Earlier this year, my family experienced an unexpected tragedy. The kind of tragedy which knocks you out of yourself and turns your whole world upside down. A tragedy which also caused me to be out of work for three months. It was completely unforeseen and I had no time to put together an out-of-office plan.
I’ve worked at previous companies where this kind of tragedy would have been handled professionally; I would have been given the legally—required money and asked to leave. But at SAS Institute (an American developer of analytics software), my team stepped in and filled in with no questions or hesitations. My work was not left undone. My clients (客户) were patient when those picking up the pieces of projects unrelated to them needed some time to get familiar with the work. My management and colleagues checked on my family regularly. At last, my manager, my entire team and Human Resources Department helped me back to work at my own pace. They even changed my workspace over a weekend to better suit my personal needs before I even came back to work.
You see, SAS—creates—a—family. The special attention to employee happiness and work/life balance makes that family possible. The flexible work environment enables most employees to create a schedule that best suits their personal needs—whether it’s attending a school play or taking an aging parent to the doctor. The Work/Life Office has a wealth of resources for college planning, anger management, sorrow, etc. But, as you can see, it doesn’t stop there. Most employees believe that SAS is their family. We rely on each other. We help each other succeed. We celebrate team successes. We hang out after work. Our kids play together. We laugh together and cry together.
Sure, we have a lot of convenience benefits at SAS. But, what really makes a difference to me is the SAS culture that the outside world doesn’t always see: The balance. The companionship. The management support. The family it allows me to have.
I’m so eager for others to see the side of SAS that I see every day.
1.After the tragedy, the author .
A. changed his job B. felt very hopeless
C. was sick for three months D. turned to his colleagues for help
2.What did the author’s colleagues do for him during his absence?
A. They raised money to help him.
B. They visited his family every weekend.
C. They asked his clients to wait for him to return.
D. They moved his office desk to a convenient place.
3.By saying the underlined words “SAS creates a family” in Paragraph 3, the author means .
A. the employees feel at home at SAS
B. SAS often organizes family get-togethers
C. many SAS employees have become couples
D. the offices at SAS are decorated like families
4.The author writes the text mainly to .
A. tell his life experience B. introduce SAS culture
C. encourage people to join SAS D. explain the importance of family
Life hasn’t always been easy for Sareana Kimia, 16. Her parents split up when she was young, and she hasn’t seen her dad since she was l0. In June 2014, she and her mom, Shefali Gupta, found out that they would soon be evicted (逐出) from their home. Sareana knew that her mom had money problems.
Even before the eviction, Gupta had become very sad. Because she didn’t have health insurance, Gupta couldn’t get a doctor’s help for her emotional problems.
Sareana took charge of things at home. For example, she often cooked her family’s meals. When she and her mom were about to lose their home, it was Sareana who arranged a place for them to stay.
For years, Sareana had been an active volunteer with several organizations. She even started her own group, Youth for National Change. It works to support the rights of young people.
Sareana called a few adults she had worked with. After finding out about her situation, one couple opened their doors right away. But by August 2014, the couple no longer had room for Sareana and her mom. The two ended up living in their car. They didn’t want to go to a homeless shelter out of fear that they could be split up. Through it all, Sareana kept working on projects and studying. “At no point did I let what was going on change my daily routine,” she says.
Sareana is homeschooled online and goes to classes at a nearby college. Last fall, school bills began piling up. She had no way to pay them. A friend suggested that she try raising funds online. After a newspaper ran an article about Sareana, donations poured in-nearly $ 30,000! She paid for school and had enough money left to rent a small apartment. She and her mom moved into it in January 2015.
1.What happened to Sareana in 2014?
A. She lost her father. B. She became homeless.
C. Her mom abandoned her. D. Her house was destroyed.
2.Sareana started an organization to .
A. teach people to cook B. support poor people
C. earn money D. help youth
3.Sareana finally found her own apartment .
A. by raising money B. by doing part—time jobs
C. with the help of her friends D. with the help of her college
假设你是李华，你的好朋友苏珊前不久随父母去了美国，她写信告诉你她不适应美国的校园生活，感到孤独。请你根据以下要点用英语给她写一封电子邮件。
1.学好英语，增加交流机会。
2.多交朋友，友情会使人忘记孤独。
3.积极参加各种活动，使自己的生活更加有趣。
注意：1. 词数100左右；开头已经写出，不计入总词数。
2. 可适当增添细节，以使行文连贯.
