26、Try, Try Again

   There was a king whose name was Tamerlane．He wanted to become the king of the whole world．So he started wars against other countries．He got many cities, but at last his army was beaten．Tamerlane left his own country．

   For a long time he moved from place to place．His enemies（敌人）were looking for him．He was about to lose all hope．

   One day he was lying under a tree, thinking about his life．Suddenly he saw a small thing climbing up the tree．He looked more closely and saw that it was an ant．The ant was carrying a grain（一粒）of wheat as large as itself．

   As Tamerlane looked, he saw that there was a hole in the tree．That was the home for the ant．

“You are brave, Mr. Ant,” he said, “but you have a heavy thing to carry．”

   Just as he spoke, the ant couldn’t hold onto the tree and fell to the ground．A second time it still tried to carry its food up the tree, and a second time it failed．

   Tamerlane watched the brave little ant．It tried three times, four times, a dozen times, twenty times—but always with the same result．

   Then it tried the twenty—first time．Slowly, one little step at a time, it climbed up safely into its home with its food．

   “Well done!” said Tamerlane． “You have taught me a lesson．I, too, will try and try again until I succeed．”

根据文章内容，回答下列问题。

1．Why did Tamerlane start wars against other countries?

2．What did Tamerlane find when he was lying under a tree one day?

3．How big was the grain?

4．How many times did the ant try?

5．What did you learn from the story?

24、在下列各句的空白处填入一个适当的词，使句子意思完整，语法正确。

1．_________ English movies is a good way to learn English．

2．She is a careless girl．She often makes some ________ in grammar．

3．I like music, and my father used to take me ________ concerts．

4．Teenagers should be allowed to choose their ________ clothes．

5．We know John likes playing the guitar．It must _______ to him．

23、选词填空。从方框中选出可以填入文中空白处的选项，并将其填入短文后相应题号的横线上。（其中有两个选项是多余的）

   When learning new vocabulary, don’t just memorize a list of words．Instead, try to __1__ five

complete sentences using each new word．Then use the new word as __2__ as you can the first

day you learn it．This way you will remember new words __3__ longer．

   Practicing sounds, you know, is difficult—the “th” sound, for example．Choose words that

begin __4__ “th” and practice them over and over again __5__ you are comfortable with them．Let’s try! This, that, those, them, think, thought, through, thin, thick…

   Read, read, read in English, of course! Reading is one of the __6__ ways to improve your

vocabulary and grammar in a natural way．Be sure to __7__ topics or books you are interested

in．

   When someone is talking in English, listen to the main point．If you __8__ a word you don’t

understand, ignore（忽略）it and go on __9__．If you __10__ think about the word, you will miss

everything the person is saying．

   Always remember: Practice makes perfect．

22、根据短文提供的信息，完成下面的家规。每空一词。

20、Steven Jobs, the designer（设计师）of Apple Computer, was not quite successful in his early years．At that time, he was not among the best students at school, and he often got into trouble with either his schoolmates or his teachers．But he was full of new ideas, which few people saw the value（有价值）of．Things remained the same when he went up to college and he dropped out halfway．

   After he left college, Steven Jobs worked as a video game designer at Atari．He worked there for only several moths and then he went to India．He hoped that the trip would give him some new ideas and a change for a better life．

   Steven Jobs lived on a farm in California for a year after he returned from India．And then, in 1975, he began to make a new type of computer．Along with his friend, Steven Woziak, he designed the Apple Computer in his garage．He chose the name “Apple” just because it reminded him of a happy summer he once spent in an apple tree garden．

   His Apple Computer was such a great success that Steven Jobs soon became famous all over the world．

根据短文内容，选择正确答案。

1．Steven Jobs seemed ________ when he was young．

A．to be one of the best students at school    B．not to be a good student at school

C．to be liked by all his teachers           D．to leave the school

2．Why did Steven Jobs go to India?

A．Because he was interested in India．

B．Because he was given a job as a designer there．

C．Because he hoped to get some now ideas from the trip．

D．Because he wanted to study there．

3．Steven Jobs designed his new computer _________．

       A．with his friend     B．in India     C．in an apple tree garden    D．by himself

4．Steven Jobs was famous for his _________ all over the world．

A．new ideas        B．apple trees   C．Apple Computer         D．video games

19、

根据短文内容，判断句子正（T）误（F）。

1．Take a book to read because it’s so boring to travel on trains and buses．

2．There are often thieves at busy places, so be careful with your bags．

3．Remember to buy souvenirs at local shops because they are much cheaper．

4．Don’t take a camera．It’s easy to be lost．

5．It’s necessary to take a passport to travel abroad．