Deep in the forest, my husband and I had fun climbing over and crawling under the downed trees that blocked the dirt path before us. It was May, yet we walked up a snow-covered hill. When we noticed our jeans were wet up to our knees, it did not dampen our spirits Not once did we say, “Let’s turn around.” This was our vacation, and we were on an adventure. Little did we know this was the beginning of many more surprises.
The trail was marked as an easy one-kilometer like yet we were already walking a long distance. Our light-heartedness stopped when we came out into a clearing and saw a parking lot without our rental car in it. As my eyes scanned the surroundings, nothing looked familiar. My heart raced. I realized we were lost in a national park that did not officially open for another week.
Usually, I am the calm one in the relationship, but my husband surprised me with his calmness. This did not comfort me; in fact, it heightened my fear. As we walked, I asked my husband to call for help, but there was no cell-phone signal in this isolated（偏僻的）area.
It was awfully quiet except for our footsteps hitting the road, and my heavy breathing. My husband suggested we conserve energy and walk slower. With each step on the road, my feet and thighs hurt while my mind raced with thoughts about people who got lost in the Canadian woods for days.
My vision sharpened. I noticed everything around me: the trees, rocks and snow. I thought we could eat the snow on the ground in case we needed water. For the first time in my life, I was ready and willing to get a ride, but we did not meet with a single car on the road. Silently, I prayed multiple times. We focused on each other, made joint decisions and connected through gratitude. We managed to stay on the main road and walked straight on.
Paragraph 1:My husband suddenly spotted a small building on a hill in the distance.
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Just then, a friendly woman appeared, saying, “Hello.”
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Should some books be banned from school libraries?
Are there Harry Potter books in your school library? Many kids all over the world are reading J.K. Rowling's books in school. But some parents think their children shouldn't be able to find those and other books in school libraries. Should school libraries keep books that some parents don't approve of? Should they take those books off the shelves? All over the country, schools are struggling with those questions.
Many people believe that books that contain violence（暴力）or bad words shouldn't be in school libraries! Some people want the Harry Potter books removed because they contain talks about wizards and magic. Besides, books should meet certain standards（标准）before they are put in schools. Is this a good book for kids to read? Is it full of violence? Does it contain bad words or ideas kids shouldn't learn about? If a book is not good for all kids, it should not be in a school library. Most parents don't have time to find out everything their kids read. They should be able to trust schools to do that for them.
On the other hand, some believe that books should not be banned from school libraries! "Parents should decide what their own kids read," said Natalie Nicol, of Denver, Colorado. Many experts say that it's the parents' job, not the school's job, to check out what their kids are reading. If they don't like a book, they should not let their kids read it. Actually, kids should be able to check out books their parents think are OK to read. Many schools let kids borrow certain books if they have a signed paper from a parent. That works fine. A parent doesn't sign the paper if he or she doesn't want the child to read the book. If more adults were careful about what their own kids read, they wouldn't have to ban books from the library.
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My Dad’s Best Flower
I remember my first home was a small apartment on the second floor with a lovely and spacious balcony. When my mom was busy in the kitchen, she let me stay on the balcony watching the kids playing in the street. On that balcony I played sometimes with my elder sister, Maria. She was seven years old and when my mom was absent, she was like a mother to me. The balcony was a great hobby place for my father. After his work he used to grow carnations (康乃馨) in flower boxes. His carnations were red, pink and white, and everyone appreciated them for their beauty.
He took care of them with so much love and devotion. He dealt carefully with his flowers like a mother taking care of her baby. Many times I sat on the floor of the balcony for hours observing him and his lovely flowers with patience. He was always doing something on that balcony. He was watering them every day, cleaning the balcony floor, changing the potting soil and when the stems were thick, strong and high enough, he started his improvement operation attentively like a doctor.
My dad took a tiny knife and with his left hand he held the stem of the carnation and measured the height. Then he made a small mark on the stem with his finger. Afterwards he made a sharp cut with the knife, just enough to fit in again of barley (插穗的芽). Then he bandaged the stem with a small bandage. His job was then to water the plants and to take care of them. “No one should touch them,” he said to Mom. Every day, when he came home from work he went straight to the balcony.
Mom used to tell us, “Do not touch Daddy’s flowers.” For us it was a fascinating experience to watch how the small stems were growing and making flowers. When the carnations had grown big enough, my dad enjoyed watching them every day. We the kids did too.
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：
One day, my elder sister, who loved Dad very much, had a great idea.
