Family traditions were important in our house, and none was more appreciated than the perfect Christmas tree
"Dad, can we watch when you trim（修剪）the tree?" My eldest son. Dan, nine, and his seven -year-old brother John, asked
"I won't be cutting this year," my husband Bob said. "Dan, you and John are old enough to measure things. Do it all by yourselves. Think you boys can handle it?
Dan and John seemed to grow six inches in their chairs at the thought of such an amazing responsibility. "We can handle it." Dan promised. "We won't let you down." .
A few days before Christmas. Dan and John rushed in after school. They gathered the tools they'd need and brought them out to the yard .where the tree waited. I was cooking when I heard the happy sounds as the boys carried the tree into the lying room. Then I heard the sound that every mother knows is trouble: dead silence I hurried out to them. The tree was cut too short. John  crossed his arms tight across his chest. His eyes filled with angry tears.
I felt worried The tree was central to our holiday. I didn't want the boys to feel ashamed every tune they looked at it. I couldn't lower the ceiling, and I couldn't raise the floor either. There was no way to undo the damage done. Suddenly, a thought came to my mind, which turned the problem into the solution.  www..com
“We can't make the tree taller." I said. "But we can put it on a higher position"
Dan nodded his head sideways. "We could put it on the coffee table. It just might work! Let's try it!“
When Bob got home and looked at the big tree on top of the coffee table, Dan and John held their breath.
"What a good idea!" he declared "Why didn't I ever think of such a thing?"   
John broke into a grin Dan's chest swelled with pride.
【小題1】Who trimmed the Christmas tree this year?

A．The writer

B．Bob

C．Dan and John

D．The whole family

【小題2】The underlined part "grow six inches"  (Para. 4) implies the brothers felt ______.

A．proud

B．nervous

C．worried

D．scared

【小題3】What happened after the brothers moved the Christmas tree into the living room?
A. They rushed into school.        
B They began to decorate the tree.
C. They got angry with each other   
D. They found the tree was cut short
【小題4】What the writer's husband said in the end showed________.

A．he expected too much of the brothers_

B．he should not have given the brothers the task to trim the Christmas

C．he was too stupid to think of such an idea_

D．he really appreciated what the brothers had done.

I decided to have dinner in the hotel, for I arrived late one night on a business trip. As I was finishing my meal, an elderly couple came in to dine. They were holding hands and had lovely smiles on their faces. They sat three tables from me. I was amazed at the love they showed for each other. It seemed to strike home all the more, because it was shortly after ending a 20-year marriage and I still had pain in my heart.
My waiter was also their waiter. As I paid my bill, I inquired as to what their bill was. He informed me, and I gave him $40 to pay their bill. He asked if I knew them and I told him "No, I just wanted to repay them for the love that they were showing to each other," and then I departed.
The next day I entered the restaurant to dine before my departure. After I had been seated, the waiter who served me the night before told me that the strangest thing happened after I left the restaurant. 
When the elderly couple went to pay for their meal, they were informed that it had been paid. When they inquired who had done this, the hostess told them they had no idea who I was, just retelling what I said.
The couple were amazed. They looked around, asked for the bill of two young couples who were seated together, paid their bill and departed, saying "Love begets(產(chǎn)生) Love" to the amazement of the hostess and waiter.
I smiled and said "That's nice," and proceeded to order my meal.
About 45 minutes later, I finished my meal and was about to head out, but my waiter was nowhere to be found. I waited and waited and finally walked over to the hostess stand and explained that I needed to pay for my meal and hurry to the airport. She smiled and explained that I would not have to pay for my meal, because both the waiter and she felt compelled to pay my bill due to the joy that was brought to the faces of the elderly couple and the amazement of the young couples.
When I told her that they didn't have to do that, she said with a smile "Love begets Love."
【小題1】The writer’s purpose of writing the passage is to            . 

A．suggest love never dies

B．share an interesting experience

C．encourage us to help people in need

D．prove a show of love really makes a difference

【小題2】Why did the elderly couple pay the bill of the two young couples? 

A．Because they were always ready to help poor people.

B．Because they were happy to pass the love they gained.

C．Because they invited the young people to the meal.

