John once told me a story about his friend, Michael. Michael happened to be on a train sitting next to a young man who seemed worried. Finally the young man told the friend that he was a convict (罪犯) returning home from a prison far away. What he did had brought shame (羞恥) on his family, and they had neither visited him nor written to him. He hoped, however, that this was only because they were too poor to travel and too busy to write.
When he was set free he had written to tell them he wanted to go home. To make matters easy for them, however, he had asked them to put up a signal (信號(hào)) for him when the train passed their little farm. If the family had forgiven (原諒) him, they were to put up a white ribbon (絲帶) in the big apple tree near the railway. If they didn't want him back, they were to do nothing, and he would stay on the train, and go far away.
As the train neared his hometown his suspense became so great that he was afraid to look out of the window. He asked Michael to watch for the big apple tree. They changed seats. In a minute, Michael put his hand on the young convict’s shoulder, "There it is," His eyes was filled with sudden tears. "It’s all right. The whole tree is white with ribbons."
【小題1】According to the passage, the white ribbon in the big apple tree means ________.

A．pleasure

B．forgiveness(原諒）

C．happiness

D．education

【小題2】The word "suspense" underlined in the last paragraph can best be replaced by ________.

A．a(chǎn)nger

B．interest

C．worry

D．happiness

【小題3】Why was Michael asked to watch for the apple tree?

A．The young man was afraid that he was refused by his family.

B．The young man’s seat was far from the window.

C．The young man was afraid of seeing the white ribbons in the tree.

D．The young man was sure that his family would accept him.

【小題4】Why did Michael cry at the end of the story?

A．The young man couldn’t live with his family.

B．There were many white ribbons on the apple tree.

C．He was afraid.

D．The young man was very sad.

Everyone needs friends. We all like to feel close to someone. It is nice to have a friend to talk, laugh and do things with. Surely, there are times when we need to be alone. We don't always want people around. But we would feel lonely if we never had a friend.
No two people are the same. Sometimes friends don't get along well, which doesn't mean that they no longer like each other. Most of the time they will go on being friends. Sometimes friends move away, then we feel very sad. We miss them much, but we can call them and write to them. Maybe we would never see them again, and we can make new friends. It is surprising to find out how much we like new people when we get to know them. Families sometimes name their children after a close friend. Many places are named after men and women, if they are friendly to people in a town. Some libraries are named this way. So are some schools. We think of these people when we go to these places.
There's more good news for people, if they have friends. These people live longer than those people if those don't have friends. Why? It could be that they are happier. Being happy helps you stay well. Or it could be just knowing that someone cares, if someone cares about you, you take better care of yourself.
【小題1】The first paragraph tells us __________.

A．none needs friends

B．we always need friends around us

C．making friends is the need in people's life

D．we need to be alone

【小題2】Which of the following is what the writer doesn't say in the passage?

A．People are happy when their friends leave them.

B．People may never see their friends after their friends move away.

C．Everyone needs friends.

D．People like their friends very much if they get to know them.

【小題3】 If people have friends, they would live longer, because __________.

A．they feel happier and healthier

B．they get a lot of help from their friends

C．they take better care of themselves

D．both A and C

【小題4】This passage tells us __________.

A．that people are all friends	B．that people need friends
C．how to get to know friends	D．how to name a place

Years ago, I lived in a building in a large city. The building next door was only a few feet away from mine. There was a woman who lived there, whom I had never met, yet I could see her seated by her window each afternoon, sewing or reading.
After several months had gone by, I began to notice that her window was dirty. Everything was unclear through the dirty window. I would say to myself, "I wonder why that woman doesn't wash her window. It really looks terrible."
One bright morning I decided to clean my flat, including washing the window on the inside.
Late in the afternoon when I finished the cleaning, I sat down by the window with a cup of coffee for a rest. What a surprise! Across the way, the woman sitting by her window was clearly visible. Her window was clean!
Then it dawned on me. I had been criticizing (批評(píng)) her dirty window, but all the time I was watching hers through my own dirty window.
That was quite an important lesson for me. How often had I looked at and criticized others through the dirty window of my heart, through my own shortcomings?
Since then, whenever I wanted to judge (評(píng)判) someone, I asked myself first, "Am I looking at him through my own dirty window?"
Then I try to clean the window of my own world so that I may see the world about me more clearly.
【小題1】The writer couldn't see everything clearly through the window because_____.

