There is a wonderful story about a young girl who had no family and no one to love her.
One day, feeling very sad and lonely, she was walking through a grassland when she noticed a small butterfly caught in a thorn (荊棘) bush. The young girl carefully released the butterfly. Instead of flying away, the little butterfly changed into a beautiful fairy. The young girl rubbed her eyes in disbelief.
“For your wonderful kindness,” the good fairy said to the girl, “I will give you any wish you would like.” The little girl thought for a moment and then replied, “I want to be happy.” The fairy leaned toward her and whispered in her ear. Then the fairy disappeared.
As the little girl grew up, there was no one in the land as happy as she. Everyone asked her the secret of happiness. She would only smile and answer, “The secret of my happiness is that I listened to a good fairy when I was a little girl.”
When she was very old and on her deathbed, the neighbors all gathered around her, believing that her unbelievable secret of happiness would die with her. “Tell us, please,” they begged, “Tell us what the good fairy said.” The lovely old woman simply smiled and said, “She told me that everyone, no matter how secure they seemed, no matter how old or young, how rich or poor, had need of me.”
【小題1】Noticing the butterfly was caught by the thorn, the orphan girl _______.

A．helped the butterfly escape from the thorn

B．felt sad, but she didn′t go up to help it

C．fell down on it too[

D．failed to help it release from the thorn

【小題2】The butterfly _________ after it was saved by the little girl.

A．flew away	B．still died
C．changed into a fairy	D．was more beautiful than before

【小題3】The only thing that the little girl wanted was_________.

A．to be rich	B．to have her own parents
C．to have a lot of friends	D．to be happy

【小題4】The neighbors all gathered around the old happy woman when she was dying, because ______.

A．they loved this woman deeply and they didn′t want her to die

B．the woman had lots of money to be shared after she died

C．they wanted to know the secret of her lifetime happiness

D．they wanted to pray for her after her death

Not many years ago, a wealthy and rather strange old man named Johnson lived alone in a village in the south of England. He had made a lot of money in trading with foreign countries. When he was seventy – five, he gave $ 60,000 to the village school to buy land and equipment for a children’s ground.
As a result of his kindness, he became famous. Many people came to visit him. Among them was a newspaperman. During their talk, Johnson remarked that he was seventy-five and expected to live to be hundred. The newspaperman asked him how he managed to be healthy at seventy-five. Johnson had a sense of humor. He liked whisky and drank some each day. “I have an injection (注射) in my neck each evening,” he told the newspaperman, thinking of his evening glass of whisky.
The newspaperman did not understand what Johnson meant. In his newspaper he reported that Johnson was seventy-five and had daily injection in his neck.Within a week Johnson received thousands of letters from all over Britain, asking him for the secret of his daily injection.
【小題1】Johnson became a rich man through _______. 

A．doing business	B．making whisky
C．cheating	D．buying and selling land

【小題2】The gift of money to the school suggests that Johnson _______.

A．had many children in the school	B．was a strange old man
C．was very fond of children	D．was very kind

【小題3】Many people wrote to Johnson to find out _______.

A．what kind of whisky he had

B．how to live longer

C．how to become wealthy

D．where to have an injection

【小題4】When Johnson said he had an injection in his neck each evening, he really meant that _______.

