For as long as I can remember, my parents raised me with dogs, cats, birds and fish in the house, and I felt the most comfort with these pets in my surroundings. As an only child, I grew up talking to these animals since I never had a partner to play with at home.
I created characters for each of the pets and I included them in my imaginary adventures, tying capes onto the dogs, who were changed into superheroes, and giving headwear to the cats, who became girls. Even after I began attending pre-school, I’d eagerly await my return from school so that I could relay all the exciting details to my pets who would listen and pretend to be slightly interested in my wandering. In fact, I probably communicated with my pets more than I did with my friends, since these animals offered a sense of safety which no individual could provide. It never felt strange for me to talk with members of different species and I always felt satisfied after I spoke with them.
Imagine the shock I faced when I realized that certain cruel persons badly treated their pets. Over the spring break of third grade when I visited Aunt Judy and my cousins in Philadelphia, I met her one-eyed cat, Gordon. A cold, skinny creature, I firstly avoided directing my attention towards the cat. Aunt Judy must have noticed my strange behavior, so she took me aside and explained that the Gordon’s owner had deserted him. The cat was extremely unhealthy and injured when Aunt Judy discovered him.
After she had found medical treatments for the cat, my aunt decided to keep him because Aunt Judy said, “The unwanted animals are the ones most in need of someone to love them wholeheartedly.” After my aunt’s advice, I spent additional time to know Gordon and as days passed, he grew less afraid of me and I became more willing to love him.
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。
Para 1: It broke my heart to see his sad eyes.
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____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Tom was one of the rudest boys in the village where he lived. If a person’s clothes were dirty or torn, he would throw stones at him, and annoy him in every way.
One afternoon after school, a stranger with a broad-brimmed hat passed through the village. His dress was old but clean. No sooner had Tom seen the stranger than he winked (使眼色) to his playmates, and said, “Now for some fun!” He then silently went toward the stranger from behind, and knocking off his hat, ran away.
The man turned and saw him, but Tom ran away quickly. The stranger put on his hat and went on his way. Again did Tom approach; but this time, the man caught him by the arm and held him fast. However, he just looked at Tom a moment, and then pushed him away. Instantly the naughty boy found himself free again, he began to throw dirt and stones at the stranger. But he was much frightened when the man’s eye was hit and badly hurt. All the boys now ran back to their home.
As Tom drew near the house, his sister Caroline met him, holding up a beautiful gold chain and some new books for him to see. She told Tom excitedly that their uncle, who had been away several years, had come home; that he had brought beautiful presents for them; that he had been at the hotel nearby, and walked on foot now to surprise his brother, their father.
She said that while he was coming through the village, some bad boys threw stones at him, and hurt his eye badly, which had been treated by their mom. “But what makes you so anxious?” asked Caroline. The guilty boy rushed upstairs into his room without a word. Soon after, he heard his father calling him to come down. Shaking from head to foot, he obeyed.
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。
When he reached the door, he stood, fearing to enter.
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But stepping back surprisedly, their uncle cried, “Oh! It’s you!”
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Last Saturday David was taking a walk in the park near his home when he noticed a woman with a boy of about eight years old. When David passed them, he heard the woman yelling: “How stupid you are! You’re good at nothing.” David stopped and looked at the little boy. The boy said nothing. He just stood there, looking upset.
David was reminded of his English teacher Mrs. Brown in middle school. After he entered middle school, David lacked self-confidence because he was often made fun of by others. He was often told that he was good at nothing, which David believed.
But one day it all changed. That day, in an English writing class, Mrs. Brown asked them to read a novel. They were asked to write a new chapter of the novel after they finished reading it. A few days later, David handed in his story. He didn’t give it much thought. But the next day to his surprise, the comment “well done” from Brown came into view the moment he turned to the page where the story was written. When David read that, he almost burst into tears. He had never expected to be praised. He suddenly gained some self-confidence.
That day after he returned home, he wrote another short story and gave it to Mrs. Brown the next morning. And again he was praised. David became very interested in writing. He often wrote short dories and asked Mrs. Brown to read them and correct them for him. Mrs. Brown always gave him good advice to improve them. One year later, David joined the school newspaper and became an editor of it. He gained his confidence and was hopeful about his future.
He succeeded in entering college and kept writing. Several years after graduating from college, he had his first book published, becoming famous as a writer in his country. And he owed his success to Mrs. Brown’s encouragement. Without her encouragement, his life might be very different now.
