浙江省宁波市余姚市2021年初中英语学业水平模拟考试卷

My mother asked me when I was young: "What is the most important part of the body?"

When I was little, I thought1was very important to us. So I said, "Is it our ears?"

"No," she said, "Because there are still many people who can't hear things. Keep2and I'll ask you again later. "

Three years passed. I had been considering the correct answer3I had my first try. This time I said, "Sight(视力) is important, so it must be our4.

"You are learning quickly,5the answer is not correct. "she said, "Because there are many people who are6. "

I kept this question in my mind. My mom asked me several times and the only reply I got was, "You are getting7, my boy. "

Last year, my grandpa8. Everybody was quite sad. When it was our turn to say goodbye to Grandpa, she asked me, "Have you found out the most important part of the body?”

"I was9hen she asked me this. I always thought this was a game between10and me. "This question is very important.11you answer it shows whether you have really understood life. Today is the day you need to12this lesson.

She looked at me the way only a mother can. I saw tears in her eyes. She said, "My dear, the most important part of the body is your13. "

I asked: "Is it because it holds up your head?"

"No," she replied. "It is because it can14the head of a friend or loved one when they cry. Everybody needs a shoulder to cry on sometimes. I only hope you have enough love and friends so you will have a shoulder to cry on when you15it. And I hope you can be the shoulder for someone when you are needed."

If there is fire, what should you do? Here are some tips about fire safety.

There was once a man who built his own house. From top to bottom, he designed and built every inch of his home. It took him over a year, but in the end, he had a beautiful house of his own. No other house in his neighborhood looked like it so that many of his neighbors admired it.

But as time went by, his house started to have some problems. One day, a neighbor said, "Friend, it looks like your front yard is a bit overgrown."

The man replied, "Yes, I know. But it's okay. I'll cut the grass tomorrow."

A few days later, a mailman came by with a letter for the man. The mailman said, "Friend, it looks like your windows are a bit dirty."

The man replied, "Yes, I know. But it's okay. I'll wash them tomorrow."

Weeks passed by. Finally, the man's brother came over to pay a visit. He took one look at his brother's house and couldn't believe what he saw. The yard was a mess, the paint on the walls was falling down and the windows were covered with dirt. The house looked like it could fall apart at any second—all because the man didn't do anything until "tomorrow".

When we procrastinate, "tomorrow" can turn into "next week" or even "next year". It's much better to just take care of things today than to wait until some imaginary(想象的) "tomorrow" that might not actually come.

The biggest secret about invention is that anybody can do it! Perhaps this sounds crazy, but it's true. Maybe you have the wrong idea about invention, so read on to discover the truth.

Wrong idea 1: An invention has to be something completely new.

Invention means creating something "new", but the idea could come from something that is already there. Take Wright brothers for example, they got the idea of building a "flying machine" from watching birds.

Wrong idea 2: Inventors are born, not made.

There are a lot of factors(因素) that make invention possible. Take Mozart for example. He was born with a musical talent. But other factors were also important for his creativity. His father was a music teacher, and Mozart practiced for hours every day from the age of four. Thomas Edison said that being an inventor was "99%hard work and 1% inspiration"!

Very successful creators don't give up when they get something wrong. As Robert Stevenson said, "In order to succeed, you must fail, so that you know what not to do next time."

Wrong idea 3:    ▲  

Don't believe that you can't invent anything when you are young. Here are two examples of young inventors: Louis Braille went blind when he was a child. When he was fifteen, he invented a system of reading and writing for blind people that is still used in most countries today.

As a young man, George Nissen was watching some artists performing in a show. He watched how they fell into the safety net and then jumped back up again. This gave him an idea, and he invented the trampoline(蹦床).

It is often said that dogs are "man's best friends". But for some children in China, this idea has taken on a deeper meaning.

Wu Qi, a dog trainer in Shanghai, started the Paw for Heal (PFH)program in China about eight years ago. The program trains dogs for animal-assisted therapy(动物辅助治疗).These animals help old people feel quiet and less stressed. They also help people with mental (精神上的) illnesses.

In Shanghai, the dogs have been trained to help kids with autism(自闭症) who are easily scared by their environments. When the PFH dogs are around, they feel much better.

Pet owners can train their pets to become therapy dogs through PFH. Although this training is difficult (only 20 percent of dogs can pass the program), it also helps a lot of people.

"She(my dog) makes me happy every day, and I think she can bring happiness to other people in need as well," one of the pet owners Wang Lei said in a report by Sixth Tone.

Animal-assisted therapy is new to China. But Wu has high hopes for the future, as he is now working together with a British university to improve his program.

"Through learning from the European team, China may shorten the time to catch up with Western countries in this field by several years." Wu said in the Sixth Tone report.