Christmas is no fun when you're poor．Twenty years ago I was a young, （struggle）,substitute（替补） teacher whose calls into work had been few．Money was tight, bills were due
my wife and I couldn't even afford to get Christmas gifts for each other．The only gifts we could get for our children were a few soft toys that I had found
（sell）at half price in the supermarket．I opened the door and brought in the gifts I
（hide） in our old car's trunk．Then I handed
to my son and daughter．I watched with a sad smile as they did their best to tear off the wrapping(包装） paper．As they pulled out their toys, though, I noticed their
lit up and they jumped up and down．My daughter
（happy） hugged her toy and then hugged her Mom and me as well．I laughed as I watched my children play with their toys _
_ hours, and Thanked God for the
（great） gift I’ve ever been given．Till today I still treasure
gift of pure love that my son and daughter gave me that day．
Many people think that teachers give pupils too much homework．They say that it is unnecessary for children to work at home in their free time．Moreover, they argue that most teachers do not （proper）plan the homework tasks they give to pupils．The result is that pupils have to repeat tasks that they
（do）at school already．
In Greece，many parents complained about the difficult homework that teachers gave to their children．The parents said that most of the homework was a waste of time，and they wanted to stop it．Spain and Turkey are two countries which stopped homework．In Denmark，Germany and several other （country）in Europe，teachers cannot set homework at weekends．In Holland，teachers allow pupils
（stay）at school to do their homework．The children are free to help one another．Similar
（arrange）also exists in some British schools．
Most people agree that homework is not fair．A pupil doing his homework in a quiet and comfortable room is in a much （good）position than a pupil who does his homework in a small，
（noise）room with the television on．Some parents help their children with their homework．Other parents take no interest in their children’s homework at all．
Dear Mum and Dad,
The College Entrance Examination is around the corner, I wish I c___have a heart-to-heart talk with you. Thanks to your
(鼓励) and unselfish love, I have been m
great progress in my studies. It will be less than three weeks before I take the exam, which makes me under great pressure. Therefore, good studying conditions and timely help will do me a lot of good. My dream is the very one you always have. In order to make f
use of the time, I decide to make a few detailed study
(计划) for the exam. What’s m
, it’s also necessary that I do some physical exercise once in a while so that I can keep f
. All in all, I have
(自信) in my future life and I do wish you good health and a happy life.
Yours,
Li Hua
There are ____（amaze）things in the world. The story about Nessie, the Loch Ness Monster, is one of the widely spread__
_____（legend）in the early 20th century.
On 22 July 1933, two visitors, Mr and Mrs George Spicer, were driving along the Loch Ness —one of the most famous ______（湖）in the highlands of Scotland. Suddenly, they saw an animal on the road in front of them. Unlike any other animals that they ___
__（see）before, it had a very big body and a small head, but no legs. When Mr and Mrs Spicer saw it, it was moving towards the lake like a snake.
Soon, stories about this strange ___ (动物)and Loch Ness became famous all over the world. Now people are still _
__ (interest) in Nessie and many visit Loch Ness in the hope of __
__ (see) Nessie.
There are various reasons why people compose(创作) poetry. Some poems tell a story or describe something in a way that ( 留下印象) the readers deeply, while others try to c
certain emotions. The first poems
(写) in English were nursery rhymes, which were used to delight small children. With their strong rhythm and a lot of repetition, they were easy to learn and to
(背诵).Cinquain is another form of poetry which
（包含）of five lines. People can describe a picture in just a few words with these poems.The Japanese form of poetry Haiku, made up of seventeen syllables, is not a traditional form of English poetry but p
with English speakers. In
（此外）, Tang poems are borrowed by English speakers, which are translated into English, making the English poetry more colorful.
Every evening, Blackie would be waiting for Alan to come back from school. He would greet Alan with a woa woa and a wagging tail. Blackie was a dog and Alan was his master. Blackie liked to play with Alan.
One evening when Alan returned from school, there was no woa woa and a wagging tail. Blackie was missing. Early the next morning, Alan and his brother went____ (look) for Blackie. They walked and searched from morning to evening, ___
__(shout) “Blackie, Blackie!”But there was no woa woa and a wagging tail. The children were very sad and tired.
One day, the children heard a woa woa coming from a house. It sounded like Blackie. The children ran to the house and ____(ring) the bell. A man opened the door. The children asked,“Uncle, have you seen a black dog?” The man replied,“No.”But the children still heard a woa woa coming from the house.
The children decided to climb a small hill that leads to the back of the house. It was not easy to climb the hill. They had to hold on to twines and pull___ (they) up the slope. When the children reached the top, they saw Blackie tied to a chain. Then the man realized that he could no longer hide the ___
__(true) from the children so he returned Blackie to them. Blackie looked __
__(happiness) and greeted the children with a woa woa and a wagging tail.