Dave had loved basketball for as long as he could remember and he had never had a day without playing it. At primary school and junior high school he joined basketball clubs, attended training programs and watched basketball games, from which he learned the moves of the star players, wishing to play in a professional team like them and shine on the court.
Now as a senior high school student, however, his dream of becoming a professional player was dimming (变暗) because he was only of average height. He had to give up the hope of joining the school team. The guys on the school team were all tall boys who played matches and won honors for the school. They were like heroes. Dave watched them play and cheered them but he knew he would never be one of them.
Dave felt it a pity not to be tall enough, but this didn’t stop him from pouring his passion into basketball. He just played for the love of the sport. He played in the school gym with other boys or by himself every day, even during holidays and weekends, when it was open for two hours in the morning. He enjoyed every minute on the court making every effort to play better.
It was one Saturday morning. Dave was playing in the gym by himself, as all the other boys were busy with other weekend affairs. Then he noticed a tall boy approaching. It was Lankas. Everybody knows him as captain of the school basketball team. “Hi, Lankas,” Dave greeted him. “My name is Dave.” “Hi, Dave,” Lankas replied as he got closer. “Nice to see you here. Do you need an opponent to play against?” Dave was shocked, frozen right there, unable to believe his ears but somehow, he answered, “Why not?”
注意：1.续写词数应为150左右；
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
So, a game of two players began.
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The next Saturday, when Dave was playing in the gym, Lankas appeared shouting, “Dave, I have good news for you.”
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2 . With the cold weather drawing nearer, few people will choose swimming as a daily or usual activity.
Good for your brain.
Swimming is one of the best activities you can do all year round, which benefits your body and your mind. Swimming has been found to increase blood flow to the brain, which leads to more oxygen.
Work your muscles.
Every time you swim, it is like doing a mini-resistance workout. Each kicks and pull works your muscles more than you could imagine, especially your arms, shoulders and gluteus — the muscles that are inactive all day when you’re sitting at your desk.
Lift your spirits.
While swimming is an individual sport, it is also very social. You can meet people from all walks of life when swimming. Have a chat in the lap pool, join a swimming club or get involved in social water sports to get to know people in your community. Besides, the great thing about swimming is that you can do it — rain or shine. Although your backyard pool, the river or beach cools down over winter, most inside swimming pools run heated pools year round, so you’ve got no excuse to stop swimming.
| A．Benefit your body. |
| B．Meet new people. |
| C．These chemicals can control your thought and action. |
| D．Swimming also works your abs (腹肌) and will reduce your waist line. |
| E．Exercise gives off chemicals in your body called endorphins (内啡肽). |
| F．And that means you’re experiencing better memory and sharp mind. |
| G．However, swimming in winter is of great benefit in cold days. |
1. 比赛目的；
2. 比赛信息；
3. 欢迎报名。
注意：写作词数应为 80 左右；可适当增加细节。
NOTICE
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Student Union
4 . Much-loved 100-Word-Story Competition
Our much-loved 100-Word-Story Competition is back! Enter for the chance to win prizes of up to₤ 1,000.
Rules and prizes
Please ensure that submissions are original, not previously published and exactly 100 words long(not including title). Don’t forget to include your full name, address, email and phone number when filling in the form. We may use entries in all print and electronic media.
Terms and conditions:
There are three categories—one for adults and two categories for schools (one for children aged12-18 and one for children under 12).
● In the adults category, the winner will receive £ 1,000 and one runner-up will receive £250.
● In the 12-18s category, the winner will receive a £200 book voucher (代金券) or a Kindle Paperwhite and a ₤ 100 book voucher for their school, and the runner-up will receive a £100 book voucher.
● In the under-12 category, the winner will receive a £100 book voucher or a Kindle Paperwhite and a £50 book voucher for their school, and the runner-up will receive a £50 book voucher.
Please submit your stories by 5 pm on January 5, 2024 either online or by post addressed to:
Reader’s Digest
00 Word Story Competition
Warmers Group Publications
West Street, Bourne
PE10 9PH
The editorial team will pick a shortlist of entries, and the three best stories in each category will be posted online at readersdigest.co.uk on February 1, 2024. You can vote you’re your favourite, and the one with the most votes will win the top prize. Voting will close on February 29,2024 and the winning entries will be published in our May 2024 issue, and posted online on April 16, 2024.
1. What do we know about the writing event from the text?| A．It will pick out 6 best entries. | B．Each entry is 100 words or fewer. |
| C．Only students over 12 can enter it. | D．Entries can be in electronic version. |
| A．A Kindle Paperwhite. | B．A £ 100 book voucher. |
| C．£250 in prize money. | D．An issue of Reader’s Digest. |
| A．On January 5, 2024. | B．On February 1, 2024. |
| C．On April 16. 2024. | D．On February 29,2024. |
5 . Chinese volleyball superstar Zhu Ting has inspired a new English word. "Stay awesome and ZHUperb!" wrote a blogger at a US-based volleyball website. The word combines "Zhu" and "superb (卓越的)", to describe the 27-year-old player.
Zhu's excellent scoring performances put her among the Top 10 Global Outstanding Athletes for this year's Heracles Prize of the Big Ben Award. As the captain, Zhu "created the new golden age of women's volleyball in China", the award said. Zhu is considered a national hero by many in China, with good reason. Before this year's World Cup victory, she helped the national volleyball team win the 2015 FIVB World Cup, the 2015 Asian Women's Volleyball Championship, and the 2016 Rio Olympic Games.
