When my brother and I were young, my mom would take us on Transportation Days.
It goes like this: You can't take any means of transportation more than once. We would start from home, walking two blocks to the rail station. We'd take the train into the city center, then a bus, switching to the train, then maybe a taxi. We always considered taking a horse carriage in the historic district, but we didn't like the way the horses were treated, so we never did. At the end of the day, we took the subway to our closest station, where Mom's friend was waiting to give us a ride home—our first car ride of the day.
The good thing about Transportation Days is not only that Mom taught us how to get around. She was born to be multimodal (多方式的). She understood that depending on cars only was a failure of imagination and, above all, a failure of confidence—the product of a childhood not spent exploring subway tunnels.
Once you learn the route map and step with certainty over the gap between the train and the platform, nothing is frightening anymore. New cities are just lightrail lines to be explored. And your personal car, if you have one, becomes just one more tool in the toolbox—and often an inadequate one, limiting both your mobility and your wallet.
On Transportation Days, we might stop for lunch on Chestrut Street or buy a new book or toy, but the transportation was the point. First, it was exciting enough to watch the world speed by from the train window. As I got older, my mom helped me unlock the mysteries that would otherwise have paralyzed my first attempts to do it myself: How do I know where to get off? How do I know how much it costs? How do I know when I need tickets, and where to get them? What track, what line, which direction, where's the stop, and will I get wet when we go under the river?
I'm writing this right now on an airplane, a means we didn't try on our Transportation Days and, we now know, the dirtiest and most polluting of them all. My flight routed me through Philadelphia. My multimodal mom met me for dinner in the airport. She took a train to meet me.
1. According to the writer, what was the greatest benefit of her Transportation Days?
A．Building confidence in herself.
B．Reducing her use of private cars.
C．Developing her sense of direction.
D．Giving her knowledge about vehicles.
2. The underlined word “paralyzed”(in Para.5) is closest in meaning to “________”．
A．displayed B．justified C．ignored D．ruined
3. Which means of transportation does the writer probably disapprove of?
A．Airplane. B．Subway. C．Train. D．Car.
On a hill 600 feet above the surrounding land, we watch the lines of rain move across the scene, the moon rise over the hills, and the stars appear in the sky. The views invite a long look from a comfortable chair in front of the wooden house.
Every window in our wooden house has a view, and the forest and lakes seldom look the same as the hour before. Each look reminds us where we are.
There is space for our three boys to play outside, to shoot arrows, collect tree seeds, build earth houses and climb trees.
Our kids have learned the names of the trees, and with the names have come familiarity and appreciation. As they tell all who show even a passing interest, maple（枫树）makes the best fighting sticks and white pines are the best climbing trees.
The air is clean and fresh. The water from the well has a pleasant taste, and it is perhaps the healthiest water our kids will ever drink. Though they have one glass a day of juice and the rest is water, they never say anything against that.
The seasons change just outside the door. We watch the maples turn every shade of yellow and red in the fall and note the poplars（杨树）putting out the first green leaves of spring. The rainbow smelt fills the local steam as the ice gradually disappears, and the wood frogs start to sing in pools after being frozen for the winter. A family of birds rules our skies and flies over the lake.
1. What can be learned from Paragraph 2?
A. The scenes are colorful and changeable.
B. There are many windows in the wooden house.
C. The views remind us that we are in a wooden house.
D. The lakes outside the windows are quite different in color.
2. By mentioning the names of the trees, the author aims to show that ______ .
A. the kids like playing in trees
B. the kids are very familiar with trees
C. the kids have learned much knowledge
D. the kids find trees useful learning tools
3. What does the underlined sentence in the last paragraph mean?
A. The change of seasons is easily felt.
B. The seasons make the scenes change.
C. The weather often changes in the forest.
D. The door is a good position to enjoy changing seasons.
4. What is the main purpose of the author writing the text?
A. To describe the beauty of the scene around the house.
B. To introduce her children’s happy life in the forest.
C. To show that living in the forest is healthful.
D. To share the joy of living in the nature.
“Hey, Jenna, do you think we’ll still be friends when we’re eighty-two?” I asked my friend．It was clear that she was wondering where I had come up with such a question．Losing Jenna would be like losing a very close sister．We hung out together．We gave each other advice．
“Of course, we’ll still be friends when we’re eighty-two.” Jenna announced loudly．
The next year, in the fourth grade, we met Jamie．The three of us soon became close friends．We played together almost every day．I thought even time couldn’t pull us apart, but I was sadly mistaken．
The three of us started fighting a lot．Before Christmas, we had a really big fight, and Jamie and Jenna were against me, both saying I was bossy．I felt helpless and lonely．I thought Christmas would be horrible!
