This year marked my five-year violin anniversary. Five years ago I entered a music shop and asked, “Do you______violin lessons?”I was standing in a room filled with beautiful ______and felt like a stranger in a new land. I had little ______in playing the violin although I had loved violin music for years. I wanted to learn to play it at that moment．
The music shop signed me up for ______and it soon became clear to me how ______it was for a novice（新手）to learn to play the violin. I once watched a skilled violinist play and it looked simple. Actually, it was more difficult than I had expected. Little did I know there was nothing natural about the ______in which one held the instrument. There was no margin(偏差) for error—a ______misplaced finger sends a note out of tune. If I had known how challenging it would be, I might never have started. However, my love for violin music ______all the difficulties. Though it was a big challenge, I made it at last. I won first place in the violin contest in our city last year．
____the past five years with my violin, I realized I've learned much more than how to make music. I believe mistakes are not ______. They are pointing you toward where to ______your attention. Besides, you'd better not ______yourself with others. If you find you’re not as good as someone, you will feel depressed. If so, remember ______you started. For me，it was because I loved the violin music and it made me happy. What's more, remember that developing a new skill ______repetition. The more you practice，the more you learn．Progress happens even when you are taking ______baby steps (like practicing for a few minutes at a time). Take the time to celebrate your successes. When you ______something you've been working on, acknowledge it with a “Yay me! Look what I did!”Give yourself rewards for what you've learned and enjoy your ______, which will lead you to the next accomplishment．______，you need to persevere（坚持不懈） no matter how difficult the situation is．I firmly believe these lessons______anything we take on．
Learning something new isn't always easy. Sometimes it's more demanding than you expected, but you are richly ______in more ways than you could have imagined for the trying．
1.A. prepare B. offer C. promise D. support
2.A. treasures B. machines C. instruments D. souvenirs
3.A. experience B. patience C. consideration D. imagination
4.A. travels B. contests C. performances D. lessons
5.A. challenging B. practical C. meaningful D. convenient
6.A. stage B. event C. relation D. position
7.A. fairly B. properly C. slightly D. equally
8.A. conquered B. expected C. discovered D. suffered
9.A. Looking up to B. Looking back on C. Looking down on D. Looking forward to
10.A. failures B. excuses C. lies D. solutions
11.A. record B. organize C. escape D. focus
12.A. connect B. share C. compare D. concern
13.A. what B. that C. how D. why
14.A. improves B. introduces C. requires D. guides
15.A. broad B. tiny C. proud D. fresh
16.A. introduce B. design C. contribute D. accomplish
17.A. surprise B. contribution C. achievement D. inspiration
18.A. After all B. In conclusion C. In brief D. Above all
19.A. lead to B. apply to C. respond to D. turn to
20.A. rewarded B. awarded C. respected D. challenged
The Best Ways to Lose Weight with Walking
Walking regularly is the easiest and least expensive form of exercise. Except for a good pair of walking shoes, no special equipment is needed. It is not necessary to join a gym. 1.You can walk every day with no “rest days” in between. There is nothing to learn; people already know how to walk. There are, however, a few important things to keep in mind when walking to lose weight．
● Ways to lose weight by walking
The first way to begin to lose weight by walking is to start walking. The initial goal should be 10,000 steps per day. Using a simple pedometer(计步器) attached to the waistband or on a belt will help you to count your daily steps. Consistency—even 10 minutes 3 times a day at first will produce the immediate results．2.
●3.
It is very important to check with your medical professional before beginning any exercise program; especially if you are over age 65, have been required sitting or little activity for more than a year，or have been diagnosed with heart disease，pregnancy，high blood pressure，or any other medical conditions．
● How to walk to lose weight
A good walking technique will help you achieve the physical or mental energy you need to walk consistently for the amount of time you have set for your goal. Making sure that you are using your large muscles correctly will also help to build your muscles．4.
