精粹閱讀B

                        Who’s  Really fmporianif 

     Several years ago,a television reporter was talking to three of the most important people in the USA.

     One was a rich banker,another owned one of the largest Companies in the world,and the third owned many buildings in the centre of New York.

      The reporter was talking to them about being important.

      “How do we know if someone is really important?” the reporter asked the banker.

        The banker thought for a few moments and then said ? “I think anyone who is invited to the White House to meet the President of the United States is really important.”

        The reporter turned to the owner of the very large company. “Do you agree with that?” he asked.

        The owner of the very large company Shook his head. “No ?” he said ? “I don ’t. I think the President invites a lot of people to the White House. You ’d only be important if while you were visiting the President,there was a telephone call from the President of Russia,and the President of the United States said he was too busy to answer it. ”

       The reporter turned to the person who owned many buildings. “Do you agree with that?” 

      “No,I don't”’ he said. “I don’ t think that makes the visitor important. That makes the President important. ”

      “Then what would make the visitor important?” the reporter asked. 

      “Oh ? I think if the visitor to the White House was talking to the President and the phone rang,and the President picked it up,listened and then said, ‘ It's for you. ’ That's really I important. ”

A) Choose the best answer according to the passage.

() 1. What kind of person was talking to three of the most important people in the USA?

   A. A reporter. B. A banker. C. A president. D. A visitor.

() 2. Who did the banker think was really important?

   A. Himself. B. People who owned large companies.

   C. People who owned large buildings. D. Visitors to the White House.

() 3. What did the owner of a large company think the President of the United States would do if he had a really important visitor?

   A. Not answer the phone.

   B. Introduce the visitor to the President of Russia.

   C. Invite the visitor to dinner.

   D. Let the visitor use the telephone of the White House.

() 4. What did the owner of many large buildings think would happen to an important person at the White House?

   A. The visitor would meet the President’s wife.

   B. The visitor would meet the President of Russia.

   C. The visitor would receive a phone call there.

   D. The visitor would phone many important people.

B) Fill in the blanks with the proper words.

      A  television reporter was 1. to three people about 2. you can tell if someone is really 3. . One of them thought that anyone who was invited 4.

the White House was important. Another thought that a 5. wasn ’ t important unless the  6. refused to answer the 7. when he or she was there. The third thought that  8. visitor was only important 9. while he was at the White House there was a phone 10. for him.

                                 Ripple of the Life 

       There was an old story among the Indians.

       An old man took his 7-year-old grandson to the pond on the farm. The old man told his gmndson to throw a stone into the water. Then he asked his grandson to watch the ripples created by the stone carefully. At last the old man asked his grandson to think of himself as that stone.

       The old man said, “You can create lots of ripples in your life. And the ripples may disturb the peace belonging to others.”

        “Remember that you are responsible for what you put in your ripples because these ripples will also touch many other ripples. ”

       “You need to send the peace in your ripples to others. The ripples coming from anger or jealousy will also send those feelings to others. So you are responsible for them.”

        The peace or anger in each person ’s mind would flow out into the world. If our mind is full of conflict,hatred,doubt or anger,we are unable to bring peace to the world.

        We send our feelings and thoughts to others ? whether we speak them or not. Whatever the ripples in our mind are,they will Spill Out into the world. The ripples will create beauty or unhappiness with all other ripples of life.

A) Complete the following sentences according to the passage. (One word for each blank)

1. The grandfather asked the boy to throw a into the water.

2. The ripple you create may many other ripples.

3. You can lots of ripples in your life.

4. Remember that you are for what you put in your ripples.

5. The ripples in our mind will spill out into the .

B) Answer the following questions according to the passage.

1. Where did the old man take his grandson?

2. What did the old man tell his grandson to do?

3. What can we learn from the story?

      Teenagers like to sing,dance and play musical instruments? but most of them do it for fun. There is a group of young American teenagers doing it for charity.

      Last year,Julien Harris,14, of New York,USA. organized a rock band to raise money for charity foundations. She invited a couple of her 8th-grade friends to join her band ? Word of the Day. “ We ’ re all music lovers and we can each play a musical instrument ? so we want to do something to help society through our band ,” said Harris. She plays the guitar and sings for the band,which mainly plays rock and pop.

         In the past few months,the band has raised money for Forever 9 ,a charity to help give equipment for children ’s sports teams. On May-2,it played for another foundation,2-Day Walk ? to right breast cancer.

        “It's wonderful. Children with good lives need to know to give back ,” says Lori Lefkowitz. She is proud of her son Matt ? 15 ? who plays for the band.

