1 . When I was a little boy growing up, my Mom, Dad, brothers and I lived in my Nana’s old house. It was surrounded by four huge vegetable gardens. And around the house so many flowers were planted. It was so beautiful there in the spring and summer. That wasn’t all, though. On the back porch Nana had dozens of potted plants hanging on hooks. She watered them, talked to them and nurtured them. And in the winter she would carry them all inside and set them on shelves near the windows of our enclosed front porch. There with a little water and a lot of love she kept them alive, green, and growing even during the coldest, darkest months.
As a boy I was puzzled by all the effort she put into them. I understood the vegetable gardens. They helped to feed the family all winter long. I even understood the flowers around the house. They were pretty and smelled so sweet in the summer months. The reason she put so much effort into caring for those potted plants, however, eluded me. They didn’t give us any food and they rarely had any flowers on them. They remained a mystery to my child’s mind.
Now as I’ve grown older I am beginning to understand why my Nana had those potted plants. It is the same reason I have so many pictures of sunrises and forests hanging in my home. They remind me during the dark, cold, winter months full of bare trees and yellow grass that light, love, and growth still exist. They remind me that Spring will come again. They remind me that God loves us and is still with us even when the earth doesn’t show it.
Today I see Nana’s potted plants in a new light. They are worth every bit of the love and care she put into them. But what tells me most about light and love is Nana herself. She is light to my soul even in my darkest times. And her love lives on in my heart even if she is in Heaven. May we all learn to love as she loved, shine as she shined, and live as she lived.
1. Which of the following is close in meaning to the underlined word “eluded” in paragraph 2?| A．Upset. | B．Misguided. | C．Confused. | D．Distracted. |
| A．They were a sign of hope. | B．They resembled sunrise and forests. |
| C．They constantly kept Nana company. | D．They were portable and easy to nurture. |
| A．To advocate growing potted plants. | B．To sing the praise of Nana’s spirit and love. |
| C．To stress the benefits of a positive lifestyle. | D．To recall beautiful memories spent with Nana. |
| A．A non-fiction. | B．A book review. |
| C．An agricultural leaflet. | D．A celebrity biography. |
Grandpa Dixon’s last grandson passed away from a rare disease. With all of his relatives gone, the man grew lonely as he entered his late 80s. His house was big and empty, and he often thought about his lost family. His grandson had lived with him after his parents passed away, and the old man loved him dearly. Grandpa Dixon took care of him in his final days, and he struggled to overcome the loss when he was gone. He even gave up his woodworking hobby.
With no one left to care for, the elderly man started looking towards his community, and he slowly got to know his neighbors. His one neighbor, Sarah, was always pleasant, and he discovered they had much in common. She was a single mother with no other family left. She didn’t have much, and she made a bed for her little Cherise in an empty drawer every night. So, when Grandpa Dixon found out about this, he gave her his late grandson’s old crib (婴儿床) that he had made himself.
“Oh, that’s so sweet of you! The woodwork is lovely, Grandpa Dixon. Where did you get it?” she asked when he showed up at her house with the crib.
He explained he had built it for his grandson before the boy was born. She gave him an impressed look, thanked him again, and the two carried the crib into her room. That night, baby Cherise slept very well, only waking up once. Sarah was so happy about the new crib that she showed it off to all her friends.
“My goodness, Sarah! Where did you find this?” they all wanted to know.
“Grandpa Dixon, the sweet man next door, showed up on my doorstep with it and said he had built it for his grandson. The poor man has no one left after his grandson passed away. I feel so bad for him. I wish there were something we could do.”
The story of Grandpa Dixon and his incredible crib spread through the community.
注意：1.续写词数应为150左右;
2.请按如下格式作答。
Paragraph 1: Soon people showed up at his front door, asking whether he would build them a crib as well.
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Paragraph 2: After a while, he made it his late career out of the hobby.
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3 . For the past 18 years, my daughter has been around me all the time. Now that she is in college, the
A week ago, my daughter wanted to
Research shows that parents are
We may have to
| A．problem | B．progress | C．goal | D．context |
| A．cold | B．special | C．different | D．casual |
| A．normal | B．idea | C．approach | D．solution |
| A．catch up | B．take over | C．check out | D．break away |
| A．visited | B．touched | C．tried | D．emailed |
| A．by taxi | B．by text | C．in private | D．in person |
| A．stupid | B．angry | C．excited | D．asleep |
| A．available | B．interested | C．ready | D．guilty |
| A．saddest | B．busiest | C．happiest | D．best |
| A．decide | B．wonder | C．investigate | D．distinguish |
| A．kind | B．appreciative | C．sensitive | D．relevant |
| A．voice | B．ignore | C．shift | D．continue |
| A．human | B．virtual | C．physical | D．permanent |
| A．widened | B．formed | C．broken | D．bridged |
| A．college | B．relationship | C．change | D．communication |
| A．He isn’t hard-working. | B．He isn’t strong. | C．He isn’t polite. |
Farah was checking the party list with her mother. The exams were over and Farah wanted to invite her special friends for a party.
