A MOTHER’S DAY SURPRISE
The twins were filled with excitement as they thought of the surprise they were planning for Mother’s Day. How pleased and proud Mother would be when they brought her breakfast in bed. They planned to make French toast and chicken porridge. They had watched their mother in the kitchen. There was nothing to it. Jenna and Jeff knew exactly what to do.
The big day came at last. The alarm rang at 6 a.m. The pair went down the stairs quietly to the kitchen. They decided to boil the porridge first. They put some rice into a pot of water and left it to boil while they made the French toast. Jeff broke two eggs into a plate and added in some milk. Jenna found the bread and put two slices into the egg mixture. Next, Jeff turned on the second stove burner to heat up the frying pan. Everything was going smoothly until Jeff started frying the bread. The pan was too hot and the bread turned black within seconds. Jenna threw the burnt piece into the sink and put in the other slice of bread. This time, she turned down the fire so it cooked nicely.
Then Jeff noticed steam shooting out of the pot and the lid starting to shake. The next minute, the porridge boiled over and put out the fire. Jenna panicked. Thankfully, Jeff stayed calm and turned off the gas quickly. But the stove was a mess now. Jenna told Jeff to clean it up so they could continue to cook the rest of the porridge. But Jeff’s hand touched the hot burner and he gave a cry of pain. Jenna made him put his hand in cold water. Then she caught the smell of burning. Oh dear! The piece of bread in the pan had turned black as well.
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。
As the twins looked around them in disappointment, their father appeared.
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________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________When Dr. Henderson was assigning（指定） project mates for his psychology class, I secretly hoped he would pair me with my best friend or at least a classmate I could have some fun with. Above all, I hoped he wouldn't assign me to work with the fiercely competitive, extremely serious fellow who always wore dark clothes and apparently had a personality to match. As fate （命运）would have it, Dr. Henderson very deliberately matched everyone in class and announced that I would be working with the one person in class I wanted to avoid.
I went up to my new teammate and introduced myself. He looked at me as though I weren't there. I felt he treated me as though I would hold him back and probably make him fail to get an A in the course. He wasn't mean or abusive; he just gave me the impression he could do whatever project we dreamed up better if he did it alone.
Needless to say, I didn't look forward to an entire term of being brushed off, but I tried to make the best of it and didn't say anything for fear that I would make things worse.
The project required each team to develop a hypothesis （假说）, set up an experiment to test the hypothesis, do the statistical analysis and present the findings. Whatever grade the team received would be shared by both students.
When my teammate and I met to discuss our project, I was uneasy. Here was this challenging student who had a reputation for single-mindedness and good grades—the exact opposite of me. I was outmatched. I actually wanted to drop the class at one point, but stopped short because I didn't want to give him the satisfaction of my chickening out. I decided to stick to it no matter what.
After long discussions we somehow agreed to do a study on the psychological well-being of teenagers. I wasn't sure what it meant exactly, but at least we had a topic.
注意：
1. 所续写短文的词数应为150左右；
2. 至少使用5个短文中标有下划线的关键词语；
3. 结尾部分分为两段, 每段的开头语已为你写好；
4. 续写完成后, 请用下划线标出你所使用的关键词语。
Para 1. We started to meet regularly to draw up our plans.
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Para 2. One day I got word that he was admitted to hospital for a serious disease.
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My dad, George, only had an eighth grade education. A quiet man, he didn’t understand my world of school activities. From age 14, he worked. And his dad, Albert, took the money my dad earned and used it to pay family expenses.
I didn’t really understand his world either: He was a livestock trucker, and I thought that I would surpass (超过) anything he had accomplished by the time I walked across the stage at high school graduation.
Summers in the mid-70s were spent at home shooting baskets, hitting a baseball, or throwing a football, preparing for my future as a quarterback on a football team. In poor weather, I read about sports or practiced my trombone (长号).
The summer before my eighth grade I was one of a group of boys that a neighboring farmer hired to work in his field. He explained our basic task, the tractor fired up and we were off, riding down the field looking for weeds to spray with chemicals. After a short way, the farmer stopped and pointed at a weed which we missed. Then we began again. This happened over and over, but we soon learned to identify different grasses like cockleburs, lamb’s-quarters, foxtails, and the king of weeds, the pretty purple thistle. It was tiring work, but I looked forward to the pay, even though I wasn’t sure how much it would amount to.
