It was once unheard-of to be a businessman in China. Nowadays, though, it’s quite common to become your own boss. Let’s say you have an idea. Maybe you want to open an English school or sell Japanese comics. First, you need a business plan. It sets out what you’ll sell and how much everything will cost. Most businesses that fail didn’t have this. If you need to borrow money at the start, banks will ask for a detailed plan.
The best starting place for a business plan is the 4Ps: product, place, price and promotion. All these must be strong to be successful.
□Product
Your product must have something unique. What makes it special compared to other similar products? If you want to start a noodle shop that has nothing new, don’t expect people to show much interest. You can research your product. For food, let people try it for free. For toys, let a few children play with them to see if they like them.
□Place
There’s no point having a product that people want to buy if your shop is in an empty mall. Think about which type of person is going to buy what you sell. Where do they usually go shopping? When looking at possible places, spend the day there. See how many people pass by. Also, are there other shops nearby selling similar products? If so, how can you be better than them?
□Price
Work out how much it costs to make or provide your product. As a general rule, your price will be double the cost. After all, you’re also paying for rent, staff and you need to eat too!
□Promotion
How can you attract people to your shop? Advertising in newspapers and on TV is expensive. Perhaps you can get free advertising by getting a newspaper to write about your business.What’s the best title for the passage?
A.How to start a business. |
B.Starting a business soon. |
C.Starting your own business. |
D.Preparations for starting a business. |
According to the author, the reason why most businesses fail is due to lack of ________.
A.a business plan | B. a shop | C. money | D.successful businessmen |
If you want to start a noodle shop, you should ________.
A.expect people to show much interest |
B.research your noodles |
C.let people try it at a low price |
D.let children have a try |
What does “If so” in Paragraph 4 refer to?
A.There are shops selling the goods like yours. |
B.Many people pass by. |
C.You should think about which type of person is going to buy what you sell. |
D.You should spend the day on possible places. |
You are selling toys to children. It costs 5 yuan to make each one. How much should you charge the children for each toy?
A.15 yuan. | B. 5 yuan. | C. 10 yuan. | D. 50 yuan. |
About ten years ago, a young and very successful businessman named Josh was traveling down a Chicago neighborhood street. He was going a bit too fast in his shiny, black, 12 cylinder Jaguar XKE, which was only two months old.
He was watching for kids rushing out from between parked cars and slowed down when he thought he saw something. As his car passed, no child came out, but a brick sailed out and—WHUMP! —it hit the Jag’s shiny black side door! Immediately Josh stopped the car, jumped out, seized the kid and pushed him up against a parked car. He shouted at the kid, “What was that all about and who are you? That’s my new Jag, that brick you threw is gonna cost you a lot of money. Why did you throw it? ”
“Please, mister, please……I’m sorry! I didn’t know what else to do! ” begged the youngster. “I threw the brick because no one else would stop! ” Tears were streaming down the boy’s face as he pointed around the parked car. “It’s my brother, mister, ” he said. “He rolled of the curb (路沿) and fell out of his wheelchair and I can’t lift him up. ”Sobbing, the boy asked the businessman, “ Would you please help me get him back into his wheelchair? He’s hurt and he’s too heavy for me. ”
Moved beyond words, the young businessman tried hard to swallow the rapidly swelling lump in his throat. Straining, he lifted the young man back into the wheelchair and took out his handkerchief and wiped the scrapers and cuts, checking to see that everything was going to be OK. He then watched the younger brother push him down the sidewalk toward their home.
It was a long walk back to the black, shining 12 cylinder Jaguar XKE—a long and slow walk. Josh never did fix the side door of his Jaguar. He kept the dent (凹痕) to remind him not to go through life so fast that someone has to throw a brick at him to get his attention. Feel for the bricks of life coming at you.How did the driver reflect firstly when he found the boy throwing a brick on his car?
