Reading is a good habit. There are hundreds of skills to help you read much in a short time. Here are two skills that I think are especially good.
Preview(预览)---if it’s long and hard. Previewing is especially useful for getting a main idea of heavy reading like long articles and reports.
Here’s how to preview.
●Read the first two paragraphs(段落) and the last two paragraphs carefully.
●Then read only the first sentence(句子) of the other paragraphs.
Previewing doesn’t give you everything. It stops you from spending time on things you don’t really want or need to read.
Skim(略读)----if it’s short and simple. Skimming is a good way to get a main idea of light reading ---like news about popular sports and stars.
Here’s how to skim.
●Get your eyes to move fast. Look through each line.
●Pick up only a few important words in each line.
Everybody skims differently. You and I may not pick up the same words when we skim the same piece, but we’ll get the main idea of the news or article.
| How to read |
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| Previewing |
A long and |
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| |
How to preview |
Read the first two and Read the first sentence of the |
| How can previewing help you in reading |
You needn’t |
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| Skimming |
What to skim |
Some |
| Make your eyes |
||
| How can skimming help you in reading |
It can help us |
Mrs Black is sixty-nine years old. She has only a daughter named Sandra. Mr Black died twelve years ago. She was very sad and lived in her house alone. Two years later her daughter had a baby. The woman was busy all the time and no time to look after her son James. She asked her mother to live with with them.
The old woman had to sell her house and moved there. She was strong and could do all the housework. And the family liked her.
Last autumn Mrs Black went to do some shopping. A car hit her and her leg was hurt. She had to be in hospital for three months. She couldn’t do anything after she came back. At first her daughter was kind to her, but soon she began to tired (讨厌)of her. The old woman wanted to leave, but she had no money to buy a house and nobody could take care of her. She didn’t know what to do.
One morning Mrs Black broke a plate. It made her daughter angry. She told James to buy a wooden(木制的)for her grandma. That afternoon James came back with two wooden plates. She was surprised(惊讶的) and asked “Why did you buy two plates, son”
“One is for my grandma,” answered the boy. “The other is for you.” She cried for long. She’s kind to her mother as she did before. Sandra asked her mother to live with them because________
| A．the old woman lived alone |
| B．she needed her help |
| C．the old woman couldn’t look after herself |
| D．the old woman could give her much money. |
The family liked Mrs Black because_________
| A．she was rich |
| B．she could watched their door |
| C．she could do the housework for them |
| D．she was friendly to them all |
Mrs Black was afraid ________,so she couldn’t leave her daughter’s house.
| A．she had no house to live in |
| B．she couldn’t look after herself |
| C．Sandra couldn’t go to see her any more |
| D．she couldn’t buy a house and none takes care of her |
Sandra was afraid ________,so she told her son to buy a wooden plate for her.
| A．her mother could broke another plate |
| B．her mother didn’t want to live |
| C．her husband could be tired of her mother |
| D．her mother couldn’t do anything at home |
Sandra is friendly to her mother again because________
| A．she knows she did wrong |
| B．she was afraid of her son |
| C．the old is poor |
| D．it’s her duty |
One year ago. I asked a worker to help me repair my old house. He had a bad first day on the job: his car broke on the way, then he found he had left his tools for work at home and his wife telephoned to say his son had a bad cold. While I drove him home, he was silent all the way. When arriving, he invited me to meet his family.
As we walked towards the front door, he stopped at a small tree, and touched the tree with hands. When we opened the door, I was very surprised to see he changed into another person and there was a big smile on his face instead. He hugged (拥抱) his son and gave his wife a kiss.
After a while, when he walked me to the car, I asked him why he had touched the tree just then. "Oh, that’s my trouble tree," he answered. "Sometimes I have troubles on my job, but one thing is for sure, they don’t belong to my wife and my son. So I just hang up (悬挂) the troubles on the tree every night when I come home. Then in the morning I pick them up. "
“The funny thing is," he smiled, "when I come out in the morning to pick them up, I hardly remember what I put the night before. "
根据短文内容，回答下列问题。How was the worker’s firs day?
Where did the worker stop as they walked towards the front door?
When did the worker pick up the troubles every day?
Did the worker remember fewer troubles the next morning?
Besides studying and tests, teens need to learn some life skills for the future. These skills can help them live by themselves. The following are some necessary skills.
★ Managing money
You often get a little money from your parents, and you may spend it as you like. You can make a list of the things that you want to buy, and plan how to spend the money. Don’t waste.
★ Washing and cleaning
Doing laundry correctly is important. You should first read the instructions on clothing, and then check the pockets of the clothes. Pay more attention to different colors of them.
