短文三則

A

In ancient times， there was a painter. He was good at painting flowers and birds. But he never stopped practicing until he became very famous.

An emperor of China also loved paintings， especially roosters. So he asked the famous painters to paint a rooster for him. He wanted the rooster to be the best among all his collections.

The painter promised to do so. The emperor waited and waited for one year， but he did not get the picture. He couldnt wait to see the painter. He became angry and wanted to kill him. So the painter hurried into the palace with paper， paint and a brush. In five minutes， a perfect rooster was on the paper.

After seeing this， the emperor became much angrier. “Since you can paint a rooster in five minutes， why did you keep me waiting for over a year？” he asked.

“Your Majesty （陛下），” said the artist. “I will let you know why. But youll have to come with me.” He invited the emperor to his house. There were piles and piles of paper. On every piece of paper was a painting of a rooster.

“Your Majesty，” said the painter. “it took me more than one year to improve my painting skill in order to paint a perfect rooster for you.”

1. According to the writer， the emperor______________ .

A. loved beautiful paintings

B. did very well in painting

C. was good at painting roosters

D. was very kind to the painter

2. The painter spent______________ practicing painting roosters for the emperor.

A. only a few months

B. only five minutes

C. more than a year

D. five minutes every day

3. The emperor wanted to kill the painter because______________ .

A. the painter refused to draw rooster

B. the painter couldnt draw rooster well

C. he couldnt find the painter anywhere

D. he couldnt wait to see his painting

4. In fact， during the whole year the painter______________.

A. escaped from the emperor to live quietly

B.worked hard at practicing drawing roosters

C.was invited to other places to draw roosters

D. drew piles and piles of paper to make a living

5. From the passage we can learn that

______________.

A. its hard for a painter to success

B. its easy to paint in a short time

C. hard work causes perfect result

D. emperor was hard to deal with

B

The Hula Hoop（呼啦圈） has a long history. May people think the Hula Hoop was invented in the 1950s， but in fact people were using the Hula Hoop earlier. The ancient Hula Hoop was made of grapevines（葡萄藤） and grass. More than 3000 years ago， children in Egypt played with large hoops of grapevines.

In the 1500s， people in England began to play with hoops. The word “hula” was first popular in England more than three centuries later.

In 1957， an Australian company began making wooden hoops as toys for sale. Later， an American toy company made a plastic hoop with bright colors. The American company first called the new toy the Hula Hoop. Soon Hula Hoops became popular in America. They were so popular that twenty-five million were sold out in four months！

At that time the Hula Hoop swept the whole America. Both adults and children got interested in the amazing toys. The Hula Hoop was then no longer a toy but a culture because it could make people think of a hand-in-hand spirit. And it was together with the rock and roll music of the 1950s. Its good influence soon reached other countries around the world. So the Hula Hoop started to be popular all over the world and became a pleasant and sport activity and a fun way to take exercise.

6. According to the writer， the Hula Hoop was played______________ .

A. in the 1950s B. for a long time

C. 3000 years ago D. in the 1500s

7. In 1957， people in______________ began to make hoops.

A. Egypt B. England

C. Australia D. America

8. The name ， the Hula Hoop was first given by______________.

A. Australians B. Egyptians

C. British people D. Americans

9. The Hula Hoop became a culture because______________.

A. it had a good influence in the world

B. so many people got interested in it

C. it could make people think of a spirit

D. it was a fun way to take exercise

10. From the passage， we can learn______________.

A. the history of the Hula Hoop

B. the importance of the Hula Hoop

C. the ancient Hula Hoop in the US

D. the Hula Hoops good influence

C

What Christmas gifts will be given to children this year？ Giving toys to children is one of the best parts of Christmas in the west. When the children love their gifts， it makes the whole Christmas holiday more pleasant.

If the toy or the game is about a popular movie or television show， the child will love it. Its reported that some of the nice toys this year will be about Where the Wild Things Are， Twilight and so on. Board games， action figures， stuffed toys， books， and DVDs of these popular movies are very popular. Twilight journals， jewelry boxes and calendars are also enjoyed by old kids. There is even a special Barbie for the Barbie collectors on their gift list.