Question

    From the very beginning of school we make books and reading a constant source of possible failure and public humiliation(侮辱). When children are little we make them read aloud before the teacher and other children, so that we can be sure they “know” all the words they are reading. This means that when they don’t know a word, they are going to make a mistake, right in front of everyone. After having taught fifth-grade classes for four years, I decided to try at all costs to rid them of their fear and dislike of books, and to get them to read oftener and more adventurously.

One day soon after school had started, I said to them, “Now I’m going to say something about reading that you have probably never heard a teacher say before. I would like you to read a lot of books this year, but I want you to read them only for pleasure. I am not going to ask you questions to find out whether you understand the books or not. If you understand enough of a book to enjoy it and want to go on reading it, that’s enough for me. Also I’m not going to ask you what words mean.”

The children sat stunned and silent. Was this teacher talking seriously? One girl, who had just come to us from a school where she had had a very hard time, looked at me steadily for a long time after I had finished. Then, still looking at me, she said slowly and seriously, Mr Holt, do you really mean that “I said just as seriously?” I mean every word of it.

During the spring she really astonished me. One day, she was reading at her desk. From a glimpse of the illustrations(插图) I thought I knew what the book was. I said to myself, “It can’t be,” and went to take a closer look. Sure enough, she was reading Moby Dick. I said, “Don’t you find parts of it rather heavy going” She answered, “Oh, sure, but I just skip over those parts and go on to the next good part.”

This is exactly what reading, I think, should be: find something, dive into it, take the good parts, skip the bad parts, get what you can out of it, and then go on to something else.

1.According to the passage, children’s fear and dislike of books may result from ___________.

A.reading little and thinking little

B.reading often and adventurously

C.being made to read too much

D.being made to read aloud before others

2.The teacher told his students to read ___________.

A.for higher scores in exams B.for knowledge

C.for enjoyment D.for a larger vocabulary

3.Upon hearing the teacher’s talk, the children probably felt that ___________.

A.it sounded stupid

B.it was not surprising at all

C.it sounded too good to be true

D.it was no different from other teachers’ talk

4.Which statement about the girl is TRUE according to the passage?

A.She skipped over those easy parts while reading.

B.She had a hard time finishing the required reading tasks.

C.She learned to appreciate some parts of the difficult books.

D.She turned out to be a top student after coming to this school.

Answer

1.D

2.C

3.C

4.C

【解析】

这是一篇记叙文。从孩子入学开始，我们就把书本和读书变成不断可能失败、当众受辱的源头。但是当他们不知道单词该怎么读的时候，他们会犯错，而且是在所有人面前犯错，这会给他们带来一些害怕。作者认为阅读应该是一件快乐的事，而且不是强迫性的阅读，强调通过快乐阅读培养阅读习惯。

1.细节理解题。根据文章第一段的This means that when they don’t know a word, they are going to make a mistake, right in front of everyone.可知当孩子们不知道单词时，他们会犯错，而且是在所有人面前犯错，这会给他们带来一些害怕。D. being made to read aloud before others

（被要求在众人面前大声朗读）符合以上说法，故选D项。

2.细节理解题。根据文章第二段的I would like you to read a lot of books this year, but I want you to read them only for pleasure.可知老师让孩子们读书，但他的目的是让他们读着玩。C. for enjoyment（为了好玩）符合以上说法，故选C项。

3.细节理解题。根据文章第三段的The children sat stunned and silent. Was this teacher talking seriously可知孩子们震惊和沉默地坐着，可见孩子们很吃惊，对老师的话感到难以置信。C. it sounded too good to be true（听起来太好了，不像真的）符合以上说法，故选C项。

4.推理判断题。根据文章倒数第二段的She answered, “Oh, sure, but I just skip over those parts and go on to the next good part.”可知女孩跳过了难的部分，只看了自己喜欢或者能看懂的部分，故推测女孩学会欣赏书的某些部分。C. She learned to appreciate some parts of the difficult books.（她学会了欣赏这本难以理解的书的某些部分）符合以上推测，故选C项。