Grandparents might be known for spoiling grandchildren, but a new study says they might also be helping the kids improve their social skills and behavior.
Spending time with grandma and grandpa especially appears to help children from single-parent, divorced/separated or stepfamily households, according to the report, published in the February Journal of Family Psychology.
"Grandparents are a positive force for all families but play a significant role in families undergoing difficulties," the study's lead author, Shalhevet Attar-Schwartz, of The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, said in an American Psychological Association news release. "They can reduce the negative influence of parents separating and be a resource for children who are going through these family changes."
In interviewing 11- to 16-year olds from England and Wales, Attar-Schwartz and her team found that the more conversations the youths had with a grandparent, including asking for advice or even money, the better they got along with their peers and the fewer problems they had, such as hyperactivity and disruptive behavior.
"This was found across all three family structures," she said. "But adolescents in single-parent households and stepfamilies benefited the most. The effect of their grandparents' involvement was stronger compared to children from two biological parent families."
The study did not look at children who lived solely with their grandparents, though.
The findings have great implications for people in the United States, the authors said, because American grandparents are increasingly sharing living space with their grandchildren. A 2004 U.S. Census Bureau survey found that more than 5 million households include a grandparent and a grandchild under 18, up 30 percent since 1990, according to background information in the news release.It is generally believed that a grandmother __________ .
| A．can help a child through hard times |
| B．can help kids develop social skills |
| C．can spoil a child |
| D．is a positive force for all families |
According to the passage, grandparents will be of least benefit to a child __________ .
| A．from two biological parent families |
| B．from a single—parent household |
| C．from a divorced household |
| D．from a stepfamily household |
A child who asks his grandmother for money will __________ .
| A．have difficulty in getting along with his peers |
| B．still get along well with his peers |
| C．be easier to be spoiled than his peers |
| D．not be popular with peers |
We can learn from the last paragraph that ___________ .
| A．there are more families in America undergoing difficulties |
| B．American parents are much busier than those from other countries |
| C．American grandparents are much better at bringing up their grandchildren |
| D．American kids like to share more living space with their grandparents |
The passage implies that __________ .
| A．children who live solely with their grandparents may benefit the most |
| B．grandparents are a source of comfort to children from families undergoing difficulties |
| C．grandparents play a more positive role than parents in children’s growth |
| D．all families should leave their children to be brought up by grandparents |
If you’re planning on traveling, there a
re a few simple rules about how to make life easier both before and after your jou
rney.
First of all, always check and double-check departure (起程) time. It is amazing how few people really do this carefully. Once I arrived at the airport a few minutes after ten. My secretary had got the ticket for me and I thought she had said that the plane left at 10:50. When I arrived at the airport, the clerk at the departure desk told me that my flight was closed. Therefore, I had to wait three hours for the next one and missed an important meeting.
The second rule is to remember that even in this age of credit cards, it is still important to have at least a little of the local currency(货币) with you when you arrive 
in a country. This can be necessary if you are flying to a place few tourists normally visit. A few years ago I was sent to Tulsa, Oklahoma. I flew there from London via(经由)Dallas, with very little time to change planes in between. I arrived there at midnight and the bank at the airport was closed. The only way to get to my hotel was by taxi and because I had no dollars, I offered to pay in pounds instead.
“Listen! I only take real money!” the driver said angrily. Luckily I was able to borrow a few dollars from a clerk at the hotel, but it was embarrassing (令人难
堪的).
The third and last rule is to find out as much as you can about the weather at your destination before you leave. I feel sorry for some of my workmates who travel in heavy suit and raincoats in May, when it is still fairly cool in London or Manchester, to places like Athens, Rome or Madrid, where it is already beginning to get quite warm during the day. According to the passage, it’s obvious that______
| A．The author learns some rules of traveling from his own experience. |
| B．The author doesn’t plan his trips or journeys carefully. |
| C．Englishmen like to wear heavy suits wherever they travel |
| D．The America taxi driver never travels to England. |
What should you make sure first before setting off?
| A．When you will leave. | B．Where you will go. |
| C．How you will travel | D．Whom you will go with. |
According to the passage, the driver was angry because_______
| A．the author gave him false money |
| B．the author did not give him the local currency |
| C．the author did not give him money |
D．the auth or had no enough change |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．The author tells people to choose warm places as their travel destinations. |
| B．You don’t have to take credit cards when traveling. |
| C．You should know more about the weather of the place you’ll visit. |
D．You should take enough change when yo u travel to other countries. |
What is t
he main idea of the passage?
