When Julie Jones and Caroline Atkin were schoolgirls, they promised to be best friends for ever. Years later, Caroline died from a brain tumor at the age of 45, leaving five children. In her last weeks, she asked Julie to raise the children as her own. Julie, a single mother of three with a small income, didn’t hesitate.
“I held her in my arms and said ‘You’ll be OK’, but I knew I was losing her.” She says.
“The hospital rang me and I rushed there, but Caroline had just gone,” she says. “I went to her house. The children arrived home from school in a taxi and I gathered them in my arms and said: ‘Mommy has gone to Heaven.’”
“Michael, who was 11, left the room. Kieran, ten, sat in great surprise; James, nine, broke down; while Emma, seven, and Chantelle, five uneasy. I brought them home.”
Julie, mother of Adam, 20, Peter, 19, and 14-year-old Christian, moved the table from her dining room to turn it into an extra bedroom for the girls.
She says “I put a tent up in the garden, and the children took turns to camp outside. We turned into a game. The children were terribly hurt by losing both their parents. But now, despite our lack of space and money, we have become one happy family.” The table in the kitchen is so small that Julie had to cook Christmas dinner in two sittings. Her eldest son has left for university and his bedroom is used by the younger boys.
Julie had to work 50 hours a week and runs the home on her salary.
“The children aren’t quiet anymore. The house is filled with screams and shouts and laughter.” she says. “They say ‘Julie, you make us so happy,’ but the truth is that they’re the ones who make me happy. I’m not extraordinary. I’m just a mum.”
21. What can we know about Julie from the text?
A. She had lived a rich life before the adoption.
B. She promised to adopt Caroline’s children as a schoolgirl.
C. She blamed Caroline’s husband for taking no responsibility.
D. She had to work very hard to support the large family.
22. Which one is NOT what Julie did to support the large family?
A. Using the dining room as a bedroom.
B. Putting a tent up in the garden.
C. Persuading her eldest son to leave for university.
D. Cooking Christmas dinner in two sittings.
23. From the last paragraph, we can know that Julie is _______ .
A. annoyed B. tired C. modest D. energetic
24. What would be the best title for the text?
A. A mother to five orphans B. Five lucky children
C. Caroline’s death D. Troubles of raising children
DCCA
Music
Opera at Music Hall: 1243 Elm Street. The season runs June through August, with additional performances in March and September. The Opera honors Enjoy the Arts membership discounts. Phone: 241-2742. http://www.cityopera.com.
Chamber Orchestra: The Orchestra plays at Memorial Hall at 1406 Elm Street, which offers several concerts from March through June. Call 723-1182 for more information. http: //www.chamberorch.com.
Symphony Orchestra: At Music Hall and Riverbend. For ticket sales, call 381-3300. Regular season runs September through May at Music Hall in summer at Riverbend. http://www.symphony.org/home.asp.
College Conservatory of Music (CCM): Performances are on the main campus(校园) of the university, usually at Patricia Cobbett Theater. CCM organizes a variety of events, including performances by the well-known LaSalle Quartet, CCM’s Philharmonic Orchestra, and various groups of musicians presenting Baroque through modern music. Students with I.D. cards can attend the events for free. A free schedule of events for each term is available by calling the box office at 556-4183. http://www.ccm.uc.edu/events/calendar.
Riverbend Music Theater: 6295 Kellogg Ave. Large outdoor theater with the closest seats under cover (price difference).Big name shows all summer long! Phone:232-6220. http://www.riverbendmusic.com.
25. Which number should you call if you want to see an opera?
A. 241-2742. B. 723-1182. C. 381-3300. D. 232-6220.
26. When can you go to a concert by Chamber Orchestra?
A. February. B. May. C. August. D. November.
27.Where can students go for free performances with their I.D. cards?
A. Music Hall. B. Memorial Hall.
C. Patricia Cobbett Theater. D. Riverbend Music Theater.
28. How is Riverbend Music Theater different from the other places?
A. It has seats in the open air. B. It gives shows all year round.
C. It offers membership discounts. D. It presents famous musical works.
ABCA
Researchers from France and Italy discovered that Canadian parents are less strict with their children than mothers and fathers in France and Italy.
“Our most important finding was the difference between Canadians and the others,” said Professor Michel Claes,the lead author of the study.“Canadians focus on independence and negotiation.On the other hand,Italians,for example,exercise more control.We found Canadians seem to focus on negotiation in case of a conflict.”
Claes said Canada,France and Italy were selected for the study because they share important cultural and social factors.“We chose FrenchCanadians because they share the same language as France,and originally came from France and share certain values.Italy was included because it was considered to have similar,strong and important family values,” he explained.
The researchers examined the emotional ties between parents and their children by questioning 1,256 students aged 11 to 19 years old.
