When my sister Diane began playing the violin, she was seven. How did she sound? Terrible. But she didn’t _______. At twelve, she asked our parents if she could _______ a full-time music school. They said no. Actually, everyone agreed that my sister _______talent.
I was better at my _______. My teacher had told my parents that I had great potential. So my parents found the best piano teacher in the area to _________me. But the only time he was _______was Saturday afternoons at 3 p.m. Back then, I was ______about the British TV shows “The Avengers”, which was aired every Saturday at 3 p.m. I let nothing take up my “Avengers” hour. So I _______ this amazing opportunity. Today, I don’t even have a _______ in my house.
My sister became an engineer, but she ________ stopped making music. When she was in her 40s, she switched careers. She went back to college, got a(n)_________in music education, and became a music teacher. She starts kids out on their first instrument and gives them all the encouragement and support she never________.
Recently, she and a pianist pal put on a recital. A big crowd of friends and family _______for her. As she played, I looked around at the audience. Everyone was _______enjoying the music. It occurred to me that I was the only person who remembered that 7 -year-old kid making those perfectly _______sounds and knew how far she had come, despite everything.
Talent is important. But enthusiasm is even more important.
1.A. advance B. quit C. reflect D. listen
2.A. inspect B. open C. attend D. visit
3.A. lacked B. spotted C. possessed D. admired
4.A. major B. project C. composition D. instrument
5.A. train B. examine C. correct D. challenge
6.A. successful B. skillful C. occupied D. available
7.A. sensitive B. crazy C. serious D. particular
8.A. jumped at B. turned down C. waited for D. opened up
9.A. tutor B. violin C. musician D. piano
10.A. never B. once C. already D. even
11.A. scholarship B. sponsor C. degree D. assistant
12.A. provided B. imagine C. received D. expected
13.A. voted B. feared C. stayed up D. turned up
14.A. obviously B. desperately C. appropriately D. anxiously
15.A. booming B. pleasing C. awful D. powerful
When I first met my new parrot, Chico, his wings had been cut short and he was stuck on the earth just like us humans. When the weather turned nice, I would take Chico outside. I ________ him on a branch of a tree, hoping to make him happier. At first he seemed confused. He walked back and forth on the branch looking ________ . He didn’t even flap his wings in an/a ________ to fly. Somehow he knew he was incapable.
One day Chico got especially excited. He paced back and forth and made an ________ amount of noise. Then all of a sudden he stopped and let out an even louder scream. He started ________ flapping his wings for the first time ever—then he lifted off the ________ like a space shuttle! I was amazed and ________. Little did I know his feathers had been growing back, and Chico had been waiting until the moment was ripe for ________!
Two days later Chico returned. First I tried to ________ him back with food, but he would not come near me. Then I took his ________ and put it away—still he would not come. Finally, I made him a firm promise that I would let him out every day if the weather was nice as long as he did come back. ________, he flew onto my shoulder.
From that day on, whenever the weather was good I would let him ________ early and he would fly around and be back before dark. The routine lasted for two months ________ suddenly Chico became ________. The vet said that he had been infected with a disease from the pigeons in the ________. Within a few days he died.
I was very sad. The ________ crossed my mind that if I had not set him free to fly, he would be still alive. But what ________ is there in being a bird if you can’t fly?
Chico made his first ________ for freedom on a late Monday afternoon in April. When will you make yours? You too can take a ________ when the conditions are right, knowing you too, in your own way, were built to fly. If you don’t set yourself free, what will be the ________ of your life?
