Something roared like thunder. The earth shook a little and we heard the rat-a-tat-tat of gunfire. ‘‘Father!” Hassan cried. We sprung to our feet and raced out of the living room.

“Father! What’s that sound?” Hassan screamed, his hands outstretched toward Ali. Ali wrapped his arms around us. A white light flashed and lit the sky in silver. It flashed again and was followed by rapid sharp sounds of gunfire.

“They’re hunting ducks, ” Ali said in a hoarse voice. “They hunt ducks at night, you know. Don't be afraid.”

A siren(汽笛）went off in the distance. Somewhere glass broke and someone shouted. I heard people on the street, woken up from sleep. Hassan was crying. Ali pulled him close and held him with tenderness.

We stayed huddled (蜷缩）that way until the early hours of the morning. The shootings and explosions had lasted less than an hour, but they had frightened us badly, because none of us had ever heard gunshots in the streets. They were foreign sounds to us then. The generations of Afghan children whose ears would know nothing but the sounds of the bombs and gunfire were not yet born. Huddled together in the dining room and waiting for the sun to rise, none of us had any idea that a way of life had ended. The end came when Russian tanks were rolling into the very same streets where Hassan and I played, bringing the death of the Afghanistan I knew and marking the start of a still ongoing era of bloodletting.

         Just before the sunrise, Baba’s car pulled into the driveway. His door slammed shut and his running footsteps pounded the stairs. Then he appeared in the doorway and I saw something on his face. Something I didn’t recognize right away because I’d never seen it before: fear. “Amir! Hassan!” He cried as he ran to us, opening his arms wide. “They blocked all the roads and the telephone didn’t work. I was so worried!”

We let him wrap us in his arms and, for a brief moment, I was glad about whatever had happened that night.

1.Who is the author of this passage?

A. Amir.                                 B. Ali.                                     C. Baba.                                 D. Hassan.

2.By saying “They’re hunting ducks”, Ali _______.

A. told the children the truth                                          B. played a joke on the children

C. tried to calm the children                                       D. cheered the children up

3.We can infer from the passage that  _______.

A. there were thunderstorms that night                               

B. Afghan children were used to the war

C. people on the street shouted and broke the windows

D. that night was the end of people's peaceful life    

4.From the last sentence of the passage, we know _______.

A. Baba's arms gave the author temporary comfort and joy

B. there was a chance that a world in peace was to come

C. what happened that night seemed nothing to the author

D. the author was glad to see his father come home safe

 Seven loyal（忠实的）readers came to the Teens Office two weeks ago. They had a wonderful day learning how to make a newspaper. But what  36  made them excited was that they had their say. 

“What most _37_ me was when I was saying something, I found all eyes were on me,” said Tang Shining, one of the students. Her friend, Li Chunbei _38_, and felt very glad that when she was talking, the editors（编辑） nodded and _39_ took notes.

Students are happy to see the editors listen to their _40_. You may often _41_about being neglected（忽视） by teachers and parents. _42__ before complaining, please make sure that you have already spoken about your _43_.

Traditionally in China, teachers at school and parents were_44_ the ones to tell teenagers what they should and shouldn’t do. The young are _45_ to doing what they are told, rather than thinking by themselves. But then their ideas would be locked in their brain and not be _46_.

A girl wrote to Teens about her family story. She _47__ to be very sad because her father seldom talked and played with her. After years of consideration, she _48_ decided to write her father a letter, telling him about her sadness. To her _49__, the father _50_, saying that he didn’t realize his mistake. From then on, he really _51_.

Sometimes, we need to let our _52__ be heard, so others can understand our thoughts and feelings.

Don’t be afraid of being _53_ for what you have done. You know it is your _54_ to speak your mind. Even if your suggestions are denied, at least you have tried your best. You will not be left with any _55_.

1.A. directly              B. really               C. completely       D. immediately

