Encouraging pupils to keep noise to a minimum should be a valuable component of all children’s education, according to new research.
Dr. Helen Lees, from Stirling University’s school of education, says that “enforced（强制的）silence” is seen as a punishment and often acts to suppress children’s natural ability. But she says that teaching children about the benefits of “enforced silence”,--- deliberate stillness that gives them the opportunity to focus and reflect in a stress-free environment--- can have a significant effect on pupils’ concentration and behavior.
It is the latest in a string of researches to establish a link between the classroom environment and pupils’ academic ability.
A study almost a decade ago in London found that children’s exam results were cut by as much as a third if they were taught in noisy classrooms. Teaching unions have also called for a limit of 26℃ to be put on classroom temperatures because teachers and pupils struggle to work in hot conditions, and some educationalists claim that too much clutter（杂乱的东西）on classroom walls can prevent children from concentrating.
Dr. Lees said, “When we take some research on school settings and put it all together, what we see is that education without silence does not make much sense. In areas of better learning outcomes, better self- confidence and well-being measures, enforced silence in a person’s life and an individual’s education is shown throughout the relevant research to be a benefit.”
Dozens of schools across Britain have already introduced periods of “reflective silence” into the timetable.
Kevin Hogston, head of Sheringdale Primary, south London, has just introduced a minute’s silence at the start of twice-weekly meetings in which children are taught breathing techniques and encouraged to reflect. The school plans to introduce it into classrooms every day.According to Dr. Helen Lees, “enforced silence” ＿＿
| A．is an effective way of punishment |
| B．does not make much sense in class |
| C．can improve pupils’ confidence |
| D．makes pupils more creative |
The underlined word, “suppress”, in the second paragraph probably means “_________”.
| A．prevent | B．improve | C．apply | D．reveal |
What can be inferred from the research on school settings?
| A．Students are more active if taught in noisy classrooms. |
| B．Silence makes a great difference to pupils. |
| C．Clutter on the walls can help students concentrate. |
| D．Most schools are not satisfactory in terms of classroom temperatures. |
What would be the best title for the text?
| A．Arranging classroom settings benefits studies |
| B．Achieving silence is beneficial for people |
| C．Using enforced silence is effective punishment |
| D．Keeping quiet in class improves academic performance |
"How should I give my children pocket money?" is one of the most common questions asked by parents. "Should kids receive pocket money when they get high marks at school, or lose pocket money if they don’t help with the housework?" are also common questions. Giving pocket money is an excellent way to develop children’s independence. Children should receive pocket money as their small share of the family wealth, and they should share in doing the housework as well. Here are some ideas to help you use pocket money to develop your children’s independence. Give pocket money regularly. Like adults, children should have a payday every week or two. Link pocket money with ages and needs. Provide spending guidelines; don’t be afraid to let them know what you expect them to buy, and what not to. A child in preschool and lower primary school is sure to spend money on candies and other such things. But older children can be expected to buy their own lunches or bus tickets. Teach kids to set their goals. Encouraging children to save money for big things like bikes can help them learn about planning ahead. When given wisely, pocket money is an excellent way to develop children’s independence. But at some time, perhaps when a child turns fifteen, it needs to be reduced or eliminated in order to encourage the child to get a part-time job and begin to earn his own pocket money.What is the author’s attitude towards giving children pocket money?
| A．Positive. | B．Indifferent(中立的). |
C．Negative. | D．Worried. |
According to the author, giving pocket money to children ______.
| A．is an excellent way to encourage them to study hard |
B．makes them learn to be more independent |
C．makes their parents worry less about them |
D．is a good way to make them do a lot of housework |
When giving pocket money to children, parents should ______.
| A．give them lots of money so that they can share the family wealth |
B．give it to them at regular times |
C．give every child the same amount |
D．let them spend it as they please |
What do we learn from the passage?
| A．Only children who help do the housework should get pocket money. |
B．Parents usually give more money to younger children. |
C．Parents should let children spend money on their own when they have money |
D．Children should find part-time jobs when they get old enough. |
While waiting to pick up a friend at the airport in Portland, Oregon, I had an experience which occurred merely two feet away from me.
