Like many new graduates, I left university full of hope for the future but with no real idea of what I wanted to do. My degree, with honors, in English literature had not really prepared me for anything practical. I knew I wanted to make a difference in the world somehow, but I had no idea how to do that. That’s when I learned about the Lighthouse Project.

  I started my journey as a Lighthouse Project volunteer by reading as much as I could about the experiences of previous volunteers. I knew it would be a lot of hard work, and that I would be away from my family and friends for a very long time. In short, I did not take my decision to apply for the Lighthouse Project lightly. Neither did my family.

  Eventually, however, I won the support of my family, and I sent in all the paperwork needed for the application. After countless interviews and presentations, I managed to stand out among the candidates and survive the test alone. Several months later, I finally received a call asking me to report for the duty. I would be going to a small village near Abuja, Nigeria. Where? What? Nigeria? I had no idea. But I was about to find out.

  After completing my training, I was sent to the village that was small and desperately in need of proper accommodation. Though the local villagers were poor, they offered their homes, hearts, and food as if I were their own family. I was asked to lead a small team of local people in building a new schoolhouse. For the next year or so, I taught in that same schoolhouse. But I sometimes think I learned more from my students than they did from me.

  Sometime during that period, I realized that all those things that had seemed so strange or unusual to me no longer did, though I did not get anywhere with the local language, and returned to the United States a different man. The Lighthouse Project had changed my life forever.

1.What do we know about the author?

A. His university education focused on the theoretical knowledge.

B. His dream at university was to become a volunteer.

C. He took pride in having contributed to the world.

D. He felt honored to study English literature.

2.According to the Paragraph 2, it is most likely that the author               

A. discussed his decision with his family.

B. asked previous volunteers about voluntary work

C. attended special training to perform difficult tasks

D. felt sad about having to leave his family and friends

3.In his application for the volunteer job, the author         

A. participated in many discussions

B. went through challenging survival tests

C. wrote quite a few paper on voluntary work

D. faced strong competition from other candidates

4.On arrival at the village, the author was       

A. asked to lead a farming team

B. sent to teach in a schoolhouse

C. received warmly by local villagers

D. arranged to live in a separate house.

5.What can we infer from the author’s experiences in Nigeria?

A. He found some difficulty adapting to the local culture

B. He had learned to communicate in the local language.

C. He had overcome all his weaknesses before he left for home.

D. He was chosen as the most respectable teacher by his students.

It was a cold winter day. A woman drove up to the Rainbow Bridge tollbooth (收费站). “I’m paying for myself, and for the six cars behind me,” she said with a smile, handing over seven tickets. One after another, the next six drivers arriving at the tollbooth were informed, “Some lady up ahead already paid your fare.”

It turned out that the woman, Natalie Smith, had read something on a friend’s refrigerator: “Practice random kindness and senseless acts of beauty.” The phrase impressed her so much that she copied it down.

Judy Foreman spotted the same phrase on a warehouse wall far away from home. When it stayed on her mind for days, she gave up and drove all the way back to copy it down. “I thought it was beautiful,” she said, explaining why she’d taken to writing it at the bottom of all her letters, “like a message from above.” Her husband, Frank, liked the phrase so much that he put it up on the classroom wall for his students, one of whom was the daughter of Alice Johnson, a local news reporter. Alice put it in the newspaper, admitting that though she liked it, she didn’t know where it came from or what it really meant.

Two days later, Alice got a call from Anne Herbert, a woman living in Marin. It was in a restaurant that Anne wrote the phrase down on a piece of paper, after turning it around in her mind for days.

“Here’s the idea,” Anne says. “Anything you think there should be more of, do it randomly.” Her fantasies include painting the classrooms of shabby schools, leaving hot meals on kitchen tables in the poor part of town, and giving money secretly to a proud old lady. Anne says, “Kindness can build on itself as much as violence can.”

The acts of random kindness spread. If you were one of those drivers who found your fare paid, who knows what you might have been inspired to do for someone else later. Like all great events, kindness begins slowly, with every single act. Let it be yours!

