I live with my husband in San Luis Obispo, California, about three miles from the beach. Every few years, the humpback whales come into the bay for a few days while they’re migrating. November 2020 was one of those times, so we took out our yellow double kayak（皮艇）to watch the wildlife. We paddled out the length of the pier（码头）and saw seals, dolphins, and about 20 whales feeding on silverfish. We were in awe watching these graceful giants—each one about 50 feet long—breach and spray through their blowholes. We laughed when they turned their side fins so that it looked as if they were waving at us.
At the time, my friend Liz was staying with us. The next day, I asked her if she wanted to go out on the water to see them.
“No way,” said Liz, now 65. She was not an experienced kayaker and was terrified that the kayak would overturn while we were surrounded by hungry whales. “There’s nothing to worry about,” I assured her. “The craft is stable, and we can turn back anytime. I’ve learned somewhere that whales have enormous mouths but tiny throats. Anything they can`t swallow they spit right out.” After some cajoling（劝诱）, she finally agreed to join me. I didn’t want her to miss this magnificent experience and regret it later.
Liz and I got out on the water at 8:30 the following morning. There were already about 15 other kayakers and paddleboarders in the bay. It was warm for November, so we wore T-shirts and leggings. After a half-hour, we had our first whale sighting just past the pier: two humpbacks swimming toward us. How amazing to be that close to a creature that size, I thought as the whales dipped under the waterline.
When whales go down after breaching, they leave what looks like an oil slick on the water. I figured if we paddled toward that spot, we’d be safe from the whales, since they’d just left. We followed them at a distance—or what I thought was a distance. I later found out that it’s recommended to keep 300 feet away. We were more like 60 feet away.
注意：1. 所续写短文的词数应为 150 左右；
2. 至少使用 5 个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:
Suddenly, we felt our kayak rocking violently.
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Paragraph 2:
Still, I didn’t panic and I just kept thinking I’ve got to breathe in this “white wall”.
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1. 观看着陆的感受；
2. 飞船凯旋的意义；
3. 给青少年的启示。
参考词汇： 神舟十三号载人飞船 Shenzhou-13 Manned Spaceship
注意：1. 词数 80 左右；
2. 可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
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Sedona hiking trails can be fun and relaxing, but sometimes can also be challenging and dangerous.
Rogers, 33, an on-duty airman, was in town from Colorado Springs for adventures on Sedona trails. Even he had just taken a sharp turn on his mountain bike in April 2020 when he was stopped short by the sight of a woman sitting on the side of the trail. She was cute and had long blond hair and big expressive eyes. What he didn’t know then was that she was also in extreme pain.
Sydney Linden, 28, had been jogging down Adobe Jack Trail in Sedona, Arizona, for a picturesque sunset view of the Red Rocks when she hopped over a rock and her leg over extended on the landing. The pain was instant.
Her right leg collapsed and she hit the dirt hard. Linden tried to stand but collapsed. She wasn’t sure if she had torn her ACL (十字韧带), broken her leg, or something else. All she knew was that the pain was a 15 out of 10.
Although it was spring, the Arizona sun beat down relentlessly (无情地). Linden dragged herself to the shade, as if an animal preparing to die. She’d called a friend, but after 30 minutes, her friend was lost. That’s when she saw the mountain biker.
Rogers was trying to play it cool. He casually rode by at a slower speed, stealing a glance at the woman. Sensing her suffering, Rogers stopped and asked if he could help. Linden explained her situation and that’s when he noticed the swelling under her leggings. She needed a hospital-now.
Rogers helped Linden to her feet and they began the steep (陡坡) over the rocky region and desert bushes. It was a long way to go. Leaning on Rogers, Linden tried to hop along, but the pain was severe. She would never make it to the trailhead (登山口) this way.
注意:
1. 所续写短文的词数应为150左右;
2. 至少使用5个短文中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:
Then Rogers had another idea.
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Paragraph 2:
It was after the operation that Linden found Rogers gone.
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Here’s the story of my growth over the past year. It’s a story of how I found the strength to change myself for better and then how I get rid of my fears to be even better. If anyone is inspired by this, that’s wonderful.
I’d been stuck as this incredibly insecure, under-confident and just scared individual for years and years. Since childhood I’d been stuck like this. Kids I met for the first time looked at me rudely and unkindly. Even my friends—actually, I had very few friends because I just felt too ashamed and frightened to make some, though I was eager to and felt extremely lonely in the depth of my heart—laughed at me and gave me bad nicknames. I felt terrible, but I’d just resigned to a life where I’d be afraid of everything and be this “introvert” (内向的人) or whatever. I thought I would never be able to change, never, for my whole life.
