2 . Yesterday after work, the boss told me I was fired. When I walked along a riverbed sadly, I suddenly realized it was New Year’s Day, a day to start afresh.

I passed by a man holding his son, one or two years old. The baby’s face was in pure joy, and his innocent eyes were full of wonder. The simple sweetness of the baby made me moved.

Walking on, I saw a young couple repairing their bicycle. They smiled at me and said, “Happy New Year!” I smiled and wished them the same. It was a simple thing, but for a moment it brought me a sudden joy.

I kept walking, enjoying the cheerful singing of birds. With people around laughing out loud, an old woman immersed herself in her sewing. She didn’t seem either happy or sad. A feeling of timeless peace flowed through me and all fear of what the future might bring disappeared. I thanked her in my heart, and moved on.

As I reached home, I was filled with great thanks and hope for life, which took me a long time to find. Actually, happiness could be simple and easy. Now I knew whatever the New Year would bring, there would be joy and enough love to help me through the hard times we all had to face.

“Happy New Year!” I said to myself.

1. What did the writer’s boss tell him after work?

A．It was New Year’s Day.	B．He was fired.
C．He needed a day to relax.	D．He had a day off.

2. When seeing the little baby, the writer was moved by his ________.

A．age

B．laughing

C．innocence

D．crying

3. When the writer saw the young couple, they were ________.

A．repairing their bicycle	B．waiting for the writer
C．watching the passers-by	D．celebrating the New Year

4. How did the writer feel when he saw the old woman?

A．Lucky.

B．Hopeless.

C．Fearful.

D．Thankful.

5. What can we learn from the passage?

A．Greetings make people polite.	B．Happiness could be simple and easy.
C．Walking makes people energetic.	D．Friendship lies in getting together.

3 . When I was looking for a Christmas present for my daughter in toy store, a nicely dressed little girl, with some money in her little hand, was looking at some beautiful dolls. When she saw a doll she liked, she would ask her father if she had enough money. He usually said yes.

At the same time, a boy, with old and small clothes, was looking at some video games. He, too, had money in his hand, but it looked no more than five dollars. Each time he picked up one of the video games and looked at his father, he shook his head.

The little girl had chosen her doll, a very beautiful one. However, she noticed the boy and his father. She saw the boy give up a video game with disappointment and walk to another comer of the store.

The little girl put her doll back to the shelf and ran over to the video game. After she talked to her father, she paid for the video game and whispered (耳语) to the shop assistant.

So the boy got the video game that he wanted for free — he was told it was a prize from the store. He smiled happily, although he felt it was so incredible.

The girl saw all this happen. She smiled, too.

When I walked out of the store to my car, I heard the father ask his daughter why she had done that. I would never forget their short talk. “Daddy, didn’t Grandma want me to buy something that would make me happy?”

He said, “Of course, she did.”

“Well, I just did!” With that, the little girl started skipping (蹦跳) towards their car happily.

1. The story happened in a ________.

A．school

B．toy store

C．cinema

D．computer room

2. The boy ________.

A．wore new and nice clothes	B．had much money in his hand
C．was from a poor family	D．wanted to get a doll very much

3. The underlined word “incredible”most probably means “ ________ ”in Chinese.

A．unbelievable

B．exciting

C．desperate

D．ridiculous

4. Which of the following is TRUE according to the story?

A．The little girl was kind and helpful.

B．The video game was a prize from the store.

C．The writer paid for the video game for the boy.

D．The boy bought the video game himself from the store.

5. What does the sentence “Well, I just did!” mean?

A．I just did something for the boy and he would be happy.

B．I just bought a nice doll for myself and I would be happy.

C．I just bought a present for Grandma and she would be happy.

D．I just did something for the boy and it would make me happy.

4 . The Appalachian Trail winds some 2,190 miles across 14 states in the eastern US. Although it attracts thousands of serious hikers each spring, only one in four hikers completes the entire trail.

The Sutton family recently finished hiking the entire trail. They are a unique trio (三人组) as their son Harvey turned five on the trail, which makes him the youngest to complete the Appalachian Trail.

Josh and Carrie Sutton said they needed to take breaks from busy work called mini-retirements. “ We set the family goal of living a life with extraordinary stories. Doing things like hiking with a child on the Appalachian Trail gives you extraordinary stories, ” Josh Sutton said.

When Harvey turned three, they took him winter camping, and by the time he was four, the family completed a 50-mile hike, camping over six days. Seeing that Harvey developed a passion for hiking, they planned a thru-hike on the Appalachian Trail. Hiking from end to end is called a thru-hike and generally takes five to seven months to complete.

