1 . The little,black-haired boy was waiting for us on the other side of the world.Ever since our adoption agency had matched us,I'd been crazily completing all the necessary paperwork.We knew we faced months of waiting before we could hold our new son in our arms,and he'd waited long enough already.
I made it a personal goal to never delay the process.If we had documents to get notarized(公证),we would do them on the very day we were told.On one late afternoon in June,I rushed from our Secretary of State's office toward the closest FedEx office.I had a document to send overnight.
I thought I knew where the FedEx office was.I drove there,only to find that the office was no longer located where I remembered it.I became very disappointed.I didn't bring my smart phone in my pockets.I had no way of finding the correct location.I started driving toward home.
Suddenly,at a stoplight,an oversized truck drove in front of my car.I became angry but my anger turned to shock when I saw the emblem(标记).It was a FedEx truck.I changed lanes quickly and followed closely behind the truck.What were the chances that the truck would lead me straight to the FedEx office I was seeking?
It turned out that the chances were good.Less than five minutes later,I saw a FedEx sign,and the truck made a turn into the parking lot.Our documents went out that night.Three months later,we flew halfway around the world to meet our son for the first time.We have been with him every day since.
Miracles are always around us if we are open to them.Sometimes,it's a smile at the right time or a kind word.And every now and then,it's even a big truck that cuts us off at the stoplight.
1. What can we infer about the author from the first two paragraphs?| A．She wanted to know more information about the boy. |
| B．She was looking forward to meeting her new son. |
| C．She spent a long time finishing the paperwork. |
| D．She felt dissatisfied with the adoption process. |
| A．She was cut off by a truck. |
| B．She couldn't contact her family. |
| C．She didn't find the FedEx office. |
| D．She failed to bring enough documents. |
| A．The truck parked at the parking lot. |
| B．The author's documents were accepted. |
| C．The truck led the author to the right place. |
| D．The author managed to pick up her new son. |
| A．A miracle at the stoplight. |
| B．Be patient for the miracles. |
| C．A stranger can change your life. |
| D．Be kind to a new family member. |
2 . Ray Tokuda,a 54-year-old Japanese American,takes pride in the title his school has already given him.He is a Shifu,a Chinese word literally meaning a master,mentor or senior practioner of martial arts.
Surely, he has reason to be proud.He has been involved with Chinese martial arts for almost 40 years.After learning them at the martial arts school in New Mexico State,he is among the most experienced kung fu teachers of the school today.
Practicing martial arts two to three hours and helping students improve their skills have become Tokuda’s daily routine.He expects to practice and teach martial arts for the rest of his life.“I’m still learning.It’s worth more than a lifetime to learn Chinese martial arts,”he said.“Once I started,I just couldn’t stop.I think it’s also the magic of Chinese culture.”
Tokuda was sent to the martial arts school when he was 10.He still remembers how unwilling he was when starting out.“I remember my father had always wanted to learn Chinese martial arts but never got the chance,so he put his kid in,”he said.“I was so afraid at that time because I thought kung fu was all about fighting.”
But things changed after he learned that martial arts were more than punching and kicking.
“One of the things martial arts teach me is to overcome adversity,”Tokuda said.“As a little kid,my first lesson was like,oh,look,this is a thing that I can get through by diligence,perseverance（毅力）and dedication,and that was priceless for my life.”
Learning Chinese martial arts opened a gateway for him to better understand the culture of China.
Meanwhile,Tokuda has also been invited to various events in his home state to showcase traditional Chinese culture,including the dragon dance and lion dance,which he also learnt at the martial arts school.Because of this,he is now considered a cultural envoy(使者)in the eyes of the public.
1. At first,Tokuda weren’t willing to learn kung fu because he had thought it was______.| A．practical | B．magical | C．violent | D．difficult |
| A．He learnt martial arts from his mother. |
| B．He is the founder of the kung fu school. |
| C．He learnt from martial arts how to solve difficulties. |
| D．He is the most experienced kung fu teacher of his state. |
| A．Modest and friendly. |
| B．Persevering and devoted. |
| C．Talented and humorous. |
| D．Motivated and considerate. |
3 . July 27th, 2010 was a typical English summer’s day—it rained for 24 hours! As usual, I rushed home from work at midday to check on the house. Nothing was amiss. By the time I left work at 5pm, however, the road into our village was flooded. Our house had never been flooded but, as I opened the front door, a wave of water greeted me. Thank God the kids weren’t with me, because the house was 5 feet deep in water. We lost everything downstairs.
