1 . ......
But the parents are proud that they were able to help Mike with his social skills along with his intellectual skills. Melissa told CNBC that people expected “Young Sheldon” before they met her son. Young Sheldon is a television show about a child talent who is an indoor man and lacks social skills. “But once they talk to Mike, they understand that he’s just a normal 14-year-old that happens to be able to do amazing things,” said Melissa.
Mark and Melissa got to know about their child’s intelligence when he entered preschool. A child psychologist told them that their son would need a different course to support his fast-track development. Many parents aren’t comfortable with putting their children with 18-year-olds, but Mike’s parents saw the value in letting their child go through it. “I wanted him to be social and be able to deal with all the different personalities in the classrooms with older children,” said Melissa.
......
What can we infer about the child in the show Young Sheldon?| A．He likes to make friends. | B．He is a well-rounded man. |
| C．He is a popular child actor. | D．He is poor at dealing with people. |
2 . We both started looking for jobs right away, but there weren’t any to be found. With each passing day we were getting increasingly worried and we continued to work together in order to pull our family through. The more we pulled together, the closer we got. I felt feelings of admiration for my husband that I hadn’t felt in years.
That’s why it was so hard for me to watch him blame himself for our present situation. I continually asked him to stop, but he seemed to want to punish himself for not having a job.
The underlined sentence in the second paragraph means that ________.| A．they became closer as they struggled together |
| B．they hoped to find jobs in the same company |
| C．both of them had the courage to face difficulty |
| D．they were trying to make their relationship closer |
3 . Parents often think that their kids should be good at studies and do well in sports. That’s usually the case because parents feel that could get their children admission to top colleges. However, Melissa and Mark Wimmer think differently.
Their 14-year-old son, Mike, is a prodigy. He is a member of Mensa, which is the world’s top IQ club. He completed his high school, associate’s and bachelor’s degrees all in three years. That’s not all. He also ran two tech companies, founded a third one that works towards controlling the population of lionfish, an invasive (入侵的) species.
What do the underlined words “a prodigy” in paragraph 2 refer to?| A．A gifted person. | B．A famous student. |
| C．A brilliant biologist. | D．A successful businessman. |
4 . This was the first communication that had come from her aunt in Jessie’s lifetime.
“I think your aunt has forgiven me at last,” her father said as he passed the letter across the table.
Jessie looked first at the autograph(签名). It seemed strange to see her own name there. There was a likeness between her aunt’s autograph and her own, a hint of the same decisiveness and precision. If Jessie had been educated fifty years earlier, she might have written her name in just that manner.
“You’re very like her in some ways,” her father said, as she still stared at the autograph.
“I should think you must almost have forgotten what Aunt Jessie was like, dear,” she said. “How many years is it since you last saw her?”
“More than forty,” her father said. “We disagreed. We invariably disagreed. Jessie always prided herself on being so modern. She read Darwin and things like that. Altogether beyond me, I admit.”
“And so it seems that she wants to see me.” Jessie straightened her shoulders and lifted her head. She was excited at the thought of meeting this mythical aunt whom she had so often heard about. Sometimes she had wondered if the personality of this remarkable relative had not been a figment(虚构) of her father’s imagination.
But this letter of hers that now lay on the breakfast table was admirable in character. There was something of intolerance expressed in its tone. It was just like what her father had told her.
Mr. Deane came out of his past memories with a sigh.
“Yes, yes; she wants to see you, my dear,” he said. “I’ve heard she has set up a school and helped many youngsters. I think you had better accept this invitation to stay with her. If she took a fancy to you, you could get a better education…”
He sighed again, and Jessie knew that for the hundredth time he was regretting his own past weakness...
1. From the passage, we know Jessie was .| A．eager to meet her aunt |
| B．cautious about her aunt’s invitation |
| C．angry with her aunt for ignoring her family |
| D．puzzled by her aunt’s sudden interest in her |
| A．Jessie’s aunt promised to offer her better education. |
| B．Jessie’s aunt’s personality seemed to change a lot. |
| C．Jessie and her aunt were different in personality. |
| D．Jessie’s father felt sorry for what he had done. |
5 .
Every summer he came to our village on his cycle. The cycle was full of coconuts and on the handle was his small red money purse and the machete that he used to cut the coconuts. He always wore a blue and black checkered lungi and was known for his toothless smile that tended to turn into a slight laugh.
He often announced the arrival of summer by standing under our village’s Gulmohar tree. During the first touch of summer, red flowers fell on the ground and welcomed him to our village; soon the red flowers turned into long sword-like fruits which hung above his head as he cut the coconuts.
He never ate anything except paan (a kind of leaf), which he always could be seen chewing, and he just sat under the tree until someone approached him. Then, he would choose the best coconut, and with expert skill, carve it so that the person could drink the satisfying liquid.
For me he was an artist who knew how to carve the green coconut into an oasis (绿洲) of relief. He was the coconut whisperer, who knew which one had more water. Nobody ever talked about him, for he was of no significance to the busy people of our village. His existence will forever be tied to the shadow of the Gulmohar tree.