A.Surprised | B.Angry | C.Strange | D.Sad |
The boy threw a brick at the businessman’s car because _________.
A.the businessman drove at a high speed |
B.he envied the brand-new car very much |
C.he wanted to ask for some money |
D.he wanted to get help from the driver |
Which of the following is the right order of the story?
a. The younger brother threw a brick at Josh’s car.
b. The elder brother fell out of his wheelchair.
c. The younger brother begged Josh for help.
d. Josh lifted the elder brother back into his wheelchair.
e. Josh shouted at the younger brother.
A.b, a, e, c, d | B.a, c, d, b, e |
C.b, a, c, e, d | D.a, c, b, e, d |
What can we learn from the passage?
A.Josh would accept the money from the kids. |
B.The two kids were Josh’s neighbors. |
C.Josh was a kind-hearted man. |
D.Josh’s new car broke down easily. |
According to the passage, the last sentence means ________.
A.trying to get ready for the trouble in your future life |
B.driving fast in a neighborhood street is dangerous |
C.trying to be more understanding seeing others in trouble |
D.protecting oneself from being hurt |
According to the Code, visitors should act _______ .
A.with care and respect |
B.with relief and pleasure |
C.with caution and calmness |
D.with attention and observation |
What are you encouraged to do when travelling in New Zealand?
A.Take your own camping facilities. |
B.Bury glass far away from rivers. |
C.Follow the track for the sake of plants. |
D.Observe signs to approach nesting birds. |
Not long ago, people thought babies were not able to learn things until they were five or six months old. Yet doctors in the United States say babies begin learning on their first day of life. Scientists note that babies are strongly influenced by their environment. They say a baby will smile if her mother does something the baby likes. A baby learns to get the best care possible by smiling to please her mother or other caregiver. This is how babies learn to connect and communicate with other human beings.
One study shows that babies can learn before they are born. The researchers placed a tape recorder on the stomach of a pregnant (怀孕的)woman. Then, they played a recording of a short story. On the day the baby was born, the researchers attempted to find if he knew the sounds of the story repeated while in his mother. They did this by placing a device in the mouth of the newborn baby.
The baby would hear the story if he moved his mouth one way. If the baby moved his mouth the other way, he would hear a different story. The researchers say the baby clearly liked the story he heard before he was born. They say the baby would move his mouth so he could hear the story again and again.
Another study shows how mothers can strongly influence social development and language skills in their children. Researchers studied the children from the age of one month to three years. The researchers attempted to measure the sensitivity of the mothers. The women were considered sensitive if they supported their children’s activities and did not interfere ( 干预)unnecessarily. They tested the children for thinking and language development when they were three years old. Also, the researchers observed the women for signs of depression.The children of depressed women did not do as well in tests as the children of women who did not suffer
from depression. The children of depressed women did poorly in tests of language skills and understanding what they hear.
These children also were less cooperative and had more problems dealing with other people. The researchers noted that the sensitivity of the mothers was important to the intelligence development of their children. Children did better when their mothers were caring, even when they suffered from depression.According to the passage, which of the following is NOT the factor that influences intelligence development in babies?
A.The environment. |
B.Mother's sensitivity. |
C.Their peers (同龄人) |
D.Education before birth. |
What is the purpose of the experiment in which newborn babies heard the stories?
A.To prove that babies can learn before they are born. |
B.To prove that babies can learn on the first day they are born. |
C.To show mothers can strongly influence intelligence development in their babies. |
D.To indicate early education has a deep effect on the babies' language skills. |
Which group of children did the worst in tests of language skills?
A.The children of depressed mothers who cared little for their children. |
B.The children of women who did not suffer from depression. |
C.The children of depressed but caring mothers. |
D.Children with high communication abilities. |
What is the main idea of the passage?
