1 . In scientific literature, baby talk is called “parentese” and is a unique way of communicating with babies. Classic baby talk will include speaking at a higher pitch, with exaggerated (夸张的) intonation, simplified vocabulary, and repetitive phrases. It has a melodic quality, coupled with exaggerated facial expressions. Adults also tend to speak more slowly and emphasize key words or phrases when engaging in baby talk. What’s the point of using such a ridiculous style of talking with babies? Why not just talk to a baby with normal speech, like we’d talk to another adult?

Primarily, we use baby talk to capture the baby’s attention. The exaggerated vocalizations and facial expressions serve to engage the child’s focus by being distinct from all the other noise and visual stimuli around the baby. Remember, the brain of a newborn baby is still developing and needs different cues to engage and learn something.

Baby talk also helps to establish an emotional connection between the adult and the baby. The melodic and nurturing tone conveys affection, love, and care. As a result, in a way, it reassures the child by giving them a sense of security.

Interestingly, there was a study where researchers tested 2,329 babies from 16 countries on their preference for this high-pitched, animated vocalization... babies love it when adults engage in baby talk. The study also revealed that babies from almost all cultures have an inherent love for baby talk.

Newborns can’t speak, but they come ready to learn. Evidence suggests that human brains are primed to absorb and process linguistic input. The melodic patterns and simplified language of baby talk help infants differentiate speech sounds and identify keywords, facilitating more efficient language development.

However, it’s important to strike a balance between baby talk and normal adult conversation as babies grow older and their language skills develop. As children become more proficient in understanding and producing language, adults should adapt and advance their communication style accordingly.

1. Which of the following is the characteristic of baby talk?

A．Vivid expressions.	B．Rich information.
C．Complex grammar.	D．Large vocabulary.

2. According to the passage, what’s the function of baby talk?

A．To entertain adults.	B．To form emotional bond.
C．To learn more about babies.	D．To help babies understand the adult world.

3. What does the last paragraph focus on?

A．Describing a phenomenon.	B．Offering advice.
C．Analyzing causes.	D．Interpreting facts.

4. What is the passage mainly about?

A．What is baby talk?	B．Why can’t adults talk like babies?
C．How do babies talk with adults?	D．Why can’t adults talk normally to babies?

2 . Arches（拱门）National Park

Why Go to Arches National Park

A trip to Arches National Park is like visiting another planet with thousands of natural sandstone arches, red rocks and amazing landscapes, as well as light that seems to change all the time. The way the shadows（阴影）pass through the arches makes the park particularly attractive for photographers.

Sitting 5 miles northwest of Moab, Utah, the park has 26 miles of scenic road and hikes for every level of fitness.

Best Months to Visit

The best time to visit Arches National Park is from April to May and from September to October. In summer, temperatures can go beyond 100 degrees, making exploring the park very uncomfortable. In late summer, violent storms often cause flash floods, which can be quite dangerous. Winter is a good time for sightseeing, with fewer crowds, but occasional snow and ice can make the paths wet, smooth and therefore easy to fall on. However, the visitor center is open daily.

What to Eat

There are no restaurants or hotels in Arches National Park, so you need to bring your own food or plan to eat in neighboring Moab, Utah, about 5 miles from the park entrance. There are several picnic areas in the park, so plan ahead if you want to eat with Arches as the background.

Getting Around Arches National Park

The best way to get around Arches National Park is by car. There is no public transport inside Arches National Park. Visitors can also ride bikes in the park, but there are no bike lanes or shoulders, so this is more of an option for experienced cyclists.

1. What may visitors do at Arches National Park?

A．Have dinner in restaurants.	B．Take some photographs.
C．Learn about another planet.	D．Stay in the hotel for a few days.

2. What is a disadvantage of visiting the park in winter?

A．The risk of falling.	B．The danger of flash floods.
C．The crowds of tourists.	D．The shutdown of the visitor center.

3. Where is this text probably taken from?

A．A travel journal.	B．A geography book.
C．A tourism website.	D．An academic article.

3 . 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。

We were very poor. To help support the family, Grandma would go to the mountains to dig wild vegetables, and then sell them. In this way, Grandma had to spend the whole day in the mountains. After she came back from collecting a lot of wild vegetables, she had to pick them until late night. Early in the morning, my grandma would take the vegetables, walk through the mountain road, and go to the market to sell them.

