BASEBALL. It’s just a word, but for millions of Americans it brings much more than a word.
Hot dogs. Cold beers. Sunny afternoons. Baseball is the game of fathers and sons. Fathers and sons catch with each other on lawns (草坪) in the US. A father’s favorite team becomes his son’s. Grandfathers talk to their grandsons about games played long ago.
Many American kids collect baseball cards. The cards have pictures of their favorite players on them. In school, friends trade (交換) baseball cards just like they trade their lunches.
Players are known as “the boys of summer” because people often play the sport mostly in warm months. You don’t need to be of a certain size or shape to play baseball. You don’t have to be tall like a basketball player or strong like an American footballer. You just need to want to have fun.
Baseball is not as fast-paced (快節(jié)奏的) a game as basketball. But when you go to see a game, there’s time to relax, talk and get to know other people.
Baseball may not be the most popular sport in the US, but it is the most traditional. It’s not just a game any more, but an important part of American culture, like apple pie and grandma’s house.
【小題1】Many American kids like to collect _______________.

A．baseballs

B．baseball cards

C．lunches

D．a(chǎn)pple pies

【小題2】People like to play baseball in _____________.

A．wet months

B．cool months

C．warm months

D．cold months

【小題3】Most of the Americans play baseball just want to _______________.

A．enjoy themselves	B．make money
C．keep warm	D．make friends

【小題4】Which one is WRONG in the article?

A．We can find many children’s favorite baseball players on their cards.

B．If you are not strong enough, you can’t play baseball.

C．When you go to watch a baseball play, you’ll relax and have time to talk to other people.

D．Baseball is the most traditional sport in the US.

When we talk about stars, especially women stars，it seems that they are always young，pretty and own charming body shapes．But recently a Britain’s Got Talent（英國達人）star Susan Boyle has changed our views absolutely(完全地)．
Simon Cowell，one of the judges of the talent show spoke of his shock over Ms Boyb’s voice. “This lady came up，and I’m thinking, ‘This will take five seconds and I can go to have a cup of tea.’ That changed when she began to sing I Dreamed a Dream from Les Miserables. She knew we were going to have that reaction and just to see that look of satisfaction on her face midway through —it was one of my favorite moments,” Cowell said.
The performance was posted On line and before long，the 47-year-old Scottish woman has been famous all over the world．
Speaking from her home in Scotland,MsBoyle said that she hadn’t thought of changing her appearance．She said that her friend helped her with make-up．“I mean，that’s hardly a makeover.” she added．
Ms. Boyle also spoke of the reason she first began to explore her vocal(歌唱的) talents．”I was kind of slow at school, so getting something like singing was a good way of hiding behind that and thus it built my confidence．’’
【小題1】Susan Boyle is __________．

A．a(chǎn) judge

B．a(chǎn) reporter

C．a(chǎn) beautiful lady

D．a(chǎn) Scottish woman

【小題2】Susan Boyle had a look of satisfaction on her face when she was singing because ______.

A．she was confident of her singing

B．she was satisfied with the judges

C．she was pretty and in good shape

D．she sang the song，I Dreamed a Dream from Lea Miserables

【小題3】What does the underlined word “views” mean?

A．見解

B．預(yù)告

C．復(fù)習(xí)

D．景色

【小題4】According to the passage，which is NOT true?

A．It was the vocal talents that built Susan’s confidence．

B．Susan Boyle was not good at her lessons when at school．

C．Susan Boyle became famous because of her appearance．

D．Simon Cowell didn’t think Susan Boyle a good singer at the time sight．

【小題5】What can we learn from Susan Boyle’s success?

A．It’s never too old to learn．

B．It’s easier to succeed at the age of 47．

C．If you have a dream，try to make it come true!

D．If you are not able to study well，to be a singer instead．

Chen Guangbiao was born in Jiangsu in July,1968. He is the chairperson of a company in Jiangsu. Now he is one of China’s richest men and he has donated a great amount of money to charity projects. He says he will donate everything he has to charity after he dies.
When people are in need of help, he will appear at once. He helped people during the Wenchuan earthquake, the Yunnan earthquake and the Taiwan earthquake. He also gave a helping hand in Japan’s earthquake. He has built many Hope Primary Schools to support the education in poor areas.
He doesn’t do charity for honour. He wants to encourage more people to make contributions to charity. After announcing he would donate everything to charity after his death, many businesses, overseas(海外)Chinese people and common people encouraged by him have also promised to do something for charity.
As a philanthropist(慈善家),he is asked for help every day. Sometimes he gets very tired, but he has never stopped caring.
So far, he has received a lot of awards, including Pioneer of the Year, and National May Day Labour Medal(全國五一勞動獎?wù)?.He is considered as one of china’s top philanthropists.
【小題1】The article is probably taken from _______.

