I’m trying to be a writer, but I can’t even start. What should I do?
Abraham, Nebraska
There are many ways to come up with ideas, one of which is to write down a list of your experiences, as well as things from your imagination. When you want to write, look in the notebook for ideas.
Books for writers often have good suggestions, too. One we like is Spilling Ink: A Yong Writer’s Handbook by Anne Mazer and Ellen Potter. Perhaps your library has it.
My classmates keep asking about a new movie I’ve seen. But I don’t want to spoil it for them. What should I do?
Corinne (by e-mail)
You could ask your classmates whether they are sure they want to know and if they insist, go ahead and tell them. You may be able to give them a general idea of the movie without revealing details of the ending.
I’m going to a soccer camp for youth, but I’m not sure if I’m good at soccer or if I’ll make friends.
Louise, New Hampshire
Soccer camp is for people who share an interest in the sport. No matter what a person’s ability is at the beginning, it’s likely that everyone will leave camp with improved skills.
Sharing a common interest may make conversations easier. Smile, be friendly, and have a sense of humor. Before long, you may find that you’ve made some good friends.
Someone invited me to a birthday party. When I got there, kids were doing stuff I’m not interested in, like watching scary movies. I told them my mom would pick me up, so I just left. Was I rude for doing that?
Sam (by e-mail)
You just did the right thing and that isn’t being rude.
We hope you’ll talk with your parents about this. They’re probably proud of what you did. They may have other suggestions for you, too. Talk about different situations that might come up and what would be the best way to handle (处理) them.
小题1:Who is interested in Spilling Ink: A Yong Writer’s Handbook? | A．Corinne. | B．Louise. | C．Abraham. | D．Sam. |
小题2:What can we learn about the soccer camp? | A．The practice is hard but interesting. | | B．It is difficult to make friends in the camp. | | C．The camp only wants people who are new to soccer. | | D．One’s skills can be improved when leaving the camp. |
小题3:The answer to Sam’s question shows what Sam did is _____. | A．funny | B．strange | C．foolish | D．smart |
小题4:According to the passage, you can make friends by the following means EXCEPT _________.| A．keeping smiling | B．Being humorous | | C．Changing your habits | D．Being friendly to others |
小题5:This purpose of the text is to _____. | A．give advice | B．tell stories | C．find friends | D．share interests |
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小题1:C
小题2:D
小题3:D
小题4:C
小题5:A |
试题分析：本文中提出了4个青少年遇见的不同的问题，作者分别做了回答，给出了建议。
小题1:C 细节题。根据文章第一部分One we like is Spilling Ink: A Yong Writer’s Handbook by Anne Mazer and Ellen Potter.
I’m trying to be a writer, but I can’t even start. What should I do?
Abraham, Nebraska
可知这样的书是Abraham, Nebraska想要的。
小题2:D 细节题。根据文章第三部分Soccer camp is for people who share an interest in the sport. No matter what a person’s ability is at the beginning, it’s likely that everyone will leave camp with improved skills.可知D正确。
小题3:D 推理题。根据文章最后一部分I told them my mom would pick me up, so I just left. Was I rude for doing that?
Talk about different situations that might come up and what would be the best way to handle (处理) them说明他的处理方法是很聪明的，一点也不粗鲁，故D项正确。
小题4:C 细节题。根据文章第三部分Smile, be friendly, and have a sense of humor. Before long, you may find that you’ve made some good friends.可知ABD三项都是交朋友的好方法，只有C项文章没有提及。
小题5:A 推理题。文章中每一部分以后都给出了作者的建议，说明本文正是为了对对方的问题给出具体的建议，故A正确。
点评：本文中提出了4个青少年遇见的不同的问题，作者分别做了回答，给出了建议。本文考查细节题为主，细节题可以在文章中直接找到与答案有关的信息或是其变体。搜查信息在阅读中非常重要它包括理解作者在叙述某事时使用的具体事实、数据、图表等细节信息。在一篇短文里大部分篇幅都属于这类围绕主体展开的细节。做这类题一般采用寻读法即先读题，然后带着问题快速阅读短文，找出与问题有关的词语或句子，再对相关部分进行分析对比，找出答案。 |
核心考点
试题【I’m trying to be a writer, but I can’t even start. What should I do?Abraham, Neb】；主要考察你对
题材分类等知识点的理解。
[详细]举一反三
What if it isn’t a dog-eat-dog world? What if caring for a dog or for a mom with Alzheimer’s (老年痴呆症) makes you stronger and allows you to live longer?
