Many little girls like flowers and Barbie toys. A lot of them also like cars, robots and ships which are boys’ favorites. But most girls’ clothing only has pictures of flowers and Barbie toys.

11-year-old Penny always wears the dress with pictures of Barbies. These days, she wants a dress with pictures of robots Transformers(变形金刚). Her mother Sara goes shopping in stores and also on the Internet, but she can’t find this type of dresses. Penny refuses to wear anything but such a dress.

“I really wish the stores can sell such a dress which has a Transformer on it. If so, my daughter will wear that. And I think someone should do that. Why shouldn’t I ?” Then Sara learns to make a dress with a Transformer picture by herself. Penny really enjoys wearing it. Her classmates ask her where they can buy the same dress. Penny feels very proud, so does Eva who is good at doing business. Eva thinks Sara can do something more, and their business comes into being. They are friends, but it’s the first time they have been partners. The women sell the first 70 dresses they make at a local market. The dresses sell out so fast that they can’t make them fast enough. They decide to expand their business.

They prepare to build a new factory and have more workers. Money is not the challenge for them. The organization Crowfunding agrees to lend them money. Eva and Sara meet their goal of $35,000 within days. “What we really need is to have more creative ideas and make the company develop rapidly, as people seem to want us to. ” Sara says.

21. Why does Sara make a dress by herself for her daughter?

A. Dresses are too expensive to buy.                        

B. She is interested in making clothes.

C. She wants to make money by making clothes.        

D. No shop sells the kind of dress her daughter wants.

22. What can we learn from the text?

A. Penny doesn’t like girls’ toys                               

B. Eva had worked with Sara before

C. Sara’s products enjoyed a good market.                 

D. Penny’s classmates think nothing of her new dress.

23. What’s the biggest challenge for Eva and Sara?

A. They are in need of new design ideas.                     

B. They have no experience of managing business.

C. They can’t find skilled workers to make dresses.    

D. They don’t have enough money to build a factory.

May 18, 2015

It has been almost eight weeks since my dad left Earth and everything seems to be back to normal. My dad calls me at least once a week. I am also able to have a video conference with him about once a month. We had our second video conference yesterday. Dad asked me to respond to his e-mails. I am not very good at that, so I hardly do that. He gave me a tour of parts of the Space Station and I was able to meet a few of the other astronauts on board. I do miss him and the video conferences make it a lot easier.

June 21, 2015

I am on the summer break from school right now. But before school ended, my dad set up a video conference with my class. All the kids enjoyed seeing him and asking him questions about space. I don’t care how many times I see it. I still have to laugh when I see him flip around in zero gravity and eat floating M&M’s.

Two nights ago, my mom and I went to a beach party with my classmate Joe and his family. Just around 9:10 pm, we looked at the night sky and saw the International Space Station(ISS) fly over. It looked like a bright star just moving across the sky. For those four minutes we were all watching. I couldn’t help but miss my dad.

Today is Father’s Day. My sister and I did a video conference with our dad at the same time. She was in Houston, I was in Virginia Beach and my dad was flying over us. He put his video monitor in his window and took a picture of us with Virginia Beach in the background.

24. After her dad went to space, the author most frequently _______

 A. contacts him by e-mail                      B. sees astronauts on board

C. talks with him over the phone   D.has video conferences with him.

25. How does the author probably find her dad’s eating floating M&M’s?

A. Difficult              B. Relaxing              C. Scary                D. Funny

26. What did the author do on the night of June 19,2015?

A. She celebrated Father’s Day. 

B.She watched the ISS fly over the sky.

C. She took a picture of Virginia Beach.         

D. She had a video conference with her dad.

27. In the text, the author clearly shows that she ______

A. misses her dad a lot   B. is very proud of her dad.

C. used to be with her dad a lot    D.dreams of becoming an astronaut.

Not long ago, I answered a telephone call from an old friend Jack. “Hi, Steve,” he said,” I just wanted to see how you are getting along.” For whatever reason, for months our paths had simply not crossed. It was good to talk with him. I wondered why we hadn’t kept in touch better. Towards the end of the conversation, he said, “If you need me in any way, I will be happy to help out.” And he meant it.

That call came at just the right time. That time, I had just about reached the lowest point in my life. I lost my job because of my poor performance, but I really needed the job to support the family. I needed those words of encouragement. The phone did it. I hung up the phone feeling real warmth in my chest.

And that day I re-learned something important about life: life is mainly about people---not plans and schedules, not to-do lists and a million tasks left undone---it’s about people.

My friend reminded me that it is never enough just to love; we must also express it. He advised me to share my trouble with my wife or even my children. He would like to have phone calls and be my listener. What good is our love toward others if we don’t find ways to let them know?

