About a year ago, a couple with three children moved into the apartment next door to mine. I never heard any noise from the children, but the parents were always shouting at the kids.
We often met in the hallway when we were coming or going. I always spoke, but the only answer I got was a hello from the four-year-old girl.
One afternoon when I returned, they were just coming out of their apartment and the little girl was holding the door open for the others. I remained in the car doing unnecessary things. But when I looked up I saw the little girl was still holding the door open, waiting for me. I hurried as much as I could and thanked her.
I was really touched by her act of kindness. That afternoon I was at the K-Mart and I bought a white Teddy bear for her. The next day, there was a knock on the door and it was the little girl and her father. She was very proud of the bear and thanked me like I had never been thanked before.
Now when we meet in the hall, we all speak in a friendly manner. As time passes, I don’t hear that yelling as often as before.
Last night we had about four inches of snow. I looked out at my car and wondered how I was going to keep my doctor’s appointment. I went out to remove the snow. But when I opened my front door, I found my car was there with all the snow removed. You couldn’t imagine how I felt at that moment. I thanked that family in my heart.
Isn’t it amazing how a small kind act of a four-year-old girl can change so many things for the better? My guardian angel says that good things come from small acts.
小題1: Who did the writer think removed the snow on his car?

A．That family next door.	B．Someone sent by his doctor.
C．Some strangers.	D．The gate keeper.

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

A．The children were very naughty and often made their parents angry.

B．Life must be very hard for the parents next door as they had a large family to support.

C．The writer put off the appointment with his doctor because of the heavy snow.

D．The little girl’s kind act changed the relationship between the writer and her family.

小題3: The right time order of these events in the passage may be         .
① I bought a white Teddy bear for the four-year-old little girl.
② A new family moved into the building next to my door.
③ The four-year-old little girl held the door for me.
④ The father came with the little girl and thanked me.
⑤We speak to each other now in a friendly manner.

A．②-③-①-④-⑤

B．②-④-①-③-⑤

C．③-②-④-⑤-①

D．③-④-②-⑤-①

The Worst Part
Mom is usually home on Sunday but this week she was going to a big golf game and I was all alone in the house. I was mad at Mom for divorcing Dad.
I kept looking at the telephone until I couldn’t stand it any longer. I picked up the receiver and dialed Dad’s number over in Bakersfield. I even remembered to dial 1 first because it was long distance. “You promised to phone me this week but you didn’t,” I said, feeling I had to talk to him.
“Take it easy, kid,” he said. “I just didn’t get around to it. I was going to call this evening. The week isn’t over yet.”
I thought about that.
“Something on your mind?” he asked.
“I hoped you would call, so I waited and waited.” Then I was sorry I said it.
“There was heavy snow in the morning,” he said, “I had to chain up on highway 80 and lost time.”
I know putting chains on eight big wheels in the snow is no fun. I felt a little better, as long as we were talking. “How is Bandit?” I asked.
There was a funny silence. For a minute I thought the line was dead. Then I knew something must have happened to my dog.
“Well, kid—”, he began. “My name is Leigh!” I almost yelled. “I’m not just some kid you met on the street!”
“Keep your shirt on, Leigh,” he said. “When I had to stop along with some other truck drivers to put on chains, I left Bandit out of the cab, I thought he would get back … I have sent out a call to CB radio, but I didn’t get an answer yet.” I was about to say I understood when there came the bad part, the really bad part. I heard a boy’s voice say, “Hey, Bill, Mom wants to know when we’re going out to get the pizza?”
小題1:We can conclude from the passage that              .

A．Leigh’s mother often went to golf games	B．Leigh was a deserted boy
C．Leigh’s dad never had a rest on Sundays	D．Leigh’s father lived in another city

小題2:Which is true about Bandit?

A．It was killed by a truck	B．It was let out of the cab and got lost
C．It was frozen to death.	D．It ran off Highway 80 and into the mountain.

小題3:The underlined sentence “Keep your shirt on”（last para） probably means “       ”.

A．Cool down

B．Stop talking

C．Be quiet

D．Keep warm

小題4:The worst part in Leigh’s eyes may be that           .

