If anyone knows what makes a great children's book，it must be Sussex author and illustrator（插图画家）Jane Hissey. Her "Old Bear" books have achieved classic status in a variety of formats.

I met Jane at her home in the East Sussex countryside and asked her what she thought the secret of a classic children's book was. "That's a difficult one, I suppose it has got to be related to children's stage of development-for young children, pictures on a page that are familiar; for older children, an experience. The book should be familiar, but hold some surprises too to keep the interest. It must inspire and delight them, but there are the things that happen every day."

After the birth of her first child, she gave up teaching and worked on her own artwork, drawing pictures of teddy bears. An editor from a publishing company saw her work and invited Jane to do a children's book. Over the years, from the first "Old Bear" book in 1986, her children have made a huge contribution-especially in terms of plots. She said, "I used to give my children the toys to play with-and they had tea parties and so on. One of my bear characters,' Little Bear', is the same age as Ralph, my youngest, who's seven now. All the children have joined in my work and, in years to come, they will realize how much."

"I hope I'll know when people are getting tired of the characters. If ever they did, I think I'd go on drawing them for fun," Jane continued. "My own children have been very useful to me in my work, but as they are older now, I' ll just have to hope that other people's children can inspire me."

【小题1】What is Jane's opinion about a successful children's book?

A．It contains something unexpected.

B．It offers an escape from everyday life.

C．It's more attractive as children get older.

D．It's set in a place known to its readers.

【小题2】Why did Jane take up writing books?

A．She got to know an editor.

B．She hoped to make classic children's books.

C．Her artwork attracted a professional.

D．She wrote stories for her own children.

【小题3】How did Jane's children assist her in her work?

A．By helping her concentrate on her work.

B．By telling her their own stories.

C．By suggesting characters for her stories.

D．By giving her ideas for her stories.

【小题4】What is Jane's attitude towards her future work？

A．Encouraged.	B．Uncertain.
C．Tired.	D．Disappointed.

Growing Pains 104

Act One
Mom, Dad and Mike are busy in the kitchen. Carol is writing something upstairs.
Maggie: Mike, would you get your sister, please？
Mike: Yeah. Fido, dinner.
Carol: I'll be right down. Tell Mom, I'm just gonna finish this paragraph.
Mike: Hey, Mom, Fido's gonna finish her paragraph.
Maggie: Thank you. I heard. And frankly, Mike, I don't think it's funny or proper for you to call your sister Fido.
Mike: You are right. It's a boy's name.
Jason: Is she still working on that article？She's taking the school paper very seriously.
Mike: Come on. This is one of the greatest papers in the world. It's nice and soft.
Maggie: Mike, this is very important to Carol. Try to stop your bad comments（评论）.
Act Two
All the family are siting at table.
Jason: You're working very hard, sweetheart.
Carol: Yeah, I just wanna get it right, you know, so it's like a best article they've ever got.
Mike: I don't think so. Mom says Mike can make three more comments on you during dinner.
Jason: Probably that was the last one. Right, Mike?
Mike: Why? Yes, Father.
Carol: Anyway, tomorrow is the moment of truth.
Tomorrow, Mr. Simmonds reads all the articles, and decides who gets the job.
Jason: Oh, no, no, not Simmonds.
Maggie: Why? Who's Simmonds?
Jason: That's the teacher who locked the kid in the closet for not finishing the homework.
Maggie: I don't think there's anything to worry about.
Just do the best you can. I'm sure he'll be impressed.
Carol: This is so exciting. Maybe I get the job. Maybe I don't. But I'll never find out unless I try my best and give it my all. Mom, do you think you can read my article tonight and tell me what you think?
Maggie: Well, I'll be happy to, honey.
Carol: You'll be honest?
Maggie: Very honest.
Carol: Well, I know. I am probably just worrying too much. But have you ever wanted something so much that you could feel it with your entire body?
【小题1】Fido is the other name of ________.

A．Maggie	B．Mike
C．Jason	D．Carol

【小题2】From the dialogue we can learn that Mike________.

A．makes no comments on his sister's paper

B．thinks highly of his sister's paper

C．is laughing at his sister

D．is praising his sister

【小题3】Why doesn't Jason like Simmonds?

A．Because Simmonds is not good at teaching.

B．Because Simmonds is hard on students.

C．Because Jason does not know the teacher.

D．Because Jason is not honest.

【小题4】Carol asks her mother to read her article to ________.