Researchers at the University of California, Berkeley are challenging our long-held belief that humans are born to be selfish.
Darwin’s theory of evolution by natural selection was misunderstood by his male followers, the researchers say. Rather than “every man for himself”, Darwin believed that humans are successful as a species precisely because of our educational, selfless and sympathetic characteristics.
Why has it taken so long for Darwin’s central revelation(揭示) to be properly understood? “We’ve had too many men in social science,” Berkeley psychology professor Dacher Keltner told me in an interview. “Female scientists acknowledge that caring for people is part of human nature according to the research, which shows the human ability to care exists in our brains and nerve systems.”
In my book Passages in Caregiving , I urge women who take the whole responsibility for taking care of an elderly parent or a sick relative to build a “Circle of Care”. Reach out to your brothers and sisters, friends, neighbors and community volunteers to help you care, because no one can perform this overwhelming role alone. You will be as shocked as I to learn how the most selfless caregivers are rewarded with longer life.
Sympathy is not a woman’s word. In fact it makes all of us stronger under stress and more highly respected by our peers. For so long we have repeated the false saying “Nice guys finish last”. But the 40 richest Americans committed to doing good by donating half their fortunes are no spring chickens. So here is my new explanation：Nice guys die last.
小题1:The first paragraph serves to .| A．give the background of the topic | | B．blame the world for selfishness | | C．urge people to care for a dog | | D．bring out the topic of the passage |
小题2:In Passages in Caregiving, women are advised to . | A．share the responsibility of caring with others | | B．take good care of themselves | | C．learn how to live a longer life | | D．help as many people as possible |
小题3:The underlined words “no spring chickens” in the last paragraph refer to .| A．rich people | B．poor people | C．young people | D．aged people |
小题4:Why does the author mention the 40 richest Americans’ commitment in this passage?| A．To argue against offering sympathy. | | B．To use it as an example to support his opinion. | | C．To show their generosity to society. | | D．To call on people to learn from them. |
小题5:Which of the following might be the BEST title of the passage?| A．Selflessness could be the secret to longer life | | B．Darwin’s theory of evolution is out of date now | | C．Measures must be taken to improve the world | | D．Males and females have different opinions about selflessness |
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This little story I’m about to tell you happened when I was about 11 years old, and I’II never forget it. I was at my friend Jenny’s __41__ after school one day, and we were doing (or not doing) homework.. __42__ I was there, Jenny’s mom came over to visit.
I don’t remember her name__43__ what her face looked like. I just remember her hands, her voice and the__44__ she taught me.
I can still see her hand __45__ for mine in our introduction. __46__ were so beautiful, I thought; rich, dark skin__47__ complemented(涂了) by the orange colored polish on her nails. Then I __48__ her saying, and not at all in a condescending(居高临下的) __49__ .“Oh no, that is NOT how you shake hands. Let me show you _50___.”
After that, I just remember her voice __51__ the importance of a good handshake, conveying（传递） a positive sense of self, looking at _52___ person in the eye, making that first moment matter…I think in that exchange I first understood__53__.
I respected her for __54__ the time to teach me about one of those subtleties(细微之处) in life. I appreciated the fact __55__ she didn’t look down upon me because I was 11 or because I didn’t know something. And so because of that I felt somewhat respected. I mean the _56___ she treated me. It felt good to be __57__ like a real person. I also appreciate her idea that _58__ someone doesn’t pay attention to something, be patient and point him or her__59__ the right direction. I__60__ her every time I meet someone and shake hands. And I’m so thankful for her little lesson.
