（2011·廣東卷）C

A year after graduation, I was offered a position teaching a writing class. Teaching was a profession I had never seriously considered, though several of my stories had been published. I accepted the job without hesitation, as it would allow me to wear a tie and go by the name of Mr. Davis. My father went by the same name, and I liked to imagine people getting the two of us confused. “Wait a minute” someone might say, “are you talking about Mr. Davis the retired man, or Mr. Davis the respectable scholar?”

The position was offered at the last minute, and I was given two weeks to prepare, a period I spent searching for briefcase (公文包) and standing before my full-length mirror, repeating the words, “Hello, class. I’m Mr. Davis.” Sometimes I would give myself an aggressive voice. Sometimes I would sound experienced. But when the day eventually came, my nerves kicked in and the true Mr. Davis was there. I sounded not like a thoughtful professor, but rather a 12-year-old boy.

I arrived in the classroom with paper cards designed in the shape of maple leaves. I had cut them myself out of orange construction paper. I saw nine students along a long table. I handed out the cards, and the students wrote down their names and fastened them to their breast pockets as I required.

 “All right then,” I said. “Okey, here we go.” Then I opened my briefcase and realized that I had never thought beyond this moment. I had been thinking that the students would be the first to talk, offering their thoughts and opinions on the events of the day. I had imagined that I would sit at the edge of the desk, overlooking a forests of hands. Every student would yell. “Calm down, you’ll all get your turn. One at a time, one at a time!”

A terrible silence ruled the room, and seeing no other opinions, I inspected the students to pull out their notebooks and write a brief essay related to the theme of deep disappointment.

36. The author took the job to teach writing because ______.

   A. he wanted to be expected

   B. he had written some storied

   C. he wanted to please his father

   D. he had dreamed of being a teacher

37. What can we learn about the author from Paragraph 2?

   A. He would be aggressive in his first class.

   B. He was well-prepared for his first class.

   C. He got nervous upon the arrival of his first class.

   D. He waited long for the arrival of his first class.

38. Before he started his class, the author asked the students to ______.

   A. write down their suggestions on the paper cards

   B. cut maple leaves out of the construction paper

   C. cut some cards out of the construction paper

   D. write down their names on the paper cards

39. What did the students do when the author started his class?

   A. They began to talk.

   B. They stayed silent.

   C. They raised their hands.

   D. They shouted to be heard.

40. The author chose the composition topic probably because ______.

   A. he got disappointed with his first class

   B. he had prepared the topic before class

   C. he wanted to calm down the students

   D. he thought it was an easy topic

（2011·湖北卷）A

Honesty, my mum always used to tell me, is the best policy. Of course, this didin’t include her when she told me that if I didn’t eat all my vegetables Father Christmas would find out and wouldn’t give me any presents.

But when it comes to medicine, I had assumed it was important to always be honest with my patients. After all, the doctor patient relationship is based on trust, and therefore honesty is essential, Or so I thought.

I had just started working in geriatrics(老年病科). Mr. McMahon was brought in when his baby was faound very swollen. I took a medical history from his daughter would accompanied him in the ambulance. She’d been his main carer for years. I stood looking at him as she gave a detailed history. “Has he lost any weight recently?” I asked, “Well, it’s funny you should mention that, but yes.” She said slowly. There was silence for a few moments. “Why? What are you worried about?” she asked, I hesitated. She was obviously very involved in his care and it was only fair that I told her the truth. “Well, we need to prove it’s not cancer.” I said and talked briefly about some of the tests I was going to order.

Half an hour later, a nurse called me: “Mr. McMahon’s daughter broke down－she said you told her he had cancer.” My heart sank. By the time I arrived at the ward, my consultant was already there, explaining that we still had to run lots of tests and that it was by no means confirmed that he had cancer. I stood silently at the end of the bed. My consultant was obviously angry with me and as we left Mr. McMahon, she turned to me. “Why on carch did you do that?” she asked to disbelief. I looked at her andbit my hp. “She asked me what I was worried about and I told her.” I said, hanging my head. “And give her more to worry about?” replied my consultant. “You don’t say the word ‘cancer’ until it’s confirmed. Even if you suspect it, think very carefully before you tell people.”

