For years I wanted a garden. I’d spend hours thinking of different things I could plant that would look nice together. But then we had Matthew, and Marvin, and the twins Alisa and Alan, and then Helen. I was too busy raising them to grow a garden. Money was not enough. Neither was time. Often when my children were little,one of them would want something that cost too much, and I’d have to say, “Do you see a money tree outside? Money doesn't grow on trees, you know.” Finally, all the children got through high school and college and were off on their own. I started thinking again about a garden. Then, one spring morning, on Mother’s Day, I was working in my kitchen. Suddenly, I looked out of the window and there was a new tree, planted right in my yard. There were things blowing around on it. Then I put my glasses on—and I couldn’t believe what I saw. There was a money tree in my yard! I went outside to look. It was true! There were dollar bills*, one hundred of them, hanging all over that tree. There was also a note among them, “Thank you for your time, Mom. We love you!” Later, my children bought me tools, ornaments, a sunflower stepping stone and gardening books. A new page started in my life. That was three years ago. My garden’s now very pretty, just like I wanted. When I go out and take care of my flowers, I don’t seem to miss my children as much as I once did. It feels like they’re right there with me. Now every year when winter comes, I look out of my window and think of the flowers I’ll see next spring in my little garden. I think about what my children did for me, and I get tears in my eyes—every time. I’m still not sure that money grows on trees. But I know love does! 【小題1】How many children did the writer have?
A.Three
B.Four
C.Five
D.Six
【小題2】 What did the mother mean when she said “Money doesn’t grow on trees”?
A.She was too busy to plant a money tree at that time.
B.She had to save money so that she could have a garden.
C.It wasn’t easy for her to make money to raise all the children.
D.They didn’t have much money because the mother lost her job.
【小題3】 The “money tree” appeared in the writer’s yard _________.
A.before her children were born
B.one spring morning when the children were little
C.a(chǎn)fter the children went to school
D.on a Mother’s Day after the children left her
【小題4】 The children planted a money tree in their mother’s yard because _________.
A.their mother needed money badly
B.they wanted to show their love to their mother
C.it was time for them to give the money back to her
D.they wanted to live together with their mother forever
Nick is a student. He has four friends.
They are Ben, Eric, Peter and Andy. But they are all very different. Nick is
confident and kind. He is also a good listener. All of his friends like to talk
to him about their problems. This is his best quality. Ben is the quietest
friend of them. He is not energetic and active like Eric, or outgoing like
Peter. But he is so patient and fair. When they have an argument, Ben is always
there to listen to everyone and make sure that everybody stays friends. Andy is
very clever and hard-working. He does the best in exams at school. It is really
kind of Andy to help Peter with his homework when he is having trouble. They
get along well with each other like brothers.
1.What do you think of Ben?
A.He is just like Peter.
B.He is energetic and active.
C.He likes to argue.
D.He is quiet, but fair and patient.
2. What is Nick’s best quality?
A.He is confident.
B.He is kind.
C.He has good friends.
D.He is a good listener.
3.What is Peter like ?
A.Energetic
B.Outgoing
C.Quiet
D.Patient and fair
4. What is it kind of Andy to do ?
A.To help Peter with his homework.
B.To do well in exams
C.To help Nick with his homework.
D.To be hard-working and clever.
5.Who is always there to make sure that
everyone stays friends when they have an argument?
Two
Chinese farmers sang "in the spring" in their small room after
drinking in a late August evening in Beijing. A friend put their song on the Internet. And
soon they became stars around China.
Wang Xu,44, is from Henan,
and Liu Gang, 29, is from Heilongjiang. They
are among the millions of farmers who have gone to the
cities to work.
"Although
nobody pays
attention to the music, I am singing happily, on streets, under bridges or in wild country, with no credit card, no
girlfriend or a home with hot water, but only a guitar.”
They sing, “It
is just like the life we live now.” Wang said, “We are poor farmers, and you know people won't care about us."
Their
song is loved by millions of Chinese, including the people who are also from the countryside. Many people said
they cried after listening to the song.
Wang
came to Beijing in 2000 and has tried many jobs. Each month after he paid 600 yuan for the house and bought food, there was little money
left. "I love music, and also want to make more money." Wang said.
"I never dreamed of standing on such a big stage.”
Liu
came to Beijing in 2002. "I wanted to try my luck in the big city."
He said. And now their dreams of music
have come true. They are really the luckiest
of all the timers in
China.
Asking for information or help is
a very common and necessary activity, especially when we visit a foreign
country. So knowing how to ask for information politely is important. In
English, "Where are the restrooms?" and "Could you please tell
me where the restrooms are?" are similar requests—both
are correct English, but the first could sound rude. It's important to use
correct language, but sometimes this alone is not enough—we need to learn how to be polite when we make requests.
In English, just like in Chinese,
we change the way we speak when talking with different people. The expressions
you use might depend on whom you are speaking to or how well you know them. If
you say to your teacher, "Where is my book?" this will sound rude.
But if you say, "Excuse me, Mr West. Do you know where my book is?"
your question will sound much more polite. On the other hand, it might be
alright to say "Where is my book?" in some situations, perhaps with
people you know well.
And you would not usually say,
"Peter, lend me your pen. " A very direct order like this can sound
rude in English. Usually in English polite questions are longer and include
extra language, such as "Could you please...?" or "Can I
ask...?" It sounds more polite to say, "Peter, could you please lend
me your pen?" Sometimes we might even need to spend some time leading in
to a question or request. For example, if you stop a stranger in the street, we
might first say, "Excuse me. I wonder if you can help me. " or
"I'm sorry to trouble you but," before asking them for help.
It might seem that speaking
politely is more difficult than being direct, and in a way this may be true.
However, in order not to offend people, learning about the language etiquette
is just as important as learning grammar or vocabulary. And doing this will
also help you become better at English, or any other language you wish to
speak.
1. It's important to know how to_
_in English when we visit a foreign country.
2. When you talk with different
people, you need to___.
3. Extra words are used to help_____.
4.._
_is as important as learning language structure.
5. How do you say " Don't
smoke here. " politely? "___*