A．he needn’t an injection in the neck

B．there was something wrong with his neck

C．he liked drinking a glass of whisky in the evening

D．a(chǎn) daily injection in the evening would make him sleep well

Barditch High School decided to an All-School Reunion. Over 450 people came to the event. There were tours of the old school building and a picnic at Confederate Park. Several former teachers were on hands to tell stories about the old days. Ms. Mabel Yates, the English teacher for fifty years, was wheeled to the Park.
Some eyes rolled and there were a few low groans(嘟囔聲)when Ms.Yates was about to speak. Many started looking at their watches and coming up with excuses to be anywhere instead of preparing to listen to a lecture from an old woman who had few kind words for her students and made them work harder than all the other teachers combined.
Then Ms. Yates started to speak:
“I can’t tell you how pleased I am to be here. I haven’t seen many of you since your graduation, but I have followed your careers and enjoyed your victories as well as crying for your tragedies. I have a large collection of newspaper photographs of my students. Although I haven’t appeared in person, I have attended your college graduations, weddings and even the birth your children, in my imagination.”
Ms. Yates paused and started crying a bit. Then she continued:
“It was my belief that if I pushed you as hard as I could, some of you would succeed to please me and others would succeed to annoy me. Regardless of our motives, I can see that you have all been successful in you chosen path.”
“There is no greater comfort for an educator than to see the end result of his or her years of work. You have all been a great source of pleasure and pride for me and I want you to know I love you all from the bottom of my heart.”
There was a silence over the crowd for a few seconds and then someone started clapping. The clapping turned into cheering, then into a deafening roar(呼喊). Lawyers, truck drivers, bankers and models were rubbing their eyes or crying openly with no shame all because of the words from a long forgotten English teacher from their hometown.
【小題1】What can be inferred from Paragraph 2? 

A．Some graduates were too busy to listen to Ms. Yates’ speech.

B．Many graduates disliked Ms. Yates’ ways of teaching.

C．Some people got tired from the reunion activities.

D．Most people had little interest in the reunion.

【小題2】We can learn from Ms. Yates’ speech that she ________.

A．kept track of her students’ progress

B．gave her students advice on their careers

C．a(chǎn)ttended her students’ college graduations

D．went to her students’ wedding ceremonies

【小題3】What was Ms.Yates’ belief in teaching teenagers?

A．Teachers’ knowledge is the key to students’ achievements.

B．Pressure on students from teachers should be reduced.

C．Hard-pushed students are more likely to succeed.

D．Students’ respect is the best reward for teachers.

【小題4】Which of the following can best describe Ms. Yates?

A．Reliable and devoted.	B．Tough and generous.
C．Proud but patient.	D．Strict but caring.

What makes a gift special? Is it the price you see on the gift receipt? Or is it the look on the recipient's face when they receive it that determines the true value? What gift is worth the most?
This Christmas I was debating what to give my father. My dad is a hard person to buy for because he never wants anything. I pulled out my phone to read a text message from my mom saying that we were leaving for Christmas shopping for him when I came across a message on my phone that I had locked. The message was from my father. My eyes fell on a photo of a flower taken in Wyoming. and underneath a poem by William Blake. The flower, a lone dandelion standing against the bright blue sky, inspired me. My dad had been reciting those words to me since I was a kid. That may even be the reason why I love writing. I decided that those words would be my gift to my father.
I called back. I told my mom to go without me and that I already created my gift. I sent the photo of the cream-colored flower to my computer and typed the poem on top of it. As I was arranging the details another poem came to mind. The poem was written by Edgar Allan Poe; my dad recited it as much as he did the other. I typed that out as well and searched online for a background to the words of it. The poem was focused around dreaming, and after searching I found the perfect picture. The image was painted with blues and greens and purples, twisting together to create the theme and wonder of a dream. As I watched both poems passing through the printer, the white paper coloring with words that shaped my childhood.， I felt that this was a gift that my father would truly appreciate.
Christmas soon arrived. The minute I saw the look on my dad's face as he unwrapped those swirling black letters carefully placed in a cheap frame, I knew I had given the perfect gift.
【小題1】The idea for a special gift began to form when the author was______.

A．doing shopping	B．having a debate
C．reading a message	D．leaving for Wyoming

【小題2】The author's inspiration for the gift came from_____.

A．a(chǎn) photo of a flower	B．a(chǎn) story about a kid
C．a(chǎn) call from the mother	D．a(chǎn) text about Christmas

【小題3】The underlined word "it" in Paragraph 3 refers to a poem by_____.

A．the father	B．the author
C．William Blake	D．Edgar Allan Poe

【小題4】What is the main purpose of the passage?

A．To show how to design images for gifts.

