Papa’s jaw dropped when Mama told him that Sister had cheated on her final exams—not to succeed but to fail. “It’s unbelievable!” he said. “Sister has always been so proud of her good grades!”
　　“Yes, she has,” said Mama. “But it’s not unbelievable. It just shows how badly she wanted off the swimming team.”
 　　“Wanted off the swimming team?” said Papa. “She never said anything about that to me.”
　　“Of course she didn’t,” said Mama. “She was afraid you’d blow your top. You already had her getting a swimming scholarship to college and winning gold medals at the Olympics. Can you imagine how much pressure she must have felt? For her, being on the team couldn’t have been much fun.”
　　“Oh, my gosh!” Papa said, clapping a hand to his forehead. “I’ve been so stupid! I just thought she’d want to be a champion swimmer because she’s so good at it.”
　　“It’s like anything else, dear,” said Mama. “No matter how good at it you are, if it stops being fun, you won’t want to do it anymore.”
　　Papa put his head in his hands.
　　“She must be really mad at me,” he mumbled. “Maybe I should say sorry to her.”
　　Sister’s footsteps could be heard on the stairs. She came into the kitchen and looked hopefully up at her parents.
　　“Honey,” said Mama with a smile, “your papa and I have decided that there’s no reason for you to be on the swimming team if you don’t want to.”
　　Sister’s face lit up like a Christmas tree. “Yippee!” she cried.
　　“And,” added Papa, “there’s no need for any more drills. I’m sure you’ll bring your grades back up all by yourself.”
　　Sister ran to Papa and jumped into his arms. She gave him a big hug. “I’m going to go p lay cards with Lizzy!” she said. “See you later!”[
　　From the kitchen window, Mama and Papa watched their daughter run down the sunny road toward Lizzy’s house.
　　“It’s good to see her happy again,” said Mama.
　　“It sure is,” Papa agreed. “As for the swimming team, there’s always next year.”
　　“If?” Mama prompted him.
　　“Oh, right,” said Papa. “If she wants to.”
　　Mama smiled. “At least you’re learning, dear,” she said. She kissed him.
　　“Well, you know what they say,” Papa said. “Better late than never.”
1. Sister wanted off the swimming team because _____.
A. she was not as good at swimming as ever before
B. she intended to improve her grades in her studies
C. she wanted to play cards far more than swimming
D. she felt it boring to struggle for Papa’s expectation
2. Mama insisted that the child should do _____.
A. what she was willing to                B. what she felt easy to 
C. what she was able to                  D. what she felt right to 
3. What do you think of Papa?
A. Cruel but reasonable.      B. Crazy but confident . 
C. Stu bborn but honest.      D. Ambitious but considerate.
4. Which might be the proper title for the passage?
A. Easier Said Th an Done        B. Health Is Better Than Wealth
C. Better Late Than Never    D. Something Is Better Than Nothing
 
【参考答案】1—4、DADC       

社会生活型阅读理解 
专题导读
社会生活型阅读文章在高考中的出现频率较高。它涉及人们衣、食、住、行等方面的社会万象、生活经历、饮食与健康、休闲与娱乐、生态旅游等内容。这类文章同学们读起来感觉轻松，试题做起来也比较得心应手。在高考阅读理解题中，这类文章属搭配类材料，所以，它的命题多数属于中低等难度的送分题，如事实细节题、计算题、识图题等。此类文章的命题多以事实细节题为主。做题时，要先从题干中找到关键性词语，然后快速在文章中寻找相关细节，细心比较所给选项与文中细节的区别，在准确理解了细节的前提下，最终确定最佳答案。