As a child, I started learning to play to piano, my favorite musical _____ , but I was forced to give up when I started my middle school _______I could concentrate more on my studies.
It’s one of my biggest ______ to stop practicing the piano when I recall sadly today. During the following years, I kept telling my piano teacher that I would _____. However, I didn’t keep my promise because I was ______ with my study. _____ I lost touch with my teacher. Some years later, my teacher died. I was very sad because I lost such a good teacher. She was a very warm and gentle person. It hurts me to think she may have been ______ that I never returned. I haven’t taken lessons since then but to be honest, I ______ to. Sitting at the piano, I couldn’t help recalling many ______—times of my practising at home and playing before my teacher and one time my teacher ______ me after I played entire pieces of music wrong in front of her colleagues. I was so ______ that I could hardly say anything. But her ____ helped ease my shame. These memories, ______, good or bad, never caused my ______ for playing the piano again.
This thought then led me to think that ____ is like music, and that we all try to play different __ in the instrument of our life. Sometimes the pitch(音高) is _____ when we play it well, but sometimes we are out of tone. However, we all continue to create our own _____ style of music. No matter what style our music is, it is ______ that we sing the songs of joy, quietness and love. Though I may never make it back to piano lessons, it doesn’t _____ that I’ve stopped making music.
1.A. instrument B. performance C. room D. stage
2.A. because B. so that C. now that D. for
3.A. successes B. regrets C. decisions D. hobbies
4.A. play B. graduate C. leave D. return
5.A. occupied B. angry C. satisfied D. patient
6.A. Actually B. Constantly C. Suddenly D. Gradually
7.A. astonished B. glad C. disappointed D. amazed
8.A. liked B. needed C. wanted D. decided
9.A. dreams B. expressions C. words D. memories
10.A. instructed B. hurt C. punished D. respected
11.A. frightened B. moved C. embarrassed D. excited
12.A. happiness B. satisfaction C. comfort D. sigh
13.A. instead B. meanwhile C. therefore D. however
14.A. hope B. courage C. feeling D. effort
15.A. life B. learning C. attitude D. enjoyment
16.A. cards B. sports C. roles D. games
17.A. hard B. wonderful C. surprising D. complex
18.A. unique B. boring C. common D. similar
19.A. necessary B. strange C. possible D. important
20.A. matter B. mean C. report D. appear
The key to losing weight is to understand what really motivates you. have you ever been excited about losing a few pounds? 1. And to help you keep your weight under control, you need some coping strategies.
Ask questions. When you’re researching different dieting products and plans or even talking to a doctor about diets, ask as many questions as you can.2.Ask questions like: Do I have to purchase special meals or supplements? Does the program include a part to help me maintain my weight loss?
Get real. 3.Don’t burden yourself with unrealistic expectations. Remember, large amounts of weight loss are not realistic and are most likely not safe or healthy. Talk with your health care professional to determine a healthy weight goal.
4.To maintain your weight, you must balance your intake of calories with the energy you burn. Just 30 minutes of fast walking in most days can take about 10 pounds off your weight each year.
Weight yourself weekly. It’s important to track your weight on any diet or weight loss plan, but don’t get on the scale every day. weighing daily won’t show you the big picture. 5.
A. Stay balanced.
B. Once a week is fine.
C. Stick with your healthy eating plan.
D. Losing one to two pounds a week is a realistic goal.
E. Being well informed will help you choose the best diet for you.
F. Regular weight check-ins will show you your progress over time.
G. If so, you must find a way to turn that excitement into determination.
One a February day during an unusually mild winter, I found myself missing the snowy beauty. I enjoyed the feeling that comes from watching snow fall gently from heaven while I’m cosy inside with a good fire burning in the stove. But there were more serious concerns, like the lack of rainfall making our woods more accessible to summer forest fires. Local ski fields and hotels, all dependent on a snowy season, felt sorry for the vacant lifts, empty restaurants and unused snowmobiles.