Although she's a superstar now, it hasn't been easy for Zhu to get to where she is. Born to a farming family in Henan province, Zhu earned a chance to attend a local sports school at age 13. She became well known to the public by helping China's U20 team win the 2013 FIVB U20 World Championship. Shortly after, Zhu joined the national team and began playing under legendary coach Lang Ping.
At first, the 1. 98-meter-tall Zhu found it difficult to move quickly and stay balanced. But Lang Ping took advantage of her height and trained her to jump high and smash balls. Her work paid off. Zhu is now an outstanding player. "Hard work and talent are equally important. I'll move forward step by step," she told People's Daily.
1. Why was "ZHUperb" created?| A．To create a new game. | B．To introduce a volleyball website. |
| C．To describe the volleyball superstar. | D．To celebrate her winning of World Cup. |
| A．Zhu Ting's training. | B．Zhu Ting's personal qualities. |
| C．Zhu Ting's achievements. | D．Zhu Ting's future plan. |
| A．In 2000. | B．In 2013. | C．In 2015. | D．In 2016. |
| A．To build up her confidence. |
| B．To make use of her advantages. |
| C．To train her to be the captain of the team. |
| D．To instruct her to move forward step by step. |
1.说明是哪种户外活动；
2.喜欢这种活动的原因；
3.呼吁参加户外活动。
注意：
1.词数80左右；
2.可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
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1.比赛情况；
2.你的表现和感受。
注意：
1.词数100左右；
2.可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
Dear Mike,
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Yours,
Li Hua
1. 活动内容； 2. 活动意义； 3. 请他一起观看比赛。
注意： 1.词数 100 左右； 2.可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯；
3.结束语已为你写好。
参考词汇：端午节 the Dragon Boat Festival;龙舟赛 the Dragon Boat Race
Dear Peter,
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Looking forward to your reply.
Yours,
Li Hua
9 . Is It a Healthy Interest?
The Guinness Book of World Records describes Ranulph Fiennes as the world’s greatest living explorer. His journeys include the first polar circumnavigation (极地环行) and the first unsupported crossing of the Antarctic continent on foot. So when he suffered a heart attack, it came as something of a surprise.
Exercise is highly beneficial as it reduces both the pulse (脉搏) rate and the blood pressure so reducing stress on the heart as it brings blood round the body. It also helps to keep the artery (动脉) walls more elastic (有弹性的).
But can you push yourself too much? On the subject of exercise, it is good to take several parts of “moderate” exercise a week，which is a little more than quick walking. “We need to be careful when we’re doing extreme sports,” says expert Len Almond. “Extreme stress can make almost impossible demands on the body’s ability to recover. The stress of extreme sports forces biochemical changes in the body, and the physical response to that kind of activity will be too extreme.”
We all know how the Olympics began. The man who ran 26 miles from the town of Marathon to Athens with news of a victory died as soon as he arrived，and the cause of his sudden death might be the heart attack. Further research was done by scientists. They studied cyclists (自行车运动员) on a race that covers 230km with a height change of 5,500m. They were interested in one particular enzyme (酶), high concentrations of which are found in those who have suffered a heart attack. The scientists found that levels of this chemical increased in most of the cyclists who completed the race. The largest increases were seen in the fastest cyclists who had trained the hardest.
Most of us will never put our bodies to such extreme sports. But if, when you hear about someone like Fiennes，you ask whether exercise is worth it. I advise you to consider your own condition. Personally, I agree with the saying: “Run not to add years to your life but to add life to your years.”
1. According to the passage, taking exercise can_______ .| A．speed up the heart rate | B．increase stress on the heart |
| C．reduce the blood pressure | D．keep the artery walls straight |
| A．Our bodies can easily deal with physical stress. |
| B．Playing extreme sports is harmful to the human body. |
| C．We need a long period of recovery after extreme sports. |
| D．There is more to learn about the effect of physical stress. |
| A．To suggest a different area of research. |
| B．To support the activity of taking part in sports. |
| C．To explain the effect of a height change on cyclists. |
| D．To prove that extreme sports may cause heart attacks. |
| A．helps you have a regular life | B．adds years to your life |
| C．should be done in moderation | D．will be worth the effort |
增加：在缺词处加一个漏字符号（∧），并在其下面写出该加的词。
删除：把多余的词用斜线（\）划掉。
修改：在错的词下划一横线，并在该词下面写出修改后的词。
注意：1.每处错误及其修改均仅限一词；
2.只允许修改10处，多者（从第11处起）不计分。
When I was still young in my high school, my mother dragged me to play basketball to lose weight. However, it was turned out to be a bitter failure because I devoted my time on study. One day, a friend of mine contacted me and suggested that we started to swim. Without any hesitation, I agreed because we all thought that it was coolest thing in the world. I couldn’t forget the day on that I was thrown into the cold water. Fortunately, I survived. Honest speaking, I had a hard time recovered from the shock. Then my friend teaches me to hold my breath underwater. Finally, I succeeded. Now realizing that taking exercises is beneficial to my health, I develop a strong taste for swimming, which becomes part of my life.
