相关试卷

Every year, hundreds of hopeful students arrive in Washington, D. C. , in order to compete in the National Spelling Bee, which has been held every year since 1925. 

In the competition, students under 16 take turns trying to properly spell words. The champion is the only remaining student who does not make a mistake. American students are familiar with the competition because it is practiced in many schools throughout the country. The National Spelling Bee, however, is a much bigger setting and showcases only the best spellers from all parts of the nation. Winning the competition nowadays requires the ability to perform under much pressure against so many talented students in front of a large audience. A student who wins the event in the twenty-first century will experience a much different challenge than the first winner, Frank Neuhauser， did in 1925 when he defeated（打败） only nine other competitors. 

Clearly, the 90 years of the National Spelling Bee's existence proves the importance of spelling in the English language. However, struggles with spelling English words go back much more than 90 years. The charming thing about spelling correctly in English is that it is in many ways without rules. English language can absorb new words from other languages and in doing so make them "English" words. Because of this, the number of words in English is much higher than any other languages. Thus, spelling in many other languages has fewer words and fewer strange exceptions to rules. It turns out that a spelling bee in most other languages would be a waste of time. Why is that? Well, without so many exceptions（例外） to common vocabulary, there would be very few words that everyone didn't already know.

Too many people want others to be their friends, but they don't give friendship back. That is why some friendships don't last very long. To have a friend, you must learn to treat your friend the way you want your friend to treat you. Learning to be a good friend means learning three rules：be honest；be generous（宽宏大量的）；be understanding. 

Honesty is where a good friendship starts. Friends must be able to trust one another. If you do not tell the truth, people usually find out. If a friend finds out that you haven't been honest, you may lose your friend's trust. Good friends always rely on one another to speak and act honestly. 

Generosity means sharing and sharing makes a friendship grow. You do not have to give your lunch money or your clothes. Naturally you will want to share your ideas and feelings. These can be very valuable to a friend. They tell your friend what is important to you. By sharing them, you help your friend know better. 

Sooner or later everyone needs understanding and help with a problem. Something may go wrong at school. Talking about the problem can make it easier to solve. Turning to a friend can be a first step in solving the problem. So to be a friend you must listen and understand. You must try to put yourself in your friend's place so that you can understand the problem better. 

No two friendships are exactly alike（相像）. But all true friendships have three things in common. If you plan to keep your friends, you must practice honesty, generosity and understanding. 

I think about him every time I pass by a pink magnolia（木兰） tree in bloom（开花）. My Irish granddaddy, tall and thin, full of energy and laughter, held a special place in my heart. He lived across the street with Grandma, and their home was open to us whenever we ran over to visit. We wouldn't go into their house to find him. We would run to the backyard where he would be working in his garden. 

Flowers, vegetables-whatever he planted-grew well. From early spring to late autumn, the backyard was colorful. 

On the side of the yard grew two apple trees and a small pear tree. A high magnolia tree stood in the middle. Its shiny, dark green leaves and large pink flowers attracted the attention of all who saw it. Besides being beautiful, it was perfect for climbing, but I didn't know how to climb it!

My granddaddy wanted to teach me. He really tried. But I was afraid that I wouldn't be able to get back down, or that I would get stuck high up in the tree, so I didn't want to try. 

But my granddaddy did want me to try. One early spring morning, Granddaddy was standing on his porch（门廊） waiting for me when I walked outside. "Come over here，" he said excitedly. "The tree has borne lollipops（棒棒糖）！"

"What?" I ran across to the backyard to see the wonderful sight. "No pink magnolia flowers this year," he said sadly as he shook his head. "But this is the first year ever for our tree to bear lollipops!"

He looked at me. "Do you think you could climb up the tree-just to the lowest branch-and gather one or two? Then throw them down to me. I would love a lollipop!"

注意： 1．续写词数应为150左右； 2．请按如下格式在相应位置作答。

Paragraph 1:

I was staring in amazement.

Paragraph 2:

I climbed down and burst into the kitchen, hands tightly holding my treasures.

