1 . I didn’t quite know what I was looking for when I flew to Mongolia for a term abroad. I just needed something different, far from the late-night libraries of my college town. Most different, I hoped, would be my rural homestay: two weeks in central Mongolia with a family of nomadic(游牧的) herders.
I was studying Mongolian at the time, but still, there was so much I couldn’t say or understand. As we walked in the snow behind the goats, my host mom would ask me if I was cold, then giggle (咯咯地笑) and copy a big shiver to make sure I understood. In the evenings, she showed me how to make dumplings with her fingers. My host siblings would talk with me, speaking too fast for me to understand, as we explored the rocks around our tent; I’d listen and nod.
This verbal(言语的) barrier was strangely freeing. In the crowded dining hall at home, meeting new people made me anxious. I’d stay quiet, measuring out my words, struggling for something to say that wouldn’t expose me as unfunny or boring. In Mongolia, I couldn’t perfect my words. I could only smile, and try out one of the phrases I’d mastered: “May I help?” “Where is the dog?” “Are you tired?” My host family laughed at my pronunciation, at the way I threw up my hands and eyebrows in a frequent gesture of confusion. But in their laughter, I felt safe, unembarrassed.
With my Mongolian family on the grassland, I found a feeling of ease I’d never felt before. We were so different, they and I, and not just in language. Their skin was hardened and darkened by sun; I’d been hidden under hats and sunscreen since birth. My host siblings(兄弟姐妹) grew up drawing water from frozen streams and jogging behind herds of sheep; I spent summers at tennis camp.
For me, these gaps made all the difference. Without shared social measures, I wasted no time wondering how I was measuring up. Only real things—kindness, helpfulness—mattered.
1. Why did the author go to Mongolia for a term abroad?| A．She dreamed of living a nomadic life. | B．She was tired of studying late at night. |
| C．She had to study Mongolians’ normal life. | D．She was collecting information for libraries. |
| A．Hug. | B．Smile. | C．Attack. | D．Shake. |
| A．She felt at ease in the crowd. | B．She usually weighed her words. |
| C．She asked a lot of funny questions. | D．She often made others laugh with jokes. |
| A．You are judged wherever you go. | B．Nature makes humans feel insignificant. |
| C．Appearance reflects one’s standard of life. | D．Being kind is the common social standard. |
2 . Two years ago Lucy was saved from a rural area in New South Wales, Australia. Today, she is one of the lucky animals living in rows of trees that have been created to protect koalas and other animals by saving their smaller and smaller habitat (栖息地) , or natural environment.
The trees, planted by the local protection group Bangalow Koalas, are made up of large systems of plants. They are a lifeline for koalas and other animals. All of them are in danger of dying out, or at risk of extinction. The trees provide a safe way across the koala’s increasingly broken habitat. This protects koalas from human threats (威胁). “Our trees are actually trying to get them away from humans, cars and dogs. ”said Linda Sparrow. President of Bangalow Koalas.
The koala is expected to die out in the wild in New South Wales by 2050. Some of the biggest threats include wildfires and habitat loss through land clearing for development.
Bangalow Koalas has planted over 336, 000 trees on 119 areas, helping koala protection and improving the local ecosystem (生态系统). The group, which depends on community volunteers, aims to plant 500, 000 trees by 2025. “The neighbor would want to join and then another neighbor would want to join. ”Sparrow said. Volunteer Lindy Stacker, who has been planting trees for over five years.