D．Because they didn’t want to take the advantage of the writer’s generosity.

【小題3】What can be inferred from the story?

A．The love between the elderly couple deeply touched the writer who was single.

B．The young couples paid the bill of other customers in the restaurant.

C．The waiter left on purpose and made the writer stay alone to test him.

D．The writer did all this to prove his belief in love.

【小題4】Which of the following proverbs can best explain the theme of the story?

A．A good beginning makes a good ending.

B．Where there is love, there is life.

C．Love me, love my dog.

D．As a man sows, so shall he reap (收獲).

One of my wonderful memories is about a Christmas gift. Unlike other gifts, it came without wrap(包裝).
On September 11th. 1958. Mum gave birth to Richard. After she brought him home from hospital, she put him in my lap, saying. "I promised you a gift, and here it is. " What an honor! I turned four a month earlier and none of my friends had such a baby doll of their own. I played with it day and night. I sang to it. I told it stories. 1 told it over and over how much I loved it!
One morning, however, I found its bed empty. My doll was gone! I cried for it. Mum wept and told me that the poor little thing had been sent to a hospital. It had a fever. For several days, I heard Mum and Dad whispering such words as "hopeless", "pitiful", and "dying", which sounded ominous.
Christmas was coming. "Don’t expect any presents this year." Dad said, pointing at the socks I hung in the living room. "If your baby brother lives, that'll be Christmas enough.”  As he spoke, his eyes filled with tears. I'd never seen him cry before.
The phone rang early on Christmas morning. Dad jumped out of bed to answer it. From my bedroom I heard him say. "What? He's all right?" He hung up and shouted upstairs. " The hospital said we can bring Richard home!"
"Thank God.'" I heard Mum cry.
From the upstairs window, I watched my parents rush out to the car. I had never seen them happy. And I was also full of joy. What a wonderful day! My baby doll would be home. I downstairs. My sacks still hung there flat. But I knew they were not empty; they were filled with love!
【小題1】What happened to the author on September 11 1958 ?

A．He received a doll	B．He got a Christmas gift.
C．He became four years old.	D．He got a baby brother.

【小題2】What does the underlined word “ominous” in Paragraph 3 probably mean？

A．Fearful.

B．Boring.

C．Difficult.

D．Impossible.

【小題3】Which word can best describe the feeling of the father when Christmas was coming?

A．Excitement.

B．Happiness.

C．Disappointment.

D．Sadness.

【小題4】What is the passage mainly about ?

A．A sad Christmas day.	B．A special Christmas gift.
C．Life with a lovely baby.	D．Memories of a happy family.

The owner of an Alabama Chinese restaurant named “Good Friend” shot at a customer who complained about a fly in her eggroll Thursday night. The bullet narrowly missed 20-year-old Birmingham resident Jatari Walker who told the Daily News she is scarred by the entire experience.
“I can’t sleep,” she said Saturday afternoon. “And since it happened I’ve had no appetite.”
Walker ordered a combination platter（大淺盤）and eggroll from the Good Friend Chinese and Seafood Restaurant on Dennison Ave. Thursday evening. After paying her $7 bill she went back to her car and discovered a fly inside. “I thought I need to take this back,” she said.
The customer went back and asked for a repayment and said the owner Chun HinChing, 52, was unhappy with her because she announced her discovery in front of other customers. After an argument he repaid the money and Walker — who is now a former frequent customer of the business — turned and walked to the exit.
That’s when Ching drew a handgun and fired a single shot over her head.
“He just shot the gun at me and I ran,” she said, adding she could feel the bullet whiz past her head.
Birmingham Police Department spokesman Lt. Sean Edwards told the News the owner was charged with attempted murder and was transported to Jefferson County Jail on $100,000 bail（保釋金）.
Police believe Ching intended to hit Walker with the bullet and missed, Edwards said. The bullet hit the top of the door frame of the take-out business.
Ching did not tell police why he fired at Walker, Edwards said.
Edwards said he did not recall any previous problems at the business. He said Ching did not say why he had a weapon but added it was not uncommon for stores in that neighborhood.
“No one was injured from the gunshot”, Edwards said.
Calls placed to the restaurant Saturday afternoon were not answered.
【小題1】What happened on Thursday night in Good Friend Chinese and Seafood Restaurant?

