If you want to help children develop language and speech skills, UCLA researchers say, listening to what they have to say is just as important as talking to them.
The effect of a conversation between a child and an adult is about six times as great as the effect of adult speech input(输入)alone, the researchers found. “Adults speaking to children helps language develop, but what matters much more is the interaction, ”said the study’s lead author, Frederick Zimmerman, an associate professor in the School of Public Health at the University of California, Los Angeles. The researchers also found that TV viewing didn’t have much of an effect—positively or negatively—as long as it wasn’t displacing conversations between an adult and a child.
The UCLA study included 275 families with children between 2 months and 48 months old. They represented a variety of incomes and education. The researchers found that, in an average day, children heard about 13, 000 spoken words from adults and participated in about 400 adult-child conversations a day.
Assessed separately, factors positively associated with language development included each additional 100 conversations a day and each 1, 000 words increase in the number of words spoken by adults and heard by children. When looked at alone, TV was negatively associated with language development. But, when these three factors were analyzed together, the only one that stood out was conversation between adults and children.
“The more a child speaks and interacts with an adult, the better idea a parent has about where the child is”, Zimmerman said. “Although it’s mostly done unconsciously, parents will provide feedback and correct mistakes. They’ll also tailor their speech to the child. Parents can give the children words by talking to them about what they’re doing, such as, ‘I’m putting on your pajamas now’. But give your child the opportunity to talk, hopefully without the rest of the noise in the environment, ”she added. “If parents can carve out some conversation time—maybe at bath time or at dinner time—that’s a wonderful thing. ”
1. The researchers also found that TV viewing .
A. could have a positive effect on a child’s language development
B. had a little effect on a child’s language development
C. affected a child’s language development more negatively than positively
D. affected a child’s language development both negatively and positively
2.Frederick Zimmerman would probably agree that .
A. parents should let their children talk most of the time
B. children should watch TV programs selectively
C. the conversation between parents and children should be two-way
D. it’s no good for parents to correct their children’s mistakes when they are speaking
3. We can conclude from the last paragraph that .
A. parents should let a child repeat what he or she says
B. bath time or dinner time is the best chance for parents to talk to a child
C. parent-child conversation can be carried out at any proper time
D. parents should leave a child talking alone
4. What would be the best title for the passage?
A. Talk with kids, not at them
B. Let your children voice their own opinions
C. How to develop a child’s language ability
D. The importance of early child language development
5.The underlined word “tailor” in the last paragraph can be best replaced by .
A. controlB. improve
C. passD. adjust
It’s only 4 hours flying time from Sydney, but a world away. What better place to rest than a country where the only place people hurry is on the football field and things are done in “Fiji time”?
Viti Levu—Great Fiji—is the largest island. Here you’ll find the capital Suva and the international airport at Nadi. Vatoa, on the other hand, is a tiny island in the farthest part of Fiji. Then there are 331 other islands, many of them with places to stay.
With less than a million people living on islands, you’ll never feel crowded. And with a climate(气候)that changes only for five degrees between seasons, there’s never a bad time to come.
From cities to villages, from mountains to beaches, from water sports to wooden artworks, Fiji can give you more adventures and special experiences than you could find almost anywhere in the world.
Whenever you come, wherever you go, you’re sure to see some unforgettable events, from war dances to religious(宗教的)songs, from market days to religious days. It’s not just staged for tourists; it’s still a part of everyday life in Fiji. And any one of us can enjoy Fiji’s spirit by being part of the traditional(传统的)sharing of yaqona—a drink made from the root of a Fiji plant.
So why not join us for the experience of a lifetime?
1. Where is the international airport of Fiji?
A. In Suva B. In Sydney
C. On the island of VatoaD. On the island of Viti Levu
2. What does the text tell us about Fijian people?
A. They invented “Fiji time” for visitors.
B. They stick to a traditional way of life.
C. They like to travel from place to place.
D. They love taking adventures abroad.
3. One of the things that make Fiji a tourist attraction is .
A. its comfortable hotels
B. its good weather all year round
C. its exciting football matches
D. its religious beliefs
4.Where can we most probably read this text?
A. In a personal diary
B. In a science report
C. In a travel magazine
D. In a geography textbook
When I started my career in management, I was really green, but I always tried to stay positive on the job. I was working for a new company that was having a difficult time with its customers. Actually, at one point my General Manager told me he liked me and suggested I should start looking for a new job as we were about to lose our only order. Every day we faced people leaving the company, customers complaining, and upper management preparing to close the place.
One night, I went home thinking about the problems. My wife told me to forget about work and see a movie. We went and saw Slumdog Millionaire. Jamal, an eighteen-year-old Indian young man, is from a poor family and becomes rich later. He tries his best to change his position. I realized what we needed to do was to correct the situation.
The next day I called my customers to have a talk. I promised to do my best to solve the problems if they would give us some time. As a result, we were given one month to turn the situation around. This was our only chance to correct the situation. To achieve this, I worked day and night with my team. I can remember working from 6 a. m. and not going home until 2 a. m. the next day.
To make a long story short, we succeeded in solving all of the problems and at the same time increased our productivity(生产率). The customers and management were very happy, and I knew at that moment we had saved our jobs. Actually things went so well that we ended up having our pay doubled.
Through this experience I understand that you can achieve what you desire as long as you work at it and stay positive.
1. The General Manager advised the author to look for a new job mainly because .
A. he knew the author didn’t want to stay there
B. his company was too small to hire so many people
C. he believed the author could get more pay that way
D. the management was preparing to close the department
2. Who caused the author to decide to change his situation?
A. The hero in a movie. B. His wife.
C. His boss. D. The customers.
3. How long did the author stay in his department every day during that month?
A. 8 hours. B. 15 hours.
C. 20 hours. D. 24 hours.
4.The experience of the author shows that .
