1 . I will never forget the year I was about twelve years old. My mother told us that we would not be _________ Christmas gifts because there was not enough money. I felt sad and thought, “What would I say when the other kids asked what I’d _________?” Just when I started to _________ that there would not be a Christmas gift that year, three women _________ at our house with gifts for all of us. For me they brought a doll. I felt such a sense of _________ that I would no longer have to be embarrassed when I returned to school. I wasn’t _________. Somebody had thought _________ of me to bring me a gift.  

Years later, when I stood in the kitchen of my new house, thinking how I wanted to make my _________ Christmas there special and memorable, I _________ remembered the women’s visit. I decided that I wanted to create that same feeling of __________ for as many children as I could possibly reach.  

So I __________ a plan and gathered forty people from my company to help. We gathered about 125 orphans(孤儿)at the Christmas party. For every child, we wrapped colourful packages filled with toys, clothes, and school supplies, __________ with a child’s name. We wanted all of them to know they were __________. Before I called out their names and handed them their gifts, I __________ them that they couldn’t open their presents __________ every child had come forward. Finally the __________ they had been waiting for came as I called out, “One, two, three. Open your presents!” As the children opened their packages, their faces beamed and their bright smiles __________ up the room. The __________ in the room was obvious, and __________ wasn’t just about toys. It was a feeling — the feeling I knew __________ that Christmas so long ago when the women came to visit. I wasn’t forgotten. Somebody thought of me. I matter.

3 . You can tell a lot about a man by how he treats his dogs.

For many years, I enjoyed living with my dogs, Tilly and Chance. Their _______ was nearly enough to keep my loneliness at bay. Nearly. Last year, I started dating, but with _______. When I first dated Steve, I _______ he had a dog, Molly, and a cat, Flora. While I was _______ that he was an animal lover, I _______ that three dogs were perhaps too many, and my dogs might attack _______, the cat.

The next week we _______ our dogs together. It was a hot day. When we paused to catch our _______, Steve got down on one knee. Was he proposing (求婚)? I liked him too, but so _______? He poured water from a bottle into his hand and offered it to my dogs. ____________, I began to fall for him.

We ____________ to date, though neither of us brought up the future. And then in late November, Tilly had an operation on her ____________. I took the dogs out four times a day, and I worried that Tilly ____________ climbing the stairs could reopen the wound. Then Steve ____________ his house. All worked ____________. The three dogs formed a pack that, with coaching, ____________ Flora’s space; Steve and I formed a good team ____________ for Tilly. We made good housemates.

A year later, much to my ____________, this man produced a little box with a ring and proposed to me. He did not kneel (跪) down, nor did I ____________ him to. That’s only for giving ____________ to the dogs that brought us together.

4 . If you want to learn a new language，the very first thing to think about is why.Do you need it for a _______ reason，such as your job or your studies？ _______ perhaps you're interested in the _______，films or music of a different country and you know how much it will help to have a _________ of the language.

Most people learn best using a variety of _______，but traditional classes are an ideal start for many people.They _______ an environment where you can practice under the _________ of someone who's good at the language.We all lead   _______ lives and learning a language takes _______.You will have more success if you study regularly，so try to develop a _______.It doesn't matter if you haven't got long.Becoming fluent in a language will take years，but learning to get by takes   _______.

Many people start learning a language and soon give up.“ I'm too _______，”they say.Yes，children do learn languages more _______ than adults，but research has shown that you can learn a language at any _______.And learning is good for the health of your brain，too.I've also heard people _______   about the mistakes they make when __________.Well，relax and laugh about your mistakes _______ you're much less likely to make them again.

Learning a new language is never _______.But with some work and devotion，you'll make progress.And you'll be _______ by the positive reaction of some people when you say just a few words in _______ own language.Good luck!

5 . People in communities have slowly been pushed apart through the years, mostly because people simply aren’t taking the time to say a simple “hello”. After considering this phenomenon, I decided I was going to _______the way I was doing things.

