Are you nervous about climbing because you think it's too dangerous? Do you feel you're not fit enough to climb? Do you know how to start climbing?
Let's consider the idea that climbing is dangerous．Being afraid is natural, but if you use suitable ropes and other climbing equipments you will feel completely safe．Climbers are usually very careful because they know what they are doing is dangerous．Accidents happen, but when they do, they tend to attract a lot of publicity．As a result, people think there are many more accidents than there are in reality．
You cannot expect to start climbing straight away．Climbing is a challenge and challenges take time．It is necessary first of all that you achieve a good level of fitness．Begin as soon as you become interested in climbing? go to the gym, go swimming, take up jogging and continue to do so throughout your training period．
Discover as much as you can about climbing．Visit the library and find book, especially for beginners or buy climbing magazines and look for articles which describe your situation．Look up information on the Internet．Find out about equipment, methods and places to go．
Next, take a course on a climbing wall．There are plenty of climbing walls all over the country which have trained and qualified people as instructors．Call your local leisure centre to find out if there is one in your area. These training sessions are a quick way to get experience and you are likely to meet other beginners. After this, you can do an outside course of join a club where you can meet climbers of all abilities and eventually join in group-climbing events.
At first you may not understand the importance of a good training period, but after you have completed your first climb and you are standing safely at the top of a rock feeling thrilled, then you will know it was the right thing to do.The article is written by .
| A．a doctor | B．an experienced climber |
| C．a beginner | D．a fitness instructor |
The writer thinks a new climber should .
| A．begin by becoming fit |
| B．have the courage to meet the challenges |
| C．be aware of the causes of the accidents |
| D．do enough sports to get interested in climbing |
By climbing walls you can .
| A．join a club you like |
| B．gain controlled experience |
| C．become qualified instructors |
| D．take part in group-climbing events |
The underlined word “it” in the last paragraph probably means .
| A．the climb | B．the training | C．the equipment | D．the achievement |
I have always known my kids use digital communications equipment a lot. But my cellphone bill last month really grabbed my attention. My son had come up to nearly 2,000 incoming text messages, and had sent nearly as many. Of course, he was out of school for the summer and communicating more with friends from a distance. Nevertheless, he found time to keep a summer job and complete a college course in between all that typing with thumb.
I was even more surprised to learn that my son is normal. "Teenagers with cellphones each send and receive 2,272 text messages a month on average, " Nielsen Mobile said.
Some experts regret that all that keyboard jabber(键盘闲聊) is making our kids stupid, unable to read non-verbal cues such as facial expressions, gestures, posture and other silent signals of mood and attitude. Unlike phones, text messaging doesn't even allow transmission of tone of voice or pauses, says Mark Bauerlein, author called The Dumbest Generation: How the Digital Age Stupefies Young Americans and Jeopardizes Our Future.
Beyond that, though, I'm not sure I see as much harm as critics of this trend. I' ve posted before on how I initially tried to control my kids' texting. But over time, I have seen my son suffer no apparent ill effects, and he gains a big benefit, continuing contact with others.
I don't think texting make kids stupid. It may make them annoying, when they try to text and talk to you at the same time. And it may make them distracted. when buzzing text message interrupt efforts to noodle out a math problem or finish reading for school.
But I don't see texting harming teens' ability to communicate. My son is as accustomed to nonverbal cues as any older members of our family. I have found him more engaged and easier to communicate with from a great distance. because he is constantly available by means of text message and responds with faithfulness and speed.What is Mark Bauerlein ' s attitude to texting?
| A．It is convenient for teens to communicate with others. |
| B．It is likely to cause trouble in understanding each other. |
| C．It is convenient for teens to text and call at the same time. |
| D．It will cause damage to the development of teens' intelligence. |
What would be the best title for this passage?
| A．For Teens, Texting Instead of Talking |
| B．For Parents, Caring Much for Their Kids |
| C．Disadvantages of Texting |
| D．The Effect of Communication |
What does the underlined word "distracted" in the fifth paragraph mean?
| A．Confused. | B．Absent-minded. |
| C．Comfortable. | D．Bad-tempered. |
The author's attitude to texting is ___________ .
| A．objective | B．opposed | C．supportive | D．doubtful |
According to the passage, which of the statements is NOT true?
| A．It is normal for a teen to send or receive 60 text messages per day. |
| B．Texting is a very popular way of communication among teens. |
| C．The writer limited his son to send or receive messages at first. |
| D．When texting, teens don't mind talking with you. |
Normally a student must attend a certain number of courses in order to graduate, and each course which he attends gives him a credit which he may count towards a degree. In many American universities the total work for a degree consists of thirty-six courses each lasting for one semester. A typical course consists of three classes per week for fifteen weeks; while attending a university a student will probably attend four or five courses during each semester. Normally a student would expect to take four years attending two semesters each year. It is possible to spread the period of work for the degree over a longer period. It is also possible for a student to move between one university and another during his degree course, though this is not in fact done as a regular practice.
