Psychologists tell us that there are four basic stages that human beings pass through when they enter and live in a new culture．This process begins with the “honeymoon stage”．This is the period of time when we first arrive in which everything about the new culture is strange and exciting．We may be suffering from “jet lag” but we are thrilled to be in the new environment, seeing new sights, hearing new sounds and language, eating new kinds of food．This stage can last for quite a long time because we feel we are involved in some kind of great adventure．
Unfortunately, the second stage can be more difficult．After we have settled down into our new life, we can become very tired and begin to miss our homeland and our family, friends, pets．All the little problems in life seem to be much bigger and more disturbing when you face them in a foreign culture．This period of cultural adjustment can be very difficult and lead to rejecting or pulling away from the new culture．
The third stage is called the “adjustment stage”．This is when you begin to realize that things are not so bad in the host culture．Your sense of humour usually becomes stronger and you realize that you are becoming stronger by learning to take care of yourself in the new place．Things are still difficult, but you are now a survivor!
The fourth stage can be called “at ease at last”．Now you feel quite comfortable in your new surroundings．You can cope（deal） with most problems that occur．You may still have problems with the language, but you know you are strong enough to deal with them．This passage mainly talks about ________．
| A．culture and foreign language learning | B．adventures in a foreign land |
| C．getting used to a new culture | D．the interaction of different cultures |
Which of the following best describes the first stage?
| A．Lonely and depressed | B．Bored and homesick |
| C．Happy and excited | D．Angry and frustrated |
According to the passage, people are most likely to return to their own culture at the ________stage．
| A．1st | B．2nd | C．third | D．fourth |
It can be concluded from the passage that ________．
| A．people feel better in their own culture |
| B．it is not easy to adapt to a new culture |
| C．culture shock doesn’t occur at the beginning |
| D．it is human nature to long for adventures |
Some people view a bad situation as a disaster. It’s not. It’s an opportunity. Once your old world collapses(倒塌), you can recover and rebuild. Now you have the chance to start fresh and do things more intelligently. I built my business on an unstable structure. I kept it going for years, but the business collapsed last year. I had to leave my office, selling off all the furniture and equipment. I got kicked out of my apartment because I couldn’t pay the rent. I couldn’t pay my bills or debt. I declared bankruptcy.(破产)
For years there was the worry that this might happen if I didn’t keep straining（尽力） to keep the business going. And my worries were right. What I worried about would happen did happen .But you know what? Going through that experience wasn’t really so bad. It was interesting. Some of it was actually pretty easy. Throughout most of it, I felt increasing relief and a renewed sense of freedom and possibility. All the old baggage was gone. No more office. Fewer possessions. Fewer obligations. No more debt. Most of all , no more straining. Life became a lot easier.
I got a cheaper and smaller apartment. I became debt-free. I learned to live within my means. Those were actually good things. The others were just feelings. The reality wasn’t actually painful. After that, I kept going with the same business but completely changed the business model. I avoided the earlier mistakes, and that business recovered just fine and worked great. It was profitable every year from then on. But I had to go through the collapse first to reach that point.
If you’ve been feeling out of control with your current work or lifestyle, and you’re currently straining to keep it going ,consider letting it go. Try allowing the old world to collapse, many or all of your fears and worries might actually come to pass, but that’s ok. You don’t have to keep the old world alive. If it keeps falling apart on you ,let it collapse. Experiencing the collapse isn’t as bad as fearing the collapseThe author regards the collapse of the old world as an opportunity to_____
| A．get a new world started in better ways |
| B．turn to others for help to save ourselves |
| C．sum up the failure and make up for the mistakes |
| D．bury ourselves in the disasters and then recover ourselves |
In the author’s opinion, the old baggage in Paragraph 2 included______
| A．the freedom and possibility of refreshing himself |
| B．the experience he learned from his former failure |
| C．the old possessions and the invisible pressure |
| D．the business knowledge and skills he got from various media |
What did the author do after his business failed last year?
| A．He cleverly transformed his business model. |
| B．He started another completely different business. |
| C．He received further training about doing business at college |
| D．He borrowed some money from his friends and relatives to pay off his debts. |
According to the author, when our work or life is out of our control we can_____.
| A．prevent it from falling apart on us. |
| B．set it free or just let it completely break down |
| C．keep straining and go on with determination |
| D．keep it alive with the courage to change it again |
After a terrible electrical accident, which caused him to become both blind and deaf, the whole world became completely dark and quiet for Robert Edwards for almost ten years. The loss of sight and hearing threw him into such sorrow that he tried a few times to put an end to his life. His family, especially his wife, did their best to tend and comfort him and finally he regained the will to live.
