When I was a tiny baby_________ all night, my mom sang to me and stayed _________my side. When I was tired and hungry, she gave me food and warm arms to sleep __________.
When I was two running__________the field, she made sure I was safe and kept me from danger. When I fell and__________(伤害) myself, she gave me a hug and __________ me up. When I was seven __________（咳嗽） badly, she said no ice-cream for me.
But I talked back l__________, “I should be allowed to eat some! Give it to me now!” When I was nine watching scary movies, she said it’d give me awful dreams.
But I shouted back __________, “I should be allowed to watch it! I’m not a baby!” When I was a teen going out with friends, she said, “Please be back by ten!”
But I __________ back again — “I should not be told what to do! I’m seventeen now!”
Now I’m an adult, thinking back to those times. I coughed for days after __________that ice-cream And had scary dreams after watching that film. I was late for school from staying out past ten. I r__________ talking back, not listening to Mom. Mom knows best, and for me she wanted only the best!
Unit7 Should I Be Allowed to Make My Own Decisions?
Many teenagers have__________. But sometimes these can get__________the way of their schoolwork, and parents might __________about their success at school. Teenagers often think they should be allowed to practice their hobbies as much as they want. Do you agree? Liu Yu, a fifteen-year-old boy from Shandong, is a __________（跑步）star. He is on his school team and has always wanted to be a __________（专业的） runner when he grows up. However, his parents won’t allow him to train so much. “Of course we want to see him achieve his dreams,” says Mr. Liu. “And we know how much he loves running. My wife and I have s__________every one of his races. We have nothing __________（反对） running! But we think our son needs to think about other possible jobs. He’s getting older now, so he needs to think about what will happen if he doesn’t __________(以--结束) a runner.”
Liu Yu doesn’t really agree. “Well, I think I should be allowed to decide for myself,” he says. “My parents have always taught me how important it is to work hard at school and __________（进入）university. I understand this, but I’m s__________ about running. It’s the only thing I’ve ever wanted to do.”
His parents believe that Liu Yu should study hard in the evenings so they don’t allow him to practice running at night. “Maybe he thinks it’s too strict or _________（不公平）,” says Mrs. Liu. “But we think we’re doing the right thing. He needs to spend more time on his homework because it is difficult to become a sports star.But Liu Yu still disagrees. “I know my parents care about me. They always talk about what will happen if I don’t succeed. But I will! I’m a quick runner! I think I should be allowed to make this _______（选择） myself. Only then will I have a chance to_________ my dream.”
U8 Strange Happenings in My Town We live in a small town and __________（几乎）everyone knows each other. It used to be very quiet. Nothing much ever happened around here. However, these days, something u__________is happening in our town. Victor, a teacher at my school, is really nervous. When he was i__________ by the town newspaper, he said, “Every night we hear strange __________ outside our window. My wife thinks that it could be an animal, but my friends and I think it must be teenagers __________ fun. My parents called the policemen, but they couldn’t find anything strange. They think it might be the wind. I don’t think so!” Victor’s next-door __________(邻居) Helen is worried, too. “At first, I thought that it might be a dog, but I couldn’t see a dog, or anything else, either. So I guess it can’t be a dog. But then, what could it be?” One woman in the __________（地区） saw something _________________（逃跑）, but it was dark so she is not sure. “I think it was too big to be a dog,” she said. “Maybe it was a bear or a wolf.” Everyone in our town is feeling u__________, and everyone has his or her own ideas. There must be something visiting the homes in our neighborhood, but what is it? We have no idea. Most people hope that this animal or person will simply go away, but I do not think that is going to happen. The noise-maker is having too much fun __________（产生） fear in the neighborhood.
Stonehenge — Can Anyone Explain Why It Is There? Stonehenge, a rock circle, is not only one of Britain’s most famous __________（历史）places, but also one of its greatest __________（神秘事物）.Every year it __________（收到） more than 750,000 visitors. Especially in June, people go to this place as they want to see the sun rising on the longest day of the year.
For many years, They believed Stonehenge was a temple where ancient __________ tried to communicate with the gods. However, Paul Stoker thinks this can’t be true because Stonehenge was built so many _________(世纪)ago. “The leaders arrived in England much later,” he p_________ out. Another popular idea is that Stonehenge might be a kind of __________（日历）. The large stones were put together in a c__________way. On midsummer’s morning, the sun s__________ directly into the center of the stones. Other people believe the stones have a medical purpose. They think the stones can p__________(阻止) illness while keeping people healthy. “As you walk there, you can feel the energy from your feet climb up your body,” said one visitor. No one is sure what Stonehenge was used for, but most agree that the position of the stones must be for a special purpose. Some think it might be a __________（埋葬的） place, or a place to __________（敬仰）ancestors. Others think it was built to celebrate a victory over an enemy.