I hated Grandma digging wild vegetables all day long, because as soon as I finished my homework, I had to help her pick vegetables. And this dirty work often made my fingers black. In that case, no matter how hard I washed my hands, the dirty black color couldn’t be washed away, which made me very upset. My grandma noticed I hated the black color so much; she once suggested using bleach and iron filings (漂白剂和铁屑). It worked. However, it really hurt so I refused to try them again.

One day, something unexpected happened.

“Everyone, you need to invite your parents to school. OK?” the teacher said to us, “the school requires students to bring your parents to school, mainly to discuss your school work.”

Of course it didn’t matter to other classmates, but I… Grandma was the only one who could come to school with me, Hearing what the teacher said, I sighed (叹气) helplessly, “Oh…” The worn-out clothes, the slightly hunched (弓背的) back, and the most terrible thing was the dirty black color on Grandma’s fingers!

I couldn’t tell how worried and frightened I was and I didn’t know what to do. Anyway, I didn’t want the teacher to see the color of my grandma’s fingers. I came home with an unhappy face and said hesitantly (犹豫地): “Well, Grandma, the teacher asked parents to go to school tomorrow.”

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。

I couldn’t help stealing a look at her hands.

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The next afternoon, a classmate told me my grandma was in the teacher’s office.

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4 . 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。

One day before Christmas, Nicole went to a supermarket near her home with her mother, Jessica, and her younger brother, Steven, to buy Christmas presents. She bought a very cute little teddy bear (泰迪熊) and she loved it very much.

It was snowing that day, but it soon stopped. And it started to clear up. So they planned to go for a walk along a local river together. It didn’t take long for Steven to start getting bored. He offered to play with his sister’s toy for a while. Nicole happily gave Steven her beloved teddy bear. As soon as Steven got the toy, he started playing with it. He even threw it into the air to show how strong he was. However, Steven threw the teddy bear into the river accidentally. Seeing what happened, Nicole was very sad, crying out loud.

The toy disappeared with the current. It was very cold, so it was impossible to go down to the river to pick up the teddy bear. Steven just stood there silently. Jessica saw the scene, and she knew she had to comfort Nicole and teach Steven a lesson.

With disappointment and sadness, Nicole walked quickly back home. Minutes later, Steven came up with an idea. He urged his mom to reach out to neighbors to see if anyone might be able to help find the toy. “I don’t want to bother anyone. I don’t think anyone would care,” Jessica said. But Steven convinced her to give it a shot. So she included the news in her personal social media and said, “If anyone happens to see the teddy bear in the river, please help us pick it up. My kids will be grateful.” She uploaded a photo of the teddy bear.

A local search and rescue team saw the news and its captain, Adam, decided to help. As hard as it was to believe, a task to rescue the teddy bear was quickly spreading. After several hours of searching, the toy was successfully located, which made the young owner very happy.

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。

On Christmas Day, Adam came to Jessica’s home.

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The next day, Nicole and Steven planned to take action to fulfil (履行) the promise to Adam.

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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。

My daughter Marissa loves to dance and is quite a good dancer. She inherited her dancing ability from my wife Angela.

Angela encouraged Marissa to dance from a very early age. I recall fondly how she would swing our daughter around the living room over and over to the song “Dancing Queen”. The two of them filled our living room with laughter and joy each time they danced together. Because of that, our daughter has always loved all types of dance, and she took classes in Irish dance, hip-hop, jazz and more.

I love music, and I will dance occasionally, but my dancing is awful! Every time I try to dance, two things get in the way: my feet.

A couple of years ago, Marissa was a bridesmaid in a wedding that my wife and I attended. It was a beautiful wedding on a bright spring day. At the reception, my daughter was dancing away. I was sitting at a table minding my own business when she talked me into dancing with her. That means she begged me to get off my chair and out on the dance floor.

When we got out on the floor, the DJ’s music took over my body. The problem was that it missed my hips and feet. I tried my best. As I began moving to the beat, I gave myself a silent encouraging talk. I thought of that famous phrase: Dance like no one is watching. That didn’t work! Everyone was watching. My brother-in-law was laughing so hard that I thought he would fall off his chair.

