1 . The elderly residents in care homes in London are being given hens to look after to stop them feeling lonely.

The project was dreamed up by a local charity to reduce loneliness and improve elderly people's wellbeing. It is also being used to help patients suffering dementia, a serious illness of the mind. Staff in care homes have reported are duction in the use of medicine where hens are in use.

Among those taking part in the project is 80-year-old-Ruth Xavier. She said: "I used to keep hens when I was younger and had to prepare their breakfast each morning before I went to school.

“I like the project a lot. I am down there in my wheelchair in the morning letting the hens out and down there again at night to see they've gone to bed.

“It's good to have a different focus. People have been bringing their children in to se the hens and residents come and sit outside to watch them. I'm enjoying the creative activities, and it feels great to have done something useful.”

There are now 700 elderly people looking after hens in 20 care homes in the North East, and the charity has been given financial support to roll it out countrywide.

Wendy Wilson, extra care manager at 60 Penfold Street, one of the first to embark on the project, said: “Residents really welcome the idea of the project and the creative sessions. We are looking forward to the benefits and fun the project can bring to people here.”

Lynn Lewis, director of Noting Hill Pathways, said: “We are happy to be taking part in the project. It will really help connect our residents through a shared interest and creative activities.”

1. What is the purpose of the project?

A．To ensure harmony in care homes.	B．To raise money for medical research.
C．To provide part-time jobs for the aged.	D．To promote the elderly people's welfare.

2. How has the project affected Ruth Xavier?

A．She has developed a strong personality.	B．She has gained a sense of achievement.
C．She has recovered her memory.	D．She has learned new life skills.

3. Who was one of the first founders of the project?

A．Lynn Lewis.

B．Wendy Wilson.

C．Ruth Xavier.

D．The elder.

4. What can we learn about the project from the last two paragraphs?

A．It is well received.	B．It is highly profitable.
C．It needs to be more creative.	D．It takes ages to see the results.

2 . Last year, Doctor Steve Lome came to truly understand what it means to be at the right place at the right time. During a half-marathon, he found himself in the position to _________ not one, but two runners. Things had been going _________ up to that 3-mile mark, but that’s when Steve noticed a (n) _________ runner named Gregory.

Gregory had just reached the peak and was _________ to see that he would run downhill for a bit. This was the last thing he _________ before collapsing. Meanwhile, Steve saw this happen, and he could _________ it wasn’t a simple fall. Steve stopped immediately to perform CPR. Once it was _________ that Gregory was doing well and an ambulance took him away, Steve continued the race.

The rest of the race itself was _________ but when Steve crossed the finish line, his life-saving _________ was needed once more. A man named Michael began to feel dizzy moments after crossing the finish line. Then, just like Gregory, he __________.

“I never expected something like that would happen to my life, let alone in the same __________,” Steve said. The __________ of this entire situation is truly remarkable. Had Steve not __________ to help Gregory, he would have crossed the finish line much sooner than Michael, __________ he wouldn’t have been around to save him, too. Thankfully, the events had a happy __________. Now the three remain good friends.

1.

A．defeat

B．encourage

C．sponsor

D．save

2.

A．rapidly

B．evidently

C．smoothly

D．randomly

3.

A．unwell

B．disabled

C．familiar

D．excellent

4.

A．worried

B．confused

C．relieved

D．surprised

5.

A．expected

B．remembered

C．approached

D．demanded

6.

A．tell

B．predict

C．decide

D．imagine

7.

A．removed

B．confirmed

C．stated

D．reported

8.

A．formal

B．fair

C．uncompetitive

D．uneventful

9.

A．lesson

B．drug

C．device

D．help

10.

A．caught up

B．broke down

C．fell down

D．sat down

11.

A．place

B．race

C．hospital

D．peak

12.

A．timing

B．setting

C．opportunity

D．background

13.

A．agreed

B．failed

C．prepared

D．paused

14.

A．proving

B．meaning

C．indicating

D．realizing

15.

A．ending

B．recording

C．solution

D．review

3 . Ariel decided to _________ herself in nature the day before she turned 30, so she rode her bike to Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge in Queens, New York on November 5 to take a hike. A mile into her walk, she _________ a gorgeous female mute (哑的) swan near the water’s edge. Ariel, 30, who _________ volunteered at the Wild Bird Fund rehab (康复) center in Manhattan for five years, knew that mute swans can be _________. But as she approached this one, it didn’t move.