B．To suggest making gifts from one’s heart

C．To explain how computers help creat gifts.

D．To describe the gifts the author has received

Most people know that Marie Curie was the first woman to win the Nobel Prize, and the first person to win it twice. However, few people know that she was also the mother of a Nobel Prize winner.
Born in September, 1897, Irene Curies was the first of the Curies’ two daughters. Along with nine other children whose parents were also famous scholars, Irene studied in their own school, and her mother was one of the teachers. She finished her high school education at the College of Sevigne in Paris.
Irene entered the University of Paris in 1914 to prepare for a degree in mathematics and physics. When World War I began, Irene went to help her mother, who was using X-ray facilities to help save the lives of wounded soldiers. Irene continued the work by developing X-ray facilities in military hospitals in France and Belgium. Her services were recognized in the form of a Military Medal by the French government.
In 1918, Irene became her mother’s assistant at the Curie Institute. In December 1924, Frederic Joliot joined the Institute, and Irene taught him the techniques required for his work. They soon fell in love and were married in 1926. Their daughter Helene was born in 1927 and their son Pierre five years later.
Like her mother, Irene combined family and career. Like her mother, Irene was awarded a Nobel Prize, along with her husband, in 1935. Unfortunately, also like her mother, she developed leukemia because of her work with radioactivity (輻射能). Irene Joliot-Curie died from leukemia on March 17, 1956.
【小題1】Why was Irene Curie awarded a Military Medal?

A．Because she received a degree in mathematics.

B．Because she contributed to saving the wounded.

C．Because she won the Nobel Prize with Frederic

D．Because she worked as a helper to her mother.

【小題2】Where did Irene Curie meet her husband Frederic Joliot?

A．At the Curie Institute.	B．At the University of Paris.
C．At a military hospital.	D．At the College of Sevigne.

【小題3】When was the second child of Irene Curie and Frederic Joliot born?

A．In 1932.

B．In 1927.

C．In 1897.

D．In 1926.

【小題4】In which of the following aspects（方面）was Irene Curie different from her mother?

A．Irene worked with radioactivity.

B．Irene combined family and career.

C．Irene won the Nobel Prize once.

D．Irene died from leukemia.

My parents influenced us with the concepts of family, faith and love for one’s motherland when l was young．Even though we struggled to make ends meet, they stressed how fortunate we were to live in a great country with limitless opportunities．
I got my first real job when l was ten．My dad, Benjamin, injured his back working in a cardboard - box factory and was retrained as a hairstylist．He rented space in a little mall and gave his shop the fancy name of Mr．Ben's Coiffure．
The owner of the shopping center gave Dad a discount on his rent for cleaning the parking lot three nights a week, which meant getting up at 3 a.m. to pick up rubbish. Dad used a little machine that looked like a lawn mower．Mom and I emptied rubbish cans and picked up rubbish by hand．It took two to three hours to clean the lot．I'd s1eep in the car on the way home. I did this for two years, but the lessons I learned have lasted a lifetime, I acquired discipline(自制力) and a strong work morality(道德), and learned at an early age the importance of balancing life's competing interests---in my case, school, homework and a job．This really helped during my senior year of high school, when l worked 40 hours a week flipping hamburgers at a fast–food joint while taking a full load of college-prepared courses．The hard work paid off．I attended the U．S．Military Academy and went on to receive graduate degree in law and business from Harvard．Later, I joined a big Los Angeles law firm and was elected to the California state committee．In these jobs and in everything else I’ve done, I have never forgotten those nights in the parking lot．The experience taught me that there is dignity in all work and that if people are working to provide for themselves and their families, that is something we should honor．
【小題1】According to the text, the author thinks           .

A．he is lucky to have many chances to get a job

B．it is difficult to find a job to make ends meet

C．his parents are full of complaint about their life

D．it is not acceptable to live in such bad conditions

【小題2】 In order to get a discount on rent,           .

A．his father had to work as a hairstylist

B．his father had to work in a cardboard - box factory

C．they had to clean the-parking lot three nights a week

D．his father had to pick up litter by hand three hours a day

【小題3】Which of the following is NOT true of the author?

