Each morning Grandpa was up early sitting at the kitchen table, reading his book. His grandson wanted to be just like him and tried to copy him in every way he could.
One day the grandson asked, “Grandpa, I try to read the book just like you, but I don’t understand it, and I forget what I understand as soon as I close the book. I think reading books is useless. So what are the benefits of reading books in your eyes?”
The grandpa quietly replied, “Take this coal (煤) basket down to the river and bring me back a basket of water.”
The boy did as he was told, but all the water leaked out (漏出) before he got back to the house. The grandpa laughed and said, “You’ll have to move a little faster next time,” and sent him back to the river with the basket to try again. This time the boy ran faster, but again the basket was empty before he returned. Out of breath, he told his grandpa that it was impossible to carry water in a basket, so he went to get a bucket (桶) instead. The grandpa said, “I don’t want a bucket of water; I want a basket of water. You’re just not trying hard enough.” The boy again put the basket into the river and ran hard, but when he reached his grandpa the basket was empty again. Out of breath, he said, “Grandpa, it’s useless!”
“So, you think it is useless?” the grandpa said, “Look at the basket.”
The boy looked at the basket and for the first time he realized that the basket was different. It had been changed from a dirty old coal basket and was now clean.
“Grandson, that’s what happens when you read the book. You might not understand or remember everything, but when you read it, you’ll be changed, inside and out.”
1. What did the grandson want to know?| A．The reason why he forgets so quickly. |
| B．The advantages that reading gives people. |
| C．The types of books which he can understand. |
| D．The way that his grandfather reads books. |
| A．To get him to realize the use of reading books. |
| B．To punish him for not reading carefully. |
| C．To clean the dirty basket in the river. |
| D．To train him to run faster. |
| A．The old are always wiser than the young. |
| B．It is foolish to carry water with a basket. |
| C．You can’t expect to remember all you read. |
| D．Reading books can change a person gradually. |
相似题推荐
【推荐1】There was a man playing the piano in a bar. He was a good piano player and always performed in this bar. People came in just to hear him play. But one night, a customer told him that he didn’t want to hear him just play the piano any more. He wanted him to sing a song.
The man said, “I don’t sing.”
But the customer was persistent. He told the bar manager, “I’m tired of listening to the piano. I want that man to sing!”
The manager shouted across the room, “If you want to get paid, sing a song. Our customers are asking you to sing!”
So he did. He sang a song. A piano player who had never sung in public did so for the first time. And everyone was surprised by his song — Mona Lisa. He got lots of applause (掌声) that night.
He had such a talent for singing, but he just had been sitting on his talent for the past years! If without such a chance, he may have lived the rest of his life as a no-name piano player in a no-name bar. However, now he had become one of the best-known singers in America.
You, too, have skills and abilities. Maybe your “talent” is not as great as the singer above, but it may be better than you think! And with effort, most skills can be improved. So, in your life, you should be brave enough to try doing different things and find out what talents you really have!
1. Why did the man start to sing?| A．Because he wanted to make more money. |
| B．Because the bar manager said he liked his song. |
| C．Because the manager asked him to sing at the request of a customer. |
| D．Because he wanted to show that he had a talent for singing. |
| A．Strict. | B．Rude. | C．Patient. | D．Kind. |
| A．He hated to sing. | B．He didn’t sing. |
| C．He had no talent for singing.. | D．He didn’t discover his talent. |
| A．Some people really have no skills or abilities. |
| B．None of us is as great as the singer. |
| C．No skills can be improved even if you try. |
| D．Sometimes through effort we can know our talent. |
【推荐2】“Serena, don’t forget your promise to me that you will mow (割) Mrs Matin’s yard this weekend,” said Dad, “Don’t let me down.”
Serena was the oldest child in the family, and one of her chores was to mow their yard. Mrs Martin, their elderly neighbor, was unable to take care of her yard, so Serena’s dad had volunteered Serena for this job. Since Mrs Martin’s yard was not very big, Serena knew the job would go quickly. However, she still resented her dad’s promise.
“Why didn’t you ask me first?” Serena had complained.
“Did you ask me first when you volunteered me to be in the school festival last fall?” asked Serena’s father.
“Well, no. I didn’t ask you first, but you would have done those things anyway. You’re always willing to help.”
“I try when I can,” Dad answered. “Serena, we have known Mrs Martin for a very long time. She has often helped our family. Now we can do something for her. Besides, the feeling you get from helping someone makes you wonder who is really helping whom.”
