1 . 阅读下列短文，根据短文内容填空。在未给提示词的空白处仅填写1个适当的单词，在给出提示词的空白处用括号内所给词的正确形式填空。

As humans, we naturally tend to notice the bad events in life more than the good. It is because we need to keep an eye on the negative ones to keep us far away     1     dangers. If we are aware of threats around us, we are more able to switch on a defense. However, if we     2     (active) turn to focus on the positive, we can feel less stress and enjoy life more from an increasingly optimistic point. To enjoy the life in the present moment, we need to notice     3     is going right, and appreciate it. It doesn't mean that you have to pretend you're happy when you're not. On the contrary, it means that you tend to notice the things that lead to greater     4     (happy) when you have a choice.

2 . Every man wants his son to be somewhat of a clone, not in features but in footsteps. As he grows you also age, and your ambitions become more unachievable. You begin to realize that your boy, in your footsteps, could probably accomplish what you hoped for. But footsteps can be muddied and they can go off in different directions.

My son Jody has hated school since day one in kindergarten. Science projects waited until the last moment. Book reports weren’t written until the final threat.

I’ve been a newspaperman all my adult life. My daughter is a university graduate working towards her master’s degree in English. But Jody? When he entered the tenth grade he became a “vo-tech” student (技校学生). They’re called “motorheads” by the rest of the student body.

When a secretary in my office first called him “motorhead”, I was shocked. “Hey, he’s a good kid, ” I wanted to say. “And smart, really.”

I learned later that motorheads are, indeed, different. They usually have dirty hands and wear dirty work clothes. And they don’t often make school honor rolls (光荣榜).

But being the parent of a motorhead is itself an experience in education. We who labor in clean shirts in offices don’t have the abilities that motorheads have. I began to learn this when I had my car crashed. The cost to repair it was estimated at $800. “Hey, I can fix it,” said Jody. I doubted it, but let him go ahead, for I had nothing to lose.

My son, with other motorheads, fixed the car. They got parts from a junkyard, and ability from vo-tech classes. The cost was $25 instead of $800.

Since that first repair job, a broken air-conditioner, a non-functioning washer and a non-toasting toaster have been fixed. Neighbours and co-workers trust their car repairs to him.

These kids are happiest when doing repairs. They joke and laugh and are living in their own relaxed world. And their minds are bright despite their dirty hands and clothes.

I have learned a lot from my motorhead: publishers need printers, engineers need mechanics, and architects need builders. Most important, I have learned that fathers don’t need clones in footsteps or anywhere else.

My son may never make the school honor roll. But he made mine.

1. What used to be the author’s hope for his son?

A．To avoid becoming his clone.	B．To resemble him in appearance.
C．To develop in a different direction.	D．To reach the author’s unachieved goals.

2. What can we learn about the author’s children?

A．His daughter does better in school.

B．His daughter has got a master’s degree.

C．His son tried hard to finish homework.

D．His son couldn’t write his book reports.

3. The author let his son repair the car because he believed that       .

A．his son had the ability to fix it	B．it would save him much time
C．it wouldn’t cause him any more loss	D．other motorheads would come to help

4. What did the author realize in the end?

A．It is unwise to expect your child to follow your path.

B．It is important for one to make the honor roll.

C．Architects play a more important role than builders.

D．Motorheads have greater ability than office workers.

3 . One morning in July 2011, a taxi sat wandering outside Petco Park stadium in San Diego. And Wade LeBlanc, a (an) _______ pitcher (棒球投手) for the Padres, climbed in.” To the airport, please,” he told the driver. LeBlanc was headed to Tucson, Arizona, home of the club’s A-level branch organization at the time. He’d been sent down to the minors. Again. For the eighth time in three years.

“You’re Wade LeBlanc,” the taxi driver said.

“Right.”

“You got some good stuff.”

This _______ the pitcher, after the previous night’s disastrous performance.

“I think there are some things you should think about _______,” the driver continued.” I don ’t know; I ’m not a _______. Maybe something like going over your head in your windup (摆臂动作)”

Wait, what? This guy was offering _______? Earlier in his career, LeBlanc   might   have _______ or been angry. But today, he just_______. He couldn’t afford to dismiss anything. His career was on the line.

The next day, in Tucson, LeBlanc met his _______. He said he was thinking about making _______ to his windup. His coach agreed. Instead of keeping his hands tight to his chest at the beginning of his delivery, LeBlanc raised them briefly over his head, as the taxi driver had ________.

