1 . If there was a subject at school that made me anxious, it was science. Maybe that’s because in my tenth grade, I couldn't understand my physics teacher's instructions, causing me to accidentally set fire to the classroom. So, when my husband and I decided to home-school our daughters, we made a deal: he would teach science, while I would handle everything else. But that’s not how things have been going these past few weeks, since my husband has been too busy to teach the girls.
Recently, while out on my morning hike before starting lessons, I noticed that the sky was a beautiful blue, and the air was filled with the sweet smell of flowers. That s why I decided that the day’s lessons would be taught outside, although I remembered that my daughters hadn't had any science classes from my husband for a while.
I returned to the house to get the girls ready. We headed up into the forest, settling ourselves by a pond that rarely has any visitors. My daughter Saoirse started to pick up pond weeds and catch frogs, while my other daughter Ula looked at me, waiting to be instructed. I handed her a drawing board and colored pencils. "We wait, "I told her, " and see if something comes along. In the meantime, just draw what's around you.”
We worked for more than an hour, hardly speaking. A bird flew across the water, and then settled in a front of a fallen tree. I quickly told Ula, worried that she’d not seen the creature. But she had, and she started drawing it. An hour later, she’d not finished her picture and I stared down at it. She drew the bird on her paper with amazing accuracy. But there was one other interesting fact about this drawing: she also drew me, sitting beside her.
I realized, as I stared at this child's drawing of us watching a bird, how I'd lived for 40 years, gathered 10 years of higher education, and never understood the foundation of science before this moment. The foundation of science is a sense of wonder; it isn't about accurately reciting words from a textbook. It is first and foremost about stepping outside our busy lives and amazing at the world around us.
1. How did the author feel about science when in school?| A．She was nervous about it. | B．She was fond of it. |
| C．She was confused about it. | D．She was eager for it. |
| A．the fallen tree | B．the forest |
| C．the bird | D．the picture |
| A．She's very outgoing. | B．She's good at observing. |
| C．She's very hard-working. | D．She shares interests with her sister. |
| A．Attention to accuracy. |
| B．Curiosity about the outside world. |
| C．Determination to find out the truth. |
| D．Ability to understand teachers' instructions. |
2 . It was New Year’s night. An aged man was standing at a window. Few more hopeless people than himself now moved towards their certain goal-the tomb. He had already passed sixty of the age leading to it, and he had brought from his journey nothing but errors and regrets.
The days of his youth appeared like dreams before him, and he recalled the serious moment when his father placed him at the entrances of the two roads. One leading to a peaceful, sunny place covered with flowers and fruits; the other leading to a deep dark cave which was endless. He looked towards the sky and cried painfully, “Oh youth, return! Oh, my father, place me once more at the entrance to life”. But both his father and the days of his youth had passed away.
He saw the lights flowing away in the darkness，and these were the days of his wasted life; he saw a star fall from the sky and disappear, and this was the symbol of himself. Then he remembered his friends in his childhood, who entered life together with him. But they had made their way to success and were then honored and happy on that New Year’s night.
The clock in the high church tower struck and the sound made him remember his parents. They had taught him and prayed to God for his good. But he chose the wrong way with shame and grief. He dared no longer to look towards the heaven where his parents lived. He burst out a cry: “Come back, my early days!”And his youth did return, for all this was only a dream on New Year’s night. He was still young though his faults were real. He had not yet entered the deep dark eave, and he was still free to walk on the road which leads to the peaceful and sunny land.
1. Which of the following words can best describe the aged man?| A．Confident. | B．Selfless. |
| C．Regretful. | D．Fortunate. |
| A．The man’s friends missed their youth. |
| B．The man’s friends suffered failure finally. |
| C．The man wasted his life at one time. |
| D．The man was lonely in his childhood. |
| A．The old man didn’t take his father’s advice. |
| B．The old man was enjoying his journey. |
| C．The old man’s father accompanied him during the journey. |
| D．The old man was like lights in the darkness. |
| A．A Special New Year’s Night | B．An Old Man’s Hesitation |
| C．Youth Coming Back | D．Two Roads to Take |
3 . Almost every light comedy or situation comedy makes me feel like I should be drinking wine every night with my best friend while one of us tries on clothes. Not only should we share the same dress size, but we should also have a long, rich history of togetherness and secrets. Clearly, this is not reality.
I have 598 friends. OK, but if I’m honest, 99.3 percent of those friends are those I met only once or acquaintances who live too far away to see regularly. That leaves 4 people, who I can call anytime, not feeling like I’m absolutely wasting their time. The remaining 0.2, I’ve decided, is my houseplant. I can tell it anything.
