五、阅读理解
The brush pen, one of the "Four Treasures of the Study", was invented thousands of years ago. However, the oldest pen was just a stick or a piece of bamboo. It was difficult for people to write well on thin silk.
It is said that Meng Tian, a general (将军) of the State of Qin, improved the pen. When Meng was leading an army to fight against the State of Chu, he had to report the situation to his king in time. But his pen was too hard and caused him much trouble, so he was thinking of ways to improve it.
One day after hunting, Meng made his way home with some wild rabbits on the horse back. Fat and heavy, one rabbit's tail left a long trail (痕迹) on the ground when they moved on. Suddenly a good idea came to his mind, "If I tie the rabbit's hair to a stick, would it be easy to write with?"
On arriving home, he tied the rabbit's hair to a stick and tried writing with it. But the rabbit's hair was too smooth to write well and wasted a lot of silk. Meng was so disappointed (失望的) that he threw away his "invention" into a stone hole in the yard.
However, Meng never gave up and kept trying all the time. A few rainy days later, he happened to find his "invention" fatter in a stone hole. He picked it up with hope. The brush worked beautifully on silk. It turned out that the special water had cleaned the oil from the hair. Meng succeeded at last.
Thanks to Meng, the brush pen is playing a key role in Chinese culture. Today, students are taught to use the brush pens in school. It makes their life more colourful and helps them better understand Chinese culture.
()1. Why did Meng Tian want to improve the pen?
A. Because the king asked him to do so.
B. Because he wanted to be an inventor.
C. Because he didn't have silk to write on.
D. Because the pen brought him much trouble.
()2. When did Meng think of the good idea in Paragraph 3?
A. Before hunting animals. B. When he saw the trail.
C. During cleaning the hair. D. After he wrote a report.
()3. Which is the right order of improving the brush pen?
a. The brush pen could write well. b. Meng tied the rabbit's hair to a stick.
c. The special water washed the oil away.
d. Meng dropped the stick into a stone hole.
A. b-d-a-c B. d-b-a-c C. b-d-c-a D. c-d-b-a
()4. How can the students understand Chinese culture better according to the passage?
A. By learning to use brush pens. B. By playing a role.
C. By planting more bamboo. D. By inventing things.
()5. What can we learn from the passage?
A. Make friends with animals. B. Value fantastic memories.
C. Keep trying and never give up. D. Build a peaceful world.

1.D 2.B 3.C 4.A 5.C

【分析】
1. 第1题：题干询问蒙恬改进笔的原因，需定位到原文第二段，找到描述蒙恬原有笔问题的句子，提取关键信息“his pen was too hard and caused him much trouble”，即可得出答案。
2. 第2题：题干指向第三段蒙恬想到好主意的时间，需在第三段中找到“a good idea came to his mind”的前置场景，即看到兔子尾巴留下的痕迹时，对应选项。
3. 第3题：这是事件排序题，需梳理蒙恬改进毛笔的完整过程：先将兔毛绑在棍子上（b），因不好用扔到石洞里（d），之后洞里的特殊水洗净兔毛上的油（c），最后笔能正常书写（a），按此顺序匹配选项。
4. 第4题：题干询问学生理解中国文化的方式，定位到最后一段，找到“helps them better understand Chinese culture”的主语，即学习使用毛笔，对应选项。
5. 第5题：需总结文章主旨，蒙恬改进毛笔时经历失败但始终不放弃，最终成功，由此提炼出“坚持不放弃”的道理。
【解析】
1. 第1题：根据第二段“But his pen was too hard and caused him much trouble, so he was thinking of ways to improve it.”可知，蒙恬因为旧笔给他带来很多麻烦，所以想要改进笔，故选D。
2. 第2题：根据第三段“one rabbit's tail left a long trail (痕迹) on the ground when they moved on. Suddenly a good idea came to his mind”可知，蒙恬是看到兔子尾巴留下的痕迹时想到了好主意，故选B。
3. 第3题：根据文章内容，事件顺序为：蒙恬把兔毛绑在棍子上（b）→ 因不好用扔到石洞里（d）→ 洞里的特殊水洗掉兔毛上的油（c）→ 毛笔能正常书写（a），正确顺序是b-d-c-a，故选C。
4. 第4题：根据最后一段“Today, students are taught to use the brush pens in school. It makes their life more colourful and helps them better understand Chinese culture.”可知，学生通过学习使用毛笔能更好地理解中国文化，故选A。
5. 第5题：文章讲述蒙恬改进毛笔时，经历失败后没有放弃，最终成功的故事，告诉我们要坚持尝试、永不放弃的道理，故选C。
【答案】
1.D 2.B 3.C 4.A 5.C
【知识点】
阅读理解细节题、主旨大意题、事件排序题
【点评】
这篇阅读理解围绕毛笔的改进历程展开，既考查了学生对文章细节的抓取、事件逻辑的梳理能力，也考查了主旨提炼能力。题目设置贴合文章内容，难度适中，学生在解题的同时还能了解中国传统文化相关知识。
【难度系数】
0.7