A poor boy was selling goods from one door to another to pay for his studies. One day he found that he had almost no money, and he was hungry. So he decided to ask for a meal.

But when a woman opened the door, he only dared to ask for a glass of water. To his surprise, she gave him a large glass of milk. He drank it and then asked how much he should pay her. She said, “You don’t have to pay me anything. Mother has taught us never to accept pay for a kindness” He was deeply moved and was determined to help those in need. The boy’s name was Howard Kelly.

Many years had passed. One day that woman became seriously ill. The local doctors could not help her. So they sent her to a big city where her rare (罕见的) disease would be studied by specialists (专家). Dr. Howard Kelly was called in for advice. When he entered her room in the hospital, he immediately spotted the woman. Howard Kelly was determined to do his best to help her.

The struggle was long, but together they succeeded in the end. After some time the woman received a bill for her treatment. She was worried that the amount would be so large that it would take the rest of her life to pay for it. However, when she looked at the bill, she found words on the side of the bill. They were, “Paid in full with a glass of milk.”

21. The woman came to a big city because 　　　.

       A. she was invited by a group of specialists to a study

    B. she was ill and no local doctors could help her

       C. she wanted to visit the poor boy whom she had helped

       D. her rare disease could only be dealt with by Dr. Howard Kelly

22. The underlined word “it” in the last paragraph refers to 　　　.

       A. the bill for her treatment     B. a glass of milk    

       C. her illness                 D. the rest of her life

23. What can we know about Howard Kelly according to the passage?

       A. He earned a lot of money.

       B. He opened his own hospital in the city.

       C. He was an experienced doctor.

       D. He became the best friend of the woman.

There is one language that is used in every country in the world. The people who use it are young and old, short and tall, thin and fat. It is everybody’s second language. It is easy to understand, although you can’t hear it. It is sign language.

       When you wave to a friend who is across the street, you are using sign language. When you smile at someone, you are saying, “I want to be friendly”, but you are not using speech. You are using sign language. When you raise your hand in class, you are saying, “Please ask me. I think I know the correct answer.”

       Babies who can’t talk can point at things. They are using sign language. A policeman who wants to stop traffic holds up his hands. He is using sign language.

       Many years ago, a French priest, Charles Michel de Epee, became interested in education for deaf people. He invented a finger alphabet (字母表). It is still in use. People can make the sign for letters and spell words with their hands, and deaf people can read and understand them. Soon there were schools for the deaf in many countries. The only university for the deaf is Gallaudet College in Washington, D.C.

Today, in the United States, there are special TV news programs for deaf people. The newsreader tells the news in sign language. At the same time, the words appear on the TV screen.

       The actors in the Theatre of Deaf don’t spell every word. Sometimes they use hand signs. When they put two hands together, it means sandwich. They can make a roof with their hands when they want to show a house. One finger in front of an actor’s mouth can mean quiet. You can talk to people who are behind windows that are closed. And when you go swimming with your friends, you can have conversations under water.

       How many hand signs do you use every day?

24. Which of the following about sign language is TRUE?

A. It is a special language used in a few countries in the world.

B. It can be heard.

C. It is only used by the deaf.            

D. It is a way to express one’s ideas without words .

25. If you want to express the idea that “I am very friendly” to someone, you will ______.

A. smile to the person          B. put one hand onto the other

C. raise your hand                  D. make a roof with your hands

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

A. Hand signs instead of finger signs are used everyday.

B. There are schools, colleges and universities for the deaf in the USA.

C. Even babies are using sign language. 

D. The French priest Charles invented sign language.     

27. The passage is mainly about ______.

A. the importance of sign language         B. an introduction to sign language  

C. a famous priest in France                D. how to use sign language 

Some people bring out the best in you in a way that you might never have fully realized on your own. My mom was one of those people.

My father died when I was nine months old, making my mom a single mother at the age of eighteen. While I was growing up, we lived a very hard life. We had little money, but my mom gave me a lot of love. Each night, she sat me on her lap and spoke the words that would change my life, “Kemmons, you are certain to be a great man and you can do anything in life if you work hard enough to get it.”

At fourteen, I was hit by a car and the doctors said I would never walk again. Every day, my mother spoke to me in her gentle, loving voice, telling me that no matter what those doctors said, I could walk again if I wanted to badly enough. She drove that message so deep into my heart that I finally believed her. A year later, I returned to school — walking on my own!

When the Great Depression (大萧条) hit, my mom lost her job. Then I left school to support the both of us. At that moment, I was determined never to be poor again.

