I have two sons. They are as different as night and day. My youngest is sweet, loveable, easy-going, and finds joy in everything. My oldest we’ve nicknamed the “Evil Genius” is ambitious, self-confident, and suffers no fools.

Whenever we mentioned Santa my husband and I were rewarded with major eye rolling and deep sighs from my oldest. At first we both tried to ignore it.

We both knew that our eldest had figured out the big secret. But I’d be damned(指責) if he was going to ruin it for his six-year-old brother who had plenty of Santa-loving years ahead of him. I looked at my husband in the eye and said, “I’ll handle this.” to which he responded “Okay just be careful because I’m not sure he knows - he might just be acting like it.” But I knew. And I had it in my mind that he was about to break his younger brothers spirit and break the news to him. I was afraid he was going to take the Christmas spirit away from my sweet innocent youngest and stamp all over it. I had to protect him. I needed to control this now before it got out of control. I rushed into the play room where my oldest was playing alone. I looked him dead in the eyes and said: “Well you know Santa isn’t real, right?” And as I stared at my eight-year-old son for what seemed like a long time of silence, his eyes started to fill with tears. And a tear dropped down his cheek when he screamed out, “He’s not?”

“Um well it’s not that he’s not real (shut up you idiot- stop saying he’s not real), but he doesn’t really make and deliver all the toys. Dad and I get some of them for you. So he’s real. He’s just got a little help from us.”

The Evil Genius wasn’t buying it. He just sat there looking at me with an expression of doubt.

You know when you make a terrible mistake but you can’t stop yourself from making it worse? That was me because I just had to know. I had to know why he had seemed to be over Santa. So I asked him why he rolled his eyes and sighed every time his father and I mentioned Santa, to which he replied that kids at school had been saying Santa wasn't real but that he still thought he was.

1.What’s the best title for the passage?

A. Two different sons

B. Santa secret given away

C. Protecting one, ruining the other

D. Making a mistake worse

2.What did the writer conclude when “Evil Genius” rolled his eyes and sighed?

A. “Evil Genius” had discovered Santa was not real.

B. “Evil Genius” had broken the secret to his younger brother.

C. “Evil Genius” had passed his Santa-loving years.

D. “Evil Genius” had been influenced by his classmates.

3.What does the underlined sentence mean in the passage?

A. “Evil Genius” refused to buy toys.

B. “Evil Genius” didn’t believe his mother’s words.

C. “Evil Genius” wanted to keep silent.

D. “Evil Genius” would not give away the secret.

4.What lesson can we learn from the story?

A. Lies can never change facts.

B. Honesty is the best policy.

C. No one is perfect.

D. We should think twice before we act.

短文改錯

假定英語課上老師要求同桌之間交換修改作文，請你修改你同桌寫的以下作文。文中共有10處語言錯誤，每句中最多有兩處。每處錯誤涉及一個單詞的增加、刪除或修改。

增加：在缺詞處加一個漏字符號（^），并在其下面寫出該加的詞。

刪除：把多余的詞用斜線（\）劃掉。

修改：在錯的詞下面劃一橫線，并在該詞下面寫出改正后的詞。

注意：1．每處錯誤及其修改均僅限一詞；

2．只允許修改10處，多者（從第11處起）不計分。

Everyone has a dream. We are on the way to achieve it whether the way is smooth or toughly. As Senior 3 student, I have the same dream as my classmates that I can be admitted to an ideal university. In the past three years, I have done everything I can to equip myself with that I have learnt from my teachers. Not only have I enjoyed the pleasure of study but also I have got closer to my dream. Anxious and pressure did discourage from me at times. Besides, with the encouragement of my teachers and classmates, I think I’ll make it.

I’m sure that there has still a long way to go to achieve my dream. No matter how challenged it is, I’ll make it come true. As the proverb said,” Where there’s a will, there’s a way.”

Instagram is a fast，beautiful and fun way to share your life with friends and family．Take a picture or video，choose a filter to transform its look and feel．a(chǎn)nd then post to Instagram—it's that easy．You can even share to Facebook．Twitter and more．It’s a new way to see the world．So many photos of food are contained on Instagram—now a pop-up diner in London is taking advantage of this new trend by letting people settle the bill for their meals simply by uploading photos of their dishes to social networks．

I always thought people’s taking pictures of their food was kind of silly, but at this new pop-up restaurant in the UK，I’d probably do it too．“The Picture House”is the world’s first pay-by-photo restaurant—you order， click a photo of the food，share on Instagram and eat for free!

