Family traditions were important in our house, and none was more appreciated than the perfect Christmas tree.
“Dad, can we watch when you trim(修剪) the tree?” My eldest son, Dan, nine, and his seven-year-old brother John, asked.
“I won’t be cutting this year,” my husband Bob said. “Dan, you and John are old enough to measure things. Do it all by yourselves. Think you boys can handle it?”
Dan and John seemed to grow six inches in their chairs at the thought of such an amazing responsibility. “We can handle it,” Dan promised. “We won’t let you down.”
A few days before Christmas, Dan and John rushed in after school. They gathered the tools they’d need and brought them out to the yard, where the tree waited. I was cooking when I heard the happy sounds as the boys carried the tree into the living room. Then I heard the sound that every mother knows is trouble: dead silence. I hurried out to them. The tree was cut too short. John crossed his arms tight across his chest. His eyes filled with angry tears.
I felt worried. The tree was central to our holiday. I didn’t want the boys to feel ashamed every time they looked at it. I couldn’t lower the ceiling, and I couldn’t raise the floor either. There was no way to undo the damage done. Suddenly, a thought came to my mind, which turned the problem into the solution.
“We can’t make the tree taller,” I said. “But we can put it on a higher position.”
Dan nodded his head sideways. “We could put it on the coffee table. It just might work! Let’s try it!”
When Bob got home and looked at the big tree on top of the coffee table, Dan and John held their breath.
“What a good idea!” he declared. “Why didn’t I ever think of such a thing?”
John broke into a grin. Dan’s chest swelled with pride.
1.The underlined part “grow six inches” (Para. 4) implies the brothers felt .
A. proud B. nervous C. embarrassed D. Scared
2.What happened after the brothers moved the Christmas tree into the living room?
A. They rushed to school.
B. They began to decorate the tree.
C. They got angry with each other.
D. They found the tree was cut short.
3.How could the short tree be turned into a perfect one?
A. By making the tree taller.
B. By lowering the ceiling.
C. By placing it on a coffee table.
D. By raising the floor.
4.What Bob said in the last but one paragraph showed .
A. he was a little disappointed
B. he was too stupid to think of the idea
C. he appreciated what the brothers had done
D. he should not have given them the task
Laziness is a state of inaction. It is something that you do, not something that you are. Being lazy means you have no to do anything. This is obvious but the mistake that many people make is themselves as someone who is lazy.
Lazy people are often seen as useless. , are they really being lazy or are they acting lazy? There is a huge difference between saying you are lazy sometimes and you are a lazy person. One is suggesting that your laziness is while the other suggests that it’s permanent. This is the myth of laziness. People who are lazy aren’t lazy; they are people who are temporarily acting that way.
So what causes a person to be inactive? The answer is a lack of goals. If you give someone a good enough to do something, he will do it. People who don’t seem to do anything just haven’t found a good enough reason to do something. Lazy students don’t study because they don’t see the in studying. For example, if you are too lazy to clean out the garage, would someone a gun to your head help you take action? The reason can be positive or negative it’s strong enough to induce(引起) action.
To motivate someone who is lazy, what you need to do is to help him find enough to work towards a certain goal.
1.A. motivation B. question C. promotion D. courage
2.A. agreeing B. denying C. identifying D. refusing
3.A. Otherwise B. Besides C. However D. Therefore
4.A. correct B. false C. temporary D. inspirational
5.A. simply B. occasionally C. often D. hardly
6.A. excuse B. gift C. chance D. purpose
7.A. point B. success C. situation D. difficulty
8.A. dropping B. pointing C. shooting D. hiding
9.A. as long as B. as soon as C. so that D. in case
10.A. reasons B. money C. energy D. Confidence
“It is never too late and you are never too old to start something new!” says Englishtown Ellen Rema. Ellen began to learn English at the age of 50, and in just a few years, she has made progress!
Ellen chose to study at Englishtown because no evening classes were in the German countryside where she lives. At Englishtown, she joins classes online and speaks with live native English-speaking teacher.
In 2010, Ellen began with the first level of Englishtown and quickly . “I spent hours and hours studying,” she said “Maybe I wanted too much in a short time. I finished all my after 2 years and studying English isn’t all about hard work. It should also be ! I really like the online conversation classrooms, in which I can learn so much about other cultures and traditions. I am open for all .”
Ellen has been able to her English to use by visiting England five times! “I am very thankful to Englishtown because most of the English I know now was learned here,” Ellen says. “My life has with Englishtown.”
1.A. professor B. friend C.student D.reporter
2.A. amazing B. challenging C. discouraging D. disturbing
3.A. satisfied B. offered C. attended D. represented
4.A. conversation B. composition C. listening D. reading
5.A. dropped B. brushed C. awarded D. progressed
6.A. channels B. schedules C. courses D. papers
7.A. fun B. waster C. weakness D. wonder
8.A. measures B. topics C. timetables D. fashions
9.A. take B. set C. make D. put
10.A. ruined B. started C. changed D. Turned
---Nowadays children are bearing too heavy a learning burden.
---______. So much homework do they have to do that they almost have no time for other activities.
A. So what? B. It cannot be better
C. Good idea D. I cannot agree more
______ that many south-east Asian countries suffered a lot.
A. So strong the Super Typhoon Haiyan became
B. So the Super Typhoon Haiyan became strong
C. Strong became so the Super Typhoon Haiyan
D. So strong did the Super Typhoon Haiyan become
A gift made by one’s own hands is better than ______ bought in a shop.
A. it B. that C. one D. the one
