1 . My history with music was not good. I still remembered when I took my short-lived piano lessons, my grandfather said _____ to my grandfather, “Why didn’t he make any progress with much practice?” I______ to make my piano performance attractive, but my efforts were______ .

So I gave up playing any musical instrument until my old friend Leroy ______ me to play the violin with him when I was 57. It made me enjoy the joy of playing music again. One day, Leroy sent a text________ me that there was a music performance and he wanted me to join him. Thinking of my past, I _________ his invitation. I expected to hear his words that I would become_______ with practice on stage. But he said, “OK, only play if you want to.” I was totally_______by the unexpected answer and made no reply except to tell him goodbye.

No one was_______ me to participate, but I faced a special ______. Should I play on stage or just watch a movie? I had chosen the “movie route” too many times and this time I was_______ to grasp the opportunity. After a long and careful______, I played my violin with Leroy. ThoughI didn’t lose all my nervousness, it was enough for me to overcome ________ fear. Finally, I________ a full performance in front of the audience.

A short time later, my friend Leroy passed away, but his ______ stayed. It helped me not only in music, but in all aspects of life. When I focus on what I wanted to do, fear is replaced with joy.

1.

A．worriedly

B．calmly

C．patiently

D．angrily

2.

A．pretended

B．regretted

C．agreed

D．tried

3.

A．on time

B．in order

C．in vain

D．on display

4.

A．challenged

B．invited

C．allowed

D．reminded

5.

A．convincing

B．informing

C．warning

D．cheating

6.

A．refused

B．received

C．blamed

D．evaluated

7.

A．important

B．special

C．reliable

D．skilled

8.

A．shocked

B．scared

C．satisfied

D．ashamed

9.

A．teaching

B．begging

C．forcing

D．expecting

10.

A．chance

B．goal

C．task

D．choice

11.

A．suitable

B．curious

C．willing

D．generous

12.

A．preparation

B．explanation

C．test

D．search

13.

A．myself

B．me

C．my

D．mine

14.

A．planned

B．recommended

C．watched

D．offered

15.

A．fame

B．concern

C．influence

D．care

2 . I always knew that I depended too much on my phone. But I didn’t know how much. So I decided to do this _______ to find out.

Every morning since I got a smartphone, I’ve used The Weather Channel App to find out what to _______. On the first morning I had to dress without guidance, but _______ I was able to guess that the day would be cold and foggy by looking out of my window.

I couldn’t tell what time it was. I haven’t worn a _______ for more than a year, because my phone showed the time. So I was late for _______ friends who had been on the bus for two hours from Santa Monica to Palos Verdes. I was also late for my part-time job. And _______, I couldn’t call people to tell them that I was running late.

Getting places was harder, too. I got _______ because I couldn’t use the GPS on my phone. My driving, though, got a lot _______ because I no longer had my phone in one hand checking directions while _______ with the other.

But the number one trouble was not having my contact list. I forgot to write down my friends’ and family members’ phone numbers before I ________ the challenge. It was sad to realize that I couldn’t remember my brother’s and my mom’s cell phone numbers. Oh, how I ________ to turn on the phone for just a second to look up phone numbers!

Even with all the problems, however, I found ________ not worrying about missing a text message or an e-mail.

This challenge was a(n) ________ learning experience. It surprised me how I’d taken no notice of even the ________ things like remembering phone numbers. We all should ________ some time to think about how we can depend less on our cell phones.

1.

A．task

B．duty

C．job

D．challenge

2.

A．carry

B．wear

C．take

D．see

3.

A．carefully

B．strangely

C．thankfully

D．surprisingly

4.

A．watch

B．hat

C．suit

D．ring

5.

A．making out

B．bringing up

C．calling out

D．picking up

6.

A．even so

B．after all

C．in all

D．even worse

7.

A．caught

B．changed

C．lost

D．hurt

8.

A．easier

B．safer

C．slower

D．quieter

9.

A．driving

B．chatting

C．writing

D．moving

10.

A．supported

B．forgot

C．started

D．reported

11.

A．felt

B．wished

C．liked

D．hated

12.

A．peace

B．silence

C．patience

D．confidence

13.

A．curious

B．unbelievable

C．comfortable

D．common

14.

A．happiest

B．nicest

C．simplest

D．clearest

15.

