贵州省黔南布依族苗族自治州2025-2026学年高二上学期1月月考英语试题

The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority welcomes you to take part in an important effort to protect this world-famous natural wonder. Your volunteer work will directly help to preserve this one-of-a-kind ecosystem for future generations. As a volunteer, you will join in projects such as removing litter, pulling out harmful plants, pruning (修剪) overgrown vegetation, clearing away sand, improving the site, and maintaining walking paths.

When

Choose weekend days each month, from 8: 00 a.m. to 1: 00 p.m. Specific dates are listed on our website.

Where

Meet in Townsville, Queensland. The specific meeting location will be listed in the registration confirmation email.

Groups

Groups of eight or more must plan ahead. Please view the Current Projects Schedule and complete a Group Volunteer inquiry Form in person at least two weeks in advance.

Age, Skills, and What to Bring:

·Volunteers aged 12 and above are welcome. Participants aged 12-15 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.

·A signed Volunteer Agreement Form is required for all participants.

·Work rain or shine. Wear clothing suitable for outdoor work and getting wet. A hat, reef-safe sunscreen, and strong, closed-toe shoes that can get wet are essential.

·Bring at least 2 liters of drinking water and your own lunch.

·No prior marine biology experience is needed. Brief training and tools will be provided on-site. Participation fulfills community service hours.

This program is a collaborative initiative supported by the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, local conservation trusts, and research institutions. Your dedication helps ensure the Reef remains vibrant, healthy, and resilient.

Braille was born in 1809 to a wealthy family, so he had a comfortable childhood. However, as a curious little boy, Braille entered his father's shop when no one was around and played with the tools. When he tried to make a hole in the leather with an awl, the tool slipped and hurt his eye. This terrible injury led to an infection that spread to both eyes, blinding him by the age of five.

Braille's parents didn't want their son's fate to be held back by his disability. They knew how important it was to read and write. To help him, his father hammered nails (钉子) into the shapes of alphabet letters on wood. At age seven, Braille attended the local school as its only blind student. Later, he won a scholarship to the Royal Institute for Blind Youth, where students could read books with raised letters.

The inspiration for Braille's invention came in 1821. Charles Barbier had created a "night writing" code for the French army to pass and carry out orders in the dark. Braille believed it could help the blind and adapted this dot-and-dash code into a phonetic system. He spent the next several years perfecting it, often working late at school and even during holidays at home. By age 15, he had created what we now know as braille writing.

Braille died at the age of 43 in 1852, yet his invention remains a guiding light for the blind. Today, visually impaired children are increasingly learning through screens and audio programs, but neuroscientists argue that braille writing is essential for thinking and brain development. Studies have shown that when a blind person reads braille through touch, the visual center of their brain is activated.

Scientific studies have suggested that indoor plants can improve mental health, reduce stress, and even lower sick leave rates among workers. Natural materials like wood are also linked to better wellbeing. However, new research presents a surprising contradiction: too much decorative nature indoors may actually harm mental health rather than help it.

What, then, is the ideal dose (剂量) of indoor nature for our wellbeing? Past studies used inconsistent methods and failed to give clear answers. For a more precise measurement, researchers from Stanford University created a software tool called Nature View Potential. This tool calculates the visual dose of natural elements — such as plants, wood, and outdoor views — within any indoor space.

Using this tool with advanced modeling, the team designed realistic virtual offices with different levels of natural elements. They assigned over 400 online participants to these digital rooms. After an initial survey, participants performed stressful tasks like counting backwards under misleading instructions to increase pressure.

The results were clear. A visual nature dose of around 20% provided the strongest benefits for mental restoration and a sense of belonging. In contrast, rooms with 60% natural elements caused the highest stress levels, suggesting that too much nature can feel overwhelming. The study also found that people with a stronger personal connection to nature gained more from its presence indoors.

A key limitation is the use of a virtual rather than real environment. Still, tools like this can help designers create healthier schools and offices by providing just the right visual dose of nature for people to thrive.

AI brings remarkable benefits to children's growth. It offers learning experiences designed for each child, something once only available to the rich, effectively bridging the gap in regions short of qualified teachers and sufficient educational resources. Early tests have shown that AI can enhance children's literacy and language-learning abilities. Additionally, AI upgrades entertainment forms: children are not only enthusiastic about popular AI videos but also eager to create their own works. Even classic toys are being redesigned with AI functions to attract young users.

However, an AI-driven childhood is filled with hidden risks. AI tutors might give wrong information, and children could misuse AI to cheat on homework or make harmful fake videos to trouble others. More seriously, AI's tendency to cater (迎合) to users' preferences createsecho chambers— spaces where people see only views they agree with, which takes away children's precious chances to learn new things and develop independent thinking. Later, children who grow up used to always-pleasing AI may become adults who cannot work well with others or understand the balance needed in relationships.

Some basic counter-measures are urgent. Strict age limits on chatbots must be followed, and schools should conduct more in-class assessments to stop cheating. In the long run, schools should take the lead: while making good use of effective personalized AI tutoring, they must also redouble efforts to teach things that a robot can't: to debate, to disagree and to get along with — perhaps even to appreciate — people who can't please you as a chatbot. Moreover, schools should also strengthen their role as centres of discovery, letting children meet different ideas and people from various backgrounds to widen their views.

AI shows undeniable potential to improve education and enrich entertainment. It may one day let every child live like a prince or princess. But the truly lucky ones may be those whose parents and teachers know when to turn it off.

As the year draws to a close, it's hard to believe we are already in its final month. For students, this period offers a valuable opportunity to reflect and recharge before a fresh start. There is still a month left and a lot can be done in this last month.

