1 . My House

My mother moved a lot when she was growing up on account of Grandpa being in the army. She hated having to adjust to new schools and make new friends. That’s why I thought she was joking when she put forward the idea of moving. But she was completely serious. “For just the two of us,” my mother said, “an apartment in the city will suit our needs much better.” Personally, I think she’s lost her mind. I guess I can understand why she would want to move, but what about me and what this house means to me?

I suppose if you looked at my house, you might think it was just another country house. But to me it is anything but standard. I moved into this house with my parents ten years ago. I can still remember that first day like it was yesterday. The first thing I noticed was the big front yard. To me it seemed like an ocean of grass — I couldn’t wait to dive in. The backyard was full of gnarled (扭曲的，粗糙的) and scary trees that talk on windy nights. But I grew to like them and the shadows they cast in my room. My father and I even built a small treehouse, where I often go to remember all the wonderful times we had before my father’s death.

This house is special — maybe only to me — but special nevertheless. It’s the little seemingly insignificant things that make this house so special to me: the ice-cold tile floors that make me tremble on midnight; the smell of my father’s pipe that still exists: the towering bookcases of my mother; the view outside my bedroom window.

This house holds too many memories, memories which would be lost if we gave it up.

1. Why did the author’s mother decide to move?

A．Because she hated the countryside.

B．Because Grandpa was on constant move.

C．Because Dad’s death made her lose her mind.

D．Because she thought a city flat more fit for them.

2. What impressed the author when she first moved into the house?

A．The treehouse.

B．The green grass.

C．The big trees.

D．The cold floors.

3. How did the author let us feel that the house was special to her?

A．By arguing whether the house was standard.

B．By explaining why the house suited their needs.

C．By describing the small things related to her house.

D．By comparing the differences between country and city life.

2 . 阅读下面短文，根据短文内容在答题卡相应题号后的横线上写下相关信息，完成对该问题的回答。

People from different generations often live and work together. Sometimes they’re happy being together, other times they’re not. One of the reasons for their unhappiness maybe a generation gap. A generation gap is the difference between two or more generations—not the differences between their years but the differences between the generations’ ideas, attitudes, and interests. Of course, people can have differences and still be happy together, but according to the experts, communication between the generations helps everyone get along.

Good communication between the generations starts in the family. These days many families are changing their communication style. They are moving from a “one-way” style to a “two-way” style of communication. To show this change, let’s compare two families:

The Smith family uses the “one-way” style of communication. Mr. and Mrs. Smith show interest in their children, but they don’t discuss problems of feelings. The parents make all the rules and decisions. They don’t ask for their children’s opinions. They explain their decisions to their children, but they don’t discuss them. The explanation is clear and the children understand. The communication goes one way: from the parents to the children.

The Jones family uses the “two-way” style of communication. Mr. and Mrs. Jones show interest in their children and ask for their opinions. They discuss problems and express their feelings. The family makes rules and decisions together after a discussion. The communication goes two ways: from parents to children and from children to parents.

Better communication between generations at home means better communication between generations at work and in the community. When people from different generations understand each other better, they learn from each other more. This helps them form stronger bonds, work together more easily. As a result, people of all ages can team up effectively and come up with new ideas in different parts of life.

1. What is a generation gap?
______________________________________________________
2. Where does good communication between the generations begin?
______________________________________________________
3. Please decide which part is false in the following statement, then underline it and explain why.

If Jack’ parents discuss with him where to spend their summer vacation, they use the “one-way” style of communication.

______________________________________________________
4. To bridge the generation gaps, what other suggestions would you make besides better communication? (In about 40 words)
______________________________________________________

3 . 阅读下列短文，根据短文内容填空。在未给提示词的空白处仅填写1个适当的单词，在给出提示词的空白处用括号内所给词的正确形式填空。

Most people have dictionaries in their homes. The Oxford English Dictionary reached even more people when it went online     1     2000. The Dictionary is made up of 60 million words of text, and describes nearly 750,000 terms,     2     have been used in English over the past thousand years. Because the language     3     (grow) all the time, the OED is being revised. Every few months during the next 10 years, thousands of new words will be released online.

4 . 阅读下列短文，根据短文内容填空。在未给提示词的空白处仅填写1个适当的单词，在给出提示词的空白处用括号内所给词的正确形式填空。

To predict is to guess what comes next. Making predictions is a reading strategy, in which readers use information from a text and their own personal experiences     1     (anticipate) what they are about to read,     2     (help) students make connections between their prior knowledge and the text. Predicting is also a process skill     3     (use) in science. In this context, a prediction     4     (make) about the outcome of a future event based upon a pattern of evidence.

5 . 阅读下面短文，根据题目要求回答问题。

Doctors in Bristol can send patients on a free course from this month, which uses stand-up comedy to help patients overcome their trauma (创伤). The course was pioneered by Angie Belcher, a comedian at the University of Bristol.

