1 . 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。续写的词数应为150左右。

One afternoon in August, five years after Mom passed away, I was unpacking my groceries(食品杂货) in my kitchen. When I lifted my left hand out of a grocery bag, I suddenly couldn’t breathe. Looking at the ring on my finger, I found the star sapphire (蓝宝石)was gone. Mom had given me the ring on my twenty-first birthday. I had worn it every day for twenty-nine years. It was a reminder of Mom and a symbol of our love.

“No! No! No!” I yelled, hurrying to check the bag and the floor, and then my car, but the star sapphire was nowhere to be found. Feeling helpless, I called my best friend, Marie. “The star sapphire in my ring fell out. I don’t know what to do,” I said, extremely worried.

Marie replied, “Please don’t be anxious. Try to stay calm and positive. You can go back to the places you just visited and take a look.” But how could I keep hope in seemingly impossible situations? Anyway, I started my car and drove to the grocery store again. I couldn’t shake the feeling that there was little chance that I could find my stone.

Back at the grocery store, I pulled into the same parking spot and looked everywhere for my star sapphire. My hands and knees felt the hot ground as I searched crazily around and under my SUV car. Then I rushed inside the store, searching for a familiar face for more help. I spotted Amanda, a staff member whom I had met on previous shopping trips, and urgently tapped her on the shoulder. “I was just here twenty minutes ago and lost the stone of this ring. It’s very special to me. It’s from my late mom. Could you please help me look for it?” I cried, unaware that many other people around also heard my words.

Amanda’s eyes softened and she nodded understandingly. She immediately took a large mop(拖把) and started carefully sweeping it back and forth down the first aisle (过道) of the huge store.

Paragraph 1:

In tears, I called after her, “It’s light blue and small.”

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Paragraph 2:

Suddenly, a customer near the counter excitedly called out loudly, “Oh, Madam, I’ve found it!”.

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

2 . In 2019, after retiring from her career as a social worker, Ane Freed - Kernis decided to build a home workshop and devote all of her free time to stone carving. “I might be covered head to to e in dust but I’m happy — it was something I needed more of in my life when I hit 60,” she says.

This appeal has its origins in Freed - Kernis’ childhood. Growing up on her father’s farm in Denmark, she used to wander through the fields with her eyes fixed on the ground, looking for stones to add to her collection. “I’ve always been drawn to the shapes and textures (质地) of stones,” she says.

After moving to England in 1977 and training as a social worker, Freed - Kernis soon became occupied with her busy career and the demands of raising her son. Stones were the last thing on her mind, until her father died in 2005. “He took a stone carving course in his retirement, and I always thought stone seemed so fun but never had the time to look into it myself,” she says. “After he died, I became determined to learn in his honour.”

Signing up for a week-long stone carving course at Yorkshire Sculpture Park, Freed-Kernis began to learn how to turn a block of rock into well-designed shapes. “It was really scary at the start because you would spend hours just hammering (锤打).”

Now 65, Freed-Kernis has a thriving small business built largely through word of mouth. She creates 12 to 15 pieces a year that can take anywhere from a few days to three weeks to complete, while her prices range from £ 200 to £ 3,000. “I’m making smaller ones,” she says. “I don’t have to depend on the money much, so I want to keep prices in the range that people can afford, mainly just covering costs and labour (劳动力).”

1. Freed-Kernis was first attracted by stones when ______.

A．she was 60	B．she was a child
C．her father died	D．she moved to England

2. What can we infer about Freed-Kernis from paragraph 3?

A．She never cared about her father.

B．She led a disappointing life in Denmark.

C．She spent lots of time studying stone carving.

D．She learned stone carving under the influence of her dad.

3. How did Freed-Kernis feel when she started stone carving course?

A．Hopeful and proud.

B．Confident and satisfied.

C．Nervous and frightened.

D．Impatient and unprepared.

4. Why is Freed-Kernis making smaller pieces?

A．They are easier to move by her.

B．They are more affordable to people.

C．She wants to save costs and labour.

D．She is too old to focus on making large ones.

3 . When I was young, my mother was very much concerned for my happiness and was always there to support me. We had healthy boundaries (界限). When my own turn came for being a mother, I was determined to do so.

