The day was warm and the sun shone down like a new beginning on my life. I was waving goodbye to my son, the last one of my fledglings （刚会飞的鸟）to leave home and go to new woods, "University actually" . I felt so lighthearted after spending many years looking after my four children—cooking, washing, ironing, teaching them how to look after themselves and manage their finances—that I actually thought “At long last, freedom".
But, as I watched my last one leave, although it was a joyous occasion, I realized I had not really prepared for this day, I was too tied up with bringing up these adults of the future to realize that they would all leave the nest and lives independently.
At first I didn't know what "I" wanted to do. I tried a part time job, which ended in me running out in tears. I started a business making soft furnishings, but that didn't work either. I grew my own veggies and fruit, which lasted 3 years, until I was advised by my doctor that my feet couldn't take any more "tools” driven through them.
I began wondering if I had a future of my own. I cried for the life I was used to, and hadn't known or wanted anything different.
Then one day I saw an ad. for foster parents, I discussed it with my husband who was always behind everything I tried and with great disturbance , I rang up the number.
I now laugh and sing with my 14-year-old foster daughter, even when my cooker is a mess and my bathroom is a disaster area. I now know, 8 years later, what “I” was meant to be doing with all the spare hours, days, and weeks I had on my hands when my last fledgling flew the nest. The sun shines once again in my home.How did the mother first feel when her last child went off to university?
| A．Lonely. | B．Anxious. | C．Relieved. | D．Annoyed. |
The underlined phrase “was tied up with” in the second paragraph means “ ”.
| A．was occupied in | B．was associated with |
| C．was tired of | D．was addicted to |
In the third paragraph, the poor mother did all the things just to .
| A．live a greener and healthier life |
| B．earn more money for her kids’ education |
| C．shift her attention and ease her anxiety |
| D．start her own decorating business |
What did the empty-nested mother think of her husband?
| A．Skilled | B．Supportive | C．Stubborn | D．Open-minded |
Thanks to the foster daughter, the author .
| A．got rid of her busy work |
| B．forgot her other children |
| C．found a suitable job |
| D．knew what she really wanted |
Fifty years ago not many people would have something repaired by themselves. In those days labour was fairly cheap and most people would have thought it worthwhile to have somebody repair their things unless they were very poor. Today, however, it is quite a different story. Men and women in all walks of life turn their hands to all kinds of jobs round the house. Some people have even successfully built their own houses. These jobs have been made easier today by using prepared materials.
In every high street throughout Britain nowadays there is at least one “DIY” shop. And “Do-it-yourself” is a booming business. A lot of people visit these shops every day because of the high cost of the present-day labour. Fifty years ago if people needed some repairs, they would .
| A．try to mend them by themselves |
| B．throw them away |
| C．repair them in their homes |
| D．have somebody repair them unless they were poor |
Many jobs have been made easier today because .
| A．some people have successfully built their own houses |
| B．men and women turn their hands to all kinds of jobs |
| C．they can be done by using prepared materials |
| D．a lot of people are very hard up for money |
From the passage we know that
| A．there are many “DIY” shops in Britain |
| B．not every high street in Britain has one “DIY” shop |
| C．people can do nothing without using prepared materials |
| D．"Do-it-yourself" is a lazy business in cities |
Why do a lot of people visit “DIY” shops every day?
| A．Because people are used to doing things at home. |
| B．Because the present-day labour is no longer cheap. |
| C．Because they are interested in shopping. |
| D．Because they enjoy the high cost of present-day labour. |
Tim Richter and his wife, Linda, had taught for over 30 years near Buffalo, New York — he in computers, she in special education. "Teaching means everything to us," Tim would say. In April 1998, he learned he would need a heart operation. It was the kind of news that leads to some serious thinking about life's purpose.
Not long after the surgery, Tim saw a brochure describing imagination Library, a program started by Dolly Parton's foundation (基金会) that mailed a book every month to children from birth to age five in the singer's hometown, Tennessee." I think, maybe Linda and I can do something like this when we retire," Tim recalled. He placed the brochure on his desk, "as a reminder".
