I was 15 months old, a happy carefree (無憂無慮的) kid, until the day I fell. It was a bad fall. I
landed on a piece of glass that cut my eye badly. My mom found a doctor who knew that if the eye
were removed, my face would look ugly, so my scarred (有疤痕的), sightless, cloudy gray eye lived
on with me.
     Sometimes people asked me embarrassing questions. When kids played games, I was always the
"monster". I grew up imagining that everyone looked down on me.
     Yet Mom would say to me, "Hold your head up high and face the world." I began to rely on that
saying.
     As a child, I thought Mom meant, "Be careful or you will fall down or bump into something because
you are not looking." As a teenager, I usually looked down to hide my shame (羞愧). But I found that
when I held my head up high, people liked me.
     In high school I even became the class president, but on the inside I still felt like a freak (怪物). All
I really wanted was to look like everyone else. When things got really bad, I would cry to my mom and
she would look at me with loving eyes and say, "Hold your head up high and face the world. Let them
see the beauty that is inside."
     When I met the man who became my husband, we looked each other straight in the eye, and he told
me I was beautiful inside and out.
     My mom's love was the spark (火花) that gave me confidence. I had faced hardships, and learned
not only to appreciate myself but to have deep compassion (憐憫) for others.
     "Hold your head up high" has been heard many times in my home. Each of my children has felt its
invitation. I say it to my children. The gift my mom gave me lives on in another generation.

1. Why did the author's mother tell her to hold her head up high and face the world?

A. Because her mother wanted to show sympathy for her.
B. Because her mother wanted her to be confident.
C. Because her mother didn't want her to be seen as a "monster".
D. Because her mother thought the author looked prettier when she did that.

2.  Which of the following is TRUE according to the article?

A. The author managed to get over her disability in high school.
B. The author gave her children encouragement and love, as her mother had given her.
C. The author was always confident after the accident.
D. In high school the author was chosen to be president of the student's union.

3. The underlined sentence "Each of my children has felt its invitation." means her children ________.

A. each received an invitation from her mother
B. didn't quite understand the meaning of her words.
C. faced the same difficulty as their mother.
D. benefited from their mother's words.

4. Which would be the best title for the article?

A. My mom's gift to me
B. How I found my life-partner
C. My terrible childhood accident
D. Disability is no shame

     Can dogs and cats live in perfect harmony in the same home? People who are thinking about adopting
a dog as a friend for their cats are worried that they will fight. A recent research has found a new recipe
of success. According to the study, if the cat is adopted before the dog, and if they are introduced when
still young (less than 6 months for cats, a year for dogs), it is highly probable that the two pets will get
along swimmingly. Two-thirds of the homes interviewed reported a positive relationship between their cat
and dog.
     However, it wasn't all sweetness and light. There was a reported coldness between the cat and dog in
25% of the homes, while aggression and fighting were observed in 10% of the homes. One reason for this
is probably that some of their body signals were just opposite. For example, when a cat turns its head
away it signals aggression, while a dog doing the same signals submission (恭維).
     In homes with cats and dogs living peacefully, researchers observed a surprising behavior. They are
learning how to talk each other's language. It is a surprise that cats can learn how to talk 'dog', and dogs
can learn how to talk 'cat'.
     What's interesting is that both cats and dogs have appeared to develop their intelligence. They can
learn to read each other's body signals, suggesting that the two may have more in common than we
preciously suspected. Once familiar with each other's presence and body language, cats and dogs can
play together, greet each other nose to nose, and enjoy sleeping together in the sofa. They can easily
share the same water bowl and in some cases groom (梳理) each other.
     The significance of this research on cats and dogs may go beyond pets-to people who don't get along,
including neighbors, colleagues at work, and even world superpowers. If cats and dogs can learn to get
along, surely people have a good chance.

1. The underlined word swimmingly in Paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to______.

A. early      
B. sweetly      
C. quickly      
D. smoothly

2. Some cats and dogs may fight when_________.

A. they are cold to each other      
B. they look away from each other
C. they misunderstand each other's signals
D. they are introduced at an early age

3. It is suggested in paragraph 4 that cats and dogs_______.

A. have common interests        
B. are less different than we thought
C. have a common body language
D. are less intelligent than we expected

4. What can we human beings learn from cats and dogs?

A. We should learn to live in harmony
B. We should knows more about animals
C. We should live in peace with animals
D. We should learn more body languages

     It is the summer of 1776. Thomas Jefferson is not happy. He'd rather be home in Virginia than attending
Philadelphia's Continental Congress(大陸會議)
     Thomas Jefferson knew he had a job to do. Important men throughout the American colonies (殖民地)
were meeting in Philadelphis to discuss and debate the war with Great Briain. The colony of Virginia sent
Thomas Jefferson to Philadelphia. But Jefferson wasn't happy. Jefferson wanted to be home that hot summer
of 1776. he missed his wife, Martha. She hadn't been feeling well when he left, and he worried about her.
     On June 7, 1776, Richard Henry Lee from Virginia stood up at the Congress and announced that "these
American colonies ought to be free and independent states." Jefferson probably knew what was coming next.
Here was another resolution (決議)to debate. And whenever there was a resolution, there was a declaration.
     The American colonies had been at war with Great Britain for more than a year, but surprisingly. The
colonies had not formally announced their independence. So the Congress appointed a five-man committee to
crate a document declaring America's independence. And the committee chose Thomas Jefferson to write it.
     Jefferson knew he was to list the unfair things Great Britain had done to the colonies. For days and days,
Jefferson wrote and rewrote about the king and his unfair laws. About independence. About freedom. He
borrowed ideas from other political writers, but he wrote these thoughts in words that all people could
understand. He wanted his ideas to be shared with everyone.
     And they were. The Continental Congress voted to adopt the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776.
on July 8, it was read out loud to a cheering crowd. No one knew who the author was, but they knew what
the Declaration stood for-independence and freedom for all.
     Still, Thomas Jefferson dreamed of home. In late July he begged Richard Henry Lee to replace him in the
Congress. In September, Jefferson's dream finally came true, and he traveled home.
      Since then, the words Thomas Jefferson wrote during that hot Philadelphia summer have inspired people
throughout the world. Thank goodness Jefferson didn't go home.

