Question

Given the tradition of students bringing apples to their teachers, it somehow seems fitting that an old apple barn(谷仓)will find a new life as a one-room schoolhouse. And it is just as fitting that a retired schoolteacher will become the caretaker of that historic treasure.

My friend Velma, a teacher for more than 30 years, has been retired for some time now, but that doesn’t stop her giving history lessons at the old Englewood School, located on her family’s

California farm. The lovingly restored building was constructed around 1850 as a home for a woodsman and later was used as apple barn. Then, in 1870 it began a new life as a schoolhouse.

Originally located in the nearby Englewood meadow, it was now moved its current site in 1978 by Velma’s late husband and his brother, Robert and Richard, who thought it would help keep

Velma busy in retirement. No nails had been used in the original construction, so each piece of wood had to be carefully marked and the building was reassembled（重装）on its new site. The brothers worked with much care and hard work to ensure a perfect fit of mitered（斜接的）corners.

After the relocation, Velma and her family furnished the school with some of its original desks. They also added a collection of schoolbooks, the oldest dating back to 1845. Perhaps the school’s most cherished souvenir is the diploma of student Hettie Essig, who graduated on June 30, 1904. Hettie’s daughter, Flora, presented Velma with the precious keepsake.

Nowadays Velma gives tours to local schoolchildren and other groups, who learn what it was like to attend school back in the good old days. She has kids ring the school bell, recite the Pledge of Allegiance and sing “Good Morning to You” as they might have done in days gone by. Then, with twinkling eyes and much enthusiasm, she tells the history of the school, and gives a short sample lesson.

1.The Englewood School was originally built as __________.

A. a man’ s house    B. a schoolhouse

C. a restroom    D. an apple barn

2.Which word can best describe the school’s being relocated?

A. Inspiring    B. Refreshing

C. fashionable    D. Challenging

3.What does the underlined part “the precious keepsake” in Para.4 mean?

A. The school’s original supplies

B. The collection of schoolbooks

C. The oldest schoolbook

D. The diploma of Hettie Essig.

4.Which can serve as the best title of the passage?

A. The Good Old Days in the Schoolhouse

B. A Mysterious Building with a Long History

C. A Historic One-room Schoolhouse

D. A Teacher Devoted to Restoring Old Buildings

Answer

1.A

2.D

3.D

4.C

【解析】试题分析：文章讲述的是恩格尔伍德学校的起源与它的发展。

1.

2.

3.the precious keepsake 最宝贵的纪念品就是这位学生的文凭。故选D。

4.

【名师点睛】

选择标题在英语阅读理解题中属主旨大意题，是深层理解题，它要求考生在通读全文的基础上，认真分析主人公的特定心态、文章大意及作者的写作意图。通常情况下，标题具有概括性、针对性、醒目性的特点。所谓概括性，就是指标题应在最大程度上覆盖全文，囊括文章的主要内容，体现文章的主题。针对性是对标题外延的一种界定，标题要直接指向文章的主要特点。而醒目性是为了吸引读者的注意力，唤起读者对文章阅读的兴趣。常见的命题形式有：The best title for the text would be... / What can be the best title for this text? / Which of the following can be the best title for the text? 等。以下是此类题目的基本解题思路。

1、确定最佳标题的方法

在阅读文章时，要注意文章中反复出现或强调的信息，寻找与文章大多数内容相关的信息，找出覆盖全文的核心词汇，看选项内容是否切中文章的中心论题，也就是要看选项内容与作者的写作目的是否一致。

2、寻找文章的主题句

了解文章主要论题的关键是找到全文的主题句。主题句通常在文章首段，但是也可能在文章的末段、在文章的某一段落，或者分散在文章的各个段落中。如果每个段落都有主题句，那么把各段落的主题句的中心思想集中起来，即为全文的主题句．

3、概括文章的主题

要把握文章主旨，就必须根据具体的语言环境、陈述内容的逻辑关系（文章的结构）、上下文的连贯意思及文中有关暗示来理解文章的深层含义。

4、逆向思维法

针对这类题型，考生不妨思考一下，“如果我是作者，遇到这样的标题，文章应该怎样写？”

5、整体把握文章，不被细节迷惑

标题实际上是文章主题的一种确认方式。要准确地把握文章的主题思想，就要十分留意文章的开头和结尾，要抓住文中具有概括性的信息，从上下文连贯的意思来理解全文。好些文章的主题句并不明显，需要我们仔细体会字里行间的意思，了解文章的背景知识、文章结构，推断作者意图或态度，从整体上把握文章的主旨。从全局的角度归纳概括出文章的标题。要防止本末倒置，主次不分，要排除干扰项的干扰，选出正确的答案。有些干扰项，从局部看也许不算错，但从全局看却又片面。这类干扰项与正确答案之差，其实是局部与全局之差。考生在做题时不要为局部现象（即细节）迷惑，而忽略了文章的整体思想。有的文章一开始就亮出主题，全文随着主题而展开。

考点：考查记叙文章阅读