But then it all started changing. Something clicked. I suddenly determined to go on a diet, and lost some weight. It was tough. I felt hungry all the time. I was always tempted by the smell of bread and hamburger, even when I didn’t see them. But the toughest thing was that even if I had just had my meals, I felt hunger mentally. However, I held on. In over a period of 6 months I finally managed to stick to one of my diets. I didn’t know how. But I did make it.
The loss of 90 lbs brought me from overweight straight down to underweight. This isn’t the best part. More importantly and inspiringly, I suddenly found strength in me. I realized I could be totally different. And maybe, I could even be whatever I wanted to be. This taught me that I could change myself.
Then I wondered, perhaps, I could also get rid of those of my fears, just like I succeeded in losing my extra pounds. It might not be easy, but it might not be that difficult.
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。
Chance presented itself soon.
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It was from that point on that I started changing rapidly.
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One of my most memorable trips took place during the summer vacation about three years ago, when my sister, my aunt and I took a trip to Spain because we were moving. On the day of the trip, I lay in bed thinking about my friends whom I was going to leave behind and thoughts were flooding in.
When we arrived at the hire station, we seemed to have some problems with our luggage because it was too much for a taxi, so we had to book a van (厢式送货车) to take our luggage to the airport. We waited for a long period to find a perfect van that would fit our luggage.
Before leaving, I felt very bad because I was going to a different country and was going to miss all my friends and family. I was not comfortable and cried.
The journey was almost perfect at the beginning, but soon it began to rain. Because of the rain, the drivers could not see far away, which caused a huge traffic jam. I was sitting by the window with a can of Coke that I had bought in the store earlier. My aunt and sister fell asleep, and during this time. I felt bored and thought about other things that bothered me. My eyes turned to the mountain in front of us.
A bus suddenly appeared in the picture. It was very close to us. Cars sped past us without any speed limit. Beside me was a very deep lake: I wondered to myself what if something or someone fell inside it. Suddenly, a bus in front of our van stopped, and because it was raining heavily and the van was going fast, no one could see what was going to happen. Then, bang, we bumped into each other. Our van overturned, but luckily, it didn’t fall into the lake. People came to help us get out of the van because we were blocked and the driver was half-dead.
注意：1.续写词数应为150左右；
2.续写部分分为两段，每段的开头语已为你写好。
We struggled to get out of the van and everything we had was gone.
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I was losing a lot of blood and then the emergency aid came.
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A New Addition to the Family
For the initial ten years of his life, Victor was the prince of the household. As he was an only child, his parents petted him and showered all their love and attention on him. Whatever toys his parents bought, they were always meant for him. Whatever food was in the refrigerator, there was no one to compete with him to polish it off first. Victor could leave his toys or books around the house with complete ease of mind, knowing that there was no one who would get their hands on his belongings and cause any damage.
However, all that was to change overnight when Victor’s parents brought back his new baby sister, Lina, from the hospital. With her rosy cheeks, wide open eyes and angelic smile, Lina caught the hearts of her parents, grandparents and relatives. Everyone focused their attention on the cute bunch of joy. Whenever she cried, her mother or father would rush to her bed. She simply cried because she wanted to be carried. There was little time left for Victor.
Now that Victor’s mother had his baby sister to take care of, she expected Victor himself to do most of the chores he can do. Victor was asked to clean his own room, iron his own school uniform and clean his own shoes. Before Lina’s arrival, he had never lifted a finger to help out with these tasks. The whole family also went out less because it was unhealthy to expose Lina to the bacteria(细菌) being in the outside world too often.
Victor felt neglected by his parents. He felt that they loved Lina more than him. As a result, he tried to attract his parents’ attention by becoming resistant. One evening, Victor’s parents were called up by his teacher because Victor had got into a fight at school. His teacher had noticed Victor’s behaviour and work attitude changing downwards in the past two months. Before that, he had been a model student.
注意：1.续写词数应为150左右；2.请按如下格式在答题卡相应位置作答。
Upon hearing the teacher’s feedback, Victor’s parents got lost in thought.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Victor realized that his parents still cared for him.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________1. 年夜饭意义；
2. 帮忙内容；
3. 表达期待。
注意：
1. 词数100左右；
2. 可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
Helping My Parents with Lunar New Year's Eve Dinner
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It was a January afternoon. My wife, Savitri and I sat on the Sahyadri Express. As the train pulled out of the station, we could barely hide our excitement. We were finally on the way to a honeymoon to Matheran! This was the first time we had enough savings to go on a trip together.
