The power of silence
Joe was an old man aged 75. His children grew up and moved to different cities in pursuit of a good career and future. He lived in a small village carrying the memories of his deceased wife. Joe had 4 grandchildren and they used to visit him during their holidays. And it was the vacation time and Joe was eagerly waiting for his grandchildren. He was making preparations for their arrival, cleaning the house, mowing (修剪) the lawn, rearranging the household items and buying snacks and dresses for the children, etc.
However, in the busy arrangements, he lost his favorite watch, which was given by his late wife when their first child was born. Joe treasured the watch and it became his only companion (伴侣) after his wife’s death. He didn’t realize that he had lost the watch and received the kids happily at home. It was only the next day when he was about to take a bath that he remembered the watch was missing. He was shocked and very upset. His grandchildren asked him why he was so sad and what troubled him.
Joe said, “Dear children, I lost the most precious watch I have ever had in my life. It was gifted by your grandma and I lost it while cleaning the house. I feel like I’m missing my heart.” Joe was in tears and the children promised him that they would find the watch for him.
One granddaughter, Mary, asked, “Grandpa, do you remember when you saw the watch last before you lost it?” Joe said, “I guess when I was cleaning the barn.”
The children immediately began to search for the watch in the barn. The barn was full of waste materials, books, broken furniture, etc. They searched for more than three hours with the help of Joe, but failed.
注意：1. 续写词数应为150左右；
2. 请按如下格式作答。
After a fruitless search for the watch, Joe gave up.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Mary stayed alone in the barn for about 10 minutes quietly and then rushed to her grandfather.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________“Howie! You can’t go in! Mom told us to avoid Mrs. Carrigan’s house at all costs! We can’t go in there,” Howie’s big brother, Archie, yelled at the boy who had entered the older woman’s yard upon seeing her Halloween decorations.
The little kid turned and looked at his two big brothers angrily. “But she put up decorations. She wants us to come in,” Howie said, pointing at the pumpkins in the yard and the trick-or-treat sign on her doorway.
“Come out, Howie! Let’s go! I think Mom thinks she’s a ... a witch,” his other big brother, Bobby, whispered the last part. “What? Are you afraid of her?” Howie laughed, knowing that his brothers would not like that. He saw their frowns, but his words were true. They were afraid. No one in the neighborhood went into Mrs. Carrigan’s house or even stayed close.
The old woman was strange. She only dressed in black and never brushed her hair. She couldn’t walk straight and never smiled at anyone, so people avoided her the few times she was seen outside. But Howie was not afraid. He was going to knock. The worst that could happen was being ignored or told to go away. Despite his big brothers’ words, he went up the tiny steps and rang the doorbell.
“Howie! Howie! No!” his big brothers whisper-yelled at him from the sidewalk, and Howie turned and put his finger to his mouth, signaling for them to shut up. But he saw their eyes widen and their faces pale even beneath the Halloween makeup they were all wearing. Howie felt something behind him and turned slowly, not knowing what to expect. He felt the cold air; he felt like ringing the bell was not a good idea.
The old woman was there, staring at him surprisedly. He saw her black clothes, and he knew precisely why everyone thought she was a witch. She looked like the ones in cartoons. But Howie squared his shoulders, raised his plastic pumpkin bucket, and said, “Trick or Treat!”
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。
Mrs. Carrigan stared at him for a few seconds.
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“Guys! Come here! There are lots of candies!” Howie shouted at the top of his lungs, waving his hands.
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Mary waited anxiously for her turn in the empty dressing room. Never had she been so nervous before. This competition was of vital importance to her comeback. “If I can win today,” she said to herself, “I can dance on the national stage next month.” Three months ago, her left arm was seriously injured in a car accident. After the medical treatment, she began to recover slowly. She practiced over and over again in order to regain her dancing skills.
“Hi, Mary,” in rushed her friend Jessica “How is your arm? Is it going to influence your performance?”
“I guess it can be tolerated for I am to win the match.” said Mary with a determined look.
“Admirable! But I hear that a girl called Linda is really gifted and strong. She can be your real well-matched competitor. Come on!”
After Jessica left, Mary decided to practice her most difficult spin. “If I don’t try harder, I won’t grasp this chance.” She thought. But her arm began to hurt, making her worried. “Mary, what makes you think you have a chance tonight?” she said to herself. After the pain was gone, she continued to warm up.
A slim girl hurried in and put down an equipment bag on the chair. Then, she took out her dance dress quickly and put it on skillfully. Seeing Mary, she smiled politely and said “Hi, I’m Linda. I am the next one!” Mary nodded in reply but felt uncomfortable. “This is just my competitor. Because of her, I may lose tonight.” Her mind was wandering when Linda let out a scream, “Oh, God, I can’t find my music tape!” Linda searched her bag but in vain. “It may be missing on the way.” With these words, she then rushed out.
注意：1．续写词数应为150词左右；2．续写部分分为两段，请在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Suddenly, Mary caught sight of a black box under the chair where Linda put her bag.
