Eleven-year-old Ruby Kate Chitsey has long been close to older folks. Her mother, Amanda Chitsey, is a nurse who works at nursing homes in Harrison, and Kate often follows her around in the summer.

    Last May, Ruby Kate learned a resident( 居民) named Pearl felt so sad for she had to send her dog away. The reason was that the nursing home didn't allow residents to have dogs and Pearl couldn't afford to pay anyone to look after hers. She also learned that many nursing home residents were unable to afford even the smallest luxuries (奢侈品). So Kate decided to do something about it.

    She started by asking residents what three things they wanted most in the world. Amanda worried that people would ask for cars and other things an 11-year-old wouldn't be able to provide. Instead, they asked for chocolate bars, McDonald's fries, pants that fit properly, and even just a prayer.

    "It broke me as a human, "Amanda says. "We left the nursing home that day and went straight to a store and bought as many items as we could."

    Using their own money, the Chitseys satisfied the wishes of about 100 people in three months. Then they started asking for donations. The good people of Harrison responded enthusiastically, so much so that Amanda set up a GoFundMe page, Three Wishes for Ruby's Residents, hoping to collect $5,000. They hit their goal in only a few days. After GoFundMe promoted Kate's story internationally this January, Three Wishes raised $20,000 in 24 hours and more than $250,000 in five months.

    Earlier this year, Three Wishes became a nonprofit and started its first nationwide chapters.

    A months-long drought affecting most of southern Africa has led to serious food shortage for millions of people.

    The United Nations estimates(估计 )that more than 11 million people are facing extreme lack of food. The World Food Program says southern Africa has received normal rainfall in just one of the past five growing seasons.

    Among the hardest hit areas is South Africa's Northern Cape province. There, many farmers are struggling to keep their families and animals alive as they lose money and debt grows. Sheep farmer Louis told the AP he had lost more than 400 sheep over the past two years. He said this drought was the worst during his 45 years of farming. He got emotional while explaining that he now accepted donations of animal feed so he could keep the rest of his animals alive.

    It's estimated that this area will need at least $28 million over the next three months to assist 15, 500 affected farms. So far, South Africa's government has promised $2 million.

    Gertruida from Vosburg told the AP things had gotten so bad that she shared her family's food with their animals. Small children were hungry, too. At Vosburg's only school, Delta Primary School, large groups of children lined up for what became both breakfast and lunch. The meal usually included corn meal, vegetables and soup. "It's very hard for the parents to actually feed their children at home, "one teacher said.

    In Kimberley, the capital of Northern Cape, government officials give out money from the $2 million disaster aid program. The job can be difficult because some farmers live in places that are not easy to get to.

    A genetic variant(基因变体) that allows people to feel fully rested with fewer than six hours sleep a night has been found. It is the second such finding in recent months.

    Ying-Hui Fu at the University of California, San Francisco, and her colleagues have been seeking out genetic variants responsible for short sleep and genetically engineering these variants into mice to confirm their effect. In August the team found a variant in a gene called ADRB1, which allows 12 members of a family to sleep 4.5 hours per night without feeling tired.

    Now the team has found a variant in a gene called NPSR1 in another family, in which one sleeps averaged 5.5 hours a night and the other just 4.3 hours, feeling fully rested. Another variant in NPSR1 has previously been linked to people requiring 20 minutes less sleep than average, based on studies of tens of thousands of people.

    Generally, long-term lack of sleep can contribute to many disorders, including obesity, heart disease, high blood pressure and depression. As far as Fu's team has been able to tell, however, people who sleep less with one of these gene variants are healthy and don't appear to suffer any ill effects. However, to be absolutely sure would require long-term studies involving large numbers of people, which is not feasible(可行的).

    It might be possible to develop drugs that mimic the effects of these variants. However, as NPSR1 is also involved in processes such as stress, anxiety and fear, there is a risk of serious side effects.

    There are great health benefits from walking: slimmer waistline, better emotions, more focus, a stronger immune system and balanced blood levels. But walking with good habits will strengthen those benefits as well as avoid any injuries. Here are the ways on how to walk properly.

    Although everyone has their own way of walking, certain common behaviors can improve almost everyone's walking experience. Chief among these is your posture(姿势).As you walk, keep your head upright, your back straight, and your chin up. Otherwise, bad posture can lead to back pain, an inflexible neck, and even more serious diseases.

    Add warming up

    Before your workout, make sure you stretch (伸展) muscles to avoid injury. Not only may you get injured, but it will also get you tired even quicker. Start with a walk at a normal pace and then slowly increase the pace.

    Swing your arms

    Don't hold your arms tight by your side. If so, it looks awkward and also limits walking pace. Your walking pace will become faster as long as you swing your arms. If weather permits, try to keep your hands out of your pockets.