A recent report by the Australian Koala Foundation said the animal was worth about S3. 2 billion per year to the tourism industry. However. the World Wildlife Fund-Australia reported a drop in koala populations in Australian states. “I can’t imagine a world where there’s no koalas in the wild. ” Sparrow said. “We’re going to do our best to make sure that doesn’t happen. ”
1. Why is Lucy mentioned in Paragraph 1?| A．To show it is important to plant trees. |
| B．To suggest a way to protect nature. |
| C．To introduce a special kind of living thing. |
| D．To compare koalas with other animals. |
| A．Growing. | B．Disappearing. | C．Reducing. | D．Failing. |
| A．Doubtful. | B．Unclear. | C．Positive. | D．Disappointed. |
| A．A Protection Group | B．The Polluted Environment |
| C．Human Threats | D．More Trees, More Hope |
1. What was wrong with Tom?
| A．He was hit by a taxi. |
| B．He hurt his head. |
| C．He fell ill with heart trouble. |
| A．She called the doctor. |
| B．She checked Tom carefully. |
| C．She took Tom to the hospital. |
1. When will the swim classes begin?
| A．On May 1st. | B．On April 30th. | C．On April 29th. |
| A．10. | B．15. | C．20. |
| A．Those who have no Level 3 certificate. |
| B．Those who want to pass the skill level test quickly. |
| C．Those who have never attended Community Pool classes. |
| A．The speaker. | B．The instructors. | C．The local community. |
1. What did Karl learn during his trip in Brazil?
| A．How to speak the local language. |
| B．How to take care of animals. |
| C．How to hunt for food. |
| A．The heavy rain at night. | B．Touching animals. | C．Sleeping alone. |
| A．They were shy. | B．They were friendly. | C．They were humorous. |
| A．Have some food. | B．Go to a print shop. | C．Look at some pictures. |
These days, many Chinese young people have turned to trees to help with their stress. Although it sounds strange, there’s science behind the act of tree-hugging.
A study in 2021
Another hormone
Although the activity is
There are other ways to turn to nature to help with your stress, such as forest bathing
1. What is the talk mainly about?
| A．How to improve self-confidence. |
| B．How to write a good speech. |
| C．How to get high grades. |
| A．His classmate. | B．His teacher. | C．A drama actor. |
| A．Sales. | B．Education. | C．Drama. |
| A．Facing mistakes bravely. |
| B．Taking part in the school play. |
| C．Talking with the head teacher. |
8 . It was early spring and my mother worked the soil into a ridge (隆起部分) for sweet potatoes on the edge of her garden. She planted sweet comas next. When I saw the plants, I was really excited. I thought it was really amazing. This gave me an idea. So one day when my mother was working in the garden again, I said to her, “Mum, can I have some space in your garden?”
My mum looked as if she couldn’t believe her ears. I was just six years old then, after all.
“Why do you want some space?” she asked. “I want to grow some plants, too,” I said.
“What plants do you want to grow?” asked my mum.
I thought of some marigold (万寿菊) seeds I had saved from my grandma’s garden, so I told her I wanted to grow that kind of flower.
My mother didn’t answer me immediately. She looked at her plants. All that she had grown were vegetables. I didn’t know what she was thinking back then, but now I do. She didn’t want to waste her garden space. But at last she said, “OK. You can do that.”
I was very happy when I heard that. My mother then gave me a 4-by-4-foot square of space in the garden. With my mother’s guidance, I happily planted the seeds in my small “garden”. Then I watered them. In the following days I waited for the seedlings to appear. When I finally saw some, I let out cries of joy.
I have fallen in love with gardening ever since, I was lucky that I could work in a “garden” of my own when I was little. Today many children living in cities can’t have such fun. But their parents can still take them out to enjoy nature in the wild. It can bring them great joy, believe me!
1. What did the author want to do when she saw the plants grown by her mum?| A．To learn to grow vegetables. | B．To have her own garden space. |
| C．To observe the plants every day. | D．To help her mother in the garden. |
| A．Surprised. | B．Excited. | C．Interested. | D．Worried. |
| A．She should plant some flowers. | B．She should grow more vegetables. |
| C．She would have to waste some space. | D．She had a lot of garden space to spare. |
| A．To introduce marigolds to gardeners. | B．To show today’s children live a boring life. |
| C．To advise people to buy houses with gardens. | D．To encourage parents to take their kids to nature. |
9 . Are flash floods becoming more severe? Natural disasters are generally getting worse—and that's true for floods, too.
