Perhaps the most famous name in the world of sileni movies is Charlie Chaplin. It was in 1889 that both moving pictures and Charlie Chaplin were born. Sadly, Charlie's father died when Charlie was five, and his mother was sent to mental hospital. This left young Charlie homeless and living on the streets.,
Things seemed bad for Charlie, but he had a bright, nice character. He was pleasant and easy to like. So he managed to get small parts in Derformances around London. Then he moved to the USA in 1906, and his life took a major change for the better. He got a part in a show performing there. Seven years after his arrival in the USA, he got his first major part in a film. Charlie was a great success in the movi
e theaters. His silent, highly visual(视觉的) form of comedy was perfect for the silent films of the time. By 1915, he was making over $1,250 a week, which was a huge amount of money at that time. Charlie knew what he was good at, and he stuck to it. Even when sound could be used for movies in 1923, he continued to make silent pictures, Charlie knew that the silence was an essential part of what made his movies so funny. Charlie continued to make silent films well into the 1940s, when almost everyone else had changed to sound. Charlie, however, still remained one of the world's greatest film stars.
1.When did Charlie get his first major part in a film?
A. In 1889. B. In 1906. C. In 1913. D. In 1923.
2.The underlined word "essential" in Paragraph 2 probably means _______.
A. very boring B. very correct C. very difficult D. very important
3.From the passage we know that Charlie_______.
A. was easy to get along with
B. stopped making movi
es in 1923
C. was born and brought up in America
D. didn't produce silent films in America
4.Which could be the best title of the passage?
A. The Major Change for an Actor. B. A Great Man of Silent Movies.
C. The Beginning of Silent Movies. D. The Hard Life for A Movie Maker.
John was a very strong man.
Once he got a job of cutting wood in a forest. His boss gave him an axe and showed him the area where he should work.
The first day, John cut down 18 trees. "Good," the boss said, "keep it up!" John was encouraged by the words of the boss and tried harder the next day, but he could only cut down 15 trees. The third day he tried even harder, but he could only cut down 10 trees. Day af
ter day he was cutting down fewer and fewer trees.
"I must be losing my strength," John thought. He went to the boss and said that he could not understand what was going on. "When was the last time you had sharpened your axe?" the boss
asked. "Sharpened? I had no time to sharpen my axe. I have been very busy trying to cut more treesl" said John.
The moral of this story: While John was working hard, he didn't think about how to do his job better. Our lives are like that. We sometimes get so busy that we don't take time to sharpen our skills. Many of us never learn new skills. We think that whatever we have learned is enough. However, in some ways, sharpening our skills from time to time is the key to success.
1.When did John cut the most trees?
A. The first day. B. The second day. C. The third day. D. The fourth day.
2.John was cutting down fewer and fewer trees. He thought_______.
A. he needed to sharpen his axe B. the boss should help him
C. it was wrong to cut down trees D. he must be losing his strength
3.What can we learn from the story?
A. It is wrong to cut down trees.
B. Hard work is the only key to success.
C. It's important to take time to sharpen our skills.
D. It's a waste of time to sharpen the axe.
It was a cold winter's night. It was getting late and l was tired so I went to bed.
At about two in the morning my phone began to ring. It was from Mum. I started to feel frightened, because she only if something was wrong.1 lived in the same flat as Mum, I rushed down to see what was wrong.
The door would not open. Everything was running through my mind including Mum could be dying and I could not get into her flat. I went around to her bedroom window and could see Mum on the floor. She had heard me and to unlock the door painfully.
Then I entered the flat and what I saw was terrible. I could see Mum's leg was badly broken and it was completely the wrong
way. I rang the ambulance(救护车) and while we were waiting I tried to make Mum comfortable.
The ambulance finally arrived and I it. It was a cold freezing night. The roads were empty and . It seemed that everything was going in a slow way.
We arrived at the hospital and rushed into A&E. The doctor told me that Mum would need an the next day. After Mum fell asleep, I went home to get some sleep.
When I rang the hospital the next morning, Mum had gone to the operating r
oom. Everything was racing through my head. Is she OK? Wi
ll she be safe? Would she it through the operation? Finally that day she was fine. My mum is a very lady and I am so proud of her.
From this I have learned that you should never take family for granted(想当然), everyday every moment you have with them because in my mind family 
is the most important thing you will ever be a part of, so never, ever forget what you have.
1.A. waited B. wondered C. rang D. cared
2.A. but B. so C. unless D. because
3.A. afforded B. offered C. allowed D. managed
4.A. meeting B. facing C. receiving D. allowing
5.A. followed B. missed C. ordered D. passed
6.A. safe B. clean C. quiet D. free
7.A. experienceB. excitement C. experiment D. operation
8.A. test B. make C. push D. cut
9.A. brave B. lonely C. weak D. serious
10.A. trust B. expect C. find D. enjoy
—Can you tell me ________?
-- With Lucy’s help.
A. when you did it so well B. when did you do it so well
C. how you did it so well D. how did you do it so well
Some drivers drive _____fast that they make people ______ are trying to cross the road afraid.
A. too, who B. even, that C. so, who D. such, that
—May I ____your dictionary?
--Sorry. Li Ping _______it for a week.
A.lend, borrowed B.lend, has lent C. borrow, has borrowed D.borrow, has kept