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When my dad arrived, he went as usual, straight to the balcony and saw his flowers lying on the floor like dead animals.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________It is clear that young people are now renting at record rates, yet the appetite to make a house a home remains equally high. While picking out the perfect color for the living room or putting down new carpets might have been important decorative choices for their parents, young people are increasingly finding more temporary solutions to the challenge of making a rental home look fantastic without annoying their landlords.
For some young renters, personalizing a home can come down to affordable, stylish additions. Houseplant sales have increased almost 50% in the US over the last three years, and mass market retailers such as Zara, ASOS and H&M have all recently launched homeware ranges, focusing largely on smaller items like vases, cushions and candles that are easy to be included into an already furnished space.
Some businesses are now even offering to equip homes with pay-per-month furniture, with everything from sofas to houseplants up for rent. This gives landlords the opportunity to attract renters with fashionable decorations rather than old sofas and mismatched furnishings, as well as offering renters the opportunity to personalize their own temporary space.
“I think that in all industries personalized yet accessible, affordable services are very popular,” says Rhiannon Smith, a spokesperson for plant rental company The Plant Library. “People want things to feel good, without having to think too much about it or pay too much for it. I’d expect it’s a section that will be very popular and continue to grow.”
In the beginning of years, when the world was so new and the Animals were just beginning to work for Man, there was a Camel, and he lived in the middle of a Howling Desert because he did not want to work; and besides, he was a Howler himself. When anybody spoke to him he said＇Humph!'Just “Humph!' and no more.
Presently the Horse came to him on Monday morning, with a saddle(鞍） on his back and a bit in his mouth, and said,“Camel,O Camel, come out and run like the rest of us.”
“Humph!”said the Camel;and the Horse went away and told the Man.
Presently the Dog came to him, with a stick in his mouth, and said, “Camel,O Camel, come and fetch and carry like the rest of us.”
“Humph!”said the Camel; and the Dog went away and told the Man.
Presently the Ox came to him, with the yoke on his neck and said,“Camel,O Camel,come and plough(耕田）like the rest of us.”
“Humph!”said the Camel; and the Ox went away and told the Man.
At the end of the day the Man called the Horse and the Dog and the Ox together,and said, “Three,O Three,I'm very sorry for you (with the world so new-and-all); but that Humph-thing in the Desert can't work, or he would have been here by now, so I am going to leave him alone, and you must work double-time to make up for it.”
That made the Three very angry (with the world so new-and-all), and they thought the Camel was a good-for-nothing on the edge of the Desert; and the Camel came chewing on milkweed, and laughed at them. Then he said 'Humph!' and went away again.
Presently there came along the Djinn in charge of All Deserts, rolling in a cloud of dust（Djinns always travel that way because it is Magic),and he stopped to the Camel and pow-pow with the Three.
＂Djinn of All Deserts," said the Horse,“is it right for any one to be idle,with the world so new-and-all?"
“Certainly not,”said the Djinn.
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。
“Well,” said the Horse,“there's a thing that has done nothing since Monday morning. He won't run.”
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And the Camel said 'Humph!' again, but no sooner had he said it than he saw a great big lolloping humph(驼峰）（we call it 'hump' now,not to hurt his feelings)on his back.
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Michelle one day found herself the unexpected owner of fifteen dollars. It seemed to her a very large amount of money. For a day or two she walked around in a dreamy state as she thought about her choices. Her daughter Mary was wearing worn shoes and needed new ones. She would buy cloth for new shirts for the boys. Her daughter Jane should have another dress. And still there would be enough left for new stockings for her children. The idea about how to spend the dollars made her restless with excitement.
On the day she planned to go shopping with the money, she ate a light meal--- no! Between getting the children fed and the house cleaned, and preparing herself to go shopping, she forgot to eat at all!
When she arrived at the large department store, she spotted a pile of silk stockings at the entrance. A sign nearby announced that they had been reduced in price. A young girl behind the counter asked her if she wished to examine the silky leg coverings. She smiled as if she had been asked to inspect diamond jewelry, and started to feel the soft, expensive items. Michelle picked up a black pair and looked at them closely. Two red marks suddenly showed on her pale face. She looked up at the shop girl and said proudly, “Well, I will buy this pair.”
Michelle changed her cotton stockings for the new silk ones in the ladies’ rest area. She had let herself be controlled by some machine-like force that directed her actions and freed her of responsibility. How good was the touch of the silk on her skin! Then she put her shoes back on and put her old stockings into her bag. Next, she went to the shoe department, where she tried on a pair of new boots. Her foot and ankle looked lovely. She could not believe that they were a part of herself.
