I looked out at the smiling faces packed into the school hall. Flashes from cameras lit up in all directions. The applause filled my ears. I had done it. I had really done it.
Just a few months earlier, I would never have pictured myself acting in a play in front of two hundred people."Not for a million dollars," I would have said. But when the time came, I got up on stage and faced one of my greatest fears-and discovered I could do more than I ever gave myself credit for. I found a new person inside me, a much more daring, outgoing person who had been hidden all along, just waiting for the opportunity to appear.
If not for my teacher, Mrs Sather, I might never have found that opportunity.
In the first and second grade, I was extremely shy. I had friends, but it just wasn't in my personality to be very outgoing, even when I knew someone well. I was afraid I would do or say something wrong, so usually I just smiled and listened to other people's conversations. I did well in school and I loved to write. However, I would escape into my writing, where I could be myself and never had to worry about what other people thought of me. In my stories, I was never shy.
My teacher, Mrs Sather, always encouraged me to write more. She told our class to go after our dreams and dig in with both hands. I think she was one of the first people to see my inner strength. One day, she announced that our class was going to perform a play she had written." I'll begin to cast everyone tomorrow," she said." I need someone who is not afraid to be on stage in front of a lot of people to play the lead part of Dorothy. Anybody want to try?" A few excited hands shot up-mine, of course, was not one of them-and Mrs Sather smiled." We'll talk more about it tomorrow," she said. Then the bell rang and my classmates slowly left the classroom.
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When I was loading up my backpack, Mrs Sather asked me to go to her.
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Hearing Mrs Sather's words,I realized it was time to make a change.
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An old wooden seat that Susan extremely valued often reminded her of mother’s Golden Rule.
Back in the 1930s, the country life was really tough. One day after dinner, Susan’s mother sat on the seat, announcing to the children the Golden Rule: “Treat others the way you want to be treated.” Susan reflected carefully and seriously on what her mother had said. She resolved that she would keep in mind and follow the rule.
One Saturday afternoon, she went to farmer Jason’s inn (小旅馆) to get the pay for her mother’s washing for the guests there, which amounted to five dollars. She found Jason in the yard, who, as all the villagers knew, was selfish and mean.
His eyes clouded with anger, as he had just finished a quarrel with one of his guests. He held in his hand an open wallet, full of bills. He barely noticed Susan until she made her request for the money. Instead of shouting at her, as usual, for troubling him when he was busy, he handed her a bank note.
Feeling relieved for escaping from Jason so easily, Susan hurried out of the inn. When carefully putting the money into her pocket, she discovered that Jason had given her two bills instead of one, and her first reaction was joy at the unexpected prize. She looked around and there was nobody nearby to share her discovery. “It is mine. All mine.” she said to herself. “I will buy mum a new coat with it, and she can give her old one to sister Mary, and then Mary can go to the Sunday school with me next winter. I wonder if I can buy a pair of shoes for brother Tom too.”
Just at that moment, she realized that Jason must have given the extra money to her by mistake, and therefore she had no right to own it. But a voice of temptation (诱惑) whispered, “He gave it, and you can keep it. He will never know, even if it is a mistake. ”
As Susan hurried home, this conflict went on in her mind.
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Susan’s face became red with embarrassment and annoyance.
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Through our lives, we can gain a lot and lose so much. But being honest should always be with us, as honesty is always regarded as a virtue. Every time I talk about the topic, something crowds in my mind as if it had just happened.
I was 16 when one morning, Dad told me I could drive him to Mijas and then take the car in a nearby garage to get it serviced. At that time, I had just passed the driving test, and I hardly had a chance to use the car, so I said yes without hesitation.
I drove my father to Mijas, promising to pick him up again at 4 pm, then I went to a
nearby garage, and put the car in there. Since I had several hours to spare, I decided to go to a movie theater near the garage to see the movie. However, I was so absorbed in the plot of the movie that I forgot the time. When the last movie finished, I looked at my watch： 6 pm. I was two hours late!
I thought my father would be very angry if he knew what I was doing. And he would never let me drive again. So I decided to make up an excuse. Then, I drove to the appointed place, my father was sitting in a corner, waiting patiently. I first apologized for being late, then told him that I wanted to get there as soon as possible, but that something was wrong with some of the main parts of the car.