注意：1. 续写的词数应为150左右。2. 请按照如下格式在答题卡相应位置作答。
Inspired by his own life story, David decided to do something for that boy.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________The mother was ashamed when she heard that.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Scout could clearly remember the night she had to leave her home in Poland. It was the beginning of World War II and her family had to escape as soon as possible. She quickly packed a suitcase with a few pieces of clothing, her diary, and her most prized treasure, a silk scarf. Scout and her best friend, Betty, had persuaded their parents to buy them matching scarves, which they took as a symbol of their friendship. Scout didn’t know she was going to America and would not be returning.
Scout kept that special silk scarf for many years. One day she decided to give it to her granddaughter, Eliza, to wear to her first job interview for good luck. Scout was afraid that Eliza would lose the scarf, but the granddaughter promised, “Don’t worry, Grandma. Nothing’s going to happen to your scarf. You’ll see that it’s going to bring both of us luck.” And with that, Eliza kissed her grandmother and left for the interview.
Leaving the interview, Eliza felt confident that she had got the job so she decided to celebrate by going to a restaurant. Sitting at her table, Eliza felt an elderly woman staring at her for a long time.
“I’m sorry. Do I know you?” Eliza asked.
“I’m sorry, dear, but you remind me of my best friend,” the old woman replied. “She looked like you and used to wear a scarf just like yours.” Eliza listened carefully, with her eyes and mouth wide open. She had heard stories of her grandmother’s best friend and knew the meaning of the scarf. Could this woman be Betty, her grandmother’s childhood friend?
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:
Then the old woman introduced herself, “My name is
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The old woman agreed.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Emma had two exams that day — physics and history. She really hated physics. It was her worst subject. Alice looked at her, and then looked away quickly. Emma thought Alice looked pleased, because she didn’t have a problem with physics, she didn’t have a problem with anything...Miss Perfect!
“I thought we were friends, but she hasn’t spoken to me for two weeks now. she promised to help me go over for the physics exam too, but then she’s forgotten all my calls and texts. And when I rang her house, her mum just told me she was busy.” Emma thought angrily. At that moment, Mr. Read asked all the students into the exam room.
Emma couldn’t answer some physics questions. Suddenly she saw Alice sitting two rows in front of her. Emma couldn’t believe it! Alice was holding her phone on her knee under the table and reading from it. Is that how Alice always got such good grades? She felt really angry at Alice, and thought about telling the teacher, but...“Stop writing,” said Mr. Read and started to collect the exam papers. Oh no, Emma hadn’t answered two of the questions. She was going to fail again!
Emma wanted to talk to Alice at lunchtime, but she couldn’t find her anywhere. Emma went to the library to prepare for the history exam, which was her favorite. But she couldn’t concentrate. “Unfair! Alice was getting good grades by cheating all that time.” She thought about telling a teacher, but everyone would hate her if she did that. Just then, Mr. Read walked past her table. “Mr. Read...”
Emma was sitting behind Alice again in the history exam that afternoon. Mr. Read wanted her to look at Alice and agreed if she saw that Alice was cheating in the exam.
注意：
1.所续写短文的词数应为150左右；
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Paragraph 1:
She was working on the last question when she saw that Alice had her phone under the table.
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Paragraph 2:
Emma was walking towards the school gate when she saw Alice waiting for her there.
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In 1959, when Jean Harper was in the third grade, her teacher gave the class an assignment (任务) to write a report on what they wanted to be when they grew up. She poured her heart into her report and expressed her dream of becoming an airline pilot. Her paper came back with an “E” on it. The teacher told her it was a “fairy tale” (神话). Jean was heartbroken and ashamed.
As the years went by, Jean was beaten down by the discouragement and negativity she encountered whenever she talked about her dream. “Girls can’t become airline pilots; never have, never will. You’re crazy. That’s impossible.” Finally Jean gave up.
In her senior year of high school, her English teacher was Mrs. Dorothy Slaton, a demanding (要求高的) teacher with high standards. One day Mrs. Slaton asked this question, “If you had unlimited finances (资金), unlimited access to the finest schools, unlimited talents and abilities, what would you do?”
Jean felt a rush of the old enthusiasm (激情), and with excitement she wrote down the very old dream. But thinking of the questioning and ridicule (嘲讽) she had suffered before, she tore up (撕碎) the piece of paper full of “her Dream”. Jean finally wrote in his exercise book, “Sorry, teacher, I have nothing to do because I have no dream.”
The next day, after class, Mrs. Slaton stopped Jean and said, “Gene, come to my office.” She looked gently at Jean, “Jean, can you tell me why you say you don’t have a dream?” Gene said depressedly, “No one wants to believe that I can be a pilot. I have a dream. If I have the conditions you mentioned, I just want to try my best to be a female pilot.”
