I was telling my boy Sonny the story of the hare and the tortoise. In the end ,I said, “ Son, remember: Be slow and steady, and that will win the race. Don’t you think there’s something to learn from the tortoise?”
Sonny opened his eyes wide, “Do you mean next time when I’m entering for the 60-metre race I should wish that Billy, Tony and Sandy would all fall asleep halfway?”
I was shocked, “But the tortoise didn’t wish that the hare would fall asleep!”
“He must have wished that,” Sonny said, “Otherwise how could he be so foolish as to race with the hare? He knew very well the hare ran a hundred times faster than he himself did.”
“He didn’t have such a wish,” I insisted. “He won the race by perseverance (坚忍不拔的), by pushing on steadily.”
Sonny thought a while. “That’s a lie,” he said. “He won it because he was lucky. If the hare hadn’t happened to fall asleep, the tortoise would never have won the race. He could be as steady as you like, or a hundred times steadier, but he’d never have won the race. That’s for sure.”
I gave up. Today’s children are not like what we used to be. They’re just hopeless.
1.The writer argued with his son because ______________.
A.he liked tortoises while his son liked hares
B.they disagreed about whether the tortoise was foolish
C.he tried to teach his son a moral (品德) lesson but the son had totally different opinion
D.he liked the story of the hare and the tortoise while his son didn’t.
2.Sonny believed that the tortoise ______________.
A.won the race by his own hard working
B.took a risk by agreeing to run a race
C.was not given a fair chance in the race
D.in fact did win the race luckily
3.Billy, Tony and Sandy must be_______________.
A.boys who were unknown to Sonny’s father
B.boys who Sonny has run races with before
C.boys who Sonny has never raced with before
D.boys who Sonny did not expect to race with again
4.According to the passage, who do you think learnt a lesson?
A.The tortoise B.Sonny
C.The hare D.Sonny’s father
In many ways, Alma Deutscher is like other 11-year-olds. She loves to climb trees, dance, read, and draw. But Alma, who lives in Dorking, England, has made one very special achievement. She has composed a full opera and brought it to the stage. Her opera, a retelling of Cinderella (灰姑娘), premiered (首次演出) in December 2016, in Vienna, Austria.
“I’ve loved Cinderella since I was 3,” Alma said. But she felt the story needed an improvement. “I didn’t like the thing about the shoe,” she says. “Why should the prince find her because of her feet?”
In Alma’s version (版本), Cinderella is a composer. She creates a melody (旋律) that she sings to the prince before fleeing the ball. “He remembers the beginning but not how it went on,” Alma says. The prince realizes that only Cinderella would know how the melody continues. He uses that knowledge to find her.
Alma began writing the opera when she was 8. It premiered on December 29, 2016, and the audience stood up and cheered. Alma played the piano and violin and performed in the show. “It was something that was completely inside my head, in my imagination, and then it came to life,” Alma says.
Alma says she is sure that music will remain a major part of her life. “I have lots of things that I want to compose,” she says. “The first one is a piano concerto (协奏曲). Then I’m writing a novel, and I want to write a movie based on it, and the music for that.”
She also has advice for kids who want to achieve their big dreams. “It’s a lot of work to reach a high level,” Alma says. “But if you love what you are doing, it doesn’t feel like hard work. Don’t let anyone stop you from doing it.”
1.What does the author mostly want to tell us about Alma Deutscher in Paragraph 1?
A.She is a cute girl. B.She lives in Vienna Austria.
C.She has a special music talent. D.She is always ready to help others.
2.What can we learn from Alma’s version of Cinderella?
A.The prince knows how the melody continues.
B.The prince finds Cinderella because of a melody.
C.The prince finds Cinderella because of her shoes.
D.The prince sings a melody to Cinderella before her fleeing the ball.
3.How was the performance of Alma’s Opera Cinderella?
A.It was a great success. B.It disappointed the audience.
C.It set a good example for other kids. D.It was something in Alma’s imagination.
4.What can we learn from Alma’s advice to other kids in the last paragraph?
A.Knowledge is power. B.A good beginning is half done.
C.Failure is the mother of success. D.Nothing is difficult if you’re enthusiastic.
Books to Read in Your 20s
The Kite Runner
By Khaled Hosseini
As a Middle Eastern and North African Studies student, I have a great interest in books about what takes place in this area. I first read this book in high school and really enjoyed it because of its accurate language. If any of you is interested in reading this book and hasn’t yet, I highly recommend (推荐) it.