One hot summer afternoon, he was taking a walk with a stick near his house when a thunderstorm started all at once. He stood under a large tree to avoid getting wet, but he was struck by the lightning. Witnesses thought he was dead but he woke up some 20 minutes later lying face down in muddy water at the base of the tree. He was trembling badly, but when he opened his eyes, he could hardly believe what he saw: a plough and a wall. When Mrs. Edwards came running up to him, shouting to their neighbors to call for help, he could see her and hear her voice for the first time in nearly ten years.
The news of Robert regaining his sight and hearing quickly spread, and many doctors came to examine him. Most of them said that he regained his sight and hearing from the shock he got from the lightning. However, none of them could give a convincing answer as to why this should have happened. The only reasonable explanation given by one doctor was that, since Robert lost his sight and hearing as a result of a sudden shock, perhaps, the only way for him to regain them was by another sudden shock.The reason for Robert’s attempts to kill himself was that _________.
| A．a terrible traffic accident happened to him |
| B．he had to live in a dark and silent world |
| C．he was struck by the lightning once more |
| D．nobody in the world cared about him |
What was Robert doing when he was struck by the lightning?
| A．Taking a walk with a stick. |
| B．Sheltering from the rain under a tree. |
| C．Driving a car. |
| D．Lying on the ground. |
We can infer from the text that ________.
| A．Robert’s wife sent for doctors immediately after the shock |
| B．many doctors came because Robert was badly injured |
| C．there was no exact explanation for Robert’s recovery |
| D．a sudden injury in the head led to Robert’s recovery |
What’s the best title of the whole passage?
| A．A Terrible Electrical Accident |
| B．Robert Edwards and His Wife |
| C．What a Sudden Shock |
| D．An Unforgettable Experience |
When I first told people I was going to work in Cameroon, the most common reaction was：“Why？” The second was：“It’s in Africa；you’ll die！” The third: “Where is that？”So let me give some answers. I was offered a job that looked interesting in a part of the world I’d never been to before. I’d also long had an interest in Africa, so I decided it was time to find out the reality. A small amount of research showed that in more than 40 years since gaining independence, Cameroon has been a peaceful country with no wars. Not only were there no wars but Cameroon is a food exporter to the region.
Now, after three years, I can say that these have been the healthiest years of my life! No malaria or any of the other frightening diseases you read about when Africa is mentioned .The worst thing that ever happened to me was a bout of food poisoning-once.
So what is it like to teach here? Well not surprisingly, not so different from anywhere else. Most students come to us with a bit of English in their heads. Cameroon is a bilingual country with French and English as official languages, while there are also close to 200 local ethnic languages in a country of 16 million people. French is the dominant language, spoken by about eighty percent of the population.
The local school system is very traditional and somewhat strict. Perhaps not surprisingly when there can be up to 150 students in the classroom ( of which maybe 30 have the books, and there are probably seats for 70)．Like anywhere, students appreciate it if you know a bit about their country, and not just Roger Milla (top scorer of the 1990 World Cup, in case you’re wondering). It helps if you know the names of the ten provinces, know who the first president was, or can say a word in a local language.
So in conclusion: Cameroon isn’t just football. Nor is it war, poverty and disease. It’s just life and people, like anywhere else.On hearing the writer’s decision, most people__________.
| A．admired him |
| B．considered it as a joke |
| C．didn’t understand him |
| D．laughed at him |
According to the passage, Cameroon is__________.
| A．peaceful after liberation |
| B．a country full of diseases |
| C．a poor country, especially lack of food |
| D．quite different from others in education |
What can we infer from the passage?
| A．Food export may lead to many frightening diseases. |
| B．Most students in Cameroon do not need books. |
| C．Cameroon is not as bad as people commonly believed. |
| D．There must be a lot of people suffering from food poisoning. |
Which language is spoken by about eighty percent of the population in Cameroon?
| A．local dialect | B．French |
| C．An ethnic language | D．English |
Calling all poets! TIME For Kids(TFK) has a challenge for you.
WHO: The contest is open to students who are 8 to 13 years old.
WHAT: Write a funny, rhyming poem and enter it in the TFK Poetry Contest. By entering, the entrant（参加竞赛者） should promise that the poem is an original one that does not copy another poet’s work, has not been published in an y medium and has not won an award.