A．he forgot to go to get the pizza	B．his parents got divorced
C．his dad got remarried	D．his dad didn’t love him

完形填空(共20小題; 每小題1.5分，滿分30分)
閱讀下面短文，掌握其大意，然后從所給的 A、B、C、D四個選項中，選出最佳選項，并在答題卡上將該項涂黑。
I will never forget the year I was about twelve years old. My mother told us that we would not be   36  Christmas gifts because there was not enough money. I felt sad and thought, “What would I say when the other kids asked what I’d   37 ?” Just when I started to   38  that there would not be a Christmas that year, three women   39  at our house with gifts for all of us. For me they brought a doll, I felt such a sense of   40  that I would no longer have to be embarrassed when I returned to school. I wasn’t   41 . Somebody had thought   42  of me to bring me a gift. 
Years later, when I stood in the kitchen of my new house, thinking how I wanted to make my   43    Christmas there special and memorable, I   44  remembered the women’s visit. I decided that I wanted to create that same feeling of   45  for as many children as I could possibly reach.
So I   46  a plan and gathered forty people from my company to help. We gathered about 125 orphans (孤兒) at the Christmas party. For every child, we wrapped colorful packages filled with toys, clothes, and school suppliers,   47  with a child’s name. We wanted all of them to know they were   48 . Before I called out their names and handed them their gifts, I   49  them that they couldn’t open their presents   50  every child had come forward. Finally the   51  they had been waiting for came as I called out, “One, two, three. Open your presents!” As the children opened their packages, their faces beamed and their bright smiles   52  up the room. The   53  in the room was obvious, and   54    wasn’t just about toys. It was a feeling –the feeling I knew   55  that Christmas so long ago when the women came to visit. I wasn’t forgotten. Somebody thought of me. I matter. 

小題1:	A．sending B．receiving C．making D．exchanging

小題2:	A．found B．prepared C．got D．expected

小題3:	A．doubt B．hope C．suggest D．a(chǎn)ccept

小題4:	A．broke in B．settled down C．turned up D．showed off

小題5:	A．relief B．loss C．a(chǎn)chievement D．justice

小題6:	A．blamed B．loved C．forgotten D．a(chǎn)ffected

小題7:	A．highly B．little C．poorly D．enough

小題8:	A．present B．first C．recent D．previous

小題9:	A．hardly B．instantly C．regularly D．occasionally

小題10:

A．strength B．independence C．importance D．safety

小題11:

A．kept up with B．caught up with C．came up with D．put up with

小題12:

A．none B．few C．some D．each

小題13:

A．fine B．special C．helpful D．normal

小題14:

A．reminded B．guaranteed C．convinced D．promised

小題15:

A．a(chǎn)fter B．until C．when D．since

小題16:

A．chance B．gift C．moment D．reward

小題17:

A．lit B．took C．burned D．cheered

小題18:

A．a(chǎn)tmosphere B．sympathy C．calmness D．joy

小題19:

A．it B．such C．something D．everybody

小題20:

A．by B．till C．for D．from

My father came to the United States as a Ukrainian immigrant (移民) when he was 14 years old. Unable to speak English but willing to do anything to succeed, he learned the language, became a barber, and opened up his own business in a small town. He put my sister and me through college during a time when most people thought that women didn’t need an education and that they should be satisfied with getting married and having children. He gave us values and ambition. But this story didn’t really start until my father was 60 years old.
I was preparing to get married and my father was attempting to practice the polke, a must at any Ukrainian wedding. But he just couldn’t do it! He had lost mobility in his leg and was diagnosed with a brain tumor (腫瘤). After surgery, this energetic, hard-working man was forced to retire as a result of significant paralysis (癱瘓) in his right arm and leg. My dad had always worked two jobs and spent his spare time working around the house. Now that kind of life came to a sudden stop. Yet never once did he complain. He bought rubber balls and spent his days trying to regain his hand mobility by squeezing those balls over and over.
After his last operation, he chatted with me pleasantly in the hospital room until a nurse flew into the room, waving her finger at me, and yelling, “You’d better tell your father to stay in bed. He is paralyzed and will never walk again. He needs to stop trying to get out of bed and accept the fact that he can’t walk now or ever. I am sick of picking him up and you’d better warn him to stay put!” My father smiled. He spent a great deal of time on the floor that year, but he eventually got up and walked.
My father lived nineteen more years after that operation. He bought himself a motor scooter (小型摩托車) and spent years zipping around the streets of Philadelphia. He was proud, free, and always smiling.
小題1: In what way was the author’s father different from most other people in his times?

