When 47­year­old volunteer Susan Boyle steppe...

When 47­year­old volunteer Susan Boyle stepped onto the stage of Britain's Got Talent and announced she was unemployed, had never been married and “never been kissed, actually”， few in the audience would have wondered why. This Ms Boyle, looking unfashionable, from a village in Scotland, shocked the three judges and the audience with the song I dreamed a dream on a show of Britain's Got Talent.

She couldn't hide the awkwardness when walking to the center of the stage in a house dress, and everyone — including the judges — seemed laughing at her when she said she wanted to be as successful as Elaine Paige. As soon as she began singing, however, everyone in the hall fell silent, then rose within seconds to admire her wonderful voice as the celebrity judges sat open­mouthed, and remained standing to the end.

After her performance,　 one of the judges Piers Morgan said，“Without doubt that was the biggest surprise I've had in three years of this show. When you stood there everyone was laughing at you. No one is laughing now. That was amazing.” Actress Amanda Holden followed，“I'm so thrilled because I know that we everybody were against you. I honestly think that we were all being very cynical (愤世嫉俗的)　 and I think that's the biggest wake­up call ever.”

Susan obviously won over the hearts of millions around the world with success spreading across the Atlantic.　 Hollywood actor Ashton Kutcher, who has nearly 1.5 million followers, speaks highly of her. Kutcher posted a link to the video clip (片段). The Scottish talent made her live American show via satellite connection on CBS's The Early Show, doing an interview and singing live from her room. And she already accepted an invitation from talk show hostess Oprah Winfrey.

Now Boyle has become one of the world's hottest celebrities. The video clip of her performance has been viewed more than 50 million times on Youtube, becoming a hit on the Internet.

1.We learn from the passage that Susan Boyle ________.

A. rose from a low social class

B. had an unhappy marriage

C. lived with a dog alone on a farm

D. won the championship in the Britain's Got Talent show

2.At the beginning of the show, almost everybody ________.

A. looked forward to her wonderful performance

B. was attracted by her beautiful dress

C. looked down upon her

D. placed great hope on her

3. The 4th paragraph is mainly about ________.

A. how Susan Boyle achieved her success

B. the comment made by American actor Ashton Kutcher

C. Susan Boyle's influence in the USA

D. Oprah Winfrey's invitation to Susan Boyle

高二英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

Susan Boyle was once a Scottish church volunteer. She decided to enter a competition named “British got Talent” at the age of 47years. On April 15th 2009, when Susan got up to sing, the audience was shocked by her age and simplicity.

Middle-aged women were not the usual type of competitor on the show and the audience was even more surprised when she said before starting to sing that she wanted to become a professional singer. To them she looked well past such possibilities. However, she amazed everybody with her wonderful voice and became an overnight singing star. It was reported that the audience all stood up and clapped warmly and that within 9 days, 100 million people had watched her performances and interviews on the Internet.

This was a lot of progress for an unemployed woman who lived along with her cat. Most of her life had been spent looking after her mother who had died aged 92, two years earlier. She had never been married or in her words, “been kissed”. Susan had learned difficulties and had only once been employed as an assistant cook.

Even though Susan did not win the “British got Talent Show” and came up second, two years later, she already released two successful albums. Many people are touched by her story because Susan Boyle is like each of us in one way or another—full of weakness, often disappointed and mocked at by others. However, unlike many of us who usually give up too soon, she had the determination to fight for her dream. Susan Boyle launched her successful music career at the age of 48 and you too can still achieve your dream. Just take courage.

1.What shocked the audience most before Susan started to sing?

A. Her experience and figure.

B. Her wonderful voice

C. Her age and simplicity.

D. Her dream career .

2.What can we learn from the third Paragraph?

A. Susan was good at raising the cat.

B. Susan was a single woman.

C. Susan learned much while attending her mother.

D. Susan didn’t like cooking.

3.What does the underlined word “mocked at” in the fourth paragraph refer to?

