1 . A seven-word sentence was discovered on a 3,700-year-old comb (梳子),which is likely the oldest known sentence written in letters,according to a new study. The sentence is in Canaanite (迦南语),which is the source (来源) of later letter systems in European languages.
The comb was first discovered in 2016 in Israeli. However,it wasn’t until 2021 that a researcher from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem first noticed the words when checking the photo of the comb. The researchers were not able to directly date the comb. They believed it dated from around 1700 BC based on comparison of the letters with those on pottery (陶器) with a known age.
Garfinkel,a professor at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem,said,“The Canaanites invented the letters. Nowadays every person in the world can read and write using the letter system. This is really one of the most important achievements of humankind. When you are writing in English,you’re really using Canaanite.”
Small groups of Canaanite letters discovered on broken pieces of pottery before did not leave much room for further research on the lives of the Canaanites. But this find of a sentence written in the first letter-based language opens up the debate about the history during the ancient time period.
Garfinkel said,“The sentence was found on an ivory comb in the ancient city’s palace and temple area,which could suggest that only wealthy men were able to read and write.” The earliest writing system started around 5,000 years ago,which relied on hundreds of pictographs (象形文字) to represent words,ideas and sounds. Canaanites were the first to use letters in their writing system. “It shows that even in the most ancient times there were full sentences,which further suggests that Canaanites stood out among the early civilizations in their use of the written word.”
1. What do we know about Canaanite?| A．It has a history of 3,700 years. | B．It is the oldest known language. |
| C．Its sentences are in many languages. | D．Its letters are still in use at present. |
| A．It was discovered on some pottery. | B．It was identified on a comb in 2016. |
| C．It was recognized when dating the comb. | D．It was recognized on a photo of the comb. |
| A．The influence of Canaanite letters. |
| B．The rules of using Canaanite letters. |
| C．The problem in identifying the Canaanite sentence. |
| D．The explanation of the discovered Canaanite sentence. |
| A．Useless. | B．Meaningful. | C．Confusing. | D．Unacceptable. |
2 . It is hard to say the first day of school in the United States because when the first day of school is and what happens on the first day of school usually are different by districts（地区）.
The first day of school for many school districts in different states is on the day after the first Monday in September. In some other school districts, school begins in mid-to-late August. For example, the Denver, Colorado schools go back in mid-August and schools in Cleveland, Ohio start back usually one week before the first Monday in September. The Boston, Chicago, New York City and San Diego schools start back on the Tuesday or Wednesday after the first Monday in September.
Schools in Cleveland, Ohio used to start the school year on the day after the first Monday in September, but in the 1976-1977 and 1977-1978 academic years, the school year was affected by several bad snowstorms, extreme cold. In the 1978-1979 school year, the Ohio Department of Education moved the start of the year to late August, one week before the first Monday in September. This went into effect in the 1980-1981 school year.
In most school districts in Utah, the school year starts between August 25 and August 30, and goes until the last week of May or the first week in June next year.
In American high schools, the freshmen class usually goes back one or two days before the rest of the school body for an orientation（迎新）period. An orientation period helps the freshmen get familiar with their new school, its rules, and surroundings.
In some schools, the freshmen classes have their photographs taken for identification purposes. Some high schools have tried to make the first week of school fun for incoming freshmen.
1. According to the passage, which schools start their school year the earliest?| A．Schools in Denver. |
| B．Schools in Cleveland. |
| C．Schools in New York City. |
| D．Schools in Boston. |
| A．Because of some political events. |
| B．Because of the entrance examinations. |
| C．Because of the increasing number of students. |
| D．Because of the extreme weather. |
| A．About seven months. |
| B．About eight months. |
| C．About nine months. |
| D．About ten months. |
| A．a book about one's life story |
| B．an official website of education |
| C．an advertisement in a newspaper |
| D．a sports magazine |
Mark was a 11-year-old boy. One day he was selling magazines for his school fees, walking up to a house that people rarely visited. The house was very old and shabby and the owner hardly ever came out. When he did come out, he would not say hello to his neighbors or passers-by but simply just glared at(怒视) them. It was said that the old man’s name was Henry.