I tried my best to keep up with my daughter’s moves. Unfortunately, I was always at least two steps behind. She was performing a move, and I was just a fool! Her “Hips Don’t Lie”, and my hips didn’t even know what to say. If she was the dancing queen, then I would have been the court jester (小丑). I think you get the picture.

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。

Despite my poor dance moves, we had a good time.

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Dance gives us so many smiles.

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6 . 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。

Coral reefs are being planted in the deep seabed around Hainan Province, a famous tourist destination in China, as part of efforts     1     (preserve) the maritime (海上的) environment and promote green development.

Coral reefs cover about 2 percent of the area of sea floor and provide habitats for about 25 percent of     2     (creature). They play     3     important role in stabilizing ecology of the ocean, according to experts. They work as     4     (extreme) natural barriers to weaken the impact of waves crashing on the shore.

However, survival of coral reefs have been challenged due     5     changes in the maritime environment. In 2019, the Hainan South China Sea Institute of Tropical Ocean initiated a program to plant     6     (million) of coral reefs through professional breeding technology.

“It’s like     7     (plant) trees under the sea,” said Chen Hong, director of the institute. “Though they grow slowly, the seedlings no     8     (big) than fingernails may become coral reefs     9     size can surpass several soccer fields.”

In recent years, the team has planted over 200,000 coral reefs around Sanya city and Danzhou city. That quantity     10     (break) the national record of coral reefs transplantation for amount and survival rate.

7 . Jacob McFarland loves making and bringing his parents coffee. And now the 21-year-old, who has autism (孤独症), has his own cafe.

Making coffee for his dad is a passion. It makes him feel very ______. Jacob is his father’s biggest ______, and he loves coffee. So, Jacob loves everything his father loves. Jacob was ______ himself in all types of research about the proper beans to use, the best water, the water temperature and the ______ of the whole thing.

His parents ______ a record store in town, and they had to ______ close it sometimes because it was not an ______ business. Jacob, who was 19 at the time and had graduated from high school, was still in continuing education courses, but those ______ too. So, the family decided to do a coffee cart (推车) outside of their store.

The coffee cart was a way to keep ______ coming out-even though they couldn’t shop for ______ inside the store. It had a double benefit, because Jacob got to ______ his dream of being barista (咖啡师).

Not only was the coffee business successful, it helped ______ Jacob’s life. The cafe has expanded even further, by employing other young people with ______ and helping them with future employment efforts. Having a business has also helped Jacob socially. He’s found the ______ side of himself. And if this were to all go away tomorrow, the ______ in Jacob in two and a half years has been worth everything.

1.

A．famous

B．injured

C．happy

D．tired

2.

A．fan

B．son

C．problem

D．concern

3.

A．celebrating

B．serving

C．educating

D．absorbing

4.

A．lecture

B．technology

C．point

D．depth

5.

A．own

B．buy

C．need

D．build

6.

A．fluently

B．gradually

C．absolutely

D．temporarily

7.

A．honorable

B．exciting

C．essential

D．accessible

8.

A．spread

B．stopped

C．existed

D．indicated

9.

A．businessmen

B．guests

C．passengers

D．customers

10.

A．records

B．vegetables

C．equipment

D．clothes

11.

A．go through

B．come up

C．live out

D．cut in

12.

A．plan

B．change

C．design

D．imagine

13.

A．disabilities

B．skills

C．knowledge

D．experience

14.

A．original

B．artificial

C．inner

D．social

15.

A．adventure

B．anxiety

C．progress

D．promise

8 . Here are some of the prettiest small towns across Europe.

Giethoorn, Netherlands

They call it the Dutch answer to Venice, but Giethoorn lacks one crucial thing that the Italian city has overtourism. As in Venice, life goes around the water. There are no cars in the center so the only way to get around is on foot or on the water. Hungry? Stop at the Michelin-starred restaurant Hollands Venetië.

Guimãries, Portugal

Guimãries is crucial to Portugal’s history — It was named the country’s first capital in the 12th century. Its Middle Age core remains largely undamaged, full of grand old palaces and a broken castle, standing on top of a cliff. Like everywhere in Portugal, local bakeries make a taste pie, but here you should try the local speciality: tortas de Guimãries, a pastry filled with squash and ground almonds.

