B

When you make a mistake, big or small, cherish it like it’s the most precious thing in the world. Because in some ways, it is.

Most of us feel bad when we make mistakes, beat ourselves up about it, feel like failures, get mad at ourselves.

And that’s only natural: most of us have been taught from a young age that mistakes are bad, that we should try to avoid mistakes. We’ve been scolded when we make mistakes—at home, school and work. Maybe not always, but probably enough times to make feeling bad about mistakes an unconscious reaction.

Yet without mistakes, we could not learn or grow. If you think about it that way, mistakes should be cherished and celebrated for being one of the most amazing things in the world: they make learning possible; they make growth and improvement possible.

By trial and error—trying things, making mistakes, and learning from those mistakes—we have figured out how to make electric light, to paint the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, to fly.

Mistakes make walking possible for the smallest toddler, make speech possible, make works of genius possible.

Think about how we learn: we don’t just consume information about something and instantly know it or know how to do it. You don’t just read about painting, or writing, or computer programming, or baking, or playing the piano, and know how to do them right away. Instead, you get information about something, from reading or from another person or from observing, then you make mistakes and repeat, making mistakes, learning from those mistakes, until you’ve pretty much learned how to do something. That’s how we learn as babies and toddlers, and how we learn as adults. Mistakes are how we learn to do something new—because if you succeed at something, it’s probably something you already knew how to do. You haven’t really grown much from that success—at most it’s the last step on your journey, not the whole journey. Most of the journey was made up of mistakes, if it’s a good journey.

So if you value learning, if you value growing and improving, then you should value mistakes. They are amazing things that make a world of brilliance possible.

1.Why do most of us feel bad about making mistakes?

A. Because mistakes make us suffer a lot.

B. Because it’s a natural part in our life.

C. Because we’ve been taught so from a young age.

D. Because mistakes have ruined many people’s careers.

2.According to the passage, what is the right attitude to mistakes?

A. We should try to avoid making mistakes.

B. We should owe great inventions mainly to mistakes.

C. We should treat mistakes as good chances to learn.

D. We should make feeling bad about mistakes an unconscious reaction.

3.The underlined word “toddler” in Paragraph 6 probably means .

A. a small child learning to walk

B. a kindergarten child learning to draw

C. a primary pupil learning to read

D. a school teenager learning to write

4.We can learn from the passage that .

A. most of us can really grow from success

B. growing and improving are based on mistakes

C. we learn to make mistakes by trial and error

D. we read about something and know how to do it right away

第二節(jié) (共5小題；每小題2分，滿分10分)

根據(jù)短文內(nèi)容，從短文后的選項中選出能填入空白處的最佳選項。選項中有兩項為多余選項。

There is distinction between reading for information and reading for understanding.1.The first sense is the one in which we read newspapers, magazines, or anything else. 2.Such materials may increase our store of information, but they cannot improve our understanding. And clearly we don’t have any difficulty in gaining the new information, for our understanding was equal to them before we started. Otherwise, we would have felt the shock of puzzlement.

The second sense is the one in which we read something that at first we do not completely understand. Here the thing to be read is at the first sight better or higher than the reader. The writer is communicating something that can increase the reader’s understanding.

Otherwise one person could never learn from another. Here “l(fā)earning” means understanding more, not remembering more information.

What are the conditions in this kind of reading? First, there is inequality in understanding.

3. Besides, his book must convey something he possesses and his potential readers lack. Second, the reader must be able to overcome this inequality in some degree. And he should always try to reach the same level of understanding with the writer. If the equality is approached, success of communication is achieved.

4.It is the least demanding and requires the least amount of effort. Everyone who knows how to read can read for entertainment if he wants to. In fact, any book that can be read for understanding or information can probably be read for entertainment as well.

A. Thus, we can employ the word “reading” in two distinct senses.

B.Such communication between unequals must be possible.

C.We can get access to the content of those materials easily.

D.The writer must be “superior” to the reader in understanding.

E.The writer should have a better communicating skill.

F.Besides gaining information and understanding, there’s another goal of reading—entertainment.

G. Reading for entertainment is capable of increasing our understanding for information.

第二節(jié) 完成句子 （共17空；每空1分，滿分17分）

1.Do you often ____________(忽略)work and study to check your phone for messages?

2.________ _________(遭受)such a heavy loss, the boss didn’t have the courage to go on with his business.

3.The old man ________ _________(經(jīng)歷) a lot of suffering during the war.

4.__________(事實上) eating habits can vary a good deal over the centuries.

