Has Tiger Mom gone soft? One year after the release of her book, Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother, Amy Chua is back in the spotlight, reflecting on how overnight infamy (恶名) affected her life, her family and her parenting.
“I have changed a lot,” she told the Huffington Post. “In October, we had 30 kids at our house! We have hosted parties with lots of food and music.”
Last January, the Wall Street Journal published an excerpt (节选) from Chua’s book with the headline “Why Chinese Mothers Are Superior”. In the excerpt, Chua described how her daughters were never allowed to have sleepovers (在外过夜的儿童聚会), appear in school plays, or earn any grade lower than an A. Chua, an author and professor at Yale Law School, spent much of 2011 on the defensive. In fact, many of her interviews seemed to lend fuel to her critics’ fire.
Now, with the book out in paperback, she said, “I put passages in the book and used very harsh words that I regret. Everybody has those moments you wish you could take back.”
For those who still read Battle Hymn as an advice guide, Chua argues that so-called tiger parenting should be employed mainly during a child’s early years, ideally between the ages of 5 and 12. These “super-strict parenting tactics” are not meant for all ages. Remaining strict after middle school makes you a helicopter parent, according to Chua. And she is quick to point out how different that is from being a tiger mom.
“By the time kids get to high school, helicopter parents are hiring all these tutors, carrying their kids’ sports bags. I never checked older daughter Sophia’s papers because I knew she knew how to sit down and focus,” Chua said.
As for younger daughter Lulu, 15, the rebel for whom the book was written, Chua has really backed off. Instead of forcing Lulu to practise violin for hours a day—the source of their biggest fights, Chua “let her give that up”. “My compromise (妥协) is that I’m going to still be as strict academically, but in exchange she has a lot of social freedom. Lulu has had four sleepovers in the last two months!” Chua said. Chua predicts she’ll only get more easygoing with age. What does the passage mainly tell us?
| A．Tiger Mom has changed and wants to be soft. |
| B．Tiger Mom persuaded readers to follow her example. |
| C．How Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother came out. |
| D．How Tiger Mom became the worldwide spotlight. |
From paragraph 1 we can know that after the publication of the book______________.
| A．Tiger Mom became stricter with her children |
| B．Tiger Mom was thought highly by the public |
| C．Tiger Mom’s life and family were influenced |
| D．Tiger Mom became wealthy and easygoing |
Lulu quarreled with her mother mainly over______________.
| A．whether she could do well at school |
| B．when she could have sleepovers |
| C．what should be written in the book |
| D．how long she practiced the violin |
Pigs are always considered dirty animals because they roll in mud．But in fact they prefer being quite clean．They cover themselves with mud to help stay cool．During cooler weather, they prefer to stay clean．So do elephants,who also cover themselves in dust or mud to keep cool．When they find a place with clean water they will take a bath，using their long noses to give themselves—or each other—a nice shower
Some animals use dust to get clean．Chinchillas (南美洲栗鼠) have very fine fur． They don`t like to take water baths because water is not warm enough for them．So, instead, they roll around in fine dust．The dust helps to keep their fur and skin dry．This protects them from disease
Usually, a small bird is a light meal for a crocodile．But when a crocodile wants its teeth cleaned．it lies on the ground with its mouth open．The crocodile bird goes in and picks out any parasites(寄生虫)between the crocodile`s teeth or under its tongue．The crocodile gets its mouth cleaned，and the crocodile bird gets dinner．
You wouldn`t think fish would need baths．But some undersea parasites live under the fish`s skin．“Cleaner”fish，like the wrasse(隆头鱼)，help take them away．The wrasse stands on its head and dances to signal a big fish that it is ready to go into the cleaning business．The big fish will stop moving and open its mouth wide so the wrasse can swim inside and pick out parasites and bits of food．The passage is mainly about how animals．
| A．stay clean | B．help each other | C．get their food | D．Take baths |
What can we learn from the first paragraph about pigs?
| A．They can help each other take baths． |
| B．They are dirtier during cooler weather． |
| C．They prefer taking baths to rolling in mud． |
| D．They like to stay cool and clean． |
Chinchillas use dust to get clean for the following reasons EXCEPT that．
| A． dust can dry their fur and skin |
| B．They are not good at swimming |
| C．Water is too cold for them |
| D．Dust is good for their health |
From Paragraphs 3 and 4，we earl know that．
| A．some animals can get clean from others`help |
| B．Most animals are friendly to each other |
| C．small animals couldn`t get food from big ones |
| D．All of the animals prefer to stay clean |
We can infer from the last paragraph that the wrasse
| A．is often eaten by other fish |
| B．1ikes under other fish`s skin |
| C．is a small kind of fish |
| D．1ikes taking baths |
Moving to a new city and state was difficult for me, especially in winter. Little did I know that a Colorado snowstorm would greet me after I had been in my new home for only a week.
