Dear Guys,

I’d like to talk to you about the shame you subjected me to last night. Let me first refresh your memory: You, a group of fit, young men, were playing soccer on the field across from my apartment building. I, a better-than-average looking young woman, was walking along the sidewalk with my groceries. That’s when your ball came flying over the fence and landed in front of me.

One of you approached and asked politely if I would throw the ball back to you. Fighting the urge to drop my bags and run screaming down the street, I reluctantly agreed.

Before I continue, let me explain something that I didn’t have a chance to mention last night: I hate sports. More specifically, I hate sports involving balls. This results from my lack of natural ability when it comes to throwing, catching and hitting. I’m bad at aiming too. So you can understand why I’d be nervous at what I’m sure seemed to you like a laughably simple request. However, wanting to appear agreeable, I put my bags down, picked up the ball and, eyes half-shut, and threw it as hard as I could.

It hit the middle of the fence and bounced back to me.

Trying to act casually, I said something about being out of practice, then picked up the ball again. If you’ll remember, at your command, I agreed to try throwing underhand. While outwardly I was smiling, in my head, I was praying, Oh God, oh please oh please oh please. I threw the ball upward with all my strength, terrified by what happened next.

The ball hit slightly higher up on the fence and bounced back to me.

This is the point where I start to take issue with you. Wouldn’t it have been a better use of your time, and mine, if you had just walked around the fence and took the ball then? I was clearly struggling; my smiles were more and more forced. And yet, you all just stood there, motionless.

Seeing that you weren’t going to let me out of the trouble, I became desperate. Memories of middle school softball came flooding back. I tried hard to throw the ball but it only went about eight feet, then I decided to pick it up and dash with ball in hand towards the baseline, while annoyed thirteen-year-old boys screamed at me that I was ruining their lives. Children are cruel. Being a big girl now, I pushed those memories aside and picked up the soccer ball for the third time. I forced a good-natured laugh while crying inside as you patiently shouted words of support over the fence at me.

“Throw it granny-style!” one of you said.

“Just back up a little and give it all you’ve got!” another offered.

And, most embarrassing of all, “You can do it!”

I know you thought you were being encouraging, but it only served to deepen the shame.

Anyway, I accepted your ball-throwing advice, backed up, rocked back and forth a little, took a deep breath and let it fly.

It hit the edge of the fence and bounced back to me.

I surprised myself --- and I’m sure you as well --- by letting out a cry, “DAMN IT!!!” I then willed myself to have a heart attack and pass out in front of you just so I’d be put out of my misery. Alas, the heart attack didn’t happen, and you continued to look at me expectantly, like you were content to do this all night. I had become a sort of exhibition for you. I could feel your collective thoughts drifting through the chain-link: “Can she really not do it? But I mean, really?”

Unfortunately for you, I wasn’t really game to continue your experiment. Three failed attempts at a simple task in front of a group of people in a two-minute period was just enough blow for me for one night. I picked up the ball one last time, approached the fence and grumbled, “Please just come get the damn ball.”

And you did. And thanks to you, I decided at that very moment to never throw anything ever again, except disrespectful glances at people who play sports.

Sincerely, Jen Cordery

1. The writer agreed to throw the ball because _______.

A. she needed to have a relax carrying the heavy groceries

B. she wanted to refresh her childhood memories

C. she could not refuse the polite request from the young man

D. she had fallen in love with the young man at first sight

2.Which of the following is closest in meaning to the underlined word “game”?

A. anxious                                      B. brave                                C. afraid                                D. curious

3.Why did the writer mention her middle school memory?

A. To explain why she failed the attempts to throw the ball back.

B. To complain that she had not mastered the ball throwing skills.

C. To show how cruel those 13-year-old boys were.

D. To express her dislike towards softball.

4.What the boys said before the writer’s third attempt actually made the writer ________.

A. inspired                                     B. encouraged                     C. embarrassed                   D. depressed

5.What’s the writer’s purpose in writing this open letter?

A. To express her regret over what she did the day before.

B. To announce that she would never play ball games again.

C. To explain her own inability to throw the ball over the fence.

D. To criticize the young men for their cruelty to her dignity.

When my twin sons, Chad and Brad, were born, I was concerned about everything． Five years later, our little girl, Becky,   21   our family．I wanted everybody to be healthy and happy．I worked hard to see that they  22 ．

As the kids grew older, I worried about headaches, throat infections and many other 23   childhood illnesses．I didn't like it when the boys spent time "warming the bench （板凳）" during Little League football games．I worried about Becky when she   24   the ball while playing softball．Before long, the teen years were upon us．I stayed   25   late t night waiting for the boys to return home．Many times the  26  crossed my mind that I would call the police if they weren't home on time．_27_, they always arrived home safe and sound  28  I had to take such measures．

"Please don't ever call the police," one of the boys said when I  29   him after a late arrival．The day the boys moved away to college was a   30   day indeed．I worried about their being able to take care of themselves．Would they starve?