*欢迎他的到来

*帮他分析原因 (至少两点) ； 

*给他提出建议（至少一条）；  

*陈述你帮助他的具体打算。

注意：词数不少于80 。

Dear Li Ming，

……

Best regards,

Zhang Hua

Mark, a journal editor, who is fond of journey. Ever since( graduate)，he has been scheduled to organize a trip to an old temple. So as to save transport fare, he was(determine) to cycle there, although there would be many disadvantages. However, I preferred to travel by bus. Because Mark was very stubborn, was his shortcoming, once he made up his mind(do) something, no one could persuade him changing his mind, not( care) about others' feelings. Finally, I had to give in to his determined attitude as usual. So we both set off with necessities( wrap) in our woolen parcel, including our insurance contact, a map, wild survival tools and even pillows.

When we were passing through high altitude, our pace slowed downthere were many sharp bends on the mountain road, under which a river was roaring while( go) through the deep valley, where the waves are rolling as if the water were boiling. In addition, the weather forecast wasn't( rely) either. We had got to hide into a cave, In which we had a poor view of everything. Mark made a fire and we sat beside the flame to warm ourselves.

At midnight, it stopped raining and brilliant stars were so beautiful that I couldn't help thinking what an unforgettable trip it was!

I've heard such a story. On a Friday1 , a poor young artist stood at the gate of the subway station, playing his violin. The music was 2 , and many people who hurried to go home3 and put some money into the hat of the young man. 

The next night, the young artist took out a large piece of4 and laid it on the ground. Then he began5 . The music sounded more pleasant. Some people gathered and they found the6 on that paper, "Last night, a gentleman put a (n)7  thing into my hat. Please come to get it back. " When the people saw that, they felt very curious and8 what it could be. After about half an hour, a man9 there in a hurry and said, "It can't be true! You... you... "

 The young violinist asked, "Did you10 something?" "A lottery ticket (彩票)," the man answered11 . 

The violinist took out a lottery ticket. "Is it?" he asked.

The man was too12 to say a word. He13 a lottery ticket a few days ago. The awards (奖) opened yesterday and he won $ 500, 000. So lucky and excited did he feel that he14 50 dollars and put it into the hat when hearing the music. However, the lottery ticket was also thrown into the hat without being15 . After the violinist finished his performance, he found the lottery ticket in his hat. Thinking that the owner would probably return to look for it, he came back to where he was given the lottery ticket. 

Someone asked the violinist why he returned the lottery ticket to the man. He said, "Although I don't have much money, I live happily; but if I lose honesty, I won't be happy forever."

I'm often asked how to study English effectively. I think this means getting the most out of your study time, and that means variety. . 

Study Every Day

It's important to study English every day. However, don't exaggerate (夸张)! . This habit of studying English every day will help keep English in your brain fresh. 

A Little Grammar, a Little Listening, a Little Reading, and a Little Writing

. Study a little grammar, then do a short listening exercise, and then read an article on the same topic. Don't do too much; twenty minutes on three different types of exercises is plenty!

. 

Give yourself one grammar goal when reading a new article or watching a new video. For example, try to write down each example of a form you are studying such as the present perfect. Use colored pens to highlight (使……突出) forms that you are studying. 

Use Different Learning Methods

Don't just use one way to study English. Use many kinds of methods which will make all the parts of your brain help you. . All of these methods together help with your learning. 

Find Some Friends

You can practice the exercises together, have conversations together (in English) , and, as you study English together, help each other with exercises you may not understand. 

When I met and married a Japanese man in New York, I thought he would learn a bit more English and we would continue to live our lives there. But in life's twists and turns, we ended up living in Tokyo! I was the one who needed to learn Japanese and fast! There is no experience quite as lonely as living in a foreign country without a grasp of the language. Especially to make friends and to break that loneliness, it is the first and foremost goal to attain... always an uphill climb, while totally awkward!

I was a trained English Language teacher, and while I lived abroad I did that work, and when we moved back to America I planned to continue it. The country's financial difficulties at the time, however, saw deep cuts to the English as a second language in schools and to refugee language programs. So I simply took a job in a department store, at its Child Playroom. 