Mark knocked on the door and waited, sweating due to fear of the old man. Mark’s parents told him to stay away from the house, and a lot of other neighborhood children were told the same thing by their parents.
Dusk found Mark wandering and hesitating(犹豫) what to do. As he was ready to walk away, the door slowly opened: “Why are you standing here?” the old man Henry said impatiently. Mark was very afraid but he had to sell a certain number of magazines for his school fees... So he got up the courage and said, “Uh, sir, I am selling these magazines and, uh, I was wondering if you would like to buy one from me.”
Henry just stared at Mark without saying a word. Mark could see that Henry had dog figurines(小雕像) on the shelves inside his house. “Do you collect dog figurines?” Mark asked. “Yes, I have many collections in my house. They are my family here and they are all I have.” Mark then felt sorry for Henry, as it seemed that he was a very lonely soul.
“Well, I do have a magazine here for collectors. It is perfect for you. I also have one about dogs since you like dogs so much.” Henry was ready to close the door on the boy and said, “No, boy. I don’t need any magazines of any kind, now goodbye.”
Mark was sad that he was not going to achieve his goal of selling a certain number of magazines. He was also sad for the old man being so alone in the house that he owned. Mark went home and then had an idea. He had a little dog figurine that he had got some years before from an aunt. The figurine did not mean so much to him since he had a real living dog and a large family.
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。
Mark held the dog figurine and ran out of his house.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Mark’s contact and communication with Henry made a difference to Henry’s life and character.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________增加：在缺词处加一个漏字符号（∧），并在其下面写出该加的词。
删除：把多余的词用斜线（/）划掉。
修改：在错的词下划一横线，并在该词下面写出修改后的词。
注意：1.每处错误及其修改均仅限一词；
2.只允许修改10处，多者（从第11处起）不计分。
During my childhood, my family didn’t have a lot of money, so we had to be creative when it came to be entertainment. One of our favorite thing to do on weekends were to go to the park and have a picnic. My mom would pack sandwiches, fruit, and cookies, and they would bring a frisbee and a soccer ball play with. We would spend hours running around but having fun. It didn’t matter which we didn’t have expensively toys. We were happy just spending time together in the fresh air. Looked back, I know those simple picnics are some of my fonder memories in my childhood.
5 . The history of Azerbaijani cinema dates back to the end of the 19th century, during which, many excellent movies have been filmed, which are still watched and admired by everyone.
These movies were filmed in many beautiful places: from the comfortable and winding streets of the Icharishahar(Old City)—UNESCO World Heritage Site in Baku—to the beautiful fruit gardens and forests of beautiful areas of Azerbaijan.
Here, on these streets, one of the most famous Azerbaijani films, Arshin Mal Alan, directed by Rza Tahmasib, was filmed.
Filmed in 1945 and characterized by its amazing plot, beautiful music, great singing and acting, Arshin Mal Alan quickly became a box office sensation (轰动).
It remains an important cultural touchstone across Eurasia and has been translated into 86languages and shown in 136 countries.
The film is about pure love, women’s rights, and a young couple’s dreams for a modern way of life.
The plot tells us about a rich young man named Asker. One day, he decides to get married. However, according to the Eastern rule, a bride (新娘) needs to cover her face before the wedding. But soon he finds a solution to this problem. On the advice of his friend Suleyman, Asker dresses up as a street seller of cloth. By selling goods, these sellers can enter houses where the women and girls choosing their cloth don’t cover their faces. Now Asker can go into any yard and choose a bride.
The film has a lot of entertaining moments, songs and humour. The black-and-white version of this film has also been restored and can now be viewed in colour.
However, this is not the only movie that was filmed in the Old City. For example, in the films Amphibian Man and The Diamond Arm, you can see the streets well known to every Azerbaijaní.
