9．　　"Hey, Brenda, is it OK if I sit here maybe?"
　　"Sorry. Our table is full. "
　　I was in the fourth grade. I was new at school. And each day I ate lunch(1)      . I would often sit at the end of a long table of people. I tried to look busy, taking long, slow bites of my favorite food. (2)      I hoped time could move more quickly.
　　This experience hurt. I wanted to tell my(3)      . I wanted to ask her what was wrong with me. I wanted to tell her how much I(4)       it. But I couldn't do that, because my mum loved me and I knew she would try to (5)       my problems. She would try to call other mums and make me friends. She would do this out of (6)       . However, it would make me feel worse. So I ignored the problem.
　　I ate lunch on my own for months (7)       one day I came home, went straight to my room and burst into tears. The pain of my (8)       could no longer be contained. My mom came in and sat beside me. She gently asked, "Honey, what's been going on?"
　　(9)      , I said, "Mommy, I eat lunch alone. "
　　Those five words broke my mom's heart. I(10)       see the pain in her eyes. She said to me, "Baby, I know it hurts. When I came to this country from India, I didn't know anyone. "
　　"But you have lots of (11)       . "
　　"Yes, I do, honey, but I didn't know anyone when I came. And when I got my first job, I also sat at a lunch table by (12)       for a while. It made me feel sad. Is that how you feel?"
　　"Yeah, it makes me sad. "
　　"Yes, that's (13)       we sometimes go through in all our life. But do you know (14)       I learned?Most hard things we face in life don't last forever. Be (15)       and sincere and you will make many friends in no time. "
　　On hearing the words, I felt much better. I made up my mind to face the challenges more confidently and blend into my classmates.

10．
　　For every student, every day is different. But do you enjoy your school life?
　　Nowadays, it seems that school life is not as(1)       as we thought. As we grow up, our pressure of study also(2)      . Many of my classmates don't go to bed (3)       11 p. m. or 12 p. m. It seems stress and pressure are (4)       of a colorful school life. But in my school, the life in Grade 9 isn't so (5)      
　　My classmates are very outgoing and energetic. Although our head teacher is strict (6)       us in our studies, we also feel very happy and do the school work well.
　　Sometimes, we may read some magazines to relax (7)      . But I prefer to do some reading and write something in my diary. These activities can help me (8)       rid of stress from studying.
　　In other words, we can do many fun things to fill up our school lives. (9)      , let's all enjoy ourselves at school.
　　(10)      , the final exam is coming soon. It's time for us to prove ourselves. We should try our best (11)       well in it.

12．　　Leopards (豹) live in many parts of the world, from Siberia to Africa. They have a very beautiful yellow skin with large black spots. They live for about 15 years and eat small mammals (哺乳动物) such as zebras, monkeys and antelopes (羚羊), They sleep for about 12 hours a day. Leopards are very solitary (孤独的) animals. They spend most of their time alone in trees, where they wait until a small animal passes. They jump on the animal and then drag it up into the tree, where they eat it.
　　Like many animals, leopards are disappearing because people hunt them. They kill them for their beautiful coats. The Sinai leopard, for example, from Egypt, is now probably extinct (灭绝的).

13．　　Mary Ann had been preparing for this moment since she was three years old. Mom wouldn't let her start dance class until she was five, so she would turn on some music and dance in front of her dad. As Mary grew, so did her love for dance.
　　As Mary entered high school, her parents were growing further and further apart (分开). Except for when Mary danced, her mom and dad would come to the show and they would all go out to eat together afterwards. It wasn't much, but it provided some of her happiest moments. Still, even those meals were distant(遥远的)memories now. Her parents had separated for 3 months after she left for college.
　　It was a very important show for Mary.
　　"Get in line!Get ready!Remember you have five minutes each and have fun out there! " the dance teacher said. Mary was first in line. Her whole life had built up to this moment. As she walked on stage, the music started. Her body moved beautifully and she tried her best to dance!As the music stopped, the people clapped (拍手)warmly.
　　The performance was over. However, Mary was leaving with just her mom. She was a little sad, because her dad didn't come. But when she opened the door to her car, she found a note and a picture. In the picture, it was she and her dad dancing together. And the note said, "That was the most beautiful thing I have ever seen. I am so proud of you. I will be waiting at our restaurant. "
　　All at once, Mary couldn't control her emotions (情绪)and she broke out in tears. It wasn't much, but for at least this one night﹣dance had brought them together as a family once again.

