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Task 1

On Sept. 21 in Mount Pleasant Township， Pennsylvania， a residence was burning with a girl trapped on the second story. Elijah Hale， a volunteer firefighter since his early teenage years， was able to be on the scene before other first responders got there， and his head start saved the life of that girl. “I knew something was not right， and I found out that there was a girl trapped up there，” Hale said. “The smoke had filled the entire house.”

He was able to quickly locate a ladder and use it to rescue the girl from the fiery house， according to a post from the Irishtown Fire Company.

“Meet Elijah Hale，” the company posted shortly after the rescue. “Member of the Irishtown Fire Company， Elijah came upon tonight's house fire on Bender Road， accessed a ladder， climbed up to the second floor and rescued a trapped resident.

“Our company is proud of his quick thinking， and willingness to take action without the benefit of PPE or other fire personnel on the scene. His quick action undoubtedly saved a life. “Well done，Elijah.”

Hale isn't taking all the credit， though， pointing out that the girl had done some quick thinking of her own that likely saved her life， too. “I believe she found a guitar and used that to break the storm window out，” he said. “If she didn't do that， the longer she was exposed to that smoke， the worse off it would have been for her.”

The whole ordeal （煎熬） was over within minutes and as soon as he got her out， EMS was pulling up， so he left her with them.

“It's a blur. I mean it was probably 30 seconds from the time I pulled up to the time I got the ladder， and another 30 seconds till she was out of the house and outside，” he recalled.

1. What do we know about Elijah Hale from the first paragraph？

A. He was sent by the fire company.

B. The resident asked him for help.

C. Other responders got him there.

D. He came across the incident by accident.

2. What does the underlined word “accessed” in paragraph 3 most probably mean？

A. Produced. B. Used.

C. Purchased. D. Managed.

3. Which of the following words can best describe Elijah Hale？

A. Brave and modest. B. Proud and serious.

C. Generous and smart. D. Sympathetic and strong.

4. What can we infer about the girl from the text？

A. She waited for firemen to save her.

B. She caused the fire carelessly.

C. She did some self-rescue herself.

D. She avoided being exposed to smoke.

Task 2

The flames of the Creek Fire didn't discriminate（歧視） in their destruction. They destroyed homes that belonged to the very crew trying to save other people's properties.

Now-fire wives from across the Valley are coming together to help replace what several volunteer firefighters have lost. “They lost it all and a lot of them are stuck without that backup safety net，”

says Brooke Schuller. Schuller is married to a Central Valley firefighter and says she and other fire wives from the area are coming together to raise money for at least a dozen volunteer Shaver Lake area firefighters whose homes were reduced to rubble.

One of those who'd get help is Assistant Chief of the Shaver Lake volunteer fire department James Parr， who was out working with the crew when the flames came through his neighborhood， destroying his home. “It was unexpected and it was absolutely devastating—the flames were angry and had a purpose，” says Parr.

Parr says he and several of his fellow volunteer firefighters lost their homes but they didn't lose sight of their goal. “It's tough. It's tough for everybody， but I'm a firefighter. I will focus on everyone in my community，” he says.

Schuller says they're raising money to help firefighters like Parr by selling signs and T-shirts.

It's a community-wide effort as Shawn Rice with Artworks Screen Printing in Clovis helped create the design that comes with a message of perseverance and sacrifice.

“They lost their homes while helping others. That's the message we need to put out there to rally around these folks and help them，” says Rice.

Schuller says the fire family sticks together and hopes this will raise enough to help Parr and many others rise from the ashes. The group put in their first order of more than 30 shirts on Wednesday and will donate 100% of the proceeds to the individual firefighters that lost their homes.

1. How does the author write the first paragraph？

A. In a humorous way. B. In a formal way.

C. In a polite way. D. In a praiseful way.

2. What are the fire wives' attitude toward the work of the firemen？

A. Concerned. B. Opposed.

C. Doubtful. D. Supportive.

3. What can we infer about the fire in James Parr's neighborhood？

A. It was soon put out. B. It spread to other cities.

C. It was very destructive. D. It made people angry.

4. Which of the following can replace the underlined word “proceeds” in the last paragraph？

A. Efforts. B. Purchases.

C. Money raised. D. Possessions obtained.

Task 3

One of the important subjects in contemporary poetry is identity—with an open-ended explanation of that word. Poets， young and old， are exploring what identity is， using their own lives as the background.

British poet Phoebe Power， in her first collection of poems， Shrines of Upper Austria， explores a different aspect of identity： a personal understanding of national identity. The collection received the Forward Prize for Best First Collection and was on the final list for the T. S. Eliot Prize.

Power was born in Newcastle-on-Tyne and raised in Cumbria. She has taken part in a number of performance art and video art projects. She received a Northern Writers' Award in 2014 and an Eric Gregory Award from the Society of Authors in 2012. Now she lives in York in northern England.

Power's starting point is her grandmother. She came to England from Austria as a new bride married to a British soldier in 1946， the first year after the end of World WarⅡ. Imagine the reactions of her British neighbors and her new British family. Imagine what she had left behind. The grandmother's experiences influenced Power greatly.

In Shrines of Upper Austria， we walk with the poet to see her grandmother's life before Britain. We can learn about the small town where she lived， the bodies of water， and buildings that existed when her grandmother lived there. Power also added some prose（散文） to the book， which tells us some stories of her grandmother's early life. For example， it tells the stories about how her grandmother was found as a baby and given to a farmer when she was two.

The poems in the collection are pieces of a life. We can no more walk in our grandparents' shoes than they can walk in ours. However， we can study old family photographs. We can see pieces of their lives—where they lived， perhaps; where they played as children; what lakes or rivers they swam in. Like Power， we are left with pieces. These pieces don't all make sense， but collectively they show a life.

1. What's the function of paragraph 1？

A. To explain what identity is.

B. To inform us the likes of poetry.

C. To make a summary of the text.

D. To introduce what will be discussed next.

2. What do we know about Power's collection of poems？

A. It reflects her own life.

B. It explores national identity.

C. It is similar to other collective poems.

D. It fails to be recognized by the public.

3. What can we find in Shrines of Upper Austria？

A. The early life of Power.

B. The life and culture in Austria.

C. The marriage of Power's grandmother.

D. The life of Power's grandmother in Britain.

4. What's the purpose of the last paragraph？

A. To persuade readers to buy Power's poems.

B. To inform readers of the regrets of grandparents.

C. To show elderly people are a useful source of stories.

D. To show the significance of learning about the past from poems.