Thomas and John have a lot in common. They are both talented high school seniors. They both love basketball. They are both captains of their respective high school basketball teams. But on one Saturday night in February, they were forever linked in the minds of all who were present for a mutual act of courage, sportsmanship(体育精神)and respect.
The remarkable moment came during a game between Thomas's small town Illinois team and John's big city team in Wisconsin—a game that almost wasn't played. Just days before the game, John's mother lost her five-year battle with cancer. Her death was sudden and painful for all who knew her.
John's coach wanted to cancel the game, but John insisted that the game should be played. So with heavy hearts, his teammates prepared to honor their captain's wishes and play without him.
What they weren't prepared for was John's appearance in the gym mid-way through the first half. As soon as the coach saw John, he called a time out, and players and fans surrounded the young man to offer love and support.
The coach asked him if he wanted to sit on the bench with the team. “No,” John said. “I want to play.” Of course his team was excited to have him. But because John wasn't on the pre-game roster(候选名单), putting him in the game at that point would result in a technical foul(犯规)and two free throws for the opposing team.
However, John's coach agreed with that. He could see that this was the teenager's way of coping with his loss. He thought the points didn't matter. The opposing team understood the situation and told the referees to let John play and forget the technical foul. The referees argued that a rule is a rule, and the free throws would have to be taken before the game could proceed. For possibly the first time in basketball history, referees had to force a team to accept and take the technical free throws.
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。
As team captain, Thomas volunteered to take the free throws.
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John and his teammates stood and applauded the gesture of sportsmanship.
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Oh, this was terrible. “Thank you for volunteering to coach soccer…” the letter began. Coach? Soccer? Me? That was crazy. My knowledge of the sport began and ended with you-can’t-use-your-hands.
I have just graduated from high school. There was a summer holiday long enough to do something unusual, Father advised me to pick up a part-time job in our community, like teaching kids to swim or helping them with their subjects. “You’ll learn a lot,” he said. So, when Community Sports asked for volunteers, I signed up for data entry, which, I thought was helping to put data into a computer. Keyboards, I knew. Coaching? Impossible!
Realizing there must be something wrong, I quickly called the head coach about the misunderstanding. It did not go well. He had been away from home and would not be coaching at all. Panicked, I called the other assistant coach. He said, “It isn’t difficult to teach a bunch of first graders about soccer. Be confident.”
“Are you kidding me?” I hang up the phone, smiling bitterly.
I phoned a Community Sports officer about our dilemma. “I am sorry,” he said. “Not enough people are willing to volunteer. If you cannot coach, we will call your team and let them know they will not be playing this season.” Seriously, that was his solution? I hang up the phone, saying I would call back to let him know my choice.
That afternoon, when Father came back, I told everything to him, complaining how careless and ridiculous the community workers were. They should have suggested my “pretending” to be a coach.
Father stared at me, “Hey, listen! I remember you like watching soccer games.”
“Watching is one thing but coaching is another,” I protested.
“Why not learn the game with the kids? To those first graders, it’s just a game. Just make it fun. Besides, you’ll gain more than them.” I couldn’t imagine the kids’ disappointed faces when they were told their team wouldn’t play because they couldn’t find them a coach.
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。
The next morning, I called back.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Then came the day when I would meet those kids for the first time.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________One day Officer Jackson and Steve were discussing a serious case when they were informed of a disturbance (骚乱) in the nearby subway. So, they walked out of the station and got into their car.
The two officers had expected they’d have to deal with an annoying beggar troubling the passers-by for money. But when they arrived at the crime scene, they were shocked at the beggar’s appearance. The man had tears in his eyes and was sitting on the subway stairs, looking untidy and tired.
“Excuse me, sir,” Officer Jackson said. “You can’t stay here, nor can you bother the people to give you money. You have to leave this place.”
“Look, officers,” the man sighed. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to cause any trouble, okay? I lost my cane (拐杖), and I can’t walk without it. I wanted a few cents so I could get myself something to eat.”
The two officers exchanged looks, knowing the man wasn’t a disturbance but someone who really needed their help. So they promised to get him food, buy him a cane, and drop him home.
After doing that, the officers drove to the beggar’s home, only to discover he had no home at all. He was just wandering in the streets and living off the leftovers he managed to find.
The poor man said his name was Eugene. When he was working at a skyscraper construction site, he was injured and became disabled, losing his ability to walk. Unfortunately, his disability forbade him from doing physical labor, and he wasn’t well-educated to find a desk job, so he remained jobless. Because he couldn’t provide for his family, his wife and children left him. “I don’t have any hopes of changing my destiny (命运), officers,” the man said.
But Officer Jackson wanted Eugene to change his life. “You’re still young,” he said.
