Why play games? Because they are fun, and a lot more besides. Following the rules…planning your next move...acting as a team member…these are all “game” ideas that you will come across throughout your life.
Think about some of the games you played as a young child, such as rope-jumping and hide-and-seek. Such games are entertaining and fun. But perhaps more importantly, they translate life into exciting dramas that teach children some of the basic rules they will be expected to follow the rest of their lives, such as taking turns and cooperating (合作) .
Many children’s games have a practical side. Children around the world play games that prepare them for work they will do as grown-ups. For instance, some Saudi Arabian children play a game called bones. Which sharpens the hand-eye coordination(协调)needed in hunting.
Many sports encourage national or local pride. The most famous games of all, the Olympic Games, bring athletes from around the world together to take part in friendly competition. People who watch the event wave flags, knowing that a gold medal is a win for an entire country, not just the athlete who earned it. For countries experiencing natural disasters or war, an Olympic win can mean so much.
Sports are also an event that unites people. Soccer is the most popular sport in the world. People on all continents play it—some for fun and some for a living. Nicolette Iribarne, a Californian soccer player, has discovered a way to give people hope through soccer. He created a foundation(基金会) to provide poor children with not only soccer balls but also a promising future.
Next time you play your favorite game or sport, think about why you enjoy it, what skills are needed, and whether these skills will help you in other aspects of your life.Through playing hide-and-seek, children are expected to learn to ________.
A.be a team leader | B.obey the basic rules |
C.act as a grown-up | D.predict possible danger |
The underlined part in Paragraph 2 most probably means that games can________.
A.describe life in an exciting way |
B.turn real-life experiences into a play |
C.make learning life skills more interesting |
D.change people’s views of sporting events |
According to the passage, why is winning Olympic medals so encouraging?
A.It makes people have a deep love for the country. |
B.It proves the exceptional skills of the winners. |
C.It helps the country out of natural disasters. |
D.It earns the winners fame and fortune. |
Iribarne’s goal of forming the foundation is to _______.
A.bring fun to poor kids |
B.provide soccer balls for children |
C.give poor kids a chance for a better life |
D.appeal to soccer players to help poor kids |
What can be learned from the passage?
A.Games benefit people all their lives. |
B.Sports can get all athletes together. |
C.People are advised to play games for fun. |
D.Sports increase a country’s competitiveness. |
Find a quiet location. Keep a routine. Focus on one subject at a time. It all seems like sound advice for students who need to hit the books, but recent studies indicate the conventional wisdom is all wrong.
Here's a list of tips from Carey, a sc ientist, for getting the most out of your study time:
Test yourself:Doing practice quizzes can help you retrieve information on test day. “Tests have a very bad reputation as a measurement tool,” Carey says. But psychologists have found self-tests slow down the forgetting of material you've studied. “If you study something once, and then you test yourself on it,” Carey says, “you do better than if you study it twice over.”
Move around: Changing up where you study can help you retain more information. “If you move around and study the same material in several places,” he says, “you may be forming…multiple associations for the same material, the same words and so on. So it's better organized in your brain, and you can pull it out easier.”
Mix it up:Think about a football player who does strength training, speed training and drills. Carey says alternating between different facets of a subject in a single sitting can “leave a deeper impression on the brain”. For example, when studying French, do some verbs, some speaking and some reading. Spending your time in deep concentration on just verbs, say, isn't as effective.
Space it out:Information learned in a hurry is lost just as fast. Carey lik es cramming your brain to speed-packing a cheap suitcase—it all falls out. So if you really want to learn, space out shorter, hour-long study sessions. “There's no doubt you can cram your way through an exam,” Carey says. The problem is that it's so easy to forget what you just crammed—and once it's gone, Carey says, “It's gone. You're not getting it back.”
Of course, nothing can replace the power of motivation and discipline. But Carey says the overall message is encouraging:“Studying can sort of be incorporated into a more varied life, much more easily than we thought.”According to the text, the best way to learn is ________.
A.to learn one's subject at a time in a quiet place |
B.to be strongly motivated to learn something |
C.to mix up everything that you will learn |
D.to do self-tests after you learn immediately |
Why are you advised to move around while learning?
A.Because it can make your brain focus on learning. |
B.Because you can save time by missing the same words. |
C.Because you can connect materials with different things. |
D.Because it keeps your brain in a completely resting state. |
How did the writer develop the fifth paragraph?
A.By telling an interesting story. |
B.By presenting in the time order. |
C.By analyzing causes and effects. |
D.By making a comparison. |
It can be inferred from what Carey said in the third paragraph that ________.
