About a week ago, my 4­year­old cousin and I were playing basketball at our local park. The1was warm, and many other children were outside2. As we played, I noticed a small group of boys3a smaller, skinnier, and possibly younger boy. They were calling him names and4pushed him to the ground and5dirt in his face. When I saw that, I grabbed my6by the hand and walked over to the7.
I stepped8them and the younger boy, and asked them9what this boy had done deserved10they were doing to him. They all11silently for a moment, and then the most amazing thing 12：one of the boys who hadn't said anything since I13stepped around the younger boy and helped him off the14and then apologized. He offered to let him play with them，15the boy quietly said “thank you” and refused, and then left there.
As I looked around, I16that there were dozens of other people at the park—some of them were17with children of their own—but no one else had stopped to help this boy. I felt18that the one of the boys was brave enough to stand up against his friends to help someone19， but I felt sad that no one else had even taken a second20. I couldn't help but think that those parents at the park would want someone to help their child in that situation, and yet they did nothing but stood by.

1. 1.
   1. A.
      climate
   2. B.
      atmosphere
   3. C.
      air
   4. D.
      weather
2. 2.
   1. A.
      as usual
   2. B.
      as well
   3. C.
      as planned
   4. D.
      as yet
3. 3.
   1. A.
      picking on
   2. B.
      leaving for
   3. C.
      staying in
   4. D.
      taking over
4. 4.
   1. A.
      yet
   2. B.
      only
   3. C.
      even
   4. D.
      just
5. 5.
   1. A.
      noticed
   2. B.
      kicked
   3. C.
      watched
   4. D.
      showed
6. 6.
   1. A.
      cousin
   2. B.
      son
   3. C.
      daughter
   4. D.
      boy
7. 7.
   1. A.
      class
   2. B.
      family
   3. C.
      group
   4. D.
      society
8. 8.
   1. A.
      among
   2. B.
      at
   3. C.
      over
   4. D.
      between
9. 9.
   1. A.
      hopefully
   2. B.
      finally
   3. C.
      politely
   4. D.
      possibly
10. 10.
    1. A.
       who
    2. B.
       how
    3. C.
       why
    4. D.
       what
11. 11.
    1. A.
       came
    2. B.
       went
    3. C.
       stood
    4. D.
       talked
12. 12.
    1. A.
       continued
    2. B.
       stopped
    3. C.
       emerged
    4. D.
       happened
13. 13.
    1. A.
       jumped up
    2. B.
       walked over
    3. C.
       went by
    4. D.
       went away
14. 14.
    1. A.
       tree
    2. B.
       room
    3. C.
       stone
    4. D.
       ground
15. 15.
    1. A.
       so
    2. B.
       but
    3. C.
       then
    4. D.
       still
16. 16.
    1. A.
       expected
    2. B.
       imagined
    3. C.
       realized
    4. D.
       admitted
17. 17.
    1. A.
       neighbors
    2. B.
       friends
    3. C.
       classmates
    4. D.
       parents
18. 18.
    1. A.
       angry
    2. B.
       sorry
    3. C.
       sad
    4. D.
       happy
19. 19.
    1. A.
       in turn
    2. B.
       in advance
    3. C.
       in need
    4. D.
       in all
20. 20.
    1. A.
       knock
    2. B.
       shout
    3. C.
       noise
    4. D.
       glance

One day a farmer’s donkey fell down into a well. The animal cried1for hours as the farmer tried to figure out2to do. Finally he decided the animal was3and the well needed to be4up anyway, so it just wasn’t5it to rescue the donkey.
He invited all his6to come over and help him. They all grabbed (握起) a shovel (鐵鏟) and began to shovel7into the well. At first, the donkey8what was happening and cried horribly. Then, to everyone’s9, he was quiet.
A few shovel loads later, the farmer looked10the well and was11at what he saw. With every shovel of dirt that12his back, the donkey was doing something amazing. He would13it off and take a step up. As the farmer’s neighbors14to shovel dirt on top of the animal, he would shake it off and take another15up. Pretty soon, everyone was surprised as the donkey stepped up over the16of the well and ran off.
Life is going to shovel dirt on you, all kinds of dirt. The best way of17out of the well is to shake it off and take a step up. Each of our18is a stepping-stone. We can get out of the deepest19just by not stopping, never20! Shake it off and take a step upward!