A．He succeeded in migrating to the U.S.

B．He learned the new language easily and quickly.

C．He achieved his life goal by working as a barber.

D．He had his daughters educated.

小題2: The underlined word “polke” in Paragraph 2 probably refers to        .

A．a(chǎn) song

B．a(chǎn) dance

C．a(chǎn) musical instrument

D．a(chǎn) tool for painting

小題3:The author’s father used the rubber balls to         .

A．kill his too much spare time	B．relieve himself from work pressure
C．get his hand’s function back	D．recover from his operation

小題4: Which of the following can be used to describe the author’s father?

A．Perfect.

B．Strong-minded.

C．Creative.

D．Impractical.

小題5: What can we learn from the text?

A．Love can do wonders.	B．Failure is the mother of success.
C．A father’s love is most valuable.	D．Never give up on your life.

Many parents who welcome the idea of turning off the TV and spending more time with the family are still worried that without TV they would constantly be on call as entertainers for their children. They remember thinking up all sorts of things to do when they were kids. But their own kids seem different, less resourceful, somehow. When there’s nothing to do, these parents observe regretfully, their kids seem unable to come up with anything to do besides turning on the TV.
One father, for example, says, “When I was a kid, we were always thinking up things to do, projects and games. We certainly never complained in an annoying way to our parents. ‘I have nothing to do’.” He compares this with his own children today: “They’re simply lazy. If someone doesn’t entertain them, they’ll happily sit there watching TV all day.”
There is one word for this father’s disappointment: unfair. It is as if he were disappointed in them for not reading Greek though they have never studied the language. He deplores (哀嘆) his children’s lack of inventiveness, as if the ability to play were something born that his children are missing. In fact, while the tendency to play is built into the human species, the actual ability to play – to imagine, to invent, to elaborate on reality in a playful way –and the ability to gain fulfillment from it, these are skills that have to be learned and developed.
Such disappointment, however, is not only unjust, it is also destructive. Sensing their parents’ disappointment, children come to believe that they are, indeed, lacking something, and that this makes them less worthy of admiration and respect. Giving children the opportunity to develop new resources, to enlarge their horizons and discover the pleasure of doing things on their own is, on the other hand, a way to help children develop a confident feeling about themselves as capable and interesting people.
小題1: According to many parents, if there’s nothing to do, the children would        .

A．turn on the TV	B．complain to their parents
C．a(chǎn)sk their parents to play with them	D．do all of the above

小題2: Many parents think that, instead of watching a lot of TV their children should       .

A．sit silently studying Greek	B．think up things to entertain themselves
C．find chances to talk with parents	D．enjoy themselves outdoors

小題3:The father often blames their children for not being able to entertain themselves. This is unfair because        .

A．the children are not really lazy, but there’s nothing for them to do

B．they do not lack the ability to play

C．they have to learn and develop their playing ability gradually

D．the father have done nothing to help the children

小題4: When parents show constant disappointment in their children, the children will         .

A．lose their confidence and respectability

B．be much more disappointed

C．refuse to learn new things

D．discover the pleasures of doing things on their own

小題5:What is the author’s main idea?

A．Today’s children are becoming less capable and independent than before.

B．Parents should give children more help on how to be creative.

C．Turning off the TV will help us solve a lot of family problems.

D．It’s not just for parents and children to complain each other.