I just missed home. But more than the old house and the beach, I missed Stacey, my best friend. And I missed our lovely tea. Going to a sweet little tearoom, we had discovered was a special treat for us. The place was a Victorian dream, with delicate teacups and tablecloths with flower prints. The hat shelf near the front door swept us back to childhood. Stacey and I became little girls, trying on different hats until we found the perfect one for our dress-up tea party. We would then choose a lovely table and order our tea. That was a precious time, filled with laughter between scones（煎饼） and sharing our lives between tiny cucumber sandwiches.
Springtime descended upon Denver, and the sun lightened my heart. But I still fought loneliness almost every day. I decided to explore the Denver area. While my husband went to the office, I took time to see what our new area had to offer.
One day, I was walking along the street when suddenly the words "Tea Leaves" caught my eye. A tea room? Here, in the land of loneliness and pain?
I walked through the doors, and tears came to my eyes. It was a beautiful room, not Victorian, but simple and lovely.
I sat down and ordered a pot of tea, a cucumber sandwich, and some scones. It felt silly and wonderful --- and it felt like home. For the first time since moving, I felt as if this new city and state could be, would eventually be, my home. I would come back here and bring new friends. When Stacey visited, we would come here.
I lifted my cup and made a silent toast. I toasted Stacey, whom I missedly, and I toasted the sweet little tearoom that lessened my pain.The author's hometown ______________.
| A．never snows | B．is still warm in winter |
| C．has a long history | D．is in an area by the sea |
The underlined word "treat" in Paragraph 2 probable means ____________.
| A．delicious food | B．something pleasant |
| C．service | D．a kind of tea party |
We can know from Paragraph 3 that the author ______________.
| A．didn't adapt to the new life |
| B．felt comfortable in the new environment in spring |
| C．didn't feel lonely any more in spring |
| D．wanted to actively adapt to the new environment |
Which of the following about "Tea Leaves" is true?
| A．It made the author recall her childhood. |
| B．It looks silly and wonderful. |
| C．Cucumber sandwiches and scones are its specialties. |
| D．It touched the author. |
We can infer from the text that the author would probably ____________.
| A．open her own teahouse |
| B．ask the owner of the teahouse to decorate it like a home |
| C．make new friends in Denver |
| D．go back to her hometown to visit Stacey |
I came to study in the United States a year ago .Yet I did not know the real American society until I was injured in a car accident because after the accident I had to see a doctor and go to court.
After the accident, my roommate called a doctor for me. I was very grateful and determined to repay him one day. But the next day, he asked me to pay him $200 for what he had done. I was astonished. He had good reason to charge me, he said. And if I wanted to collect money from the person who was responsible for my injury, I’d have to have a good lawyer. And only a good doctor can help me get a good lawyer .Now that he had helped me find a good doctor, it was only fair that I should pay him.
But every day I went to see the doctor, I had to wait about 50 minutes. He would see two or three patients at the same time, and often stop treating one so as to see another. Yet he charged me $115 each time .The final examination report consisted of ten lines, and it cost me $215.
My lawyer was all smiles the first time we met. But after that he avoided seeing me at all. He knew very well the other party was responsible for the accident, yet he hardly did anything. He simply waited to collect his money. He was so irresponsible that I decided to dismiss him. And he made me pay him $770.