The restaurant belongs to frozen food giant(巨人)Birds Eye，who came up with the idea to cash in on people’s addiction with photographing food and sharing the pictures online. They conducted a survey and found out that more than half of the British population regularly took pictures of their meals．So they realized it was a better way to advertise their new dining range．

The pop-up diner was open in Soho，London for three days in May，and is now moving to other major UK cities．They serve two-course meals that customers don’t have to pay for, if they photo and lnstagram it．

The restaurant is a part of Birds Eye’s“Food for Life”campaign，a new marketing project that aims at changing the way people look at frozen food．“Taking photos of food enables people to show off and to share their mealtime moments—from the everyday to the special，”said marketing director Margaret Jobling．

The reaction to The Picture House has been great so far And the pay-by-picture concept has proven to be an effective way．Alternative payment methods are actually gaining popularity among a lot of businesses．Last year in a cafe in Germany customers pay by how much time they spend there，not by what they eat．

1.Instagram probably is______．

A．a(chǎn) restaurant free of chmge

B．a(chǎn) campaign of“Food for Life’’

C．a(chǎn) program used to share photos

D．a(chǎn) new marketing project

2.What’s the author’s attitude to this new trend?

A．Confused B．Unconcerned

C．Opposed D．Interested

3.“The Picture House”encourages sharing photos of its food to_____．

A．raise the price of frozen food

B．a(chǎn)ttract more customers

C．create a new social media trend

D．reward the regular customers

4.Which of the following can serve as the best title for the passage?

A．Pay by Picture B．The Pop-up Diner

C．No Need to Pay D．Food for Life

完形填空

閱讀下面短文，從短文后各題所給的四個選項(A、B，C和D)中，選出可以填入空白處的最佳選項，并在答題卡上將該項涂黑。

That holiday morning I didn’t have to attend schoo1．Usually，on holidays，Mother________ me to sleep in．And I would certainly take full advantage of it．On this particular morning，________ ，I felt like getting up early．

I stood by my window overlooking the ________，having nothing better to do．But as it turned out，I was soon to learn about something ________ in life．

As I watched several people go by，get into their cars and go off，I ________ an old man on a bicycle with a bucket on its ________ and a basket of rags and bottles on its back-carriage．He ________ from one car to another， washing and cleaning them．From the water on the ground，it seemed that he had already ________ washing and cleaning about a dozen or more cars．He must have begun to work quite early in the morning．

Several thoughts ________my mind as I watched him work．He wash’t well-dressed．He had on a pair of shorts and a(n) ________ T-shirt．The bicycle he rode was not by any means the kind modern ________ would want to be seen riding on．But he seemed ________ with life．There he was，working hard at his small business， ________ at passers by and stopping to chat now and then ________ elderly men and women on their way to the market nearby．

There was a noticeable touch of ________ in the way he seemed to be doing things ________ the windscreen(擋風玻璃)，then standing back to admire it；scrubbing(擦凈)the wheels and ________ ，standing back to see what they look like after the scrub．

It was a ________ to learn，I felt．At no age need one have to beg for a ________ if one has good health and is willing to work hard．For a while I felt ________ of myself．Young as I am—just sixteen，and there was this old man who must have been usefully engaged perhaps before the sun appeared above the horizon．

1.A．forces B．a(chǎn)llows C．causes D．forbids

2.A．otherwise B．therefore C．however D．besides

3.A．parking lot B．bus stop C．school D．market

4.A．interesting B．surprising C．a(chǎn)wful D．useful

5.A．noticed B．recognized C．called D．a(chǎn)ssisted

6.A．back B．handle C．wheel D．seat

7.A．searched B．1eft C．moved D．wandered

8.A．stopped B．started C．intended D．finished

9.A．crowded B．slipped C．disturbed D．inspired

10.A．a(chǎn)ttractive B．shiny C．simple D．expensive

11.A．repairmen B．businessmen C．drivers D．cyclists

12.A．busy B．content C．careful D．bored

13.A．waving B．1ooking C．1aughing D．pointing

14.A．a(chǎn)bout B．for C．with D．1ike

15.A．worry B．respect C．sympathy D．pride

16.A．cleaning B．fixing C．replacing D．covering

17.A．still B．yet C．a(chǎn)gain D．soon

18.A．1esson B．subject C．skill D．fact

19.A．business B．1iving C．success D．right

20.A．tired B．doubtful C．fearful D．a(chǎn)shamed

閱讀下面材料，在空白處填入適當?shù)膬?nèi)容(不多于3個單詞)或括號內(nèi)單詞的正確形式。

You may like reading novels for fun．But you need to get1. (organize)if you are reading a novel for schoo1．Here 2. (be)a few tips．