LeBlanc included the new ________ into his next start. And he was________, allowing only one hit over seven innings ( 回 合 ). It was the turning point in his career. Eight years later, LeBlanc is a pitcher for the Seattle Mariners. He signed the first contract extension of his Major League Baseball career—at age 33.

The funny thing about advice: We so often take it from the ________ people. That is, we ________ the advice of experts, while undervaluing the input of regular folk. Wade LeBlanc ________ that trend, and he obtained the ________.

“Expert advisers often make surprisingly inaccurate predictions about the future, yet people ________ their suggestions nevertheless,” concluded Stanford University psychologists in a study published last year.

Now, not everyone took experts’ advice. The more ________ people become, the smaller the pool of advisers they ________. Participants in positions of power ignored almost two thirds of the advice they received, according to one Harvard University study. Other participants—the control and low power groups—ignored advice about half as often. So it required a massive increase of modesty (谦虚) to do what Wade LeBlanc did: hear what the taxi driver was offering him and accept it as a(an) ________.

1.

A．excellent

B．struggling

C．ambitious

D．awkward

2.

A．surprised

B．concerned

C．disturbed

D．angered

3.

A．avoiding

B．making

C．trying

D．crossing

4.

A．player

B．director

C．joker

D．loser

5.

A．service

B．advice

C．chances

D．courses

6.

A．accepted

B．worried

C．smiled

D．laughed

7.

A．explained

B．interrupted

C．listened

D．guessed

8.

A．parents

B．coach

C．driver

D．fans

9.

A．changes

B．contributions

C．additions

D．objectives

10.

A．included

B．announced

C．suggested

D．resisted

11.

A．aim

B．effect

C．hobby

D．move

12.

A．patient

B．optimistic

C．brilliant

D．justified

13.

A．attractive

B．popular

C．humble

D．wrong

14.

A．overvalue

B．skip

C．ignore

D．involve

15.

A．identified

B．supported

C．opposed

D．started

16.

A．qualifications

B．benefits

C．prize

D．degree

17.

A．follow

B．abandon

C．provide

D．improve

18.

A．literary

B．successful

C．careful

D．negative

19.

A．tolerate

B．help

C．know

D．trust

20.

A．job

B．example

C．excuse

D．gift

4 . The small town of Allen Crossing, Indiana, has been the place I’ve called home for all 16 years of my life. That’s where I spend hours just ______. Looking at how the wind blows the wild flowers to create a magical ______ of color. Looking at the way insects move hurriedly among plants. The beauty of nature has always been what ______ me to create art. I used to think that artists get inspiration from ______. Then I went to New York and something happened that really made me ______ that idea.

I was offered two-week courses at an art college there. When I took the train to the college for the first time, I had some serious ______ about whether I had made the right choice about coming. I was so used to the ______ countryside. New York, however, was noisy and ______. People pushed past me to squeeze through the doors of the subway cars. Everything moved at such a ______ pace that I felt I had no time to process it all.

Art classes were another story. ______ I started making art, I felt like myself again. Working from memory, I made a series of drawings of natural scenes. “Your images are very ______ and accurate,” one teacher told me. “Why not try using brighter colors and bolder shapes and motions?” I followed her advice and was amazed at the ______.

One day my cousin Ken came to see my drawings. “Gosh! These are great! They remind me of graffiti (涂鸦).” He exclaimed.

I looked at my drawings and was ______.To me graffiti was not art, it was ____ messy, unreadable writing on walls.

“Cool,” Ken continued. “If you’re into art, you should come with me.” I followed him to a huge factory that was completely ______ with graffiti. The walls were covered with bright colors, portraits, words and calligraphy-like symbols. What I saw was art not unlike what I had been making. The big ______ was that the artists drew images from city life, such as crowded subway trains and tall, shiny buildings. In every sketch, there was a(n) ______ that reminded me of that first subway ride, only it was a creative one.

Now I know that ______ is different for everyone. What drives one person crazy can be the thing that drives another person to ______. I may not look at the city the way street artists do, but they may not see nature the way I do. I ______ the way the city’s energy inspires them. And now I use that energy wherever I am to create my own art.

1.

A．thinking

B．reading

C．looking

D．working

2.

A．note

B．moment

C．power

D．carpet

3.

A．leads

B．drives

C．forces

D．requires

4.

A．beauty

B．scenery

C．nature

D．imagination

5.

A．regret

B．develop

C．share

D．rethink

6.

A．doubts

B．problems

C．trouble

D．consideration

7.

A．remote

B．quiet

C．colorful

D．open

8.

