I’ve loved my mother’s desk since I was just tall enough to see above the top of it as mother sat doing letters. Standing by her chair, looking at the ink bottle, pens, and white paper, I decided that the act of writing must be the more wonderful thing in the world.

   Years later, during her final illness, mother kept different things for my sister and brother. “But the desk,”she’d said again, “it’s for Elizabeth.”

   I never saw her angry, never saw her cry. I knew she loved me, she showed it in action. But as a young girl, I wanted heart-to-heart talks between mother and daughter. They never happened. And agulf opened between us. I was “too emotional(易动感情的)”. But she lived “on the surface”.

   As years passed I had my own family. I loved my mother and thanked her for our happy family. I wrote to her in careful words and asked her to let me know in any way she chose that she did forgive(原谅) me. I posted the letter and waited for her answer. None came.

My hope turned to disappointment, then little interest and, finally peace, it seemed that nothing happened. I couldn’t be sure that the letter had even got to mother. I only knew that I had written it, and I could stop trying to make her into someone she was not.

   Now the present of her desk told, as she’d never been able to, that she was pleased that writing was my chosen work. I cleaned the desk carefully and found some papers inside --a photo of my father and a one-page letter, folded and refolded many times.

 Give me an answer, my letter asks, in any way you choose. Mother, you always chose the act that speaks louder than words.

根据短文内容，选择最佳答案。

I learned about life from an ant farm. It was when I was seven years old, my family created one. First, we put clean sand in a thin glass box, and then we waited for the live ants to arrive. Shortly after the ants were dropped into the glass structure, they got to work making tunnels. I was amazed that each of them knew exactly what to do .After hours of staring, I discovered that the ants hadassignedjobs.   

With the help of mom, I kept a diary of what happened each day and named the ants. One day an incident struck the ant farm. The pages of the diary, still wrinkled(皱巴巴的)where tear drops fell, indicate the great loss. I had put my face so close to the structure that I accidentally knocked it over and all the tunnels caved in. Although the ants survived(幸存) their earthquake, one by one they began to die. 

I was terrified as I watched them give up their tunnel-building to carry the bodies to a corner of the farm. My mom reported that the ants were dying of frustration. They simply could not stand the reality that their tunnels had been destroyed.   

Although much time has passed, I still think of that ant farm. Mom had hoped it would teach me about the natural world, but it taught me much more. Over the years, I came to realize the ants were a study in the benefits of teamwork. Working together, they were able to create an amazing world for themselves. I also learned that they should be admired for their hard work. Day in and day out, each worked hard at their task.   

The ant farm showed that teamwork and perseverance(持之以恒）are indeed two keys to success. But there was an even larger lesson that I did not realize until recently: Adversity is a natural part of life, and must be accepted. Unlike the ants, humans cannot give up when they face disappointment. Unlike the ants, we have to realize that if a tunnel caves in, we just have to build another. Giving up, I say, is not a choice.

When I was about 12, I had an "enemy", a girl who liked to point out my shortcomings (缺点). Sometimes she said I was thin. Sometimes she said I was lazy. Sometimes she said I wasn't a good student. Sometimes she said I talked too much, and so on. I tried to boar (忍受) her as long as I could. At last, I became very angry. I ran to my father with tears in my eyes.

   He listened to me quietly, and then he asked, "Are the things she said true or not? Mary, didn't you ever wonder what you're really like? Go and make a list of everything she said and make the points that are true. Pay no attention to the other things she said."

   I did as he told me and I was very surprised to discover that about half the things were true. I brought the list back to my dad. He refused to take it. "That's just for you," he said. "You know the truth about yourself better than any other people. When something that is said about you is true, you'll find it will be helpful to you. Don't shut off your brain and your ears. You should listen to them all carefully, but hear the truth and do what you think is right."

   Many years has passed. The situation often appears in my mind. In our life, we often meet with some trouble and we often go to someone and ask for advice. For some advice, you need to treasure (珍惜) all your life!