At home, my dad said, “A job’s a big step to growing up. I’m glad you will be contributing to the household.” My dad’s words made me realize that my earnings might not be mine to do with as I wished.
My labors lasted about two weeks, and the farmer said there might be more work, but I wasn’t interested. I decided it was not fair that I had to contribute my money.
注意：
1.所续写短文的词数应为150左右;
2.至少使用5个短文中标有下划线的关键词语;
3.续写部分分为两段，每段的开头语已为你写好;
4.续写完成后，请用下划线标出你所使用的关键词语。
Paragraph 1：The pay arrived at last.
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Paragraph 2：I understood immediately what my parents were worried about.
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4 . 阅读下面材料，根据其内容和所给段落开头语续写两段，使之构成一篇完整的短文。
I looked up from my desk to see the teacher writing on the board: “Battle of the Books!” She smiled and said, “This time it’s a teamwork. You’re going to be in teams of two, and set a reading goal. Every team that meets their goal by the end of the month will get a prize!” The lunch bell sounded before she could explain any more rules.
As I gathered my things, Liya passed my desk and said, “Teammates?” Since Liya and I shared the same interest in graphic novel(漫画小说), and we took Hindi language class together, we teamed up automatically. I was both relieved and excited to have my team. Then we got to the cafeteria and quickly threw out a bunch of ideas of what to do at our table.
I looked to our third friend Kash, with whom the three of us always do stuff together, “Kash, do you have ideas for us?” “Why would I give you guys ideas?” he said gloomily(阴沉地). “I’ll save that for my team...whoever that is. Now I see how I rank in the friendship lineup.” Kash replied in an angry tone.
I knew he was mad for a reason. If I were him, not only would I think that I ranked last in that group, but I’d also be panicking about what team I could join. But now, I was on the inside and Kash wasn’t. I felt like the only way to fix this would be three people on a team. So, as the teacher walked by our table, I asked for her permission. What surprised me was that she had intended to draw names to assign random groups, but didn’t get a chance to say it before lunch.
Awkward and frustrated, we were stuck in this dilemma. Having first teamed up without Kash didn’t mean we didn’t like him. I knew we—especially I—wouldn’t be able to enjoy any prize if our friend felt bad about being left out. So, I decided to do something to make it up for him and convince Kash he was an equal friend.
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。
That night, I was struck by an idea as I read a graphic novel that all three of us liked.
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The next day, I handed my pages of apology to Kash.
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Hector stood in the front of his fifth-grade classroom as one of the last two competitors in the Room Five Geography Bee. His opponent having missed the last question, it was Hector’s turn. If he answered his question correctly, he would be the Room Five champion.
“Where did I put that second sheet of questions?” Mr. Adler whispered while searching through a thick pile of papers on his messy desk. Mr. Adler, though a great teacher, had a reputation of being disorganized with a long history of misplacing things. “Oh well, I apologize for the delay.” said Mr. Adler after what seemed like a long time. “Hector, please tell us the capital city of Brazil.” Hearing the question, Hector smiled. Then, there was the answer.
Later that day in the courtyard, many classmates congratulated Hector. Wearing a proud smile, he greeted and thanked them all. Oh, the sweet taste of victory.
As it was getting late, the courtyard became deserted. But Hector still didn’t want to leave. Then he saw Mr. Adler crossing the courtyard and holding a half-open bag full of papers. As he hurried past, an envelope dropped out but Mr. Adler was unaware, turned a corner and disappeared out of sight. Hector picked it up. On the envelope were the words “Fifth Grade Geography Bee Questions and Answers”. Hector stared wide-eyed at the envelope. Before he even had time to reflect on the consequences, he opened it and read the questions.
As soon as Hector had done it, he knew it was the wrong choice. He’d cheated and whatever he did now, he couldn’t change the fact. “What if Mr. Adler thought I stole this morning’s questions too?” Hector thought. “He’d take away my Room Five victory for sure.” Little did he know that one of the best days in his life would be turned into the worst so quickly. Torn by his conscience, Hector was totally at a loss what to do.
