1 . My grandma, Elena, pulled me on stage for our routine to entertain the crowd. At five years old, I needed no encouragement to perform. Like my grandma, formerly a professional dancer, I loved the spotlight, and soon became addicted to the applause (鼓掌).
I was Grandma’s willing partner, always ready to kick off a show with her on stage. Each week, Grandma came to my parents’ home so that we could practice our performances. “Choose whatever you like,” Grandma said. “You can wear whatever you want.”
Grandma didn’t mind at all if I chose to wear high-heeled shoes on stage. To her, I was a natural performer. Wearing them was simply considered as artistic expression. On my first night on stage, I dressed up as Madonna in a white skirt, singing a song of her and I won many praises.
One year, after being attracted by the movie 101 Dalmatians, I decided to act Cruella de Vil, a role in it. Performing on the stage with my black frock (连衣裙), a handbag and a cigarette holder, I enjoyed the audience’s laughter, and it was like music to my ears. “You’re a natural actor,” Grandma said after the show.
Today, I always perform at the hugely popular theatre. Going up on stage feels like being at home. That’s how I make a living and I find the place where I belong. In July this year, I headed to the Gold Coast, where Grandma lives. Now 95 and still my biggest fan, she saw me perform my new act for the first time and loved it.
She has been my lifelong inspiration and support, but I can never repay her. She always loved me for who I was and now, I’m finally the person who I was always meant to be.
1. What can we know about the author from the text?| A．She lived with her grandma. | B．She has liked performing since young. |
| C．She always refused to go on the stage. | D．She learned to dance from her grandma. |
| A．She supported it. | B．She punished her. |
| C．She bought her a skirt. | D．She paid no attention to it. |
| A．An actor. | B．A teacher. | C．A doctor. | D．A manager. |
| A．To memorize her experiences. | B．To show her achievements. |
| C．To record her childhood. | D．To thank her grandma. |
2 . Parents often believe that they have a good relationship with their teenagers. But last summer, Joanna and Henry noticed a change in their older son. Suddenly he seemed to be talking far more to his friends than to his parents. “The door to his room is always shut,” Joanna noted.
Tina and Mark noticed similar changes in their 14-year-old daughter. “She used to cuddle up (依偎) against me on the sofa and talk,” said Mark. “Now we joke that she does this only when she wants something. Sometimes she wants to be treated like a little girl and sometimes like a young lady. The problem is understanding which time is which.”
Before age 11, children like to tell their parents what’s on their mind. “In fact, parents are first on the list,” said Michael Riera, author of Uncommon Sense for Parents with Teenagers. “This completely changes during the teen years,” Riera explained. “They talk to their friends first, then maybe their teachers, and their parents last.”
Parents who know what’s going on in their teenagers’ lives are in the best position to help them. To break down the wall of silence, parents should create chances to understand what their children want to say, and try to find ways to talk and write to them. And they must give their children a mental (思想的) break, for children also need freedom, though young. Another thing parents should remember is that to be a friend, not a manager, with their children is a better way to know them.
1. “The door to his room is always shut” suggests that the son ________.| A．keeps himself away from his parents | B．begins to dislike his parents |
| C．is always busy with his study | D．doesn’t want to be ignored |
| A．Their daughter isn’t as lovely as before. |
| B．They can’t read their daughter’s mind exactly. |
| C．They don’t know what to say to their daughter. |
| D．Their daughter talks with them only when she needs help. |
| A．Teenagers talk a lot with their friends. | B．Teenagers do not understand their parents. |
| C．Teenagers talk little about their own lives. | D．Teenagers do not talk much with their parents. |
| A．Parents shouldn’t be angry with teenagers. |
| B．Parents have to talk with children face to face. |
| C．Parents are unhappy with their growing children. |
| D．Parents should try to understand their teenagers. |
3 . My wife and I used to feel that it was impossible to be a true friend to someone whose name we didn’t know. How wrong we were! Years of Sunday morning bus trips through the city with the same group of “nameless” people have changed our thinking.
Before the bus takes off, we all join in a conversation: where’s the silent woman who sits up front and never replies to our greetings? Here she comes. Her worn clothing suggests she doesn’t have much money to spare, but she always takes an extra cup of coffee for the driver.
We get smiles from a Mexican couple as they get on the bus hand in hand. When they get off, they’re still holding hands. The woman was pregnant late last year, and one day her change of shape showed that she’d borne the child. We even felt a little pride at the thought of our extended family.
