Have you ever had a case 1. a mistake helped you understand an idea or a skill? For me, it was sailing. I took a sailing class when I was in high school. No matter how many times I read the 2. (explain), I could not understand the difference between a “tack" and a “jibe”---two methods of turning a boat ---one much 3. (safe) than the other. Later, one day, when I was sailing, a heavy wind blew up. We needed to head back, 4. I mistook the “tack” for the “jibe” and pushed the boat in the wrong direction. Before I realized 5. (I) mistake, it was too late. Luckily, no one 6. (hurt). Only after this experience did I 7. (clear) understand the sailing phrase “turning on the wind” that I 8.(read) so many times in the textbook.I never confused a “jibe” with a “tack” again! Now I often share this story 9. my students after they have made mistakes. I hope they can learn something from their mistakes and correct them instead of10. (regret) all day.
Years ago, in a small fishing village in Holland, a young boy taught the world about the rewards of unselfish service. Because the entire village ______ the fishing industry, a volunteer rescue team was needed in case of ______. One night, the winds screamed, the clouds burst and a strong storm overturned a fishing boat at sea. The crew in trouble______the S.O.S. The captain of the rescue rowboat team sounded the alarm and the villagers______in the town square overlooking the sea. When the team started their rowboat fought their way through the wild waves, the villagers waited ______on the beach, holding lamps to______the way back.
An hour later, the rescue boat ______ through the fog and the cheering villagers ran to greet them. Falling _______on the sand, the volunteers reported that the rescue boat could not hold any more _______and they had to leave one man behind. Even one more passenger would have surely _______the rescue boat and all would have been lost. Therefore, the captain called for another volunteer team to _______the survivor. Sixteen-year-old Hans_____ forward. His mother grabbed his arm, crying, "Please don't go. Your father______in a shipwreck (船只失事) 10 years ago and your elder brother, Paul, has been lost_____for three weeks. Hans, you are all I have left." Hans replied, "Mother, I have to go. ________everyone said I can't go, let someone else do it? Mother, this time I have to do my duty. When the call for service comes, we all need to take our _______and do our part. Hans kissed his mother, joined the team and______into the night. "
Another hour passed, which seemed to Hans' mother like a century._____the rescue boat dashed through the fog with Hans _______up in the bow. Cupping his hands, the captain called, "did you find the lost man?" Hardly able to control himself, Hans ______ cried back, "Yes, we found him. Tell my mother it's my elder brother, Paul!”
1.A. suffered from B. got through C. depended on D. turned away
2.A. frequency B. emergency C. efficiency D. fluency
3.A. set about B. took over C. came up with D. sent out
4.A. fought B. followed C. gathered D. struggled
5.A. angrily B. anxiously C. fearfully D. happily
6.A. hope B. try C. expect D. light
7.A. reappeared B. repeated C. rewrote D. reminded
8.A. unknown B. urgent C. exhausted D. energetic
9.A. villagers B. barbers C. passengers D. captains
10.A. pushed B. pulled C. settled D. overturned
11.A. look for B. look after C. look out D. look on
12.A. stepped B. looked C. put D. threw
13.A. lived B. pulled C. died D. survived
14.A. in the fire B. in the war C. on strike D. at sea
15.A. How about B. What if C. What for D. What with
16.A. place B. photo C. fame D. turn
17.A. disappeared B. appeared C. came D. went
18.A. Secondly B. Firstly C. Finally D. Thirdly
19.A. standing B. keeping C. fishing D. taking
20.A. sincerely B. excitedly C. worriedly D. curiously
One day, a professor entered the classroom and asked his students to prepare for a surprise test. They waited anxiously at their desks for the test to begin. The professor ______ the question papers, with the text facing down as usual. ______ he handed them all out, he asked his students to ______ the page and begin. To everyone's surprise, there were no ______, just a black dot (点) in the center of the page. The professor, seeing the expression on everyone's face, told them the following:
"I want you to write what you ______ there.”
The students, ______, got started on the inexplicable (令人费解的) task.
At the end of the class, the professor ______ all the answer papers and started reading each one of them aloud in front of all the students. All of them, with no ______, described the black dot, trying to explain its position in the middle of the sheet, etc. After all had been ______, the classroom was silent, the professor began to explain:
"I'm not going to grade this. I ______ wanted to give you something to think about. No one wrote about the ______ part of the paper. Everyone focused on the black dot, and the same happens in our ______. We have a white paper to observe and ______, but we always focus on the dark spots. Our life is a ______ given to us with love and care and we always have ______ to celebrate: nature renewing itself every day, our friends around us. the job that ______ our livelihood and the miracles we see every day.
____, we insist on focusing only on the dark spots: the health issues that bother us, the lack of money, the ______ relationship with colleagues, the _______ with a friend, and etc.
The dark spots are very _______ compared to everything we have in our lives, but they are the ones that pollute our minds. "
1.A. handed out B. turned up C. referred to D. pointed at
2.A. Since B. Until C. If D. After
3.A. fold B. turn C. open D. use
4.A. exercises B. choices C. questions D. scores
5.A. remember B. imagine C. study D. see
6.A. surprised B. confused C. curious D. displeased
7.A. collected B. finished C. marked D. selected
8.A. excuse B. doubt C. exception D. explanation
9.A. said B. answered C. returned D. read
10.A. also B. just C. even D. finally
11.A. big B. black C. beautiful D. white
12.A. lives B. classrooms C. colleges D. studies
13.A. send B. keep C. enjoy D. show
14.A. burden B. gift C. pressure D. lesson
15.A. reasons B. time C. freedom D. festivals
16.A. threatens B. ruins C. provides D. changes
17.A. However B. Therefore C. Besides D. Moreover
18.A. close B. complicated C. special D. strong
19.A. stay B. contact C. satisfaction D. disappointment
20.A. dark B. round C. small D. dirty
Being organized is an important skill for school and life．When you’re well organized, you can stay focused，instead of spending time hunting things down．
1.For schoolwork, it means having one notebook or place where you store all your assignment，so you know what you have to do and when. Keeping all your school work neat and in a specific place--these are the main parts of organization.
