1 . One summer night in a seaside cottage, a boy felt himself lifted from bed. Then, with the swiftness of a dream, he was held in his father’s arms out onto the nearby beach. Overhead the sky blazed with stars. “Watch!” Incredibly, as his father spoke, one of the stars moved. In a line of golden fire it flashed across the astonished heavens. And before the wonder of this could fade, another star leaped from its place, then another, plunging towards the restless sea.

“What’s this?” the child whispered.

“Shooting stars. They come every year on a certain August night. I thought you’d like to see the show.”

That was all: just an unexpected glimpse of something mysterious and beautiful. But, back in bed, the child stared for a long time into the dark, knowing that all around the quiet house, the night was full of the silent music of the falling stars.

Decades have passed, but I remember that night still, because I was the fortunate boy whose father believed that a new experience was more important for a small boy than an unbroken night’s sleep. No doubt I had all the usual childhood entertainment, but those are forgotten now. What I remember is the night of the shooting stars, and the day we rode in a caboose (列车末尾的职工车厢), the telegraph we made that really worked, and the “trophy table” in the dining room where we children were encouraged to exhibit things we had found — anything unusual or beautiful — snake skins, seashells, flowers, arrowheads... I remember the thought-provoking (引人深思的) books left by my bedside that pushed back my horizons and sometimes actually changed my life.

My father had, to a marvellous degree, the gift of opening doors for his children, of leading them into areas of splendid newness. This subtle art of adding dimensions to a child’s world doesn’t necessarily require a great deal of time. It simply involves doing things more often with our children instead of for them or to them.

1. What does the underlined sentence in paragraph 4 mean?

A．The child was still immersed in the beautiful scenery just now.

B．The child was too frightened to fall asleep because of darkness.

C．The child wanted to listen more to the music about falling stars.

D．The child felt grateful to his father for what he showed him.

2. All the things the author remember from his childhood are ________.

A．unusual and novel	B．dangerous and demanding
C．strange and uncommon	D．educational and thought-provoking

3. What can we learn from the last paragraph?

A．Parents should interfere more with their children’s learning.

B．Parents should push their children to try to do everything on their own.

C．Parents should devote energy to exploring new things for their children.

D．Parents should encourage children to be curious and explore new things in life.

4. What’s the best title for this passage?

A．Limitless knowledge	B．Father, the hero of my life
C．Curiosity aroused that night	D．The unusual things in my life

2 . 阅读下面短文，根据题目要求回答问题。

It would be easy to believe that Mother’s Day was created by a greeting card company. After all, the day is celebrated with special sales and brunches, lots of presents and massive advertising campaigns. But the day was actually set up more than a century ago by Anna Jarvis of West Virginia as a way of honoring the sacrifices mothers made for their children.

Jarvis’s mother, Ann Reeves Jarvis, helped start “Mothers’ Day Work Club”, teaching women how to care for their children. During the Civil War, she organized “Mothers’ Friendship Day”, where mothers of Union and Confederate soldiers met to try to promote harmony. The younger Jarvis was inspired by all the things her mother had accomplished with her social work.

When Jarvis was young, she overheard her mother praying, “I hope and pray that someone, sometime, will find a memorial mother’s day honouring her for the matchless service she offers to humanity.” When her mother died in 1905, Jarvis looked through all the sympathy cards she received. She underlined all the kind words that praised her mother, reading them over and over. The outpouring of kindness for her mother inspired her to create a day to honor all mothers.

The white carnation(康乃馨) was her mother’s favorite flower, so it became the symbol for the day. She said it symbolized the truth, purity and charity of a mother’s love. Her idea of celebrating Mother’s Day was wearing a carnation while visiting your mother. Children were also encouraged to write letters to their mothers, sharing the depths of their appreciation.

The first official Mother’s Day events were held on May 10, 1908, at the church where her mother taught Sunday School in West Virginia, and at the Wanamaker’s department store auditorium(礼堂) in Philadelphia.

1. Why was “Mother’s Day” set up?
2. How did Jarvis advised children to celebrate on Mother’s Day?
3. Please decide which part is false in the following statement, then write the false part on the paper and explain why.
Jarvis’s mother hoped someone, sometime, will find a perfect day to honor her for the service she offers to humanity, which inspired her to create a day to honor all mothers.
4. Why do you think Mother’s Day is important and how do you celebrate it? (about 40 words)

4 . Is there a magic cutoff period when children become responsible for their own actions? Is there a wonderful moment when parents can become spectators in the lives of their children and shrug, “It’s their life,” and feel nothing?

