1 . A LETTER TO MY NEIGHBOUR

You have always been reserved, polite neighbors who kept to yourselves. You have the best house in the _________ —the one at the end that has an old apple tree that was there before the houses were _________. The legacy of the apple tree is great, and you’ve always _________ your fruit with me and my children.

It _________ fruit from September to January, which is a _________ resource. As a single parent facing a tight _________, I welcome the healthy food of free, keeping me and my children in dessert fare for months _________. You said that mostly you _________ to take the apples home, because people didn’t want to _________ the work to clean and prepare them. I still can’t get my head around that.

I once started to __________ how much it would cost if I had bought the apples you gave me from the supermarket __________. I stopped when I realized that it would have been a luxury I couldn’t __________. I gave you apple pie as a Christmas thank you, but there’s no way that was __________.

Over the years your apples have been turned into __________ apple sauce and the main part in the homemade pie that __________ the hearts and stomachs of my family.

It __________ me recently that you probably don’t realize how much you contribute to our comfortable home, with so much __________ and unrest in our past. It’s a fundamental __________ of mothers to feed their children, and I’m able to express this at least in __________ because of you. I think that as my kids become adults, they’ll remember ups and downs, but also good food from the __________. So thank you from all of us: a struggling household.

1.

A．universe

B．field

C．row

D．valley

2.

A．built

B．appeared

C．painted

D．removed

3.

A．divided

B．shared

C．provided

D．delivered

4.

A．picks

B．obtains

C．harvests

D．bears

5.

A．natural

B．precious

C．unique

D．unforgettable

6.

A．issue

B．schedule

C．budget

D．relationship

7.

A．at most

B．on average

C．at all

D．on end

8.

A．desired

B．struggled

C．agreed

D．forgot

9.

A．put in

B．put off

C．put down

D．put up

10.

A．remember

B．guess

C．calculate

D．recall

11.

A．though

B．otherwise

C．anyway

D．instead

12.

A．bargain

B．resist

C．possess

D．afford

13.

A．proper

B．easy

C．perfect

D．enough

14.

A．common

B．sour

C．delicious

D．cheap

15.

A．froze

B．stole

C．won

D．melted

16.

A．struck

B．convinced

C．occurred

D．informed

17.

A．fortune

B．disaster

C．hurt

D．warmth

18.

A．right

B．drive

C．tradition

D．cause

19.

A．part

B．fact

C．vain

D．all

20.

A．kitchen

B．shelter

C．restaurant

D．market

2 . Anger and sadness are important in life. New research shows that experiencing and accepting such feelings is good.

Positive (积极的) thoughts and feelings are, of course, good for our health. But unpleasant feelings are just as important as the enjoyable ones in helping us understand life’s ups and downs. Negative (消极的) feelings are important because they can tell us that we may have a health problem, or we need to pay attention to other important matters such as friendship.

Instead of avoiding negative feelings, we should accept them. Many people find it helpful to breathe slowly and deeply while learning to accept negative feelings or imagine the feelings as clouds to remind them that they will pass.

If the feelings are very strong, you may want to express how you feel in a diary or to other persons. You may want to tell the friend that her words hurt you or take steps to leave the job that makes you unhappy.

You should pay attention to your breathing and simply acknowledge (承认) any bad thoughts or feelings. This may make it easier to accept unpleasant thoughts.

It is impossible to avoid negative feelings fully, because to live is to experience losing and pain. Therefore, learning how to deal with those feelings is very important.

1. What’s the main idea of Paragraph 2?

A．What positive and negative thoughts and feelings are.

B．How positive and negative thoughts and feelings influence people.

C．What we can do to keep negative feelings away.

D．Both positive and negative thoughts and feelings are important.

2. What does the underlined word “they” in Paragraph 3 refer to?

A．Clouds.	B．Negative feelings.
C．Positive thoughts.	D．Important matters.

3. What ways does the writer tell us to deal with negative feelings?
① Breath deeply.   ② Talk to others.   ③ Write a diary.   ④ Avoid the feelings.

A．①②③

B．②③④

C．①③④

D．①②④

4. What can we infer from the last paragraph of the passage?

A．We will experience more bad feelings than the good ones.

B．Some people will only experience losing and pain in their lives.

C．We can avoid bad feelings because we can choose to forget them.

D．Everyone will experience anger and sadness during his lifetime.

