How to Study Smarter, Not Harder
Here are some of our favorite study tips that will help any student study smarter, not harder:
Recite As You Study
Reciting—saying things out loud should first take place as you read through each paragraph or section. Test yourself. This will help you to understand as well as learn faster because it is more active than reading or listening. It will also help you to notice your mistakes and the topics you have trouble understanding.
Take Fuller Notes
Notes should be in your own words, brief and clear. They should be tidy and easy to read. Writing notes will help you better than just underlining as you read, since it forces you to rewrite ideas in your own words.
Study the Middle
The best time to review is soon after you’ve learned something. You are more likely to remember the material at the beginning and the end of the lesson, so make sure you focus on the middle when you review.
Sleep On It
Study before going to bed, unless you are very tired. It’s easier to remember material you’ve just learned after sleeping than after an equal period of daytime activity, because your brain continues to think even after you’ve fallen asleep.
Combine Memory and Understanding
There are two ways to remember: by memorizing and by understanding. Multiplication tables(乘法表), telephone numbers, and math formulas(公式)are better learned by memorizing(记忆). Ideas are best learned by understanding.
The more ways you have to think about an idea, the more meaning it will have; the more meaningful the learning, the better you can remember it. Pay attention to similarities in ideas and concepts, and then try to understand how they fit in with things you already know. Never be satisfied with anything less than a completely clear understanding of what you are reading. If you are not able to follow the thought, go back to the place where you first got confused and try again.You can notice your mistakes by _______.
| A．saying things out aloud | B．taking notes |
| C．studying the middle | D．sleeping on it |
When taking notes, you should _______ to better help you with reading.
| A．underline important notes |
| B．write notes in your own words |
| C．take down every detail |
| D．write as quickly as possible |
The writer advises you to _______ as it is easier for you to remember material.
| A．study after a period of activity |
| B．do some exercise after studying |
| C．study as soon as you get up |
| D．study before going to sleep |
Which of the following is NOT helpful for your understanding?
| A．Thinking about an idea in different ways. |
| B．Relating ideas and concepts with what you already know. |
| C．Reading from the beginning to the end without stop. |
| D．Going back to what first made you confused and start again. |
What’s black and white and read all over? Not newspapers, at least not anymore. In fact, if you’re like most young people, you probably don’t read the newspaper at all.
In one recent survey, just 19 percent of 18 to 34-year-old said they read a newspaper every day, while 37 percent watch local TV news and 44 percent visit Internet news sites daily. As people turn more and more to new technologies, they turn the pages of newspapers less and less.
“There’s a revolution (革命) in the way young people get news,” says media consultant Merrill Brown.
Just a generation (一代人) or two ago, the newspaper was the main way that many people got their news. Now, nearly every home has at least one TV set. There’s high-speed, wireless Internet both at home and in many public places.
You no longer have to wait for a bundle of newsprint to arrive on your doorstep every morning. Thanks to new technology, if you want to know what’s going on in the world, you can get breaking news immediately in more ways than one.
So newspapers face a very big challenge. Raised on MTV and video games, today’s kids and young adults want flashy displays, special effects, quick information, and the chance to interact (互动) in real time, even when they’re reading about serious problems.
If newspapers can’t find creative ways to be more than just ink on paper, some experts suggest, they might disappear completely.
Traditional newspaper articles are supposed to be read from beginning to end, lack (缺乏) of interaction. With Web pages, on the other hand, there’s more freedom. You can look through the things you’re interested in, then follow links to other sources. You can join discussion groups, read other people’s opinions on a topic, or start a blog to express your own views.This passage is mainly about ______.
| A．the disappearing newspaper | B．different news sources |
| C．the future of the Internet | D．the new technologies |
From the survey, we can see that ______.
| A．TV has become the major source of news |
| B．newspapers are no longer the major source of news |
| C．more than half of the 18-to-34-year-old visit news sites daily |
| D．new technologies have replaced the traditional one |
According to the passage, which of the following is NOT mentioned about the disadvantage of newspapers?
| A．High price. | B．Lack of changes. |
| C．Slow speed. | D．Lack of interaction. |
The author of the passage would probably think the future of newspapers is ______.
| A．attractive | B．bright |
| C．hopeless | D．uncertain |
When I was in my fourth year of teaching, I was also (and am still) a high school track and field coach (田径教练). One year, I had a student, John, who entered my class when he was a junior (三年级学生). John changed to our school from Greece, and seemed to be interested in athletics, so I encouraged him to join our track team. I explained to him that even though he had never taken part in it before, I did believe that he could do well in any event, and I would be willing to coach him at whichever ones interested him. He accepted the offer, and began to work hard at every practice.