As it turned out, it wasn’t cancer. But I did learn that when somecone is stressed and worried about their loved one they’re sometimes selective in what they hear－and as a doctor it’s important to be mindful of this. In being truthful, I’d made the situation worse.

51.The purpose of the first two paragraphs is to show that the author        .

A. misunderstood the doctor-patient relationship

B. was anxious to receive Christmas gifts

C. regarded honesty as the best policy

D. had an unhealthy eating habit

52.The author’s consultant was angry with him because         .

A. he told the daughter what he suspected.

B. he delayed running the necessary tests.

C. he failed to confirm the parent’s disease.

D. he forgot what the consultant had advised.

53．The author hung his head (the underlined part in Para.4) because he was feeling     .

A. guilty

B. hurt

C. disappointed

D. helpless

54.What lesson has the author learnt from his experience?

A. Learning form parents is necessary.

B. Jumping to a conclusion is dangerous.

C. Telling the truth may not always be the best solution.

D. Selecting pleasant words may not be the perfect policy.

（2011·湖南卷）B

My father was Chief engineer of a merchant ship, which was sunk in Word War II. The book Night of the U-boats told the story.

Memories

       In September, 1940, my mother, sister and I went to Swansea, where my father’s ship was getting ready to sail. We brought him a family photograph to be kept with him at all times and keep him sale.

       Then I remember my mother lying lace down, sobbing. She had heard from a friend that the ship had been sunk by a torpedo(魚雷).

       I can remember the arrival of the telegram(電報),Which in those days always brought had new. My grandmother opened it. It read, “Safe, Love Ted.”

       My most vivid memory Is being woken and brought down to sit o my father’s knee, his arm in a bandage.

       He was judged unfit to return to sea and took a shore job in Glasgow for the rest of the war. For as long as I can remember, he had a weak heart. Mother said it was caused by the torpedoes. He said it was because of the cigarettes. Whichever, he died suddenly in his early 50s.

       Ten years later I read Night of the U-bouts and was able to complete the story.

       Torpedo

       One torpedo struck the ship. Father was in the engine room, where the third engineer was killed. He shut down the engines to slow the ship making it easier for it to be abandoned.

       By the time he got on deck (甲板) he was alone. Every lifeboat was gone except one which had stuck fast. When he tried to cut it free it swung against the ship, injuring his hand and arm. He had no choice but to jump—still with the photograph in his pocket.

       Three days later, he and other survivors were safe in Glasgow. All 23 with him signed the back of the photograph.

       In my room is the book and the photograph. Often, glass in hand, I have wondered how I would have dealt with an explosion, a sinking ship, a jump into a vast ocean rind a wait for rescue? Lest（以免）we forget, I have some more whisky and toast the heroes of the war.

61. We can infer that the mother and children went to Swansea ________.

A. to meet a friend

B. to see the father off

C. to take a family photo

D. to enjoy the sailing of the ship

62. What did the author learn about the father from the telegram?

A. he was still alive.

B. His knee was broken.

C. His ship had been sunk.

D. He had arrived in Glasgow.

63. The underlined word “it” in Paragraph 6 refers to the father’s ________.

A. weak heart

B. taking a shore job

C. failure to return to sea

D. injury caused by a torpedo

64. What can we know about the author’s father after his ship was attacked?

A. He lost his arm

B. He repaired the engines.

C. He managed to take a lifeboat.

D. He was the last to leave the ship.

65. What is the passage mainly about?

A. A group of forgotten heroes

B. A book describing a terrifying battle.

C. A ship engineer’s wartime experience.

D. A merchant’s memories of a sea rescue.

（2011·北京卷）A

“I Went Skydiving at 84!”