Trying to locate my friend among the passengers coming through the jet way, I noticed a man walking toward me carrying two light bags. He stopped right next to me to greet his family.
First he kissed his three children one by one and said, “It’s nice to see you. I missed you so much!” Then he hugged his wife, “I’ve saved the best for last!” giving her the longest, most passionate (热情的) kiss I ever remember seeing. They stared at each other’s eyes, smiling at one another, while holding both hands. For an instant they reminded me of newlyweds, but I knew by the age of their kids that they couldn’t possibly be.
Full of admiration, I asked, “Wow! How long have you two been married?” “Being together for fourteen years total, married twelve of those.” He replied, without breaking his stare from his lovely wife’s face. “Well, then, how long have you been away?” I asked. “Two whole days!” “Two days?” I was astonished. By the intensity (热烈) of the greeting, I had thought he’d been gone for at least several weeks — if not months. I knew my expression gave away me, so I turned away my eyes and said quietly, “I hope my marriage is still that passionate after so long!”
The man suddenly stopped smiling and looked at me straight in the eye. With forcefulness he told me something that left me a different person. “Don’t hope, friend…decide!” Then he smiled again, shook my hand and said, “God bless!”
With that, he and his family turned and walked away together.
I was still watching that man and his special family walk just out of sight when my friend came up to me and asked, “What are you looking at?” Without hesitation, and with a curious sense of certainty, I replied, “My future!”The best title of the passage may be __________.
| A．Long Loving Hugs | B．My Future |
| C．Love Is Everywhere | D．Don’t Hope, Decide |
Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．It was fourteen years since the couple had got married. |
| B．After being away for several weeks, the man missed his family very much. |
| C．The man replied to the author, with his eyes still fixed on his wife’s face. |
| D．Their three kids reminded the author of newlyweds. |
By saying “my expression gave away me” （in Paragraph 4）, the author means that __________.
| A．he failed to express his ideas to the man |
| B．his expression was not faithful to him |
| C．he didn’t believe in his expression any more |
| D．the man sensed his real feelings from his expression |
From the passage, we can infer that __________.
| A．the author will live a passionate life from now on |
| B．the experience may be easily forgotten by the author |
| C．the author will be away from his family and hug them passionately upon his return |
| D．Americans prefer to save the best for last |
“Old wives’ tales” are beliefs passed down from one generation to another. For example，most of us remember our parents’ telling us to eat more of certain foods or not to do certain things. Is there any truth in these teachings? Some of them agree with present medical thinking，but others have not passed the test of time.
Did your mother ever tell you to eat your carrots because they are good for your eyes? Scientists now report that eating carrots can help prevent a serious eye disease called macular degeneration. Eating just one carrot a day can reduce the possibility of getting this disease by 40%. Garlic is good for you，too. It can kill the type of virus that causes colds.
Unfortunately, not all of Mom’s advice passed the test of medical studies. For example, generations of children have been told not to go swimming within an hour after eating. But research suggests that there is no danger in doing so. Do sweets cause tooth problems？Well, yes and no. Sticky sweets made with grains(谷物) tend to cause more problems than sweets made with simple sugars.
Even though science can tell us that some of our traditional beliefs don’t hold_water,_there is still a lot of truth in the old wives’ tales. After all, much of this knowledge has been accumulated (积累) from thousands of years of experience in family health care. We should respect this body of knowledge even as we search for clear scientific support to prove it true or false.Which of the following is TRUE according to the text?
| A．Sticky sweets are damaging to our teeth. |
| B．Eating garlic is good for our eyes. |
| C．Swimming after a meal is dangerous. |
| D．Carrots prevent people from catching colds. |
The author develops the third paragraph mainly________.
| A．by cause and effect | B．by order in space |
| C．by examples | D．by order in time |
The phrase“ hold water” in the last paragraph most probably means“________”．
| A．to be valuable | B．to be believable |
| C．to be admirable | D．to be suitable |
What is the author’s attitude towards“old wives’ tales”in the text?
| A．Subjective(主观的). | B．Objective(客观的). | C．Dissatisfied. | D．Curious. |
Of all the things our wisdom tells us will make life entirely happy, the greatest is the possession of friendship. One loyal friend is worth ten thousand relatives. Friends are very rare jewels, indeed. They make you smile and encourage you to succeed.