Comedy is a natural human trait (特质). Every night we come back home from work and tell our family what our day was like, but on the way home we’ll make up details, and try to make our stories funnier to entertain family members. Professional comedy education is to give a tool to take this to a more polished and informed level. The content of the six-week course is described as a “combination of psychology, comedy and storytelling.”

Actually, past traumas are perfect for comedy. Comedy doesn’t come from the happy moments of our life, but from our everyday struggles. People, who’ve been through big life experiences, such as the loss of a close friend or ill health, often can’t wait to share their stories, mostly because there’s always something funny about the situation. We can accept and honor the comedy of a situation, as much as the sadness of it.

While the comedy course can’t take the place of traditional clinical approaches, talking about our trauma in a funny way is quite lovely, and more importantly, it has a chain reaction on our audience, and we help other people to deal with their sadness. When we bring our stories alive for others, it makes other people feel less alone. Having our experiences mirrored back to us is hugely comforting. Comedy builds community.

1. Who was the course pioneered by?
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
2. What is the content of the course?
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
3. Please underline the false part in the following statement and explain why.
Comedy comes from our everyday struggles, and from the happy moments of our life as well.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
4. If you meet a trauma, would you like to take the comedy course? Why?
(In about 40 words)
_______________________________________________________________________________________________

6 . 阅读下列短文，根据短文内容填空。在未给提示词的空白处仅填写1个适当的单词，在给出提示词的空白处用括号内所给词的正确形式填空。

Last Friday Peta-Lynn, a 13-year-old girl from Darwin, saved a man from a huge crocodile. Mr. Graham was standing in shallow water near his boat     1     a crocodile grabbed his left arm. Peta-Lynn rushed to help and pulled him free. While they     2     (head) for the shore, the crocodile attacked for the second time. It bit Mr. Graham’s right leg and cut it badly. Peta-Lynn dragged him up the bank to     3     (safe).

7 . Do you know what a resolution is?     1     Most of the time, we make promises to other people—“Mom, I promise I’m going to tidy my room when I get back from school”.

However, promises you make to yourself are resolutions, and the most common kind is New Year’s resolutions. The start of the year is often a time for making resolutions. When we make resolutions at the beginning of the year, we hope that we are going to improve our lives.     2     This helps them to remember their resolutions. Others tell their family and friends about their wishes and plans.

There are different kinds of resolutions. Some are about physical health. For example, some people promise themselves they are going to start an exercise program or eat less fast food.     3     These are about making yourself a better person. Some people might say they are going to take up a hobby like painting or taking photos, or learn to play the guitar. Some resolutions have to do with better planning, like making a weekly plan for schoolwork.     4    

Although there are differences, most resolutions have one thing in common. People hardly ever keep them! There are good reasons for this. Sometimes the resolutions may be too difficult to keep. Sometimes people just forget about them. For this reason, some people say the best resolution is to have no resolutions!     5    

A．It’s a kind of promise.

B．How about you—will you make any next year?

C．Many resolutions have to do with self-improvement.

D．For example, a student may have to find more time to study.

E．Do you know how to stick to your resolution as long as possible?

F．A New Year’s resolution is the goal that is set at the start of a new year.

G．Some people write down their resolutions and plans for the coming year.

8 . 阅读下列短文，根据短文内容填空。在未给提示词的空白处仅填写1个适当的单词，在给出提示词的空白处用括号内所给词的正确形式填空。

As of June, China had about 285 million Internet users in rural areas,     1     (account) for over 30 percent of the country’s total. The number of rural Internet users     2     (grow) by over 30 million in the last few months. Nowadays, the Internet is playing a     3     (great) role than ever in the country’s poverty (贫困) reduction efforts. China saw over 10 million livestreaming marketing     4     (activity) in the first half of this year, attracting over 50 billion views.

9 . 阅读下列短文，根据短文内容填空。在未给提示词的空白处仅填写1个适当的单词，在给出提示词的空白处用括号内所给词的正确形式填空。

Your friends influence the way you view your physical appearance. If you have friends who     1     (be)good-looking or have a great fashion sense, it can feel like you are living     2     their shadow. For children of the digital age, social media makes this problem even worse. Your friends may post a never-ending series of photos online to show off, and it becomes easier for you     3     (compare)yourself with them.

10 . 阅读下列短文，根据短文内容填空。在未给提示词的空白处仅填写1个适当的单词，在给出提示词的空白处用括号内所给词的正确形式填空。

Last year, I studied at a British secondary school as an exchange student. There, I made friends with a boy     1     (name)Paul, a huge fan of the NBA. Paul’s favourite player was Tyrone Bogues,     2     played for the Charlotte Hornets. Bogues was only 1.6 metres tall,     3     made him the shortest player ever in the NBA. Paul used Bogues as his inspiration. Paul once said, “Bogues could make it, why not me?”