Walking regularly can aid in muscle growth and increase the amount of calories you burn throughout the day. Eating a healthy low-fat diet will raise your metabolism(新陈代谢)．5.If paired the calorie burn with the correct diet, it can lead to a better form of weight loss．
A． Limit your "bad" fat intake．
B． Begin a walking program with suitable physical qualities．
C． For example, take the stairs rather than taking the elevator．
D． It can be done anywhere and anytime, alone or with friends．
E． These two methods will help lead to a safe 1 to 2 pound weight loss per week．
F． Strong muscles burn more calories throughout the day, even when you are not walking．
G． But slowly increasing the time and the distance will encourage your weight-loss efforts．
America's top education official says many schools are spending too much time teaching the “basics”—reading, math and writing. It might seem opposite to what educators have been promoting. But U.S. Education Secretary John King says children really deserve access to a well-rounded education that includes music and arts because it will help them go into being well-rounded, well-educated persons．
King spoke about his own education when explaining why schools need to teach more than math， reading and writing．
King grew up in New York. Both his parents died when he was quite young. In his house, things were often crazy and frightening. It was his teacher, Mr. Osterwei, who helped him escape his difficult life. Quite often, the teacher took him and his classmates to the theater, the zoo, the ballet and famous Museum of Natural History. “Those were powerful, life-changing experiences, ”King says. King graduated from Harvard University. He received his law degree from Yale University. He took charge of New York State public schools from 2011-2015. The U.S. Senate approved him as Education secretary last month．
Many schools spend almost all funding on the “basics” because they lack money for other subjects, King says. Or they want students to do better on tests used to compare student performance．
Students need to connect their studies and things that matter to them personally, such as music if they are to become “sophisticated(水平高的) thinkers”. A 2013 report by UNESCO says today's world needs people able to solve new and unusual problems. It says arts can help students find those answers. In the report, UNESCO said teaching the arts in China, South Korea and Japan is different．
From that in many Western countries, the emphasis(重点) in those three countries is “on joyful experiences and children's interests. ” In the West, educators are more likely to connect the arts to reading, writing and math. A 2014 report tried to compare how well countries teach children how to solve problems. It found Singapore, South Korea, Japan, China, Canada, Australia and Finland with the highest scores for 15-year-olds. Singapore led the way with a score of 562 out of a possible 1，000. The average score was 500. The United States had a score of 508．
1.According to paragraph 1, what have educators been encouraging?
A. Teaching arts should never be put second to teaching the “basic”．
B. More money and time ought to be set aside for teaching arts．
C. Research should be done to ensure a well-rounded education．
D. Enough time is supposed to be spent in teaching the “basics”．
2.King spoke about his own education experience to ________.
A. share with us his extraordinary education background
B. tell us his teacher attached great importance to teaching
C. confirm access to arts contributes to good academic performances
D. call on schools to give arts lessons as much attention as the "basics" ones
3.The author convinces us of the importance of teaching arts by different means except ________.
A. by giving examples B. by making comparisons
C. by analyzing figures D. by performing experiments
4.What is the best title for the text?
A. Schools are supposed to be far-sighted
B. Kids should be well-rounded persons
C. Kids need more than “the basics” to learn
D. Teachers must have advanced teaching methods
An article describing the attitude of post-1990s generations toward life has recently gone viral on Chinese social media, which resonates with(引起共鸣) millions of youngsters for reflecting their casualness and calmness under gradually increasing social pressure．
The article was first published on WeChat with the title of “The first group of post-90s generation who have become monks”. By using the phrase “Buddha-like youngsters”(佛系青年), it claimed that some of the post-90s generations, who were born between 1990 and 1992, have “seen through the emptiness of life” and kept a casual and calm attitude toward career and life．
“It's fine to have something or not and there is no need to pursue or win anything," said the article, while defining "Buddha-like" people and clarifying that the phrase has nothing to do with the religion of Buddhism. An easy example is that Buddha-like youngsters do not care about taking which way to return home or choosing what to eat for lunch, according to the article．
The phrase has touched the nerves of the Chinese youngsters who are facing the fast-paced life, cut-throat world of career and great mental pressure in China, read a commentary by People's Daily on Wednesday. The phrase was well received by Chinese netizens; the original WeChat post has been viewed by more than 1 million times and then read more than 60 million times on SinaWeibo by Wednesday．
“The phrase properly describes the mentalities and lifestyle of (some of) the post-90s generations in China, who have become less ambitious and more casual toward life due to the great pressure and fierce competition in today's China”, one SinaWeibo user commented．
Are you a Buddha-like youngster?