They hit the trail in Georgia on January 13, 2021. The first weeks were cold. The trail was icy and snow-covered, and the weather was often cloudy and bitter, so they made slow progress. They would wake up early each day, pack their gear (装备), and then start walking. As they had many miles to cover each day, they had to be inventive and started using imagination and Skittles (彩虹糖) as incentive for little Harvey.

The family completed their journey on August 9, 2021. Little Harvey learned to count all the way to 2,193, the total miles his little feet traveled, and a big number for someone who just started kindergarten. “ I will do it again because I like it so much, ” said Harvey.

Although the Suttons are now back home, they have incredible memories of this mini-retirement. The journey is a life-changing experience for the Sutton family and is an inspiration for families who dream of taking a similar journey.

1. What’s special about the Sutton family hiking the Appalachian Trail?

A．Their young son’s participation.	B．Their rich experience in hiking.
C．Their great love for adventure.	D．Their ways to get rid of busy life.

2. What does the underlined word “incentive” in Paragraph 5 probably mean?

A．Motivation.

B．Information.

C．Evidence.

D．Suggestion.

3. Which of the following can best describe their journey?

A．Tiring and boring.	B．Relaxing and pleasant.
C．Dangerous but exciting.	D．Challenging but meaningful.

4. What can we learn from Harvey’s story?

A．More haste, less speed.	B．Chances favor the prepared mind.
C．We should think twice before acting.	D．We should dream big and start small.

8 . In the early 1950s, I was a junior high student at Punahou School in Hawaii. During summer vacations, I often swam at Waikiki Beach. There was another man who would also _________. He was a tall, handsome, silver-haired Hawaiian. Occasionally I saw him swimming gracefully and effortlessly at a(n) _________ pace to the beach wall and _________ again.

One morning when I arrived as usual, he walked past me on his way to the water. Suddenly he stopped and asked me if I’d like to _________ against him. “Just for fun. Down to the beach wall and back.” He pointed in that direction. After some thought, I _________ it.

We jumped into the water and started swimming. Teenagers are often very _________, and I was no different. I started out as fast as I could to build a strong _________. But in the first 50 yards, we were even. When we reached the beach wall, we were still even. I was already _________. My legs felt heavy. My shoulders started to burn. As we turned back, my arms and shoulders were numb, and my head was spinning. I wanted very _________ to quit and __________ the rest of the way. But I struggled and __________ it, fighting the water.

When we finally arrived where we started, I was out of __________. “Just about even. You’re pretty good,” he said. He walked out of the water and up the beach. I stayed where I was, __________.

Ten minutes later my friend, Sammy Kauua, arrived. I told him what had happened. Sammy laughed, “Are you __________? That’s Duke Kahanamoku. He won gold medals at the Olympics!”

Several days later when I saw Kahanamoku on the beach, I talked to him about his swimming __________. What I really wanted to know was __________ an athlete could become good enough to win in the Olympics. “Oh, I trained,” he said. “__________ not hard, really. I did most of my swimming at the beach. I swam because I liked it. We trained of course, but __________ we just swam. It was natural.”

I was __________ at that time because there was no secret formula (秘诀) for success as an athlete. Thinking back on it now, though, I find the __________ he gave me very appealing.

1.

A．step in

B．walk by

C．move around

D．turn up

2.

A．perfect

B．impressive

C．terrifying

D．obvious

3.

A．back

B．out

C．forward

D．off

4.

A．fight

B．argue

C．swim

D．challenge

5.

A．responded

B．accepted

C．replied

D．agreed

6.

A．outgoing

B．desperate

C．superb

D．competitive

7.

A．lead

B．objective

C．distance

D．chance

8.

A．encouraged

B．exhausted

C．shocked

D．ashamed

9.

A．delightedly

B．angrily

C．badly

D．worriedly

10.

A．stay

B．lie

C．relax

D．walk

11.

A．made

B．got

C．achieved

D．realized

12.

A．action

B．breath

C．place

D．control

13.

A．fighting

B．shaking

C．recovering

D．smiling

14.

A．kidding

B．wondering

C．considering

D．expecting

15.

A．choice

B．reward

C．promise

D．career

16.

A．why

B．how

C．when

D．whether

17.

A．But

B．Also

C．Or

D．And

18.

A．recently

B．originally

C．mostly

D．partly

19.

A．touched

B．disappointed

C．trembled

D．embarrassed

20.