A．unsafe

B．tough

C．dull

D．crowded

9.

A．steady

B．rapid

C．natural

D．leisure

10.

A．Although

B．Because

C．Once

D．Unless

11.

A．realistic

B．unique

C．clear

D．abstract

12.

A．attempt

B．choice

C．passion

D．change

13.

A．shocked

B．convinced

C．confused

D．amused

14.

A．just

B．still

C．even

D．yet

15.

A．coated

B．decorated

C．engaged

D．marked

16.

A．advantage

B．attraction

C．priority

D．difference

17.

A．clue

B．energy

C．style

D．element

18.

A．destination

B．ambition

C．inspiration

D．determination

19.

A．create

B．discover

C．progress

D．concern

20.

A．explore

B．respect

C．understand

D．follow

5 . This Too Shall Pass

When my family moved to Ohio over the summer, I feared attending another new school and knowing no one because I was able to expect what was coming. I had bright red hair and enormous glasses. In addition, I was_______and not very sociable.

Boarding the school bus that first day, I felt like all eyes on me. I could hear the_______“She’s huge!” Obviously, the kids on the bus had known each other well. I spent that first bus_______in silence.

The following day was even_______. I did not notice that a few boys had tied a shoelace across the aisle   and thus fell face first on the bus, _________everything I was carrying. _________I was embarrassingly gathering   my supplies, I could hear the laughter, and then the_______“That felt like an   earthquake!” Anyway,   I_______ to find a seat. Looking out of the window, I_______the tears welling up in my eyes.

It was then that I sank into myself. I began walking everywhere. I would wander through the woods behind our house. I would also walk to a________about two miles down the road, where I would chat silently   with myself. I began________the afternoon school bus on purpose, walking home instead. Then,________, I     started losing weight. And as I became content with myself, I began making________.

One of my newly-found friends also________with her weight, wanting to be a “perfect” cheerleader. She   lived near my neighborhood so we would meet and________together. This became a daily activity with talking and laughing________the way—different from the lonely walks I had taken. My friend said that I didn’t have     to be perfect. I just had to be me, and be happy with________.

While I would not want to________that time of loneliness, sadness and embarrassment, I am________I made it through. Whenever I am struggling with any other problem in life, I always remember the proverb “This too shall pass.” If you can find a path with no obstacles, it probably doesn’t________anywhere.

1.

A．outgoing

B．overweight

C．intelligent

D．friendly

2.

A．whisper

B．whistle

C．giggle

D．laugh

3.

A．drive

B．lift

C．ride

D．travel

4.

A．worse

B．longer

C．funnier

D．duller

5.

A．throwing

B．losing

C．leaving

D．dropping

6.

A．Though

B．While

C．Since

D．Because

7.

A．opinions

B．statements

C．comments

D．discussions

8.

A．determined

B．attempted

C．pretended

D．managed

9.

A．kept away

B．took back

C．put away

D．held back

10.

A．garden

B．market

C．church

D．library

11.

A．escaping

B．missing

C．delaying

D．stopping

12.

A．uninterestedly

B．uncertainly

C．unfortunately

D．unexpectedly

13.

A．changes

B．friends

C．efforts

D．decisions

14.

A．struggled

B．competed

C．dealt

D．lived

15.

A．run

B．play

C．chat

D．walk

16.

A．along

B．across

C．by

D．in

17.

A．oneself

B．myself

C．herself

D．itself

18.

A．relive

B．remind

C．relate

D．rethink

19.

A．excited

B．upset

C．proud

D．regretful

20.

A．exist

B．stretch

C．lead

D．stay

6 . 阅读下列短文，根据短文内容填空，在未给提示词的空白处仅填写 1 个适当的单词，在给出提示词的空白处用括号内所给词的正确形式填空。

Although it might not always feel like it, life is ridiculously short. It probably wouldn’t mean much or be worth much if it lasted forever.     1       it’s so short, with the limited time that you have, I recommend creating something worthwhile, and if you dare,     2       amazing. Think of your life as a major project, with a deadline. Every day, every week, month and year, you get the opportunity to     3       work on improving it piece by piece or sit back and watch it corrode        away. That’s life. At some point, you have to be improving just to stay where you are.

7 . Forgiving My Father

I grew up on a small farm. My father worked in the city as a welder (焊工). He was quiet, distant. He was a man made of leather and chewing tobacco who tried to teach me useful things, including respect. He also had a _______. I did not like him very much.

