Education has always been important to Carolyn Patton, but life always seemed to “get in the way” every time she tried to finish her bachelor’s degree. The single mom was so busy working to support her two children that she repeatedly put her own education goals on hold, abandoning her college program on two separate occasions over the years.

When he was just 5 years old, her son Immanuel Patton noticed her struggling to get her degree, and he made a promise to help her. “I remember I just told my mom...one day, it’s gonna be you and me,” Immanuel said. “We’re going to get our degrees at the same time.” Those words proved to be prophetic for the mom-and-son duo, who recently walked across the stage at the university to collect their bachelor’s degrees together!

“That promise, he never allowed it to die,” said Carolyn. “It was continuously, ‘You know, mom, we’re gonna do this.’” Their path to graduation wasn’t easy, but Immanuel stayed true to his promise and helped his mother along the way. The two hold two associate’s degrees each, so in fall of 2020 they enrolled together in bachelor-level online courses. They both found the classes challenging, but Immanuel stepped up as the cheerleader his mother needed. “I said, ‘Ma, you’ve got to keep it going. I know you want to stop. We got to keep going,’” Immanuel recalled. “The main thing was just trying to get everything lined up and stay on top of her as well stay on top of myself.”

It took the Pattons two years to finish their bachelor’s degrees, hers in humanities and Immanuel’s in public safety administration. Carolyn plans to stay at her job as a coordinator, and Immanuel has accepted a job at university to help other students succeed in college, too.

Carolyn says she’s incredibly proud of Immanuel’s achievement, and she personally couldn’t have reached her lifelong goal without the support of her family, especially him. “Between my son and my daughter, they were my greatest supporters,” Carolyn said.

1.What does the underlined word “prophetic” probably mean?

A Permanent.

B Passive.

C Predictable.

D Particular.

解析：选C。C词义猜测题。根据划线部分后文“who recently walked across the stage at the university to collect their bachelor’s degrees together”可知，这对母子最近都拿到了自己的学士学位，即前文Immanuel说的话“We’re going to get our degrees at the same time.”是“可预见的，可预料的”。故选C。

2.What can we know about the Pattons?

A They took online courses at the same time.

B Carolyn thought the courses were more challenging.

C Immanuel majored in humanities at university.

D Carolyn now works as a university teacher.

解析：选A。A细节理解题。根据第三段的“The two hold two associate’s degrees each, so in fall of 2020 they enrolled together in bachelor-level online courses.”可知，他们母子俩在2020年的秋天一起报名了学士在线课程。故选A。

3.Which of the following can best describe Immanuel?

A He’s the good man of the house.

B He’s a tall man of his hands.

C He’s a man among men.

D He’s a man of his word.

解析：选D。D推理判断题。根据全文内容可知，Immanuel尽全力鼓励母亲坚持以及关键词句“Immanuel stayed true to his promise”以及最后一段母亲Carolyn说的话“she personally couldn’t have reached her lifelong goal without the support of her family, especially him.”等可知，Immanuel是一个信守诺言的人。He’s the good man of the house.“他是一家之主。”He’s a tall man of his hands.“他是手艺人。”He’s a man among men.“他是个很突出的人。”He’s a man of his word.“他是个信守诺言的人。”故选D。

4.What can be the best title of the passage?

A Families help each other.

B We value the time being with families.

C The home is our heaven.

D Each family has its own problems.

解析：选A。A主旨大意题。根据全文内容可知，一位在5岁时许下诺言要和妈妈一起获得学士学位的男孩，在多年后实现了自己的诺言，和妈妈一起获得了学士学位。这是一则家人帮助家人的温馨故事。故选A。