I would never forget the way he looked at me. “I'm very disappointed that you thought you had to lie to me, Jason.” My father looked at me again and said, “When you didn't show up on time, I called the gas station and asked if there was anything wrong They told me you never picked up the car. So, you see, I know there's nothing wrong with the car at all."
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A wave of guilt swept over me and I had to admit the fact that I had gone to the movies and that was the real reason why I was late.
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But father, it's exactly eighteen miles home from here , and it's dark. You can't walk back. " I begged.
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Jenny was a pretty eight-year-old girl.
One day when she and her mother were checking out at the grocery store, Jenny saw a plastic pearl necklace, by which she was totally defeated. How eagerly she wanted it! But when she saw the price, her heart sank a little. She gathered up her courage and asked her mother if she would buy it for her. Her mother said, “Well, it is a pretty necklace, but it costs an awful lot of money. I can buy you the necklace, but when we get home, we should make up a list of housework that you can do to pay for the necklace.” Jenny agreed immediately, feeling a burst of joy. So her mother bought the pearl necklace for her. Jenny worked on her housework determinedly and earnestly every day. Soon Jenny paid off the pearls.
Jenny had a very loving daddy. When Jenny went to bed, he would read Jenny her favorite story. One night when he finished the story, he said, “Jenny, do you love me?” “Oh, yes, Daddy, you know I love you.” the little girl said delightedly, with a broad smile on her face. “Well, then, give me your pearls.” Hearing that, Jenny froze there, an anxious expression twisting her face. “Oh! Daddy, not my pearls! But you can have Rosy, my favorite doll. Remember her? You gave her to me last year for my birthday. Okay?” “Oh no, darling, that’s okay.” Her father brushed her cheek with a kiss, gently and calmly. “Good night, little one.”
A week later, her father once again asked Jenny after her story, “Do you love me?” “Oh yes, Daddy, you know I love you.” the little girl murmured softly, trying to escape from her father’s eyes. “Well, then, give me your pearls.” “Oh, Daddy, not my pearls! But you can have Ribbons, my toy horse. Do you remember her? She is my favorite.” The little girl begged. “No, that’s okay,” her father said, smiling broadly and sweetly and brushed her cheek again with a kiss. “God bless you, little one. Sweet dreams.”
注意：1. 所续写短文的词数应为150左右；
2. 续写部分分为两段，每段的开头语已为你写好；
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Several days later, when Jenny’s father came in to read her story, Jenny was waiting anxiously for him on the bed.
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Holding the plastic pearl his daughter offered, the father dragged out a blue box.
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I lived in the State of Texas, where sudden storms often happened every year. Last Sunday, there was no dirt in the air, only bright spring sunshine and a clear blue sky. After lunch, Papa headed out to the field to check on the cattle while Mama started dinner. Everything seemed peaceful. Faye and I played happily in the yard. The heat had been building since dawn. Suddenly the temperature dropped--- it felt good.
Then Mama shouted from the house, “Iris, you and Faye get inside, read quick now!”
I looked to the west and saw a huge black cloud of dust, like thick smoke from a railway engine’s chimney. All the birds flew away. The stop lights nearby weren't working because of a power failure.
“Faye, go with Mama!” I shouted. “I’ll warn Papa.”
Faye ran toward the house. The storm hit so fast that I hardly saw her climb the steps. In a short time, the day turned into night. I screamed for Papa, hoping my voice would lead him back. But I couldn’t hear or see him at all.
Some poor house roofs were blown off, and small trees down. I thought a terrible storm was on the way and the scene was “the worst I've seen in several years.” The dirt and sand stung(刺痛) my face like a thousand bees. I needed to get to shelter. Covering my face with one hand, I made my way toward the car and opened the door. Dirt flew in with me as I pulled the door closed. Papa was still out somewhere! I needed to help him find the car.
I searched the dashboard (仪表板) and found the switch for the front lights. They made some rays, but would Papa see them in the thick darkness? I pushed the horn (喇叭) again and again, hoping Papa would hear it.
Suddenly, Papa’s face appeared at the window.
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Papa shut off the car’s lights and I worried the dirt would bury us.
