More than ever, kids today have given up reading for activities like watching TV, playing video games and surfing the Internet, but recently a new trend (趋势) has been catching on that will hopefully change that.
In fact, book clubs are becoming more popular among American kids. 11-year-old Kenya Debarros read about singer Lena Horne. “It was just amazing to see a black woman as the star and not just a mammy or a maid,” she says. But did all these kids come enthusiastically (热情地)? No, not exactly.
“I like book club, uh, I don’t know, but I am just trying it out. My mom didn’t make me, but I just tried it out,” says 16-year-old Antonio Nash.
And if they’ll try it, the experts say, there are ways to get them to come back. Make it fun, serve pizza, serve chocolate cakes and have door prizes (门票对号奖). It also helps to connect books to the real world. They talk about things that are happening in the community, so they can relate whatever they’ve read in the book to what’s happening now.
Here they have long talks about the books they have selected, which most kids don’t get to do when they’re in school, and these kids say, in book clubs they’re learning to love books and love reading.
“I feel like I’m actually in the book and doing what the actual main character is doing,” says 13-year-
-old Justin Woodard.
16-year-old Antonia McManus says reading gives her a nice break from the day, “Sitting down and reading a book gives me some time to get away from the world, and get my mind straight.”
52. What does the underlined phrase “catching on” in Paragraph 1 mean?
A. Happening. B. Realizing. C. Becoming popular. D. Bringing in.
53. What is the main idea of the passage?
A. Book clubs develop very fast in America.
B. Book clubs are popular among American kids.
C. American kids’ habits are changing towards reading.
D. A new trend helps change children in America.
54. It can be known from the passage that ______.
A. book clubs are designed to improve kids’ study
B. book clubs are mainly to help kids forget the reality
C. kids like to go there for the silent surroundings
D. kids may get unexpected rewards in book clubs
55. Why does Antonia McManus like going to the book club?
A. She finds reading restful.
B. She could get some sound sleep.
C. She likes the noisy conditions there.
D. She can deal with her problems there.
Although most people know there are Seven Wonders in the Ancient world, only few people can name them. This is because most of them are no longer there except the pyramids. However, there is a growing list of wonders of the world today.
About nine years ago, UNESCO’s World Cultural and Nature Heritage (自然文化遗产) List had 411 places and 136 countries were responsible to protect them, and the list keeps on growing. Usually it is the task of a group of 21 experts to decide which places go on the list. The experts are chosen to work for six years. Their work is to examine and discuss the suggestions from different countries. They also manage the World Heritage Fund（基金） which can offer help to countries for protection work. Over the past centuries a lot of cultural or historic places have been destroyed by man or nature. Protecting our natural and cultural heritage is a long and difficult task. Earthquakes, floods, pollution, wars, or even tourism are some of the dangers that harm the heritage.
When a historic place is in great danger, it is put on the World Heritage in Danger List and necessary things will be done to protect it. Places which are on the danger list include Historic Bridges of Indiana, St. Elizabeth’s Hospital, Rosenwald School in Southern U.S., etc..The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World include ________.
| A．Golden Gate Bridge | B．Sydney Opera House |
| C．the Great Wall | D．the pyramids |
According to the passage, ______ may provide some money for protecting the cultural relics.
| A．UNESCO ( 联合国教科文组 ) |
| B．the World Heritage Fund |
| C．the 21 experts |
| D．some countries |
Why does the World Cultural and Natural Heritage List keep on growing?
A. There are more cultural heritages beginning to appear.
B More countries begin to build cultural heritages.
C.A lot of cultural or historic places have disappeared.
D. More and more cultural heritages are in great danger.Which of the following statements is true?
| A．People can still visit the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World today. |
| B．Rosenwald School is a newly built school in Southern U.S. |
| C．More places will be added to the UNESCO list. |
| D．The list is decided mainly by the governments of different countries. |
What would be the best title for this passage?
| A．Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. |
| B．21 Experts |
| C．The Growing List of Wonders of the World. |
| D．Some Historic Places in Danger |
For many years there’s been a debate about rewarding our children. Does it work? Is it effective?
