Ⅳ. 阅读理解(10分)

Jack thought himself a basketball fan. He watched quite a lot of American NBA basketball games. Not only did he watch them, he spent much of his free time playing on the court too. Then came the final year of his middle school. All of his regular teammates stopped showing up on the court because they were simply too busy preparing for the high school entrance exam to play. He was, of course, under much stress himself, like everyone else. A good exam result meant a good high school; a mediocre(平庸的)score meant a mediocre school. Much was at stake. However, he loved basketball so much that he still found time to play, this time with a group of guys who were said to have skipped classes(逃课)before.

Some of his teachers started worrying about him. They asked his mother to go to school to let her know that Jack was hanging out with problem kids. When his mother returned home that day, she wanted to talk to Jack. Knowing the purpose of her visit to the school, Jack thought his mother would punish him for befriending those bad guys. To his surprise, his mother was not angry with him at all. She wanted to hear her son’s side of the story. So Jack told his mother about what he knew of Simon and Peter. Simon’s parents were badly ill; Peter’s father had lost his job. They both seemed to Jack to be normal kids. Jack’s mother thought for a moment, then went on to say that she was OK with her son playing with them and that she and her son should think of ways to help these kids. Soon Jack’s mum introduced some part-time jobs to Simon and Peter, which they accepted. She believed in her son and cared about those who were less lucky.

Jack’s basketball friends and he have left for different places, but they still keep in touch. He knows Peter is now a manager of a local bank. Simon is currently a freshman at a university. Sadly, it is impossible to get together to play basketball again, but whenever they get on the phone, they talk about it all the time.

1. After Jack’s mother came home from school, she　　　.

A. was angry with him

B. told him what his teachers had said

C. asked him to keep away from problem kids

D. was patient enough to listen to her son’s words

2. What does the underlined sentence “Much was at stake” probably mean in the passage?

A. Jack must be punished by his mother.

B. Jack might not enter a good high school.

C. Jack might get hurt when playing basketball.

D. Jack must be influenced badly by problem kids.

3. Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?

A. Peter’s family are living much better.

B. Simon is now studying at a university.

C. Jack’s mum understood him instead of blaming him.

D. Jack’s teachers wanted his mother to help his friends.

4. The main idea of the passage is to tell us to　　　.

A. make friends with problem kids

B. keep in touch with friends all the time

C. try to understand children and help problem kids

D. give up hobbies before the high school entrance exam