One of the biggest problems when we are talking is the awkward silence. Encountering this situation is so uncomfortable that you would avoid meeting new people in the first place. In the past, I struggled with this and I even thought it had to do with my DNA or something… But later I learned that once you know how to keep those words flowing, you can meet and talk to anyone you like, which helps create great possibilities for friendship, fun and shared activities that you would otherwise have missed out on.

After studying this in depth, I had different opinions and found that one of these common behaviors is the habit of filtering (过滤)--holding back from saying something until you’ve “checked” to make sure that what you’re about to say is cool, impressive and interesting. Another problem is not learning to get in the mood for conversation. If you don’t know how to change from subjects, then it can take a lot of time to warm up.

It is the reflex (习惯性思维) that allows you to say whatever goes on in your mind. It’s fun to realize that you’re allowed to say whatever is on your mind. As long as you don’t say anything that could land you in jail (监狱).

All of the “Oh! That’s interesting…” “Hmm, I’ve never heard of that” “Hmm, cool!” expressions are reactionary (保守的) bits of conversation that prove to the other person that you’re really listening. This works 99% of the time. So, if you show some interest, they’ll hang around and want to talk to you even more.

Everyone knows that stories juice-up conversations, but most people only talk about stories of their own lives. When someone mentions something related to any of them, just tell the story, even if it’s not from your life. The more interesting, stranger or more frightening they are, the harder they are to forget.

1.If people can deal with the awkward silence, they can      .

A. train their working skill    B. improve their life quality

C. enrich their social life    D. establish their working relationship

2.When talking with others, we should      .

A. feel nervous    B. think twice

C. be free to express    D. avoid breaking in

3.According to the passage, what do the speakers care much about?

A. The attractive topics of conversation.

B. The atmosphere of the conversation.

C. The listener’s experiences and tastes.

D. The listener’s curiosity and concern.

4.What does the underlined part “juice-up conversations” mean?

A. making conversations more boring    B. making conversations livelier

C. making conversations smoother    D. making conversations more relaxing

When my sister Mertie told me she had put out tomato plants last summer, I was quite impressed.

Since she was a garden-beginner, Mertie researched exactly how far apart to space her tomato plants; what kind of fertilizer to use; how to keep away the bugs, etc. Once they were planted, she took care of them daily, anxiously awaiting the juicy tomatoes to appear. But, day after day, her plants were tomato-less while all of her neighbors who had also put out tomato plants were already enjoying the fruit of their labor.

Frustrated, Mertie gave in and went to the market to search fresh tomatoes. While paying, Mertie told the farmer her troubles. The farmer paused to think for a moment and then asked, “Well, what kind of tomatoes did you plant?”

“I think they were called Big Boy,” Mertie remembered.

“Well there’s your problem,” the farmer explained. “Big Boy and Better Boy tomatoes have a 95-day growing period whereas regular tomato plants produce fruit in as few as 70 days…you just have to wait a little longer for the Big Boys.”

With that new knowledge, Mertie went home with excitement, knowing they would be worth the wait.

Thinking about my sister’s gardening experience, I had to smile. She just didn’t know that Big Boy tomatoes took longer--neither did I--but once she discovered that information, she was no longer discouraged and upset about the lack of tomatoes on her plants. Instead, she was encouraged and excited to see them a few weeks later.

It makes me wonder how many of us have “Big Boy” dreams in our hearts, yet we just don’t realize that they are of the “Big Boy” variety so we are discouraged and worn out with the waiting process. Instead of waiting with excitement, we give up on our dreams and figure we must have done something wrong to stop them from coming to pass. Frustrated, we see other people’s dreams coming true, and we wonder why ours haven’t yet been achieved.

1.What is not mentioned in the passage when growing tomato plants?

A. Using suitable fertilizer.    B. Keeping them well apart.

C. Watering them regularly.    D. Controlling pests on them.

2.Why did Mertie’s tomato plants fail to produce at the expected time?

A. Because they were destroyed by her neighbors.

B. Because she grew the wrong kind of tomatoes.

C. Because she didn’t manage the garden well.

D. Because they required more time to produce.

3.What does the author compare tomatoes to in the text?

