Nearly everyone is shy in some ways. If shyness is making you uncomfortable, it may be time for a few lessons in self-confidence. You can build your confidence by following some suggestions from doctors and psychologists.
Make a decision not to hold back in conversations. What you have to say is just as important as what other people say. And don’t turn down party invitations just because of your shyness.
Prepare for yourself for being with others in groups. Make a list of the good qualities you have. Then make a list of ideas, experiences, and skills you would like to share with other people . I think about what you would like to say in advance. Then say it.
If you start feeling self-conscious in a group, take a deep breath and focus your attention on other people, Remember, you are not alone. Other people are concerned about the impression they are making, too.
No one ever gets over being shy completely, but most people do learn to live with their shyness. Even entertainers admit that they often feel shy. They work at fighting their shy feelings so that they can face the cameras and the public. Just making the effort to control shyness can have many rewards. But perhaps the best reason to fight shyness is to give other people a chance to know about you.The main purpose of the article is to _____.
| A．explain how shyness developed. |
| B．recommend ways of dealing with shyness |
| C．persuade readers that shyness is natural. |
| D．prove that shyness can be overcome |
Which of these can you conclude from reading the article?
| A．Shy people never have any fun. |
| B．Entertainers choose their work to fight shyness |
| C．The attempt to overcome shyness is always successful |
| D．The attempt to overcome shyness is always rewarding |
Who probably gives the suggestion for fighting shyness?
| A．The author of the article | B．Shy men and women |
| C．Doctors and psychologists | D．Popular entertainers |
It's really true what people say about English politeness: it's everywhere. When squeezing past someone in a narrow passage, people say "sorry". When getting off a bus, English passengers say "thank you" rather than the driver. In Germany, people would never dream of doing these things. After all, squeezing past others is sometimes unavoidable, and the bus driver is only doing his job. I used to think the same way, without questioning it, until I started traveling to the British Isles, and here are some more polite ways of interacting (交往) with people in UK.
People thank each other everywhere in England, all the time. When people buy something in a shop, customers and retail assistants in most cases thank each other twice or more. In Germany, it would be exceptional to hear more than one thank you in such a conversation. British students thank their lecturers when leaving the room. English employers thank their employees for doing their jobs, as opposite to Germans, who would normally think that paying their workers money is already enough.
Another thing I observed during my stay was that English people rarely criticize others. Even when I was working and mistakes were pointed out to me, my employers emphasized several times but none of their explanations were intended as criticism. It has been my impression that by avoiding criticism, English people are making an effort to make others feel comfortable. This also is showed in other ways. British men still open doors for women, and British men are more likely to treat women to a meal than German men. However, I do need to point out here that this applies to English men a bit more than it would to Scottish men! Yes, the latter are a bit tightfisted.What is the author's attitude towards English politeness?
| A．He thinks it is artificial. | B．He thinks little of it. |
| C．He appreciates it very much. | D．He thinks it goes too far. |
What can be inferred from the passage?
| A．The author think it's unnecessary to say "thank you" to the bus driver. |
| B．In Germany, employers often say "thank you" to employees for their job. |
| C．German men never treat a woman to dinner. |
| D．Germans think it is unnecessary to thank workers because payment is enough. |
We can learn from the last paragraph that Scottish men _______.
| A．are more likely to be involved in a fighting |
| B．are as generous as English men |
| C．treat women in a polite way |
| D．are unwilling to spend money for women |
Which of the following statements is true according to the passage?
| A．English drivers often say "thank you" to passengers when they get off the bus. |
| B．In Germany, passengers sometimes say "thank you" to bus drivers. |
| C．English people try to avoid criticizing others in the daily life. |
| D．Germans are more considerate and polite than Englishmen. |
The author develops the text through the method of
| A．making comparisons | B．telling stories |
| C．giving comments | D．giving reasons/examples |
Dear Michelle,
Why can't my daughter manage her life better? She is 17 and an honor student, but she seems to be wasting her life away with a boyfriend who is holding her back.
He consumes every waking minute of her precious time and smooth-talks her as well.
His goal is to get her to agree to go to the college of his choice, not her choice, and because his grades are lower, his choice will be limited.
I feel like I want to rescue her, but she pushes me away and shuts me out. She has only brought us pride and joy; and now this! Help!
A worried mother
Dear Mother of a 17-year-old Girl,
Hmmmmm. What's the matter with kids today? Remember that song from "Bye Bye Birdie"?
Well if you do not, let me fill you in about teenagers and their life-management skills. Do not expect too much too soon because at the ripe age of 17, life-management is not within their reach, nor should it be.
Life experience creates both the conditions and the skills for management, and if management went before experience, there would be little of it.
Your daughter is an honor student for good reasons. She is smart, studies with intelligence and you have given her good values.
When the time comes for her to apply for college, and she visits the ones that are specifically designed for students at the top of their grade, she will most likely break away from her boyfriend's influence.
It is rare for an honor student to change the path of their academic career for puppy love. That being said, there might be some adolescent wisdom in her behavior after all.
Perhaps she is choosing to worry you, her parents, for unconscious reasons. Being such a good girl and being a steady source of joy might have become a bit too much for her.
Let your daughter have her own private moment of 11th grade rebellion. She deserves a break from perfection.