A．the woman's window was dirty

B．the writer's window was dirty

C．the woman lived nearby

D．the writer was near-sighted

【小題2】The writer was surprised that_____.

A．the woman was sitting by her window

B．the woman's window was clean

C．the woman did cleaning in the afternoon

D．the woman's window was still terrible

【小題3】The underlined sentence "It dawned on me" probably means "____".

A．I began to understand it	B．it cheered me up
C．I knew it grew light	D．it began to get dark

【小題4】It's clear that _____.

A．the writer had never met the woman before

B．the writer often washed the window

C．they both worked as cleaner

D．they lived in a small town

【小題5】From the passage, we can learn ______.

A．one shouldn't criticize others very often

B．one should often make his windows clean

C．one must judge himself before he judges others

D．one must look at others through his dirty windows

Linda Evans was my best friend—like the sister I never had. We did everything together: piano lessons, movies, swimming, horseback riding.
When I was 13, my family moved away. Linda and I kept in touch through letters, and we saw each other on special times—like my wedding and Linda's. Soon we were busy with children and moving to new homes, and we wrote less often. One day a card that I sent came back, stamped "Address Unknown" I had no idea about how to find Linda.
Over the years, I missed Linda very much. I wanted to share(分享) happiness of my children and then grandchildren. And I needed to share my sadness when my brother and then mother died. There was an empty place in my heart that only a friend like Linda could fill.
One day, I was reading a newspaper when I noticed a photo of a young woman who looked very much like Linda and whose last name was Wagman—Linda's married name. "There must be thousands of Wagmans."I thought, but I still wrote to her.
She called as soon as she got my letter. "Mrs. Tobin!" she said excitedly, "Linda Evans Wagman is my mother."
Minutes later I heard a voice that I knew very much, even after 40 years, laughed and cried and caught up on each other's lives. Now the empty place in my heart is filled. And there's one thing that Linda and I know for sure: We won't lose each other again!
【小題1】The writer went to piano lessons with Linda Evans ________.

A．a(chǎn)t the age of 13

B．before the writer’s family moved away

C．a(chǎn)fter they moved to new homes

D．before she got married

【小題2】They didn't often write to each other because they ________.

A．got married

B．didn't like writing letters

C．had little time to do so

D．could see each other on special time

【小題3】There was an empty place in the writer’s heart because she ________.

A．was in trouble

B．didn't know Linda’s address

C．received the card that she sent

D．didn't have a friend like Linda to share her happiness and sadness

I’d just got in a taxi at the railway station when suddenly I found one of my suitcases missing. Just then, I saw a young fellow about 30 walking away with it, opening it and drawing out the valuables. “Stop thief! Stop thief!” I shouted and threw open the car door and rushed out to him, followed by the driver and half a dozen passers-by. Very soon the thief was cornered at the turn of the road. My driver caught the thief by the neck and put his hand into his trouser pocket, drawing out money, credit card, telephone book and so on and put them back into my suitcase.
Half an hour later, the car was running at full speed on the express highway. I sat back and breathed a long sigh of relief (松口氣). But as I pulled out those stolen things from the suitcase and started to check them, I became dumbfounded (驚呆了). Before my eyes were 200 yuan instead of 100. And a blood test report of a 58-year-old woman appeared. I suddenly realized that the taxi driver must have mistaken the thief’s belongs and put his into my suitcase. The pitiful and begging look of the poor young man flashed across my mind again. My heart began to sink.
Two years has passed since then. But this event keeps coming back to me. Was the young man a habitual robber or a dutiful son who had been driven to desperation (鋌而走險(xiǎn)) to find money to save his mother’s life? My heart aches for him. How I wish I had gone back that summer afternoon to return the 200 yuan and say sorry to him. For the first time in my life, I realized that hate and love are very close.
【小題1】Why was the writer dumbfounded when he opened his suitcase?

A．Because he was now searching a different suitcase.

B．His own blood test report has changed into an old woman’s.