For every course that he follows a student is given a grade, which is recorded. and the record is available for the student to show to potential employers. All this imposes(增加) a constant pressure and stress of work, but in spite of this some students still find time for great activity in student affairs. Elections to positions in student organizations arouse much enthusiasm. The effective work of maintaining discipline is usually performed by students who advise the academic authorities. Any student who is thought to have broken the rules, for example, by cheating has to appear before a student court. With the enormous numbers of students. the operation of the system does involve a certain amount of activity. A student who has held one of these positions of authority is much respected and it will be of benefit to him later in his career.Normally a student would at least attend __________classes each week.
| A．36 | B．12 | C．20 | D．15 |
According to the first paragraph an American student is allowed
| A．to live in a different university |
| B．to change permanently his or her university |
| C．to live at home and drive to classes |
| D．to get two degrees from two different universities |
American university students are usually under pressure of work because__________.
| A．their academic performance will affect their future careers |
| B．they are heavily involved in student affairs |
| C．they have to obey university rules |
| D．they want to run for positions of authority |
Some students are enthusiastic for positions in student organizations probably because_________.
| A．they hate the constant pressure and stress of their study |
| B．they will then be able to stay longer in the university |
| C．such positions help them get better jobs |
| D．such positions are usually well paid |
The student organizations seem to be effective in__________.
| A．dealing with the academic affairs of the university |
| B．ensuring that the students observe university regulations |
| C．evaluating students' performance by bringing them before a court |
| D．keeping up the students' enthusiasm for social activities |
Play allows children to use their creativity while developing their imagination and physical, cognitive (认知的), and emotional strength. Play is important to healthy brain development. Play allows children to create and explore a world they can master, conquering their fears while practicing adult roles. Undirected play allows children to learn how to work in groups, to share, to negotiate, and to resolve conflicts.
Ideally, much of play involves adults, but when play is controlled by adults, children acquiesce (顺从) to adult rules and concerns and lose some of the benefits play offers them, particularly in developing creativity, leadership, and group skills. In contrast to passive entertainment, play builds active, healthy bodies. In fact, it has been suggested that encouraging unstructured play may be an exceptional way to increase physical activity levels in children, which is one important strategy in the resolution of the obesity problem.
Children’s development is critically influenced by appropriate, affective relationships with loving and consistent caregivers as they relate to children through play. When parents observe their children in play or join with them in child-driven play, they are given a unique opportunity to see the world from their children’s vantage point as the child navigates a world perfectly created just to fit his or her needs. The interactions that occur through play tell children that parents are fully paying attention to them and help to build enduring relationships. Parents who have the opportunity to look at their children’s world learn to communicate more effectively with their children and are given another setting to offer guidance. Less verbal children may be able to express their views, giving their parents an opportunity to gain a fuller understanding of their perspective. Quite simply, play offers parents a wonderful opportunity to engage fully with their children.
Play is essential to the academic environment. It ensures that the school setting attends to the social and emotional development of children as well as their cognitive development. It has been shown to help children adjust to the school setting and even to strengthen children’s learning willingness. Social-emotional learning is best integrated (融合) with academic learning; it is concerning if some of the forces that enhance children’s ability to learn are improved at the expense of others. Play and unscheduled time that allow for peer interactions are important components of social-emotional learning.Compared with undirected play, play which is controlled by adults ________.
| A．doesn’t benefit the children at all |
| B．doesn’t help develop leadership and group skills |
| C．makes children become more active |
| D．helps increase physical activity levels |
The third paragraph mainly tells us that ________.
| A．play offers parents a good chance to establish good relationships with children |
| B．children’s development is greatly influenced by relationships with parents |
| C．play helps children better express their views |
| D．play offers parents a unique opportunity to see the world from a different perspective |
From the last paragraph, we know that ________.
| A．play can’t help children become adapted to the school setting |
| B．play makes social-emotional learning and academic learning separated |
| C．play is beneficial to social-emotional learning as well as academic learning |
| D．it is necessary to strengthen children’s academic development at the expense of others |
Which of the following statements is NOT true?
| A．Undirected play can help children develop team spirit. |
| B．Play can improve children’s willingness to learn. |
| C．Play helps adults gain a better understanding of the children’s thoughts. |
| D．Adults shouldn’t be involved in children’s play. |
High childcare costs are putting British mothers off going out to work. It really is that simple. Eurostat figures show that 66 per cent of mothers in the UK work, less than France (72 per cent), Denmark (86 per cent), the Netherlands (78 per cent) or Germany (69 per cent). This not only damages Britain’s economic prosperity—it limits women’s careers and squeezes family incomes. It would be fine if this is the choice parents want to make, but it isn’t. Half of those surveyed want to go to work and the expense of childcare is one of the key reasons they couldn’t.
