One year ago all eyes were on Beijing．The excitement of the 2008 Olympics was going up day by day． Then something happened --- the earthquake．Our eyes turned quickly from Beijing towards Sichuan．Day after day we watched the terrible pictures on television．They went into our hearts．

But our spirits were also lifted as we saw so many ordinary people become heroes．Many people saved the lives of others without thinking about themselves． Soon people from all over the country were trying to help． Some traveled to Sichuan to save people, others sent food, water and clothes．And it seemed that everyone tried their best to donate money．

The Sichuan earthquake was a terrible thing but it did teach us some useful lessons．First, it taught us the importance of helping others．Without everyone joining together the things were much worse． It also taught us to love our friends and family．We realized that the people we love so much could be taken from us very quickly．

We also learned to respect （尊重） the power of nature．The earth is our home but it can sometimes be a dangerous place to live．Earthquakes, floods and droughts can happen at any time．We can’t do anything about that, but we do have the power to show our respect for nature by not causing pollution．That may be the most useful lesson of all．

（   ）1．When did the Sichuan earthquake take place? _________．

A． On May 12 , 2007                                   B． On May 12 , 2008

C． On May 12 , 2009                                   D． On April 12 , 2008

（   ）2．How many useful lessons did the Sichuan earthquake teach us according to the passage?

A． Two             B． Three             C． Four             D． Five

（   ）3．According to this passage, how can we show our respect for nature? _________．

A． By preventing floods                        B． By stopping droughts

C． By keeping earthquakes away                D． By not causing pollution

（   ）4．What’s the main idea of the last two paragraphs? _________．

A． The importance of helping others

B． Loving our friends and family

C． Respecting the power of nature

D． The useful lessons of the Sichuan earthquake