1 . The sun was preparing to rest for the evening. Saying goodbye to the clan (氏族), I headed back to camp. I looked forward to setting my
I wasn’t long headed home when I heard a
As I looked at him, half interested, an idea for a composition
To cheer him, others in his clan gathered around, clapping loudly.
That photograph turned out to be better than the
| A．budget | B．camera | C．essay | D．flame |
| A．voice | B．quarrel | C．scream | D．whistle |
| A．joints | B．fingertips | C．heels | D．cheeks |
| A．blow | B．print | C．see | D．shoot |
| A．largely | B．wide | C．straight | D．barely |
| A．integrity | B．resistance | C．tolerance | D．anticipation |
| A．knocked | B．spared | C．flashed | D．raised |
| A．pose | B．sleep | C．pretend | D．cover |
| A．urbanization | B．frustration | C．tiredness | D．convention |
| A．sensible | B．curious | C．blind | D．shy |
| A．In response | B．In panic | C．In comparison | D．In short |
| A．guidance | B．potential | C．composition | D．technique |
| A．kicked off | B．picked up | C．told off | D．caught up |
| A．civilized | B．particular | C．successful | D．cooperative |
| A．delivered | B．memorized | C．recorded | D．reserved |
2 . A few days before my high school ended, I was sitting in my English class. My classmates were talking about who would be the first person to shed tears at
High school isn’t for everyone, but there is something for everyone in high school. You just have to
But there were a lot of times when I felt
My biggest
| A．school | B．graduation | C．break | D．random |
| A．cry | B．lie | C．sing | D．sigh |
| A．proposal | B．option | C．possibility | D．thought |
| A．meant | B．replied | C．reacted | D．faded |
| A．bring | B．figure | C．cross | D．carry |
| A．anxiously | B．bravely | C．luckily | D．initially |
| A．organization | B．impression | C．voice | D．discovery |
| A．benefit | B．chance | C．challenge | D．purpose |
| A．objectives | B．principles | C．concerns | D．updates |
| A．disturbed | B．sheltered | C．alarmed | D．inspired |
| A．applauding | B．searching | C．fighting | D．longing |
| A．counted down | B．went through | C．set aside | D．put off |
| A．promise | B．assume | C．pray | D．realize |
| A．support | B．advice | C．rule | D．warning |
| A．account | B．notice | C．control | D．advantage |
3 . I’m in a coffee shop in Manhattan and I’m about to become the most disliked person in the room. First, I’m going to interrupt the man reading quietly near the window and ask for a drink of his latte. Next, I’m going to ask the line of people waiting to pay if I can cut to the front of the queue. This is how I chose to spend my last vacation. Here’s why.
Growing up, all I ever heard about was “EQ.” It was the mid-1990s, and psychologist Daniel Goleman had just popularized the concept of emotional intelligence. Unlike IQ, which tracked conventional measures of intelligence like reasoning and recall, EQ measured the ability to understand other people — to listen, to empathize (共情), and to appreciate.
My mother, an elementary school principal, prized brains and hard work, but she placed a special emphasis on Goleman’s new idea. To her, EQ was the elixir (万能药) that separated the good students from the great after they left school. She was determined to send me into the adult world with as much of this elixir as possible.
But when I finally began my first job, I noticed a second elixir in the pockets of some of my colleagues. It gave their opinions extra weight and their decisions added impact. Strangest of all, it seemed like the anti-EQ: Instead of knowing how to make others feel good, this elixir gave people the courage to do the opposite — to say things others didn’t want to hear.
This was assertiveness (魄力). It boiled down to the command of a single skill: the ability to have uncomfortable conversations. Assertive people — those with high “AQ”— ask for things they want, decline things they don’t, provide constructive feedback, and engage in direct confrontation (对峙) and debate.
A lifetime improving my EQ helped me empathize with others, but it also left me overly sensitive to situations where I had to say or do things that might make others unhappy. While I didn’t avoid conflict, I was always frustrated by my powerlessness when I had to say or do something that could upset someone. This is my problem and I’m working on it.