Over the years, I experienced various levels of business success. But the real turning point occurred on a vacation I took with my wife and five kids in 1951. I was dissatisfied (不满意) with the second-class hotels available for families and was angry that they charged an extra $2 for each child. That was too expensive for the average American family. I told my wife that I was going to open a motel (汽车旅馆) for families that would never charge extra for children. There were plenty of doubters at that time.

Not surprisingly, mom was one of my strongest supporters. She worked behind the desk and even designed the room style. As in any business, we experienced a lot of challenges. But with my mother’s words deeply rooted in my soul, I never doubted we would succeed. Fifteen years later, we had the largest hotel system in the world — Holiday Inn. In 1979 my company had 1,759 inns in more than fifty countries with an income of $ 1 billion a year.

You may not have started out life in the best situation. But if you can find a task in life worth working for and believe in yourself, nothing can stop you.

28. According to the author, who played the most important role in making him walk back to school again?

   A. Doctors.    B. Nurses.    C. Mom.      D. Friends.

29. What caused Kemmons to start a motel by himself?

   A. His wife’s suggestion.

   B. His previous business success of various levels.

   C. His mom’s support.

   D. His terrible experience in the hotel.

30. Which of the following best describes Kemmons’ mother?

   A. Modest, helpful, and hard-working.

   B. Loving, supportive and strong-willed.

   C. Careful, helpful and beautiful.

   D. Strict, sensitive and supportive.

31. Which of the following led to Kemmons’ success according to the passage?

 A. Self-confidence, hard work, higher education and a poor family.

 B. Mom’s encouragement, clear goals, self-confidence and hard work.

 C. Clear goals, mom’s encouragement, a poor family and higher education.

 D. Mom’s encouragement, a poor family, higher education and opportunities.

Nickname: Hawaii’s Island of Adventure

Size: 4,028 square miles

Population: 148,677. The most heavily populated areas are Hilo on the east side and Kailua-Kona on the west.

Temperature: Averages between 71F and 77F year around.

Beaches: 47 

Golf Courses: 20

Highest Peak: Mauna Kea, 13,796 feet

Agriculture: The bulk of Hawaii’s farming products are grown and processed on the Big Island, including coffee macadamia nuts and papaya

Lodging: 9,655 rooms total; nightly rates range from $35-$5,000.

Airports: Hilo International Airport on the east side and Kona International Airport on the west side.

Rental Cars: All of the nationally known rental car companies have locations at Hilo International and Kona International Airports as well as many resorts. In addition, Hilo, Kona and the major resort areas are serviced by taxis.

Resources: Call (800) 648-2441 to order a video, poster, brochures and maps from the Big Island Visitors Bureau. See www.bigisland. org for updated information.

Shopping: The large shopping centers are in Hilo, Kona, Waimea and the Kohala Coast.

32. The passage is written for ________.

A.     students   B. tourists  C.  business  D. immigrants

33.The average population per square mile on the island is about _____.

A.     37    B. 32   C.  28  D. 44

34.Which of the following is NOT mentioned as a traffic means to get around the Big Island?

A.     By air    B. By train   C. By rental cars   D. By taxi

35.What can we infer from the passage?

A. You can see www.bigisland. org for updated information

B. You can call (800) 648-2441 to order some food

  C. You can find some counts to play tennis on the island

D. You may pay a high price for spending one night on the island.

How to keep a good friendship

It’s not easy for everyone to make friends. Once you have friends, it takes contributions and work on both sides to keep the friendship going. In order to keep a good friendship, you will have to take time to develop your friendship.

Work at keeping a two-way street with your friends. If only one person is attempting to be a good friend, the friendship isn’t going to work. It has to be a partnership where both contribute equally.  36  If you only take and never give, the friendship will fall apart.

 37   Don’t stand by and watch your friend make mistakes. If you think your friends is making a mistake, express your concerns. Be honest about how you feel, but be careful not to criticize your friend.

Try to avoid fighting and arguing. Narurally there will be times when you disagree with each other, but don’t blow things out of proportion(小题大做).  38   Most situations people argue over aren’t worth ending a good friendship.

Never date each other’s boyfriend or girlfriend. This is something that can tear a friendship apart. Friends should have enough love and respect for each other not to do things to hurt each other.   39

Be there for each other through good times and bad times. 40   Give each other room to grow, and give the friendship room to grow.

A.     Communicate with one another.

B.     Speak up in order to protect your friend.

C.    A good friendship is both give and take .

D.    Instead, try to talk things over and put the situation to rest.

E.     If you realize that, your friendship will greatly improve.

F.     This includes not dating anyone your friend has dated .

G.    Celebrate each other’s success, and help each other get through failures.