Some people think we should establish a standard with our kids and give them something for meeting this standard as a reward. Punishment is given out in much the same way, but it’s used when certain standards of performance, behavior, etc. have not been met. Kids will often become more dutiful when threatened with punishment, and work harder when promised a valuable reward. The problem is what happens when you aren’t around.
To develop responsible, self-disciplined kids, parents need to promote certain ideas. One of these ideas is that everyone pitches in and helps in your family. Another idea is that there can be enjoyment in doing any task if we choose to make it so. When a task is for a worthy cause ( our family can enjoy the house more because I helped clean it), this message can have a big impact.
This is how we help our kids develop a sense of responsibility. When our children develop this responsibility, they’ll be more disciplined, and they’ll control their emotions better. When we give rewards to our kids, we reduce the sense of responsibility. We also create children who may temporarily perform to a certain standard, but who aren’t likely to continue the performance without the carrot hanging in front of them.
“Rewards and punishment can change behavior for a while, but they cannot change the person who engages in the behavior,” said Alfie Kohn, author of Punished by Rewards. “Good values have to be grown from the inside out.” Parents can help give their children a sense of shared responsibility and discipline which can last a life time. The real rewards that your children receive will be their readiness for the complex and demanding world that waits for them—a world that rewards those who have learned the secrets of discipline responsibility. So keep those shiny rewarding to yourself, and let your kids find their own rewards.According to the passage, when children are threatened with punishment, ______ .
| A．they may lose interest in their work |
| B．they may appear to be well-behaved |
| C．they may change to another person |
| D．the results will be worse than usual |
What can we know from Paragraph 3?
| A．Parents should promote certain ideas to help children develop. |
| B．Children should be responsible for their discipline. |
| C．Children should help build a good family atmosphere. |
| D．No children will adapt to society without their parents’ help |
The underlined part “the carrot” in Paragraph 4 probably refers to _____.
| A．rewards | B．aims |
| C．apologies | D．doubts |
According to the passage, Alfie Kohn would agree that parents should ______.
| A．never pay attention to the way their children do things |
| B．show their children how to behave by example |
| C．never punish their children |
| D．help their children establish good values |
What’s the best title for the passage?
| A．Do you often reward your children? |
| B．Should parents reward their children? |
| C．When should parents reward their children? |
| D．What can parents reward their children with? |
What makes one person more intelligent than another? What makes one person a genius, like the brilliant Albert Einstein, and another person a fool? Are people born intelligent or stupid, or is intelligence the result of where and how you live? These are very old questions and the answers to them are still not clear.
We know, however, that just being born with a good mind is not enough. In some ways, the mind is like a leg or an arm muscle. It needs exercise. Mental exercise is particularly important for young children. Many child psychologists (心理学家) think that parents should play with their children more often and give them problems to think about. The children are then more likely to grow up bright and intelligent. If, on the other hand, children are left alone a great deal with nothing to do, they are more likely to become dull and unintelligent.
Parents should also be careful with what they say to young children. According to some psychologists, if parents are always telling a child that he or she is a fool or an idiot, then the child is more likely to keep doing silly and foolish things. So it is probably better for parents to say very positive things to their children, such as “That was a very clever thing you did.” or “You are such a smart child.”The words “intelligent” and “brilliant” in the first paragraph probably mean _______ while “dull” in the second paragraph means ________.
| A．bright and splendid; slow in thinking and understanding |
| B．pretty and handsome; ordinary-looking |
| C．great and important; common |
| D．hopeful and helpful; careless |
According to the context we can guess that a genius is ________ while an idiot is ________.
| A．a normal person; a funny person |
| B．a strong person; a weak person |
| C．a highly intelligent person; a foolish or weak-minded person |
| D．a famous person; an ordinary person |
A person ________ is more likely to become a genius.
| A．whose parents are clever |
| B．often thinking about difficult problems |
| C．often helped by his parents and teachers |
| D．born with a good brain and putting it into active use |
It is better for parents ________.
| A．to praise and encourage their children more often |
| B．to be hard on their children |
| C．to leave their children alone with nothing to do |
| D．to give their children as much help as possible |
Which of the following is NOT true according to the article?
| A．Parents play an important part in their children’s growth. |
| B．The less you use your mind the duller you may become. |
| C．Intelligence is obviously the result of where and how you live. |
| D．What makes a person bright or stupid is still under discussion. |
I’m sure you know the song “Happy Birthday”. But do you know who wrote the song and for whom it was written?