1.Why did Natalie Smith pay for the six cars behind her?

A. She knew the car drivers well.

B. She wanted to show kindness.

C. She hoped to please others.

D. She had seven tickets.

2.Judy Foreman copied down the phrase because she       .

A. thought it was beautifully written

B. wanted to know what it really meant

C. decided to write it on a warehouse wall

D. wanted her husband to put it up in the classroom

3.Who came up with the phrase according to the passage?

A. Judy Foreman.

B. Natalie Smith.

C. Alice Johnson.

D. Anne Herbert.

4.Which of the following statements is closest in the meaning to the underlined sentence above?

A. Kindness and violence can change the world.

B. Kindness and violence can affect one’s behavior.

C. Kindness and violence can reproduce themselves.

D. Kindness and violence can shape one’s character.

5.What can we infer from the last paragraph?

A. People should practice random kindness to those in need.

B. People who receive kindness are likely to offer it to others.

C. People should practice random kindness to strangers they meet.

D. People who receive kindness are likely to pay it back to the giver.

Samuel Osmond is a 19-year-old law student from Cornwall, England. He never studied the piano. However, he can play very difficult musical pieces by musicians such as Chopin and Beethoven just a few minutes after he hears them. He learns a piece of music by listening to it in parts. Then he thinks about the notes in his head. Two years ago, he played his first piece Moonlight Sonata（奏鸣曲）by Beethoven. He surprised everyone around him.

Amazed that he remembered this long and difficult piece of music and played it perfectly, his teachers say Samuel is unbelievable .They say his ability is very rare, but Samuel doesn’t even realize that what he can do is special. Samuel wanted to become a lawyer as it was the wish of his parents, but music teachers told him he should study music instead. Now, he studies law and music.

Samuel can’t understand why everyone is so surprised. “I grew up with music. My mother played the piano and my father played the guitar. About two years ago, I suddenly decided to start playing the piano, without being able to read music and without having any lessons. It comes easily to me ---I hear the notes and can bear them in mind---each and every note,” says Samuel.

Recently, Samuel performed a piece during a special event at his college. The piece had more than a thousand notes. The audience was impressed by his amazing performance. He is now learning a piece that is so difficult that many professional pianists can’t play it. Samuel says confidently,” It’s all about super memory---I guess I have that gift.”

However, Samuel’s ability to remember things doesn’t stop with music. His family says that even when he was a young boy, Samuel heard someone read a story, and then he could retell the story word for word.

Samuel is still only a teenager. He doesn’t know what he wants to do in the future. For now, he is just happy to play beautiful music and continue his studies.

1.What is special about Samuel Osmond?

A. He has a gift for writing music.

B. He can write down the note he hears.

C. He is a top student at the law school.

D. He can play the musical piece he hears.

2.What can we learn from Paragraph 2?

A. Samuel chose law against the wish of his parents.

B. Samuel planned to be a lawyer rather than a musician.

C. Samuel thinks of himself as a man of great musical ability.

D. Samuel studies law and music on the advice of his teachers.

3.Everyone around Samuel was surprised because he _________.

A. received a good early education in music

B. played the guitar and the piano perfectly

C. could play the piano without reading music

D. could play the guitar better than his father

4.What can we infer about Samuel in Paragraph 4?

A. He became famous during a special event at his college.

B. He is proud of his ability to remember things accurately.

C. He plays the piano better than many professional pianists.

D. He impressed the audience by playing all the musical pieces.

5.Which of the following is the best title of the passage?

A. The Qualities of a Musician

B. The Story of a Musical Talent

C. The Importance of Early Education

D. The Relationship between Memory and Music.

阅读下面短文，按照句子结构的语法性和上下文连贯的要求，在空格处填入一个适当的词或使用括号中词语的正确形式填空。

Last year, my brother and I went to Miami for a vacation. Some of my friends who had been there before said_1._____ was a wonderful holiday destination. Before we went, we had planned for months. When the day came, we were ready.