These days,Word of the Day has been practicing hard for their June 5 concert. It's their second show for the 2-Day Walk. ^u The hardest part is to keep the beat and play the right Chords," says Harris.

         Members know that what they are doing is meaningful. They hope the concert can help people who are dealing with breast cancer. “ We ’ re doing what we love,and we ’ re doing it for a good cause. That makes it much better,” says Asa Lieberman,14.

A) Answer the following questions according to the passage.

1. Why did Julien Harris organize a rock band last year?

2. What's the name of her band?

3. What does Julien Harris do in the band?

4. What kind of foundation is Forever 9 ?

5. What is Julien Harris’s recent concert for?

6. What can you learn from Julien Harris and her band?

B) Fill in the blanks according to the passage.

l. A group of young American teenagers sing ? dance or play musical instruments not for fun ? but .

2. Julien Harris organized a rock band and invited a couple of  to join her band.

3. Lori Lelkowitz says that children with good lives need to know to .

4. On May 2 the band played for another foundation,  ，to fight breast cancer.

課外閱讀   B.

                                        Shop from Catalogs 

        Where do you go to shop? Supermarkets or department stores? In the United States people may do some other kinds of shopping.

        American people often shop from catalogs. There are special catalogs for almost every need—including clothing? furniture,health and beauty products,and things for the kitchen. When people decide to buy something from a catalog,they just order it and it is delivered to them. People order about 40% of their music ? for example ? from music catalogs.

        Television shopping began in 1986. About 5% to 8% of the American people now shop by television. There are many TV shopping channels in the USA. People say that TV shopping is easier than physically shopping in person. How do they buy things by TV? They just turn on a TV shopping channel,find something they want,make a telephone call and pay for it by credit card. TV shopping channels are on late at night,so people can shop at any time.

        Now a new kind of shopping has found its way into American families—computer shopping. About 37% of American families now have computers and are shopping by computer  (or shopping online) . It is interesting to more and more people every day. Already,people can use their computers to order different things,such as computer products,flowers,food,T-shirts? and so on. Computer shopping is even better than TV shopping because people can not only shop for anything at any time,but also anywhere in the world.

fell whether the following statements are True (T) or False (F) according to the passage.

1. In the US people only do shopping in supermarkets or department stores.

2. Computer shopping is a new kind of shopping in the US.

3. TV shopping channels are on early in the morning or late in the evening.

4. People can shop for anything at any time anywhere in the world by computer shopping.

課外閱讀A

                                             First Aid 

      Once a week a nurse visits Tom ’ s school and teaches the students how to help people who suddenly become ill or who have had an accident. Last week,the nurse talked to the students about how to stop bleeding. This is part of what she said ,“When we cut ourselves,we usually bleed. This is because our bodies are full of blood vessels ? which carry blood to and from the heart. It doesn ’t matter if we lose a little blood from time to time. In fact,many people donate blood to hospitals. We can give at least a pint of blood without harming ourselves. We mustn ’ t lose too much blood,however ? so we need to know how to stop bleeding when it occurs. If the injury is small and the amount of blood coming from it is also small,we can usually stop the blood from flowing by pressing on the cut with a clean,cold,wet cloth that has a little sntiseptic on it. It is most important to use antiseptic. If you do not,then dirt and bacteria may get into the wound and cause an infection. If the injury is large and the amount of blood coming from it is also large ? then it is necessary to stop the blood flowing through the blood vessel. We do this by putting pressure on the vessel above the injury. We can either press on it with our fingers or put on a tourniquet,which is a piece of cloth tied tightly around the arm ? leg ? or finger.

A) Answer the following questions according to the passage.

1. What's the passage about?

2. What usually happens when we cut ourselves?

B) Choose the best answer according to the passage.

() 1. What can be dangerous?

   A. Losing too much blood. B. Losing a little blood.

   C. Donating blood to hospitals. D. Stopping bleeding when it occurs.

() 2. What does the underlined word donate mean?

   A. Lose. B. Find. C. Give. D. Receive.

精粹閱讀B 

            China Red Ribbon Foundation Helps AIDS Orphan Go Back to School 

       The Longchuan County is in the southwestern part of Yunnan. It is close to Myanmar and has been thought as one of the areas in China most affected by AIDS.

