Parents are a child’s first teachers. But some parents never learned from good examples. In New York City, a nonprofit agency called Covenant House tries to help homeless young mothers become good parents.

The twelve or so teenagers who live at the shelter attend parenting classes four days a week. The class is called Mommy and Me. Teacher Delores Clemens is a mother of five and a grandmother. She teaches basic skills, like how to give a baby a bath and how to dress a baby depending on the season.

She remembers one student who learned from her mother not to pick up a crying baby. The mother said that would only make the child needy and overly demanding. Delores Clemens says, “That’s not true. You have to hold your baby! He is crying for a reason. If you never pick him up, he’s going to keep crying. Pick your baby up. Cuddle your baby. Hug him! And she started to do that. They just want a little cuddling and a little love. And it works!”

Delores Clemens says her students also learn how to be good mothers by letting themselves be mothered. Around three hundred fifty teenage mothers graduate from Covenant House's Mommy and Me class every year.

In class, with her baby son is Natasha．She lived on the streets. She is glad not only for the warmth and shelter of Covenant House. As she told reporter Adam Phillips, she is also glad for the help they offer in seeking a more secure life.

The World Health Organization says the United States has forty-one births for every one thousand girls age fifteen to nineteen. That is higher than other developed countries, as well as some developing ones. By comparison, northern neighbor Canada has fourteen births and southern neighbor Mexico has eighty-two.

1.What is the text mainly about?

A．Parents who are a child’s first teachers.

B．A nonprofit agency that offers a more secure（安全的）life.

C．A class where teens learn mothering and are mothered.

D．A kind teacher who helps homeless young mothers.

2.Covenant Houses’ Mommy and Me class is intended to _____.

A．provide homeless young mothers with a warm shelter

B．help homeless young mothers become good parents

C．help mothers in New York be good parents

D．teach some parents how to love their children

3.What can we know about Delores Clemens from the text?

A．She thinks a crying baby should be picked up and hugged.

B．She has a mother of five and a grandmother.

C．She teaches advanced skills on how to be good mothers.

D．She is very glad for the warmth and shelter of Covenant House.

4.According to the World Health Organization, which country has the highest births for girls age fifteen to nineteen?

A．Canada

B．The United States of America

C．Britain

D．Mexico

 

补全对话（共5小题，每小题1分，满分5分）

A. For every writer kissed by fortune, there are thousands more whose longing is never rewarded. B. What I did have was a friend who found me in my room in a New York apartment building. C. This is the shadow land of hope, and anyone with a dream must learn to live there. D. In most cases these people are dreaming of wealth and fame, not the long hours alone at a typewriter. E. It was so hard to sell a story that barely made enough to eat.

 Many a young person tells me he wants to be a writer. I always encourage such people, but I also explain that there's a big difference between "being a writer" and "writing".(61)________ "You've got to want to write," I say to them, "not want to be awriter."

The reality is that writing is a lonely, private and poorly-paid affair. (62)________ When I left a 20-year job in the US Coast Guard to become a writer, I had no hopes at all. (63)________ . It didn't even matter that it was cold and had no bathroom. I immediately bought a used typewriter and felt like a real writer.

After a year or so, however, I still hadn't gotten a break and began to doubt myself.(64)________ But I knew I wanted to write. I had dreamed about it for years. I wasn't going to be one of those people who die wondering "What if... ?" I would keep putting my dream to the test even though it meant living with uncertainty and fear of failure. (65)________ .

 

High-quality customer service is preached(宣扬) by many, but actually keeping customers happy is easier said than done.

Shoppers seldom complain to the manager or owner of retail store, but instead will alert their friends, relatives, co-workers, strangers and anyone who will listen.

Store managers are often the last to hear complaints, and often find out only when their regular customers decide to frequent their competitors, according to a study jointly conducted by Verde group and Wharton school.

“Storytelling hurts retailers and entertains consumers.” Said Paula Courtney, president of the Verde group. “The store loses the customer, but the shopper must also find a replacement.”

On average, every unhappy customer will complain to at least four other, and will no longer visit the specific store for every dissatisfied customer, a store will lose up to three more due to negative reviews. The resulting “snowball effect” can be disastrous to retailers.

According to the research, shoppers who purchased clothing encountered the most problems. Ranked second and third were grocery and electronics customers.

The most common complaints include filled parking lots, cluttered(塞满了的) shelves, overloaded racks, out-of-stock items, long check-out lines, and rude salespeople.

During peak shopping hours, some retailers solved the parking problems by getting moonlighting local police to work as parking attendants. Some hired flag wavers to direct customers to empty peaking spaces. This guidance got rid of the need for customers to circle the parking lot endlessly, and avoided confrontation between those eyeing the same parking space.

Retailers can relieve the headaches by redesigning store layouts, pre-stocking sales items, hiring speedy and experienced cashiers, and having sales representatives on hand to answer questions. Most importantly, salespeople should be diplomatic and polite with angry customers.

“Retailers who’re responsive and friendly are more likely to smooth over issues than those who aren’t so friendly.” Said professor Stephen Hoch. “Maybe something as simple as a greeter at the store entrance would help.”

Customers can also improve future shopping experiences by filing complaints to the retailer, instead of complaining to the rest of the world. Retailers are hard-pressed to improve when they have no idea what is wrong.

