Computer programmer David Jones earns $35.000 a year designing new computer games. yet he cannot find a bank ready to let him have a credit card（信用卡）Instead he has been told to wait another two years until he is 18. The 16-year-old works for a small firm in Liverpool where the problem of most young people of his age is finding a job David’s firm releases（推出）two new games for the fast growing computer market each month
But David’s biggest headache is what to do with his money. Even though he earns a lot he cannot drive a car take out a mortgage（抵押贷款）,or get credit cards David got his job with the Liverpool-based company four months ago ,a year after leaving school with six O-levels and working for a time in a computer shop. “I got the job because the people who run the firm knew I had already written some programs” he said David spends some of his money on records and clothes and gives his mother 50 pounds a week But most of his spare time is spent working.
“Unfortunately, computing was not part of our studies at school “ he said “But I had been studying it in books and magazines for four years in my spare time I knew what I wanted to do and never considered staying on at school Most people in this business are fairly young, anyway” David added :”I would like to earn a million and I suppose early retirement（退休）is a possibility You never know when the market might disappear.”In what way is David different from people of his age?
| A．He often goes out with friends |
| B．He lives with his mother |
| C．He has a handsome income |
| D．He graduated with six O-levels |
What is one of the problems that David is facing now?
| A．He is too young to get a credit card |
| B．He has no time to learn driving |
| C．He has very little spare time |
| D．He will soon lose his job |
Why was David able to get the job in the company?
| A．He had done well in all his exams |
| B．He had written some computer programs |
| C．He was good at playing computer games |
| D．He had learnt to use computers at school |
Why did David decide to leave school and start working?
| A．He received lots of job offers |
| B．He was eager to help his mother |
| C．He lost interest in school studies |
| D．He wanted to earn his own living |
Say you're in the wine store and you want to buy something new. You have nothing to go by outside of the label. Will the label tell you anything you should know? Here's some general advice:
Vintage. This is the first thing we look for ourselves. You don't need to care whether 2001 or 2002 was a better year in the Sierra Foothills. The vast majority of wines at the store are meant to be drunk right away, so you make sure the wine isn't too old, particularly if you're buying it expecting lively, fresh fruitiness. We often see five-year-old Pinot Grigio and two-year-old Beaujolais Nouveau at stores, for example, so as soon as we see that kind of age on wines like those, we know we can skip them and move on(and possibly not shop there again).
Alcohol content. Too many wines have too much alcohol, which leaves them unbalanced. Sure, there are some classic wines with high alcohol levels, but many of today's regular table wines--Merlot, Chardonnay--have levels at 15% or above. Some of those might be terrific, but if we had nothing else to go on, we'd look for alcohol content at about 14% and below.
The more specific the better. A wine that says it's from Napa is probably a better bet than a wine that simply says it's from California. Unfortunately, this will also probably be reflected in the price, so this might not tell you much about value, If you care enough to know a few of famous vineyards for producing high-quality grapes, they might help you make an educated guess about quality.
Old vines. Theoretically, older vines produce fewer, but more flavorful grapes, but the problem is that no one has defined what an "old vine" is, so anyone can put this on the label. Just ignore it.
A phone number. You'd be surprised many small-production wines these days include a phone number on the back and an invitation to call the winerY, which is a sign of a highly personal winerY. We have called those numbers many times over the years and it's amazing how often the winemaker or winerY owner answers the phone. The underlined word "Vintage" in the second paragraph probably means "________ " .
| A．the place where the wine was made | B．the year when the wine was made |
| C．the freshness of the wine | D．the label of the wine |
It's better to buy
| A．five-year-old Pinot Grigio | B．the wine labeled from older vines |
| C．the wine from famous vineyards | D．two-year-old Beaujolais Nouveau |
From the passage we Can infer that
| A．the wine with high alcohol levels is definitely terrific |
| B．most wines at the store are intended to be drunk right away |
| C．older vines have lower production |
| D．some winemakers keep the promise all the time |
What is paragraph 4 mainly about?
| A．Geography. | B．Price | C．Quality. | D．Grapes. |
I was standing in the kitchen helping with dinner, asking my mom about my brother's doctor ' s appointment. They were testing him for autism(自闭症 ) . My brother, Captain, four years old at the time, had always been my best friend. We would wrestle, play games and have the best of times together, even though we were far apart in age. My mom told me about the appointment, but ,when she got to the point about the test, she stopped. I turned around and she had tears in her eyes. I stared at her, wishing she would say something , when I realized what that silence meant. My eyes got blurry (模糊的 ) and my breathing got very ragged. " The test was positive , sweetheart , " she said. I broke down, crying.