I was surprised when Jenna came to my house and gave me an awesome Christmas card she had made for me．I was so sure that she was still disappointed with me．
“Wow, ” I said, breaking the silence as we stood on either side of my front door．“Thanks．”
“Okay…well…I have to go,” she said softly．
“Okay．See you later then…” and I closed the door．
“Who was that at the door?” my mum asked．
The card started off with “Merry Christmas”, but then it said, “I am so glad we’re friends．I am sorry about what I said when we were fighting．A fight won’t stop us from being friends．Besides, we said we were going to be friends even when we’re eight-two．”
I stopped reading and started laughing．I couldn’t believe I had forgotten what she said that day in her backyard．I couldn’t believe I had been so selfish in making my friends feel sorry for me that I had forgotten about real friendship．
1.How would the author and Jenna get along with each other after Christmas?
A．They would be close friends again．
B．They would not speak to each other．
C．They would lose touch with each other．
D．They would go on fighting with each other．
2.The underlined sentence “I was bossy” in the fourth paragraph means “_________”．
A．I looked like a boss B．I acted as a boss
C．I was fond of giving orders D．I was fond of fighting
3.Which of the following is the right time order according to the passage?
a．Jamie became our friend．
b．I felt lonely and unhappy．
c．Jenna, Jamie and I fought a lot．
d．Jenna brought me a Christmas card．
e．I was sorry for what I did to her．
f．Jenna and I promised to be lifelong friends．
A．f a b c e d B．a c f b d e C．a b c f e d D．f a c b d e
4.The author was delighted when she read the card from Jenna because _________．
A．what Jenna wrote was funny
B．Jenna would be her friend again
C．she was happy about the coming Christmas
D．she was happy to receive a Christmas card
One sunny afternoon, a seven-year-old girl went for a walk. She crossed a large area of grassland into the woods __ __ she realized that she was lost.
Sitting on a rock and ____ what to do, she began crying. After a while, she____ to walk along a wide path lined with tall trees and thick bushes. ____ it was getting dark, she saw a small, dark wooden house. She opened the door and ____ stepped in. Suddenly, she heard a strange noise, and she ran out the door and back to the ____. Cold and tired, she fell asleep near a ____.
The girl’s parents were out and her dog, Laddy, was at home. Laddy ____ that his Mistress（女主人）was in danger. He jumped ____ a window, breaking the glass. He looked in the fields. But he couldn't find his mistress anywhere. However, from the ground came a ____ scent (气味) as he lowered his head. He ____ the scent and walked across the grassland. Barking ____ into the air, the dog ____ through the woods until he found the ____ . But the girl was not there, so he headed back to the woods. Much to his ____ , he saw his mistress’ blue shirt in the distance. He ____ over some bushes and saw the little stream, where the girl was ____.
When she opened her eyes and her dog standing beside her, the girl said, “You me, Laddy,” and she kissed him several times. Seeing their daughter and dog coming back, the parents burst into tears of . That night Laddy had a Hero's supper: a huge meal of steak.
1.A. before B. since C. while D. as
2.A. wondering B. forgetting C. remembering D. regretting
3.A. preferred B. expected C. failed D. decided
4.A. When B. Until C. If D. Because
5.A. carelessly B. cautiously C. hopelessly D. unwillingly
6.A. trees B. bushes C. woods D. grasses
7.A. stream B. rock C. tree D. house
8.A. found B. sensed C. heard D. smelt
9.A. at B. through C. in D. onto
10.A. terrible B. strange C. pleasant D. familiar
11.A. missed B. discovered C. followed D. ignored
12.A. calmly B. loudly C. merrily D. gently
13.A. searched B. wandered C. looked D. traveled
14.A.window B. girl C. house D. hero
15.A. satisfaction B. disappointment C. embarrassment D. delight
16.A. jumped B. climbed C. walked D. flew
17.A. awake B. abandoned C. available D. asleep
18.A. spotted B. watched C. observed D. saw
19.A. disturbed B. comforted C. rescued D. scared
20.A. pain B. shock C. sorrow D.relief
It is hard to say what kind of person he is．Sometimes he is very friendly; at other times he ___ be very cold．
A．can B．must C．will D．shall
In my opinion, ___ matters is not one’s looks, but one’s inner thoughts．
A．that B．it C．what D．which