Now I had to act as my own lawyer. Due to my inexperience, I told the insurance company the date I was leaving America. Knowing that, they played for time…and I left without getting a cent.The author’s roommate offered to help him because________.
| A．he felt sorry for the author |
| B．he thought it was a chance to make some money |
| C．he knew the doctor was a very good one |
| D．he wanted the author to have a good lawyer |
The word “charge” in the third paragraph means_________ .
| A．ask as a price | B．accuse | C．be responsible | D．claim |
Both the doctor and the lawyer in this passage are very__________.
| A．friendly | B．busy | C．professional | D．selfish |
What conclusion can you draw from the story?
| A．Going to court is something very common in America. |
| B．One must be very careful while driving a car. |
| C．There are more bad sides in America than good sides. |
| D．Money is more important than other things in the US. |
When I was 11, I had an enemy, a girl who liked to point out my shortcomings(缺点). Week by week her list grew: I was very thin, I wasn’t a good student, I talked too much, I was too proud, and so on. I tried to hear all this as long as I could. In the end, I became so angry that I ran to my father with tears in my eyes.
He listened to me quietly, then he asked. “Are the things she says true or not? Janet, didn’t you ever wonder what you’re really like? Well, you now have that girl’s opinion. Go and make a list of everything she said and mark the points that are true. Pay no attention to the other things she said.”I did as he told me. To my great surprise, I discovered that about half the things were true. Some of them I couldn’t change (like being very thin), but a good number I could—and suddenly I wanted to change. For the first time I go to fairly clear picture of myself.
I brought the list back to Dad. He refused to take it.” That’s just for you,” he said.
“You know better than anyone else the truth about yourself. But you have to learn to listen, not just close your ears in anger and feeling hurt. When something said about you is true, you’ll find it will be of help to you. Our world is full of people who think they know your duty. Don’t shut your ears. Listen to them all, but hear the truth and do what you know is the right thing to do.”
Daddy’s advice has returned to me at many important moments. In my life, I’ve never had a better piece of advice.What did the father do after he had heard his daughter’s complaint?
| A．He told her not to pay any attention to what her” enemy” had said. |
| B．He criticized (批评) her and told her to overcome her shortcomings. |
| C．He told her to write down all that her” enemy” had said about her and pay attention only to the things that were true. |
| D．He refused to take the list and have a look at it. |
What does “Week by week her list grew” mean?
| A．Week by week, my shortcomings grew more serious. |
| B．She had made a list of my shortcomings and she kept on adding new ones to it so that it was growing longer and longer. |
| C．I was having more and more shortcomings as time went on. |
| D．Week by week she discovered more shortcomings of mine and pointed them out to me. |
Why did her father listen to her quietly?
| A．Because he wasn’t quite sure which girl was telling the truth. |
| B．Because he had been so angry with his daughter’s shortcomings that he wanted to show this by keeping silent for a while. |
| C．Because he knew that his daughter would not listen to him at that moment. |
| D．Because he believed that what her daughter’s “enemy” said was mostly true. |
Which do you think would be the best title for this passage?
| A．The Best Advice I’ve Ever Had |
| B．Not an Enemy,but the Best Friend |
| C．My Father |
| D．My Childhood |
Water is very important to living things. Without water there can be no life on the earth. All animals and plants need water. Man also needs water. We need water to drink, to cook our food and to clean ourselves. Water is needed in offices, factories and schools. Water is needed everywhere.
There is water in seas, rivers and lakes. Water is found almost everywhere. Even in the desert part of the world, there is some water in the air. You can not see or feel it when it is a part of the air. The water in the seas, rivers and lakes is a liquid, the water in the air is a gas, and we call it water vapour (蒸气).
Clouds are made of water. They may be made of very small drops of water. They may also be made of snow crystals(结晶体). Snow crystals are very very small crystals of ice. Ice is frozen water. It is a solid. There can be snow and ice everywhere in winter.
Water may be a solid or a liquid or a gas. When it is a solid, it may be as hard as a stone. When it is a liquid, you can drink it. When it is a gas, you can not see or feel it.Where can we find water?
| A．We can find water when it turns into vapour. |
| B．Water is only in seas and rivers. |
| C．We can see water in deserts here and there. |
| D．Water can be found almost everywhere. |
We can drink water when it is
| A．a solid | B．aliquid | C．in the air | D．turned into ice |
Clouds are made of
| A．seas, rivers and lakes |
| B．blocks of ice |
| C．very small drops of water or snow crystals |
| D．solid, liquid and gas |
Water has three states(状态). They are
| A．solid, liquid and gas |
| B．solid, vapour, snow |
| C．drops of water, blocks of ice and crystals of water |
| D．ice, snow and air |