Long long ago, a king had a big rock placed in the middle of a very busy road. Then he hid nearby to see if anyone would move the rock out of the way to make it convenient for others. Some of the king’s wealthiest supporters came past and simply walked around it. Many others complained about the rock and some blamed the king for the problem. To the king’s surprise, no one did anything about moving it out of the way.

Finally, a poor farmer came along, carrying a load of old vegetables. When he saw the rock, he put down his load, and tried to move the heavy rock to the side of the road. No one stopped to help him. Many laughed at him and made jokes as they walked past. Finally, after much pushing and straining, and with no help , the farmer managed(設(shè)法) to get the rock to the side of the road. As he bent down to pick up his vegetables, he noticed a small bag lying in the road, exactly where the rock had been. There was a lot of money and a note in the bag. The note was from the king saying that the money was for the person who moved the rock out of the way.

Taking responsibility(責(zé)任) is about solving hard problems. The farmer takes responsibility when no one else is prepared to. It does not always mean that you will get an instant reward, but it is a value that builds up a community, and makes life better for all of us.

1.The word “convenient” in Paragraph1 means        in Chinese.

A．重要的           B．方便的           C．必要的           D．有用的

2.Why did the king put a big rock in the middle of the road?

A．To see if anyone would move the rock away.

B．To see who was the most powerful.

C．To find out who was the most poorest.

D．To see how people walked around it.

3.Who moved the rock away？

A．The king                              B．The king’s supporters.

C．The wealthy                           D．A poor farmer

4.The story mainly tells us that           .

A．everyone should learn to take responsibility

B．nobody likes to solve hard problems

C．taking responsibility always means getting a reward

D．the poor always take more responsibility than the rich

 

  There was once a farmer who lost his watch in his barn ( 倉庫 ). The watch was only cheap but it was very ________ to him because it was a present from his father. After ________ the barn for a long time ,he gave up and asked for ________ from a group of children playing nearby.

   He promised them that the person who ________ the watch would be rewarded ( 獎賞 ).

   Hearing this , the children hurried inside the barn at once . They searched ________ but  still could not find the watch . Just when the farmer was going to give up, a little boy went up to him and asked to be given another ________.

   The farmer looked at him and thought , “ Why not ? ________, this kid does look honest .”

   So the farmer sent the little boy back to the barn. After a while the little boy came out with the watch in his hand ! The surprised farmer asked the boy how he ________ where the rest had failed.

   The boy ________ , “ I did nothing but sit quietly and listen for the sound of the watch .”

   This shows us that sometimes a peaceful mind can think _______ than an excited one .

1.A. important  B. expensive  C. useless  D. interesting

2.A. finding     B. searching  C. watching  D. studying

3.A. money     B. danger    C. work    D. help

4.A. saw       B. found     C. looked   D. watched

5.A. somewhere  B. anywhere  C. nowhere  D. everywhere

6.A. way        B. chance    C. lesson   D. present

7.A. In all    B. That’s all   C. After all  D. Above all

8.A. came   B. knew   C. succeeded   D. stopped

9.A. spoke   B. added  C. talked    D. replied

10.A. badly   B. better   C. worse   D. Well

 

Many people don’t think that the number 13 is a lucky number. Many hotels do not have a 13th floor. The floors go from 12 to 14, and there is no number13. Some people will never sit at a table with 12 other people. They will tell someone to go or ask another person to sit with them.

No one really knows why people do not like the number 13. Perhaps one reason is that when people began to count, they used ten fingers and two hands. This made 12. They could not count more.

Some Christians (基督徒) say that 13 is not lucky because there were 13 people at a meal the day before Jesus (耶穌) was killed (被殺). In a story about the old Greek (希臘的) gods, 12 gods were asked to a meal but one more came. This made 13. It is why the god Balder, who was at the meal, was killed.

1.Some people will never sit at a table with twelve other people, or _________________.

A． they will never come for dinner together

B．they will ask one of them to leave

C．a(chǎn)ll of them will leave

D．they will wait for two other people to come

2.The story is about _____________________.

A．the death of Jesus

B．the person who killed Balder

C．why 13 is not a lucky number

D．the way people count with their fingers

 

Long long ago, a king had a big rock placed in the middle of a very busy road. Then he hid nearby to see if anyone would move the rock out of the way to make it convenient for others. Some of the king’s supporters came past and simply walked around it. Many others complained(抱怨) about the rock. To the king’s surprise, no one tried to move it out of the way.