After our plane landed, we went to the hotel. We had made our reservation six months__2.____ （early）, but the man at the front desk said there had been a mistake. We 3._____（tell）that our rooms hadn’t been reserved for that week, 4._____ for the week after. I didn’t understand 5.____ this would happen and my credit card had already been charged6.______ the reservation. What’s worse, the hotel had been fully booked. When we were wondering what to do, the manager came out. She was 7._____（surprise）helpful. She apologized for the mistake and gave us a spare VIP room on 8._____ top floor. We had never stayed in such an amazing room, and we weren’t charged extra.

The next day, my brother and I went to the beach 9.____ we watched some people play volleyball. We got a little10._____（sunburn），but the day had been so relaxing that we didn’t mind.

Parents feel that it is difficult to live with teenagers. Then again, teenagers have      feelings about their parents, saying that it is not easy living with them. According to a recent research, the most common       between parents and teenagers is that regarding untidiness and daily routine tasks. On the one hand, parents go mad over       rooms, clothes thrown on the floor and their children’s refusal to help with the       . On the other hand, teenagers lose their patience continually when parents blame them for       the towel in the bathroom, not cleaning up their room or refusing to do the shopping at the supermarket.

The research, conducted by St. George University, shows that different parents have different        to these problems. However, some approaches are more       than others. For example, those parents who yell at their children for their untidiness, but       clean the room for them, have fewer chances of changing their children’s       . On the contrary, those who let teenagers experience the       of their actions can do better. For example, when teenagers who don’t help their parents with the shopping don’t find their favorite drink in the refrigerator, they are forced to       their actions.

Psychologists say that     is the most important thing in parent-child relationships. Parents should     to their children but at the same time they should lend an ear to what they have to say. Parents may     their children when they are untidy but they should also understand that their room is their own private space. Communication is a two-way process. It is only by listening to and     each other that problems between parents and children can be settled.

1.A. natural B. strongC. guilty     D. similar

2.A. interest B. argumentC. link     D.knowledge

3.A. noisy B. crowdedC. messy     D. locked

4.A. homework B. houseworkC. problem      D. research

5.A. washing     B. using C. dropping     D. replacing

6.A. approaches     B. contributions C. introductions D. attitudes

7.A. complex    B. popular C. scientific     D. successful

8.A. later B. deliberately C. seldom D. thoroughly

9.A. behavior   B. taste C. future D. nature

10.A. failures   B. changes C. consequences  D. thrills

11.A. defend   B. delay     C. repeat D. reconsider

12.A. communication  B. bond C. friendship D. trust

13.A. reply   B. attend C. attach D. talk

14.A. hate   B. scold     C. frighten D. stop

15.A. loving B. observing     C. understanding D. praising

某英文报社组织题为“我喜欢的英语谚语”征文活动，你有意参加。请从下面两句谚语中任选一句作为标题写一篇英语作文，内容须包括：1.该谚语的含义；2.体现该谚语含义的个人经历。

A friend in need is a friend indeed.     

②Where there’s a will, there’s a way.

注意：1.词数：120-150；

2.文中不得透露个人姓名和学校名称。

参考词汇：谚语 proverb

阅读下面的短文并用英语回答问题，然后将答案写到答题卡相应的位置上（请注意问题后的字数要求）。

[1] Nowadays the cost of a new car has fallen in real terms so that it is cheaper than ever to own one, and better road conditions have also attracted more drivers. The result is overcrowding on the road system, which is one of the problems the local governments are faced with.

[2] When people travel to other towns, the problem might be relieved by getting them to park outside the town. Buses could be provided to take them into the centre. These Park and Ride projects are increasingly popular in the UK. At Southerton, for example, a council-funded project led to a 15% drop in city centre traffic over five months.

[3] What the council found, though, was that the project proved somewhat unpopular with shop owners in the area outside the centre. Many of their shops relied on passing car drivers for some of their trade. As the number of people driving past dropped, so did their incomes.

