One day, I came home after school and threw my gym bag and volleyball down at the floor. I had tried out for the school volleyball team, but I didn’t ________. I felt terrible. My mother tried to cheer me up, ________ nothing she did worked.

Finally, my mother sent me to visit my uncle ________ lived around the corner. “Are you still feeling bad?” my uncle asked. I guess my mother had told my uncle ________ my disappointment (失望). He ________ give me some good advice. He said, “Tommy, I’m ________ you for trying out for the volleyball team although you failed. You know what I do? Every year, I make a promise to ________ to try one new thing like a new sport, a new hobby or a new friend each year. Trying new things helps you grow as a person.”

One day, when I was walking by a school, I saw some kids ________ baseball. I thought about what my uncle had said, so I got close to the kids. It took some courage, but soon I was playing with them and having fun. From then on, I played with them every week.

A year ________, I became a happy player on our school baseball team. And I found this happiness because I tried ________ new.

One spring morning, Mrs. Jones was in her garden with her grandson. She said, “Justin, I ________ to plant some vegetables here. Are you going to help me?”

“Sure, Grandma, but could you tell me ________ you want to plant vegetables?” said Justin.

Mrs. Jones replied, “We can eat them when they are fully grown. But it will ________ a few months.”

Justin had no ________ of growing vegetables, so he asked in surprise, “A few months? Why don’t we just go to the store and ________ some?”

“Dear, when I was your age, my parents taught ________ to plant vegetables. I got some life skills ________ the farm work,” Mrs. Jones explained, “Planting is not a boring chore, but a(n) ________ activity. We can choose to plant our favorite vegetables and watch them grow up. More importantly, they taste ________ than those from stores.”

These words made Justin ________. “I can’t wait to try the interesting work, Grandma,” Justin said. At last, they decided to plant potatoes and tomatoes.

The next day, Mrs. Jones and Justin started ploughing and sowing (耕种). It took them several hours to ________ the work. Seeing the hopeful garden, Justin felt pleased.

Mrs. Jones and Justin ________ the garden carefully. As time went on, the tomatoes and potatoes grew bigger, which made Justin understand the importance of patience (耐心) and hard work.

________, it was time to harvest (收获). Justin picked lots of potatoes and tomatoes, and he shared some of them with his neighbors. Then he went home with the rest of the vegetables and ________ them to his grandma. Mrs. Jones used them to cook a dish. Justin tasted it and got a strong feeling of ________. “No pains, no gains. For me, nothing can be more delicious than it!” Justin said happily.

When I was about 12 years old, I really wanted a new bike! I told my parents my birthday ____, but I knew there was little hope because my family could ____ have that money.

On my birthday my parents told me they had my ____ outside in the back yard. At once (马上) I ____ out quickly to the yard. There was my bike, ____ it wasn’t the bike that I thought it would be. This one was pink, old and worn (破旧的) with age. How disappointing (失望) it was! I thought I hurt (伤害) my parents’ ____ because I could see disappointment ____ their faces, and I was sure they could see it on mine. Although I was ____ I got on the old bike and rode it. Also, I put on a smile (微笑), rode as ____ as I could and didn’t look back.

As time went by, I began to understand (明白) my parents gave me ____ much more than just a rusty (生锈的) old bike. They gave me a life lesson about ____. By now, I still remember this ____ because giving a gift is not about money. It’s about ____ love you can feel from it. So, when you get a gift from someone, never mind ____ it is. Do remember, the value (价值) of a gift that costs two dollars isn’t ____ than that of a gift costs one hundred dollars, or even more.

Good morning. My name is Lucy. I am twelve. I like sports, and I often play them _____ my friends after school. I can _____ tennis and ping-pong well. I think they are _____. I have a great sports collection (收藏品). I _____ a ping-pong ball, two ping-pong bats, three soccer balls and four tennis balls.

Lily is my sister. She likes _____, too. She doesn’t like tennis, _____ she likes basketball and volleyball. She often plays _____ at weekends, and she plays well. Lily has a great sports collection, _____—five basketballs, seven volleyballs and four baseballs and bats. But she doesn’t have any ping-pong balls.

Lily and I are in the _____ school, and we are in the same class, too. We ______ an interesting name in our school—“Sports Sisters”. That is fun.

【推荐2】When I got the driving license (驾照) last summer, Mom and I took our first trip around an empty parking lot. Then I found that my mother was not the best _________ for me. It wasn’t that she shouted, or told me that I was doing poorly. As you can imagine, my mother’s “helpful instructions” only managed to make me more _________.

Since I could no longer practice with her, the job was _________ in the hands of my father. The idea of learning from Dad was not the one that excited me. I loved him dearly, but I just did not see Dad as someone I could be comfortable leaning from. He almost never talked. We shared a typical father-daughter relationship. He’d ask how school was, and I’d say it was fine. _________, that was the most of our conversations. _________ hours alone with someone who might as well have been a stranger really scared me.

