15．When I visit Merle，I always head straight to the kitchen．I play with her dog，and get settled at the table while Merle makes cups of tea for us．
We talk about anything we can think of：politics，dogs，the weather，and work．It's a ritual that I look forward to days in advance．
To an outsider，my visit appears to be simply the typical act of a granddaughter visiting her grandmother．But Merle and I are not related．She is my surrogate grandmother（代理外祖母）．
I didn't even realize I was in the market for a new grandparent until I gradually found that the relationship between Merle and I was exactly what I had with my maternal（母性的） grandparents---safe and comfortable．
While our relationship developed organically，there are plenty of people who have gone out searching for a grandparent-grandchild relationship．
Sydney-based Cate Kloos started"Find a Grandparent"in May 2012，after moving to Australia from Germany．While she enjoyed a close relationship with her grandparents in her native country，she realized her own children would be without their extended family（大家庭）．She wanted them to benefit in the same way that she had．Grandparents，she says，offer a different but essential kind of support．
"Find a Grandparent"works much like a match-mating service，where young families or individuals can ask for someone to act as a grandparent figure in their life．So far，several hundred families have made connections and spend time doing typical activities---lunch，going to movies and sharing stories．
"It is very important to have another person to turn to when they have problems； often grandparents have a different approach to life，"said Kloos．
28．How does the author feel about her visit to Merle？C
A．It is very formal．
B．It makes her nervous．
C．It gives her great pleasure．
D．It is a source of inspiration for her．
29．Why did Kloos decide to start"Find a Parent"？D
A．To honor her grandparents．
B．To make people closer to each other．
C．To bring warmth to elderly people．
D．To enable her kids to get more emotional support．
30．What does Kloos stress in the last paragraph？B
A．The qualities of grandparents．
B．The important role of grandparents．
C．We should have a positive attitude to life．
D．We should spend more time with our family．
31．What's the best title for the text？D
A．Merle and I
B．My role-model
C．Biological or surrogate？
D．Finding surrogate grandparents．
分析 短文講了作者和她的代理外祖母度過的日子，讓她很快樂，從而介紹了在生活中有這樣的代理祖父母給人們帶來了多大的支持．
解答 28．C，推理判斷題，根據(jù)句子It's a ritual that I look forward to days in advance可知，作者每次去拜訪Merle都會提前好幾天期待著，因此可見她是快樂的，故答案為C．
29．D，細(xì)節(jié)理解題，根據(jù)句子She wanted them to benefit in the same way that she had．Grandparents，she says，offer a different but essential kind of support．可知，Kloos發(fā)起"尋找父母"這個活動是想讓他的孩子獲得情感上的支持，就像他自己一樣，故答案為D．
30．B，推理判斷題，根據(jù)句子It is very important to have another person to turn to when they have problems； often grandparents have a different approach to life可知，Kloos強(qiáng)調(diào)的是祖父母在人們生活中扮演的重要的角色，故答案為B．
31．D，主旨大意題，短文講了作者和她的代理外祖母度過的日子，讓她很快樂，從而介紹了在生活中有這樣的代理祖父母給人們帶來了多大的支持，因此最好的題目是"尋找代理祖父母"，故答案為D．
點(diǎn)評 解答任務(wù)型閱讀理解題，首先對原文材料迅速瀏覽，掌握全文的主旨大意．因為閱讀理解題一般沒有標(biāo)題，所以，速讀全文，抓住中心主旨很有必要，在速讀的過程中，應(yīng)盡可能多地捕獲信息材料．其次，細(xì)讀題材，各個擊破．掌握全文的大意之后，細(xì)細(xì)閱讀每篇材料后的問題，弄清每題要求后，帶著問題，再回到原文中去尋找、捕獲有關(guān)信息．最后，要善于抓住每段的主題句，閱讀時，要有較強(qiáng)的針對性．對于捕獲到的信息，要做認(rèn)真分析，仔細(xì)推敲，理解透徹，只有這樣，針對題目要求，才能做到穩(wěn)、準(zhǔn)．