    Time your walks

    When walking, the time you do so matters. Make sure you walk a few minutes after you eat, not immediately. That way, your body can still digest what you just ate before a workout. May it be 15-30 minutes every day, find time to walk and exercise, keeping your body active.

A. Relax before walking.

B. Stand straight while walking.

C. Don't go walking at a high speed immediately!

D. It's best to create a schedule suitable for your lifestyle.

E. In other words, walking can make you happier and healthier.

F. Doing so allows you to walk faster and farther than you would otherwise.

G. Having your shoulders pulled back makes you more confident and greater!

    I met my art teacher Ms. J in the seventh grade and she changed me.

In her first class, she encouraged us to1what art meant. During discussion on facial structure and paintings, she2the “golden ratio (黄金比例)”, a beauty standard and explained how Davinci applied it to his works to ensure they were visually3.

    I couldn't help but think if my4had been measured against the "golden ratio," my score would have been5

    I was born with a facial disfigurement( 缺陷)and my face looked6. After regular appointments with7, my face was changed many times with little improvement. I8seeing myself in the mirror.

    People's strange tones, curious expressions kept telling me that I was9. Worse still, my photo appeared in a magazine with big letter "Face similar to work of Picasso" right below. I felt10

    I told Ms. J about my11and how my face was compared to Picasso's painting.

    "Art isn't about what you see but about what you12." She comforted me and told me that our13appearances were our signatures that we left in the world, which set us14and made us beautiful. And then she showed me a picture of an old man with long white hair. "You see, Davinci doesn't look too pretty, but his works15beauty on us." she added.

    I was struck by her words, and I wondered16I had never thought this way.

     "Being compared to Picasso may seem like a shame, but it's a(n)17.You are unique and you are a masterpiece."

    Today, when I look18the mirror, I will remember the words of my teacher, "beauty is subjective" and I get to know my appearance is my19.

    It takes me years to20that beauty is more than a cold calculation.

    CPR is an effective form of first aid (give) to the victim whose heart stops. Doing it can increase the chance of the victim's (survive). So knowing CPR can be a real lifesaver.

    How to give CPR? There are (simple) three steps. Firstly, roll the victim onto his back and do chest compression (按压). this way, it keeps blood flowing to the brain, heart and other organs. To perform the compression, place one hand over other and press firmly on the victim's chest many times in a row, (push)at least 2 inches deep on every compression. Then after compressions (complete), check the air way (see)whether the person is breathing. If not, perform mouth-to-mouth rescue breathing, helps to move the oxygen down into the victim's lung. And chest compression should start again right after the two breaths are given.

    Learn CPR, for you never know when you might need . And it feels good to know that you could help in case of emergency.

1）表示震惊。

2）表达担忧。

3）呼吁采取行动。

注意：

1）词数80左右；

2）开头和结尾均已给出(不计入总词数)；

3）可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。

Dear Sir/Madam,

    I am writing to you about hungry polar bears invading a northern village in Russia for food.

    Best wishes for you.

Yours,

Li Hua

    When I was 9 years old, I used to cut grass for Mrs. Long. The elderly lady paid me very little, for she hadn't much money. But she did promise me, "When Christmas comes, I shall have a present for you." I spent much time wondering what it would be. The boys I played with had baseball gloves and bicycles and ice skates, and I was so eager to acquire any one of these that I convinced myself that Mrs. Long intended choosing from among them.

    "It would hardly be a baseball glove,"I reasoned with myself. "A woman like Mrs. Long wouldn't know much about baseball." Since she was old and weak, I also ruled out the bicycle, for how could she handle such a large item.

    On my last Saturday at work, Mrs. Long said, "At Christmas you come to the door and collect the present." These words clinched(确定)my guess. Since she was going to have the present in her house and handle it herself, unquestionably she was giving me a pair of ice skates.

    I became so convinced of this that I could imagine myself upon the skates and the excitement they brought me. As the cold days of November arrived and ice began to form on the ponds, I began to try my luck on the ice. " Get away from that ice! " a man shouted. " It's not strong enough yet."

    As Christmas approached it was with difficulty that I restrained (抑制) myself from reporting to Mrs. Long and demanding my present. On the 21st of December, icy weather froze all the ponds so that boys who already had ice skates were able to use them. My longing to possess mine became overpowering.

    So the next day I could control myself no longer and presented myself at Mrs. Long's door. "I've been waiting for you," she said with a smile.

注意：

1）所续写的短文词数应为150左右；

2）应使用5个以上短文中标有下划线的关键词语；

3）续写部分分为两段，每段开头语已为你写好；

4）续写完成后，请用下划线标出你所使用的关键词语。

Paragraph 1:

    She set me in a chair and handed a package to me.

Paragraph 2:

    On Christmas morning, I could not wait to open the package.