As we got into the car that first time, I was not _________ at what happened. Dad and I drove around, saying almost nothing, except from a few instructions on how to turn. As my lessons went on, however, things began to _________. Dad would turn the radio up so I could fully appreciate his favorite Stones music. And he actually began talking. I was soon hearing about past failed dates, “basic body” gym class, and other tales from his past.

Dad’s sudden _________ was shocking until I thought about why he was telling me so much in the car. In all the years that I had wondered why my father never spoke that much, I had never stopped to consider that it was because I had never spent time _________. Homework, friends, and even TV had all called me away from him, and, as a result, I never thought my quiet father had anything to say.

Since I began driving with him, my driving skill has greatly increased. More important, though, is that my knowledge of who my father is has also increased. Just living with him wasn’t __________—it took driving with him for me to get to know someone who was a mystery.

【推荐3】When I was a 9-year-old boy, I once decided to run away from home. With some bread in my __________, I started for the front door and said to Mom, “I’m leaving.”

“If you want to __________, that’s all right,” she said, “but you came into this home with nothing and you can leave the same way.” I threw my schoolbag on the floor __________ and started for the door again.

“Wait a minute,” Mom said, “You didn’t wear __________ when you were born.” This really made me get mad. I __________ my clothes-jacket, shoes, socks, underwear and all, shouting, “Can I go now?” “Yeah,” Mom answered, “but if you close that door, don’t come back again.”

I was so __________ that I shut the door and started again. When I stepped out, I suddenly realized that I was outside with no clothes on. Then I saw three girls walking towards our house. I ran to __________ behind a big tree quickly. After a while, I was sure the girls had walked away. I rushed to the front door and knocked on it loudly.

“Who’s there?” I heard.

“It’s Mike! Let me __________!”

The voice behind the door answered, “Mike doesn’t live here anymore. He ran away from home.”

I begged, “Mom! Mom! I’m __________ your son. Don’t keep me out of the door!”

Mom __________ the door with a smiling face. “Did you change your mind?” she asked.

“What’s for dinner?” I answered.

【推荐1】Last month, I met a homeless dog when I had a walk with my mother in the park. ______ dog looked dirty and weak with a thin body. I ______ to go to him with some food. He shook his tail and ran ______ towards me. ______ he saw my mother, he ran away in fear.

I began to take care ______ homeless pets after that. Each year, our city has 250,000 homeless pets and the number ______ increasing. What should we do to solve this serious problem? ______, the government should pass a law to protect homeless pets. Second, charities (慈善机构) need ______ money for more shelters (收容所). Besides, we need to provide food and medical care.

The problem of homeless pets will change for the better if we can work together to create a good world for ______. As for me, I will advise my mother to let me ______ homeless dog this summer. What do you think of the idea? Do you also like dogs?

At the opening ceremony (开幕典礼) of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, 44 children from the Malan Flower Choir sang the Olympic anthem (颂歌) in Greek. They are Deng Xiaolan’s students. She ______ to teach music in a village in Hebei for 18 years.

Deng began to learn music when she was young ______ both of her parents were music lovers. Deng loved music so much that she joined the school band after getting into Tsinghua University. In 2003, Deng went to the Malan village for a ceremony for the ______ time. She wanted to sing a song ______ the children. However, ______ of the children knew the well-known songs she named. Even when she asked if they could sing the national anthem (国歌), only two children ______ their hands.

“I felt so ______ that the children here couldn’t sing,” said Deng. “I like music a lot. It’s like my friend who’s ______ there when I’m happy or sad. If they couldn’t sing, then they wouldn’t know ______ to enjoy music.” She travelled between Beijing and the ______ to teach the children music.

She started the Malan Band two years later, the first ______ were six children from the village. Later, she ______ money to build a house called the “Music Castle” for children to study music. Deng said, “It is my only ______ that they could sing and find some happiness from music.”

______, Deng died on March 21, 2022. During her lifetime, she taught over 200 students. Many of them left the mountainous village to ______ university education.

【推荐3】I sat down in my seat waiting for the plane to take off. A line of ________ came over and filled all the empty seats.

After a while, we were told that packed lunches were ________ for $5. As I reached for my wallet to buy one, I overheard a soldier ask another if he planned to buy lunch. “No, that seems like a lot of money for just a packed lunch.” I ________ at the other soldiers. None of the soldiers were buying lunch. I walked to the back of the plane and handed the flight staff a $50 bill. “Take a lunch to all those soldiers.”

After I finished eating, I went to the restroom. A man stopped me. “I saw what you did. I want to be ________ of it. Here, take this.” He handed me $25. Soon after I ________ to my seat, the Flight Captain (机长) came to me and said, “I want to shake your hand, I was a military (军队) pilot. Once, someone bought me a lunch. It was an act of ________ I never forgot.” Later I walked to the front of the plane. A man who was seated about six rows in front of me ________ his hand, wanting to shake mine. He left another $25 in my hand.

When we landed in New York, I picked up my things. While waiting to get off, a man passed by and put something in my pocket. Another $25! I walked over to the soldiers and ________ them $75. These soldiers were giving their all for our ________. I could ________ give them a couple of meals. It seemed so little.