For many months, our only sadness lay in our inability to establish the same friendship with the silent woman at the front of the bus. Then, one evening, we went to a fish restaurant. We were shown to a table alongside someone sitting alone. It was the woman from the bus.
We greeted her in the friendly and familiar way we’d shown all year, but this time her face softened, then a shy smile. When she spoke, the words escaped awkwardly (笨拙地) from her lips. All at once we realized why she hadn’t spoken to us before. Talking was hard for her.
Over dinner, we learned the story of a single mother with a disabled son who was receiving special care away from home. She missed him badly, she explained.
“I love him…and he loves me, even though lie doesn’t express it very well,” she murmured. “Lots of us have that problem, don’t we? We don’t say what we want to say, what we should be saying. And that’s not good enough.”
The candles lit on out tables. Our fish had never tasted better. The atmosphere grew pleasant, and when we parted as friends—we share names.
1. The underlined word “establish” in the fourth paragraph probably means____________.| A．set up | B．keep | C．discover | D．take part |
| A．She was worried about her disabled son. |
| B．She was only interested in the bus driver. |
| C．She had some difficulty in expressing herself. |
| D．She was sad to see the happy Mexican couple as a single mother. |
| A．The silent woman with her son both brought interest to the passengers. |
| B．The silent woman and her son both had some difficulty in expressing. |
| C．My wife and I didn’t become friends with the silent woman. |
| D．The Mexican couple were going to give birth to a baby. |
| A．The Silent Woman on the Bus | B．Different Kinds of Friendship |
| C．Going to Work by Bus | D．Friends of the Road |
4 . How to Make Friends
Friendship is a very important human relationship and everyone needs good friends. Good friendship has many benefits. It offers companionship, improves self-worth and promotes good health. There are times in our lives such as when we have recently moved into a new town, or changed our jobs or schools. Such changes often leave us without a friend.
1. Associate with others.
The first step to making friends is associating with other people. You can go to public places to meet new people. Besides, you will need to make yourself known by becoming an active member of such places.
2. Start a conversation.
Starting a conversation is the second most important step in making new friends.
3.
Choosing friends with common interests is important in building friendship as these interests would always bring you and your friend together. Hanging out will always be a pleasant experience.
4. Let it grow.
It is a good thing to stay in touch. However, try not to press your new friend with calls, messages or visits as this would likely wear him or her out and finally you may lose your friend.
5. Enjoy your friendship.
The best way to enjoy your friendship is to allow your friends to be themselves.
| A．Be cheerful. |
| B．Do things together. |
| C．Do not wait to be spoken to. |
| D．Try not to find fault with your friends. |
| E．Making new friends comes easy for some people. |
| F．For a friendship to develop you need to stay in touch. |
| G．So you will need to give your friend time to react to you. |
5 . Many of us experience loneliness. The truth is that all the people, no, matter what their age or character is-even the most outgoing, wealthy and popular-experience loneliness at least sometimes.
Solomon, the wisest man who ever lived, explains: that if we want friends, we must be friendly and reach out to others. But it has risk. Because we are often afraid of no, many of us are unwilling to reach out to others. We take a safer way and wait for others to make friends with us.
Be brave enough to step out. If you see someone whom you would like to know, don’t wait for her to make the first move.
Ask questions. Start your first conversation by, asking this, possible friend what she likes, to do or asking about her family. Be sure to ask questions that cannot be replied with “yes” or “no”. For example, don’t ask “Do you have a dog?”,
| A．Make friends with a popular one. |
| B．Reach out to those who are lonely. |
| C．Instead, say“So, tell me about your pets.” |
| D．But if we want friends, we’ve got to get beyond this. |
| E．It’s healthy and natural to want to be around people who care. |
| F．Gather all your courage and get close to her and begin a conversation. |
| G．As we all know, the famous, saying: “A friend in need is a friend in deed.” |
6 . In choosing a friend, one should be very careful. A good friend can help you study. You can have fun together and make each other happy. Sometimes you will meet fair weather friends. They will be with you as long as you have money or luck, but when you are down, they will run away. How do I know when I have found a good friend? I look for certain qualities of character, especially understanding, honesty and reliability.
Above all else, I look for understanding in a friend. A good friend tries to understand how another person is feeling. He is not quick to judge. Instead, he tries to learn from others. He puts himself in the other person’s place, and he tries to think of ways to be helpful. He is also a good listener.