A. Laughed at.

B. Highly respected.

C. Cut off.

D. Turned to.

4.What does the writer intend to tell us?

A. Failure is the path to success.

B. It is never too late to start your dream.

C. Entering TV talent show leads to success.

D. Some singers succeed late in life.

高二英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

When 19­year­old Sophia Giorgi said she was thinking of volunteering to help the Make­A­Wish Foundation (基金会)，nobody understood what she was talking about. But Sophia knew just how important Make­A­Wish could be because this special organization had helped to make a dream come true for one of her best friends. We were interested in finding out more, so we went along to meet Sophia and listen to what she had to say.

Sophia told us that Make­A­Wish is a worldwide organization that started in the United States in 1980. “It's a charity (慈善机构)that helps children who have got very serious illnesses. Make­A­Wish helps children feel happy even though they are sick, by making their wishes and dreams come true，” Sophia explained.

We asked Sophia how Make­A­Wish had first started. She said it had all begun with a very sick young boy called Chris, who had been dreaming for a long time of becoming a policeman. Sophia said lots of people had wanted to find a way to make Chris's dream come true，so with everybody's help, Chris, only seven years old at the time, had been a “policeman” for a day. “When people saw how delighted Chris was when his dream came true, they decided to try and help other sick children too, and that was the beginning of Make­A­Wish，”explained Sophia.

Sophia also told us the Foundation tries to give children and their families a special, happy time. A Make­A­Wish volunteer visits the families and asks the children whatever they would wish for if they could have anything in the world. Sophia said the volunteers were important because they were the ones who helped to make the wishes come true. They do this either by providing things that were necessary, or by raising money or helping out in what way they can.

1.Sophia found out about Make­A­Wish because her best friend had ________.

A．benefited from it　　　 B．volunteered to help it

C．dreamed about it　　　　 D．told the author about it

2.According to Sophia,　 Make­A­Wish ________.

A．is an international charity

B．was understood by nobody at first

C．raises money for very poor families

D．started by drawing the interest of the public

3.What is said about Chris in Paragraph 3?

A．He has been a policeman since he was seven.

B．He gave people the idea of starting Make­A­Wish.

C．He wanted people to help make his dream come true.

D．He was the first child Make­A­Wish helped after it had been set up.

4.Which of the following is true about Make­A­Wish volunteers?

A．They are important for making wishes come true.

B．They try to help children get over their illnesses.

C．They visit sick children to make them feel special.

D．They provide what is necessary to make Make­A­Wish popular.

高二英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

When 19-year-old Sophia Giorgi said she was thinking of volunteering to help the Make-A-Wish Foundation (基金会)，nobody understood what she was talking about .But Sophia knew just how important Make – A –Wish could be because this special organization had helped to make a dream come true for one her best friends .We were interested in finding out more ,so we went along to meet Sophia listen to what she had to say .

Sophia told us that Make – A –Wish is a worldwide organization that started in the United States in 1980.”It’s a charity(慈善机构)that helps children who have got very serious illnesses. Make – A –Wish help children feel happy even though they are sick, by making their wishes and dreams come true ,” Sophia explained .

We asked Sophia how Make – A –Wish had first started .She said it had all begun with a very sick young boy called Chris ,who had been dreaming for a long time of becoming a policeman .Sophia said lots of people had wanted to find a way to make Chris’s dream come true ----so, with everybody’s help , Chris, only seven years old at the time ,had been a “policeman” for a day .” when people saw how delighted Chris was when his dream came true, they decided to try and help other sick children too ,and that was the beginning of Make – A –Wish,” explained Sophia

Sophia also told us the Foundation tries to give children and their families a special, happy time. A Make-A-Wish volunteer visits the families and asks the children what they would wish for if they could have anything in the world. Sophia said the volunteers were important because they were the ones who helped to make the wishes come true. They do this either by providing things that are necessary, or by raising money or helping out in whatever way they can.

1.Sophia found out about Make-A-Wish because her best friend had________________________.