Then I happened to see three little robins （知更鸟） fly into our yard. What were they doing here? West of us, in the Willamette Valley, wild flowers burst this time of year. But here in central Oregon, even if a groundhog （ 土拨鼠） had wanted to appear, it couldn't have broken through the frozen earth. And yet, these robins had arrived.
Their presence brought me a flow of happiness. It felt like a celebration as I dug into my bag of birdseed and spread a handful on the ground. Above me, the deep blue sky was cloudless, perfectly quiet but for some smoke from a neighbor's chimney. The lively cold made the air fresh and clean.
My robins jumped lightly toward the seed. My soul jumped with them, feeling equally carefree. Caught up in the moment of spring fever, I checked our snowless flower beds. To my delight, I spotted a green branch sticking out through the brown soil.
Despite the cold, I wasn't ready to go back inside. Just a short meeting with those robins had renewed my spirit. The next day I would return to my outdoor work with a cheerful heart and a hopeful eye for these signs of spring.
1.The author missed a snowy winter because snow could __________.
A. prevent forest fires B. boom his business
C. promise an early spring D. bring him a good feeling
2.The author felt happy when finding _________.
A. the sky was deep blue with clouds
B. three little robins flew into his yard
C. wild flowers burst in the Willamette Valley
D. a groundhog appeared through the frozen earth
3.We can infer from the passage that the author _________.
A. would enjoy wild flowers the next day B. though winter was already over
C. longed for the coming of spring D. loved robins the most
Many foreign students report feeling lonely or unwelcome in Australia. Those feelings are among the reasons why Australia is taking a close look at its international education industry. But wherever international students go, making friends may not always be easy. Elisabeth Gareis of Baruch College in New York surveyed 454 international students. They were attending four-year colleges and graduate schools in the American South and Northeast.
Students from English-speaking countries and from northern and central Europe were more likely to be happy with their friendships. But 38% of the international students said they had no close friends in the United States. And half of the students from East Asia said they were unhappy with the number of American friends they had. Thirty percent said they wished their friendships could be deeper and more meaningful.
Professor Gareis says, “Students from East Asia have cultures that are different on many levels from the culture in the United States. There are also language problems, and maybe some social skills, such as small talk, which are possibly not as important in their native countries, where it's not as important to start friendships with small talks. Many East Asian students blamed themselves for their limited friendships with Americans, for not speaking the language well enough and for not knowing the culture well enough.
VOA's Student Union blogger Jessica Stahl did her own survey to find out how American students and foreign students relate to each other. More than 100 students, about half of them American, answered her online questions.
Half of the international students and 60% of the Americans said they related as well or better to the other group than to their own group.
Professor Gareis says: "International students who make friends with host nationals are, overall, more satisfied with their stay in the host country. They have better language skills, they have better academic performance and they have better attitudes toward the host country."
1.What can be the best title for the text?
A. Making Friends Is Not Always Easy for Foreign Students
B. Students from East Asia Are Not Good at Making Friends
C. International Education Industry in Australia and America
D. The Relation between Foreign Students and Host Countries
2.Professor Gareis tends to think that ___________.
A. culture shock should be blamed for many levels of American culture
B. foreign students don’t know small talks mean a lot to Americans
C. foreign students should learn some basic social skills first of all
D. foreign students have difficulty making friends for different reasons
3.How did Jessica Stahl carry out her survey?
A. By doing questionnaires from Students Union
B. By asking questions on the Internet
C. By forming the students into groups
D. By doing a survey through VOA
4.Which of the following statements will the writer probably agree with?
A. International students like to make more friends in their own group
B. International students are more likely to remain in the host country after graduation
C. Students who make more friends at home have better academic performance
D. Students who make friends in their host countries feel happier with their experience
In America, parents tend to encourage their children to develop their potential(潜能)to the fullest extent. Fathers and mothers frequently teach their children both ambition and the confidence necessary to work toward their goals. American parents are always active in concentrating on what their kids can do, not what they can’t. As a result, millions of American boys and girls grow up hoping to become actors and athletes, diplomats and doctors. Many of them even want to become president.
