【推荐3】Let me tell you about my relationship with the school desk. From my first day at Penny Camp Elementary School in 1982, it was terrible. This is how it went down: five seconds into class, the foot start bouncing;10 seconds in, both feet; 15 seconds, I burst out the drums! After a few minutes, it’s all over. I’m trying to put my leg behind my neck. No, that desk and I didn’t get along.

Sitting still was hard enough, but I also struggled with reading. Reading out loud in class was a special kind of hell(地狱). By the third grade I had progressed from being one of “those kids” to being the “special kid”. I was found to have multiple language-based learning disabilities and attention deficit disorder (A.D.D) (注意力缺陷障碍症). I was turned into a “patient” who needed treatment rather than a human being with differences. I struggled with severe anxiety and depression at age 10.

I survived this time in my life because of my mom. She knew in her heart that her child wasn’t broken and didn’t need to be fixed.My mom was right. When I think back on my school experience, I realize it wasn’t the A.D.D. that disabled me. What disabled me were limitations not in myself but in the environment. I’ve come to believe that I did not have a disability, as it is common to say, but experienced disability in environments that could not accommodate and accept my differences.

In the fall of 1977, after two years at Loyola Marymount University, where my learning differences were fully accommodated, I transferred to(转学) Brown University, where I graduated with an honors degree in English literature. I still can’t spell or sit still, but I now use support and technology to relieve my weakness and build a life on my strengths. I don’t feel stupid anymore and I know that I—and others like me—can live good lives despite these challenges.

1. What does the author want to tell us in the first paragraph?

A．He didn’t like to study.	B．He used to be active at school.
C．He suffered from a broken desk.	D．He had trouble sitting still in class.

2. How did the author probably feel in class in his early school years?

A．Exited.	B．Uneasy.
C．Interested.	D．Bored.

3. Which of the following is correct according to the last paragraph?

A．He is living a good life with his weakness.

B．His disability has been cured by technology.

C．He got his honors degree in English literature in the fall of 1997.

D．He was transferred to Brown University because of his disability.

4. From the passage we learn that__________.

A．a disability is nothing but a difference

B．family’s support is the most important

C．disabled people can’t live well however hard they work

D．sometimes limitations of the environment disable a person

【推荐1】It’s hard to talk to Dad sometimes. His silence about his feelings and thoughts made him mysterious and hard to see through. You could never break his hard shell and get to know him. And he seemed to want to stay that way too.

But a year ago when my relationship with my wife and career took a hit, I needed my dad to pull back the curtain so I could see him as real and accessible. I was facing serious problems and I wanted to know whether he had faced them before and how he had found his way, because I felt like I had lost mine. In desperation, it occurred to me that sending an email might be the key, so I wrote him one, telling him about my regrets and fears, and I asked him to answer, if he felt like it.

Two weeks later, it showed up in my inbox: a much-thought, three-page letter. Dad, a 68-year-old retired technologist and grandfather of four, had carefully considered my message, and crafted a response. He mentioned his lost love, the foolish mistake he made in career and the stupid pride he had between him and his parents. He comforted me that “life will still find its right track despite many of its twists and turns”.

I closed the email and started to cry, because I wished I had opened up earlier but was grateful it wasn’t too late. I cried because at 33, in the midst of my own struggles, his letter instantly put me at ease. And I cried because in the end, it was so simple: I just had to hit “Send”.

We’ve since had many email exchanges. This increasing communication opened a door into his world. My problems haven’t been magically solved, but getting to know my dad better has made the tough thing more manageable and life sweeter. It’s hard to talk to Dad sometimes, but I’m glad I found a way to talk to mine.

1. Which of the following best describes the author’s father?

A．Quiet and caring.

B．Optimistic but careless.

C．Selfish and lonely.

D．Simple but proud.

2. Why did the author write to his father?

A．To make an apology.

B．To express thanks.

C．To turn to him.

D．To blame him.