When I was in my twenties, I stood in a hospital passage waiting for doctors to put a few stitches (缝线) in my son’s head. I asked, “When do you stop worry?” The nurse said, “When they get out of the accident stage.” My mother just smiled faintly and said nothing.

When I was in my thirties, I sat on a little chair in a classroom and heard how one of my children talked continually and disrupted the class. As if to read my mind, a teacher said. “Don’t worry, they all go through this stage and then you can sit back, relax and enjoy them.” My mother just smiled faintly and said nothing.

When I was in my forties, I spent a lifetime waiting for the phone to ring, the cars to come home, the front door to open. A friend said, “They’re trying to find themselves. Don’t worry, in a few years, you can stop worrying. They’ll adults.” My mother just smiled faintly and said nothing.

By the time I was 50, I was sick and tired of being weak. I was still worrying over my children, but there was a new wrinkle, there was nothing I could do about it. My mother just smiled faintly and said nothing.

I continued to suffer from their failures, and be absorbed in their disappointments. My friends said that when my kids got married, I could stop worrying and lead my own life. I wanted to believe that, but I was haunted by my mother’s warm smile and her occasional “You look pale. Are you all right? Call me the minute you get home. Are you depressed about something?” Can it be that parents are sentenced to a lifetime of worry?

One of my children telephoned me last month, saying, “Where were you? I’ve been calling for three days, and no one answered. I was worried.”

I smiled a warm smile.

1. The author intends to tell us in the passage that ________.

A．parents long for a period when they no longer worry about their children

B．there is no time when parents have no worry about their children

C．it’s parents’ duty to worry about their children

D．parents don’t have to worry their children

2. The author mentioned her ages of twenties, thirties, forties and fifty in order to show ________.

A．the hard times she experienced in her life

B．the different stages of her children

C．she had been worrying about her children in her life

D．the support she received from her mother

3. What can we infer from the last sentence “I smiled a warm smile”?

A．Finally the mother didn’t have to worry about her children.

B．The mother was pleased that her child began to worry about her, too.

C．At last the mother could live her own life without worry.

D．The mother felt satisfied that she had succeeded in turning her children into adults.

5 . 假设你是红星中学高二学生李华。你校将在五月举办一次英文演讲比赛，主题是介绍一位对你产生影响的人物，请你用英文写一篇演讲稿。内容包括：
1. 该人物是谁；
2. 该人物的主要事迹；
3. 该人物对你的影响。
注意： 1. 词数100左右；
2. 开头已给出，不计入总词数。

Hello, everyone.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

7 . 阅读下面的短文和问题，根据短文内容，完成对该问题的回答。答语要意思清楚，结构正确，书写工整。

I always dreamed of pulling off the surprise prank (玩笑) of a lifetime. Well, thanks to a little determination, some luck, and the power of love, my dream became a reality.

My family is Canadian, although my sister studied in Australia. She was graduating just before Christmas, but because my school schedule was busy, I would not be able to make it down in time for her graduation. She was understandably disappointed, and I felt guilty that I couldn’t be there for her on this most special occasion.

While I was talking to my teacher the week before the big event, I mentioned that I would be missing my sister’s graduation. Surprisingly, she commented, “Well, if you want to go, I have no problem with it, so go ahead!” I couldn’t believe my luck! I nearly jumped for joy.

Immediately, I called the airline. Amazingly, even during the busy Christmas season, I was able to change my ticket to arrive the day before my sister’s graduation.

With this fantastic news, I was bursting to tell my sister. But, wait. For a grand surprise, I needed a much more dramatic arrival than just a ring of the doorbell. What if I could arrive in a box? That would be the best Christmas present for my sister.

Although I was leaving in less than seventy-two hours, I started searching for delivery companies. The only one willing to go along with my Christmas surprise, was CouriersPlease. At first the manager said no, because Christmas was their busiest season. But then later, he kindly volunteered to deliver me himself.

Upon arrival in Australia, the manager and his colleagues loaded me in the box and carried me all the way up to my sister’s, where they rang the doorbell and announced they had a delivery for her. I couldn’t see the look on my sister’s face, but I could tell from her voice that she was both shocked and excited to receive such a huge gift box. I will never forget the look on her face as she opened the box.

