1 . 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 faced a tight budget when I was nine. On November Ist, I used up most of the money I saved. With a small amount of pocket money left before Christmas I didn’t have enough to buy presents for the family.

I was seriously considering going to my dad and asking for an advance on the next year’s pocket money, so I could at least buy gifts for my family members. But then, one evening, I was sitting in my room reading advertisements in the back of a magazine. Several greeting-card companies were telling us how people could make money by selling their cards and stationery (文具). Normally, I would have passed right over the ads, but this time my situation was so difficult that I felt I had nothing to lose.

The ad that attracted me most was one by a well-known greeting-card company in my nation, whose products were of high quality. With my parents’ help, I contacted the company, although they preferred adults or older kids to advertise their products. After my sincere request, they agreed to give me, a nine-year-old boy, a chance.

My sales materials arrived within the week. I had expected something small and neat, but the package looked like a dinosaur’s shoebox it was close to three feet long and nearly a foot wide, full of stuff. There was a thick binder (活页夹) containing a complete selection of the cards and some writing paper, which I would be selling for around $3 per box.

Although my parents supported my try to make money by myself, they had little confidence in my success; after all, instead of an outgoing kid, I was somewhat shy. However, I was determined to have a try to challenge 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。

Wasting no time, I set off and knocked on doors in my neighborhood.

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Eventually, I earned over $20, a large sum of money for a 9-year-old kid in 1954.

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2 . Students who are better able to understand and manage their emotions effectively, a skill known as emotional intelligence (EI), do better at school than their less-skilled classmates, according to research published by the American Psychological Association.

“It’s not enough to be smart and hardworking. Students must also be able to understand and manage their emotions to succeed at school,” said Carolyn MacCann, lead author of the study. MacCann and her colleagues analyzed data from more than 160 studies, representing more than 42,000 students from 27 countries, published between 1998 and 2019. The students ranged in age from primary school to college. The researchers found that students with higher EI tended to get higher grades and better achievement test scores than those with lower EI scores. This finding held true even when controlling for intelligence and personality factors. What was most surprising to the researchers was the association held despite different ages.

As for why EI can affect academic performance, MacCann believes a number of factors may come into play. “Students with higher EI may be better able to manage negative emotions, such as anxiety, boredom and disappointment, which can negatively affect academic performance,” she said. “Also, these students may be better able to manage the social world around them, forming better relationships with teachers, classmates and family, all of which are important to academic success.” Finally, the skills required for EI, such as understanding human motivation and emotion, may overlap with (与……重叠) the skills required to master certain subjects, such as history and language, giving students an advantage in those subject areas, according to MacCann.

However, MacCann cautions against widespread testing of students to identify and target those with low EI as it may stigmatize (给……打上烙印) those students. Instead, she recommends interventions that involve the whole school, including additional teacher training and a focus on teacher well-being and emotional skills. “Programs that integrate emotional skill development into the existing curriculum would be beneficial, as research suggests that training works better when run by teachers rather than external specialists,” she said. “Increasing skills for everyone — not just those with low EI—would benefit everyone.”

1. What surprised the researchers most during MacCann’s study?

A．Intelligence mattered more than EI for academic success.

B．EI had an effect on learning for students of all ages.

C．College students benefited more from EI than pupils.

D．Personality affected academic performance greatly.

2. What can be a reason for the conclusion of MacCann’s study?

A．High-EI students hardly experience negative emotions.

B．High-EI students seldom develop social relationships.

C．High-EI students tend to easily focus on their study.

D．High-EI students have helpful skills for certain subjects.

3. What does MacCann suggest in the last paragraph?

A．Equipping teachers with emotional skills.

B．Designing tests to identify students with low EI.

C．Developing special programs for students with low EI.

D．Employing emotional specialists to give training to students.

4. What can be a suitable title for the text?

A．Should EI be taught in school?

B．How can students develop high EI?

C．Students with high EI do better in school

D．Good students do better in managing emotions

4 . Community ovens are a centuries-old tradition worldwide. There are actually records going back to the 12th century when home ovens were not _________. The community ovens were places where people chatted together while their food was _________.