Five years later, now retired and with that brochure still on the desk, Tim clicked on www.imaginationlibrary.com. The program had been opened up to partners who could take advantage of books and postage discounts.
The quality of the books was of great concern to the Richters. Rather than sign up online, they went to Dollywood for a look-see. "We don't want to give the children rubbish, "said Linda. The books — reviewed each year by teachers, literacy specialists, and Dollywood board members - included classics such as Ezra Jack Keats's The Snowy Day and newer books like Anna Dewdney's Llama Llama series.
Satisfied, the couple set up the Richter Family Foundation and got to work. Since 2004, they have shipped more than 12,200 books to preschoolers in their area. Megan Williams, a mother of four, is more than appreciative: "This program introduces us to books I've never heard of."
The Richters spend about $400 a month sending books t0 200 children. "Some people sit there and wait to die, "said Tim. "Others get as busy as they can in the time they have left."What led Tim to think seriously about the meaning of life?
| A．His health problem. |
| B．His love for teaching. |
| C．The influence of his wife. |
| D．The news from the web. |
What did Tim want to do after learning about Imagination Library?
| A．Give out brochures. |
| B．Mailing books to children. |
| C．Write books to children. |
| D．Retire from being a teacher. |
According to the text, Dolly Parton is____.
| A．a well-known surgeon |
| B．a mother of a child |
| C．a singer born in Tennessee |
| D．a computer programmer |
Why did the Richters go to Dollywood?
| A．To avoid signing up online. |
| B．To meet Dollywood board members. |
| C．To make sure the books were the newest. |
| D．To see if the, books were of good quality. |
The news report that night was about a famine(饥荒) in Ethiopia. The pictures were of people who were so thin that they looked like beings from another planet. The camera(摄像机) focused(聚焦 ) on one man so that he looked directly at me, sitting in my comfortable living room. All around was the sound of death.
It was clear that the world had not noticed this until now. You could hear the sadness in the voice of the reporter, Michael Buerk. At the end of the report he was silent. Paula started crying, and then rushed upstairs to check our baby, Fifi, who was sleeping peacefully.
I kept the news' pictures in my mind. What could I do? I was only a pop singer and by now not a very successful pop singer. All I could do was to make records which no one bought. But I would do that. I
would give all the profits(利润) of the next Rats(the name of the music group he was in) record to Oxfam, an organization in Britain which helps poor people around the world. What good would that do? It would only be a little money but it was more than I could give just from my bank account. Maybe some people would buy it because the profits were for Oxfam. And I would be protesting about this disaster(灾难). But that was not enough. What do we Learn about the writer from the text?
| A．He felt really bad because the news report made him think of his own hard life. |
| B．After he saw a news report on TV about the famine in Ethiopia, he decided that he had to do something about the problem. |
| C．His ideas on how to collect money for the people in Ethiopia were very successful. |
| D．He wanted to do nothing but be a famous singer. |
Which paragraph describes(描写) what he thought about after watching the news?
| A．Paragraph l. |
| B．Paragraph 2. |
| C．Paragraph 3. |
| D．None. |
The writer wished that ____ .
| A．he would be a very successful pop singer if he could have sold all his records |
| B．he would rather give all his money from his bank account than the little money made by making new records |
| C．perhaps people would be interested in his records because they knew that the money they paid for them would go to Oxfam. |
| D．he would make records which no one bought |
Do American children still learn handwriting in school? In the age of the keyboard, some people seem to think handwriting lessons are on the way out. 90% of teachers say they are required to teach handwriting. But studies have yet to answer the question of how well they are teaching it. One study published this year found that about three out of every four teachers say they are not prepared to teach handwriting. Some teachers are teaching handwriting by providing instruction for 10 to 15 minutes a day, and then other teachers who basically teach it for 60 to 70 minutes a day—which really for handwriting is pretty much.