Feeling the same way? You’re absolutely not alone. Most of us find our “people” in school, but over time life changes: marriage, kids, etc. We grow out of our relationships and they grow out of us.
So when the relationships come to an end, how do you find a new one?
A woman in my apartment building, who I had seen around over the years, approached me one day and introduced herself. She bravely stated, “You seem cool. Do you want to hang out with me sometime? I’m looking for new friends.” I almost dropped my bag of groceries at her social honesty. And now we get together for coffee a few times a year, gossip (八卦) about the neighbors, and take in the mail when one of us is on vacation. But a few times a year isn’t enough for me.
So, what counts as true friendship as you get older? For me, it’s feeling comfortable enough to be myself. And if you’re like me, it’s also trust — not just keeping the secret, but trusting that my life choices aren’t their gossip elsewhere.
1. What do the numbers in Paragraph 2 show?| A．The author has some unusual friends. | B．The author has very few real friends. |
| C．The author is fond of phoning her friends. | D．The author doesn’t like most of her friends. |
| A．The author was a little careless. | B．The author was glad at the request. |
| C．The author was shocked by the request. | D．The author was carrying something heavy. |
| A．It is really difficult to find. | B．It can show one’s genuine belief. |
| C．It is really hard for people to understand. | D．It can make people have a sense of security. |
4 . As we all know, friendship is of great importance in our daily life. A friend can give us help and share our difficulties and happiness. But how to make friends is still difficult for some of us.
Be friendly to others.
Be reliable. If you and your friends agree to meet somewhere, don’t be late. If you’re not going to make it on time or make it at all, call them as soon as you realize it.
Encourage and support your friends: A true friend always gives encouragement to his friends.
| A．Be a good listener. |
| B．A friend to all is a friend to none. |
| C．When you say you’ll do something, do it. |
| D．He will stay with them in good as well as bad times. |
| E．The following information can give you some tips. |
| F．Smile at others and you are sure to get a smile in return. |
| G．A true friend should always share the same interest with you. |
5 . I never saw my father home from work late or ill, nor did I ever see my father take a “night out with the boys”. He had no hobbies but just took care of his family.
For 22 years, since I left home for college, my father called me every Sunday at 9:00 am. He was always interested in my life----how my family was doing. The calls even came when he and my mother were in Australia, England or Florida.
Nine years ago when I bought me first house, my father, 67 years old, spent eight hours a day for three days, painting my house. He would not allow me to pay someone to have it done. All he asked was a glass of iced tea, and that I hold a paintbrush for him and talk to him. But I was too busy, for I had a law practice to run, and I could not take the time to hold the paintbrush, or talk to my father.
Five years ago, my 71-year-old father spent five hours putting together a swing set (秋千) for my daughter. Again, all he asked was that I get him a glass of iced tea, and talk to him. But again, I had laundry to do, and the house to clean.
The morning on Sunday, January 16, 1995, my father telephoned me as usual, this time he had seemed to have forgotten some things we had discussed the week before. I had to get to church, and I cut the conversation short.
The call came at 4:40 am. That day my father was sent to hospital in Florida. I got on a plane immediately, and I vowed (发誓) that when I arrived, I would make up for the lost time, and have a nice long talk with him and really get to know him.
I arrived in Florida at 1:00 am, but my father had passed away at 9:12 pm. This time it was he who did not have time to talk, or time to wait for me.
In the years since his death I have learnt much about my father, and even more about every single day.
1. We know from the reading that the father_____.| A．liked to paint houses |
| B．had no friends around him |
| C．was not healthy in his youth |
| D．thought of his family as his all |
| A．could only afford a glass of iced tea |
| B．was too busy to talk to her father |
| C．could do nothing but hold a paintbrush |
| D．spent eight hours a day working with her father |
| A．seemed to be a little different |
| B．had no time to phone her as usual |
| C．became interested in church |
| D．had forgotten to discuss some things with her |
| A．Painting Houses |
| B．Daughter’s Family |
| C．Father and I |
| D．Father’s phone calls |
6 . Desiree was only four when she lost her Dad. Instead of gradually adjusting to his death, Desiree refused to accept it and even wanted to die so as to be with her father. Concerned about her daughter, Rhonda turned to her mother, Trish Moore, for help.
November 8 of 1993 would have been Ken’s 29th birthday. So Trish advised Desiree to send her father a card. Desiree’s eyes lit up as she dictated a letter, “Happy birthday, Daddy. I love you and miss you. I hope you get this and can write to me on my birthday.” Trish wrote the message and their address on a small piece of paper and tied it to the end of the string on a balloon with a drawing of the Little Mermaid (美人鱼). Finally, Desiree released the balloon.