One day I came home from school. Once inside, I was told by my mother that he didn't feel well. His back hurt. Multiple myeloma, I _______, is a type of blood cancer. For the last year of my father's life, his entire day consisted of rising from his hospital bed in the living room and walking to his _______to sit and think. He was _______in that chair when I came home one day during the ninth grade. I do not remember where my mother and brother were, but the two of us were alone. He asked me to sit down.

What followed still _______me these decades later. He told me about his _______: his family growing up, what it was like in the Pacific during World War II, his loves, his heartbreaks. It was as if a pipe had _______, his inner self rushing out to me in a great flood. He had been speaking for maybe an hour or more when I realized that he was doing more than _______. He was asking to be _______. All it took was understanding that that was what he________, and I forgave everything, immediately.

When he died, I didn't ________to school for a few days. My biggest ________going back was gym class. It was poorly ________, and bullies ran the show. On my first day, I was standing there when a (an) ________voice yelled, ''Lensch! '' It was a guy who had given many of us a few lumps (包，肿块) over the years. I turned to face him and said, ''What do you want? '' The other boys didn’t say a word as they waited for the ________.

''I heard your dad died, '' he said. ''Is that true? ''

I quietly replied, ''Yes. ''

He didn't ________me. He didn't even move. Instead, he said, ''I'm sorry. ''

I was________. I'm sure I cried. Those two words are how I have remembered that kid ever since. What do you do when your ''enemies'' reveal that they are also ________? I think you either forgive and move ________or hold on to resentment (怨恨)and live in the past. I'm certainly not glad that my father got________, but at the same time, I realize that if he hadn't, I might never have come to love him.

1.

A．temper

B．taste

C．fame

D．nerve

2.

A．meant

B．doubted

C．learned

D．felt

3.

A．bench

B．chair

C．bedroom

D．balcony

4.

A．predictably

B．acceptably

C．hopefully

D．surprisingly

5.

A．touches

B．annoys

C．educates

D．encourages

6.

A．life

B．career

C．youth

D．achievement

7.

A．burst

B．leaked

C．moved

D．frozen

8.

A．teaching

B．telling

C．supporting

D．complaining

9.

A．known

B．forgiven

C．mistaken

D．forgotten

10.

A．found

B．received

C．needed

D．escaped

11.

A．contribute

B．adapt

C．head

D．return

12.

A．relief

B．favor

C．lesson

D．fear

13.

A．understood

B．prepared

C．regulated

D．attracted

14.

A．angry

B．warning

C．pitying

D．familiar

15.

A．defeat

B．quarrel

C．miracle

D．fight

16.

A．punish

B．beat

C．disappoint

D．scold

17.

A．frustrated

B．shocked

C．thrilled

D．frightened

18.

A．classmates

B．friends

C．humans

D．families

19.

A．backward

B．away

C．around

D．forward

20.

A．depressed

B．hurt

C．sick

D．lost

8 . Never Say Quit

In my twenty-five years of coaching, I encountered many extraordinary athletes. Yet the athlete who made the greatest impression on me wasn't one of those promising young men, but Bobby Colson.

Early in the season, Bobby, who looked heavy but strong, ____ me in the school hallway. He told me he was eager to join in our track team and believed he could make an important ____. I was deeply_____by his presentation and self-confidence.

Given his physique, the logical role for Bobby was that of a "weight man”. So he did his best in trying discus(铁饼), shot pot…, only to find out these events were not ____ for him at all. So Bobby intended to try another more difficult event: two-mile race. I admired Bobby's ____, but to myself, I questioned whether the two-mile race was a good choice. Yet Bobby was ____ and for the following weeks, he painfully but____ struggled through his workouts.

Three months later, the two-mile race was well underway. While all the other runners had already finished, Bobby ____ had three laps to go. As Bobby completed his last two of his ____ laps, several boys from the other teams started making fun of him and ____ at him to get off the track. Bobby was crying noticeably but kept going. At this moment, our team members noticed and went to ____ Bobby on. On the last lap, all our athletes stood up to cheer Bobby on. Imagine a moving sight: Our whole team lined up ____ the track, clapping and cheering for Bobby as tears ____down his face.

After that, Bobby put in effort to support his teammates. He went from event to event ____ his teammates. When one of our athletes took a first place, Bobby was even more excited than the winner. Every teammate ____him very much and felt lucky to have him in the team.