A．make an honest comment

B．learn what the activity for Mike

C．set a good example for Mike

D．make the teacher impressed

The president of Indonesia, Joko Widodo, is asking for foreign help to fight forest and agricultural fires in his country. According to Mr Widodo, Indonesian helicopters are only able to carry a small amount of the water needed to put out the fires. “_____________________________________” the Associated Press reported his comment.
The Indonesian National Institute of Aeronautics and Space says more than 1,300 fires are burning across the country. The government has sent about 25,000 soldiers, police and firefighters in six provinces to battle the fires.
Indonesian farmers and some businesses often burn rainforest to clear land at this time of year. The burning usually takes place during the country's dry season. But a large rise in palm（棕榈）oil production on peat lands is blamed for the many fires this year. Peat is made partly of dead plants, which burns easily and is often used as cooking fuel.
The resulting thick, black smoke has polluted skies over Indonesia and four other countries. The burning has worsened air quality, closed schools and caused any outdoor activities to stop. The smoke is not only affecting people; it is affecting wildlife. In Indonesian Borneo, an animal rescue center says some of its animals have developed breathing problems. If the fires continue, a lot more could become sick and some could die.
Scientists have warned that the fires this year could be worst ever because of a weather system called El Nino. They say the weather system has created extremely dry conditions in Indonesia.
【小题1】What does the underlined sentence in Paragraph 1 probably mean?

A．Countries should hold hands in the fight against fires.

B．It takes countries time to figure out ways to fight fires.

C．It’s too late for countries to make efforts together to put out fires.

D．Countries should work together to put our fires as soon as possible.

【小题2】Which statement is true according to the passage?

A．El Nino might help relieve the dry conditions in Indonesia.

B．Many animals have become sick and died because of the fires.

C．25,000 people from home and abroad have been sent to fight fires.

D．Some other countries besides Indonesia have been affected by the fires.

【小题3】What is the main cause of the many fires this year?

A．The increase in palm oil production.

B．The burning of rainforest.

C．The extreme dry weather.

D．A weather system called El Nino.

【小题4】This passage might be found in .

A．a government report	B．a news report
C．a firefighting guide	D．an agricultural book

Tigers are the largest wild cats in the world. They usually go out to hunt for food when it is dark. When a tiger sees an animal, it moves quickly and then jumps on the animals to kill it. Sometimes it can take the tiger several days to finish eating its food. When the tiger is full, it will cover the dead animal with leaves. Later, when the tiger is hungry again, it comes back to eat some more.
Tigers are different from others in the cat family: they like water and often jump into rivers to swim. Some tigers live in very cold places in North Korea, Russia and China. Other tigers live in warmer places—in India and parts of Southeast Asia.
But now all tigers are in danger. Some people kill tigers to use their skins for clothes, and their bodies for medicine. There is also less and less land for tigers to live in.
根据短文内容，选择正确答案。
【小题1】The  is the largest wild cat in the world.

A．lion

B．tiger

C．panda

D．bear

【小题2】Tigers like  , which is different from others in the cat family.

A．eating meat	B．drinking water
C．swimming	D．climbing trees

【小题3】Tigers mainly live in  .

A．Asia

B．Europe

C．Africa

D．America

【小题4】Tigers are in danger now because  .

A．some people kill them

B．the weather becomes warmer

C．they have less land to live in

D．both A and C

【小题5】Which of the following is NOT true?

A．Tigers usually go out to look for food at night.

B．The tiger can kill a big animal very quickly.

C．The tiger covers the dead animal with leaves if it can’t eat it up.

D．Tigers like to hunt for food in small groups.

Dear Editor(编辑),
I used to be a doctor in a children’s hospital. Sometimes I treated children who had been poisoned（中毒）by medicines for older family members. The children didn’t know the medicine was dangerous; they just knew it tasted sweet. Children easily opened the bottle that we now use in China.
Some days ago I talked about medicine with an American. He showed me a kind of plastic bottle. The design was very quite simple and I’m sure our Chinese factories could produce these bottles. The top of the bottle locks but can be opened by pressing down on it while turning. This is difficult for most young children to do, though grown-ups can open these bottles very easily.
I’m certain that the price of making such tops would be very low. As a doctor, I’d love to see this done. And most parents would be grateful.
Yours,
Li Hua
【小题1】The writer’s job in the hospital was mainly to________.

A．treat sick children	B．treat poisoned children
C．give medicine to people	D．give medicine to children

【小题2】The doctor seems to be ________.

A．happy about China’s hospital

B．angry with what has happened

C．anxious to solve the problem

D．pleased with his invention

【小题3】The doctor thinks that we should ________.

A．study the Americans

B．buy that kind of bottle

C．produce this kind of plastic bottle

D．turn to Americans for help

【小题4】The letter was written to the editor to ask for______.

A．money from the newspaper

B．the plastic bottles from the readers

C．medicine from the editor

D．support from the Chinese factories