A few months after the boys left college, our  31   rang in the middle of the night． It startled （惊醒）us when we looked at the clock．It was 3 o'clock in the morning．" 32   must be wrong," I shouted to my husband, Roy, as we both jumped up．We ran to the door, opened it, and there   33   a police officer．

"You need to  34   your sons," he seriously announced．I picked up the telephone, but unfortunately, it was  35 ．A line outside had been accidentally （偶然） cut．Roy and I jumped into the car and  36   to the nearest telephone．My stomach ached．My husband was   37   so badly that he could hardly dial the number．

On the first   38  , Chad answered the telephone．"What's wrong?" Roy shouted into the receiver （听筒）．

"We were worried about you," Chad told him．"We've been trying to call you all night, but you didn't   39   We called the police and asked them to go and check on you．"

For the first time in their lives, the boys were worried about us．And they were the ones who   40   had to call the police．

1.A．completed        B．visited              C．tested          D．appreciated

2.A．did              B．had                C．were               D．would

3.A．serious            B．common            C．unusual              D．incurable

4.A．hit            B．threw                C．got                D．missed

5.A．down            B．up                            C．out                 D．in

6.A．plan                B．advice              C．worry               D．thought

7.A．Strangely          B．Probably              C．Luckily               D．Exactly

8.A．after            B．when              C．before              D．since

9.A．threatened        B．told                C．surprised            D．reminded

10.A．nice          B．embarrassing           C．happy               D．sad

11.A．phone                  B．clock               C．alarm                  D．doorbell

12.A．Something       B．Anything                        C．Everything     D．Nothing

13.A．stood         B．greeted            C．turned               D．came

14.A．call                     B．email              C．see               D．educate

15.A．gone                   B．useless             C．dead              D．stolen

16.A．rushed        B．headed             C．went                D．moved

17.A．looking                  B．shaking             C．suffering       D．seeing

18.A．night                   B．arrival       C．try                 D．ring

19.A．talk            B．answer        C．wake             D．care

20.A．frequently     B．suddenly    C．actually        D．rarely

完形填空（共20小题，每小题1分，满分20分）
When I entered the classroom, our teacher announced we were going to have a math test. I took a look at the   41  full of what looked like hieroglyphs(象形文字) to me and began to   42  . I did the best that I could, and then left my   43  to put my paper in a pile(摞) on the front desk with a(n)   44  .
I returned to my seat and then an idea came to my mind. I   45  where the teacher was before I made my   46 . She was walking in the   47  of the room with her back turned. I left my seat and went back to the pile of test papers already handed   48  and when I picked up my paper I also   49  the paper right below it before returning to my seat. When I looked at the   50  paper I had taken, I discovered it was the work of the   51  girl in our class,   I copied her answers to my paper.
The next day the teacher handed back our papers turning them facedown on everyone’s desks. When I   52  my paper over, I was   53  to see an “F” on it. After class I went to the girl whose answers I had   54  and said to her, “That math test was difficult. I   55  it. I guess we need to study more.” Her   56  was, “Not me, I got every question   57  and got an A.”
The teacher knew. She never blamed me in front of the class and   58  me to keep my dignity(尊严). I made a   59  to myself never ever to cheat again. I would remember to always be   60  in the things I do. I never forgot that teacher who failed me when, really, I had failed myself.

完型填空（共20小题；每小题1.5分，满分30分）

阅读下面短文，从短文后所给各题的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。

I was doing some last-minute Christmas shopping in a toy store. A nicely dressed little girl was  36  the teddy bears(泰迪熊) beside her father  37 she saw a little boy walk in and stop in front of the Pokémon toys. His jacket was obviously too small. He had money in his hand.   38 , it looked no more than five dollars at most. He was with his father as well, and  39 picking up the Pokémon video games. Each time he showed one to his father, his father  40  his head, “No”.

Rather  41 , the boy gave up the video games and chose a book of stickers  42 . After they walked away, the little girl ran over to the Pokémon video games. She excitedly picked up one  43  on top of the others, and raced down toward the check-out. I picked up my purchases and  44 the girl and her father.

Then, much to the little girl’s  45 , the little boy and his father got in line  46 her and me. After the video was paid for and bagged, the little girl  47 it back to the cashier(收银员) and  48   something to her. The cashier smiled and put the  49 under the counter(柜台). I was putting things in my bag when the little boy came up to the cashier. The cashier said, “  50 , you’re my hundredth customer today, and you win a prize!” and she handed the boy the Pokémon game. The boy could only  51  in disbelief. It was, he said,   52 what he had wanted! The little girl and her father had been standing at the doorway, and I saw the biggest and  53 smile on that little girl I have ever seen in my life.

I suddenly understood that the world is not  54 into the strong who care and the  55 who are cared for. We must each in turn care and be cared.

1.A．looking through B．getting through   C dressing up    D．tidying up

Public schools in Washington, D.C. provide students with musical instruments for free. When something goes wrong with an instrument, Charles West and Larry Jernigan do the repairs. Both men approach their work with a passion(激情). For them, it’s important that students have a joyful experience with music.
The two have worked together for almost 20 years. This year alone, they’ve fixed about 450 instruments. Both men are musicians and music lovers, so learning to do repairs came naturally.
“I have been a musician all my life.” says West. “I played in an orchestra here in the city. I majored in music in college. I played in an army band.”
Jernigan’s musical interests are varied. “I was formerly trained in the piano and guitar. The alto sax, and the flute, I picked up while working here.”
In addition to fixing instruments, the two also go to schools to instruct teachers and students on how to make minor repairs on their own.
West believes if children start early and stay concerned with music, it enriches other areas of their lives. “I see that in other kids. I see it in myself. I have seen it hundreds of times and it works,” he says. “They learn teamwork. They learn patience and respect.”
But West has concerns about the future of music in the electronic age.
“This instant age has taken away from the sit-down, the patience. And to learn to play an instrument, it takes patience, it takes diligence, it takes time.”
Being able to enjoy music on the job is one of the benefits of the job. Both men agree their best rewards are the students’ performances.
【小题1】What’s the job of West and Jernigan at school?