【推荐2】My teenage son Karl became withdrawn after his father died. As a single parent, I tried to do my best to talk to him. But the more I tried, the more he pulled away. When his report card arrived during his junior year, it said that he had been absent 95 times from classes and had six falling grades for the year. At this rate he would never graduate. I sent him to the school adviser, and I even begged him. Nothing worked.
One night I felt so powerless that I got down on my knees and pleaded for help. “
Please God, I can’t do anything more for my son. I’m at the end of my rope. I’m giving the whole thing up to you.” I was at work when I got a phone call. A man introduced himself as the headmaster. “I want to talk to you about Karl’s absences.” Before he could say another word, I choked up and all my disappointment and sadness over Karl came pouring out into the ears of this stranger. “I love my son but I just don’t know what to do. I’ve tried everything to get Karl to go back to school and nothing has worked. It’s out of my hands.” For a moment there was silence on the other end of the line. The headmaster seriously said, “Thank you for your time”, and hung up.
Karl’s next report card showed a marked improvement in his grades. Finally, he even made the honor roll. In his fourth year, I attended a parent-teacher meeting with Karl. I noticed that his teachers were astonished at the way he had turned himself around. On our way home, he said, “Mum, remember that call from the headmaster last year?” I nodded. “That was me. I thought I’d play a joke but when I heard what you said, it really hit me how much I was hurting you. That’s when I knew I had to make you proud.”
1. By saying “Karl became withdrawn”, the author means that the boy changed entirely and ________.

A．preferred to stay alone at home	B．lost interest in his studies
C．refused to talk to others	D．began to dislike his mother

2. There was silence on the other end of the line because ________.

A．the speaker was too moved to say anything to the mother

B．the speaker waited for the mother to finish speaking

C．the speaker didn’t want the mother to recognize his voice

D．the speaker was unable to interrupt the mother

3. The sentence “he even made the honor roll” means that ________.

A．he was even on the list to be praised at the parent-teacher meeting

B．he was even on the list of students who made progress in grades

C．he was even on the list of students who had turned themselves around

D．he was even on the list of the best students at school

4. What is the main idea of this passage?

A．Children in single-parent families often have mental problems.

B．Mother’s love plays an important role in teenagers’ life.

C．Being understood by parents is very important to teenagers.

D．School education doesn’t work without full support from parents.

【推荐3】It had been a year since Susan, thirty-four, became blind. As a result of medical accident, she was sightless. All she had to depend on was her husband Mark.

Mark was an air-force officer and he loved Susan with all his heart. When she first lost sight, he decided to use every method to help his wife.

Finally, Susan felt ready to return to her job, but how would she get there? She used to take the us, but she was now too frightened to go to work by herself. Mark suggested taking the bus with us an each morning and evening.

For two weeks, Mark, in military uniform, took the bus with Susan to and from work each day, lie taught her to rely on her other senses, especially her hearing. He helped her make friends with the bus drivers who could watch out for her and save her a seat.

Each morning they made the journey together, and Mark would take a taxi back to his office, although that meant he had to travel through the city. Mark knew it was only a matter of time before Susan would be able to take the bus on her own. He believed in her.

Finally. Susan decided that she was ready to start the trip on her own. Monday morning arrived. She said goodbye and, for the first time, they went their separate ways. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday-Each day on her own went perfectly.

On Friday morning, Susan took the bus to work as usual. As she was getting off the bus, the driver said," Miss, I sure envy you." Susan asked the driver why. "You know, every morning for the past week, a fine-looking gentleman in a military uniform has been standing across the comer watching you when you get off the bus. He makes sure you cross the street safely and he watches you until you enter your office building. Then he blows you a kiss, gives you a salute and walks away. You are one lucky lady," the bus driver said.

Tears of happiness poured down Susan’s cheeks. She was so lucky, for he had given her a gift more powerful than sight, the gift of love that can bring light where there is darkness.

1. What does the underlined sentence probably mean?

A．Susan had lost her sight because of Mark’s gift.

B．A gift was more important than sight.

C．Mark’s deep love had given Susan great strength.

D．Mark’s love had made Susan recover from blindness.

2. Why did Mark stand across the street and watch Susan?

A．Because he loved Susan very much and watched out for her safety.

B．Because Susan was not sure of herself and asked for his help.

C．Because he wanted to show others that he was a good husband.

D．Because he had nothing to do every morning after getting up.

3. Which of the following statements is right according to the passage?

A．Susan lost her sight in a car accident.

B．Susan lost her sight before she met Mark.

C．Susan went to work alone two weeks after her blindness.

D．Susan didn’t know the truth until the bus driver told her.

4. Which of the following can serve as the title?

A．Love is Sight.	B．Love is Blind.
C．Never Say Die.	D．Husband and Wife.

【推荐1】An African-American man named John Henry was the hero of former slaves and the people who built the railroads in the US in the 19th century.
John Henry was born a slave. He was known for his strength. Many people say he represents the spirit of growth in America during that period.
John Henry grew up in a world that did not let children stay children for long. Before he was six years old, he was carrying stones for workers building a nearby railroad. By the time John Henry was a young man, he was one of the best railroad workers in the country.
John Henry was asked to lead workers on a hard project, creating a tunnel through a mountain. The project required about 1,000 laborers and lasted three years. Hundreds of men became sick as a result of the hot weather and tiredness. John Henry was the strongest and fastest man. Concerned his friends might lose their jobs, he picked up their hammers and began doing their work. He worked day and night, rarely stopping to have a rest.
One day, a salesman came to the work area with a new drilling machine powered by steam. He said it could drill holes faster than twelve men working together.
John Henry looked at the machine and saw images of the future. He saw machines taking the place of America’s best laborers. He saw himself and his friends unemployed and sanding by a road, asking for food. He decided he would never let the machine take their jobs. Therefore, a competition between a man and a machine began .At first, the steam-powered drill worked twice faster. Then, John Henry started working with a hammer in each hand. He worked faster and faster. People cheered when the machine broke down and was pulled away. But they were sad to find John Henry fall to the ground, with blood spilling all around, and still holding a hammer in one of his hands.“I beat them,”he said. Then he took his last breath.
1. What does the underlined part in Paragraph 3 most probably mean?

