“Nothing is so beautiful as spring—When weeds, in wheels, shoot long and lovely and lush.” However, there is no denying that early spring can be a tough time in the Midwest. It can take both people and animals by surprise with its unexpected snowstorms.
My house is built in a high position so that my backyard overlooks a large pond. Every spring, flocks of migratory birds (候鸟) chose to root in the pond on the way to their summer homes. They had a rest in the pond, looked for food to feed their baby birds and played with each other casually. This year, among others, hundreds of scaups, a type of diving duck, spent several days hanging out there, diving for food. Life was peaceful and warm for them. They spent hours swimming with each other. The older ones would run after the younger after they finished their breakfast. Every time the little ducks would spare no effort to escape and the open water around them would get bigger and bigger.
Then the snowstorm hit followed by a very cold night. The temperature dropped sharply. As the open water of the pond shrank into icy desolation (荒凉) the scaups took off for a more livable habitat (栖息地).
The next morning, I found that all birds had disappeared overnight except one lo ne female, who was diving energetically in her little circle of open water. Her movements and body heat had kept the ice from coming close. She bravely swam around as I watched her from the comfort of my warm home.
As time passed, the open water around the duck got smaller and smaller, and her movements slowed. Obviously, she was in danger. I watched with anxiety as she eventually stopped moving, and I feared she was dead. I decided to go out to have a look.
注意：1.所续写的短文词数应为150左右;
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Then it happened.
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This little duck’s friends probably saved her life.
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The end of the year had finally arrived. The first year of my teaching career would be over in a matter of days, but I hated Awards Day. Although I had a class of outstanding students, I feared one student wouldn’t have an award.
Brent just didn’t have the high averages as some of his classmates. As I sat down and began looking over my grade book, I filled in the blanks on the award sheet for the highest grade in each subject. Then, I proceeded to “A Honor Roll” and on through the list. When I began checking averages for the “AB Honor Roll”, I knew Brent hadn’t made it yet now. But while the first honor roll was determined by the average of all grades of the first three months, the yearly honor roll was the average of the final grade in each class for the whole year. Maybe there was a chance.
Brent’s grades may have been considered average, but he was far from it. He was no quitter. That boy was very persistent. If he failed a spelling test midweek, by Friday, he would pass. If his math grade slipped a bit, he’d work to get it higher. Unlike the other students who would often attempt to “one up” one another, Brent’s only competitor was himself, and his goal for the entire year was the AB Honor Roll.
With each report card, his face had fallen when he had missed that elusive (难以达到的) B average, and although he had never made any honor roll, he had never stopped trying to reach that goal. Now, he had one last opportunity. I entered his final grades into the computer and averaged. It was a B! I checked again. Yes, it was a B. His grades had gone up and down. When he focused harder on one subject, another slipped a bit. Overall, he had a B average.
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。
Awards Day came!
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While everyone who got an award made me proud, I knew what it took Brent to achieve it.
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内容包括：
1.你身边的环境问题;
2.相应的解决办法。
注意：1.词数80左右;
2.可适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
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Catherine was a mother of three and after her husband died three years ago, she had to step out and earn money to make ends meet.
In the beginning, she worked as a sales clerk at a store. But as her children grew older, she knew she must find a new job which could pay a higher salary (薪水). One day, Catherine was walking home after her shift (轮班) at the store when she spotted a construction site. Realizing that the money she would make by working there was more than her current salary, she thought she might be able to work there. She then approached the manager. After learning about her circumstances, the manager hired her on the spot. Then she left her job at the store and worked full-time at the construction site.
However, Catherine kept her new job a secret from her children. She thought they would feel embarrassed after learning their mother worked at a construction site. Every morning, Catherine would wake up and make breakfast for her children before dropping them at school. Then, she would go to the construction site and work until her shift ended. She would pick up heavy bricks on her shoulder to transport them from one part of the site to the other. One weekend, Catherine’s son, Peter, told her about an upcoming contest in school that required mothers to participate. In the competition, students would wear blindfolds (眼罩) and have to recognize their mothers without looking at them. “That sounds like such a cool event, Peter!” Catherine said. “I won’t go there with you, Mom,” Peter replied. When asked why, Peter said that he would have to touch Catherine’s hands to recognize her. “Everyone would look at them, but your hands are so ugly. They’re so hard and rough,” he added. Catherine felt terrible after hearing her son’s excuse for not participating in the competition, but couldn’t say anything in her defense. She had to stay quiet and keep working at the construction site to make ends meet.