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Ruby, a 16-year-old girl in Chicago No. 1 High School, always looked up to her cousin Wanda, who was two years older than her and was studying in a university. Ruby was the only child in her family, so she regarded Wanda as her “immediate” sister. Wanda was not only beautiful, but also smart. She always had straight A's in the exams and she could play several kinds of musical instruments, especially the piano. Therefore, she was very popular in her school and she had a lot of friends. In Ruby's eyes, Wanda was a perfect girl so she considered Wanda as her example. Ruby was still in high school but she wanted to go to the same university as Wanda did. Ruby was even in the same clubs in high school as Wanda used to be.
Wanda knew that Ruby looked up to her and she appreciated that. On Ruby's birthday, Wanda sent Ruby a sweater with her university's logo on it as a gift. Ruby was so happy when she got the sweater. She put it on immediately and wore it almost every day.
One day in class, Ruby raised her hand to answer the teacher’s question and the teacher, who had ever been Wanda’s head teacher, accidentally called her Wanda. “Oh, I’m sorry, but you just look a little like her,” the teacher said. “I'm so flattered(感到荣幸的),” Ruby said. From that day on, Ruby studied harder and harder because Wanda did well in all her subjects. Ruby just wanted to catch up with her.
When college admission results came out, Ruby was so nervous and anxious to visit the website to see if she got admitted. She closed her eyes and slowly opened them. She found out that she got accepted!
注意：1. 所续写短文的词数应为150左右；
2. 应使用5个以上短文中标有下划线的关键词语；
3. 续写部分分为两段，每段的开头语已为你写好；
4. 续写完成后，请用下划线标出你所使用的关键词语。
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She called Wanda at once.
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The next day, Wanda picked Ruby up and they drove to their university.
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It was the first day of our new grade. Everyone in the classroom was chatting happily, excited to see each other again after the long holidays. When the door slid open, all of us stopped talking and turned to look. In came our teacher Ms. Sullivan, followed by an ordinary-looking boy,
“This boy’s name is Rafael.” Ms. Sullivan announced. “He’s a transfer student (转校生), and he’s going to be in our class starting from today. Make sure all of you welcome him warmly.”
The class clapped. But I didn't want to have a second look at the newcomer, for he had no outstanding qualities considering his small figure and casual T-shirt.
“Oh, I forgot to mention one thing.” Ms. Sullivan spoke up. “Rafael actually has hearing problems. Normally he would have hearing aids on, but his old ones have just been broken.
His doctor suggested that he stay at home until he got his new ones. However, Rafael insisted on attending his first day of school. So if you want to communicate with him, you have to write it on a piece of paper.”
This single speech sent the whole class up into an uproar (嘈杂). Some students looked at each other with expressions of surprise. Others voiced cries of concern out of pity.
Ms. Sullivan calmed everyone down. “I’d like someone to personally help him out throughout the day. Do I have any volunteers?”
“How can a disabled person be intelligent?” I thought to myself. I refused to raise my hand, expecting someone else would. But nobody did or said anything. Dead silence spread across the classroom.
It was by total bad luck that my eyes happened to meet Ms. Sullivan's.
“How about you, James?” She asked me. “Is it okay for you to take care of Rafael just for today?”
It is difficult to refuse a request by someone, especially if that person is a teacher. I sighed and nodded slightly. Ms. Sullivan gestured for Rafael to sit beside me and then asked us to share our holiday stories with the class.
Paragraph 1:Immediately, the class became excited.
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Then Rafael rose and walked onto the platform.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Another disappointing day was passing, and he was driving his beat-up old car home. He was out all day looking for a job. It was getting dark and light snow was coming down, so he almost didn’t see the old lady standing on the side of the road. It was clear that she needed help. He pulled up in front of her obviously brand new and expensive car and got out.
While nobody had stopped to help for the last hour and there was a smile on his face, she was worried when he approached her. He didn’t look safe. He looked poor and hungry.
He could see she was frightened, standing out there in the cold. He said, “I’m here to help you, ma’am. Why don’t you wait in your car to keep warm? My name is Bryan.”
A tire was flat. Bryan fetched tools from his own car to change the tire. But he had to get dirty and his hands hurt. As he was tightening her car’s nuts, she rolled down the window, said thanks and asked him how much she owed him. Any amount would have been all right with her. She had already imagined all the awful things that could have happened without his help.
