Stayinthemagicwithyourfriendsa-优题课

Welcome to my Message Board!
Subject: Slimming down classics?
Mr. Handsome 2007-5-12 6: 34 AM	Orion Books, which decides there is a market in creating cut-down classics (经典著作), is slimming down some novels by such great writers as L. Tolstoy, M. Mitchell and C. Bronte. Now, each of them has been whittled down to about 400 pages by cutting 30 to 40 pages per cent of original, with words, sentences, paragraphs and, in a few cases, chapters removed. The first six shortened editions, all priced at ￡6.99 and advertised as great reads “in half the time”, will go on sale next month, with plans for 50 to 100 more to follow. The publishing house believes that modern readers will welcome the shorter versions.
Mr. Edwards 2007-5-12 9: 40 AM	Well, I’m publisher of Orion Group. Thanks for your attention, Mr. Handsome. I must say, the idea developed from a game of “shame” in my office. Each of us was required to confess (承认) to the most embarrassing blanks in his or her reading. I admitted that I had never read Anna Karenina and tried but failed to get through Gone with the Wind several times. One of my colleagues acknowledged skipping (跳读) Jane Eyre. We realized that life is too short to read all the books you want to and we never were going to read these ones. As a leading publishing house, we are trying to make classics convenient for readers but it’s not as if we’re withdrawing the original versions. They are still there if you want to read them.
Ms. Weir 2007-5-12 11:35 AM	I’m director of the online bookclub www.lovereading.co.uk Mr. Edwards, I think your shortened editions is a breath of fresh air. I’m guilty of never having read Anna Karenina, because it’s just so long. I’d much rather read two 300-page books than one 600-page book. I am looking forward to more shortened classics!
Mr. Crockatt 2007-5-12 4:38 PM	I’m from the London independent bookshop Corckatt & Powell. In my opinion, the practice is completely ridiculous. How can you edit the classics? I’m afraid reading some of these book is hard work, and that is why you have to develop as a reader. If people don’t have time to read Anna Karenina, then fine. But don’t read a shortened version and kid yourself it’s the real thing.

According to the message board, Orion Books ___________.

A．opposes the reading of original classics

B．is embarrassed for cutting down classics

C．thinks cut-down classics have a bright future

D．is cautions in its decision to cut down classics

In Mr. Edwards’ opinion, Orion Group is shortening classics to _________.

A．make them easier to read	B．meet a large demand in the market
C．increase the sales of literary books	D．compete with their original versions

By describing the shortened classics as “a breath of fresh air”, Ms. Weir ________.

A．speaks highly of the cut-down classics

B．shows her love for original classics

C．feels guilty of not reading the classics

D．disapprove of shortening the classics

Mr. Crockatt seems to imply that _________.

A．reading the classic works is a confusing attempt

B．shortening the classics does harm to the original

C．publishing the cut-down classics is a difficult job

D．editing the classic works satisfies children’s needs

How many classics are involved in the massage board?

A．Two.

B．Three.

C．Four.

D．Five

Imagine a boy from a small village in East Africa, He from a very early age has been looking after cattle. At twelve years old he knows more about cattle than most of you. However, he has never been to school. Has this boy ever had any education?
Education is discovering about ourselves and about the people and things around us. All the people who care about us — our parents, brothers, sisters, friends — are our teachers. In fact, we learn something from everyone we meet. We start learning on the day we are born, not on the first day" we go to school. Every day we have new experiences, like finding a bird's nest, discovering a new street in our neighborhood, making friends with someone we didn't like before. New experiences are even more fun when we share them with other people.
Encouragement from the people around us enables us to explore things as much as possible. As we grow up, we begin to find out what we are capable of doing. You may be good at cooking, or singing or playing football. You find this out by doing these things. Just thinking about cooking doesn't tell you if you are good at it.
We learn so much just living from day to day. So why is school important? Of course you can learn some things better at home than at school, like how to do the shopping, and how to help old or disabled people who can' t do everything for themselves. At school, teachers help us to read and write. With their guidance, we begin to see things in different ways.
The writer takes the African boy as an example to show that _______.

A．African children are very poor

B．some children are unlucky

C．education takes many ways

D．schools are of great importance

In the eyes of the writer .

A．we have to learn from the people around us

B．school is not important at all

C．only the people caring for us can teach us

D．education takes place everywhere

One can find out what he is good at by _.

A．the encouragement of people around	B．the teachings of those he or she meets
C．thinking of it when growing up	D．trying practicing it

How the writer looks at the role of school is that .

A．school is not so important as our living places

B．school enables us to understand the world in other ways

C．school teaches us something useless at home

D．school cannot prepare us for our daily lives

The passage tells us that _.

A．everyone gets education from the day he or she is born

B．different education trains different classes of people

C．school is absolutely necessary if one wants to understand the world

D．everyone will find out what he or she is good at

We are all called upon to make a speech at some point in life, but most of us don’t do a very good job. This article gives some suggestions on how to give an effective speech.
So, you have to give a speech—and you are terrified. You get nervous, you forget what you want to say, you stumble over words, you talk too long, and you bore your audience. Later you think, “Thank Goodness, it’s over. I’m just not good at public speaking. I hope I never have to do that again.”
Cheep up! It doesn’t have to be that bad. Here are some simple steps to take the pain out of speech making. Ask yourself the purpose of your speech. What is the occasion? Why are you speaking? Then, gather as many facts as you can on your subject. Spend plenty of your time doing your research. Then spend plenty of your time organizing your material so that your speech is clear and easy to follow. Use as many examples as possible, and use pictures, charts, and graphs if they help you make your points more clearly. Never forget your audience. Don’t talk over their heads, and don’t talk down to them. Treat your audience with respect. They will appreciate your thoughtfulness.
Just remember: Be prepared. Know your subject, your audience, and the occasion. Be brief. Say what you have to say and then stop. And be yourself. Let your personality come through so that you make person-to-person contact with your audience.
If you follow these simple steps, you will see that you don’t have to be afraid of public speaking. In fact, you may find the experience so enjoyable that you volunteer to make more speeches! You’re not convinced yet? Give it a try and see what happens.
The main idea of this article is.

