Jean—Francois Millet (October 4,1814----January 20, 1875) was a French painter and one of the founder of the Barbizon School in rural France. Born of a peasant family, Millet was encouraged by his father to study art in Cherbourg, France. He can be categorized as part of the movement called “naturalism”(自然主義). His understanding of the peasant’ hard life was perfectly expressed in his choice of subject and natural preference for powerful but simple drawing and coloring.
One of the most well—known of Millet’s paintings, The Gleaners(《拾穗者》)，first came in a vertical composition(垂直式構(gòu)圖) painted in 1854,and then there came the horizontal version in 1856, which is now preserved in the Musee d’Orsay. It depicts women bending over in the fields to collect the leftover’s from the harvest, and it is a monumental composition devoted to the working class.
Previously, servants were depicted in paintings as obedient to a noble or a king, and picking up what was left of the harvest was regarded as one of the lowest jobs in Millet;s times. However, Millet offered these women as the heroic focus of the picture. Besides, in the painting, light lights up the women’s shoulders as they carry out their work. Behind them, the field that stretches into the distance is bathed in golden light, under a wide , magnificent sky. The forms of the three figures, standing against the lighter field, show balance and harmony.
小題1:According to the passage , we can know that Millet________.

A．was born in rural France

B．belongs to neither naturalism nor realism

C．became famous for his love of the countryside

D．received his high school education in Barbizon

小題2:As for the painting The Gleaners, ________.

A．it is originally a horizontal composition

B．it is based on the effort of Musee d’Orsay

C．it presents women in the field as the chief focus

D．it shows how women are stopped from working in the field

小題3:In the painting, the viewer can appreciate Millet’s_________..

A．crazy interest in blue color

B．strong focus on the city life

C．a(chǎn)bsolute respect for the king

D．particular choice of main characters

小題4:In which of the following books can we probably find this passage?

A．Kings and Nobles in France

B．A Guide to French Painting

C．French Agricultural History

D．The Founder of Musee d’Orsay

One warm September night, Mira had come down to the beach to enjoy the night air. She closed her eyes and listened to the waves. Suddenly, she could hear another sound, so she opened her eyes and looked down at the sand. It was moving! All of a sudden she could see a tiny head coming out. Then a turtle(龜) appeared! One by one they struggled out of their underground nests. Mira looked in surprise at the baby turtles.
Mira knew the turtles should head towards the waves and swim away, so she was puzzled when they began to pull themselves towards the dunes(沙丘). Suddenly, she remembered something her grandmother had told her.
“Sea turtles bury their eggs on the beach every year in April and in September. Those baby turtles hatch(孵出) and head back down to the sea. But some of them never make it. Sometimes they die going across the dunes, trying to find those bright lights on the houses. Every day there are more houses being built on the dunes. That means more and more lights to confuse the sea turtles.”
Mira looked out across the dunes at her house. Mira saw her mother and father, sitting on the porch(門廊). She could see them because her house had two bright lights that lit up the porch.
Mira began to run to her house and shouted, “The turtles are hatching! We have to help the turtles!” With these words, Mira ran into the house and turned off the bright porch lights.
In a rush she was off running down the dunes with her whole family following her. They reached the beach just in time to see the tiny turtles slipping silently into the waves. Mira watched as the last turtle entered the water. As the turtle swam away, it looked back at Mira. In the moonlight, Mira thought she saw it smile.
小題1:Where did the story happen?

A．On a beach at night	B．In a house near the dunes.
C．On a front porch in the evening.	D．In the shallow water of the ocean.

小題2:How did Mira feel when she saw the baby turtles appear?

A．Proud.

B．Sad.

C．Confused.

D．Surprised.

小題3:How did Mira know the lights confused the turtles?

A．She read it in a book.	B．Her grandmother told her.
C．She learned about the turtles at school.	D．Her parents taught her about the turtles.

小題4:Why did Mira run to her house?

A．To get a flashlight	B．To turn off the porch light.
C．To communicate with her parents.	D．To ask her grandmother about the lights.

小題5:This story is mainly about a girl ________.

