Doyoueverfightwithyourlittlebr-优题课

People have used pigeons to carry messages to one another for hundreds of years. In the 12th century, the royal palaces of Iraq and Syria included pigeon houses so the kings could be kept informed of their generals’ victories and defeats on the battlefield. In fact, pigeons were a common way to send messages right up through World War II.
Many countries, such as the United States, England, France, Germany, and Italy, in both World War I and World War II, used carrier pigeons. Not only were the birds often the fastest, most reliable way to send messages, they could also be used to reach soldiers far behind enemy lines, where radios and field telephone lines were useless. Since they could easily be released (释放) from airplanes or ships, every branch of the armed services used the birds. In World War II, more than 3,000 soldiers and 150 officers were needed to care for and train the tens of thousands of birds in the U.S. Pigeon Service.
Carrying messages could be a dangerous job. Some pigeons performed with such bravery that they became famous and were even awarded medals, such as England’s Dicken Medal of Gallantry. In a few cases, pigeons even became prisoners of war. In 1918 American forces captured a pigeon named Kaiser, which had been trained to fly special missions for Germany during battle. He was taken to America, where he lived to the age of 32. The most famous pigeon of all may have been Cher Ami. Stationed in France during World War I, he carried twelve important messages for American forces. On his last mission, though wounded, he carried a message that saved the lives of 194 American soldiers. For his extraordinary service, he was awarded the French “Croix de Guerre.”
Carrier pigeons are a slightly different breed (品种) from the kind of pigeons you see on city streets. They are much thinner and taller, with longer legs. Many people find carrier pigeons ugly because of their big wattle, a bent buildup of skin on the beak（鸟嘴）; however, people who raise pigeons often enjoy this strange appearance and consider carriers the best of their breed.
Today, modern communication methods can carry information from one place to another hundreds of times faster than a pigeon could do. However, few people would argue with the fact that carrier pigeons—especially those that served in the military—have earned their place in history. Stories about brave pigeons such as Cher Ami, President Wilson, and Colonel’s Lady have the power to inspire us as no fax machine or high-speed Internet connection could ever do.
Many countries used carrier pigeons in the war because_______.

A．they could be believed in

B．they were easily raised

C．they could reach the enemy lines

D．they could hardly be found by airplanes

Which is the best example to show the bravery of carrier pigeons?

A．Carrier pigeons could fly to places where radios and telephone lines were useless.

B．For his extraordinary service, Cher Ami was awarded the French “Croix de Guerre”.

C．In World War II, more than 3,000 soldiers were needed to care for and train the pigeons.

D．In the 12th century, kings in Iraq were kept informed of the victories and defeats by pigeons.

From the passage, we can learn _________.

A．how carrier pigeons developed in history

B．how to train carrier pigeons to get victory

C．carrier pigeons played an important role in the wars in the old days

D．pigeons inspired soldiers to fight before high-speed Internet invented

"Earworms", some people call them. Songs that get stuck in your head go round and round, sometimes for days, sometimes for months. For no clear reason you cannot help yourself from humming or singing a tune by Lady Gaga.
To a psychologist, the most interesting thing about earworms is that they show a part of our mind that is clearly outside of our control. Earworms arrive without permission and refuse to leave when we tell them to. They are parasites (寄生虫) living in a part of our minds.
If you have got an earworm you can suffer an attack of it simply by someone mentioning the tune, without having to hear it. This proves that earworms are a part of long-term memory. Humans have an "inner ear", for remembering phone numbers, for instance. When it gets infected with earworms, rather than review our plans for the day, or lists of things to remember, the inner ear gets stuck on a few short bars of music or a couple of phrases from a song. A part of us that we normally do not have to think about, that should just do what we ask, has been turned against us, upsetting us with a request that we never asked for. The mind is an inner world which we do not have complete knowledge of, or have control over.
Fortunately psychology can provide some advice on how to deal with an uncontrollable mind. Consider the famous "don’t think of a white bear" problem, which tells you to try not to think about white bears, or to do something else, to avoid both thinking of the white bear and not thinking of the white bear. For earworms, the solution may be the same. Our inner ear has become infected with an earworm. This is a part not under our control, so just sending in instructions to "shut up" is unlikely to be of much help (and has been shown to make it worse). Much better is to employ the inner ear in another task. If your mind is poisoned by Brittany Spears’ Toxic, for instance, then try singing Kylie Minogue’s Can’t Get You out Of My Head. Let me know if it works!
According to the passage, earworms are ______.

A．songs that keep going round in our mind

B．worms that live in a part of our brain

C．tunes by pop singers like Lady Gaga

D．parasites clearly under our control

Which of the following statements is TRUE?

A．Singing songs may get earworms out of your head.

B．Earworms are used for keeping long-term memory.

C．Humans do not have complete control over their mind.

D．You won’t suffer from earworms unless you hear the song.

What does “it” in the last paragraph refer to?

A．The instruction to shut up your mind.

B．“Don’t think of the white bear” problem.

C．Kylie Minogue’s Can’t Get You out Of My Head.

D．Using the earworm-infected inner ear in another task.

What is the passage mainly about?

A．The causes and influences of earworms.

B．What earworms are and how to deal with them.

C．How to clear earworms out of your head.

D．The relation between earworms and popular songs.