3. What can we infer from the last two paragraphs in the text?

A．The author regretted not writing to Dad earlier.

B．Dad’s letter of reply is simple.

C．Dad helped settle the author’s problems.

D．The author can talk to Dad easily.

【推荐2】Last year, I fell into a deep depression(抑郁). It was caused by a car accident. I was in physical recovery from the accident and suddenly all of my old hurts started coming up. I found myself crying on the floor of my apartment.

I don't want you to bleed with me or to pity me. But I also don't want to gloss my reality. And the truth is, beneath the shiny photos you see on the Internet, I'm still a work in progress. I'm not perfect. Like all of us, I'm doing the best I can. Making the best choices I can. Back to the evening when I found myself   lying on the floor.

What happened next? I started writing.

There was a TV show I absolutely loved. I started writing fan fiction. It provided a beautiful place of escape from the thoughts swimming in my head. The depression started to lift. I started to feel like myself again.

After completing a four-part fan fiction totaling around 12,000 words, I had an idea. I should write a novel to give a hand to those like me.

I continued writing, having no idea where it would lead. I didn't know I would publish it but, after much resistance on my part I finally made the decision to publish the book under my own name. No pen name. No hiding on the deep bowels of the internet.

And so here we are. The day before the release of the book. Sure, readers will enjoy the twists and turns. And I can see myself in the character. But that's not my real motivation. I wrote it to help people. To give them a place to belong to. A place to talk about this fictional world. The very same thing that saved me last year.

If the story provides this to just one person, I've done my job.

1. What does the underlined word “gloss” in Paragraph 3 mean?

A．Cover.

B．Expose.

C．Realize.

D．Face.

2. What really motivated the author to write a novel?

A．To earn a living.	B．To follow his dream.
C．To help people with depression.	D．To find a place to belong to.

3. What do you think of the writer?

A．Perfect.

B．Cautious.

C．Shy.

D．Honest.

4. What can be the best title for the passage?

A．My Hobby

B．Writing Can Help

C．A Moving Story

D．My New Book

【推荐3】It feels like every time my mother and I start to have a conversation, it turns into an argument. We talk about something as simple as dinner plans and suddenly, my mother will push the conversation into World War 3. She’ll talk about my lack of bright future because I don’t plan to be a doctor. And much to her disappointment, I don’t want to do any job related to science, either. In fact, when I was pushed to say that I planned to major(主修) in English and communications, she nearly had a heart attack.
“Why can’t you be like my co-worker’s son?” she bemoans (哀叹) all the time. Her coworker’s son received a four-year scholarship and is now earning 70,000 dollars a year as an engineer. I don’t know what to answer except that I simply can’t be like Mr. Perfect as I’ve called the unnamed co-worker’s son. I can’t be like him. I am the type of the person who loved to help out in the community, write until the sun goes down, and most of all, wants to achieve a career because I love it, not because of a fame or salary.
I understand why my mother is worried about my future major. I’ve seen my mother struggle to raise me on her small salary and work long hours. She leaves the house around 6:30 am and usually comes home around 5 pm or even 6pm. However, I want her to know that by becoming a doctor, it doesn’t mean I’ll be successful. I’d rather follow my dreams and create my own future.
1. Which of the following topics do the writer and his mother often talk about?

A．the writer’s studies	B．the writer’s future job
C．dinner plans	D．wars around the world

2. We can infer from Paragraph 1 that the writer’s mother _____.

A．doesn’t want the writer to major English

B．doesn’t think the writer should be a doctor

C．gets along very well with the writer

D．doesn’t think working in the scientific field is a good idea

3. Which of the following statements is probably TRUE about the writer?

A．He wants to be like his mother’s co-worker’s son.

B．He wants to find a job in his community in the future.

C．He doesn’t think his mother’s co-worker’s son is perfect.

D．He wants to do something he really likes in the future.