A.tests used to be treated as a tool to judge learners |
B.tests would slow down your study |
C.tests were the best way to learn new information |
D.tests do good to you more than learning itself |
Your four-legged friends may soon have their own channel. DogTV, cable TV’s first channel for dogs, is mostly about keeping lonely dogs calm.
There are about 78 million canines(犬) in the United States. DogTV is aimed at the many of these that are left alone for long periods. Dogs are social animals and often grow anxious when left on their own. They may bark, chew shoes, and generally get into trouble. DogTV, which was launched last February, is designed to help ease their boredom and anxiety.
Creators of the cable service approached their task scientifically. The sounds, colors, and camera angles have all been adjusted for canine senses. For instance, colors are made more vivid so that dogs can see objects clearly. DogTV does not, as you might think, show Scooby-Doo and Clifford the Big Red Dog. Rather, there are three types of DogTV “shows.” The first aims to relax dogs. These segments show dogs resting to the sound of calming music. The second kind shows pleasant (for a dog) day-to-day settings, like riding in a car or walking down a street. The third type is meant to stimulate ---like a scene of two dogs playing in a field. “Dogs love watching other dogs being active on the screen,” says Beke Lubeach, a DogTV spokesperson. She says that birds, monkeys, and zebras also make dogs take notice.
Not everyone is buying it. “I think a lot of this is to make us feel better as opposed to making the pet happier,” says Dr. Ann. E. Hohenhaus of New York’s Animal Medical Center. She tells The New York Times, “Your pet needs adequate exercise and an interesting environment.” You cannot just turn on the TV and hope your dog is going to get better.
On the other hand, the Humane Society animal shelter in Escondido, California, tried out DogTV at its shelter. Sally Costello, the director, says workers observed that dogs exposed to the channel were calmer and barked less.
DogTV has been seen only in Southern California so far. But it is scheduled to go national soon. Owners of the commercial-free channel hope to charge about $5 a month for their service.The following programs are often broadcast on DogTV EXCEPT________.
A.Dogs resting to the sound of calming music. |
B.Programs like Cliff ford the Big Red Dog. |
C.A scene of two dogs playing in a field |
D.Dogs riding in a car or walking down a street |
What does Dr. Ann E. Hohenhaus agree according to the fourth paragraph?
A.Everyone who owns dogs will buy the service. |
B.DogTV can make your dogs happier and happier. |
C.Dogs need more than a good animal channel. |
D.DogTV makes people happier than pet dogs. |
Which of the following is RIGHT according to the passage?
A.DogTV will only be seen in Southern California. |
B.There will be many ads on the animal Channel. |
C.Dog owners will enjoy the programs very much. |
D.Dogs exposed to the channel will become calmer. |
Which of the following can serve as the best title for this passage?
A.How to Make Your Dog Happier. |
B.A New TV for Dogs |
C.How to Keep Dogs Calm. |
D.A New Channel to Calm Dogs Down |
The booking notes of the play the Age of Innocence:
Price: $10
BOOKING
There are four easy ways to book seats for performance:
------ in person:
The Box Office is open Monday to Saturday, 10 a.m. -8 p.m.
------ by telephone:
Ring 01324976 to reserve your tickets or to pay by credit card(Visa, Master Card and Amex accepted)
------ by post:
Simply complete the booking form and return it to Global Theatre Box Office.
------ online:
Complete the online booking form at www. Satanfieldtheatre. Com
DICOUNTS:
Saver: $2 off any seat booked any time in advance for performances from Monday to Thursday. Savers are available for children up to 16 years old, over 60s and full-time students.
Supersaver: half-price seats are available for people with disabilities and one companion. It is advisable to book in advance. There is a maximum of eight wheelchair spaces available and one wheelchair space will be held until an hour before the show.
Standby: best available seats are on sale for $6 from one hour before the performance for people eligible(suitable)for Saver and Supersaver discounts and thirty minutes before for all other customers.
Group Bookings: there is a ten percent discount for parties of twelve or more.
School: school parties of ten or more can book $6 standby tickets in advance and will get every tenth ticket free.
Please note: we are unable to exchange tickets or refund money unless a performance is cancelled due to unforeseen circumstances.If you want to book a ticket, you CANNOT _____
A.use the Internet. |
B.ring the booking number and pay for the tickets by credit card. |
C.go to the Box Office on Sundays. |
D.complete a booking form and post it to the Box Office. |
According to the notes, who can get $2 off?