On the first Sunday in August, it’s time to recognize your friends and their contribution to your life. The first Sunday in August was fixed as National Friendship Day by the U.S. Congress in 1935, and remains a tradition observed in many countries and cultures. In 1997, the United Nations named Winnie the Pooh as the world’s Ambassador of Friendship.
Apparently, there are several friendship holidays, all of which fall on fixed dates.
National Friendship Day is on the first Sunday in August
Women’s Friendship Day is on the third Sunday in September
International Friendship Month is February
Old Friends, New Friends Week is the third week of May
People show their appreciation for friendship in various ways. Some expressions may be practical ones, such as flowers, particularly the pink friendship roses, cookies, chocolates, souvenirs from their vacations, a tape of favorite songs, farewell dinners, and welcome balloons.
Recipe for Friendship 2 cups of patience, 1 heart full of love, 2 handfuls of generosity, 2 cups of loyalty, 1 cup of understanding, A dash of laughter. Mix them all well. Spray generously over a lifetime and serve everyone you meet.
Friendship helps to bring peace and positivity to the globe, another great reason to celebrate! Although our friends certainly deserve thanks on more than just one day of the year, what better day to honor them than Friendship Day!!Which of the following proverbs supports the main idea of the first paragraph?
| A．Friendship cannot stand always on one side. |
| B．A friend in need is a friend indeed. |
| C．A friend without faults will never be found. |
| D．A life without a friend is a life without a sun. |
Which of the holidays happens first in a year?
| A．National Friendship Day. | B．Women’s Friendship Day. |
| C．International Friendship Month. | D．Old Friends, New Friends Week. |
What is most needed to make friendship grow, develop and last?
| A．Inviting your friends over for a party. |
| B．Looking on your friends as relatives. |
| C．Honoring your friends on Friendship Day. |
| D．Being loyal and generous to your friends. |
“Recipe for Friendship” here actually means .
| A．a prescription for curing friends | B．a method of keeping a friendship |
| C．the pleasure of having friends | D．the importance of friendship |
How to protect children Web fans from unsuitable material on-line while encouraging them to use the Internet has long been discussed in the US.
For some parents, the Internet can seem like a jungle, filled with danger for their children. But jungles contain wonders as well as danger. With good guides, some education, and a few precautions(预防 ), the wilds of the Internet can be safely navigated. “Kids have to be on-line. If we tell our kids they can’t be allowed to surf the Internet, we’re cutting them off from their future,” said an expert.
Most kids have started to use search engines. Many of them are great for finding tons of interesting Internet sites, and they can also locate places where you might not want your kids to go. There are search engines designed just for kids. A certain software contains only sites that have been selected as safe. The most popular way would be to use what is known as a “content screener”. But this can’t be wholly reliable(可靠 ), and the best thing parents can do is to talk to their kids and let them know what is OK or not OK to see or do on the Internet. Another way is that mum or dad is nearby when the child is surfing the Internet.
A few other tips:
—Do not put the PC in a child’s room but keep it in an area where mum or dad can keep an eye on things. That also makes the Internet more of a family activity.
—Ask your child what he or she has been doing and about any friends they make on-line.
―Tell your child not to give on-line strangers personal information, especially like address and phone number.
And tell your children never to talk to anyone they meet on-line over the phone, send them anything, accept anything from them or agree to meet with them unless you go along.What is the best way to protect children from improper material?
| A．To talk to the children and persuade them to tell right from wrong. |
| B．To be nearby when the children are surfing the Internet. |
| C．To fix a content screener on the computer. |
| D．To buy some search engines for children. |
Which of the following statements is true according to the passage?
| A．Surfing the Internet is the best way of educating children. |
| B．Using a content screener is most reliable for keeping children from having ways to the Internet. |
| C．Searching engines can help children to select materials fit for them. |
| D．Children’s not having chances to go to the Internet may have effect on their progress. |
According to the passage, we can infer that ____.
| A．softwares that are fit for children who want programming |
| B．the Internet contains a lot of harmful sites |
| C．the Internet will be protected by law |
| D．a child who is on-line is in danger |
What does the passage tell us most?
| A．Education | B．Good guides | C．Precautions | D．Software |