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Linda finished her dancing successfully and then came Mary’s turn.
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Karie double-checked the words on her spelling test .If she got 100 percent today, she’d win her class’ First-Quarter Spelling Challenge and a brand new dictionary.
Three more words to go. N-i-c-e-l-y. Q-u-i-c-k-1-y. H-o-n-e-s-t-y. Wait! She had spelled honesty, not honestly. She hurriedly erased the t-y and wrote l-y before handing in her paper.
Ms. McCormack graded the test papers at the break. Meanwhile, Karie sat restlessly in her seat with her fingers crossed. Then, Ms. McCormack walked to the front of the room and cleared her throat, “Congratulations. Karie! You did it!” she announced.
The whole class burst into applause! Ms McCormack presented Karie with her prize. Karie grinned as she read the label on the box: To Karie Carter; for her perfect first-quarter score in spelling.
“Everything OK?” Mom asked as Karie burst through the front door after school. Karie didn’t answer. As if by magic, she took out her spelling test paper and prize and showed them to her mother, Mom hugged her, asking her to put the test paper on the fridge so that Dad could see it when he got home.
Karie took another look at the test paper before putting it on the fridge. Her hands stopped in the midair. She just couldn’t believe her own eyes. Honesly? YES! H-O-N-E-S-L-Y.
Mom sensed something unusual and asked why. Karie stuffed the test paper into her backpack and explained that she was just too excited. Mom brought her some tea. Yes, a “t” was exactly what she needed.
After drinking a little, Karie plodded(重步走) down the hall, lost in thought How could she tell the class she hadn’t earned the prize after all?
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。
Later Dad came in with excitement.
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The next morning, Karie went to school earlier than usual.
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Her pale face stood out against the blackness of her hair. She looked much younger than her fifteen years, a worn coat hanging loose above her. We weren’t supposed to take a child, but an emergency call came through that morning. A home was needed for a young girl immediately.
I, together with four children, hurried to get her room ready. The kids were great. Joanne, our second-eldest daughter, did the cleaning and Margaret, Rob and Jeff helped make the bed. I felt my heart pounding in my chest. I was excited, but scared at the same time because I was told an adopted child might give us a lot of trouble.
That afternoon, Trudy arrived with the social worker Mrs. Kline. She stepped into the front hall and stood against the wall. I will never forget the look in her eyes. The first thing that came to my mind was that she looked like a hunted animal. The children moved towards her, and Jeff grabbed her hand and said proudly, “Come and see your room. I helped make your bed.” Trudy pulled back, speechless.
At this point, I stepped towards her and said, "Welcome to our home, Trudy. “She looked at me with such blank eyes. But with her head bowed, she simply said, eyes moving back and forth like a creature looking for a way out, “No, thank you.”
For the first two weeks, Trudy was very quiet. She would come into the kitchen while I was working, and we would discuss school and what she would like to do in the future. Mrs. Kline had given us all the information about her history, but I never mentioned the terrible things that had happened to her.
As the days went by, Trudy became a delight to have around. Very quickly, it seemed like she had always been with us. The girls would sit in each other’s rooms and giggle(咯咯笑) like typical teenagers. It was a sound that warmed my soul. However, when they talked about new clothes, Trudy fell silent again.
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。
I took Joanne shopping for a winter coat, and Trudy came too.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Back home, I presented the jacket Trudy had tried on.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Mama and Papa were like most parents. They wanted the best for their kids. Jeff and Jenna were like most kids. They wanted the best for themselves－the best place in front of the TV, the biggest piece of cake and the most candies.
One night, when the noisy kids were sound asleep, Mama lay awake worrying. She sighed a big sigh, thinking how to teach Jeff and Jenna to mend their selfish ways. Lecturing didn’t work.
As Mama lay there, she thought about how kids learn. Kids learn by doing. They learn to walk by walking. That’s the answer, thought Mama. The kids will learn to help others by helping others. But questions of who, when, and where went unanswered as she drifted off to sleep.
To her pleasure, those questions were soon answered. The next day, they happened to meet Mrs. Marie, the elderly widow who lived just down the road, at the checkout line at the supermarket.
Mama asked the kids to say hello to Mrs. Marie, about whom the kids were a little nervous. She was really old and kind of bent over. And there was that crooked cane she used when she walked. But the real reason they were nervous about her was that two days ago their ball had gone into her yard and knocked over some flowers in the garden and broke the glasses of the attic. They had never apologized.
When Mama and the kids were loading their groceries into the car, Mrs. Marie came out of the supermarket pushing her little collapsible shopping cart.
“Where are you going?” called Mama.
“To the bus stop,” she said, “The bus goes right by my house.” “So does our car,” said Mama.
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。
Mama asked the kids to help Mrs. Marie into the car and put her things in the trunk(后备箱).