“You can’t lose hope so soon. He brought him something warm to eat, helped him take a shower, and gave him his warm boots. After his work, Officer Jackson drove Eugene to a shelter for the homeless and left.
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。
Since that day, Eugene had never expected to meet the two officers again.
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A few months later, Eugene was a changed man.
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Last summer, my friends and I went on a camping trip in the mountains. We were all excited about the adventure ahead, but little did we know what was in store for us.
We arrived at the campsite in the late afternoon. The sun was setting, and the sky was painted with hues of orange and pink. We set up our tents and started a fire to cook our dinner. As we sat around the fire, we planned our activities for the next day. We decided to go on a hike to see the nearby waterfall.
The next morning, we woke up early and set out on our hike. The trail was steep and narrow, but the scenery was breathtaking. We passed through the forests and crossed the streams. As we got higher, the air became colder and thinner. We had to stop frequently to catch our breath.
After a few hours of hiking, we finally reached the waterfall. It was amazing. The water fell down from a great height, and the mist created a rainbow. We sat down to catch our breath and take in the beauty of the waterfall.
But our adventure was far from over. As we were about to leave, we noticed dark clouds gathering overhead. It started raining heavily, and we realized that we had not brought any rain gear. We were completely soaked(湿透)and trembling in the cold. We decided to take shelter in a nearby cave until the rain stopped.
The cave was dark and damp, but it gave us a brief relief from the rain. We sat there for what seemed like hours, waiting for the rain to stop. But it only got worse. The thunder was so loud that it echoed through the cave, and the lightning was so bright that it lit up the cave like daylight.
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。
We were scared and worried.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________That night, as we sat around the fire, we reflected on our adventure.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Sam was a junior high school student. He lived in a community in Charlotte and usually had little exposure to country life. So much of what he knew about plants came from text-books. Sam was a kind-hearted person. He longed for a chance to explore nature and he wanted to do his part to beautify the world.
Finally, the opportunity came. On Arbor Day (植树节), his class organized a trip to a local village to plant trees. Sam was excited about it and couldn’t wait to tell his mom the good news. So the next day, Sam and his mom went to buy some tools for planting trees, including a shovel(铲), a bucket, gloves and so on.
On the day of the event, Sam and his classmates arrived early at the starting point. It was a beautiful day and everyone looked particularly happy. With the tools in hand, Sam got into the bus with everyone else and headed off to their destination.
As soon as they reached the village, all the students were divided into three teams by their teacher. One team was responsible for planting the trees, one team for shovelling the soil and one team for watering the trees. At the teacher’s command, everyone started to do their job.
However, it was the first time that many of the students had taken part in planting trees, so they had no idea about how to start. Of course, Sam was one of them. Fortunately, their teacher was a middle-aged man from the countryside who had some knowledge of planting trees. In order to set an example to the students, the teacher started to plant trees himself. After watching the teacher plant the trees, everyone also became busy. Before long, they planted hundreds of trees. Sam watched very carefully, not wanting to miss any of the details. Finally, Sam learned how to plant trees by himself and felt 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。
A few days later, a storm damaged some young trees in the community.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________The neighbours praised Sam for what he had done.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________It was a bright, sunny day and Amelia was on the way to the grocery store that was not far from her house.
Suddenly, she saw an old man holding a cardboard sign (纸牌) near a street crossing. Although some stores hired (雇佣) people to hold signs around, attracting business, this man was sitting on the ground, so Amelia thought he was homeless and asking for money. Luckily, she had some bills in her wallet and decided to give him some.
As she got closer, she offered him a $5 bill. To her complete shock, the man refused it. “No, madam. I don’t need money. What I really need is a job,” the old man said.
Amelia walked a few steps more to get a good look at his cardboard sign. It read: “A shoemaker is looking for work. I can repair any kind of footwear!” She realized the man was actually not a homeless man begging for money. “Oh! You’re a shoemaker. I think many factories out there will offer you some jobs,” she told the man, finally noticing some of his tools around him.
“No, miss. At my age, no one wants to hire me anymore, so I’m trying to find some work this way. If you know someone who needs shoe repair, please let them know about me,” the man said.
Amelia nodded, thinking about a few pairs of shoes at home that needed repairing. Generally, she would donate them and buy new ones, but if this man could repair them, she could keep using them. “What’s your name, sir?” Amelia asked.
“I’m Martin, young lady,” he said and smiled at her. “OK, sir. I have to go shopping now, but I’ll return with a few pairs of shoes that need some fixing,” Amelia told him with a smile and then walked towards the store. After she finished her shopping, she went back home.
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。
Paragraph 1: Then Amelia returned to Martin and gave him her shoes for repair.
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Paragraph 2: That night, she posted Martin’s story online along with the picture.