5. What’s the best title of this passage?

A．Anger and Sadness	B．Ups and Downs
C．Positive and Negative Ideas	D．Activities in People’s Life

3 . Noah reached for his guitar, remembering his father as he did so, thinking how much he missed him. He strummed once, adjusted the tension on two strings, then strummed again. This time it sounded about right, and he began to play.

Soft music, quiet music. He hummed for a little while at first, then began to sing as night came down around him. He played and sang until the sun was gone and the sky black. It was a little after seven when he quit, and he settled back into his chair and began to rock. By habit, he looked upward and saw Orion and the Big Dipper, Gemini and the Pole Star, twinkling in the autumn sky. He started to run the numbers in his head, then stopped. He knew he’d spent almost his entire savings on the house and would have to find a job again soon, but he pushed the thought away and decided to enjoy the remaining months of restoration without worrying about it. Besides, thinking about money usually bored him. Early on, he’d learned to enjoy simple things, things that couldn’t be bought, and he had a hard time understanding people who felt otherwise. It was another trait he got from his father.

Clem, his hound dog, came up to him then and nuzzled his hand before lying down at his feet. “Hey, girl, how’re you doing?” he asked as he patted her head, and she whined softly, her soft round eyes peering upward. A car accident had taken her leg, but she still moved well enough and kept him company on quiet nights like these. He was thirty-one now, not too old, but old enough to be lonely. He hadn’t dated since he’d been back here, hadn’t met anyone who remotely interested him. It was his own fault, he knew. There was something that kept a distance between him and any woman who started to get close, something he wasn’t sure he could change even if he tried. And sometimes in the moments right before sleep came, he wondered if he was destined to be alone forever.

The evening passed, staying warm, nice. Noah listened to the crickets and the rustling leaves, thinking that the sound of nature was more real and aroused more emotion than things like cars and planes. Natural things gave back more than they took, and their sounds always brought him back to the way man was supposed to be. “It’ll keep you from going crazy,” his father had told him the day he’d shipped out. “It’s God’s music and it’ll take you home.” He finished his tea, went inside, found a book, then turned on the porch light on his way back out. After sitting down again, he looked at the book. It was old, the cover was torn, and the pages were stained with mud and water.

It was Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman, and he had carried it with him throughout the war. It had even taken a bullet for him once. He rubbed the cover, dusting it off just a little. Then he let the book open randomly and read the words in front of him: This is thy hour O Soul, thy free flight into the wordless. Away from books, away from art, the day erased, the lesson done. Thee fully forth emerging, silent, gazing, pondering the themes thou lovest best. Night, sleep, death and the stars. For some reason Whitman always reminded him of New Bern, and he was glad he’d come back. Though he’d been away from fourteen years, this was home and he knew a lot of people here, most of them from his youth. Like so many southern towns, the people who lived here never changed, they just grew a bit older.

1. The underlined sentence in paragraph two is the equivalent of “_________”.

A．he hated those who were unable to appreciate simple things in life

B．he didn’t see eye to eye with people who liked to save money

C．he had difficulty in figuring out how he got this trait from his father

D．he didn’t understand why people were so materialistic

2. Which of the following is NOT true according the passage?

A．Noah often played the guitar and observed the stars.

B．Clem the dog showed great affection for her master.

C．Noah was destined to be alone since no woman seemed interested in him.

D．Noah planned to restore his house before landing himself a job.

3. Which of the following statements would Noah’s father most agree with?

A．Patients suffering from mental disorder can be cured by nature.

B．The closer you are to nature, the closer you are to your true self.

C．Where there is God’s music, there is home.

D．A good book is a man’s best company.

4. Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman _________.

A．had been a treasure but was now too damaged to read

B．recorded the lives of New Bern’s people who never changed over the years

C．was beyond Noah’s understanding so he randomly picked up some words to read

D．stirred a feeling of nostalgia in Noah

4 . Procrastination is the act of putting off tasks until the last minute, or past their deadline.

For many students, getting a task that is due in two months is a great thing. They have two months to slowly work on the task, making necessary improvements all along the way.     1     Some students plan to get to work on that task, but they never get around to it. Then, the due date rolls around and those students have to work all night to meet the deadline the next morning.

    2     Many jobs are lost because a worker did not get to the work in time. Deadlines are missed because a business plan wasn’t given enough consideration early on. These things cost businesses large amounts of money in lost productivity.