On November 12 in eastern Canada, Wade MacKinnon was duck-hunting. Suddenly something in the bushes caught his eye. Curious, he approached to find a silver balloon. The letter finished with a mailing address in Live Oak, California. The balloon traveled 3,000 miles. What a coincidence! A Little Mermaid balloon landed at Mermaid Lake. To help Desiree, the MacKinnons wrote her a letter with a birthday card and an adaptation of The Little mermaid.
The MacKinnons’ package arrived later on Desiree’s birthday. The letter read, “Happy birthday from your daddy. You must be wondering who we are. Well, it all started... There are no stores in heaven, so your daddy picked us to do the shopping. We know your daddy loves you very much and wants you to be happy and not sad. Lots of love, the MacKinnons.”
Tears in eyes, Desiree said, “I knew Daddy would find a way not to forget me.” Next, Trish began to read the Little Mermaid to her, in which the mermaid was finally carried away by angels. “The mermaid goes to heaven just like Daddy!” Desiree said with delight. She understood then her father was with her always.
1. Why did Rhonda ask her mother for help?| A．Her husband passed away too young. |
| B．She wanted to free Desiree from sorrow. |
| C．Desiree kept her distance from her father. |
| D．She had no time to read books to Desiree. |
| A．It travelled a long distance for several days |
| B．It was decorated with some silver strings. |
| C．It landed just at the MacKinnons’ house. |
| D．It was tied with the book the Little Mermaid. |
| A．Demanding. | B．Humorous |
| C．Caring. | D．Generous. |
| A．A Fantastic Adventure of a Balloon | B．A New Story of the Little Mermaid |
| C．A Heartbreaking Experience of a Girl | D．A Magic Response from “Heaven” |
7 . Most young architects particularly those in big cities— can only dream about working in a building of their own. And making that dream come true often means finding a building no one else seems to want, which is exactly what happened to David Yocum and his partner, Brain Bell. Their building is a former automobile electrical-parts film in Atlanta. From the outside, it looks too old, even something horrible, but open the door and you are in a wide, open courtyard, lined on three sides with rusting (生锈的) walls.
In 2000, Yocum and Bell found this building in the city’s West End. Built in 1947, the structure had been abandoned years earlier and the roof of the main building had fallen down. But the price was right, so Yocum bought it. He spent eight months of his off-hours on demolition (排除), pulling rubbish out through the roof, because it was too dangerous to go inside the building. The demolition was hard work, but it gave him time to think about what he wanted to do, and “to treasure what was there — the walls, the rust, and the light.” Yocum said. “Every season, more paint falls off the walls and more rust develops. It’s like an art installation (装置) in there—a slow-motion show.”
Since the back building had been constructed without windows, an all-glass front was added to the building to give it a view of the courtyard, and skylights were installed in the roof. The back of the building is a working area and a living room for Yocum and his wife. A sort of buffer(缓冲） zone between the front and the back contains a bathroom, a kitchen and a mechanical room, and the walls that separate these zones have openings that allow views through to the front of the studio and the courtyard beyond.
Yocum and Bell, who have just completed an art gallery for the city, feel that the experience from the decoration of their building, focusing on the inside rather than the outside, has influenced their work. It has also given these architects a chance to show how they can make more out of less.
1. According to the passage, it is ________ for most young architects in big cities to work in a building of their own.| A．easy | B．unnecessary |
| C．unrealistic | D．common |
| A．it was a bargain to him |
| B．it was still in good condition |
| C．it was located in the city center |
| D．it looked attractive from the outside |
| A．pulled rubbish out through the roof |
| B．removed the skylights from the bathroom |
| C．presented a slow-motion show in an art gallery |
| D．built a kitchen at the back part of the old building |
| A．benefited a lot from pulling down the roof |
| B．turned more old buildings into art galleries |
| C．got inspiration from decorating their old building |
| D．paid more attention to the outside of the art gallery |
| A．people can learn a lot from their failures |
| B．it is worthwhile to spend money on an old building |
| C．people should not judge things by their appearance |
| D．creative people can make the best of what they have |
8 . “It’s really cool to have a dad who flies fighter jets,” thought 11-year-old Casey as she was watching him fly overhead.
Living on an Air Force base was not as bad as some people might think. Casey rather enjoyed being around friends who had something in common with each other. They had their own school, bowling area, and movie theatre. She especially loved it when her dad would come home each day and greet her with a new joke and tickles.
Today was different, though. When her dad walked into the room, he looked sad for some reason. He just kissed her on the forehead and told her mum that he needed to talk to her. Casey knew something was wrong.