A. volunteered to help it    B.  benefited from it

C. dreamed about it    　　  D. told the author about it

2.According to Sophia,  Make-A-Wish________________________________________________________________.

A. is an international charity

B. was understood by nobody at first

C. raises money for very poor families

D. started by drawing the interest of the public

3. What is said about Chris in Paragraph3?

A. He has been a policeman since he was seven.

B. He gave people the idea of starting Make-A-Wish

C. He wanted people to help make his dream come true.

D. He was the first child Make-A-Wish helped after it had been set up.

4.Which of the following is true about Make-A-Wish volunteers?

A. They are important for making wishes come true.

B. They try to help children get over their illnesses.

C. They visit sick children to make them feel special.

D. They provide what is necessary to make Make-A-Wish popular.

高二英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

Two weeks ago, a 5-year-old girl named Sunshine Oelfke emptied out her piggy bank （存钱罐）onto the living room floor and immediately started counting． Her grandmother, Jackie Oelfke, thought she was playing as she carefully lined up the coins, but then she saw the girl put the coins into a plastic bag and place it in her backpack．

"That aroused my curiosity," Jackie told CBS News． "Nobody messes with the piggy bank．" After observing Sunshine at work a few minutes longer, Jackie decided to find out why the little girl broke into her savings．

"What are you doing with that money?" Jackie asked her granddaughter．

"I'm taking it to school," Sunshine replied． The little girl finally stated the real reason why she needed the money． "I'm going to take it for milk money． My friend Layla doesn't get milk—her mom doesn't have milk money and I do．"

Jackie's heart melted at Sunshine's words． Choked with strong feelings, Jackie held her sweet granddaughter tightly in her arms．

Last week, Jackie and Sunshine met with her teacher, Rita Hausher, and handed her the﹩30 the kindergartner had saved． There are 20 kids in Sunshine's class and about half don't get milk． It costs ﹩0.45 a carton（纸盒）．The total adds up to about ﹩180 a month for every child in the class to have milk every day．

After dropping Sunshine off at school, Jackie posted a tearful video on Facebook to explain her granddaughter's plan． To her surprise, dozens of people offered to donate toward the cause． Within a week, Jackie raised more than ﹩1，000． Now every student in Sunshine's class can get free milk for the rest of the year．

Jackie said Sunshine doesn't see her kind act as a big deal． She was just trying to look out for her friends． "She doesn't understand the effect she's brought about," Jackie said． "But now she knows she can do whatever she puts her mind to．"

1.Why did Sunshine empty her piggy bank?

A. She wanted to play with the coins．

B. She needed to train her counting skills．

C. She intended to pay for her friend's milk．

D. She hoped to show off her savings in class．

2.How did Jackie feel upon hearing Sunshine's words？

A. Touched． B. Curious．

C. Proud． D. Relieved．

3.In Jackie's eyes， what did Sunshine learn from the experience？

A. Many hands make light work．

B. Two heads are better than one．

C. A friend in need is a friend indeed．

D. Nothing is impossible to a willing heart．

4.What is the best title for this passage？

A. Jackie's Piggy Bank． B. Small Coins, Big Deeds．

C. A Moved Grandmother． D. Piggy Bank and Carton Milk．

高二英语阅读理解简单题查看答案及解析

In 1859，during the Gold Rush，a twenty- year-old immigrant（移民）from Bavaria named Levi Strauss stepped off the boat in San Francisco. He had with him a special cloth called Serge de Nimes that was later called denim in America. Levi Strauss hoped to sell the denim as material to make tents and covers for wagons to the men who were going to the goldfields to look for gold.