In 1995, Susan Boyle went to Glasgow to audition（試鏡）for My Kind of People, a televised talent show popular in the UK. She was immediately rejected. She was nervous during the audition, and felt she didn’t perform well, but her brother said that she was rejected because of her plain looks. Susan was not discouraged and continued to sing at church and at the karaoke nights in a local pub.
Susan suffered a personal loss in 1997, when her father passed away. After his death, Susan put her big dreams on hold to care for her sick mother, Bridget Boyle. The mother and daughter often talked of Susan’s possible fame. Bridget Boyle encouraged her daughter to take part in singing competitions. “She was the one who said I should enter Britain’s Got Talent. We used to watch it together,” Susan later told reporters. “She thought I would win.”
In 1999, Susan used all of her savings to pay for a professional demo（樣本唱片）tape, which she sent to record companies. In 2002, Susan began taking singing lessons from voice coach Fred O’Neil.
In 2007, her mother passed away at the age of 91. A neighbor reported that when Bridget Boyle died, her daughter “wouldn’t come out for three or four days or answer the door or phone”. She lived alone with her cat, Pebbles. For over a year, she refused to sing. But in August of 2008, O’Neil urged her to try out for Britain’s Got Talent. Convinced that the performance would be an honor to her mother, Susan auditioned in Glasgow, Scotland. She sang I Dreamed A Dream, a hit song from the musical Les Miserables（《悲慘世界》）, in the first round of the show, which was aired on April 11, 2009.
The 47-year-old Scottish woman's plain looks provided a sharp contrast（對比）to her powerfully beautiful voice. The performance astonished the audience and the judges. Online videos of her performance totaled over 40 million views within a week. Although she failed to win the final of Britain’s Got Talent, Susan Boyle became globally popular. Her first album I Dreamed A Dream has sold over five million copies.
小題1:Bridget Boyle’s attitude towards her daughter’s musical talent can be described as ___.

A．critical

B．doubtful

C．indifferent

D．confident

小題2: From Paragraph 4, we can learn that Susan _____.

A．was slightly discouraged by her voice coac	B．entered Britain’s Got Talent to prove her ability
C．decided to give up her singing career	D．was deeply affected by her mother’s death

小題3: Which of the following is TRUE about Susan Boyle?

A．Her international fame grew rapidly in 2008.	B．Her audition for My Kind of People failed.
C．She has never stopped singing since 1995.	D．She was the winner of Britain’s Got Talent.

小題4: We can infer from the passage that ______.

A．Susan Boyle was convinced by her brother that her plain looks were disadvantageous to her success

B．It was at the age of forty that Susan Boyle established a student-teacher relationship with O’Neil.

C．Susan Boyle was so struck by her father’s death that she shut herself out from the neighborhood.

D．The online views of Les Miserables numbered over 40 million within a week in 2009.

小題5:In writing this passage, the author mainly intends to ______.

A．tell us how Susan’s dream come true	B．let us know more about Susan’s personal life
C．show how Susan was influenced by her family	D．explain how to enter and win a talent show

完形填空（共20小題；每小題1.5分，共30分）
閱讀下面短文，從短文后所給的A、B、C、D四個選項中選出可以填入空白出的最佳選項。
?After 42-year-old guy Tom had quitted his job, he began to make up his mind to become a freelance (self-employed) writer, no one could tell for sure whether he would succeed or not．He found a cold storage room in a building, set up a(n)  21  typewriter and settled down to work．
After a year or so, however, Tom began to  22  himself．He found it was difficult to earn his living by  23  what he wrote．But Tom determined to put his dream to the test —  24  it meant living with uncertainty and fear of  25 ．This is the shadowland of hope, and  26  with a dream must learn to live there．
One day Tom got a call, “We need a(n)  27 , and we’re paying $6,000 a year．” $6,000 was  28  money in 1960．It would enable Tom to get a nice apartment, a used car and more． 29 , he could write on the side． 30  the dollars were dancing in Tom’s head, something  31  his senses．He had dreamed of being a  32  — full time．“Thanks, but no,” Tom said  33 ．“I’m going to stick it out and write．”
After Tom got off the phone, he  34  everything he had: two cans of vegetables and 18 cents．Tom put the cans and cents into a  35  bag, saying to himself, “There’s everything you’ve made of yourself so far．”
　　Finally his work was  36  in 1970．Instantly he had the kind of fame and success that  37  writers ever experience．The shadows had turned into limelight．
　　Then one day, Tom  38  a box filled with things he had owned years before． 39  was a paper bag with two cans and 18 cents．Suddenly he  40 himself working in that cold storage room．It reminds Tom, and anyone with a dream, of the courage and persistence it takes to stay the course in the shadowland．