For home stuff, being organized means having a place to put your things and putting them back as you go.2.It means keeping your schoolbag，your shoes, and your clean underwear in the same places so you always know where to find them.
Planning is part of being organized, too. 3.Calendars，lists，and schedules can help you plan. You can buy or draw a calendar and keep it near your workplace. Making a schedule or “to-do” list for yourself is a good idea. Looking at your list helps you keep track of what you need to do. 4.Check off things when you’ve done them. Use your list to help you decide which thing is the most important to work on first.
5.But once you’re organized，it feels great．The less time you spend hunting around for things or panicking about homework，the more time you have for better things，like reading a good book or playing.
A. Planning means deciding what you will do and when you will do it.
B. First，you should get your schoolwork organized.
C. Add new things as you get assignments.
D. You will benefit a lot from a good habit.
E. What does it mean to be organized?
F. It takes some extra efforts to organize yourself and your stuff.
G. It means hanging your coat up instead of dropping it on the floor or throwing it on a chair.
A new study, conducted by British company Mindlab International, has found that listening to music at work increases accuracy and speed, The Telegraph reported. Perhaps, some parents disagree with this idea, saying, "Switch off the music and concentrate!" Well, if that's the case with your parents, you might now be able to convince them that you have science on your side.
The company gave 26 participants a series of different tasks for five days in a row, including spell checking, mathematical word problems, data entry, and abstract reasoning. The participants completed these tasks while listening to music or no music at all.
The results showed that while music was playing, 88% of participants produced their most accurate test results and 81% completed their fastest work. David Lewis, chairman of Mindlab International, told The Telegraph, "Music is a very powerful management tool if you want to increase not only the efficiency of your workforce but also their emotional state... they are going to become more positive about the work."
However, you may have a list of your favorite songs, but not all kinds of music match all homework. For maths or other subjects involving numbers or attention to detail, you should listen to classical music, the study found. In the study, pop music enabled participants to complete their tasks 58% faster than when listening to no music at all. If you are reviewing your English writing, pop music is the best choice, as it is the best kind for spell checking. It cut mistakes by 14%, compared to listening to no music. After finishing your homework, do you often take time to check your answers? Maybe, some dance music is suitable for you.
1.Which of the following can be the best title for the passage?
A. Music helps us to learn
B. We cannot live without music
C. Different music, different lives
D. Music in the classroom.
2.What did the participants have to do in the study？
A. Persuade their parents to listen to music.
B. Listen to the same music together.
C. Try their best to choose the most suitable music.
D. Finish tasks with music or without music at all.
3.What does the underlined word "they" refer to in Para 3？
A. tools B. results
C. tests D. participants
4.When you review your English writing, what kind of music is the best choice？
A. Classical music B. Dance music
C. Pop music D. Rock music
CALGARY, CANADA---It was one of the most important phone calls Bruce Burrell has ever received, a call warning that a flood was headed Calgary’s way.
“I got a phone call about five in the morning on Thursday from Len McCharles, who was on watch at the time, and he said “there has been big flooding in Canmore and it’s heading this way,” said Burrell, the head of the Calgary Emergency Management Agency.
“I got up immediately, turned on the morning news, saw the pictures from Canmore and then called McCharles back. I said “open the Emergency Operations Centre.”
Burrell was in the EOC for 48 hours straight and it wasn’t until Burrell left the centre for the first time that the disaster(灾难）hit him.
“Once you step outside and you actually see it and hear it, it paints a completely different picture from what you thought you would be dealing with.”
Calgary firefighters came to help the Calgarians who were influenced by floodwaters. Keal Prince, captain of the Calgary Fire Department remembers how a young boy lost his finger while helping a woman remove debris(瓦砾）out of her house.
“As his finger got cut off it went into a fully loaded dumpster(装好的垃圾箱）”Prince said. “People had worked hours to get the dumpster loaded and now they’re working tirelessly, quickly to unload that dumpster, looking for that finger.”
“We had to remove a lot of debris to find that finger. Luckily, the finger was found and it was reattached(重新接上），”Prince added.
Burrell is proud of what the city has achieved so far. And he says the city couldn’t have done it without hundreds of unsung heroes. “There were a lot of unbelievable things that went on during the flood and I think that is what Calgarians need to be proud of.”
1.On the morning of Thursday, Burrell ______.
A. recogised his house was flooded
B. was called to go to Canmore to help people
C. got to know from others about a coming disater.
D. opened his house and found something was wrong.
2.Hearing what had happened, Burrell ________.
A. called the centre to collect pictures
B. reported the event to the TV station
C. went to the flooded areas immediately
D. gave orders for work to be started at once
3.It seemed that the young boy ____.
A. was a great help
B. had a happy ending
C. looked for his finger hours alone
D. was hurt while unloading the dumpster
4.We can infer from the last paragragh that Burrell ______.
A. thinks highly of people in Calgary
B. has received praise from Calgarians
C. thinks it’s his duty to protect the city
D. feels the firefighters need more training
