1 . Barbara, 70, and me, at 71, have swum together for at least 50 years. We swim in a quiet cove (小海湾). It’s home to seagulls, a duck or two, and kayaks (独木舟) on occasion. The difficult summer drought of 2021 brought a burning sun that warmed the water. As the drought eased and the water cooled in late August, we decided to keep swimming. We have both read Bonnie Tsui’s Why We Swim, a fine book about cold-water swimming. We challenged ourselves to swim for as long as possible through September and into October.
I have long loved swimming, though the fear of being seen as fat has dogged me. I am one of those female bodies poorly displayed in bathing suits. Cold-water swimming deepened my sense of well-being and let me use my body. It became a ritual Barbara and I embraced as swimming sisters. When she returned to the United States immediately after our Canadian Thanksgiving, I did not know how I could continue our cold-water tradition. I wasn’t prepared to freeze alone.
But, I had to swim; there were larger commitments I should stick to. In the summer, we planned to cross from the cove to an island across the lake. I had to stay fit. We also planned to host a cold-water swimming race for locals in the fall. We would make it an annual event, improving our strength and endurance (耐力) so that, in our 80s, we might swim through October and into November.
With these plans in mind, I joined my local city pool. I had not been in a public pool for about 30 years. But my body said swim, my brain said swim and my heart, could not let go. So I went anyway.
I am swimming. I am alive to my love of the water, alive to my promise for the spring and the summer that will come. I intend to step back into the lake in May, and through September and October with Barbara. We are perfectly matched in our devotion, and increasingly aware of the miracle of being able-bodied enough to share the cold-water wonder side by side.
1. Why was the book Why We Swim mentioned in the first paragraph?| A．It guided the author to learn to swim. |
| B．It analyzes the advantages of swimming. |
| C．It is the author’s favorite book about swimming. |
| D．It partly contributed to the author and Barbara’s common interest. |
| A．Promises . | B．Preparations . | C．Requirements . | D．Opportunities . |
| A．She went to a gym to improve her strength. |
| B．She became a member of the local public pool. |
| C．She swam across the lake to the island on her own. |
| D．She participated in a local cold-water swimming race. |
| A．To describe her friendship with Barbara. |
| B．To express her passion for cold-water swimming. |
| C．To recommend people to go swimming to keep fit. |
| D．To explain how she overcame her fear of swimming in public places. |
| A．It is helpful. | B．It is unexpected. | C．It is a great pity. |
3 . It is not always easy to keep a conversation going in English. You might not be sure about what to say. Or maybe you are afraid that your pronunciation is not good. So how can we continue a conversation in English?
Listen and follow up
First, remember the importance of listening. Listen to the other person attentively, so that you can ask a follow-up question. For example, let’s say the other person tells you, “I just got back from a trip to Canada.”
How was the food there?
Avold simple “yes” or “no” questions
If you want to keep a conversation going, it’s a good idea to ask questions that cannot be answered with a simple “yes” or “no”. If the other person asks you a “yes” or “no” question, try to give a longer answer to help keep the conversation going.
For example, a friend might ask, “Hey, have you seen the new Star Wars movie?” You could just answer, “No, I haven’t.”
Do not worry about your pronunciation. If your pronunciation is a little different, the other person will still understand your message if you try speaking slowly and clearly. When you are traveling in an English-speaking country and have some free time, be brave and speak in English with someone who does not look too busy.
| A．Or, you could say more. |
| B．Be brave and practice often. |
| C．You can try the following ways. |
| D．Why did you choose the destination? |
| E．Then you may make a new friend. |
| F．Correct your pronunciation if possible. |
| G．You can continue with a question using where, what, why, or how. |
When I was a kid, my parents were busy working so they enrolled (登记) me in the Spartak Tennis Club in Moscow. Every day after school my parents would take me to Spartak and I would be there until maybe nine o'clock. All we did was play tennis, eat, do homework, have fun and hang out. It was basically my second family.
In that second family was a woman who was like a mother to me, my first coach, Larissa. I still refer to her as my second mother. She taught me everything I know about how to play tennis, but she’s also a wonderful person. She’s kind and patient, which is not what you expect from one of the top tennis coaches in Russia.
Her program when I was little was based on tricking us into doing our exercises. She would put a candy under the cones (锥形物), and we would try to hit the targets with balls, you got to have an ice cream.
Of course we worked hard and I didn’t let her down.
My second-ever tournament was the Moscow Championships, and I won. Afterwards Larissa came up to me and said, “Congratulations, Enjoy today because tomorrow it’s back to work.” She was always telling us to celebrate and have fun with any particular achievement but to always remember there is something more you can do, something more you can achieve.
Now every time I go back to Russia I go to Spartak to see Larissa. We look at all the pictures from all the birthday parties and tournament and celebrations. It is really cool to have someone like her in my life. Larissa is still coaching, but we don’t talk much about tennis any more. We just talk.
1. Why did the author go to Spartak every day? (no more than 15 words)2. What does the author think of his coach? (no more than 10 words)
3. What’s Paragraph 3 mainly about? (no more than 10 words)
4. What does the underlined phrase “let her down” in Paragraph 4 mean? (no more than 5 words)
5. What can you learn from Larissa? (no more than 25 words)
6 . Biking is an amazing family activity, but finding a route that can accommodate a wide-range of ages can be a challenge.
Lee McNeil and his family are crazy about biking. They have seven children, from 4 to 24 years old. When looking for a route, they look for enough protection from traffic, good surface condition, easy access and interesting views.
With that in mind, here are some great routes for biking with your whole family, as are suggested by McNeil.
Iron Horse Trail
This is the McNeil family’s favourite ride. The route is 26 miles and goes through the 2.1mile Snoqualmie Tunnel.
