PETS

Between Parents and Us

A

Although Father’s Day may be celebrated at different times of the year in different parts of the world, I think the importance of the day remains the same. It is a day to show our love and respect for our fathers.

As a young girl, I remember the excitement I felt whenever I had a chance to spend time with my father on the farm. Although he was busy doing his work, being with him was what mattered most to me. I can remember my father giving orders to the dogs as they corralled1 the sheep. I held his strong hands as we crossed the yard to close the gate behind the last sheep.

It was amazing to see that my dad wrestled sheep after sheep to get them into just the right position for shearing2. I remember the sweat pouring down from his head when he worked hard, shearing one sheep after another, pausing now and then to have a drink of water and give me a smile.

Later we would go back to the house in our old car. I sat in the front seat, feeling like a queen, with my dad next to me and the dogs in the back.

My father’s memory of the same day may be quite different, but no matter which story you hear, it all comes down to one thing: It doesn’t matter who my father was; it matters who I remember him to be.

Notes:

1. corral v.将(家畜)关进畜栏

2. shear v.修剪(羊毛)

Read the passage and choose the best answer for each question.

1. Which word below helps you conclude that the passage contains opinions?

A. Pour. B. Amazing.

C. Give. D. Pause.

2. _____ is a fact.

A. "Although Father’s Day may be celebrated at different times of the year, the importance of the day remains the same."

B. "It doesn’t matter who my father was; it matters who I remember him to be."

C. "Father and I crossed the yard hand in hand to close the gate."

D. "It was amazing to see my dad wrestled sheep after sheep to get them into the right position for shearing."

B

Recently, my younger brother passed away at the age of 38. I cleaned his things up and gave everything that could be used to those who needed them.

I came across a Father’s Day card I had given nearly 35 years ago, and the thought of it brought a tear to my eyes and gave me an idea.

When I was growing up, I was told to make hand-made cards for our parents at school. It was a pleasant experience but a little uncomfortable for me because only my mom was left.

Anyway, we created Happy Father’s Day cards to bring home. I thought that my mom played both roles in our home, so on the front of the card, where it read Happy Father’s Day, I added the word "mom" to the text and gave it to her. Mom was very happy!

My younger brother had gotten many of Mom’s things when she moved to Florida. He had remembered that Mom loved the card, and he did not want to lose it. It remained with him until his death.

This card gave me the idea for creating a line of gifts for children seeking a similar gift, as I have never found a similar product yet. The website called Happy Father’s Day, Mom was created with some of the profits going to Mom to support her retirement. Who would have thought it could go this far? I am not sure how many more years Mom will be with us, but I know I will always have the memory of the card that read "Happy Father’s Day, Mom".

Note:

retirement n.退休

Read the passage and choose the best answer for each question.

1. Which of the following word helps you infer that the passage contains facts?

A. Pleasant.

B. Remained.

C. Happy.

D. Similar.

2. Which word below helps you conclude that the third paragraph contains opinions?

A. Uncomfortable.

B. Grow.

C. Parents.

D. School.

C

The more fathers care, the more problems they have. This is not surprising for a society that has focused on motherhood for hundreds of years. Why do scientists close their eyes to the problems surrounding fatherhood? What is the relationship between fathers and children?

"Sometimes children decide to end contact with their fathers for one or two years. I think it’s difficult for fathers," Ed Spruijt, a social scientist, said. He has shown that a pause of contact could lead to the restoration of the father-child relationship. Different opinions of parents likely have little to do with this. Ending contact has more to do with the amount of time fathers spend taking care of their children.

"If you’ve spent a lot of care-giving time with your children, there is a greater chance that the father-child relationship will continue," a research found.

Fatherhood researcher Duindam supports Spruijt’s statement with two research papers. However, in one of the papers, he tries to show that taking on a classic parental role results in a better chance that the father-child contact will continue. The latter study spoken of by Duindam describes traditional care by fathers, such as visiting the school and discussing with the mother any problems with the children, rather than the physical care giving, such as feeding.

Note:

contact n.(尤指经常的)联系

Read the passage and choose the best answer for each question.

1. Which word below shows that the passage contains opinions?

A. Difficult.

B. Support.

C. Contact.

D. Statement.

2. _____ is an opinion.

A. "Fatherhood researcher Duindam supports Spruijt’s statement with two research papers."

B. "Duindam is a scientist and has written two research papers on the father-child contact."

C. "Sometimes children decide to end contact with their fathers for one or two years. I think it’s difficult for fathers."

D. "If you’ve spent a lot of care-giving time with your children, there is a greater chance that the father-child relationship will continue."

D

More and more parents are preparing for their children’s financial1 future, new research shows.

In the study done by Mutual Assurance, about a third of mums and dads put money away for their children. Because their parents continually save money for them, children do not have to worry about their spending as much. It will also help the children a great deal in the future because they will have the money that their parents saved for them in case there is a problem.

Meanwhile, just under half of parents have the habit of giving out lots of pocket money. The financial services company suggests that these parents, who give their kids a lot of money for allowance, are the least likely to be saving for the child’s future. The result of this is that these children may run into many financial difficulties in the future.

Overall, East Midlands is the area where kids are the most likely to receive pocket money. 55% of parents give their children money. In addition, this is also the area where many children may face a hard financial future as less than one in five grown-ups are saving regular2 amounts of money for them. London, on the other hand, is the place where parents give their children the least amount of pocket money.

Looking at the results of the research, Karl Elliott, the spokesperson for Mutual Assurance, said, "In a credit card society that is driven by a have-it-now culture, it is nice to see so many parents saving for their kids’ future. Children whose parents are giving them less pocket money will thank them in the years to come, when they enjoy the benefits of all the money that their parents saved up for them."

Notes:

1. financial adj.财政的

2. regular adj.经常的;定时的

Read the passage and answer the following questions.

1. Find in the passage a word closest in meaning to the underlined phrase "pocket money".

2. According to Karl Elliott, what will the future of children whose parents give out less pocket money be like? (回答词数不超过20个)

3. According to the people at Mutual Assurance, what is the problem with parents not saving money for their kids? (回答词数不超过15个)

参考答案：

阅读理解A： 1-2 B C

阅读理解B： 1-2 B A

阅读理解C： 1-2 A C

阅读新题型

1. Allowance.

2. They will enjoy the benefits of all of the money that their parents saved up for them.

3. It will be easier for these kids to run into financial difficulties in the future.

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