A.A 20-year-old full-time college student. |
B.A 55-year-old woman |
C.An 18-year-old teenager. |
D.The people who book the tickets on Fridays. |
If you make a group booking for a group of 14 students in advance, how much should you pay?
A.$78 | B.$84 | C.$126 | D.$140 |
I learnt about the Pygmalion effect (皮格玛丽翁效应) when I was 7 years old at Riverdale School in Palmerston North and I copied Melissa Crawford’s answers in a spelling test. Before that I was average at school but after that, because Melissa Crawford was smart, and I got all the right answers, I got put in all the smart kids groups.
From then on, I did really well at school because it was believed by the teachers that I would and I also got grouped with the smart kids. This experience that occurred at my primary school shows just how important the Pygmalion effect is in terms of being around mentors (导师) that expect that you' re going to do well and also being around people who are smart.
The Pygmalion effect is one principle you want to use if you want to make money fast. Have mentors that expect you will make money fast and as an extra boost hang around, copy and learn from other people who are also making money fast.
Yesterday this site had over 5,000 unique visitors and the traffic to it is increasing all the time. A year ago I contacted a group of people who got lots of traffic on their websites and I learnt from them. Truthfully I didn’t know if they expected me to start getting such traffic to websites but 1 imagined they did.
So there you have it the Pygmalion effect.
P. S. My grammar and spelling are not that great nowadays but that's actually completely irrelevant (不相关的) when it comes to getting lots of visitors to your site.When did the author learn about the Pygmalion effect?
A.Before he took the spelling test. |
B.After he cheated in the spelling test. |
C.When he did badly in exams. |
D.After he finished primary school. |
The author got grouped with the smart kids because ______.
A.he was an average pupil at school |
B.he did better than expected |
C.Melissa Crawford was smart |
D.he did better than all the others at school |
What does the underlined word “contacted” mean in the passage?
A.Lost touch with | B.Made friends with |
C.Got in touch with | D.Was concerned about |
Where does this passage probably taken from?
A.A science report | B.A newspaper. |
C.A website. | D.A magazine. |
Imagine being given the opportunity to wake up to lions, eat your meals with monkeys, and even share your bath with bears, all from the comfort of a unique new lodging experience.
The Jamala Wildlife Lodge opened its doors in January 2015,which was set up in an effort to educate visitors about aiding the survival of many of the world's endangered species.
“It’s great for the animals; they're going to get more space. It's great for the viewing public; they're going to get more things to see. It will be great for tourism and just for the local community," Said Richard Tindale,the owner and operator.
Spreading across three locations in the National Zoo,the 18 rooms, which range from giraffe tree houses to jungle bungalows, offer a fantastic experience with wildlife
The Giraffe Treehouse
The Giraffe Treehouse is set among the giraffe enclosures(), and the Jungle Bungalows are luxurious individual suites which are next to either lion, cheetah(), brown bear, or Malaysian sun bear enclosures.
The Ushaka House
Housing up to 26 people, the Ushaka House is built around the monkey enclosure and has a built-in aquarium which offers private views of some of the zoo’s sharks.
The Burley Griffin House
Only meters from the edge of Lake Burley Griffin, the indoor and outdoor entertaining areas have splendid views across the lake to Black Mountain.
The Shark House
The shark House has its own little jetty() and it comes out over the shark tank here and so the people who stay in the room will be able to go to their bedroom and pat the shark.
Location
Located in the heart of Australia’s political capital, the Jamala Wildlife Lodge at the National Zoo and Aquarium is just ten minutes from Canberra’s central Business District. What can't be seen at the Jamala Wildlife Lodge?
A. Sharks. | B. Lions. |
C. Monkeys. | D. Polar bean,. |
Which of the following is TRUE about the Iamala Wildlife Lodge?
A.The Jamala Wildlife Lodge has altogether 26 houses. |
B.The Jamala Wildlife Lodge has a very long history. |
C.The Jamala Wildlife Lodge is outside the National Zoo. |
D.The Jamala Wildlife Lodge lies in the heart of Canberra. |
If a tourist wants to visit Lake Burley Griffin, he'd better choose_________.
A.The Giraffe Treehouse | B.The Ushaka House |
C.The Burley Griffin House | D.The Shark House |
The purpose of writing the passage is to_________.
A.attracs more tourists to visit the. National Zoo. |
B.introduce the Jamala Wildlife Lodge in Australia |
C.raise people's awareness of protecting animals |
D.offer visitors an opportunity to play with sharks |