1 . In a world where acts of kindness often go unnoticed, a good story that has been discovered reminds us of the power of care and the effect it can have on someone’s life.
It all started with a “Kindness Week Challenge” given to Brennan by his 8th-grade teacher, Ms. Watkins. Little did he know that this challenge would lead to a wonderful friendship with 84-year-old Ms. Ann.
Brennan’s promise to send his little attractive things every day for a week developed a habit of checking up on Ms. Ann and sending gifts regularly(定期地), long after the challenge was over.
Their friendship has now lasted for over five years, and Brennan still visits Ms. Ann every month with flowers, cakes, chocolates, cards and more.
They talk about everything from his high school life to his college goals. The pair has found that they share a common love of chocolates. Ms. Ann always hopes to hear about what he’s doing and loves to share her own stories from a different time. They have become the best friends, with Brennan treating her as his great-grandmother.
Brennan’s mom, Traci, takes pride in her son. She said, “The best thing a teenager can do is to take care of the elderly. I’m so glad my son has added more sunshine to Ms. Ann’s life. I hope he always remembers the joy he’s brought her, and his fun talks with her, keeps his kind heart, and thinks of others.”
Ms. Ann’s daughter Emma, with her husband Gould, has a 2-year-old son. They are thankful for Brennan’s friendship as they cannot always be with Ms. Ann. Brennan’s kind heart has brought more sunshine into Ms. Ann’s life, and her encouraging words have helped to inspire(启发)him in return.
1. How did the task “Kindness Week Challenge” affect Brennan?| A．He discovered his love of chocolates. |
| B．He became a good friend of Ms. Ann. |
| C．He developed a habit of receiving gifts. |
| D．He learned how to choose attractive things. |
| A．Flowers. | B．Cakes. | C．Chocolates. | D．Cards. |
| A．His kindness to others. |
| B．His talent for telling stories. |
| C．His good performances at school. |
| D．His ability to earn money for the gifts. |
| A．Worried. | B．Sorry. | C．Thankful. | D．Surprised. |
2 . For 18 years after her retirement, Deng Xiaolan volunteered to teach music in a rural village in Hebei rovince. Her inspirational teaching and the enthusiasm and talent of her pupils shone in the opening ceremony of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.
Deng’s involvement with the rural children can be traced back to an experience of paying homage to the martyrs with them. She wanted to ask children to sing a song in memory of those heroes, but most of the children didn’t know the well-known songs she named and their singing was out of tune as well. So she thought she must do something to teach them to sing.
Deng began to travel between Beijing and the village since 2004 to teach the children music. She collected instruments from her siblings and friends, including a violin, keyboard and accordion, and took them to the village, and also rebuilt the school houses by raising funds and using her own money. As the children had no background in music, she had to teach them basic music theory, such as scales.
Two years later, she established the Malan Band, the first members of which were six children from the village. In 2013, she hosted a children’s music festival in the village, which became a regular event where the children could showcase their singing and instrument skills.
Deng passed away at the age of 79 at the Beijing Tiantan Hospital. “In the last 18 years of her life, my mother devoted most of her time and energy to music education for children in Malan village, which brought her and the children joy and contentment and received widespread praise,” her daughter said.
1. What made Deng want to teach the children to sing?| A．The fact that the children had little knowledge of music. | B．The experience of paying homage to the martyrs. |
| C．That it was her dream from childhood. | D．That she had retired from her work and had time to do it. |
| A．She bought instruments and took them to the village. | B．She repaired the school houses using her pension only. |
| C．She taught the children basic musical knowledge. | D．She gave her own money to the children. |
| A．It is a musical festival that is hosted temporarily. |
| B．It is a festival where people can watch their performances. |
| C．It is a festival that children can show their instruments. |
| D．It is a festival that children can sing and dance. |
| A．She thought it was easy for her mother to achieve. |
| B．She thought it was meaningless to her mother. |
| C．She thought it was demanding but in vain. |
| D．She thought highly of her mother’s effort. |