At first we tried to push on through. We didn’t want to move the children out of home, so we camped upstairs. We put a sheet of plastic across the floor to protect us from the damp. But after three months, we felt very sick, so we moved to a wooden house in a park. The house was small, but at first we were all just delighted to be in a new place. Unfortunately, things took longer than expected and we were there for 10 months. The life there was inconvenient. What surprised me most was how much I missed being part of a community (社区). We had lived in a friendly village with good neighbours, and I’d never thought how much I’d miss that.
Although our situation was very hard, it’s difficult to feel too sorry for yourself when you look at what’s happening elsewhere. I watched a news report about floods in Northern India and thought, “We didn’t have a straw hut (茅草房) that was swept away, and our house is still standing. We’re lucky.”
We moved back home in August. With December coming, there’s still reconstruction work to be done, so it’s difficult to prepare for Christmas. But I can’t wait—I’m going to throw a party for our friends in the village to say thanks for their support. This year, I won’t need any gifts—living away from home for months has made me realize how little we actually need or miss all our possessions. Although we are replacing things, there’s really no rush—we have our home back, and that’s the main thing.
1. The underlined word “amiss” in the first paragraph means .| A．wrong | B．missing | C．right | D．difficult |
| A．Because they were able to move to a new place. |
| B．Because many other places were flooded. |
| C．Because their straw hut was not swept away. |
| D．Because some others suffered even more. |
| A．was sick of staying upstairs |
| B．cared much about her children |
| C．could not stand living in a wooden house |
| D．did not deal well with her family affairs during the flood |
| A．She valued human feelings more than before. |
| B．She realized she almost didn’t need possessions. |
| C．She found Christmas gifts no longer badly needed. |
| D．She thought her own home was the most important. |
4 . With bushfires continuing to swallow different parts of Australia, local zoo in New South Wales, the state which is the easiest to catch fire, has hit the headlines with a heartwarming story.
Right in the line of a bushfire, the keepers of Mogo Wildlife Park managed to protect all 200 animals from harm after they received evacuation orders, according to the reports.
Netizens were quick to react on social media and praised the bravery of the zoo keeper and staffs, as they stayed and managed to protect animals from uncontrolled fires and even sheltered some at their own house.
The 40-year-old zoo keeper, Chad Staples, described the situation as the worst catastrophe, which felt like Armageddon (大决战) here. Luckily, his team had made a precise plan ahead of time by moving everything flammable from the area and the larger animals to safe places.
What’s remarkable is that as the smaller ones needed extra shelter, Staples decided to take them to his own house.
“Right now in my house there are animals of all descriptions in all the different rooms. They are safe and protected, not single animal lost.” he said.
BBC news also mentioned that “there’s a tiger to the back of the house.”
Some media outlets highlighted the “heroic job” in their headlines. Online users also reacted with thumbs-up and were glad to see all the staff and animals coming through the terrible fire.
Located in the southern coast of New South Wales. Mogo Wildlife Park houses Australia’s largest collection of primates (灵长目动物), also including different and unique animals such as zebras, giraffes, rhinos and red pandas.