1. What can we know about Arshin Mal Alan?| A．It was filmed before 1945. | B．It is popular around the world. |
| C．It is an action film with amazing plot. | D．It can be viewed in black and white only. |
| A．A man must be rich in order to marry his bride. |
| B．A man must dress up as a seller at the wedding. |
| C．A man mustn’t see his bride’s face before the wedding. |
| D．A man must buy a house for his bride before the wedding. |
| A．To choose a bride. | B．To make a film. |
| C．To work in the street. | D．To earn more money. |
| A．The street culture in Azerbaijan. |
| B．The history of black-and-white TV. |
| C．A love story between Asker and his bride. |
| D．A famous movie filmed in Old City—Icharishahar. |
6 . For the last few years, Elijah Cossio, a Houston teen, has been assisting his mother Tina Hernandez with her hospital bills by holding a daily bake sale after school. The 14-year-old
Hernandez, a mother of three who nearly
However, Elijah’s baking hobby wasn’t something he ever
The teen’s world was
At that point, Elijah was already selling baked goods on the weekends to earn some
“There’s more to
| A．immediately | B．regularly | C．only | D．finally |
| A．gives | B．presents | C．provides | D．sells |
| A．broke out | B．died from | C．suffered from | D．passed down |
| A．wonderful | B．powerful | C．skillful | D．painful |
| A．seemed | B．preferred | C．expected | D．considered |
| A．handed | B．bought | C．awarded | D．returned |
| A．ignored | B．disturbed | C．changed | D．turned |
| A．tried | B．improved | C．agreed | D．recovered |
| A．casual | B．difficult | C．simple | D．former |
| A．disability | B．condition | C．location | D．experience |
| A．extra | B．useful | C．enough | D．large |
| A．mastered | B．attempted | C．influenced | D．taught |
| A．pressure | B．confidence | C．income | D．benefit |
| A．study | B．health | C．life | D．money |
| A．picked | B．controlled | C．attracted | D．raised |
7 . Lexi is just a little girl from Canada who found herself in a heart-stopping situation. It started off as a normal car trip. Angela Shymanski, Lexi’s mom, was at the wheel, navigating the tricky roads of the Rockies with her daughter Lexi and her baby Peter in the car. An unexpected animal ran into the road. Angela swerved (突然转向) to avoid the animal. Unfortunately, their car was off the road, falling down a steep embankment (路堤).
The crash was nothing short of terrifying. Angela ended up with a broken back. She was unconscious, and unable to help her babies. Meanwhile, baby Peter’s cries echoed in the chaos. But Lexi, only five years old, didn’t freeze. Instead, she showed courage that would leave many grown-ups in awe.
She quickly jumped into action. The little girl, without even shoes on her feet, wrestled free from her seatbelt and climbed the 40-foot embankment. Once she reached the top, Lexi did everything she could to flag down a passing car in order to get help for her mom and brother.
Lexi’s insistence finally paid off. A car stopped, and the people inside didn’t hesitate to help her call for emergency services. When the paramedics (护理人员) arrived, they found Angela in a severe state, and her heart had stopped. Thankfully, they managed to bring her back.
Lexi’s dad, reflecting on the incident, couldn’t help but be amazed by his daughter’s bravery. He stressed how important it is for kids to be prepared for emergencies, shocked at how Lexi remembered and acted on what she had been taught. It’s a powerful reminder of what kids can do when push comes to shove.
And Lexi’s heroism didn’t go unnoticed. She was awarded a Bronze Medal for Bravery by the police. But for the Shymanskis, the real prize was being back in each other’s arms, safe and sound.
1. What caused the accident?| A．The tough road. | B．The children’s noise. |
| C．A car that suddenly swerved. | D．An animal appearing suddenly. |
| A．Putting on her shoes. | B．Managing to get out of the car. |
| C．Flagging down a passing car. | D．Scaling the 40-foot embankment. |
| A．Her heroic action deserved recognition. | B．Her dad knew her daughter well enough. |
| C．She had learned how to deal with emergencies. | D．It was important for her to face some emergencies. |
| A．Brave and honest. | B．Calm and courageous. |
| C．Thoughtful but stubborn. | D．Caring but naughty. |
8 . Public Speaking Training
Get a coach
Focus on positives
Any training you do to become more effective at public speaking should always focus on the positive aspects of what you already do well. Nothing can hurt confidence more than being told that you aren’t doing well.