C．An old woman had put her savings into his suitcase.

D．He was facing things that did not belong to himself.

【小題2】Who helped the writer catch the thief?

A．No one. He caught the thief all by himself.

B．The driver with several other people.

C．Some policemen.

D．The thief came back and gave back the suitcase to him.

【小題3】What was one of the reasons for the young man to steal in the writer’s opinion?

A．The young man was a born thief.

B．The young man couldn’t afford to pay for his old mother’s medical treatment.

C．The young man’s mother asked him to do so.

D．Young people are likely to steal when they are poor.

【小題4】The major purpose for the writer to write this passage is ______.

A．to describe what hate and love are like

B．to entertain the readers with an interesting story

C．to impress the readers with an interesting story

D．to encourage the readers to help him find the thief

Many years ago, there was a story of a school teacher—Mrs. Thompson. She told the children on the first day that she loved them all the same. But that was a lie. There in the front row was a little boy named Teddy Stoddard. He didn’t play well with the other children and he always needed a bath. She did not like him.
Then Mrs. Thompson got to know that Teddy was actually a very good boy before the death of his mother. Mrs. Thompson was ashamed of herself. She felt even worse when, like all her other students, Teddy brought her a Christmas present too. It was his mother’s perfume.
Teddy said, “Mrs. Thompson, today you smell just like my Mom used to.” After the children left she cried for at least an hour. On that very day， she stopped teaching reading, writing and maths. Instead, she began to teach children.
Mrs. Thompson paid particular attention to Teddy. The boy’s mind seemed to come alive. The more she encouraged him, the faster he improved. By the end of the sixth grade, Teddy had become one of the smartest children in the class.
Six years went by before she got a letter from Teddy. He wrote that he had finished high school, third in his class, and she was still the best teacher he ever had in his whole life. He went to college. Mrs. Thompson got two more letters from him with the last one signed, Theodore F. Stoddard, M. D.（醫(yī)學(xué)博士）.
The story doesn’t end there. On his wedding day, Dr. Stoddard whispered in Mrs. Thompson’s ear， “Thank you, Mrs. Thompson, for believing in me. You made me feel important and showed me that I could make a difference.”
Mrs. Thompson, with tears in her eyes, whispered back, “Teddy, you have it all wrong. 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 first impression did Teddy give Mrs. Thompson?

A．Heoftentoldlies.

B．Hewasgoodatmath.

C．Hewas dirty and not easy-going.

D．Heenjoyedplayingwithothers.

【小題2】According to the first paragraph, which is true between Teddy and his teacher?

A．Mrs. Thompson had a dislike of Teddy at first.

B．Mrs. Thompson didn’t play well with him.

C．Mrs. Thompson loved him all the time.

D．Mrs. Thompson told Teddy not to tell a lie.

【小題3】Why did Teddy become one of the smartest children in the class?

A．Mrs. Thompson paid little attention to him.

B．Mrs. Thompson gave him encouragement more often

C．Teddy was cleverer than before.

D．Teddy got on well with other students.

【小題4】Why did Teddy invite Mrs. Thompson to his wedding?

A．Teddy kept in touch with her all the time.

B．Teddy thanked her for her help and encouragement.

C．Teddy was treated by the teacher like her son.

D．She had taught him how to judge people.

【小題5】From the passage, we can infer that ______.