But this store was located near a major company that hired some of its workforce from many other countries. Often a preschooler in my playroom could not speak a word of English, and would look so lost and lonely! My heart flew to them! We interacted with each other a lot. We would play English language games and they would teach their language to me. 

Years later, when a small girl who had come from South America could speak good English, she said to me, "Teacher, remember when I called you Maestra?"Another child whose language was only Russian originally-we built a robot from blocks and fed it block food and learned English words that way-would come years afterwards and continue to play that same game! These moments became my life compass-due north is that place where when persons are different, Love Matters!

My dad doesn't seem like the kind of guy who would bake（烤） great bread，but he is and he does. Every Saturday he produces homemade bread. When he's done, the whole house smells delicious.

The rest of the week, Dad fixes cars at work. The shop where Dad works doesn't have enough work, so he's under a lot of stress（压力）. I think Dad began baking bread to help him relax. 

I've been feeling kind of stressed out myself since I found out I didn't make the school swim team. Now I'll have to wait a whole year to try out again. Plus, I'm taking some difficult classes this year. 

I think Dad knew I was feeling bad. Last Saturday he asked me how things were going. I said OK, even though I didn't feel OK at all. He looked at me for a moment, and then he said it wastime for me to help. Then he headed to the kitchen. 

I followed right behind him. Once we were there, Dad took out his big mixing bowl, handed me a large wooden spoon, and told me to mix while he added the ingredients（烹饪原料）. Dad isn't big on measuring, but he knows how much of each ingredient to use, and the bread always turns out great. 

When I finished stirring, Dad showed me how to knead the dough（揉面团）. Next came the most difficult part-doing nothing. We put the dough back into the bowl and then we waited for more than an hour for the dough to slowly rise and double in size. Next, we divided it into two and waited for it to rise again. Afterward, we put the dough into pans and waited another hour for the dough to rise and double. 

Dad said the waiting is always the hardest part. "It's hard to resist（抵制）putting the dough directly into the oven（烤箱），but if you do，the bread wil1 be hard. The most important lesson of all is learning to be. " Dad taught me more than how to bake bread.

One summer evening I was sitting by the open window, reading a good science story book. I was so interested in the story I was reading that I did not notice that it was getting dark. When I realized it was too dark for me to read easily, I put the book down and get up to turn on the light. Just then I heard someone crying: "Help! Help!" It seemed to come from the trees at the other end of the yard. I looked out but it was now too dark to see anything clearly. Almost immediately I heard the cry again. It sounded like a child, but I could not imagine what anybody would be doing in our backyard, unless one of the neighborhood children had climbed a tree and had not been able to get down. 

I decided that I ought to go out and have a look in the yard, just in case someone was in trouble. I got a flashlight and a stick, I thought it might be useful. Armed with these, I went out into the yard. Once again I heard the cry and this time there was no doubt that it came from the trees at the far end of the yard. "Who's there?" I called out as I walked across the yard toward the trees. But there was no answer. With the help of my flashlight, I searched all over that end of the yard, including the branches of the trees. There was no sign of anybody or anything. I came to the conclusion that my imagination was playing tricks to me, probably because of the story I was reading about strange creatures on another planet. 

Feeling rather foolish about hunting around in my own backyard with a baseball bat, I went back into the house and put the bat and flashlight away. I had just sat down to read my book again when I was frightened by the cry of "Help! Help!" This time from right behind me. I dropped my book and jumped up. There, sitting on the table was a large green and red bird. It was my neighbour's parrot! While I was out in the yard, the parrot must have seen the light in the living room and come in through the open window. 

We walked in so quietly that the nurse at the desk didn't even lift her eyes from the book. Mum pointed to a big chair by the door and I knew she wanted me to sit down. While I watched mouth open in surprise, Mum took off her hat and coat and gave them to me to hold. She walked quietly to the small room by the lift and took out a wet mop. She pushed the mop past the desk and as the nurse looked up, Mum nodded and said, "Very dirty floor. "

"Yes. I'm glad they've finally decided to clean them," the nurse answered. She looked at Mum strangely and said, "But aren't you working later?"

