1 . When I was growing up, I had an old neighbor named Doctor Gibbs. He didn’t look like any doctor I’d ever known. He never yelled at us for playing in his yard, but was always very kind.

When Doctor Gibbs wasn’t saving lives, he was planting trees. He had some interesting theories about planting trees. He hardly watered his new trees, an attitude which flew in the face of conventional wisdom.

Once I asked why and he told me that watering plants spoiled them because it made them grow weaker. He said he had to make things tough for the trees so that only the strongest could survive. He talked about how watering trees made them develop shallow roots and how, if they were not watered, trees would grow deep roots in search of water.

So, instead of watering his trees every morning, he’d beat them with a rolled-up newspaper. I asked him why he did that, and he said it was to get the trees’ attention.

Doctor Gibbs died a couple of years after I left home. Every now and then, I walked by his house and looked at the trees that I'd watched him plant some 25 years ago. They were tall and strong.

Every night before I go to bed, I check on my two sons. I often pray that their lives will be easy. But lately I’ve been thinking that it’s time to change my prayer. I know my children are going to encounter hardship. There’s always a cold wind blowing somewhere. What we need to do is to pray for deep roots, so when the rains fall and the winds blow, we won’t be torn apart.

1. What did the author think of Doctor Gibbs’s planting trees at first?

A．Perfect .	B．Puzzled.
C．Amused.	D．Impractical .

2. What did Doctor Gibbs do to the trees he planted?

A．He let them grow quickly.

B．He beat them to get their attention.

C．He helped them search for water.

D．He read a newspaper near them.

3. Which of the following can best describe Doctor Gibbs?

A．Kind and wise.	B．Calm and brave.
C．Careful and ambitious	D．Strict and devoted.

4. What does the author learn from Doctor Gibbs?

A．Elders are treasures.

B．Two heads are better than one.

C．A man without distant care must have near sorrow.

D．Only those who bear the most become the highest.

2 . My daughter was being thrown out of the sixth grade. The teacher said, “She may not be up to what we’re trying to accomplish.” He was really saying she didn’t have the intelligence. I got mad because I knew she was smart, just as my father had known I was smart when I was failing in school. We had her tested. I decided to get myself tested as well, and found that the troubles she was having were exactly what I had had — dyslexia. By then I was a successful television writer, and had won an Emmy Award for “The Rockford Files.”

If I had known earlier that something beyond my control could explain why I was a low achiever, I may not have worked so hard in my late 20s and early 30s. I was writing and writing. I was working for no other reason than to hear people praise me, because I did badly in all my courses.

I once asked a friend who had always gotten an A, “How long did you study for this?” He said, “I didn’t. I just glanced at it.” So he must be smarter. I began to ask, “What will happen to me when I’m not good at anything?” Despite my doubts, I did become successful, and people now say to me, “So you’ve overcome dyslexia.”

No. You don’t overcome it, you learn to compensate for it. Some easy things are very hard for me. Most people who go through college read twice as fast as I do. I avoid dialing a phone if I can, because I sometimes have to try three times to get the number right.

Despite my weaknesses I view dyslexia as a gift, not a curse (诅咒). Many dyslexics are good at right-brain, abstract thought, and that’s what my kind of creative writing is. And I can write quickly, and can get up to 15 pages a day. Writing is my strength.

The real fear I have for dyslexic children is not they have to struggle in school, but that they will quit on themselves before they get out of school. Parents have to create victories for them, whether it’s music, sports or art. You can make your dyslexic child able to say, “Yeah, reading is hard. But I have other things I can do.”

