Reading comprehension.
In America it is common for children as young as four to participate in organized activities. Piano and
ballet lessons, scouts meetings, soccer and softball practices surround their normal school schedules.
However, one person is very important in the logistics of how these children are able to get from swimming
practice to French lessons: The Soccer Mom.
The Soccer Mom is a very important stereotype in American suburban life. The phrase Soccer Mom was
first created in 1995 and broadly refers to a married middle-class woman who lives in the suburbs, works
outside the home and has school age children. Much of her time is spent managing her children's schedules
and transporting them to sporting events and other activities. The image of the Soccer Mom conjures a busy
woman who drives a minivan large enough to contain her children, their friends and their sporting equipment.
Once they arrive at the sporting event or other activity, the Soccer Mom will stay to watch, serving granola
bars and juice to their children after their game or activity is finished.
In America, the roles of mother and of career woman demand opposite responsibilities from a woman.
The role of a career woman is to work hard and climb the corporate ladder, while the role of mother often
asks women to put her family's interests ahead of her own. The Soccer Mom attempts to straddle this divide,
at once balancing her children and their activities with her own life outside her family. The Soccer Mom
becomes overburdened with the weight of responsibilities A 1999 poll states that being stressed out is one of
the most frequently mentioned characteristics of a Soccer Mona. Yet without Soccer Moms, who would fill
the responsibilities of getting children to where they needed to be?
1. The best title for this passage is "_____".
A. The Hectic Lifestyle of Suburban Children
B. The American Family
C. Minivans the Realm of the Soccer Mom
D. Soccer Moms in American Society
2. The main role of Soccer Moms is _____.
A. transporting their children
B. buying things for their children
C. pushing their children to achieve
D. a successful career
3. Why are American mothers stressed out?
A. Because they are very career centered.
B. Because they work and have children.
C. Because they push their children to achieve.
D. Because their husbands are lazy.
4. What is a frequently mentioned characteristic of Soccer Moms?
A. Overburdened.
B. Works outside the home.
C. Has young children.
D. Brings juice to soccer games.
5. What does "Climbing the corporate ladder" mean?
A. Working.
B. Having a career as a woman.
C. Advancing your career.
D. Working in a ladder factory.