1.Why are store managers often the last to hear complaints?

A. Few customers believe the service will be improved.

B. Customers would rather relate their unhappy experiences to people around them.

C. Customers have no easy access to store managers.

D. Most customers won’t bother to complain even if they have had unhappy experiences.

2.Shop owners often hire moonlighting police as parking attendants so that shoppers         .

    A. can find their cars easily after shopping                      B. won’t have trouble parking their cars

    C. can stay longer browsing in the store D. won’t have any worries about security

3.What contributes most to smoothing over issues with customers?

    A. Design of the store layout.              B. Hiring of efficient employees.

C. Manners of the salespeople.                  D. Huge supply of goods for sale.

4.To achieve better shopping experiences, customers are advised to        .

A. voice their dissatisfaction to store managers directly            

B. shop around and make comparisons between stores

C. settle their disputes with stores in a diplomatic way

D. put pressure on stores to improve their service

 

Parents are a child’s first teachers. But some parents never learned from good examples. In New York City, a nonprofit agency called Covenant House tries to help homeless young mothers become good parents.

The twelve or so teenagers who live at the shelter attend parenting classes four days a week. The class is called Mommy and Me. Teacher Delores Clemens is a mother of five and a grandmother. She teaches basic skills, like how to give a baby a bath and how to dress a baby depending on the season.

She remembers one student who learned from her mother not to pick up a crying baby. The mother said that would only make the child needy and overly demanding. Delores Clemens says, “that's not true. You have to hold your baby! He is crying for a reason. If you never pick him up, he's going to keep crying. Pick your baby up. Cuddle your baby. Hug him! And she started to do that. They just want a little cuddling and a little love. And it works!”

Delores Clemens says her students also learn how to be good mothers by letting themselves be mothered. Around three hundred fifty teenage mothers graduate from Covenant House's Mommy and Me class every year.

In class, with her baby son is Natasha. She lived on the streets. She is glad not only for the warmth and shelter of Covenant House. As she told reporter Adam Phillips, she is also glad for the help they offer in seeking a more secure life.

The World Health Organization says the United States has forty-one births for every one thousand girls age fifteen to nineteen. That is higher than other developed countries, as well as some developing ones. By comparison, northern neighbor Canada has fourteen births and southern neighbor Mexico has eighty-two.

1.What is the text mainly about?

A. Parents who are a child’s first teachers.

B. A class where teens learn mothering and are mothered.

C. A nonprofit agency that offers a more secure life.

D. A kind teacher who help homeless young mothers.

2.Covenant Houses’ Mommy and Me class is intended to _____.

A. help homeless young mothers become good parents

B. provide homeless young mothers with a warm shelter

C. help mothers in New York be good parents

D. teach some parents how to love their children

3.What can we know about Delores Clemens from the text?

A. She has a mother of five and a grandmother.

B. She thinks a crying baby should be picked up and hugged.

C. She teaches advanced skills on how to be good mothers.

D. She is very glad for the warmth and shelter of Covenant House.

4.According to the World Health Organization, which country has the highest births for girls age fifteen to nineteen?

  A. Canada    

B. the United States of America   

C. Mexico    

D. Britain

 

I was six when I joined my father and two brothers at sunrise in the hayfields of Eufaula,Oklahoma.By the time I was eight I was helping Dad fix up low-income rent properties.He gave me a penny for every nail I pulled out of old boards.

I got my first real job,at JM’s restaurant in town,when I was 12.My main responsibilities were cleaning tables and washing dishes,but sometimes I helped cook.

Every day after school I would head to JM’s and work until ten.On Saturdays I worked from two until eleven.At that age it was unlucky going to work and watching my friends run off to swim or play.I didn’t necessarily like work,but I love what working allowed me to have.Because of my job I was always the one buying when my friends and I went to the local bar Tastee Freez.This made me proud.

Word that I was honest and hard-working got around town.A local clothing store offered credit to me although I was only in the seventh grade.I immediately charged a $68 sports coat and a $22 pair of trousers.I was making only 65 cents an hour,and I was already $90 in debt!So I learned early the danger of easy credit.I paid it off as soon as I could.

My first job taught me discipline,responsibility and brought me a level of personal satisfaction few of my friends had experienced.As by father,who worked three jobs,once told me,“If you understand sacrifice and commitment,there are not many things in life you can’t have.”How right he was!

When the author was a child,he was made to help his father work because_________.

A.the retaurant was short for hands

B.his family belonged to the low-income group

C.he wanted to earn some money

D.he was stronger than his two brothers

At the age of 12,the author got a job at a restaurant and often worked till late at night because_________.

A.he liked that work

B.he didn’t like playing

C.he was hard-working

D.he felt rewarded by doing that work

When the author was in the seventh grade,he was in debt because_________.

A.he did not work any more

B.he bought clothes on credit

C.he was charged too much for the sports coat

D.he made little money at that time

What does the author want to tell the reader by this text?

A.If you know sacrifice and responsibility,you can have many things in life.

B.Children from poor families usually have a very unhappy childhood.

C.Children could be made to work and earn some money by themselves.

D.You will learn discipline and responsibity by working early in life.