Nowadays, he doesn’t do much business. Kids no longer care for coconut water; they want soft drinks. I know his weak body will fail him in the coming years. He will not visit our village, and with him, all my memories of summer will disappear. No one will miss him apart from the Gulmohar tree, his only friend.
My friends and I have stayed in the same village our whole life. Now, in our mid-thirties, we don’t have time to talk about our childhood and the lite beyond the chains of society.
I’ve made up my mind. Tomorrow I will talk with him. I will listen to him and preserve him in my memory. I will tell him how important he was for me, how he defined summer for me, and, during every summer, how he nurtured (滋养) me with the coconut water, which was filled with his love. I will take in his smile one last time—a remembrance of my childhood innocence. I will hug him until my tears mix with his.
1. What message does the author want to express?
| A．Pass on what is yours to the next generation. |
| B．Free yourself from the pressure of society. |
| C．Enjoy the simple things in your busy life. |
| D．Appreciate something before it’s gone. |
Family is the cell of the society, and rulers of past dynasties all paid great attention to the stability of families, which affected the stability of the society and the ruler’s system of government as well.
In the Past
The Chinese family as it is described in the Story of the Stone (hong lou meng, Qing dyansty) is the result of a long historical development.
The Chinese for “family” is Jia, which generally means the basic family group, those who are related by blood, marriage, or adoption, living and managing their finances together. In a Jia, the males are all blood relations. Sons live in their father's house with their wives, who have been brought in from outside the family. As soon as daughters come of age, they are married out, that is, they join another Jia. They are members of their parents’ Jia only as long as they are unmarried. During the wedding ceremony, daughters officially end their ties to their father’s patriline, and are promised to serve their new family, including its ancestors. Males are permanent members of the family they were born into; females, however, are expected to eventually leave their born family. Women, therefore, belong to a place in a patriline -- that of their husband, not their father -- when they give birth to a son.
The Jia shares living space and finances. One male, the patriarch (the oldest competent male) has the most authority in all family matters. In the ideal Jia, three, four, or five generations live under one roof. Sons obediently follow their father’s direction in choosing a career and a wife, and every member of the Jia works together for a single aim: keeping and increasing the Jia’s wealth and status. Such a large, multi-generational Jia can grow to be very complex.
For women and children, especially in the large, wealthy, elite families, the Jia was essentially both the center and the limit of the world. The wealth, reputation, and status of the Jia, however, rested largely on the success or failure of men operating outside the Jia.
Modern Chinese Family
According to latest statistics, China has 430 million families (the year 2014), with 3.13 people per household on average. In general, a Chinese family is made up of a couple and their children, but big families with three or more generations can also be found in China. With the pursuit of personal freedom, the trend of forming small families with only directly related members is now popular.
In the past, each Chinese family had a “head”, who had absolute authority at home, and had the final say in family affairs. But now in most Chinese families, the husband and wife, or a couple with other family members, work out together the household plans, and decide family affairs through consultation.
Moreover, family members share the housework, making the division of labor at home more reasonable; and the husband and wife support each other’s work.
Chinese people have the tradition of respecting the old and loving the young. Though many young couples do not live with their parents, they keep close contact with them. Grown-up children have the duty to support and help their parents. The Chinese people attach great importance to relations between family members and relatives, and treasure their parents, children, brothers and sister, uncles, aunts and other relatives.
Family planning has been pushed forward as one of the basic state policies in China. The basic requirements of family planning are late marriages and late childbearing, so as to have fewer but healthier babies, especially one child per couple. But a flexible family planning policy is adopted for rural people and ethnic minorities: in rural areas, couples may have a second baby in exceptional cases, but must wait several years after the birth of the first child; in areas inhabited by minority peoples, each ethnic group may work out different regulations in accordance with its wish, population, natural resources, economy, culture and customs -- now in general a couple may have a second baby, or a third child in some places. As for ethnic minorities with extremely small populations, a couple may have as many children as they want.
Nowadays, universal two-child or three-child policy has been carried out to meet with the country’s aging trend.
1. Taking the Story of the Stone for example, tell your foreign friends about Chinese families.
2. What’s difference between modern Chinese family and Chinese family in the past?
True friends are hard to find. You often think you can believe in someone, but later he or she may let you down. However, always be a good friend yourself and you may change the situations.
Part of being a friend is being prepared to devote your time and energy to helping out your friend. If your friend needs a shoulder to cry on, just be there for him or her. You will attract those who value your loyalty.
When you say you will do something, do it. When your friend tells you a secret, keep it secret from others. Be someone that people know that they can rely on. If you show this quality to your friend, he or she will appreciate it and will be reliable in return.
Be a good listener.
Many people think they have to appear very interesting. Far more than that, however, is your ability to show that you’re interested in others. Listen carefully to what people say, remember important details about them, ask questions about their interests, and take time to learn more about them.
