The owner of a missing cat is asking for help. “My baby has been missing for over a month now, and I want him back so badly,” said Mrs. Brown, a 56-year-old woman. Mrs. Brown lives by herself in a trailer park near Clovis. She said that Clyde, her 7-year-old cat, didn’t come home for dinner more than a month ago. The next morning he didn’t appear for breakfast either. After Clyde missed an extra-special lunch, she called the police.

When the policeman asked her to describe Clyde, she told him that Clyde had beautiful green eyes, had all his teeth but was missing half of his left ear, and was seven years old and completely white. She then told the officer that Clyde was about a foot high.

A bell went off. “Is Clyde your child or your pet?” the officer suspiciously asked. “Well, he’s my cat, of course,” Mrs. Brown replied. “Lady, you’re supposed to report missing PERSONS, not missing CATS,” said the sppeadeotoned policeman. “Well, who can I report this to?” she asked. “You can’t. You have to ask around your neighborhood or put up flyers,” replied the officer.

Mrs. Brown figured that a billboard would work a lot better than an 8”x11” piece of paper on a telephone pole. There was an empty billboard at the end of her street just off the interstate（州際公路） highway. The billboard had a phone number on it. She called that number, and they told her they could blow up a picture of Clyde (from Mrs. Brown’s family album) and put it on the billboard for all to see.

“But how can people see it when they whiz（快速移動） by on the interstate?” she asked. “Oh, don’t worry, ma’am, they only whiz by between 2 a.m. and 5:30 a.m. The rest of the day, the interstate is so full of commuters that no one moves.” They told her it would cost only $3,000 a month. So she took most of the money out of her savings account and rented the billboard for a month.

The month has passed, but Clyde has not appeared. Because she has almost no money in savings, Mrs. Brown called the local newspaper to see if anyone could help her rent the billboard for just one more month. She is waiting but, so far, no one has stepped forward.

1.How long has the cat been missing?

A．More than a month                      B．More than two months

C．More than three months                  D．It’s been back.

2.Who did the old lady finally turn to for help?

A．A billboard company                     B．The police

C．The phone company                     D．The interstate telephone line

3.How is the old lady like?

A．Stupid            B．Loving            C．Smart            D．Decisive(有決斷力的)

4.The underlined word was mistyped（打錯了）. But we can still guess it’s most probable meaning:____________.

A．angry            B．surprised          C．happy            D．excited

5.What’s the best title for this passage?

A．An advertisement                       B．A missing cat

C．A pet’s story                          D．Life without cat

In 1961, a man found a strange cat on his farm in Scotland. The cat's ears were folded, bent forward, on its head. In fact, this was a new kind of cat. People named it the "Scottish Fold(蘇格蘭折耳貓)".

The Scottish Fold has a round head and large eyes. Its neck and legs are short, which makes it look very cute. Interestingly, all the Scottish Folds are born with straight and unfolded ears. And when they are growing up day by day, some cats' ears will begin to fold. So, the Scottish Fold comes in two types: folded ears and straight ears.

Besides, there is a nickname for the Scottish Fold. It is the " Messenger of Peace". Why?

Because the Folds are sweet and friendly animals. They can get along well with other cats. And

unlike some other cats, they can even get along well with dogs! In many different environments, such as at a noisy house, or in a cat show, you can see them playing with other animals happily.

Well, when you come to a new school, do you think it's difficult to adapt to the new environment? Perhaps you can learn from the Scottish Fold. That is: always be sweet and friendly to others.

1.Tie Scottish Fold _____.

A. is born with folded ears             B. is born with straight ears

C. always has folded ears              D. always has straight ears

2. What does the Scottish Fold look like?

A. It has a round head and large eyes.    B. Its neck and legs are short.

C. It looks very cute.                  D. All above.

3. Why are the Scottish Folds named the " Messenger of Peace" ?

A. Because their ears are folded.

B. Because they look very cute.

C. Because they can get on well with other animals.

D. Because they can stay at a noisy house or in a cat show.

4. According to the passage, what is the writer' s suggestion to us when we are in a new

environment?

A. We should have a nickname.         B. We should learn from the cats.

C. We should get along well with dogs.   D. We should always be sweet and friendly to others.

This is a girl. Her name is Nancy. She has a cat. It’s an English cat. Her friends are Amy and Barbara. They have cats, too. They are Chinese cats. The English cat is four. The Chinese cats are both two. They all like their cats.

Now they can’t see their cats. They think their cats are in the tree. They go there and carry (抱) them down.

根據短文內容選擇正確答案。

(   )46. Nancy has a good _____cat.

A. English        B. Chinese   C. American   D. Japanese

(   )47. Nancy has _____ friends.

A. one             B. two         C. three         D. four

(   )48. The English cat is _____ and the Chinese cats are______.

A. two, two     B. two, four  C. four, two    D. four, four

(   )49.Where are the cats?   —They are_______.

A. in the tree                         B. on the floor  

C. behind them                      D. under the tree

(   )50. Do they like their cats?

A. No, they don’t.                  B. Yes, they do. 

C. Yes, they don’t.                  D. No, they do.

Tigers are terrible animals, but a cat is a cute animal.    As a mother, the Chinese-American writer Amy Chua is just a tiger . Her book, Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother (《虎媽戰(zhàn)歌》), tells us how she gives her two children education.    She says that being strict is the only way to train a child’s talent. Her kids had to obey the following rules. To begin with, her kids weren’t allowed to watch TV or play computer games. Then, they were not allowed to “ hang out ” with other kids after school. They had to be the top students in their class. And they had to practice the piano and the violin for hours every day. Of course, she believes this has brought a lot of problems for herself and her kids. But she doesn’t mind because her kids have become great. Chua says, like her, most Asian mothers are tigers because they believe their children can achieve a lot if they’re pushed hard enough. She says American mothers are really cats. They care more about their children’s self-respect (自尊). They don’t want to be strict with their kids because this may hurt their feelings. With soft words and understanding, they encourage their children to choose for themselves. So is a tiger mom better than a cat mom? It may also depend on the child.
【小題1】The writer of this passage wants to  _________.