As a young girl growing up in the 1930s, I always wanted to fly a plane, but back then it was almost unheard of for a woman to do that. I got a taste of that dream in 2011,when my husband arranged for me to ride in a hot air balloon for my birthday. But the experience turned out to be very dull. Around that time,I told my husband that I wanted to skydive. So when our retirement community（社區(qū)）announced that they were having an essay competition and the topic was an experience of a lifetime that you wanted to have, I decided to write about my dream.

In the essay, I wrote about my desire to skydive, stating George Brush Sr. did it at age 80. Why not me? I was just 84 and in pretty good health. A year went by and I heard nothing. But then at a community party in late April 2009, they announced that I was one of the winners. I just couldn’t believe it. Inspired by this.I deeided to realize my dream,even though some of my family members and my doctor were against it.

On June 11, 2009, nearly 40 of my family and friends gathered in the area close to where I would land while I headed up in the airplane. My instructor, Jay, guided me through the experience. The plane was the noisiest one I had ever been in, but I wasn’t frightened—I was really just looking forward to the experience. When we reached 13,000 feet, Jay instructed me to throw myself out of the plane. When we first hit the air, the wind was so strong that I could hardly breathe. For a second I thought, “What have I gotten myself into?” But then everything got calmer. We were in a free fall for about a minute before Jay opened the parachute（降落傘）, then we just floated downward for about five minutes. Being up in the clouds and looking at the view below was unlike anything I have ever felt—much better than the hot air ballon. I was just enjoying it.

Skydiving was really one of the greatest experiences of my life. I hope other people will look at me and realize that you don’t stop living just because you are 84 years old. If there’s something you want to experience, look into it. If it’s something that is possible, make it happen.

56. What happened to the auther in 2001?

A. She flew an airplane

B. She entered a competition

C. She went on a hot air balloon ride

D. She moved into a retirement community

57. The author mentioned George Bush Sr. in her essay to       .

A. build up her own reputation

B. show her admiration for him

C. compare their health conditon

D. make her argument persuasive

58. How did the author feel immediately after she jumped out of the plane?

A. Excited    B. Scared    C. Nervous    D. Regretful

59. What did the author enjoy most when she was skydiving?

A.The beautiful clouds     B. The wonderful view

C. The company of Jay     D. The one-minute free fall

 A（2011·全國卷新課標卷)

When milk arrived on the doorstep

When I was a boy growing up in New Jersey in the 1960s, we had a milkman delivering milk to our doorstep. His name was Mr. Basille. He wore a white cap and drove a white truck. As a 5-year-old boy, I couldn’t take my eyes off the coin changer fixed to his belt. He noticed this one day during a delivery and gave me a quarter out of his coin changer.

Of course, he delivered more than milk. There was cheese, eggs and so on. If we needed to change our order, my mother would pen a note—“Please add a bottle of buttermilk next delivery”—and place it in the box along with the empty bottles. And then, the buttermilk would magically（魔術般）appear.

All of this was about more than convenience. There existed a close relationship between families and their milkmen. Mr. Basille even had a key to our house, for those times when it was so cold outside that we put the box indoors, so that the milk wouldn't freeze. And I remember Mr. Basille from time to time taking a break at our kitchen table, having a cup of tea and telling stories about his delivery.

There is sadly no home milk delivery today. Big companies allowed the production of cheaper milk thus making it difficult for milkmen to compete (競爭). Besides, milk is for sale everywhere, and it may just not have been practiced to have a delivery service.

Recently, an old milk box in the countryside I saw brought back my childhood memories. 1 took it home and planted it on the back porch (門廊). Every so often my son's friends will ask what it is. So I start telling stories of my boyhood, and of the milkman who brought us friendship along with his milk.