A．Many children in those days starved to death.

B．Children at that time grew much faster.

C．Children in those days had to work like adults.

D．Children at that time couldn’t stay together.

2. Why did hundreds of workers become sick?

A．Because they had to work long hours.

B．Because the weather was hot and they were tired.

C．Because the project was too hard.

D．Because they didn’t have time to eat.

3. John Henry helped do his friends’ work ________.

A．because he was the strongest and fastest man

B．for fear that his friends would lose their jobs

C．so that they could regain their strength

D．in order be the hero of the railroad workers

4. Which of the following best describes John Henry?

A．Kind and determined.	B．Cautious and considerate.
C．Brave and strict.	D．Hardworking and stubborn.

【推荐2】If you were to walk up to Arthur Bonner and say, “Hey, Butterfly Man,” his face would break into a smile. The title suits him.And he loves it.

Arthur Bonner works with the Palos Verdes blue butterfly (蝴蝶), once thought to have died out. Today the butterfly is coming back—thanks to him. But years ago if you’d told him this was what he’d be doing someday, he would have laughed, “You’re crazy.” As a boy, he used to be “a little tough guy on the streets”. At age thirteen, he was caught by police for stealing. At eighteen, he landed in prison for shooting a man.

“I knew it had hurt my mom,” Bonner said after he got out of prison.“So I told myself I would not put my mom through that pain again.”

One day he met Professor Mattoni, who was working to rebuild the habitat (栖息地) for an endangered butterfly called EI Segundo blue.

“I saw the sign ‘Butterfly Habitat’ and asked, ‘How can you have a habitat when the butterflies can just fly away?’” Bonner recalls,“Dr. Mattoni laughed and handed me a magnifying glass (放大镜), ‘Look at the leaves.’ I could see all these caterpillars (蝴蝶的幼虫) on the plant. Dr. Mattoni explained, ‘Without the plant, there are no butterflies.’”

Weeks later, Bonner received a call from Dr. Mattoni, who told him there was a butterfly that needed help. That was how he met the Palos Verdes blue. Since then he’s been working for four years to help bring the butterfly back. He grows astragalus, the only plant the butterfly eats. He collects butterflies and brings them into a lab to lay eggs. Then he puts new butterflies into the habitat.

The butterfly’s population, once almost zero, is now up to 900. For their work, Bonner and Dr. Mattoni received lots of awards. But for Bonner, he earned something more: he turned his life around.

For six years now Bonner has kept his promise to stay out of prison. While he’s bringing back the Palos Verdes blue, the butterfly has helped bring him back, too.

1. When he was young,Arthur Bonner _______.

A．broke the law and ended up in prison

B．was fond of shooting and hurt his mom

C．often laughed at people on the streets

D．often caught butterflies and took them home

2. Bonner came to know the Palos Verdes blue after he _______.

A．found the butterfly had died out

B．won many prizes from his professor

C．met Dr. Mattoni, a professor of biology

D．collected butterflies and put them into a lab

3. From the last sentence of the text,we learn that raising butterflies has _______.

A．made Bonner famous

B．changed Bonner’s life

C．brought Bonner wealth

D．enriched Bonner’s knowledge

4. Which of the following would be the best title for the text?

A．A Promise to Mom

B．A Man Saved by Butterflies

C．A Story of Butterflies

D．A Job Offered by Dr. Mattoni

【推荐3】Anyone who cares about what schools and colleges teach and how their students learn will be interested in the memoir (回忆录) of Ralph W. Tyler, who is one of the most famous men in American education.

Born in Chicago in 1902, brought up and schooled in Nebraska, the 19-year-old college graduate Ralph Tyler became hooked on teaching while teaching as a science teacher in South Dakota and changed his major from medicine to education.

Graduate work at the University of Chicago found him connected with honorable educators Charles Judd and W. W. Charters, whose ideas of teaching and testing had an effect on his later work. In 1927, he became a teacher of Ohio State University where he further developed a new method of testing.

Tyler became well-known nationally in 1938, when he carried his work with the Eight-Year Study from Ohio State University to the University of Chicago at the invitation of Robed Hutchins.

Tyler was the first director of the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences at Stanford, a position he held for fourteen years. There, he firmly believed that researchers should be free to seek an independent spirit in their work.

Although Tyler officially retired (退休) in 1967, he never actually retired. He served on a long list of educational organizations in the United States and abroad. Even in his 80s he traveled across the country to advise teachers and management people on how to set objectives (目标) that develop the best teaching and learning within their schools.

1. Who are most probably interested in Ralph W. Tyler’s memoir?

A．Top managers.

B．Language learners.

C．Serious educators.

D．Science researchers.

2. The words “hooked on teaching” underlined in Paragraph 2 probably mean ______.

A．attracted to teaching

B．tired of teaching

C．satisfied with teaching

D．unhappy about teaching

3. Where did Tyler work as the leader of a research center for over 10 years?

A．The University of Chicago.

B．Stanford University.

C．Ohio State University.

D．Nebraska University.

4. Tyler is said to have never actually retired because _________.

A．he developed a new method of testing

B．he called for free spirit in research

C．he was still active in giving advice

D．he still led the Eight-Year Study