“Farah, aren’t you going to invite Hafsa?” her mother asked. Hafsa had been her best friend who lived across the street but now Farah had made new friends. “Mother, I am now a part of Purple Girls Club and we have rules about friends,” Farah answered hesitantly. “What rules?” her mother asked sarcastically (讽刺地).
“Only very pretty girls can be in our group. Hafsa is ... dark. I can’t be seen with her. It’s bad for my image.” “Farah, I can’t believe you base your friendship on appearance rather than character. I had expected better judgment from you than this nonsense,” her mother retorted (反驳) angrily.
Farah sank into silence. In her heart she knew her mother was right. Sometimes she too felt uncomfortable with her “cool” friends.
Just then, her father called, “Farah, come here.” Farah went and paled when she saw the report card in his hands.
“Farah, how come you failed each subject? You were my pride.” Her father questioned.
She hated to see such look of disappointment in his eyes. The truth was that the Club left her with little time for studies. The girls got together almost daily for movies, shopping, and partying. It had seemed like so much fun but now it left a bitter taste in her mouth.
“Farah?” her father asked again , but Farah just hung her head in shame and did not answer.
“Farah, you shall take supplementary (补考) papers next month.”
Knowing how strict her father could be, Farah went to her room and opened her copies.
Seeing her homework filled with red crosses, Farah felt awfully terrible. How could she have neglected(忽视)her studies so much?
She called Gina, the leader of the Club. “Gina, can you lend me your copies? I need them to complete my notes for the exams.” Gina erupted into laughter. “Exams? Who cares? Farah. There are other ways of passing them.” Farah replaced the phone quickly. Even in desperation, she could never cheat.
One by one, she called her so-called friends but no one was willing to help.
注意：1. 所续写短文的词数应为150左右；
2. 续写部分分为两段，每段的开头语已为你写好。
Paragraph 1: Farah sat dejected on her bed, searching hard in her mind for other names she could turn to.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Paragraph 2: Next Monday, as the two old friends entered the school together, Gina saw them and called out haughtily (傲慢地),
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________6 . “Is there anything you want from Grandma’s flat?” My uncle, texting me, last week.
His mum had passed away. He’d begun the painful yet necessary task of sorting through her belongings. I required zero thinking time. Yes, I would like her aloe vera (芦荟) plant, please.
Here’s why. Sometime around 1975, Grandma received this plant as a gift. It came courtesy (礼仪) of the local butcher in recognition of her loyal custom. It could, I suppose, just as likely have been a calendar, or a fountain pen, or a box of biscuits. But it just happened to be a pot plant, which Grandma, who always had green fingers, appreciated and placed in her doorway. Five years later, my mum married the butcher’s son. And had me.
When my father’s mother died in 1993, Grandma revealed to me how this particular plant was different to the dozens of others she had in her home. This one had history. It was, she suggested, a living, blooming representation of the relationship that existed between the two sides of my family. As, indeed, was I.
Aloe vera is reasonably hardy, but, as I’ve learned, if you put it above a radiator, it dies. If you under-water it, it dies. If you over-water it, it dies. In short, with my awful agricultural skills, I’m better off with a plastic one. So, straight after I asked my uncle for this treasure, I put in place an insurance policy: the plant will go and live with Ann, my mother-in-law.
Ann, is a genius with a greenhouse. The plan is for Ann to keep hold of the original plant. In time, she can teach me how to care for its cuttings properly. Meantime, Ann will spread cuttings and clippings among her own family. My wife’s two sisters, for example, are both far better at tending plants than I am, so it is quite conceivable that they, too, will spread cuttings of the plant around their partners’ families; that this humble plant might yet spread across my entire extended family. What an amazing outcome!