My mom was trying to cool me down, saying that Captain couldn't see me like this and I had to be a big girl , when the front door opened, and Captain, our three-year-old sister Cali, and my father came in. I walked out of the kitchen. I couldn't look at him. Everything had just changed. He was no longer that little baby brother who was just a normal little boy.
We had to move a while later because Captain needed treatment. One day ,I was standing in the bus line waiting when the " short bus" came and picked some kids up. The children in the other line started making jokes about the " retards(智力迟钝者) " on that bus and I felt a strange feeling in my stomach, ,which I had never felt before.
During a band class, my teacher, Mrs. Young, stopped our playing to give us some feed- back. " Guys ,we ' re playing like the kids on the short bus ! Come on!" I felt that same feeling I had in the bus line. The entire room was laughing when I raised my hand. " Yes , Alexis?" Mrs. Young asked. "I don't think we should make fun of the short bus, because there are a lot of people on that bus who have great personalities and have the same feelings as we do. And also ,I know some people on those buses and they are some of the most caring, sweetest, and smartest people , so I would appreciate it if you didn't make fun of them. "
Everyone stared at me. Mrs. Young apologized for the comment and then started the song again. What did Alexis think her mother' s silence mean in Paragraph One?
| A．There was no chance for Alexis to play games with Captain. |
| B．Captain was likely to miss the appointment. |
| C．Captain really suffered from autism. |
| D．Alexis had to prepare dinner quickly. |
Why did Alexis go out of the kitchen?
| A．Because she didn't want to help with dinner. |
| B．Because she would be much sadder looking at Captain. |
| C．Because she wanted to play with Captain outside. |
| D．Because she wasn't willing to meet a sick brother. |
What Alexis said to her teacher can be seen as a kind of .
| A．threat | B．approval | C．apology | D．condemnation |
Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?
| A．Speaking up. | B．Giving up. | C．Looking .up. | D．Taking up. |
A decades-old tradition, illustrated in a modem children's book, links the sweetness of honey with the joy of learning to read.
The grandpa held a jar of honey so that all the family could see. He then dipped a spoon into it and put some honey on the cover of a small book.
The little girl had just turned five. Stand up, little one, "he asked the girl softly. "I did this for your mother, your uncles, your
old brother, and now you ! "
Then, he handed the book to her. "Taste f "
She touched the honey with her finger and put it into her mouth.
" What is the taste?" the grandpa asked.
The little girl answered, " Sweet ! "
Then all. the family said in a single voice, "Yes, and so is knowledge, but knowledge is from the bee that made that sweet honey, you have to go after it through the pages of a book ! " The little girl knew that the promise to read was at last hers. Soon she was going to learn to read.
This is the beginning of a profoundly moving children's book entitled Thank You, Mr. Falker.
In this book, Patricia Polacco writes of her own passion to read, inspired by the honey on the book. It wasn't until fifth grade that she met her beloved teacher who provided the help that she needed to finally unlock the magic of the written world.
The child learning to read is admitted into a collective memory by way of books. And with the printed words that are active with. meaning, the child bees acquainted(熟悉的) with a common past which he or she renews, to a greater or lesser degree, in every reading. Much as the author of the book Thank You, Mr. Falker puts it, " Almost as if it were magic, or as if light poured into her brain, the words and sentences started to take shape on the page as they never had before-And she understood the whole thing---Then she went into the living room and found the book on a shelf, the very book that her grandpa had shown her so many years ago. She spooned honey on the cover and tasted the sweetness---Then she held the book, honey and all, close to her chest. She could feel tears roll down her cheeks, but they weren't tears of sadness- she way happy, so very happy. "The girl who tasted the honey on the book was ______.
| A． nearly six years old | B．less than five years old |
| C．a little more than five years old | D．more than six years old |
It can be inferred from this passage that_______.
| A．the girl's mother and uncles were good scholars |
| B．Mr. Falker helped Patricia Polacco write her book for children. |
| C．the girl who tasted the honey on the book grew into an artist |
| D．the honey-on- book tradition has been practiced for many generations |
The book entitled Thank You, Mr. Falker is about
| A．the early life of Mr. Falker |
| B．the magic power of oral words on children |
| C．Polacco's early experience with reading |
| D．how the honey on the book makes children feel happy |
The last paragraph implies that the happiness of the little girl came from _______.
| A．the ability to read books |
| B．the honey she tasted |
| C．the book her grandpa had shown her |
| D．the collective memory that accepted her |
Dear Mom, Clear My Calendar
September is around the corner, and some of us are already complaining about summer’s end. But parents have a special reason to do so. The end of summer means the start of school. And these days, planning a young child’s schedule is a big challenge. The challenge is no longer finding activities to fill a child’s day; it is saying no to the hundreds of options available. Our mailbox is filled with brochures urging us to sign our kids up for classes from cooking to martial arts(武术).
