上海市2023-2024学年九年级上学期英语开学摸底卷（二）

—Yes. I am afraid it takes time to find out the answer.

— Well, no, to be ____, I think it's quite silly.

— Of course. And I believe ____ kids learn to be independent, ____ it is for their future.

—Yes, of course you _________.

—____!

Sometimes people's words are not easily understood.

A man learned this lesson. He had been working late collecting  and piling（堆）them high on his wagon（马车）.

Towards the end of the day, his wagon was  with potatoes. He decided to head home, for it was  late. He wished to know how long it would take to get back to his village so that he could arrive before darkness  .

He noticed a small boy along the roadside and  to ask for directions.

"Young boy," he said, "it's  and I must get home soon. How long will it take to get to my village from here?"

The boy answered, "If you go slowly, it will take only a short while for you to get home. But if you go  , it will take a long time and you will not get there until late in the night.”

The man thought about the  answer, but he could not understand it. He gave the boy an angry look and hit his horse to make it hurry. The horse began to run quickly. But soon, potatoes began to fall from the wagon. Each time, the man got off to collect the fallen potatoes and put  back into his wagon.

The faster he went, the  potatoes fell from his wagon, and the more time he had to spend stopping to pick them up. But, if he had travelled slowly, none of the potatoes would have fallen, and the man would have arrived home much earlier.

And so, as the young boy warned, go slowly and it will take only a short while.

Jane's parents to every month.

One day a poor man was walking along from house to house. He carried an old wallet in one hand and at every house he asked for a little money to buy something to eat. As he was complaining about his misfortune (不幸), he kept wondering why some people who had so much money were never satisfied and always wanted more.

He thought that if he only had enough money to buy food and clothing, he would be very happy and wouldn't want anything more.

At that moment, Fortune came down the street. She saw the poor man and stopped. She said to him. "I want to help you. Hold out your wallet and I will pour this gold into it, but only on this condition. All that falls into your wallet will be gold, but all that hits the ground will turn into sand. Do you understand?

"Oh, yes I understand," said the poor man,

"Your wallet is old. Don't put too much in it," said Fortune.

The poor man opened his wallet and a lot of gold was poured into it. His wallet grew heavy.

"You are the richest man in the world now," said Fortune. "I think you should stop! Your wallet is going to break!"

However, the poor man said he wanted one more handful. Fortune added one more handful and the wallet broke. All the gold fell to the ground and turned into sand. The poor man had nothing but his empty wallet. He was as poor as he had been before.

If you are going to study in a foreign country, what can you do to feel less lonely (孤独的)? Well, here I will give you some 1  to help you.

Always say yes. Of course, 2  you feel uncomfortable in any way, don't agree. I mean, try not to 3  an invitation. By saying yes, you can get the chance (机会) to meet lots of people and learn a lot 4  them.

Find a hobby or try something new. Join a dance class, a chess club or a cooking class! This is a good way of making your life 5 .

Another way is to take language classes. By taking them, you can 6  your language and you can meet a lot of people who are also looking forward to making new friends.

Get out of your house! Spending long hours in front of your computer will make 7  more lonely. Go out to 8  new and exciting places in your neighborhood.

 Lastly — don't be a wallflower (舞会或聚会待在一旁的人). When you are at a party or in a group, don't be shy. Be 9  others. Try to talk with them. You can also ask your friends to introduce new friends to you.

If you follow the above, I'm 10  you'll have a good time in a foreign country.

Read the comments about changes in the future. How much do you agree with them?

In general, laws for children are a good thing. One hundred years ago in industrial countries, children worked 18 hours a day in a factory at age seven. The factory owner could beat a child who fell asleep or was not fast enough. Both parents and teachers could do the same. 

Today, there are many laws about children all over the world. Some people think children must obey rules or they should be punished others do not agree. The Inuits or Eskimos in Alaska almost never punish their children. The parents don't hit them. If the children go too far, the parents punish them by making fun of them.

Children in other parts of the world are not as lucky as Eskimo children. American parents can spank（打……臀部） their children at home, but a teacher cannot hit a child in public school. This is also true in Germany. In contrast（对比）, it is against the law for anyone to hit a child in Sweden. Swedish parents cannot spank their children. The children also have a special government official who works for their rights. There is even a plan for children to divorce from their parents though this is not a law yet！

内容包括：时间、地点、过程（所见、所做………）和感受等。

作文要求：内容充实，语句连贯，词数70个左右。