Several years ago, I had to replace a receptionist for my unit. Before I advertised for the position, I was approached by another manager, and asked if I would consider a transfer from his staff instead of opening a new competition. My natural question was to ask who he wanted me to consider and why.
It appeared from his description of this employee, Maria, that she was having a lot of problems performing her duties and had difficulties with her boss and did not appear to respond to any attempts he, the manager, had made to settle the issues. Now, after listening to his explanation, I really had severe doubts. What crossed my mind, after this discussion, was that he wanted me to take a problem off his hands.
I told him I would think about it and would let him know the next day. As promised, after thinking more about this potential performance issue, I decided that I would agree to speak with Maria privately before I made any decision.
And, what I found out during this interview, left me deep in thought. As it turned out, the performance issue appeared to result from working for a boss who never extended a good morning greeting, never gave a word of encouragement, and was constantly changing the work load and routines. The end result was a totally ruined employee who was unconfident and hated to see a new work day start.
I decided to accept her transfer to my unit. What started out as a shy, withdrawn and frightened employee turned out to be one of the most productive and loyal employee that I had ever worked with. Maria couldn’t do enough and was constantly asking for more responsibility. I was more than happy to give her what she needed – praise for work well done, respect as a person, and encouragement for doing well in anything she dealt with.
Sometimes we are guilty of holding others back from accomplishing or doing, or developing as they should or could. It may be a wise idea that we all look in the mirror, from time to time, to see what we are really like.
1. What can we learn about the writer from the first paragraph?
A. He is a manager in the company.
B. He doesn't like his receptionist.
C. He likes to compete with others.
D. He wants to find another position.
2. After hearing his colleague's description of Maria, the writer thought that Maria ____ .
A. attempted to settle the issues
B. was a problem to her boss
C. shouldn't stay in the company
D. could get on well with others
3. Why did Maria fail to perform well in her previous job?
A. Her previous job was not suitable for her.
B. She had difficulty responding to her manager.
C. Her boss didn't inspire her working enthusiasm.
D. Her boss showed no trust in her ability.
4. We can infer that before working with the author, Maria ______.
A. was not welcome by her colleagues
B. wanted to transfer her position
C. didn't like her boss
D. felt frustrated at her work
5. The writer probably believes that a good boss should ______.
A. praise and award his employees a lot
B. respect, praise and encourage his employees
C. greet his employees and give them much work
D. always give his employees guidance in working
When I was an education official in Palo Alto, California, Polly Tyner, the president of our school board, wrote a letter that was printed in the Palo Alto Times. Polly’s son, Jim，had great difficulty in school．He was classified as the educationally disabled and required a great deal of patience on the part of his parents and teachers. But Jim was a happy kid with a great smile that lit up the room. His parents knew his academic difficulties, but always tried to help him see his strengths so that he could walk with pride. Shortly after Jim finished high school, he was killed in a motorcycle accident. After his death, his mother sent this letter to the newspaper．
Today we buried our 20-year-old son. He was killed instantly in a motorcycle accident on Friday night. How I wish I had known when I talked to him last that it would be the last time．If I had only known, I would have said, “Jim, I love you and I’m very proud of you．”
I would have taken time to count the many blessings he brought to the lives of the many who loved him. I would have taken the time to appreciate his beautiful smile，the sound of his laughter, his genuine love of people.
When you put all the good qualities on the scale and try to balance all the irritating phenomena such as the radio which was always too loud, the haircut that wasn't to our liking, the dirty socks under the bed, etc, your angry feelings won’t amount to much.
I won't get another chance to tell my son all that I would have wanted him to hear, but, other parents, you do have a chance. Tell your young people what you would want them to hear if you knew it would be your last conversation. The last time I talked to Jim was the day he died. He called me to say, “Hi, Mom! I just called to say I love you. Got to go to work, Bye.” He gave me something to treasure, forever．
If there is any purpose at all for Jim's death, maybe it is to make others appreciate more of life and to have people, especially members, take the time to let each other know just how much we care.
You may never have another chance.
1. According to the passage, we know that .
A. Jim was always ashamed of himself
B. Jim did very well in his studies
C. Jim’s parents were patient with him
D. Jim failed to finish his high school
2. The underlined word "irritating" in paragraph 4 most probably means .
A. annoying B. aggressive
C. impatient D. surprising
3. By writing the letter printed in the Palo Alto Times, the author intends to __________.
A. mourn(哀悼)her son’s sudden death in a traffic accident
B. remind people to be cautious of motorcycles
C. tell parents to take better care of their children
D. suggest people taking the chance to express their love in time
4. Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the passage?