A．A fire broke out but luckily no one was injured.

B．The restaurant owner refused to repay the money.

C．The egg rolls caused sickness among some customers.

D．A young woman narrowly escaped being killed by a bullet.

【小題2】Why did Walker go back to the restaurant after buying the food?

A．Because she left her car key in the restaurant.

B．Because she discovered a fly in the egg roll.

C．Because she forgot to take the combination platter.

D．Because she found the owner charged her too much.

【小題3】The restaurant owner fired on Walker when ______.

A．she was about to leave

B．she was arguing with him

C．she asked for a repayment

D．she announced her discovery

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

A．this is the first time for Walker to buy food from Good Friend Restaurant

B．the owner was unhappy with the complaint and refused to repay the money

C．it is common for a restaurant owner in that neighborhood to have a weapon

D．if someone had been hit, Ching would have been charged with attempted murder

Today, we are talking about money. I can share a bit about my history with money and my new view when it comes to using green paper.
I made a web page with links to posts about our financial journey where you can look for more details of where we’ve been and how we got where we are now. It was a big part of my story in the past and was a huge part of our downsizing journey. We got out of debt and stayed out of debt.
So I feel eager to share the benefits of being on this side. It takes planning and more careful thought whenever a dollar is spent now than it did when I had a wallet full of credit cards. I now like to think all of my dollars having a job. So many of us work for money and don’t consider that money should work for us, too. Make your dollars do the job of helping you live the life you want.
Each time money is spent or saved, it should be going toward something that you purposefully want for your life. Last week I was out and I spent $20 on food in 3 days. It made me angry because afterward I thought about eating is not at all what for my life.
On the other hand, there are times I spend $20 while out with my family and it doesn’t bother me one bit. An afternoon out with my kids during which we stop for ice cream, and do something fun together has a completely different feel to it.
In the end, I want the dollars I spend to have purpose like I can enjoy life while still planning and saving for the future.
【小題1】What do the underlined words “green paper” in Paragraph I refer to ______.

A．money

B．work

C．newspaper

D．book

【小題2】You can learn about the writer’s history with money ______.

A．by making a web page

B．by reading posts about their financial journey

C．by going on a financial journey

D．by writing to him

【小題3】In the writer’s opinion, ________.

A．more credit cards should be used in our daily life

B．we should work hard to make more money

C．money should help us live better

D．saving money is very easy

【小題4】Why did the writer feel happy with the money spent with his family?

A．Because the money is spent on food.

B．Because the money is spent in doing something fun.

C．Because eating is what he wanted for his life.

D．Because the money went toward something that he wanted for his life.

I was now in my twenty third year of residence in this island and was accustomed to the place and to the manner of living. If it had not been the savages（野人）who had come to the place to disturb me, I could have been content to spent the rest of my time there, even to the last moment, till I had laid me down and died, like the old goat in the cave.
I had also arrived to some little recreations and amusements, which made the time pass more pleasantly with me a great deal than it did before．
At first, I had taught my Poll to speak. And he did it so familiarly and talked so clearly and plain that it was very pleasant to me. And he lived with me no less than twenty six years. How long he might live afterwards, I don’t know; though I know they have an idea in Brazil that they live a hundred years. Perhaps poor Poll may be alive there still, calling Poor Robin Crusoe to this day. I wish no other English man had the bad luck to go there and hear him. But if he did, he would certainly believe it was the devil（魔鬼）.
My dog was a very pleasant and loving companion to me, for no less than sixteen years of my time, and then died of mere old age.
As for my cats, they multiplied to that degree that I had to shoot several of them at first to keep them from eating up all I had.
Besides these, I had two more parrots which talked pretty well and would all call Robin Crusoe, but none like my first. Nor indeed did I take the pains with any of them that I had done with him.
I had also several sea-fowls, whose names I don’t know, that I caught upon the shore and cut their wings. And the little stakes which I had planted before my castle wall being now grown up to a good thick bush, these fowls all lived among these low trees and bred there, which was very agreeable to me; so that as I said above, I began to be well content with the life I led if not worried about the threat from the savages.
【小題1】What does the passage mainly talk about?