2. A. disappointed          B. frightened           C. impressed        D. horrified （恐惧）

3. A. refused               B. disagreed            C. disliked     D. agreed 

4. A. even              B. yet              C. already      D. still

5. A. speeches          B. opinions         C. songs            D. articles

6. A. talk              B. complain         C. write            D. speak

7. A. And               B. So               C. But          D. Instead

8. A. pleasure              B. love             C. hatred   （憎恨） D. worry

9. A. seldom                B. never               C. always           D. sometimes

10. A. used             B. reduced          C. devoted      D. told

11. A. remembered           B. used             C. touched      D. heard

12. A. used             B. pretended            C. seemed       D. had

13. A. sadly                B. suddenly         C. angrily          D. finally

14. A. sorrow（悲伤）       B. disappointment       C. surprise     D. satisfaction

15.A. apologized           B. smiled               C. laughed      D. sighed

16.A. exchanged        B. changed          C. left         D. played

17. A. voices               B. decisions            C. suggestions      D. secrets

18.A. praised               B. blamed           C. beaten           D. fined

19. A. duty             B. task             C. right            D. pleasure

20. A. regret              B. sadness          C. trouble          D. difficulty

Mr. and Mrs. Wu were fed up with their neighbor. He was always borrowing things from them.
“It’s not right.” Mr. Wu said to his wife one evening. “At some time or another that man has borrowed nearly everything we have. Almost every day he comes over to borrow something.”
“You are quite right,” his wife replied, “and most of the things he’s never returned.”
“What I want to know,” her husband said, “is why he can’t buy the things he needs like everyone else.”
“Because people like us are foolish enough to lend him what he needs.” she replied. “As long as we are willing to lend, he’ll keep on borrowing.”
“Then we’ll never lend him anything again.” Mr. Wu said. “The next time he asks to borrow something, I’ll say no.”
“We must have a good reason for saying no,” his wire said, “and we must always try to be polite to him. We don’t want to make an enemy of the man.”
It was not long before their decision not to lend their neighbor anything ever again was put to the test.
The next morning there was a knock on the door.
Mr. Wu went to answer it.
Their neighbor was standing there. Mr. Wu knew he was going to ask to borrow something, and was ready to refuse him politely.
“Good morning,” their neighbor said, “I’m sorry to trouble you, but I wonder if I could borrow your garden scissors.”
“I’m sorry,” Mr. Wu said, “but I’m afraid my wife and I will be using them today. We’ll be spending all day working in the garden.”
“Oh, ! see.” the neighbor said, “In that case, may I borrow your golf clubs? You won’t be needing them if you are working in the garden all day, will you?”
【小题1】What did the neighbor do with most of the things he had borrowed?

Little did I know that I was about to see something I would never forget at the Kentucky Association of School Administrators.

They introduced the young musician---Mr Patrick Henry Hughes. He was rolled onto the stage in his wheelchair and began to play the piano. His fingers danced across the keys as he made beautiful music.

About ten minutes into Patrick’s performance, someone came on the stage and said, “I’d like to share a seven-minute video about Patrick Hughes.” Then the lights were turned down.

Patrick Henry Hughes was born with no eyes and a tightening of the joints(关节), which left him disabled for life. However, he was fitted with artificial eyes and placed in a wheelchair. Before his first birthday, he discovered the piano. His mom said, “I could hit any note on the piano, and within one or two tries, he’d get it.” By his second birthday, he was playing records people asked for. His father was ecstatic. “We might not play baseball, but we can play music together.”

Today, Patrick is a junior. His father attends classes with him and he’s made nearly all A’s. He’s also a part of a 214-member marching band(游乐乐队). He’s a blind, wheelchair-bound trumpet player; he and his father do it together. In order to attend Patrick’s classes and every band practice, his father works the night shift(夜班) at United Parcel Service. Patrick says, “My dad’s my hero.”

On stage, between songs, Patrick talked to the audience about his life and about how blessed he was, “God made me blind and unable to walk. BIG DEAL! He gave me musical gifts and the great opportunity to meet new people.”

When his performance was over, the crowd rose to their feet and cheered for over five minutes.

1.The underlined word “ecstatic” could be replaced by “_________”.

A. relaxed    B. disappointed    C. anxious    D. delighted

2.What do we know about Patrick’s father?

A. He taught Patrick to play the piano.

B. He does part-time jobs in the daytime.

C. He accompanies Patrick in class and practice.

D. He expects Patrick to become a famous musician.

3.We know from the text that Patrick Henry Hughes ______________.

A. began to play the piano at age two

B. is in charge of a marching band

C. is now a high school student

D. admires his father greatly.

4.The story of Patrick Henry Hughes mainly teaches us to _______________.

A. develop an interest in music

B. be grateful for what we have

C. be ready to help people in trouble

D. work hard to achieve great success

“ Are you too stupid to do anything right？”These words—said by a woman to a little boy who was obviously her son—were spoken   21    he had walked away from her．They boy returned, his eyes down-cast.

Not a   22     moment, perhaps,   23     small moments sometimes last a very long time．And a few words—though they mean   24    at the time to the people who say them—can have great   25    .

I recently heard a story from a man named Malcolm Dalkoff．For the last 24 years he has been a professional   26    ．Here is what he told me:

As a boy in Rock Island, Dalkoff was terribly   27    ．He had few   28    and no self-confidence．One day, his English teacher, Ruth Brach, gave the class an assignment（作业）．The students had been reading To Kill a Mockingbird．Now they were to write their own chapter that would   29     the last chapter of the novel.

Dalkoff wrote his chapter and turned it   30   ．Today he can not recall anything   31 

about the chapter he wrote, or what   32    Mrs．Branch gave him．What he does remember is the four words Mrs．Brach wrote in margin（空白处）of the paper：“This is   33   writing.”

    Four words．They   34     his life.

    “   35     I read those words, I had no idea of who I was or   36   I was going to be.”he said.“After reading her note, I went home and wrote a short story, something I had always been   37    of doing but never believed I could do.”

         Over the rest of that year in school, he wrote many short stories and always brought them to school for Mrs．Brach to evaluate．She was   38     , tough and honest.“She was just what I

   39   .”Dalkoff said.

         His confidence   40   ．Dalkoff believes that none of this would have happened if that woman had not written those four words in the margin of his paper.

1.A．where            B．why                C．because              D．when

2.A．wonderful             B．difficult               C．funny        D．big

3.A．yet              B．although            C．for                   D．therefore

4.A．much            B．little                 C．more                 D．most

5.A．meaning             B．power             C．force                  D．sense

6.A．writer            B．player                 C．poet                D．singer

7.A．sorry           B．proud        C．sick                   D．shy

8.A．books             B．ideas                 C．friends                D．chances

9.A．follow              B．match                 C．decide                D．improve

10.A．on                 B．in                 C．out                 D．down

11.A．more                   B．again                 C．special           D．different

12.A．honors              B．remarks              C．prizes                 D．grade

13.A．poor          B．serious                C．good                  D．silly

14.A．changed            B．damaged              C．affected             D．improved

15.A．Unless          B．Until                  C．When                  D．While

16.A．what              B．how                  C．where                 D．which

17.A．tired               B．fond                  C．proud                  D．dreaming

18.A．strict                   B．kind                  C．encouraging            D．praising

19.A．feared          B．needed            C．expected              D．loved

20.A．grew                    B．lifted                  C．appeared             D．returned