1. 1.
   1. A.
      sadly
   2. B.
      confidently
   3. C.
      frequently
   4. D.
      gradually
2. 2.
   1. A.
      how
   2. B.
      what
   3. C.
      that
   4. D.
      which
3. 3.
   1. A.
      strong
   2. B.
      old
   3. C.
      stubborn
   4. D.
      powerful
4. 4.
   1. A.
      dug
   2. B.
      flowed
   3. C.
      covered
   4. D.
      emptied
5. 5.
   1. A.
      important
   2. B.
      possible
   3. C.
      necessary
   4. D.
      worth
6. 6.
   1. A.
      neighbors
   2. B.
      relatives
   3. C.
      partners
   4. D.
      friends
7. 7.
   1. A.
      dust
   2. B.
      pain
   3. C.
      stone
   4. D.
      dirt
8. 8.
   1. A.
      determined
   2. B.
      recognized
   3. C.
      realized
   4. D.
      admitted
9. 9.
   1. A.
      relief
   2. B.
      surprise
   3. C.
      fear
   4. D.
      joy
10. 10.
    1. A.
       down
    2. B.
       around
    3. C.
       for
    4. D.
       after
11. 11.
    1. A.
       annoyed
    2. B.
       delighted
    3. C.
       astonished
    4. D.
       disappointed
12. 12.
    1. A.
       attacked
    2. B.
       packed
    3. C.
       recovered
    4. D.
       hit
13. 13.
    1. A.
       shake
    2. B.
       blow
    3. C.
       take
    4. D.
       wash
14. 14.
    1. A.
       decided
    2. B.
       continued
    3. C.
       pretended
    4. D.
       volunteered
15. 15.
    1. A.
       base
    2. B.
       stage
    3. C.
       step
    4. D.
       breath
16. 16.
    1. A.
       bottom
    2. B.
       track
    3. C.
       appearance
    4. D.
       entrance
17. 17.
    1. A.
       holding
    2. B.
       getting
    3. C.
       sorting
    4. D.
       sticking
18. 18.
    1. A.
       troubles
    2. B.
       happiness
    3. C.
       successes
    4. D.
       losses
19. 19.
    1. A.
       reality
    2. B.
       distance
    3. C.
       caves
    4. D.
       wells
20. 20.
    1. A.
       setting up
    2. B.
       blowing up
    3. C.
       giving up
    4. D.
       picking up

A little boy almost thought of himself as the most unfortunate child in the world because a disease made his leg lame．He 36 played with his classmates．When the teacher asked him to answer questions，he always 37  his head without a word．
One 38 the boy’father asked for some saplings(樹苗)from the neighbor．He wanted the 39 t0．plant a sapling each person in front of the house。The father said，“Wh6se sapling grows  best，  1  will  buy him  or her  a  favorite 40．"    Seeing his  brothers  and  sisters  watering the trees，however，the boy had an idea．tie，hoped that the tree he planted would 41  soon．S0． after watering it once or twice，he never 42 it．
A few days later，when the little boy went、to see his tree again，he was 43 to find that it didn’t fade but grew some fresh leaves． 44 the trees of his brothers and sisters，his tree was even greener．His father kept his 45， bought the little boy his favorite gift and said that from the tree he planted，he would become an outstanding 46  when he grew up．
Since then，the little boy slowly became 47 .One night，he lay on the bed but eouldn’t sleep Then he got up and came to the 48.T0 his surprise，his 49 was splashing something onto his tree． 50，he understood——his father had been  51  fertilizing his small tree!
He returned to his room，52 running down  53 passed．The little boy didn’t become a botanist，but he was elected President of the United States．His name was Franklin Rooseveh．
Love is the 54 nourishment(營養(yǎng))of life．55 it is just a drop of clear water，it can still help the tree of life thrive(茁壯成長)．

Last Sunday, I waked into the house in the afternoon to find my brother rushing around in a hurry. As soon as I took my coat off, my little brother placed a bunch of papers in my hands and asked me to fold them up so they could fit into an envelope as quickly as possible. He said it needed to get done quickly before it turned dark.
I was a little surprised that something could be so urgent on a Sunday. It wasn’t until I was halfway through that I actually looked at what I was folding. After I read it, it put the biggest smile on my face. It was a lovely letter to all the residents （居民）in my neighborhood. My brother was asking everyone to let him know if anyone needed help. He left his contact information and said that anyone that needed help should get in touch with him and he would figure something out. He also asked people to get in touch if they were able to help out.
London received an unusual amount of snow last week, and the city was completely under- prepared for it. So it was quite difficult to get anywhere. Only the major roads had been cleared, and smaller roads and pavements could be quite treacherous. There are a good number of old people in our little community. So my brother thought that the snow may have posed （造成）some difficulty for some of them, particularly because we live on a hill.
A few elderly people got in touch with him asking for help for things they needed. One of them was especially grateful because his caregiver couldn’t make it. To our surprise, he got more responses from people offering to help. Then he received help from people who wanted to help. Everyone was really touched and wrote to my brother wonderful email. One of our neighbors wrote email saying that although she wasn’t able to help, she was “very proud of having a neighbor like him who puts other people’s interests first.”
【小題1】The author’s brother wrote the letter to _______.