“Beautiful views, the thrill the tunnel, and places to stop and watch the rock climbers make it special,” McNeil said. “All our kids have taken their turn at braving the black tunnel bravely for the first time, which we celebrate it at the end of the ride.”
How to get there: If you prefer, check http://bit.ly/Mlt9y4 for more information.
Centennial Trail
The Centennial Trail runs for 23 miles from Snohomish to Bryant. The trail is wide and smooth, and is safe for kids as it is off the roads. A nice stop is Lake Cassidy east of Marysville. A dock on the lake is fun to explore. It also has picnic tables and washrooms for a convenient lunch time stop.
How to get there: The trail can be accessed from a number of trailheads. For a map, go to http://bit.ly/L5qCeY.
Cascade Trail
The Cascade Trail follows an abandoned Burlington Northern railroad grade for 23 miles between Sedro-Woolley and Concrete. Because it’s on a railroad grade, the slope is gentle and it makes for an easy family ride.
McNeil said it is a “beautiful ride up the Skagit Valley, with lots of places to watch wildlife along the river.”
How to get there: Go to http://bit.ly/PR4wOW to see a map showing the trail, parking areas and bus stops .
Other good choices
Snoqualmie Valley Trail: http://l.usa.gov/nWGWO
Guemes Island: http://bit.ly/LJ3RxL
Burke-Gilman Trail: http://l.usa.gov/s33li
1. We can learn from the passage that Lee McNeil ________.| A．has a large family |
| B．often travels with his family |
| C．teaches his children how to bike |
| D．spends lots of money on bike rides |
| A．Cascade Trail | B．Iron Horse Trail |
| C．Centennial Trail | D．Burke-Gilman Trail |
| A．see a small valley | B．go through a tunnel |
| C．have a picnic for lunch | D．watch the rock climbers |
| A．http://bit.ly/Mlt9y4 | B．http://bit.ly/LJ3RxL |
| C．http://bit.ly/L5qCeY | D．http://bit.ly/PR4wOW |
| A．ask people to learn from Lee McNeil |
| B．tell people how to make a family ride |
| C．introduce some routes for family rides |
| D．encourage more people to ride bikes |
7 . We all know at least one person shows confidence and grace (优雅) without working at it.
Slouching (佝背)
Slouching is a huge no-no.
Weak Handshaking
It’s programmed in our minds to consider somebody with a weak handshake as untrustworthy. Unfortunately, there’s no way around it—you either have a firm handshake and appear trustworthy or you don’t. It’s not a good idea to have a crushing (太用力的) handshake, either.
Rolling Your Eyes
This is the classic way of showing discomfort or anger.
Leaning (倾斜) Back
| A．So try to stand straight |
| B．If you want your body to make the same impression |
| C．Sitting backward a bit can be good for your conversation |
| D．All cultures are different in terms of proper social conduct |
| E．But it’s one of the most commonly made body- language errors |
| F．It can feel good to respond to a silly statement by rolling your eyes |
| G．You can respond with similar amount of pressure that your shaking partner gives |
| A．To help her with her job. | B．To find a good job. | C．To go to America. |
(1) 从下表中选择对你影响最大的一位伟人，描述他（她）的主要事迹；
(2) 谈谈该伟人对你产生的激励作用。
注意：
(1) 字数100-120； (2) 标题和开头结尾不计入总词数。
参考词汇：动物学家zoologist (n.) 黑猩猩 chimp (n.) 青蒿素artemisinin (n.) 杂交稻 hybrid rice
| Jane Goodall(1934-)，Britain | Tu Youyou(1930-), China | Yuan Longping(1930-2021), China |
| 动物学家, 前往非洲研究黑猩猩多年,在研究和保护野生动物方面做出巨大贡献。 | 药学家,多年从事中西药结合研究,创制了新型抗疟药青蒿素,首位获诺贝尔科学奖的中国人。 | 农业专家, 致力于杂交水稻研究, 在消除世界饥饿方面做出巨大贡献。 |
The Great Person I Admire
Ladies and gentlemen,
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Thank you for your listening.
10 . A 70-year-old woman wins hearts with her energetic workouts on Douyin, He Qi reports in Shanghai.
Videos on the social networking platform Douyin—also know globally as TikTok—that show men and women with perfect physiques working out or giving fitness tips are commonplace. Trying to stand out from millions of such videos can often be difficult, but a relatively new account, which has only been active since last year, has managed to do so easily.
The fitness instructor behind this account is not a young woman with a slim, toned figure that would leave viewers green with envy. The star here is 70-year-old Chen Jifang, a Shanghai resident with 3 million likes on her Douyin videos. She was once even featured on a reality show on China Central Television.
According to her trainer, who helped to manage the Douyin account, Chen attracted more than 400,000 followers within just a few months. "The main group that I wanted to encourage was people ages 30 to 50," says Chen. "I think they will be motivated to work out in the gym after seeing that a granny like me can. The message I want to convey is that it is never too late to pursue good health."
While most people would be concerned about having an elderly family member perform such intensive workouts in the gym, Chen has the full support of her family. Her husband shows his support by doing most of the housework. Her daughter, on the other hand, helps to pick her gym attire(运动服装).
Chen may be a star in her own right, but she is also just one of many elderly citizens in China's major cities who are embracing exercise.
1. What does "commonplace" probably mean?| A．unusual | B．important |
| C．usual | D．unimportant |
| A．attract as many followers as she can |
| B．inspire the middle-aged to stay healthy by exercising |
| C．stand out among the fitness instructors |
| D．to be a star in her own right |
| A．They are concerned about Chen's safety. | B．They do all the housework for Chen. |
| C．They support her in every way they can. | D．They work out with her. |
| A．favorable | B．doubtful | C．indifferent | D．critical |
