For a long time, a boy wondered why his next-desk-pal was always the first in the class, whereas he could only rank the 21st.

At home, he asked his mom:“Am I more stupid than other kids? How can I always fall behind? I just can’t come up with an answer.”Mom was aware that her son’s self-respect had been damaged by the ranking system, but she didn’t know what to say to help.

She tended to say that intelligence differs and that yes, her son’s friend really was the smarter boy. But that would so upset her son. Thank goodness she resisted the temptation to say it.

Her son and his friend went on to high school that year, but despite trying as hard as he could, her son’s friend still outdid him. But she was proud of her boy for his hard work, sincerely proud. It was around this time that she decided to take him on a trip to the seaside. On the trip, she at last found an answer for him.

Today her son no longer cares about rankings. He doesn’t have to, for he himself is now the top of the class at the top national university he attends. After university his teachers and peers fully expect him to have a promising career.

Invited to speak to his old high school, he mentioned a valuable childhood experience. It concerned that holiday his mother had prepared for them:“Once, on a trip to the sea, my mother and I were lying on the beach. She pointed to the sea and said to me: Do you see the seabirds fighting for food out there? When a wave comes near, the little birds rise quickly. The clumsy seagulls are far slower and have to struggle to get away from the wave. But these clumsy birds prove to have the biggest, strongest wings, which allow the bird to travel the furthest. When the season changes, they leave for foreign shores, leaving the little birds behind. Son, I have a feeling that you are one of those seagulls. ”

56. The story mainly conveys the message that        .

  A. competition between students is good for society

  B. only rankings show intelligence of a child

  C. parents should build up children’s self-respect

  D. children take competition among them to heart

57. From the 2nd paragraph, we can see that the mother        .

  A. saw the negative effects of the ranking system

  B. decided to help with her son’s homework

  C. knew her son was weak in his study

  D. felt sorry for her son’s bad behavior.

58. We can infer from the passage that        .

  A. the son knew intelligence didn’t mean anything

  B. the mother was not strong enough to face the truth

  C. the mother was careful to protect her son’s self-respect

  D. the son would forget his rankings soon after leaving high school

59.Which of the following has the similar meaning with the underlined word“outdid”?

  A. was equal to                          B. did better than

  C. laughed at                            D. worked harder than

Over the years, thanks to my life’s obstacles(障碍), I understood the meaning of faith and the strong will to survive. It was Hurricane Ike that made me fully____ the beauty of our strength and a human’s motivation to ____.

?? Mom had a two-week ____ in summer. While we enjoyed our holiday in Southeast Texas, we didn’t realize the fact that Ike ____ cause months and likely years of “labor”. By September 7th, the “eyes of Texas” were watching Hurricane Ike more ____, making the typical mad rush for last-minute hurricane ____. Two days later, both oil and ice were in ____ demand.

?? In the early hours of September 11th, some neighbors were planning to ____the storm in their homes, ____ others were making final preparations to get away. At first, we decided to stay. But that afternoon, the Houston-Galveston area would be on the more ____ side of the storm. Mom and I packed some of our most ____ belongings in the car and ____ the East Texas town of Lufkin.

?? As Ike pushed farther inland, we ____power in Lufkin. On Sunday, our next-door neighbor told us via cell phone that our ____ had remained well. Our hopes could not have been ____. But a few hours later, the neighbors reported that our brick chimney had ____, and it was sitting on our living room, ____ a hole in the roof between two skylights (天窗).

We wouldn’t be allowed to return home ____ September 17th. I climbed upstairs, and looked toward the hole in the roof which showed a beautiful blue sky.

Without hesitation, I shouted, “Wow! A third skylight!”

My neighbors could not believe I was making jokes ____ crying, but ____ is always good medicine. It was with that joke that I knew, given time, everything would be okay.

1.A. observe????????????? ????????????? B. appreciate????????????? ????????????? C. explore????????????? ????????????? D. improve

2.A. work????????????? ????????????? B. apologize????????????? ????????????? C. recover????????????? ????????????? D. change

3.A. vacation????????????? ??? B. journey????????????? ????????????? C. meeting????????????? ????????????? D. schedule

4.A. must????????????? ????????????? B. might????????????? ????????????? ????????????? C. should ????????????? ????????????? D. would

5.A. closely????????????? ????????????? B. constantly????????????? ????????????? C. warningly????????????? ????????????? D. differently

6.A. adventure????????????? B. equipment????????????? ????????????? C. supplies????????????? ????????????? D. reports

7.A. basic????????????? ????????????? B. high????????????? ????????????? ????????????? C. pure????????????? ????????????? ????????????? D. neat

8.A. get through????????????? B. put away????????????? ????????????? C. test out????????????? ????????????? D. suffer from

9.A. since????????????? ????????????? B. when????????????? ????????????? ????????????? C. until????????????? ????????????? ????????????? D. while

10.A. dangerous????????????? B. abundant????????????? ????????????? C. peaceful????????????? ????????????? D. awesome

11.A. available????????????? B. concrete????????????? ????????????? C. prized ????????????? ????????????? D. potential

12.A. set out????????????? ????????????? B. headed????????????? for????????????? ????????????? C. settled down????????????? D. watched out

13.A. provided????????????? B. reduced????????????? ????????????? C. produced????????????? ????????????? D. lost

14.A. garden????????????? ????????????? B. house????????????? ????????????? ????????????? C. pool????????????? ????????????? ????????????? D. yard

15.A. clearer????????????? ????????????? B. wilder????????????? ????????????? ????????????? C. lower????????????? ????????????? ????????????? D. higher

16.A. passed????????????? ????????????? B. stood????????????? ????????????? ????????????? C. gone????????????? ????????????? ????????????? D. followed

17.A. leaving????????????? ????????????? B. digging????????????? ????????????? C. filling????????????? ????????????? ????????????? D. kicking

18.A. by ????????????? ????????????? B. before ????????????? ????????????? C. until? ????????????? ????????????? D. after

19.A. in spite of????????????? B. instead of????????????? ????????????? C. apart from????????????? ????????????? D. in terms of

20.A. faith????????????? ????????????? B. will????????????? ????????????? ????????????? C. strength????????????? ????????????? D. laughter?????????????