It’s just a small, white envelope stuck among the branches of our Christmas tree. No name, no identification. It all began because my husband Mike hated Christmas. He didn’t hate the true meaning of Christmas, but the commercial aspects. Knowing this, one year I to reach for something special just for Mike. The came in an unusual way.
Our son Kevin, who was 12 that year, attended a wrestling match against a team sponsored by an inner-city church shortly Christmas. These youngsters’ sneakers were in and the shoestrings seemed to be the only thing holding them , compared to our boys’ gold uniforms and shoes. I was even shocked to find they had no helmets.
Mike, seated beside me, his head sadly, “I wish just one of them could have won,” he said. “They have a lot of potential, but losing could take their dreams away.” That’s when the idea for his came.
That afternoon, I went to a local sports store and bought some wrestling helmets and and sent them anonymously（匿名地） to the inner-city . On Christmas Eve, I placed the envelope on the tree, the note telling Mike what I had done and that this was his gift from me. His smile was the brightest thing about Christmas that year.
For each Christmas, I the tradition. The envelope became the most exciting part of our Christmas. It was always the thing opened on Christmas morning and our children, ignoring their unwrapped (打开的) new toys, would stand with wide-eyed as their dad lifted the envelope from the tree to exhibit its .
As the children grew, the toys more practical presents, but the envelope lost its temptation. The story doesn’t end there.
We lost Mike due to cancer. When Christmas rolled around, I was in . But Christmas Eve found me placing an envelope on the tree, and in the morning, three more it. Each of our , had placed an envelope on the tree for their dad. The tradition has grown and someday will expand further with our grandchildren standing around the tree as their fathers take down the envelope with expectation. Mike’s spirit, like the Christmas spirit, will always be with us.
1.A. decidedB. urgedC. struggledD. declared
2.A. storyB. ChristmasC. inspirationD. affection
3.A. afterB. beforeC. duringD. on
4.A. ruinsB. stylesC. chainsD. rags
5.A. apartB. foreverC. togetherD. around
6.A. noddedB. shookC. wavedD. turned
7.A. wordB. noteC. envelopD. present
8.A. shoesB. shoestringsC. giftsD. sports
9.A. houseB. schoolC. churchD. store
10.A. insideB. outsideC. betweenD. nearby
11.A. refusedB. imaginedC. followedD. missed
12.A. bestB. firstC. worstD. last
13.A. comfortB. patienceC. satisfactionD. expectation
14.A. conceptsB. contentsC. shadowsD. shapes
15.A. gave way toB. keep up withC. get away withD. fit in with
16.A. onceB. neverC. everD. seldom
17.A. angerB. shockC. sadnessD. annoyance
18.A. attendedB. enteredC. placedD. joined
19.A. grandchildrenB. childrenC. friendsD. relatives
20.A. watchingB. singingC. smilingD. crying
The word addiction usually makes you think of alcohol or drugs. 1. Some people are compulsive (难以自制的) shoppers. Others find it impossible to pull themselves away from their work. Still others spend countless hours watching TV or playing computer games.
2. Many people enjoy going to markets or stores more and more every day, but it’s more than a common hobby for some of them. They have turned into shopaholics. They are people who simply enjoy shopping and walking around spending money without being able to stop doing it. They are so interested in shopping that they usually buy things they don’t need. Even though they don’t have enough money, they buy everything they want.
The question is why they have this addiction. There isn’t a specific answer. Some people go shopping when they are sad, worried, upset or lonely. 3. Shopaholics say that they feel more important and better after they buy something. They also tend to have this addiction when they feel guilty.
4. Some of them can be psychological. If this is the case, people addicted to shopping should go to a support group to help them break this habit. However, the process, like for most addictions, is long, and they suffer a lot. It can also cause financial problems. They just think about satisfying their feelings, so they spend money they don’ t have. 5.