1. Why does New South Whales hit the headlines?| A．Because of its famous zoo. |
| B．Because of its endangered animals. |
| C．Because of the heartwarming event. |
| D．Because of its being easy to catch fire. |
| A．It belongs to Chad Staples. |
| B．None of the animals is missing. |
| C．It merely holds rare animal species. |
| D．Extra shelters were built for emergencies. |
| A．Method. | B．Landscape. | C．Disaster. | D．Household. |
| A．The Heroic Job | B．The Brave Zoo Keeper |
| C．The Extinct Animals | D．The Terrible Fire |
Epic Fails: The Wright Brothers: Nose-Diving into History By Erik Slader and Ben Thompson. Ages 6 to 12. The first book in the Epic Fails series deals with one of the most ambitious goals humans have pursued: the quests to fly. Authors Slader and Thompson focus on life-or-death scenes, such as when the Wright brothers crashed their glider over and over on the sandy coast of North Carolina; it took them two more years to get it right. |
Epic Fails: The Race to Space: Countdown to Liftoff By Erik Slader and Ben Thompson. Ages 6 to 12 Today, everyone is familiar with Neil Armstrong’s famous words as he first set foot on the moon, “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” He made it look easy, but America’s journey to the moon was anything but simple. Our first attempt was a failure. Still, we didn’t give up. We tried again. And again. And each time we failed, we failed a little bit better. |
Fantastic Failures: True Stories of People Who Changed the World by Falling Down First By Luke Reynolds. Ages 6 to 12. Teacher Luke Reynolds opens each chapter with a quick, impossibly perfect version of one person’s life and then says how that person actually had to face huge challenges to accomplish goals. In this book, Reynolds writes about various common men, women and children. |
Cyrus Field’s Big dream：The Daring Effort to Lay the First Transatlantic Telegraph Cable By Mary Morton Cowan. Ages 6 to 12. In 1853，it took at least a week to relay a message between the United States and Europe because people had to be transported on ships over the Atlantic Ocean. Cyrus Field tried to reduce that transmission（传送）time to just minutes by laying a long undersea cable. In this book，Cowan describes many failures Field suffered before he achieved this major breakthrough. |
1. Who are the four books intended for?
| A．Children. | B．Teenagers. | C．Adults. | D．Old people. |
| A．It was written by a famous actor. | B．It tells stories of ordinary people. |
| C．It is about science fiction stories. | D．It is a picture book by a teacher. |
| A．All roads lead to Rome. | B．Failure is the mother of success. |
| C．An early bird catches worms | D．Actions speak louder than words. |
6 . At a young age, Patti Wilson was told by her doctor that she was an epileptic (癫痫病患者). Her father, Jim Wilson, is a morning jogger. She ran with her father every day. After a few weeks, she told her father, “Daddy, what I’d really love to do is to break the world’s long-distance running record for women.” Her father checked the Guinness World Records and found that the farthest any woman had run was 80 miles.
As a freshman in high school, Patti announced, “I’m going to run from Orange County up to San Francisco.”(A distance of 400 miles.) “As a sophomore (二年级学生),” she went on, “I’m going to run to Portland, Oregon.”(Over 1,500-miles.) “As a junior, I’ll run to St. Louis.”(About 2,000 miles.) “As a senior, I’ll run to the White House.”(More than 3,000 miles away.)
In view of her handicap (缺陷), Patti was as ambitious as she was enthusiastic, but she said she looked at the handicap of being an epileptic as simply “an inconvenience”. She focused not on what she had lost, but on what she had left.
That year she completed her run to San Francisco wearing a T-shirt that read, “I Love Epileptics.” In her sophomore year, Patti’s classmates got behind her. They built a large poster that read — “Run, Patti, Run!”
On her second marathon (马拉松), a doctor told her she had to stop. “Doctor, you don’t understand,” she said. “I’m doing it to break the chains on the brains that limit so many others.”
She finished the run to Portland, completing her last mile with the governor of Oregon. After four months of almost continuous running from the West Coast to the East Coast, Patti arrived in Washington and shook the hand of the then President of the United States. She told him, “I wanted people to know that epileptics are normal human beings with normal lives.”
Because of Patti’s efforts, enough money had been raised to open up 19 multi-million-dollar epileptic centers around the country. If Patti Wilson can do so much with so little, what can you do to outperform (超越) yourself in a state of total wellness?
1. How did Patti look at her illness?| A．She thought of it as a gift. |
| B．She devoted all her attention to it. |
| C．She faced it with discouragement. |
| D．She considered it a small difficulty. |
| A．She continued without quitting. |
| B．She focused on her treatment. |
| C．She followed his advice. |
| D．She asked for her classmates’ assistance. |
| A．To ask readers to answer it. |
| B．To get inactive people to run. |
| C．To encourage deep thinking. |
| D．To show his view on success. |
7 . “They tell me that you’d like to make a statue(塑像) of me-is that correct, Miss Vinnie Ream?”
The deep, gentle voice helped calm the nervous girl. Asking a favor of the President of the United States was no casual matter, especially for a seventeen-year-old girl.