My _______came one morning when I was in the community library. I passed by a girl who_______ her books out of her locker. Thinking like most that someone else would help her pick them up, I continued my way. However, when I had to_______ because I stupidly forgot my book, I noticed she had just finished packing them up by herself and no one had stopped to _______her.

“OK,” I thought to myself, “this is where I should have changed.”

My best opportunity came a few days later when I saw a man _______by himself waiting for the library to open, so I sat down next to him and began a _______. It was difficult to get started, and even harder when I had to say goodbye, almost every _______ from my new friend had a tone (语气) of doubt in it. And who could blame him?

People aren’t used to making an _______chat with a stranger. But a change, no matter how__________ it is needed, doesn’t just happen. It takes people like us to make it possible. I__________ you to take a small step out of your comfort zone and try to make someone’s day a little brighter. Together, we can really make society come __________ as a whole.

6 . Introduction to letters to Sam

Please allow me to tell you something before you read this book. When my____, Sam,was born, my heart was filled with joy. I had been sitting in a wheelchair for 20 years before then, and I have been____ill many times. So I wondered if I would have the ___to tell Sam what I had_____.

For years I have been hosting a program on the____and writing articles for a magazine. Being____to move freely, I have learned to sit still and keep my heart____, exchanging thoughts with thousands of listeners and____. So when Sam was born, I ___to tell him about school and fridship, romance and work, love and everything else. That’s how I started to write these____. I hope that Sam would____them sooner or later .

However, that expectation____when Sam showed signs of autism (自闭症) at the age of two. He had actually stopped talking before the discovery of the signs. He____to communicate with others, even the family members. That was____for me but didn’t stop me writing on. I realized that I had even____now to tell him. I wanted him to____what it means to be “diffenet” from others, and learn how to fight against the misfortune he’ll___ as I myself, his grandfather, did. I just____if I could write all that I wanted to say in the rest of my life .

Now____the book has been pubhshed, I have been given the chance. Every chapter in the book is a letter to Sam: some about my life. and all about what it means to be a____.

Daniel Gottlied

7 . I used to hate being called upon in class mainly because I didn’t like attention drawn to myself. And ________otherwise assigned a seat by the teacher, I always ________to sit at the back of the classroom.

All this _________after I joined a sports team. It began when a teacher suggested I try out for the basketball team. At first I thought it was a crazy________ because I didn’t have a good sense of balance, nor did I have the_______ to keep pace with the others on the team and they would tease me. But for the teacher who kept insisting on my “________for it”, I wouldn’t have decided to give a try.

Getting up the ________to go to the tryouts was only the half of it! When I first started________the practice sessions, I didn’t even know the rules of the game, much _______what I was doing. Sometimes I’d get _________ and take a shot at the wrong direction—which made me feel really stupid.________ , I wasn’t the only one “new” at the game, so I decided to _________ on learning the game, do my best at each practice session, and not be too hard on myself for the things I didn’t ________“just yet”.

I practiced and practiced. Soon I knew the _______and the “moves”. Being part of a team was fun and motivating. Very soon the competitive _______in me was winning over my lack of confidence. With time, I learned how to play and made friends in the ________ — friends who respected my efforts to work hard and be a team player. I never had so much fun!

With my ________ self-confidence comes more praise from teachers and classmates. I have gone from _______in the back of the classroom and not wanting to call attention to myself, _______raising my hand— even when I sometimes wasn’t and not 100 percent _______I had the right answer. Now I have more self-confidence in myself.

8 . The True Story of Treasure Island

It was always thought that Treasure Island was the product of Robert Louis Stevenson’s imagination. ______, recent research has found the true story of this exciting work.

Stevenson, a Scotsman, had lived ______ for many years. In 1881 he returned to Scotland for a ______.With him were his American wife Fanny and his son ______.