First，pay attention to characters. What do they do in the novel? What do they want? Everything 3. is about a character can help us to understand him，from his 4. (appear)to the kind of food he eats．

Besides，the order of the story and the plot are 5. (equal)important．Make sure that as you read，you make 6. quick note of what happens in each chapter．This will help you bring the things you have noticed about the character，setting，language and so on together．It's also an enormous help for you to retell the story after you have read it．

Next，themes．They are ideas that a novel explores．7. is a must to get the hang of the theme if you want to fully appreciate the novel．Perhaps love is a major theme，or justice，or 8. (survive)．

Furthermore，novels are made up 9. language．Writers use language in a special way10. (make)their novels work．They may use metaphors，invent symbols，or show different characters’personalities through their speech styles．

For most caffeine(咖啡因)consumers, its chief benefit is that it helps you get more done. This is what makes it unusual, says Stephen Braun, author of Buzz: The Science and Lore of Alcohol and Caffeine.

“Its appeal is that it helps us earn more money,” he adds. “What makes it different from other drugs is that it’s used as a productivity tool –– not for pleasure.”

Many of history’s creative minds have also been associated with a large amount of caffeine consumption.

According to one biographer, the French novelist and playwright Balzac drank as many as 50 cups of coffee a day. “Were it not for coffee one could not write, which is to say one could not live,” he once insisted.

For seven years, the film-maker David Lynch ate at the same Los Angeles diner every day, drinking up to seven sweetened cups of coffee “with lots of sugar” in one sitting, which he said would guarantee that “l(fā)ots of ideas” arrived.

Ludwig van Beethoven was said to have painstakingly counted out exactly 60 coffee beans per cup when he brewed(煮)coffee.

Perhaps recent tales of caffeine excess featured the singer Robbie Williams, who reportedly consumed 36 cups of black coffee and 20 cans of Red Bull a day.

It is the routine task itself, as much as the stimulating(刺激的)effects of caffeine, that makes the process so important, says Mason Currey, author of Daily Rituals: How Artists Work. “A lot of artists use the process of making coffee as a gateway to the creative process,” he adds. “You need to get into the right mindset to do that sort of work, and the preparation process provides a focus.”

One problem with attempting to control caffeine, says Braun, is that it affects everyone differently –– it is impossible to work out a “safe” limit that works for everyone. “Eventually, you have to become your own scientist –– there isn’t an alternative to careful self-experimentation,” he says.

1.Stephen Braun mainly stresses caffeine’s _______.

A. creating ideas B. improving work efficiency

C. helping people to relax D. stimulating people

2.The examples of some famous people are given to show that _______.

A. most artists like drinking coffee

B. drinking coffee helps artists make more money

C. there’s a link between drinking coffee and creating ideas

D. drinking coffee makes artists become more successful

3.What leads to the artists’ creative process according to Mason Currey?

A. Getting a good mindset. B. Drinking the coffee.

C. Being lost in thought. D. Brewing the coffee.

4.What does Braun advise us to do in the end?

A. To drink less coffee.

B. Never to take more coffee than you need.

C. Never to limit caffeine use.

D. To work out a safe level of caffeine use.

短文改錯

假定英語課上老師要求同桌之間交換修改作文，請你修改你同桌寫的以下作文。文中共有10處語言錯誤，每句中最多有兩處。每處錯誤僅涉及一個單詞的增加、刪除或修改。

增加: 在缺詞處加一個漏字符號(∧)，并在其下面寫出該加的詞。

刪除: 把多余的詞用斜線( \ )劃掉。

修改: 在錯的詞下劃一橫線，并在該詞下面寫出修改后的詞。

注意: 1. 每處錯誤及其修改均僅限一詞;

2. 只允許修改10處，多者(從第11處起)不計分。

It was on Sunday so I didn’t have to go to school as usually. My parents went to the countryside to see my grandparents, left me alone. After finishing my homework, I began to play football at home. All of a sudden, I kicked the ball so hardly that it flew right onto a vase and broke it. It was great favorite of my mother’s. I decided to tell my parents it was the fault of the cat for fear that she should punish me. Therefore, when they got home, I hesitated for a moment and told them that truly happened. Instead of punishing me, they just hoped that I will never make so a foolish mistake again.

The health and welfare of every person in America will be affected by global warming, especially children, the elderly and the poor, according to a new White House science report.