[4] Making car driving expensive is another way of ____________. Road taxes tend to mean that people use their cars less. Fining drivers who are in areas where cars have been banned can also tend to encourage them to leave their cars behind.

[5] However, one thing has to be got right for any solution to succeed. If we expect people to give up the habit of driving, we must give them an alternative they can rely on. Constant delays, unannounced changes to the timetable and sudden cancellations all discourage people from using public transport. People will only see it as a real choice if the buses and trains are on time.

1.What causes overcrowding on the road system according to Paragraph 1? (no more than 12 words)

_______________________________________________________________________________

2.What should people do when traveling to other towns according to the Park and Ride projects? (no more than 10 words)

_______________________________________________________________________________

3.Why were some shop owners unhappy about the project? (no more than 10 words)

_______________________________________________________________________________

4.Fill in the blank in Paragraph 4. ( no more than 8 words)

_______________________________________________________________________________

5.Why are people unwilling to use public transport according to Paragraph 5? (no more than 8 words)

_______________________________________________________________________________

The kids in this village wear dirty, ragged clothes. They sleep beside cows and sheep in huts made of sticks and mud. They have no school. Yet they all can chant the English alphabet, and some can make words.

The key to their success: 20 tablet computers(平板电脑) dropped off in their Ethiopian village in February by a U.S. group called One Laptop Per Child.

The goal is to find out whether kids using today’s new technology can teach themselves to read in places where no schools or teachers exist. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology researchers analyzing the project data say they’re already amazed. “What I think has already happened is that the kids have already learned more than they would have in one year of kindergarten,” said Matt Keller, who runs the Ethiopia program.

The fastest learner—and the first to turn on one of the tablets—is 8-year-old Kelbesa Negusse. The device’s camera was disabled to save memory, yet within weeks Kelbesa had figured out its workings and made the camera work. He called himself a lion, a marker of accomplishment in Ethiopia.

With his tablet, Kelbasa rearranged the letters HSROE into one of the many English animal names he knows. Then he spelled words on his own. “Seven months ago he didn’t know any English. That’s unbelievable,” said Keller.

The project aims to get kids to a stage called “deep reading,” where they can read to learn. It won’t be in Amharic, Ethiopia’s first language, but in English, which is widely seen as the ticket to higher paying jobs.

1.How does the Ethiopia program benefit the kids in the village?

A. It trains teachers for them.

B. It contributes to their self-study.

C. It helps raise their living standards.

D. It provides funds for building schools.

2.What can we infer from Keller’s words in Paragraph 3?

A. They need more time to analyze data.

B. More children are needed for the research.

C. He is confident about the future of the project.

D. The research should be carried out in kindergartens.

3.It amazed Keller that with the tablet Kelbesa could _______.

A. learn English words quickly.      

B. draw pictures of animals.

C. write letters to researchers.        

D. make phone calls to his friends.

4.What is the aim of the project?

A. To offer Ethiopians higher paying jobs.

B. To make Amharic widely used in the world.

C. To help Ethiopian kids read to learn in English.

D. To assist Ethiopians in learning their first language.

How fit are your teeth? Are you lazy about brushing them? Never fear: An inventor is on the case. An electric toothbrush senses how long and how well you brush, and it lets you track your performance on your phone.

The Kolibree toothbrush was exhibited at the International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas this week. It senses how it is moved and can send the information to an Android phone or iPhone via a Bluetooth wireless connection.

The toothbrush will be able to teach you to brush right (don’t forget the insides of the teeth!) and make sure you’re brushing long enough. “It’s kind of like having a dentist actually watch your brushing on a day-to-day basis,” says Thomas Serval, the French inventor.

The toothbrush will also be able to talk to other applications on your phone, so developers could, for instance, create a game controlled by your toothbrush. You could score points for beating monsters among your teeth. “We try to make it smart but also fun,” Several says.

Serval says he was inspired by his experience as a father. He would come home from work and ask his kids if they had brushed their teeth. They said “yes,” but Serval would find their toothbrush heads dry. He decided he needed a brush that really told him how well his children brushed.