A．He got the graduate degrees from Harvard．

B．He took a college - prep courses at high school．

C．He took a part-time job during his senior year．

D．He regretted having worked in the parking lot．

【小題4】What does the underlined sentence "The hard work paid off" mean?

A．The author got a high pay by working hard．

B．The author complained of the hard work．

C．The effort which he made had no effect．

D．The hard work was worthwhile for the author．

【小題5】We can learn from the text that _   

A．it is unimaginable for a child to help his family

B．it is honored to work for one's family as a member

C．it is unnecessary to keep work rules-of behavior

D．the harder the work is, the more interest one shows

Jimmy is an automotive mechanic, but he lost his job a few months ago. He has good heart, but always feared applying for a new job.
One day, he gathered up all his strength and decided to attend a job interview. His appointment(約會) was at 10 am and it was already 8:30. While waiting for a bus to the office where he was supposed to be interviewed, he saw an elderly man wildly kicking the tyre(輪胎) of his car. Obviously there was something wrong with the car. Jimmy immediately went up to lend him a hand. When Jimmy finished working on the car, the old man asked him how much he should pay for the service. Jimmy said there was no need to pay him; he just helped someone in need, and he had to rush for an interview. Then the old man said, “Well, I could take you to the office for your interview. It’s the least I could do. Please. I insist.” Jimmy agreed.
Upon arrival, Jimmy found a long line of job hunters waiting to be interviewed. Jimmy still had some grease(油漬) on him after the car repair, but he did not have much time to wash it off or have a change of shirt. One by one, the job hunters left the interviewer’s office with disappointment. Finally his name was called. The interviewer was sitting on a large chair facing the office window. Rocking the chair back and forth, he asked, “Do you really need to be interviewed?” Jimmy’s heart sank. “With the way I look now, how could I possibly pass this interview?” he thought to himself.
Then the interviewer turned the chair and to Jimmy’s surprise, it was the old man he helped earlier in the morning. It turned out he was the General Manager of the company.
“Sorry I had to keep you waiting, but I was pretty sure I made the right decision to have you as part of our workforce before you even stepped into the office. I just know you’d be a worker who is worth trusting. Congratulations!” Jimmy sat down and they shared a cup of well-deserved coffee as he landed himself a new job.
【小題1】Why did Jimmy apply for a new job?

A．He was out of work	B．He was bored with his job
C．He wanted a higher position	D．He hoped to find a better boss

【小題2】What did Jimmy see on the way to the interview?

A．A friend’s car had a flat(癟的) tyre

B．a(chǎn) wild man was pushing a car

C．a(chǎn) terrible accident happened

D．a(chǎn)n old man’s car broke down

【小題3】How did Jimmy feel on hearing the interviewer’s question?

A．He was sorry for the other job hunters

B．There was no hope for him to get the job

C．He regretted （后悔）helping the old man

D．The interviewer was very rude

【小題4】Why did the old man offer Jimmy a ride?

A．He was also to be interviewed

B．He needed a traveling companion

C．He always helped people in need

D．He was thankful to Jimmy

【小題5】What can we learn from Jimmy’s experience？

A．Where there is a will, there’s a way

B．A friend in need is a friend indeed

C．Good is rewarded with good.