She was certain that the bird needed medical attention. Ariel put her jacket over the bird’s head to keep it calm, carefully picked it up, and held it in her arms. And then a thought _________ her: What can I do now?

Her best bet was the rehab center, but that was across the East River and clear on the other side of town. How was she going to _________ a 17-pound swan on her bike all that way? _________, some puzzled strangers driving by offered her, her bike, and the swan a _________ to a nearby subway station.

On the subway, no one seemed particularly annoyed by the _________ passenger. Ariel says: “One guy was sitting right in front of me on his phone. I don’t know if he __________ there was a swan in front of him”.

Ariel called the rehab center on the way, and Tristan Higgin, a(n) __________ manager, picked her up at the subway station and drove the bird, bike, and __________ to the facility. There, staff members determined that the swan might have lead poisoning, caused by swallowing __________ used on fishing lines.

While recovering, she made a boyfriend at the center — another injured swan. Sadly, even with all that TLC, the swan __________ a bacterial infection. Two months after Ariel came to her rescue, she __________. It’s a disappointing ending, but the real story is just how far some people are willing to go to save a swan in the big city. In all, Ariel traveled two hours by foot, car, and subway (while dragging her bike). “That’s the perfect summary of who she is.” says Higginbotham.

1.

A．immerse

B．expose

C．wrap

D．breathe

2.

A．teased

B．spotted

C．caught

D．hit

3.

A．wholly

B．literally

C．previously

D．stably

4.

A．aggressive

B．cautious

C．ambitious

D．abnormal

5.

A．disgusted

B．informed

C．reminded

D．struck

6.

A．transport

B．conduct

C．preserve

D．put

7.

A．Suddenly

B．Immediately

C．Fortunately

D．Normally

8.

A．lift

B．chance

C．treat

D．habitat

9.

A．scared

B．hungry

C．fierce

D．feathered

10.

A．doubted

B．minded

C．noticed

D．preferred

11.

A．fire-controlling

B．animal-caring

C．forest-protecting

D．nature-loving

12.

A．director

B．survivor

C．partner

D．rescuer

13.

A．worms

B．weights

C．plastics

D．facilities

14.

A．contracted

B．spread

C．controlled

D．resisted

15.

A．stood up

B．pulled through

C．flew away

D．passed away

4 . Auri Katariina used to be a service manager at a cleaning company in Finland. To her family and friends’ _________, she quit her high-paid job and decided to follow her unique passion.

Auri has always _________ cleaning things, and she began posting cleaning videos online after leaving her job. Then one day, a single mother asked her for help because she was _________ so much with three children always making a mess at home. Auri, who is “in heaven” whenever she is doing cleaning, was _________ to help. So she went on a weekend and _________ her home. Auri didn’t ask for any _______ for her service; it was the _______ in the house, which her work resulted in, that made her really happy.

Since then, Auri has gone as far as France and the UK to help people. She gets _______ online but chooses only the   _______ homes belonging to people most in need. For the first six months she __________ all travel and product expenses herself, about several hundred euros per visit._________ her popular videos of cleaning tips, a sponsor (赞助者) has reached out to her. But she still never __________ a penny.

Now, Auri goes to clean homes of _________ once a week and creates _________ for her social media channels, including lists of some of her top tips. Her dream is to clean all over the world, helping people while doing something she absolutely __________.

1.

A．embarrassment

B．amusement

C．surprise

D．regret

2.

A．avoided

B．considered

C．delayed

D．enjoyed

3.

A．struggling

B．earning

C．wondering

D．paying

4.

A．ashamed

B．excited

C．hesitant

D．grateful

5.

A．painted

B．decorated

C．searched

D．cleaned

6.

A．reward

B．evidence

C．permission

D．assistance

7.

A．experience

B．furniture

C．change

D．space

8.

A．arrangements

B．requests

C．comments

D．instructions

9.

A．oldest

B．biggest

C．closest

D．dirtiest

10.

A．covered

B．approved

C．planned

D．decreased

11.

A．In spite of

B．Thanks to

C．Ahead of

D．In addition to

12.

A．loses

B．keeps

C．wastes

D．charges

13.

A．guests

B．employers

C．strangers

D．sponsors

14.

A．content

B．wealth

C．advantage

D．opportunity

15.

A．supports

B．loves

C．recommends

D．manages

7 . In 1970, Alan Ayers was participating in a skydiving team competition in Gainesville, Florida. He would be ________ out of a Cessna 172, a small four seat passenger plane. In preparation, the passenger door and front passenger seat were ________, but the passenger side seatbelt remained.

