My best friend, Marcie, is an amazing person who I treasure. From the first day we met we have been the best friends. It all _______ when I was sitting alone at a _______job where I didn't know anyone—it was noon and she asked if I wanted to have _______ with her. That was in September of 2009.
Marcie is _______ with kindness and _______ someone with it every day. She often helps others and has never let me _______ any difficulties alone, from common childhood illnesses of my children to financial difficulties which we often have. She has helped me and my family through the recent _______ of my father, including helping me to find and _______ his urn(骨灰盒).
Marcie has _______ asked us to repay her, although we ________ to do it when we can. She never has made us ________she was giving us pity, only love.
Recently I celebrated my 37th birthday and, as usual, she made it ________. She gave me an ornament(装饰品) to hang on our ________ this Christmas. It says “Merry Christmas from heaven” with my dad’s ________ on the back. She knew, although I didn’t tell her, that the holidays were so ________ for our family. That gift was just what I needed to ________me that my dad was ________ around us, just in another way, and that the kids need to ________ this Christmas as much as ever. I hope that everyone has a ________ like mine—you can know that a friend like Marcie will always make you smile ________you do.
1.A. ended B. began C. stayed D. continued
2.A. good B. daily C. new D. difficult
3.A. food B. lunch C. supper D. drinks
4.A. satisfied B. compared C. covered D. filled
5.A. touches B. carries C. offers D. introduces
6.A. move B. keep C. face D. send
7.A. illness B. trouble C. work D. death
8.A. pay for B. pay back C. put back D. take care of
9.A. also B. almost C. sometimes D. never
10.A. manage B. refuse C. try D. stop
11.A. feel like B. feel free C. look like D. feel sure
12.A. expensive B. special C. funny D. popular
13.A. roof B. ear C. house D. tree
14.A. record B. name C. address D. voice
15.A. great B. wonderful C. hard D. successful
16.A. teach B. encourage C. warn D. remind
17.A. even B. therefore C. still D. often
18.A. enjoy B. remember C. change D. prepare
19.A. friend B. job C. family D. father
20.A. though B. if C. unless D. while
How to become a better reader
Language and literacy(读写能力) are among humans’ greatest inventions. Evolving（演变） over the course of human history, languages are a reflection of our cultural and societal attitudes. Today, surrounded（包围） by social media, television, movies, and, of course, books, the ability to read and write is important to expressing one’s feelings. Most humans acquire language in early childhood and speak fluently when they are about three years old, but our continued relationship with language gives shape and meaning to our lives. 1.
(1) Take it slow. Many readers feel that they read too slowly, especially compared with others. 2. The best readers are flexible（灵活的） — slowing down when needed — and always have a dictionary at hand.
(2) Read aloud. When humans first began reading written words, it was unusual to read in silence. 3. Try listening to the author reading their own work — you’ll be surprised to find how clearly it comes through on the page.
(3) Write. Writing and reading go hand-in-hand: how and what you read affects how and what you write, and the best readers often make the best writers. But while much can be learned from close, repeated readings, there are many pleasures to language that can only be experienced through the practice of writing. 4.
(4) Tell your friends. All of the literature is essentially communication from an individual’s inner voice to an audience. 5. It’s a good way to see the world from someone else’s eyes and, in the process, carefully examine your own reaction to what you’re reading.
A. But the truth is that the faster you read, the less likely you are to understand fully what you’re reading.
B. Can you remember the first piece of writing that transported you to another world?
C. There is something magical about sharing books with friends or a book club.
D. Try writing every day for a month, and you will never read the same again.
E. Reading out loud is one of the best ways to improve your reading ability.
F. Here are 4 ways to become a better reader.
G. In no time, you’ll be appreciating novels like fine wine.
One day, when I was working as a psychologist(心理学家) in England，a boy showed up in my office. It was David. He kept walking up and down restlessly, his face pale, and his hands shaking slightly. His head teacher had referred him to me. “This boy has lost his family,” he wrote. “He is understandably very sad and refuses to talk to others, and I'm
very worried about him. Can you help?”
I looked at David and showed him to a chair. How could I help him? There are problems psychology doesn’t have the answer to, and which no words can describe. Sometimes the best thing one can do is to listen openly and sympathetically.
The first two times we met, David didn't say a word. He sat there, only looking up to look at the children's drawings on the wall behind me. I suggested we play a game of chess. He nodded. After that he played chess with me every Wednesday afternoon -- in complete silence and without looking at me. It's not easy to cheat in chess, but I admit I made sure David won once or twice.
Usually, he arrived earlier than agreed, took the chess board and pieces from the shelf and began setting them up before I even got a chance to sit down. It seemed as if he enjoyed my company. But why did he never look at me?
"Perhaps he simply needs someone to share his pain with," I thought. "Perhaps he senses that I respect his suffering.” Some months later, when we were playing chess, he looked up at me suddenly.
"It’s your turn," he said.
After that day, David started talking. He got friends in school and joined a bicycle club. He wrote to me a few times about his biking with some friends, and about his plan to get into university. Now he had really started to live his own life.
Maybe I gave David something. But I also learned that one -- without any words -- can reach out to another person. All it takes is a hug, a shoulder to cry on, a friendly touch, and an ear that listens.Ziyuanku.com
1.When he first met the author, David _________ .