A．we should love our teacher

B．we shouldn’t tell a lie in any way

C．knowledge can’t be important

D．motherlycare can really make a difference

He was 11 years old and went fishing every chance he got from the dock at his family’s   cabin on an island in the middle of a New Hampshire lake.
　　 On the day before the bass season opened, he and his father were fishing early in the evening, catching sunfish and perch (鱸魚)  with worms. Then he tied on a small silver lure（魚餌） and practiced casting. The lure struck the water and caused colored ripples in the sunset, then silver ripples as the moon rose over the lake.
　　When his peapole doubled over, he knew something huge was on the other end. His father watched with admiration as the boy skillfully worked the fish alongside the dock.
　　Finally, he very gingerly lifted the exhausted fish from the water. It was the largest one he had ever seen, but it was a bass. The boy and his father looked at the handsome fish, gills playing back and forth in the moonlight. The father lit a match and looked at his watch. It was 10 P.M.-- two hours before the season opened. He looked at the fish, then at the boy.
　　“You’ll have to put it back, son,” he said.
　　“Dad!” cried the boy.
　　“There will be other fish,” said his father.
　　“Not as big as this one,” cried the boy.
　　He looked around the lake. No other fishermen or boats were anywhere around in the moonlight. He looked again at his father. Even though no one had seen them, nor could anyone ever know what time he caught the fish, the boy could tell by the clarity of his father’s voice that the decision was not negotiable（可協(xié)商的）. He slowly worked the hook out of the lip of the huge bass and lowered it into the black water.
　　The creature swished its powerful body and disappeared. The boy suspected that he would never again see such a great fish.
　　That was 34 years ago. Today, the boy is a successful architect in New York City. His father’s cabin is still there on the island in the middle of the lake. He takes his own son and daughters fishing from the same dock.
　　And he was right. He has never again caught such a magnificent fish as the one he landed that night long ago. But he does see that same fish-again and again-every time he comes up against a question of ethics (道德規(guī)范).
【小題1】 Why did the father ask his son to put the perch back?

A．Because the father disliked the perch.

B．Because the father was afraid of being fined

C．Because the ethics must be obeyed.

D．Because the son was more experienced in fishing than his father.

【小題2】When does the architect (the father’s son) think of that perch put back?

A．When he takes his own and son and daughters fishing from the same dock.

B．When he builds many famous buildings.

C．When he pays a visit to his old father.

D．When he faces some problems about ethics.

【小題3】Which word can not be used to describe the boy’s father?

A．honest

B．noble-minded

C．caring

D．generous

My son. The phrase felt difficult and strange the first time I said it, and I had to practice it a thousand times． I started saying the words to myself the day when the ultrasound told me we were having a baby．
Finally, my son was born.
The nurse came out of the delivery room, holding a tiny, howling human being wrapped in a white sheet, his small hands and delicate fingers shaking nervously. “Baby Sanchez?” she asked, looking at the room full of expectant fathers.
I stood up, holding my breath． She showed me my baby． “My son,” I whispered. The little guy screamed, “waaaaaaaaaah.”
But in my heart I heard him cry out, “Daaaaaaad!” I don’t care if everyone in the room will swear they didn’t hear my baby say that. I called him, “My son,” and he called me “Dad,” and that’s that.
People ask me, “What did you feel at that moment?” I can’t even begin to answer. I’m a writer yet I try hard to find the right words. Joyful isn’t powerful enough. Bliss(狂喜) is not sweet enough. Peaceful isn’t calm enough. Happy isn’t tense enough.
After my son was taken away to the nursery, I sat down and shut my eyes. But tears escaped them away. Then out of the blue, my 80-year-old father entered, and we embraced.
“Dad,” I whispered.
“My son,” my heart heard him saying.
Suddenly the past 33 years folded into the present and I was now the baby bundled in white, with my father standing over me.
“My son,” I imagined him saying.
“Daaaaaaaaaad!” I cried my little lungs out.
At that point, I knew I was going to be a great father. The old man in front of me seemed to agree. He smiled and we walked out of the room in search of the tiny human being that would change our lives for ever.
【小題1】Which of the following statement is TRUE according to the passage?

A．His son called him “Dad” when the writer called him “My son”．

B．All the people didn’t hear the baby say except the writer．

C．Sanchez is the writer’s family name．

D．The baby was taken away because the nurse found there was a mistake．

【小題2】The author couldn’t tell how he felt at the moment because ________．

A．he was a writer

B．he was too excited

C．he was too nervous

D．it’s a feeling too complex to express

【小題3】We can learn the following from the passage EXCEPT that ________．

A．the author got his first baby

B．he probably had a lung disease

C．the author didn’t really hear “Daaaaad” from his baby

D．the baby would change the author’s life

【小題4】Why was the writer sure he was going to be a great father?