小題1:	A．excellent B．used C．expensive D．priceless

小題2:	A．regret B．hate C．doubt D．trust

小題3:	A．selling B．buying C．reading D．a(chǎn)ppreciating

小題4:	A．Now that B．What if C．As if D．Even though

小題5:	A．success B．failure C．perspiration D．loss

小題6:	A．someone B．none C．nobody D．a(chǎn)nyone

小題7:	A．boss B．a(chǎn)ssistant C．manager D．writer

小題8:	A．false B．little C．real D．high

小題9:	A．However B．Still C．Besides D．Therefore

小題10:

A．As B．But C．If D．Because

小題11:

A．hurt B．destroyed C．cleared D．struck

小題12:

A．driver B．a(chǎn)ssistant C．writer D．dancer

小題13:

A．hesitantly B．firmly C．slowly D．hurriedly

小題14:

A．pulled out B．pulled apart C．pulled back D．pulled down

小題15:

A．cloth B．metal C．plastic D．paper

小題16:

A．written B．published C．completed D．punished

小題17:

A．few B．great C．famous D．poor

小題18:

A．sought B．searched C．found D．picked

小題19:

A．Above B．Below C．Outside D．Inside

小題20:

A．called B．pictured C．described D．reminded

完形填空（共15小題；每小題2分，滿分30分）
　　閱讀下面短文,掌握其大意,然后從下列各題所給的四個選項中, 選出最佳選項,并在答題卡上將該項涂黑。
Last summer Tom and his friends George and Bill wanted to take a vacation. But they did not have much __26__.They decided that a ___27____ mountain climbing expedition(探險；郊游)was the only trip they could ___28____.Since each of them was ____29____ to climbing，the vacation would be a lot of fun. Tom made all the plans. He ____30_____ that they should share the expenses for food and gas equally and that each one should bring some ____31____ clothes because the weather at ____32____ altitudes is usually cold. The boys were not in a hurry，so they climbed ____33____ the first day. The weather was __34__，and they enjoyed the fresh __35__ as they climbed up a narrow path.
Tom expected the weather to stay nice，but late in the afternoon there was a __36__.The boys rushed toward a cave and decided to camp there that night.
When the sun rose the next morning，they continued __37__.As the boys went higher，the climbing became more __38__，and by late that afternoon the trip appeared endless. When they finally reached the __39__ of the mountain，they saw a beautiful sight. The colors of the sunset were yellow，red，and gold. The boys relaxed and enjoyed the view. The farms and fields of wheat and corn below appeared very small. In the distance，they could see trees，hills and valleys. They __40__ a week in the mountains. They really had great fun.　　
小題1:.

A．time

B．money

C．cost

D．fare

小題2:	A．short B．long C．free D．pleasant

小題3:	A．take B．have C．a(chǎn)fford D．go

小題4:	A．a(chǎn)ccustomed B．liked C．fond D．interested

小題5:	A．said B．thought C．suggested D．wanted

小題6:	A．more B．extra C．beautiful D．expensive

小題7:	A．low B．high C．mountainous D．top

小題8:	A．usually B．casually C．quickly D．happily

小題9:	A．pleasant B．please C．hot D．cold

小題10:

A．rain B．a(chǎn)ir C．view D．plants

小題11:.