George William Childs said like this: Do not keep the box of your love and friendship sealed(封闭) up until your friends are dead. Fill their lives with sweetness. Speak cheering words while their ears can hear them and while their hearts can be made happier. Say the kind things you mean to say before they go. Happiness may be just a phone call away.

28. By “our paths had simply not crossed”, the author means_______

A. they avoided meeting each other                

B. they lived far away from each other

C. they went different ways to go to work        

D. they didn’t have contact with each other

29. What happened to Steve when he received Jack’s call?

A. He ran out of money                          B. He was out of work

C. He lost his friends’ support               D. He couldn’t balance his work and family

30. What’s Jack’s suggestion to the author?

A. Running his own business B. Caring more about life than work

C. Working hard to support his family D. Communicating with his family and friends

31. According to George William Childs, _________

 A. love should be spoken out               

B. true love suffers, and is silent          

C. happiness is as simple as a phone call             

 D. don’t say bad words about your beloved ones

The Maggi noodles cook in two minutes and are popular among children and students. The food manufacturer(生产商) Nestle sells about $240 million worth of the noodles every year. However, tests show Maggi noodles contain large amounts of the heavy metal---lead(铅).

India’s food safety agency declared(宣布) Maggi noodles unsafe to eat. Supermarkets in at least six states have banned(禁止) the product up to now. Fortunately, nobody died of eating Maggi noodles. The recall(召回) of Maggi noodles is one of India’s largest food actions of all time.

Nestle has refused the test results. It says the product is made according to the international food safety standard. Nestle has asked for an examination of the government’s testing method. Several countries, including Canada and Britain, also have suggested a reliable test on Maggi noodles. But India’s food safety agency stands by(支持) its reports.

Food safety experts note that India’s food safety agency is just seven years old. India has met such food scares before. In 2006, a New Delhi environmental group raised questions about small amounts of pesticide(杀虫剂) in Coca-Cola and Pepsi drinks. Packaged food is not as safe as it appears to be. So the testing of packaged food should be happening more regularly,especially for the bigger products which are circulated in millions.

A number of Maggi noodles fans are not persuaded of the food threat. ShwetaAndrew says, “ I don’t think there is any problem in having Maggi. I have grown up having Maggi, and it does not matter really.” Nestle Chief Executive Paul Bulcke says he is working with India to remove the ban. And Nestle will spare no effort to win back the trust of customers.

32. What has happened to Maggi noodles in India?

A. Their sales are rising rapidly            B. Children lose interest in them      

C. They have caused some deaths.     D. They are not allowed in the market.

33. According to Paragraph 3, the ban on Maggi noodles_______

 A. wins support          B. proves practical         

 C. causes disagreements                     D. sounds convincing

34. What can we learn from the food safety experts?

 A. The testing of packaged food is needed.          

B. India is inexperienced with food problems

C. The test results of Maggi noodles are reliable. 

D. Food from large companies is usually safe enough.

35. What can we infer from the last paragraph?

A. India is sure to correct the test results.        

B. Many people will still eat Maggi noodles.

C. Nestle can do nothing to remove the ban   

D. Shweta Andrew is disappointed at Maggi noodles.

As a parent, you have spent years caring for and protecting your child. But as he /she becomes a teenager, he/ she will naturally want to spread his/her wings. __36__. So teaching your teen to be independent is very rewarding both for you and for your teen.

   Explain to your teen what it means to be independent. During adolescence(青春期), your teen is starting to explore and understand the things and people around him/her. Therefore, this is the best time to build a sense of responsibility in your child, which will make him/her into a stronger and better person in the long run. __37___. Exercise your teen’s ability to make decisions independently.

   Encourage your teen to fully express himself/herself. He /She is trying to discover who he/ she is and is not. __38__ Try to listen to what he /she is saying and avoid being judgmental(动辄评头论足的). Learn to know him/her as a person in his/ her way.

   Help your teen develop his/her talent. You can encourage independence in your teen by finding and developing his /her talent. __39___ Being good at something will give your teen confidence and help him/her try his/ her hardest. And your teen will become more disciplined(守纪律的)

__40__ As he/ she spreads his/ her wings, make sure you let him/her know you will be nearby whenever he/ she needs you. This safety net will make it possible for him/her to have the confidence he/ she needs to fly into his/her future.

A. Remind your teen that you will always be there for him/her.

   B. If he/ she loves to cook, sign him/her up for a cooking class.

   C. But now is his/her chance to make mistakes and learn from them

   D. Explain to your child that he/ she must do something on his/ her own.

   E. Accept that he/ she may not like the thing you do or have the same opinions.

   F. You can guide your teen in the right direction by giving him/her some advice.

   G. This can be a challenge for both of you, as you have to rebalance your relationship.