1 . 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.

2 . 听下面一段独白，回答以下小题。
1. When does Anna leave home?

A．By 5:15 a.m.

B．By 6:00 a.m.

C．By 7:00 a.m.

2. Why does Peter choose to be a househusband?

A．He wants to spend more time with his children.

B．His wife is too busy to look after the kids.

C．He couldn’t find a good job.

3. What does Peter do in the afternoon?

A．He cleans the floor.

B．He fixes TVs.

C．He washes clothes.

4. What can we learn from the talk?

A．Anna and Peter have two children.

B．Anna and Peter usually stay up at night.

C．Anna often reads bedtime stories to the children.

3 . 听下面一段独白，回答以下小题。
1. What is Cathy’s nationality?

A．Chinese.

B．German.

C．American.

2. When will they start making dumplings?

A．At 4 p. m.

B．At 6 p. m.

C．At 8 p. m.

3. How will Cathy come to the speaker’s house probably?

A．By car.

B．By bus.

C．By taxi.

4. What does the speaker think Cathy may worry about?

A．Going back too early.

B．Staying there too long.

C．Having difficulty watching TV shows.

4 . 听下面一段较长对话，回答以下小题。
1. What did Carol’s mother study at college?

A．Finance.

B．Engineering.

C．Literature.

2. Who will pay for Carol’s mother’s education in Stanford University?

A．Carol’s father.

B．The university.

C．Carol’s grandparents.

3. What does Carol suggest the man do?

A．Work hard.

B．Find a part-time job.

C．Help with the housework.

4. What does Carol ask the man to do?

A．Mail a letter.

B．Clean her bedroom.

C．Borrow a book.

5 . 你校正在组织英语作文比赛。请你以“我家的家风”( My Family Tradition)为题，写一篇短文参赛。内容包括：
1.介绍你家的家风：(如重视教育、热爱读书、诚实守信、孝敬老人、遵规守纪等)
2.对你的影响。(可举例说明)
注意：
1.词数100左右；
2.题目已为你写好。
提示词：
传统美德 traditional virtues
代代相传 pass down from generation to generation   
孝敬老人 show filial respect to the elderly
诚实做人，认真做事 be an honest person and take things seriously
遵规守纪 follow the rules and regulations

My Family Tradition

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6 . 最近。你班进行了一个参与家务劳动的调查，请你根据调查结果在你的博客上用英语写一篇博文。

每周做家务1小时以十	5%
每周做家务小于1小时	65%
完全不参与家务劳动	30%

要点包括：1.调查结果，2. 你的感受。
注意：1.词数80左右，2.可适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
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7 . Raising children is limitlessly rewarding but no doubt challenging. Here are some tips for raising a happy, healthy and responsible child.

    1     Studies find that kids who have televisions in their bedrooms are more likely to be overweight. When a TV is in a child’s bedroom, you have no control over what he’s watching, nor do you have any opportunities for family bonding time—when everyone lies onto the sofa to watch a favorite show.

Get them used to doing chores from a young age. We all know a parent who still makes their high school daughter’s lunch every day.     2     By the time your two-year-old begins talking, he’s old enough to start helping around the house.

    3     If you really want to teach your teen about money, then stop handing over the credit card and the “allowance.” Instead, put your kid on a budget, open a checking account for him or her, and let your teen really learn to manage money. Tell your kid that all clothing, movies, entertainment, fast food, and cell phone bills come out of his or her checking account which you fund.     4     Just make sure you also set up a savings account for your teen and insist that at least one third of any savings or money from you be put away.

Imagine the future with your children.     5     By age ten, kids are old enough to start looking ahead and figure out the value of an education. Studies find that teens who can imagine themselves with a future are less likely to do those things that destroy a future.

A．Get the TV out of the bedroom.

B．Don’t find yourself in this situation!

C．Teach them how checking accounts work.

D．Start an activity that you can do with your teen.

E．If your son or daughter has a job, then cut back the amount.

F．You reduce the risk that your child will engage in such behavior.

G．It’s never too early to begin talking to your child about his or her future.

8 . 阅读下面材料，在空白处填入适当的内容(1个单词)或括号内单词的正确形式。

When a grandchild comes along for the first time, it’s important to have the right help. In our case, a lovely young couple seems    1    (absolute) perfect in bringing up our grandson. The new baby appears to really like them,    2    certainly takes away the worry for us grandparents.