A. Goals.    B. Experiences.

C. Time.    D. Imagination.

4.What does the text intend to show us?

A. It’s better late than never.

B. A bad beginning makes a bad ending.

C. Success sometimes needs a little patience.

D. A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.

Plan your dream vacation to one of these excellent destinations.

St. Lucia

Abundant（丰富的） rainforests and splendid mountains are all reasons to visit this Caribbean island. St. Lucia offers the perfect mix of relaxation and adventure. To take in the breathtaking scenery, plan to hike the Piton Mountains or dive in the waters of Anse Chastanet.

Banff. Alberta

This Canadian destination will bring out the explorer in anyone who visits. From hiking and whitewater rafting to skiing and snowboarding, Banff offers travelers an abundance of year-round outdoor activities. The Lake Louise Ski Resort is one of the largest in North America and the striking photo opportunities of the Canadian Rockies from Moraine Lake can’t be underestimated (低估).

Machu Picchu

According to travelers, a visit to this Peruvian UNESCO World Heritage (遗产) site is a once-in-a-lifetime adventure. Located in the Andes Mountains, it is the most familiar icon (象征物) of Inca civilization. Spend a few days accustoming yourself to the altitude in the neighboring city of Cusco, where you can experience a mix of Incan and Spanish cultures.

Great Barrier Reef

It’s easy to see why the Great Barrier Reef is one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World – it stretches nearly 1,500 miles along the eastern coastline of Australia and features about 3,000 reefs, 900 islands and more than 1,500 species of fish. Travelers can see these amazing natural structures from the air or underwater. However, large amounts of coral bleaching (褪色) caused by rising ocean temperatures put this place’s continued existence at risk, so plan your visit soon to see this awesome sight up close.

1.What can you enjoy both in St. Lucia and Banff?

A. Hiking.    B. Skiing.

C. Diving.    D. Snowboarding.

2.Where may a historian choose to go?

A. St. Lucia.    B. Banff. Alberta.

C. Machu Picchu.    D. Great Barrier Reef

3.What do we know about the Great Barrier Reef?

A. It’s on the western coast of Australia.

B. It’s famous for coral reefs rather than fish.

C. People must take a plane to enjoy its beauty.

D. It may disappear if temperature keeps on rising.

假定你是李华，你的外国笔友Sally想利用假期参加一些夏令营活动，写信征求你的意见。请结合自身经历，给她回一封邮件，告诉她参加夏令营的好处。

注意：1. 词数100左右 (开头和结合已给出，但不计入总词数)；

2. 可适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。

Dear Sally,

I'm writing to tell you about my ideas about taking part in various camp activities.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

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：在错的词下画一横线，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。

Yesterday, I spent one memorable afternoon with my little friend Tom, which was the child of my neighbors next door. When I reached home after school, I find Tom sitting on the stairs.

Know he had lost his key, and I invited him to my home. He started to do his homework. Meanwhile, I called her mother and told her what had happened. Soon Tom finished all his homework. Since it was still early, I decided play Chinese chess with him so that he wouldn't feel boring. Tom was very careful and he thought very hard before makes any move. Later, Tom's mother arrived and thanked me for taking care of her sons. Tom said he had an enjoyable afternoon. In fact, I also felt very happily.

阅读下面短文，在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。

Henry Bond was about ten years old when his father died. He lived 1. poor life with his mother. When in fourth grade, Henry wanted a grammar book in order to join a class in the school. But his mother didn't have money 2. (buy) one for him. 3.(trouble) by it, Henry started thinking about 4. could be done.

One morning, it snowed 5. (heavy) and the cold wind blew hard. 6. (look) at the deep snow, Henry said to 7. (he), “It is an ill wind that blows nobody good.”

He ran to the house of a neighbor, and offered his services to clear a path in front of his house. The offer was accepted. After 8. (complete) this work, he received a tip. Then he went to another place for the same purpose, and then to another, until he earned enough to buy the book.