A.Scientific findings about how babies develop before birth. |
B.Scientific findings about how time has an effect on babies' intelligence. |
C.A study shows babies are not able to learn things until they are rice or six months old. |
D.Scientific findings about how intelligence develops in babies. |
Moral(道德的)science is taught as a subject in most schools but with little effect. Perhaps part of the problem lies in the fact that morality is not a science, strictly speaking. It is too much of a social phenomenon, and also has too much of the personal and subjective things mixed within. Besides, morality itself changes with generations. So it is impossible to be defined in a textbook.
I remember sitting through forty minutes of moral lessons, which told stories about little children who never told lies and were rewarded for their goodness. It had little effect and left no impression on me, though.
If moral science has to be taught as a subject in schools, it needs a participatory(参与其中的) approach. When you tell a child about morals, you also have to deal with social norms(规范)and cultural differences. You have to explain that morality can be subjective, and be able to co-exist in society. You will probably have to refer to the morals of the present time.
The best way to tell a child how to live is to show him what is valued. If a child likes his friend, you have to make the child think about why. Once the child notices and recognizes goodness in others, he or she is likely to develop it as well.
In fact, children learn most of their morals by watching people around them. They absorb behavior patterns from teachers and older students. They watch to see what is rewarded and who is punished. They learn on the sports field and through social work. Moral science lessons should simply consist of letting them live and interact, and watch you support correct values and reward good behavior. Which is NOT the reason that moral science is taught in schools but with little effect?
A.Morality doesn’t strictly belong to a science. |
B.Morality is more like a social phenomenon. |
C.Different generations have different moral ideas. |
D.Morality can’t be written down in textbooks. |
The author describes his own experience of having moral lessons in order to _____.
A.explain telling lies is not moral for little children. |
B.advise people should be rewarded for their goodness. |
C.show he has no opinions about moral science. |
D.prove moral lessons in schools have little effect. |
When you tell a child about morals, you should________.
A.tell him about social norms and cultural differences. |
B.teach him to share personal moral ideas with others. |
C.explain that nobody can influence his moral ideas. |
D.say that the present morals are likely to be changed. |
What is the last paragraph mainly about?
A.The value of teachers’ setting a good example. |
B.The best way of teaching children about morals. |
C.The influence of people’s behavior on morals. |
D.The importance of rewarding good behavior. |
It’s great fun to explore new places—it feels like an adventure,even when you know you’re not the first to have been there. But make sure not to get lost or waste time going round in circles.
● Do the map reading if you’re being driven somewhere. It’ll be easier if you keep turning the map so it follows the direction you’re traveling in. Keep looking ahead so that you can give the driver lots of warning before having to make a turn or you’ll have to move to the back seat.
● Get a group of friends together and go exploring. You'll need a good map, a compass , a raincoat, a cell phone to call for help in case you get lost, and a bit of spare cash for emergencies . Tell someone where you’re going before you set out and let them know what time you expect to be back. The test is in not getting lost, not in seeing how fast you can go, so always stick together, waiting for slower friends to catch up.
● See if your school or a club organizes orienteering activities, in which you need a map and a compass to find your way. This can be done as a sport, with teams trying to find the way from A to B (and B to C, etc.)in the fastest time, or simply as a spare-time activity. Either way, its not only good fun, but a great way to keep fit. Sitting beside the driver, you should___________.
A.look ahead to see where there’s a turn |
B.direct the driver when necessary |
C.move to the back seat if feeling uncomfortable |
D.keep looking at the map to find a place to go to |
Why do you need to tell someone your exploration plan before setting out?
A.To be saved in case of an accident. |
B.To get information when in danger. |
C.To share the fun with him/her in exploration. |
D.To tell him/her what’s going on with the group members. |
Orienteering activities can______________.
A.make people work fast |
B.help people organize other activities |
C.help people stay healthy |
D.make people get prepared for sports |
The text mainly talks about____________.
A.the fun of exploration |
B.what to bring for exploration |
C.the way to use a map in exploration |
D.how to prevent getting lost in exploration |