Clovelly, UK

Donkeys used to be the only way to get up and down the steep streets of Clovelly, a pretty fishing village in Devon, southwest England. Today, they still haven’t managed to bring cars in. It sits at the bottom of a 400-foot cliff. Instead, goods are transported by man-powered sledges (雪橇).

Kenmare, Ireland

On the southwestern tip of Ireland, the land melts into the ocean in County Kerry. Kenmare swings on the bay of the same name. This is in the middle of some of Ireland’s best loved ares. It’s on the Wild Atlantic Way, between the Ring of Kerry and the Ring of Beara. Kenmare is known for its food, and for its views — with grand mountains behind the clear bay.

1. How can one travel in Giethoorn?

A．By car.

B．By bus.

C．By air.

D．By water.

2. Why is Guimarães important to Portugal’s history?

A．It stands on top of a cliff.	B．It has many grand old palaces.
C．It was the country’s first capital.	D．It attracted many famous bakers.

3. In which place can you experience the life of a fishing village?

A．Giethoorn.

B．Guimarães.

C．Clovelly.

D．Kenmare.

9 . Consider what goes through your mind after you’ve taken your seat on an airplane. You’ve not seen the captain, but his or her voice comes over the air. “Hello, this is your captain speaking.” Are you about to fly the friendly skies? What you probably don’ realize is that you do make quick judgments (判断) based on very few factors the moment you hear “hello”.

Experts have discovered that “hello” carries enough information for listeners to draw judgments about the speakers personality, such as how reliable (可信赖的) he or she is. They recorded 64 students reading a telephone conversation. The word “hello” was then picked from each recording, and 320 different students listened to that word through a computer. The students were asked to score the voices according to personality, including attractiveness and warmth, giving them points from l to 10. Although every voice was played in one third a second, the students formed an opinion quickly.

It is amazing that from such short voices of speech they can get such an obvious impression of a person. And whether it is correct, their impressions are mostly the same as what the other listeners get. The research also suggests that people’ impressions are based on the tone (语调) of voice. Men and women who present the strength of their voices are regarded as more reliable.

The speed with which the students made their judgments makes much sense. Deciding who to trust can be important to your survival. There’s no point in listening to someone talk for 5 minutes to decide if they’re reliable or not — you could be dead already. The discovery may help improve computer-made voice technologies, experts say.

1. Why does the author mention “the captain” in paragraph 1?

A．To present a fact.	B．To make a prediction.
C．To introduce a new research.	D．To explain the rule on a plane.

2. How did the students tell the speakers’ personality?

A．Making telephone calls.

B．Playing voices at high speeds.

C．Picking “hello” from conversations.

D．Listening to and scoring the records of “hello”.

3. What can we do to leave a good first impression?

A．Make a long speech.	B．Give powerful voice.
C．Follow other listeners.	D．Speak as fast as possible.

4. What will probably be talked about in the following paragraph?

A．The secret to tallying for 5 minutes.	B．The different ways you say “hello”.
C．The application in voice technologies.	D．The method of listening with attention.

10 . 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。

The Great Wall

As a symbol of ancient Chinese civilization, the Great Wall is one of the world’s oldest and most magnificent (壮丽的) man-made scenes,     1     has a long history. Given its out-standing architectural achievement and remarkable historical influence, the Great Wall     2     (list) as a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage site in 1987, the first of     3     (it) kind in China.

The Great Wall was     4     (original) built over 2,000 years ago during the West Zhou Dynasty, and served     5     a functional military defence. It had been playing a crucial role in wars in ancient Chinese history. Therefore, it was continually to be extended in the next 2,000 years, till the end of Ming Dynasty. As a result, the Great Wall was expanded to many places in China and formed a beautiful shape.

Because its     6     (long) is 21,196. 18 km, it is widely named “Wanli Changcheng”. There are Northern Great Wall and Southern Great Wall, according to the locations.

The Great Wall is a place steeped in history and has much     7     (offer) you. For those who are fascinated (入迷的) by it and     8     (greed) for the knowledge of it, you will find massive information about it, the historical development, the background stories and its facts and figures. Whether you are a history-loving traveler     9     a lover of natural landscape, you will never get tired of the Great Wall, one of the seven     10     (wonder) in the world.