【推荐1】I’ve worked in the factories surrounding my hometown every summer since I graduated from high school, but making the transition between school and full-time blue-collar work during the break never gets any easier. For a student like me who considers any class before noon to be uncivilized, getting to a factory by 6 o'clock each morning is torture. My friends never seem to understand why I’m so relieved to be back at school or that my summer vacation has been anything but a vacation.

There’re few people as self-confident as a college student who had never been out in the real world. People my age always seem to overestimate the value of their time and knowledge. In fact, all the classes did not prepare me for my battles with the machine I ran in the plant, which would jam whenever I absent-mindedly put in a part backward or upside down.

The most stressful thing about blue-collar life is knowing your job could disappear overnight. Issues like downsizing and overseas relocation had always seemed distant to me until my co-workers told me that the unit I was working in would shut down within six months and move to Mexico, where people would work for 60 cents an hour.

After working 12-hour shifts in a factory, the other opinions have become only too clear. When I’m back at the university, skipping classes and turning in lazy rewrites seems too irresponsible after seeing what I would be doing without school. All the advice and public-service announcements about the value of an education that used to sound stale now ring true.

These lessons I’m learning, however valuable, are always tinged with a sense of guilt. Many people pass their lives in the places I briefly work, spending 30 years where I spend only two months at a time. “This job pays well, but it’s hell on the body,” said one co-worker. “Study hard and keep reading,” she added.

My experiences in the factories has inspired me to make the most of my college years before I enter the real world for good.

1. What does the author think of his summer days while at college?

A．They brought him nothing but torture.

B．They were no holiday for him at all.

C．They were a relief from his hard work at school.

D．They offered him a chance to know more people.

2. What does the author say about college students?

A．They expect too much from the real world.	B．They have little interest in blue-collar life.
C．They have a feeling of trust in themselves.	D．They are not confident of their future.

3. In what important way has the author’s work experience changed him?

A．He learned to be more practical.	B．He acquired a sense of urgency.
C．He came to respect blue-collar workers.	D．He came to appreciate his college education.

4. Why does the author feel somewhat guilty?

A．He realizes there is a great divide between his life and that of blue-collar workers.

B．He looks down upon the mechanical work at the assembly line.

C．He has not done much to help his co-workers at the factory.

D．He has stayed at school just for the purpose of escaping from the real world.

【推荐3】When I was growing up, I had an old neighbor named Dr. Gibbs. He didn’t look like any doctor I’d ever known. He never yelled at us for playing in his yard. When Dr. Gibbs wasn’t saving lives, he was planting trees. His house sat on ten acres, and his life’s goal was to make it a forest.

The good doctor had some interesting theories about plant care and growth. He never watered his new trees as others did. Once I asked why. He said that watering plants spoiled them and that if you water them each successive tree generation would grow weaker and weaker. So you have to make things tough for them and weed out the weaker trees early on. He talked about how watering trees made for shallow roots, and how trees that weren’t watered had to grow deep roots in search of moisture. I thought he meant that deep roots were to be treasured.

So he never watered his new trees. He planted an oak and, instead of watering it every morning, he beat it with a rolled-up newspaper. Smack! Slap! Pow! I asked him why he did that, and he said it was to get the tree’s attention.

Dr. Gibbs passed away a couple of years after I left home. Every now and again, I walked by his house and looked at the trees that I’d watched him plant some twenty five years ago. They’re extremely tall, big and robust since they have deep roots now. However, the trees in my garden trembled in a cold wind although I had watered them for several years.

It seems that adversity and suffering benefit these trees while comfort and ease never could. I stood there, deep in thought.

Every night before I go to bed, I check on my two sons. I often pray for them. Mostly I pray that their lives will be easy. But I think that it’s time to change my prayers because now I know my children are going to encounter hardship.

1. According to Paragraph 2 and Paragraph 3, we can infer that Dr. Gibbs’ motto may be _________?

A．“Seeing is believing”	B．“Honesty is the best policy”
C．“Practice makes perfect”	D．“No pain, no gain”

2. The underlined word “robust” in Para. 4 probably means _________?

A．strange

B．deep

C．strong

D．old

3. Which of the following statements is TRUE?

A．The writer is twenty-five years old.

B．Dr. Gibbs beat his trees with a rope.

C．Dr. Gibbs thought that watering trees might spoil them.

D．The writer will not pray for her children any more.

4. Which of the following can be the best title of the passage?

A．A Doctor

B．The Deep Roots

C．My Prayer

D．My Childhood Memory

【推荐1】I’ve been having trouble concentrating on one thing. It made school difficult for me. When everyone else in the class was focusing on tasks, I could not.

In my first literature class, Mrs. Smith asked us to read a story and then write on it, all within 45 minutes. I raised my hand right away and said, “Mrs. Smith, you see, the doctor said I have attention problems. I might not be able to do it.”   She glanced down at me through her glasses, “You are not different from your classmates, young man.”

I tried, but I didn’t finish the reading when the bell rang. I had to take it home.

In the quietness of my bedroom, the story suddenly all became clear to me. It was about a blind person, Louis Braille. He lived in a time when the blind couldn’t get much education. But Louis didn’t give up. Instead, he invented a reading system of raised dots (点), which opened up a whole new world of knowledge to the blind.

Wasn’t I the “blind” in my class, being made to learn like the “sighted”   students? My thoughts spilled out and my pen started to dance. I completed the task within 40 minutes. Indeed, I was not different from others; I just needed a quieter place. If Louis could find his way out of his problems, why should I ever give up?

