题文
When Steve Maxwell graduated from college, he had an engineering degree and a high tech job — but he couldn’t balance his checkbook. “I took one finance class in college but dropped it to go on a ski trip,” says the 45-year-old father of three, who lives in Windsor, Colorado. “I actually had to go to my bank and ask them to teach me how to read my statement.”One of the biggest obstacles to making money is not understanding it: Thousands of us avoid investing because we just don’t get it. But to make money, you must be financially literate. “It bothered me that I didn’t understand this stuff,” says Steve, “so I read books and magazines about money management and investing, and I asked every financial whiz (能手) I knew to explain things to me.”
He and his wife started applying the lessons: They made a point to live below their means. They never bought on impulse, always negotiated better deals (on their cars，cable bills, furniture) and stayed in their home long after they went for an expensive vacation. They also put 20 percent of their annual salary into investments.
Within ten years, they were millionaires, and people were coming to Steve for advice. “Someone would say, ‘I need to refinance my house — what should I do? ‘A lot of times, I wouldn’t know the answer, but I’d go to find it and learn something in the process,” he says.
In 2003, Steve quit his job to become part owner of a company that holds personal finance seminars for employees of corporations like Wal Mart. He also started going to real estate investment seminars, and it’s paid off: He now owns $ 30 million worth of investment properties, including apartment complexes, a shopping mall and a quarry.
“I was an engineer who never thought this life was possible, but all it truly takes is a little self education,” says Steve. “You can do anything once you understand the basics.”
小题1:The underlined part “live below their means” (in Paragraph 3) probably means “______”.A．take effective measuresB．live a miserable lifeC．spend more money than they hadD．spend less money than they had小题2:Since Steve Maxwell became a millionaire, he ______.A．has been unwilling to help othersB．hasn’t stopped learning from practiceC．has been willing to follow others’ adviceD．has stopped to invest in houses小题3:What would be the best title for the passage?A．A self made engineerB．How to balance your checkbookC．Don’t avoid investing D．Educate yourself to become a millionaire小题4:It can be inferred from the passage that ______.A．self education is very important to one’s lifeB．everyone should learn how to invest in their lifeC．Steve Maxwell was quite interested in finance classes in collegeD．Steve became rich because he saved every penny he had earned 题型：未知 难度：其他题型
答案
小题1:D
小题2:B
小题3:D
小题4:A
解析
本文讲述了Steve从自己的经历中取得经验，开始的时候他也不会理财，后来经过学习，合理花钱有节制，最终成为了百万富翁，通过这个情况告诉我们如何理财。
小题1:D 推理题。根据该句的下一句They never bought on impulse, always negotiated better deals (on their cars，cable bills, furniture) and stayed in their home long after they went for an expensive vacation.说明他们量入为出，有节制，不乱花钱。故D的说法正确。
小题2:B 推理题。根据倒数1,2行‘A lot of times, I wouldn’t know the answer, but I’d go to find it and learn something in the process,” he says.说明他一直在学习，故B正确。
小题3:D 主旨大意题。本文讲述了Steve从自己的经历中取得经验，开始的时候他也不会理财，后来经过学习，合理花钱有节制，最终成为了百万富翁，通过这个情况告诉我们如何理财。故D正确。
小题4:A 推断题。Steve从自己的经历中取得经验，开始的时候他也不会理财，后来经过学习，合理花钱有节制，最终成为了百万富翁，他的所有的成功都是通过自己的个人努力，自我教育实现的。故A正确。
点评：本文讲述了Steve从自己的经历中取得经验，开始的时候他也不会理财，后来经过学习，合理花钱有节制，最终成为了百万富翁，通过这个情况告诉我们如何理财。考查推理题为主，要求考生仔细审题，认真地考虑题目及选项，结合上下文的语义进行合理的推测和判断。
考点
据考高分专家说，试题“When Steve Maxwell g.....”主要考查你对 [政治经济类阅读 ]考点的理解。政治经济类阅读
政治经济类文章的概念：
要做好这类阅读，平时就要注意了解国内外发生的政治经济大事，掌握一定背景知识，对这类文章的叙述特点及内容安排有一定了解，还要扩展这方面的词汇。阅读这类文章，要抓住文章的核心，即文章整体和各段主要在说什么，也要注意段落之间的逻辑关系。
如何备考政治经济类阅读理解题：
【题型说明】政治经济类阅读文章是高考常选材料之一。该类文章时代气息浓郁，语言鲜活，但熟字新义词、超纲词及专业词语多，长句、难句多。政治类文章大多数是同学们感性趣的内容，读起来倒有似曾相识的感觉，经济类文章读起来就像是雾里看花，文章看完，一头雾水。再加之这类文章的命题侧重于词义猜测、推理判断和文章主旨，同学们对这类题材是望而生畏。
【备考策略】建立心理优势。针对不同体裁的文章，我们要采取相应的阅读方法和技巧。政治类文章多采用记叙文形式，我们可采取“顺读法”，以便抓关键语句，领会文章主旨；而经济类文章则多采用说明文形式，我们则可以采取“逆读法”，先读试题，再从文章中查找有用信息。若遇到的确难读的材料。千万不用着急，因为你觉得难，其他人也一定是同感。在高考前，我们就要有这种心理准备，高考试卷肯定有一、两篇难以阅读的材料。不过，我们平时可以有意识地从报刊杂志上找一些较难的阅读材料来阅读，以培养自己迎难而上的心理素质。
【答题方法】
1、寻找主干：
根据英语中五种基本句型结构，把句子中的主语、谓语、宾语、表语等主要成分找出来，其他成分如定语、状语、补语等则易于理解。找到了句子主干，句子的意思至少明白了一半。
2、剔除从句：
在一个长句中可能会出现若干个从句，在理解时，如果把各个从句剔除出来单独理解，然后把大意拼凑起来，整个长句的意思就会明白六、七分。
3、辨别分句：
一个长句如果是由几个并列、转折、递进、对比关系的分句组成，句中往往有表示这些分句关系的连接词，只要能弄清楚分句和分句之间的逻辑关系，再把各层分句的意思加以连贯，整个长句的句意基本上能跃然脑中。
4、寻找关键词：
如果一个句子看完，一点句意的感觉也没有，下下策就是抓住句中的关键词，通过关键词大体弄懂这个长句的意思。