“You should have brought trousers to sell. In the goldfields we need strong trousers that don‘t wear out，”one young miner advised Strauss. So Levi Strauss took some of his denim to the nearest tailor and had him make the miner a pair of trousers. The miner was so pleased that he told other miners about the wonderful newcomer，Levi，and soon Levi Strauss had to open a shop，producing enough trousers for the miners. The miners wanted trousers that were comfortable to ride in and were low cut so that they could bend over easily to pick up the gold from under their feet. Besides they wanted the trousers to have big useful pockets. One miner complained that the gold in his pockets kept tearing them. So Levi put metal corners in the pockets to make them stronger. Very soon，miners and cowboys from all over came to get fitted up with Levi‘s trousers. Today more than a hundred years later， Levi’s trousers walk the world a Levi‘s blue jeans（牛仔裤）。

1.The denim cloth was originally（起初）meant for____.

A. making tent covers and wagons

B. making tents for wagons

C. making trousers for the miners

D. making wagon covers and tents

2.What kind of material do you think is denim？

A.A strong type of cloth that is not torn by strong wears.

B.A special type of cloth that cannot be washed away by rain.

C.A smooth type of cloth that is for underwear.

D.A wonderful type of cloth that is as good as metal.

3.A miner advised Strauss to sell trousers because ____.

A. the miners didn‘t have enough trousers

B. the miner‘s trousers had not been strong enough

C. the miner‘s trousers did not wear out easily

D. the tailor on the goldfield could not make trousers

4.Why did the miners need strong pockets in the trousers？

A. Their pockets kept tearing the gold.

B. Their pockets were not made of metal.

C. The gold they found was too sharp and heavy to tear their pockets.

D. The gold they collected easily tore their pockets.

高二英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

Susan Boyle was just an ordinary middle-aged British woman before she appeared on the reality show（真人秀）.

She lives in a house with her cat Pebbles in a tiny Scottish town. Because of learning difficulties, she doesn’t have much education. But what she does have is a very good voice. As a kid, she sang in church and school plays. For a living, she sang at local pubs.

When she took the stage on April 10th, her hair was untidy and her clothes seemed just one step up from rags（破烂）.The audience laughed at her.

But then she opened her mouth. A few bars into the song and the laughing audience went silent. A beautiful voice was singing I Dreamed a Dream from the musical Les Miserables. Everyone was amazed. At the end of the song, the audience jumped to their feet and applauded wildly.

Almost overnight, Susan became a household name. She won fans and millions of admirers. Her online videos have drawn over 85.2 million hits.

Susan’s story proved the truth of an old saying: “Never judge a book by its cover.”

1.The underlined phrase “just one step up from” in the third paragraph probably means “_________”.

A. far from　　　　 B. close to

C. different from　　　　　　 D. the same as

2. The audience jumped and applauded wildly because ___________.

A. her hair was untidy and her clothes seemed just one step up from rags

B. she looks very funny

C. she sang so well that everyone was amazed

D. she made a foolish mistake in the end

3.Susan Boyle has many fans now because of _____________.

A. her beautiful face

B. her knowing how to dress

C. her good education

D. her beautiful voice and courage

4.The passage is mainly about____________.

A. how to win fans　　　　　　　　　　　 B. how to sing well

C. a woman’s sudden success　　　　 D. a woman’s simple life

高二英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

Conor Grennan was unwilling to be a volunteer(志愿者). The 29-year-old American was not sure if he had the skills or a strong feeling for it.However, he went to work at an orphanage(孤儿院) in Nepal. His first thought was to make people impressed.

"I thought that if I volunteered just once. I could retell the story over and over," Grennan said in a Huffington Post article.However, his three-month stay it the orphanage turned into in unusual experience. It was 2004 and Grennan had given up his job to begin a year-long around-the-world trip, His first three months were spent in Nepal.

When he arrived in the village, he knew nothing about the children or the local culture. When he opened the gate of the Little Princes Children's Home, he was faced by the excited children.

The young American ended up caring for 18 children. He later discovered that they were trafficked(被拐卖的)children. So he walked through the mountains with great difficulty to find the kids' families, "I started walking with photos of the kids." he told the Reuters reporter. "I would show up in villages and show photographs around. I went with 24 photos, and I found 24 families." At the same time, he put his heart into Nepalese culture.

Grennan said, “Volunteering is the single best way to see how the rest of the world lives.”

