When I was a boy we had several gardens around our old house. The largest one of all was used just for __ potatoes. I can still remember those potato __ days. The whole __ helped.

__ my Dad had tilled(耕地)the soil, my Mom, brothers, and I went to work. It was my job to __ the little seed potatoes in the rows while my Mom dropped __ of fertilizer (肥料)beside them. My brothers then covered them all __ the freshly turned earth.

For months afterward I would __ over at the garden while I played outside and wonder what was going on underneath the ground. When the harvest time came I was __ at the huge size of the potatoes my Dad pulled out of the soil.

Those little seedlings had grown into sweet food. They would be __ meal after meal of baked potatoes, mashed potatoes, fried potatoes, and my __ favorite: potatoes cooked in spaghetti sauce.

They would __ the entire family well fed throughout the whole year. It __ was a miracle to be held.

Thinking back to those special times makes me wonder how many other __ I have planted in tills life that have grown ___in the hearts and minds of others.

How many times has God used some little thing that I said __ did to grow something beautiful? How many __ has Heaven used these little seedlings to __ another's soul with sweet food?

I hope then you always __ the garden around you with care. I hope that you plant only goodness, peace, and___ in the lives of everyone you help. I hope that everyday you help miracles to grow.

1.A. selling B. growing C. cooking D. cutting

2.A. planted B. planting C. being planted D. to plant

3.A. committee B. group C. family D. class

4.A. Before B. Since C. Until D. After

5.A. drop B. throw C. pull D. drive

6.A. boatfuls B. housefuls C. handfuls D. mouthfuls

7.A. at B. with C. by D. on

8.A. see B. notice C. glance D. glare

9.A. encouraged B. annoyed C. tired D. amazed

10.A. run into B. broken into C. looked into D. turned into

11.A. personal B. practical C. pure D. powerful

12.A. know B. knock C. keep D. kick

13.A. truly B. bitterly C. frequently D. conveniently

14.A. rows B. gardens C. seeds D. potatoes

15.A. unmade B. unseen C. unprotected D. untouched

16.A. and B. or C. so D. For

17.A. gardens B. rows C. days D. times

18.A. provide B. shut C. approach D. view

19.A. promote B. take C. close D. tend

20.A. love B. hate C. anger D. sadness

Singapore's schools have become global role models with high results in international tests.But now they want to move,beyond this—towards something that encourages creativity and what they term "holistic(全面的)education".

Minister of Education,Heng Swee Keat,says this is "less about content knowledge",but "more about how to process information".He describes this challenge of innovating(创新)as being about to "tell truth from untruth,connect seemingly different things,and create knowledge even as the situation changes".

This approach aims to prepare today's students for the demands of the next 20 years.It means that schools are under more pressure,and will be given more freedom,to come up with creative ways to teach students.So instead of the traditional impressions of high-pressure Asian schools,with rows of heads buried in books,they are trying different approaches to learning.

To put this into practice,on a sunny April morning,80 students from one of Singapore's top schools were traveling outdoors.The nine to ten-year-old from Rosyth School were on a "learning journey" in a park,with science topics and values such as caring for the environment.

"We are conducting a biopsy(活组织检查)to find out why a bee,a fish,a bird or a plant died strangely,"said one student."Is it because of human actions?"

They photographed "evidence" on smart phones and digital cameras,getting facts on plants and animal species. "They can really learn through hands-on experience and putting things into action,"said moral education teacher, Joslyn Huang.

1.What are Singapore's schools famous for according to the passage?

A. Test results. B. Strict management.

C. Teaching methods. D. Learning environment.

2.What does Singapore's "holistic education" lay emphasis on?

A. Students' moral behavior. B. Students' creative ability.

C. Students' content knowledge. D. Students' hands-on experience.

3.Why did the 80 students from Rosyth School conduct a biopsy?

A. To improve the environment.

B. To protect animals and plants.

C. To study the relationship between human actions and some animals' death.

D. To find out the relationship between human behaviors and climate changes.

4.How did the author tell us about a different way of learning in Singapore's schools?

A. By giving examples. B. By making comparisons.

C. By listing figures. D. By analyzing cause and effect.

French writer Frantz Fanon once said: “To speak a language is to take on a world, a culture.” Since the world changes every day, so does our language.

More than 300 new words and phrases have recently made it into the online Oxford Dictionary, and in one way or another they are all reflections of today’s changing world.

After a year that was politically unstable, it’s not hard to understand the fact that people’s political views are one of the main drives of our expanding vocabulary. One example is “clicktivism”, a compound of “click” and “activism”. It refers to “armchair activists” — people who support a political or social cause, but only show their support from behind a computer or smartphone. And “otherize” is a verb for “other” that means to alienate (使疏远) people who are different from ourselves — whether that be different skin color, religious belief or sexuality.

Lifestyle is also changing our language. For example, “fitspiration” — a compound of fit and inspiration — refers to a person or thing that encourages one to exercise and stay fit and healthy.

The phrase “climate refugee” — someone who is forced to leave their home due to climate change — reflects people’s concern for the environment.