A．Because his son is so gifted．

B．Because he had much experience in bringing up children．

C．Because his father promised to help him．

D．Because his father had already set him a good example．

The 92-year-old, thin, calm and proud lady, who is fully dressed each morning by eight o’clock, even though she is nearly blind, moved to a nursing home today.
Her husband of 70 years recently passed away, making the move necessary. After many hours of waiting patiently in the hall of the nursing home, she smiled sweetly when told her room was ready.
As she walked slowly to the elevator, I provided a true description of her tiny room, including the old sheets that had been hung on her window. “I love it,” she said with the happiness of an eight-year-old girl having just been presented with a new puppy.
“Mrs. Jones, you haven’t seen the room…just wait.”
“That doesn’t matter,” she replied. “Happiness is something you decide ahead of time. Whether I like my room or not doesn’t depend on how the furniture is arranged. It’s how I arranged my mind. I have already decided to love it. It’s a decision I make every morning when I wake up. Each day is a gift, and as long as my eyes open I’ll focus on the new day and all the happy memories I’ve stored away.” She went on to explain, “Old age is like a bank account. You take what you’ve put in. So, my advice to you would be to put in a lot of happiness in the bank account of memories. Thank you for your part in filling my memory bank.” And with a smile, she said, “All my memories are happy ones.”
Mrs. Jones was always happy in the nursing home and she died at the age of 108.
【小題1】We can infer from the passage that the author ________.

A．is one of Mrs. Jones’ children

B．is a relative of Mrs. Jones

C．works in the nursing home

D．is the owner of the nursing home

【小題2】The room in which the old lady will live ________.

A．is very comfortable

B．is fairly big

C．isn’t well equipped

D．is equipped with new furniture

【小題3】Mrs. Jones was very happy when told about her room because she ________.

A．couldn’t see what her room was like

B．thought the nursing home was her home

C．would have to live in the nursing home

D．had already made up her mind to be happy

【小題4】Which of the following words can best describe Mrs. Jones?

A．Proud.

B．Pleasant.

C．Determined

D．Honest

Justin’s bedroom was so full of flat bicycle tires, bent tennis rackets, deflated basketballs, and games with missing pieces that you could hardly get in the door.  His parents pleaded with him to clean out his room.
“What use is a fish tank with a hole in the bottom?” his father asked.  But Justin simply smiled and repeated his motto, “Never throw anything out, you never know when it might come in handy.”
When Justin was away from home, he always carried his blue backpack — a smaller bag of his bedroom — a place to store the many objects that he collected.  It was so worn and stretched that it hardly resembled a backpack anymore.
Justin had earned a reputation for figuring things out and getting people out of otherwise hopeless situations.  Many of his classmates and neighbors sought him out when they needed help with a problem.  On the first day of school, his friend Kenny, came looking for Justin.
“Do you think you have something in your backpack that could help me remember my locker combination (箱子密碼)?”  he asked.  “I lost the piece of paper it was written on.  I have a science class in two minutes and if I’m late on the first day it’ll make me look bad for the rest of the year.”  Kenny looked really worried.
“Relax,” Justin said, taking his backpack off and opened it.  “Remember how you borrowed my notebook in my home to write the combination down?  Well, I know how I can recover what you wrote.”
He took the notebook and a soft lead pencil out of his backpack.  The page that Kenny had written on had left faint marks on another page in the notebook.  Justin held the pencil on its side and rubbed it lightly over the marks.  Slowly but surely the numbers of the locker combination appeared in white.
“That’ s amazing!”  Kenny said, “I owe you one.”  And he dashed off to open his locker.
It was just another day in the life of the boy whose motto was “Never throw anything out; you never know when it might come in handy.”
【小題1】Why is Justin’s room in such a mess?

A．He always forgets to clean it.

B．He never throws anything out.

C．He has no time to clean it.

D．He shares the room with his brother.

【小題2】In what way is Justin’s blue backpack used?

A．He uses it as a place to store collected objects.

B．He uses it to carry his books and sports equipment.

C．His parents tell him to clean it all the time.

D．He carries it to remind others of his ability.

【小題3】The underlined phrase “pleaded with” means              .

A．ignored

B．a(chǎn)sked

C．pushed

D．a(chǎn)dmired

【小題4】How does Kenny feel toward Justin?

A．Annoyed

B．Disinterested

C．Grateful

D．Angry