About a month later, I had found out from other sources that John was a first-class tennis player, winning various junior awards in his home country. I went to him asking, “John, I really appreciate that you came out for the track team, but why didn’t you play tennis instead? It seems that would interest you a lot more, since you’re so good at it.”
John answered, “Well, I like tennis, but you told me that you believed in me, and that you thought I could do well in track, so I wanted to try it for that reason.”
From then on, I often remember my student’s reply. I told it to a friend and she suggested I write it down to share somewhere with more teachers. No matter how critical (不满的) students can be of themselves, I’ve found that a simple “I trust that you can do it!” can go a long way!According to Paragraph 1, the author seems to think more about John’s ______.
| A．PE marks | B．self-confidence |
| C．interest in sports | D．state of health |
Why did John take part in the track team?
| A．He had been an excellent runner. |
| B．He was encouraged by his teacher. |
| C．He liked running more than tennis. |
| D．He had no tennis coach to train him. |
The purpose of this passage is probably ______.
| A．to build a close teacher-student relationship |
| B．to introduce a new way of sports training |
| C．to explain the value of sports and games |
| D．to show the importance of encouragement |
The passage is mainly written for ______.
| A．teachers | B．parents |
| C．students | D．players |
Bringing art into hospitals
The medical world is gradually realizing that the quality of the environment in hospitals may play a significant role in helping patients to get better.
As part of a nationwide effort in Britain to bring art out of the museums and into public places, some of the country's best artists have been called in to change older hospitals and to soften the hard edges of modern buildings. Of the 2,500 national health service hospitals in Britain, almost 100 now have very valuable collections of present art in passages, waiting areas and treatment rooms.
These recent movements first started by one artist, Peter Senior, who set up his studio at a Manchester hospital in northeastern England during the early 1970s. He felt the artist had lost his place in modern society, and that art should be enjoyed by a wider audience(观众).
A common hospital waiting room might have as many as 500 visitors each week. What a better place to hold regular exhibitions of art? Senior held the first exhibition of his own paintings in the out-patients waiting area of the Manchester Royal Hospital in 1975. Believed to be Britain's first hospital artist, Senior was so much in demand that he was soon joined by a team of six young art school graduates.
The effect is striking. Now in the corridors and waiting rooms the visitor experiences a full view of fresh colors, playful images(形象) and restful courtyards.
The quality of the environment may reduce the need for expensive drugs when a patient is recovering from an illness. A study has shown that patients who had a view onto gardens needed half the number of strong pain killers compared with patients who had no view at all or only a brick wall to look at.Some best artists of Britain have been called in to ________
| A．set up new hospitals |
| B．make the corners of the hospital collect paintings |
| C．Bring art into hospitals |
| D．help patients recover form serious illnesses |
After the improvement of the hospital environment, _________
| A．patients no longer take drugs to kill their pains |
| B．patients don’t have to stay long in hospital |
| C．patients need fewer pain killers when they suffer from an illness |
| D．patients feel happy in hospital |
It can be inferred from the passage that _________
| A．the role of hospital environment is important |
| B．hospital artists have done more than doctors |
| C．exhibitions attract more audience in hospitals |
| D．the hospital is a better place for people |
When I was young I wanted to be a model，so when a national contest was staged，I convinced my parents to take me for an audition(试演). I was selected and told I had potential．They said that for only$900 I could attend a weekend event which dozens of the most prestigious(有声望的)modeling agencies from around the world would attend．At l 3，my hopes of fame and fortune clouded all judgment and I begged my parents to let me go．We have never been rich，but they saw my enthusiasm and agreed．
I imagined being signed by some famous model companies．For months，any boredom or disappointment I faced was pushed aside because I knew I would soon have the chance to be a real model．I thought I would grace the covers of famous magazines!
