The teacher who did the most to encourage me was, as it happened, my aunt. She was Myrtle C.
Manigault, the wife of my mother's brother Bill. She taught in second grade at all-black Summer School
in Camden, New Jersey.
     During my childhood and youth, Aunt Myrtle encouraged me to develop every aspect of my potential, without regard for what was considered practical or possible for black females. I liked to sing; she
listened to my voice and pronounced it good. I couldn't dance; she taught me the basic dancing steps.
She took me to the theatre - not just children's theatre but adult comedies and dramas - and her faith that
I could appreciate adult plays was not disappointed.
     My aunt also took down books from her extensive library and shared them with me. I had books at
home, but they were all serious classics. Even as a child I had a strong liking for humor, and I'll never
forget the joy of discovering Don Marquis's Archy & Mehitabel through her.
     Most important, perhaps, Aunt Myrtle provided my first opportunity to write for publication. A writer
herself for one of the black newspapers, she suggested my name to the editor as a "youth columnist". My
column, begun when I was fourteen, was supposed to cover teenage social activities - and it did-but it
also gave me the freedom to write on many other subjects as well as the habit of gathering material, the
discipline of meeting deadlines, and, after graduation from college six years later, a solid collection of
published material that carried my name and was my passport to a series of writing jobs.
     Today Aunt Myrtle is still an enthusiastic supporter of her "favorite niece". Like a diamond, she has
reflected a bright, multifaceted (多面的) image of possibilities to every pupil who has crossed her path.

1. Which of the following did Aunt Myrtle do to the author during her childhood and youth?

A. She lent her some serious classics.      
B. She developed her taste for music.
C. She introduced her to adult plays.        
D. She discovered her talent for dancing.

2. What does Archy and Mehitabel in Paragraph 3 probably refer to?

A. A writer of high fame.                
B. A book of great fun.
C. A serious masterpiece.                
D. A heartbreaking play.

3. Aunt Myrtle recommended the author to a newspaper editor mainly to ______.

A. give her a chance to collect material   
B. develop her capabilities for writing
C. involve her in teenage social activities      
D. offer her a series of writing jobs

4. We can conclude from the passage that Aunt Myrtle was a teacher who _______.

A. gave pupils confidence in developing their potential
B. I trained pupils to be diligent and well-disciplined
C. emphasized what was practical or possible for pupils.
D. helped pupils overcome difficulties in learning

     As Mrs Thompson stood in front of her 5 grade class on the very first day of school, she told the
children a lie. Like most teachers, she looked at her students and said that she loved them all the same.
     But that was impossible, because there in the front row, slumped in his seat, was a little boy named
Teddy Stoddard. Mrs Thompson noticed that he didn't play well with the other children, that his clothes
were messy and that he constantly needed a bath. And Teddy could be unpleasant. It got to the point
where Mrs Thompson would actually take delight in marking his papers with a broad red pen, making
bold X's and then putting a big "F" at the top of his papers.
     However, when she reviewed his file, she got a surprise.
     Teddy's first grade teacher wrote, "Teddy is a bright child with a ready laugh. He does his work
neatly and has good manners…, he is a joy to be around ."
His second grade teacher wrote, "Teddy is an excellent student, well liked by his classmates, but he is
troubled because his mother has a terminal illness and life at home must be a struggle."
     His third grade teacher wrote, " His mother's death has been hard on him. He tries to do his best but
his father doesn't show much interest and his home life will soon affect him if some steps aren't taken."
     Teddy's fourth grade teacher wrote, "Teddy is withdrawn and doesn't show much interest in school.
He doesn't have many friends and sometimes sleeps in class."
     Now, Mrs Thompson was ashamed of herself and felt worse when her students brought her
beautifully wrapped Christmas presents. Teddy's present, however, was clumsily wrapped in rough
brown grocery paper. Taking her time she opened it to reveal Teddy's gifts, a shinestone bracelet with
stones missing and a quarter full perfume bottle. How the children laughed! " What a pretty bracelet! Mm,
lovely perfume! Perfect on my wrist." The children were silent.
     Alone together, after school, Teddy told Mrs Thompson, " Today you smelled just like my Mom used
to …" His teacher cried all night and,from that day, she stopped teaching reading, writing ,and arithmetic
and began to teach children instead.