A．enjoying the ocean	B．turning lights off at night
C．saving the baby turtles	D．learning from her grandparents

Henry Loomis served as director of the Voice of America for seven years starting in 1958.Mr Loomis played an important role in creating the Special English service .
Henry Loomis was born in 1919 Tuxedo Park , New York. His father was Alfred Lee Loomis , a rich New York City businessman .In 1940, Henry Loomis dropped out of Harvard University to join the United States Navy .He was able to put to good use his knowledge of radar technology that he had learned about because of his father’s work .After graduating at the top in his naval(海軍的) training class, Henry Loomis became a teacher at the Navy's radar training school in Hawaii. By the end of World War Two, Henry Loomis had received many honors for his service, including a Bronze Star and an Air Medal. He left the Navy in 1946 to begin graduate（研究生）studies.
Henry Loomis later moved to Washington, D.C. to begin another part of his career in public service. He held positions in the Department of Defense and other agencies: In 1958, he became director of the Voice of America.
During his travels around the world, Mr. Loomis saw that English was becoming an
important international language. He believed that it was important to make English easier to
understand by listeners of VOA broadcasts whose native language was not English. So Mr. Loomis asked VOA program manager Barry Zorthian to develop a way to broadcast to listeners
with a limited knowledge of English:
The result of this effort was Special English: The first Voice of America broadcast in Special English took place on October 19th, 1959. Those against his ideas at the time said the Special English method of broadcasting at a slower rate with a limited vocabulary would never work, it was not practical. American embassies（大使館） demanded that the program be called off. But Mr. Loomis supported the program.
Soon, VOA began to receive hundreds of letters from listeners praising the program. Special English programs became some of the most popular on VOA. We are pleased to say that our programs still are.
小題1:We can know from the passage that Henry Loomis______．

A．was born in a poor family

B．did well in his naval training class

C．stayed in the Navy for nearly 8 years

D．joined the army immediately after graduating from university

小題2:What is the second paragraph mainly about?

A．Henry Loomis's childhood.

B．Henry Loomis's whole business.

C．Henry Loomis's background.

D．Henry Loomis's army life.

小題3:What led to Henry Loomis's idea of Special English programs?
A. His experience in the Navy.
B. His experience in the Department of Defense.(國防部)
C. His early dream of promoting the influence of VOA.
D. His finding VOA programs are too difficult for non-native listeners.
小題4:Those who were against his ideas of Special English programs said______

A．Special English programs were not practical

B．it would cost too much to make Special English programs

C．it was unnecessary to broadcast Special English programs

D．Special English programs wouldn't help listeners in improving their English

The hardworking businessman Jones used to work all day in his shop and so hard-working was he that at times he would make the sparks(火星) fly from his hammer.
The son of Mr. Smith, a rich neighbor, used to come to see him every day and for hours and hours he would enjoy himself watching how the man worked.
“ Young man, why don’t you try your hand to learn to make shoe tacks (釘) , even if it is only to pass the time ? ” said Jones. “ Who knows, one day, it may be of use to you .”
The lazy boy began to see what he could do. But after a little practice he found that he was becoming very skilled and soon he was making some of the finest tacks.
Old Mr. Smith died and the son because of the war lost all his goods. He had to leave home and was forced to live in another country. It so happened that in this village there were many shoemakers who were spending a lot of money buying tacks for their shoes and even at times when they paid high prices they were not always able to get what they wanted, because in that part of the country there was a high demand for soldiers’ shoes.
Our young Mr. Smith, who was finding it difficult to earn his daily bread, remembered that once upon a time he had learned the art of making tacks and had the sudden idea of making a bargain with the shoemakers. He told them that he would make the tacks if they would help to get him settled in the workshop. The shoemakers were only too glad of the offer. And after a while, Mr. Smith found that he was soon making the finest tacks in the village.
“ How funny it seems, ” he used to say, “ even making tacks can make money. My trade is more useful to me than all my former riches.”
小題1:The young man learnt to make shoe tacks because ___________.

A．his father told him to	B．he wanted to learn a skill
C．Jones encouraged him to	D．he just wanted to pass his time

小題2:Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage ?

A．Old Mr. Smith enjoyed making the shoe tacks.

B．Jones had said the young man must be in need of the skill.

C．The higher prices they paid, the more tacks the shoemakers would get.

D．The young man earned his living by his skills learnt when he was young.

小題3:What can we learn from the story ?

A．Practice makes perfect.

B．Skill makes life easy.

C．A good beginning makes good ending.