A．that it is hard to make a speech	B．that a poor speaker can never change
C．to always make a short speech	D．that you can improve your speaking ability

Paragraph 2 implies that .

A．many people talk too long

B．many people are happy to give a speech

C．many people don’t prepare for a speech

D．many people are afraid of giving a speech

The phrase “talk over their heads” means .

A．speak too loudly	B．look at the ceiling
C．look down upon them	D．use words and ideas that are too difficult

All of the following statements are TRUE except .

A．a lecturer does not need to organize his speech

B．few people know how to make good speeches

C．research is important in preparing a speech

D．there are simple steps you can take to improve your speaking ability

The title for this passage may be .

A．Do Not Make a Long Speech	B．Try to Enjoy a speech
C．How to prepare for a Speech	D．How to Give a Good Speech

There are a lot of differences in life in the US that you can only learn by living here. However, we will try to introduce you to some of the more important cultural differences.
Personal Space
When two people are talking to each other, they tend to stand a distance apart. Each person has an invisible boundary (界限) around their body into which other people may not come.
Interestingly，the average personal distance varies from culture to culture. Americans tend to require more personal space than in other cultures. So if you try to get too close to an American during your conversation, he or she will feel that you are “in their face” and will try to back away.
Try to avoid physical contact while you are speaking, since this may also lead to discomfort.
Tipping(小费)
Restaurants do not include a service charge in the bill, so you should tip the waiter 15% of the total bill. If service is slow or particular bad, some Americans will tip only 10%. If service is particularly good, it is appropriate to tip 20%. If service is so bad that you will never eat in the restaurant again, leave two cents. It tells the waiter that you haven’t forgotten to leave a tip. Tipping is only appropriate in restaurants which offer table service. You do not tip the cashier in a fast food restaurant.
Gestures
To wave goodbye or hello to someone, raise your hand and wave it from side to side, not front to back. Wave the whole hand, not just the fingers. Waving the hand front to back or the fingers up and down means “no”, “stop”, or “go away’. Holding your hand up with the palm facing forward but no movement means “stop”.
If you want to point at an object, extend the index finger and use it to point at the object. It is not polite to point at people.
Although showing your fist with the thumb up or your open hand with the tips of the thumb and index finger together forming an “O” means “OK”， these are stereotypes (老套). Americans understand these gestures, but they are mainly used by actors in movies, not in real life.
If an American to whom you are speaking backs away a little, you’d better __________.

A．not try to close the gap	B．stop talking with him or her
C．back away too	D．ask him or her what happened

Which of the following statements is TRUE when you eat out in the US?

A．The tip always ranges from 10% to 20% of the total bill.

B．You needn’t leave a tip if you will never eat in the restaurant.

C．It’s unnecessary to tip the waiter in a restaurant.

D．Tipping is not necessary in fast food restaurants.

Which of the following gestures is not used in Americans’ daily life?
A B. C. D.
.
We can learn from the passage that in the US ___________________.

A．it’s natural to touch each other in a conversation.

B．it’s polite to leave a tip though the service is bad.

C．there is only one gesture meaning “stop”.

D．Americans use the same gesture to point at people and objects.

When Xia Min started drinking alcohol with her classmates at a friend’s birthday, she didn’t realize what would happen to her. She drank a lot and fell into a coma (昏迷). The 15year-old girl from Chongqing never recovered.
Xia’s death is warning to other students. A new rule went into effect on January 1, 2006. Teens are not allowed to buy or drink alcohol. Shops are not allowed to sell it to them.
A 1999 Chinese law forbade (禁止) shops to sell alcohol to youths under 18. But it is not taken seriously by shopkeepers because it doesn’t have specific rules. People hope the new rule will work.
“I tasted alcohol when having the dinner of the last New Year’s Eve,” said Lian Yuqi, a 16-year-old girl in Xiamen. She believes that the new rule will stop teens from drinking and help them grow in a healthy way.
“Although it may be a little disappointing not to have beer at parties, I think we can have soft drinks instead,” she said.
Xia Min died from alcohol at the age of ______.

A．15

B．16

C．17

D．18

The underlined word “it” means ________.

A．a warning sing	B．a shopkeeper
C．the new rule	D．a 1999 Chinese law

We can know that ________.

A．it is against the new rule for youths under 18 to drink alcohol

B．shops can sell alcohol to a 16 years old youth.

C．without an ID card, young people can’t buy alcohol

D．it seems that the young girl, Liang Yuqi, likes to drink alcohol

According to the passage, which of the following is TRUE?

A．The new rule has worked very well.

B．Shopkeepers can sell alcohol to teens above 18.

C．China’s legal drinking age is clearly under18.

D．Many teens drink alcohol to show they’ve grown up.

This passage is mainly about _______.

A．the harm of drinking alcohol

B．the legal age for drinking alcohol

C．a new rule to stop teens drinking

D．student’s ideas about drinking alcohol

A．Hong Kong Disneyland Park	B．a Hong Kong family
C．Hong Kong Disneyland Hotel	D．Disney’s Hollywood Hotel

A．a newspaper	B．a magazine
C．the website	D．a travel handbook