“Yes, sir,” she replied, her dark eyes meeting his. “I wouldn’t have duo ask you, but my teacher, Mr. Mills, says I am ready. I plan to make it in an admirable manner. “
President Lincoln smiled. “Painters, sculptors-they’ve all tried to make the best of this ordinary face, but I’m afraid there’s not much hope. What did you have in mind, Miss Ream? A bust(半身像)?”
Before Vinnie could say yes, the President hurried on, a shade of apology in his voice.
“Of course-I shouldn’t have asked. A full-length pose would be much too big a project for a young woman your size. “
Vinnie’s face turned red. She realized she looked like a child, with her tiny figure. “Small does not mean weak, sir,” she defended herself. “I was born in the country of Wisconsin. I’ve driven teams of horses and carried water. Making a full-length clay(粘土) figure would not exhaust my strength-and that is what I intend to do!”
The President’s eyes, brightened at her show of spirit. “Sorry, madam, I have underestimated you as I didn’t know your background.”
But his smile faded as he rubbed his beard with bony fingers, in thought. “Miss Ream,” he sighed, “I’d like to let you do it, but as you know, we are in the middle of a war. How could I possibly take the time to pose for a sculpture now? I hardly have a minute to myself.”
Vinnie glanced around and noted the size of his office. “I work quickly,” she said. Her voice was soft but confident as she pointed to the corner near the windows. “If I were to bring my clay here and work for three hours every afternoon, I could complete most of the project while you are at your desk.”
The President seemed to consider her idea seriously. He got up and shook Vinnie’s hand warmly, “I’ve heard that you are a talented young woman, and I have found you charming and intelligent as well. I cannot make my decision immediately, but you will hear from me soon.”
The very next day, Vinnie received an invitation from the President.
1. What gave Vinnie confidence to make her request of President Lincoln?| A．Her aggressive personality. |
| B．Mr. Mills’s encouraging remark. |
| C．President Lincoln’s gentle voice. |
| D．Her interest in a challenging job. |
| A．Pleased. |
| B．Thrilled. |
| C．Regretful. |
| D．Doubtful. |
| A．her experience from other projects |
| B．her innocent childhood in the country |
| C．the heavy labor she had done before |
| D．the skill she picked up in Wisconsin |
| A．achieve effects of natural lighting |
| B．keep all her tools within easy reach |
| C．observe the President at a right angle |
| D．avoid disturbing the president’s work |
| A．A strong-willed soul can reach his goal. |
| B．Experience helps to promote excellence. |
| C．Ups and downs make one strong. |
| D．Devotion requires enthusiasm. |
8 . I became a magician by accident. When I was nine years old, I learned how to make a coin disappear. I’d read The Lord of the Rings and ventured into the adult section of the library to search for a book of spells—nine being that curious age at which you’re old enough to work through more than 1,200 pages of fantasy literature but young enough to still hold out hope that you might find a book of real, actual magic in the library. The book I found instead taught basic sleight-of-hand technique, and I dedicated the next months to practice.
At first the magic wasn’t any good. At first it wasn’t even magic; it was just a trick—a bad trick. I spent hours each day in the bathroom running through the secret moves in front of the mirror. I dropped the coin over and over, a thousand times in a day, and after two weeks of this my mom got a carpet from the hardware store and placed it under the mirror to muffle the sound of the coin falling again and again.
I had heard my dad work through passages of new music on the piano, so I knew how to practice—slowly, deliberately, going for precision rather than speed. One day I tried the illusion in the mirror and the coin vanished. It did not look like a magic trick. It looked like a miracle.
One of the lessons you learn very early on as a magician is that the most amazing part of a trick has nothing to do with the secret. The secret is simple and often dull: a hidden piece of tape, a small mirror, a duplicate playing card, diversion of the audience’s attention. In this case, the secret was a series of covert ( 暗 中 的 ) technique to hide the coin behind my hand in the act of opening it, a dance of the fingers that I learned so completely I didn’t even have to think. I would close my hand, then open it, and the coin would vanish not by skill but by real magic.