Here’s the deal: we get the young couple to do most of the difficult work, like    3    (feed) the baby and changing nappies. He even lives    4    their house, which makes things a lot    5    (easy). We arrive for the good times, such as when the grandson is available to lie in our arms and glancing up at the world as if to comprehend its wonder.

Why, you may ask, would a young couple be willing    6    (do) all the hard work, while the grandparents enjoy the good times? It’s a fair question. When we arrive,     7    couple has usually been up, all night with dark circles. The grandchild, though, is full of energy. We, the grandparents, take    8    (turn) to rock him and he wriggles (扭动)in our arms. An hour    9    two later,when things are about to turn tricky, we hand him back to them and disappear down the steps.

Could these different work conditions really    10    (consider) fair? The young couple seems happy enough. The grandchild looks like them both, which may have helped.

9 . Healthy family relationships can bring love and security to all family members, which can be one of the greatest blessings parents can give to their children.     1     Here are a few ways to strengthen your family bonds.

Communicate effectively. Good communication is crucial for any healthy relationship as it makes it easier to settle conflicts and build strong connections.     2     Speaking with respect, minding the tone and being considerate while sharing information can become the basis of positive communication.

    3     You can start by doing activities that your family enjoys. This can be a movie night, solving puzzles or simply engaging the family in preparing a meal. Whafs important is that you are fully present in the moment, spending meaningful time with them.

Celebrate little moments. Most families make it a point to celebrate important milestones, birthdays and anniversaries.     4     Seize opportunities to have a good time with the family so that you can build a bank of happy memories.

Work as a team. Discussing things together can help a family emerge with creative solutions. Moreover, family discussions can be used to determine everyone’s responsibility and build trust by respecting every member’s views.     5    

A．Spend quality family time.

B．Be grateful to one another.

C．However, it is not easy to establish strong family ties.

D．But try to find surprising little things in day-to-day life.

E．Listening sympathetically and talking openly can aid in forming ties.

F．Having a positive atmosphere is something that all families should work for.

G．Working corporately produces a feeling of belonging, thus strengthening family bonds.

10 . I woke to the sound of birds outside my window and lay in bed, going over the busy day ahead of me. Finally, I got up and attempted to switch on the light — nothing happened. I checked my phone. No Wi-Fi, no data. With our unstable cell service, there was no way of knowing if we had received alerts fbr a power failure. I grabbed a sweater, went downstairs, found a flashlight and a match to light the gas stove, and then boiled water to brew coffee. Outside the window, the falling snow obscured (遮蔽) the sunrise. Deep piles of snow covered the road.

My work meetings and deadlines, my sons’ classes and tests, my husband’s plans — everything would have to wait. Why does this happen today of all days?“ I asked. Thankfully, the wood stove was still going strong. I took a deep breath. I supposed we had everything we needed.

The house was quiet as I sipped my coffee and cuddled (搂抱) our dog. One by one, my husband and sons came downstairs and complained about the turn the day had taken.

I opened the curtains to let light in. We gathered around the table and had cereal. After breakfast, my husband played a game of solitaire. Then my sons joined him in building a house of cards that reached three levels until our cat jumped up to investigate and knocked it down. We played a round of Scrabble and had my favorite snow day lunch: grilled cheese and tomato soup.

Then we took a long walk in the woods behind our house, walking along the stream. We spotted deer tracks and played in the snow that was coming down in big fluffy flakes. When we returned, all the clocks in the house were blinking. I started to make dinner, happy to have things back to normal — even better than normal.

It was a day that began without electricity, cut off from the rest of the world, and ended with hot chocolate and power restored. We were recharged by the unexpected gift of a day together.

1. What did the author find when she woke up?

A．Heavy snow trapped the family in the house.

B．The electricity supply had been cut off.

C．It was still early for breakfast.

D．Her phone wouldn’t be turned on.

2. What was the direct impact of the power cut on the author’s family?

A．Their arrangements were upset.

B．They had to serve themselves with simple meals.

C．The family encountered a shortage of supplies.

D．Everyone was angry about this unexpected event.

3. Why did the author describe their family activities on that day?

A．To pave the way for her insight.

B．To present the daily life of the family.

C．To show the close family relationship.

D．To create a lighthearted atmosphere.

4. What did that day mean to the author?

A．It was a temporary disaster.

B．It was a day full of exciting adventures.

C．It was a lovely day of family togetherness.

D．It was a rare moment of leisure and freedom.