Many students ask for advice about improving (提高) their English. There are three basic(基本的) questions.
The first question is about real English. Li Hao from Hubei wrote, “I enjoy watching English films and listening to real English songs. But it takes a long time. What do you think?”
This is a great way to learn English! Talk about the film or song with your friends, and guess the meaning of the new words. Just enjoy yourself!
The second question is about speaking. Sam, from Suzhou wrote, “Our school has a foreign teacher. But I'm shy and can’t speak to her. What should I do?”
When I visit China, lots of people in the street say, “Hello! How are you? Where are you from? Do you like China?” These are good questions to start a talk. Many people are shy when they speak English, so before you begin, take a deep breath and smile! Smiling always helps.
The third question is about vocabulary. Oliver, from Anhui wrote, “I want to remember all the new words. I write them down, but I forget them quickly. What should I do?”
Try to remember eight or ten words a day. Write them on pieces of paper and place them in your bedroom. Say the words when you see them, and change them every day. And when you’re shopping, how about counting the English words, or saying the English names for everything you see?
| A．Two. | B．Three | C．Four. | D．Five. |
| A．Watch English films. |
| B．Write down the words first. |
| C．Listen to real English songs. |
| D．Take a deep breath and smile before you begin. |
| A．How to learn English. |
| B．Talking about English films. |
| C．Advice about English writing. |
| D．The way of beginning an English talk. |
| A．Listening to English songs. |
| B．Practising English with a foreigner in the street. |
| C．Sitting in your bedroom to remember words. |
| D．Saying the English names for everything you see. |
Arctic fox(北极狐) is a kind of small fox that lives in the Arctic. It grows about 50 centimeters long, not including its tail, 30 centimeters tall and weighs from 3 to 7 kilos.
The Arctic foxes are white or blue in color. The white ones are white in winter, but grey-brown in summer. The blue ones are blue-grey all year round. The Arctic foxes have long, thick hair that is called fur. And the long fur covers their whole bodies, including both their cat eyes and rabbit feet, to keep them warm. in the low temperature in the Arctic.
The Arctic foxes feed mainly on birds, birds’ eggs and other small animals. Teamwork is the way they look for food, and they don’t like to do that alone.
Baby Arctic foxes are very lovely. They don’t open their eyes until a week after their birth. For the first half of the year, their parents offer them food. They begin to look for food on their own when they are about six months old. The next year they can live alone.
Today, the number of the Arctic foxes is becoming smaller and smaller, because people kill them for their fur to make beautiful coats for money. Something must be done to protect the Arctic foxes.Not all the Arctic foxes change their colors in different seasons.
The Arctic foxes have rabbit eyes and cat feet.
Baby Arctic foxes are born with their eyes open.
Birds, birds’ eggs and other small animals are the main food for the Arctic foxes.
According to the passage, there are more Arctic foxes now.
My biggest problem is that I'm too busy.When I was young,I used to have so much time,but these days I get up early and stay in school all day.Then go right home and eat dinner.Before I started hight school,I used to spend a lot of time playing games with my friends,but I just don't have the time anymore.In the evening,I used to watch TV or chat with my grandmother,but now I have to study.I love music,and my father used to take me to concerts.These days,I hardly ever have time for concerts.I do my homework and go to bed.I really miss the old days.
| My biggest problem |
||
 |
Used to |
Now |
| When I was young |
Stay in school all day |
|
| Before I started hight school |
Spend lots of time with friends |
|
| In the evening |
Watch TV or chat |
Last year my English class was difficult. First of all（1）， it wasn't easy for me to understand the teacher when she talked. To begin with, she spoke too quickly, and I couldn't understand every word. Later on, I realized that it doesn't matter if you don't understand every word. 我也害怕在课堂上说。（2) because I thought my classmates might laugh at me. I couldn't always make complete sentences, either. Then I started to watch English-language TV. It helped a lot. I think that doing lots of listening practice is one of the secrets of becoming a good language learner. （3）写出（1）处词语的同义词
将（2）处句子翻译成英语。
将（3）处句子翻译成汉语。
Swimming and English Learning
Can you swim? Do you like swimming? Yes? Well, how can you learn to swim? I think the best way is to go into the water and learn. I’m afraid you’ll never learn to swim just by reading books about swimming or looking at others swimming. It’s the same with the English study. We must practice, practice and practice.
Listening and speaking are very important for beginners. The children in English-speaking countries first listen to others. Then they try to imitate and speak. We can listen to English programs on radio. You may just understand a few words. It doesn’t matter. Just be relaxed, try to catch every word.
Somebody may be a good listener. But he dare not speak. He’s afraid of making mistakes. You know we sometimes make mistakes when we speak Chinese. Don’t be afraid. We must be brave. If you really want to learn English well, you must try to speak with everyone so long as he knows English. Whether you know him or not is not important when there’s nobody to talk with, you can talk to yourself in English. It’s interesting and also a good way to practice your spoken English. Remember, the more you speak, the fewer mistakes you’ll make.
Reading and writing are more important for senior school students. First we must choose the books we’re interested in. A lot of reading will improve your language sense. This is the most important.
Keep writing English diaries. We can also write English articles. You may even post them to English magazines. Don’t be afraid of failure. Failure is the mother of success.
Easier said than done. Well, let’s do more practice from now on. I’m sure you’ll learn English well in this way.You can learn to swim by_______.
| A．reading books about it. | B．looking at others swimming |
| C．having lessons on it. | D．going into the river and learning |
We should learn English by _______.
| A．listening and speaking | B．reading and writing |
| C．A and B | D．swimming |
What will you do with mistakes when you speak?
| A．Don’t make mistakes. | B．Study hard |
| C．Try not to speak English | D．Don’t be afraid. |
What’s more important for senior school students?
| A．listening | B．speaking |
| C．reading and writing | D．learning |
We can listen to English ______, according to the passage.
| A．by train | B．on the radio |
| C．every minute | D．now and then |
Listening test is one of the most important parts of the English exam. Here are some tips for you.
Before you start to listen, you need to relax. Don’t be stressed out. And try to read the questions. These questions usually help you understand the conversation or the passage.
Then listen carefully to the first sentence. It usually tells you the main idea of the passage. When you’re listening, try to do some thinking and take some notes, such as:
☆What happened?
☆When, where, and how?
☆What does the speaker want to tell us?
In this way, you may understand the passage better.
Please remember not to think about one or two words for a long time. When you hear some words you don’t know, don’t spend too much time on them. Very often, you’ll find out what they mean later when you go on with the listening. This passage mainly talks about_________.
| A．tips on listening |
| B．tips on speaking |
| C．tips on reading |
| D．tips on writing |
It’s better for you to keep ________when you start to have a listening test.
| A．excited | B．relaxed |
| C．stressed out | D．worried |
We should listen to the first sentence carefully, because it usually tells us________.
| A．the answers to the questions |
| B．where to write the answers |
| C．the main idea of the passage |
| D．how much time left (剩余) for the listening test |
When you’re listening, it’s important for you to_________.
| A．remember every word |
| B．take some notes |
| C．understand all the words |
| D．think about one or two words for a long time |
The _______ usually help(s) us understand the passage better.
| A．questions | B．first sentence |
| C．notes | D．A, B and C |