Mum just pushed harder, each swipe(拖一下) of the mop taking her farther and farther down the hall. I watched until she was out of sight and the nurse had turned back to writing in the big book. 

After a long time，Mum came back. Her eyes were shining. She quickly put the mop back and took my hand. As we turned to go out of the door, Mum bowed politely to the nurse and said, "Thank you. "

Outside, Mum told me, "Dagmar is fine. No fever. "

"You saw her, Mum?"

"Of course. I told her about the hospital rules, and she will not expect us until tomorrow. Dad will stop worrying as well. It's a fine hospital. But such floors! A mop is no good. You need a brush. "

I keep a two dollar bill in my wallet that was given to me by my mother when I was six years old. I am not superstitious but the bill goes with me wherever I go. 

My mother gave it to me so that luck would follow me everywhere. She looked at me and said "I want you to carry this two dollar bill for extra good luck. ""Thanks mom. "I replied. "I will keep it close to me always. " Every morning I would get dressed and my two dollar bill went into my pocket. My mother passed away when I was 17 years old and I remember taking out my two dollar bill. I held it in my hand for the longest time and knew that she would be watching over me the rest of my life. Each time I felt I had a crisis on my hands I would reach for my two dollar bill and set it on the table. I would stare at it for several hours and could always come up with a solution. When I applied for my first job I was thirty years old and very shy The thought of being interviewed for a job was scary but I had to work. On my first interview, as I sat in the waiting room, I noticed there were five women ahead of me. All of the women were younger and very well dressed. One of them was impeccable in her blue striped suit with matching purse and shoes. I knew I was up against women better qualified by looking at the length of their resumes.

Mrs. Martin. the office manager, summoned me into her office"What makes you feel you are qualified for this job?"she asked. "I really need this job and there is nothing I cannot do, I responded. She asked me a series of questions and the interview was over. As I exited her office, I turned around and said, "Mrs. Martin, I know that I am not qualified like your other applicants but please give me a chance. I learn quickly and can be a very productive member of your team. "I thanked her and went home exhausted. Oh well, I thought tomorrow would be another day.

注意：1. 续写词数应为150词左右。 2. 请按如下格式在相应位置作答。

That evening as I was getting ready for bed, I received a phone call from Mrs. Martin. 

I got my wallet and took out my two dollar bill. 

注意： 1. 词数80左右； 
2. 可适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。

参考词汇：报名sign up；外貌appearance；功能function 

NASA has got some good news for us. The world is a（green）place today than it was 20 years ago. How does this happen? Well, it appears China and India are leading the change. 

NASA researchers compared satellite data (卫星数据) from the mid-1990s to today. They found that global green leaf area（increase）by five percent since the early 2000s. That's about the same area as the entire Amazon rainforest. At first, the researchers were unsurecaused the large increase in greening around the planet.

After further(investigate), they found that greening was mostly located in China and India. China and India have the world's biggest populations. In the past, they(consider) to have overexploited land, water and other resources for economic growth. But now, the two countries are responsiblethe largest greening of the planet in the past two decades.

China has carried out programs(protect) and expand forests. These programs were developed to reduce the(effect) of soil erosion(水土流失)，air pollution and climate change. India continues to break world records in tree planting.  was reported that 800, 000 Indians planted 50 million trees in one day in 2016. However, the researchers warned that we should not be content with situation. The gain in global greenness does not offset（抵消）the losses. 

I was informed that my four-grade daughter was not going to make it to the fifth grade. The teacher said, "She may not be1 what we're trying to accomplish." He was actually saying she didn't have the2 . I got mad because I knew she was smart, just as my father had known I was smart when I was3 in school. We had her tested and found that the trouble she was having was dyslexia—difficulty in reading, which was4 what I had had. By then I was a successful television writer, and had5 an Emmy Award for "The Rockford Files. "

Writing and writing, I worked so hard in my late 20s and early 30s, 6 to hear people praise me, because I did badly in all my courses. Eventually, I did become successful, and people now say to me, "So you've7 dyslexia. "

No. I don't overcome it, but just switch to something within my8 . Some easy things are very hard for me. Most people who go through college9 twice as fast as I do. I avoid10 a phone if I can, because I sometimes have to try three times to get the number right.