Many adults remember learning that way—by copying letters over and over again. Today’s thinking is that short periods of practice are better. Many experts also think handwriting should not be taught by itself. Instead, they say it should be used as a way to get students to express ideas. After all, that is why we write.
Handwriting involves two skills. One is legibility, which means forming the letters so they can be read. The other is fluency—writing without having to think about it. Fluency continues to develop up until high school.
But not everyone masters these skills. Teachers commonly report that about one fourth of their kids have poor handwriting. Some people might think handwriting is not important any more because of computers and voice recognition programs.
But Steve Graham at Vanderbilt says word processing is rarely done in elementary school, especially in the early years. American children traditionally first learn to print, and then to write in cursive, which connects the letters. But guess what we learned from a spokeswoman for the College Board, which administers the SAT college admission test. More than 75 percent of students choose to print their essay on the test rather than write in cursive.Which of the following is WRONG for traditional handwriting in the USA?
| A．The students are taught by practicing a long period. |
| B．The letters are repeated many times. |
| C．Handwriting includes two skills. |
| D．To write in cursive is taught first. |
The underlined word “legibility” in Paragraph 3 means _____.
| A．easy to read |
| B．complex |
| C．unexpected |
| D．unreadable |
The best title for the passage is _____.
| A．How to improve handwriting in school |
| B．Right or wrong: the death of handwriting |
| C．Handwriting involves two skills |
| D．Handwriting lessons are on the way out |
The author’s attitude towards whether still to learn handwriting in school is _____.
| A．negative |
| B．objective |
| C．critical |
| D．optimistic |
If you’re wondering what the top things people do on their Hawaii vacations (besides enjoy the magnificent Hawaii beaches), look on further.
Whether you’re here to see an incredible Hawaii volcano or you want to laze on a beach at a top resort in Kona, Hawaii, knowing ahead of time what you want to do will help you make the most of your trip to Hawaii.
Volcanoes National Park
Most visitors to Hawaii want to see lava from an active Hawaii volcano, and the big island does not disappoint when it comes to this. Spread out over 333,000 acres, the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park takes up a large portion on the southern part of the Big Island. Mauna Loa, rising at 13,667 feet, is easily the largest dormant volcano in the world. Kilauea volcano is where you can see the lava floes(熔岩块) and terrible volcanic landscapes. You can spend days hiking and camping in the Hawaii volcano park, since over half of it is set aside as wilderness.
Kona Coast
The Kona Coast, on the west side of the Big Island, is home to the top resorts on the Big Island and the popular Kona vacation rentals. The Kona area enjoys great weather all year round, in addition to other activities like deep-sea fishing and snorkeling(潜水), making it a popular place for Hawaii beaches. You can also take a tour of the coffee farms that produce the world famous Kona coffee, which is organic and all natural. Kona vacation rentals are popular because many of these look out over the Pacific Ocean, and are close to excellent beaches. Whether you Hawaii vacation includes Hawaii beaches, staying at a resort or booking one of the Kona vacation rentals, this area is one of the best of all islands to stay.
Iao Valley
Iao Valley beauty has inspired Hawaiians to gather here to honour the agriculture god, Lono, during an annual festival called the Makahiki Festival. For over a hundred years visitors have been coming to the valley to enjoy the scenic beauty of this lush(青葱的) valley. There are trails in the park, so you can see the best scenery of the cloud-covered valley. These clouds have a lot to do with the shape of the valley, since these feed the streams that carved the shape of the Iao Valley.The best title for this passage is _____.
| A．Things to do in Hawaii |
| B．Rich tourism resources in Hawaii |
| C．Hawaii’s charming beauty |
| D．Wondering in Hawaii |
This passage is meant for _____.
American students
potential travelers
local residents
geographerWe can guess the meaning of “organic” is _____.
| A．man-made |
| B．green |
| C．chemical |
| D．animal |
We can read this passage from _____ in a newspaper.
| A．a tour edition |
| B．a sport edition |
| C．a social life edition |
| D．a science and technology edition |
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