D．Two heads are better than one

About ten years ago, a young and very successful businessman named Josh was traveling down a Chicago neighborhood street. He was going a bit too fast in his shiny, black, 12 cylinder Jaguar XKE, which was only two months old.
　　He was watching for kids rushing out from between parked cars and slowed down when he thought he saw something. As his car passed, no child came out, but a brick sailed out and-WHUMP!-it hit the Jag’s shiny black side door! SCREECH...!!!! Immediately Josh stopped the car, jumped out, seized the kid and pushed him up against a parked car. He shouted at the kid, “What was that all about and who are you? Just what the heck are you doing?!” Building up a head of steam, he went on. “That’s my new Jag. That brick you threw is going to cost you a lot of money. Why did you throw it?”
　　“Please, mister, please... I’m sorry! I didn’t know what else to do!” begged the youngster. “I threw the brick because no one else would stop!” tears were streaming down the boy’s face as he pointed around the parked car. “It’s my brother, mister,” he said. “He rolled of the curb （路沿）and fell out of his wheelchair and I can’t lift him up.” Sobbing, the boy asked the businessman, “Would you please help me get him back into his wheelchair?” he’s hurt and he’s too heavy for me.”
　　Moved beyond words, the young businessman tried hard to swallow the rapidly swelling lump in his throat. Straining, he lifted the young man back into the wheelchair and took out his handkerchief and wiped the scrapers and cuts, checking to see that everything was going to be OK. He then watched the younger brother push him down the sidewalk toward their home.
　　It was a long walk back to the black, shining, 12 cylinder Jaguar XKE — a long and slow walk. Josh never did fix the side door of his Jaguar. He kept the dent （凹痕）to remind him not to go through life so fast that someone has to throw a brick at him to get his attention. Feel for the bricks of life coming at you.
【小題1】The boy threw a brick at the businessman’s car because ________.

A．the businessman drove at a high speed

B．he envied the brand-new car very much

C．he wanted to ask for some money

D．he wanted to get help from the driver

【小題2】Which of the following is the right order of the story?
a．The younger brother threw a brick at Josh’s car.
b．The elder brother fell out of his wheelchair.
c．The younger brother begged Josh for help.
d．Josh lifted the elder brother back into his wheelchair.
e．Josh shouted at the younger brother.

A．b, a, e, c, d

B．a(chǎn), c, d, b, e

C．b, a, c, e, d

D．a(chǎn), c, b, e, d

【小題3】What can we learn from the passage?

A．Josh would accept the money from the kids.

B．The two kids were Josh’s neighbors.

C．Josh was a kind-hearted man.

D．Josh’s new car broke down easily.

Sherlock Holmes was the greatest detective in history. His astonishing power of observation and analysis meant that he was able to solve cases which left the real police completely perplexed. As a problem solver in the law forced business, he was a knowledgeable person equal to Superman, the comic book hero.
Like Superman, of course, Holmes did not exist. He was the creation of a Scottish doctor and novelist Arthur Conan Doyle, and remains one of the most famous literary fiction characters of all time.
Holmes’ general rule when trying to solve a case was as follows: completely get rid of the impossible. Then whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.
It’s said that Holmes’ powers of deduction (推斷) were superhuman, particularly his ability to process information from what he observed. In a story called The Boscombe Valley Mystery, Holmes examines the area near a lake where a murder has been committed. The local police have already searched the area and found no clues. Holmes spends ten minutes in the area, and announces that the murderer “is a tall man, left-handed, limps with the right leg, wears thick-soled shooting boots and a gray coat, smokes Indian cigars, uses a cigar holder, and carries a penknife in his pocket. There are several other indications, but these may be enough to aid us in our search.” Needless to say, he has found evidence to support all of these statements.
The fictional Holmes lived in an apartment at 221 Baker Street, a real street in Central London. When Conan Doyle wrote about Holmes, there was no 221 Baker Street, but after the street was extended northwards, there was. There is currently a bank at that address.
The fact that Holmes didn’t actually exist doesn’t stop thousands of people writing to him for help every year.The bank kindly responds to every letter they receive with the following message: “Mr. Holmes thanks you for your letter. At the moment he is retired in Sussex, keeping bees, and does not undertake detective work nowadays.”
【小題1】In the first paragraph the underlined word “perplexed” suggests that the police were _______

A．confident

B．worried

C．confused

D．sure

【小題2】How does the writer describe Holmes and Superman?

A．Neither Superman nor Holmes was a real character.

B．Both Superman and Holmes used super intellect to solve problems.

C．Superman was a comic book figure, while Holmes was a real detective.

D．Superman and Holmes were equally intelligent and brave.

