1 . Instead of being a pacing-up time, winter is a locking-down time. Winter frees us in all sorts of ways.

I once had a neighbor named Earl. An old-timer and a self-made man, he _________ told me stories about Maine winters in the past. He suggested he had _________ the ice age. He backed up his old stories with _________ of old black-and-white photographs of heavy snowstorms that piled up to second-floor windows and completely _________ cars.

And I’ll never _________ what he said as an end to one of his stories, “A man couldn’t get much done once the snow came.” So what did he do once the snow came? He spent a great deal of time _________ to home and hearth, where he _________ the wood stove, sat with his wife, made pots of coffee, and read by the fire.

As I write these words I occasionally raise my head to _________ the window at the woodpile stacked (堆), the garden harvested, the apple tree _________, the lawn mowed, and the bicycle shed newly roofed.

As I tended to all those things, when did I have time to __________?

Some years ago a friend sent me a quote by Socrates that I try to be mindful of: Beware the fruitlessness of a __________ life.

The advice __________ me to look forward to the coming of winter, because I’ve finally learned that it is a slowing-down time, a gift of rest, a (n) __________ to acknowledge that most of the outdoor work that could be done has been done.

A friend of mine who lives in the Southeast recently called. In the course of our __________ he celebrated the climate where he lives, which __________ him to work outside year-round. “I’m always on the go.” he told me.

But I think I need a good time of winter.

1.

A．gradually

B．excitedly

C．angrily

D．unwillingly

2.

A．struggled

B．explored

C．survived

D．celebrated

3.

A．laughter

B．evidence

C．expectation

D．patience

4.

A．buried

B．struck

C．destroyed

D．supported

5.

A．realize

B．forget

C．recall

D．learn

6.

A．designing

B．improving

C．fixing

D．tending

7.

A．bought

B．controlled

C．built

D．filled

8.

A．look at

B．watch over

C．glance out

D．glare at

9.

A．picked

B．cut

C．planted

D．fell

10.

A．settle

B．arrange

C．work

D．breathe

11.

A．busy

B．happy

C．creative

D．special

12.

A．demanded

B．taught

C．appointed

D．assisted

13.

A．amazement

B．surroundings

C．opportunity

D．ability

14.

A．convenience

B．appearance

C．contribution

D．conversation

15.

A．employs

B．forces

C．enables

D．saves

2 . My photographs are the items I would definitely take or guard in case of an emergency. But what else? This was the question I asked myself as a ________ came toward us.

Unlike some friends and________, we decided to stay in our home. We didn’t have to choose what we would save by ________ it into the car, but we still had to decide what required protection by storing it in our walk-in closet. Surprisingly, few items made the cut - an obvious ________ that we had surrounded ourselves with beautiful yet unessential items. We needed ________ for the truly important things: ourselves.

Because when you hear the roar of the winds, or when something ________ hard against your windows, you don’t think of photos.You don’t worry about your big screen TV, or those paintings you’ve covered with towels to protect them, or that ________ car that you still haven’t finished paying for.

As ________ goes on outside, this is what you think: My children, are they OK? Are their impact-resistant(耐冲击的) windows working ________? Are their roofs keeping out the damage? My grandchildren, are they crying out in fear? Are they ________ as their own grandparents are? My relatives — yes, even those I try to avoid — have they ________ the worst of it? My friends, will they be forced to move somewhere else permanently? You don’t think about what you own but about what you love; what money can’t buy back.

Months and years after the hurricane, I often told people that there are two parts to ________ this kind of catastrophe: the horror of the hurricane itself and then the rebuilding that follows. The ________ together of a life, however, will take months, perhaps years.

But we will do it, ________ and as a community. Of that I have no doubt. In fact, I’ll make one more prediction. Piece by piece, item by item, we will once again collect the material possessions that decorate a home. I hate to admit this, but lessons learned ________ fear aren’t always long-lasting.

1.

A．flood

B．drought

C．wildfire

D．hurricane

2.