A．sunshine

B．wind

C．storm

D．cloud

小題12:

A．climbing B．camping C．cycling D．hunting

小題13:

A．easy B．exciting C．tired D．dangerous

小題14:

A．side B．middle C．foot D．top

小題15:

A．took B．rested C．spent D．walked

It was time for Mr. Rocco to shut up shop when I hurried into the florist’s. “Now, what is it you want?” Mr. Rocco turned to me. “I want the most beautiful flower you have.” I replied. “And just how much do you have to pay for this most beautiful flower?” I held out a wet hand showing a quarter and dime. He nodded, and then showed me a plant on the counter. “I can give you this one for 35 cents.” he said. “Aw, gee,” I protested, “it looks like a weed!” About 18 inches high, the plant was in a small pot covered with faded red paper. “Now trust me, boy—I promise that tomorrow morning when you get up, you will find your most beautiful flower.” said Mr. Rocco. I knew him to be a good honest man, so I agreed to take it.
It was almost midnight when I arrived home. Mom was seriously sick and using the front bedroom. I looked in to see if she was asleep, and then quietly tiptoed in and set the plant on the table beside her bed. I wanted her to be surprised when she woke on Mother’s Day.
The next morning, I dressed and hurried downstairs. The sun was shining through kitchen window as I looked into Mom’s room. She motioned for me to come in, then glanced over at the table where the plant was. Holy mackerel! There were three big yellow trumpet-shaped（喇叭狀的）blooms. It was just like Mr. Rocco said—the most beautiful flower I ever saw! When I looked at Mom, she was smiling as tears streamed down her cheeks. She held out her hand for me to come near, then pulled me close and hugged till it hurt. Then, remembering her contagious condition and that she wasn’t supposed to touch me, she quickly let me go.
My dear mom died the next night. The moment she hugged me turned out to be the most wonderful moment of my life. Not only had that beautiful plant helped show just how much I loved her, but I’d always know how much she loved me.
小題1:   The author didn’t like the plant recommended by Mr. Rocco at first because ______.

A．the packing of the plant was shabby

B．the plant was more a weed than a flower

C．the plant appeared too ordinary to be the most beautiful

D．he thought Mr. Rocco was reluctant to do the deal with him

小題2:   Mother’s condition was contagious (Line 6, Para.3) for ______.

A．she was at the death’s door	B．she suffered from the illness
C．others were sick of her appearance	D．virus might spread from her to others

小題3: When mother hugged the author tightly, she was showing that ______.

A．she liked being given gifts

B．she valued what the author had done for her

C．she was aware of the approaching of death

D．she was touched by the beauty of the flower

小題4: The story is mainly developed by______________.

A．time

B．logic

C．comparison

D．cause and result

小題5:Which may be the best title of the passage?

A．Flowers of Love	B．A Son’s Love for Mother
C．Low Price, High Value	D．A Special Mother’s Day

Mr. Brown’s horse was stolen at night. All of his friends were very sorry about it and came to see him together. After they had been told about it, one of them said, “Why did not you lock the door of your stable (馬房)that night? I think it is your fault.”
“You aren’t deaf, are you?” the second man said, “Didn’t you hear anything at that moment? The thief must have driven the beast out of the gate, and couldn’t have carried it on his back.”
“I agree with them!” Blamed the third, “How careless you are! Every evening before I go to bed, I lock my stable first and hide the key in my box. Why didn’t you do so?”
The more they said, the more excited they became. At last Mr. Brown couldn’t bear it any more and said, “I am glad that you have come to see me. But none of you would help me either look for my horse or catch the thief. Do you think that it’s all my fault? Why don’t you blame the thief?
小題1: The first man thought it’s Mr. Brown’s fault because _______.

A．let the door open	B．locked the door
C．had the door unlocked	D．had the horse locked up

小題2: The second man thought Mr. Brown _________________.

1. was a deaf                        

B. was very careful
C. must hear something when the thief stole the horse     
D. couldn’t hear anything at that time
小題3: The third man thought ________________.

A．the horse must be driven out	B．Mr. Brown did hide his key in his box
C．Mr. Brown wasn’t blamed by the third	D．Mr. Brown wasn’t careful.

小題4: The more his friends said the more Mr. Brown ______________.
A. became excited    B got angry    C could bear       D blamed them
小題5:____________ should be blamed.
A. Mr. Brown      B his friends       C The thief      D All of them