1. Why did the author act that way in the coffee shop?| A．To improve a skill. | B．To test a concept. |
| C．To advocate a new idea. | D．To have a unique vacation. |
| A．She thought little of IQ. |
| B．She popularized Goleman’s idea. |
| C．She was a strict mother and principal. |
| D．She valued EQ as the key to greatness. |
| A．EQ. | B．AQ. | C．Empathy. | D．Courage. |
| A．successful leaders | B．people pleasers |
| C．terrible complainers | D．pleasure seekers |
4 . I found a brown bag outside after our move. “Grass Seed,” it said in big letters. My husband and I
Near our new house sat a charming cottage, which was
While we waited for our grass to grow — or not — we
But after a monsoon (季风) swept through, I woke up to a beautiful morning and looked out the window. There was no grass growing in the sunlight.
| A．sought | B．spread | C．collected | D．removed |
| A．remain | B．last | C．dry | D．root |
| A．need | B．intention | C．decision | D．agreement |
| A．rented | B．given | C．sold | D．introduced |
| A．green | B．advertise | C．fill up | D．look after |
| A．help | B．chance | C．service | D．accommodation |
| A．pretended | B．decided | C．understood | D．prayed |
| A．naturally | B．hardly | C．gradually | D．temporarily |
| A．uncertainty | B．potential | C．danger | D．untidiness |
| A．locals | B．employers | C．regulars | D．gardeners |
| A．proud | B．grateful | C．curious | D．stressed |
| A．house renting | B．yard cleaning | C．keeping house | D．growing grass |
| A．Otherwise | B．Instead | C．Besides | D．Therefore |
| A．imagined | B．designed | C．remembered | D．appreciated |
| A．test | B．memory | C．reminder | D．choice |
5 . I’m always cautious of the tired saying, “If it doesn’t kill you, it’ll make you stronger.” I mean, what about polio (小儿麻痹症)? Or loads of other horrible things that if you survive, you’re left scarred in one way or another.
For many years I worked in a specialist NHS clinic for people with eating disorders, which are greatly misunderstood and connected with vanity (虚荣) when instead it’s usually about control or even profound trauma (精神创伤). Eating disorders have the highest mortality of any mental illness, with one in five of those with an eating disorder dying from it. Treatment for it is long, tough and tiring. So, it’s fair to say it’s not something to be taken lightly.
Yet I was often surprised by how many patients-patients with all sorts of other conditions too, from depression to cancer -would tell me how the experience had changed them for the better after receiving treatment. It’s not so much that what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger; more, it might make you more understanding of yourself and more sensitive to the battles and struggles of others. It can also give people a sense of determination and perseverance they never had before.
I had one patient who was an addict and alcoholic besides suffering eating disorder. She was frequently rushed into hospital and was sometimes at a real risk of dying. However, after years of hard work, she stopped drinking, stopped using drugs and her eating disorder improved. She got back into work and started doing several courses to get promoted. Actually, she had gone through numerous intense and exhausting interviews before landing a job, but she said whenever she felt she couldn’t handle it or doubted her capabilities, she reminded herself that nothing would ever be worse or harder than what she had already gone through. She managed to make the most of her life and turn her life around.
1. What does the author think of the old mantra?| A．Always applicable. | B．Totally absurd. |
| C．Partially right. | D．Quite misleading. |
| A．The number of deaths. |
| B．The possibility of being cured. |
| C．The rate of getting mentally hurt. |
| D．The chance of having mental illness. |
| A．It leads to a changeable attitude. |
| B．It makes no noticeable difference. |
| C．It builds up their physical strength. |
| D．It fosters self-awareness and sympathy. |
| A．She continued harmful habits. | B．She relied only on medication. |
| C．She always believed in herself. | D．She became stronger and tougher. |
6 . I used to think I was a good person. I was caring to my friends, my partner, my family; I gave to charity and I volunteered. But when I started training to become a therapist (治疗师), I began to understand that however much we might like to think of ourselves as good people, we don’t actually know ourselves very well. I learned about how we might, without consciously realizing it, deny the feelings and motivations we consider to be bad, pushing them down into our unconscious and projecting them out on to others, so they become the bad people. I learned that deep in the human mind, alongside love and kindness, run currents of anger, need, greed, envy, destructiveness, superiority—whether we want to acknowledge them or not.
It was 22-year-old Boru who taught me what it really means to be a good grown up. We first spoke two years ago. He was unemployed, living with his parents, watching his friends’ lives progress. A good grown-up, he told me, is “someone who has his ducks in a row”—and that wasn’t him.
I also didn’t feel like the competent, confident grown-up I thought I should be—and neither did most of the adults I knew. I researched statistics about people hitting the traditional landmarks of adulthood later and later, if at all—from buying a home to getting married or starting a family. I recognized what made me feel like a bad grown-up: that I’ll sit with a broken fridge rather than call an engineer to repair it.
