Question

Until late in the 20th century, most Americans spent time with people of generations. Now mid-aged Americans may not keep in touch with old people until they are old themselves.That’s because we group people by age. We put our three-year-olds together in day-care center, our 13-year-olds in school and sports activities, and our 80-year-olds in senior-citizen homes. Why?

We live away from the old for many reasons: young people sometimes avoid the old to get rid of fears for aging and dying. It is much harder to watch .someone we love disappear before our eyes. Sometimes it’s so hard that we stay away from the people who need us most.

Fortunately, .some of us have found our way to the old. And we have discovered that they often save the young.

A reporter moved her family onto a block filled with old people. At first her children were disappointed. But the reporter baked banana bread for the neighbours and had her children deliver it and visit. Soon the children had many new friends, with whom they shared food, stories and projects. “My children have never been less lonely,” the reporter said.

The young, in turn, save the old. Once I was in a rest home when a visitor showed up with a baby. She was immediately surrounded. People who hadn’t gotten out of bed in a week suddenly were ringing for a wheelchair. Even those who had seemed asleep wake up to watch the child. Babies have an astonishing power to comfort and cure.

Grandparents are a special case. They give grandchildren a feeling of security and continuity. As my husband put it, “my grandparents gave me a deep sense that things would turn out right in the end.”

Grandchildren speak of attention they don’t get from worried parents. “My parents were always telling me to hurry up, and my grandparents told me to slow down,” one friend said. A teacher told me she can tell which pupils have relationships with grandparents: they are quieter, calmer, more trusting.

1.Now in an American family, people can find that ____.

A．children never live with their parents

B．not all working people live with their parents

C．aged people are supported by their grandchildren

D．grandchildren are supported by their grandparents

2.The reason why old people are left alone may be that ____.

A．the old don’t like to live in a big family

B．the young can’t get enough money to support the old

C．different generations have different lifestyles

D．the old are too weak to live with the young

3.The fact that the reporter told us shows that ___.

A．old people in America lead a hard life

B．old people in America enjoy banana bread

C．she had no time to take care of her children

D．old people are easy to get along with

4.Seeing a baby, the old people get excited because ____.

A．they had never seen a baby before

B．the baby was clever and beautiful

C．the baby brought them the image of life

D．the baby’s mother would take care of them

5.Why do children not get attention from their parents?

A．Because they often make trouble and make their parents disappointed.

B．Because their parents are too busy to take care of them.

C．Because their parents have to take care of their grandparents.

D．Because their parents have been out of work for a long time.

Answer

1.B

2.C

3.D

4.C

5.B 

【解析】

试题分析：文章介绍孩子们不怎么和父母生活在一起的原因，而实际上和老年人相处很容易，对孩子和老人都很有好处。

1.细节题：从第一段的这一句：Now mid-aged Americans may not keep in touch with old people until they are old themselves.可知孩子们不怎么和父母生活在一起。选B

2.推理题;从第一段的句子：That’s because we group people by age. We put our three-year-olds together in day-care center, our 13-year-olds in school and sports activities, and our 80-year-olds in senior-citizen homes. 以及We live away from the old for many reasons: young people sometimes avoid the old to get rid of fears for aging and dying.可以推断不同年代的人的生活方式不同，是老年人与年轻人不再同住、老年人独居的原因。选C

3.细节题：从第四段的句子：the reporter baked banana bread for the neighbors and had her children deliver it and visit them. Soon the children had many new friends，说明了我们和老年人相处很容易，选D

4.排除题和常识题。选项A显然有悖起码的常识，几十岁的老人怎么可能连婴儿都没见过呢？B、D文中均未提到，因而不是正确答案。文章的句子：Babies have an astonishing power to comfort and cure.和生活中的常识，结合文中描述的情景，便可以判断C就是答案！我们经常看到老人一见到婴儿就高兴得不得了，对一个垂暮之人来说，婴儿象征着生命和重生。所以选项C是正确答案。

5.推理题：从最后一段的句子：Grandchildren speak of attention they don’t get from worried parents. “My parents were always telling me to hurry up, and my grandparents told me to slow down,”可知父母太忙，没时间关注孩子。选B 

考点：考查社会现象类短文