    Finally, a poor farmer came along, carrying a load of old vegetables. When he saw the rock, he put down his load, and tried to move the heavy rock to the side of the road. No one stopped to help him. At last, after much pushing and straining, and with no help, the farmer got the rock to the side of the road. As he bent down to pick up his vegetables, he found a small bag lying in the road. There was a lot of money and a note in the bag. The note was from the king. It said that the money was for the person who moved the rock out of the way.

    Taking responsibility（責(zé)任）is about solving hard problems. The farmer takes responsibility when no one else is prepared to. It does not always mean that you will get a reward(報酬), but it is a value that builds up a community, and makes life better for all of us.

1.Why did the king put a big rock in the middle of the road?

A. To see if anyone would move the rock away.

B. To see who was the most powerful.

C. To find out who was the most poorest.

D. To see how people walked around it.

2. Who moved the rock away?

A. The king.  B. The king’s supporters.  C. The wealthy.  D. A poor farmer.

3. The story mainly tells us that _________.

A. everyone should learn to take responsibility

B. nobody likes to solve hard problems

C. taking responsibility always means getting a reward

D. the poor always take more responsibility than the rich

 

BALTIMORE. MARYLAND—An old postcard changed the lives of an eleven-year-old boy and a very sick woman. The postcard had a picture of the steamship Titanic. The Titanic was the largest ocean ship in the world. It hit an iceberg（冰山）and sank on April 14. 1912. More than 1,500 of the 2,200 people on the ship were killed.

　　The postcard was passed from one person to another for more than 80 years. Then it appeared at a card show for people who liked to collect postcards. An eleven-year-old boy, Joey Russell, came to the show with his grandfather. His grandfather knew everything about the Titanic and its trip from England to New York. “Let’s buy that postcard.” he told Joey. “It will be important someday.”

　　Two years later, Joey’s grandfather took him on a special trip. They went on a trip to the North Atlantic ocean to watch as workers pulled the Titanic up from the bottom of the ocean. Joey put his special postcard in his bag for the trip. On the ship, Joey met Edith Haisman. This woman was on the Titanic when it sank. She was one of the people who were rescued. Joey pulled the postcard out of his pocket. “Please sign this, Mrs. Haisman.” he said. She was happy to write her name on the back of the postcard.

When Joey got home, he put the postcard away and forgot about it, Then Kate Shelley, one of Joey’s friends, told him that her mother was very sick. She needed an operation, but there was a problem. The operation was very expensive, and the family needed $80, 000 to pay for it. Friends and relatives tried to help. But where could they get so much money?

　　Then when Joey went to see the new movie “Titanic”, he had an idea. “Millions of people are seeing this movie and reading about the Titanic.” Joey thought. He remembered the old postcard with Edith Haisman’s signature on it. “Maybe I can sell it for some money. Then I can help Kate’s mom.”

　　Joey told his mother and father about his idea to help Mrs. Shelley. His parents helped him try to sell the postcard to the person who would pay the most money for it. Joey’s story was on television and in newspapers. Joey and Kate even went to New York to be on a national TV show. After the show, many people called in to offer money for the Titanic card. Someone bought it for $60. 000.

Joey’s kind heart and the old Titanic postcard worked together to save a woman’s life.

1.Which of the following is NOT true about the old postcard?

A. The Titanic was the largest steamship in the world in 1912.

B. The steamship Titanic hit an iceberg and sank about a hundred years ago

C. Over two thousand passengers were killed in the ocean accident.

D. More than eighty years had passed before the postcard belonged to Joey.

2.Joey Russell _________.

A. decided to buy the postcard at a shop

B. showed great interest in collecting postcards

C. took the postcard with him to see Mrs. Shelley

D. asked Mrs. Haisman to sign her name on his postcard

3.What does the underlined word “rescued” mean in the sentence?

A. Be made safe from danger.

B. Be on an ocean trip.

C. Be working on board.

D. Be asked to sell the postcard.

4.When did Joey Russell have the idea of selling his old postcard for money?

A. When Kate Shelley told him of her mother’s sickness.

    B. When he went to see the new movie “Titanic”.

    C. When he was reading the new book of Titanic.

    D. When he remembered Mrs. Haisman’s signature on his card.

5.Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

A. The Titanic arrived in New York at the end of April, 1912.

B. At the age of 13, Joey Russell got Mrs. Haisman’s signature.

C. Joey Russell sold out his postcards on a national TV show.

D. The Titanic card was sold to many people for $60, 000.