Question

They had a dozen children, six boys and six girls, in seventeen years. One reason Dad had so many children was that he was confident anything he and Mother teamed upon was sure to be a success.

Our house at Montclair, New Jersey, was a sort of school for scientific management and the removal of wasted motions — or “motion study,” as Dad and Mother named it.

Dad took moving pictures of us children washing dishes, so that he could determine how we could reduce our motions and thus hurry through the task. Each child who wanted extra pocket money put forward an offer saying what he would do the job for. The lowest bidder got the contract(合约).

Dad put process and work charts in the bathrooms. Every child old enough to write — and Dad expected his children to start writing at a young age — was required to sign their names on the charts in the morning after he had brushed his teeth, taken a bath, combed his hair, and made his bed. At night, each child had to weigh himself, mark the figure on a graph, and sign the process charts again after he had done his homework, washed his hands and face, and brushed his teeth. Mother wanted to have a place on the charts for saying prayers, but Dad said as far as he was concerned prayers were voluntary.

It was strict management, all right. Yes, at home or on the job, Dad was always the efficiency expert. He buttoned his vest from the bottom up, instead of from the top down, because the bottom-to-top process took him only three seconds, while the top-to-bottom took seven. He even used two shaving brushes to make his face smooth enough, because he found that by so doing he could cut seventeen seconds off his shaving time. For a while he tried shaving with two razors, but he finally gave that up.

“I can save forty-four seconds,” he complained, “but I wasted two minutes this morning putting this bandage on my throat.” It wasn’t the injured throat that really bothered him. It was the two minutes.

1.Why was the author’s house considered a sort of school?

A. It had a team of twelve children there.

B. The children were taught how to work well in it.

C. The parents could teach their children better at home.

D. The parents could have the children’s daily activities recorded.

2.What is the purpose of signing the charts?

A. To help to do things efficiently.    B. To manage the big family effectively.

C. To look after the children better.    D. To remind the children to obey the rules.

3.What did the father complain about one morning?

A. He should have given up shaving.    B. His bleeding throat bothered him.

C. He couldn’t shave with two razors.    D. He failed to cut short his shaving time.

4.We can we infer from the text?

A. The kids had to bid for everything they wanted.

B. The author took pride in his father’s management.

C. The couple were always troubled by their children.

D. The father’s work was to teach the children at home.

Answer

1.B

2.A

3.D

4.B

【解析】本文是一篇记叙文。作者兄弟姐妹多，父亲有一套严格的管理方法，非常有效。作者以他父亲的管理而自豪。

1.推理判断题。根据第二段Our house at Montclair, New Jersey, was a sort of school for scientific management and the removal of wasted motions — or “motion study,” as Dad and Mother named it.可知，作者的家被认为是一种学校是因为孩子们被教导如何在里面工作得很好。故B项正确。

2.推理判断题。根据倒数第二段第一、二句It was strict management, all right. Yes, at home or on the job, Dad was always the efficiency expert.可知，签署图表的目的是为了帮助我们有效地做事。故A项正确。

3.推理判断题。根据最后一段“I can save forty-four seconds,” he complained, “but I wasted two minutes this morning putting this bandage on my throat.” It wasn’t the injured throat that really bothered him. It was the two minutes.可知，父亲抱怨他没能缩短他的剃须时间。故D项正确。

4.推理判断题。根据倒数第二段中It was strict management, all right. Yes, at home or on the job, Dad was always the efficiency expert. He buttoned his vest from the bottom up, instead of from the top down, because the bottom-to-top process took him only three seconds, while the top-to-bottom took seven.可知，作者以他父亲的管理而自豪。故B项正确。