A．Robin Crusoe treated animals kindly.

B．Robin Crusoe led a hard life on the island.

C．The animals raised by Robin Crusoe brought him much pleasure.

D．The savages always spoiled Robin Crusoe’s happy life.

【小題2】How many parrots did Robin Crusoe mention in this passage?

A．2

B．3

C．4

D．5

【小題3】According to the passage, which of the following statements is true?

A．Robin’s dog may be still alive on the island.

B．Robin Crusoe lived in harmony with savages.

C．Robin Crusoe met an English man while on the island.

D．Parrots raised by Robin could talk very well.

【小題4】What is the “sea-fowl” mentioned in the last paragraph?

A．A bird living on the coast.

B．A fish living in the sea.

C．A creature without a name

D．An animal feeding on tree leaves.

At the age of 16, Clara Barton was advised to become a teacher, since she was quite shy. She taught in Massachusetts for ten years, and was invited to Bordentown, New Jersey, to teach in a private school. She saw personally that these communities needed free education for their citizens, and she responded by creating a free school, one of the first in her state. Later, officials ignored her and appointed a male as principal instead. She resigned and moved to Washington DC, becoming the first woman employed by the U. S. Patent Office. 
Clara Barton was forever changed by her experience with the troops in the Civil War. She saw surgeons dressing wounds with cornhusks（玉米葉）, since they had nothing else. The medical supplies for the Army were well behind the troops, who were moving faster than their medical supply lines. She brought in a wagon of bandages and medical supplies that she had collected personally beforehand. Barton continued to work on the battlefields throughout the war. 
She helped in the identification process of 13,000 dead Union soldiers. Afterward, she was an important figure in a campaign to identify missing soldiers from the Civil War. This non-stop work debilitated her, and upon recommendation by her physicians, she traveled to Europe to recover herself.
While in Europe, and still in poor health Miss Barton was moved by the hardship on civilians brought about by the France-Prussia war. She helped in their relief effort, and in that work she was inspired to create the Red Cross, which served all troops and civilians. 
Clara Barton returned to America and then began the establishment of the American Red Cross. The US government did not think there would ever be another war, after the horror of the Civil War. But she convinced them that the Red Cross would be valuable to serve in times of natural disasters, as well. This was her lasting legacy（遺產(chǎn)）, an agency that still provides aid to victims today.
【小題1】What does this text mainly tell us about?

A．The establishment of the American Red Cross.

B．A general introduction of Clara Barton’s life.

C．Clara Barton’s contribution to the Red Cross.

D．Clara Barton’s service in the army.

【小題2】Why did Clara give up her job in the free school?

A．Because officials didn’t make her principal.

B．Because she wanted to work in a Patent Office.

C．Because she wanted to serve in the army.

D．Because she was not satisfied with the pay.

【小題3】The underlined word “debilitated” in the third paragraph means        .

A．rewarded

B．satisfied

C．disturbed

D．weakened

【小題4】What is the greatest contribution made by Clara Barton?

A．She set up a free school.

B．She collected supplies for the army.

C．She identified missing soldiers.

D．She set up the American Red Cross.

Once upon a time, there was a lovely vegetable field, on which grew a very thick tree. Both the vegetables and the tree gave the place a wonderful appearance, which was the joy of the garden’s owner. What no one knew was that the vegetables in the field and the tree couldn’t stand each other. The vegetables hated the tree’s shadow, because it left them only just enough light to survive. The tree, on the other hand, hated the vegetables because they drank nearly all the water before it could get to him, leaving him with just enough to survive.
The situation became so extreme that the vegetables got totally fed up and decided to use up all the water in the ground so that the tree would dry up. The tree answered back by refusing to give the vegetables shadow from the hot midday sun, so they both began to dry up. Before long, the vegetables were really thin and the tree’s branches were drying up.
Neither of them thought that the gardener, on seeing his vegetable field becoming worse, would stop watering it. When he did that, both the tree and the vegetables really learned what thirst was. There seemed to be no solution, but one of the vegetables, a small courgette（小胡瓜）, understood what was going on, and decided to deal with it. Despite the little water and the unbearable heat, the little courgette did all he could to grow, grow...He managed to grow so big that the gardener started watering the field again. The gardener wanted to enter that beautiful big courgette in some gardening contest.
And so the vegetables and the tree realized that it was better to help each other than to fight. They should really learn how to live in harmony with those around them, doing the best they could. So they decided to work together, using both the shadow and the water in the best combination to grow good vegetables. Seeing how well they were doing, the gardener now gave the best of care to his vegetable field, watering it better than any other field for miles around.
【小題1】What is the problem between the tree and the vegetables?