When school 9. (start), Henry was in his seat, the happiest boy in the class, ready to begin the lesson in his new book.

Henry was always one of the top students in his class. He knew no such word 10. “fail”. Having the will, he always found the way.

Have you ever flown on an airplane? Before you left, you______everything you would need for your ______ in a suitcase. Most suitcases that travel on an airplane have to be ____ in special areas away from the passengers. It helps keep the plane _____. This also frees up more room for passengers and makes them more______.

While you were flying in the airplane, you might have had _____looking out of the window or listening to music. Your suitcases, though, didn’t get the same______. Where had they gone? Most airports have baggage handling(处理) systems that______your baggage during your trip.

The systems differ from airport to airport, but baggage handlers have three______jobs. First, they move your baggage from the check-in area to the ____ you’ll be catching. Then your baggage ____ sit with all the other passengers’ baggage in certain areas of your airplane. Second, if you have to ____ airplanes somewhere during your trip, your baggage will be moved to the new airplane you are going to ____ . Finally, they will move your baggage from the airplane to a ____ area at your final destination.

Of course, the systems must make sure baggage travels to the ____ airplanes. Even so, mistakes happen every day. Sometimes, baggage may ____ their airplane. When this happens, they may be found ____ and sent on the next available airplane. Some baggage, though, gets ____ for longer periods of time and may end up in off-site storage facilities(异地仓储设施点). Baggage that can never be ____ to their owners may be given away to charity ____ they can be sold at special auctions(拍卖会).

1.A. discovered    B. rewrote    C. packed    D. forgot

2.A. village    B. house    C. visit    D. trip

3.A. repaired    B. stored    C. shared    D. cleaned

4.A. organized    B. heavy    C. fixed    D. safe

5.A. comfortable    B. confident    C. beautiful    D. careful

6.A. patience    B. courage    C. money    D. fun

7.A. experiment    B. knowledge    C. treatment    D. education

8.A. break away from    B. catch up with    C. take care of    D. make use of

9.A. well-paid    B. main    C. interesting    D. easy

10.A. airplane    B. train    C. boat    D. bus

11.A. still    B. never    C. nearly    D. usually

12.A. choose    B. change    C. control    D. stop

13.A. order    B. save    C. take    D. see

14.A. collection    B. rest    C. dining    D. picnic

15.A. slow    B. small    C. quiet    D. right

16.A. destroy    B. miss    C. follow    D. meet

17.A. suddenly    B. strangely    C. quickly    D. clearly

18.A. prepared    B. broken    C. washed    D. lost

19.A. returned    B. introduced    C. lent    D. added

20.A. but    B. or    C. so    D. if

Should schools allow Halloween celebrations?

Halloween is one of the most celebrated holidays in the United States. 1. Many schools also celebrate the holiday by having kids dress up in costumes, take part in costume shows, and join in a variety of activities relating to Halloween. On October 31, the halls of schools across the country will be filled with princes, princesses, and superheroes. In addition to costumes, school Halloween celebrations often include classroom parties and trick-or-treating.

2. They also say that dressing up in costumes allows kids to express themselves and show off their creativity.

3. Officials at many of those schools say the celebrations are too time-consuming (费时的) and take away class time. They also point out that kids who can't afford costumes or who don't celebrate Halloween for cultural reasons feel left out. For example, Seth Boyden Elementary School in Maplewood, New Jersey, canceled（取消）its Halloween celebration last year. Officials at the school said that in the past, many students stayed home on that day.

4. Bree Picower, a Professor of Early and Elementary Education at Montclair State, said, “Maplewood is a wonderful example of a school being responsive to society. Many schools plan to learn from it. Schools are places where students should feel included.”

Parents in Maplewood had different opinions of this policy. Some said that the new no-Halloween policy was a welcome change. 5.