       According to research in Longchuan ? there are 31 ? 300 students in tatol. 845 children of school age have become orphans because of AIDS. After they became orphans ? they had no money to go to school. A Chinese charity organization named China Red Ribbon Foundation decided to give a donation of 3. 57 million yuan to help these orphans go to school. The organization is supported by private businesses. It signed an agreement on the donation with Longchuan County government. China Red Ribbon Foundation said the money would be used to help build a school building in Longchuan County. It would build & three-story building with 15classrooms. At least 180 students could return to school.

       Although many orphans have returned to study ? there are many students who can^,t go to school. China-Red Ribbon Foundation hopes there are more people and businesses who will help these children by donating money.

A) Answer the following questions according to the passage.

1. Where is the Longchuan County?

2. How many children of school age have become orphans because of AIDS?

3. What will the 3. 57  million yuan be used to do?

4. What does China Red Ribbon Foundation hope to do?

B) Fill in the blanks with proper words according to the first given letter.

      There are 31,300 students in Longchuan in 1. t . 845 students have become

2. o because of AIDS. By 3. d money,China Red Ribbon Foundation can help?l80 students 4. r to school. It hopes there are more people and 5. b   to help these children by donating money.

       The Red Cross is one of the most famous signs in the world. It is the sign of the International Red Cross Society. They help people who were injured in a war or natural disasters such as floods and earthquakes.

        In June 1859 ? Jean Henri Dunant,a man from Switzerland ? organized emergency help for hundreds of French and Austrian soldiers. These soldiers were injured and dying after the war in Italy. He wrote a book about what happened and suggested organizing groups In June 1859 ? Jean Henri Dunant,a man from Switzerland ? organized emergency help for hundreds of French and Austrian soldiers. These soldiers were injured and dying after the war in Italy. He wrote a book about what happened and suggested organizing groups 

        The International Red Cross Society had ambulances and helped injured people in wartime. These ambulances had large red crosses on them. Soldiers on both sides would know that these ambulances had injured men in them and would not attack them. At that time,the International Red Cross Society didn’t have its own hospitals and didn ’t have ships to carry the injured soldiers,but now they have helicopters and other advanced forms of transportation.

        As time passed ? the Red Cross grew larger. Now they have blood hanks. Whenever there is a disaster ? the Red Cross will be there.

A) Choose the best answer according to the passage.

() 1. The International Red Cross is .

   A. a sign   B. a hospital   C. an organization   D. a school

() 2. Where was Jean Henri Dunant from?

   A. Italy. B. Switzerland. C. Austria. D. France.

() 3. Why did Jean Henri Dunant become a famous man?

   A. Because he wrote a book.

   B. Because he was willing to help injured people.

   C. Because he was in the war in Italy.

   D. Because he suggested organizing the International Red Cross Society.

() 4. The first International Red Cross Society appeared .

   A. in 1859   B. before 1859   C. after 1859   D. right now

() 5. The International Red Cross Society is now.

   A. in France   B. in Austria   C. in Italy   D. all over the world

B) Try to answer the following questions according to the passage.

1. Which charity is the passage mainly about?

2. Who does the Red Cross help?

3. When did the first International Red Cross appear?

4. What is on the ambulance of the International Red Cross?

                       The First siack Present in u.s. History 

         Ten-year-old Barack Obama was one of the only three black students at his school in Hawaii,US. He felt very different from most other students. White girls wanted to touch his hair. A white boy asked him whether his father ate people.

        “l(fā) lied to them that my father was a Kenyan prince. But I kept asking myself who I am ? ”said Obama.

        However,37  years later,the boy made history. In 2008,Obama became the first black president in US history.

       Obama was bom in 1961,to an African father and a white American woman from a small town in the US. He grew up in Indonesia and HawaⅡ. This unusual background made him wonder who he was. He once turned to alcohol to help forget this question.

        With the help from his friends ? Obama finally turned his life around at college. His hard work made him a star at Harvard. Later,he became the third black senator in US history.

        During his race to the highest post in the US,Obama talked about his background. He called for a United States of America ? rather than a white America or a black America.

       “Obama's success has made Martin Luther King's dream come true. That is: A man should not be judged by the colour of his Skin ? but by the content of his character ?wrote ABC News.

A) Choose the best answer according to the passage.

() l. Barack Obama was in 2008.

   A. 37   B. 47   C. 57   D. 27

() 2. When he was a child,Obama at school.

   A. was popular   B. looked different

   C. felt uneasy   D. was hard-working

() 3. “This unusual background” refers to the fact that .

   A. 10-year-old Obama was one of the only three black students in his school in Hawaii

   B. Obama became the first black president in US history

   C. he comes from a mixed-race family and grew up in different countries

   D. Obama became the third black senator in US history

() 4. Which fact about Obama is NOT true?