At the same time, however, a good friend is honest. He does not look for faults in others. He notices their good points. In short, a friend will try to understand me and accept me
Another quality of a friend is reliability. I can always depend on a good friend. If he tells me he will meet me somewhere at a certain time, I can be sure that he will be there. If I need a favor, he will do his best to help me. If I am in trouble, he will not run away from me.
There is a fourth quality that makes a friend special. A special friend is someone with whom we can have fun. We should enjoy our lives, and we would enjoy our friendship. That is why I especially like friends who are fun to be with. A good friend likes the same things I like. We share experience and learn from each other. A good friend has a good sense of humor too. He likes to laugh with me. That is how we share in the joy of being friends. And I know that he is looking for the same quality in me.
When I meet someone who is reliable, honest, and understanding, I know I’ve found a friend!
1. Which of the following qualities the writer thinks is the most important in choosing a friend?| A．Honesty. | B．Understanding. | C．Reliability. | D．A sense of humor. |
| A．they will give you all that they have when you need help. |
| B．you will be refused when you get into trouble. |
| C．you can be sure that you get real friends. |
| D．you will become rich. |
| A．very outgoing | B．quite knowledgeable. | C．can be trusted. | D．willing to listen. |
| A．the qualities of a friend. | B．where to choose friends. |
| C．how to get along with friends. | D．the importance of having a friend. |
7 . Some of my earliest memories involve sitting with my dad in his study every night when he came home from the office. I’d watch as he put his personal items away: his watch, wallet, comb and car keys. They would always occupy the same spot on the table every time.
Dad’s comb was jade green. I heard he bought it when he married Mum. Every night, he would smile, hand me the comb and say, “Be a good girl and help Daddy clean it, OK?”
I was more than happy to do it. At age five, this kind of task brought me such joy. I would excitedly turn the tap on, and then brush the comb with a used toothbrush as hard as I could. Satisfied that I’d done a good job, I would proudly return the comb to Dad. He would smile at me, and place the comb on top of his wallet.
About two years later, Dad left his sales job and started his own wholesale business. I started primary school. That was when things started to change. Dad’s business wasn’t doing so well, and our stable life started getting shaky. He didn’t come home as much as he used to. And when he did come home, it was always late and I’d already be in bed. I started to get mad. Why didn’t he listen to Mum and just stick to his old job? Why take the risk and place the whole family in trouble? Over the years, I stopped waiting for him to come home, and stopped going downstairs to check on him.
Now 28, I’ve graduated from college and got a job. Dad’s business has also started to get back on track. Yet the uncomfortable silence between Dad and me went on.
Two days before my birthday last year, Dad came home early. On that evening, I helped him carry his bags into his study as usual. When I turned to leave, he asked me to clean his comb. I looked at him for a while, then took the comb and headed to the sink.
It was a new comb. This one was brown. I hadn’t noticed that he’d changed it. After cleaning it, I passed it back to Dad. He looked at it and smiled. But this time, I noticed something different. My dad had aged. He had wrinkles next to his eyes when he smiled, yet his smile was still as heartwarming as before.
1. From the first three paragraphs, we can learn .| A．the earliest memories with Dad were full of joy |
| B．the precious green comb of Dad was made of jade |
| C．the author was unwilling to clean the comb for Dad |
| D．the author would study together with Dad every evening |
| A．That he was eager to get everything on track. | B．That he wanted to keep his family life stable. |
| C．That he was laid off and had to make a living. | D．That he hoped to earn a better life for the family. |
| A．cheerful→ mad→ warm. | B．mad → satisfied → warm. |
| C．satisfied → worried → angry. | D．warm → concerned → uncomfortable. |
| A．A Comb of Jade Green | B．Dad’s Wholesale Business |
| C．Evenings with My Dad | D．My Earliest Memories with Dad |
8 . Conflict (冲突) between teenagers and parents happens for a lot of reasons. Sometimes conflict happens between teenagers and parents just because conflict happens between human beings anyway. Humans have different needs, different feelings, different opinions about what they want, and the relationship with people can be really difficult. However, teenagers can cause further conflict because of the hormonal (生理的) changes that are happening and the stage of life that they're in.
Teenagers and parents have different understanding about rules and at times they find it difficult to look into the future. So parents and teenagers will often experience conflict about many things, do chores, homework, whether teenagers speak respectfully or not and about what they're allowed to do.