Show others what makes you stand apart from the crowd. Talk about interests and hobbies. Everyone has interesting stories to tell—don’t be afraid to share yours. Besides, a little humour always keeps a conversation light and happy. People love to be around someone who makes them laugh.
A. Be a reliable friend.
B. Be loyal to a friend.
C. Stress your good qualities.
D. Tell your secret to your friend.
8 . Mom said, “Anna, this will look good on you. Do you want it?” It Was much too expensive, but I almost thoughtlessly answered “Yes”. Then I took a closer look at the small, tired woman with a big smile and a sweater in her hands, happy to be giving me something so nice. My words died in my throat. Her clothes were worn and old because she spent her money buying me new ones. She looked so tired because she was busy working to provide for me. She didn’t wear jewelry or perfumes because she was content with spending what little money she had on me. Suddenly, my mom was beautiful and extraordinarily wonderful in my eyes. I was no longer ashamed of her, but of myself.
What did the author mean by “My words died in my throat” in Paragraph 4?
| A．She was afraid of being blamed by her mom. |
| B．She was too excited to say anything about the sweater. |
| C．She felt her mom was so ordinary that she stopped speaking. |
| D．She failed to speak after realizing her mom’s great sacrifices. |
9 . When reading, my mother likes to slice a paragraph or a sentence out and attach it to the wall of her kitchen. She picks boring sentences that puzzle me. But I prefer copying favorite bright lines into a journal in soft, gray No. 2 pencil, word by word.
She doesn’t know any of this. There’s nothing shocking: for our chatting. We seldom begin certain conversations though we talk on the phone weekly, sometimes making each other laugh so hard that I choke and she cries. But what we don’t say could fill up rooms. Fights with my father. Small failures in school. Anything that really upsets us.
My mother has never told me “I love you, Lisa.” — as if the four-word absence explains who I am — so I carry it with me, like a label on me. The last time she almost spoke the words was two years ago, when she called to tell me a friend had been in hospital. I said, “I love you, Mom.” She stopped for a while and then said, “Thank you.” I haven’t said it since, but I’ve wondered why my mother doesn’t until I’ve found a poem that supplies words for the blank spaces I try to understand in our conversations:
Don’t fill up on bread. I say absent-mindedly. The servings here are huge.
My son, middle-aged, says: Did you really just say that to me?
What he doesn’t know is that when we’re walking together, I desire to reach for his hand.
It’s humble, yet heartbreaking. After copying it down in my journal, I emailed it to mom, adding “This poem makes me think of you.” My mother doesn’t read poetry — or at least, she doesn’t tell me, and I felt nervous clicking “Send”.
She never mentioned the poem. But the next time I went home for vacation, I noticed something new in the kitchen fixed to an antique board: the poem. The board hung above the heater, the warmest spot in the kitchen. The poem still hangs there. Neither my mother nor I have ever spoken about it.
What’s the function of paragraph 1?| A．To stress the theme. | B．To establish the setting. |
| C．To represent the characters. | D．To create the atmosphere. |
10 . Lena could clearly remember the night she had to flee her home in Hungary. It was the beginning of the Second World War and her family needed to escape fast. She quickly packed a suitcase with a few pieces of clothing, her diary, and her most prized possession — a beautiful silk scarf. Lena and her best friend, Monika, had persuaded their parents to buy them matching scarves, which they each wore tied around their neck as a symbol of their friendship. Lena had no idea that when she left for America that night, she would never return. Her family settled on the sunny west coast in California.
Lena kept that special silk scarf for many years. One day she decided to give it to her granddaughter, Eliza, to wear to her first job interview for good luck. Lena was afraid that Eliza would lose the scarf, but her granddaughter reassured her, “Don’t worry, Grandma, nothing’s going to happen to your scarf. You’ll see. It is going to bring both of us luck today.” With that, Eliza kissed her grandmother on the cheek and left.
That afternoon, Eliza left the interview feeling confident that she had got the job. She decided to celebrate by going to a restaurant. As she sat at her table, she felt someone staring at her. Sitting next to her was an elderly woman who could not take her eyes off her. “I’m sorry. Do I know you?” Eliza asked.
“I’m sorry, dear, but you remind me of someone I once knew,” the old woman replied in an accented voice. “My best friend looked like you and used to wear a scarf just like the one you’re wearing around your neck.” Eliza felt goose bumps go up her arms. She had heard stories of her grandmother’s best friend and knew the significance of the scarf. Could this be Monika, her grandmother’s childhood friend?
Which of the following is the correct order of the story?
a. Eliza wore the silk scarf to the interview. b. Lena’s parents bought her a silk scarf.
c. Eliza went to a restaurant for celebration. d. Lena met her childhood friend.
e. Lena fled her home in hurry. f. Eliza unexpectedly met Monika.
| A．b-e-a-c-f-d | B．e-b-a-f-c-d | C．e-d-b-a-c-f | D．b-e-a-f-c-d |