A. Once you are addicted to alcohol or drugs, it is difficult to get rid of.
B. Over the years, shopping has become a very common activity.
C. They use this activity as a way to forget their problems.
D. However, in modern-day society we are seeing some new kinds of addictions.
E. People addicted to computer games consider the games as great ways to amuse themselves.
F. They get deep in debt, and can even go bankrupt (破产) and get sent to prison.
G. Shopaholism seems to be a harmless addiction, but it can bring out problems.
“Mommy, I’m a funny bird,” Jack, my almost-4-year-old tells me. He moves his little fingers like wings.
“You are?” I say. I’m sitting across from him while he eats breakfast at our table. I smile; he says the greatest things. A week ago, however, when he had chocolate on his face and I licked (舔) my finger to wipe it off, he said, “Don’t put your dirty water on me.”
A week ago, I wouldn’t have been sitting here with him during breakfast. I wouldn’t have been up, emptying the dishwasher, cleaning the kitchen, or answering emails. We always had dinner together at the table, but other meals got much less attention. I work from home, and my husband owns an advertising agency and often travels. We were so busy that we had to do the chores during breakfast or lunch.
Why was I not sitting down with my son? It could take Jack an hour to eat a meal, during which I could feel the tug (猛拉) of unanswered emails, a deadline, and the unswept floor each minute.
Then we went to visit friends for a weekend. They have two kids. They are busy, professional, and good parents. And at every meal -- not just dinner -- we all sat down at the table and ate. When we got home, my husband said, “Maybe we should be doing that.”
I took this as criticism. My husband works a lot, so mealtimes are mostly under my charge. The “we” he was talking about was me.
Then, I remembered myself that I’m a big girl, and took his comment the way it was meant. We both want what’s best for Jack. Yes, I thought. I’m home. I have to eat, too. My husband is Jack’s favorite, which delights and moves me, but I am Jack’s constant. Constants are there. Constants sit down.
So I’ve been sitting. And, surprise, I haven’t missed a deadline. The house has been clean. And Jack seems to like having me there. Two days ago, over lunch, he smiled and stared at me.
“What?” I asked, amused.
“Mommy, I love you so much and I can’t stop loving you.”
I could have missed that.
God, I could have missed that.
1. Before visiting the friends, Jack _________.
A. didn’t like chocolate
B. couldn’t eat by himself
C. was sometimes rude to his mom
D. preferred his mother to his father
2.After visiting the friends, the author _________.
A. was determined to learn to cook
B. asked her husband to have every meal with her
C. decided to have dinner together with her family
D. was advised by her husband to learn from the friends
3.What does the underlined word “that” in the last paragraph refer to?
A. The best time to visit friends.
B. Jack saying sweet words to his mom.
C. A deadline for answering emails.
D. Jack having lunch with his mom.
Dogs are social animals and without proper training, they will behave like wild animals. They will soil your house, destroy your belongings, bark excessively, fight other dogs and even bite you. Nearly all behavior problems are perfectly normal dog activities that occur at the wrong time or place or are directed at the wrong thing. The key to preventing or treating behavior problems is learning to teach the dog to redirect its normal behavior to an outlet that is acceptable in the domestic (驯养的) setting.
One of the best things you can do for your dog and yourself is to train its obedience. Obedience training doesn’t solve all behavior problems, but it is the foundation for solving just about any problem. Training pens up a line of communication between you and your dog. Effective communication is necessary to instruct your dog about what you want it to do.
Training is also an easy way to establish the social rank order. When your dog obeys a simple request of “come here, sit,” it is showing obedience and respect for you. It is not necessary to establish yourself as top dog or leader of the pack (群) by using extreme measure. You can teach your dog its subordinate (从属的) role by teaching it to show submission to you. Most dogs love performing tricks for you to pleasantly accept that you are in charge.
Training should be fun and rewarding for you and your dog. It can enrich your relationship and make living together more enjoyable. A well-trained dog is more confident and can more safely be allowed a greater amount of freedom than an untrained animal.
1.Behavior problems of dogs are believed to _________.