1.The underlined phrase “gone viral” in Paragraph 1 means "__________"．
A. spread quickly B. been clearly explained
C. appeared secretly D. been completely confirmed
2.According to the text, "Buddha-like youngsters" may__________.
A. get used to life stress B. struggle hard for their future
C. attach much importance to fame D. take a casual attitude toward competition
3.The author shows that the phrase “Buddha-like youngsters” was well received __________.
A. by offering definition B. by making comparisons
C. by using figures D. by giving examples
The bus was full of the sounds of laughing and yelling fifth graders. They were on their way to the zoo for a class trip. Mario was excited to see the zoo, but there was one problem. It was ten o'clock in the morning, but his stomach was already grumbling(咕咕叫). He reached down and grabbed his lunch bag. Opening it, he saw that it contained a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, an orange, and two cookies. Mario sighed. He always had peanut butter and jell.
“Trade you lunches,” he said to the boy seated next to him on the bus．
“Okay,” said Mark as he handed his brown bag to Mario．
Mario opened it and was hit with the smell of tuna(金枪鱼). Mario wrinkled his nose and quickly closed the bag. He leaned forward and tapped the shoulder of the girl in front of him.” Swap lunches, Toni?” he asked．
“Hmm, okay,” said Toni．
Mario smiled. This was fun. But when he looked into the bag, he frowned. What a disappointment! A ham sandwich, but no cookies! He had to have cookies．
Mario turned in his seat. “Want to trade lunches?” he asked Juana．
“Definitely!” said Juana. She grabbed his lunch and tossed hers onto his lap．
He opened the lunch bag. Pizza! He reached into the bag to grab it. Oh, no! The pizza was hard. He could hit a home run with pizza that hard．
Mario twisted in his seat. One last try, he told himself. “Hey, Mona! Trade lunches?”
Three rows behind him, Mona seemed hesitant: Finally, she nodded. She passed her lunch forward, and he passed his back．
Mario took a deep breath and opened the bag. It was a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, an orange, and two cookies. The sandwich was a little squashed(挤压), and one of the cookies was broken.
Mario ate it anyway. And it was delicious.
1.Mario trade lunches so many times because ________.
A. each lunch he received was dissatisfying
B. his curiosity was aroused with each trade
C. he needed something interesting to kill time
D. he preferred more food to settle his stomach
2.In the underlined sentence (Paragraph 9), the author is comparing the pizza to ________.
A. left-over food B. a baseball bat
C. home-made bread D. a difficult game
3.What does the author intend to tell us？
A. Friends are there when you need them．
B. You should be content with what you have．
C. If you want something done right, do it yourself．
D. There is always something better around the corner．
假如你是学校学生会主席，请你以学校学生会的名义给全校学生写一封倡议书，主题为"校园拒绝零食"
要点提示如下：
1．目前学校里学生吃零食现象很严重，有些同学每天花很多钱买零食吃；
2．吃零食是一种浪费；
3．大多数零食是不健康食品，容易使人发胖，甚至生病；
4．有些同学乱扔包装袋；
作为高中生，我们应当养成良好的饮食习惯，拒绝零食
注意：
1．词数100左右，格式已为你写好；
2．内容可适当发挥，注意行文连贯．
参考词汇：现象phenomenon零食snacks包装袋wrapper
Dear fellow students，
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The Students'Union．
