Like most July days, it was hot．I stepped into a tiny ice-cream shop to cool off with a chocolate ice-cream．It was a very   21  store with little round tables and chairs．

As I entered, I found a very old woman bent over a  22  near the door．Her back was so 23 twisted （扭曲） by some misfortune that her face nearly  24 the tabletop．1 sat down  25  her a couple of tables away．

"Poor woman," I thought．"What does she  26 life? Why does God let people live so long past their prime （盛年）?"

As I thought, another  27 lady entered the shop and sat down with her．Soon the two of them were  28  childhood days．They talked of how little the shop had changed in 70 years．In minutes, the two of them were shaking with  29 .

I looked again at the first woman, then in the  30 on a nearby wall, catching a picture of myself．I was wearing a dirty shirt．She was  31  dressed in white, her face carefully made up and her hands  32  with gold rings．I was  33 ．She was laughing．I was putting the   34  of my life together．She had millions of   35 memories to recall．  36 I was worried about getting old．She was old, but it wasn't   37  her．As I left the shop, I thought of my  38  question about God letting people live past their prime．Why, that woman was more  39  to life than I was．Age has not  40 her spirit． 

第三部分：阅读理解（共15小题；每小题2分，满分30分）

阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项（A、B、C 和D）中，选出最佳选项。

Having divorced (离婚) my dad, my mom had to move frequently in order to find a job that would provide her with enough money to support the big family. For three years, we lived in the town of Parkersburg. On the first Christmas there, my brothers and I had been well prepared for a holiday without presents. But we had a surprise on Christmas Eve.

At midnight, we were woken up by someone shouting at our front door, “Ho, ho, ho! Merry Christmas!” We jumped up and ran to the door to find no one there, but several boxes and bags! Not only were there gifts, which were our favorite, but there were also clothes and food. Each of us kids, as well as Mom, had gifts with our names on them. And the clothes all fit us!

Another year went by and on Christmas Eve, we again got boxes and bags full of goodies. The next year we moved. We were in the same town but across the other side. Mom was beginning to get on her feet. Since we had moved and Mom had a better job, we were quite certain that “Santa” wouldn’t visit us that year. But we were wrong!

Those “Santa” visits restored in me the belief in the goodness of mankind, though to this day we don’t know who our helper was.

When we grew up, Mom moved to Virginia. She had some extra money one Christmas. She sent it to me and let us know her decision. We then took action. My husband and children had so much fun buying and wrapping presents for the needy family we had chosen. On Christmas Eve, we allowed the excited kids to stay up late to be part of our secret “Santa” project.

Such satisfaction there was in being able to pass on the gift of love to others who needed it. And the gift goes on!

56. From the first paragraph, we can learn that ______.

A. the writer’s family didn’t like to celebrate Christmas

B. the writer felt sorry about not having Christmas presents

C. the writer’s mother couldn’t afford any Christmas presents

D. the writer knew that something surprising would happen

57. The presents that the writer’s family received must be from _______.

A. someone who has no children        B. someone who knew them well

C. the church in the neighborhood       D. the richest family in the town 

58. What decision did the writer’s mom make in the fifth paragraph?

A. To give her extra money to a poor family.   

B. To thank the person who once helped her family.

C. To give some Christmas presents to a poor family in secret.  

D. To invite a poor family to spend Christmas with her family.  

59. This passage is written to ______.

A. show pity to the poor people        B. show human kindness  

C. thank the helper                 D. show the advantages of being rich

三、阅读理解(40%)
A
February has long been a month of romance. With the sweet smell of roses in the air, romantic films hit cinemas and love stories fill newspapers and magazines.
   On the 14th day, it is a custom for a boy to take his girlfriend out to dinner, buy her flowers and chocolates, write poems, sing to her or even spell out her name with rose petals! This is what you see on Valentine’s Day, a day named after Valentine who was a priest in the third century Rome. When the emperor decided that single men could become better soldiers than those with wives, he didn’t allow marriage.
   But Valentine continued to perform marriage ceremonies for young lovers in secret. When his actions were discovered, the emperor sentenced him to death. While in prison, it is said that Valentine fell in love with the daughter of his prison guard. Before his death, he wrote her a letter, which he signed “From your Valentine”, an expression that is still in use today. Valentine died for what he believed in and so he was made a Saint (圣徒), as well as becoming one of history’s most romantic characters.
   Nowadays, Valentine’s Day is also popular among Chinese young people. Some students are planning to make Valentine’s cards for parents, teachers and friends. Others want to hold parties at which they will exchange small gifts and eat heart-shaped cakes. The idea is to have fun and encourage people to share in the spirit of St. Valentine.
51. Which of the following is not a custom for a boy to do on Valentine’s Day?
   A. to take his girlfriend out to dinner
   B. to buy his girlfriend flowers and chocolates     
   C. to make Valentine’s cards for teachers and friends
   D. to spell out his girlfriend’s name with rose petals
52. Why did the emperor in Rome not allow marriage in his country?
   A. Because there were few women in his country at that time.
   B. Because he thought men without wives could be better soldiers.
   C. Because there wasn’t enough food for so many people.
   D. Because he wanted to control the birth rate.
53. Valentine was put into prison because ______.
   A. he killed one of the soldiers              B. he stole a lot of food
   C. he didn’t obey the emperor’s order        D. he didn’t want to be a soldier
54. The last paragraph mainly tells us ______.
   A. students in China send cards to their teachers
   B. it is a good idea to celebrate Valentine’s Day in China
   C. it is interesting to celebrate Valentine’s Day in China
   D. Valentine’s Day is also popular in China now