John, a famous musician, took his priceless violin and played it in the crowded subway station. The music from the violin was streaming throughout the whole station. However, during the one-hour play, only six or seven people were truly appreciating the music. A three-year-old kid was so fascinated by the music that he forgot everything around. John only got 52 dollars for his work that day.

However, in normal days, when John is about to hold a concert, one ticket can be sold at more than 100 dollars and it is really hard to buy a ticket even at such a high price. Therefore, later, many passers-by in the station that day felt deeply regretful for not recognizing the famous musician and missing such a valuable but cheap music feast(盛宴).

I have a very busy friend called Charles. He had totally changed after knowing that his wife came down with incurable illness. He cooked by himself for the family and took a walk with his wife every day. But even so, his wife still did notconquerthe illness and passed away. After that, he often sighed. Due to his past busy life, he had missed a lot of beautiful time with his wife. But now, it is impossible to make up for it.

   But It is no use crying over spilt milk. We have missed a lot of precious things without knowing to treasure them. The reason is less than simple :we had thought that we could still own them tomorrow.

There was a famous Buddhist monk saying that in many people’s lives, they have only done two things: waiting and regretting. The result is that they were always too late to treasure what they had before they lost it. We should often expect to do something when we grow up, or when we have money or when we become old, ect. However, when we reach the condition we have expected, we could no longer realize our wish, because we have lost it by then.

When I was eleven, my mother worked all day. As a sister, I had to look after my younger sister on weekends. At that time, my little sister was about three years old and she missed Mum all the time.

   One day, she started crying for Mum after lunch. She was so young and really needed Mum. To make her stop crying, I dressed her up, helped her to put on the shoes, carried her on my back and walked out to the park. Soon she fell asleep (入睡) on my back.

   Before we got to the park, I found one of her shoes lost. I took her off my back and put her down.

   I knew we needed to find that shoe, for our mother didn't have enough money to buy her new shoes. I had to go back to find it, so I told my sister to wait right there.

   A man happened to hear my words and stopped me just before I walked off. He asked me, "Are you leaving your sister here to find the shoe? What will you do if she is not here when you return?" I didn't know how to answer that question. "It's OK if you can't find the shoe, but it is not OK to lose your sister," he added. Then he sent us to Mum's workplace by taxi and left without another word.

   People always say, "Do not believe in strangers (陌生人)." But during my whole life, the kindness of the man is always in my mind. I feel regretful that I can't find him and say "Thank you". I do not even remember what he looked like, but he taught me a lesson－people are more important than things.

根据材料内容选出最佳选项,并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。

My father woke me up early one summer morning when I was fourteen and said: "Get up, you're going with me to cut the grass in the garden."

   The idea that my father thought f was old enough to help him in his business made me feel proud and excited. From sunup to sundown, my father, my younger brother and I worked in the large garden. By the end of the day I was too tired to say a word but I felt good. This was my first time to help my father in his business. I got $6 for my work that day.

   One day my father found some leaves I had missed and pulled me aside. "Take away these leaves!" he said, "and don't make me have to tell you to do it again." The message was clear. Today I value the importance of doing a job well the first time. It will never fail to impress(给……留下印象) the person you are working for.

   After two years, my father told me and my brother that he felt we were old enough to cut the grass by ourselves. Every Saturday during my last two years of high school, we set off early in the morning with the same strong wish we had gained while working under our father.

   Looking after the garden Was neither exciting nor high paying, but that didn't matter. It taught me that any job was a good job and that whatever I was paid was more than I had before.

   A newspaper reporter once asked me how someone could possibly live with hard work and low pay. "If you're only thinking about hard work and money, you probably don't want to do any better than you are doing." I answered. In every job, from cutting the grass to washing dishes, I've learned much. I've learned something that helps me in my next job. If you work hard enough, you can learn from any job you do.