“I don’t know, Dad,” said Serena. “The only feeling I get from mowing our yard is tired.”
“Just you wait and see,” said Dad.
After breakfast, Serena made her way to Mrs Martin’s yard. She was good at her job and soon had Mrs Martin’s yard looking tidy. Mrs Martin came outside with a big glass of orange juice and offered it to her. Serena stopped her work and gratefully enjoyed the drink, while Mrs Martin talked to her about all of the flowers in her yard. Seeing the joy in Mrs Martin’s eyes, Serena began to understand how much the yard meant to Mrs. Martin.
After finishing her drink, Serena returned to work with a new attitude. A warm feeling began to spread through her body. Her dad was right. It was hard to tell who was helping whom!
1. The underlined word “resented” (Paragraph 2) means __________.| A．understood | B．disliked | C．welcomed | D．broke |
| A．Through Dad’s words. | B．Through Serena’s actions. |
| C．Through Mrs Martin’s behaviour. | D．Through the author’s statement. |
| A．Serena likes the job of mowing her family’s yard. |
| B．Mrs Martin shared her love for the yard with Serena. |
| C．Mrs. Martin and Serena did the work together |
| D．Dad volunteered himself to take part in the school festival. |
【推荐3】Graduation is a significant milestone for everyone. An 89-year-old man called Rene Neira had been trying to finish a degree since the 1950s. However, in the 1960s, he was so passionate about urban and economic development of the southside of San Antonio that he stopped school and got involved with the local government. From that time, one of his life goals was to earn a degree in economics. In 2017, the grandpa and his 19-year-old granddaughter both enrolled (入学) at the University of Texas at San Antonio.
“There were times when we would get lunch together, be in the library together, and just work silently side-by-side,” Melanie Salazar, Rene’s granddaughter, recalled. “He always had something to say, especially if his professors had different opinions than him,” Melanie said. “And there were often times when a professor would invite him to talk about the past.”
Rene’s college years weren’t easy. “He has worked very hard over time. Especially in recent years, with hearing loss and going through seasons of not having a car, there was a term where he had to take medical leave because he had a stroke, so he couldn’t go back to school that term. And then the pandemic started,” said Melanie.
After four years, their hard work finally paid off—they graduated. Together, they stood on the stage. Everyone broke into applause and cheered for this fantastic pair.
Their story has been making waves online. People have nothing but good words for them, “Awww... I love stories like this. This was such a beautiful moment. Congratulations to both of them. Grandpa definitely demonstrated that one shouldn’t give up their dream no matter how long it takes,” one wrote. Another wrote, “I’m motivated to go back to school myself, thanks to his example.”
Rene had the determination to finish his degree even at an advanced stage in his life. Hard work, patience, and determination are the keys to success, especially when the path is not easy or clear.
1. Why did Rene fail to get a degree when he was young?| A．He was not interested in university life then. |
| B．He devoted himself to city development. |
| C．He needed to work to support his family. |
| D．He was not good at his school work. |
| A．It made him physically ill. | B．It was full of surprise. |
| C．It was smooth and plain. | D．It came with challenges. |
| A．Admirable. | B．Doubtful. | C．Funny. | D．Pitiful. |
| A．Actions speak louder than words. |
| B．It is never too late to achieve one’s dream. |
| C．Genius without education is like silver in the mine. |
| D．A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. |
【推荐1】I was born with a disability (残疾). When I started to go to school, my classmates were always teasing about it. I told them I’d fallen as a baby and cut my lips on a piece of glass. Somehow it seemed more acceptable to have suffered an accident than to have been born different. By seven, I was sure no one outside my own family could ever love me or even like me.
And then I entered the second grade, and Mrs. Leonard’s class. She was round, pretty and sweet, with shining brown hair and warm, smiling dark eyes. Everyone loved her. But no one came to love her more than I did.
The time came for the annual hearing tests given at our school. I was hardly able to hear anything out of one ear, and wasn’t about to show yet another problem that would single me out as different. So I cheated.
During the hearing tests, each child would go to the door of the classroom, turn sideways, close one ear with a finger, and the teacher would whisper something from her desk, which the child would repeat. Then the same thing was done for the other ear. I had discovered in kindergarten that nobody checked to see if the untested ear was being fully covered, so I only pretended to block mine.
