It’s common for parents to feel emotional when the moment comes for their child to leave home and go to university. Even parents who don’t speak about the event are likely to feel a sense of sadness because it’s the end of an era where you and your family were at the centre of your child’s world. As a parent you’ll probably continue to support your child in different ways, but the main job of raising your child is over. It’s a huge change for everyone involved.
There are a few things that you can do to make the transition easier. Plan carefully for your child’s departure and think about how you can help. Many parents take their child to university for the first time. If you decide to do that, be ready to feel a real wrench when the time comes to say goodbye. Your child will probably be as nervous as you are about the moment when you finally say goodbye – but that might not show!
Be positive and cheerful about the choice your child has made to continue studying, and plan to leave once you’ve unpacked the car and looked around your child’s new living accommodations. If you can, save your tears for the car – you’ll make things easier on your child and yourself.
The more you’ve invested in being a parent, the more you’ll feel a sense of loss, so the sadness you feel now is a sign that you’ve been a good mom or dad. Remind yourself that parenting is all about raising an independent and confident child who functions well without you. If your child quickly settles and starts enjoying himself, you should congratulate yourself.
It’s also only fair to allow yourself some time to grieve. Don’t expect to pick yourself up and move on straight away. But you may decide to find a hobby or sport to fill your extra time. Perhaps you’ve always wanted to learn a new language, go to yoga classes or take up swimming. You may decide to spend more time with family and close friends, who are likely to be feeling the absence of your child as well.
Agree on the best approach to staying in touch before your child leaves, and stick to your agreement. Try not to panic if your child doesn’t respond immediately – remember, they’re starting a new and busy life.The underlined word “wrench” in Paragraph 2 means a feeling of ________.
| A．sorrow | B．regret | C．anger | D．love |
What does good parenting consist of?
| A．Supporting your child in different ways all the time. |
| B．Congratulating yourself when your child goes to college. |
| C．Preparing your child to stand on their own feet in the future. |
| D．Investing as much as possible in the growth of your child. |
What’s NOT advised as the way to recover from your child’s departure?
| A．Developing a new hobby or sport |
| B．Learning a new language. |
| C．Spending more time with close friends |
| D．Staying in touch with your child. |
What would be an appropriate title for the whole passage?
| A．Staying in Touch with Your Child |
| B．Preparing to Say Goodbye to Your Child |
| C．Dealing with Your Child Leaving Home for University |
| D．Life after Your Child Has Left Home for University |
This is a tale of two friends --- one is blind, the other has no arms. On their own, the two are “disabled”. But together, they are a powerful team that has changed part of their village in North China’s Hebei Province into a rich, green forest. Meet 53-year-old Jia Haixia and Jia Wenqi!
Their story began in 2000, when Haixia, who was already blind in his right eye, lost his left one after an illness. Wenqi lost his arms in an accident when he was just three. Neither could find a job, so the two decided to team up. They rented some poor land and began to plant trees. In return, the local officials paid them a small fee. Haixia and Wenqi never imagined that they would end up creating an environmental paradise. Their forest now has over 10,000 trees, hundreds of birds and many other wild animals. In addition, it saves the village from river flooding during the rainy season. When the friends work together, they focus on their strengths not their disabilities. Their day begins at 7 a.m. when the sightless Haixia carries Wenqi across the river to get to their worksite. Since they cannot afford to buy young trees to plant, the two use branches from existing trees. Haixia climbs to the tree-top and with Wenqi’s direction, selects the perfect branch. He then digs a hole and carefully plants it. Finally Wenqi waters the area.
Though hard-working, the men don’t make much money. But as Wenqi puts it, “We stand on our own feet, so the fruits of our work taste sweeter.”
Neither Haixia nor Wenqi cares about money. Together, they already have everything they need --- a perfect pair of eyes, two strong hands, and the best friendship in the world!Why did Haixia and Wenqi start working together?
| A．Haixia needed someone to help him. |
| B．They both needed a way to make money. |
| C．They wanted to improve the environment. |
| D．They were required to do so by local offcials. |
Haixia and Wenqi’s forest has helped the village by______ .
| A．stopping floods in the rainy season |
| B．increasing the number of tourists |
| C．making the villagers richer |
| D．providing more farmland |
Why do Haixia and Wenqi plant tree branches?
| A．They are easy to get. |
| B．They do not cost money. |
| C．They can grow very quickly. |
| D．They are preferred by animals. |
In paragraph 5, when Wenqi says “We stand on our own feet, so the fruits of our work taste sweeter”, he means that “______”.
| A．they hope to make the forest even better |
| B．the fruits from their trees are very sweet |
| C．they are proud not to depend on others |
| D．they are able to do any difficult work |
What can we learn from this story?
| A．Never give up and you will succeed. |
| B．We should help the disabled to work. |
| C．Try your best when facing difficulties. |
| D．We can achieve more with teamwork. |
Green is an important color in nature. It is the color of grass and the leaves on trees. It is also the color of most growing plants.
