Almost all cultures celebrate the end of one year and the beginning of another in some way. Different cultures celebrate the beginning of a new year in different ways, and at different times on the calendar.
In Western countries, people usually celebrate New Year at midnight on December 31st-January 1st. People may go to parties, sometimes dressed in formal（正式的）clothes, and the may drink champagne（香槟）at midnight. During the first minutes of the new year, people cheer and wish each other happiness for the year ahead. But some cultures prefer to celebrate the new year by waking up early to watch the sun rise. They welcome the new wear with the first light of the sunrise.
Many cultures also do special things to get rid of（摆脱）bad luck at the beginning of a new year. For example, in Ecuador, families make a big doll from old clothes. The doll is filled with old newspapers and firecrackers. At midnight, these dolls are burned to show the bad things from the past year are gone and the new year can start afresh（重新）. Other common traditions to keep away bad luck in a new year include throwing things into rivers or the ocean, or saying special things on the first day of the new year.
Other New Year traditions are followed to bring good luck in the new year. One widespread Spanish tradition for good luck is to eat grapes on New Year’s Day. The more grapes a person eats, the more good luck the person will have in the tear. In France, people eat pancakes for good luck at New Year. In the United States, some people eat black-eyed peas for good luck-but to get good luck for a whole year you have to eat 365 of them!
【小题1】 The reading is mainly about_____.

Nearly all of us have an unpleasant habit, whether we realize it or not, and we want to get rid of it but didn't know the proper ways. Here’s some advice on how to get rid of bad habits（习惯）.

Make a list. Write down all the reasons why you want to stop a certain behavior----how it’s hurting you and why getting rid of it will help. Look at that list regularly.

Join other activities .It’s wise of you to do something else when you want to stop your bad habits.(1) If you get angry easily, for example, you can practice deep breathing or go for a walk.

Give yourself a reward. Before you get rid of a bad habit, decide what you’ll do to celebrate it if you achieve your goal.

Keep off bad habits. If you are fat and want to lose weight, keep junk food out of your house. If you are a heavy smoker, keep away from smoky bars or friends who like smoking.

Be patient. Bad habits develop over years, so you probably won’t be able to get rid of them quickly. In fact, people often  give up several times before being successful, so you should (2)     ,        .

Find support. Don’t be afraid to ask for support from friends, family or other people who have the same bad habits as you. When you talk to others,  they might be able to give you some advice or encouragement that you normally wouldn’t get from yourself.

1.将(1)句译成中文: ______________________________________________

2.在(2)句的空白处填一个短语使句意完整，上下文通顺；______  ________

3.回答问题 What should you do if you are a heavy smoker?_________________________

4.在文中找出与You can get support from others that have the same problems as you.意思相近的句子，并将它写在横线上。

__________________________________________________________________

5.在文中找出最能表达该短文主题的句子，并将它写在横线上。

Dear Miss Li,
I’d like to thank you for sending money    1   “Animal Helpers”, an organization set up to help disabled people. You see, you have helped    2   it possible for me to have “Lucky”. My life    3  pleasure because of him now. Let me tell you my story.
Being blind, deaf, unable to walk or use your hands    4   is something that most people cannot imagine. But there are many people who face these challenges, and I am one of them. Because I can’t use my arms or legs well, things like answering the telephone, opening and   5
doors or carrying things have always been difficult for me. Then one day last year, a friend of mine said that she would like to    6  . She said she would talk to “Animal Helpers” to see   
  7    it would be possible for me to get a trained dog. She also thought a dog might cheer me up. I told her that I love animals and that I’d love to have a dog.
   8   six months of training with a dog at “Animal Helpers”, I was able to   9   him
home. My dog’s name is “Lucky” – a good name for him    10   I feel very lucky to have him. You see, I’m only able to have a “dog-helper” because of your kind donation!
  11  , you might ask? Well, he has been trained to    12   different instructions. For example, I say, “Lucky! Fetch my book,” and he does it at once. He is very clever and understands many English words, even some difficult    13   like “upstairs”.
Lucky is an    14   dog. I’ll send you a photo of him if you like, and I could show you how he helps me too one day. And so I thank you again for supporting “Animal Helpers”. It is very important that this organization does not run out of money. Your donation   15   and the money is well used to help disabled people like me.
Best wishes,
Liz Smith

Everyone needs friends. There is an old saying “Friends are God's way of taking care of us.” But how do you find real friendship and keep it?
The American writer Sally Seamans tells young students some smart ways to find friends. Sally says finding friendship is just like planting a tree. You plant the seed (种子） and take care of it to make it grow.
First, you should choose a friend. What good friends should you make? It’s not because a person has money or good looks. A good friend should be kind and patient. For example, if you have a bad day, a good friend should listen to your complains and do his or her best to help. To make a friend, you can not be too shy. You should make each other happy and share your lives. But things cannot always be happy. Even the best have fights. What should you do when you have a fight with your friend? You have to talk to him or her. When there is no one around, have an honest talk. If he or she doesn't want to talk, you could write a letter.
There are three steps to being friends again:
Tell him or her how you are feeling ; say what your friend has done wrong, and explain why you did this or that. Remember that friendship is the most important thing in your life.
根据短文内容，选择最佳答案。（共5小题，每小题2分，满分10分）
【小题1】The world “patient” in the third paragraph means________.

One midnight, a little girl woke up to pass water. She by herself got up and down her bed, walked to the bedroom door and opened it. She looked outside and walked back, for it was so dark in the hall that she feared.

Her mother said, “Don’t be afraid, honey. Take courage!”

“What’s courage?” she asked, running to her mother’s bed.

“Courage is the brave breath,” her mother answered.

“Mum, do you have courage?”

“Certainly.”

The girl held out her little hands, saying, “Mum, blow some of your breath of courage to me.”

After her mother blew out two mouthfuls of breath into her little cold hands, the little girl clenched her fists(握拳) nervously, afraid that the “breath of courage” would run away. Then with her fists clenched, she walked out of the bedroom towards the bathroom with nothing to fear.

Her mother said to herself, “It will be nice if someone can blow some kind of ‘breath’ to me. Then I can hold it in my hands too when I feel terrified or lost.”

In fact, mostly, what we are terrified of is nothing but the fear in our mind. Who we should defeat(战胜) is nobody but ourselves.

1.The girl walked back because __________.

2. We learn from the reading that ___________.

3.To stop “mother’s breath” from running away, the girl __________.

4.The writer mainly wants to tell us that ________.

5.Which is the best title of the passage?