According to Stevenson, social media was the main source for the new expressions. “People feel much freer to coin their own words these days,” he said.

But still, not all newly-invented words get the chance to make their way into a mainstream (主流的) dictionary. If you want to create your own hit words, Angus Stevenson, Oxford Dictionaries head of content development, suggests that you should not only make sure that they are expressive (有表现力的) and meaningful, but also have an attractive sound so that people will enjoy saying them out loud.

1.What is the article mainly about?

A. Some new word that got included into the online Oxford Dictionary.

B. The application of new words and phrases.

C. How a language mirrors the changing world.

D. The impact of social media on our language.

2.The underlined word “coin” in the second-to-last paragraph probably means ________.

A. use B. record

C. change D. create

3.How is the article mainly developed?

A. By giving examples. B. By making comparisons.

C. By following a timeline. D. By presenting research findings.

4.According to Stevenson, to make the words you invent popular, they should ________.

A. be easy to remember B. have unique meanings

C. reflect the changing world D. be meaningful, expressive and catchy

Today, roller skating is easy and fun. But a long time ago, it wasn't easy at all. Before 1750, the idea of skating didn't exist. That changed because of a man named Joseph Merlin. Merlin's work was making musical instruments. In his spare time he liked to play the violin. Joseph Merlin was a man of ideas and dreams. People called him a dreamer.

One day Merlin received an invitation to attend a fancy dress ball(化装舞会). He was very pleased and a little excited. As the day of the party came near, Merlin began to think how to make a special entrance at the party. He had an idea. He thought he would get a lot of attention if he could skate into the room.

Merlin tried different ways to make himself roll. Finally, he decided to put two wheels under each shoe. These were the first roller skates. Merlin was very proud of his invention and dreamed of arriving at the party on wheels while playing the violin.

On the night of the party Merlin rolled into the room playing his violin. Everyone was surprised to see him. There was just one problem. Merlin had no way to stop his roller skates. He rolled on and on. Suddenly, he ran into a huge mirror that was hanging on the wall. Down fell the mirror, breaking to pieces. Nobody forgot Merlin's grand entrance for a long time!

1.The text is mainly about ____________.

A. a strange man

B. an unusual party

C. how roller skating began

D. how people enjoyed themselves in the 18th century

2.People thought Merlin was a dreamer because he__________.

A. often gave others surprises B. was a gifted(天才的)musician

C. invented the roller skates D. was full of imagination

3.Merlin put wheels under his shoes in order to________.

A. impress the party guests B. arrive at the party sooner

C. test his invention D. show his skill in walking on wheels

4.What is the main point the writer is trying to make in the last paragraph?

A. The roller skates needed further improvement.

B. The party guests treated Merlin as a fool.

C. Merlin succeeded beyond expectation.

D. Merlin got himself into trouble.

5.It is clear that Merlin was a _______.

A. a dreamer B. a violin

C. a farmer D. a maker of musical instrument

Most times, what people accept as hope is a feeling or thought that something desired may happen. The word hope is a guarantee(保证)of happiness without a doubt. Hope in ancient Greek is “elpis” meaning “to expect or look forward with pleasure”. Orison Swett Marden says “there is no medicine as great and powerful expectation of something better tomorrow.”

Samuel Esson Jonah is one of the world’s most influential personalities of this century. When he was young, mining for Africans was hell on earth, because they were treated very badly and there were no key positions in the industry for them because it was believed that the black could not manage their affairs successfully. Even in the face of all these challenges and discriminations, Jonah hoped to head the industry someday. When he told his workmates and parents about his hope, he became a laughing stock. Not giving up on his hope, he worked hard toward it and at last he became president of Anglo Gold Ashanti.

Hope without doubt helps you to work hard until you finally achieve your aims or goals. Hope keeps one alive and also helps us persevere (坚持) to succeed. Someone may say “I’ve tried and failed several times”. As a matter of fact, failure is inevitable(无法避免的) sometimes but that doesn’t overrule your ability to succeed. The key is that you can’t give up your hope. Our history has seen many great achievers. Though they hoped they could make it, they also failed; however, they didn’t give up on their hope. They worked even harder and eventually succeeded.

Today when we can celebrate so many of them for their courage, remember “faith without work is dead”, so is your dream or hope. Samuel Similes says “Hope is the companion(伙伴) of power, the mother of success, for who so hopes strongly has within him the gift of miracles (奇迹).” So don’t let your hope down.

1.What is Paragraph 1 mainly about?

A. How to remain hopeful.

B. What hope really means.

C. The importance of having hope.

D. The relationship between hope and pleasure.

2.The author uses the example of Samuel Esson Jonah mainly to _________.

A. prove that hope can lead to success

B. prove a lowly man can also succeed

C. show the times produce their heroes

D. show it’s hard for a black to succeed

3.According to Paragraph 3, to succeed one should _________.

A. acquire great ability

B. avoid quitting easily

C. try to understand history

D. stop being overconfident

4.Which would be the best title for the text?

A. Hope is just a choice

B. Keep your hope alive

C. Failure breeds success

D. How to achieve success

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