故事类阅读理解模拟训练(76174)-高三英语阅读(459)-21英语网

本文作者： 21ST

A

Lisa Klein spends much of her time surrounded by mountains of brightly colored baby clothes, folding tiny T-shirts. For most parents, this is pretty routine, but Klein has a larger purpose: She’s getting infant clothing to mothers in need.

She was inspired a few days after Hurricane Katrina, when she read that a Louisiana church was asking for baby clothes for displaced families camped out on the church’s front lawn. “I instantly knew I’d found a way to help,” Klein says. She pulled together all the boxed-up outfits that her daughter, then one, had outgrown, and spread the word to a handful of friends. Within days, 200 pounds of onesies, booties, caps, sweaters, and other little items were piled up on her porch, ready to be shipped to New Orleans. Klein thought, if that’s what I can do in four days with a few friends, what if I really put my mind to it?

Not long after her second child was born, in 2007, Klein started the nonprofit group Loved Twice to collect donations of gently used baby clothes for distribution to hospitals, prenatal-care clinics, and shelters in the San Francisco Bay Area. “You’re going through so much when you have a child. But these women also have to worry about having the finances to feed the baby, buy diapers, and pay rent. We try to alleviate some of that stress, hoping it will give the mothers more time to bond with their babies.”

Now Loved Twice supplies baby clothes to 40 social service agencies assisting new mothers. Fifty more want to sign up. The group’s six collection bins fill up quickly, landing roughly 1,000 pounds of clothing in Klein’s basement every month. “My husband has been very tolerant!” she says with a laugh.

Volunteers sort the garments into boxes, each of which holds 75 items of clothing, sizes zero to 12 months, along with kid’s books and tips on child-care resources. To date, Klein’s group has sorted and delivered over 28,000 pounds of clothing to newborns in need and the clothes keep on coming, she says. Her dream is to raise enough money to rent a warehouse as a headquarters, allowing her to handle even larger amounts of clothing and more volunteers.

“I’m so happy to be able to spread awareness,” she says. “These babies deserve to be warm and clean.”

1. What can we learn about the group “Loved Twice” from the article?

A. It collects used baby clothes and sells them.

B. It helps families who suffered from Hurricane Katrina.

C. It aims to help new mothers in need in the San Francisco Bay Area.

D. Its supplies cannot meet the demand of the 40 social service agencies.

2. Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the article?

A. She rented a warehouse as the headquarters of her volunteer group.

B. Many mothers in her neighborhood have serious financial problems.

C. Her husband was quite supportive of her nonprofit organization.

D. She doesn’t have enough time to spend with her daughters.

3. The underlined word “alleviate” in the third paragraph probably means ______.

A. react B. ease

C. solve D. understand

4. Which of the following statements might Lisa Klein agree with according to the article?

A. American babies don’t get high quality clothes.

B. She could do anything if she really put her mind to it.

C. Social service agencies in the US are not doing well.

D. Much effort is still needed to help mothers in need.

B

I believe that I always have a choice. No matter what I’m doing. No matter where I am. No matter what is happening to me. I always have a choice.

Today I am sitting at my computer, speaking these words through a microphone. I have spent my life typing on a keyboard. I can no longer use my hands. In 2003, I was diagnosed with ALS, Lou Gehrig’s Disease. Over time, this disease will weaken and finally destroy every significant muscle in my body. In the end, I will be unable to move, to speak, and finally, to breathe. Already, I am largely dependent upon others. So every day I review my choices.

Living with ALS, everything I have ever known about myself, how I look, how I act, how I interact (互动) with the world, is rapidly and thoroughly changing. And yet, with each change, I still have choices. When I could no longer type with my hands, I knew I could give up writing entirely or go through the tough process of learning how to use voice recognition software. I’m not a young woman. This took real work. Interestingly, I write more now than ever before.

At an even more practical level, every day I choose not only how I will live, but whether I will live. But this is where my belief in choice truly finds its power. I can choose to see ALS as nothing more than a death sentence or I can choose to see it as an invitation – an opportunity to learn who I truly am.

So far I have discovered many unique things, but one stands out above the rest. I have discovered in myself an ability to recognize, give, and receive caring in a way far deeper than anything in my life previously. Others have seen this in me as well.