56. Mr. Basille gave the boy a quarter out of his coin changer      .

A. to show his magical power  

B. to pay for the delivery

C. to satisfy his curiosity    

D. to please his mother

57. What can be inferred from the fact that the milkman had the key to the boy's house?

A. He wanted to have tea there.  

B. He was a respectable person.  

C. He was treated as a family member.

D. He was fully trusted by the family.

   58. Why does home milk delivery no longer exist?

A. Nobody wants to be a milkman now.  

B. It has been driven out of the market.  

C. Its service is getting poor.

D. It is forbidden by law.

59. Why did the author bring back home an old milk box?

A. He missed the good old days.

B. He wanted to tell interesting stories.  

C. He needed it for his milk bottles.

D. He planted flowers in it.

（2011·天津卷) B

   In the fall of 1985. I was a bright-eyed ghl heading off to Howard University, aiming at a legal career and dreaming of sitting on a Supreme Court bench somewhere. Twenty-one years later I am later I am still a bright-eyed dreamer and one with quite a different tale to tell.

  My grandma, an amazing woman, graduated from college an the age of 65. She was the first in our family to reach that goal. But one year after I started college, she developed cancer. I made the choice to withdraw from college to care for her. It meant that school and my personal dream would have to wait.

  Then I got married with another dream: building my family with a combination of adopt and biological children. In 1999, we adopted our first son. To lay eyes on him was fantastic---and very emotional. A year later came our second adopted boy. Then followed son No. 3. In 2003, I gave birth to another boy.

  You can imagine how fully occupied I became, raising four boys under the age of 81. Our home was a complete zoo---a joyous zoo. Not surprising, I never did make it back to college full-time. But I never gave up on the dream either. I had only one choice: to find a way. That meant talking as few as one class each semester.

  The hardest part was feeling guilty about the time I spent away from the boys. They often wanted me to stay home with them. There certainly were times I wanted to quit, But I knew I should set an example for them to follow through the rest of their lives.

In 2007, I graduated from the University of North Carolina. It took me over 21 years to get my college degree！

I am not special, just single-minded. It always struck me that when you’re looking at a big challenge from the outside it looks huge, but when you’re in the midst of it, it just seems normal. Everything you want won’t arrive in your life on one day. It’s a process. Remember；little steps add up to big dreams.

41. When the author went to Howard University, her dream was tobe    

A. a writer

B. a teacher

C. a judge

D. a doctor

42. Why did the author quit school in her second year of college?

A. She wanted to study by herself.

B. She fell in love and got married.

C. She suffered from a serious illness.

D. She decided to look after her grandma. 

43. What can we learn about the author from Paragraphs 4 and 5?

A. She was buy yet happy with her family life.

B. She ignored her guilty feeling for her sons.

C. She wanted to remain a full-time housewife.

D. She was too confused to make a correct choice.

44. What dose the author mostly want to tell us in the last paragraph?

A. Failure is the mother of success.

B. Little by little ,one goes far.

C. Every coin has two sides.

D. Well begun ,half done.

45.Which of the following can best describe the author ?

A. Caring and determine.

B. Honest and responsible.

C. Ambitious and sensitive .

D. Innocent and single-minded.

（2011·重慶卷）A

There was a gardener who looked after his garden with great care. To water his flowers, he used two buckers. One was a shiny and new bucket. The other was a very old and dilapidated one, which had seen many years of service, but was now past its best.

Every morning, the gardener would fill up the two buckets. Then he would carry them along the path, one on each side, to the flowerbeds. The new bucket was very proud of itself. It could carry a full bucket of water without a single drop spilled (溢出). The old bucket felt very ashamed because of its holes: before it reached the flowerbeds, much water had leaked along the path.

Sometimes the new bucket would say, “See how capable I am! How good it is that the gardener has me to water the flowers every day! I don't know why he still bothers with you. What a waste of space you are!”

And all that the old bucket could say was, “I know I’m not very useful, but I can only do my best. I’m happy that the gardener still finds a little bit of use in me, at least.”

