高二英语阅读训练

　　Allan goes everywhere with Birgitta Anderson, a 54-year-old secretary. He moves around her office at work and goes shopping with her." Most people don't seem to mind Allan," says Birgitta, who thinks he is wonderful. "He's my fourth child," she says. She may think of him and treat him that way, buying his food, paying his health bills and his taxes, but in fact Allan is a dog.

　　Birgitta and Allan live in Sweden, a country where everyone is expected to lead an orderly life according to rules laid down by the government, which also provides a high level of care for its people. This level of care costs money.

　　People in Sweden pay taxes on everything, so aren't surprised to find that owning a dog means yet more taxes. Some people are paying as much as 500 Swedish kronor in taxes a year for the right to keep their dog, money that is spent by the government on dog hospital sand sometimes medical treatment for a dog that falls ill.

　　However, most such treatment is expensive, so owners often decide to pay health and even life insurance(保险)for their dog.

　　In Sweden dog owners must pay for any damage(损坏) their dog does. A Swedish Kennel Club official explains what this means: if your dog runs out on the road and gets hit by a passing car, you, as the owner, have to pay for any damage done to the car, even if your dog has been killed in the accident.

　　1.Birgitta pays taxes for Allan because ______.

　　A. he is her dog

　　B. he is her child

　　C. he follows her everywhere

　　D. he often falls ill

　　2.The money paid as dog taxes is used to ______.

　　A. keep a high level of care for the people

　　B. pay for damage done by dogs

　　C. provide medical care for dogs

　　D. buy insurance for dog owners

　　3.If a dog causes a car accident and gets killed, who should pay for the damage done to the car? ______

　　A. The owner of the car

　　B. The owner of the dog

　　C. The insurance company (公司)

　　D. The government

　　4.From the text it can be inferred that in Sweden ______.

　　A. dogs are welcome in public places

　　B. keeping dogs means asking for trouble

　　C. many car accidents are caused by dogs

　　D. people care much about dogs

　　B

　　When a group of children politely stop a conversation with you, saying: "We have to go to work now," you're left feeling surprised and certainly uneasy. After all, this is the 1990s and the idea of children working is just unthinkable. That is, until you are told that they are all pupils of stage schools, and that the "work" they go off to is to go on the stage in a theatre.

　　Stage schools often act as agencies (代理机构) to supply children for stage and television work. More worthy of the name "stage school" are those few places where children attend full time, with a training for the theatre and a general education.

　　A visit to such schools will leave you in no doubt that the children enjoy themselves. After all, what lively children wouldn't settle for spending only half the day doing ordinary school work, and acting, singing or dancing their way through the other half of the day?

　　Then of course there are times for the children to make a name and make a little money in some big shows. Some stage schools give their children too much professional work at such a young age. But the law is very tight on the amount they can do. Those under 13 are limited to 40 days in the year; those over 13 do 80 days.

　　The schools themselves admit that not all children will be successful in the profession for which they are being trained. So what happens to those who don't make it? While all the leading schools say they place great importance on children getting good study results, the facts seem to suggest this is not always the case.

　　5. People would stop feeling uneasy when realizing that the children they're talking to ______.

　　A. attend a stage school

　　B. are going to the theatre

　　C. have got some work to do

　　D. love singing and dancing

　　5. In the writer's opinion, a good stage school should ______.

　　A. produce star performers

　　B. help pupils improve their study skills

　　C. train pupils in language and performing arts

　　D. provide a general education and stage training

　　7."Professional work" as used in the text means ______.

　　A. ordinary school work

　　B. money-making performances

　　C. stage training at school

　　D. acting, singing or dancing after class

　　8.Which of the following best describes how the writer feels about stage schools? He ______.

　　A. thinks highly of what they have to offer

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