If you find a public speaking course that looks as though it’s going to give you lots of dos and don’ts, walk away! Your brain is so full of what you’re going to be talking about.
You are a special person not a clone
Most importantly, good public speaking training should treat you as a special one, with your own personal habits.
| A．You aren’t like anybody else |
| B．You already do lots of things well |
| C．Turn your back on too many rules |
| D．Practise speaking whenever possible |
| E．Whatever the presentation, public speaking is tough |
| F．The one thing you don’t want is for them to fall asleep |
| G．So trying to force a whole set of rules into it will just make things worse |
9 . Official figures show that 101 people were killed in road accidents on the streets of London last year. The city wants to reduce the number of deaths and serious injuries on the capital’s roads to zero. It seems impossible. But it focuses more minds on an important question: What can help reduce accidents in a big city? Transport for London (TfL), the capital’s road and rail authority, has some answers: safe speeds, safe vehicles and so on.
A safety standard for Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGVs), which harnesses blind area cameras and sensors (传感器), is pioneering. Blind area cameras and sensors are widely placed where they are needed. The European Commission has followed it. TfL has also helpfully identified London’s most dangerous places. Half of Britain’s most dangerous roads run through the capital. Around three-quarters of accidents that cause deaths or serious injuries happen at crossing near the British Museum, which has been the site of the most deaths since 2012. Westminster is the most dangerous area for walkers and cyclists, so it introduced 20 mph speed limits on all its roads in 2021.
“Vision Zero” was launched in 2018. Deaths and serious injuries on London’s roads have fallen — by 53% and 40% respectively in 2022. But movement is not one-way. Deaths were record breakingly low in 2020 and 2021. But in 2022 the deaths rose again. “We are moving in the right direction,” says Will Norman, London’s walking and cycling commissioner.
Lack of funds for TfL has put off improving the riskiest areas. Only a few parts of the1010 Avenue have bike paths with guardrails (护栏). Safety is the biggest problem to people taking up cycling or letting their children walk or cycle. But greener vehicles may be unsafe themselves. Electric scooters (滑板车) are the latest ones to confuse planners. “One of those doing 50 mph down the road is not good for anybody,” said Mr Norman.
1. What is the author’s purpose in writing paragraph 1?| A．To make the article interesting. |
| B．To stress the importance of TfL. |
| C．To call on scientists to study the question. |
| D．To give some background information. |
| A．Compares. | B．Removes. | C．Uses. | D．Replaces. |
| A．Doubtful. | B．Supportive. | C．Puzzled. | D．Unclear. |
| A．Bike lanes are not safe anymore for riders on roads. |
| B．Children should think twice when taking up cycling. |
| C．Safety has been a problem for some eco-friendly vehicles. |
| D．Electric scooters have become the biggest confusion for planners. |
增加：在缺词处加一个漏字符号(⋀)，并在其下面写出该加的词。
删除：把多余的词用斜线(\)划掉。
修改：在错的词下划一横线，并在该词下面写出修改后的词。
注意：
1.每处错误及其修改均仅限一词；
2.只允许修改10处，多者(从第11处起)不计分。
Success rarely happen overnight. It is perseverance that makes failure the mother of success. I used to struggle with my math. However hard I tried, little progresses was made. I was about to give up while my math teacher came to my assistance. She told me the value of perseverance and encouraged me keep going. I took her advice and changed her strategy. At the same time, when I had difficulty solved problems, I would ask my teacher for help. It worked at the last and my grades gradual improved. This experience tells me that life is a journey what requires continuous efforts. Only by constant efforts could we eventually obtain success.
