It was Mother's Day. John was so busy with his work that he couldn't go back home. When he passed by a flower shop in the evening, an idea came to his mind. "I'll send Mum some roses . " While John was picking his flowers, a young man went inside. "How many roses can I get for only five dollars, Madam?" he asked. The assistant was trying to tell him roses were as expensive as forty dollars a dozen . Maybe he would be happy with carnations . "No, I have to have red roses. " He said, "My mum was badly ill last year and I didn't get to spend much time with her. Now I want to get something special, it has to be roses as rose is her favourite. " After hearing it, John said he would pay the rest of the money for the young man. Moved by both of them, the assistant said, "Well, lovely young men, thirty dollars a dozen, only for you. "Taking the roses, the young man almost jumped into the air and ran out of the shop. It was well worth twenty-five dollars John paid to see the exciting moment. Then John paid for his dozen of roses and told the assistant to send them to his mother. As he walked out, he felt nice. Suddenly he saw the young man crossing the street and going into a park. But soon he realized it was not a park but a cemetery . Crying, the young man carefully laid the roses," Mum, oh, Mum, why didn't I tell you how much I loved you ? God, please help me find my mum and tell her I love her. " Seeing this, John turned and quickly walked to the shop. He would take the flowers home himself. The writer writes the passage to tell us" _ ". A) Buy roses for your mother when she is ill B) Let your mother know how much you love her C) Work hard to get more money for your mother D) Send your mother flowers on Mother's Day
B
(Question)
There is one holiday in the year which is completely American, Thanksgiving Day. It is the day when everyone goes back home to spend the day with his family, to have the traditional Thanksgiving dinner of roast turkey, to talk about old times. This is a story of Thanksgiving Day and of one man's efforts, under rather special circumstances, to carry on these traditions. Old Pete took his seat this day on his usual bench in Union Square. Every Thanksgiving Day for nine years, Pete had taken this same seat exactly at one o'clock, and each time the same pleasant thing had happened. But this time Pete had come here more from habit than from hunger. Certainly today Pete was not hungry. He had just had a dinner so enormous that he could hardly breathe. The buttons on his ragged shirt and coat were about to burst. He was so full of soup, oysters, roast turkey, apple pie, ice cream, and a dozen other rich foods that the November breeze and the first light fall of snow felt cool and pleasant to his face. The meal had been completely unexpected. He had been passing one of the large homes on Fifth Avenue, where there lived two rich old ladies. It seems that it was their custom each Thanksgiving to place a servant at the front entrance with orders to bring in the first hungry looking person that passed and then give him a Thanksgiving dinner of everything he could eat. On this particular Thanksgiving Day, Pete had passed, the servant had brought him in, and, before Pete knew it, he was being served like a king with more food than he could eat. Pete sat on the bench now, hardly able to move. He happened to look to the left and there in the distance he saw the Old Gentleman coming toward him. He wanted to get up and run, but he was so full of food that he stayed right there. Every Thanksgiving Day for nine years, the Old Gentleman had come here, and found Pete on this same bench, and then taken him to a restaurant and bought him a Thanksgiving dinner. It was a kind of tradition which the Old Gentleman, who had no family and... This year Old Pete came to the Union Square because _ . A) he was hungry and expected to find some food B) he had nowhere to go on the Thanksgiving Day C) he wanted to meet the Old Gentleman and check his health D) it was a convention for him to accept the Old Gentleman's dinner
(Answer)
D
American sign language has an interesting history. Although there have always been deaf individuals in America, the history really begins in 1817. Before 1817 deaf people communicated by using "home signs". Gestures were individually created and used within the home for simple communication. There were no schools or formal sign language training for the deaf. So, why was 1817 an important date? Well, the story begins with Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet. Gallaudet met his neighbor's daughter Alice Cogswell. Alice was the young deaf daughter of Dr. Mason Cogswell from Hartford, Connecticut. Gallaudet began teaching Alice to read and write a few simple words. Excited by the success Dr. Cogswell encouraged Gallaudet to establish a school for the deaf. Cogswell raised the money and Gallaudet traveled to Britain to learn the methods used there. However, the schools refused to share their instructional techniques and methods. While in London, there happened to be a demonstration of the French method of deaf education. Britain was using an oral method of instruction; however, the French method used signs. Gallaudet was fascinated with the method and was able to meet with the instructor, Sicard, and his two deaf pupils, Jean Massieu and Laurent Clerc. Sicard agreed to teach Gallaudet his method and Gallaudet went to Paris to learn French signs. After a while, Gallaudet wished to return home and convinced Clerc to go with him and help him establish the school. The trip home was a 52-day voyage during which Clerc taught Gallaudet French signs and Gallaudet taught Clerc English. On April 15, 1817, Laurent Clerc and Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet established what is currently known as the American School for the Deaf in Hartford, Connecticut. The opening of the first school for the deaf can be viewed as one of the most important events in current deaf culture. What is the text mainly about? A) How Gallaudet set up the first school for the deaf in America. B) What contributions Gallaudet made to the education of the deaf in America. C) Different methods of teaching the deaf in the world. D) Who invented American sign language.
A