I, who have always been an intensely private and independent person, have allowed a wide circle of family and friends into the most private parts of my life. Previously, I would have found such a possibility frightening. I might have felt living with ALS would mean a life of hardship and isolation (与世隔绝). Instead, because I believe that I always have a choice, I opened myself to other possibilities. Now the very thing that at first seemed so terrible has enriched my life with unaccustomed sweetness. Anonymous (佚名)

5. Because of ALS, the author _____.

A. has had to quit writing

B. lives in loneliness and isolation

C. writes via a microphone

D. has lost the ability to move or speak

6. The author’s belief in choice is strengthened when ______.

A. she interacts with the world

B. she reviews her choices in life

C. people care for her and she appreciates them for that

D. she allows others into the most private parts of her life

7. ALS has made the author ______.

A. become a better writer

B. feel that people shouldn’t be so private or independent

C. believe that many people are unable to care about others

D. feel that life never lacks opportunities as long as you look for them

8. From the article, we can conclude that the author has a _____ attitude toward ASL.

A. positive B. passive

C. negative D. hopeful

C

Word travels quickly in the small fishing village of Port Washington, Wisconsin. So when Mardy McGarry wanted to build a playground for kids with special needs, she knew it wouldn’t take long to create interest in the project. But she never expected that 2,800 people (a third of the town) would roll up their sleeves and use their vacation days to bring her vision (愿景) to life.

“A lot of learning comes through play,” says McGarry, 52, a special education teacher for 28 years. But her students were too often left out. She’d seen the wood chips and sand of traditional playgrounds stop wheelchairs dead in their tracks.

McGarry started researching play equipment and contacting design firms. When a piece of land became available, the city council (议会) agreed to choose a part for a playground if she would build it. McGarry asked classrooms of kids for their wish list. She also asked experts for help. And she brought on board her friend Sue Mayer, whose eight-year-old son, Sam, has a disease called Down syndrome.

Her Kiwanis Club chapter came through with $7,000, and that’s when the grassroots movement really got started. One woman gave $25,000 and had her company donate the same amount. Soon smaller businesses were helping. There were silent auctions (拍卖) and T-shirt sales. The local Pieper Family Foundation offered to donate half of the remaining $170,000 balance if McGarry could raise the rest.

The $450,000 covered materials, but the actual construction, the women learned, would cost an additional $900,000. Not a choice. But the community could build it.

On September 16, 2008, the first day of construction, they came. Two women heard about the project on the radio on the way to work and took the day off to help. A couple in their 80s operated the tool trailer (拖车). Ten-year-olds sanded surfaces.

Today, Possibility Playground is one of the most popular destinations in Ozaukee County. There’s a giant rocking pirate ship, a lighthouse, a rock-climbing wall, high and low rings, monkey bars, palm drums, sandboxes, swings, slides, bridges, and ramps (坡道), ramps, ramps.

All children play shoulder to shoulder. It’s exactly what McGarry wanted. “People used to ask, ‘Why do you want to build a playground just for children with disabilities?’” she says. “They didn’t get it. It’s only when you build a playground for children with disabilities that you build one for all children.”

9. From the text, we can conclude that Mardy McGarry teaches students who ______.

A. have strange diseases B. suffer mental problems

C. are gifted D. are disabled

10. Mardy McGarry wanted to build a playground for kids with special needs because ______.

A. they were often left out by other kids

B. she wanted to end her career with honor

C. traditional playgrounds were often inaccessible to them

D. they were often made fun of on traditional playgrounds

11. The underlined sentence “she brought on board her friend Sue Mayer” probably means that ______.

A. she put Sue Mayer in charge

B. she gave help to her friend Sue Mayer

C. she got Sue Mayer involved in the project

D. she had Sue Mayer monitor and inspect the construction

12. Which of the following is TRUE according to the article?

A. It turned out that the community constructed the playground.

B. Possibility Playground was so popular that it even made a profit.

C. Most people in the town understood McGarry’s intention.

D. The city government rented a piece of land to her.

D

I am an Englishman teaching English in China and students often ask me what the main things separating Chinese culture from English culture are.

The growth of globalization has taken place with such rapid progress that this question has become more difficult to answer.

I originally taught in China from 1999 to 2002. I returned to England for a brief period and then came back to teach.

On returning home in 2002, I felt I was in a better position to observe how habits and traditions in England were beginning to change. England is now a “multicultural society”. There is not one culture in England, but a variety of cultures. Each new culture adds something different to our daily lives. This is not to forget how the world’s developing economy is impacting on traditional ways of living and cultures.

If there was one defining characteristic the English were known for, it was how to form an orderly queue. Forming a queue was an essential English habit. Above all, the English liked people to stand sensibly and quietly, and patiently wait their turn. During the Second World War, when food and other items were scarce, people would stand for hours waiting to be served by a helpful shopkeeper. It is often said that women would regularly join a queue without knowing what was waiting for them at the end.

Now we have call-centers, Internet shopping and online grocery stores. The concept of one person patiently standing behind another has changed somewhat, perhaps forever.

