4、My father was 44 and knew he wasn’t going to make it to 45．He wrote me a letter and hoped that something in it would help me for the rest of my life．

Since the day I was 12 and first read his letter，some of his words have lived in my heart．One part always stands out．“Right now，you are pretending to be a time-killer．But I know that one day，you will do something great that will set you among the very best．”Knowing that my dad believed in me gave me permission to believe in myself．“You will do something great．” He didn’t know what that would be，and neither did I，but at times in my life when I’ve felt proud of myself，I remember his words and wish he were here so I could ask．“Is this what you were talking about，Dad? Should I keep going?”

A long way from 12 now，I realize he would have been proud when I made any progress．Lately，though，I’ve come to believe he’d want me to move on to what comes next: to be proud of，and believe in，somebody else．It’s time to start writing my own letters to my children．Our children look to us with the same unanswered question we had．Our kids don’t hold back because they’re afraid to fail．They’re only afraid of failing us．They don’t worry about being disappointed．Their fear－as mine was until my father’s letter－is of being a disappointment．

Give your children permission to succeed．They’re waiting for you to believe in them．I always knew way parents loved me．But trust me: That belief will be more complete，that love will be more real，and their belief in themselves will be greater if you write the words on their hearts; “Don’t worry; you’ll do something great．” Not having that blessing from their parents may be the only thing holding them back．

1．We learn from the text that the author ________．

A．lost his father when he was young

B．worked hard before he read his father’s letter

C．asked his father permission to believe in himself

D．knew exactly what thing his father wanted him to do

2．What does the author tell us in the 3rd paragraph?

A．Children need their parents’ letters．

B．Children are afraid to be disappointed．

C．His children’s fear of failure held them back．

D．His father’s letter removed his fear of failing his parents．

3．Which of the following is true of the author?

A．He got no access to success．

B．He wrote back to his father at 12．

C．He was sure his parents loved him．

D．He once asked his father about the letter．

4．The main purpose of the text is to _______．

A．describe children’s thinking

B．answer some questions children have

C．stress the importance of communication

D．advise parents to encourage their children

3、The need to feed a growing population is putting much pressure on the world’s supply of water．With 97% of the world’s water too salty to be drunk or used in agriculture，the worldwide supply of water needs careful management，especially in agriculture．Although the idea of a water shortage（短缺）seems strange to someone fortunate enough to live in a high rainfall country，many of the world’s agricultural industries experience constant water shortages．

Although dams can be built to store water for agricultural use in dry areas and dry seasons，the costs of water redistribution（重新分配）are very high．Not only is there the cost of the engineering itself，but there is also an environmental cost to be considered．Where valleys（山谷）are flooded to create dams，houses are lost and wildlife homes destroyed．Besides，water may flow easily through pipes to fields，but it cannot be transported from one side of the world to the other．Each country must therefore rely on the management of its own water to supply its farming requirements．

This is particularly troubling for countries with agricultural industries in areas dependent on irrigation（灌溉）．In Texas，farmers’ overuse of irrigation water be resulted in a 25% reduction of the water stores．In the Central Valley area of south eastern USA，a huge water engineering project provided water for farming in dry valleys，but much of the water use has been poorly managed．

Saudi Arabia’s attempts to grow wheat in desert areas have been the pumping of huge quantities of irrigation water from underground reserves．Because there is no rainfall in these areas，such reserves can only decrease，and it is believed that fifty years of pumping will see them run dry．

1．From the first two paragraphs we learn that _______．

A．much of the world’s water is available for use

B．people in high rainfall countries feel lucky

C．the costs of water redistribution should be considered

D．water can be easily carried through pipes across the world

2．Which of the following is true?

A．The water stores in Texas have been reduced by 75%．

B．Most industries in the world suffer from water shortages．

C．The underground water in Saudi Arabia might run out in 50 years．

D．Good management of water use resulted from the project in the Central Valley．

3．What is most likely to be discussed in the paragraph that follows?

A．Steps to improving water use management．

B．Ways to reduce the costs of building dams．

C．Measured to deal with worldwide water shortages．

D．Approaches to handling the pressure on water supply．

4．The text is mainly about        ．

A．water supply and increasing population

B．water use management and agriculture

C．water redistribution and wildlife protection

D．water shortages and environmental protection．

1、假如你将参加某英语杂志社开展的一次征文活动，征文的内容要求你在电视、手机（cell）和网络三者中，放弃其中一个并陈述理由。请你以“Which would you give the TV，cell，or Web”为题，写一篇英语短文。

注意：1．字数100左右；

2．可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。

22、请根据下面提示，写一篇短文。词数不少于50。

In your spoken English class, your teacher shows you the following picture. You are asked to describe the picture and explain how you understand it.

21、_______ at my classmates' faces, I read the same excitement in their eyes.

A. Looking              B. Look             C. To look            D. Looked

20、In the spoken English of some areas in the US, the “r” sounds at the end of the words _______.

A. are dropped                                   B. drop

C. are being dropped                               D. have dropped

19、——Good morning. I’ve got an appointment with Miss Smith in the Personnel Department.

——Ah, good morning. You _______ be Mrs. Peters.

A. might                B. must                   C. would               D. can

18、——I’ve not finished with my dinner yet.

——But our friends _______ for us.

A. will wait              B. wait             C. have waited                    D. are waiting