1. Why did the butcher give my Grandma the aloe vera plant?| A．To contribute to the marriage. |
| B．To observe a specific custom. |
| C．To show the butcher’s loyalty. |
| D．To appreciate her regular visits. |
| A．She is a garden enthusiast. | B．She is loyal to her friends. |
| C．She is a local shop keeper. | D．She is ready to help others. |
| A．He is skilled at agricultural planting. |
| B．He has a preference for plastic plants |
| C．He is confident in feeding the plant himself. |
| D．He is anxious to keep the plant alive. |
| A．An amazing outcome | B．A family tree |
| C．A family history | D．Green fingers |
1. When did the man’s boss call Jeff?
| A．In the morning. | B．In the afternoon. | C．In the evening. |
| A．Over the phone. | B．By e-mail. | C．In person. |
| A．He was sick. |
| B．He was off the day. |
| C．He was working somewhere else. |
| A．Excited. | B．Angry. | C．Surprised. |
8 . “Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish, by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.”---Albert Einstein
If you have a kid with special needs in the school system, you’re likely to have come across that saying hanging on a classroom wall. My five-year-old daughter Syona has cerebral palsy (脑瘫) and it means, combined with her communication and sight problems, that normal standard isn’t always an accurate measure of her abilities.
By now you have probably heard about Chris Ulmer, the 26-year old teacher in Jacksonville, Florida, who starts his special education class by calling up each student to give them much admiration and a high-five. I couldn’t help but be reminded of Syona’s teacher and how she supports each kid in a very similar way. Ulmer recently shared a video of his teaching experience. “I have seen their confidence increase rapidly.” he said. All I could think was: how lucky these students are to have such good teachers.
Syona’s teacher has an attitude that can best be summarized in one word: wonderful. Her teacher doesn’t focus on what can’t be done---she focuses on what can be done. Over the past several months, my husband Dilip and I have seen Syona’s confidence increase greatly. She uses words she wouldn’t have thought of using before. She recently told me about her classmates trip to Ecuador and was very proud when I understood her on the first try.
I actually wonder what the influence would be if we did something similar to what Ulmer does with his students in our home. We’ve recently started our day by reminding each other of the good qualities we all have. If we are reminded of our strengths on a regular basis, we will become increasingly confident about progress and success.
1. What does the author think of Albert Einstein’s saying?| A．Funny. | B．True. | C．Strange. | D．Confusing. |
| A．She is Syona’s favorite teacher. |
| B．She puts Einstein’s quote on the wall |
| C．She uses videos to teach her students. |
| D．She helps increase her students’ confidence. |
| A．They’ve invited Ulmer’s students to their home. |
| B．They visit Ulmer’s classroom regularly. |
| C．They give each other praise every day. |
| D．They feel thankful to people in their lives. |
| A．Supportive | B．Opposed | C．Indifferent | D．Negative |
| A．She is quiet. | B．She is sociable. | C．She is talkative. |
Cody always knew his family was different. While other kids went to the beach for summer vacation, he and his mom visited the world’s largest baseball bat or the world’s largest fork. Cody’s mom even had photos framed on the wall.
As a kid, Cody thought these vacations were the best ever. But later, somewhere during their search for the world’s biggest ball of twine(麻团), he started to feel embarrassed. When his classmates, especially Nathan, asked where he’d gone for vacation, he’d say, “No place special.”
Cody could tell that his mom was planning something when she walked into the kitchen with a shine in her eye. It was the same shine she’d had on those photos! “I was reading this article about the world’s largest gathering of people dressed as turkeys. It was in Texas, and it was only 661 people! Five times as many people living in our town.”
“And then?” Cody doubted.
“We can hold a similar one here around Thanksgiving!”
“Mom,” Cody said. “No.”
“Yes,” Mom confirmed. “I just called the newspaper. The announcement runs tomorrow. The day after Thanksgiving, everyone will meet in the town square, dressed as turkeys!”
Cody could do nothing but sigh.
Back to school the next day, Nathan shouted, “Hey, Cody!” Whenever Nathan talked, it always meant trouble. “Gobble(火鸡叫), gobble!” Nathan came strutting(昂首阔步走)like a turkey. Other kids laughed as Cody rushed to the class. It turned out that the announcement wasn’t just in the paper but all over social media.
The big day came. But instead of dancing around the house as she’d been all week, Mom was sitting on the floor, shoulders drooping. She was staring at the electronic equipment. “I can’t believe the DJ(音响师)is sick. Without music, how can we make the gathering festive?” Mom sighed sadly.
Cody looked at his mom, thinking that this was his chance to escape. No more gobbling. No more strutting. No more embarrassment.
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 the framed photos on the wall came into his sight before he could say something.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Cody was setting music in the town square when he heard a familiar voice behind him.
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