What would happen if you tried to blow a soap bubble in freezing weather? Would it freeze solid(固体) and fall to the ground? Would you have to hit it to break it? These questions happened to me on a cold winter day. It was too cold to play in the snow, but it was a perfect time to experiment with blowing frozen bubbles.
To blow frozen bubbles, I used dishwashing soap and a drop of glycerin（甘油） to make it even better. I chose a place out of the wind, and blew bubbles the same way I always do. I watched to see what would happen. Here’s what I learned.
If the temperature is low enough, the skin of the bubbles frosts over (结霜), becoming cloudy instead of clear. And what about those rainbow swirls（旋转） you see in soap bubbles? The rainbow colors stay even when the bubbles frost, but they don’t swirl anymore. The bubbles still stay in the air. They don’t fall to the ground any faster than they would on a warm summer day.
When these frozen bubbles break, they don’t turn into small water drops as summer bubbles do. They turn into flashing rainbow confetti（碎屑） and move slowly to the ground. Sometimes a frozen bubble will roll across the snow without breaking. If nothing disturbs the bubble, it may stay there for a long time. Sometimes I could catch a bubble and hold it until the heat of my hand made it pop.
I learned another thing about blowing frozen bubbles. It’s so interesting that I want to try it again next year.
It is the perfect time to blow frozen bubbles on a ___________day.

A．cold winter

B．warm spring

C．hot summer

D．sunny autumn

When the frozen bubbles break, _________.

A．they make a big sound	B．they turn into small drops
C．they fall to the ground like rain	D．they become rainbow confetti

The purpose of the passage is _______.

A．to learn how to do a science experiment

B．to show the experiment of blowing frozen bubbles

C．to discover games that are fun to play in the snow

D．to invent a new kind of soap that makes stronger bubbles

My Classroom Wheel Teachers 2012~2013
Welcome to My Art Class! My Classroom Mission(任务) We will learn about art history, artists and develop students’ talent. In order to learn, be creative and improve our painting skills, we will have a relaxing classroom. Name: Kathy Grady Email Address:kgrady@iss.k12.nc.us	Welcome to Pope’s Computer Lab! My Classroom Mission Students will work together and actively take part in designing the computer programs.By doing this we will be able to use computer technology successfully in our lives. Name:Barbara Pope Email Address:bpope@iss.k12.nc.us
Welcome toMyPE class! My Classroom Mission Be active in PE classes!You do not have to be an Olympic athlete to get an A in my class. Take part in our sports activities to keep a healthy body and mind. All students will be successful. Name: Sherry Cash Email Address:scash@iss.k12.nc.us	Welcome to the Science Lab! My Classroom Mission This year we will learn about science by becoming a scientist. We will do experiments, observe, touch, listen, and ask questions about our world. We will learn to care for our world. We will never give up trying! Name: Denise Harris Email Address:dharris@iss.k12.nc.us

In order to improve___________, the students will have a relaxing classroom.

A．painting skills

B．computer programs

C．sports activities

D．science studies

We can email at ________ to get more information about computer class.

A．dharris@iss.k12.nc.us	B．kgrady@iss.k12.nc.us
C．bpope@iss.k12.nc.us	D．scash@iss.k12.nc.us

Students should go to __________ class to learn to do experiment.

A．Barbara Pope’s

B．Sherry Cash’s

C．Kathy Grady’s

D．Denise Harris’

Reading is the key to school success and, like any skill, it takes practice. A child learns to walk by practicing until he no longer has to think about how to put one foot in front of the other. An excellent sportsman practices until he can play quickly, correctly and without thinking. Educators call it “automaticity (自动性)”.
A child learns to read by sounding out the letters and finding the meaning of the words. With practice, he stumbles less and less, reading by the phrase (短语). With automaticity, he doesn't have to think about the meaning of words, so he can give all his attention to the meaning of the text.
It can begin as early as first grade. In a recent study of children in Illinois schools, Alan Rossman of Northwestern University found that automatic readers in the first grade not only read almost three times as fast as the others, but also got better results in exams.
According to Rossman, the key to automaticity is the amount (数量) of time a child spends reading, not his IQ. Any child who spends at least 3.5 to 4 hours a week reading books, magazines or newspapers will probably reach automaticity. It can happen if a child turns off TV just one night for reading at home.
You can test yourself by reading something new which is suitable (适合) for your level. If you read aloud with expression, with a sense of the meaning of the sentences, you probably are an automatic reader. If you read brokenly, one word at a time, without expression or meaning, you need more practice.
Children with “automaticity” can read faster because they don’t have to think about ________.

A．how to read the words	B．the meaning of the words
C．reading by themselves	D．the meaning of the text

Rossman tells that any child who ________will possibly be an automatic reader.

A．turns off TV one night 4 weeks

B．reads books by the word quickly

C．spends an hour reading every day

D．gets the same grades as others in exams

The underlined word “stumble” in the passage means “________” in Chinese.

A．结结巴巴地读	B．全神贯注地读
C．心不在焉地读	D．声情并茂地读

The best title for the passage is“________”.

A．IQ Is the Key to the Automaticity

B．TV Is Bad for Children's Reading

C．Automaticity Depends on Practice

D．Automatic Reads Will Be Successful

A．touring the world	B．their musical group
C．a perfect mix of music	D．cleaning the world

A．in the magazine	B．on the radio
C．on TV	D．on the Internet