There is one part of culture that separates the Chinese from the British, and that is food.

China has an admirable food culture. Food – particularly buying, preparing, and cooking it – is a serious business for the Chinese. Chinese cuisine is a joy to be cherished, an activity to be shared with family and friends, and a subject to be debated and discussed, like a slowly cooked stew (焖菜，煨炖菜). Chinese can appreciate not only taste, but also the color and texture of what they are eating. The skill, if not the art of Chinese cooking, is contained in the ability to mix and blend, not just flavor, but color as well.

I think the appreciation and joy of Chinese cuisine is so firmly built in the Chinese mentality that the growing number of Western fast food outlets will not change the obvious pleasure Chinese get from preparing and enjoying a meal with friends and family. By John Taylor

13. Which of the following can be inferred from the first four paragraphs?

A. The author is interested in cultural differences.

B. Globalization is reducing cultural differences.

C. The English hope to stick to their traditional culture.

D. The author is fascinated by the changes taking place in England.

14. Which of the following is TRUE about the English queuing culture?

A. The English are no longer as patient as they once were.

B. The English formed the habit during the First World War.

C. English women enjoy waiting more than English men.

D. The habit is not as common as it once was due to modern technology.

15. Which of the following would the author probably agree with?

A. The Chinese take pleasure in eating more than anything else.

B. The Chinese love to prepare and enjoy a meal together.

C. Fast food culture has had a big impact on Chinese food.

D. The Chinese regard flavor as the most important thing in a dish.

16. Which of the following aspects separate Chinese culture from English culture according to the author?

a. how multicultural they are

b. the habit of lining up

c. cuisine

d. globalization

A. abc B. bcd C. bc D. abcd

E

We’re not really sure you know

A few months ago as I wandered through my parents’ house, the same house I grew up in, I had a sudden, scary realization. When my parents bought the house, in 1982, they were only two years older than I am now. I tried to imagine myself in two years, ready to settle down and buy the house I’d still be living in almost 30 years later.

It seemed ridiculous. On a practical level, there’s no way I could afford to buy a house anytime soon. More importantly, I wouldn’t want to. I’m not sure where I’ll be living in two years, or what kind of job I’ll have. And I don’t think I’ll be ready to settle down and stay in one place.

So this is probably the generation gap that divides my friends and me from our parents. When our parents were our age, they’d gotten their education, chosen a career, and were starting to settle into responsible adult lives.

My friends and I – “Generation Y” – still aren’t sure what we want to do with our lives. Whatever we end up doing, we want to make sure we’re happy doing it. We’d rather take risks first, try out different jobs, and move from one city to another until we find our favorite place. We’d rather spend our money on travel than put it in a savings account.

This casual attitude toward responsibility has caused some critics to call my generation “arrogant”, “impatient”, and “overprotected”. Some of these complaints have a point. As children we were encouraged to succeed in school, but also to have fun. We grew up in a world full of technological innovation: cellphones, the Internet, instant messaging, and video games.

Our parents looked to rise vertically – starting at the bottom of the ladder and slowly making their way to the top, on the same track, often for the same company. That doesn’t apply to my generation.

Because of that, it may take us longer than our parents to arrive at responsible, stable adulthood. But that’s not necessarily a bad thing. In our desire to find satisfaction, we will work harder, strive for ways to keep life interesting, and gain a broader set of experiences and knowledge than our parents’ generation did.

By Ariel Lewiton

17. When the author walked through her parents’ house, she _______.

A. was frightened that she had no idea what she wanted from life

B. started to think about her own life

C. realized the problem facing “Generation Y”

D. wondered why her parents had settled down early

18. What is the main “generation gap” between the author and her friends and their parents according to the article?

A. Their attitude toward high technology.

B. Their ways of making their way to the top.

C. Their attitude toward responsibility.

D. Their ways of gaining experiences.

19. Which of the following might the author agree with?

A. It’s all right to try more before settling down.

B. It’s better to take adult responsibility earlier.

C. It involves too much effort to rise vertically.

D. It’s ridiculous to call her generation “arrogant”.

20. What can we conclude from the article?

A. The author is envious of her parents enjoying a big house at her age.

B. Growing up in a hi-tech world makes “Generation Y” feel insecure about relationships.

C. “Generation Y” people don’t want to grow up and love to be taken care of by their parents.

D. The author wrote this article so that others would be able to understand her generation better.

21. What is the main theme of the article?

A. The sudden realization of growing up.

B. A comparison between lifestyles of generations.

C. Criticisms of the young generation.

D. The factors that have changed the young generation.

(答案和解析见A32版)