Obama Still Smokes in Secret
US President Barack Obama has just made life more difficult for cigarette makers. He has just signed a law that will set tough new rules for the tobacco industry. The new law gives the US Food and Drug Administration the power to strictly limit the making and marketing of tobacco products.
At a White House signing ceremony Monday, Obama said that he was among the nearly 90% of smokers who took up the habit before their 18 th birthday.
Obama, who has publicly struggled to give up smoking, said he still hadn’t completely kicked the habit. Every now and then he still smokes in secret.
“As a former smoker I struggle with it all the time. Do I still smoke sometimes? Yes. Am I a daily smoker, a constant smoker? No.” Obama said at a news conference.
“I don' t do it in front of my lads.I don ?t do it in front of my family.I would say that I am 95% cured, but there are times when I mess up, " he said.
"Once you go down this path, it' s something you continually struggle with, which is exactly why the law is so important.The new law is not about me, it' s about the next generation of kids coming up.What we don ' t want is kids going down that path," he said.
Nearly 20% of Americans smoke and tobacco use kills about 440,000 people a year in the United States due to cancer, heart disease, and other serious diseases.

1. 1.

   The new law makes life difficult for             .

   1. A.
      Obama
   2. B.
      tobacco industry
   3. C.
      White House
   4. D.
      US Food and Drug Administration
2. 2.

   What do we know about Obama?

   1. A.
      He no longer smokes.
   2. B.
      He still smokes as usual.
   3. C.
      He began to smoke at eighteen.
   4. D.
      He is trying hard to give up smoking.
3. 3.

   According to the passage, Obama is most concerned about           .

   1. A.
      children
   2. B.
      officials
   3. C.
      his family
   4. D.
      Businessmen

第二节 读写任务（共 1小题；满分 25分）
阅读下面的短文，然后按照要求写一篇 150词左右的英语短文。
Teenagers’ secrets should be kept to themselves and no one else, their parents included, has the right to stick their nose into their private life.
As we know, teenagers are going through a special period of development both physically and psychologically. They are curious about and puzzled by the unexpected changes in their body and mind. What’s more, exposed to a world of adults, it is only too natural for them to begin imitating adults’ behaviors in secret. Boys begin to smoke and girls begin to spend time doing their hair and care more about what to wear. Some even begin to date with a girlfriend or boyfriend without letting their parents know. They are doing all this in secret because they are still unsure whether it is right to do so and afraid that, if found out by their parent, they will get misunderstood and even punished. In fact, in many cases, parents can not deal with such matters well but hurt their children’s feelings badly, making children unwilling to communicate with them any more. When this happens, it hurts terribly feelings of the family as well. Therefore, it sounds reasonable and acceptable that teenagers should keep their secrets to themselves instead of sharing them with their parents, who should give them the freedom in dealing with secrets.
【写作内容】
1. 以约30个词概括上面文章的要点；
2. 然后以约120个词就“青少年的秘密该不该与父母分享”这一话题发表你的看法，至少包含以下内容：
1）你是支持还是反对与父母分享秘密？
2）你支持或反对的理由是什么？
3）结合你的实际, 谈谈你是具体怎么做的？
【写作要求】
1. 在作文中可以使用自己亲身的经历或虚构的故事，也可以参照阅读材料的内容, 但不得直接引用原文中的句子；
2. 作文中不能出现真实姓名和学校名称。
3. 题目自拟。
【评分标准】概括准确，语言规范，内容合适，篇章连贯。