But as my daughter and I sat down to choose courses for the seventh grade, I felt the boundaries begin to fall. Students were allowed three electives (选修课) each term. Several of these were year-long courses—band, orchestra, yearbook and Spanish, and the rest were random (随机的) — technology education, drama, leadership and PE. I hated PE in my own school days.

We read the elective options carefully and sweet relief flooded through me. “You can sign up for band, yearbook and Spanish, and you won’t have to take PE ever,” I told her. I settled back into my chair, a weight taken off my chest. My daughter, however, frowned. “But I’m not sure I want to take Spanish. And I want to do the leadership class... and try drama!”

I broke in on her words with more practical wisdom. “You can’t pick the electives you want, though. They’re organized randomly. So you might get drama and leadership..., or you might get gym class or technology education. You might get the classes you want, and you might not. Is it worth risking having to take PE?” Finally, she chose to take the chance and signed up for band, yearbook and one period of the unknown elective. I reminded myself she was not me.

Watching your child walk into the trap of middle school is worse than experiencing it yourself. Motherhood, after all, is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body. I am not going into the seventh grade again. It is my daughter’s turn. She is her own person, and while she is delicate and easily hurt, she is also stronger and more confident than I was.

1. What is the function of paragraph 1?

A．To present a fact.	B．To provide an example.
C．To introduce the topic.	D．To make a comparison.

2. Why did the author feel relaxed after reading the elective options?

A．Drama was her daughter’s favorite.	B．Her daughter followed her advice.
C．There were many year-long courses.	D．PE was optional for her daughter.

3. What did the author think of her daughter’s option?

A．It seemed organized.	B．It was uncertain.
C．It was made at random.	D．It sounded reasonable.

4. What does the author want to say in the last paragraph?

A．Motherhood is rewarding.	B．Mothers should learn to let go.
C．Children should ask for help if necessary.	D．Children are too young to make a decision.

4 . Have you heard of depression (抑郁)? It’s a mental illness. People who have it may feel sad all the time or do something to hurt themselves. Now, doctors can put a “happy switch” in their heads to help them.

Doctors at Shanghai Ruijing hospital helped a patient Wu Xiaotian. Wu, 31, has had depression since he was 15 years old. The doctor did an operation on Wu. They put two long lines of electrodes (电极) inside his brain. The 16 electrodes are used to let out electricity on different parts of the brain, which can change the patient’s feelings. Wu can control the “happy switch” through an app on his phone. When feeling down, Wu turns on the switch and the electrodes start working. He is soon cheered up. “It feels like there is power rising from the inside of my body,” Wu said.

The hospital has tested the switch on 26 patients since 2020. Up to now, it has helped cut down a patient’s sad feelings by 60%, said the hospital.

But is the switch safe enough? Although patients like Wu feel great using it, the operation is actually a dangerous one. And doctors are still working to improve it. Also, doctors have to make sure that patients don’t rely on it. Healthy people shouldn’t use it, or it may be like a kind of drug for them.

1. What really makes the “happy switch” work?

A．The small “box”.

B．Electrodes.

C．Electricity.

D．An App.

2. What is Paragraph 2 mainly about?

A．Why people have bad feelings.	B．How the “happy switch” works.
C．How doctors do operations on brains.	D．Who will have the switch on their brains.

3. What do we know about the switch?

A．The switch still needs improving.	B．The switch is a kind of drug.
C．All patients who used it became healthy.	D．It can make all sadness go away.

4. What might the writer agree with?

A．The new operation is safe for humans.

B．Some people may use the switch to sell drugs.

C．Different kinds of people should try the switch.

D．People should also care about the bad points of the switch.

5 . 任务型阅读

After lunch we went out in the playground and ran around. All the boys had a competition to see who could spin around (快速旋转) in circles the longest. Michael Robinson won. Then we all sat down on the grass. That's when Ryan came up with a wonderful idea: we should buy the school. He said we could turn it into a video-game arcade (游乐场) and teach kids how to play video games.

I got all excited, because I like it so much. I started emptying out my pockets. The other boys emptied their pockets too. Then we added up all our money. We had one dollar and thirty-two cents.

“I don’t think it’s enough to buy a school,” said Ryan. We all got very worried.

“Well, how much do we need to buy a school?” I asked.

“I don't know,” said Ryan. “We’d better ask the headmaster, Mr. Klutz.”