| 小题1: | | A．office | B．house | C．family | D．room |
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| 小题2: | | A．Although | B．As | C．During | D．If |
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| 小题4: | | A．homework | B．English | C．lesson | D．knowledge |
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| 小题5: | | A．reaching down | B．reaching up | C．reaching out | D．reaching far |
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| 小题7: | | A．patiently | B．beautifully | C．strongly | D．thickly |
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| 小题8: | | A．listened | B．found | C．heard | D．saw |
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| 小题9: | | A．manner | B．means | C．method | D．voice |
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| 小题11: | | A．explains | B．explained | C．explain | D．explaining |
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| 小题12: | | A．the other | B．other | C．another | D．others |
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| 小题13: | | A．politeness | B．saying | C．friendship | D．respect |
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| 小题14: | | A．costing | B．spending | C．taking | D．using |
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| 小题16: | | A．place | B．position | C．way | D．time |
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| 小题17: | | A．talking about | B．talked to | C．talking to | D．talked about |
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| 小题18: | | A．as soon as | B．as long as | C．once | D．if |
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| 小题20: | | A．think over | B．think of | C．think about | D．think out |
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Letters to the next president
Dear Mr. President:
I would like to personally thank you for your time and concern for our great country. I would like to take a few minutes to address a few concerns that I have with the United States.
First of all, I would like to address the war. In my opinion, we should have never been involved with Iraq to the extent that we are now. I believe we should pull our troops out. However, I think there should be a time table that we follow but the time table should not be released（发布） because the enemy does not need to know when we are going to pull out. Also, the war takes out a ton of our money, which leads me to my next issue.
The economy right now, in the opinion of many Americans is the biggest issue with which we are facing right now. No one can predict what will happen one day or the next. The obvious thing to do is to put 700 billion dollars in the economy, but that bill failed and was rejected by the House of Representatives(众议院). Instead of putting 700 billion dollars in, I think the money should be equally distributed among Americans to pay off their debts. I"m not sure if this would work, but I think it is a positive alternative(替代) we could take.
My final issue I would like to call to your attention is teacher"s salaries. The high school students of today are America"s future. In a way, America"s future depends greatly on the high school teachers of America. Saying this, it is sad that teacher"s salaries are where they are. While teachers are working harder and harder every day to teach high school students, CEO"s of big companies that are driving our countries economy into the ground are getting bonuses. I"m not saying that teacher"s salaries should be the same of CEO"s of companies, but I do strongly believe that action should be taken to increase the salaries of teachers because they have one of the most important jobs in America - - preparing our country for the future.
Once again, thank you for your time and your effort you put in to making this great country a better place.
Sincerely, Walker
小题1:What"s the author"s attitude towards the Iraq War?| A．Supportive | B．Objective(客观的) | C．Negative | D．Positive |
小题2:What"s true about the time of pulling the troops out?| A．We should pull the troops out without delay. | | B．There is no need to have a time table to follow. | | C．The public has the fight to know the time table. | | D．We should keep the time secret from the enemy. |
小题3:According to the author, the 700 billion dollars__________| A．is the biggest issue with which we are facing right now. | | B．has been accepted by the House of Representatives. | | C．should be equally shared among Americans | | D．should be put in the economy |
小题4:When talking about high school teachers, the author thinks that____________| A．the teachers" salaries are not high enough. | | B．teacher"s salaries should be as high as CEO"s. | | C．the teachers work harder than CEO"s of companies. | | D．teaching is more important than any other job in America |
小题5:Which of the topics is NOT included in the letter?| A．Election | B．International affair | C．Finance | D．Education, |
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I worked hard for a whole week. So I decided to relax and went out of town with my son for the 1 . When we were walking on the street, we felt a little 2 . So we found a café and 3 to have lunch there. After we sat down at our table, I 4 an elderly couple having lunch at a table across the room. I must have looked over at them a few times because my son asked me if I 5 them. I shook my head and said no. But I told him that they 6 me of my own grandparents.
When the waitress came over, I asked her if she knew them. She said she did. She said it was the elderly man’s birthday today. On hearing this, I wanted to do something for them, so I told the 7 that I wanted to buy them the lunch and gave her the money.
Some time later, the elderly couple came over to 8 us. They were so excited that someone had bought them lunch. It was really a big 9 for them. They said that they had been a little 10 because their own son and daughter seemed to have 11 the old man’s birthday. But they were really cheered up by my 12 .
