1 . A little boy told his mother that there was a teacher-parent meeting in his school. To the little boy’s_________, she said she would go. This would be the first time that his classmates and teacher met his mother and he felt _________of her appearance. Although she was a beautiful woman, there was a severe scar (伤疤) that_________nearly the entire right side of her face. The boy never wanted to_________why or how she got the scar.

At the meeting, the people were _________by the kindness and natural beauty of his mother_________the scar, but the little boy was still embarrassed (尴尬的) and_________himself from everyone. He, however,_________ a conversation between his mother and his teacher.

The teacher asked_________, “How did you get the scar on your face?”

The mother replied, “When my son was a baby, he was in a room that caught fire. Everyone was too afraid to go in because the fire was out of__________, so I went in. As I was running toward his bed, I saw a piece of wood coming down and I placed myself over him trying to protect him. I was knocked __________but fortunately, a fireman came in and saved both of us.” She __________the burned side of her face. “This scar will be permanent, but until this day, I have never__________what I did.”

At this point, the little boy came out running toward his mother with tears in his eyes. He held her in his arms and appreciated her great __________of sacrifice (牺牲), He held her hand __________ for the rest of the day.

14.

A．honour

B．spirit

C．happiness

D．pride

I remember the first time I met Roy. He was telling a joke. When he reached the final line, everyone burst out laughing. “A popular boy,” I thought to myself. My name is Daniel. I was the new boy in the class. There were 33 students in my new class, and most people weren’t very interested in a shy new boy. Roy was kind to me. He often invited me to join his particular group and we became good friends. We trusted each other and we could talk about personal matters.

Five years later, Roy and I were still in the same class. But just a year ago Roy’s father was knocked over by a car. He died a few days later. The family had difficulty with finance. Roy changed completely. He started losing friends, including me.

About three months ago, a group of us were playing football together after school. Having left something in the classroom, I went inside to get it and found Roy going through the pockets of people’s coats. In his hand he had a wallet and I knew it wasn’t his. Roy went bright red. “I will put it back right now,” he said, and he did so. I turned round and walked out without saying a word. I really hoped that Roy would explain why he had been stealing, but instead he started avoiding me.

Last week, our school had a big fair in order to raise money for a charity and we made about ￡500. But to our surprise, the next morning, we were told that the money had been stolen. This morning I decided to ask Roy about the theft so I went to see him. Roy was out. I put his jacket on and put my hands in the pockets. I could feel a lot of notes and I pulled them out. It looked as if there were about ￡500 there. I was so surprised that I just stood there, holding the notes in my hand. And that moment, Roy walked in.

Seeing me standing there with money in my hand, Roy felt panicked (恐慌的).

We went to the head teacher Mrs Smith, together.

For a long time, I had been looking for a piano of my own to practise on. There was a piano shop on the street along which I walked every day to school. Whenever I passed the shop, I would stop, looking at the beautiful piano standing in the comer of the shop window. How I had been dreaming, day and night to possess a piano like that!

Unfortunately, my father was just a clerk. Times were tough during the Depression, and there were five mouths to feed, besides buying coal and wood for the stove. In order to save money, even on cold winter days, my father would walk the seven miles every day to get to work. No he could never afford to buy me an expensive piano. Though he knew I wanted to play that piano so much» buying it was an extravagance (奢侈品) well beyond our family’s income.

One day after school, I went as usual to the shop window to look at the piano. However, to my surprise and disappointment, the piano had gone. I should not have been surprised as others had the right to buy it, if they could afford to. Tears filled my eyes when I thought of not being able to sec that piano any more.

Disappointed, helpless and sad, I wandered aimlessly up and down the street. After about an hour. I returned home. I had just entered into our house, when I heard my mother calling me. I brushed away my tears and followed the sound of her voice into the dining-room.

I could not believe my eyes.

As soon as my father appeared, I hugged him tightly.

6 . Ways to build strong friendships

Be loyal to a friend. Part of being a friend is being prepared to devote your time and energy to helping out your friends. If a friend needs help with an unpleasant thing, or if he or she just needs a shoulder to cry on, be there for them.     1     This is a good way to attract the kind of friends you want in your life.

    2       When you say you’ll do something, do it. When your friend tells you a secret, keep it secret from others. Be someone that people know that they can rely on. If you show this quality to your friends, they will appreciate it and will be reliable in return.

Be a good listener. Many people think they have to appear very interesting.     3       Listen carefully to what people say, remember important details about them, ask questions about their interests, and take the time to learn more about them.

Stress your good qualities. Show others what makes you stand apart from the crowd. Talk about your interests and hobbies. Everyone has interesting stories to tell — don’t be afraid to share yours.     4     People love to be around someone who makes them laugh.

Choose your friends wisely. As you make friends with more people, you may find that some are hard to get along with. Sometimes you may even realize that certain friendships are unhealthy.     5     Cherish those friends who are a positive influence in your life, and do your best to be a positive influence in theirs.