A．a(chǎn) newspaper

B．a(chǎn) novel

C．a(chǎn) detective story

D．a(chǎn) science book

【小題2】He says he will donate _____ to charity after he dies.

A．nothing	B．some schools
C．everything he has	D．his whole company

【小題3】 What does he do charity for?

A．He wants to do charity for money.

B．He wants to do charity for pleasure.

C．He wants to ask people to help him.

D．He wants to encourage more people to contribute to charity.

【小題4】Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the passage?

A．He is from Jiangsu.

B．He has visited many countries.

C．He has helped people in need.

D．He has got a lot of awards.

【小題5】Which do you think is the best title for the passage?

A．Earthquakes.	B．Hope Primary Schools.
C．Pioneer of the Year.	D．Philanthropist Chen Guangbiao

Mrs. Thompson came to the 5th grade class and noticed that Teddy was always alone. Also, he did badly in his studies. When she reviewed Teddy’s past records，she find he was a good child at first，but he began to change when his mother got ill. Finally he lost interest in school after his mother’s death.
Mrs.Thompson realized the problem and felt sorry for him. She felt even worse when her students brought her beautifully-covered Christmas presents. His presents were covered with some old paper. Some children laughed when she found a bracelet(手鐲)with some of the stones missing, and a bottle with a little perfume(香水). But she said how pretty the bracelet was, putting it on, and dabbing some perfume on her hand. Teddy stayed after school for a long time just to say，“Mrs.Thompson，today you smelled just like my mom used to.” After the child left，she cried for quite a long time.
On that very day，she taught not only knowledge but also children. As she worked with Teddy，his mind seemed to come alive. By the end of the year，Teddy had become one of the smartest children in the class.
A year later，Teddy left school. She found a note under her door，from Teddy，saying that she was the best teacher he ever had in his life. After that, these words were repeated in each of his letters to her.
Then after he finished college, Teddy wrote telling her that he had met a pretty girl and was going to get married. He explained that his father was dead，and that he wondered if Mrs.Thompson might sit at the wedding in the place for the mother of the groom(新郎).
Of course，Mrs.Thompson did. She wore the bracelet and the perfume that Teddy remembered his mother wearing on their last Christmas together.
They hugged(擁抱)each other，and Teddy whispered in Mrs.Thompson’s ear，“Thank you，Mrs.Thompson，for making me feel important，and showing me that I could make a difference. ”
Mrs.Thompson，with tears in her eyes，whispered back，“Teddy，it’s not like that. You were the one who taught me that I could make a difference. I didn’t know how to teach until I met you.”
【小題1】What made Teddy change before Mrs. Thompson came?

A．His mother’s illness and death.	B．His classmates’ laughing at him.
C．His past records by his teachers.	D．His interest in some other things.

【小題2】Teddy left a note for Mrs. Thompson when he left school mainly to say _______.

A．sorry

B．hello

C．thanks

D．goodbye

【小題3】What kind of person was Mrs. Thompson?

A．Wise and humorous.	B．Kind and helpful.
C．Selfish and impatient.	D．Strict and stubborn.

【小題4】We can learn from the passage that _______.

A．Mrs. Thompson became Teddy’s mother at last.

B．Mrs. Thompson didn’t know how to teach all her life.

C．Teddy didn’t finish college before he got married.

D．Mrs. Thompson and Teddy each made a difference.

On a hot summer day, Holmes and Dr. Watson went on a camping trip. After a good meal and a bottle of wine, they lay down in a tent for the night and went to sleep.
Some hours later, Holmes woke up and pushed his friend. “Watson, look! What can you see in the sky?"
Watson replied, “I see millions and millions of stars.”
“What does that tell you?” asked Holmes.
Watson thought for a while. “First, it tells me that we will have a beautiful clear day tomorrow. Second, it tells me that the time is about twelve o’clock. And…”
“What else?” Holmes asked.
“Well, it also reminds me that the world is so big and we are so small. What does that tell you?” Holmes said with a grin on his face, “You silly guy! It only tells me that someone has stolen our tent!”
【小題1】Holmes woke up _____.

A．in the middle of the night	B．early in the morning
C．soon after he fell asleep	D．a(chǎn)fter Watson pushed him

【小題2】Watson thought of at least _____ things after he saw the stars.

A．two

B．three

C．four

D．five

【小題3】Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?

A．The story happened in the afternoon.

B．They had some wine before they went to sleep.

C．Holmes asked Watson questions because Holmes didn’t know what happened.

D．Holmes and Watson were in their tent while they were talking about the question.