A. if a person does his best and keeps positive, he’ll succeed
B. if a person takes advice from others, he’ll make progress
C. if a person is clever, he’ll realize his dream sooner or later
D. if a person wants to change his fate, he mustn’t change his job
5.What would be the best title for this passage?
A. My Work Experience
B. My First Management Job
C. How to Correct Your Situation
D. The Importance of Working Hard
Tom: Do you have any plans for your future?
Bob: Er, 1.
Tom: That’s great! I’d like very much to go to Shanghai. Maybe I’ll find a job there.
Bob: That’ not bad. 2.
Tom: What? Are you kidding? It’s such a good chance to go abroad.
Bob: You know, 3. And if I go there, my mum will go there, too. I have to live with them.
Tom: 4. But so many students envy your chance.
Bob: I see. 5. You have your own say on your future while I am sort of controlled by my parents.
Tom: Poor you! Anyway, I think what your parents do is all for your own good.
A. But I envy you.
B. You mean you have no freedom?
C. What about you?
D. But I may change my mind.
E. my father’s there.
F. for the moment I plan to go to England for my MBA.
G. Good luck for your future.
Bananas are one of the world’s most important food crops. They are also one of the most valuable exports. Bananas do not grow from seeds. Instead, they grow from existing plants. Bananas are threatened by disease because all the plants on a farm are copies of each other. They all share the same genetic weaknesses. For example, the Cavendish banana is most popular in North American and European markets. However, some kinds of fungus organisms easily infect the Cavendish. Black Sigatoka disease affects the leaves of Cavendish banana plants. The disease is controlled on large farms by putting chemicals on the plants’ leaves. Farmers put anti-fungal chemicals on their crops up to once a week.
Another fungal disease is more serious. Panama disease attacks the roots of the banana plants. There is no chemical treatment for this disease. Infected plants must be destroyed. Panama disease has affected crops in Southeast Asia, Australia and South Africa. There is concern that it may spread to bananas grown in the Americas. This could threaten an important export product for Central and South America.
The International Network for the Improvement of Banana and Plantain supports research on bananas. The group has headquarters in France and other offices in the major banana-growing areas of the world. The group says that more research must be done to develop improved kinds of bananas. The group says that fungal diseases mainly affect only one kind of banana. In fact, there are five hundred different kinds of bananas. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations has said that the Cavendish banana represents only 10% of world production.
The U. N. agency says farmers should grow different kinds of bananas. This protects against diseases that affect only one kind. Experts warn that disease may cause the Cavendish banana to disappear. This happened earlier to another popular banana because of its genetic weakness against disease.
1.What does this passage mainly tell us?
A. Bananas are the world’s most important food crops.
B. The risk to a popular banana shows need to grow other kinds.
C. There are five hundred different kinds of bananas.
D. How to grow bananas in different countries.
2.Bananas are threatened by disease because .
A. they grow from seeds
B. they are one of the most valuable exports
C. the only way to prevent it is to put chemicals on their leaves
D. they have genetic weaknesses against disease
3. Panama disease .
A. doesn’t belong to fungal disease
B. affects the leaves of banana plants
C. destroys bananas more seriously than Black Sigatoka disease
D. has spread to bananas all over the world
4. We can infer from Paragraph 3 that .
A. the center of the group is in the US
B. the Cavendish banana covers only a small part of the yield of bananas
C. the key to solving the disease is to research all kinds of bananas
D. each fungal disease affects five hundred different kinds of bananas
They are the sort of friends who are so close that they trust each other with their lives. If one falls, the other is there to catch him.
They are Wellman, whose legs were permanently injured nine years ago in a rock-climbing accident, and Corbett, an experienced rock climber. Together, they climbed up Half Dome, the famous 2, 000-foot rock in the Yosemite National Park, through one of the most difficult routes(路线).
During the climb, Corbett took the lead, hit in the metal spikes(尖状物)that guided the ropes, and climbed up. Then, after Wellman pulled himself up the rope, Corbett went down to remove the spikes and climbed up again. This process was repeated time and again, inch by inch, for 13 days. Wellman’s job was not easy either. He got himself up the rope through upper body strength alone. In all, Wellman figured that he had done 5, 000 pull-ups up the rope on the climb.
However, when the two men first met, they never talked about climbing. “He knew that was how I got injured. ”Wellman said. Until one day Wellman decided that he wanted to climb again and they started training.
Their climb of Half Dome was not all smooth. At one point, pieces of rock gave way, and Corbett dropped down quickly. Wellman locked their rope in place, stopping the fall at 20 feet. His quick action probably saved his friend’s life.
“Your partner can save your life—you can save your partner’s life. ”Wellman said as the pair received congratulations from friends. “There are real close ties. ”
1. Which of the following was a challenge for Corbett in climbing Half Dome?
A. To climb up to remove the spikes.
B. To climb it twice.
C. To do 5, 000 pull-ups up the rope.
D. To lock the rope in place.
2. Why did the two men never talk about climbing when they first met?
A. Corbett was poorly trained.
B. Wellman had lost interest in climbing.
C. Corbett didn’t want to hurt Wellman.
D. Wellman hadn’t decided whether to climb again or not.
3. What do we know about Wellman?
A. He climbed Half Dome by himself.
B. He was disabled in a traffic accident.
C. He stopped rock-climbing for some time.
D. He was saved by Corbett during the climb.
4. The main idea of the text is that .
A. two heads are better than one
B. friendship is precious in life
C. the disabled should never give up
D. a man can be destroyed but cannot be defeated