Sometimes, the word “green” means young, fresh and growing. For example, a greenborn is someone who has no experience. In the 15 th century, a greenborn was a young cow or an ox whose borns(角)had not yet developed. A century later, a greenborn was a soldier who had no experience in war. By the 18 th century, a greenborn had the meaning it has today—a person who is new in a job.
Someone who is good at growing plants is said to have a green thumb(大拇指). The expression comes from the early 20 th century. A person with a green thumb can make plants grow quickly and well. The Green Revolution(绿色革命)is the name given some years ago to the development of new kinds of rice and other grains. It was the result of hard work by agricultural scientists who had green thumbs.
Green is also the color used to describe the powerful feeling. Jealousy(嫉妒). The green eyed monster is not a dangerous animal from outer space. It is an expression used about 400 years ago by the British writer William Shakespeare in his play “Othello”. It describes the unpleasant feeling when someone has something he wants.
In most places in the world, a green light is a signal(信号)to move ahead. In everyday speech, a green light means approval(赞成)to continue with a project.A new solider was called a greenborn in the ____ century.
| A．15 th | B．16 th | C．18 th | D．20 th |
A person with a green thumb____.
| A．is good at growing plants |
| B．really has a green thumb |
| C．has no experience in war |
| D．is new in a job |
A man may meet the green eyed monster if ____.
| A．he sees a dangerous animal |
| B．he can’t get something |
| C．he reads a sad play |
| D．his friend gets a prize that he wants |
This passage doesn’t mention the history of the expression “____”.
| A．a green thumb | B．a greenborn |
| C．the green eyed monster | D．a green light |
Which would be the best title of the passage?
| A．Green, the color of grass and trees |
| B．The stories about the color “green” |
| C．Green, a sign of approval |
| D．Different meanings of “green” |
Most of us probably live without vegetables, but a world without chocolate? Now that would be hard! According to chocolate makers it could happen if we don’t act soon.
There are two main causes of the chocolate shortage --- chocolate’s growing popularity and less production of cocoa, the plant from which chocolate is made. With more and more people in India and China loving chocolate, not much can be done about the first cause.
Therefore, the only thing we can do is to increase cocoa production. However, new plant diseases and little rain in Ivory Coast and Ghana, the world’s largest producers, have reduced cocoa production by 40 percent in the past 10 years. What’s worse, many cocoa farmers in Africa and other cocoa-producing countries like Indonesia and Venezuela are changing to easier-to-grow crops such as corn or rubber. This way, the farmers can make more money.
To prevent more farmers from changing, researchers at the newly opened International Cocoa Control Centre, in the UK, are trying to create new cocoa plants that are stronger and faster growing. But first they must make sure the new plants are safe to grow. This takes a long time.
First, each new plant is stored at the Control Centre for six months to make sure it is healthy. It is then planted in the Centre’s fields, studied and tested for another two years. Only after scientists are certain that they’re disease-free, will the plants be sent to farmers in West Africa or wherever else they are needed.
To create new stronger types of cocoa, scientists at the Centre are combining the best parts from different cocoa plants. Though the world is facing a serious chocolate shortage, there is now hope!The first paragraph tells us that______.
| A．chocolate is healthier than vegetables |
| B．the world could soon be without chocolate |
| C．people love vegetables more than chocolate |
| D．it’s not necessary to eat so much chocolate |
In which countries has chocolate become more popular in recent years?
| A．Venezuela and Indonesia. |
| B．Ivory Coast and Ghana. |
| C．Indonesia and China. |
| D．China and India. |
Cocoa farmers are choosing to grow rubber and corn because these crops______.
| A．can make them more money |
| B．need less rain to grow |
| C．can be planted more times each year |
| D．are not damaged by plant diseases |
How long does it take scientists at the Centre to make sure a cocoa plant is safe to grow?
| A．6 months. | B．12 months. | C．24 months. | D．30 months. |
What is one of the purposes of the Cocoa Control Centre?
| A．To introduce cocoa production to more countries. |
| B．To provide more chocolate for British people. |
| C．To produce stronger types of cocoa plants. |
| D．To make sure that cocoa is healthy to eat. |
A group of reporters asked a group of 4-to-8-year-old children this question, “What does love mean?” The answers were surprising. The children would answer like they did below.
Rebecca --- age 8
“When my grandmother hurt her knees , she couldn’t bend (弯腰) over and paint her toenails (脚趾甲) any more. So my grandfather would do it for her all the time, even when his hands hurt, too. That’s love.”