A．They looked down upon each other.

B．They didn’t leave water to each other.

C．They couldn’t stand each other.

D．They didn’t know how to protect themselves.

【小題2】What is the result of the fight between the tree and the vegetables?

A．They grew taller and stronger.

B．They were both drying up.

C．The tree defeated the vegetables.

D．The vegetables defeated the tree.

【小題3】The courgette thought of ways to solve the conflict by        .

A．making peace with the tree	B．working together with other vegetables
C．entering the gardening contests	D．growing big enough

【小題4】What can we learn from this passage?

A．We ought to live in harmony with others.

B．We ought to save as much water as possible.

C．We ought to learn from each other in some ways.

D．We ought to learn to respect each other.

Uncle Li and Uncle Wang are good friends. They live next to each other and their farms are both at the foot of the mountain. So they can help each other. But neither of them likes to use his head. They're both poor though they work hard. Most villagers have built new houses, but they still live in the low and broken houses. They never find out why.
Once Uncle Li went to town to buy some medicine for his wife. In the town he heard the apples in a city were expensive. He told Uncle Wang about it as soon as he went back. They decided to carry some apples to the city. They borrowed some money from their friends and bought nearly 1,000 kilograms of apples in the villages and carried them to the city on a tractor（拖拉機(jī)）. Bad luck! A lot of apples had already been carried there when they arrived. A few days later they had to sell them at a low price (價(jià)格)。They felt unhappy and returned to their   village.
"I can't understand why we sustained (蒙受) losses in business while others always profit (盈利)" Uncle Li asked one day. "The tractor was too small " Uncle Wang said without thinking. "We'll carry more apples on a truck next time!" "I agree!" said Uncle Li.
How foolish they were !
【小題1】Uncle Li and Uncle Wang live in the low and broken houses because __________.

A．they hope to save money

B．they're both poor

C．their farms are at the foot of the mountain

D．they're not far from their farms

【小題2】The two farmers carried the apples to the city to _________.

A．make a journey	B．visit some places of interest
C．meet their friends	D．make a profit

【小題3】the two farmers had to sell their apples at a low price because ________.

A．theirs weren't as good as the others'

B．theirs were much less than the others'

C．a(chǎn) lot of apples had been already carried to the city

D．they forgot to carry them on a truck

Mr Brown was going away for a week. Before he left, he said to his son, "if anyone asks for me, you can tell him that your father has been out for doing something, and will be back in a week, then be sure to ask him to sit down for a cup of tea.""OK, Dad," said his son. But he was afraid his son couldn't remember this, he wrote these words down on a piece of paper and gave it to him. His son put it into his small pocket, took it out and looked at it every now and then.
Four days passed, but no one came to see his father. The boy thought that there was no man to come and that the piece of paper was of no more use for him, so he burnt it that evening.
The next afternoon, someone knocked at the door. The boy opened it. A man was standing at the door and said, "Where is your father?" The boy put his hand into his pocket at once and looked for the piece of paper. He could not find it. He suddenly remembered he had burnt it, so he shouted, "No more."The man was very surprised. He asked, "No more? I met your father last week. When did it happen?"
"Burnt yesterday evening."
【小題1】Mr Brown told his son that _____.

A．he would be away from home for four days

B．he would be back in seven days

C．he would be back in a month

D．he liked a cup of tea

【小題2】Mr Brown wrote the words down on ________.

A．the wall

B．the door

C．a(chǎn) piece of paper

D．his son's pocket

【小題3】A man came to visit the boy's father on ________.

A．the second day

B．the third day

C．the fourth day

D．the fifth day

【小題4】What was burnt? ___________.

A．The piece of paper

B．Mr Smith

C．The visitor

D．The boy