In this age of Internet chat，videogames and reality television，there is no shortage of mindless activities to keep a child occupied．Yet，despite the competition，my 8-year-old daughter Rebecca wants to spend her leisure time writing short stories．She wants to enter one of her stories into a writing contest，a competition she won last year．

    As a writer I know about winning contests，and about losing them．I know what it is like to work hard on a story only to receive a rejection slip from the publisher．I also know the pressure of trying to live up to a reputation created by previous victories．What if she doesn.t win the contest again？That’s the strange thing about being a parent．So many of our own past scars and dashed hopes can surface．

A revelation（启示）came last week when l asked her，”Don’t you want to win again？” “No,” she replied，“I just want to tell the story of an angel（天使）going to first grade．”

I had just spent weeks correcting her stories as she spontaneously（自发地）told them．Telling myself that l was merely an experienced writer guiding the young writer across the hall. I offered suggestions for characters，conflicts and endings for her tales．The story about a fearful angel starting first grade was quickly“guided”by me into the tale of a little girl with a wild imagination taking her first music lesson．I had turned her contest into my contest without even realizing it．

Staying back and giving kids space to grow is not as easy as it looks．Because I know very little about farm animals who use tools or angels who go to first grade，I had to accept the fact that I was co-opting（借用）my daughter’s experience．

While stepping back was difficult for me，it was certainly a good first step that l will quickly follow with more steps，putting myself far enough away to give her room but close enough to help if asked．All the while I will be reminding myself that children need room to experiment，grow and find their own voices．

What did the author say about her own writing experience？

    A．Most of her stories had been rejected by publishers．

    B．She did not quite live up to her reputation as a writer．

    C．Her way to success was full of pains and frustrations．

    D．She was constantly under pressure of writing more．

Why did Rebecca want to enter this year’s writing contest？

    A．She wanted to share her stories with readers．

    B．She was sure of winning with her mother’s help．

    C．She believed she possessed real talent for writing．

    D．She had won a prize in the previous contest．

The author took great pains to refine her daughter’s stories because       ．

    A．she was afraid Rebecca’s imagination might run wild while writing

    B．she did not want to disappoint Rebecca who needed her help so much

    C．she believed she had the knowledge and experience to offer guidance

    D．she wanted to help Rebecca realize her dreams of becoming a writer

What’s the author’s advice for parents？

    A．Parents should keep an eye on the activities their kids engage in．

    B．Children should be allowed freedom to grow through experience．

    C．A writing career，though attractive，is not for every child to pursue．

    D．Children should be given every chance to voice their opinions．

--Shall I ________ the raincoat?

--No hurry. Leave it ________ it is. It looks like rain.

A. put on; there                      B. put on; where

C. put away; in the place               D. put away; where

There is a joke among flu researchers: “If you've seen one flu season, you've seen one flu season.” The joke is about the unpredictable nature of the flu virus. Every year it looks different, and every strain (类型) follows its own pattern — it's the reason why new strains like H1N1 are extremely difficult to predict.

Dr. Michael Osterholm is a former adviser to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. “I know less about influenza today than I did 10 years ago,” he says in a joking way. “Every stone we've turned over, we get more questions.”

The flu rectums every season and the world experiences terrible pandemics (全国或全世界范围流行的疾病), but researchers still do not understand why some strains infect people and others do not; they are not entirely sure about how the flu is transmitted; nor do they understand why some patients become seriously ill while others develop mild symptoms (症状). As a result, when a new strain shows up — like H1N1 — they often have little information to fall back on, and the lessons of previous pandemics are only somewhat helpful. While researchers are still putting together a complete picture of H1N1, for example, its most striking difference with the seasonal flu is that the elder1y are not the most vulnerable (易受攻击的) population.

Influenza's unpredictable nature makes it a moving target for researchers, says researcher Allison Aiello at the University of Michigan. “Even if we had complete seasonal flu data from the past, it wouldn't be much helpful for a new strain of influenza,” she explains.

Whi1e researchers are frustrated by the holes in their knowledge, they say, however, that the pub1ic--health community is generally doing a very good job responding to H1N1 with seasonal flu data that do exist. Studying influenza, says Osterholm, is “like looking through the windows of a house you can't get into because the door is locked.” Gathering the data researchers do have is like “looking through the windows to get a pretty good picture of what the inside looks like.”

One thing researchers do know for sure: the best way for people to protect against H1N1 is to get the vaccine once it becomes available to them.

What do we learn about H1N1 from the passage?

A. In fact it is not a kind of influenza virus.

B. It is quite possible to predict it in theory.

C. Old people are more likely to contract it than kids.

D. Receiving vaccines will be effective to protect against it.

The underlined phrase “fall back on” in Para. 3 probably means      .

A. rely on       B. pass on       C. col1ect      D. exchange

What do we know about previous seasonal flu data?

A. It is useless to study them.      

B. It is still necessary to study them.

C. They are misleading most of the time.

D. They are much more helpful than expected.

Which of the following could be the best title for the passage?

A. Outbreaks of the flu  B. Symptoms of the flu

C. Mysteries of the flu   D. Risks of the flu

It looks like the weather is changing for ______. Shall we stick to our plan?

A. the worse          B. worse                       C. the worst                  D. worst

根据对话情景和内容，从对话后所给的选项中选出能填入每一空白处的最佳选项。选项中有两个为多余选项。

Jack: The hat I bought yesterday.

Bob: How nice! _____1._____     .

Jack: Yes, it looks very cool, __2._______  .

Bob: Do you mind my__3.___?

Jack: Not at all. It’s 58 dollars.

Bob: Then did you pay for it yourself?

Jack: Haha, luckily, I didn’t.

Bob: ___4._  ?

Jack: My uncle. He is on a visit here.

Bob: Really? Oh, it’s time for supper. I will go home, bye!

Jack: ____5.____