1.A. brought B. seated C. caught D. chased
2.A. comfortable B. painful C. patient D. anxious
3.A. attempt B. stage C. journey D. path
4.A. serious B. first C. incredible D. accessible
5.A. slowly B. gently C. madly D. gracefully
6.A. ground B. branch C. window D. house
7.A. moved B. shocked C. delighted D. excited
8.A. patience B. exchange C. rescue D. escape
9.A. trick B. fasten C. seize D. expect
10.A. cage B. chain C. food D. feather
11.A. At last B. As usual C. Once in a while D. In the meantime
12.A. out B. off C. away D. alone
13.A. until B. while C. since D. although
14.A. active B. weak C. annoying D. miserable
15.A. forest B. community C. countryside D. neighborhood
16.A. fact B. thought C. concern D. detail
17.A. problem B. meaning C. interest D. mistake
18.A. relief B. willingness C. communication D. breakthrough
19.A. breath B. look C. holiday D. chance
20.A. success B. purpose C. contribution D. importance
（题文）As you grow rapidly through your teenage years, you will experience a lot of changes. The changes may seem difficult. （小题1） Don’t panic! You will deal successfully with them! You are a young adult now!
With more responsibility, you will find more freedom to make your own choices. This is a time to be well informed about making choices. In this way you can make healthy balanced decisions. （小题2） You may already know your career path or you may have no idea at all what you want to do. Both situations are fine! Work hard and the right opportunity will present itself to you.
Young adulthood means greater freedom and more choices. （小题3） But try not to shut your family out of your life. You should learn to think of others even though you are old enough to look after yourself.
It is also perfectly natural at this time for you to spend more time with your friends than your family. （小题4） A true friend will stand by you no matter what happens.
This period is a part of the life cycle. These are some people who will be with you throughout life’s journey. There will be some people with whom you part and go separate ways. Leaving school can be hard. The reality is that you may not even see all of your classmates again.
You are a young adult. It is your life. No one can live it for you. （小题5） So making the right choices will be important to you. Life is for living. Enjoy your life wisely!
A．Choose your friends wisely.
B．They will help shape the future.
C．They may seem to happen quickly.
D．You will probably want to be independent.
E. You may appreciate what you have in your own life.
F. The choices that you make from now on will be your choices.
G. Your family has been with you since you came into this world
The news of Harper Lee’s second novel broke the internet. Go Set a Watchman would be published in July. Lee became a recluse (隐士)after the publication of her first book, To Kill a Mockingbird, in 1960. Although the author has been out of the public eye for more than 50 years, the wave that followed the announcement showed her novel’s beloved place in the American literary works.
In 1991, The Book of the Month Club and the library of Congress conducted a survey that made readers identify books that had made a difference in their lives. Lee’s book followed only The Bible. Alongside the works of Shakespeare and Twain, To Kill a Mockingbird remains one of the most widely taught books nationwide, reaching an estimated 70% of American public schools. What makes it such a perfect read for young people?
English class is a place where young Americans come to know themselves. In the folds of dusty books, students can make contact with humanity beyond the superficial(肤浅的) conversations of the school hallways. Literature promises relief, a place to figure out one’s problems and get to know oneself better.
To Kill a Mockingbird particularly distinguishes itself in this regard. It speaks in child’s voice without treating its readership as children. People have called it an ‘impossible’ achievement, a children’s book penned in the prose(散文) of a well-educated adult—it’s unlikely that a child like Scout could exist in the real world. But that’s exactly what makes it such a charming read for young people. It alludes to (转弯抹角地说到)the consciousness of a well-educated adult going through difficult realities, but shows it through the light and playful voice of a curious little girl.
1.In which year might Go Set a Watchman come out?
A. 2015 B. 1960
C. 1910 D. 1991
2.Which book leaves the deepest impression on American readers?
A. Go Set a Watchman B. To Kill a Mockingbird
C. The Bible D. Shakespeare’s works
3.Which of the following statements is right about To Kill a Mockingbird?
A. Its author may be a playful child.
B. It’s a story about a well-educated adult.
C. Young people can see themselves from it.
D. It’s impossible for children like Scout to exist.
4.What is the best title for the text?
A. The Great Writer: Harper Lee B. The Great Young People Novel
C. Voices from Children D. Differences Harper Lee made
Do you like spicy food?
What’s your opinion on spicy food? Some people cannot handle even the smallest amount of chili-red pepper-in their dinner while others can’t get enough of it.