A. Many people loved him．
B. Jim's smile cheered up his family．
C. Jim was killed in a motorcycle accident at the age of 20．
D. Jim constantly expressed his love to his mother．
5. Which of the following can be the best title of the passage?
A. Love Your Family B. Do It Today
C. Walk with Pride D. Appreciate Smiles
Plumb was a successful US pilot in the war against Vietnam. However, once his plane 1. (destroy) by the enemy and he was forced to jump out. 2. (luck), with the help of the parachute（降落伞）he landed safely, but he was caught by the enemy and put 3. prison for 6 years.
One day, many years after the war, Plumb and his wife were sitting in a restaurant4. he found a man staring at him.
Plumb looked back but didn’t recognize him. The man stood up and said, “You are Captain Plumb?” Plumb looked up at him and nodded. The man said, “You were 5.pilot soldier in Vietnam. You landed into the enemy land with the help of your parachute.”
6. (embarrass), Plumb asked, “ How did you know all that?” The man continued, “Because I packed your parachute and 7. worked well.”
Plumb stayed awake that night. He wondered 8. many times he had either walked past his life saver without saying anything 9. ignored him completely.
Think about this for ourselves. We sometimes completely ignore the people around, who help us out when we need them badly. They are just 10. the man who was just there packing parachutes.
Anyone who has been a parent knows that raising children is a tough job. It is filled with as many difficult and moments as with moments of joy. Children don’t come with an instruction manual(说明书). And each child is . So parents sometimes feel , not knowing what to do.
But in raising children—as in all of life—what we do is by our culture. Naturally then, American parents teach their children basic American . To Americans, the goal of parents is to help children become . From childhood, each child may get his or her own room. As children grow, they get more to make their own choices. Teenagers choose their own forms of entertainment, as well as the friends to share them with. When they reach young adulthood, they their own jobs and marriage partners. Of course, many young adults seek their parents’ advice and approval for the choice they make. But once they “ the nest ” at around 18 to 21 years old, they want to be on their own, not tied to their mother’s apron strings (围裙带).
The between parents and children in America is very informal. American parents try to treat their children as individuals—not as of themselves. They them to achieve their own dreams . Americans praise and encourage their children to give them the to succeed. When children become adults, their relationship with their parents becomes more like a among equals. But contrary to popular belief, most adult Americans don’t make their parents pay for room and board when they come to visit. Even as adults, they respect and honor their parents.
1.A. delightfulB. meaningfulC. hopeful D. painful
2.A. strange B. differentC. new D. similar
3.A. excited B. frightenedC. puzzled D. surprised
4.A. influencedB. made C. controlledD. changed
5.A. servicesB. standardsC. languagesD. values
6.A. brave B. active C. independentD. optimistic
7.A. freedom B. space C. time D. money
8.A. love B. change C. design D. choose
9.A. still B. then C. thus D. therefore
10.A. build B. get C. enter D. leave
11.A. conversationB. relationshipC. competitionD. gap
12.A. friendsB. children C. teenagers D. extensions
13.A. allow B. force C. forbid D. persuade
14.A. dependenceB. trust C. belief D. confidence
15.A. friendshipB. citizenshipC. membershipD. leadership
假定你是班长李华，请根据以下内容给新任外教Smith先生写一封信, 向他表示欢迎并转达同学们对英语课的希望：
1. 介绍西方文化；
2. 组织多样活动；
3. 关注学生发音, 提高听说能力。
注意：
1．词数100左右；
2．可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯；
3．开头已为你写好。
Dear Mr. Smith,
I’m writing on behalf of my class to extend our warm welcome to you......
Yours truly
Li Hua
假定英语课上老师要求同桌之间交换修改作文，请你修改你同桌写的以下作文。文中共有10处语言错误，每句中最多有两处。错误涉及一个单词的增加、删除或修改。
增加：在缺词处加一个漏字符号(∧)，并在其下面写出该加的词。
删除：把多余的词用斜线（\）划掉。
修改：在错的词下划一横线，并在该词下面写出改正后的词。
注意：1. 每处错误及其修改均仅限一词；
2. 只允许修改10处，多者（从第11处起）不计分。
Yesterday, I saw the old lady fall down when I went to school. I was going to help him up. At that moment, a passer-by stop me, saying I might be considered to knock her down. Hearing from his words, I began to slow down my steps. However, another student, that saw everything, went quickly up to help. The old lady said anything but lots of thanks to the good boy. I felt badly and ashamed. Helping other is forever a virtue of China. We can let it disappear. I will try my best reach out my hand without hesitation next time.
