Fifteen years spent in the field of education has provided me with many treasured moments. One of the most unforgettable   36   when I was teaching second   37   10 years ago.

In May I decided to plan something special for the children; a Mother’s Day tea. We had put our heads together to   38   ideas of how to   39   our mothers. We practiced singing songs, memorized poems and wrote cards. We decided to hold our tea the Friday before Mother’s Day. I was surprised and   40   to learn that every mother was planning to attend. I   41   invited my own mother.

Finally, the big day arrived. Each child   42   up at our classroom door, expecting the arrival of his or her mom.   43   it got closer to starting time, I looked around and my eyes quickly found Jimmy. His mother hadn’t shown up and he was looking   44  .

I took my mother by the hand and walked over to Jimmy. “Jimmy,” I said, “I have a bit of problem here and I was   45   if you could keep my mother   46   while I’m busy.”

My mom and Jimmy sat at a table. Jimmy   47   my mom her treats, presented her with the gift I had made, just as we had   48   the day before. Whenever I looked over, my mother and Jimmy were in deep   49  .

Now 10 years later, I work with students of all ages, educating them about the environment. Last year, I took a senior class on a field trip, and there was Jimmy, I had the students complete an outline of the day’s   50   and an evaluation(評(píng)價(jià)) of our trip. Then I collected the students’ booklets(小冊(cè)子)and checked them to see if   51   was completed. When I came   52   Jimmy’s page, he had written “Remember our Mother’s Day tea we had in second grade, Mrs, Marra? I do! Thanks for all you did for me, and thank your mother, too.”

I told him I really enjoyed what he had written. He looked rather embarrassed and   53   his own thanks and walked away. Suddenly he ran back and gave me a big hug. “Thanks again. No one even knew my mother didn’t   54   it.”

I ended my workday with a hug from a teenage boy who had   55   stopped hugging teachers years ago.

36. A. lasted                     B. happened              C. experienced           D. described

37. A. school                    B. class                     C. grade                    D. lesson

38. A. pay attention to       B. look forward to     C. get on with           D. come up with

39. A. love                       B. please                   C. respect                 D. admire

40. A. astonished              B. worried                 C. relieved                 D. interested

41. A. even                      B. ever                      C. still                       D. once

42. A. followed                 B. held                      C. kept                     D. lined

43. A. As                         B. Although               C. While                   D. Because

44. A. wild                       B. curious                 C. strange                 D. upset

45. A. considering             B. wondering             C. asking                  D. doubting

46. A. connection             B. care                      C. company              D. concern

47. A. served                    B. supplied                C. assigned               D. applied

48. A. taught                    B. studied                  C. practiced              D. told

49. A. mind                      B. thought                 C. agreement             D. conversation

50. A. feeling                    B. behavior                C. event                    D. action

51. A. something              B. everything             C. anything               D. nothing

52. A. by                         B. to                         C. on                        D. over

53. A. announced              B. delivered               C. stated                   D. whispered

54. A. make                     B. get                       C. do                        D. take

55. A. probably                 B. exactly                  C. rarely                   D. eagerly

--- Shall I explain the problem to you, since it’s too difficult?

--- __________.

A. It’s up to you　　B. Of course you can　　 C. If you like　 D. It couldn’t be better.

--- Mike is always working hard and has made greater progress recently.

--- ________ he got the first prize.

A. No doubt　　　　　 B. No wonder　　　　　 C. No way　　　　　 D. No problem

--- The car give off a great deal of waste gas into the streets.

--- Yes. But I’m sure something must be done to ________ air pollution.

A. reduce                            B. remove                     C. cut                                 D. rid

Hi, Jim. I’m so glad your vocabulary is gradually ________.

A. bringing up　　　 B. turning up　　 C. building up　　　D. setting up

Tom was ________ to win first prize in the competition, but his illness made him miss the chance.

A. possible                    B. likely                        C. probable                          D. maybe

Only after Mary read her composition the second time ________ the spelling mistake.

A. did she notice　 B. she noticed　　　C. does she notice　　　　 D. she has noticed

The key to our success was having the courage to take on any job, and then being creative in our _______ to getting it finished.

A. measure                   B. approach                 C. methods                          D. chance

The famous musician, as well as his students, ____ to perform at the opening ceremony of the 2012 Taipei Flower Expo.

A. were invited　 B. have been invited 　　 C. was invited　　　　　　D. has been invited

---Allen said something hard to understand at the conference.

---Yes, her remarks left me _______ about her real purpose.

A. wondering                B. to wonder                C. having wondered            D. wondered