Stonehenge was built slowly over a long period of time. Most_______________(历史学家)believe must be almost 5,000 years old. One of the greatest things is how it was built because the stones are so big and heavy. In 2001, a group of English volunteers tried to build another Stonehenge, but they couldn’t. “We don’t really know who built Stonehenge,”says Paul Stoker. “And perhaps we might never know, but we do know they must have been hardworking — and great planners!”
U9 What Do You Feel Like Watching Today?
While some people only __________（坚持） to one kind of movie, I like to watch different kinds ______________（依靠） how I feel that day. When I’m down or tired, I __________（偏爱） movies that can cheer me up. Comedies like Men in Black or cartoons like Kung fu Panda have funny dialogues and usually have a happy__________. The characters may not be p__________, but they try their best to __________ their problems. After watching them, I’m __________（充满）with hope again and the problems I have suddenly seem less serious. __________（大笑） for two hours is a good way to relax! I don’t watch dramas or documentaries when I’m sad or tired. Dramas like Titanic make me feel even __________（沮丧）. Documentaries like March of the Penguins which __________（提供）plenty of information about a certain subject can be interesting, but when I’m tired I don’t want to think too much. I don’t mind action movies like Spider-Man when I’m too tired to think. always saves the world just in time.
I can just ______________（关闭） my brain, sit back and enjoy watching an exciting superhero who always save the world just in time. Once in a while, I like to watch movies that are scary. They can be fun, but I’m too scared to watch them alone. I always bring a friend who isn’t afraid of these kinds of movies, and it doesn’t feel so scary anymore.
Sad but Beautiful
Last night one of my Chinese friends took me to a c__________ of Chinese folk music. The piece which was played on the erhu especially __________（感动） me. The music was __________ （不可思议地）beautiful, but under the beauty I s__________（意识到） a strong sadness and pain. The piece had a simple name, “Erquan Yingyue” (Moon Reflected on Second Spring), but was one of the most moving pieces of music that I’ve ever heard. The erhu sounded like it was crying, and I almost cried ____________（伴随） it as I listened. Later I looked up the history of “Erquan Yingyue”, and I began to understand the sadness in the music.
The music was __________by Abing, a folk musician who was born in the city of Wuxi in 1893. His mother died when he was very young. Abing’s father taught him to play many musical instruments, such as the drums, dizi and erhu, and by age 17, Abing was known for his musical __________（能力）. However, after his father died, Abing’s life grew worse. He was very poor. not only that, he d_________（得了）a serious illness and became blind. For several years, he had no home. He lived on the streets and played music to make money. Even after Abing got _________ and had a home again, he ________（继续） to sing and play in the city streets. He p_________（表演） in this way for many years.
Abing’s amazing musical skills made him very popular during his __________. By the end of his life, he could play over 600 pieces of music, many of which he wrote himself. It is a__________that only six pieces of music __________(总之) were recorded for the future world to hear, but his popularity continues to this day. Today, Abing’s “Erquan Yingyue” is a piece which all the great erhu masters play and praise. It has become one of China’s national__________. Its sad beauty not only paints a picture of Abing’s own life but also makes people __________（使--回想）their deepest wounds from their own sad or painful experiences.
Unit 11 Sad movies make me cry. The Winning Team
Peter kept his eyes on the ground and felt a heavy __________ on his shoulders as he walked home alone. It was the worst day of his life. His mind would not stop thinking about what happened only just an hour ago on the school soccer field. How could he have missed _________ that goal? He had let his ________ team down. His stupid mistake made him angry. His team lost the game because _______ him. He was really worried that his coach may kick him ________ the team.As soon as he walked through the door, his father asked, “What’s wrong, son?” Peter’s f_________ were written all over his face. “I lost the game,” Peter r__________(回答). Then he went into his room without another word. Ten minutes later, Peter _______ his father knocking on his bedroom door. He opened the door to let him in. “Look, Peter. I don’t know what happened. But whatever it was, don’t be too hard _______yourself.” “I lost the game, Dad. I _________ my team. They’ll probably never let me play again.”
“Soccer is about team effort. You’re not the only reason your team lost. If you have a good team, you should __________(支持) each other. Besides, __________ or losing is only half the game. The other half is learning how to communicate with your teammates and __________ from your mistakes.” Peter didn’t say anything but what his father said made him think carefully.