We all rushed hopefully inside and asked Mr. Klutz how much it would cost to buy the school. Mr. Klutz asked why. I told him we wanted to turn it into a video-game arcade. “I can’t sell you the school, but if you kids read a million pages in books, you can turn the school into a video-game arcade for one night,” Mr. Klutz said. “Would it be okay if some of the other classes helped us out?” I asked. “Certainly,” Mr. Klutz said. “The more, the better.” We all jumped and shouted and couldn’t wait to start.

1. 根据文本内容从方框中选择恰当的词并用其正确形式填入文本图示中，每词限用一次，有两词为多余选项。

wonderful        excited        worry        hope        suggest        empty        cheer        play allow        page        curious        cost
After lunch, we ________ on the playground and Ryan came up with a (n) ________ idea to buy our school.		I got very ________.
We started to _______ our pockets.		We felt ________ that we didn’t have enough money.
Ryan ________ asking Mr. Klutz.		We rushed inside with ________.
Mr. Klutz ________ us to turn the school into a video-game arcade for one night if we read a million ________ in books.		We all ________.

根据文本内容回答下列问题。
2. What did all the other boys think of Ryan’s idea and why?
____________________________________________________________________________________________
3. Why did Mr. Klutz ask the kids to read a million pages in books?
____________________________________________________________________________________________
4. What do you think the boys will do next?
____________________________________________________________________________________________

6 . Have you ever seen people swimming dressed like a mermaid (美人鱼)? You may consider it as a show, a game or just for fun. But mermaid diving is a physical activity in which people compete with each other. Now, it is getting more popular. From September 19 to 20, mermaid divers from around the world got together in Sanya to compete in the 2023 China Mermaid Open Championship Atlantis Station and International Mermaid Contest.

Among them, Xiang Lei is a 29-year-old diver and performer in Sanya. Like everyone else, he found it hard to swim in a beautiful way when he first tried on the mermaid tail. “Mermaid diving needs good-looking moves,” he said. It was quite difficult for him to make the moves with his legs tied together. “Although it is not comfortable, you have to keep your face relaxed at the same time,” he said.

Mermaid diving is usually done without glasses and air canisters (气瓶). Divers need strong endurance (耐力), which is the most important. In this way, they can stay in water long enough. However, people can train themselves through running and swimming. Anyone in good health can learn to be a mermaid.

Xiang believes that mermaid diving shows unlimited beauty. “Many people think it’s a girls’ activity. But what truly moved me the first time I watched a mermaid diving contest was that there were mermen!” he said. “The beauty of mermaid diving means a lot. It can also be happy and fit for men.”

1. What is mermaid diving?

A．A show.

B．A meeting.

C．A sport.

D．A performance.

2. What was the difficulty when Xiang Lei first tried mermaid diving?

A．He couldn’t swim at all.	B．His face was not good-looking.
C．Mermaid diving hurt his eyes and nose.	D．It was hard to swim well with his legs as a tail.

3. What is the most important for mermaid diving?

A．Having strong endurance.	B．Being young.
C．Owning glasses and air canisters.	D．Living near the sea.

4. What does the underlined word “mermen” in the passage refer to?

A．Beautiful mermaid divers.	B．Girls who like diving.
C．The first mermaid divers in the world.	D．Men who are mermaid divers.

7 . At some point, something will have to be done about the stuffed toys (毛绒玩具). I haven’t counted them because, truthfully, I’m not prepared to know how many there are. Lately, our neighborhood’s message boards are filled with posts about parents trying to make space, to clear out the things their kids no longer need. The tone of some of these posts can best be described as “emergency”. “Help!” they sometimes begin. “I have to get this out of my house.”

“The proliferation (激增) of children’s toys is the outcome of a long, gradual cultural change,”says Gary Cross, a professor at Pennsylvania State University. To understand how we got here — drowning (淹没于) in all those stuffed toys and bricks — it helps to look as far back as the late 19th century. “Parents were no longer passing their jobs on to the children,” Cross says. “Instead, they connect across generations through the gifting process. From the early 20th century on, goods became the things that define relationships between family members, and the way of marking success as a family.”

Then, how can parents deal with the proliferation of children’s toys at home? Naeemah Ford Goldson, a professional organizer, is also a mom of two. In her own home, Goldson likes to include her kids in the work of sorting out their toys. They know that the items they don’t need anymore will be given to people who can use them, to families who might not be as fortunate as theirs. “Doing so helps them build those habits of letting go,” she says, “so then they don’t become adults who are too dependent on material things instead of experiences, or people, and the memories we make with people.”