The train stopped at Neral, where we were forced out of our reverie (白日梦). As we stepped out and started making inquiries, we realized it was unlikely that we would find a train to take us to the misty hill station we had been dreaming of for months. The afternoon gradually settled into a pink dusk as we sat in a corner at the station, waiting for news of the train services as the cold winter breeze rattled (使紧张)our bones. We unwrapped some biscuits when a little girl, no more than five or six, went past us, screaming, “But I want food! I am hungry!”
Savitri's eyes turned to the girl’s family. Smiling, she called out-her name was Mehrunisa，we overheard-and asked her to seek her parent’s permission to accept biscuits from us. Left with no option, her family accepted, And we began chatting.
After several hours, the train finally arrived. We entered alongside. As the short uphill journey progressed, Savitri and I softly discussed our trouble. It seemed unlikely that our reservation at Ragdi Hotel would still be held. As the train arrived and we rose to bid the family goodbye, Mehrunisa’s father, Viraaz, suggested that he would accompany us to make sure that we had a place to spend the night. He had overheard our anxious exchange.
His family headed to their guesthouse and Viraaz came with us to look for a hotel. To no one’s surprise, Ragdi Hotel was packed with people. The manager offered assistance by placing a few beds in the coal storage room but the cold made it uninhabitable. A gradual dread(恐惧)started to appear in my mind.
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。
Sensing our helplessness, Viraaz offered to put us up in their accommodation for the night.
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Our friendship has since continued for decades.
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Soft Skills—Soft or Not?
Rapidly advancing technology and its impact on education have been a subject of much debate. How can schools equip students with the skills to succeed in a changing job market? Since technology is driving many social changes, there is an opinion that governments should keep focusing on STEM subjects. These are often referred to as “hard skills”, which are prioritized in primary schools and right through to university level.
However, research from Harvard University on the global job market has shown that STEM-related careers grew strongly between 1989 and 2000 but have slowed ever since. In contrast, jobs in the creative industries, which are probably most associated with the need for soft skills, are growing rapidly. A study by Deloitte Access Economics predicts that “soft skill-intensive occupations will account for two-thirds of all jobs by 2030”.
With the rapid evolution of technology, a focus on hard skills leaves people delicate when facing change, as these skills often have a limited shelf life. According to a survey, more than one in four adults reported a mismatch between their skills and those needed for their job role. Fortunately, soft skills can solve the problem, enabling people to adapt to change more easily in their chosen field. Additionally, interpersonal interactions in the modern workplace require some level of soft skills. At a company they might be negotiating to win a new contract or networking for a new job. People use soft skills every day at work and developing them will help things in the job go smoothly.
Many universities have begun to emphasize soft skills such as critical thinking alongside hard skills. But the issue goes much deeper. Soft skills need to be handled across the entire education system so that by the time students reach university level, they are already armed with the qualities needed to further develop these skills.
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It was eight o'clock on a May morning, and Micah, my 17-year-old daughter, was in our bonus room upstairs. It had been her temporary eleventh-grade classroom ever since schools had moved to remote learning due to the pandemic （疫情）.
From the kitchen, I listened for the sound of her tapping on her laptop. I resisted the urge to check on her. Way too often, Micah was texting friends and commenting on their posts about the fun they were having together. We'd barely left the house for 10 weeks straight.
"Mom, everyone is hanging out today!" Micah's voice came from upstairs. "Why can't I?"
I went up the stairs. Micah was lying on the floor wearing pajamas（睡衣）, her laptop, school iPad and cell phone in front of her. "It's not fair," she said. I have no one I can be with. I can't wait until I'm 18 and can do what I want."
We'd had this conversation before. Still, I couldn't help but feel sorry for her. I was sick of having to stay at home too. Even though Micah and I were home together more than we had been in years, we might as well have been living in separate worlds. "Wanna watch TV later?" I asked. "No, thanks." Micah shook her head.
"In a few weeks you'll be going to sports camp,'' I added "That's something you can look forward to." I closed the door. I was used to Micah's rejection, but it still hurt. Teenage independence is heathy, but I worried if I didn't find a way to bond with my girl soon, I might never be close with her again. She'd be 18 in the fall and had already convinced herself she didn't need me anymore. Maybe she was right. No matter what I did, I couldn't seem to reach her.
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。
That evening, I was surfing online and saw a friend's children playing with their new cat.
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"This is the one I want," she said, smiling.
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