Of course，I wasn’t signed，but what hurt the most was being told that if I grew to 5'9”(about 1．75metres)I could be a success．I prayed for a growth spurt(冲刺)because I could not imagine giving up my dream．I made an appointment with a local modeling agency and the agent demanded$500 for classes．$500 for a photo shoot and $300 for other expenses．My parents only agreed after hours and hours of me begging．
The agency sent me out on a few auditions，but with every day I didn’t receive a call，I grew more depressed．The final straw came in July after I had decided to focus on commercial modeling．There was an open call in New York City．We spent hours driving and another few hours waiting．only to be told that I was too short．I was devastated(极度不安的)．
Years later，I realized that the trip to New York was good as it made me notice I didn’t actually love modeling，just the idea of it．I wanted to be special and 1 was innocently determined to reach an impossible goal．The experience has made me stronger and that will help me in the future．What’s the main reason why the author wanted to be a model?
| A．She won a national contest． |
| B．She wanted to get reputation and wealth． |
| C．She was urged by some modeling agencies． |
| D．She had full potential to be a successful model． |
What’s the author’s parents’attitude toward her dream?
| A．Encouraging． | B．Worried． |
| C．Doubtful． | D．Enthusiastic． |
What was it that made the author end her attempt to become a model?
| A．Her parents were strongly against it． |
| B．She realized that it was impossible for her． |
| C．Even a local modeling agency turned her down． |
| D．She realized that she didn’t actually love the idea of modeling. |
The underlined phrase‘'The final straw”probably means __________ .
| A．the last in a series of bad things that happen to make someone very upset, angry, etc |
| B．the final result that she was admired by the model company |
| C．the final audition given by the famous agency |
| D．the decision that she made at last not to be a model any more |
For years scientists have been worrying about the effects of air pollution on the earth’s natural conditions. Some believe the air inside many houses may be more dangerous than the air outside. It may be one hundred times worse.
Indoor air pollution can cause a person to feel tired, to suffer eye pain, headache and other problems. Some pollutants can cause breathing disorders, diseases of blood and even cancer, Most scientists agree that every modern house has some kind of indoor pollution.
People have paid more attention to the problem now. It is true that when builders began making houses and offices they did not waste energy. To do this they built buildings that limited the flow of air between inside and outside. They also began using man-made building materials. These materials are now known to let out harmful gases.
As the problem became more serious, scientists began searching for a way to deal with it. They discovered a natural pollution control system for building—green plants. Scientists do not really know how plants control air pollution. They believe that a plant’s leaves absorb or take in the pollutants. In exchange the plant lets out oxygen through its leaves and through its tiny organizations on its roots. Scientists suggest that all buildings should have one large plant or several small plants inside for every nine square metres of space. Studies of different plants show that each absorbs different chemicals.
So the most effective way to clean the air is to use different kinds of plants. Having green plants inside your house can make it a prettier and more healthy place.Generally speaking, indoor air pollution may be more harmful than the air outside because ________.
| A．indoor air pollution can make a person seriously ill |
| B．man - made building materials give off dangerous gases |
| C．there may be more harmful gases outside the buildings |
| D．the air indoors is polluted, which is very harmful |
Some kind of indoor pollution can be found in ________
A. every modern house
B. every old house
C. all kinds of houses
D all kinds of officesThe indoor air pollution is caused by ______
| A．the limit of the flow of air between inside and outside |
| B．the building way that the builders want to save energy |
| C．the building things that are made of man-made materials |
| D．the man-made building materials and the limit of airflow |
The reason why we should use different kinds of plants to clean the air is that _______
| A．plants can let out all kinds of pollutants indoors |
| B．plants may take in more oxygen which people need |
| C．plants can absorb all kinds of harmful indoor chemicals |
| D．plants can make our houses prettier and more healthy |