1. The writer decided to get himself tested as well because he________.

A．wanted to know if they had the same problem

B．didn’t believe his daughter had the problem

C．had to take a regular medical examination

D．accepted that his daughter was not smart

2. We can learn from the second paragraph that the writer________.

A．struggled and got better grades

B．didn’t work hard when he was young

C．was praised for overcoming dyslexia

D．was thankful not knowing of dyslexia earlier

3. According to the passage, a dyslexic person________.

A．is less intelligent	B．always fails in school
C．reads more slowly than normal people	D．performs worse in left-brain activities

4. What can we learn from the story?

A．Clumsy birds have to start flying early.	B．God shuts one door but opens another.
C．Never judge a person by his appearance.	D．No one can make a good coat with bad cloth.

3 . When I was in primary school, I got into a major argument with a boy in my class. I can't _______ what it was about, but I have never forgotten the _______ I learned that day.

I was _______ that I was right and he was wrong but he strongly believed that I was wrong and he was right. Our _______ decided to teach us a very important lesson and _______ a good idea. She ________ both of us up to the front of the class and placed him on one side of her desk and me on ________. In the middle of her desk was a large, round object. I could ________ see that it was black. She asked the boy what ________ the object was. "White," he answered in a ________ voice. I couldn't believe he said the object was white, ________ it was obviously black! Another ________ started between my classmate and me, this _______ about the color of the object.

The teacher told me to go to stand where the boy was standing and told him to come to stand where I had been. We changed ________, and now she asked me what the color of the object was. I ________ answer, "White." It was then ________ I realized I was wrong. In fact, it was an object with two _________ colored sides, and from his side it was white, ________ from my side was the color black.

My teacher taught me a very important lesson that day: You must ________ yourself in the other person's shoes and look at the ________ through their eyes in order to truly understand their view.

1.

A．think

B．remember

C．forget

D．determine

2.

A．class

B．speech

C．text

D．lesson

3.

A．convinced

B．informed

C．warned

D．regretted

4.

A．doctor

B．parent

C．partner

D．teacher

5.

A．kept up with

B．went on with

C．came up with

D．got along with

6.

A．woke

B．brought

C．advised

D．came

7.

A．the other

B．other

C．another

D．others

8.

A．clearly

B．happily

C．casually

D．cautiously

9.

A．height

B．colour

C．size

D．shape

10.

A．sweet

B．loud

C．fearful

D．grateful

11.

A．for

B．unless

C．if

D．although

12.

A．match

B．fight

C．argument

D．conversation

13.

A．day

B．time

C．chance

D．month

14.

A．desks

B．seats

C．attitudes

D．places

15.

A．hoped to

B．needed to

C．had to

D．was able to

16.

A．when

B．before

C．that

D．since

17.

A．loosely

B．frequently

C．differently

D．surprisingly

18.

A．or

B．and

C．but

D．so

19.

A．sit

B．live

C．lie

D．put

20.

A．performance

B．movement

C．effort

D．situation

4 . Advice for Graduates

Thank you for letting me share this wonderful day with you. The next part of my speech consists of some advice, which is rarely valued, seldom remembered, never followed. As Oscar Wilde said,     1     So, here comes the advice.

First, every time you celebrate an achievement,     2     Thank your parents and friends who supported you, thank your professors who were inspirational, and especially thank the other professors whose less-than brilliant lectures forced you to teach yourself. To your fellow students who have added immeasurably to your education during those late night discussions, hug them.

Second, in your future life, cultivate a generous spirit.     3     Leave the change on the table. In a successful cooperation, everybody gets 90 percent of the profit.

My third piece of advice is as follows: As you begin this new stage of your lives, follow your passion. If you don’t have a passion，don’t be satisfied until you find one.     4     When I was your age, I was incredibly single-minded in my goal to be a physicist. After college, I spent eight years as a graduate student and postdoc at Berkeley, and then nine years at Bell Labs. During that my time, my central focus and professional joy was physics.

Here is my final advice. Pursuing a personal passion is important, but it should not be your only goal. When you are old and gray, and look back on your life, you will want to be proud of what you have done. The source of that pride won’t be the things you have acquired or the recognition you have received.     5    

A．It will be the lives you have touched and the difference you have made.

B．In all negotiations, don’t bargain for the last, little advantage.