Bobby had been right when he told me he felt he could make a significant contribution. He had joined a good team and made it into a great ____.Since then, I've seen many top athletes ____ the track when they knew they weren't going to win a race. Bobby, on the contrary, never once ____ leaving that two-mile race. Once he___, quitting was not an option. His example helped us all to understand that talent is God given, and those who have it should be thankful, but the spirit of ____ is self-given, and we should value it.

1.

A．waved

B．informed

C．limited

D．stopped

2.

A．appearance

B．promise

C．contribution

D．influence

3.

A．impressed

B．frightened

C．puzzled

D．embarrassed

4.

A．satisfactory

B．challenging

C．suitable

D．attractive

5.

A．enthusiasm

B．generosity

C．achievement

D．cooperation

6.

A．worried

B．confused

C．determined

D．hesitated

7.

A．cautiously

B．proudly

C．secretly

D．diligently

8.

A．still

B．already

C．ever

D．rather

9.

A．spare

B．remaining

C．extra

D．additional

10.

A．crying

B．throwing

C．shouting

D．criticizing

11.

A．pull

B．assist

C．drive

D．urge

12.

A．over

B．around

C．with

D．beyond

13.

A．rolled

B．paved

C．covered

D．measured

14.

A．convincing

B．appreciating

C．competing

D．encouraging

15.

A．envied

B．loved

C．respected

D．believed

16.

A．family

B．organization

C．institution

D．system

17.

A．check out

B．give off

C．walk off

D．carry out

18.

A．supposed

B．considered

C．imagined

D．concerned

19.

A．proved

B．realized

C．discovered

D．started

20.

A．bravery

B．unity

C．perseverance

D．devotion

9 . 阅读下列短文，根据短文内容填空。在未给提示词的空白处仅填写1个适当的单词，在给出提示词的空白处用括号内所给词的正确形式填空。

You are never too old to go after your dreams. Many people don’t let age stop them. If they want to do something, they just do it. For example, Gladys Burrill ran her first marathon at 86. She became famous when she     1     (finish) the Honolulu Marathon (檀香山马拉松). She was 92 then. Life is about change, so don’t be afraid to take your     2     (one) step. It is easy after you do that. So, stop     3     (think) about your dreams, and start doing something about them.

10 . Poet William Stafford once said that we are defined more by the detours (绕行路) in life than by the narrow road toward goals. I like this image. But it was quite by accident that I discovered the deep meaning of his words.

For years we made the long drive from our home in Seattle to my parents' home in Boise in nine hours. We traveled the way most people do: the fastest, shortest easiest road, especially when I was alone with four noisy, restless kids who hates confinement (限制) and have strong opinions about everything.

Road trips felt risky, so I would drive fast, stopping only when I had to. We would stick to the freeways and arrive tired.

But then Banner, our lamb was born. He was rejected by his mama days before our planned trip to Boise. I had two choices: leave Banner with my husband, or take him with me. My husband made the decision for me.

That is how I found myself on the road with four kids, a baby lamb and nothing but my everlasting optimism to see me through. We took the country roads out of necessity. We had to stop every hour, let Banner shake out his legs and feed him. The kids chased him and one another. They'd get back in the car breathless and energized, smelling fresh from the cold air.

We explored side roads, catching grasshoppers in waist-high grass. Even if we simply looked out of the car windows at baby pigs following their mother, or fish leaping out of the water, it was better than the best ride down the freeway. Here was life. And new horizons.

We eventually arrived at my parents' doorstep astonishingly fresh and full of stories.

I grew brave with the trip back home and creative with my disciplining technique. On an empty section of road, everyone started quarreling. I stopped the car, ordered all kids out and told them to meet me up ahead. I parked my car half a mile away and read my book in sweet silence.

Some road trips are by necessity fast and straight. But that trip with Banner opened our eyes to a world available to anyone adventurous enough to wander around and made me realize that a detour may uncover the best part of a journey-and the best part of yourself.

1. Why did the author use to take freeways to her parents' home?

A．It was less tiring.

B．It would be faster and safer.

C．Her kids would feel less confined.

D．She felt better with other drivers nearby.

2. What does the author discover from the trip according to Paragraph 6?

A．Freeways are where beauty hides.

B．Getting close to nature adds to the joy of life

C．Enjoying the beauty of nature benefits one's health

D．One should follow side roads to watch wild animals

3. Why did the author ask the kids to get out of the car on their way back home?

A．To give herself some time to read.

B．To order some food for them.

C．To play a game with them.

D．To let them cool down.

4. What could be the best title for the passage?

A．Charm of the Detour

B．The Road to Bravery

C．Creativity out of Necessity

D．Road trip and Country Life