Then I saw Boru again. He told me how, over two years, he’d found a job he loves, rented a flat with a friend. He’s now cycling round the world, having adventures that will keep him strong for the rest of his life. So what changed? “You start to have those conversations with yourself, and you become more of an honest person. I don’t feel like I’m hiding from anything anymore, because I’m not hiding from myself.”
I think growing up must involve finding your own way to have those conversations. Boru does it on his bike, I do it in psychoanalysis, others I spoke to do it while cooking or playing music. That, for Boru, and for me, is what it means to “have his ducks in a row”.1. What does the first paragraph imply about understanding ourselves?
| A．Recognizing our positive traits is enough for growth. |
| B．Our understanding of our motives and feelings is accurate. |
| C．True self-awareness means accepting both good and bad sides. |
| D．Ignoring our negative traits does not affect our self-perception. |
| A．It involves having a clear career path and financial stability. |
| B．It requires constant self-improvement and education. |
| C．It means being employed and living independently. |
| D．It is like a journey of self-discovery and honesty. |
| A．Escaping basic responsibilities. |
| B．Delaying reaching traditional life milestones. |
| C．Comparing personal achievements to others. |
| D．Investigating changing patterns of adult life. |
| A．Why Hide Harms |
| B．How to Be Better Adults |
| C．Why Growing up Matters |
| D．How to Have Effective Conversations |
7 . My son, Ben, died when he was 23. The year after his death, I hiked 48 of the state’s tallest mountains in his memory. Every step, path and peak has been a way to restore.
About a month after his death, my husband and I hiked Carter Dome and Mount Hight, sorrow weighing heavy in our hearts and legs. Standing on the peak, I looked out across the mountains my son loved. For a moment, the heavy blow brought about by Ben’s death faded into the timeless expanse, and I could breathe.
The next weekend found us on Mount Moosilauke. Then Mount Cannon, Mount Flume, Mount Liberty and so on. It was a series of firsts, of struggles and overcoming them — climbing at night, climbing slides and rocks, camping alone, finding paths and planning routes.
Six days before the anniversary of Ben’s death, I hiked my 48th and final peak: Mount Carrigain. As I stood on the observation platform at the peak, I found the essential truth I had been grasping to express for months: The only place that feels vast enough to hold sorrow this deep and wide is the top of a mountain, looking out into forever.
These days, I hike not to hide, but to seek. I find Ben, but I also find myself: someone broken, now braver and more capable. The forced isolation of sorrow becomes the welcome loneliness of the path; the peace of nature replaces the pain of loss. Hiking is both exhausting and exciting, and it teaches us that sorrow and joy can coexist.
But there’s another, possibly more important truth: A hike is not the only way to find the peace of the natural world; a simple walk along a park path can have a similar effect. The internal journey of sorrow mixes with our steps, and we find comfort along the way.
1. How did the writer feel after climbing Carter Dome and Mount Hight?| A．Doubtful. | B．Relieved. | C．Sad. | D．Terrified. |
| A．it was possible to live with both sorrow and joy |
| B．it was the isolation of sorrow that exhausted her |
| C．only by overcoming struggles could one survive |
| D．the peaks were proper places to remember someone |
| A．Walking works best for those in sorrow. | B．We can plan our internal journey as intended. |
| C．What counts is to make peace with ourselves. | D．People tend to hike in parks to seek comfort. |
| A．The Heavy Steps That Led Me To Peaks | B．The Mountains That Held My Sorrow |
| C．The Journeys That Frustrated Me | D．The First Struggles That Empowered Me |
8 . I was sitting in my high school classroom, nervously tapping my pencil against the desk as I awaited the start of the English exam.
As the clock struck, signaling the beginning of the exam, my heart began to race. I opened the exam booklet and scanned the questions, and I felt a wave of panic over me. The questions seemed foreign, and the topics unfamiliar. In a state of panic, I hurriedly wrote down my answers, hoping that somehow, by some stroke of luck, they would be correct. But as the minutes went by, I realized I couldn’t seem to make sense of the questions before me. As the final bell rang, I handed in my paper with a heavy heart.
In the days that followed, I couldn’t shake the feeling of failure that hung over me like a dark cloud. I replayed the exam over and over in my mind, analyzing every question, every answer, searching for clues as to where I had gone wrong.
