D

When I walked into the house after school, I found my dad at home.

"What are you doing home already?" I asked casually.

"Andrew, I was laid off today," he answered quietly.

    I was sure he was joking. "No, you weren't. Why are you really home?"

    Then I noticed his expression and realized he was telling the truth. My father has always been a hard worker and prided himself on his career. My father's unemployment created many changes in our lives. He was home all day, which meant my bed had to be made, my room cleaned up, and my homework done right after school. I would come home every day to find him at the computer searching for jobs. I began to notice how down he seemed, and how losing his job had affected his self-esteem (自尊心), though he tried to be optimistic. He asked my brother and me to spend less money. I gave up my allowance（零用錢）, which even though it wasn't much, felt like the right thing to do. I also found a part-time job.

    After several difficult months of searching, my dad decided to go in a totally different direction. He explained that he never wanted to be laid off again, so he was going to start his own business. Day by day, I watched him build it, and I admired how much time and energy he devoted to it.

   One evening I asked if he needed help. "Only if it doesn't interfere（打擾，妨礙） with school," he said, which sounded like a yes.

I showed up at his office the next afternoon, and most afternoons after that for two months. I always knew he was a hard worker, but watching him in action really influenced me. Although this was one of the worst experiences for our family, it taught me a lot about dealing with adversity. Now I know that through creative problem-solving, I can always find Plans, ask for help, and take risks. 

54．When the father was laid off, he ________.

    A．was angry with his boss             B．didn't care about it at all

    C．couldn't accept the fact easily         D．was as happy as usual

55．We can know from the passage that ________.

    A．it was not easy for the father to find a new job

    B．the father asked his sons to give up their allowance

    C．the father found a good job when he changed his direction

    D．Andrew and his brother helped his father set up his business

56．The underlined word "adversity" in the last paragraph probably means        .

    A．poor feelings     B．bad situations     C．low spirits     D．old ideas

57．What has Andrew learned from his father?

    A．The spirit of creative problem-solving.    B．The skills of surfing the Internet.

    C．The experience of saving money.         D．The rich business skills.

Last July, my 12-year-old car died on California’s Santa Ana Freeway. It was an hour before sunset, and I was 25 miles from home. I couldn’t reach anyone to pick me up, so I decided to take a bus. Not knowing the routes, I figured I’d just head east.

A bus pulled up, and I asked the driver how far she was going. “Four more lights,” she said. There was another bus I could take from there. This clearly was going to be a long night.

She dropped me off at the end of her route and told me which bus to look for. After waiting 30 minutes, I began to think about a very expensive taxi ride home. Then a bus pulled up. There was no lighted number above its windshield(擋風玻璃). It was out of service. But the door opened, and I was surprised to find that it was the same driver.

“I just can’t leave you here,” she said. “This isn’t the nicest place. I’ll give you a ride home.”

“You’ll drive me home in the bus?” I asked, perplexed(困惑).

“No, I’ll take you in my car,” she said.

“It’s a long way,” I protested.

“Come on, ” she said. “I have nothing else to do.”

As we drove from the station in her car, she began telling me a story. A few days earlier, her brother had run out of gas. A good Samaritan picked him up, took him to a service station and then back to his car. “I’m just passing the favor along, ” she said.

When I offered her money as a thank-you, she wouldn’t hear of it. “That wouldn’t make it a favor, ” she said. “Just do something nice for somebody. Pass it along.”

1. Why did the writer say that he would have a long night?

A. He wondered how long he had to wait for the next bus.   B. No driver would give him a ride.

C. He didn’t know the routes.                            D. He perhaps would have to take a taxi.

2. Judging from its context, the place where the writer waited for the second bus was _______.

A. very quiet and peaceful                 B. dark without street lights

C. neither clean nor beautiful              D. a little unsafe

3. Why did the writer change his mind after waiting for 30 minutes at the end of the route?

A. No bus would come at the time.          B. A taxi ride would be more comfortable.

C. He became impatient and a bit worried.   D. He knew the driver would never return.

4. The bus driver drove the writer home later because ________.

A. she happened to go in the same direction  B. she wanted to do something good for other people

C. her brother told her to do so              D. she wanted to earn more money

5. The bus driver hoped that the writer ________

A. would do as she did                     B. would keep her in memory

C. would give the money to others          D. would do her a favor

A young father was visiting an old neighbor．They were standing in the old man's garden，talking about children. The young man said，“How strict should parents be with their children？”

  The old man pointed to a string（繩子）between a big strong tree and a thin young one． “Please untie（解開）that string，” he said．The young man untied it，and the young tree bent over to one side．“Now tie it again， please，” said the old man，“but first pull the string tight so that the young tree is straight again．”

  The young man did so．Then the old man said，“There，it is the same with children．You must be strict with them，but sometimes you must untie the string to know how they are getting on．If they are not yet able to stand alone，you must tie the string tight again．But when you find that they are ready to stand alone，you can take the string away．”

