C
Sally walked home with her friend Jun.
“I really want to win the spelling competition,” Sally told Jun. “But I don’t think I can do it. Ms Charlton circled (圈出) three or four spelling mistakes in my last story.”
“Never mind,” Jun said. “There’s one week left. You have a chance, but you have to work hard.”
“OK. I’ll give it a try.”
Sally got up early on Saturday morning. She took a dictionary, walked to the park and started studying.
“Bagel,” Sally practised. “B-A-G-E-L ...”
This was hard work!
That night at dinner, Sally’s mum asked how things were going.
“I don’t know, Mum,” Sally sighed. “Even if I practise every day until the competition, I don’t think I can beat Annika. She’ll win like she always does.”
Sally’s mum didn’t agree. “You shouldn’t worry about Annika or anyone else. You should only worry about yourself. If you study hard, I think you’ll have a good chance, and I’ll be proud of you whether you win or lose.”
Sally knew her mum was right, but she really wanted to win.
For the next several days, Sally studied even harder. She taped flashcards to the mirror and practised while brushing her teeth.
Sometimes, Jun would help her. He told her some tricks, “The end of ‘principal’ is spelled P-A-L, like your pal. ‘Embarrassed’ has a double ‘r’ and a double ‘s’. When you’re embarrassed, you will feel ‘really, really stupid and silly’!”
() 22. How did Sally feel before the spelling competition?
A. Proud.
B. Brave.
C. Worried.
D. Bored.
() 23. If you were Jun, which saying would you use to encourage Sally?
A. Learning by doing.
B. Save for a rainy day.
C. Practice makes perfect.
D. A friend in need is a friend indeed.
() 24. According to the last paragraph, what trick did Jun tell Sally?
A. The trick of writing words.
B. The trick of pronouncing words.
C. The trick of understanding words.
D. The trick of remembering words.

22. C 23. C 24. D