Bryan never thought twice about the money. He told her that if she really wanted to pay him back, the next time she saw someone who needed help, she could give that person the assistance they needed. He waited until she started her car and drove off. It had been a cold and depressing day, but he felt good as he headed for home.
Soon the lady saw a small restaurant. She went in to grab a bite to eat and warm up before she made the last leg of her trip home. The waitress came over with a sweet smile and brought a clean towel to wipe her wet hair. The lady noticed the waitress was nearly eight months pregnant(怀孕的). Although the waitress looked tired and walked painfully due to the pregnancy, she still served the lady.
Paragraph 1:After the lady finished her meal, she paid with a one-hundred-dollar bill. __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Paragraph 2:That night when the waitress got home from work, she was thinking about the money and what the lady had written.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________There was a rich couple who was throwing a big New Year party at their house. So they went shopping at the market where everything was of high cost and fixed price. They wanted to maintain their level of standard so they didn’t mind paying for it. After purchasing all they needed, they called a porter to carry everything and drop it at their home. The porter who came was of an old age, and looked very unhealthy, and his clothes were torn, and he looked as if he wasn’t even able to meet his daily needs.
They asked the porter about the charges for delivering their goods to their home. The old porter quoted just $20, well below the market price. Yet, the couple argued and bargained with the porter and finally settled for $15. The porter was struggling to make even one time’s meal so he needed anything he could earn.
The couple was very happy thinking how well they bargained with the poor porter and paid him $15 in advance and left after giving the porter their address for delivery. They reached their home and one hour passed, and two hours passed, but the porter still didn’t deliver their stuff.
The wife started to get angry at her husband, “I always tell you not to trust such person, but you never listen to me. I am sure instead of delivering the goods to our home, he must have disappeared with everything. We must immediately go back to the market to inquire and then to the police station to file the complaint against him.”
They both left towards the market. On their way near the market, they saw another porter. They stopped him to inquire about the old porter and noticed that he was carrying their goods in his cart! The angry wife asked him, “Where is that old thief? This is our goods and he was supposed to deliver them. It seems you poor thieves are stealing our goods and going to sell them.”
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When the porter heard the angry wife asking.
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Upon hearing this, the husband had tears in his eyes,
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I always prided myself on being a wise shopper and having a good nose for bargains. So when I came across a sporting goods store with a sign “Going Out of Business Sale”, I marched into the crowded store. Up and down the aisles (通道), I wandered, humming to myself and enjoying the energy and excitement of a sale.
All of a sudden, there, at the back of the store sat a canoe(轻舟) exactly like my husband’s dream Supremo Numero-Uno, whose picture had been stuck on the bathroom mirror for years. My heart beat wildly. I pushed my way through the crowds, and nearly fell into the canoe looking for the price tag. There it was, with the manufacturer’s suggested price at $6,750 plus tax crossed out and a handwritten TO CLEAR $750 AS IS. Must be a mistake. $6000 off? Salesman. I had to talk to a salesman. I spotted a young fellow with a “Hi. I’m Mathew”. “Mathew. Tell me about this El Supremo canoe. What’s wrong with it? Why is it only $750?”
“Oh. There’s nothing wrong with it. It’s brand new. We’re closing the store. It’s on clearance like everything else. I’ll go check.” A few minutes later he came back and said, “I’m sorry ma’am. Someone made a mistake on the sale tag. It should be $4,750 for the whole package.”
I felt tears well up in my eyes. “Oh well”, I said sadly. “Of course, it was too good to be true. This is exactly like my husband’s dreamboat. I guess I started to dream myself when I saw that price tag. He’s going to be 62 years old Friday. Had to retire early for his health. It’s been hard on just the pension but the stubborn old fool has been saving $10 every week for years to buy one just like this. I promise I won’t buy anything, but it’s just an old man’s silly dream, you know. Always said he wanted to fish in a canoe after he retired,” my voice lowered and I turned and walked away.
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I was already at the mall door when Mathew caught up with me. “Do you have $750 plus $25 for delivery, ma’am?”
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“Ma’am. There’s something you should know. This store was my Grandpa’s and the canoe had been ordered by him.
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