Susan was born as the ninth child in a Catholic family. She suffered from learning disabilities ever since her birth because of her mother’s poor health.
School was difficult for Susan and she was bullied because of her different behaviors. Her siblings, who were much older, had life experiences that were unknown to their little sister. From the time of her birth, Susan was a screamer. The only really safe place that she would use as a repeat was her bedroom. There she would hang posters of her musical idols on the wall and sing popular music into a hairbrush that she pretended was a microphone.
One by one the siblings moved away from home and then Susan’s father died. This left her alone with an aging mother and a cat. The siblings accused her mother of not expecting more out of Susan. She had seen many professionals and remembered hearing the word “borderline” but didn’t know what it meant. She tried volunteer work. Her best state of mind, however, was found when she was singing and so she would regularly join others in karaoke or pubs where she could show her skills and receive appreciation from the crowd.
When Susan announced at Christmas that she was planning to compete in the Britain’s Got Talent contest, her siblings tried to discourage her. It was a wonder that she was even able to do the audition considering the troubles she faced just physically getting to the right place.
“The Woman I Was Born to Be” is a beautiful story written in the simple but humorous voice of the author, Susan Boyle. She tells her story from birth to the present in an interesting and educational manner. The writing is supplemented by photos from her albums.
I love this book! In fact, I read the whole thing in one day!
There is something in the stories that not only teaches the reader but also inspires us to reach for our dreams — no matter how impossible they may seem to be!
1.This passage should be .
A. a news report B. a biography
C. an introduction D. a book review
2.According to the passage, which was NOT true?
A. Susan tried doing a lot of volunteer work.
B. Susan’s mother expected too much out of her.
C. Susan’s siblings tried to stop her from competing in the Britain’s Got Talent contest.
D. Susan’s performances were well received by the customers in pubs.
3.What does the author think of Susan Boyle?
A. Pitiful and selfless. B. Shy and passive.
C. Determined and inspiring. D. Great and generous.
Everybody hates it, but everybody does it. A recent report said that 40%of Americans hate tipping. In America alone, tipping is a $ 16 billion-a-year industry. Consumers acting politely ought not to pay more than they have to for a given service. Tips should not exist. So why do they? The common opinion in the past was that tips both rewarded the efforts of good service and reduced uncomfortable feelings of inequality. And also, tipping makes for closer relations. It went without saying that the better the service, the bigger the tip.
But according to a new research from Cornell University, tips no longer serve any useful function. The paper analyzes numbers they got from 2,547 groups dining at 20 different restaurants. The connection between larger tips and better service was very weak. Only a tiny part of the size of the tip had anything to do with the quality of service.
Tipping is better explained, by culture than by the money people spend. In America, the custom came into being a long time ago. It is regarded as part of the accepted cost of a service. In New York restaurants, failing to tip at least 15% could well mean dissatisfaction from the customers. Hairdressers can expect to get l5%-20%, and the man who delivers your fast food $ 2. In Europe, tipping is less common. In many restaurants the amount of tip is decided by a standard service charge. In many Asian countries, tipping has never really caught on at all. Only a few have really taken to tipping. According to Michael Lynn, the Cornell papers’ author, countries in which people are more social or outgoing tend to tip more. Tipping may reduce anxiety about being served by strangers. And Mr. Lynn says, “In America, where people are expressive and eager to mix up with others, tipping is about social approval. If you tip badly, people think less of you. Tipping well is a chance to show off.”
1.This passage is mainly about .
A. different kinds of tipping in different countries
B. the relationship between tipping and custom
C. the origin and present meaning of tipping
D. most American people hate tipping
2.Which of the following best explains the underlined phrase “caught on”?
A. become popular.
B. been hated.
C. been stopped.
D. been permitted
3.Among the following situations, in your opinion, who is likely to tip most?
A. A Frenchman just quarreled with the barber who did his hair badly in New York.
B. An American just had a wonderful dinner in a well known restaurant in New York.
C. A Japanese businessman asked for a pizza delivery from a Pizza Hut in New York.
D. A Chinese student enjoyed his meal in a famous fast food restaurant in New York.
4.We can infer from this passage that .
A. tipping is no longer a good way to satisfy some customers themselves
B. tipping is especially popular in New York
C. tipping in America can make service better now
D. tipping has something to do with people’s character
You may have never heard of Lanthanum, Cerium or Neodymium, but these elements (元素) and others known as “rare earth” play a major role in modern technology. They can actually be found in many places on the earth, but not in quantities that can be mined. Only a few countries — China, America, India, Australia, Brazil and Malaysia have any that can be mined enough to be traded.
Even though some of these elements such as Cerium are as abundant as Copper, they are not found in concentrated amounts on the earth’s surface. They are often mixed together with other metals, which makes extraction (提取) of these elements an expensive and an environmentally messy process. It was due to this reason that the term “rare earth” was invented.
Rare earth metals are used widely in our life. Rechargeable car batteries, computers, iPhones, DVD players, computer monitors, televisions, lighting, lasers, glass polishing, and superconductors all use quantities of rare earth metals. Also, with the advancement in “green” technology like solar panels, these shiny materials are becoming more important than ever. An average electric car uses 10 pounds of Lanthanum for its rechargeable battery!