The report said every region (地區(qū)) of the country will suffer worse health from heat waves and drought. All but a handful of states would have worse air quality and flooding. It predicts an increase in diseases spread by tainted (腐爛的) food, bad water and bugs (臭蟲).

The report concludes that climate change causes real risk to human health and human system that supports the way of life in the United States.

Man-made global warming is caused by greenhouse gases from the burning of fossil fuels. At current emission (放射) levels, global temperatures are likely to rise by about 2 degrees by midcentury and about 7.5 degrees by the end of the century.

The most vulnerable (脆弱的) Americans — the poor, elderly, sick, very young and immigrants — will suffer more. That’s at least 10 percent of the country’s population, probably more. It will be tougher for these people to get enough health care for climate-related illnesses, to cool down in heat waves, to escape extreme events such as Hurricane Katrina, and even to get enough food.

While every region of America is vulnerable to global warming’s health and welfare effects, more people are moving to coastal regions, which are most vulnerable to climate change because of drought and hurricanes.

1.According to the report, we learn all of the following will risk human’s health EXCEPT ______.

A. heat waves and drought

B. increase in the number of bugs

C. reduction in carbon dioxide emissions

D. global warming and climate change

2.What does the underlined sentence in Paragraph 2 mean?

A. All of states would suffer flooding.

B. Air quality in few states is not high.

C. About half of all states would have clear air.

D. Flooding would occur in almost all the states.

3. Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?

A. Global warming is caused by human beings.

B. It is wise for the Americans to move into coastal regions.

C. Global temperatures are increasing year by year because of carbon dioxide.

D. At least one tenth of Americans are more likely to suffer climate-related illnesses.

4. The writer wrote this passage to ______.

A. explain how the phenomenon of global warming forms

B. protect the vulnerable Americans from suffering from diseases

C. provide evidence that global warming and climate change risk human’s health

D. warn every American of the danger of global warming to their health

完形填空,閱讀下面短文，從短文后各題所給的四個選項（A, B, C和D）中，選出可以填入空白處的最佳選項，并在答題卡上將該項涂黑。

The family had just moved. The young woman was feeling a little ________ .It was Mother's Day—and 800 miles separated her from her parents.

She had called them that morning, and her mother had ________ how colorful their backyard was ________ spring had arrived. Later, she told her husband how she________ those lilacs (丁香) in her parents' yard. “I know where we can find some,” he said. “Get the ________ and come on.” So off they went.

Some time later, they stopped at a hill and there were lilacs all round. The young woman rushed up to the nearest ________and buried her face in the flowers. Carefully, she________ some. Finally, they returned to their car for the________ home. The woman sat smiling, surrounded by her ________ .

When they were near home, she shouted “stop,” got off quickly and ________ to a nearby nursing home. She went to the end of the porch (門廊), where a(n) ________patient was sitting in her wheelchair, and put the flowers into her lap. The two ________ ,bursting into laughter now and then. Later the young woman turned and ran back to her ________ . As the car pulled away, the woman in the wheelchair ________ with a smile, and held the lilacs________ .

“Mom,”the kids asked, “________did you give her our flowers?” “It is Mother's Day, and she seems so________ while I have all of you. And anyone would be ________by flowers.”

This satisfied the kids, but not the husband. The next day he ________some young lilacs around their yard.

I was the husband. Now, every May, our yard is full of lilacs. Every Mother's Day our kids ________purple lilacs. And every year I remember that smile of the lonely old woman.

1.A. moved B. worried C. angry D. depressed

2.A. learned B. imagined C. mentioned D. realized

3.A. now that B. so that C. as if D. even if

4.A. missed B. grew C. watered D. showed

5.A. cars B. kids C. clothes D. lilacs

6.A. bush B. hill C. yard D. door

7.A. bought B. picked C. set D. raised

8.A. break B. holiday C. trip D. dinner

9.A. friends B. memory C. flowers D. honor

10.A. responded B. pointed C. drove D. hurried

11.A. loving B. elderly C. serious D. sensitive

12.A. hesitated B. waited C. sat D. chatted

13.A. family B. mother C. path D. home

14.A. nodded B. waved C. left D. continued

15.A. sadly B. politely C. quickly D. tightly

16.A. why B. when C. how D. where

17.A. quiet B. confused C. alone D. patient

18.A. calmed B. persuaded C. disappointed D. cheered

19.A. arranged B. dried C. planted D. hid

20.A. find B. gather C. receive D. buy

– Sorry, but I must be off now. Better check everything again.

– Ok. ________.

A. It doesn’t matter B. Don’t mention it

C. Catch you later D. Everything is fine