I was invited to a cookout on an old friend’s farm in western Washington. I parked my car outside the farm and walked past a milking house which had apparently not been used in many years. A noise at a window caught my attention, so I entered it. It was a hummingbird (蜂鸟), desperately trying to escape. She was covered in spider-webs (蛛网) and was barely able to move her wings. She ceased her struggle the instant I picked her up.
With the bird in my cupped hand, I looked around to see how she had gotten in. The broken window glass was the likely answer. I stuffed a piece of cloth into the hole and took her outside, closing the door securely behind me.
When I opened my hand, the bird did not fly away; she sat looking at me with her bright eyes. I removed the sticky spider-webs that covered her head and wings. Still, she made no attempt to fly. Perhaps she had been struggling against the window too long and was too tired? Or too thirsty?
As I carried her up the blackberry-lined path toward my car where I kept a water bottle, she began to move. I stopped, and she soon took wing but did not immediately fly away.
Hovering (悬停), she approached within six inches of my face. For a very long moment, this tiny creature looked into my eyes, turning her head from side to side. Then she flew quickly out of sight.
During the cookout, I told my hosts about the hummingbird incident. They promised to fix the window. As I was departing, my friends walked me to my car. I was standing by the car when a hummingbird flew to the center of our group and began hovering. She turned from person to person until she came to me. She again looked directly into my eyes, then let out a squeaking call and was gone. For a moment, all were speechless. Then someone said, “She must have come to say goodbye.”
注意：1. 续写词数应为 150 左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题纸的相应位置作答。
A few weeks later, I went to the farm again.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________I was just about to leave when the hummingbird appeared.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________2 . For people who are planning a trip, a visit to a museum might not be the first thing they think of. After all, there are plenty of ways to appreciate the world’s civilization, gain exciting experiences and spend quality time with family and friends.
Museums are where people learn something new, at every age! Are you interested in something specific?
Museums support tourism. They are tourism promoters in small towns and large cities. Museums aren’t a burden on tax revenue (税收) or a separate concern from other city projects.
Museums shape communities. They have activities and exhibitions through which visitors can learn about local history. Museums are places where a shared heritage is celebrated and a collective identity is formed. They provide an interesting public space where people meet and talk to each other.
| A．Museums bring out the best qualities in children. |
| B．Museums often deliver kids-centered exhibitions. |
| C．Instead, they generate funding and fuel employment. |
| D．Then, visit a local museum to learn about that subject. |
| E．Even shopping at the gift shop there is an opportunity for connection. |
| F．On the contrary, they consume a small percentage of city funds annually. |
| G．The fact, however, is that museums offer magical benefits in many ways. |
For Greek photographer George Doupas, Beijing is home now. During the past decade, he has been photographing the city, capturing its beauty
“This
With rich historical heritage, Beijing
Doupas is determined to continue with his career in China, hoping to serve as
“I call Beijing my home now,” he said, “I’ll keep sharing photos of China
4 . Early fifth-century philosopher St．Augustine famously wrote that he knew what time was unless someone asked him．Albert Einstein added another wrinkle when he theorized that time varies depending on where you measure it．Today's state-of-the-art atomic（原子的） clocks have proven Einstein right．Even advanced physics can't decisively tell us what time is, because the answer depends on the question you're asking．
Forget about time as an absolute．What if，instead of considering time in terms of astronomy,we related time to ecology？What if we allowed environmental conditions to set the tempo（节奏） of human life？We're increasingly aware of the fact that we can't control Earth systems with engineering alone，and realizing that we need to moderate（调节）our actions if we hope to live in balance．What if our definition of time reflected that？