1. What is the best title of this text?

A. A Student's Best Friend
B. How to Be a Good Students
C. The Story of a Good Teacher
D. A Teacher's Lesson

2. Which of the following is true about Teddy?

A. He only bathed once a week.
B. He had no friends at school.
C. His clothes were usually untidy.
D. He was the worst student in the class.

3. How did Teddy's behavior change between Grades1 and 4?

A. He became better at making friends.
B. He became closer to his father.
C. He paid less attention to school.
D. He stopped doing his homework.

4. Why did Mrs Thompson feel ashamed after she read Teddy's file?

A. She didn't treat Teddy fairly.
B. She was being unpleasant to Teddy.
C. She took delight in failing Teddy in the exam.
D. She disliked Teddy for all his problems.

5. We can learn from the last paragraph that_____.

A. Mrs Thompson was deeply hurt by Teddy's words
B. Teddy missed his mother and desired love very much
C. Mrs Thompson realized it useless to teach knowledge
D. Mrs Thompson cried because she lied to Teddy about his presents

     My goddaughter, Shari, owns The Berry Factory in Sacramento, California, and her mother, Joan,
and I were helping with the Valentine's Day rush of 2011. We'd been preparing hundreds of berries,
arranged gift baskets and packaged orders to be shipped around the country.
     By the end of the day and I were exhausted. Shari didn't seem tired. That was what Shari liked doing
especially when she gave someone else something. I'd seen her give away berries to everybody-parking
attendants, mail carriers, hairdressers. "For me?" they'd say, breaking into a smile.
     As a "thank you", Shari took us out for dinner. But there was a 45-munite wait at her favorite
restaurant. "No big deal. There's another place just up the road," she said, driving us there. This time we
walked right in. While the waitress took our drink orders Shari reached into her handbag, pulling
something out.
     "I want you to have these," she said, handing the waitress a box of chocolate-dipped strawberries.
     "Will she love those berries!"I said to myself. But the waitress seemed extremely surprised. She hardly
let out a "Thank you" before grabbing the box and rushing into the kitchen.
     A few minutes later, the waitress returned with our iced tea. " I apologize," she said. " It's just …my
best friend and I made an agreement to send each other something every Valentine's Day. But she passed
last year. I didn't know how I'd get through this day without her. Then you handed me that box."
     "I'm so sorry to hear that," said Shari. " It's not much, but I hope you can enjoy them."
     "Oh, I will," the waitress said. " See, every year we always sent each other the same thing: a box of
chocolate-dipped strawberries bought from our favorite store, The Berry Factory.

1. The first paragraph is mainly about _____.

A. something about Shari's job
B. something about The Berry Factory
C. how they celebrated Valentine's Day
D. what they did on Valentine's Day

2. Why did the waitress apologize to Shari?

A. Because she had a bad service to Shari
B. Because she didn't express her thanks to Shari
C. Because she didn't pay for the strawberries
D. Because she didn't take Shari's drink order

3. What do we know about the waitress?

A. She was unhappy with Shari's gift
B. She was a new customer at Shari's store
C. She would be very depressed without Shari's gift
D. She was reminded of her dead friend by Shari's gift

4. What's the right order of the following events?
a. The author, Joan and Shari arranged gift baskets.
b. The waitress' friend sent her a box of chocolate-dipped strawberries.
c. The author, Joan and Shari went to a restaurant up the road.
d. Shari gave the waitress a box of strawberries.