A．experience

B．concept

C．answer

D．belief

9 . “Where is the light?” My dad used to ask me the question when I was little. It’s one of those questions that parents often use to find out how smart their young children are. During my teenage years, my dad jokingly told me that he thought I was going to be dimwitted(愚蠢的) because I pointed at him whenever he asked me where the light was.

Dad is from a rural area about 230 kilometers north of the capital Manila, and where most people live off the land, raising and selling livestock and poultry. His father, an artist and street magician, died when he was very young. To make ends meet, his mother went about town and washed laundry in various households. My dad found himself alone—lack of nurturing (养育) and love, short of family bonds.

Dad loved reading and always looked for opportunities to educate himself. One day, when my father was 16 and out of work, a stranger saw him sitting under a tree, absorbed in a book. He approached Dad and asked him why he wasn't in school. Dad replied that he had no money for college. The stranger saw his desire to study and recommended him to University of the Cordilleras as a working student. He also gave Dad a job in a local factory. Thanks to the warm-hearted stranger, Dad got his Bachelor of Arts degree, then went on to study law and became a successful lawyer. He wrote a widely-read textbook on Philippine law.

Looking at my father now, I can see how he was able to overcome so many obstacles. He is by nature a hardworking man, pouring his energy into his career without forgetting his family. He values education—when we were younger, he would tell me and my brother to constantly seek improvement in ourselves through learning.

Like a light, he shines with dignity and respect because of his achievements, but his light radiates the brightest for maintaining our family as a cohesive (有凝聚力的)unit with love and faith as its foundation.

There are times when my dad kids around and asks me, using my childhood nickname, “Sasi, where's the light?”

I just smile, and point at him.

1. What joke did Dad play on the writer?

A．He considered her a little foolish.	B．He treated himself as the light.
C．He turned the light on to be dim for her.	D．He asked her to answer many difficult questions.

2. It can be inferred from the second paragraph that ______.

A．Dad got along well with his father	B．Dad didn’t have a happy childhood
C．Dad was particular about his clothes	D．Dad used to wander in the market

3. How did Dad finish his college education?

A．He got much money from a stranger.	B．He won a scholarship by studying hard.
C．He paid his fees by doing a part-time job.	D．He earned money by writing books on law.

4. In the eyes of the writer, her dad ______.

A．chose careers for his children	B．taught his children by himself at home
C．acted as the light in his children’s lives	D．worked too hard to look after his children

5. What is the author’s purpose in writing this passage?

A．To stress the importance of the light.	B．To recall a question asked by her dad.
C．To introduce the benefit of a close family.	D．To praise her dad for his effort to achieve his goals.

10 . 阅读表达

Growing up in Saudi Arabia, 44-year-old photographer Jody MacDonald has always had a strong interest in the desert. “I have always wanted to spend some time in the Sahara,” MacDonald said. “There are still so many unexplored areas in the Sahara Desert. These relatively unexplored places are so rare these days and hold the very fundamentals of exploration, which attract me. So finally I made the journey.” MacDonald started her journey in Mauritania’s capital city Nouakchott, and headed inland where she and her team jumped on the world’s longest cargo train (货运列车) for a 435-mile journey on the Mauritania Railway. “The train was dirty and uncomfortable but it was such an interesting and unique way to travel through the vast desert by train,” said MacDonald.

MacDonald and her group had to face many challenges on their journey. Except for the dirt and discomfort, the travelers also had to deal with the intense heat, violent winds and even dangerous sandstorms. “I was out taking photographs and within minutes, the wind increased to more than 100 miles an hour,” MacDonald said. “I thought my skin was going to be torn off because of the rain and blowing sand. It felt like sandpaper on my skin. I have never experienced winds that strong before. There was once a time when I wanted to give up.”

She dealt with the harsh (恶劣的) conditions by trying not to travel in the middle of the day and wore headscarves to protect herself from the sun and blowing sand. “The weather definitely dictates when and where you travel,” said MacDonald. Even with all the challenges, the photographer managed to record amazing images of the beautiful but harsh landscapes of Mauritania, and its fascinating cultures and communities.

1. Why did MacDonald tour the Sahara? (no more than 10 words)
2. How did MacDonald feel on the cargo train? (no more than 5 words)
3. Why did MacDonald once decide to give up her journey? (no more than 10 words)
4. What does the underlined word in the last paragraph mean? (1 word)
5. How does MacDonald’s story inspire you in life? Please explain. (no more than 20 words)