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。
Before he realized it, Hector found himself standing in Mr. Adler’s room.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________The next day the entire school came to watch the Fifth Grade Geography Bee.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________It was exam time at Marc’s school. Every day, their teachers gave them loads of homework and told them the test was very important and that they ought to spare no effort to perform well in it. Everyone followed the teachers’ instructions and made preparations for it, except Marc. He just turned a deaf ear to it. He thought he would rather play football than study.
His mum and dad repeated the importance of revision for exams over and over again. They told him that he should be working hard preparing for the test. But the weather was sunny and he thought he had better things to do.
“Shall we go to the park?” he said to his friend Huck one afternoon. “It’s a nice day. We could play football and kick around.” Huck shook his head. “I’m supposed to review my lessons,” he said. “I’m going home to do some math.”
Marc was amazed. “You’d rather do math than play football?”
“Math is important. Besides, my mum says she will buy me a mountain bike if I do well in the math exam.”
“That’s crazy,” said Marc. Huck shrugged (耸肩) and replied, “Wait until I beat you in the test and you will watch me riding past on my mountain bike!”
“You won’t beat me,” said Marc.
“Oh yes, I will.”
“Oh no, you won’t! That will never happen. Just wait and see!”
For the first time ever, Marc wanted to perform well. He couldn’t bear it if his friend came top and he did badly. So when he got home, he opened his math book. But there was so much to do. All of a sudden, he felt like he’d forgotten everything he had learned that year! He didn’t know where to start. When his sister Lily came in, he was sitting expressionlessly by the desk, just staring out of the window.
注意：1. 续写词数应为150左右;
2. 请按如下格式作答。
“You don’t look happy, Marc. What’s wrong?” she said.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________On the day of the exam, Marc went to school with great confidence.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________When my little brother Tom was four, Mom said something like “I’d give anything to have a few more hours in the day.” And Tom said, “Why don’t we buy a bigger clock?” If time worked that way, I could have used an extra-big clock last week!
Our teacher had asked us to make an art project showing how plants eat, “I can’t believe we only have two nights to finish it,” Noah said with a sigh. “I have no idea how I’ll get mine done.”
I didn’t say anything. Not because I was nervous—I wasn’t nervous at all. 1 love art projects! In fact, I was so relaxed that I didn’t work on the project at all on Monday night. I planned to start the minute I got home from baseball practice on Tuesday. But there was just one thing.
I forgot baseball would run later than usual because it was the day of Baseball Buddies, which happens every month, and it’s a chance for us older students to practise baseball with the adorable younger kids. The second I got home, I threw the entire craft box (手工盒) onto the kitchen table, took out my “How Plants Eat” paper, and started to work. But just then, the telephone rang.
It was my friend Ollie, who said his grandmother Abuela had just made cookies and wanted to know if I’d come help decorate them. I love decorating cookies, and I love, love, love Abucla’s world-famous Thanksgiving cookies that only happen once a year!
I had no choice. I had to go. Ollie and I put all the star cookies with red jam filling in one group, and all the snowflakes with white cream-cheese filling in another. It was 7 o'clock when I finally got home.1 planned to work on my project right after we ate. But then another interruption hit me.
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。
Just as I was about to start, Dad said, “Joanna, it’s your turn to do the dishes.”
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Looking at the big “F” on my paper, I started to reflect on what I had done these days.
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“I’ll bet Anjali knows. Right, Anjali? Why don’t you show us since you’re the star student,” Deepak taunted (奚落).
Anjali was confused. She wasn’t trying to show off. She was just playing tabla (印度塔不拉鼓), like everyone else. And why was Deepak being so mean lately? Is it because tabla is a boy’s thing? She didn’t care that people thought it was a boys’ instrument. Anjali knew there was no such thing. She danced her fingers across the tabla to perform the composition in confusion. “Ugh!” Anjali heard someone groan, and she stopped playing.
“I guess I don’t know it that well after all,” Anjali said sheepishly to the teacher, Mr. Zakir. Her stomach was doing flip-flops. That wasn’t true. Not even a little. Mr. Zakir’s eyes narrowed. He looked like he was about to say something, but changed his mind. “The recital (演奏会) is next week, everyone. Keep practicing. I will be announcing who will get to perform onstage with me at my next concert!” Anjali had dreamed of a moment like that. She wanted to win the opportunity, but she needed to sort things straight with Deepak first.