What is at the root of all of this procrastination? Some might say that it is laziness, but it is really just a problem with mindset (心态).     3    

It is difficult to stop this terrible habit.     4     By doing that, you would be changing the way your mind processes work. As a hypnotherapist (催眠师), I have used hypnosis to stop people from smoking and keep them away from stress. I find that it is an effective solution for procrastination as well.

    5     They think that it is just like the dull shows on television. That’s not what hypnosis is about, though. Hypnosis is really about changing a person’s basic senses so that their thinking is changed. This sounds like a perfect way to deal with procrastination, doesn’t it?

A．That is how it is supposed to be done.

B．For many people, it has become a habit.

C．It takes a long time to truly change your ways.

D．Procrastination is a problem that usually affects students.

E．Procrastination can be found in the working world as well.

F．If it does, you probably have a problem with procrastination.

G．Many people don’t even consider hypnosis as a treatment option.

5 . 听下面一段较长对话，回答以下小题。
1. Why does the woman look upset?

A．Her pen was lost.

B．Sam lost her dictionary.

C．The bus was late.

2. What does the man probably think of Sam?

A．Careless.

B．Poor.

C．Careful.

3. What will the woman do this afternoon?

A．Play table tennis.

B．Talk to Sam.

C．Go shopping.

4. How is the woman’s dad going to the conference tomorrow?

A．By subway.

B．By car.

C．By bus.

6 . Being a young adult has got to be one of the most difficult times in a person’s life. You’re at a stage when you don’t feel like a child anymore and you aren’t ready to take up all the responsibilities that adulthood brings with it either.     1    

Need to express

At this stage, there is a need for expression of thoughts and feelings. But they don’t understand that this need to express themselves can’t be used in whichever way they want, but has to be used with caution.     2    

Need to be an independent adult

    3     There is a need to be an independent adult, yes, but they haven’t learned the ropes of it yet and therefore when parents try to discipline them, they want to oppose and put forth their rights as adults. Therefore, they often go through the “no one understands me” stage, which can lead to many problems like anger and frustration.

Need for acceptance

In addition, being part of a group and developing healthy relationships and getting acceptance from them are of prime importance to young adults.     4     When these things happen, they often get into a self-pitying mode.

Need to succeed

There is an innate need to stand on their own feet.     5     If there is any hurdle on that path, it leads to varied psychological problems like stress, depression, and anger.

These are some of young adults’ emotional problems. If you’ve been faced with them, seek help and treat them.

A．This is where the problems of discipline arise.

B．Therefore, don’t ignore these emotional needs.

C．And they want to prove themselves to the world.

D．But there are also misunderstandings and conflicts in a group.

E．So there will be varied emotional issues that can trouble a young adult.

F．They therefore find it difficult to deal with the pressures of mincing their words (婉转地说).

G．Now that you know what some problems of young adults can be, it’ll help you be prepared.

7 . 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。续写的词数应为150左右。

Mark Mancuso’s phone rang. He looked at it. It was a calendar alert, telling him it was his mother’s birthday. His mother Amelia lived 200 miles away, a bit of a drive, but Mark had driven further for a lunch with a friend. He just couldn’t stand his mother’s complaints. Then he found a florist(花店). He smiled and got an idea.

Entering the florist, Mark smiled broadly, “Can you arrange to have flowers delivered in Syracuse, N.Y.? It’s my mother’s 65^th birthday and I wanted to send her some flowers.” Mark explained.

The florist said, “Of course, I just need your mother’s name and address, and I guess you want to send a note, a birthday message?”

“Yes,” said Mark, and he quickly recited his mother’s name and address and then added, “Please write: Happy birthday to the best mom in the world, love you and miss you. Your son, Mark.”

Mark was walking out with a feeling of accomplishment when he saw a girl sitting on the corner with tears running down her face. Mark squatted down(蹲下来)next to her and asked, “Hey dear, are you OK?”

“I’m Mandy and I wanted a rose for my mom,” the girl wept.

“But I don’t have enough money! The flower lady said I could only buy a daisy, but my mom loves red roses.”

“You just wait here,” Mark said, and then he walked back into the florist and bought a lovely red rose for Mandy. “Here you go,”he said, placing the rose in her hands. Mandy took the rose in her hands, smiled up at Mark and said,“Thank you! But could you take me to my mom? It’s not far but I’m not supposed to go on my own.”

