I guess I always knew about the little fish treat, but this past summer it was all I could see. Pipin and Nemo were balancing on one front flipper(鰭), flying through hoops, dancing with the trainer, and we were all applauding — the little kids screaming with delight. That’s when the trainer, who wore a little treat bag on her belt, slipped Pipin and Nemo a fish. Each time they successfully performed a trick, they’d get an immediate reward.

These creatures weren’t really dancing, of course. They were performing a series of movements that they knew would produce a fish. It’s such a good show because the sea lions look like they’re having such fun. These talented performers who love to be in front of an audience seem almost human.

Somewhere in our faith journey, we all have a sea lion moment. You see how you’ve spent years jumping through hoops, balancing a ball on your nose, not because it’s really who you are, but because you’ve always done it and the system rewarded you for your performance. But when you’ve done that for ten or twenty years, you start to ask yourself, “Whose approval am I working for? What do I really believe?” Suddenly you see it: you’ve spent most all your life taking direction from other people. They’ve told you what to believe in, what to work for, what to value, how to live your life. You don’t want to end your life like Sinclair Lewis’s George Babbitt, the middle-aged real-estate broker(經紀人) who has everything and reached the top. But on the last page of Babbitt, George is speaking to his son Ted, who cannot follow in his father’s steps. He wants to leave college and head off on his own way. “Dad, I can’t stand it any more,” the boy says. “Maybe it’s all right for some fellows. Maybe I’ll want to go back some day, but now, I want to get into mechanics.” Babbitt, seeming old and subdued, says, “I’ve never done a single thing I’ve wanted to in my whole life!”

The Good-Bye Gate brings us naturally to a second passage, leading from dependency to self-possession. As you start separating from the whole worn-out system, you discover that where there is supposed to be a self, there really isn’t.

1.The sea lions were pleased to perform in front of the audience because they ____.

A. will be punished if it refuses it

B. wants to win the trainer’s favor

C. wants to get audiences’ applauses

D. can get food as a reward that way

2.While watching the sea lions’ performance, the author ____.

A. realized an important life philosophy

B. recalled the similar scene of last year

C. couldn’t help shouting and dancing

D. was happy to see them living freely

3.By saying “we all have a sea lion moment”, the author means that ____.

A. anyone can make it so long as they work hard

B. sometimes we don’t act following our own will

C. we can also get rewarded if we do something well

D. every human being also has his happy moment

4.What do you learn about George Babbitt?

A. He has been living a free life of his own.

B. His son ends up Babbitt family’s business.

C. He tends to agree to his son’s choice of life.

D. His son decides to follow his father’s steps.

5.Which can be the best title for this passage?

A. Challenge YourselfB. Summer Vacation Fun

C. No Pains, No GainsD. Now I Become Myself

[1] Boys whose fathers work very long hours are more likely to be aggressive, according to a new research. A study of more than 1,400 children found those boys, whose fathers worked more than 55 hours a week, were more aggressive than their peers, yet the same thing didn’t happen to daughters. What’s more, mothers’ working hours did not seem to affect it.

[2] Now, further research needs to be carried out to find out why this happens in males, and to look for ways to tackle it. In Germany, 15 percent of fathers of children, aged three and four, worked 55 or more hours a week. Dr. Jianghong Li said, “It is possible when fathers work very long hours, children are less well monitored after school, especially if mothers also work full time hours. There is some evidence young boys are less well monitored than girls, when fathers have high work related demands. As a result, it will cause more problems.

[3] The average amount of time parents spend with their children has increased in recent years, but the quantity and quality of parent-child time is still raised as a concern. Studies in the US and Australia point to a desire among parents to work fewer hours and spend more time with their children. A wish among children is that parents would come home from work less tired and stressed.

[4] The finding provides evidence to support equal opportunities for mothers and fathers to share parenting and work responsibilities. Instead of focusing on negative effects of mothers’ working hours, policy makers should pay attention to negative results of fathers’ long working hours for children’s emotional well being. Fathers should be urged not to work long hours, but to have a greater share of parenting responsibilities.

1.What’s the main idea of the passage? (no more than 11 words)

2.How much time should fathers work a week at most according to the passage? (no more than 5 words)

3.What would happen if fathers work too long hours? (no more than 10 words)

4.What’s the desire among children according to the passage? (no more than 10 words)

5.What does the text suggest to us? (no more than 10 words)

在英語課堂上，你的周圍有一些學習效率高的同學，他們表現(xiàn)突出，這與他們良好的習慣是分不開的。請就此話題用英語寫一篇120詞左右的短文，舉一兩個例子說明他們的良好習慣，并談談你的看法。

Catching _____ sight of their head teacher coming, the students fell into silence all of _____ sudden.

A. the; the B. /; a C. the; a D. /; /

China's population is expected to increase to about 1.5 billion in 2040, ______it will start to decline slowly.

A. where B. which C. on which D. after which

However, at times this balance in nature is disturbed, ____ a number of possibly unforeseen effects.

A. lying in B. calling in C. existing in D. resulting in

The business of the company was growing so fast that the manager had to _____ more workers.

A. take in B. take on C. take up D. take after

The woman _____ her boss of having broken the labor law because he fired her when she was pregnant.

A. blamed B. charged C. accused D. scolded

It is not right for some young people to live a life of absolute dependence ______ their parents.

A. of B. on C. from D. in

______ I met him, I always think of the thing that happened between us.

A. Every time B. The moment C. Suddenly D. While