Each morning Stevenson would take them out for a long ______ over the hills. They had been ______ this for several days before the weather suddenly took a turn for the worse. Kept indoors by the heavy rain, Lloyd felt the days ______.To keep the boy happy, Robert asked the boy to do some ______.

One morning, the boy came to Robert with a beautiful map of an island, Robert ______that the boy had drawn a large cross in the middle of ______. “What’s that?” he asked. “That’s the ______ treasure,” said the boy. Robert suddenly ______ something of an adventure story in the boy’s ______.While the rain was pouring, Robert sat down by the fire to write a story. He would make the ______ a twelve-year-old boy, just like Lloyd. But who would be the pirate (海盗)？

Robert had a good friend named Henley, who walked around with the ______ of a wooden leg. Robert had always wanted to ______ such a man in a story. ______ Long John Silver, the pirate with a wooden leg, was ______.

So, thanks to a ______ September in Scotland, a friend with a wooden leg, and the imagination of a twelve-year-old boy, we have one of the greatest ______ stories in the English language.

9 . A Love Note to My Mom

When I was a little girl, I would often accompany you as you modeled for fashion photographers. It was years later that I finally understood what role modeling   _______ in your life. Little did I know you were _______every penny you earned to go to _______ school.

I cannot thank you enough for   _______   you told me one autumn afternoon when I was nine. After finishing my homework, I wandered into the dining room where you were buried   _______   piles of law books. I was   _______ . Why were you doing what I do—memorizing textbooks and studying for   _______ ? When you said you were in law school, I was more puzzled. I didn’t know Moms   _______ be lawyers too. You smiled and said, “In life, you can do anything you want to do.”

As young as I was, that statement kept _______ in my ears. I watched as you faced the __________ of completing your studies, starting companies with Dad, while still being a   __________   and a Mom of five kids. I was exhausted just watching you   __________. With your words of wisdom in my   __________ mind, I suddenly felt unlimited freedom to dream. My whole world   __________. I set out to live my life filled with   __________ seeing endless possibilities for personal and professional achievements.

Your words became my motto. I __________ found myself in the unique position of being either the first (woman doctor in Maryland Rotary) __________ one of the few women (chief medical reporters) in my field. I gained strength every time I said, “Yes, I’ll try that.”

Encouraged by your   __________ , I have forged ahead (毅然前行) with my life’s journey, less afraid to make mistakes, and   __________   meeting each challenge. You did it, and now I’m   __________   it. Sorry, got to run. So much to do, so many dreams to live.

10 . A boy was walking home from school when he saw a large, tempting (诱人的) apple on one of the branches of an apple tree hanging out over a tall fence. The boy wasn’t much of a fruit-eater, _______ a bar of chocolate if given the choice, _______, as they say, the forbidden fruit can be tempting. Seeing the apple, the boy wanted it. The more he looked at it, the _______ he felt and the more he wanted that apple.

He stood on tiptoe (脚尖), _______ as high as he could, but even as his tallest _______ he was unable to touch it. He began to _______ up and down, as high as he could, at the _______ of each jump stretching his arms to get the apple. Still it remained out of _______.

Not giving up, he thought, if only he had something to _______ on. His school bag wouldn’t give enough height and he didn’t want to ____________ the things inside, like his lunch box, pencil case, and Gameboy. Looking ____________, he hoped he might find an old box, a rock, or, ____________ luck, even a ladder, but it was a tidy neighborhood and there was nothing he could use.

He had tried everything he could think to do. ____________ seeing any other choices, he gave up and started to walk ____________. At first he felt angry and disappointed thinking about how hungry he had become from his ____________, and how he really wanted that apple. The more he ____________ like this, the more unhappy he became.

____________, the boy of our story was a pretty smart guy, even if he couldn’t always get what get he wanted. He started to say to himself, “This isn’t ____________. I don’t have the apple and I’m feeling miserable as well. There’s ____________ more I can do to get the apple — that is unchangeable — but we are supposed to be able to ____________ our feelings. If that’s the case, what can I do to feel better?”