I didn’t expect anything when I handed in my paper to Mrs. Smith, so it was quite a surprise when it came back to me the next day — with an   “A”   on it. At the bottom of the paper were these words: “See what you can do when you keep trying?”

Inspired and touched, I began to keep trying hard in my study and struggled against attention problems. I believe one can find his way out of difficulty with determination (决心) and efforts.

1. Why didn’t the author finish his reading in class?

A．He missed several classes before.

B．He was not a bit interested in literature.

C．He was unable to concentrate on his task.

D．He was used to doing his homework at home.

2. What do we know about Louis Braille from the text?

A．He was poor.	B．He was well-educated.
C．He was shortsighted.	D．He was very creative.

3. What kind of teacher is Mrs. Smith according to the text?

A．Impatient.	B．Encouraging.
C．Disappointing.	D．Careless.

4. What can we learn from the last paragraph?

A．You can never be too old to learn.

B．Do not judge a book by its cover.

C．One good turn deserves another.

D．Where there is a will, there is a way.

【推荐2】Farmer John and Farmer Bob were neighbors. For more than 30 years, they had been getting along very well.

Then their good relationship broke. It began with a small thing, then bitter words, and then weeks of silence. One morning Farmer John woke up to find a stream between the two farms. “It must be Bob,” John thought.

Then one day there was a knock on John’s door. He opened it to find a carpenter(木匠) standing at the doorway.

“I’m looking for a few days’ work,” the carpenter said.

“I do have a job for you,” John said. “Look across the stream at that farm. That’s my neighbor Bob. He dug a stream between the two farms. I want you to build a fence—an 8-foot fence. I don’t want to see his place or his face any more. I don’t have such a neighbor!”

The carpenter said, “I think I know what to do, sir, and I’ll be able to do a job that pleases you.”

Farmer John helped the carpenter get the materials ready and then he was off for the day. About sunset when the farmer returned, the carpenter had just finished his job. The farmer’s eyes opened wide. There was no fence there at all!

It was a bridge! And the neighbor, Bob, was coming across, with his hand outstretched(伸出). “Hi, John! You’re quite a fellow to build this bridge!”

Then they met in the middle, taking each other’s hands. “I’m terribly sorry for what I have said and done. We should be good to each other,” said Farmer Bob.

Then they turned to see the carpenter, who was ready to go. “No, wait! Stay a few days. I have a lot of other jobs for you,” said Farmer John. “I’d love to stay,” the carpenter said, “but I have more bridges to build.”

1. Just before the carpenter came, John and Bob ________ each other.

A．didn’t speak to	B．were friendly to
C．often fought with	D．never had bitter words with

2. Farmer John asked the carpenter to build a fence because

A．he wanted to protect his farm	B．he didn’t want to do it himself
C．he wouldn’t like to see Bob	D．he wanted to find him something to do

3. What does the sentence “You’re quite a fellow to build this bridge!” mean!

A．John was great to build this bridge.

B．John was not good at building bridges.

C．John was foolish to build such a bridge.

D．John should build the bridge earlier.

4. What do you think of the carpenter?

A．shy.	B．wise.
C．proud.	D．careless.

5. What is the best title for the passage?

A．What a Big Fence!	B．Farmer and Bridge
C．Three Kind Men	D．A Fence or a Bridge

【推荐1】Teaching is a constant process of upgrade, where every moment you learn new things, not only as a teacher, but also as a human being.

At the start of my career, I believed I should come across to my students as a “no-nonsense” type of person. My entire focus was towards maintaining classroom discipline. It was tough. Most of my Indian students were from a rural background. They would intentionally use vocabulary that sounded Greek to me. They did all in their power to make me feel like a fish out of water.

My last lecture ended at 2:30 in the afternoon. Some of the students approached me begging to let them leave 15 minutes early as they had a bus to catch. My permission resulted in a stir (骚动) as half of the class stood up to leave. They all had buses to catch! Unable to distinguish between the genuine ones and those faking it, I put a ban on anybody leaving before time.

One evening, I spotted three boys from my last class at the bus stop. I called out, “You constantly blame me for not allowing you to leave early because you have a bus to catch and here you are still hanging around at 5 pm!” One of the boys replied respectfully and humbly, “Madam, the bus leaves at 2:30. If we leave the class at 2:15, we are able to make it. In case we miss it, the next bus to our village comes after three hours. Now we are waiting for it. At this hour, the bus will be overloaded and we will not even get a seat.”

I was full of regret. The next day, I asked all the students who had a bus to catch to write an application, get it signed and leave whenever they wanted, without seeking my permission. I learnt the first lesson of my life as a teacher—learn to understand your students, for they would learn better from you when they respect you than when they fear you.

1. What gave the author the biggest headache when she started teaching?

A．Her students’ serious violent behavior.	B．Her struggle to keep her classes in order.
C．Her inability to understand Greek words.	D．Her students’ various educational backgrounds.

2. How did the author deal with the students’ request to leave before time at first?

A．She took it seriously.	B．She refused it completely.
C．She permitted it immediately.	D．She handled it gracefully.

3. How did the author feel the moment she spotted the three boys at the bus stop?

A．Embarrassed.

B．Angry.

C．Regretful.

D．Concerned.

4. What lesson can teachers learn from the story?

A．Show students that you respect them.

B．Care about students’ emotional experiences.

C．Cooperate with students to improve learning.

D．Evaluate yourself first and the students second.