HOW: Send your poem by e-mail to contest@poetry4kids.com. The subject line of your e-mail message should read “TFK POETRY CONTEST”. Be sure to include your first name only, your e-mail address and your parents’ e-mail address. Limit one entry per person or e-mail account. The sponsor（赞助者） is not responsible for lost, late or incomplete entries, or those not received for any reason.
WHEN: This contest begins 12:01 a.m. on January 13,2013, and ends 11:59 p.m. on March 1,2013.
JUDGING: All entries will be judged by poet Kenn Nesbitt, based on the following standards: creativity and o riginality (50%),use of language and rhyme (25%) and relatedness to contest theme(25%).Winner will be informed by e-mail and must respond within five days.
WINNER’S LIST: For names of the winner and finalists, visit timeforkids.com (after April 1,2013, you can get for a period of 10 days).
PRIZE: Our judge will select four semifinalists(半决赛选手)from which one grand-prize winner and three finalists will be chosen. The one grand-prize winner will receive an online class visit from poet Kenn Nesbitt and a signed copy of one of his books of poetry. The poem of the grand-prize winner will be published on timeforkids.com. The finalists will receive signed copies of one of Nesbitt’s books of poetry. The poems of finalists will be published on timeforkids.com.Which may be a proper work for the TFK Poetry Contest?
| A．A war poem published in a book. |
| B．A great poem which has won many prizes. |
| C．A fine poem downloaded from the Internet. |
| D．A love poem which has been kept secret from others. |
According to Paragraph 4, a student__________.
| A．can send more than one original poem |
| B．must send the poem with his full name on it |
| C．can ask a parent for help while writing the poem |
| D．can’t use the name of the poem as the subject line |
Only the grand-prize winner can________.
| A．visit timeforkids.com for free |
| B．have his poem published on timeforkids.com |
| C．receive an online class visit from poet Kenn Nesbitt |
| D．obtain（获得） a signed copy of one of Nesbitt’s books of poetry. |
Not being the greatest fan in the world of live performance, I took a deep breath before I en tered the building, the castle theatre, and prepared myself to be bored, expecting to find it more interesting to watch the audience than the show. Then I got the shock of my life.
Wadaiko Inchiro are a group of ten young Japanese men and women using traditional drums with a history going back more than 1500 years. The drums were once used for festivals and religious ceremonies and also as a means of communication during wars. Today they give an ear-blasting performance which punches out rhythms with the power to wind you. They’re a welcome relief from the Scottish pipers.
Unlike other performances, the best seats are at the back of the house. Not only will your ears be protected from full blast, but you will get a fantastic view of the whole set. On stage are some of the biggest drums you will ever see and a cast wearing red, white and black headscarf.
There had been almost no publicity for the show, but the house was full of people desperate, one could only assume, for something a bit different from the unrelenting performances appearing at this world-famous festival. The solid 60-minutes show starts as it means to go on. The drums rumble into fever-pitch action as the ten-strong company strike their sticks with startling control. Their rhythmic frenzy almost immediately drugs you into submission. Trapped inside the beating of the drums, you carried swiftly through warrior war cries to emotional rhapsodies（狂想曲）. Not only is this display musically impressive, but the dance is strikingly beautiful. Moving between the enormity（巨大）of the drums, the slight Japanese characters have complete synchronicity（同步性）with the flying of their sticks, which they ceremonially cross and use to command.
The biggest drum is played only by Inchiro, the leader of the group. When I ask why this is so, he refuses to admit that he is being precious about this monster of an instrument and says, “When someone else can play it as I do, I will happily move aside.” Dressed all in red, he stands before it as thought he is worshipping at an altar; as he raises his sticks to the drum, he touches it sometimes tenderly and sometimes murderously. Inchiro and his drum produce a range of sounds from thunder to the trickle of rain.The writer took a deep breath before entering the building because she__________ .
| A．was excited |
| B．knew it would be hot in the theatre |
| C．was nervous |
| D．was preparing herself to be bored |
According to the writer, there were many people watching the performance because________.
| A．the drummers are dressed in different colors |
| B．they wanted to see something unusual |
| C．the people in the group are famous |
| D．the show had been well advertised |
We can learn from the passage that .
| A．the drums have been linked with religion for a long time |
| B．the show was more exciting at the beginning than at the end |
| C．the drummers make controlled movements with their drums |
| D．the best place to see the show is the seats nearest to the drummers |
Inchiro feels that____________.
| A．no one else should ever play the biggest drum |
| B．he must always make loud noises on his biggest drum |
| C．he is now the only one who can play the biggest drum well enough |
| D．it is very important for him to teach someone else to play the biggest drum |
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