5.After 25 years she has changed ________ ________(認不出來).

6.The fact that he didn’t speak a foreign language put him at a __________(劣勢).

7.I haven’t been ___________(決定) where to go during the summer vacations.

8.After the big fire, his house was completely d____________(毀壞), so he had to build a new one.

9.Dad has given me a lot of __________(指導) on choosing a career.

10.We should set aside some time to take __________(有規(guī)律的) exercise every day, which is good to our health.

11._________(無論如何), you must tell me the truth.

12.I would ___________(感激) it if you would teach me how to use the computer.

13.He _________ an _________(道歉) to the guests for his rudeness.

When I began planning to move to Auckland to study，my mother was a little worried about the uncertainty of living in a place that was so different from India，where we lived. She worried particularly about the lack of jobs，the cultural differences and the chance that I would face racism.

Despite these worries，I came to New Zealand in July 2009. I have found the place and people very nice and supportive. Soon after I arrived，I realized the importance of getting a job to supply my living expenses.

Determined to do this on my own ，I spent a whole day going from door to door asking for a job. However，I received little or no response. This became my routine every day after college for

a few weeks.

One afternoon，I walked into a building to ask if there were any job opportunities. The people there were very surprised，and advised me not to continue my job search in that manner. As I was about to leave，a clerk in the building，who had been listening to what the others had said, approached me and asked if I would wait outside. Fifteen minutes later，he returned. He asked me what my plans were and encouraged me to stay confident. He then offered to take me to the Royal Oak area to search for a job.

I was a little surprised，but had a good feeling about him，so I went along. Along the way I realized that I had run out of copies of my resume（簡歷）．The man stopped at his business partner's office to make me 15 extra copies. He also gave me tips on dressing and speaking，and added that I should give him, a call if I ever needed anything. I handed out my resumes and went home feeling very satisfied. The following day，I received：call from。store in Royal Oak offering me a job.

It seems that the world always gives back to you when you need it. And this time，it was a complete stranger who turned out to be a real blessing.

1.What wasn't the author's mother worried about?

A. People might look down on the author.

B. The author couldn't speak the local language.

C. The author wasn't familiar with local customs.

D. It might be difficult for the author to find a job.

2.After staying in New Zealand for a short time, the author

A. decided to go back to his own country

B. felt the local people were not very friendly

C. had to find a job to cover his living expenses

D. wanted to get a job that needed practical skills

3. When the author went into a building to look for a job

A. a clerk gave him encouragement and advice

B. he was confident that he would find a good one

C. he found many college students like him already there

D. a clerk recommended him to the company he worked for

4.What is the story mainly about?

A. How a stranger offered the author a job.

B. How a stranger turned out to be a real blessing.

C. How the author adapted himself to a new situation.

D. How the author was helped to get a job by a stranger.

The year of 2014 saw smart people always busy inventing useful things，which have helped to

make the world better，smarter and a little more fun. Now，let's take a look at some of the inventions.

Super banana

Australian biogeneticist（生物遺傳學家）James Dale

visited Uganda，a poor African country，in the early 2000s，

where he found that 15％-30% of children under 5 were at

the risk of going blind because they didn't get enough vitamin

A. Dale also learned that people there love bananas. They

eat 3 to 11 bananas a day. So hecame up with an idea to

plant bananas containing added nutrition in order to improve

Ugandans' health ．With the help of Bill Gates' foundation，Dale developed the“super banana，’·He added a gene to the fruit，making it rich in vitamin A.

1.Which of the following statements would James Dale agree with?

A. Children in Uganda should eat fewer bananas.

B. Vitamin A is largely found in fruits like bananas.

C ．Super bananas are definitely a safe biological product.

D. People's eating habits can be used to develop new food.

2.What is the biggest advantage of the 94Fifty Basketball?

A. The sensors hidden inside can help players run faster in a game.

B. It can help players to improve their shooting and ball-handling skills.

C. It allows players to connect to their smartphones while playing basketball.

D. The Bluetooth chip inside allows its users to listen to music while playing basketball.

3.What can we learn about the hovercraft from the text?

A. It enables its users to float off the ground freely.

B. It can work on many different kinds of surfaces.

C. It still needs to improve its power and efficiency.

D. It is an affordable means of transport for a family.

4.What do the hovercraft and wireless electricity have in common according to the text?