My turn came. I knew from previous years that the teacher whispered things like “The sky is blue.” or “Do you have new shoes?” I turned my bad ear to her, covering the other with my finger, and gently backed my finger out enough to be able to hear. I waited, and then came the seven words that changed my life forever: “I wish you were my little girl.”
1. What does the underlined phrase “teasing about” in paragraph 1 mean?| A．Looking into. | B．Caring about. | C．Arguing over. | D．Laughing at. |
| A．She didn’t want to make her disability public. |
| B．She couldn’t understand the teacher’s words. |
| C．She was afraid to make mistakes in the test. |
| D．She didn’t want to disappoint Mrs. Leonard. |
| A．It made the girl very discouraged. | B．It proved the girl cheated in the test. |
| C．It made a huge difference to the girl. | D．It embarrassed the girl immediately. |
| A．A Hearing Test Upsetting a Girl | B．Seven Words Changing a Girl’s Life |
| C．A Strict Primary School Teacher | D．Clever Ways to Pass a Hearing Test |
【推荐2】Bill Gates was born in 1955. He grew up in Seattle, Washington. When he was young, he was good at science and maths. And he wanted to be a scientist.
Bill started to play with computers when he was 13. At that time, computers were very large machines. Once he was interested in a very old computer. He and some of his friends spent lots of time doing unusual things with it. In the end, they worked out a software programme with the old machine. Bill sold it for 4,200 dollars when he was only 17.
In 1973, Bill went to Harvard University. He developed the basic language for the first microcomputer. In his third year, he left Harvard. Bill began his company in 1975 with his friend Paul Allen. They thought that the computer would be a very important tool in every office and in every home, so they began developing software for personal computers. They developed the software for personal computers. They developed the software to make it easier for people to use computers.
In 1999, Bill wrote a book. In the book, he told people how computer technology could solve business problems in new ways. It was one of the best-sellers on The New York Times' list. Bill Gates has many hobbies. He enjoys reading very much. He also enjoys playing golf and bridge.
1. When did Bill begin to play with computer?| A．In 1965. | B．In 1966. |
| C．In 1968. | D．In 1972. |
| A．17 years old. | B．18 years old. |
| C．19 years old. | D．20 years old. |
| A．how to do unusual things |
| B．how to play computer games |
| C．how to work out a software programme |
| D．how to solve business problems with the help of computers in new ways |
| A．Bill worked for Microsoft before he went to Harvard University |
| B．Bill sold his first software programme for 420 dollars |
| C．Bill began his company in 1976 with his friend |
| D．reading is one of Bill's hobbies |
【推荐3】I grew up in New Hampshire, a small town in South Canada, where in my father’s words the seasons were “Spring, Summer, Fairtime and Winter!”At that time, a week-long fair was held in the town every autumn. Thousands of people from other towns came to sell and buy things. It was the busiest time of the year.
When “Fairtime” came, my grandma became the most “useful” and busiest person of the family. Grandma was a kind, well-educated old lady. She was good at cooking. All her relatives liked the food she cooked. During “fairtime”, they would come to live in her house and have meals there. Grandma was always happy to look after them.
Year after year, many people moved to big cities. There was no longer “Fairtime”. Grandma became very old and was gradually going blind. My parents and I moved to live with Grandma in her house. We did our best to make her day-to-day life as comfortable as possible. I was at high school then. What I often did at home was to help Grandma with the daily newspaper’s crossword puzzle. However, she didn’t look happy. She often sat in her room for hours, without saying a word.
To attract people to move back, the Town Hall decided to reopen the Fair. One day, when I came back from school, I saw Grandma wearing her glasses, washing the dishes in the kitchen. With a big smile on her face, she looked a lot much younger. She told me that her two nieces would come. “They said the food I cooked was very delicious and they want to stay in my house again.” Grandma said happily. “They will stay here for one week and we can have a big party. That must be the busiest week I’ve had in years!”
I suddenly realized that Grandma didn’t want to be looked after. She wanted to be “useful”, appreciated and helpful.
1. For what purpose did thousands of people come to the town?| A．To learn to cook. | B．To have a big party. |
| C．To enjoy Grandma’s food. | D．To sell and buy things. |
| A．She was not “useful”. | B．No one lived with her. |
| C．She was too busy. | D．She couldn’t see anything |
| A．Grandma didn’t like “Fairtime”. | B．Grandma was a kind old lady. |
| C．Grandma was good at cooking. | D．Many people moved to big cities. |
| A．Fairtime | B．My “Old” Grandma |
| C．A Small Town | D．Grandma’s Family |