Fast forward to today, Brickyard Bakery has _________ the unique approach. It _________ to bake cakes for customers and provides them with a warm place to stay while their cakes, which _________ take four or more hours to bake, are in the oven. It’s reported that due to the increasing cost of fuel, many individuals cannot _________ to leave their ovens on that long.

Owner Ed Hamilton-Trewhitt told the BBC, “We’ve _________ the idea of a community oven from ancient times. People can _________ their cake base (胚) at home. But _________ being baked in their own ovens, it can be __________ to our bakery for a large amount of baking.”

“It struck me that if one was __________ about the energy costs of baking the Christmas cake, there would be lots more out there __________ the same situation,” he added. “In the big picture, it costs me so little but makes a massive __________. ”

The response to this attempt has been so __________ that Hamilton-Trewhitt has provided the __________ until right before Christmas. After all, that’s what being a good neighbor is all about.

1.

A．reliable

B．available

C．safe

D．useful

2.

A．saved

B．shared

C．displayed

D．cooked

3.

A．witnessed

B．suggested

C．adopted

D．advertised

4.

A．offers

B．fails

C．declines

D．happens

5.

A．exactly

B．hardly

C．typically

D．occasionally

6.

A．afford

B．wait

C．fear

D．refuse

7.

A．challenged

B．explained

C．removed

D．reintroduced

8.

A．bake

B．prepare

C．cut

D．enjoy

9.

A．instead of

B．regardless of

C．due to

D．as for

10.

A．returned

B．delivered

C．sold

D．lent

11.

A．excited

B．curious

C．upset

D．certain

12.

A．accustomed to

B．devoted to

C．satisfied with

D．faced with

13.

A．difference

B．profit

C．decision

D．development

14.

A．direct

B．positive

C．complex

D．timely

15.

A．food

B．fuel

C．recipe

D．service

5 . Vast lands of America are dominated by corn, nearly 100macres of it, stretching from Ohio to the Dakotas. What once was forest today produces the corn that feeds people, cattle and, when made into ethanol (乙醇), cars.

Now, the nation’s airlines want to power their planes with corn, too. United Airlines signed a deal with a Nebraska ethanol company to buy enough sustainable fuel, to power 50,000 flights a year. The government could decide on its tax incentives (税收激励) for the industry as soon as December. “Mark my words, the next 20 years, corn farmers are going to provide 95% of all the sustainable airline fuel,” President Biden said in July.

The airlines’ ambitious goal would likely require nearly doubling ethanol production, which airlines say, with great expectation, would decrease their greenhouse gas emissions. If they succeed, it could transform America’s Corn Belt, stimulating farmers and ethanol producers, but potentially further damaging one of the nation’s most important resources: groundwater.

Corn requires a lot of water to grow and it can take hundreds of gallons to produce a single gallon of ethanol. But as airlines take the idea of ethanol, the vital groundwater faces serious risks. “We’re on track to massively increase water usage without any real sense of how sensitive our groundwater is,” said Jeffrey Broberg, who is concerned about groundwater in Minnesota, a major corn state.

The Department of Energy said in a statement that “water use is a critical part of the conversation surrounding bio-energy sustainability”. It pointed to a 2022 department study that concluded that the United States could significantly reduce pressure on groundwater by shifting fuel production away from water-intensive crops like corn, instead growing more crops that don’t require irrigation (灌溉), like various types of straw, grasses and trees. Hopefully, a better approach will be soon studied and adopted.

1. What can we learn from the first two paragraphs?

A．Farmers will increase 95% of their ethanol production.

B．The sustainable fuel will not be popular in the future.

C．Corn will be an influential source in the fuel industry.

D．The government stops the new fuel for the groundwater.

2. What does the underlined word “stimulating” mean in paragraph 3?

A．Preventing.

B．Motivating.

C．Destroying.

D．Impressing.

3. What is the potential risk of the increased use of ethanol in fuel?

A．The shortage of corn production.

B．The increase in global warming.