Paragraph 1: A few weeks later, when Peter was returning home earlier one day, something unexpected caught his attention.
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Paragraph 2: Later that night, Peter decided to apologize to his mother.
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Two years ago, we’d traded our old life in Sydney to sail around the world. Life on the water was extremely happy: we were finally free of the 9-to-5 grind and our two children enjoyed getting to see the world while being home-schooled. But one day, looking at the kittens on the dock at a port in Greece, the kids asked, ”Can we please have a pet?" Guy and I were hesitant at first, but after some thought it made sense that living on a boat would be the best time to welcome an animal into our lives -we would be with it 24/7 and could give it plenty of attention. We decided a dog would be better-suited to sea life.
After doing some research about what it would take to bring a dog back home to Australia as we sailed back, I decided a dachshund (腊肠狗) would make the ideal pet. They were low to the ground, easy to transport, good boat security and loving, intelligent dogs. Guy hadn’t had a little dog before and doubted a little. But my cute photos eventually worked their magic and we headed to a town in Sicily to meet a breeder who had some miniature dachshunds. And the minute we laid eyes on the brown pup, we knew she was the one for us. We called her Pipsqueak-or Pip for short-and welcomed her onto the boat.
The first few days with Pip saw us encounter some rough weather, but she took it all in her stride (从容应对). The kids fell in love with her instantly. Pip was never far from our side, even accompanying us to museums and galleries. Our sails saw us cross the Atlantic Ocean to the United States, and then we decided to sail home to Australia. But when COVID-19 hit, it became complicated: we had to get on a flight quickly as borders around the world were closing fast. Problem was, we couldn’t take Pip. After much discussion, Guy and I decided that we would have to leave her with a friend while we flew home. Handing our dog over was utterly heartbreaking. It’ll only be for a couple of weeks, I told myself.
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。
But, like most people, we underestimated the situation.
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So, on the way to the airport, we stopped at Ikea and bought some hot dogs to be sure she’d come to us.
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I have a confession (坦白) to make, and the sooner it gets out in the open, the better I’ll feel about it. I don’t drive a car.
Americans are broad-minded people. They will accept the fact that a person can be an alcoholic, a dope fiend (瘾君子), a wife beater, and even a newspaperman, but if a man does not drive, there is something wrong with him. Through the years I’ve found it very embarrassing to admit it to anyone and my best friends tend to view me with distrust and disapproval.
But where I really run into trouble is when I go into a store and try to make a purchase with a check.
It happened again last week when I went to a discount house at a large shopping center in Maryland. I wanted to buy a portable type writer, and the salesman was very helpful about showing me the different models. I decided on one, and then I said, “May I write out a personal check?”
“Naturally,” he said kindly. “Do you have any identification?”
“Of course,” I said. I produced an American express credit card, a Diner’s club credit card, a Bell telephone credit card, and my pass to the White House.
The man inspected them all and then said, “Where’s your driver’s license?”
“I don’t have one,” I replied.
“Did you lose it?”
“No, I didn’t lose it. I don’t drive a car.” He pushed a button under the cash register, and suddenly a floor manager came rushing over.
The salesman had now become surly. “This guy’s trying to cash a check, and he doesn’t have a driver’s license. Should I call the store detective?”
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。
“Wait a minute. I’ll talk to him,” the manager said.
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By this time the president of the store had arrived on the scene.
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In a heartwarming event that has touched the nation, a police officer in Warren, Michigan, was considered as a true hero by saving the life of an 18-month-old boy who had suddenly stopped breathing. This event happened on the evening of August 29 and has since touched the hearts of many.
Officer Brandan Fraser was on duty, focusing on speed and absent-minded driving, when he noticed a car speeding past him. What in the beginning seemed like a common traffic violation (违规) rapidly turned into a life-and-death crisis.
As Fraser came up to the car, he was met with a sad cry from a woman, who screamed, “We got a baby in here dying. Help! Help!” Both the woman and the man in the car were frightened as they handed over the baby boy, who appeared to be lifeless, not breathing and turning blue.
Rather than giving in to the pressure of the moment, Fraser immediately sprang into action. He examined the baby and doubted that he might be choking (窒息). Fraser quickly positioned the baby on his forearm and performed a series of back blows to force any obstruction (阻塞物) from the baby’s airway out.