Recently，I conceptualized a new approach to timekeeping that's connected to circumstances on our planet，conditions that might change as a result of global warming．We're now building a clock at the Anchorage Museum that reflects the total flow of several major Alaskan rivers，which are sensitive to local and global environmental changes．We've programmed it to match an atomic clock if the waterways continue to flow at their present rate．If the rivers run faster in the future on average，the clock will get ahead of standard time．If they run slower，you'll see the opposite effect．
The clock registers both short-term irregularities and long-term trends in river dynamics．It's a sort of observatory that reveals how the rivers are behaving from their own temporal frame（时间框架），and allows us to witness those changes on our smartwatches or phones．Anyone who opts to go on Alaska Mean River Time will live in harmony with the planet．Anyone who considers river time in relation to atomic time will encounter a major imbalance and may be motivated to counteract it by consuming less fuel or supporting greener policies．
Even if this method of timekeeping is novel in its particulars，early agricultural societies also connected time to natural phenomena．In pre-Classical Greece，for instance，people“corrected”official calendars by shifting dates forward or backward to reflect the change of season．Temporal connection to the environment was vital to their survival．Likewise，river time and other timekeeping systems we're developing may encourage environmental awareness．
When St．Augustine admitted his inability to define time， he highlighted one of time 's most noticeable qualities：Time becomes meaningful only in a defined context．Any timekeeping system is valid，and each is as praiseworthy as its purpose．
1. What is the main idea of Paragraph 1？| A．Timekeeping is increasingly related to nature． |
| B．Everyone can define time on their own terms． |
| C．The qualities of time vary with how you measure it． |
| D．Time is a major concern of philosophers and scientists． |
| A．present an assumption | B．evaluate an argument |
| C．highlight an experiment | D．introduce an approach |
| A．Those who do not go on river time will live an imbalanced life． |
| B．New ways of measuring time can help to control Earth systems． |
| C．Atomic time will get ahead of river time if the rivers run slower． |
| D．Modern technology may help to shape the rivers’ temporal frame． |
| A．It is crucial to improve the definition of time． |
| B．A fixed frame will make time meaningless． |
| C．We should live in harmony with nature． |
| D．History is a mirror reflecting reality． |
5 . Two years ago, I lost my wallet. I made the poor decision of keeping my identity card, my credit card, a large amount of money and other various things inside my
About a week
After that, I decided that I wanted to do
That’s why I
| A．handbag | B．wallet | C．pocket | D．car |
| A．money | B．food | C．gold | D．card |
| A．satisfied | B．excited | C．worried | D．puzzled |
| A．bad | B．good | C．beautiful | D．wonderful |
| A．ahead | B．earlier | C．long | D．later |
| A．threw | B．searched | C．returned | D．suggested |
| A．the people | B．the police | C．the students | D．the children |
| A．sadness | B．surprise | C．regret | D．disappointment |
| A．got up | B．looked up | C．gave up | D．picked up |
| A．it | B．her | C．him | D．them |
| A．kind | B．funny | C．stupid | D．serious |
| A．protect | B．respect | C．help | D．recognize |
| A．bad | B．good | C．free | D．sick |
| A．allow | B．force | C．choose | D．encourage |
| A．herself | B．himself | C．itself | D．yourself |
Huishan clay figurines (泥人) are produced in the western suburb of Wuxi, Jiangsu Province, and are one of China’s most famous folk arts, having a history
The craft originated in the Southern Dynasties and reached
Huishan figurines differ from those of other localities in that they are always small and always feature a big head. They divide into two types - mold-pressed and hand-crafted. The
The characters depicted (描绘) come
7 . Apply for the 2024 –2025 School Year
We are thrilled you are considering Marist School for your child’s next chapter. Marist has two primary entry points for students in 7th and 9th grades to which we typically accept 150 and 50 students respectively.
Marist School utilizes Ravenna, an application management system, for all aspects of the admissions process. Through Ravenna, parents can access the Marist application, submit supporting materials, track application status, and view admission decisions. Our application for the 2024 - 2025 school year will be available late September with a January 22, 2024 deadline.
Importantly, Marist continues to require the SSAT as part of the application process. On Saturday, January 6, 2024, Marist will serve as a community test site for the SSAT. This is the last national testing day prior to our application deadline when a first set of SSAT scores is due.