C．“I like to do all the talking myself. It saves time, and prevents arguments.”

D．“The only thing to do with good advice is to pass it on. It is never of any use to oneself.”

E．Life is too short to go through it without caring deeply about something.

F．be thankful to those who made it possible.

G．Change your manners when you are dealing with others.

5 . “God, give us thankful hearts for these and for all our many blessings.” That was the _________ my father, an East Texas farmer, said over every meal.

Pa passed away long ago, but I try to ______ his example every day. The year we spent Thanksgiving at our home on Lake Tawakoni was such a ______. I was preparing a dinner party for the day. I opened the oven, put in our huge ______ and tried to turn on the old oven. It took just a few minutes for me to ______ that the heating had failed. I only had a few hours ________family members and special friends were going to arrive with side dishes, so I called my neighbor Lois and explained my problem.

Lois just ______ and said, “Honey, you bring that turkey to my house. We’ll have it cooked in no time. ”

With a sigh of ______, I put the roasting pan into the car and ______ across the road. Lois babysat the big bird while I returned to the lake house and ______ a festive table. While the turkey was cooked in her oven, I gave special ______ for kind neighbors. Our family arrived. We_______ before our meal, stood in a ______ and prayed. Some people mentioned things for which they were ______ thankful and others stood in ______ silence. The tissue box made its way around the circle as some of us began to ______ — a sign of joy rather than sorrow.

When the last of the food was ______ off the table, I took a deep breath. A Thanksgiving prayer is easy for me when things are going well, but sometimes it ______ extra courage to give thanks when I am sad or when something unforeseen ______ my plans — even a broken oven.

Then I stopped to ______ Pa and the many times I heard him say, “God, give us thankful hearts for these and for all our many blessings.” I want that to be my prayer, too.

1.

A．complaint

B．wish

C．prayer

D．dream

2.

A．follow

B．copy

C．set

D．contain

3.

A．dinner

B．party

C．process

D．time

4.

A．meal

B．turkey

C．roast

D．beef

5.

A．realize

B．predict

C．admit

D．assume

6.

A．until

B．before

C．since

D．after

7.

A．laughed

B．yelled

C．screamed

D．nodded

8.

A．belief

B．surprise

C．relief

D．doubt

9.

A．walked

B．moved

C．toured

D．drove

10.

A．painted

B．bought

C．prepared

D．borrowed

11.

A．tasks

B．dishes

C．prizes

D．thanks

12.

A．paused

B．discussed

C．hesitated

D．quarreled

13.

A．line

B．circle

C．row

D．room

14.

A．hardly

B．seriously

C．particularly

D．casually

15.

A．joyful

B．careful

C．respectful

D．sorrowful

16.

A．cry

B．smile

C．cheer

D．sing

17.

A．knocked

B．dropped

C．kicked

D．swept

18.

A．needs

B．takes

C．wants

D．loses

19.

A．monitors

B．ruins

C．adjusts to

D．keeps to

20.

A．call up

B．turn to

C．bring back

D．reflect on

6 . The story I’m going to tell you happened two years ago when I was in high school in Poland. I came to school early on a sunny day, ____ I felt that there was something wrong. Students from my class were behaving ____.

I noticed that Tom was absent from school that day. Later, I ____ what happened. Tom had got sick and he had lung cancer, a very serious disease. It was _____ for my friends and me. I couldn’t believe that this had happened to him. He was so ____ and he was good at sports.

____ he had lung cancer, so he had to have an operation. It was successful. After that, he returned to school and felt very good. Twice a month he went back to the ____ for medical examinations just to make sure that everything was going well.

One day, the doctors noticed that the cancer had ____ to his brain. When I heard this ____, I felt like bursting into tears, “God, why do you do this, it is not ____.”

A lot of my friends ____ their faith and hope, and they even thought that there was no ____ for him to live, but he was strong. Tom was eager to live, and he said: “No way, I’m not going to ____. I will fight!”