D．Every man has his gift.

My husband had just bought a new washing machine for me . I decided to use it the very day and I washed a lot of things .
Everything worked well , but I found one of my husband’s socks(短襪)  missing . I looked everywhere for it , but I couldn’t find it anywhere .
The next morning , I got ready for school as usual . When the bell rang , the students came in . I greeted them and told them what we were going to do that day .
When I turned around to write on the blackboard , the class bursted out a roar (大笑聲)! They laughed and laughed . They laughed so much , in fact ,that I was afraid the headmaster would be in to see all this .
I asked the class to stop , but the more I talked , the more they laughed . I decided to pay no attention to them and I continued to write on the blackboard . when I did this , they roared even more .
Finally , the teacher who had the room next to mine came in to see what all the laughter was about .
“Good heavens ,” I said , “Will someone please tell me what is so funny?”
“Oh , God,” said the teacher , “You have a brown sock to the back of your skirt !”
So that’s how I found my husband’s missing sock .
“Oh , well ,” I said to the class , “Let’s just say you have had an unforgettable lesson on static electricity(靜電)。”
小題1:What was the writer ?

A．A washer

B．A student

C． A headmaster

D． A teacher

小題2:What happened when the writer turned around to write on the blackboard ?

A．The class roared with anger .

B．The class began to laugh loudly .

C．Another teacher came in

D．There was a loud noise outside the room

小題3:Why couldn’t she find one of her husband’s socks?
A. Because some students had hidden it .
D. Because her husband had taken it away .
C. Because she had left it in the classroom .
D. Because she never expected that it would stick to her skirt .
小題4:What did the writer do when she got to know why her students laughed?

A．She did nothing but laugh.

B．She got angry with the class .

C．She did nothing

D．She explained the matter in a clever way .

Tom arrived at the bus station quite early for the London bus. The bus for London would not leave until five to twelve. He saw a lot of people waiting in the station. Some were standing in lines, others were walking about. There was a group of school-girls. Their teacher was trying to keep them in order. Tom looked around but there was nowhere for him to sit.
He walked into the station café. He looked up at the clock there. It was only twenty to twelve. He found a seat and sat down, facing a large mirror on the wall. Just then, John, one of Tom’s friends, came in and sat with Tom.
“What time is your bus?” asked John.
“Oh, there is plenty of time yet,” answered Tom.
“Oh, I’ll get you some more tea then,” said John.
They talked while drinking. Then Tom looked at the clock again.
“Good heavens! It’s going back-ward!” he cried. “A few minutes ago it was twenty to twelve and now it’s half past eleven.” “You are looking at the clock in the mirror,” said John.
Tom wanted to kick himself for being so foolish. The next bus was not to leave for another hour. He has never liked mirror since then.
小題1:Tom went into the station café because _______.

A．John asked him to have a cup of tea

B．he wanted a drink there

C．he would meet a friend of his

D．it was early yet and he could find a place to sit

小題2:What time was it in fact when he looked at the clock in the mirror?

A．Half past twelve.	B．Half past eleven.
C．Twenty to twelve.	D．Half past one.

小題3:When we look at a clock in the mirror we’ll see _______.

A．the right time	B．it is going slower
C．it is going backward	D．it is going fast

小題4:Which of the following is true?

A．Tom missed his bus.

B．He liked mirror even before.

C．The next bus would leave soon.

D．Tom arrived in London on time.

For the past two years, 8-year-old Harli Jordean from Stoke Newington, London, has been selling marbles(彈珠). His successful marble company, Marble King, sells all things marble-related － from affordable tubs of the glass playthings to significantly expensive items like Duke of York solitaire tables － sourced, purchased and processed by the mini-CEO himself.
“I like having my own company. I like being the boss,” Harli told the Mirror.
With profits now in the thousands, “the world’s youngest CEO” has had to get his mother and older brothers to help him meet the growing demand.
Harli launched Marble King after swapping marbles at school led to schoolchildren consuming his marble collection. Yes, he literally “l(fā)ost his marbles.” Harli and his mother, Tina, turned to the Internet to find replacements.
Harli saw an empty space online: the marbles he wanted were hard to find. Within months, Harli had his own marble-selling website － and orders started pouring in.
Tina says her son's attachment to marbles started when he was just 6.
“His attachment became so passionate that we started calling him the Marble King — so when he wanted to set up a website it was the natural name for it,” she told The Sun.
“I never thought it would become so popular － we are struggling to cope with the number of orders at times.”
The 8-year-old boy has his sights set on expanding his business and launching his own brand of marbles.
“Sometimes his ideas are so grand we have to scale them back a bit. But his dream is still to own Britain's biggest marble shop and open stores around the world,” Tina told The Daily Mail.
“At the moment he is annoying me by creating his own Marble King marbles － so that could well be the next step for him.”
小題1:Harli’s Marble Company became popular as soon as he launched it because ______.

