5 . 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。

In the spring sun, my aunt and I headed for her flower shop. Normally I would be delighted to help in her shop, but not recently because of Rosa. Rosa was my sister, just one month old, who was settled in my old bedroom. For ten years, the small room was full of my toys and books. But now it was transformed into her baby room, decorated like a garden with pinks and yellows. My space, my old life, was gone.

“Here we are!” We arrived at the shop, a wave of colour and sweet smell washing over me. My aunt said I could pick some flowers for Mum and Dad. I used to love this, but today I was so overcome with tiredness and envy. Why bother to bring them flowers when they were enjoying Rosa at home without me?

Silently I helped my aunt arrange flowers. “Your mum told me there hasn’t been much shut eye recently for any of you.” “Not much, since Rosa the alarm clock was installed (安装).” I complained with a huge yawn (哈欠).

“I remember having to creep (蹑手蹑脚地走) around like a worn-out mouse when your mum was a baby. I spent the first months hating her so much.” “But you and Mum seem so close,” I said, guiltily hiding away my envy of Rosa.

“Now we are. But it took me years to grow into the role of big sister. Few flowers blossom (绽放) overnight, you know.” She pulled me in for aside hug, glancing up at the clock, and suggested I take a walk outside.

Behind her shop was a field dotted with spring flowers. Stepping into the field, I began to pick little flowers. It was like gathering my childhood memories. I remembered how I’d sit with Dad, making flower chains, crowning (授予) each other with the silliest titles: Queen of Junk Food and King of Mess. My smile grew wider. The shining yellow flowers reminded me of the color in Rosa’s baby room. Was she awake? I wondered.

注意：
1.续写词数应为150左右；
2.请按如下格式在答题卷的相应位置作答。

Suddenly I saw two familiar figures walking towards me.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Rosa was wide awake in her baby basket beside the picnic blanket.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

7 . “Anyone knows single parents who can’t afford to get their child’s hair done for school? I will braid (编辫子) it for free!”Brittany Starks wrote on a Facebook post.

She decided to offer her hair braiding services after a family friend delivered backpacks full of school supplies, clothing and shoes for Cayden and Ceniyah in early August. “At the time, I didn’t have anything for my kids to start school,” said Starks, who is in between homes and staying with her mother. “It meant so much to me.”

The unexpected gift made a big difference to Starks and her children, and it motivated her to pay it forward. Starks, who works two receptionist jobs, also braids hair part-time. “The hair-braiding process involves washing, blow-drying, and finally dividing the hair into small sections and braiding it. It also requires multiple supplies — including combs, brushes, hair jam and additional pieces of hair to weave in. It costs anywhere from $150 to $400 at a salon (美发厅), depending on the style,” Stacks explained. “But it can last for months and is a huge timesaver in the mornings.”

When she wrote the Facebook post, she assumed only a handful of people would reach out,but before she knew it, she had 35 appointments booked. Her Facebook inbox was suddenly full of messages from single parents, whose stories of hardship and financial challenges mirrored her own.

“There’s a huge need for this. I could really relate to a lot of the women who reached out, and it made me realize that what I was doing was really important,” said Stacks. “What got me the most was seeing the kids smile.” Given that there was less than two weeks before the start of school, Starks knew she needed to enlist help.

1. What got Brittany Starks to offer her hair braiding service?

A．A post on Facebook.	B．Her friend’s timely help.
C．Her mother’s advice.	D．A trip to her kids’ school.

2. What does Starks say about hair braiding?

A．It’s a bit dear.	B．It’s time-wasting.
C．It’s an easy job.	D．It’s a mother’s duty.

3. How does Starks feel about the response to her Facebook post?

A．Rather disturbing.	B．Beyond expectation.
C．Far from satisfactory.	D．Very disappointing.

4. What can we infer about Brittany Starks from the text?

A．She is single with one child.	B．She is ambitious and arbitrary.
C．She is in need of helping hands.	D．She is free from financial worries.

8 . 阅读下面短文，在空白处填入 1 个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。

Chinese calligraphy (书法) is an art form that    1    (involve) the skilled and deliberate use of brush and ink to create beautiful and expressive characters.

The origins of Chinese calligraphy can be traced back thousands of years to the Shang Dynasty, making it one of the     2     (old) continuous artistic traditions in the world. Its evolution is accompanied with the development of the Chinese writing system,     3     consists of thousands of characters, each with its own artistic structure and stroke order (笔顺).

Calligraphy in China    4    (regard) as one of the highest forms of artistic expression. It is not only a means of communication     5     a way to develop one’s character, discipline, and spirituality. The practice of calligraphy requires     6    (patient), concentration, and a deep understanding of the balance between empty space and solid forms.

Different styles of calligraphy have emerged throughout history, each with its own distinct characteristics and artistic conventions. The most famous    7    (style) include regular script (kaishu), running script (xingshu), cursive script (caoshu), and seal script (zhuanshu).

Chinese calligraphy has a profound influence     8     other art forms, such as     9    (paint), poetry, and seal carving. It is often considered as an important part of the Chinese traditional culture, where scholars and artists would gather in a     10    (culture) salon to appreciate and discuss calligraphic works.

10 . When you think about it, food is an important part of our lives. Family gatherings center around food and the celebration of major life events and milestones involves food in one way or another. The same holds true for us here on the Space Station. Food is important and ends up usually being a topic of discussion for almost every crew.

The food that we have here on ISS has to meet many different requirements. What about variety? How do you meet all of the peculiarities of the people that you come across, especially when they are from different cultures? What about the logistics(物流)of getting the right food here at the right time? So there are a couple of different questions you have to consider when you talk about food and long-duration space flight.

On the U.S. side we have gone to a standard menu, meaning that every 16 days you start over with the same menu. To compensate the crews, we are allowed to pick one“preference”container which consists of our pick of anything on the U. S. menu list. This allows us some variety in our menu, with the choices up to us. One of the desirable options for any crew is to make sure that enough tortillas(墨西哥玉米粉薄饼) get on board. You can do so much with a tortilla; it becomes the vehicle with which to eat almost anything.

Our food also comes packaged in many ways. But no matter what the form of the food though, you still have the same problem eating it- - you do not want it flying away from you and making a mess when you open it up. In this case a little bit of extra water is extremely helpful. It keeps the food kind of sticking together and to the package and to your spoon. Small things do escape from time to time, but we really try hard to minimize the random flying food problem. That is enough for now! Next time I will write about how to cook in space.

1. Where is the text most probably taken from?

A．A food magazine.	B．An astronaut’s journal.
C．A sci-fi handbook.	D．A space history website.

2. What does the underlined word “peculiarities” mean in paragraph 2?

A．Ambitious targets.	B．Similar requests.
C．Unusual habits.	D．Harsh conditions.

3. What is the author’ s purpose in mentioning tortillas?

A．To illustrate the preference container.	B．To give an example of standard menu.
C．To advocate tortillas to the readers.	D．To show the variety of food options.

4. What can be inferred about eating in space?

A．Food packaging is optional.	B．Sufficient water helps transport food.
C．Flying food problem is unavoidable.	D．Eating in space is easier than most imagine.