Walk Out of the Comfort Zone and Try New Things

    For most high school students, free periods are useless. From what I have seen, few do homework, instead many are on their phones and talking, making it impossible for those who actually want to do work to complete any. As a senior next year, I think extra periods should be used to take optional subjects.

    Our school offers many classes. Now is the time to experiment in different fields of study. We will never know if we are interested or talented in a subject if we don't try it.

    In my 8th grade, I was told that I had to take an art class as a graduation requirement; so in the 9th grade I took Studio and Art. One of the projects was to build a clay pot, but I built mine incorrectly, so it broke in the kiln (窑). I found out that I have no artistic ability at all, and now I know for sure that I do not want to be an artist. However, the class was one of my favorites that year. I was able to try new activities and test my ability.

    Walk out of our comfort zone and try new things! College is when we should focus on a specific major, but high school is when we have to figure it out.

    Half of all college students change their major at some point. By doing that hundreds of dollars are wasted on classes that they would have never needed to take. So use our extra periods to find out what we want to do in college. The classes we choose can impact us in future. Taking optional subjects will enrich our mind. It will also show colleges we are diverse students.

阅读下面的短文，然后按照要求写一篇150词左右的英语短文。

    Once upon a time some tiny frogs held a competition. The first to reach the top of a very high tower would be the winner.

    A big crowd gathered around the tower to see the race and cheer them on.

    The race began. No one in the crowd really believed that any of the tiny frogs would reach the top of tower. “They will never get to the top! They will never succeed!” someone said.

    One by one, the tiny frogs began to collapse (退下).

    The crowd kept shouting, “It is too difficult! No frog will make it!”

    More tiny frogs got tired and gave up, but one continued climbing, higher and higher. This one wouldn't give up.

    In the end, he was the only one left—the only one to get to the top. The other frogs naturally wanted to know: How did the frog make it？

    One frog stepped forward to ask the winner. It turned out that the winner was deaf.

    He had won because he was able to keep his own mind. He was able to keep trying. He couldn't hear criticism; neither could he hear praise.

    We learn a lesson from this story: don't let others' praise or criticism to hold you back on your way to succeed.

【写作内容】

( 1 ) 以约30个词概括寓言故事的大意。

( 2 ) 然后以120个词就“如何对待别人的批评和表扬”这个主题发表你的看法, 并包括如下要点：1) 叙述着个寓言给你的启示以及你对他人的批评和表扬的态度；2 以事例说明他人的批评或表扬给你的感受和对你的影响；3) 谈谈中学生应该如何对待老师的批评和表扬。

【写作要求】

( 1 ) 可以使用自己或他人的故事, 也可以参照阅读材料的内容, 但不得直接引用原文中的句子；

【评分标准】

概括准确、语言规范、内容合适、篇章连贯。

    The 18-year-old girl from Linyi, Shandong province scored 568 points on her college entrance exam this year and was admitted to Nanjing University of Posts and Telecommunications.

    On Aug 19, Xu received a phone call from an unknown person telling her that she was due to receive student funding. Following the call, Xu transferred a 9,900-yuan "activation fee" into the man's bank account, hoping the money would appear in her student account, but it never did.

    After discovering they had been cheated, the family immediately reported the incident to the police, but Xu was said to be frustrated. On their way home, she suddenly fainted and despite doctors' best efforts to rescue her, she passed away.

    The death of Xu yuyu immediately caused an outcry over the society, and once again, it fired a public anger towards those who commit heartless fraud(欺诈).

    So how was Xu's private information leaked out?

    Reporters have discovered that there are many people who openly sell the examinee's information online. The information includes the examinee's name, school, phone number, and address. The personal information of examinee has become the target of the online fraud industry.

【写作内容】

1). 用约30个单词写出上文概要；

2). 用约120个词就“Personal information leakage”谈谈你的看法和感受，内容包括：（1）简述个人信息泄露的危害及保护个人信息的重要性；（2）就如何保护个人信息提几点建议（至少两点）。

【写作要求】

1). 阐述观点或提供论据时，不能直接引用原文语句；

2). 作文中不能出现真实姓名和学校名称等。

【评分标准】

内容完整，语言规范，语篇连贯，词数适当。

    Middle and high school days are both fun and busy. Students spend their days in class, listening to the interesting and sometimes boring words of the teacher. They spend the short breaks running, playing, and shouting happily before going back to the classroom again. But how should students spend their free time outside school?