Mark nodded. Mandy took his hand and walked with him down the street. After a while, Mandy turned right and Mark was surprised to see they were standing by the gates of a cemetery(墓地).

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。
Paragraph 1

The girl gently placed the rose on a grave(墓碑).

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Paragraph 2:

Mark felt tears well up in his eyes.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

8 . 假如你是李华，前段时间不健康的生活习惯导致你出现了一些健康问题，你在采纳了伦敦好友Eric的建议后身体好多了。昨天，Eric又写信向你询问近况，请你给他写一封回信。
注意：
1. 词数100左右；
2. 可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

9 . Imagine a friend has just asked how you’re feeling. “I’m fine,” you protest. You’re clearly anxious but respond in this way, unable to express how it is you really feel. Try as you might, you can’t quite understand your emotions, and truth to be told, you’re not sure whether you really want to.

Research shows that being aware of your emotions is hugely beneficial and people with high emotional awareness have better social and emotional functioning. “Emotional awareness is being able to identify and make sense of not only our own emotions but those of others, ”explains Rachel Vora, psychotherapist and founder of CYP Wellbeing. “It’s absolutely essential in maintaining good mental health. When we are able to identify and reflect on our emotional responses, we can understand how this influences our behaviours and in turn, change the way we respond to challenging situations.”

Of course, finding out how we feel can often prove difficult. It’s the very reason we turn to general phrases like ‘I feel blue’ or I’m not myself today’. It’s not always easy to put a finger on exactly what’s wrong, without digging a little deeper. Vora says this is often because on some level we don’t want to know how we really feel. “We can often try to numb or suppress because they feel overwhelming or distressing and this can often lead to a lack of emotional awareness as we feel disconnected from ourselves,” she explains.

Without emotional awareness, we can also develop emotional blind spots: unhealthy thoughts, behaviours and coping mechanisms that are hidden from our view. Perhaps you lash out or withdraw when you feel overwhelmed or go into criticism and self-doubt when you receive negative feedback. Unless you take time for self-reflection, you’ll remain unaware of these habits and continue to repeat the same destructive patterns again and again. Vora says tuning into your emotions and honestly reflecting on how you feel is the key. “When we do this, we are more able to work with our emotions and put strategies in place to improve our mood,” she points out. “By identifying our emotional blind spots, we can feel more in control of our emotions, and also how we respond in challenging situations.”

1. Why can’t you express your true feeling according to paragraph 1?

A．You want to keep it a secret.	B．You are absent-minded at that time.
C．You are unable to grasp your feeling.	D．You are unwilling to share it with your friend.

2. How does emotional awareness benefit us?

A．It’s easy for us to respond politely.	B．It can identify our emotional responses.
C．It can contribute to our mental health	D．We can identify our emotions and those of others’.

3. What can be inferred from paragraph 3?

A．People tend to lie to their friends.

B．People often doubt about themselves.

C．People should communicate with each other frequently.

D．People sometimes avoid their true feelings consciously.

4. What is Vora’s suggestion according to the passage?

A．Thinking over what is your true feeling.	B．Hiding you from the negative feedback.
C．Criticizing bravely when you are anxious.	D．Remaining unaware of the destructive patterns.

10 . 阅读下面短文，在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。

Navigating human emotions can sometimes feel like walking through minefields(布雷区), especially when these emotions are negative.

Envy is one of such emotions with certain negativity when it     1     (direct) at our loved ones. However, just like all other emotions, envy is human and normal and its morality depends on     2     we do with the way we feel. It only becomes negative when it is handled     3     a weapon or an excuse for bad behaviour.

Envy could cause serious damage to relationships if     4     (leave) to worsen, because people dislike to admit they feel that way towards someone they love, which tends to get worse and transforms into     5     (hate) when you silently think over it.

It’s impractical to completely prevent envy, but it is possible to refine the way we process it. Envy is not something to hide away. Being honest with ourselves about the way we feel     6     (help) us better understand what exactly were envious of and makes communicating with our partners     7     (easy).

We have all     8     (collective) got better at processing our emotions but there’s still a lot of work to be done. The goal is to get to a point     9     discussing envy becomes as casual as discussing excitement and can serve as     10     motivator in our life.