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________As the car was approaching Mrs. Marie`s house, Mama made a decision.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________1. 交流的重要性；
2. 如何有效交流(不少于两点)。
注意：
1.词数为80左右；
2.开头已给出。
More communication, fewer conflicts
Mary waited anxiously for her turn in the empty dressing room. Never had she been so nervous before. This competition was of great importance to her comeback. “If I can win today,” she said to herself, “I can dance on the national stage next month.” Three months ago, her left arm was seriously injured in a car accident. After the medical treatment, she began to recover slowly. She practiced over and over again in order to regain her dancing skills.
“Hi, Mary,” in rushed her friend Jessica. “How is your arm? Is it going to influence your performance?”
“I guess it can be tolerated for I am to win the match.” said Mary with a determined look.
“Admirable! But I hear that a girl called Linda is really gifted and strong. She can be your real well-matched competitor. Come on!”
After Jessica left, Mary decided to practice her most difficult spin (旋转). “If I don’t try harder, I won’t grasp this chance.” She thought. But her arm began to hurt, making her worried. “Mary, what makes you think you have a chance tonight?” she said to herself. After the pain was gone, she continued to warm up.
A slim girl hurried in and put down an equipment bag on the chair. Then, she took out her dance dress quickly and put it on skillfully. Seeing Mary, she smiled politely and said “Hi, I’m Linda. I am the next one to you!” Mary nodded in reply but felt uncomfortable. “This is just my competitor. Because of her, I may lose tonight.” Her mind was wandering when Linda let out a scream, “Oh, God, I can’t find my music tape!” Linda searched her bag but in vain (徒劳). “It may be missing on the way.” With these words, she then rushed out.
注意：1.所续写短文的词数不少于80字；
2.续写部分为一段，请在答题卡相应的位置作答。
Paragraph 1
Suddenly, Mary caught sight of a black box under the chair where Linda put her bag.
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When I arrived home from school, night was falling. A call came from the public: a bird of unknown species was being attacked by a group of noisy children in his front garden. He scared them off and grabbed their victim. I immediately called for my classmate Jack to the spot.
We were standing in front of a stranger’s house in an unfamiliar street, rescue box in hand. My head full of instructions to follow. “The bird would be our first test as a volunteer wildlife rescuer!” Jack said excitedly. We had completed the two-day intensive training course the previous month and learned the basic skills of rescuing animals in various situations.
But we were anxious, too. After all, it was the first time for us to rescue a bird. Would I be able to transfer the bird neatly into my rescue box? Many worries flashed in my mind. Sensing my unease about the act ahead, Jack said, “These things are pretty easy to deal with!”
I was wondering what kind of bird it was when a kind-looking man appeared and led us inside to see our very first patient. I lifted the edge of the shoe box very slightly to see an angry-looking bird standing to attention on very thin and long legs, together with a slice of banana and a small dish of water. He didn’t know its true name but the folks called the creature Red Fan. “It’s eaten some banana,” said the man proudly. The poor soul seemed rather nervous, so l decided not to grab it by hand but just transfer the whole shoe box into my rescue box.
Back home, we could only see some minor injuries in the left wing, but there was no blood on its feathers. Jack managed to treat the injuries with some iodophor (碘伏药水). We assessed its condition to find out if it was appropriate to release the bird the next day. How could we help it spend the night peacefully? We hadn’t seen this species of bird before, let alone its habits.
注意：1. 续写词数要求应为150左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
“Why not do a search on the Internet?” suggested Jack.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________The next day, we were glad to see the bird was well enough.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Having held the interschool (校际) story tell g championship for the past two years, I was the shining star of my school. When it came to choosing the right candidate (候选人) to participate in such competitions, I was always the first choice. Naturally, I was once again selected to represent my school in the approaching contest this year.
Upon hearing the fact that I was chosen again, my classmates and friends acknowledged that I would undoubtedly be the champion again. Consequently, I became conceited (自负的). I was so proud that I ignored the importance of practicing for the contest.
A week before the contest, my teacher Ms. Sara asked, “Selena, would you like to stand in front of the class to rehearse (排练) for the contest?” She had tutored me in the past two competitions and knew how important practice was. “Just imagine you are on the stage
in the audience,” she added.“I’m sorry, Ms. Sara,” I replied. “I have a bit of a sore throat.”
This was usually the lie I would tell whenever my teacher requested me to practice in front of the class. I always found excuses to avoid doing it because I believed that I was the best and therefore the practice was unnecessary. On one occasion, I event old Ms. Sara not to worry too much as I was well prepared for the contest. In fact, I did everything but practice my script (讲稿) .I only managed to glance briefly through the story the day before the contest. As the best storyteller among the students of the local secondary schools, I was too vain to practice and expected everything to be fine.
The contest was being held in the local community hall. On the day of the contest, the hall was crowded with people. My schoolteachers and principal were there along with many of my classmates and schoolmates. I was the eighth contestant out of twenty in total. Those who spoke before me did extremely well. On seeing their fascinating and outstanding performance, I began to lose confidence in myself. My palms (手掌) sweated heavily and I started to feel nervous.
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。
Soon it was my turn to talk.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Finally, I heard the results announced after the contest and felt sad.
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