Firefly Lane
By Kristin Hannah
This is my favorite book. It is a story about friendship, love and life lessons. The story covers the lives of two best friends, Tully and Kate, from childhood to adulthood. I learned so much about friendship and life. So, read Firefly Lane! You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, and then you’ll share this book to your best friend.
Half the Sky
By Nicholas Kristof
For any person of any age, Half the Sky is a must-read. It describes the struggle of women and the most pressing human rights problems of our time: the common oppression of women and girls.
The Little Prince
By Antoine de Saint
This children’s book is simple. It might seem like a wrong book to recommend to someone in their twenties but perhaps that’s what makes it a good choice. It sings praises to exploration and shows the importance of making friends.
1.Who is the writer of the book The Kite Runner?
A.Khaled Hosseini. B.Kristin Hannah.
C.Nicholas Kristof. D.Antoine de Saint.
2.What can you learn from Firefly Lane?
A.It’s written by Tully and Kate. B.It’s about friendship, love and life lessons.
C.It’s a simple book for children. D.It’s a book written for any person of any age.
3.Which book will you read if you want to know about human rights problems?
A.The Kite Runner. B.Firefly Lane.
C.Half the Sky. D.The Little Prince.
假定你是李华，你的美国笔友 Richard 准备来你们市参加龙舟赛(the dragon boat race )。他写信给你，希望你帮他预订好旅馆，并带他游览市内著名景点。请你给他写封回信，内容包括:
1.回复他的要求；
2.询问具体信息(到达时间、呆多久等)。
注意:1.词数 100 左右；
2.可适当增加细节，以使行文连贯；
3.开头己给出，不计入总词数。
Dear Richard,
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
假定英语课上老师要求同桌之间交换修改作文，请你修改你同桌写的以下作文。文中共有10处语言错误，每句中最多有两处。每处错误仅涉及一个单词的增加、删除或修改。
增加：在缺词处加一个漏字符号（∧），并在其下面写出该加的词。
删除：把多余的词用斜线（\）划掉。
修改：在错的词下划一横线，并在该词下面写出修改后的词。
注意：1. 每处错误及其修改均仅限一词；
2. 只允许修改10处，多者（从第11处起）不计分。
Lucy was used to live in my community. Her father went abroad and didn’t support her financial. My mother saw the situation and decided to help her out. She bought us a same lunch bags. When we left off school every morning, whichever was in my lunch bag was in hers. Then one day, her father returned to pick her up live with him abroad. Years late, we saw a stranger stood at our gate and looking in. It was Lucy, who came back to show appreciations to my mother for what she has done for her.
The other day, my husband and I took the kids for dinner at a branch of Pizza Express. There was a very friendly lady ____alone at the next table. When the time came for her to pay the ___, her bank card was declined. The waitress told her, in a very kind way, that there was a ____but that she would call her manager for help. Seeing this, my husband ___got up and told the waiting staff that we would pay for the lady's meal.____, when the manager arrived, he explained to the lady that although she couldn't use her ___, there was no need to ___. Pizza Express authorizes (授权) the restaurant to____two free meals per month and on this ____, they would like to provide her with a free meal.
She was extremely grateful and apologetic that she had been ____to pay. We were relieved that the lady had been ____with dignity instead of being placed in a ___position.
Then, the manager_____our table. He said that ___we had shown such generosity, he would like to donate the second free meal that the restaurant was able to ____to us! we were absolutely ___! I had never heard of any chain restaurant behaving in such a(n) ___way. We were quite____with gratitude. I made sure that the lady was able to get home OK, and then we ____the staff and left ourselves. I was really impressed by how the restaurant had treated this ____case.
1.A.waiting B.working C.ordering D.dining
2.A.menu B.bill C.service D.recipe
3.A.disadvantage B.solution C.problem D.technique
4.A.immediately B.bravely C.cautiously D.slowly
5.A.Actually B.Finally C.However D.Therefore
6.A.cash B.card C.phone D.check
7.A.worry B.help C.pay D.bother
8.A.let out B.pick up C.give away D.take on
9.A.condition B.demand C.moment D.occasion
10.A.unable B.likely C.ready D.unwilling
11.A.treated B.encouraged C.appreciated D.pleased
12.A.dangerous B.difficult C.painful D.pleasant
13.A.noticed B.remove C.approached D.cleaned
14.A.as B.after C.if D.when
15.A.share B.cover C.spare D.offer
16.A.annoyed B.confuse C.interested D.astonished
17.A.strange B.generous C.abnormal D.awkward
18.A.supplied B.equipped C.filled D.burdened
19.A.praised B.thanked C.greeted D.met
20.A.special B.regular C.unique D.complex