First Frenchman: I once heard someone shout, “Look out,” I put my head out of a window and a basin (盆) of water fell on me. It seems that “Look out” may mean “don’t look out.”
　　Second Frenchman: Once I was on a ship and heard the captain (船長) shout, “All hands on deck,” I put my hands on the deck and someone walked on them.
　　Third Frenchman: I once visited an English friend early in the morning and the maid who came to the door and said, “He’s not up yet. Come back in half an hour,” When I went again for him, she said, “He’s not down yet.”
　　“If he’s not up and he’s not down, where is he?” I asked.
She said, “He’s still in bed. When I say ‘He’s not up ’  I mean ‘he has not yet got up’. When I say‘He’s not down ’I mean ‘he has not yet come downstairs.”
【小題1】“Look out”here means “ _______”.

A．put your head out of the window and look

B．Take care

C．I’m going to pour the water

D．Help me

【小題2】“All hands on deck”means “ _______ ”.

A．All the sailors gather ( 集合 )on deck

B．Give your hands to me

C．Put your right hand and left hand on deck

D．Shake your hands with me

【小題3】When the third Frenchman went back, the English friend _______ .

A．was washing his face

B．was having his breakfast

C．was still in an upstairs room

D．was reading a newspaper

In the summer of 1978 an English man named Steven was driving his tractor through a field of wheat when he discovered something strange. Some of his wheat was lying on the ground. The flattened wheat formed(形成)a circle about six meters across . Around this circle were four smaller circles of flattened wheat.
　 Three years later a farmer who lived nearby discovered almost the same circles in one of his fields. These circles were larger—nearly 15 meters across . That same year , another English farmer discovered three circles of flattened wheat on his land—one large circle between two small circles. During the following years, farmers in England found circles in their fields more and more often.
　 The circles are called “crop circles” because they usually appear in fields of wheat or corn. The wheat in the circles lies on the ground but is never broken; it keeps on growing, and the farmers can later harvest it. Farmers always discover the crop circles in the morning, so the circles probably form at night. They appear only in the months from May to September. What causes the crop circles?
　 At first, people thought that some kids were making them as a joke, or that farmers were making them to attract tourists.(In fact, in 1991, two men said they made the circles themselves, but many scientists don’t believe them.) People tried to copy them: They tried to make circles exactly like the ones the farmers had found. They couldn’t do it. They couldn’t enter a field of wheat without leaving tracks, and they couldn’t flatten the wheat without breaking it.
　 Several times people reported seeing stranger objects near the fields where crop circles later appeared. Many people believe that these crop circles are the messages sent by living things from outer space(外層空間)or the marks left by their spaceships.
　 Scientists who have studied the crop circles try to find out what causes them. In the summer of 1990 some scientists spent three weeks in the part of England where many circles have appeared. They had all the latest high-tech equipment(最新高科技設(shè)備). The equipment—worth 1.8 million dollars—got nothing. But one night, as the scientists were watching a field, crop circles formed in the field behind them, which were quite different from the others. The scientists had neither seen nor heard anything.
　 When Steven discovered the crop circles on his land in 1978, he said, “It was just like something that had landed in the field from the air and gone back up again. I don’t know what to make of these things.”
　 Crop circles have appeared in England, Japan, the United States and Russia. Experts from all over the world have studied them, and they say what Steven said: They don’t know what to make of these things.
【小題1】Which picture is probably the one formed in the field behind the scientists?

【小題2】“Flattened wheat” means ___________.
　　  

A．broken wheat

B．lying wheat

C．harvested wheat

D．growing wheat

【小題3】The passage is mainly about something ___________ .

A．that is done by living things from outer space

B．that cannot be solved but found all around the world

C．that cannot be made clear or understood

D．that is discovered and copied by the farmers

Four men who would become fathers were in a hospital waiting room while their wives were in labor (分娩). The nurse arrived and proudly said to the first man, “Congratulations, sir. You’re the father of twins!”
“What a coincidence (巧合)! I work for the Minnesota Twins Baseball teams!”
Later the nurse returned and congratulated the second father on the birth of his triplets (三胞胎).
“Wow! That’s unbelievable! I work for the 3M Company.”
An hour later, the nurse returned to congratulate the third man on the birth of his quadruplets (四胞胎). Surprised, he only could answer, “I don’t believe it! I work for the Four Seasons Hotel!”
　　After this, everyone turned to the fourth man who had just fainted (暈). The nurse ran fast to his side. As he slowly came to himself, they could hear him speak in a very low voice over and over, “I should never have taken that job at 7-Eleven. I should never have taken that job at 7-Eleven. I should never have taken that job at 7-Eleven.”
【小題1】Why were the fathers there?

