and didn't know what to do.

　　My parents agreed that I was short of talent. "Maybe you should go to preparatory school (预科学校) for an additional year，" my mother suggested. Preparatory school? Was she crazy? I wasn't the greatest student, but I couldn't go to a preparatory school. I thought that was for stupid kids - kids who don't get good jobs or succeed in life.

　　My grandfather, who recently passed away, has had the greatest influence on my life. I knewthathe graduated from a top college, Bowdoin, but I didn't know whether this was my best bet, and feared finding the perfect school would be difficult.

　　Then, I heard about New Hampton School from a friend and decided to visit. I was blown away and immediately felt comfortable. I became hesitant (犹豫的) to visit other schools because I couldn't imagine any other would be as educating as New Hampton. The staff gave me a warm feeling, which meant a lot to a kid from a small town. Even though I'm a senior, I will be able to better prepare myself for college at New Hampton School. I feel the staff will help me get that extra year of development to make sure that I will be ready for college. Then I'll go.

　　9．Why didn't the author apply to Tufts or Berkeley?

　　A．He didn't want to go to college.

　　B．They were common universities.

　　C．He didn't reach their admission standards.

　　D．He wanted to go to a university better than them.

　　10．The author didn't want to go to preparatory school at the beginning because ________.

　　A．he was a kid from a small town

　　B．it was difficult to find a good preparatory school

　　C．going to preparatory school was his mother's choice

　　D．he thought only stupid kids would go to preparatory school

　　11．The fact that the author's grandfather had attended preparatory school ________.

　　A．encouraged the author to go to top college, Bowdoin

　　B．made the author find the perfect school more easily

　　C．changed the author's original idea about preparatory school

　　D．made the author find the perfect school with more difficulty

　　12．What attracted the author most in New Hampton School?

　　A．The name of the school.

　　B．The staff of the school.

　　C．The location of the school.

　　D．The living conditions of the school.

　　课下能力提升(五)

　　1．解析：选B　细节理解题。根据文章第一段"When his report card arrived during his junior year, it said that he had been absent 95 times from classes and had six falling grades for the year."可知。

　　2．解析：选C　句意理解题。根据文章第二段"I love my son but I just don't know what to do. I've tried everything to get Karl to go back to school and nothing has worked."可知。

　　3．解析：选C　推理判断题。根据文章最后一段"I thought I'd play a joke but when I heard what you said, it really hit me how much I was hurting you."可知。

　　4．解析：选D　推理判断题。通读全文可知，正是母亲的爱让Karl从失去父亲的悲痛中振作起来，努力学习，成为让母亲自豪的人。故D项为最佳选项。

　　5．解析：选B　词义猜测题。根据上下文可知，prom指"毕业舞会"。

6．解析：选D　细节理解题。根据第三段的内容可知，举办毕业舞会，标志着他们的毕业和独立。