1. Why didn't Thomas Jefferson want to go to Philadelphia?

A. He was not a good debater
B. He found a new job in Virginia
C. It was extremely hot in Philadelphia
D. He was concerned about his wife's health

2. The Continental Congress set up a committee to write a document to _____.

A. officially declare war on Britain
B. announce the American colonies were free
C. inspire soldiers fighting against Britain
D. revise the Declaration of Independence

3. The underlined word "they" in Paragraph 6 refers to _____.

A. people in the colonies
B. members of the Congress
C. Jefferson 's ideas
D. ideas of other writes

4. What do we know about the Declaration of Independence?

A. It was written in quite simple words
B. It took Jefferson about one year to write it
C. Jefferson finished it with the help of Richard Henry Lee
D. It won Jefferson great honors immediately it was announced.

5. We can learn from the passage that _____.

A. Jefferson was a very caring husband
B. Jefferson was not really interested in politics
C. Jefferson was unwilling to borrow other writers' ideas
D. Jefferson finished his job in the Congress before going home

     I first went to Harrow in the summer term. The school had the biggest swimming pool I had ever seen.
It was a good joke to come up behind a naked boy, and push him into the pool. I made quite a habit of this
with boys of my own size or less.
     One day I saw a boy wrapped in a towel on the side of the pool. He was no bigger than I was, so I thought
him a fair game. Coming secretly behind, I pushed him in, holding on to his towel so that it would not get wet,
I was surprised to see an angry face come out from the water, and a being of great strength making its way
by fierce strokes (猛力地劃) to the shore. I fled, but in vain. He overtook me, seized me violently, and threw
me into the deepest part of the pool. I soon climbed out on the other side, and found myself surrounded by a
crowd of younger boys. "Do you know what you have done?" they said, "It's Amery; he is in Grade Six. He is
champion at gym, he has got his football honor."
     I was frightened and felt ashamed. How could I tell his position when he was wrapped in a bath towel and
so small. He didn't seem pleased at all, so I added in a most brilliant word, "My father, who is a great man, is
also small." At this he laughed, and after some general words about my rude behavior and how I had better be
careful in the future, signified the incident was closed.

1. The writer thought Amery "a fair game" because the boy _____.

A. looked like an animal
B. was fond of games 
C. was of similar size
D. was good at sports

2. The writer felt "ashamed" because _____.

A. he was laughed at by other boys
B. Amery turned out to be in the same grade
C. he pushed Amery hard and hurt him
D. he played a joke on an outstanding athlete

3. By saying "My father, who is a great man, is also small", the writer _____.

A. tried to please Amery
B. challenged Amery
C. threatened Amery
D. admired his father

4. Which of the following is TRUE?

A. The writer could run faster than Amery.
B. The writer liked playing on boys of all sizes.
C. Amery was a student in Grade Four.
D. Amery forgave the writer for his rude behavior.

5. What does the underlined word "overtook" mean?

A. catch hold of
B. catch up with
C. take a look at
D. shout at

     On May 12, 2008, an earthquake of 8 magnitude struck Sichuan. Everyone in China was shocked, and
quickly became heartbroken as reported deaths climbed from 10,000 to 32,000 to more than 62,000 people.
The death toll is still rising, and the number of injured and missing is many times more.
     The Chinese people faced this disaster with compassion (同情) and courage. I was touched by the teacher
who died forming a bridge with his body between two desks, protecting four surviving students under him,
by the trapped child who told the rescue workers to save others first, and by the dying mother who texted her
baby, "My Treasure: If you survive, always remember I love you." She died using her own body to protect
her 3-month-old from harm. But don't worry about this baby growing up without a family. Thousands of
families in China have already volunteered to adopt earthquake orphans. And the Chinese people faced this
 disaster with resourcefulness (智慧) and tenacity (堅韌). A brave CEO took his weekend SUV, drove
hundreds of miles, started digging, and saved several lives. A child used his hands to dig out two fellow
students. His hands were severely injured, but his friends survived. Cab drivers turned their cars into
ambulances and delivery trucks. More than 100,000 brave soldiers risked (and some gave) their lives to find
every survivor.
     These are the heroes among us, whether they use an SUV, a shovel or a phone. Their heroic deeds and
selflessness inspired me so deeply that I can recall only one other such occasion. It was 9/11-I vividly
remember the police officers, the firefighters, and of course the passengers and crew on United Flight 93.
     As a Chinese American, I hope that the Chinese and the Americans will see that they have so much in
common-their compassion, courage, and generosity. I hope that people will see that these heroic commonalities
are much stronger than any differences. And I hope that these heroes from 9/11 and 5/12 will inspire all of us
to turn our anxiety into courage, our misery into tenacity, and our sorrow into love.