For his eleventh birthday, Lin was given a gift that would shape his life. On that day his father took him to the Children’s Activity Centre and said he could choose any course that interested him. There was just one requirement: Lin would have to promise to study it for at least one year.
To that point Lin had had many hobbies, but none kept his interest for more than a week or two. His mum once gave him a bag of stamps to encourage stamp collecting. That hobby lasted a week. Then his father got him some paints hoping that Lin's artistic side would shine through. Those paints were now under his bed, still unopened. This time Lin’s parents would let him decide.
Lin's eyes moved down the noticeboard that listed all the courses on offer. He stopped at "Photography". He liked the idea of taking beautiful pictures but the notice said that each student needed their own camera. Although Lin's family weren't poor, they weren’t rich either, and a camera cost a lot of money. He continued looking.
The next course to catch his eye was "Language Art". He didn’t even know what that meant. His father explained that it taught people how to make public speeches. Lin, a shy boy, could think of nothing worse.
Then he saw it. "Cooking" sounded like something he'd like to do. It was inexpensive and convenient, it could be done alone and it was also creative.
Based on Lin’s hobby history, his dad had doubts, but he agreed. Much to his parents' surprise, Lin kept his promise. He studied cooking at the Centre every Saturday, and practised at home, making delicious meals for his family. Everyone looked forward to birthdays, when they could eat his cakes. Lin got great satisfaction from the pleasure his food brought to others.
The months turned to years but his hobby never changed again.
Now Lin is an adult and runs a successful restaurant. When customers say they enjoy his meal, he still gets the same pleasure he did as a child, and remembers the special gift he received all those years ago.
1.Why didn't Lin choose to study photography?
A.It was too expensive.
B.He had no interest in it.
C.He was not very creative.
D.It was not offered that term.
2.The underlined expression "catch his eye" in Paragraph 4 means “ ”.
A.make him excited
B.cause him surprise
C.get his attention
D.help him see clearly
3.Which of the following best describes Lin's interest in cooking?
A.It only lasted for a short time.
B.It seemed to match his character.
C.It was forced on him by his parents.
D.It developed slowly over many months.
4.Why did the father have doubts about Lin's choice of cooking?
A.Lin wasn't good at cooking.
B.Cooking wasn't very convenient.
C.He didn’t think Lin would continue.
D.Cooking wasn't a good hobby for a boy.
5.What's the best title for the passage?
A.A Strict Father
B.A Changeable Boy
C.The Fun of Cooking
D.The Birthday Gift
Dear Mr Scott,
I expect you may be slightly surprised to receive a letter from your next-door neighbor, but I have to raise a theme that it will be easier for me to discuss in writing. You may have noticed that I have a line of apple trees running along the fence（栅栏）that separates our two gardens. You may also have felt happy when you see your two children sitting on your grass by the fence. And you may also have noticed that my apple trees bend over the fence and seem to look down at your children with interest. It is only natural that your children should sometimes seem to return that interest. And it is quite legal（合法的）for them to show that interest by picking all the apples that hang over on your side of the fence. But to tell you the truth, Mr Scott, I am tired of seeing your children, day after day, destroy the branches of every one of my apple trees. And it seems that a war has been fought on one side of my apple trees. Besides, I am more tired of waking up on these fine autumn mornings to find even the apples on MY side of the fence much less in number. I know this too is the work of your children, since last night I was woken at midnight by the noise they were making when climbing one of my trees, and (as they may have told you) I drove them away.
Yours sincerely,
Becky Aldrin
1.What is this?
A.A complaint letter. B.An invitation letter.
C.A thank-you letter. D.A recommendation letter.
2.Which season was it?
A.Spring. B.Summer. C.Autumn. D.Winter.
3.What did the two children do last night?
A.They sat on the grass. B.They ran along the fence.
C.They destroyed the branches. D.They climbed an apple tree.
4.How was Becky Aldrin when she wrote this letter?
A.Polite but serious. B.Surprised but happy.
C.Angry and rude. D.Tired and uninterested.
5.What did Becky Aldrin wish Mr Scott to do next?
A.Be kind to his neighbour B.Make friends with his children.
C.Have a talk with his children. D.Grow apple trees in his garden.
On a farm lived a father and a son. The father always got up early and read books by the stove. One morning, the son came up to him and said, "Dad, I read books at night but forget most of them the next morning. What's the good of reading?"
The father didn’t reply to his question at once. He passed him a basket that was used to carry coal. He said, "Get some water from the river with the basket and then I'll tell you the answer."
The son felt surprised but he did as his father said, He tried many times but every time the water leaked (漏掉) from the basket.
An hour later, the son came back with the empty basket and told his father it was impossible to hold water with the basket. The father said with a smile. "Yes, you are right, my son. The basket can t hold water. But did you notice the basket was different?" The son found the dirty basket had become clean. The father continued, "Reading is like holding water with the basket. Although we can't remember all we read, we have changed while reading."
1.The father was used to reading in the morning.
2.The son wondered if reading was good for him.
3.The father didn't answer his son's question because he thought it was stupid.
4.The basket had no difference after the son used it to get water from the river.
5.From the passage, we know that reading can make a difference to a person.
Once there was a king and his daughter. The king asked his daughter how much she loved him. She said that she loved him as much as she loved _______. Her answer made the king very happy. Salt is simple thing, ______ it is very important. So the king thought his daughter cared a lot about him.
Salt has many _______. Bodies need salt. If we don’t have enough, our bodies can't work properly. We put salt on icy roads to make them _______.We also use salt to produce other products, like paper and glass. But for many years salt's most important job was to ______ food. Like other living things, most bacteria (细菌) need water to live. Salt lakes in plenty of water, so most bacteria (细菌) can not live ______ a salty environment. As a result, salt protects food and many other things. For much of humans history, this ability has made salt _______. Every ancient culture from Egypt to China depends on suit. Even today, the hard-working useful people are ______ as “the salt of the earth”.
For centuries, salt was also hard to ______ .Its usefulness, together with rarity (稀有) made it very expensive. Salt could even be used like ______ . In fact, the word salary (薪水) comes from the word salt.
Today, salt fs used more widely and it still plays an important role in our life.
1.A.salt B.air C.gold
2.A.and B.so C.but
3.A.forms B.secrets C.uses
4.A.wide B.safe C.smooth
5.A.protect B.provide C.produce
6.A.in B.outside C.for
7.A.hopeful B.comfortable C.valuable
8.A.saved B.dreamed C.described
9.A.sell B.get C.take
10.A.money B.medicine C.earth
-- Would you like more dumplings, Harry?
-- ________. I'm full
A.Yes, please
B.No way
C.No, thanks
D.All right
-- Will you go camping with us, Bob?
-- I'd love to, but I ______ study for the test.
A.may
B.must
C.can
D.could