One day, the gardener heard that kind or conversation. After watering the flowers as usual, he said, “You both have done your work very well. Now I am going to carry you back. I want you to look carefully along the path.”

Then the two buckets did so. All along the path, they noticed, on the side where the new bucket was carried, there was just bare (光禿禿的) earth; on the onther side where the old bucket was carried, there was a joyous row of wild flowers, leading all the way to the garden.

56. What does the underlined word “dilapidated” probably mean?

A. Dirty                       B. Dark

C. Worn-out                    D. Plain-looking.

57. What was the old bucket ashamed of?

A. His past.                     B. His aging.

C. His manner.                  D. His leaking.

58. The new bucket made conversations with the old one mainly to         

A. laugth at the old one

B. take pity on the old one

C. show off its beautiful looks

D. praise the gardener’s kindness

59. Why was the old bucket still kept by the gardener?

A. Because it was used to keep a balance

B. Because it stayed in its besr condition

C. Because it was taken as a treasure

D. Because it had its own function

（2011·安徽卷）C

They are the sort of friends who are so close they trust each other with their lives. If one falls, the other is there to catch him.

They are Wellman, whose legs were permanently injured nine years ago in a rock-climbing accident, and Corbett, an experienced rock climber. Together, they climbed up Half Dome, the famous 2,000-foot rock in the Yosemite National Park, through one of the most difficult routes(路線).

During the climb, Corbett took the lead, hit in the metal spikes（尖狀物）that guided the ropes and climbed up. Then, after Wellman pulled himself up the rope, Corbett went down to remove the spikes and climbed up again. This process was repeated time and again, inch by inch, for 13 days.

    Wellman’s job was not easy either. He got himself up the rope through upper body strength alone. In all, Wellman figured that he had done 5,000 pull-ups up the rope on the climb. 

However, when the two men first met, they never talked about climbing. “He knew that was how I got injured.” Wellman said. Until one day Wellman decided that he wanted to climb again and they started training.

Their climb of Half Dome was not all smooth. At one point, pieces of rock gave way, and Corbett dropped down quickly. Wellman locked their rope in place, stopping the fall at 20 feet. His quick action probably saved his friend’s life.

“Your partner can save your life — you can save your partner’s life,” Wellman said as the pair received congratulations from friends. “There are real close ties.”

64. Which of the following was a challenge for Corbett in climbing Half Dome?

A. To climb up to remove the spikes.         B. To climb it twice

C. To do 5,000 pull-ups up the rope.          D. To lock the rope in place.

65. Why did the two men never talk about climbing when they first met?

A. Corbett was poorly trained.

B. Wellman had lost interest in climbing.

C. Corbett didn’t want to hurt Wellman.

D. Wellman hadn’t decided whether to climb again.

66. What do we know about Wellman?

A. He climbed Half Dome by himself.

B. He was disabled in a traffic accident.

C. He stopped rock-climbing for some time.

D. He was saved by Corbett during the climb.

67. The main idea of the text is that             .

A. two heads are better than one

B. friendship is precious in life

C. the disabled should never give up

D. a man can be destroyed but cannot be defeated

（2011·陜西卷）C

In early autumn I applied for applied for admission to college. I wanted to go nowhere but to Cornell University,but my mother fought strongly againsnst it. When she saw me studying a photograph of my father on the sports ground of Cornell,she tore it up.

“You can’t say it’s not a great university,just because Papa went there.”

“That’s not it at all.And it is a top university.”She was still holding the pieces in her hand. “But we can’t afford to send you to college.”

“I wouldn’t dream of asking you for money.Do you want me to get a job to help suppont you and Papa?Things aren’t that bad,are they?”

“No,”she said. “I don’t expect you to help support us.”