Dear Susan,
I’m sorry to hear that you are having trouble adapting to your new school life in America,
_______________________________________________________________________________
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Yours,
Li Hua
1.I_____________ ( 我十分感激) if you could come to attend my wedding ceremony.
2.She finishes her home work on time every day to _________（避免受到惩罚）by the teacher.
3.If you want to succeed in business, you have to make efforts. The same ____________ （适用于）study.
4.You’d better _____________ （确保）the exact time of the arriving train.
5.Tom studied hard in senior high school. _____________（因此）, he was admitted into Beijing University.
6.___________________ (令我尴尬), I forgot his name.
7.The students___________________ (对…有印象) his performance.
8.Alice can speak English fluently, __________________ (我们也能).
9.I _______________ (宁愿) go out for a walk than stay at home.
10.Take time to ______________ (帮助援助)others；it will give your life meaning.
Everyone wants to be self-confident, but maybe we just don’t know how to be. Here are some tips on how you can feel more confident about yourself.
1. Everyone has shortcomings. When you have found your shortcomings, work to overcome them. If you are a shy person, take part in social activities, such as parties, and speak to at least one or two people there.
Second, try to spend more time with positive people. Successful and confident people have their own ways of settling problems. 2.
Third, set goals for yourself. With each goal you achieve, you self-confidence will increase. 3. We are afraid that we might lose. Stop thinking like that and give yourself a chance.
Fourth, start each day with a sense of opportunity. 4.Think positively about yourself.
Actually everyone has his or her own way of becoming confident. 5. Friends might have useful suggestions, too.
In short, as long as you try new things, you are sure to become more confident.
A. You should talk with your friends.
B. Pay attention and learn from them.
C. First, don’t think about your weak points.
D. It’s not always right to ask friends for help.
E. sometimes we might be afraid of trying new things.
F. First, you should know what your weak points are.
G. Start your day by reading something encouraging.
On the first day of my new high school, I almost had a nervous breakdown. Everything about the school seemed so difficult. When I got home, my parents said, “You're nervous and that's okay. Everyone is afraid of high school. ”I denied it. I wanted to be strong, so I refused to let anyone know about my fear, even my closest friends.
On the first day I was late for every class and was constantly lost. The school seemed like a puzzle that I couldn't figure out. Was this how the whole year was going to be？ I didn't think I could rise to this challenge, especially carrying a huge backpack that I could hardly lift. It was so big that I could knock someone out with it！The schoolmates seemed to regard me as a fool, and they were probably right.
Despite my fears, after the first week I finally had my schedule figured out.
With the exception of falling up and down the stairs a couple of times and getting laughed at, high school was turning out to be not so bad. It was actually much better than middle school and much more challenging.
Since then, I've been elected vice president of my class, which wasn't much of a victory since only three people ran for the four positions.
It is normal to be scared about a new school. Take a deep breath and relax. High school is something that any student can overcome. Make sure you participate in some out-of-class activities because you’ll find it easier to make friends. Try to do your best, even if it isn't straight A’s.
Most important of all, be who you are , whether you're a “fool”, an athlete, or a lower grader. Don't try to pretend to be someone you're not. Now you know the true secrets of high school.
60. The main reason for the authors fear on his first day is that .
A. he was unable to work out the puzzle
B. his schoolmates were unfriendly to him
C. he was not familiar with the new surroundings
D. his schoolbag was too heavy for him to carry
61. From the author's first day experience we can infer that .
A. his home was far from the school
B. he got to school after classes began
C. he didn’t get any school schedule
D. he didn't know the right way to class
62. After his first week at school, the author .
A. was still not accustomed to the schedule
B. gradually adjusted himself to the new school
C. found high school not so challenging as he had imagined
D. ran for president of his class against three other students
63. According to the passage, the secret of the author’s success lies mainly in .
A. making more friendsB. getting more A’s at school
C. being who he really isD. joining in out-of-class activities