A．They were waiting for their wives.

B．They were seeing doctors.

C．They were waiting for their babies to be born.

D．They were working at men nurses there.

【小題2】Which of the following is true about the third man?

A．He thought the nurse made a mistake.

B．He was very surprised at the nurse’s words.

C．He didn’t want to have these babies.

D．He should never have worked at 7-Eleven.

【小題3】Why did the fourth man faint when he heard what the nurse told the third man?

A．Hew was afraid of having so many babies.

B．He was seriously ill.

C．He was too excited.

D．He was very glad to have 7 babies.

【小題4】At least how many babies would be born according to the story?

A．9.

B．10.

C．11.

D．16.

A little girl thought she was not as beautiful as other girls, and nobody liked her. So she was always unhappy and didn’t like to talk to others. However, one day, her mother gave her a beautiful hair clip(發(fā)夾). When she wore it, she looked much more beautiful than before. She decided to wear it to school.
On her way to school she found that everyone who saw her smiled at her. Most of her schoolmates said “Hello” to her, but this never happened before. She thought that the beautiful hair clip had brought her them all. She was so happy about all of the wonderful things. Although she didn’t tell her classmates about her beautiful hair clip, they all wanted to know what had happened to her.
When she went back home after school, her mother asked her: “Did you know you dropped your hair clip? I found it by the door this morning.”
She understood that she hadn’t worn the hair clip to school at all.
【小題1】Which of the following sentence is true?

A．The girl is not as beautiful as other girls.

B．Nobody liked the girl.

C．The girl’s classmates thought she was more beautiful than before with the hair clip.

D．The girl wanted to be more beautiful, so she decided to wear the hair clip.

【小題2】Why was the girl so happy?

A．She found that everyone who saw her smiled at her.

B．She heard most of her schoolmates said “Hello” to her.

C．She thought what she experienced today never happened before.

D．Both A, B, and C

【小題3】 From this passage we know that ____________________

A．the girl was really ugly without the hair clip	B．the girl was as beautiful as her classmates.
C．the girl was not self-confident enough at first.	D．the girl was happy all the time.

【小題4】Her classmates wanted to know what had happened to the girl because__________________

A．she didn’t tell her classmates about her beautiful hair clip.

B．she was always unhappy but that day she was so happy.

C．she looked more beautiful wearing the hair clip.

D．she wanted to talk to others.

【小題5】We can learn from this passage that_______________________

A．A friend is easier lost than found.	B．Make your enemy your friend.
C．A friend in need is a friend indeed.	D．The most important is how we think about ourselves.

Ole Bull was a very famous violinist from Norway. He really liked to play the violin. But his father thought that playing the violin was not useful. So his father sent him to university to study. However, playing the violin was his dream. He didn’t want to give up his dream. So he left university before he finished his studies and spent all his time and energy practicing the violin. Unfortunately, his violin teacher was not very good. So when it was time for him to start his concert tour, he still couldn’t play the violin very well.
Therefore, a Milan newspaper critic¹ criticized him and said that he was an untrained violinist. The critic said, “If he is gold, he is not ready to shine² yet.”
When facing this kind of problem, some people may become very angry and some people try to learn from it. Fortunately, Ole Bull belonged to the second group. He went to the newspaper office and found the critic. Instead of being angry, he talked about his mistakes with the man and listened to the man’s advice.
After he met the critic, he gave up the rest of his concerts. Then he went back to practice the violin with the help of good teachers. In the end, he got great success when he was only 26. He also became one of the most famous violinists in the world.
【小題1】Why didn’t Ole Bull’s father like him to play the piano?

A．Because he thought playing the violin was useless.

B．Because his father thought playing the violin would cost lots of money.

C．Because his father thought he couldn’t play the violin well.

D．Because his father thought he couldn’t make his dream come true.

【小題2】What does the underlined part "If he is gold, he is not ready to shine yet." mean?

A．Gold always shines no matter where it is.

B．He is an excellent violinist.

C．He doesn’t play the violin very well.

D．If he sells gold, he will make a lot of money.

【小題3】What was Ole Bull’s attitude towards the critic’s article?

A．Angry.

B．Excited.

C．Modest.

D．Worried.

【小題4】Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?

A．Without a good teacher, one can’t succeed.

B．The critic’s advice helped Ole Bull a lot.

C．Ole Bull got success after many years’ hard practice at last.

D．The critic helped Ole Bull find a famous teacher.

【小題5】What can we learn from the passage?

A．Becoming a violinist can make a lot of money.

B．When we meet problems, we should learn to face them.

C．Old Bull was a famous American pianist.

D．You can be famous easily if you play the violin.