A．spend

B．waste

C．enjoy

D．spare

3 . 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。

One morning, I was waiting at the bus stop, worried about     1    (be) late for school. There were many people waiting at the bus stop,     2     some of them looked very anxious and     3    (disappoint). When the bus finally came, we all hurried on board. I got a place next     4     the window, so I had a good view of the sidewalk(人行道). A boy on a bike     5    (catch) my attention. He was riding beside the bus and waving his arms. I heard a passenger behind me shouting to the driver, but he refused     6    (stop) until we reached the next stop. Still, the boy kept     7    (ride). He was carrying something over his shoulder and shouting. Finally, when we came to the next stop, the boy ran up to the door of the bus. I heard an exciting conversation. Then the driver stood up and asked，“Did anyone lose     8     suitcase at the last stop？”A woman on the bus shouted，“Oh dear! It’s     9     (I)．”She pushed her way to the driver and took the suitcase thankfully. Everyone on the bus began talking about what the boy had done, and the crowd of strangers     10    (sudden) became friendly to one another.

4 . Lisa winked (眨眼) as she placed a warm blanket in my arms. It was a particularly _______ evening in this little Italian mountain village.

Her _______ was the first knock on the door of my temporary (临时的) home in Campania, from my closest _______, a house dress-wearing woman in her 80s with a lovable smile. But there was on _______: Lisa spoke little English and my Italian was very limited (有限的).

I tried very hard to _______ my Italian, but my long hours of studying _______ produced less than 60 seconds of results in Lisa’s living room. In _______ sentences we talked about the weather and how I liked the village. She also _______ me photos of her family. But she spoke too _______ for me to follow. Although Lisa and I speak ________ languages, we found ways to ________. One afternoon when she saw me ________ laundry she shook her finger at me and pointed at the sun. I was ________ until the sun went down and I got wet clothes back into the house. After that, every time we hung laundry, one finger shake and I never again got wet clothes at the end of the day. When it was time to ________, I woke early to take the train. The village was ________. But Lisa broke the silence, calling out from her balcony. I couldn’t understand every word, but I got the main idea: Italiano, Italiano!

1.

A．dark

B．cold

C．amazing

D．frightening

2.

A．interview

B．trip

C．visit

D．trouble

3.

A．relative

B．neighbor

C．partner

D．friend

4.

A．agreement

B．strength

C．pity

D．problem

5.

A．repeat

B．apply

C．speak

D．improve

6.

A．only

B．still

C．rather

D．even

7.

A．long

B．broken

C．awkward

D．common

8.

A．showed

B．lent

C．sent

D．recommended

9.

A．fluently

B．confidently

C．loudly

D．fast

10.

A．several

B．different

C．official

D．positive

11.

A．exchange

B．communicate

C．quarrel

D．meet

12.

A．designing

B．washing

C．hanging

D．buying

13.

A．angry

B．shocked

C．annoyed

D．confused

14.

A．leave

B．work

C．travel

D．contact

15.

A．silent

B．crowded

C．graceful

D．noisy

5 . Forty-three years seems like a long time to remember the name of a mere acquaintance. I have forgotten the name of an old lady, who was a customer on the paper route in my home town when I was a twelve-year-old boy.Yet it stays in my memory. for she taught me a lesson of forgiveness that I shall never forget.

On a winter afternoon, a friend and I were throwing stones onto the leaning roof of the old lady's house from a spot near her backyard. The object of our play was to observe how the stones changed to missiles as they rolled to the roofs edge and shot out into the yard. I found myself a perfectly smooth rock and threw it out. The stone, however, slipped from my hand and headed straight for a small window on the old lady's back porch. At the sound of fractured (破碎的) glass. we knew we were in trouble. We ran as fast as possible

I was too scared about getting caught to be concerned about the old lady with the broken window in winter. However, a few days later, when I was sure that I hadn't been discovered, started to feel guilty for her misfortune. She still greeted me with a smile each day when I gave her the paper, but I was no longer able to act comfortably in her presence.

I made up my mind that I would save my paper delivery money, and after three weeks I had the seven dollars that thought would cover the cost of her window. I put the money in an envelope with a note explaining that I was sorry for breaking her window and hoped that the seven dollars would cover the cost. I put the letter through the letter slot in her door. My soul felt redeemed (救赎的) and I could have the freedom of,once again, looking straight into the old lady's kind eyes. The next day, I handed the old lady her paper and was able to return the warm smile that I was receiving from her. She gave me a bag of cookies. I thanked her and felt an envelope in it. When I opened the envelope, inside it were the seven dollars and a short note reading,I’m proud of you.

1. How old is the writer now?

A．Forty three.	B．Forty five.
C．Fifty five.	D．Twelve.

2. What can we learn from paragraph 2?

A．I was throwing stones alone.

B．I broke the window on purpose.

C．The stones changed to missiles

D．I heard the window broken.