As climate change warms the atmosphere, extreme rainfall is rising, which increases the risk of flash floods. Heavy precipitation(降水) events are predicted to increase by 2 to 3 times the historical average. The Federal Emergency Management Agency expects the nation’s floodplains to expand by 45 percent by the end of this century, as the agency reported in a recent study. A study in early 2021 found that increased precipitation—resulting partially from climate change—costs the US an additional $ 2.5 billion each year in flood damage. And some studies show that flood frequency was increasing in the Mississippi River valley and across the Midwest in the last century, as well as in the Northeast over the past 50 years.
There are several steps you can take to prepare for flash floods
First, know the level of risk by looking at flood maps. You may be required to have flood insurance if you live in a high-risk area.
Pay attention to flash flood watches, which the National Weather Service issues to indicate when conditions could result.in flash floods. People in these areas-should be-ready to take action—particularly if the NWS announces a flash flood warning. That’s issued when flash floods are approaching and, at that point, people should immediately leave the area.
But be particularly careful when travelling by car. Don’t drive through flooded streets—it's difficult to judge the water depth, and roadways hidden below the water can collapse. If floodwaters cause your vehicle to lose control, abandon it and seek the higher ground. Rapidly rising water can sweep the vehicle away. Know your surroundings and head to the higher ground, and listen to the radio updates when in a flood.
It’s also important to develop an emergency prepared plan with your family or those you live with to have a few days’ worth of resources.
1. Why does the author ask the question in paragraph 1?| A．To confirm an idea. | B．To conclude the text. |
| C．To introduce a topic. | D．To express some doubts. |
| A．By analyzing causes. | B．By listing relevant data. |
| C．By describing processes. | D．By making comparisons. |
| A．Purchase insurance. | B．Look at flood maps. |
| C．Have an emergency plan. | D．Avoid the flooded streets. |
| A．What Is a Flash Flood? |
| B．Do Flash Floods Need Controlling? |
| C．How Do We Prepare for Flash Floods? |
| D．Are Flash Floods Becoming More Severe? |
Mr Swales was talking about what people do, and wanted to find out what his students wanted to be when they grew up. Mr Swales was about to call on Jodie when the girls in the back row burst out laughing.
Shirley yelled, “Jodie’s daddy is a garbageman! Pee-yoo!” Everybody in the class laughed out loud except Jodie. She felt her face turn bright red. She looked around the whole classroom. Everyone was laughing. Some kids were even holding their noses. Mr Swales was angry. He almost never raised his voice, but now he did.
“Silence! I want everybody quiet this instant.”
The laughter stopped immediately. “You should be ashamed of yourselves,” Mr Swales said. “Being a garbageman, I mean, a sanitation engineer, is a difficult and extremely useful job. We should all be grateful to Mr Harris. Where would we be without him? Up to our ears in garbage, that’s where. How would you like that?”
“Pee-yoo!” somebody said. A few kids started laughing again.
“It’s not funny,” Mr Swales went on. “Garbage is a serious matter. I think you all owe Jodie an apology. And after that, you’re all going to write Jodie’s father, Mr Harris, a nice letter to tell him how much you appreciate what he does for all of us.” Everybody moaned (抱怨). Everyone said sorry to Jodie, but Jodie could tell they didn’t really mean it.
Her face was burning red and she felt like crying.
Mr Swales came to her and said, “Let’s go out in the hall, so we can have a private talk.” Jodie couldn’t hold back any more. She started crying out in the hall. “I’m sorry this happened,” he said. “But remember, hard work done well is something to be proud of. There’s nothing wrong with being a garbageman… a sanitation engineer, absolutely not.”
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。
Jodie’s father came to walk her home from school as usual, but she didn’t run up to him the way she always did.
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Next day, Jodie went to work with her father.
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