Scientists have long been puzzled by why some people love chili while others loathe it. Plenty of research has been done on the subject, dating as far back as the 1970s. Previous results showed that a love of chili is related to childhood experiences, and cultural influences affect our taste buds too. But the latest study has found that a person’s love of spicy food may be linked to his or her personality more than anything else, CBC News reported.
“We have always assumed that liking drives intake-we eat what we like and we like what we eat. But no one has actually directly bothered to connect these personality traits with intake of chili peppers,”said Professor John Hayes from Pennsylvania State University, who led the study.
But before you look at the study, you should first know that “spicy” is not a taste, unlike sour, sweet, bitter and salty. It is, in fact, a burning sensation that you feel on the surface of your tongue. This got scientists thinking that maybe a love of spicy food is brought about by people’s longing for thrill, something they usually get from watching action movies or riding a roller coaster.
In the study, 97 participants, both male and female, were asked to fill out questionnaires about certain traits of their personality, for example, whether they like new experiences or tend to avoid risks. They were then given a glass of water with capsaicin, the plant chemical that makes a chili burn, mixed into it.
By comparing the answers to the questionnaire and what participants said they felt about the spicy water, researchers found that those who tended to enjoy action movies or take risks were about six times more likely to enjoy the spicy water.
Interestingly, we used to believe that the reason some people can withstand spicy food is that their tongues have become less sensitive to it. However, this latest study has found otherwise. “It’s not that it doesn’t burn as badly, it’s that you actually learn to like the burn,” Hayes explained.
1.What’s the meaning of the underlined word “loathe” in the second paragraph?
A. dislike B. fear
C. put up with D. adapt to
2.What did Professor John Hayes and his team discover from their study?
A. what we eat actually helps to develop our personalities
B. Males are more likely to enjoy spicy food than females
C. Those trying to avoid risks tend to be less interested in spicy food
D. People are wrong to treat spicy as a kind of taste rather than a feeling
3.Why do some people like spicy food according to the recent study?
A. Because their taste buds have become less sensitive
B. Because they love the burning sensation
C. Because they want to challenge themselves
D. Because the more they try spicy food, the less it burns
4.What’s the main idea of the passage?
A. What he or she likes to eat mainly decides on his or her personality
B. That a person enjoys spicy food depends largely on the personality
C. His or her childhood experiences decide on his or her personality
D. His or her cultural background decides on his or her personality
We arrived at the hospital to find Dad was very weak, but his smile was as sure as ever. It was another attack of pneumonia(肺炎). My husband and I stayed with him for the weekend but had to return to our jobs on Monday. Local relatives would help Dad get home from the hospital and look after him. But I longed to be able to let him know that we cared too, even when we weren’t with him.
Then I remember a family tradition when our children were small. When leaving their grandparents’ home after a visit, each child would write a note to their grandparents. They hid notes in the cereal(麦片), under a hairbrush, next to the phone or even in the microwave oven. For days, their parents would smile as they discovered these signs of our love.
So as I tidied Dad’s kitchen and made up a bed for him downstairs in the living room, I wrote some notes. Some were practical, “Dad, I put the food in the fridge so it wouldn’t spoil.” Some expressed my love, “Dad I hope you will sleep well in your new bed.” Most notes were downstairs where he would stay for several weeks until he recovered strength, but one note I hid upstairs under his pillow, “Dad, if you have found this one, you must be feeling better. We are so glad. ”
Just like his medicine strengthened him physically, these “emotional vitamins” would improve his spiritual health. Several weeks later, in one of our regular phone calls, I asked Dad how he was doing. He said, “Pretty good. I just found your note under my pillow upstairs!”
1.We can infer from the text that the author’s father _____.
A. had suffered from the same illness before B. got home from hospital alone
C. asked her to return to work D. lived with his relatives
2.The children hid notes in their grandparents’ home in order to _____.
A. follow a family tradition B. give their grandparents a pleasant surprise
C. show their gifts to their grandparents D. play tricks on their grandparents
3.Following the family tradition, the author _____.
A. often called her father B. wrote some notes to her father
C. longed to visit her father D. worried about her father
4.Having heard what her father said, the author would feel _____.
A. surprised B. lucky
C. pleased D. sad