Despite claims made by Labour (工党) about childcare, a forthcoming (即将到来的) report by the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) confirms the true legacy of their time in government. They left behind a childcare system with high costs to parents, variable quality and patchy (不均匀的) coverage, despite soaring government spending. British parents now face the highest childcare bills in the world after Switzerland.
In the Eighties and Nineties under Mrs Thatcher and John Major, the picture was very different. Mothers in England were more likely to go out to work than their Dutch or German counterparts. But the position has reversed, despite a huge rise in public spending.
So why does the British Government spend more on childcare than France or Germany, even though the costs given to parents are sky-high? As always, under the previous government, money was frittered away (浪费) without adequate focus on improving quality. Instead of clear and transparent funding, four separate funding streams were created, skewing (偏离) the market and confusing parents and providers alike. The majority of the money was given away in cash benefits; so much of it did not get through to the front line.
The IPPR report points out that continental systems, in countries such as Germany, France, Denmark and the Netherlands, manage to deliver better value for money. What all of these systems have in common is a focus on quality, with greater flexibility and autonomy given to local providers. They also see a much higher proportion of government money getting to the front line. Which of the following doesn’t belong to the disadvantages caused by the mothers prevented from going to work?
| A．Damaging Britain’s economic development. |
| B．Causing damage to women’s careers. |
| C．Decreasing the family incomes. |
| D．Causing childcare costs to go up. |
According to the second paragraph, we can infer that the former government of the Labour Party _______.
| A．was highly praised by British people |
| B．made British people face the highest childcare bills |
| C．left behind a childcare system full of problems |
| D．managed to decrease the government spending |
We can learn from the passage that _______.
| A．in the Eighties and Nineties, mothers in the UK were likely to work |
| B．there is a prejudice against mothers in the UK employment market |
| C．most of the mothers surveyed in the UK don’t want to work |
| D．the percentage of mothers who work in the UK is the lowest in the world |
| Help Wanted |
PAINTER Must have at least 3 years painting experience. Commercial and new construction work. $ 10/hr. Immediate opening. Call 435-9201 with work history. SECRETARY Part-time position available in friendly, busy office. Good typing and general office skills. Some weekends required. High pay. Various duties. Apply(申请) at East Side Management, 500 Park Drive, DeWitt, NY. 13214. |
| Help Wanted |
VETERINARIAN ASSISTANT(兽医助理) Person needed for busy animal hospital. Some nights and weekends. Apply in person to Johnson-Marks Animal Hospital, 404 Snow Road, Syracuse, NY. 13224. After 4 p.m. only please. NURSES’ ASSISTANTS Full-time and part-time positions available for modern nursing home. High pay. Call Mrs. Downes, R.N. at 534-7618. |
| Help Wanted |
COOK NEEDED Immediately. Busy downtown restaurant. Must be good and dependable. Experience preferred. Weekends required. Call 324-9817. SALESPERSON Experienced. Must have some knowledge of men’s clothing industry. Available to work evenings and some Saturdays. Send resume(个人简历) to: Martin’s Apparel, 237 Rockledge St. Syracuse, NY. 13224. TEACHER Small private school needs English and math teachers. Must have BS degree and at least 4 years teaching experience. Send resume to: Wales Charter School 19 South 8th St. NY. 13214. |
| Help Wanted |
HOTEL needs part-time FRONT DESK CLERK. No experience necessary. Excellent people and phone skills a must. Some computer skills helpful. $ 13/hr. Call: Mr Jones 357-2897. |
If you want to get a job as a math teacher, send your resume to ________.
| A．237 Rockledge St. Syracuse, NY. 13224 | B．404 Snow Road, Syracuse, NY. 13224 |
| C．500 Park Drive, DeWitt, NY. 13214 | D．19 South 8th St. NY. 13214 |
If you dislike working on Sundays, being a ______ should be your best choice.
| A．cook | B．secretary | C．salesperson | D．veterinarian assistant |
If you want to get a job at ________ you must have office skills.
| A．Martin’s Apparel | B．East Side Management |
| C．Wales Charter School | D．Johnson Marks Animal Hospital |
Which job do you think suitable for a beautiful lady, who just graduated from a university and without any work experience?
| A．FRONT DESK CLERK | B．TEACHER | C．SECRETARY | D．PAINTER |