In Western countries, it is common for students to have a part-time job after school and at weekends. Students can earn their own money and learn more about the "real world". They enjoy the extra independence and money, and parents enjoy the quiet house. However, it seems that, in China, parents worry so much about their children' studies that they would prefer to see their children spending most of their free time studying and preparing for all those exams.

    It is natural for parents to feel that way, but I believe the answer lies in balance. Sometimes, Western school children work long hours after school to make money, and so they become too tired to listen in class or have no time for homework. But Chinese students spend so much time on their studies that all else becomes less important until they want that new MP4 player.

    So, find a good and healthy balance! If you have a part-time job, you'll be happy, and your parents will also be happy because you're spending your hard-earned money and not theirs!

【写作内容】1） 概括短文的内容要点，该部分的字数大约30词左右；2） 就"如何利用课余时间"这个主题发表你的看法，至少包含以下的内容要点，该部分的字数大约120词左右:

a. 以自身为例，简述你平时是怎样打发课余时间的；

b. 你如何看待自己利用课余时间的方式；

c. 你的父母对你利用课余时间的态度及你的看法。

【写作要求】你可以使用实例或其它论述方法支持你的论点，也可以参照阅读材料的内容，但不要抄袭阅读材料中的句子。

     [1] Jean Paul Getty was born in 1892 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He became a millionaire when he was only 24. His father was wealthy, but he did not help his son. Getty made his millions alone. He made his money from oil. He owned Getty Oil and over 100 other companies. The Fortune magazine once called Getty “the richest man in the world.”

     [2]But money _________. He married five times and divorced five times. He had five children but spent little time with them. None of Getty's children had very happy lives.

     [3]Getty loved to make money and loved to save it. In spite of his great wealth, Getty was miser. Every evening, he wrote down every cent he spent that day. He even put pay telephone in the guest's bedrooms in his house so he could save money on phone bills.

[4] In 1973, kidnappers took his 16-year-old grandson, and demanded a large amount of money for his safe return. Getty's son asked his father for money to save his child. But Getty refused. The kidnappers were merciless and Getty's son made repeated requests for help from his father. Finally, Getty agreed to lend the money, but at 4 percent interest.

     [5] Getty started a museum at his home Malibu, California. He bought many important and beautiful pieces of art for the museum. When Getty died in 1976, the value of the collection in the museum was $1 billion. He left all his money to the museum. After his death, the museum grew in size. Today it is one of the most important museums in the United States. Getty made a large fortune in his life, but he gave his money to the art world because he wanted people to learn about and love art.

    【1】A safari park is a park in which wild animals are kept. They are mainly located in east or central Africa. They often occupy a very wild area, with mountains and rivers. To visit the park and look at the animals, people have to drive around in a car for a few of hours because the park is huge.

    【2】In south Africa there is a safari park, which contains all sorts of wild animals like lions, elephants, rhinoceroses(犀牛), zebras, wild pigs, deer and giraffes.

    【3】There is a wild road leading through the park, but nobody is permitted to walk on the road. Anyone traveling in the park has to go in a car because wild animals may fiercely attack people. From the car he may see almost every types of African wildlife. Some of these are getting scarce (稀有的) because people kill them for various reasons. For example, rhinoceroses are killed for their horns (角), which are used in traditional Chinese medicines for colds and headaches. Perhaps they will be seen only in museums and books one day.

    【4】Travels may buy food for the animals. They can feed them when they tour the park. Of course, they should not feed them in a close distance because the wild animals may attack people. In addition, they should only give proper food to the animals.

    【5】A traveler may carry a gun with him in his journey. The gun is given to him by the government. However, it is not used for hunting. In fact, a seal(封条) is fixed to it. The traveler may fire at a wild beast to defend himself in case he is attacked. However, he has to prove to the government that he has been attacked and that he has not fired at a harmless animal.