It was such a great Christmas present for my sister, that is, for me to be able to go to her graduation, and in the process, show her how much I loved her. It also served as a lesson for me: _____________________.

1. Why was the author unable to go to his sister’s graduation? (不多于7个单词)
2. Who delivered the author to his sister’s? (不多于5个单词)
3. How did the author’s sister feel when she received the box? (不多于6个单词)
4. What lesson does the author learn from the experience? (单词数不限)

8 . A few days before Christmas 2012, I found myself in Walmart. It was the last _______I wanted to be, especially during the chaos of last-minute Christmas shopping. It had been a little more than a month since my husband was laid off.

The school my kids attended asked if we needed help for Christmas, and we _______. If not for them, our kids would not have had Christmas gifts.

My children were with me that day at Walmart. Our cupboards were bare, and I had only eighty dollars to _________   a family of six for a week. It’s not impossible to _______, but certainly not comfortable. It leaves little _______   for anything extra. Yet, it was Christmas, and my kids asked if they could buy a present for their dad. How could I say “no”? I found a gift box of their dad’s favorite cologne and hoped I could _______ it. Lucky for me, my husband doesn’t have expensive_______.

My husband worked very hard to_______ for us, and I stayed home. It wasn’t by _______ . Having two children on the autism spectrum makes it difficult for me to work. Doctors’ appointments, therapy schedules, and school meetings make it near impossible to __________   a regular work schedule. So, when he was laid off, things got very __________ quickly. He wasn’t without a job long, but the __________   of income for a couple of weeks certainly put a stress on our family.

As I chose my groceries, I kept a running total in my head. As my cart (手推车) filled, my __________   rose. The more I thought about it, the less ___________ it was that I would be able to buy a gift for my husband.

When I went to the checkout, I set aside the cologne gift box. My kids____________,       but I didn’t have much of a choice. My heart__________ when the grocery total was indeed too high for us to buy the gift, but an angel was waiting in the wings.

What happened left me speechless, and being the __________ type, speechless is rare for me. A man__________ us, put four twenty-dollar bills into my hand and happily exclaimed, “Merry Christmas!” He left so fast that I didn’t __________ have a chance to say, “Thank you.”

A wave of emotion came over me as I ___________the cologne gift set to the belt. We were thrilled, and my husband had a Christmas present. Wherever there is a human being, there is an opportunity for a kindness.

1.

A．place

B．moment

C．season

D．station

2.

A．refused

B．answered

C．accepted

D．ignored

3.

A．warm

B．feed

C．help

D．inspire

4.

A．respond

B．appreciate

C．purchase

D．accomplish

5.

A．room

B．excuse

C．energy

D．courage

6.

A．offer

B．afford

C．owe

D．earn

7.

A．bill

B．collection

C．taste

D．clothes

8.

A．stand

B．compete

C．prepare

D．provide

9.

A．choice

B．mistake

C．heart

D．nature

10.

A．create

B．design

C．maintain

D．discover

11.

A．smooth

B．tight

C．unexpected

D．simplified

12.

A．increase

B．discount

C．steadiness

D．absence

13.

A．regret

B．anxiety

C．blame

D．complaint

14.

A．likely

B．important

C．necessary

D．difficult

15.

A．cheered

B．followed

C．protested

D．supported

16.

A．lost

B．calmed

C．beat

D．sank

17.

A．outgoing

B．optimistic

C．talkative

D．hardworking

18.

A．approached

B．guided

C．pleased

D．trusted

19.

A．ever

B．even

C．once

D．already

20.

A．threw

B．cancelled

C．recommended

D．added

9 . 阅读短文，并按照题目要求用英语回答问题。

My family and I belonged to a country club located across the street from the Long Island Sound. Each summer, the big attraction for us was the pool. I learned how to swim and joined the swimming team but was never really a good swimmer. However, swimming in my younger days was a way to keep cool, and swimming on a team gave me identity and a sense of belonging. It also became invaluable many years later.

Fast-forward (快进) to 1973 — I was married, pregnant and had a home. What made our little home even more wonderful was when I discovered that four blocks away was Rath Park Pool! For the next 30 years, most of our summer days were spent around that pool.

Each of my five kids took swimming lessons and learned all the different swimming strokes (姿势). They later joined the swim team and competed in meets. My daughter even became a lifeguard at the town pool. I sat back and happily took it all in!