Before we think about rule boundaries (界线) for teenagers, we need to make sure that we have a really good relationship base. There's no point saying “From now on, you have to listen to me”: if you don't have a positive relationship with your teenager. We need to go back and make sure there is some degree of shared respect, and some degree of positive communication and enjoyment being together. you do that first, it means that rule boundaries are a lot easier to set up.
Often we're dealing with conflict on the fly. This is not the right time to be dealing with it. We really want parents and teenagers to sit down and think about the kinds of things that may happen in the house before the problems come. The more detailed your rule boundaries are for teenagers, the more likely it is that they are going to follow them. So this means we don't have rule boundaries like “Have the bathroom cleaned”. It needs to be “The floors mopped, nothing on the countertop and the mirrors cleaned by ten o'clock every Saturday”: Rule boundaries need to be written down, and set out ahead of time so the teenager knows exactly what's expected.
1. What's important to set up a rule boundary easily for teenagers?| A．Being strict from the start. | B．Developing a good relationship with them first. |
| C．Saying"No" to their requirements. | D．Avoiding close talks with them. |
| A．Doing some housework. | B．Having a good reading habit. |
| C．Cleaning the bathroom. | D．Finishing your homework by five. |
| A．In a hurry. | B．On the plane. | C．By oneself. | D．Another day. |
| A．Growing Pains | B．Teenage Problems |
| C．Parent-Child Conflict and Solutions | D．Knowing the Conflict |
9 . When was the last time you had great fun with your family?
Going to the zoo is definitely a number-one pick for family activities. Other than visiting animals, most zoos nowadays have rides that you can enjoy with your family. Meals are served in the zoo.
Having a picnic at the park is also a good activity for your family. Even though you might not be really keen on outdoor activities, you can still enjoy your time by playing together after having your lunch.
Visiting the nation’s capital would be your choice if you want to go on a trip with your family. Learn more about the history by visiting historical sites.
A treasure hunt is a popular activity, so going hunting with your family is a nice choice. You can train yourself by asking to be the person in charge who can hold the treasure map and make decisions.
Create a video clip (片段) with your family.
| A．History creates topics for you and your family. |
| B．Family is always the most valuable thing in life. |
| C．At bedtime read to your young kids and read with your elder kids. |
| D．Bring your own snacks if you want to save some money. |
| E．Here are two examples. |
| F．Make your family the characters in the clip. |
| G．Doing some yard work together can also be a fun quality time for your family. |
10 . My dad doesn’t seem like the kind of guy who would bake great bread, but he is and he does. Every Saturday he produces homemade bread. When he’s done, the whole house smells delicious.
The rest of the week, Dad fixes cars at work. The shop where Dad works is running so well that he is always occupied. He is under a lot of stress. I think Dad began baking bread to help him relax.
I’ve been feeling kind of stressed out myself since I found out I didn’t make the school swim team. Now I’ll have to wait a whole year to try out again. Plus, I’m taking some difficult classes this year.
I think Dad knew I was feeling bad. Last Saturday he asked me how things were going. I said OK, even though I didn’t feel OK at all. He looked at me for a moment, and then he said it was time for me to help. Then he headed to the kitchen.
I followed right behind him. Once we were there, Dad got out his big mixing bowl, handed me a large wooden spoon, and told me to mix while he added the ingredients. Dad isn’t big on measuring. He knows how much of each ingredient to use, and the bread always turns out great.
When I finished stirring, Dad showed me how to knead the dough (揉面团). Next came the most difficult part — doing nothing. We put the dough back into the bowl and then we waited for more than an hour for the dough to slowly rise and double in size. Next, we divided it into two and waited for it to rise again. Afterward, we put the dough into pans and waited another hour for the dough to rise and double.
Dad said the waiting is always the hardest part. “It’s hard to resist putting the dough directly into the oven, but if you do, the bread will be hard. The most important lesson of all is learning to be.” Dad taught me more than how to bake bread.
1. What can we learn about the author’s father?| A．He is living a relaxing life. | B．He tries his best to make ends meet. |
| C．He has a special way to deal with stress. | D．He is more like a baker than a mechanic. |
| A．School isn’t going well. | B．She dislikes making bread. |
| C．She feels sorry for her father. | D．Some classes aren’t worth it. |
| A．Dad is unskilled. | B．Dad dislikes measuring. |
| C．Dad has a craze for measuring. | D．Dad is careful about ingredients. |
| A．Never give up. | B．Take life easily. |
| C．Believe in yourself. | D．Enjoy time with family. |
