A
(In the classroom)

Emma: Why is the poster still empty? We have 2 days left!
Jake: Because you always change the topic (主题)! First storms, then oceans...Make up your mind!
Liam: Maybe we should just do space. Easy and cool.
Emma: Easy? This is worth 30% of our scores! You two never take anything seriously (严肃地)!
Jake: Says who? I stayed up drawing charts (图表) last week! You threw them away!
Liam: Guys, my mom says shouting never helps with the problem...
Emma & Jake: (together) NOT HELPING, LIAM!
(Ms Clark entered the classroom)

Ms Clark: (calmly) I heard creative differences. Let’s try this:
1. Emma lists 3 facts she needs.
2. Jake thinks 2 design ideas.
3. Liam looks for the latest strange news about space & ocean topics.
(Meet in 20 minutes)

Emma: Fine. But we need deep-sea animals, not just sharks (鲨鱼).
Jake: Deal. But let me use neon (霓虹的) colours this time?
Liam: I found bioluminescent fish (发光的鱼)! They shine like stars!
All: (laughing) That could work!
() 1. Who may be good at drawing?
A. Emma. B. Jake. C. Liam. D. No one.
() 2. What is the main conflict (冲突) in this conversation?
A. Choosing the poster colours. B. Not finding bioluminescent fish photos.
C. Disagreeing on the poster topic. D. Not having enough time for the poster.
() 3. What is Ms Clark like?
A. Impatient. B. Encouraging. C. Brave. D. Hard-working.
() 4. The students laughed in the end because they ______.
A. finished the poster quickly B. got high scores finally
C. thought of a cool idea for the poster D. didn’t need to make the poster any more

B
I know I’m not an ordinary ten-year-old kid. I feel ordinary inside, but I know ordinary kids don’t make others run away screaming (尖叫) on the sports field. Ordinary kids don’t get stared (盯着) at everywhere they go. It’s all because of my face.
I’ve got used to (习惯于) how I look. I know how to pretend (假装) I don’t see the faces people make. My family have learned to do this too: me, Mom, Dad, and Via. In fact, Via isn’t so good at it. Once, some older kids made noise about me. I didn’t hear them, but Via felt angry and berated them.
Via doesn’t see me as ordinary, and Mom and Dad don’t either. They see me as special. I think the only person who knows how ordinary I am is me. My name is August. I won’t describe (描述) my face—whatever you’re thinking, it may be worse.
Next week, I will start the fifth grade. Because I’ve never been to a real school, I have a lot on my mind. Can I run freely on the field with other kids? I can almost smell the freedom! ... will the teachers and kids be nice to me? Will I have friends?
People think I haven’t been to school because of how I look, but that’s not it. Do you know how many surgeries (手术) I had? Twenty-seven. The big ones were before I turned four, so I don’t remember them. I had two or three surgeries every year after that. ▲ That’s why my parents decided it was better for me not to go to school. But I’m much stronger now.
— Adapted (改编) from Wonder by R. J. Palacio
() 5. Why do August’s family pretend not to notice people’s thoughts on his face?
A. Because they are proud of his face. B. Because they want to protect him.
C. Because they believe he is strange. D. Because they don’t care about him.
() 6. What does the underlined word “berated” mean in Paragraph 2?
A. Smiled at. B. Talked to. C. Shouted at. D. Played with.
() 7. What does the sentence “I can almost smell the freedom!” mean?
A. I think of free things. B. I am scared of new things.
C. I feel good about my looks. D. I really want an ordinary life.
() 8. Which sentence can be put in “ ▲ ”?
A. I was often sick and couldn’t go to school.
B. My special face made me miss school a lot.
C. The doctors stopped me from going to school.
D. My parents wanted me to have surgeries at school.