A．hosts

B．partners

C．relatives

D．architects

3.

A．applying

B．packing

C．exchanging

D．delivering

4.

A．sign

B．gap

C．clue

D．summary

5.

A．kit

B．gym

C．space

D．greenhouse

6.

A．rests

B．erupts

C．carves

D．cracks

7.

A．cheap

B．expensive

C．graceful

D．economic

8.

A．destruction

B．appreciation

C．challenge

D．determination

9.

A．as usual

B．as follows

C．as scheduled

D．as promised

10.

A．annoyed

B．amazed

C．confused

D．frightened

11.

A．escaped

B．protested

C．identified

D．processed

12.

A．causing

B．preventing

C．surviving

D．suffering

13.

A．cutting out

B．putting back

C．giving up

D．working out

14.

A．devotedly

B．creatively

C．individually

D．dependently

15.

A．in favor of

B．in times of

C．in need of

D．in search of

3 . It might sound a bit old-fashioned, but there’s something unique about handwritten things. And I’m a real believer in the_______of letters.

When I was about 12 years old, my friends and I wanted a pet mouse. The pet shop wouldn’t_______us one until we had a letter from a parent, so, having the tidiest_______, I faked(伪)one.

My trick was quickly_______. My mum felt that the punishment should fit the crime, so she made me write letters to a few randomly selected_______.

One of them was my uncle who I’d only_______a few times. I wrote along letter_______my life and listing my interests.

My punishment_______, I forgot about this until I suddenly got a reply from him. He told me all about his life and would love to_______about what school subjects I enjoyed. And so started a correspondence(通信)that________for several years.

Then out of the blue, he passed away. My mum was________as they had not really spoken for years. I went upstairs and presented a box of________from him. She comforted herself reading them and knowing that ________she hadn’t been in touch, I had grown close to him by writing to him.

I often think about how that one________childhood behavior led to such an enriching correspondence. It________me-to write to lots of other people, and it’s something I keep up with to this day.

1.

A．content

B．advance

C．order

D．power

2.

A．sell

B．pay

C．give

D．offer

3.

A．handwriting

B．room

C．hand

D．habit

4.

A．admired

B．exchanged

C．discovered

D．solved

5.

A．strangers

B．neighbors

C．relatives

D．friends

6.

A．ignored

B．met

C．recognized

D．thanked

7.

A．detailing

B．organizing

C．improving

D．wasting

8.

A．reasonable

B．complete

C．serious

D．efficient

9.

A．think

B．care

C．hear

D．argue

10.

A．went on

B．ended up

C．got over

D．turned up

11.

A．concerned

B．upset

C．angry

D．calm

12.

A．chocolates

B．books

C．puddings

D．letters

13.

A．after

B．although

C．because

D．if

14.

A．meaningful

B．frank

C．unique

D．improper

15.

A．advised

B．required

C．encouraged

D．warned

4 . 阅读下面材料，根据其内容和所给段落开头语续写两段，使之构成一篇完整的短文。

My Own Label

It seemed to me that I had two different identities when I was in fifth grade. Outside of school, I was a reasonably happy kid who enjoyed spending time with my friends, reading or listening to rock music. When I was in class, however, I turned into a very different Denise, one who was on guard all the time, and one who wanted nothing more than to get through the day without being teased.

To my classmates I was strange, because I wasn’t just like them. The most obvious thing they focused on was that I didn’t wear the same designer clothes as they did. Designer clothes were beyond my family’s reach. My mother was a single parent, and she worked long hours to support our small household. As far as love and attention were concerned, I was rich beyond all imagination. I was supported and cared for. The only thing that my classmates cared for was fashion, though, and there, I was poor.

I never knew if my classmates would torment (戏弄) me in class, but on the bus I could count on it. My trips to and from school were the horrific, painful bookends to stressful days. One girl made a point of running over to my seat every morning to see what I was wearing, and then returned to her friends to laugh about it. I shrank into myself and stared out the window.

I was the smallest girl in my class. One of my classmates’   mothers noticed, and offered me a beautiful skirt that her daughter had outgrown. I wore it happily, thrilled to have a cool item of clothing for once. When I outgrew the skirt, my mother bought me a new one of my own, one without a label. When my classmate saw it, she shouted on purpose, “Oh, that’s not my skirt, is it? Where did you get this one, Denise? The poorhouse?” My classmates burst into laughter, and I slipped away, my eyes locked on the ground. I stopped wearing the skirt.

注意：
1.续写词数应为 150左右；
2.请按如下格式作答。

After fifth grade ended, over the summer, I spent a month at a day camp.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

With the love and support of my new friends, I became more confident.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

5 . We’ve made a list of reasons why everyone should enrich their life by traveling around the world.

★Travel is easier than you think.

We believe that traveling around the world shouldn’t be hard.    1    Whether you choose to spend a few years or just a couple of months traveling this beautiful planet, it’s important to see what’s out there. It’s up to you to make the dream come true and take the first step.

★Travel is a good chance for learning.

Travel can provide great learning chances for children. Different cultures, good scenery and people can teach kids valuable life lessons and broaden their views.    2    

★Travel develops skills you didn’t know you had.

    3     Travel brings them to the surface and makes you smile, satisfied to have reached the mountain top, or helped a villager clean up after a storm, or even to have successfully ordered a meal at a restaurant in a foreign country.

★    4    

Meeting people from other cultures will teach you to look at the world in a different way. In fact, your view might have some major blind spots. Seeing the world for yourself will help you see the world differently.

★Travel is education.

    5     Travel teaches you economy, politics, history, geography, and sociology in a hands-on way no class will. Fortunately, the school of travel is always taking applications, no entrance exam required.

A．Travel helps you see in a different way.

B．Travel gives chances to prove dreams can come true.

C．Sometimes this happens without them even knowing it.

D．Finishing a trip gives you the satisfaction of making a travel.

E．Everyone should at least travel around the world once in their lives.

F．It’s likely that you have some skills you have never known or used.

G．Seeing the world provides an education that you can’t get in school.

6 . When I hear the word stereotype (刻板印象), I feel it’s a word that doesn’t have a good aura (氛围) around it. It makes me feel ________ when I hear it. I’m not gonna ________ you on what you look like, I’m gonna judge you only when I meet you.

People assume that because of my ________ that I can’t do things that white women do, like finishing high school, going to college, graduating from college, getting a PhD, and having a career. ________ I go to the gym, people will be like, you run well for an ‘Asian guy’. And like this little ________ use of languages really affects how we view our world.

Being an Indian in a ________ American school, I’ve faced a couple of challenges. Many people assume things ________ me like I’m smart or I want to be a doctor, or I play things like chess, but I don’t think my skin color is what ________ me. I think it’s important for you to get to know a person ________ their skin. And really, I’m just American. I was born here. I like to live the same way ________ anybody else would.

When I first meet someone, I just talk about where they’re from and stuff ________ assuming where they’re from. Because it’s usually better to get to ________ someone’s background information than just assume it.

I break the stereotypes that I’ve encountered by ________ them, and walking off. A stereotype does not make you. You make you. You should accept who you are and love who you are, because we’re all human. We all deserve to have a ________. Your color or your race shouldn’t ________ your personality.

1.

A．upset

B．concerned

C．tired

D．excited

2.

A．make

B．judge

C．meet

D．criticize

3.

A．personality

B．school

C．family

D．race

4.

A．Wherever

B．Whatever

C．Whenever

D．However

5.

A．great

B．tiny

C．strange

D．enormous

6.

A．mostly

B．partially

C．clearly

D．rarely

7.

A．in

B．about

C．on

D．from

8.

A．predicts

B．chooses

C．replaces

D．defines

9.

A．at

B．in

C．under

D．about

10.

A．of

B．as

C．for

D．from

11.

A．instead of

B．by accident

C．because of

D．thanks to

12.

A．guess

B．think

C．know

D．understand

13.

A．coming across

B．looking after

C．depending on

D．laughing at

14.

A．voice

B．noise

C．sound

D．interest

15.

A．explain

B．assess

C．identify

D．acquire

7 . Take a Leap to Find Luck

What is luck? I’ve realized, by watching so long, that luck is rarely a lightning strike, isolated and dramatic.     1     Sometimes it’s calm, and sometimes it blows in gusts, and sometimes it comes from directions that you didn’t even imagine.

So how do you catch the winds of luck?     2     So I’m going to share three things with you that you can do to build a sail to capture the winds of luck. The first thing to do is to change your relationship with yourself.     3     When we’re children, we do this all the time. We have to do this if we’re going to learn how to walk or talk or ride a bike. The problem is, as we get older, we rarely do this. We sort of lock down the sense of who we are and don’t stretch anymore.

The second thing to do is to change your relationship with other people. You need to understand that everyone who helps you on your journey is playing a huge role in getting you to your goals.     4     And if you don’t show appreciation, not only are you not closing the loop, but you’re missing an opportunity.

And third, you want to change your relationship with ideas. Most people look at new ideas that come their way and they judge them. “That’s a great idea” or “That’s a terrible idea.” But it’s actually much more different. Ideas are neither good nor bad. And in fact, the seeds of terrible ideas are often something truly remarkable.     5    

So, yes, sometimes people were born into terrible circumstances, and sometimes, luck is a lightning bolt that hits us with something wonderful or something terrible. But the winds of luck are always there.

A．It’s easy, but it’s not obvious.

B．Judgment brings fear and hope.

C．You need to acknowledge what they’re doing.

D．Nothing comes to you accidentally or randomly.

E．It’s much more like the wind, blowing constantly.

F．Be willing to take small risks that get you out of your comfort zone.

G．When they’re turned into something brilliant, amazing things may happen.

8 . I had some pretty serious issues with my community for the last year, and our relationship completely fell apart 6 months ago. As a result, I ________ them on social media, and did my best to forget about them. The events though continued to ________ me, and the ________ that I felt from those events affected other aspects of my life. It began destroying relationships in other parts of my life and I ended up ________ bridges with big opportunities and people I really ________.

Yesterday, I was forced to see this community because of a major work event. I was fearing this event for months and it was pretty ________ when I first saw the people with whom I was in ________. Despite all of this, the strangest yet most wonderful thing happened to me. After I left the event, I felt something that I hadn’t felt in a long time-peace and ________. Some of the people at this ________ didn’t even know who I was and it was clear that a lot of people had ________ from the events.

________ breaking up with that community, I could still see them during the conference and apologize in my head and forgive them. After doing this, I felt peace in myself, and I find I’ve been able to see things from a bigger ________.

When you forgive others, you not only free them, but you free yourself ________. You not only find peace with them, but you find peace ________ yourself. Now, I only wish them the best life that they can have, the most success that they can ________, and the most happiness they could ever have.

1.

A．shared

B．posted

C．blocked

D．contacted

2.

A．frustrate

B．disturb

C．defeat

D．interrupt

3.

A．interactions

B．emotions

C．fantasies

D．passions

4.

A．burning

B．building

C．crossing

D．strengthening

5.

A．disagreed with

B．sided with

C．worried about

D．cared about

6.

A．overwhelming

B．annoying

C．frightening

D．embarrassing

7.

A．harmony

B．comparison

C．conflict

D．contact

8.

A．security

B．confidence

C．forgiveness

D．comfort

9.

A．conference

B．stage

C．moment

D．lecture

10.

A．broken away

B．held on

C．got away

D．moved on

11.

A．While

B．When

C．Since

D．Unless

12.

A．tendency

B．perspective

C．prospect

D．expectation

13.

A．in return

B．at least

C．at times

D．as well

14.

A．about

B．of

C．within

D．for

15.

A．acknowledge

B．attain

C．demonstrate

D．measure

9 . Review Our Worries

We spend a lot of our lives worrying, but there’s one basic thing we almost never remember to do.    1    For example, one week, we might be worried about running out of money, the next of having offended a friend, and the third about being brought down by a rumour on social media. The worries go on and on, shifting unstoppably from one target to another.    2    

What we seldom spend time doing is pausing to compare the scale of the worry with what actually happened in the end. We are too taken up with the next worry to return for a composed review.

However, if we force ourselves to perform one, a strange discovery is likely to dawn on us.     3    We almost lost our minds to worry, but we didn’t run out of money in the end, our friend wasn’t offended, and so on.    4    Mark Twain’s famous saying comes to mind: “I have lived through many disasters, only a few of which actually happened.”

    5    If we got it so wrong in the past, we’re highly likely to get it wrong now too. Of course, we’re convinced that this is really and truly the end, but such a certainty was with us on many other situations which we appear to have sailed through well enough.

Perhaps the world is not quite as awful as we assume. Perhaps most of the drama is ultimately unfolding in a place we need to explore and heal as fast as we can: our own minds.

A．Our worries are nearly always out of line with reality.

B．They ruin our precious time on Earth in the process.

C．Ignore our worries and focus on more productive things.

D．Go back and check how our worries matched up to reality.

E．We might say that only 1% of our worries truly become awful.

F．Our worries are caused by external factors beyond our control.

G．We should use the data about the unreliability of our fears as a guide to the future.

10 . You can’t see it, smell it, or hear it, and people disagree on how precisely to define it, or where exactly it comes from. It isn’t a school subject or an academic discipline, but it can be learned. It is a quality that is required of artists, but it is also present in the lives of scientists and entrepreneurs. All of us benefit from it and we succeed mentally and spiritually when we are able to handle it. It is a delicate thing, easily wiped out; in fact, it blossoms most fully when people are playful and childlike. Meanwhile, it works best in meeting with deep knowledge and expertise.

This mysterious—but teachable—quality is creativity, the subject of a recently-published report by Durham Commission on Creativity and Education. The report concludes that creativity should not exist in the school curriculum only as it relates to drama, music, art and other obviously creative subjects, but that creative thinking ought to run through all of school life, infusing (充满) the way humanities and natural sciences are learned.

Nevertheless, it is arts subjects through which creativity can most obviously be promoted. The value placed on them by the independent education is clear. One only has to look at the remarkable arts facilities at Britain’ stop private schools to understand this. But in the state education the extreme focus on English, maths and science threatens to destroy arts subjects; meanwhile, reduced school budgets mean decreasing extracurricular activities.

This difference between state and private education is a matter of social justice. It is simply wrong and unfair that most children have a small part of the access to choirs, art studios and drama that their more privileged peers enjoy. As lives are affected by any number of threatening challenges—climate crisis, automation in the workplace—humans are going to need creative thinking more than ever. For all of our sakes, creativity in education, and for all, must become a priority.

1. What is the primary function of the first paragraph in the passage?

A．It offers a historical overview of creative thinking.

B．It introduces the precise definition and benefits of creativity.

C．It guides the reader on to the topic of creativity in education.

D．It provides evidence for the importance of science education.

2. What is the conclusion of a recently-published report?

A．Natural sciences should be learned the way humanities courses are.

B．Growth of creativity should run through the entire school curriculum.

C．Art courses should be made required for all students，

D．Students should learn more obviously creative subjects.

3. What do we learn about the private schools in the UK?

A．They encourage extracurricular activities.

B．They attach great importance to arts education.

C．They prioritize arts subjects over maths and sciences.

D．They meet the needs of students from different family backgrounds.

4. What should be done to meet the future challenges?

A．Increasing government investment in school education.

B．Narrowing the existing gap between the rich and the poor.

C．Providing all children with equal access to arts education.

D．Focusing on meeting the needs of under-privileged students.