Her idea made sense. She told her 5-year-old they should pick some to give to kids in their community who came from another country and had to leave their toys behind. She immediately took a pink bear from the pile.

1. Why does the author present the posts in paragraph 1?

A．To show the popularity of children’s toys.

B．To offer suggestions about choosing children’s toys.

C．To praise the role of social media in buying children’s toys.

D．To introduce the influence too many children’s toys bring about.

2. What has caused the huge increase of children’s toys according to Cross?

A．Children’s demands.	B．The growth of technology.
C．The traditions in the 18th century.	D．The practice of gifting among family members.

3. What does Goldson do to avoid too many toys?

A．Involve her kids in organizing toys.	B．Put away toys for her kids.
C．Buy her kids fewer toys.	D．Sell unwanted toys to neighbors.

4. Which is the most suitable title for the text?

A．The Rise of Toy Stores in Neighborhoods	B．The Importance of Choosing Proper Gifts
C．The Challenge of Managing Children’s Toys	D．The Joy of Collecting Children’s Toys

8 . Popular people are admired and loved by their peers (同龄人).     1     Popular people have plenty of friends and usually have a high social status in their peer group. Here are some general tips that will help you become a more likable and popular person.

Avoid offering help in exchange for approval (认可). Trying to be helpful will have the opposite effect.     2     Popular people help others because they have a useful skill, not because they want to win someone else’s friendship.

Be the glue in your social circle. When you have plans to meet a group of friends for a social outing, make a habit of inviting someone who hasn’t met everyone in the group yet. If you re hanging out with a friend and run into another friend, remember to introduce them to each other.     3    

Practice positivity. People who often complain about life and are more pessimistic have fewer friends. Therefore, it’s important to have a positive attitude and avoid constant complaining.     4     It can be a key step in making close friends. But if you talk about your problems over and over again, your friends might not enjoy hanging out with you.

    5     Many people make the mistake of avoiding social relationships at their school or workplace. They think these places are for work or studying, not socializing. But most of us spend a lot of time at work or college. If you refuse to socialize with people you see almost every day, you’ll miss out on some valuable relationships.

A．Build relationships at work place and school.

B．Otherwise, your friends might feel awkward.

C．Make sure you are popular with your friends.

D．You’ll be regarded as people who need friendship.

E．And many people want to be associated with popular people.

F．However, sometimes sharing your problems with others is a good thing.

G．Peers have a special gift that enables them to make friends wherever they go.

9 . 阅读下面材料，在空白处填入适当内容（1个单词）或括号内单词的正确形式。

In the past year, I had an unforgettable experience of learning tai chi. Honestly speaking, I admitted that I     1     (feel) hesitant at first but with time passing by, it really had a huge effect on me     2     (physical) and mentally. Not only were I deeply impressed by the moves that caught my imagination, such as “white crane spreading its wings” and “golden rooster standing on one leg”, but also I     3     (inspire) to explore Chinese culture.

It is all about keeping a balance between yin and yang,     4     are believed to form the unity of opposites. The practice of taichi aims     5     (maintain) the balance of our body through opposite     6     (movement): up and down, left and right, forwards and backwards, breathing in and breathing out. By performing the routine, tai chi eventually brings     7     a state of physical and mental peace. No wonder it is a best way to relax your mind and body.

I also experienced a short period of tiredness and boredom. Thanks to the patient guidance of professional coach, I gradually found to my     8     (satisfy) that I could focus on peace of mind and sleep better,     9     (enable) me to stay cool under pressure. I am sure I will continue to practice tai chi and enjoy     10     benefits it has brought me.

10 . 听下面一段独白，回答以下小题。
1. What is the speaker mainly talking about?

A．A trip experience.

B．Houseboats.

C．A book on sale.

2. How long is the tour?

A．One hour.

B．Two hours.

C．Three hours.

3. What does the speaker say about her houseboat?

A．It is quite large.

B．It is very popular.

C．It has everything needed.

4. What is the speaker’s new book about?

A．The tours on houseboats.

B．The largest houseboat in the world.

C．The history of houseboats in Seattle.