A．it was run by “the world’s youngest CEO”

B．it filled the gap of online marble trade

C．Harli was fascinated with marble collection

D．Harli met the growing demand of the customers

小題2:How many mass media are mentioned in the passage?

A．One

B．Two

C．Three

D．Four

小題3:The underlined expression “scale them back” is closest in meaning to ______.

A．hold them down	B．carry them out
C．set them aside	D．clear them away

小題4:What message do the last two paragraphs carry?

A．Conflicts often occur between Harli Jordean and his family.

B．Harli’s mother and brothers are worried about Marble King’s future.

C．Marble King marbles will surely attract more fans around the world.

D．The “Marble King” has great ambition for his Marble King company.

Disease, poverty, hate, love－Charles Dickens’ stories opened his readers eyes to the most important themes of his age. Two hundred years on, his stories still speak volumes across the world, proving that Dickens’ legacy（遺產(chǎn)） was far greater that just “great-literature”.
February 7 marks the 200^th anniversary of the writer’s birthday. To mark this date, BBC writer Alex Hudson listed six things Dickens gave the modern world. Let’s take a look at two of them.
A White Christmas
Dickens is described as “the man who invented Christmas” － not the religious festival, but the cultural aspects that we associate with the festive season today.
In the early 19^th century, Christmas was barely worth mentioning, according to critic and writer Leigh Hunt. The committee which ran the Conservative Party even held ordinary business meetings on Christmas Day－unthinkable in the West nowadays, when everyone but the most necessary workers takes at least three days off.
Many people believe that Dickens’ popular descriptions of the festive period became a blueprint for generations to come. In his classic novel, A Christmas Carol, he not only put forward the idea of snow at Christmas, but also painted a picture of glowing warmth－“home enjoyments, affections and hopes”.
In his biography of Dickens, Peter Ackroyd wrote: “Dickens can be said to have almost single-handedly created the modern idea of Christmas.”
“Dickens” poverty
Dickens was one of the first to take an honest look at the underclass and the poor of Victorian London.
He helped popularize the term “red tape” to describe situations where people in power use needless amounts of bureaucracy(官僚作風(fēng)) in a way that particularly hurts the weaker and poorer members of society.
“Dickensian” has now become a powerful word for describing an unacceptable level of poverty. In 2009, when the president of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers in the UK wanted to talk about poverty in some areas of Britain, she did not use words like “terrible” or “horrific”, but rather described it as “l(fā)ife mirroring the times of Dickens”.
小題1:The article is mainly about           .

A．a(chǎn) brief introduction to Charles Dickens’

B．Charles Dickens’ impact on the world

C．the characters in Charles Dickens’ stories

D．Charles Dickens’ achievements in literature

小題2:Why is Dickens’ called “the man who invented Christmas”?

A．Because he created both religious and culture festival.

B．Because his novels have something to do with Christmas.

C．Because one of his novels helped to shape Christmas celebrations.

D．Because he was the first man to have proposed celebrating Christmas.

小題3:We can learn from the passage that           .

A．Charles Dickens’ novels reflect the true life at his age

B．Dickensian is widely used to describe the Christmas

C．Every person can take three days off for Christmas

D．The theme of Charles Dickens’ stories is about poverty

小題4:According to the passage the phrase “red tape” refers to           .