The doctors made another operation on his brain. The operation ____ well and now he feels great and everything is fine. From Tom’s ____, I learned that whatever happens in our lives, we can’t give up or lose heart.

1.

A．so

B．but

C．for

D．and

2.

A．strangely

B．interestingly

C．naturally

D．impatiently

3.

A．spoke out

B．pointed out

C．worked out

D．found out

4.

A．disappointing

B．frightening

C．shocking

D．amusing

5.

A．kind

B．humorous

C．clever

D．healthy

6.

A．Therefore

B．Thus

C．Besides

D．Anyhow

7.

A．stadium

B．hospital

C．school

D．home

8.

A．adapted

B．crashed

C．turned

D．moved

9.

A．research

B．evidence

C．idea

D．information

10.

A．fair

B．perfect

C．honest

D．reliable

11.

A．held

B．lost

C．rebuilt

D．kept

12.

A．need

B．wonder

C．chance

D．doubt

13.

A．give off

B．give up

C．give out

D．give in

14.

A．went

B．observed

C．command

D．charged

15.

A．misfortune

B．achievement

C．accident

D．experience

7 . Snowy was a beautiful little horse. Since she was born she has wanted to be a show jumping horse. Every day she would ______her mum to allow her to ______. Finally, her mum decided that she was ______ enough and they went into the jumping arena(竞技场).

Snowy was very ______, but when she saw how _____ the jumps were, she started shaking. “I can’t jump that high. It’s good idea that we ______,” she said. Her mum said, “I wouldn’t expect you to ________ that high. There’s a log(原木) on the ground. Why don’t you start jumping over that?” Snowy gathered(积聚) her ______, walked to the log and then ______ to jump over it.

“I did it!” she shouted happily. Soon Snowy developed good ______ in jumping over logs.

____, her mum said, “You can’t just jump over logs ______ you want to be a show jumper.

____ the low jump over there.”

Again, Snowy was ______, but she tried it and found she could do it. As time went on, Snowy progressed to taller jumps, until finally she ______ the arena and looked at the tallest jumps.

Over the past few weeks, something had ______. These jumps seemed much less ______ to Snowy. She jumped over them easily. Her mum looked with ______ at her and said, “This is what happens when you start ______ and build your way up.”

So never be afraid of ______ in life, but start small and keep trying. Then you’ll be able to do anything.

1.

A．ask

B．warn

C．force

D．advise

2.

A．sing

B．dance

C．jump

D．run

3.

A．old

B．fat

C．clever

D．careful

4.

A．moved

B．bored

C．satisfied

D．excited

5.

A．deep

B．high

C．long

D．far

6.

A．wait

B．leave

C．stay

D．settle

7.

A．see

B．stop

C．start

D．arrive

8.

A．speed

B．power

C．doubt

D．courage

9.

A．managed

B．expected

C．agreed

D．happened

10.

A．habits

B．skills

C．senses

D．styles

11.

A．Suddenly

B．Immediately

C．However

D．Besides

12.

A．although

B．unless

C．until

D．if

13.

A．Remember

B．Try

C．Carry

D．Study

14.

A．nervous

B．happy

C．upset

D．serious

15.

A．missed

B．liked

C．entered

D．needed

16.

A．appeared

B．changed

C．begun

D．continued

17.

A．dangerous

B．important

C．familiar

D．terrible

18.

A．pride

B．anger

C．patience

D．kindness

19.

A．early

B．young

C．small

D．smart

20.

A．failures

B．worries

C．uncertainties

D．difficulties

8 . When I was in primary school, I got into a major argument with a boy in my class. I can't _______what it was about, but I have never forgotten the ______ I learned that day.

I was _______ that I was right and he was wrong but he strongly believed that I was wrong and he was right. Our _______ decided to teach us a very important lesson and _______ a good idea. She ________ both of us up to the front of the class and placed him on one side of her desk and me on ________. In the middle of her desk was a large, round object. I could ________ see that it was black. She asked the boy what ________ the object was. "White," he answered in a ________ voice. I couldn't believe he said the object was white, ________ it was obviously black! Another ________ started between my classmate and me, this _______ about the color of the object.