Despite my weaknesses I view dyslexia as a11 , not a misfortune. Many dyslexics are12 at right-brain, abstract thought, and that's what my kind of creative writing is. And I can write quickly, and can get up to 15 pages a day. Writing is my13 .

The real fear I have for dyslexic children is not that they14 in school, but that they will quit on themselves before they get out of school. Parents have to create15 for them, whether it's in music, sports or art. You can make your dyslexic child able to say, "Yeah, reading is hard. But I have other things I can do. "

People have always wanted to know what the future will look like. Then, how can we?

The world has changed a lot in the last 150 years, but we humans are driven by the same basic needs as we were 150 years ago, such as food, sleep, the feeling of being appreciated and loved.  No. In addition, generally speaking, the inventions in the last 150 years have been a human effort for freedom (自由) and communication. Since there is still much to do in this area, this will be the focus at least for the next 150 years. 

But why do we need to predict the future? Predicting the future is important for two reasons: First, we need to start to think about what kind of future we would like for ourselves and to pass on to the next generation. 

How about the virtual worlds? It might be that in the future people can feel the sand between their toes, and hear the waves, just lying in the bed at home. So, even if a great invention is an affordable price, it'll never take the place of the common experience if it is not real.

What we'll see in the next 50 years is the transition from an oil-dependent society to a new society. Here there'll be new medicine, continued exploration of space, challenges in the climate change, and new inventions that make life a little easier.

A. Will this change in the next 150 years?

B. So what will the future look like then?

C. Predicting the future can help us in many ways. 

D. However, you'll get the feeling of being there.

E. Well, to understand the future, you must know the past. 

F. However, no matter how real the experience is, it doesn't happen for real. 

G. Then we need to know what decisions we need to make today will give the best result in the future. 

An Italian company has created the world's first underwater farm. The station named Nemo's Garden consists of five biospheres (生物圈) fixed to the bottom of the sea off the coast of Savona, Italy. They're being used to grow strawberries, beans, garlic, and lettuce.

"The main target of this project is to create other sources of plant production in areas where environmental conditions make it difficult to grow crops through traditional farming, including lack of fresh water, fertile soil, and extreme temperature changes, " said project spokesperson Luca Gamberini.

The five biospheres, currently floating between depths of 18 and 36 feet, are constantly watched by Ocean Reef Group—a diving equipment company—from a control center on dry land. According to various news reports, the plants are watered by drips of water on the inner walls of the biospheres. With a constant temperature of 79 degrees day and night, and humidity (湿度) at around 83 percent, the conditions are ideal for plants to grow well. 

The high amount of carbon dioxide also encourages growth. 

Ocean Reef president Sergio Gamberini said he came up with the idea of growing plants underwater during a summer vacation in Italy. In his own words, he wanted to do something that's different and to show the beauty of the ocean. After two years of failed attempts, they finally were able to get these five biospheres working. Their success may lay the foundation for a new form of crop production that can be done without harming the environment.

In fact, the biosphere seems to be attracting wildlife. Octopuses (章鱼) and endangered seahorses are taking shelter under the structure, while crabs (螃蟹) are climbing up the anchors and into the greenhouses. None of the creatures have damaged the plants so far. "It's so kind of science-fiction to see these two different forms of life interact, " Gamberini said.

Our world's forests are becoming isolated and broken. In fact, today we have only two remaining continuous forests systems in the world-the Amazon and the Congo. The rest of the world's forests are becoming eparated-kind of like islands.

