5 . Peter, 60, loved his job as a bus driver. He had been one almost all his life, loving the company of the little children who rode his bus daily. It made him feel younger and more energetic. His record was clean, without one accident during his duty, which made him a trustworthy driver.
However, Mr. Clark, Peter’s boss, was concerned and thought that it was time for him to retire. “You don’t have a choice here, Peter,” he said seriously. “We don’t want to invite any risk to the children who take your bus every day. We need a replacement at this stage.”
“But I have a perfect record,”argued Peter. “You know, for an elderly man like me, my job is the only thing that keeps me alive. I want to keep my job.”
“Would you take responsibility if something bad happened to those children?” Mr. Clark said.
Peter thought it over, and very reluctantly, he gave in to Mr. Clark’s request. Peter decided to retire a week later.
His retirement day approached pretty soon. The day before his last day, Peter was dropping off the kids at his first stop when he looked out of the window and saw a lady on the road who had fainted (昏厥). He asked the kids not to leave the bus and got off to help the woman.
Just when he finished, he heard screams behind him. The children were looking out of the window and screaming. “Fire! Fire! Help!” “How could that have happened?” Peter was shaking in fear. With trembling hands, Peter dialed 911 and rushed to help the children. Peter covered himself with his jacket and burst into the flaming bus. He took the children out of the burning bus one by one. Thankfully, the firefighters arrived soon and helped Peter, saving all students.
The next day, Peter saw the entire school gathered in front of his home. When Peter approached them, Mr. Clark started clapping and everyone joined him. “You are a hero, Peter! You saved the lives of those young children,” he said. “You are the best driver. We hope you can keep the job!”
1. What made Mr. Clark concerned?
| A．He couldn’t persuade Peter to retire. |
| B．Taking school bus was unsafe for children. |
| C．Peter was too old to be a school bus driver. |
| D．The school bus driver must be changed regularly. |
2. What does the underlined “
reluctantly” mean in Paragraph 5?
| A．Angrily. | B．Carefully. |
| C．Doubtfully. | D．Unwillingly. |
3. Why were the children screaming?
| A．They were caught in the burning bus. | B．They were frightened by the woman. |
| C．They couldn’t find Peter on the bus. | D．They didn’t want a new school bus driver. |
4. Which of the following is a suitable title for the text?
| A．Putting out the fire | B．An old hero driver |
| C．Working after retirement | D．Dangerous journey on school bus |
