Collections were the inspiration(灵感) for a project at Thomas Tallis School, which formed part of the Imagine Children’s Literature Festival last autumn. Each child (aged 12-13) beautified a box and wrote a story on the subject of collections to throw inside it. The boxes were spread within the Royal Festival Hall’s Ballroom. Some were left empty to encourage
The subject chosen by Lauren was an imaginative one. "It’s a sort of Cinderella (灰姑娘) story," she told me, inspired by a collection of letters from her cousin, in the story these become love letters, burned by a cruel stepmother. Lauren’s best friend Charlotte is the stepmother. "I’m in Charlotte’s story too," says Lauren, "and I get run over." Charlotte’s tale was inspired by the girls’ coin collection. "We’ve collected foreign coins for years – since our families went on holiday to Tenerife." she explains. "That was before the Euro, so we put pesetas in." Lauren continues: "I find a coin in the road, go to get it and get run over, I’m in hospital and then I die." Charlotte adds: "or she might not die. I haven’t decided yet”
Millie Murray, who is a tea-novel author, thinks that setting the subject of collections was a useful inspiration to their creativity rather than a restriction(限制). "In the beginning I thought, ‘Will the children be able to do it?’" she says. "But it’s been fruitful. Some have their own collection, some have parents who do, and some have written complete stories. It’s made them think about something they wouldn’t have otherwise, which can only be a good thing."
1.What were the children asked to do in the project?
A. To meet friends at Thomas Tallis School
B. To write stories on the subject of collections.
C. To encourage visitors to write their own stories.
D. To have their friends for characters in the stories.
2.The underlined word "pesetas" in Paragraph 2 is a kind of _____.
A. story B. collection C. inspiration D. foreign coin
3.From the stories by Lauren and Charlotte, we know that _____ .
A. Charlotte hurt herself when getting a coin
B. both of them developed their imagination
C. both of them will die in each other’s stories
D. Lauren’s cousin posted her some love letters
4.Millie Murray thinks ________.
A. collections could inspire writing creativity
B. it was good for parents to have collections
C. inspirations were very useful in writing stories
D. setting collection subjects restricted inspirations
We were on tour a few summers ago, driving through Chicago, when right outside of the city, we got pulled over. A middle-aged policeman came up to the car and was really being troublesome at first. Lecturing us, he said, "You were speeding. Where are you going in such a hurry?" Our guitarist, Tim, told him that we were on our way to Wisconsin to play a show. His way towards us totally changed. He asked, "Oh, so you boys are in a band (乐队)?" We told him that we were. He then asked all the usual broad questions about the type of music we played, and how long we had been at it. Suddenly, he stopped and said, "Tim, you want to get out of this ticket, don’t you?" Tim said, "Yes." So the officer asked him to step out of the car. The rest of us, inside the car, didn’t know what to think as we watched the policeman talk to Tim. Next thing we knew, the policeman was putting Tim in the back of the police car he had parked in front of us. With that, he threw the car into reverse(倒车), stopping a few feet in back of our car. Now we suddenly felt frightened. We didn’t know if we were all going to prison, or if the policeman was going to sell Tim on the black market or something. All of a sudden, the polliceman’s voice came over in a loudspeaker. He said, "Ladies and gentlemen, for the first time ever, we have Tim here singing on Route 90.” Turns out, the policeman had told Tim that the only way he was getting out of the ticket was if he sang part of one of our songs over the loudspeaker in the police car. Seconds later, Tim started screaming into the receiver. The policeman enjoyed the performance, and sent us on our way without a ticket.
1.The policeman stopped the boys to ______.
A. put them into prison B. give them a ticket
C. enjoy their performance D. ask some band questions
2.The policeman became friendly to the boys when he knew they ____
A. had long been at the band B. played the music he loved
C. were driving for a show D. promised into a performance
3.The boys probably felt ______ when they drove off.
A, joyful B. calm C. nervous D. frightened
阅读下面短文,从短文后所给各题的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中,选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项,并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
When I was thirteen, my family moved from Boston to Tucson, Arizona. 1the move, my father 2us in the living-room on a freezing January night. My sisters and I sat around the fire, not 3that the universe would suddenly change its course. "In May, we’re 4to Arizona."
The words, so small, didn’t seem 5enough to hold my new life. But the world changed and I awoke on a tram moving across the country. I watched the 6_ change from green trees to flat dusty plains to high mountains as I saw strange new plants that 7mysteries(奥秘) yet to come. Finally, we arrived and 8into own new home.
9my older sisters were sad at the loss of friends, I 10explored(探索) our new surroundings.
One afternoon, I was out exploring 11and saw a new kind of cactus(仙人掌). I crouched (蹲) down for a closer look. "You’d better not 12that."
I turned around to see an old woman
"Are you new lo this neighborhood?" I explained that I was, 13, new to the entire state.
"My name is Ina Thorne. Have you got used to life in the 14? It must be quite a _15after living in Boston."
How could I explain how I 16the desert? I couldn’t seem to find the right words.
"It’s vastness," she offered. “That vastness 17you stand on the mountains overlooking the desert -- you can 18how little you are in comparison with the world. _19, you feel that the possibilities are limitless.”
That was it. That was the feeling I’d bad ever since I’d first seen the mountains of my new home. Again, my 20would change with just a few simple words.
"Would you like to come to my home tomorrow? Someone should teach you which plant you should and shouldn’t touch."
1.A. During B. Until C. Upon D. Before
2.A. gathered B. warned C. organized D. comforted
3.A. hoping B. admitting C. realizing D. believing
4.A. going B. moving C. driving D. flying
5.A. good B. simple C. big D. proper
6.A. picture B. ground C. scene D. area
7.A. suggested B. solved C. discovered D. explained
8.A. settled B. walked C. hurried D. stepped
9.A. If B. After C. once D. While
10.A. bitterly B. easily C. proudly D. eagerly
11.A as well B. as usual C. fight away D. on time
12.A. move B. dig C. pull D. touch
13.A. of course B. in fact C. after all D. at least
14.A. desert B. city C. state D. country
15.A. luck B. doubt C. shock D. danger
16.A. found B. examined C. watched D. reached
17.A. why B. when C. how D. where
18.A. prove B. guess C. sense D. expect
19.A. However B. Otherwise C. Therefore D. Meanwhile
20.A. idea B. life C. home D. family
I was surprised by her words, which made me recognize ___ silly mistakes I had made.
A. what B. that C. how D. which
I send you 100 dollars today, the rest _______ in a year.
A. follows B. followed C. to follow D. being followed
You will find as you read this book that you just can’t keep some of these stones to ______. You will want to share them with a friend.
A. itself B. yourself C. himself D. themselves