C．A rise in clean-energy tax credits.

D．Higher stress on the groundwater.

4. What did the 2022 study suggest according to the last paragraph?

A．Expand the corn planting area.

B．Use some alternative materials.

C．Cut down the daily water usage.

D．Turn to the government for help.

6 . Aunt Suzy insists you have seconds before you’ve even finished your meal. Or you can count on your coworker to say things like, “I can’t believe you’re only going to have a salad for lunch! “These are both examples of food pushing.

It’s common to find yourself in a situation where someone is pressuring you to eat or commenting on your food choices. Intentional or not, the pressure to eat can make you feel uncomfortable, or worse, disturb your dietary preferences.     1    

Change the subject. It can be helpful to change the subject immediately upon your response. You can simply say, “no thank you”, and immediately follow with a question to distract the food pusher.     2    

Keep it positive. Avoid making negative comments about the food, your body, or health condition when declining a food pusher.     3    . Praise the chef for their hard work and how amazing the food looks or smells while politely saying no.

    4     Communicating your boundaries honestly and openly puts you back in control of what you eat and lets others know your wants and needs. Remember, you’re allowed to say no without feeling guilty.

Avoid challenging situations. You know your food preferences. Take time beforehand to research the restaurant or ask about the menu so you can be sure there’s food you can eat.     5    

Even if you can’t find the “right” way to say no, chances are no permanent damage will be done to the relationships in your life when you do, so stick to your guns. Remember, no one but you is in control of your own behavior. You have the right to make your personal health a top priority.

A．Stay honest.

B．Instead, keep it light.

C．Hold your boundaries.

D．It may be something like “what are your plans for this weekend?”

E．It may be uncomfortable, but you’ll have to kindly repeat yourself.

F．Having that information will empower you to make suitable choices.

G．Learning how to say no will help you cope with similar experiences.

9 . In December 2004, I had just become a professional photographer and was working on a project about communities who live on the sea, known as sea nomads (海上游牧民族). I was living with members of the Chao-Ley tribe (部落) on a small island in southern Thailand. We didn’t share a language and relied on body language to communicate.

I went out to sea with them regularly. One morning, I was due to set out with a group of six Chao-Ley fishermen in a small boat. The sea looked different, with the water totally still.

About 20 minutes after we left and a few miles out in the open sea, one of the fishermen pointed to a small white spot far in the distance. It was getting bigger and bigger very quickly. This was a tsunami (海啸) wave speeding through the ocean.

Usually, the deeper the water, the weaker the wave. But we weren’t out far enough to be safe, nor close enough to shore to make it back in time. We were stuck. I began to feel really scared.

The captain told the six of us where to sit, so we would balance out the boat. My camera was in my backpack. I wanted to capture the scene, but I couldn’t. Any movement would imbalance the boat. Suddenly there was a huge noise. The wave hit the boat, but in a flash the skilled captain managed to swerve (使突然转向) us up and onto the wave. Then the boat moved from the tip of the wave down into safe waters. Our eyes and mouths were wide open, and everyone let out heavy sighs. The captain had saved us all.

Surviving gave me a deep understanding of how important life can be. I’ve been going back to Southeast Asia almost every year since. The photography project has become a thank-you to the people who saved my life. The picture I wanted to take on the boat remains “the one that got away” – I think every photographer has one. But mine changed my life.

1. What happened before the author set out with the fishermen?

A．The captain wanted to cancel the trip.

B．He noticed something unusual.

C．They saw a white spot in the distance.

D．It looked like it was about to rain.

2. When did the author start to feel frightened?

A．When fishermen on the boat felt nervous.

B．When he realized they were trapped.

C．When the boat was about to be hit.

D．When the boat shook violently.

3. What was the author doing when the tsunami wave hit the boat?

A．Helping the captain swerve.

B．Taking a photo of the wave.

C．Trying not to move.

D．Reaching for his backpack.

4. What did the author learn from his experience?

A．We should have the courage to take risks.

B．Opportunity never knocks twice.

C．Life is too short to be wasted.

D．Sometimes regrets in life can save us.