A．regulations that are required to finish a task

B．a(chǎn) situation where poor members of society are hurt

C．conflict between people in power and weaker people

D．a(chǎn)greements made by the underclass of society

Obama Still Smokes in Secret
US President Barack Obama has just made life more difficult for cigarette makers. He has just signed a law that will set tough new rules for the tobacco industry. The new law gives the US Food and Drug Administration the power to strictly limit the making and marketing of tobacco products.
At a White House signing ceremony Monday, Obama said that he was among the nearly 90% of smokers who took up the habit before their 18 th birthday.
Obama, who has publicly struggled to give up smoking, said he still hadn’t completely kicked the habit. Every now and then he still smokes in secret.
“As a former smoker I struggle with it all the time. Do I still smoke sometimes? Yes. Am I a daily smoker, a constant smoker? No.” Obama said at a news conference.
“I don' t do it in front of my lads．I don ?t do it in front of my family．I would say that I am 95% cured, but there are times when I mess up, " he said．
"Once you go down this path, it' s something you continually struggle with, which is exactly why the law is so important．The new law is not about me, it' s about the next generation of kids coming up．What we don ' t want is kids going down that path," he said．
Nearly 20% of Americans smoke and tobacco use kills about 440,000 people a year in the United States due to cancer, heart disease, and other serious diseases．
小題1:The new law makes life difficult for             .

A．Obama

B．tobacco industry

C．White House

D．US Food and Drug Administration

小題2:What do we know about Obama?

A．He no longer smokes．

B．He still smokes as usual．

C．He began to smoke at eighteen．

D．He is trying hard to give up smoking．

小題3:According to the passage, Obama is most concerned about           ．

A．children

B．officials

C．his family

D．Businessmen

He was a hero that saved two children from the jaws of a cougar(美洲獅). Standing barely 1.7 meters, the 22-year-old with black-frame glasses might pass more for a Chinese Harry Potter. Yet Shen Huigang is now getting recognition for his bravery in fighting off a cougar on Vancouver Island, Canada, during a family outing. Shen, also known as Ian, was then an exchange student. With him was a friend, Myles Hagar, and Hagar’s two grandchildren. Silently and suddenly a cougar appeared out of nowhere. By the time they spotted the cat, it already had the head of 18-month-old Julien in its mouth.
“At first, my brain was nothing but blank,” Shen recalled. “But I believed I could get the child back.” He gestured as if he were ready for a fight, and tried to scare the beast off with his bag. Hearing the noise Shen made, the animal dropped the baby and Hagar rushed to grab his grandson. But the animal didn’t run, instead turned toward 3-year-old Iris standing beside Shen. “Had Ian not been there, shouting at the cougar, remaining calm and standing firm, it would certainly have attacked Iris.” Hagar recalled.
They chased the animal back into the woods. “We moved slowly to our vehicle as we waved our fists and bags, pretending to wrestle it,” Shen said. “The vehicle wasn’t far away but it felt like it took us a century to travel the short journey.” As Hagar drove for help, Shen held the heavily-bleeding boy in the passenger seat and calmly kept him awake by hugging and kissing him in case he would go into a coma(昏迷). The boy was flown to a hospital nearby. Doctors later said his little skull had been punctured(刺穿) through to his brain in two places. Luckily, Julien made a full recovery.
“Any hesitation, even a second delay, would have resulted in certain death for Julien, but Ian was there…” Hagar said. Following the incident, the story appeared on Canadian TV networks in every city, and in many small town newspapers---plus many US Internet news sites. The Royal Canadian Humane Association planned to give Shen a Canada Bravery Award, but it couldn’t reach him because he had returned to China.
小題1:Why did the cougar drop the baby?

A．Because it was scared by the noise made by Ian’s shouting.

B．Because Hagar rushed to grab the baby from its jaws.

C．Because it wanted to attack Iris and took her away.

D．Because Hagar and Ian were chasing it back into the woods.

小題2:Which of the following statements about Shen Huigang is TRUE?

A．He was called Chinese Harry Potter because he was very brave.

B．His deed was spread both in Canada and the US.

C．He was better at fighting and wrestling compared with Hagar.

D．He was too shocked to move to the vehicle in the incident.

小題3:What did Ian do in the car to keep the baby awake?

A．He held, hugged and kissed the baby in the passenger seat.

B．He drove the car as quickly as possible to find a hospital.

C．He encouraged the baby telling him to be awake.

D．He held the heavily- bleeding wound of the baby.

小題4:Which of the following can be the best title for this passage?

A．Saving Lives From the Jaws of Death

B．Experiencing a Family Outing

C．Taking Care of Two Children

D．Interviewing a Clever Young Student