But in the depression, a realization began to dawn on me — I had failed, yes, but I had also learned valuable lessons along the way. Armed with this newfound wisdom, I ensured that I would do better next time. I threw myself into my studies with renewed determination, devouring books and practicing past exams with an eagerness I had never known before.
When the time came to retake the exam, I was ready. I approached each question with confidence and clarity, drawing upon the lessons I had learned from my previous missteps.
When the results were announced, I held my breath as I scanned the list of names. And there it was — my name, shining brightly among the list of successful candidates. At that moment, all the hard work, all the late nights and early mornings, were worth it.
And as I look back on that sunny afternoon in the high school classroom, I am grateful for the lessons it taught me, and the person it helped me become.
1. Why did the author panic when he first took the exam?| A．He sat with a pounding heart. |
| B．He found the questions too difficult. |
| C．He was not familiar with the foreign language. |
| D．He was in a hurry when answering the questions. |
| A．He attended valuable lessons in school. |
| B．He retook the exam over and over again. |
| C．He promised to arm himself with eagerness. |
| D．He determined to engage himself in learning. |
| A．being targeted at | B．being obliged for |
| C．being absorbed in | D．being credited to |
| A．cheerful and considerate | B．objective and demanding |
| C．tough and persevering | D．proud and tolerant |
在一堂写作课上，老师给出了以下三个题目供学生选择。
| 题目一： 以“盛年不重来，一日难再晨。”（Prime years do not return; a day’s morning is hard to come by again.）为题，结合你的生活体验，写一篇文章。 题目二： 针对目前因为了升学考试而导致的学生知识结构很不平衡（unbalanced knowledge structures）的现象，你觉得有什么好的方法或手段能够改变这种情况，谈谈你的想法。 题目三： 续写“当最后一个地球人（earthling）坐在房间里时，传来了敲门声……” |
写一篇短文，说明你选择的题目，简述理由并介绍你的写作思路。
文章必须包括以下内容：
1. 你选择的作文题目及理由；
2. 你的写作思路。
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
10 . I didn’t go to Santiago, Chile to look for friendship. In fact, Chile was not even on my wish list.
A mid-life crisis woman, I got a chance to study abroad. I only wanted to learn about global business, taste South American cuisine, and check “study abroad” off my wish list.
On the fifth day, I joined a group for a neighborhood work project aided by the anti-poverty (扶贫) organization. Our tasks were to build a water tower and paint the community center. Upon arrival, I couldn’t believe my eyes. It was like a scene out of a horrible film. That moment redefined poverty for me because I had never seen such terrible living conditions. As advised, I showed no signs of the motional battle going on inside me.
Just as I was about to start work on painting, a request came through for a few volunteers to help Nadia, a local resident who volunteered to cook for us. I raised my hand to help because I wanted spend time with the people of the neighborhood despite my shortage of Spanish speaking skills.
Nadia had a sincere smile but not overly friendly. Even without speaking each other’s language we started to learn about one another. We chatted about our children, our upbringing, shared picture of our family, struggled to instruct each other to communicate in the other’s language, and laugh many times.
After we fed everybody and the dishes were washed, my day was over. But I found myself hesitant to leave. It was as if I had known her my entire life. I had not predicted the unselfishness heart I would encounter, and it was moving.
As we were waiting for the car to pick us up, Nadia showed me her plants that are well-maintains. I could see that despite the hard conditions she was passionate about life. She made me long to be stronger person. She showed me that poverty was external, but happiness was internal. I was seeking to give 100 percent for a well-intentioned cause, but I left receiving 200 percent from her.
1. What was the author’s initial purpose of going to Chile?| A．To find new friends while traveling. | B．To participate in an anti-poverty project. |
| C．To fulfill the desire to study abroad. | D．To gain a graduate certificate in business. |
| A．She decided to relieve the poverty. | B．She kept her emotions well hidden. |
| C．She comforted the shocked volunteers. | D．She refused to continue the present task. |
| A．She felt very sympathetic toward Nadia. |
| B．She longed to interact with the local residents. |
| C．She wanted to improve her Spanish speaking skills. |
| D．She preferred cooking to painting the community center. |
| A．True friends are never apart in heart. |
| B．Happiness is defined by a positive attitude. |
| C．Language is not a barrier to great connections. |
| D．Unselfishness is putting others before ourselves. |