Educators are themselves discouraged by the number of special classes that many children attend. In the name of “enrichment,” three-year-olds not only go to preschool in the morning but study French or gymnastics after lunch. One teacher tells of a four-year-old asking for help in the toilet before hurrying off to tennis. Another teacher says that children sometimes hold on to her at pickup time. What happened to unstructured time?
A generous explanation is that we enjoy giving children opportunities we never had. The truth however is that many parents have doubts about how much time they spend away from their families. And one way to reduce this guilt is to believe that time spent in these classes is somehow more beneficial to children than the time we know we should be giving them ourselves.
David Elkind, an expert on children, suggests that the 1960s gave birth to the belief that earlier is better. Parents hope that early music lessons, for example will build a child’s confidence. The truth, however, is that any time children are asked to do too much, too soon, they are at greater risk for feelings of failure.
A child’s time does not have to be planned to be meaningful. Remember the lazy days of summer? Some children sleep late and play with the kids across the street until it’s time to come home for dinner. However, with the majority of mothers working, fewer children enjoy that idle (空闲的) time now.
Come September, children across the country will finish a full day of kindergarten, only to attend an after-school program until 6 P.M., when a working mom or dad comes to take them home. That’s too much for a five-year old. Finances, of course, do limit some parents. But let’s be honest with ourselves – our own busy schedules, whatever they involve, are no excuse for burdening a young child’s. The author holds that it’s a challenge to plan a schedule for a child mainly because _____.
| A．a child’s schedule is too complex |
| B．activities suitable for kids are limited |
| C．parents are stuck in numerous choices |
| D．children always say no to parents’ advice |
What the two teachers say in Paragraph 2 implies that _____.
| A．children love to stay at school |
| B．they are popular with children |
| C．children dislike after-school classes |
| D．after-school classes are of poor quality |
According to the author, what is the real reason for parents to send their children to after-school classes?
| A．Parents want to make up for their own regrets. |
| B．After-school classes develop children’s potential. |
| C．Parents have doubt about their own ability to guide children. |
| D．After-school classes give parents an excuse for being absent. |
Which of the following will the author probably agree with?
| A．For children’s benefits, the earlier the better. |
| B．Children’s spare time should be carefully designed. |
| C．Idle time for children is becoming a thing of the past. |
| D．Parents should be forgiven if they have a good reason., |
We’re always looking for well-written reviews of books, music, movies, television shows, websites, video games and other products. When writing a review, concentrate on exactly what you liked or didn’t like. Give examples of strengths and weaknesses, be descriptive and provide background information on an author, director, actor or musician, if possible. Find professional reviews in magazines or newspapers and see how reviewers deal with their topic, but be sure to express your own voice in your review.
Grammar Hint for Reviews: When describing a book, movie, album or anything else, use the present tense.
Book Reviews
Discuss an author’s technique, strengths and weaknesses instead of focusing on the plot. Does the story flow? Is there a strong sense of character and place? Did you stay up until dawn to finish it? Is it good reading for teenagers? What influence did it have on you and why? If you’ve read other books by the same author, discuss how this book compares.
Movie Reviews
Think of the major Oscar categories and consider the performances, music, lighting and setting, etc. Do these work together? Did some hold up while others didn’t? If the movie is based on a book, discuss whether one is better than the other and why. If the movie is a remake, compare the film to its original.
Remember that a well-written movie review should discuss strengths and weaknesses. Some readers may not have seen a movie yet, so don’t give away an exciting scene or the ending!
College Reviews
Begin by providing an overview of the college, including location, size and a description of the campus and/or dorm life. Think about all aspects of your college visit. What academic, athletic and after-class programs are available? What are the students like? What makes the college different from others? Every school has strengths and weaknesses. Be objective. Consider what the school has to offer and who might enjoy or benefit the most from attending there. When writing a review, you ________.
cannot refer to any previous review
must express your own views and opinions
must provide some information about the author
needn’t give any examples to support your viewsWhich aspects should be included in all three reviews?
| A．Strengths and weaknesses. | B．Plot and character. |
| C．Programs and scenes. | D．Location and description. |
Where can you probably find the passage?
| A．In a personal diary. |
| B．In an official report. |
| C．In a tourist guidebook. |
| D．In a popular magazine. |
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