The story is about ＿＿＿＿＿＿＿ ．

  A． how to take care of young trees   

B． how strict parents should be with their children

  C． how the young father should get on with his old neighbor

  D． how to tie and untie the string

The young man untied the string ＿＿＿＿＿＿＿ ．

  A． in order to throw it away          

B． so that both of the trees would grow straight

  C． only to find that the thinner one bent over to one side

  D． in order to let the old man teach him

When can the string be taken away？＿＿＿＿＿＿＿ ．

  A． When the old man has left                

B． After you have untied it

  C． When the young man has untied it next time

  D． When the young tree grows strong enough

At last the old man told the young man ＿＿＿＿＿＿＿ ．

  A． that he should be strict with his children if they could not yet stand alone

  B． that he should always be strict with his children    

C． that he should be hard on them

  D． that he should tie his children until they are ready to stand alone

A 25-five-year student from Hubei was admitted into Tsinghua University, China’ most famous university, after an eight-year ___21___．Li Jun comes from a small village of Hubei Province．He first ____22____ going to college in year 2000 ___23__he was admitted by a local school after __24___ from a secondary technical school at 17．As a ___25___ art student, he passed the exam again the next year but __26_____ school due to economic pressure in September 2002．Life seemed ___27___ but Li didn’t give in．He earned a _28_____ by working part-time in Wuhan’s art rooms and tutoring students．But he never lost sight of his lifelong dream of __29___ the Academy of Arts & Design of Tsinghua University．Li __30____ the college entrance examination for five continuous years from 2003．____31___, he missed making the cut one mark last year．

       In 2008, his fifth try, Li’s efforts ___32_____．He finished the qualifying exam in his province and was finally admitted as a sculpture major in Tsinghua University．Every year, Li took art __33___ in Beijing and took exams from December to March．He then took cultural courses in his school till June．The rest of the year he spent on __34____ work．Li said he hadn’t ____35___any money from his family since he graduated from the technical secondary school．Li said the reason he maintained for eight years was that he wanted to change his __36_____ through knowledge．

       _____37___ by his contribution, Li Jun’s university __38____ him 9,000 yuan out of his tution fees of 11,450 yuan．An eight-year struggle may have come to an end for Li Jun, but a new ___39__ has now begun．Li said he would not worry about repaying loans at present．He wants to study well and __40___ more scholarships．

A．research     B．struggle            C．service              D．expectation

A．talked of           B．told of             C．dreamt of          D．knew of

A．where        B．when             C．that               D．since

A．learning     B．separating         C．dating               D．graduating

A．gifted        B．surprised           C．interested          D．easy-going

A．went on with B．watched out for      C．dropped out of        D．looked forward to

A．unfair        B．happy               C．practical           D．busy 

A．value         B．respect              C．freedom           D．living

A．entering     B．visiting             C．supporting               D．pursing

A．turned to     B．a(chǎn)pplied for           C．called for           D．a(chǎn)dapted to

A．Instead     B．At times           C．However           D．Besides

A．took off      B．paid off            C．gave off            D．sent off

A．ways        B．programmes         C．success             D．courses

A．full-time     B．part-time          C．out-of door          D．a(chǎn)ll

A．a(chǎn)sked for     B．looked for         C．prayed for         D．waited for

A．plan         B．ideal              C．fate               D．opinion

A．Encouraged B．Influenced               C．Accused            D．Impressed

A．funded     B．gave                C．paid              D．cost

A．challenge     B．life                C．case               D．relationship

A．spend       B．win               C．care               D．use

       When someone gives you advice, listen without judgment, try to find value in what you’re hearing, and say “Thank you”．This wise advice is easy to understand yet hard to practice．I’ll give you an example from my life when I totally blew it in terms of practicing what I teach．

       In my work I travel constantly．I always put off going to the airport until the last second．My wife, Lynda, was sitting next to me in the front seat．I was racing along and not paying much attention．Lynda cried out, “Look out! There is a red light up ahead．”

       Being a trained behavioral science professional --- who teaches others the value of encouraging advice --- I naturally screamed at her, “I know there is a red light up ahead! Don’t you think I can see?” When we arrived at the airport, Lynda didn’t speak to me．I wondered why she seemed mad at me．

       During the flight to New York, I did a cost-benefit analysis．I asked myself, “What was the cost of just listening when Lynda called out the warning? Zero．” I then reasoned, “What was the potential benefit? What could have been saved?” Several potential benefits came to mind, including her life, my life, and the lives of other people．

I landed in New York feeling ashamed of myself．I immediately called Lynda and told her my cost-benefit story．I convinced her, “The next time you help me with my driving, I am just going to say, ‘Thank you．’”

       A few months passed, and I had long forgotten the incident．Again, I was racing off to the airport, when Lynda cried out, “Look out for the red light!” I was embarrassed, and then shouted, “Thank you!”

       I’m a long way from perfect, but I’m getting better．My suggestion is that you get in the habit of asking the important people in your life how you can do things better．And be ready for an answer．Some people may tell you things like “Look out for the red light．” When this happens, remember that there is possibly some potential benefit．Then just say, “Thank you．”

What do we know about the author?

       A．He is expert at behavioral science．      B．He is gifted in cost-benefit analysis．

       C．He seldom takes his wife’s advice．      D．He often runs the red traffic light．

The underlined part “blew it” in Paragraph 1 probably means “__________”．

       A．lost personal judgment    B．forgot the practical method

       C．became annoyed with the adviser    D．failed to say “Thank you”

It can be inferred from the passage that people __________．

       A．should give their opinions patiently       B．tend to be defensive when given advice

       C．had better study behavioral science D．intend to follow others’ suggestions

The purpose of the passage is to advise people to __________．

       A．do a cost-benefit analysis in daily life   B．discover potential benefits

       C．learn from the author’s experiences       D．treasure others’ suggestions