You may know your mother, but how well do you really know Mother’s Day? Cards, flowers, sales, TV specials, and a day off for someone who really deserves it —those are what probably come to mind for many people when they think of Mother’s Day. But there’s more about the story.
The earliest Mother’s Day celebrations were held during spring in Ancient Greece. The celebrations honored Rhea, the Mother of the gods. During the 1600s, England celebrated a day called Mothering Sunday. On this day even servants (仆人) were given the day off to spend with their families. A mothering cake was even served with the family meal.
In the U.S., Mother’s Day began in 1872 when Julia Ward Howe, who wrote the words of the famous song The Battle Hymn of the Republic, suggested it as a day devoted to peace. But it didn’t really become popular until 1907 when Anna Jarvis started a campaign (运动) to honor her own mother. She believed that mothers could help people get over the pain they experienced during the Civil War. The U.S. isn’t alone in devoting a day to its mothers. Many other countries including Denmark, Finland, Italy, Turkey, Australia, Japan, and Belgium also celebrate their Mother’s Day in May. Other countries honor their mothers at different times of the year.
Learning more about Mother’s Day and celebrating Mother’s Day is important, but probably not as important as understanding what your own mother, or grandmother, or aunt has really done for you. And that should certainly be appreciated more than one day in a year.
小题1:What is the passage mainly about?
A．The reason why people celebrate Mother’s Day.
B．How people honor mothers.
C．The history of Mother’s Day.
D．Mother’s Day in different countries.小题2:Where was the earliest Mother’s Day celebrated?
A．In Ancient Greece.
B．In the U.S.
C．In England.
D．In Italy.小题3:According to the third paragraph, we know that _____.
A．Julia Ward Howe composed a song about Mother’s Day
B．American people started to celebrate Mother’s Day in 1907
C．Anna Jarvis attached great importance to mothers
D．Mother’s Day celebrations are held in different times in the U.S. every year小题4:The last paragraph tells us that ______.
A．all the people should celebrate Mother’s Day
B．only mothers are honored on Mother’s Day
C．understanding mothers’work is more important than just celebrating Mother’s Day
D．people should make every day a Mother’s Day
小题1:C
小题2:A
小题3:C
小题4:C
题目分析：本文讲述了母亲节的历史，节日起源于古希腊。古希腊人向希腊众神之母Rhea致敬。在17世纪中叶，母亲节流传到英国，在这一天仆人放一天的假回家和家人团聚，并且吃上一块大的蛋糕。后来美国和其他的一些国家也相继有了母亲节。
小题1:主旨大意题。根据全文的内容来看主要讲述的是母亲节的历史，故选C。
小题2:细节理解题。根据The earliest Mother’s Day celebrations were held during spring in Ancient Greece.故选A。
小题3:细节理解题。根据She believed that mothers could help people get over the pain they experienced during the Civil War. 她提出母亲的重要性，故选C。
小题4:细节理解题。根据Learning more about Mother’s Day and celebrating Mother’s Day is important, but probably not as important as understanding what your own mother, or grandmother, or aunt has really done for you. And that should certainly be appreciated more than one day in a year.理解母亲是更重要的比仅仅过母亲节，故选C。
点评：细节题为阅读考题的重头戏，所占比例高达80% ，相对而言较简单，因为这类题虽然要求理解准确，但基本上限于字面意义的理解，范围也限于局部，因此是我们可望得高分的部分。细节题绝大部分体现“中心思想是解”这一原理。本文都是细节理解题，在文中比较容易找到答案。