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I ran after the train, shouting, “Hey mister, can’t you see me?” It was hopeless, as no conductor is going to slow down for a 60-year-old man who got to the station several minutes late. They absolutely didn’t know how important that day, that train ride was to me! I was on my way to an interview for what could have been the opportunity of a lifetime.
I threw both my hat and my art case down in depression, and sat down on the nearest chair, wiping (擦掉) the sweat from my face and breathing heavily. I would have to wait a whole day for the next train, and by then my appointment with the gallery owner would have given up on me. Perhaps it was for the best. It was, after all, the first time in 40 years anyone had shown such an interest in my art. Maybe if the gallery owner had seen all my paintings, he would have changed his mind about offering me space on his walls.
Disappointment filled my soul. Should I dial the gallery and get an interview on a different day? But Pierre Gianni was the owner of the most well-known gallery in New York City. Why would he give a rare second chance to an elderly nobody when he had the newest, coolest young artists to choose from?
Come to think of it, perhaps these insecurities were the very reason I had never been offered a show before. I was too afraid to try. I found countless excuses not to offer my work up to be seen and perhaps criticized. I told myself it would hurt too much if I failed, but the truth was that I had never tried.
Finally, I gathered all my courage to dial the gallery, only to find my antique cell phone had broken down. It was at the very moment that I was in total despair and decided to go home.
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。
Suddenly I felt a touch on my shoulder.
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The next morning I got to the gallery on time.
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I had been acting in school for a few years. When I got a rough role in a play, I, only a junior in my high school, was excited that my inspiring drama teacher and director had trusted me with the part.
We had little time to prepare and I would never forget reading the lines for the first time. At first the dialogue was lively, but then it became quite long and boring. To my surprise, my character had one disrespectful line that complained about his bad luck. I had never said something like that on stage before. Uncomfortable as I felt about it, I had never thought of making myself heard to make a change. I was weak, went silent, and accepted the line as it was.
At our first rehearsal (彩排), I whispered, the line and hoped with so many distractions on stage that the director wouldn’t notice. Luckily, she didn’t. Over three wild weeks of rehearsals, I convinced myself that I could keep faking it. Then, when the curtain finally rose with an audience, maybe I would feel fine about saying the line just once as loudly as I could.
On the night of the open dress rehearsal, I was nervous to see an old couple, the Ehlers, seated in the hall. They were close friends of our family and I had no idea they would be there. When the big moment arrived, with nervousness racing through my body, I went for it. I remember the moment quite clearly. Where I stood. How it sounded. How I felt.
After the show, the Ehlers met me with cheers, a warm hug, and some brief dialogue of their own. While talking with them, I was overwhelmed by mixed feelings of regret and shame.
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。
“Jason, that was quite some language. You surprised us,” Mrs. Ehlers looked at me.
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I said goodbye to the couple and waited in the drama room until our director appeared.
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1. 你推荐社团活动的内容及原因；
2. 对于姊妹学校开展该社团活动的建议。
注意：
1. 词数80左右；
2. 短文题目已为你写好。
3. 可以适当增加细节, 以使行文连贯。
Club Activity Recommendation
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I grew up and started my school career in Haiti. Teachers in Haiti were well known for certain skills: some for their ability to scare you with just a look, and others for their consistency in beating kids.
Our fear pushed us to learn whatever we’re assigned, whether it was memorizing a passage or solving a math problem, so in a way, the teachers were effective. I was able to remember a lot, and as a kid I never sat back and wondered if the education I was getting was good enough.
But looking back, I see that I never grew mentally in that school. They didn’t teach us to think broadly or be creative. Instead, my classmates and I were taught what we needed to know to survive inside a classroom, but not the things that would help me survive in the real world.
When I came to the United States, I didn’t know what to expect. On my first day of school, I met my new teacher, Mr Jean Pierre, who was Haitian. He greeted me with Creole (克里奥尔语). It meant that we were equals.
On my first day in his class, I couldn’t even read the English title of the textbook he handed me. But I learned so quickly that by my third week, I understood most questions and was even raising my hand.
He also had us learn 10 to 20 vocabulary words each day. For each word we had to memorize how to spell it and pronounce it and create a sentence with it. At first, I hated this method because I wasn’t used to having to be creative in any way. But gradually, he helped me fall in love with creative writing. Every morning, we’d have 30 minutes to write about anything that came to mind. I discovered I was good at this, and he was the first teacher ever to put in time aside from his regular schedule for me, staying during lunch or after school to help me and another student who loved writing.
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。
Paragraph 1
Through actions like these, Mr. Jean Pierre showed me that he truly cared about me as a person and wasn’t just interested in doing his job and getting paid.
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Paragraph 2
But he was also the kind of teacher who taught us how to survive in life.
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