How hard we have all prayed(祈祷) to grow up quickly, and looked forward to the pappy days of being a grown-up and enjoying the many interests that a youth should have.

At last, you have grown up. At least you are no longer a child. They call you ‘young lady’. You then enjoy the pleasure of being a young lady. You are proud of being a grown-up teenager. People welcome you—this young lady heartily. You are glad that your prayer has been answered.

But this is always something that troubles you a lot. You say, “Papa and Mama, give me some money please. My pocket money is all gone already.’

‘No,” they say, “Your age is a dangerous age. If you have too much money to spend, it won’t do you any good.’ Then you have to stay at home because you dare not go out with an empty pocket.

Another time you tell your grandma, ‘Grandma. See, I am a grown-up now.’

‘Good, now, you can sit here and knit(编织) this for me while I go and have a rest.’ To show that you are no more a child, you have to sit there the whole afternoon doing the work, which only a grown-up can do. After an hour, you find it hard to do, and give the knitting basket back to your grandma. Your grandma criticizes your work. You hear what she says, “Such a bad girl can’t do such easy work.’ You wish then you were a child again.

(　　 )51. The passage is told about ________ problem.

　　　 A. a grown-up boy’s　　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. a teenage girl’s

C. an old woman’s　　　　　　　　　　　 D. an old man’s

(　　 )52. It is clear that the writer, as a teenager, ________.

　　　 A. is pleased with the present life　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. is unhappy about growing up

　　　 C. doesn’t think her present life happy enough　　 D. is sad about being a kid

(　　 )53. How does she know her prayer had been answered?

　　　 A. People treat her as a young lady.

B. She doesn’t need to play with kids now.

C. People begin to call her teenager.

D. She can join women in all kinds of activities.

(　　 )54. From what her parents say, we know ________.

　　　 A. the girl always has much money in her pocket

　　　 B. it’s dangerous for a girl to spend money

　　　 C. they love her more than before

　　　 D. they still regard her as a child

(　　 )55. Why does he promise to help her grandma do some knitting?

　　　 A. Because she likes doing knitting

　　　 B. Because she wants to show that she has grown up.

　　　 C. Because she has much more free time.

　　　 D. Because her grandma is very tired.

The teacher stood before his class and was going to hand out the final exam papers.  “I know how  1   you have all worked to prepare for this test,” he said.  “And because I know you can do it well, I am willing to offer a B to anyone who would    2 not to take the test. ”
Many students jumped up to   3 the teacher and left the classroom.  The teacher looked at the   4  students and said, “Does anyone else want to get a B? This is your last  5    . ” Two more students decided to go. Seven students remained.  The teacher then handed out the 6  .  There were only three sentences typed on the paper: Congratulations! You have just  7  an A in this class.  Keep believing in yourself.    
I never had a teacher like that, but I think it is a test  8  any teacher could and should give.  Students who are not   9  in what they have learned are B students at best(充其量). The same is  10   in real life.  The A students are those who believe in what they are doing because they have  11  both successes and failures. 
They have learned life’s lessons, either from normal education   12  from events in their lives, and have become   13  people.     
Scientists say that by the age of eight, 80% of what we believe about ourselves has already been formed.  You are a big kid now, and you   14  that  you have some limits (限制).  However, there is   15  you can’t do or learn or be.  Sir Edmund Hillary, the first person to reach the summit of Mount Everest said, “It’s not the mountain we conquer(克服) but ourselves. ”
【小题1】A.  luckily        B.  terribly        C.  hard
【小题2】A.  dislike        B.  help            C.  prefer
【小题3】A.  thank         B.  praise          C.  fight
【小题4】A.  following     B.  relaxing       C.  remaining
【小题5】A.  chance        B.  trouble         C.  test
【小题6】A.  results        B.  presents        C.  papers
【小题7】A.  given         B.  sent            C.  received
【小题8】A.  where         B.  that            C.  what
【小题9】A.  confident     B.  necessary       C.  mysterious
【小题10】A.  unusual       B.  impossible      C.  true
【小题11】A.  broken off       B.  dreamed of      C.  learned from
【小题12】A.  and          B.  or             C.  but
【小题13】A.  ruder        B.  cuter           C.  better
【小题14】A.  decide           B.  forget          C.  realize
【小题15】A.  something     B. anything        C.  nothing

Hong Kong has about forty public beaches. Some of them are very famous around the world. People can go there for a swim. You can go to them by bus. To go to some beaches yu must take a boat.
You will swim there without danger if you remember these instructions:
?Never swim alone.
?Never go out in a boat if you cannot swim.
?Never swim after a meal or when you feel hungry or tired.
?Don’t stay in the water too long.
Remember:A red flag means that it is dangerous for anybody to go into the water.A blue flag means that it is dangerous for children.
根据短文内容，判断下列各句正误。正确的在题前括号内写“T”，错误的写“F”。
【小题1】There are about 40 public beaches in Hong Kong.
【小题2】You should swim after a meal.
【小题3】You can take a bus to go to most of the public beaches.
【小题4】You’d better swim when you’re alone.
【小题5】If you were a child, you could swim when you saw a red flag.