14．　　A nurse took the tired, worried soldier to the bedside. "Your son is here. "she said to the old man. She had to repeat the words several times before the patient's eyes opened. The old man reached out his hand. The soldier took the old man's hand gently making him feel love, warmth and encouragement.
　　All through the night, the young man sat there in the poorly﹣lighted ward (病房) holding the old man's hand and offering him words of love and strength. Now and then the nurse heard him say a few gentle words. The dying man said nothing, and only held the young man's hand tightly all through the night.
　　At dawn, the old man died. The young man released the lifeless hand he had been holding and went to tell the nurse. While she did what she had to do, he waited.
　　"Who was that man?" he asked. The nurse was surprised.
　　"He was your father. " she answered.
　　"No, he wasn't. " the young man replied, "I never saw him before in my life. "
　　"Then why didn't you say anything when I took you to him?"
　　"I knew right away there had been a mistake but I also knew he needed his son. And his son just wasn't here. When I realized that he was too sick to tell whether or not I was his son, knowing how much he needed me, I stayed. "
　　The next time someone needs you, just be there.

15．　　Many companies have created apps to help blind people. Microsoft created apps that can describe a photo. Huawei made an app that uses sounds to tell users if people they are talking to look happy, sad or angry. Now, Google is testing an app that will allow blind people to run alone.
　　Panek, CEO of Guiding Eyes for the Blind, had always loved running. But he started losing his eyesight(视力)when he was 8, and by his early 20s he was blind. Later in life, he started running with other people or a guide dog to help him. But he didn't like this way. He asked a group of experts of Google whether they could create something to help blind people run on their own.
　　The Google team soon created Project Guideline. The Guideline app uses a smartphone camera to recognize(辨认) a line painted on the ground. Through earphones(耳机), the app makes sounds when a person moves away from the line. The sounds get louder in either the left ear or the right ear the further the person moves away from the line.
　　After trying the app, Panek used it while running outside in a park. In November, 2020, when he was 38 years old, Panek successfully ran 5 kilometers around New York City's Central Park using the app.
　　Panek hopes that the app Project Guideline can help more people like him. And Google will improve Project Guideline to help the blind.

16．　　Have you ever considered the way you spend your money? What do you buy? When do you buy? It is important to use your money wisely. Then, you will have enough for the things you want. You can make smart decisions about your money. (1)      
　　One way to be smart with your money is to shop around before you buy. Visit more than one store, check the prices at each store, and try not to be in a hurry to buy. You do not have to buy at the first store you visit; another store might have what you want at a lower price. (2)      
　　Another way to be smart with your money is to wait for a sale. (3)       For example, suppose you want to buy a camera. Wait until a store has a sale. You can save 20 percent, 30 percent, or more on the price of the camera by waiting for a sale. Some stores also offer a discount if you buy more than one of an item. So, look for sales offering a lower price per item if you buy two of that item. You could save money. (4)       For instance, large bags of dog food usually cost less per pound than small bags cost. A large pack of pens usually costs less per pen than a small pack of pens. So, even though you may spend more on a large size, you are really saving money per item.
　　You can learn to be smart with your money. (5)       You cannot always have what you want right away. But if you are patient, you will save money. Then, you will have more money to spend on what you want.

17．A. Hi, Jack. Haven't seen you for too long! (1)      
B. I've just been to the Boy Lake(碧云湖).
A. Really? (2)      
B. As you know, they've built a great dam(坝)across the lake.
A. (3)      
B. Yes, the dam is stopping water these days.
A. Oh, no wonder it's said the beautiful scenery of the Boy Lake will be under water. What a pity!
B. (4)       It has been copied in another place with some other place of interest.
A. Great!I want to go to the Boy Lake this summer. Would you like to go there with me again?
B. I'd love to! (5)      

18．临近期末, 学习任务繁重, 压力大．在英语课上老师组织我们对如何减压放松进行讨论．请根据以下提示, 以"How to get relaxed"为题, 写一篇短文发表你的看法．
要求:(1)须包含所给提示, 并提出不少于两则自己的观点; (2)语句通顺, 意思连贯, 语法正确, 书写规范;(3)行文中不得出现真实人名、校名或地名;(4)不少于80词(文章的开头和结尾已给出, 不计入总词数)．提示词:do some reading, go sightseeing, communicate with parents…
How to get relaxed
　　As students, we study hard and sometimes we feel tired. How to deal with it?Different people have different ideas. __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
　　Working hard is very important for us. But keeping healthy is more important.