A. It brings a lot of safety problems.

B. Experts say Maplewood is not alone.

C. Many people dislike these costumes.

D. Each year there're millions of Americans celebrations the holiday.

E. But more and more schools have canceled（取消）Halloween celebrations in recent years.

F. Many teachers, parents, and students see these celebrations as a fun break from the school day.

G. And others said that it was unfair that their children are now not allowed to celebrate Halloween in school.

In Scotland, 600,000 tonnes of food are thrown away every year. This amount of food, which could as feed about 1.2 billion poor people, is almost a third of household (家庭) waste. And food waste isn't just a big problem in Scotland.

Money time, and resources (资源) are often wasted by throwing away good food. It also causes very harmful greenhouse gas, which is perilous to the planet.

In the production stage, some foods do not enter the food chain for many reasons. Supermarkets usually care about the quality of food from farms. They often refuse strange-looking and unusually sized produce. However, they seem to forget that it is almost impossible to grow the perfect produce. Food waste at the consumption (消费) stage includes food going out of date and leftovers (剩饭) because of too much food. In households, even mostly fresh fruit and vegetables are thrown away.

In order to reduce food waste, here is what we can do:

Understanding the terms “use by” and “best before” dates. “Use by” dates are there for your safety. It is dangerous to eat food after the use-by date and doing so risks your health. “Best before” dates tell you how long the food will be at its best quality. Once the food passes the date, it isn't necessarily bad, but you should still check, just to be sure.

Every time you go shopping and you bring back new food, put them at the back of your fridge and bring the food that will expire (到期) soon closer to the front. That way, you know what needs to be eaten first.

If you have any food that will expire soon, give it to charity if you aren't going to eat it. They will really appreciate the food you have given.

1.What does the underlined word “perilous” in Paragraph 2 mean?

A. Valuable.    B. Dangerous.

C. Different.    D. Unnecessary.

2.What should people do to reduce food waste according to the text?

A. Pick usually sized produce.

B. Improve the quality of farm produce.

C. Order produce directly from farmers.

D. Avoid buying too much food at a time.

3.What advice does the author offer to people?

A. Buy food that will expire soon to reduce waste.

B. Throw away food that passes the best-before date.

C. Place food carefully according to its expiry date.

D. Give food that has passed its use-by date to charity.

Have you ever wished you could see in the dark as well as an animal? In action movies, we often see characters wearing special glasses that reveal（显示）things that can't be seen in darkness. Everything looks green, but we can see the shapes and outlines clearly. As a matter of fact, this is somewhat similar to the way animals' night vision (视力) works.

You may have noticed eyeshine in pictures of animals, or seen it for yourself when light hits an animal's eyes. Dogs, cats, and many other animals have tissue (组织) called the tapetum lucidum（光神经纤维层） in each eye. The purpose of this tissue is reflect (反射) light deeper into the eye. For many animals, it leads to their excellent night vision, and it helps them hunt.

Different types of animals have different colors of eyeshine. The light reflecting back from the eyes of dogs and cat is likely to be yellow. Rats and birds usually have eyes that shine red. Other animals’ eyes may reflect white, yellow, green, or pink light. In each case, the color is related to the type of cells that make up the tapetum lucidum, as well as the chemicals inside the cells.

Eyeshine has the function of improving animals' night vision, but humans have found other uses for it. For example, when people are searching for certain types of animals, their eyeshine may be helpful in recognizing or discovering them. Also, eyeshine has inspired humans to invent substance (物质) that reflect light at night. Strips containing this substance are used to warn us of safety risks such as  raised parts of roads. Even though humans cannot see so well at night, we have still found ways to benefit from this amazing animal feature.

1.How does the tapetum lucidum help animals' night vision?

A. It sends out light in the dark.    B. It makes everything appear green.

C. It reflects light back into the eyes.    D. It enables them to see colors at night.

2.How does the author mainly develop Paragraph 3?

A. By providing reasons.    B. By giving examples.

C. By following space order.    D. By doing experiments.

3.What can we learn about scientists' research on eyeshine?

A. They've put it to practical uses.

B. They're using it to protect some animals.

C. They're trying to include more animal types.

D. They've invented special glasses based on it.

4.What is the text mainly about?

A. How humans' night vision works.    B. Different colors of animals' eyes.

C. How animals see in the dark.    D. Eyeshine and its benefits.