Canadian students reported less control and more free actions,according to the study.Italian parents were stricter and French parents were somewhere in the middle.
Claes explains that the differences lie in education in Canada,France and Italy.
“North America has its own educational values,which promote individualization.Tolerance and comprehension are encouraged.Italy,on the other hand,promotes respect of authority,control,and the need for permission.” he said.
Children from all three countries described their mothers as warm and communicative.Italian and Canadian children had similar feelings about their fathers,and reported high levels of emotional ties.But French fathers were generally thought by their children to be more distant and cold.
“We were surprised by this,” Claes admitted.“It seems as though the relationships between French mothers and their children were becoming closer over time,while fathers maintain a form of distance and coldness,which is more of a source of conflict in France than in the other countries.”
29.Professor Michel Claes believes that Canada,France and Italy ________.
A.have the same family spirit
B.have some similar cultural traditions
C.have experienced some similar social changes
D.have experienced similar cultural developments
30.How did the researchers carry out the study ?
A.By collecting answers of parents from Canada,France and Italy.
B.By collecting answers of children from Canada,France and Italy.
C.By questioning parents and their children from Italian Canadian families.
D.By questioning children from FrenchCanadian families.
31.According to Michel Claes,what mainly leads to the differences in parentchildrenrelationships among Canada,France and Italy?
A.Educational opportunities. B.Traditional ideas.
C.Educational values. D.Historical events.
BBC
Happy birthday! Do birthdays really make people happy? Of course they do. Birthdays celebrate the day we were born. Besides, that extra candle on the cake suggests another year of growth and maturity—or so we hope. We all like to imagine that we’re getting wiser and not just older. Most of us enjoy seeing the miracle of growth in others, as well. For instance, seeing our children develop and learn new things makes us feel proud. For Americans, like people in most cultures, growing up is a wonderful process. But growing old? That’s a different story.
Growing old is not exactly pleasant for people in youth-oriented American culture. Most Americans like to look young, act young and feel young. As the old saying goes, “You’re as young as you feel.” Older people joke about how many years young they are, rather than how many years old. People in some countries value the aged as a source of experience and wisdom. But Americans seem to favor those that are young, or at least “young at heart”.
Many older Americans find the “golden years” to be anything but golden. Economically, “senior citizens” often struggle just to get by. Retirement at age 65 brings a sharp decrease in personal income. Social security benefits usually cannot make up the difference. Older people may suffer from poor nutrition, medical care and housing. Some even experience age discrimination (歧视). In 1987, American sociologist Pat Moore dressed up like an older person and wandered city streets. She was of ten treated rudely—even cheated and robbed. However, dressed as a young person, she received much more respect.
Unfortunately, the elderly population in America is increasing fast. Why? People are living together. Fewer babies are being born. And middle-aged “baby boomers” are rapidly entering the groups of the elderly. America may soon be a place where wrinkles (皱纹) are “in”. Marketing experts are already noticing this group of consumers (消费者).
32. The main idea of the third paragraph is________.
A. the golden years can make the old earn lots of money
B. many old people in America are leading a hard life
C. the old in America have to retire at the age of 65
D. American social security benefits are not good
33. From the last paragraph we know that the underlined word “in” can be replaced by________.
A. serious B. bad C. disappearing slowly D. growing fast
34. From this passage we can know________.
A. in America, growing up is not a wonderful process
B. in America, growing up is as wonderful a process as growing old
C. in America, growing up is a wonderful process, while growing old is not
D. in America, growing old is a wonderful process, while growing up is not
35. What should be mentioned in the following paragraph?
A. The public will change their attitude towards old people.
B. People will provide more services to the old in their communities.
C. Companies will soon produce more goods for old Americans.
D. The government will pass laws to ensure the benefits of the people.
BDCC
As we know, everyone can make mistakes, but don’t worry about it. The following is what we should do when we make mistakes.
• Just admit (承认)it. Don’t think that our mistakes are caused by others. 36 Don’t blame other people, and don’t cheat ourselves, either.
• 37 .In order to stop the problem from getting worse, we should act quickly to solve it. If we don’t act and deal with the problem quickly, it’ll only make us feel more stressed. Also it is necessary to make a plan of action and correct the mistake according to it. 38 .
• 39 .Those who have made the most mistakes can get an A, for they are the ones who have learned the most. The more we learn from our mistakes, the cleverer we are.
• 40 .What caused us to make the mistake? How can we avoid making the same mistake in the future? When we act with a method to get a good result, do it that way next time. If we don’t, we should stop, think about it, change it and try again.
A. Realize that making mistakes is the best way to learn.
B. Don’t be afraid of failure.
C. Be brave and face the fact that we have made the mistakes.
D. Solve it at once.
E. So be away from stress.
F. So decide quickly and act.
G. Think about what we can learn from our mistakes.
CDFAG
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