·Review what truly matters.

This involves looking back at your study plans and re-evaluating your subject, and then setting priorities. Ask yourself: Are the things you haven't accomplished this year still important to you? What will happen if you don't accomplish what matters by the end of the year?

·Let go of what's no longer useful.

Sometimes we hold onto tasks or study methods that no longer serve us. Letting go can free your mind and reduce stress, making room for what truly counts.

·

With limited time left, pick one academic goal that will make the biggest difference — whether it's mastering a difficult chapter or organizing your notes. Committing to just one thing can boost your motivation and help you make real progress.

·Take action to achieve it.

Adopt a "no excuses" attitude. For instance, you can ask a teacher for help, form a study group or spend extra time on revision.

Remember, even one month can make a meaningful difference in your studies. Use this time wisely, stay focused, and you'll end the year with a sense of accomplishment and readiness for the year ahead.

A. Choose one key goal to focus on.

B. Set a specific target for your studies.

C. Do whatever it takes to achieve your goal.

D. So why not make full use of it to push forward?

E. This is key to identifying where to concentrate your efforts.

F. So why not begin by making a detailed timetable for each subject?

G. If a project or plan has lost its importance, consider removing it from your list.

A few weeks later, I met Riley, a 10-year-old 5th grader. I said, "Alright, Riley. Let's deal with addition and subtraction (减法)," hoping my enthusiasm would2 her. Riley rolled her eyes, "Let's not. I don't3 to go to college. I will work with my uncle in his4. How would these equations help me cook or wait tables?" I didn't know how to5 but still kept encouraging her,6 the importance of studying.

The next morning, I told my mom I couldn't teach Riley because she just didn't want to learn. My mom laughed, saying, "Maybe she needs something different from the7." I was inspired by my mom's words.

After several weeks, when Riley walked into my home for our lesson, I handed her an apron.8 was written across her face. I explained, "Today, we're baking cookies instead of the lesson. Grab the measuring cups. We need 1 3/4 cups of flour." Riley looked9, but answered, "OK... wait, what's three-fourths again?" I picked up the cup and pointed to the numbers on the side. "It's three parts out of four. Like dividing a pizza into pieces." Riley smiled. "Like the textbook!" "Yes! Your uncle uses these10 too when he works in the restaurant." As we baked, with growing11, she asked more questions. She slowly grasped fractions (分数),12 more and more practice sets. In the following seven months, her grades13 improved and she grew to like school more.

Tutoring Riley reshaped my view of education and my privilege to be able to focus on school from a young age. Whether I14 education as my career or not, I know now that making a(n)15 in someone's life will guide my path.

Rong hua (velvet flower), name sounds like "prosperity (荣华)" in Chinese, (consider) a lucky symbol in China since ancient times, especially at weddings and festivals. Legend says that in the Tang Dynasty, silk flowers were created (welcome) spring when real blossoms faded too easily. Thus, the handmade rong hua came into being as a lasting decoration.

Made of natural silk and copper wire, rong hua was (traditional) used in folk celebrations and ceremonies. It is believed that its symbolic shapes — such as phoenixes, double happiness characters, pomegranates, and (vary) flowers — express good wishes and auspicious (吉祥的) meanings.

With their delicate and elegant (feature), rong hua decorations became popular among royal and noble families, later spreading to the general public. In Nanjing, the commercial area near Sanshan Street and Changle Road used to be known the "flower market," filled with shops making selling rong hua for use as hairpins and opera costumes.

Today, craftsman Zhao Shuxian is working to keep this ancient art alive. (bear) in Nanjing, he began making rong hua about 40 years ago and is now one of its few remaining artisans. In 2006, Nanjing rong hua was listed as Intangible Cultural Heritage of Jiangsu Province.

1. 简述危害；

2. 你的建议。

注意：1. 写作词数应为80个左右；

2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。

Step Away from Short Videos, Embrace a Better Life

Good morning, everyone!

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Thank you!

This Christmas was going to be a tough one for my family. It would be our first Christmas without our dad, who had lost his battle with cancer. I didn't even want to think about Christmas — and surely, I didn't want to celebrate. So when my mom called me eight days before Christmas, there was still no Christmas tree, no twinkling lights, no ornaments (装饰品), nothing. I was trying to forget that Christmas was here at all.

My mom lives six hours away from us. Since I am the only child working from home, it fell on me to pick her up for Christmas with the family. When she asked if I'd decorated yet, my "no" clearly disappointed her. "You have your kids — don't let them miss out because of grief (悲伤)." I am forty-two years old and still afraid of my mom — so, I put that tree up, picked up my mom and brought her home for Christmas.

Yet even with the tree standing in the living room, I refused to feel any Christmas spirit. How could I? I'd watched Dad take his last breath half a year ago. The pain was still fresh — sharp enough to make me shut out the world. I just wanted to be left alone, buried in sorrow without others trying to "fix" it. I stepped back from my husband's hug, turned from my kids, and barely spoke to Mom. I was so consumed by pain that I ignored everyone around me.

Dad had always taught me love, faith, and everything about life. In his final days, he drifted between sleep and wakefulness. But the night before he passed, he'd woken up suddenly, his eyes clear, and sang "Peace in the Valley" in that deep, warm voice we had all loved. He smiled at us, as if trying to tell us he was okay — that we should be okay too. But I couldn't. The hole he left was too big, and the loneliness too heavy.

注意：1. 续写词数应该为150左右;

2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。

Christmas finally arrived and Mom handed me a small box.

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Holding the ornament and the note, I finally understood.

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