A．A few simple rules about how to make life easier both befo re and after your journey. |
| B．Always check and double-check departure time. |
| C．It is important to have the local currency with you when you arrive in a country. |
D．To find out as much as you can about the weather at your destination before you lea ve. |
Everyday, 340 million people speak it. One billion people are learning it and it is said that by 2050, half of the world’s population will be using it. What are we talking about? That is the global language—English.
The English language started in Britain in the 5th century. It is a mixed language. It was built up when German. Scandinavian and French invaders settled in England and created a common language for communication.
Today it is the official language of the UK, the USA, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, South Africa and Ireland as well as many islands in the Caribbean. Many other countries and regions use it for politics and business, for
example, India. Pakistan, Nigeria and the Philippines. English is also one of the official languages of Hong Kong.
But global advertising and pop music mean that in most countries, you will see or hear some English. Thanks to McDonalds, we all know about “burgers”. “fries” and “milkshakes”. Songs by Madonna, Britney Spears and Celine Dion are in English. We can sing along, even if we do not understand what we are singing!
English is a messy (杂乱的) language. Every year, dictionaries include new word
s that talk about popular culture, for example, computer-related words such as "blogging", "download" and "chartroom". Also included are words that teenagers use. Who does not know “cool”, “OK” and “hello”?
Other languages also influence 
English. Many English words come from French. Words like “café” and expressions like “c'est la vie” (that is life) are all part of the English language. On the other hand, the French language includes English words like "le weekend" and "le camping". German words are also part of English
. Words like "kindergarten" come from the German language.
Recently, British peo
ple have become interested in “yoga”. But the word comes from an ancient Hindu language in India. The English language has a history of ______.
| A．over 2000 years | B．over 500 years |
| C．over 1500 years | D．over 1000 years |
The underlined expression “thanks to” can be replaced by ______.
| A．because of | B．in order to | C．as usual | D．as if. |
Which of the following statements is true about the language of English?
| A．It has been changing all the time. |
B．It has borrowed words from all the other languages. |
C．French words are used by the En glish because dictionaries have French words. |
| D．Singers and film stars have the greatest influence on language. |
How many people in the world are using English now?
| A．One billion people | B．340 million |
| C．almost all the people in the world. | |
| D．not mentioned above, but the number is growing rapidly. |
Many countries and regions use it for politics and business except______.
| A．the USA | B．Nigeria | C．the Philippines | D．Norway |
Everyone needs friends. We all like to feel close to someone. It is nice to have a friend to talk, laugh and do things with. Sure, there are times when we need to be alone. We don’t always want people around. But we would feel lonely if we never had a friend.
No two people are the same. Sometimes friends don’t get along well. That doesn’t mean they no longer like each other. Most of the time they will go on being friends. Sometimes friends move away. Then we feel very sad. We miss them very much. But we can call them and write to them. Maybe we wound never see them again. And we can make new friends. It is surprising to find out how much we like new people when we get to know them. Families sometimes name their children after a close friend. Many places are named after men and women, if they are friendly to people in a town. Some libraries are named in this way. So are some schools. We think of these people when we go to these places.
There is more good news for people, if they have friends. These people live longer than those people who don’t have friends. Why? It could be that they are happier. Being happy helps you stay well. Or it could be just knowing that someone cares. If someone cares about you, you take better care of yourself. The first paragraph tells us_______
| A．what is the feeling of having no friends |
| B．how to communicate with friends |
| C．making friends is a need in people’s life |
| D．we need to be alone in our life |
According to the author, why sometimes friends don’t get along well? Because________
| A．friends move away |
| B．we don’t call them and write to them |
| C．we have made new friends |
| D．no two people are the same |
Which of the following places people name after their friendly people is NOT mentioned in the passage?
| A．A town | B．A room | C．A school | D．A library |
Why do people who have friends live longer?
| A．They feel happier and healthier. |
| B．They know more about friendship. |
| C．They take less care of themselves. |
| D．They care more about their friends. |
This passage mainly tells us ______
| A．that people are all friends | B．that people need friends |
| C．how to get to know friends | D．how to name a place |
The word “conservation” has a thrifty meaning. To conserve is to save and protect, to leave what we ourselves enjoy in such a good condition that others may also share the enjoyment. Our forefathers had no idea that human population would increase faster than the supplies of raw materials: most of them, even until very recently, had the foolish idea that the treasures were “limitless” and could “last forever”. Most of the citizens of earlier generations knew little or nothing about the complicated and delicate system that runs all through nature, and which means that, as in a living body, an unhealthy condition of one part will sooner or later be harmful to all the others.