As much as I would have liked to have life stand still, it doesn’t. My children outgrew their pool days and moved on. But the pool was still four blocks from my home, so I began to take up swimming again. And it was far better than I ever could have imagined. I got so much out of it that I joined the local pool so I could swim year-round. Whenever I swam, I would always come out feeling physically and mentally refreshed. I often felt that if I looked hard enough, I would be able to see all of the worries and problems I’ve had in life, sitting at the bottom of the pool!

What has swimming taught me? I’ve learned that balance is the key to being a good swimmer. If you are balanced in the water, you have no resistance. Working on staying balanced made me realize the similarities between life in and out of the swim lane (泳道). If you work on keeping yourself balanced, you will be able to swim right through the stress and problems life throws at you!

1. What influence does swimming ever have on the author according to Paragraph 1? (no more than 10 words)
2. What does Paragraph 3 mainly tell us? (no more than 10 words)
3. What is the meaning of the underlined sentence in Paragraph 4? (no more than 10 words)
4. What has the author learned from swimming? (no more than 15 words)
5. Name one of your favorite sports (swimming not included). What lesson can you learn from your sport? (no more than 20 words)

10 . Forgiving My Father

I grew up on a small farm. My father worked in the city as a welder (焊工). He was quiet, distant. He was a man made of leather and chewing tobacco who tried to teach me useful things, including respect. He also had a _______. I did not like him very much.

One day I came home from school. Once inside, I was told by my mother that he didn't feel well. His back hurt. Multiple myeloma, I _______, is a type of blood cancer. For the last year of my father's life, his entire day consisted of rising from his hospital bed in the living room and walking to his _______to sit and think. He was _______in that chair when I came home one day during the ninth grade. I do not remember where my mother and brother were, but the two of us were alone. He asked me to sit down.

What followed still _______me these decades later. He told me about his _______: his family growing up, what it was like in the Pacific during World War II, his loves, his heartbreaks. It was as if a pipe had _______, his inner self rushing out to me in a great flood. He had been speaking for maybe an hour or more when I realized that he was doing more than _______. He was asking to be _______. All it took was understanding that that was what he________, and I forgave everything, immediately.

When he died, I didn't ________to school for a few days. My biggest ________going back was gym class. It was poorly ________, and bullies ran the show. On my first day, I was standing there when a (an) ________voice yelled, ''Lensch! '' It was a guy who had given many of us a few lumps (包，肿块) over the years. I turned to face him and said, ''What do you want? '' The other boys didn’t say a word as they waited for the ________.

''I heard your dad died, '' he said. ''Is that true? ''

I quietly replied, ''Yes. ''

He didn't ________me. He didn't even move. Instead, he said, ''I'm sorry. ''

I was________. I'm sure I cried. Those two words are how I have remembered that kid ever since. What do you do when your ''enemies'' reveal that they are also ________? I think you either forgive and move ________or hold on to resentment (怨恨)and live in the past. I'm certainly not glad that my father got________, but at the same time, I realize that if he hadn't, I might never have come to love him.

1.

A．temper

B．taste

C．fame

D．nerve

2.

A．meant

B．doubted

C．learned

D．felt

3.

A．bench

B．chair

C．bedroom

D．balcony

4.

A．predictably

B．acceptably

C．hopefully

D．surprisingly

5.

A．touches

B．annoys

C．educates

D．encourages

6.

A．life

B．career

C．youth

D．achievement

7.

A．burst

B．leaked

C．moved

D．frozen

8.

A．teaching

B．telling

C．supporting

D．complaining

9.

A．known

B．forgiven

C．mistaken

D．forgotten

10.

A．found

B．received

C．needed

D．escaped

11.

A．contribute

B．adapt

C．head

D．return

12.

A．relief

B．favor

C．lesson

D．fear

13.

A．understood

B．prepared

C．regulated

D．attracted

14.

A．angry

B．warning

C．pitying

D．familiar

15.

A．defeat

B．quarrel

C．miracle

D．fight

16.

A．punish

B．beat

C．disappoint

D．scold

17.

A．frustrated

B．shocked

C．thrilled

D．frightened

18.

A．classmates

B．friends

C．humans

D．families

19.

A．backward

B．away

C．around

D．forward

20.

A．depressed

B．hurt

C．sick

D．lost