1. What book did the author intend to find in the library when he was nine years old?| A．A book teaching people how to make a coin disappear. |
| B．The second book of The Lord of the Rings. |
| C．A book on how to become a magician. |
| D．A book of real magic. |
| A．clean | B．punish |
| C．lower | D．kill |
| A．Without music, life is of no value. | B．Practice makes perfect. |
| C．Great liars are also great magicians. | D．No pains, no gains. |
| A．Carrying out skillful hand moves. |
| B．Using real magic to create miracles. |
| C．Hiding some stage tools inside the coat. |
| D．Guiding the audience to focus on something unimportant. |
9 . Heroic mother cat Lele gave birth to four kittens at home and lived alone for over 50 days in Wuhan, when its owners, a family of seven, were in hospital for treatment of novel coronavirus. In late January, Lele's owner, surnamed Chen, was infected with novel coronavirus and has been in hospital since then. Several days later, Chen's father, and five other family members all tested positive for the virus, leaving pregnant cat mom Lele alone at home.
For fear of cross-infection, Chen didn't ask friends to take care of Lele, but prepared two bags of cat food weighing about 24 pounds and some water at home.
As he gradually recovered in the hospital, worries about Lele, the expectant mother, always haunted him.
Fifty-four days later, when Chen' s family got back home, they were surprised to find Lele had already given birth to four kittens.
The four were healthy and active and have been weaning (断奶) from their mother's. According to Chen, Lele survived on the cat food and water found in a fish pond on the balcony. Since no one cleaned up for such a long time, the cat litter box has gone messy and smelly.
In memory of the special experience, Chen named the four kittens ''Xiaowu'', ''Hanhan'', ''Xiaojia'' and ''Youyou'', which together mean ''Wuhan, fighting'' in Chinese, hoping the city could stay strong and return to normal soon.
Lele's story went viral (迅速传播) on Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok, and won over 366,000 likes. A Douyin user commented, "God bless the poor cats! Good luck to you, another netizen commented, ''What a kind family! Please don't abandon pets because of the virus outbreak. ''
1. How did LeLe survive during its owner's absence?| A．By being looked after by Chen's friends. | B．By the cat food left and water in a fish pond. |
| C．With the help of the doctors in the hospital. | D．With the help of its four babies. |
| A．All the members in Chen's family were not infected with the novel coronavius |
| B．The birth of the four kittens was an inspiration for Chen's family. |
| C．Both the cat LeLe and its babies were strong and healthy. |
| D．LeLe got popular among Chinese netizens. |
| A．how a family took good care of their pet cat. |
| B．how Wuhan people fought against the novel coronavirus. |
| C．that a cat saved its owner. |
| D．that a brave cat gives birth alone when owners in hospital. |
10 . When I was in my first year of high school, I had a terrible time when every area of my life was a disaster. I felt so hopeless and alone that I thought everything was impossible.
On one such day, I was walking from class across the school to catch the school bus home, with my head down, fighting tears of total hopelessness, when a young man came down the sidewalk toward me. Though I had never seen him before, I did not want him to see that I was in such low spirits, so I turned my head away and hoped to hurry past. I thought he'd walk on by, but he moved until he was directly in front of me, waited until I looked up, and then smiled.
Looking into my eyes, this stranger spoke in a quiet voice："Whatever is wrong will pass. You're going to be OK, just hang on." He then smiled again and walked away.
I can't explain the effect of that man's unexpected kindness and caring! He gave me the one thing that I'd lost completely—hope. I looked for him in our school to thank him, but never saw him again.
That was thirty years ago. And I've never forgotten that moment. Over the years, whenever I see someone who is in trouble, I will always think of that young man and try to give a flash of hope in the dark wherever I can. I carry things for people when they are too heavy for them, sit with naughty babies in the waiting room while their mothers are busy, or talk to tired couples at the checkout line or it could be anything.
If you keep your head up, your heart will show you the place that needs hope.
1. Where did the writer meet with the young man？
| A．In the school. | B．In the school bus. | C．In the classroom. | D．In the library. |
| A．had known the young man for a long time |
| B．made friends with the young man afterwards |
| C．was grateful to that young man very much |
| D．avoided meeting the young man since then |
| A．show his sympathy to those who are badly ill |
| B．give others hope of life when they are in trouble |
| C．realize his promise made to the young man |
| D．get respect from those who were helped by him |
| A．the young man always tried his best to help those who were in trouble |
| B．it was the young man's smile and words that made the author feel hopeful |
| C．the author had never been praised by others before he met with the young man |
| D．the author traveled to a lot of places to look for the young man but failed |