A. felt a little excited B. walked energetically
C. looked a little nervous D. showed up with his teacher
2.Which statement about the passage is NOT TRUE?.
A. David enjoyed being with the author.
B. What David really needs is to play chess with someone.
C. David didn't say a word the first two times they met.
D. The author knows how to treat David's problem.
3.What can be inferred about David?
A. He recovered after months of treatment.
B. He liked biking before he lost his family.
C. He went into university soon after starting to talk.
D. He got friends in school before he met the author.
4.What made David change?
A. His teacher’s help.
B. The author’s friendship.
C. His exchange of letters with the author.
D. The author’s silent communication and company with him.
Johnny Smith was a good math student at a high school. He loved his computer. He came home early every day, then he worked with it till midnight. But Johnny was not a good English student, not good at all. He got an F in his English class. One day after school Johnny joined his computer to the computer in his high school office. The school office computer had the grades of all the students: the math grades, the science grades, the grades in arts and music, and the grades in English. He found his English grade. An F! Johnny changed his English grade from an F to A. Johnny' parents looked at his report card. They were very happy.
"An A in English!" said Johnny's Dad. "You're a very clever boy, Johnny."
Johnny is a hacker. Hackers know how to take information from other computers and put new information in. Using a modem, they join their computers to other computers secretly. School headmasters and teachers are worried about hackers. So are the police, for some people even take money from bank computer account and put it into their own ones. And they never have to leave home to do it! They are called hackers.
1.Johnny changed his English grade with the computer in _______.
A. the classroom B. his own house
C. a bank near his house D. the school office
2.When Johnny's parents saw the report, they were delighted because _______.
A. They thought Johnny was not poor in English any longer
B. Johnny loved computers
C. Johnny could join one computer to another
D. Johnny was a good English student all the time.
3.The last paragraph is about _______.
A. Johnny B. hackers
C. computers D. Modem
Do you know Madonna? She is a music superstar in the USA. She has made another children’s book. Its name is Lotsa De Casha (《快乐的真谛》). There are some beautiful pictures in her book. They were drawn by an artist from Spain.
Madonna has written four other children’s books. The books are all popular with children.
In Lotsa De Casha, Madonna tells a story of a man. He is very rich but he is not happy. He loses his money but finds a friend. At the end of the book, Madonna says, “Money can’t buy happiness. When you learn to share, you will find it.” That is an important lesson from the 46-year-old woman. She is not only a pop star but also a mother. She has lovely children and she loves them a lot. Her family makes her happy. That is why she likes to write children’s books.
1.Madonna has written children’s books so far.
A. six B. four
C. five D. three
2.According to the passage, which is the best way for us to find happiness?
A. Becoming a superstar. B. Making a lot of money.
C. Writing a book. D. Sharing something with each other.
3.Madonna likes writing children’s books because .
A. her family makes her happy B. she wants more money
C. she is good at writing D. she is a pop star
4.Which one is the best title of the passage?
A. Love me, love my children B. Learn to make more money
C. How to be a super woman D. Money can’t buy happiness
An eight-year-old girl heard her parents talking about her little brother. All she knew was that he was very sick and they had no money. Only a very expensive operation could save him now and there was no one to lend them the money.
When she heard her daddy say to her tearful mother, “Only a miracle can save him now,” the little girl went to her bedroom and pulled her money from its hiding place and counted it carefully.
She hurried to a drugstore (药店) with the money in her hand.
“And what do you want?” asked the salesman.
“It’s for my little brother,” the girl answered. “He’s really, really sick and I want to buy a miracle.”
“Pardon?” said the salesman.
“My brother Andrew has something bad growing inside his head and my daddy says only a miracle can save him. So how much does a miracle cost?”
“We don’t sell a miracle here, child. I’m sorry,” the salesman said with a smile.
“Listen, if it isn’t enough, I can try and get some more. Just tell me how much it costs.” said the girl.
A well-dressed man heard it and asked, “What kind of a miracle does your brother need?”
“I don’t know,” she answered with her eyes full of tears. “He’s really sick and mum says he needs an operation. But my daddy can’t pay for it, so I have brought all my money.”
“How much do you have?” asked the man.
“$ 1.11, but I can try and get some more,” she answered.
“Well, what luck,” smiled the man. “$ 1.11, the price of a miracle for little brother.”
He took up the girl’s hand and said, “Take me to where you live. I want to see your brother and meet your parents. Let’s see if I have the kind of miracle you need.”
That well-dressed man was Dr Carlton Armstrong, a famous doctor. The operation was successful and it wasn’t long before Andrew was home again.
How much did the miracle cost?
1.What was the trouble in the little girl’s family?
A. Miracle was hard to get in the drugstore.
B. They were poor and no one can lend them money.
C. Nothing could save her brother.
D. Her brother was badly ill and her family couldn’t afford the operation.
2.In the eye of the little girl, a miracle might be _______.
A. something interesting B. something beautiful
C. some useful medicine D. some good food
3.What made the miracle happen?
A. The girl’s love for her brother. B. The girl’s money.
C. The medicine from the drugstore. D. Nobody can tell.
4.From the passage we can infer that _______.
A. the salesman didn’t sell miracle to the girl
B. a miracle is sure to happen if you keep on
C. the little girl is lovely but not so clever
D. Andrew was in fact not so sick as they had thought