My son was surprised that I had paid for this couple who we didn’t know. He asked me why I did it. I smiled at him and replied that my grandparents used to go out for lunch to celebrate their birthdays in the same way and it just felt like the 13 thing to do to make this couple smile, 14 on their birthdays. Hearing my 15 , my son smiled.
| 小题1: | | A．week | B．hour | C．month | D．weekend |
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| 小题2: | | A．hungry | B．thirsty | C．hot | D．bored |
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| 小题3: | | A．continued | B．decided | C．refused | D．begged |
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| 小题4: | | A．noticed | B．visited | C．recognized | D．attracted |
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| 小题5: | | A．interrupted | B．invited | C．knew | D．needed |
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| 小题6: | | A．introduced | B．reminded | C．brought | D．sent |
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| 小题7: | | A．manager | B．man | C．couple | D．waitress |
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| 小题8: | | A．support | B．comfort | C．impress | D．thank |
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| 小题9: | | A．activity | B．surprise | C．chance | D．change |
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| 小题10: | | A．moved | B．tired | C．shocked | D．sad |
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| 小题11: | | A．ruined | B．delayed | C．forgotten | D．celebrated |
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| 小题12: | | A．action | B．advice | C．opinion | D．wish |
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| 小题13: | | A．right | B．normal | C．unnecessary | D．useful |
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| 小题14: | | A．always | B．only | C．especially | D．even |
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| 小题15: | | A．excuses | B．news | C．questions | D．words |
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C
One Sunday, my family had gathered at my parents’ house to feast upon Mom’s wonderful cooking. During the normal dinner chatter (闲聊), I noticed that my father was slurring (说话含混) his words. No one mentioned this during dinner, but I felt compelled to discuss it with my mother afterward.
We decided that there was something seriously wrong and that Dad needed to see the doctor.
Mom phoned me two days later. “The doctor found a brain tumor (肿瘤). It’s too large at this point to operate. Maybe they can do something then, but the odds are long.”
Even with the treatment, my father’s condition worsened, and the doctor finally informed us that this condition was terminal (晚期的). During one of his stays in the hospital, we brought our baby daughter Chelsey with us when we visited him. By this time he had great difficulty speaking. I finally figured out that he wanted Chelsey to sit on his stomach so he could make faces at her.
Watching the two of them together, I realized I was living an experience that would stay with me forever. Though grateful for the times they could share, I couldn’t shake the feeling of a clock ticking in the background.
On the visit to my parents’ home during what we all know was my father’s last days, my mother took Chelsey from my arms and announced, “Your father would like to see you alone for a minute.”
I entered the bedroom where my father lay on a rented hospital bed. He appeared even weaker than the day before.
“How are you feeling, Dad?” I asked. “Can I do anything for you?”
He tried to speak, but he couldn’t make out a word.
“I’m sorry, but I can’t understand you,” I said.
With great difficulty he said, “I love you.”
We don’t learn courage from heroes on the evening news. We learn true courage from watching ordinary people rise above hopeless situations. In many ways my father was a strict, uncommunicative man. He found it difficult to show emotion. The bravest thing I ever saw him do was overcome that barrier to open his heart to his son and family at the end of his life.
小题1:Which of the following statements is TRUE?| A．The writer accompanied his father to a medical examination. | | B．The writer’s father got worse after the removal of the brain tumor. | | C．The writer was quick to notice the strange condition of his father. | | D．The writer’s father had known about his illness before the writer discovered it. |
小题2: What does the underlined sentence “the odds are long” mean?| A．There’s little possibility for Father to recover. | | B．It takes a long time for Father to recover. | | C．Father needs love and care from his family. | | D．They need a proper time to operate on Father. |
小题3:The father had never said “I love you” to the writer before because ________.| A．he believed in strictness and punishment | | B．he was not so attached to the writer | | C．he thought there was no need to tell the writer | | D．he was not used to openly showing his emotions |
小题4:What does the writer attempt to tell us?| A．We don’t often value health until we lose it. | | B．Don’t wait to see a doctor till it is too late. | | C．Life is short, so live your life to the fullest. | | D．Bravely express your love for your family. |
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