Important DatesSeptember 2023 - March 2024 | Marist School admissions events |
| Late September 2023 | Marist 2024 - 2025 application available in Ravenna |
| October 2023 - January 2024 | Required SSAT testing |
| December 3, 2023 | Open Heuse |
| January 22, 2024 | Deadline to apply to Marist; preliminary application and fee, parent and student questionnaires, and a first set of SSAT scores are due |
| February 1, 2024 | Deadline for Marist to receive any outstanding supplemental materials; transcripts, teacher and administrator evaluations, and parish/church verification form are due |
| February 12, 2024 | Deadline to submit separate tuition assistance application |
| March 30, 2024 | AAAIS common notification date |
| April 11, 2024 | Deadline to respond to offer of admission |
| A．Students in all grades. | B．Students in 6th or 8th grades. |
| C．Parents of children in 6th or 8th grades. | D．Parents of children in 7th to 9th grades. |
| A．It deals with entry applications. | B．It promotes school management. |
| C．It is accessible the whole school year. | D．It monitors the admissions process. |
| A．August 30, 2023. | B．January 26, 2024. |
| C．February 3, 2024. | D．March 30, 2024. |
It was exam time at Marc’s school. Every day, their teachers gave them loads of homework and told them the test was very important and that they ought to spare no effort to perform well in it. Everyone followed the teachers’ instructions and made preparations for it, except Marc. He just turned a deaf ear to it. He thought he would rather play football than study.
His mum and dad repeated the importance of revision for exams over and over again. They told him that he should be working hard preparing for the test. But the weather was sunny and he thought he had better things to do.
“Shall we go to the park?” he said to his friend Huck one afternoon. “It’s a nice day. We could play football and kick around.” Huck shook his head. “I’m supposed to review my lessons,” he said. “I’m going home to do some math.”
Marc was amazed. “You’d rather do math than play football?”
“Math is important. Besides, my mum says she will buy me a mountain bike if I do well in the math exam.”
“That’s crazy,” said Marc. Huck shrugged (耸肩) and replied, “Wait until I beat you in the test and you will watch me riding past on my mountain bike!”
“You won’t beat me,” said Marc.
“Oh yes, I will.”
“Oh no, you won’t! That will never happen. Just wait and see!”
For the first time ever, Marc wanted to perform well. He couldn’t bear it if his friend came top and he did badly. So when he got home, he opened his math book. But there was so much to do. All of a sudden, he felt like he’d forgotten everything he had learned that year! He didn’t know where to start. When his sister Lily came in, he was sitting expressionlessly by the desk, just staring out of the window.
注意：1. 续写词数应为150左右;
2. 请按如下格式作答。
“You don’t look happy, Marc. What’s wrong?” she said.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________On the day of the exam, Marc went to school with great confidence.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________The Chengdu Sports Center, a giant stadium at the heart of the provincial capital of southwest China’s Sichuan, once
Back to 2013, a renovation revealed relics dating back to the Han Dynasty right underneath the middle of the venue. It created a
After nine years of excavation, the Donghuamen historical site opened to a
An archaeological park is under construction at the site. The first stage will be finished in two weeks and will be made public two months
10 . 阅读下面材料，根据其内容和所给段落开头语续写两段，使之构成一篇完整的短文。
I looked up from my desk to see the teacher writing on the board: “Battle of the Books!” She smiled and said, “This time it’s a teamwork. You’re going to be in teams of two, and set a reading goal. Every team that meets their goal by the end of the month will get a prize!” The lunch bell sounded before she could explain any more rules.
As I gathered my things, Liya passed my desk and said, “Teammates?” Since Liya and I shared the same interest in graphic novel(漫画小说), and we took Hindi language class together, we teamed up automatically. I was both relieved and excited to have my team. Then we got to the cafeteria and quickly threw out a bunch of ideas of what to do at our table.
I looked to our third friend Kash, with whom the three of us always do stuff together, “Kash, do you have ideas for us?” “Why would I give you guys ideas?” he said gloomily(阴沉地). “I’ll save that for my team...whoever that is. Now I see how I rank in the friendship lineup.” Kash replied in an angry tone.
I knew he was mad for a reason. If I were him, not only would I think that I ranked last in that group, but I’d also be panicking about what team I could join. But now, I was on the inside and Kash wasn’t. I felt like the only way to fix this would be three people on a team. So, as the teacher walked by our table, I asked for her permission. What surprised me was that she had intended to draw names to assign random groups, but didn’t get a chance to say it before lunch.
Awkward and frustrated, we were stuck in this dilemma. Having first teamed up without Kash didn’t mean we didn’t like him. I knew we—especially I—wouldn’t be able to enjoy any prize if our friend felt bad about being left out. So, I decided to do something to make it up for him and convince Kash he was an equal friend.
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 night, I was struck by an idea as I read a graphic novel that all three of us liked.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
The next day, I handed my pages of apology to Kash.
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