   A. He graduated from Harvard University.

   B. He thinks hard work was the key to his success at college.

   C. He lied to his classmates that his father was a Kenyan senator.

   D. He called on blacks and whites to come together.

B) Fill in the blanks with fhe right??hrases.

1. His sister herself why she couldn^, t work out the problem.

2. My brother wants to be a singer when he .

3. My dream with the help of my teacher.

4. Do you the others?

5. I don’t believe in Peter. He always us.

                               BillGates

        A young man went to Harvard University when he was 18. But  he soon found that his heart wasn’t in studying. He spent many nights in front of the computer and slept in class. Two years later,the young man dropped out of Harvard. He went to start Microsoft. We all know the young man's name： Bill Gates.

        Now Microsoft is the world ’s biggest Software company. About 90 percent of computers run on Microsoft Windows. Bill topped the list of the richest men around the world for 13 years until 2007. But he made the decision to give all his money to charity,instead of his children.

        All of his $58 billion fortune went to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Bill and his wife set up the foundation to help with health and education projects around the world. After stepping down from Microsoft in July,Bill worked on running the charity programs. The foundation is the world's biggest charity foundation.

        “I've got the gift of great fortune. But I think great wealth comes from great responsibility? the responsibility to give back to society,said Bill.

Reading Comprehension

A) Match the words on the left with the meanings on the right.

() 1. top           A. a large amount of money

() 2. step down       B. a choice that you make about something

() 3. fortune        C. to be on the upper surface of something

() 4. decision        D. to return something

() 5. give back        E. to leave an important job

B) Choose the best answer according to the passage.

() 1. When did Bill drop out of Harvard?

   A. When he was 13 years old. B. When he was 18 years old.

   C. When he was 20 years old. D. When he was 21 years old.

() 2. What will Bill do with his money?

   A. He wants to give all his money to his children.

   B. He wants to give his money to the charity and his children.

   C. He wants to give all his money to the charity.

   D. He hasn ’t made his decision.

() 3. What's the purpose (目的) of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation?

   A. To help the old.

   B. To help the children.

   C. To help with health and education projects in the USA.

   D. To help with health and education projects around the world.

() 4. What do you think of Bill Gates?

   A. He started the Microsoft after graduation of university.

   B. He says his great fortune means great happiness.

   C. He is not only very rich but also quite responsible.

   D. He is very rich but he is irresponsible.

課外閱讀A

                                     Thomas Edison 

      Thomas Edison was born in Ohio,in 1847. He had a serious fever as a young child and began to lose his hearing at that age. By the end of his life he was almost totally deaf. He did not think of this as a hdndicap. He said it gave him more time to think because he didn ’t have to listen to other people.

       He began working for the railroads at a very young age ? but was always thinking of ways to do things differently. At the age of twelve he was printing and selling a newspaper from a railway station. When he was fifteen ? he saved a boy who fell in front of a train ? and the boy ’s father taught him how to use the telegraph. From then on,he became a telegrapher and was soon finding ways to improve the equipment.

       In his early twenties ? his inventions were successful enough for him to start a Isboratory in New York and start inventing full time. That's when he invented the Stock Ticker (證券報(bào)價(jià)機(jī)) . He thought he might sell it to a company for about $5,000,but they offered him $40,000!He used the money to set up his first business.

       Edison continued inventing machines. His most famous invention was the phonogrsph. His other well-known invention was the electric light bulb. By the time he died,the whole cities were lit by this invention.

       Edison ’ s. famous saying is “ Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration. ” This shows his belief in hard work.

       Edison patented over one thousand inventions during his life. He died in 1931 and all Americans dimmed their electric lights for one minute to pay tribute to this extraordinary inventor.

A) Choose the best answer according to the passage.

() 1. How did Edison feel about losing his hearing?

   A. Terrible. B. Sad. C. Surprised. D. Helpful.

() 2. Which invention helped Edison start his own business?

   A. The telegraph. B. The Stock Ticker.

   C. The phonograph. D. The light bulb.

B) Fill in the blanks with the right words. (One word tor eadi blank)

     Thomas Edison was a very successful and famous 1. who lived from 1847 to 1931. He invented the electric light bulb and the 2. ? and improved lots of other inventions like the telephone and 3. . He became quite wealthy and was known for his 4. . He believed that the way to be 5. was to work hard.

C) Put the following sentence imo Chinese.

Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration.