1 . 听下面一段较长对话，回答以下小题。
1. Why does the girl want a baby brother?

A．To please her dad.

B．To enjoy being a big sister.

C．To raise ‘animals together with him.

2. What does the girl hope to do at last?

A．Keep a dog.

B．Get a cute cat.

C．Look after her brother.

2 . 听下面一段较长对话，回答以下小题。
1. What do Nick and his wife agree to do?

A．Manage their money together.

B．Reduce their spending on food.

C．Save money for their children’s education.

2. What do we know about the woman?

A．She invests part of her money in stocks now.

B．She keeps all her money in the bank.

C．She takes care of the money in her family.

3 . When children are growing up, what they see in their families is what they tend to consider normal. That means family traditions and other activities are generally seen as just normal. If a family eats dinner together or spends time talking with each other, that’s what the child absorbs and internalizes.

Our family traditions are declining as we move toward a more isolated (孤立的) society. How many families no longer share meals around the dinner table, instead choosing to watch TV or text friends on their phones? This tends to isolate and disconnect family members from each other. It also stops families from communicating and catching up on each other’s lives.

For those of us who grew up in a household where families shared meals together and spent time talking with each other, chances are that we are passing along those traditions to our own families. The problem is, children today often want to spend their time in front of screens rather than people. Cell phones, computers and other attention-grabbing devices often mean parents get resistance to traditional family togetherness time. This pressure can lead to parents giving in and letting children do what they want rather than fight with them over sitting at the dinner table. This creates a new normal that no longer values the idea of families and the society at large, connecting with each other.

Family and community traditions are important, not just for the current shared experiences, but for the future as well. Since children internalize their experiences, that means generations to come may not know what it’s like to sit together around the dinner table and truly connect as a family.

That is why it is so important that parents and caregivers create boundaries of behavior that help to keep family traditions alive. If you remember the shared experiences you had with your parents and grandparents, you know the important bonding that took place during those times. It is this shared experience that brings people closer together and is well worth preserving.

1. What is the phenomenon the author describes at the beginning of the text?

A．The increase in shared family meals means a shift towards isolation.

B．Increased use of technology replaces traditional family interactions.

C．More and more children prefer to spend quality time with the family.

D．Family members are more likely to share their updates with each other.

2. What is the central concern expressed in paragraph 3?

A．The inability of parents to understand technology.

B．The challenge of preserving traditional family values.

C．The influence of technology on children’s education.

D．The necessity of controlling children’s digital devices.

3. What can be inferred about future generations if current trends continue?

A．They will be more addicted to advanced technology.

B．They will maintain stronger and closer family bonds.

C．They may create new and irreplaceable family traditions.

D．They may not understand the value of family gatherings.

4. How does the author view the role of parents in preserving family traditions?

A．Insignificant	B．Irresponsible
C．Crucial	D．Overemphasized

4 . 听下面一段较长对话，回答以下小题。
1. What happened at the man’s dinner with his host family?

A．He forgot to introduce himself.

B．He called the host by the wrong name.

C．He whispered to someone.

2. How did the man deal with the situation?

A．He apologized for his behavior.

B．He said nothing about it.

C．He made a joke of himself.

3. How does the woman sound in the end?

A．Helpful.

B．Embarrassed.

C．Grateful.

5 . Improving your family life can help make your family members closer and prevent conflicts from getting in the way of everyone’s happiness.     1    .

Talk to your family members at the end of the day.     2    . That way, they can understand you and generally know what’s going on in your life. In turn, it is equally important that you know about their lives too, so that they feel understood, supported and realize that they are not alone.

Set aside time for regular family activities. You can do fun activities together to relax yourselves.     3    . If possible, leave at least an afternoon or evening per week for a family activity. Keep it low-key, and focus on having fun together and enjoying each other’s company.

Show sincere concern about your family members.     4    . If you love them, then tell them that you love them. If you care about them, tell them this. Go out of your way to remind each family member what glues you all together—love, care and support.

    5    . Do not always give a lot of advice to your family members. Just hear them out at times. That is all they need. Make eye contact with them, nod your head, and say things like, “I understand,” when appropriate. Make sure they know that whatever they are talking about, you are there to listen and be supportive.

By doing so, you can surely develop a close family relationship with your family members.

A．Be an active listener

B．Do not keep your feelings bottled up

C．You can also surprise them with presents

D．Remember to make eye contact with them

E．It is very important that you let them know about your life

F．These could include bike rides, walks, playing cards or board games

G．The following ways can make your time with your family more enjoyable

6 . Household chores like cooking, cleaning, washing the dishes, and making the bed are never done; they just get repeated like a broken record. Boring!     1    . But there are science-based reasons for changing your attitude towards chores. It turns out that doing chores is great for your health.

    2    . As researchers state in a report, doing undemanding tasks allows the mind to wander. Your mind gets a break, which allows you to consider old problems with new eyes. In fact, undemanding tasks stimulate (激发) more creative ideas than demanding tasks or just resting.

Chores are linked to a lower dementia (痴呆) risk. To discover what activities might be linked to a lower rate of dementia, researchers analyzed massive amounts of healthcare data from the UK Biobank. They found that those most engaged in household chores had a 21 percent lower risk of dementia compared to those least engaged in chores.     3    .

Finishing your chores can increase motivation. BJ Fogg, author of Tiny Habits: The Small Changes That Change Everything, states that the most important skill is recognizing and celebrating successes. Completing even a small task, like making your bed, can give you a sense of satisfaction.     4    . Similarly, author Admiral William H. McRaven argues that if you want to change the world, start off by making your bed.

Chores are good for children’s mental health. Children develop a sense of ownership when they have jobs to do around the house and it makes them feel like they are an important member of the household.     5    . In my own case, I bond with my daughter by gossiping (闲聊) and singing while we do chores together.

A．Chores are an opportunity for “me time”

B．Chores can lead to creative problem-solving

C．Thus, you feel motivated to deal with tasks one after another

D．In this way, they can be taught to be independent and confident

E．Like many people, you may regard chores as something annoying

F．Doing chores with children also improves the parent-child relationship

G．This result indicated simple changes could make a difference to health

7 . 听下面一段较长对话，回答以下小题。
1. Why did the man refuse the job?

A．His wife didn’t want him to take it.

B．It wasn’t special enough.

C．He couldn’t handle it.

2. What does the woman offer to do at the end?

A．Ask around for a babysitter.

B．Look after the children.

C．Help the man find another job.

8 . 听下面一段较长对话，回答以下小题。
1. What will John get?

A．A bike.

B．A toy car.

C．A football.

2. Who is learning Chinese probably?

A．John.

B．Jane.

C．Jack.

3. When will the woman buy the gifts?

A．On Friday.

B．On Saturday.

C．On Sunday.

4. Why will the man take the kids to the McDonald’s?

A．To have lunch.

B．To keep a secret.

C．To make them quiet.

9 . The oldest is the first, the youngest is the baby — but where does that leave the middle-borns? For National Middle Child Day, you’ll recognise these annoying, and sometimes surprisingly advantageous things about growing up in between.

When middle children want to know if they’re old enough to do anything (like sleepover at a friend’s house for the first time or wear makeup) they may as well just look to their older siblings to see when they were allowed to pursue the same milestone. That’s the bar they have to clear to maintain family “fairness”.

How often have you been referred to in relation to your older or younger sibling? Your parents gave you a name at birth, but typically you’re known as someone’s little brother or sister, or even worse, so-and-so’s older brother or sister. It’s easy to have an identity crisis sometimes. In fact, you may have wished you had one of these unusual names so you would stand out from the pack.

Not only do middle children find themselves under a mountain of hand-me-downs (别人用过的东西), unless they’re living in a large house, they also tend to have to share a bedroom. Whether living with the older or younger sibling, your space was never really your own.

Middle children are the only family members who get the life experience of being both a younger and older sibling, giving them unique perspectives on just about everything.

However, the less attention you were given wasn’t necessarily a bad thing — it let you explore and discover your world in your own way, and usually prevented you from getting in trouble for doing so because your parents didn’t even notice! “I think a middle child can fly under the radar,” says middle child Andrea Smarrelli. “I was very good at hiding my crazy moments and childish mistakes from my family.” From harbouring a frog in your room to sneaking out at night, you could get away with a lot. If you’re a troublemaker, we can guess your birth order.

This standing-outness might not have proved in becoming a great performer, but you developed your originality in some way. Without super-high expectations from your parents, you were allowed to think outside the box, leading you to become creative in artistic, entrepreneurial, or other activities.

1. What’s the topic of the text?

A．Older sibling.	B．Younger sibling.
C．Family members.	D．Middle children.

2. What annoys middle children according to Paragraph 3?

A．The relation with their older or younger sibling.

B．The names given by their parents.

C．The identity problem.

D．The unusual names.

3. What leads middle children to become creative according to the text?

A．Standing-outness.	B．Free thinking.
C．Expectations from parents.	D．Activities.

4. What’s the purpose of the text?

A．To analyse the problems of middle children.

B．To introduce who the middle children are.

C．To explain middle children’s relation with family.

D．To illustrate the strengths of middle children.

10 . What is the man going to do next?

A．Repair the tap.

B．Fix his brother’s car.

C．Ring his father.