The next thing that Mrs. Slaton said changed the course of Jean’s life. The teacher leaned forward over her desk and said, “I have a little secret for you. You do have unlimited abilities and talents. When you leave school, if you don’t go for your dreams, no one will do it for you.”
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 hurt and fear of years of discouragement disappeared all of a sudden.
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Paragraph 2:
Eventually, Jean made it.
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My teenage son, Jordan, always complained about having to be home earlier than all his friends. He would tell me that he was already seventeen, but still had a curfew (宵禁). He believed he was practically an adult. I pointed out that he was not an adult as he was still in high school.
“You don’t trust me!” he yelled. Before I continued, he rolled his eyes, slammed the door and walked away. I sighed. How could I make Jordan see that I only wanted to keep him safe?
I decided to go for a walk, hoping the December air would clear my head. I opened the front door and nearly stepped on her: a small black cat, just like a meatball. “Hi, Meatball,” I said, bringing her into my arms. I walked back in, touching her neck gently. Meatball seemed happy enough to come in the house, but after an hour or two, she sat by the door, meowing to go back outside.
“Why won’t she just stay in with us all the time?” Nathan, my youngest son asked.
I explained to him that she was happy here but she liked being able to come and go as she pleased.
“That must be nice,” Jordan muttered from the other room, complaining why the cat, not him, could come and go. He even asked me to give Meatball a curfew.
Meatball became a regular.
One night, temperatures were unusually low. Meatball stood at the door, meowing to go outside.
I shook my head at her, afraid that she might freeze to death. She stared at me and meowed again. I patted her head, “I know you’re not happy, but it’s for your own good.”
“Mom’s not being mean to you,” Nathan told the cat. “She’s just trying to keep you from turning into a frozen meatball.” We both laughed at his joke.
The next morning, I couldn’t find Meatball. I asked the kids if anyone had seen her.
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。
Jordan nodded, “I let her out last night.”
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________As I drove to the animal hospital, Jordan sat in the back, holding Meatball inside his coat.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________When Gloria Estefan started primary school, she could not read, write nor speak English. She felt lost, unhappy and completely frightened. However, someone changed her life—her English teacher, Mrs Collins. Her family had left Cuba in 1959 when she was only a year old in the hope of finding a better life in America. Initially they moved to Miami where the family settled in a set of apartments with other Cuban women and children who had immigrated.
The women were close-knit and supportive. While she felt safe, she was also isolated. They all spoke Spanish, and she rarely heard English. On her very first day in school, which she was looking forward to, she was completely shocked. She came home and told her mother that she had learnt her first English word “stupid”. It was the nickname a boy had given her.
In every way possible, she was set apart from her classmates. She was the only panic and non-white student. She also found it difficult to grasp the English language as it was her second language. The culture, her school friends and the food they ate were different from hers. As such, she was set apart from her classmates.
One person made that year bearable for her, Mrs Collins. She was young and African American, so she understood how Gloria felt as she was the only non-white student in class. Mrs Collins never doubted that Gloria could catch up with the other students in time.
Still, the teasing continued. The boy who called her stupid would not stop laughing at her for her accent. He was a good student and the proud holder of the class’s reading award. It was an honour given periodically to a student, based on excellence in schoolwork, participation and homework. Gloria wanted that long-waited award.
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。
Mrs Collins encouraged her to compete for the reading award.
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The award ceremony was coming up.
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Dusty Brian has wandered for three days and three nights, and didn’t eat enough.
All of a sudden, the wall AD attracted him, “Looking for a man, height 180 cm, shoe size 44， just with my son a weekend, I am willing to pay $500.”
Fifteen minutes later, when Brian got to the accommodation, a gaunt (憔悴的) woman opened the door.
After a simple communication, the woman took out the set of teddy bear doll clothing and let Brian put on. She said, as long as he played with her son until he went to bed, $500 belonged to him. Then the woman took Brian into her son’s room and said, “Dear, see who is back?”
The little boy was very excited. As the woman said，he is a mentally retarded (智力低下) boy.
The boy looked at Brian, “Dad, dad...are you back?” Brian said, “Yes!” The woman said， “Andrew, mom didn’t cheat you. Dad has come back with a teddy hear look!” Then Brian played with the boy happily until it was time to have dinner.
When the three people finished the meal, the little boy wanted to play basketball in the yard. Brian had to agree and accompanied the little boy in the yard. When the little boy played with Brian in the yard, he said, “Dad, you are great!”
It’s time for bed. Brian helped the little boy bath and began to tell him story. Brian’s musical sound let the woman stand behind the door for a long time. Finally, the little boy fell asleep.
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。
When Brian went out of the bedroom, the woman was boiling coffee.
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Brian refused the money and left.
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