Samantha --- age 6
“Love is when someone hurts you, and you get so mad but you don’t shout at her because you know it would hurt her feelings.”
Terry --- age 4
“Love is what makes you smile when you’re tired.”
Bethany --- age 4
“I let my big sister pick on (捉弄) me because my Mum says she only picks on me because she loves me. So I pick on my baby sister because I love her.”
Lauren --- age 4
“I know my elder sister loves me because she gives me all her old clothes and has to go out and buy new clothes.”
Elaine --- age 5
“Love is when Mummy gives Daddy the best piece of chicken.”
Clear --- age 5
“My Mummy loves me more than anybody. You don’t see anyone else kissing me to sleep at night.”
Jessica --- age 8
“You really shouldn’t say ‘I love you’ unless you mean it. But if you mean it, you should say it a lot. People forget.”The passage mainly tells us about ______.
| A．what “ life ” means to children |
| B．what “family ” means to children |
| C．what “ friendship ” means to children |
| D．what “ love ” means to children |
Who told us the love between Mum and Dad?
| A．Clear. | B．Elaine. |
| C．Rebecca. | D．Lauren. |
Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?
| A．Rebecca’s grandmother ever couldn’t bend over. |
| B．Bethany wants to be picked on by any other person. |
| C．If Samantha becomes angry, she will not shout at others. |
| D．Lauren prefers to wear her sister’s old clothes. |
What does Jessica mean about love?
| A．Too much love is no love. |
| B．You should say love more often. |
| C．You mean what you think. |
| D．Say love more often if you have it. |
What is love according to Terry?
| A．Love is the care between husband and wife. |
| B．Love is a rest when you are tired. |
| C．Love is what cheers you up when you are tired. |
| D．Love is a kiss from parents. |
Here’s one number to keep in mind during your next cell phone conversation: 50. A new experiment shows that spending 50 minutes with an active phone pressed up to the ear increases activity in the brain. This brain activity probably doesn't make you smarter. When cell phones are on, they emit (发出) energy in the form of radiation that could be harmful, especially after years of cell phone usage. Scientists don't know yet whether cell phones are bad for the brain. Studies like this one are attempting to find it out.
The 47 participants in the experiment may have looked a little strange. Each one had two Samsung cell phones attached to his or her head — one on each ear. The phone on the left ear was off. The phone on the right ear played a message for 50 minutes, but the participants couldn't hear it because the sound was off.
With this set-up, the scientists could be sure they were studying brain activity from the phone itself, and not brain activity due to listening and talking during a conversation. After 50 minutes with two phones strapped to their heads, the participants were given PET scans.
The PET scan showed that the left side (the side with the phone turned off) of each participant's brain hadn't changed during the experiment. The right side of the brain, however, had used more glucose, which is a type of sugar that provides fuel to brain cells. These right-side brain cells were using almost as much glucose as the brain uses when a person is talking. This suggests that the brain cells there were active ― even without the person hearing anything. That activity, the scientists say, was probably caused by radiation from the phone.
Henry Lai, who works at the University of Washington in Seattle, is uncomfortable with the data related to cell phones. Holding a cell phone to your ear during a conversation is “not really safe,” Lai told Science News. Lai is a bioengineer at the University of Washington in Seattle. He wrote an article about the new study for a journal, but he did not work on the study. Bioengineers bring together ideas from engineering and biology.
For those who don't want to wait to find out for sure whether cell phones are bad for the brain, there are ways to talk more safely. You can have short and sweet conversations, use a speakerphone or keep the phone away from your head. Which of the following statement is true?
| A．Scientists are sure that cell phones are bad for the brain. |
| B．In the experiment, the left side of the brain used more glucose. |
| C．Radiation from the phone probably causes the change in the brain. |
| D．Henry Lai wrote a lot of articles about this new study. |
Why weren’t the participants allowed to have a conversation on the phone during the experiment?
| A．Because the scientists want to be sure of the accuracy of the experiment. |
| B．Because they really looked strange and no one wanted to talk to others. |
| C．Because they were given PET scans and they lost the ability to talk. |
| D．Because that would be too noisy and bad for the experiment. |
What is glucose?
| A．A type of sugar that provides vitamin to brain cells. |
| B．Something that the right side of the brain used. |
| C．A type of sugar that gives energy to brain cells. |
| D．Something that makes a human excited. |
According to the last two paragraphs, which is the safest way to use a cell phone?
| A．Holding the cell phone close to your head. |
| B．Using a cell phone more than three hours a day. |
| C．Taking the most powerful cell phone. |
| D．Keeping the cell phone at a distance. |
Where is this article probably taken from?
| A．Literature magazine. | B．Science News. |
| C．Story books. | D．Art Journal. |