A. a, b, d, c
B. a, c, d, b
C. b,d,a,c
D. b,a,c,d

5. Which of the following words can be used to describe Shari?

A. Kind and generous
B. Humorous and intelligent
C. Energetic but careless
D. Hard-working but selfish

     In our home it was natural to fear our father . Even our mother was afraid of him. As children, my
sister and I thought every family was like that. Every family had an unpredictable dad who was impossible
to please and a praying mom who was there to protect the children.
     We were good children. Mom was always telling us we were, even if Daddy couldn't see it . part of
this was because we didn't dare to do anything.
     Then came the day we found something new and fun to do. We worked at drawing with chalk on our wooden front door and making lots of pretty pictures all over it. We had a great time. We thought Mom
would love it and praise us.
     The praise we expected did not come. Instead, Mom was mad. We did not understand why, but we
knew we were in big trouble!
     Off we ran to find a place to hid. In our wooded yard it was not hard for two small children to find
safety. Together, we hid behind a tree and did not move. Soon we heard the frightened voices of Mom
and our neighbors calling out to us.
     The sun set and it began to get dark. Those around us became more anxious, and we became more
frightened. However, we still didn't move.
     As we clung (緊緊擁抱) together in the dark, we became aware of yet another voice, one we
recognized with great fear: our daddy. But there was something strangely different about it. In it we heard
something we had never heard before: fear, agony (痛苦) and despair. Then came his prayers in tearful
voice. Our daddy was promising God that he would give his life to him if he would safely return his girls.
     Nothing in our lives had prepared us for this kind of shock. Neither of us remembers making a
decision to come out. We were drawn to him like a magnet (磁鐵), our fears disappearing into the forest. We didn't know yet if we actually took steps or if God somehow moved us out and into Daddy's arms.
What we do remember were those strong, loving arms holding us and crying, hugging us like we were
precious.
     Things were different after that. We had a new daddy. Our whole family was changed by a piece of
chalk.

1. From the first two paragraphs, we can learn _____.

A. the author was very naughty when young
B. the children were proud of their mother
C. the author's father was difficult to please
D. the author's father was afraid of her mother

2. The children's drawing on the door _____.

A. brought them great trouble
B. gained their mother's praise
C. made their father very angry
D. failed to meet their mother's demands

3. Which shows the children's emotional change when they heard their father's voice?

A. Anxious→content →miserable
B. Frightened→happy→depressed
C. Excited→fearful→desperate
D. Scared→shocked→moved

4. The underlined sentence"We had a new daddy"implies that _____.

A. the relationship between the family members changed
B. the author's father developed an interest in drawing
C. the author's mother found a new husband
D. the children were afraid of their new father

5. What's the best title of the passage?

A. The belief in God
B. A piece of chalk
C. The big trouble of my mother
D. A painful memory of my childhood.

     I am a writer. I spend a great deal of my time thinking about the power of language-the way it can evoke
(喚起) an emotion, a visual image, a complex idea, or a simple truth. Language is the tool of my trade. And
I use them all-all the Englishes I grew up with.
     Born into a Chinese family that had recently arrived in California, I've been giving more thought to the kind
of English my mother speaks. Like others, I have described it to people as "broken" English. But feel
embarrassed to say that. It has always bothered me that I can think of no way to describe it other than "broken",
as if it were damaged and needed to be fixed, as if it lacked a certain wholeness. I've heard other terms used,
"limited English," for example. But they seem just as bad, as if everything is limited, including people's
perceptions (認(rèn)識(shí)) of the limited English speaker.
     I know this for a fact, because when I was growing up, my mother's "limited" English limited my perception
of her. I was ashamed of her English. I believed that her English reflected the quality of what she had to say.
That is,because she expressed them imperfectly her thoughts were imperfect. And I had plenty of evidence to
support me: the fact that people in department stores, at banks, and at restaurants did not take her seriously,
did not give her good service, pretended not to understand her, or even acted as if they did not hear her.
     I started writing fiction in 1985. And for reasons I won't get into today, I began to write stories using all
the Englishes I grew up with: the English she used with me, which for lack of a better term might be described
as "broken", and what I imagine to be her translation of her Chinese, her internal (內(nèi)在的) language, and for
that I sought to preserve the essence, but neither an English nor a Chinese structure: I wanted to catch what
language ability tests can never show; her intention, her feelings, the rhythms of her speech and the nature of
her thoughts.

1. By saying "Language is the tool of my trade", the author means that _____.

A. she uses English in foreign trade
B. she is fascinated by languages
C. she works as a translator
D. she is a writer by profession

2. The author used to think of her mother's English as _____.

A. impolite
B. amusing
C. imperfect
D. practical

3. Which of the following is TRUE according to Paragraph 3?

A. Americans do not understand broken English.
B. The author's mother was not respected sometimes.
C. The author' mother had positive influence on her.
D. Broken English always reflects imperfect thoughts.

4. The author gradually realizes her mother's English is _____.

A. well structured
B. in the old style
C. easy to translate
D. rich in meaning

5. What is the passage mainly about?

A. The changes of the author's attitude to her mother's English.
B. The limitation of the author's perception of her mother.
C. The author's misunderstanding of "limited" English.
D. The author's experiences of using broken English.