When her mum and dad came out of the other room, mum was crying. Dad sat down and began to explain that he had been called to go to Iraq to help with the war effort. Casey was so surprised that she couldn’t speak for a moment. She began to feel tears in her eyes. How could she live without her dad for a whole year?
Soon, the day came. Her dad was leaving. As Casey and her mom watched him climb up the steps to his cockpit, the tears began to flow and it felt like they would never end. It was hard for Casey to believe that she wouldn’t be her dad for so long. They depend on him for so many things. who would fix the broken window? Who would greet her with jokes and tickles at the end of the day? And then the thought hit her, “What if he doesn’t make it home?” Casey began to sob more than ever.
1. According to the story, one thing Casey enjoyed on the base was that ________.| A．there was a friendly girl of her age living next door |
| B．she could travel around in her father’s jet |
| C．her friends had something in common with her |
| D．her dad was going to fight abroad |
| A．Casey’s dad volunteered to help with the war. |
| B．Casey’s parents didn’t let her know the truth. |
| C．Casey’s dad amused her in the morning usually. |
| D．Children living on the base could see movies in their theater. |
| A．Casey was worried that they couldn’t live without her father. |
| B．Casey saw her father off at the airport. |
| C．Casey’s dad looked sad. |
| D．Casey’s father left home. |
9 . How to Recognize a True Friend
Sometimes it can be hard to recognize a true friend. Hopefully this article will help you recognize which friends are the keepers.
Be able to trust your friends. You should be able to trust true friends and they should return this trust. Do your friends tell you secrets that no one else knows? Ask you for advice?
Think about loyalty(忠诚).
Think about nicknames. A lot of true friends love to give each other nicknames！ If your friend is giving you nicknames, then this is a great sign. Think of the nickname your friend has given you, does it suit you well?
Look at how you fight. Nearly all best friends fight.
| A．Consider comfort. |
| B．Choose your friends carefully. |
| C．True friends are always there for one another. |
| D．Both are sure signs that your friend trusts you. |
| E．If so, this shows your friend must know you quite well. |
| F．So if you and your friend have a little argument, don’t worry! |
| G．An inside joke shows that you share a special connection with your friend. |
10 . Flower Power
When her grandmother’s health began to worsen last autumn, Mary would make the drive from Washington, DC to Winchester, VA every few days.
She hated highway driving, finding it ugly and boring. She preferred to take winding country roads to her grandmother’s hospital. When she drove through the rocky town of Harpers Ferry, the beauty of the rough waters was always appealing to her.
Toward the end of her journey, Mary had to get on highway 81. It was here that she discovered a surprising bit of beauty during one of her trips. Along the shoulder of the highway, there was a long stretch of wild flowers. They were thin and delicate and purple, and moved back and forth in the wind as if whispering poems to each other.
The first time she saw the flowers, Mary was seized by an uncontrollable urge to pull over on the highway and pull a bunch from the soil. She carried them into her grandmother’s room when she arrived at the hospital and placed them in a vase by her bed.
For a moment her grandmother seemed more lucid（清醒的）than usual. She thanked Mary for the flowers, commented on their beauty and asked where she had gotten them. Mary was overjoyed by the ability of the flowers to wake something up inside her sick grandmother.
Afterwards, Mary began carrying scissors in the car during her trips to visit her grandmother. She would quickly glide onto the shoulder, jump out of the car, and clip a bunch of flowers. Each time Mary placed the flowers in the vase, her grandmother’s eyes would light up and they would have a splendid conversation.
One morning in late October, Mary got a call that her grandmother had taken a turn for the worse. Mary was in such a hurry to get to her grandmother that she sped past her flower spot. She decided to turn around, head several miles back, and cut a bunch.
Mary arrived at the hospital to find her grandmother very weak and unresponsive. She placed the flowers in the vase and sat down to hold her grandmother’s hand. She felt a squeeze on her fingers. It was the last conversation they had.
1. Mary preferred to take country roads to the hospital because she could ________.| A．get on highway 81 more easily | B．enjoy the natural view along the roads |
| C．pick wild flowers for her grandmother | D．spend less time driving to the destination |
| A．came alive at the sight of the flowers | B．commented on Mary’s beauty |
| C．was overjoyed by the flowers | D．was curious about the type of the flowers |
| A．Mary discovered the wild flowers along the country roads |
| B．Mary’s grandmother had passed away before she arrived at the hospital |
| C．Mary’s last conversation with her grandmother was a silent one |
| D．Mary headed several miles back because she sped past the hospital |
| A．Beauty in nature can be powerful. | B．Love has no beginning or ending. |
| C．Life is as beautiful as summer flowers. | D．Flowers have the magic to cure diseases. |