As for cleaning, you should learn how to use brooms, mops (抹布) and so on. If you often do more cleaning, the people who live with you will thank you for the efforts you make.
★ Cooking your favorite meals
You should learn how to cook a few of your favorite meals. First ask your parents for help to decide on the menu and ingredients, and then you can go shopping, cook the meals and clean up the kitchen together.
根据短文内容，判断句子正（T）、误（F） This passage is mainly about some life skills for teens for the future.
Teens should manage money by saving money as much as they can.
Before they wash clothes, teens should first check the pockets of the clothes.
The people around will feel uncomfortable if teens do more cleaning.
Parents can help teens decide on the menu and ingredients to cook meals.
One day a strong cowboy was traveling on his horse when he saw a bar. He decided to stop for a few drinks, so he tied(拴) his horse outside the bar, walked into the bar and ordered two bottles of beer. This cowboy was new in town. He looked around and noticed some people making faces to him. He guessed that they might play some tricks (把戏) on him, but he said nothing and continued to drink. After drinking, he walked out of the bar and found his horse lost.
However, he kept calm, came back into the bar, and said slowly, " I don’t know what you fools did to my horse out there… but I’m leaving in five minutes, and by then if my horse isn’t back where it’s supposed to be, well … I have to do here what I did in Texas!" The cowboy added, "And I don’t want to do what I did in Texas!" After hearing these words, the other customers seemed a little bit frightened.
The cowboy went back to his seat and ordered another two bottles of beer. After five minutes, he walked out and found his horse tied where it was supposed to be.
Just as he was leaving, the boss of the bar came up and asked curiously (好奇地) , "What was the thing that you did in Texas but you didn’t want to do here?"
The cowboy turned to the boss and replied in a low voice, " I had to walk home!"
根据短文内容，选择最佳答案。 That day the cowboy tied his horse outside __________ before he wanted to drink.
| A．the bar | B．he hotel | C．the store | D．the restaurant |
After a few drinks, the cowboy found his horse__________.
| A．ill | B．dead | C．asleep | D．lost |
The cowboy drank __________of beer at the bar in all.
| A．five bottles | B．four bottles | C．three bottles | D．two bottles |
In Texas, the cowboy had to __________when he couldn’t find his horse.
| A．walk home | B．argue with others |
| C．call the police | D．ask the boss for help |
From the passage, we can know__________ .
| A．the cowboy’s look frightened the customers |
| B．the cowboy kept calm because he was strong |
| C．the cowboy also played a trick on the customers at the bar |
| D．The cowboy would fight with others if he couldn’t find his horse |
Dolphins are our friends. They can use tools to solve problems although they don’t have hands. For example, scientists have ever found that a dolphin can make a shy eel(鳗鱼) come out of its hole with a dead fish.
Dolphins use different sounds to exchange information with each other. Scientists in Hawaii have developed a sign language to give instructions to dolphins, and the results are amazing. They find that dolphins not only understand the meaning of individual (个别的) words, but also understand the importance of word order in a sentence.
Most animals enjoy playing — but dolphins seem to like making their games as challenging as possible. On a beautiful day in 1997, scientists at a beach watched a little dog going into the sea and swimming towards the dolphins. To their surprise, the dolphins came up to the dog and then started throwing it into the air. The dog seemed to enjoy the "game" and continued playing with the dolphins for more than an hour.
Dolphins live in a very different world from ours, but they are very good at our "IQ tests” . For example, they will jump out of the water when they hear a whistle (口哨) noise. They do this because they will get a fish as a prize.
There is still much to learn about these cute problem-solvers, but it is certain that watching a dolphin show is fun.
根据短文内容，选择最佳答案。 What can a dolphin use to make an eel come out of its hole?
| A．Its mouth. | B．Its head. | C．A dead fish. | D．A little dog. |
How do dolphins exchange information with each other?
| A．By using tails. | B．By using tools. |
| C．By using words. | D．By using sounds. |
Where did the dolphins throw the dog when playing?
| A．Onto its back. | B．Into the air. |
| C．Onto the beach. | D．Into the water. |
Why do the dolphins jump out of the water when they hear a whistle noise?
| A．Because they want to get a fish as a prize. |
| B．Because they enjoy playing on the water. |
| C．Because they want to play with other dolphins. |
| D．Because the dolphin keepers want them to come out. |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．Dolphins understand many languages. |
| B．Dolphins are a kind of clever animals. |
| C．Scientists have known dolphins well enough. |
| D．Dolphins seem to make their games relaxing. |