注意：1. 所续写短文的词数应为150左右。
2. 应使用5个以上短文中标有下划线的关键词语。
3. 续写部分分为两段，每段的开头语已为你写好。
4. 续写完成后，请用下划线标出你所使用的关键词语。
Paragraph 1：
After buying a pair of new boots, she walked into the clothing department.
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Paragraph 2：
She was about to leave the store when a kid running around reminded her of something.
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There are many benefits of public transportation. For example, public transportation makes it easier for people to get where they want and need to go. It also helps people save money, as the cost of maintaining a working vehicle is often much more than the cost associated with public transportation. The frequency of traffic jams and accidents may also be reduced when a person uses public transportation.
One of the main benefits of public transportation is the fact that it makes it easier for people to get around. Without public transportation, many people — especially those without cars — would be limited in where they could go and what they could do. With public transportation, however, people can get to school and work, get to the grocery store and to doctors’ offices, and visit relatives, even if they do not own vehicles. Public transportation serves people of all ages and from all walks of life, ranging from families, including their children, to business people on their way to the office, to the elderly.
Often, people complain about the cost of public transportation when the rates are raised. When compared to the cost of buying a car, many people find that choosing to ride public transportation is a much cheaper option.
When public transportation is available, many people choose to use it instead of driving to work and school. This is true even of many people who own cars, as they may prefer to ride to work on a bus or train rather than deal with traffic jams and parking frustrations each day. When people make this choice, the result is less traffic on the roadways, which means fewer traffic jams and less pollution. In fact, the choice many people make to ride public transportation may even translate into fewer car accidents and vehicle-related deaths and injuries. Additionally, the use of public transportation also means less gas is consumed each year.
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"Mrs. Krycia, that song...it’s about me. I am the bully. Please, can you help me stop?" The class had already been dismissed for lunch, and I was puzzled about why Tommy had made sure he was at the end of the line when he usually jumped up to push his way to the front. Approaching me with a great deal of obvious discomfort, Tommy looked up at me with pleading eyes. I could not believe my ears!
I was teaching a fifth grade class at the request of the teacher who was at her wits’ end with the bullying behavior in her classroom—Room 7. I had just played a song called "Don’t Laugh at Me". The lyrics really could have been written with this boy in mind. The song described a variety of people who had been bullied and how much it hurt.
Tommy laughed at everyone. He was loud and obnoxious(可恶至极的) about it. He would stand up, point, and loudly say something insulting regarding the person’s behavior. It could have been as simple as someone misspelling a word in class, or tripping, or perhaps asking a question he considered stupid. "Ha ha!" he would laugh and point at John. “You are so stupid!” John would hang his head and shuffle his feet. Across the room, Scott would be crying; he couldn’t stand conflict. Scot spent a good deal of time crying. Everyone ignored him. Tommy got the attention, and he was, by all definitions, quickly earning the title of class bully. The behavior was appealing. The other boys had picked up on it, and now it seemed that the boys in Room 7 were competing for the title of "class thug(恶棍)." Tommy was not a big boy, but he walked big. His fists were always clenched, and his posture said, "I’ll get you if you mess with me." He was eleven years and appeared to be headed for big trouble.
Perhaps it was not until that moment that Tommy recognized the effect his behavior could potentially have on others. Perhaps he had already noticed that he was being mean and searching for a way to change. Either way, here was my golden opportunity to do something with him. I asked the teacher if I could take Tommy and other boys she considered to be the biggest troublemakers and meet with them twice a week. She felt thrilled. So I began meeting with the boys and asked them each to make one small, obtained goal-something they could achieve in a week’s time. Tommy’s goal was to stop laughing and pointing at people. He was to make a mark on a piece of masking tape(胶带纸) we had applied to his desk every time he noticed himself pointing and laughing. I was hopeful.
注意：
1. 所续写短文的词数应为150左右；
2. 应使用5个以上短文中标有下划线的关键词语；
3. 续写部分分为两段，每段的开头语已为你写好；
4. 续写完成后，请用下划线标出你所使用的关键词语。
Paragraph 1:
Several weeks passed, I checked in to the classroom and noticed a change.
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Paragraph 2:
I was so proud of Tommy that I knew never again would anyone mistake this boy for a bully! ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Foreign Teachers Wanted! The Education Department of the Ladder Company is running an English course for children and adults. Requirements: 1.Native English speaker 2.University degree in educational related field preferred 3.Foreign expert certification(证明). If you are interested, please call us: Tel:86-10-68019433 E-mail: liecbj@ hotamil.com Beijing Ladder Information Company Limited |
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请根据下面提示，写一篇短文。词数不少于50。
In your spoken English class, your teacher shows you the following picture. You are asked to describe the picture and explain how you understand it.
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