Read the article and select the best answer. Article: I grew up in the south of Spain in a little community called Estepona. I was 16 when one morning, my father told me I could drive him into a remote village called Mijas, about 18 miles away, on the condition that I take the car in to be serviced(,) at a nearby garage. Having just learned to drive and hardly ever having the opportunity to use the car, I readily accepted. I drove Dad into Mijas and promised to pick him up at 4 p.m., then drove to a nearby garage and dropped off the car. Because I had a few hours to spare, I decided to catch a couple of movies at a theatre near the garage. However, I became so interested in the films that I didn't pay attention to the time. When the last movie had finished, I looked down at my watch. It was six o'clock. I was two hours late! I knew Dad would be angry if he found out I'd been watching movies. He'd never let me drive again. I decided to tell him that the car needed some repairs and that they had taken longer than had been expected. I drove up to the place where we had planned to meet and saw Dad waiting patiently on the corner. I apologized for being late and told him that I'd come as quickly as I could, but the car had needed some major repairs. I'll never forget the look he gave me. "I'm disappointed that you feel you have to lie to me, Jason." "What do you mean? I'm telling the truth." Dad looked at me again. "When you did not show up, I called the garage to ask if there were any problems, and they told me that you had not yet picked up the car. So you see, I know there were no problems with the car." A feeling of guilt ran through me as I weakly confessed to my trip to the movie theatre and the real reason for my being late. Dad listened intently as a sadness passed through him. "I'm angry, not with you but with myself. You see, I realize that I have failed as a father if after all these years you feel that you have to lie to me. I have failed because I have brought up a son who cannot even tell the truth to his own father. I'm going to walk home now and... Question: According to the passage, the boy's father _ . Options: A: had already checked with the garage to see whether the car was still being serviced B: guessed correctly that his son had gone to watch movies C: was very angry at having to wait two hours for his son D: knew that repairing the car would take an extra two hours
A

Read the article and select the best answer. Article: Standing in front of the "Chilkoot Trailhead" sign for 15 minutes, I didn't take one step. I was afraid of bears. That's what was keeping me from walking the trail alone. I had hiked through black-bear country back home in Colorado, but now I was in Alaska, home to the fierce brown grizzly bear. Fortunately, a friendly couple arrived and asked me to take their picture. We started talking and soon were walking the trail together. I was relieved. Ron and Carol were from Alaska and they taught me how to stay safe in bear country. I had finally started my hike along the famous Chilkoot Trail, where more than 115 years ago, thousands of gold miners had walked. I was writing a book about the Klondike Gold Rush, and I wanted to follow in the footsteps of the miners to know what it was really like. Ron, Carol, and I walked through the forest. As I was looking around at the beautiful scenery in the forest, I tripped over a big tree root and injured my ankle . Fortunately, my ankle felt better in the morning, and we followed the trail. We went to bed early that night because the following day would be the toughest hike of all. At dawn, we started hiking up the steep , green valley. Icy glaciers covered the mountains above. Soon we were as high as the clouds and could see only 20 feet in front of us. Finally, we reached the top of the Chilkoot pass and saw a Canadian flag moving in the heavy wind. Hours later, we arrived at our campground. The following morning, my ankle was feeling fine, and my fear of bears had mostly disappeared. I said good-bye to Ron and Carol and walked alone for the next two days. Without seeing any bears the entire trip, I finally arrived at Bennett Lake. I rode the old train down to the town of Skagway and checked into my hotel. While relaxing in my comfortable bed in the hotel, I thought of the miners from the Klondike Gold Rush. When the miners reached Bennett Lake, they had to cut down trees, build boats, and travel 500 miles down dangerous rivers and lakes. Then, when they finally... Question: Why did the author stand in front of the "Chilkoot Trailhead" sign for 15 minutes? Options: A: To wait for Ron and Carol. B: Because he felt nervous. C: Because he met a black bear. D: To take photos of the beautiful scenery.
B

Read the article and select the best answer. Article: Reading for pleasure is declining among primary-age pupils, and increasing numbers of "time poor" parents are dropping the practice of sharing bedtime stories with their children once they start school. Research presented to a conference last week found that, while parents read to preschoolers, this later tails off, and by the final year of primary school only around 2% read to their children every day. Once children can read skillfully, parents tend to step back, and this usually happens at the age of seven or eight. The report also found that 82% of teachers blame the government's "target--driven" education policies for the fact that fewer children are reading for pleasure. They believe that a straitjacket of strictly organized schooling is containing young people's ability to read more widely. Two-thirds of teachers surveyed said they lacked time in the school day to introduce a variety of books and that this was a "major obstacle to being able to develop a level of reading". Teachers also cited as main factors the reduction in the number of school librarians, who could put interesting books before children, and the rise in "screen time", switching children from reading to playing games. The majority of teachers said the curriculum's " emphasis on reading as a skill to be mastered" was increasing the pressure. This was _ by parents who saw reading just as a focus of learning, a skill critical to career advancement in a competitive world. Reading habits and the digital revolution in publishing were key topics of debate at the conference. The theme of the lack of British culture was supported by children's writer Frank Cottrell Boyce, who wrote the scripts( ) for the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2012 Olympics. "We discovered the whole nation had forgotten that they did the industrial revolution," he said. "Books are so central to it; books can be written by anyone. A lot of the pleasure of a book is listening to somebody read it to you. " "We found a real love of reading among teachers, and a... Question: What leads to parents' dropping the practice of sharing bedtime stories with their children? Options: A: Children have less time to spend with their parents after they start school. B: Parents think it unnecessary to do so when children can read themselves. C: The government's education policies have placed much burden on children. D: Children don't like parents reading stories to them when they are seven or eight.
B