He also encouraged others to do what he had done. He believes that volunteering needs only making decisions to show up.

Grennan's fight against child-trafficking has changed him. His book, Little Prince, came out last week.

1.At first, Grennan simply wanted to _______by volunteering in Nepal.

A. write travel stories　　 B. impress people

C. help the kids there　　 D. learn the skills

2.When Grennan came to the Little Princes Children’s Home. _______.

A. the children there felt excited　　 B. 18 children were ill in bed

C. he decided to give up his job　　 D. he’d lived in Nepal for a year

3.From the passage we can learn that Grennan _______.

A. found the kids’ families easily　　 B. was good at taking pictures

C. wrote the book Little Princes　　 D. asked others to go to Nepal

4.Which is the best title for the passage?

A. Volunteer travels in Nepal　　 B. Volunteer is with the kids

C. Volunteer becomes a writer　　 D. Volunteer changes a lot

高二英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

1.Our headmaster stepped onto the platform, closely following by his secretary.

2.The building intended to be a museum. Now it’s a school.

3.Anji County is famous for a green tea producing place.

4.Travel can help us get closed to parts of the world we have never experienced.

5.It’s certain that patient teachers are more popular than dispatient ones.

6.Three years has passed since the couple met last time, and for them, three years is really a long time.

7.A cook will be immediately fired (解雇) if he is found smoke in the kitchen.

8.It’s very kind for you to help me.

9.Doctor Yuan Longping has devoted himself to increase rice harvests.

10.Seen from the top of the hill, we can see a small village under it.

高二英语其他题简单题查看答案及解析

One night, as Diaz stepped off the train and onto a nearly empty platform, a teenage boy approached and pulled out a knife.

“He wanted my money, so I just gave him my wallet and told him, ‘Here you go ’” Diaz says.

As the teen began to walk away, Diaz told him, “Hey, wait a minute. You forgot something. If you’re going to be robbing people for the rest of the night, you might as well take my coat to keep you warm.”

The robber looked at him puzzled, saying, “Why are you doing this?”

Diaz replied, “If you’re willing to risk your freedom for a few dollars, then you must really need the money. I mean, all I wanted to do was get dinner and if you really want to join me…..”

Diaz says he and the teen went into a diner and sat in a booth.

“The manager comes by, the dishwashers come by, the waiters come by to say hi,” Diaz says.

The kid said, “You know everybody here. Do you own this place?”

“No, I just eat here a lot,” Dias said. “But you’re even nice to the dishwasher,” he said.

Diaz replied, “Well, haven’t you been taught you should be nice to everybody?”

“Yeah, but I didn’t think people actually behaved that way,” the teen said.

When the bill arrived, Diaz said, “You’re going to have to pay for this bill because you have my money and I can’t pay for this. So if you give me my wallet back, I’ll gladly treat you.”

The teen returned it immediately. “I gave him $20…. I figure maybe it’ll help him.” Diaz says he asked for something in return--- the teen’s knife--- “and he gave it to me.”

Afterwards, when Diaz told his mother what happened, she said, “You’re the type of kid that if someone asked you for the time, you gave them your watch.”

“I figure, you know, if you treat people right, you can only hope that they treat you right. It’s as simple as it gets in this complicated world.”

1.What did Diaz do to the teen?

A. He gave the teen a new wallet        B. He treated the teen to dinner

C. He gave his coat to the teen         D. He bought the teen’s knife

2.From the passage we can infer that the boy _______.

A. expressed his gratitude for Diaz’s kindness

B. gave up the idea of robbing in the end

C. wasn’t taught how to be nice to everybody

D. gave the knife to Diaz in return for his forgiveness

3.As for what Diaz did, his mother showed an attitude of _______.

A. anger          B. concern           C. criticism            D. praise

4.By telling the story of Diaz, the author intends to tell us ______.

A. to keep calm in danger               B. not to go out alone at night

C. to treat others kindly                   D. not to harm others on purpose

高二英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析