America has large deposits (存储量) of rare earths and has one of the first mines. It was openedin Southern California in 1940. The element “Europium” was the first metal to be separated in quantity for use in color televisions. However, in the 1980’s and 1990’s, as China started producing these elements in Inner Mongolia, the mines in America and elsewhere could not keep pace. The mine in Mountain Pass, California also failed environmental regulations and shut down in 2002.
Now, recognizing the importance of having more than one supplier of this important resource, other rare earth owning countries like India and Australia are either dusting off their rare earth mines or speeding up their production. It is believed that the debate over rare earths will become louder in the coming months and years.
1.What can we learn about rare earths?
A. They are actually as abundant as Copper.
B. They can be mined easily as other metals.
C. They can only be found in a few countries.
D. They are not really as rare as they are named.
2.Compared with China, America .
A. paid more attention to Europium
B. has larger deposits of rare earths
C. started producing rare earths earlier
D. has more rare earth mines
3.It can be inferred from the text that rare earths .
A. are now in great demand
B. can now be used in few fields
C. are harmful to the environment
D. will soon be replaced by other metals
Children’s lives have changed greatly over the last 50 years. But do they have a happier childhood than you or I did?
It’s difficult to look back on one’s own childhood without some element of nostalgia (怀旧的). I have four brothers and sisters, and my memories are all about being with them. Playing board games on the living room floor, or spending days in the street with the other neighborhood children, racing up and down on our bikes, or exploring the nearby woods. My parents scarcely appear in these memories, except as providers either of meals or of severe blame after some particularly risky adventure.
These days, in the UK at least, the nature of childhood has changed dramatically. Firstly, families are smaller, and there are far more only children. It is common for both parents to work outside the home and there is the feeling that there just isn’t time to bring up a large family, or that no one could possibly afford to have more than one child. As a result, today’s boys and girls spend much of their time alone. Another major change is that youngsters today tend to spend a huge amount of their free time at home, inside. More than anything this is due to the fact that parents worry far more than they used to about real or imagined dangers, so they wouldn’t dream of letting their children play outside by themselves.
Finally, the kind of toys children have and the way they play is totally different. Computer and video games have replaced the board games and more interesting activities of my childhood. The irony (令人啼笑皆非的事情) is that so many ways of playing games are called “interactive”. The fact that you can play electronic games on your own further increases the sense of loneliness felt by many young people today.
Do these changes mean that children today have a less relaxing childhood than I had? I personally believe that they do, but perhaps every generation feels exactly the same.
1.What is the purpose of the direct question given in the first paragraph?
A. To get people’s attention and lead in the topic
B. To gather people’s opinions on childhood
C. To show who the passage is written for
D. To compare the childhood lives of two generations
2.Which is NOT a reason for the changes?
A. Families are smaller today
B. Parents worried too much about their children
C. Toys can be played by children alone at home
D. It’s too dangerous to play outside
3.What has the writer focused on in the fourth paragraph?
A. Young people today shouldn’t play electronic games
B. Some games that young people play today aren’t really good
C. Computer and video games have replaced the board games
D. Board games are much more interesting than computer games
4.The writer’s attitude towards the childhood changing is .
A. approving B. unconcerned
C. objective D. optimistic
Nearly 19 percent of teachers of color (有色人种教师) left their jobs after the 2014-2015 school year. Some left for personal reasons like taking care of their families. But 50 percent said they left because they were dissatisfied with their employment situation, such as poor working conditions, student discipline problems and large class sizes. Thus, taking immediate measures to improve it is our top priority.
For years, researchers have proved the benefits of increasing the share of minority teachers in schools, especially as our public school system has turned to one that is made up mostly of minority students. Teachers of color, who are more likely than their white counterparts to choose to work in racially diverse (多种多样的) schools, offer particular benefits to their students. Graduation rates increase among minority students when they are taught by racially similar educators, research shows. They can also serve as positive role models, and their presence reduces the chance of racial discrimination at school.
The Shanker Institute report suggests that the rate of minority teacher hiring is not the whole problem. The problem is what happens after these teachers enter the classroom. These teachers often work in high-poverty rural schools. They are more likely to have less-desirable working conditions.
Diversity is a key component to equality and opportunity. Where there’s a diverse teaching workforce, all kids thrive. So solutions must be found at once to turn this trend around. Firstly, schools should develop mentorship programs that support minority teachers once they are in the classroom. Secondly, more money should be spent in improving working conditions in these schools. Of course, school headmasters should also be evaluated on their ability to retain teachers of color.
1.Among teachers of color leaving their jobs, half of them quit because .
A. they had to take care of their children
B. they had to move to other places
C. they eventually found better-paid jobs
D. their employment situation was unsatisfactory
2.Which of the following is the main idea of the second paragraph?
A. The solutions to increasing graduation rates among minority students.
B. The benefits of increasing the share of minority teachers in schools.
C. The reasons for teachers of color leaving their jobs in many schools.
D. The ways to decrease the possibility of racial discrimination at school.
3.How did the author feel when writing the passage?
A. He felt angry about the government.
B. He was satisfied with the present situation.
C. He felt it urgent to solve the problem.
D. He didn’t care about diverse teaching workforce.
假定你是李华，你和父母在职业选择上意见不一，于是写信给你的外国朋友John倾诉你的苦恼并请他给你提些建议。要点如下：
1.你和父母双方的想法；
2.你的苦恼；
3.希望得到John的意见。
注意：1.词数100左右；
2.可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯；
3.开头语和结尾已为你写好。
Dear John,
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Yours,
Li Hua