The company says the Kolibree will go on sale this summer, for $99 to $199, developing on features. The U.S. is the first target market.

Serval says that one day, it’ll be possible to replace the brush on the handle with a brushing unit that also has a camera. The camera can even examine holes in your teeth while you brush.

1.Which is one of the feature of the Kolibree toothbrush?

A. It can sense how users brush their teeth.

B. It can track users’ school performance.

C. It can detect users’ fear of seeing a dentist.

D. It can help users find their phones.

2.What can we learn from Serval’s words in Paragraph 3?

A. You will find it enjoyable to see a dentist.

B. You should see your dentist on a day-to –day basis.

C. You can brush with the Kolibree as if guided by a dentist.

D. You’d like a dentist to watch you brush your teeth every day.

3.Which of the following might make the Kolibree toothbrush fun?

A. It can be used to update mobile phones.

B. It can be used to play mobile phone games

C. It can send messages to other users

D. It can talk to its developers.

4.What is Paragraph 5 mainly about?

A. How Serval found out his kids lied to him.

B. Why Serval thought brushing teeth was necessary.

C. How Serval taught his kids to brush their teeth.

D. What inspired Serval to invent the toothbrush 

5.What can we infer about Serval’s children?

A. They were unwilling to brush their teeth

B. They often failed to clean their toothbrushes.

C. They preferred to use a toothbrush with a dry head.         

D. They liked brushing their teeth after Serval came home.

6.What can we learn about the future development of the Kolibree?

A. The brush handle will be removed.

B. A mobile phone will be built into it.

C. It will be used to fill holes in teeth

D. It will be able to check users’ teeth

Elizabeth Freeman was born about 1742 to African American parents who were slaves. At the age of six months she was acquired, along with her sister, by John Ashley, a wealthy Massachusetts slaveholders. She became known as “Mumbet” or “Mum Bett.”

For nearly 30 years Mumbet served the Ashley family. One day, Ashley’s wife tried to strike Mumbet’s sister with a spade. Mumbet protected her sister and took the blow instead. Furious, she left the house and refused to come back. When the Ashleys tried to make her return, Mumbet consulted a lawyer, Theodore Sedgewick. With his help, Mumbet sued(起诉) for her freedom.

While serving the Ashleys, Mumbet had listened to many discussions of the new Massachusetts constitution. If the constitution said that all people were free and equal, then she thought it should apply to her. Eventually, Mumbet won her freedom---- the first slave in Massachusetts to do so under the new constitution.

Strangely enough, after the trial, the Ashleys asked Mumbet to come back and work for them as a paid employee. She declined and instead went to work for Segdewick. Mumbet died in 1829, but her legacy lived on in her many descendants(后裔). One of her great-grandchildren was W.E.B. Du Bois, one of the founder of the NAACP, and an important writer and spokesperson for African American civil rights.

Mumbet’s tombstone still stands in the Massachusetts cemetery where she was buried. It reads, in part: “She was born a slave and remained a slave and remained a slave for nearly thirty years. She could neither read nor write, yet in her own sphere she had no superior or equal.” 

1.What do we know about Mumbet according to Paragraph 1?

A. She was born a slave

B. She was a slaveholder

C. She had a famous sister

D. She was born into a rich family

2.Why did Mumbet run away from the Ashleys?

A. She found an employer

B. She wanted to be a lawyer

C. She was hit and got angry 

D. She had to take care of her sister

3.What did Mumbet learn from discussions about the new consititution?

A. She should always obey her owners’ orders

B. She should be as free and equal as whites

C. How to be a good servant 

D. How to apply for a job

4.What did Mumbet do after the trial?

A. She chose to work for a lawyer

B. She found the NAACP

C. She continued to serve the Ashleys

D. She went to live with her grandchildren

5.What is the test mainly about?

A. A story of a famous writer and spokesperson

B. The friendship between a lawyer and a slave

C. The life of a brave African American woman

D. A trial that shocked the whole world