Father borrowed money form his rich cousins to start a small jewellery shop,His chief customers were his old college friends.To get new customers,my mother had to help.She picked up a long-forgotten membership in the local league of women,so that she cound get to know more people. Whether those people would turn into customers was another question. I knew that my Parents had to wait for quite a long time before their small investment (投資) could show returns.What’s more ,they had not wanted enough to be roch and successful ；otherwise they cound not possibly have managed their lives so badly.

I was torn between the desave to help them and change,their lives,and the determinstion not to repeat their mistakes.I had a strong belief in my power to go what I wanted.After months of hard study I won a full college scholarship（獎學金）.My father could hardly contain his pride in me,and my mother eventually gave in before my success.

53.The author was not allowed to go to Cornell University mainly because

A.      his father grduated from the university

B.      his mother did not thinks it a great university

C.      his parents needed him to help support the family

D.     his parents did not have enough money for him

54.The father srarted his small shop with the money from          .

A.a local league                 B.his university

C.his relatives                  D.his college friends

55.Why did the mother renew her membership in the league?      

A.To help with her husband’s business   B.To raise money for her son

C.To meet her long-forgotten friends     D.To better manage her life

56.According to the text,what was the author determined to do in that autumn? 

A.      To get a well-paid job for himself

B.      To improve relations with his mother

C.      To go to his dream university

D.     To carry on with his father’s business

（2011·江西卷）A

“Mum, what does it mean when someone tells you that they have a skeleton（骨骼）in the closet（衣櫥）?” Jessica asked. “A skeleton in the closet?” her mother paused thoughtfully. “Well, it’s something that you would rather not have anyone else know about. For example, if in the past, someone in Dad’s family had been arrested for stealing a horse, it would be ‘a(chǎn) skeleton in his family’s closet’. He really wouldn’t want any neighbor to know about it.”

“Why pick on my family?” Jessica’s father said with anger. “Your family history isn’t so good, you know. Wasn’t your great-great-grandfather a prisoner who was transported to Australia for his crimes?” “Yes, but people these days say that you are not a real Australian unless your ancestors arrived as prisoners.” “Gosh, sorry I asked. I think I understand now,” Jessica cut iin before things grew worse.

After dinner, the house was very quiet. Jessica’s parents were still quite angry with each other. Her mother was ironing clothes and every now and then she glared at her husband, who hid behind his newspaper pretending to read. When she finished, she gathered the freshly pressed clothes in her arms and walked to Jessica’s closet. Just as she opened the door and reached in to hang a skirt, a bony arm stuck out from the dark depths and a bundle of white bones fell to the floor. Jessica’s mother sank in a faint（暈倒）, waking only when Jessica put a cold, wet cloth on her forehead. She looked up to see the worried faces of her husband and daughter.

“What happened? Where am I?” she asked. “You just destroyed the school’s skeleton, Mum,” explained Jessica. “I brought it home to help me with my health project. I meant to tell you, but it seemed that as soon as I mentioned skeletons and closets, it caused a problem between you and Dad.” Jessica looked in amazement as her parents began to laugh madly. “They’re both crazy,” she thought.

56.   According to Jessica’s mother, “a skeleton in the close” means ______.

       A.    a family honor                                    B.    a family secret

C.    a family story                                     D.    a family treasure

57.   What can we learn about some Australians’ ancestors form Paragraph 2?

       A.    They were brought to Australia as prisoners.

       B.    They were the earliest people living in Australia.

       C.    They were involved in some crimes in Australia.

       D.    They were not regarded as criminals in their days.

58.   Jessica’s mother fell down into a faint because she was ______.

       A.    knocked         B.    frightened              C.    injured            D.    surprised

59.   Why did Jessica bring a skeleton home?

       A.    She was curious about it.                    B.    She planned to keep it for fun.

       C.    She needed it for her school task.         D.    She intended to scare her parents.

60.   Jessica’s parents laughed madly at the end of the story probably because ______.

       A.    they were crazy

B.    they were over excited

       C.    they realized their misunderstanding

D.    they both thought they had won the quarrel