Question

When William Stidger taught at Boston University, he once thought about the people that he hadn’t thanked in his life. They taught him, encouraged him or cared a lot about him.

One was a teacher. She once taught William geography. So he wrote a letter of thanks to her.

He got the teacher’s letter later. It began, “My dear Willie”. He was very happy. Now over 50, he didn’t think someone would call him “Willie”. Here is that letter:

My dear Willie,

I cannot tell you how much your letter means to me. I’m in my eighties, living alone in a small room and cooking my own meals. You will be interested to know that I taught school for 50 years and yours is the first letter of appreciation (感激) I ever got. It came on a cold morning but it made me feel very warm.

William cried when he read the letter. She was one of the people that William hadn’t thanked in his past. She helped him to believe in himself. He would never forget her.

There are some people we should always remember, because they helped to shape our life. William Stidger found a way to show his appreciation—he wrote them letters.

Who are some of the people that you need to thank in your past? It may not be too late to say "Thanks".

1.Who did William write a letter to?

A. His teacher.    B. His parents.    C. A neighbor.    D. A friend.

2.When William wrote the letter, he was ____________.

A. quite old    B. young    C. in his fifties    D. retired

3.Why did William write to his geography teacher?

A. He got her first letter of appreciation.

B. His teacher encouraged him to be active.

C. He wanted to make friends with his teacher.

D. His teacher helped him to believe in himself.

4.What can we learn about William’s teacher?

A. She was over 80.    B. She lived with her children.

C. She taught geography for 40 years.    D. She did everything well.

5.How did William show his appreciation to the people he needed to thank?

A. He called them.    B. He visited them.

C. He sent them gifts.    D. He wrote them letters.

Answer

1.A

2.C

3.D

4.A

5.D

【解析】本文主要介绍了William在大学教学期间写信感激过去教过他，鼓励过他，给予过他关心的老师。这位老师给他写了回信。这个故事告诉我们感谢什么时候都不会太晚。

1.A

事实细节题；由短文第二段的“One was a teacher. She once taught William geography. So he wrote a letter of thanks to her.”，可知William写信给他的老师，答案应是A项。

2.C

事实细节题；由短文第三段的“Now over 50, he didn’t think …”，可知现在他已五十多岁了，故选C项。

3.D

事实细节题；由短文第五段的“She helped him to believe in himself. He would never forget her.”，可知他给地理老师写信的原因。故选D。

4.A

事实细节题；由第四段的第二句话“I’m in my eighties.”，可知这位地理老师已八十多岁了，故选A项。

5.D

事实细节题；由第六段的“William Stidger found a way to show his appreciation—he wrote them letter.”可知William通过给需要感谢的人写信来表达他的感激，应选D项。