The teacher told me to go to stand where the boy was standing and told him to come to stand where I had been. We changed ________, and now she asked me what the color of the object was. I ________ answer, "White." It was then ________ I realized I was wrong. In fact, it was an object with two _________ colored sides, and from his side it was white, ________ from my side was the color black.

My teacher taught me a very important lesson that day: You must ________ yourself in the other person's shoes and look at the ________ through their eyes in order to truly understand their view.

1.

A．think

B．remember

C．forget

D．determine

2.

A．class

B．speech

C．text

D．lesson

3.

A．sure

B．glad

C．afraid

D．upset

4.

A．doctor

B．parent

C．partner

D．teacher

5.

A．kept up with

B．went on with

C．came up with

D．got along with

6.

A．woke

B．brought

C．advised

D．came

7.

A．the other

B．other

C．another

D．others

8.

A．clearly

B．happily

C．luckily

D．nearly

9.

A．height

B．colour

C．size

D．shape

10.

A．sweet

B．loud

C．fearful

D．grateful

11.

A．for

B．unless

C．if

D．although

12.

A．match

B．fight

C．argument

D．conversation

13.

A．day

B．time

C．chance

D．month

14.

A．desks

B．seats

C．attitudes

D．places

15.

A．hoped to

B．needed to

C．had to

D．was able to

16.

A．when

B．before

C．that

D．since

17.

A．loosely

B．frequently

C．differently

D．surprisingly

18.

A．or

B．and

C．but

D．so

19.

A．sit

B．live

C．lie

D．put

20.

A．performance

B．movement

C．effort

D．situation

9 . Life will be peaceful if you always do kind things. I teach my daughters to develop a habit of _______ others. The little acts of _______ give you opportunities to provide service for others. They can make you remember how _______ it feels to be kind and helpful.

We _______ in a rural (乡村的) area. Most of what we _______ is beautiful nature. One of the exceptions to the _______ is the rubbish that some people throw out of their car windows as they drive along the rural roads. One of the few _______ of living there is the lack of _______ public services, such as rubbish collection, which is common in the _______.

A helping behavior that I practice regularly with my daughters is __________ rubbish in our neighborhood. My daughters often have a match to see who can collect the most rubbish. They will often say to me in a(n) __________ voice, “There’s some rubbish, Daddy —__________ the car!” And if we have time, we will often get out of our car and pick it up. __________ it may seem strange, we do it. In fact, we __________it. We pick up rubbish in parks, on sidewalks, almost anywhere.

One day I saw a stranger picking up rubbish on the road. I stopped. He __________ his head and smiled, “I saw you doing this with your family. It’s a good __________ to protect our environment.”

There are many other ways to __________ kindness for others. You may share a dinner with a beggar, visit __________ old people in the nursing home, or help the blind __________ the street. You can think of something that can be finished __________ but helpful. It is fun, self­satisfying, and what’s more, it can set a good example. Helping others is helping yourself.

1.

A．watching

B．welcoming

C．helping

D．teaching

2.

A．kindness

B．peace

C．cruelty

D．interest

3.

A．sad

B．unusual

C．rare

D．great

4.

A．work

B．live

C．travel

D．stay

5.

A．see

B．dream

C．need

D．develop

6.

A．environment

B．beauty

C．area

D．weather

7.

A．favorites

B．disadvantages

C．wishes

D．mercy

8.

A．comfortable

B．modern

C．necessary

D．excellent

9.

A．city

B．village

C．sky

D．street

10.

A．looking for

B．picking up

C．taking apart

D．laughing at

11.

A．surprised

B．tired

C．excited

D．angry

12.

A．speed

B．start

C．move

D．stop

13.