The next day, Peter went to soccer practice with courage____________(而不是)fear in his heart.
“Hey, guys,” he said to his teammates. “I’m really sorry about yesterday. We were so close to winning that game. But I think if we continue to _____________(齐心协力)together, we’re going to win the next one.”
To his surprise and relief, his teammates all __________(点头)in agreement.“Yeah,” they said, “don’t worry about it. It’s never just one person’s fault. We should think about how we can do better next time.”Peter smiled. It made him feel lucky to know that he was on a winning team.
Unit 12 Life is full of the unexpected.
In May 2001, I found a job in New York at the World Trade Center. On September 11, 2001, I ____________at my building at around 8:30 a.m. I was___________to go up when I decided to get a coffee first. I went to my favorite coffee place even though it was two blocks east from my office. As I was _________ in line with other office workers, I heard a l_______sound. Before I could join the others outside to see what was going on, the first plane had already ___________(撞击)my office building. We stared _______________（难以相信的） at the black smoke rising above the burning building. I felt lucky to be ___________（活着）.
Almost 10 years later, I woke up at 10:00 a.m. on February 21, 2011 and realized that my alarm never went ___________. I jumped out of bed and went straight to the airport. But by the time I got to the airport, my plane to New Zealand had already__________off. “This is the first holiday I’ve taken in a year, and now I ‘ve missed my plane. What bad luck!” I thought to ___________. The other planes were full so I had to wait till the next day. The next morning, I heard about the earthquake in New Zealand the day before. My bad luck Had unexpectedly ___________ into a good Thing.
2d April Fool’s Day is a celebration that ______________(发生) in different countries around the world. It happens on April 1st every year and is a day when many people play all kinds of ___________（玩笑） and jokes on each other.
One April Fool’s Day, a reporter in England announced that there would be no more spaghetti because the spaghetti farmers in Italy had stopped growing spaghetti. Many people ran to their local supermarkets to buy_______ much spaghetti_______ they could. By the time people realized that the story was a hoax, all of the spaghetti across the country had been ___________（卖完）. In another famous trick a TV show in England reported the discovery of special water. They said this water would help people lose weight and that one customer had already lost a lot of weight in just four months. _________the end of the day, more than 10,000 people had phoned the TV station to find out how to get this water.
Many April Fool’s jokes may end up being not very funny. A famous TV star once invited his girlfriend onto his show on April Fool’s Day. He asked her to marry him. The lady was so happy because she really wanted to_______________（结婚）. However, when she said “yes”, he replied, “April Fool!” That little joke didn’t have a very happy ending. The TV star lost his girlfriend and his show was canceled.
One of the world’s most famous things, however, happened in October rather than April. In that month in 1938, actor Orson Welles ___________(宣布)on his radio program that aliens from Mars had landed on the earth. He described where they had landed and told how they were moving across the United States. Welles made it sound so___________（真实的） that hundreds of people believed the story, and ___________（恐惧）spread across the whole country. By the time police officers said that the story was a hoax, thousands of people had left their homes.
Unit 10 You’re supposed to shake hands. Dear Laura,
Thanks for your ___________. Yes, I’m having a great time on my student exchange program in France. I was a bit nervous before I arrived here but there was no reason to be. My host family is really nice. They go out of their way to make me feel at home.
The grandmother knows that I miss Chinese food a lot. So she actually learned how to make Chinese food! She also has a teenage granddaughter about my age. She’s really kind and she always talks to me in ______（法语）to help me practice. You wouldn’t believe how quickly my French has improved because of that. I’m very __________（舒服的）speaking French now. Although I still make lots of mistakes, it doesn’t worry me like it used to. My biggest ________(挑战) is learning how to behave at the dinner table. As you can __________（想象）, things are very different from the way they are at home.
For example, you’re not supposed to put your bread on your plate. You’re supposed to put it on the table! I thought that was pretty strange at first, but now I’m used to it. Another example is that you’re not supposed to eat anything with your hands ___________除…之外） bread, not even fruit. You have to cut it up and eat it with a fork. Another thing is it’s impolite to say that you’re full. If you don’t want any more food, you should just say, “That was delicious.”Also, you’re not supposed to put your ___________(肘)on the table. I have to say that I find it difficult to remember everything, but I’m gradually_____________________ （渐渐习惯了）it. I don’t find French customs so strange anymore. I’ll write again soon and tell you more about my life in France. Hope you’re having a good school year.
Yours, Lin Yue
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