四、阅读理解
It was a grey, windy day, and I walked alone in the nearby woods, my heart as heavy as the sky—I just needed space to sort out my messy thoughts.
I ran into an old man sitting on a stone, who noticed I was down and asked softly, “Son, you look like you've got the weight of the world on your shoulders. What's eating you?”
I let out a low breath and sat beside him, too tired to hold back my true feelings. “I'm done with school,” I said in a low voice. “I just can't keep up any more.”
“Done with school?” He raised an eyebrow. “There's no use running from your problems—slow and steady wins the race, kid.”
I shrugged (耸肩). “I'm not running,” I said. “I'm no good at exams. Every test is full of red crosses. I've tried, but nothing works. I guess I'm not smart enough, so what's the point anyway?”
The old man nodded and pointed to the ferns (蕨草). “I planted these a few years back with bamboo seeds. I watered them daily, and the ferns shot up fast, covering the ground in a month.”
“What about the bamboo?” I asked, looking over the dirt next to the ferns.
“Nothing at first,” he smiled. “My friends told me to give up, but I kept at it—time will tell everything, right?” “You never felt like giving up?” I asked, surprised.
“Sure I did sometimes,” he said, “but I didn't throw in the towel. The next year, ferns got thicker, but bamboo still didn't sprout (发芽)—I kept caring.”
“When did it grow?” I asked, drawing close, my sadness dying away.
“In the fifth year,” he said, eyes lighting up. “A tiny sprout poked out, so small that everyone laughed. But six months later, it became a 100-foot-tall bamboo, taller than the trees.”
I stared in wonder. “Why so fast after waiting so long?”
“Those five years weren't wasted,” he explained, gently touching my arm. “It grew deep, strong roots (根) to get water and nutrients (营养素)—without them, it would've never stood tall.”
I sat quietly, letting his words sink in. Maybe I was like the bamboo seed, needing time to “grow my roots” before getting better. When I left, the grey sky didn't feel so heavy any more.
() 1. What can we infer from the first five paragraphs?
A. The writer hated windy weather very much.
B. The writer felt lost and thought studying was meaningless.
C. The writer went to the woods to enjoy beautiful natural sights.
D. The writer was unwilling to share his true inner feelings with others.
() 2. The underlined phrase “throw in the towel” probably means “”.
A. continue to try one's best B. keep on doing something difficult
C. give up doing something D. throw a towel to someone in need
() 3. Why did the old man talk about ferns and bamboo?
A. To show his rich planting experience. B. To encourage the boy to grow plants.
C. To introduce different kinds of plants. D. To advise the boy not to lose heart easily.
() 4. What may the writer do next after hearing the old man's words?
A. He will learn to plant bamboo with the old man.
B. He will return to school and study hard.
C. He will stick to his decision and leave school forever.
D. He will take a long break before making a final choice.

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

【分析】
做这篇阅读理解需结合文章细节和上下文逻辑解题：1.第1题是推理判断题，需定位前5段作者的言行，判断他的状态；2.第2题是词义猜测题，需结合老人的态度推断短语含义；3.第3题是推理判断题，需理解老人讲植物故事的目的；4.第4题是推理判断题，需根据作者最后的心情变化推断后续行为。
【解析】
1.第1题：前5段作者提到“done with school”“can't keep up”“not smart enough, so what's the point”，可知他迷茫且觉得学习无意义，对应选项B；A错，作者是心情差而非讨厌风；C错，他去树林是整理思绪而非看风景；D错，他向老人倾诉了真实感受。
2.第2题：结合上下文，老人说朋友让他放弃竹子但他没做，“didn't throw in the towel”对应“没有放弃”，故该短语意为“放弃做某事”，选C。
3.第3题：老人用竹子需五年扎根才长高的例子，目的是鼓励遇到学业困境的作者不要轻易灰心，选D；A、B、C均不符合主旨。
4.第4题：作者听完老人的话后心情变好，不再沮丧，结合他之前的学业困境，推断他会回学校努力学习，选B；A、C、D不符合文意。
【答案】
1.B 2.C 3.D 4.B
【知识点】
英语阅读理解、推理判断题、词义猜测题
【点评】
本文是一篇富有哲理的记叙文，通过老人用蕨草与竹子的成长故事，引导学生理解“厚积薄发”的道理，考查学生对文章细节、词义及主旨的把握，是初中英语常见题型。
【难度系数】
0.6