Why should that concern most of us city dwellers? It turns out that forests affect us in ways more than we can see and experience. If you had your breakfast this morning, blew your nose on a tissue, switched on a light or are reading this article, you have one thing to thank for-the world's forests and the products they supply us. Forest products are used by us in our daily lives either directly or indirectly. Think of paper and wood-your school textbook, newspaper your parents read, or the furniture you are sitting on. Even for our medicines and cosmetics we depend on forest products.

But that is only one way of looking at it. In another sense, forests are habitats for diverse plant and animal species; many people around the world depend on forests for their livelihood. Forests give us our rivers, help maintain the water cycle, act as a carbon sink and help prevent soil erosion. 

For all that forests provide us, humans are using its resources faster than the forests can regain themselves,  so much so that we are losing them fast—too fast for our own good! Forests today make up 30% of the land area of the world. But just in the last 50 years, more than one half of the world forests are gone. It is believed that forest areas, about half the size of Singapore, are being lost every day!

Forests don't disappear in a day. It is gradually eroded (侵蚀) away. The biggest cause is roads and man-made developments, as well as natural events such as wildfires. Did you know that when an area of a forest gets broken-up by artificial barriers, these areas tend to lose about 50% of all their species within a couple of decades?

The areas that are exposed by the disappearing forests now begin to experience extreme temperature, pressure and wind. Now add to it, invasive species that destroy the habitat. 

It is in our hands to do something about it. If government officials and local populations can work together to reconnect the mini forests by planting linking trees, it may not be too late to preserve what we already have. 

Last year Justin met a great difficulty in his life: Where should he work after graduation? He had two great offers. The first was a government job in his hometown, a 10-minute bike ride from his apartment. It wouldn't pay much, but he'd have time to spend with his wife, nephew, and aging parents. The second was a job in the biggest neighboring city. It would pay a lot more, but he'd have to travel four hours a day.

We know surprisingly little about how people do when they make more money at the expense of having less time or have more time at the expense of earning less money. My colleagues-PhD student Lucia Macchia, 

Professor Elizabeth Dunn and I set out to do a study. We asked more than 1, 000 college students. What we found was that students who     rioritized time were happier than those who prioritized money. Those who valued time were happier and more satisfied with their lives and careers one to two years after graduation. 

People who live in more unequal areas feel less financially secure and are more likely to value money. 

People who grew up in families fighting about money also are more likely to focus on money instead of time as adults, even if they now have a lot of money. Of course, debt also plays a role. 

Sometimes we cannot choose our priorities; we might need to choose the better-paying job and sacrifice (牺牲) having more time to socialize with our friends and family. Society needs to work harder to make us all feel like we have the choice to prioritize time over money. However, when we do have the ability to choose which resource to prioritize, the data is clear: Valuing time is likely to bring us greater joy both in the moment and in the long term. 

Four Great Persons

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)

Born in Austria in 1756, Mozart was the son of a successful musician. He wrote his first piece of published music at five. Within the year, he began playing for the public, which included a tour of Europe where people admired the young boy's talent. By the time he was a teenager, Mozart had written several operas. He wrote over 600 pieces of music in his lifetime.

Shirley Temple (1928-2014)

Shirley Temple received her first acting chance at the age of three and starred in Carolina, her first film, at six. She quickly caught attention and by 1940, she had starred in 43 films, including Bright Eyes for which she won a special award for "Outstanding Personality". As an adult, Temple became a US diplomat(外交官) for the United Nations.

Nkosi Johnson (1989-2001)

South African Nkosi Johnson was born HIV-positive(携带艾滋病毒). His story caught the media's attention when his local public school refused to admit him because of his condition. Soon he traveled the world, telling his story wherever he could, encouraging other patients to speak out. Besides, he founded Nokie's Haven, a safe place for HIV-positive mothers and their children. In 2005, he was award the International Children's Peace Prize.

Alexandra Scott (1996-2004)

Alexandra Scott had cancer before she celebrated her first birthday. At the age of four, she decided to raise money for other children going through the same thing. So she set up a lemonade stand(摊位), which inspired others to start lemonade stands, too. They raised over $1 million before Scott died of cancer. Her family carries on her legacy(遗产) through Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation, which has raised over $150 million.