A. They create magnetic fields to produce power.

B. They apply technologies to many things in life.

C. They are technologies which can produce electricity.

D. They use wireless technology to improve their products.

第一節(jié)完形填空（共20小題；每小題1.5分，滿分30分）

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，選出可以填人空白處

的最佳選項，并在答題卡上將該項涂黑。

I used to abandon myself to despair. Last year my mother from stroke（中風）and had an operation on her brain. I felt my whole world turn upside down and I had no what I could do to help her to relieve her . Tears welled up in my eyes whenever I was alone.

Last month I precious watch，which was an 18-year-old birthday gift from my father. I could not fall asleep for a couple of nights because I felt about the loss.

There have been many like these in my life. I could never figure out how to deal with such tough things I read“If You Have a Lemon，Make a Lemonade" by American writer Dale Carnegie.

“When the wise man is handed a lemon，he says，‘What 48 can I get from this? How can I my situation? How can I turn this lemon into a lemonade？’”he wrote.

I suddenly that life is full of ups and downs，so I need to stay all the time. Now when I think of my past，I wish I could have handled things ．When my mother was fighting for ，I should have held her hands in mine，telling her things would get better instead of and crying.

Several weeks ago，I took part in a campus singing competition. I didn't a prize. If I had not this article，I would definitely have felt again. But instead，I smiled after the competition. I was happy that at least I had got some stage ．

Life is not just a bed of roses. There are thorns（刺）as well，but these thorns help us become and strong. When life us a lemon, let's try to make a lemonade.

1.A. resulted B. suffered C. survived D. escaped

2.A. hope B. wonder C. idea D. doubt

3.A. pain B. anxiety C. fear D. pressure

4.A. received B. sold C. fixed D. lost

5.A. unbelievable B. shameful C. angry D. terrible

6.A. diseases B. memories C. incidents D. difficulties

7.A. when B. until C. though D. since

8.A. lesson B. lemonade C. decision D. challenge

9.A. control B. accept C. improve D. avoid

10.A. realized B. thought C. discovered D. predicted

11.A. healthy B. independent C. serious D. positive

12.A. exactly B. differently C. easily D. practically

13.A. recovery B. life C. freedom D. happiness

14.A. shouting B．hiding C. quarreling D. regretting

15.A. expect B. miss C. win D. refuse

16.A. figured out B．written down C. found out D. come across

17.A. embarrassed B. discouraged C．excited D. concerned

18.A. performance B．experience C．progress D. effect

19.A. brave B. calm C. great D. clever

20.A. shows B. makes C. gives D. sends

第二節(jié)（共10小題；每小題1 ．5分，滿分15分）

閱讀下面材料，在空白處填人適當?shù)膬?nèi)容（1個單詞）或括號內(nèi)單詞的正確形式，并將答案填寫在答題卡相應的位置上。

Two weeks before Christmas，two little girls were walking down the street 1.hey saw old Harry，who was on his knees pulling weeds from around a tree. He wore a pair of worn gloves．His fingers were sticking out 2.the ends，blue from the cold. They stopped to talk to him.

Harry told them he3.（get) the yard in shape as a Christmas gift for his mother，who had died several years before.“My mother was all I had. She loved her yard and trees，so I do this for her every Christmas."

His -words touched the girls and soon they 4.（join) him，pulling weeds. When they finished，Harry pressed a coin into each of their hands.“I wish I could pay you more，but that's all rve got right now，”he said.

The girls had often passed his house，and they remembered that it had always been 5.poor condition. No decorations to add cheeriness were anywhere in sight.

As they walked on，the coin in one little girl's hand seemed to burn a hole of6.（guilty）．The next day she called her friends．7.they agreed to put their coins in a jar

marked“Harry's Christmas Gift"．Then they began to seek out small jobs to earn more．Every coin they earned went into the jar.

Finally，they had enough 8.（buy）new gloves. Christmas Eve found them on Harry's doorstep singing carols. They presented him with the gloves. With9.tremble）hands，he held the gloves to his face and wept. No doubt he once again felt 10. love of others as the

girls reached out to him.

The video, Under the Dome, has rapidly pushed the public______ about air pollution and encouraged people to join in efforts to make a difference.

A. analysis B. imagination

C. awareness D. argument

As well as teaching soccer's basic skills and rules, the introduced textbooks will ______team spirit and sense of responsibility.

A. multiply B. distinguish

C. preserve D. develop

There is a beautiful Chinese song called I Came Over the Ocean to See You. Why not do that in reality on this Valentine’s Day? Keep your plan a secret and ______suddenly.

A. show up B. cut in

C. show off D. cut down