【小題3】How did Holmes use his powers of deduction in the fourth paragraph?

A．He spent a long time thinking about possible solutions.

B．He found clues to help him create a full description of a suspect.

C．He observed the crime area and guessed what happened.

D．He searched the area with the police and discussed with them,

【小題4】When letters are written to Holmes, _______

A．he answers letters when he receives them

B．his secretary answers them for him.

C．the bank at 221 Baker Street where he used to live sends the letters back

D．the bank at his address replies that Holmes is no longer working as a detective

Henry Ford grew up on an un-electrified farm, and as a young man he followed Edison's career as the inventor became a national role model．Ford took a job at the Edison Illuminating Company working his way up to chief engineer．
In 1896 Ford was thirty-three and, though still working for Edison Co．,he had created his first experimental automobile the Ford Quadricycle2 during his off-time． At an Edison company party in New York, Ford had his first chance to meet his hero Edison and was able to explain his new automobile to the great inventor． Edison was impressed． Edison is said to have slammed his fist downand shouted ¨Young man, that's the thing! You have it! Your car is self-contained and carries its own power plant．" Edison himself had been working on the idea, but had only been considering electricity as the power source, so the idea of a gas engine was a somewhat new one．
The words comforted Ford greatly, who immediately set out building a second car which was to become the Model-T．6．The two men became f'ast friends and would go on camping trips together．When Edison later became limited to a wheelchair, Ford brought an extra one to his house so they could race．At the 50th anniversary of the invention of light-bulb, Ford honored Edison．When Edison spoke, he ended his speech directed at Ford:“ As to Henry Ford, words fail to express my feelings．I can only say that he is my friend．" Therefore it is no surprise that Ford wanted something to remember Edison by after he passed away in 1931．
Once, Ford asked Thomas Edison's son Charles to sit by the dying inventor's bedside and hold a test tube next to his father's mouth to catch his final breath． Ford was a man with many strange behaviors（ as was Edison）including some interest in reanimation and spiritualism（夏活通靈術(shù)）and some say that he was attempting to catch Edison's soul as it escaped his body in hopes of later bringing the inventor back to life．
The test tube itself didn't turn up until 1950 when it was listed in the Ford possessions after Clara Ford's passing away, and then lost again until 1978 when it was discovered in an exhibit Entitled “Henry Ford-A Personal History"  in the Henry Ford Museum．It would then be discovered that the tube was labeled “Edison's Last Breath"．
There is a further mystery of this “l(fā)ast breath"  test tube． It would seem as if Edison had quite a last breath indeed, as the Edison Estate holds a collection of 42 test tubes all supposedly containing Edison's last breath．
Regardless of the excitement over the last breath, the test tube is quite touching in its meaning．Although both men were known for all sorts of poor behavior towards ．their loved ones and mistreatment of employees, between them at least, there was clearly a deep respect and admiration．
【小題1】The passage can be sorted as a        ．

A．science research

B．short story

C．news report

D．self-introduction

【小題2】From the underlined sentence in Paragraph2 we can learn that       ．

A．Edison envied what Ford had achieved

B．Edison was annoyed that Ford did better him

C．Edison was angry because Ford stole his idea

D．Edison was extremely amazed at Ford's new idea

【小題3】In Paragraph 3,the writer mentions Ford bought an extra wheelchair       ．

A．to remind Edison was Ford's role model

B．to suggest Ford was a man of strange behavior

C．to tell us the importance of a creative idea then

D．to show the close friendship between Henry Ford and Edison

【小題4】¨The 61ast breath' test tube" can probably be regarded as       ．

A．a(chǎn) symbol of a friendship and memory

B．a(chǎn) witness to a scientific breakthrough

C．a(chǎn) failure to bring Edison back to life

D．a(chǎn) sign of the two inventors' poor behavior

【小題5】It can be learned from the last paragraph that“      ” ．

A．Great minds think alike

B．Nobody is perfect

C．Two heads are better than one

D．A friend in need is a friend indeed