Hi, my name is Dave. I'm 8 1 old. My birthday is 2 December 12th. I have 3 birthday party every year. Today I have my 4 birthday party. I get some gifts at the party. 5 are very good and I really like them. This 6 T-shirt is from my mother. Green is my 7 color. My mother buys me a pair of green 8, too. My father buys some 9 about history for me, because I like 10 best. I think these books 11 very interesting. My grandparents 12 I like playing basketball, 13 they buy me a basketball. I can 14 it with my friends after class. I'm very happy today.

    15 is your birthday, my friend? Do you have a party, too?

阅读下面短文，从短文后所给的三个选项中选出能填入相应空白处的最佳选项。

    The man in the photo has a special 1一 knitting(编织)sweaters．He usually knits a sweater for a place of interest and then takes a2there alone in the sweater．Up to now, he has knitted l 03 sweaters．

    Sam Barsky is from the US．His stories have been 3in American

media so that he becomes famous and popular in a very short time．You can see

different patterns on his sweaters，such as Times Square and Golden Gate Bridge

in the US.

    He4this interesting project in 2000．When he has a holiday, he wears his sweater and starts his amazing trip．“I started to learn knitting in March，1999 and found my own way to5in August 2000．Then l was very interested in it．I 6my photos and sweaters on my Facebook which got a lot of7 ． In an exhibition in August last year, I8got two prizes，”Sam said．

    Two of his latest works were for Dead Sea and Bahai Garden，because he just took a trip to Israel in December last year．There are still many places which Sam hasn't9and it is his future goal．In 10 opinion，life is full of fantastic things and some fun should be created and discovered by people themselves．

   Granny Sarya lived outside Moscow. Her only son 1 to Afghanistan(阿富汗) and was killed in action there.Soon after that, her husband lost his job. The old man was always 2 food and clothes.And on a winter night he went out alone when Sarya was asleep. The next morning he was 3 dead in a cold lake. And his worn-out coat was 4 in a tree not far away. Sarya was so 5 that she nearly took her own life.

    Things got worse and worse after that. She always lived in hunger and cold. She had hoped that the government(政府) could help her but she 6 .

    It was a cold windy night. The old woman couldn't 7 asleep at all. She had to get up. She decided to write a letter to God(神), asking for 8 . She wished God to give her 100 rubles (卢布), so she could buy some food for herself. When she 9 writing it, she found she had no 10 . She had to put the 11 at a crossing. 12 the next morning a policeman found the letter. He read it to his comrades.They were all so 13 that they gathered some rubles and sent them to the poor old woman.

    At first Granny Sarya was happy. But after she 14 the money, she became 15 and said, "I'm told that all things that are touched by the policeman will be only a half left!"

    Who is the 1 teacher in Chinese history? Many people will think of Confucius, whose birthday was September 28th. Although he lived over 2,000 years 2, people still remember and respect him3 his contribution to the education today.

    Confucius lived in the Kingdom of Lu, which lies 4 Shandong Province. He lived during the Spring and Autumn Period. He had a(an) 5 childhood. His father 6 when he was only 3. His mother brought him up. As a child, he had to work to help his mother, but young Confucius didn't give up 7. He visited many famous teachers and learned music, history, poems and sports.

    Later, he became a teacher and 8 the first public school in Chinese history. Today, people still follow 9lessons. He told us that we all have 10worthy to be learned. "When I am with 11 people, one of them must be better than me in some areas. I choose their good qualities and follow them."

    He also taught us that 12 is very important in study. "All study but no thinking makes people puzzled(困惑的). All thinking but no study makes people 13."

    Confucius is not only a great teacher, but also a famous thinker with wise thoughts about the world and society. His most important teachings are about 14 and good manners." A person should be strict with himself, but be kind to 15 people." he said.

Painting from Memory

    I was born in Damyang, a beautiful place known for its bamboo forests in Korea. I spent much time in the forests painting pictures of the1. Painting is one of my talents. I lived there until last year when my family moved to New York. My mother, a scientist, was asked to come work here.

    There are no bamboo forests, I said, there is nothing to 2 in NewYork. Don't worry, you will find many things to see and paint there, my mother said. I still felt 3 . But I will miss home, I said. Then you can paint pictures of your favorite places. They will make you feel at home even in New York, she said. So when we moved, I brought my forest paintings with me.

    New York was not easy at first. I missed home a lot. Yet when I looked at my paintings of bamboo, I felt much better. I soon 4 friends at school too. They also like painting, and we now paint in a group after school.

    Last month, we had a new neighbor, Varvara, an old lady who moved from Russia, to be closer to her daughter. She was sad to leave her home. My mother and I often visited her. She told us her unbearable homesick and everything about her hometown Vyborg. I could 5 her home in my head.

    Varvara missed her home so much that she became ill. I worried about her and I wanted to do something for her. I had ever been in her 6 before. At least, I had my forest paintings of home. However, she didn't even have that. Unless …

    A few days later, I met Varvara on the stairs. She looked better but still sad. I gave her my gift: a painting of Vyborg. I had painted it from her 7 .

    She began to cry as she saw the painting. At first, I was worried that she didn't like it. Later, she told me that those were tears of joy. I knew just how she 8 wherever you go, hometown is always with you.