However, the baby still showed no signs of breathing. Fraser’s heart raced, but his training kicked in here. After making sure the baby’s airway was clear, he then continued to perform CPR on the baby. His hands pressed the baby’s tiny chest and at the same time, he blew some air into the baby’s mouth to help make his heart beat again. Fraser continued these life-saving efforts tirelessly, knowing that every second counted.
Surprisingly, the baby began to breathe once more. Fraser described the moment, saying, “The baby started breathing, and you saw that color started coming back around his lips. You realized that something happened here, and we were heading in the right direction.”
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。
After a while, the baby gave out a cry, a sign that life was returning.
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Then the baby was quickly transported to a nearby hospital.
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When I moved to Dallas in the fourth grade, I noticed I was behind in my reading at Saint Michael’s School. Reading out loud, I had difficulty with half the sentences.
My teacher, Mrs Agnew, said my reading comprehension (理解力) and ability to pronounce words were at a lower level than other fourth graders’. I was nervous every time she called on me to read aloud because, although I would try my hardest, she would always have to help me with the words. She guessed I suffered from dyslexia (诵读困难), and she suggested I be tested for dyslexia.
At first, I didn’t want to be tested because I feared it would prove I truly had dyslexia. However, finally, I decided to receive the test.
One morning, I went to hospital with my parents and met Dr. Waites. Before long, I began to take the test. The test made me feel uncomfortable, and I was frightened to answer the questions related to the test, in fear of facing failure. When the test ended, Dr. Waites said the test results showed that I had dyslexia, I was shocked and felt upset. Dr.Waites comforted (安慰) me, saying that his hospital had many other kids who had dyslexia. Then, he smiled and suggested ways to get over dyslexia.
According to him, I should often read books and understand what was read. And I should try to read aloud, and build a vocabulary of recognized and understood words. Besides, I should often do physical exercise. And he suggested I receive speech therapy (治疗) in his hospital every few days. As for my parents, Dr. Waites suggested they spare time to read aloud with me.
After returning home, I searched information on the Internet and further leaned about dyslexia. I found it was not easy for a person to get over dyslexia. I had little confidence that I could succeed in removing my dyslexia, and I was worried and frightened about my future. Noticing it, my parents tried to encourage me.
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。
Para 1: They brought me a book about some people defeating life challenges.
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Para 2: Several years later, when I volunteered at the same hospital, a girl who had dyslexia asked me to read a book to her.
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“BANG!” the door was shut loudly. It was just standing there, with my father standing on one side, and I on the other side.
We were both in great anger. “Never set foot in this house again!” my father said angrily. With tears in my eyes, I rushed out of the flat and ran along the street.
I didn’t know whether it was because I had grown up or because my dad was getting old. He always put his opinions on me. We were just like two people in two different worlds. It felt like there was an iron door between us that could never be opened.
My heart was frozen on this hot summer night. As I walked on, there were fewer and fewer people on the streets. When I finally reached my house, I saw that the light was still on.
All the lights were off except living room’s.
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 stood at the door and didn’t know how to face my father.
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To my surprise, my father was sitting by the dinning table alone.
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April has been a vet(兽医) for many years. Throughout her practice, there have been many unusual cases. Some were quite sad and some were even funny. But most of all she remembered one time on a rainy day a little girl came to her with her little guinea pig(豚鼠).
She was in tears and asked April to save her beloved pet. “This is my only friend. I really love my Dorothy,” the girl said. April examined the animal and realized that it was very ill. The pig looked young. Probably, it was already sick when it was sold to the girl. The vet saw many children’s tears, and each time she felt awful. But she always found strength to say that she couldn’t save the pet.
However, this time she looked at the girl and couldn’t say anything. April saw how simply the girl was dressed and thought that her family didn’t make a lot of money. Therefore, the pig wasn't just a pet for her, but a real treasure. “Tell me your phone number, so I can call you after the operation,” April said. “I’ll give you my grandmother’s phone number, because I live with her. My parents were gone. Grandma said that they had gone somewhere far and for a long time. By the way, they gave me the pig before leaving,” the girl said. April wrote down the number, and when the girl left the clinic, she burst into tears. She realized her parents had died and the girl didn't know the truth yet. How could she tell her that her guinea pig was going to die? April looked at the animal helplessly and wondered what she could do. Suddenly she came up with an idea. But before doing it she put the guinea pig to sleep, and went to the nearest pet store during lunchtime. She wanted to buy exactly the same guinea pig and give it to the girl.
注意：1. 续写词数应为 150个左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
However, finding it wasn't so easy.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Her grandmother understood everything, but the girl didn't notice the switch.
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