MichelleFrom the mother's letter we can learn that her daughter .
| A．is being fooled by the boy |
| B．has fallen behind in her studies |
| C．doesn't talk much with her mother |
| D．has chosen which college to attend |
According to Michelle, 17-year-old teenagers.
| A．are too young to manage their life |
| B．are old enough to live their own life |
| C．should have management before experience |
| D．have reached the age of an adult |
The underlined word "puppy-love" refer to .
| A．false love | B．foolish love |
| C．pure love | D．adolescent love |
Michelle seems to believe that the daughter will finally.
| A．come up with the right decision |
| B．follow her boyfriend's advice |
| C．worry her parents for unconscious reasons |
| D．influence her boyfriend's behavior |
The best title for the passage would be .
| A．College of kids' own choice |
| B．How can I help my girl? |
| C．How to manage teenagers' life? |
| D．A 17-year-old girl and her mother |
Pulling heavy suitcases all day in the summer is hard work, especially when you're a thin 14-year-old.That was me in 1940-the youngest and smallest baggage boy at New York City's Pennsyl-vania Railway Station.
After just a few days on the job, I began noticing that the other fellows were overcharging passengers. I'd like to join them, thinking, "Everyone else is doing it."
When I got home that night, I told my dad what I wanted to do." You give an honest day's work," he said, looking at me straight in the eye." They're paying you. If they want to do that, you let them do that."
I followed my dad's advice for the rest of that summer and have lived by his words ever since.
Of all the jobs I've had, it was my experience at Pennsylvania Railway Station that has stuck with me. Now I teach my players to have respect for other people and their possessions. Being a member of a team is a totally shared experience. If one person steals, it destroys trust and hurts everyone. I can put up with many things, but not with people who steal. If one of my players were caught stealing, he'd be gone.
Whether you're on a sports team, in an office or a member of a family, if you can't trust one another, there's going to be trouble.What can be inferred about the baggage boys?
| A．They could earn much, but they had to work hard. |
| B．Many of them earned money in a dishonest way. |
| C．They were all from poor families. |
| D．They were all thin, young boys. |
What does the father's advice imply?
| A．It is wrong to give more pay to the passengers. |
| B．Don't believe them if they are paying you more. |
| C．Don't follow others to overcharge the passengers. |
| D．It is difficult to work hard and live as an honest boy. |
The writer can't put up with stealing because he thinks that ______.
| A．it is a totally shared experience |
| B．it is considered as the most dangerous |
| C．it does great harm to human relationship |
| D．it may lead to the loss of his sports team |
It can be concluded from the text that ______.
| A．his father's advice helped him to decide which job to take up |
| B．working in the sports team was his most important experience |
| C．he learnt much from his shared experience with his team members |
| D．his experience as a baggage boy had a great influence on his later life |
The year was 1932. Amelia Earhart was flying alone from North America to England in a small single-engined aeroplane. At midnight, several hours after she had left Newfoundland, she ran into bad weather. To make things worse, her altimeter(高度表) failed and she didn’t know how high she was flying. At night, and in a storm, a pilot is in great difficulty without an altimeter. At times, her plane nearly plunged into the sea.
Just before dawn, there was further trouble. Amelia noticed flames coming from the engine. Would she be able to reach land? There was nothing to do except to keep going and to hope.
In the end, Amelia Earhart did reach Ireland, and for the courage she had shown, she was warmly welcomed in England and Europe. When she returned to the United States, she was honored by President Hoover at a special dinner in the White House. From that time on, Amelia Earhart was famous.
What was so important about her flight? Amelia Earhart was the first woman to fly the Atlantic Ocean alone, and she had set a record of fourteen hours and fifty-six minutes.
In the years that followed, Amelia Earhart made several flights across the United States, and on each occasion she set a new record for flying time. Amelia Earhart made these flights to show that women had a place in aviation (航空) and that air travel was useful. Which of the following statements is NOT the difficulty which Amelia Earhart met in her flight from north America to England?
| A．She lost her direction. |
| B．The altimeter went out of order. |
| C．Her engine went wrong. |
| D．She was caught in a storm. |
When Amelia Earhart saw flames coming from the engine, what did she do?
| A．She did nothing but pray for herself. |
| B．She changed her direction and landed in Ireland. |
| C．She continued flying. |
| D．She lost hope of reaching land. |
Which of the following statements was NOT mentioned?
| A．She was the first woman who succeeded in flying across the Atlantic Ocean alone. |
| B．She made plans to fly around the world. |
| C．She was warmly welcomed in England, Europe and the United States. |
| D．She showed great courage in overcoming the difficulties during the flight. |
Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?
| A．Amelia Earhart—First Across the Atlantic |
| B．Amelia Earhart—Pioneer in Women’s Aviation |
| C．A New Record for Flying Time |
| D．A Dangerous Flight from North America to England |
Welcome to one of the largest collections of footwear（鞋类）in the world that will make you green with envy（嫉妒）. Here at the Footwear Museum you can see exhibits（展品）from all over the world. You can find out about shoes worn by everyone from the Ancient Egyptians to pop stars.
| Room 1 The celebrity（名人）footwear section is probably the most popular in the entire museum. Started in the 1950s there is a wide variety of shoes and boots belonging to everyone from queens and presidents to pop stars and actors! Most visitors find the celebrities' choice of footwear extremely interesting. |
Room 2 Most of our visitors are amazed and shocked by the collection of “special purpose” shoes on exhibition here at the Museum of Footwear. For example, there are Chinese shoes made of silk that were worn by women to tie their feet firmly to prevent them from growing too much! |
| Room 3 The museum also exhibits shoe shaped objects. The variety is unbelievable. For example , there is a metal lamp that looks like a pair of shoes, and Greek wine bottles that are like legs! |
The footwear Library People come from all over the world to study in our excellent footwear library. Designers and researchers come here to look up information on anything and everything related to the subject of footwear. |
Where would you find a famous singer's shoes?
| A．Room 2. | B．Room 1. |
| C．Room 3. | D．The Footwear Library |
All exhibits in each room .
| A．share the same theme |
| B．have the same shape |
| C．are made of the same material |
| D．belong to the same social class |
The purpose of the text is to get more people to ____________.
| A．do research | B．design shoes |
| C．follow celebrities | D．visit the museum |