A. occur when they go wild
B. be just part of their nature
C. get worse in modern society
D. become a threat to the community
2.The key to solving dogs’ behavior problems is to _________.
A. teach the dog to perform clever tricks
B. make the dog aware of its owner’s authority
C. enable the dog to regain its normal behavior
D. provide the dog with a pattern accepted by its owner
3.Why do pet dogs love performing tricks for their masters?
A. To avoid being punished.
B. To show their affection for their masters.
C. To win leadership of the dog pack.
D. To show their willingness to obey.
4.When a dog has received effective obedience training, its owner _________.
A. can give the dog more freedom
B. will enjoy a better family life
C. can give the dog more rewards
D. will have more confidence in himself
Boys’ schools are the perfect place to teach young men to express their emotions and involve them in activities such as art, dance and music. Far from the traditional image of a culture of aggressive masculinity (阳刚), the absence of girls gives boys the chance to develop without pressure of following that tradition, a US study says.
Boys at single-sex schools are said to be more likely to get involved in cultural and artistic activities that help develop their emotional expressiveness, rather than feeling they have to follow the “boy code” of hiding their emotions to be a “real man”.
The findings of the study are so against received wisdom that boys do better when taught alongside girls.
Tony Little, headmaster of Eton, warns that boys are being faded by the British education system because it has become too focused on girls. He criticizes teachers for failing to recognize that boys are actually more emotional than girls.
The research argues that boys often perform badly in mixed schools because they become discouraged when their female schoolmates do better earlier in speaking and reading skills. But in single-sex schools teachers can tailor lessons to boys’ learning style, letting them move around the classroom and getting them to compete in teams to prevent boredom, writes the study’s author, Abigail James, from the University of Virginia.
Teachers can encourage boys to enjoy reading and writing with “boy-focused” approaches such as themes and characters that appeal to them. Because boys generally have sharper vision to learn best through touch, and are physically more active, they need to be given “hands-on” lessons where they are allowed to walk around. “Boys in mixed schools view classical music as feminine (女性的) and prefer what centers on violence and sexism, ” James writes.
Single-sex education also makes it less likely that boys would feel they have to follow the tradition that men should be “masterful and in charge” in relationships. “In mixed schools boys find themselves pushed to act like men before they understand themselves well enough to know what that means,” the study reports.
1.The author believes that a single-sex school will _________.
A. force boys to hide their emotions to be “real men”
B. help to develop masculine aggressiveness in boys
C. encourage boys to express their emotions more freely
D. naturally make boys accept the traditional image of a man
2.It is commonly believed that in a mixed school boys _________.
A. perform relatively better
B. grow up more healthily
C. behave more responsibly
D. receive a better education
3.What does Tony Little say about the British education system?
A. It fails more boys than girls academically.
B. It focuses more on mixed school education.
C. It fails to give boys the attention they need.
D. It places more pressure on boys than on girls.
4.According to Abigail James, one of the advantages of single-sex schools is _________.
A. teaching can be tailored to suit the characteristics of boys
B. boys can focus on their lessons without being absent-minded
C. boys can choose to learn whatever they are interested in
D. teaching can be designed to promote boys’ team spirit
Our site specializes in European cycling tours, Bike & Boat Tours, Road Bike Tours and now River Cruises (航行) throughout Europe, Asia, and the Americas.
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1.The text is mainly written to _________.
A. introduce fantastic tour places
B. invite readers to join in the tours
C. compare boat tours with bike tours
D. Encourage readers to have adventures
2.Which countries have been added to “Bike Europe and Beyond”?
A. America & New Zealand. B. New Zealand & China.
C. Vietnam & America. D. China & Vietnam.
3. Which of the following require(s) certain cycling experience?
A. Road Bike Tours.
B. Bike & Boat Trips.
C. Luxury Boat Tours.
D. Bike Europe and Beyond.
4.The text is probably taken from a _________.
A. newspaper B. textbook
C. website D. Magazine