【推荐1】Claude Monet is surely one of the most famous French artists of all. Monet was particularly interested in the effect of light and would paint the same scene in different lighting conditions or times of the day. For example, he painted around 20 versions of the Rouen Cathedral from dawn to dusk. His most famous paintings include his Water lilies series.

The paintings of Paul Cézanne had a lot of influence in the development of 20th century art, including Cubism (立体派) and Fauvism (野兽派). Cézanne is one of the most famous French artists and is known as a “post-impressionist”, which was similar in some ways to impressionism but also broke away from some of its limitations. Famous French paintings include his Bathers and Mont St Victoire series.

Henri Matisse was one of the most important famous French artists of the 20th century. He was considered one of the leaders of the Fauvist movement. He had a long and varied (多样化的) artistic career, painting in different styles ranging from Impressionism to Abstract. In 1941, Matisse was diagnosed with cancer and was forced into a wheelchair. But this didn’t stop him completing the amazing Chapel of the Rosary in Vence.

Degas is probably one of the most fascinating of all the famous French artists. He is known as one of the founders of Impressionism, but his paintings were also influenced by classicism, romanticism, and realism. His style is definitely very unique. He was a prolific (多产的) artist, producing over one thousand works. He is best known for his paintings of ballet dancers.

1. We can know that Claude Monet painted about 20 versions of the Rouen Cathedral       .

A．within one day	B．using the same colors
C．at different places	D．in different lighting conditions

2. Which style does Bathers most probably belong to?

A．Impressionism.	B．Post-impressionism.
C．Romanticism.	D．Abstract.

3. During Henri Matisse’s long artistic career, he       .

A．painted paintings of different styles

B．did his most famous paintings after 1941

C．painted in the style of Fauvism most frequently

D．spent most of his time painting in a wheelchair

4. We can infer from the last paragraph that       .

A．Degas’ works all belong to Impressionism

B．Degas’ works were influenced by many styles

C．it’s not easy to tell Degas’ paintings from other artists’

D．Degas’ paintings influenced classicism, romanticism and realism

【推荐2】On a dark winter day in Russia in 1896, Sergei Prokofiev sat by a piano next to his mother. She was helping him compose (作曲) his first piece of music. Sergei was only five years old.

He had overheard his parents discussing a terrible famine (饥荒) in India. The picture Sergei had of those hungry people in his mind caused him to write a story, in the form of musical notes. Sergei could not read music, so he picked out a tune on the piano keys, and his mother recorded the notes. Sergei titled it “Indian Gallop.”

Sergei's mother began giving him piano lessons for 20 minutes a day, and his ability grew quickly. She had a great love for music, too, and Sergei often lay awake in bed at night and listened to her play the piano.

Sergei's parents found a famous music teacher for him. The teacher shouted at Sergei when he didn't practice reading and playing music. Sergei later wrote, “I wanted to compose great musical plays, and instead I was given all sorts of boring tasks.” Yet he persisted with his studies and grew up to be a great composer.

In 1936 a children's theater asked Sergei to write music that would teach children about different instruments. He was happy and wrote the piece in a week, calling it Peter and the Wolf.

Sergei's Peter and the Wolf was enjoyed by children as well as adults. The first time Sergei played the piece on the piano, the children listening to it loved it so much that they made him play the ending three extra times. He was excited.

Today Sergei Prokofiev is remembered not only for his contributions (贡献) to classical music, but also for his sense of fun.

1. When he was five, Sergei _____.

A．could read music	B．experienced a famine
C．created his first composition	D．wrote a story about his parents

2. What does the underlined part “persisted with” in Paragraph 4 mean?

A．Hurried up.	B．Continued with.
C．Put up with.	D．Walked away from.

3. The piece of music Peter and the Wolf _____.

A．was a great success

B．was one of Sergei's early works

C．was written to teach children about the piano

D．was played three extra times when first played

4. What's the text mainly about?

A．The greatest 20th-century composer.	B．Sergei's contributions to music.
C．Musical plays in Russia.	D．Sergei's musical stories.