A．Although

B．But

C．And

D．Since

14.

A．enjoy

B．experience

C．forget

D．understand

15.

A．covered

B．lowered

C．shook

D．raised

16.

A．sport

B．idea

C．result

D．question

17.

A．provide

B．debate

C．describe

D．make

18.

A．amazing

B．fancy

C．healthy

D．lonely

19.

A．clean

B．cross

C．deserve

D．draw

20.

A．suddenly

B．impossibly

C．easily

D．hardly

10 . “Are you going to the audition (试镜)?” Someone asked Connie, as we came out of ballet class.

“What audition?” I asked.

“Oh, nothing,” said Connie. “It’s for The Ed Sullivan Show. You wouldn’t be _______.”

The Ed Sullivan Show was a famous one-hour show on CBS. They constantly needed performers for their new shows. This time they were looking for six dancers to support the star performer Jimmy Durante.

“Why not? I’d love to go!” I _______.

Connie smiled at me and said, “I don’t think you are _______ yet, Eva.”

Later that night, I couldn’t fall asleep. It _______ me. Who said I shouldn’t go to the audition? Only because I was a young novice (新手)? How would I know if I didn’t try?

The next morning, I _______ I was going to the audition. I packed my dancing shoes, and put on bright red lipstick. As I looked at my _______ in the mirror, I saw one thing missing. I put on a smile.

I took the subway to the Eighth Avenue and walked to the rehearsal studio. I _______ and took my place nervously.

Connie and five of my other friends were there. “What are you doing here?” one asked.

I said simply, “Well, I have nothing to lose by _______.”

The look I got said, “Okay. _______.”

The audition began. All the other dancers had confident but expressions. I had a smile. ________

More and more dancers were knocked out. I was still there with my friends. Then we were asked to do a jeté en l’air ________: stand on one leg, kick the other one up and out as close to a split as possible, and then do a turn in the air. Hopefully, you’d land on both feet.

All the other candidates did the jeté beautifully. It was my turn. I took the preparatory step, and with that never-ending smile, I leaped up into the air, turned in mid-air and ________ flat on my back. But even then, the smile never ________ my face.

When everything settled down, my friends were instructed to go to the right. When I was told to go to the left, their faces told they felt ________ for me.

I picked up my belongings and prepared to leave when the choreographer called out to me, “Where are you going? You’ve got the ________if you want it.”

Did I want it? I certainly did. I thought I had been ________!

There were no jetés in the ________. I made my first appearance on national TV. I never stopped ________, and I always landed on my feet.

Had I not believed I could do it, and had I not tried, I would have ________ out on a thoroughly enjoyable experience.

It proved once again that a smile will get one ________ than a frown ever will.

1.

A．qualified

B．interested

C．available

D．suitable

2.

A．declared

B．complained

C．requested

D．suggested

3.

A．stable

B．flexible

C．ready

D．mature

4.

A．inspired

B．bothered

C．discouraged

D．shocked

5.

A．admitted

B．promised

C．confirmed

D．decided

6.

A．costume

B．shadow

C．reflection

D．reaction

7.

A．called in

B．signed in

C．logged in

D．joined in

8.

A．consulting

B．fighting

C．training

D．trying

9.

A．Whoever

B．Whatever

C．Wherever

D．Whenever

10.

A．delighted

B．proud

C．impatient

D．serious

11.

A．immediately

B．formally

C．gradually

D．individually

12.

A．landed

B．stayed

C．lay

D．hung

13.

A．approached

B．changed

C．left

D．covered

14.

A．puzzled

B．relieved

C．nervous

D．sorry

15.

A．job

B．gift

C．dance

D．reward

16.

A．dismissed

B．cheated

C．rejected

D．ignored

17.

A．show

B．contest

C．interview

D．play

18.

A．smiling

B．acting

C．laughing

D．leaping

19.

A．stood

B．taken

C．missed

D．come

20.

A．freer

B．further

C．faster

D．fitter