Fifty years ago, nature study was not part of school work; scientific forestry was a new idea; wood was still cheap because it could be brought in any quantity from distant woodlands; soil destruction and river floods were not national problems; nobody had yet studied long-term climatic cycles in relation to proper land use; even the word “conservation” had nothing of the meaning that it has for us today.
For the sake of ourselves and those who will come after us, we must now set about correcting the mistakes of our forefathers. Conservation should be made part of everybody’s daily life. To know about the water table (水位) in ground is just as important to us as a knowledge of the basic math formulas(公式). We need to know why all watersheds (上游集水区) need the protection of plant life and why the running current of streams and rivers must be made to give their full benefit to the soil before they finally escape to the sea. We need to be taught the duty of planting trees as well as of cutting them. We need to know the importance of big, grown trees, because living space for most of man’s fellow creatures on this planet is figured not only in square measure of surface but also in cubic（立方体的） volume above the earth. In a word, it should be our goal to restore as much of the original beauty of nature as we can.The author’s attitude towards the use of natural resources is_________.
| A．positive | B．uninterested | C．optimistic | D．critical |
According to the author, the greatest mistake of our forefathers was that________.
| A．they had no idea about scientific forestry |
| B．they had little or no sense of environmental protection |
| C．they were not aware of the importance of nature study |
| D．they had no idea of how to make good use of raw materials |
To avoid repeating the mistakes of our forefathers, the author suggests that ________.
| A．we plant more trees |
| B．natural sciences be taught to everybody |
| C．environmental education be given to everybody |
| D．we return to nature |
How can you understand the underlined sentence in the last paragraph?
| A．Our living space on the earth is getting smaller and smaller. |
| B．Our living space should be measured in cubic volume. |
| C．We need to take some measures to protect space. |
| D．We must preserve good living condition for both birds and animals. |
Students and Technology in the Classroom
I love my blackberry — it’s my little connection to the larger world that can go anywhere with me. I also love my laptop computer，as it holds all of my writing and thoughts. Despite this love of technology, I know that there are times when I need to move away from these devices（设备）and truly communicate with others.
On occasion, I teach a course called History Matters for a group of higher education managers. My goals for the class include a full discussion of historical themes and ideas. Because I want students to thoroughly study the material and exchange their ideas with each other in the classroom, I have a rule — no laptop, iPads, phones ,etc .When students were told my rule in advance of the class, some of them were not happy.
Most students assume that my reasons for this rule include unpleasant experiences in the past with students misusing technology. There’s a bit of truth to that. Some students assume that I am anti-technology. There’s no truth in that at all. I love technology and try to keep up with it so I can relate to my students.
The real reason why I ask students to leave technology at the door is that I think there are very few places in which we can have deep conversions and truly engage complex ideas. Interruptions by technology often break concentration and allow for too much dependence on outside information for ideas. I want students to dig deep within themselves for inspiration and ideas. I want them to push each other to think differently and make connections between the course the material and the class discussion.
I’ve been teaching my history class in this way for many years and the evaluations reflect student satisfaction with the environment that I create. Students realize that with deep conversation and challenge, they learn at a level that helps them keep the course material beyond the classroom.
I’m not saying that I won’t ever change my mind about technology use in my history class, but until I hear a really good reason for the change, I’m sticking to my plan. A few hours of technology-free dialogue is just too sweet to give up.Some of the students in the history class were unhappy with _______.
| A．the course material | B．others’ misuse of technology |
| C．discussion topics | D．the author’s class regulations |
The underlined word “engage ”in paragraph 4 probably means _______.
| A．explore | B．accept | C．change | D．reject |
According to the author, the use of technology in the classroom may _______.
| A．keep students from doing independent thinking |
| B．encourage students to have in-depth conversations |
| C．help students to better understand complex themes |
| D．affect students’ concentration on course evaluation |
It can be inferred from the last paragraph that the author _______.
| A．is quite stubborn |
| B．will give up teaching history |
| C．will change his teaching plan soon |
| D．values technology-free dialogues in his class |