根据材料内容选择正确答案。

I know my brother better than anyone else in the world. Since the moment of his birth, I’ve been part of his life. I had spent seven happy years in the world with the attention of those around me. But when Rohan was born, life changed. All of a sudden, I had to share my toys and there were no more bedtime stories or my own choice of food.

Finally, I hated this small boy. The poor baby had no idea what had made me so unhappy. Maybe he found me strange, the only person in this house who did not like him. Whatever the reason was, he loved following me around. However, I seldom talked to him and always asked him to leave me alone.

Then all that changed. I hardly remember everything of that day six years ago, but I do remember that I was feeling very angry. Then I found myself in my brother’s room. I couldn’t help reaching my hand through the bars(栏杆) of his bed. At once, he reached his small hand and softly touched mine. And that was all I needed. Through all the unhappiness of the day,that one momentchanged everything. How could I hate someone who made me feel so important? For the first time, I saw my brother through the eyes of a sister. Suddenly I realized love from my family was always with me.

To this day, I can’t imagine life without my brother. It is unbelievable(难以置信的) how much I have learned about life from a seven-year-old boy. Above all, Rohan has taught me that one should not care only for himself.

 Are you sad that you don’t have a nice face? Are you worried that you are not cleverer than your classmates? If so, reading the story of Beethoven(贝多芬) may help you.

   Beethoven was born in a small city in Germany in 1770. His father was an actor and he always drank much. His mother was in bad health and she died when Beethoven was seventeen. They lived a poor life.

   Beethoven was a talented(有天赋的) child in music. At that time people thought he was as clever as Mozart. His father wanted to make money from his talent, so he told him to practice and play all the time. If he didn’t do that, his father would be angry with him and beat him. Beethoven was very short and ugly. He couldn’t hear well from the age of 22 and later he heard nothing. He once fell in love with three girls, but they all left him for some reasons at last. But all these didn’t make him give up music. He kept writing music, and later he became a great musician. On a snowy day in 1827, Beethoven died of illness. His life was so short that he didn’t leave much music. But people think he was one of the best musicians in the world.

   It's not easy to find a. person with the qualities of being a hero. I didn't really understand the meaning of the word "hero" until my third year in the college.

   If you saw her, you wouldn't think she really looks the part (看起来样子像那种人). but she is stronger than Superman. Her name is Sandra Keierleber. I first. met her at volleyball tryouts (选拔赛), but didn't notice anything special at first. As the week passed, however, she showed she had more heart than anyone. She stood out because she never gave up, no matter what.

   Sandra isn't the tallest or the fastest -- in fact, this was her first time playing volleyball and it showed -- but that didn't stop her. She was always the first to arrive and the last to leave. By the end of tryouts she had found a place in everyone's heart. When the name list for new members was put up, we all waited nervously as she checked. When she stood at the door and smiled happily, all we could do was cheer.

   After Sandra made the team, she worked even harder to improve her game. When she asked for help, we gladly taught her. She also became our fan, attending almost every school game and even joining us in the city games. We all like her, because she never thinks about doing things the easy way, or loses that smile. Because of her great exertion, she makes herself a true hero -- and my hero, too.

Dolphins talk with sounds. They show their feelings with sounds.

Dolphins travel in a group. We call a group of fish a “school”. They don’t study, but they travel together. Dolphins are mammal（哺乳动物）, not fish, but they swim together in a school.

Dolphins talk to the other dolphins in the school. They give information（信息）. They tell when they are happy or sad or afraid. They say “welcome” when a dolphin comes back. They talk when they play.

They make a few sounds above(在···上面) water. They make many more sounds under water. People can’t hear these sounds because they are very, very high. Scientists make tapes of the sounds(录音) and study them.

Sometimes people catch a dolphin for a large zoo. People can watch the dolphin in a show. Dolphins don’t like to be away from their school in a zoo. They are sad and lonely.

There are many stories about dolphins. They help people. Sometimes they save somebody’s life. Dolphin meat is good, but people don’t like to kill them. They say that dolphins bring good luck. Many people believe this.