As the class was dismissed, Anjali hurried over to Deepak. When she finally made eye contact with him, he purposely looked away and walked off. The next day at school, Anjali overheard Deepak whispering to Mary. “People are only interested because she’s the only girl in tabla class and they want her to feel special. She’s not that good—” Anjali was furious. She excused herself and went to the bathroom. She took some deep breaths but couldn’t relax. Her heart was pounding:
“It’s not my fault that people make a big deal about a girl playing tabla. I make mistakes too, but I work really hard. Maybe he should too. He should be less mean and practice more.”
“If I play in this concert, no one will talk to me again. He will turn everyone against me.”
“I don’t want to see a tabla or hear a tabla or play a tabla EVER AGAIN!!” Anjali yelled at the mirror. It was quiet for a moment. She believed it was one of her darkest days ever.
注意：1.续写词数应为150个左右；
2.请按如下格式在答题纸的相应位置作答。
Stepping out of the bathroom, Anjali saw some inspiring posters on the wall.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________After the recital, Deepak walked up to Anjali.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Joyce is in the fourth grade and he joined the noisy children of his class as usual. “Children! Silence!” Mangat Madam suddenly entered the class. She announced next week would be math week. “I’d like each of you to work on a project. You could do it individually or in a group.” she instructed. “The topic for the project needs approving tomorrow and it has to be displayed at the math week exhibition. The best project will be awarded and there is also a surprise gift from my side,” she added.
Joyce, who is extremely good at math, sat in the corner seat of the first bench with Karan, an average. Karan asked Joyce if they could work on the math project together. Joyce replied in a prideful tone, “Ha-ha you want to join me. I think I will do the project on my own.” Joyce wanted to get awarded and the surprise gift all for himself from Mangat Madam.
After deep consideration, Joyce decided to work on a math magic quiz on the circuit board. The next day in school, Mangat Madam arrived in the classroom and all the children submitted their topics for math exhibition. They all chose to work in a group except Joyce. In the following days, Joyce gathered all the materials for the project such as wires, bulbs (灯泡), a switch and a thin plywood board (胶合板). He worked out a few mathematical basic operations to be fixed on the board so that when the wire of the circuit touched the right answer, the bulb glowed. Joyce completed the project and was happy with the result.
The evening before the exhibition, while packing his school bags, Joyce again checked the project to see if it was working fine. Alas! All the lights that were to glow did not seem to light at all. Without finding the reason, Joyce was tensed. However, he decided to take the same project to the school as he couldn’t change the topic at the last minute. Then came the next day, and everybody was fascinated in the exhibition.
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。
It was Joyce’s turn to display his project.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Finally, the teacher announced Karan’s team was the winner.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________When we were finally dismissed from the last class of the day, the students streamed out of the classrooms. It was another boring day after school. I dragged my feet home as I sighed. Yet another uneventful day, I thought. Little did I know that the day would take a turn for the worse.
The lift lobby (电梯间) of my flat was old and dirty. The walls, which were painted white, had been dirtied over many years. I reached my flat’s lobby, and pressed the lift button and went in. Just then, Mrs Lim, my elderly neighbour, hobbled (蹒跚) in. She looked ancient with tissue paper white hair, wearing a faded old-fashioned dress. I held the lift door open, flashing a friendly smile, and politely greeted her. I asked her how she felt that day and pressed the buttons. She thanked me for being so polite, then we were silent for the rest of the ride.
The lift fell down increasingly fast. There were loud clanking sounds here and there while the lift grew slower and slower. My heart beat hard and fast as my hands turned cold and wet with sweat. Unfortunately, the lift came to an abrupt stop at the fifth floor. I pressed the buttons hard several times, but it was of no help. The lights on the buttons had gone out. It soon dawned on me that we were trapped. An icy fear crept up my spine. Mrs Lim was hysterical (歇斯底里).
“We will never get out!” she cried with her face pale. It had become a colourless mask. I had no time to lose. I pressed the bell in the lift immediately. The sound was surely deafening, but what other choice did I have? Mrs Lim burst into tears. I tried my very best to comfort her, telling her that everything would be all right and that we needed to find out how to get out safely. Mrs Lim began having trouble breathing, and I immediately helped her sit down and loosened her collar.
Paragraph 1: Several minutes passed, but no help came.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Paragraph 2: Bang! My hopes were lifted when I heard the firefighters on the other side of the lift door.
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