Ayers’ teammates skydived first, ________ him and the pilot as the only two people remaining in the plane. It was Ayers’ ________. But as he stepped out into the air, his foot got ________ in the passenger side seatbelt.

“I was completely out of the plane on my back, ________ at the belly (腹部) of the Cessna, with only my boot ________ to the pilot ... I tried to pull myself up to reach the buckle (锁扣), but I just couldn’t,” Ayers remembered.

Thousands of feet in the air, hanging from the plane, Ayers was out of ________.

“And what happened next was ________,” Ayers said. “The 23-year-old pilot unbuckled her seatbelt, crouched (蹲) down in the door of the airplane, with both hands off the operating handle, and ________ my ankle.”

Ayers dropped away from the plane, opened his parachute, and landed ________.

More than 50 years later, she often came into his ________. “To this day, I can see her two ________ hands reaching out of the door to unbuckle the belt,” Ayers said. “I owe my ________ to this person and will always think of her as one of the ________ people imaginable.”

1.

A．falling

B．jumping

C．marching

D．sliding

2.

A．repaired

B．painted

C．removed

D．broken

3.

A．leaving

B．recognizing

C．choosing

D．admiring

4.

A．right

B．luck

C．chance

D．turn

5.

A．hurt

B．caught

C．spotted

D．covered

6.

A．hitting back

B．looking down

C．staring up

D．pushing forward

7.

A．challenging

B．confusing

C．fearful

D．visible

8.

A．sight

B．trouble

C．options

D．doors

9.

A．incredible

B．exciting

C．accidental

D．disappointing

10.

A．straightened

B．pushed

C．dropped

D．freed

11.

A．dramatically

B．safely

C．unconsciously

D．regretfully

12.

A．possession

B．mind

C．position

D．focus

13.

A．young

B．practiced

C．dirty

D．bony

14.

A．fame

B．victory

C．life

D．health

15.

A．bravest

B．happiest

C．kindest

D．wisest

8 . “If you could have any three things, what would you want?”

Eleven-year-old Ruby Kate Chitsey loves asking that question, but it’s not a game she plays at recess（课间）. She asks it at nursing homes in the Harrison, Arkansas, where she lives. Even more amazing, she then sets out to make the residents’ wishes come true.

Ruby Kate often tags along with her mother, Amanda, who works at nursing home in the summer. “I’ve never found them scary at all, so I’m able to just go up to them and ask if they need anything,” she says.

Last May, Ruby K ate noticed a resident named Pearl staring out a window. She seemed sad. “What are you looking at?” Ruby Kate asked. Pearl said she was watching her dog being led away by his new owner after a visit. Pearl didn’t know when she would see her dog again. Pearl was a medicaid recipient, who got only $40 a month to spend on personal items. Ruby Kate and Amanda asked around and discovered that many residents are unable to afford even the smallest luxuries. So Ruby Kate decided to do something about it.

She started by asking residents what three things they wanted most. “That’s a lot simpler than going, ‘Hey, what do you want?’” she explains. “They can understand you better.” Amanda worried that people would ask for things an 11-year-old wouldn’t be able to provide. Instead, they asked for chocolate bars, McDonald’s fries, and even just a prayer.

“It broke me as a human,” Amanda says. “We left the nursing home that day and went straight to a store and bought as many items as we could.”

Using their own money, the Chitseys granted the wishes of about 100 people in three months. Then they started asking for donations. The good people of Harrison responded enthusiastically, and they raised $20,000 in 24 hours and more than $250,000 in five months.

1. Why does Ruby often ask the same question?

A．She likes hearing everyone’s stories.

B．It makes her famous in the community.

C．She finds it amusing to repeat the question.

D．She wants to help residents in nursing homes.

2. What can be inferred about Pearl in paragraph 4?

A．Pearl was in good health.	B．Pearl couldn’t afford to keep her dog.
C．Pearl was too old to raise a dog.	D．Pearl sold her dog for small luxuries.

3. What moved Amanda most?

A．The residents’ gratitude for Amanda’s assistance.

B．The popularity Ruby achieved for her good deeds.

C．The simplicity and sincerity of the residents’ requests.

D．The residents’ enthusiasm and optimism in difficult times.

4. What message does the author seem to convey in the text?

A．Action speak louder than words.	B．A friend in need is a friend indeed.
C．Kindness is the language of the heart.	D．Nothing is difficult to a willing heart.