The retired professor, Archibald A. Hill in Lucasville, USA could tell us the story. Ninety-seven years ago, two of Mr. Archibald Hill’s aunts, Miss Patty Hill and Miss Mildred Hill were asked to write some songs for a book called “Song Storied for the Sunday Morning”. Miss Patty Hill and Miss Mildred Hill were both kindergarten teachers then. They loved children very much and wrote many beautiful songs for the book. One of them was the famous “Good Morning to You.” The song said, “Good morning to you, good morning to you, dear children, good morning to all.” This song was very popular at that time among kindergarten children. But not many grown-ups knew it. A few years later little Archibald was born. As his aunt, Miss Patty Hill sang the song “Happy Birthday” to the melody（曲调）of “Good Morning to you” to her little nephew（侄子）. She sang the song like this: Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday, dear Archie! Happy birthday to you!
Miss Patty Hill and her sister had never expected that this song would become so popular, but it really did. People all over the world like the song because of its simplicity in tune（曲调简单）and friendliness in words.Archibald A. Hill was __________.
A. English B. Russian
C. American D. AustralianWhy did Miss Hiss wrote songs?
| A．Because they are musicians. |
| B．Because they love children. |
| C．Because they were asked to write for a book. |
| D．Because their nephew asked them to do so. |
The sentence “it really did” means __________.
| A．The song really became popular |
| B．Their wish would really come true |
| C．People all over the world like to listen to the song |
| D．Yes, but the song didn’t become popular |
More than half of Americans do not take all their vacation days，even though they think they need one more holiday. And nearly a third of workers who take a break check their emails from the boss every other day and some even keep in touch hourly.
“We’re workaholics(工作狂)’，”said Samuel Nahmias.“From a general perspective，this has a lot to do with the economic situation in the US. More and more people are unemployed.”
With jobless numbers reaching 9.6 percent，people who have jobs seem to be unwilling to take time off.“It is not a great picture and that affects vacations. People are not going on vacation as much and those who are going on vacation are being more selective about where they are going.”Nahmias explained.
Unlike European countries where four or more weeks of holiday each year is normal,27 percent of people questioned in the poll said they had 6 to 10 days of annual leave and 20 percent had less than 3 days.With more people on unemployment lists in America，those still with jobs are facing more responsibility at work，which is reflected in their lack of time off.
The majority of workers who did not take time off mentioned too many responsibilities or stress at work，while some people said they simply did not have time to plan a holiday.“People are more conscious of what they are doing and when they are going on vacation because they don’t want to look bad in this situation，”Nahmias explained.
Technology is also playing a part with smartphones enabling workers to keep in contact in ways that were not possible before.It has to do with technology and the level of concern about what is going on in the office.Americans don’t take all their vacation days because ________.
| A．they devote themselves to the whole work |
| B．they are afraid that they may lose their jobs |
| C．they are asked to keep in touch with their bosses |
| D．they aren’t in need of holidays at all |
What does Nahmias mean by saying the underlined words in Paragraph 3?
| A．Travelling makes people unwelcome. |
| B．People are unwilling to go on short vacations. |
| C．The economic situation remains at a low point. |
| D．People are more selective about places of interest. |
We can infer from Paragraph 4 that ________.
| A．Unemployment rate is higer in America than that in Europe |
| B．European economic situation is better than that in America |
| C．Americans are more hardworking than Europeans |
| D．More people are losing their jobs in Europe |
What’s the main idea of the text?
| A．Americans are all workaholic. |
| B．Many Americans don’t choose to take vacations. |
| C．Unemployment is going from bad to worse. |
| D．US economic situation becomes worse and worse. |
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