3. How did the author feel as time passed?

A．Frightened-guilty-comfortable.	B．Concerned-scared-relieved.
C．Innocent-determined-sorry.	D．Scared-indifferent-redeemed

6 . One day Mrs．Smith was sitting in her doctor’s waiting room when a young boy and his mother entered the office．The young boy caught Mrs. Smith’s attention because he wore a patch over one eye．She felt surprised at how unaffected he seemed to be by the loss of an eye and watched as he followed his mother to a chair nearby．

The doctor’s office was very busy that day, so Mrs. Smith had an opportunity to ask the little boy what had happened to his eye while he played with his soldiers. He considered her question for a long moment, then replied, "I’m a pirate （海盗）!" Then he returned to his game．

Mrs. Smith was there because she had lost her leg from the knee down in an auto accident．Her trip today was to determine if it had healed enough to be fitted with a prosthetic （假肢）．The loss had been a disaster to her．Intellectually, she knew that this loss should not interfere with her life; but emotionally，she just couldn’t overcome this obstacle．Her doctor had suggested imagination, but she had been unable to imagine such an emotionally unacceptable, lasting image.

The word "pirate" changed her life．Instantly，she was transported. She saw herself dressed as Long John Silver，standing aboard a pirate ship．She stood with her legs wide apart—one artificial．Her hands were clenched (紧握的) at her hips, her head up and her shoulders back, as she smiled into a storm．Cold water blew across the board as great waves broke against the ship. Still she stood firmly—proud, fearless.

A few minutes later，the nurse called her．As she balanced on her walking sticks, the boy noticed her amputation(截肢)．"Hey lady，"he called，"What‟s wrong with your leg？

Mrs. Smith looked down at her shortened leg for a moment．Then she replied with a smile，"Nothing．I’m a pirate，too."

1. According to the first two paragraphs, which word can best describe the boy?

A．enthusiastic

B．curious

C．athletic

D．optimistic

2. What do we know about Mrs. Smith’s leg?

A．She lost her leg by accident.

B．She couldn’t accept the fact that she lost her leg.

C．She suffered great pain due to the loss of her leg.

D．She decided not to give up her life even without her leg.

3. We can infer from the underlined sentences that ________

A．the pirate’s life attracted Mrs. Smith’s a lot.

B．Mrs. Smith became a pirate after she left the hospital.

C．what the boy said had a great influence on Mrs. Smith’s life attitude.

D．Mrs. Smith got to know the meaning of the word and became a knowledgeable person.

4. What can we learn from this story?

A．let bygones be bygones.

B．Whatever worth doing is worth doing well.

C．We don’t see things as they are, we see things as we are.

D．A lack of imagination is lack of the half life of beauty.

7 . “A bird with a broken wing will never fly as high.” I’m sure T. J. Ware was made to feel this way almost every day at school. By high school, T. J. was the most widely known troublemaker in his town. Even some teachers literally cringed (感到局促不安) when they saw his name posted on their lists of students.

I met T. J. for the first time when all the students at school were attending ACE training. At first, he showed no interest in it. But slowly, the interactive games drew him in. T. J. had some brilliant thoughts, which were welcomed by his group. The other students on the team were impressed with his ideas and elected T. J. co-chairman of the team.

When T. J. showed up at school on Monday morning, a group of teachers were expressing their disagreement with his, being elected co-chairman to the school principal. The principal reminded them that the purpose of the program was to uncover any positive thought and strengthen its practice until true change can take place. The teachers left, firmly convinced that failure was unavoidable.

Two weeks later, T. J. and his friends led a group of 70 students to collect food. They collected 2,854 cans of food in just two hours, which was a new school record. The local newspaper covered the event with a full-page article the next day. That newspaper story was posted on the main bulletin board at school, where everyone could see it. T.J.’s picture was there. T. J. started showing up at school every day and answering questions from teachers.

T. J. reminds us that a bird with a broken wing only needs mending. Once its wing has healed, it can fly higher than the rest. He is flying quite nicely these days.

1. What do we know about T. J. from Paragraph 1?

A．He was talkative in class.	B．He didn’t have a good fame.
C．His ideas were quite impressive.	D．He showed up at school every day.

2. Why did the team members elect T. J. co-chairman?

A．Because he promised them a bright future.

B．Because they wanted to offer him a chance.

C．Because they thought the work was quite easy.

D．Because he was considered equal to the position.

3. What do we know about the principal’s attitude towards T.J.’s being elected?

A．Uncaring.

B．Supportive.

C．Cautious.

D．Doubtful.

4. What does the writer try to tell us with this story?

A．No pain, no gain.	B．Rome wasn’t built in a day.
C．Don’t judge others with prejudice.	D．Treat others as you want to be treated.