American parents often encourage their children to become involved in extra activities of all types at school, such as student government, sports and music. They believe that only through taking part in these activities can their children become mature young adults.
As we all know, schoolwork is important. But parents should realize that the social skills their children learn form natural conversations with each other are as important as schoolwork and the skills they will need in the future work. What’s more important in their work is that their children should have a sound knowledge of physics or the ability to communicate effectively.
As a rule, Chinese parents don’t educate their children about the same kind of ambition and confidence as Americans do, nor do they encourage the same level of participation in extra activities. Children are typically advised to study hard and pass exams. They have to spend a lot of time in doing much schoolwork every day. It is a great waste of time to do so.
Now more and more Chinese parents have recognized that they should pay attention to developing the potential of their children. I hope that leaders in Chinese educational circles should take some measures to develop the potential of their children. I am very confident about it.
1.From the passage, we know the American parents pay much more attention to ________.
A. the social skills than Chinese parents
B. their children’s studying hard and well
C. what their children want but they can’t
D. extra activities than schoolwork
2.According to the passage, Chinese parents ________.
A. know more than American parents to educate their children
B. owning ambition and confidence is necessary and important
C. pay much more attention to their children’s fine future
D. don’t encourage their children to participate in extra activities
3.From the passage, we can infer _______.
A. American children are brave and adventurous
B. American children are more active in their studies
C. Chinese children have the ability to communicate effectively
D. Something should be done to develop the potential of the children in China
4.What’s the writer’s attitude towards Chinese education reform?
A. Neutral. B. Indifferent.
C. Positive. D. Negative.
What Theresa Loe is doing proves that a large farm isn’t a prerequisite for a modern grow-your-own lifestyle. On a mere 1/10 of an acre in Los Angeles, Loe and her family grow, can(装罐)and preserve much of the food they consume.
Loe is a master food preserver, gardener and canning expert. She also operates a website, where she shares her tips and recipes, with the goal of demonstrating that everyone has the ability to control what’s on their plate.
Loe initially went to school to become an engineer, but she quickly learned that her enthusiasm was mainly about growing and preparing her own food. “I got into cooking my own food and started growing my own herbs (香草) and foods for that fresh flavor,” she said. Engineer by day, Loe learned cooking at night school. She ultimately purchased a small piece of land with her husband and began growing their own foods.
“I teach people how to live farm-fresh without a farm,” Loe said. Through her website Loe emphasizes that “anybody can do this anywhere.” Got an apartment with a balcony （阳台）? Plant some herbs. A window? Perfect spot for growing. Start with herbs, she recommends, because “they’re very forgiving.” Just a little of the herbs “can take your regular cooking to a whole new level,” she added. “I think it’s a great place to start.” “Then? Try growing something from a seed, she said, like a tomato or some tea.”
Canning is a natural extension of the planting she does. With every planted food. Loe noted, there’s a moment when it’s bursting with its absolute peak flavor. “I try and keep it in a time capsule in a canning jar,” Loe said. “Canning for me is about knowing what’s in your food, knowing where it comes from.”
In addition to being more in touch with the food she’s eating, another joy comes from passing this knowledge and this desire for good food to her children: “Influencing them and telling them your opinion on not only being careful what we eat but understanding the bigger picture,” she said, “that if we don’t take care of the earth, no one will.”
1.The underlined word “prerequisite” (Pare. 1) is closest in meaning to “______”.
A. recipe B. substitute
C. requirement D. challenge
2.Why does Loe suggest starting with herbs?
A. They are used daily.
B. They are easy to grow.
C. They can grow very tall
D. They can be eaten uncooked
3.According to Loe, what is the benefit of canning her planted foods?
A. It can preserve their best flavor
B. It can promote her online sales
C. It can better her cooking skills
D. It can improve their nutrition
4.What is the “the bigger picture” (Para. 6) that Loe wishes her children to understand?
A. The knowledge about good food
B. The way to live a grow-our-own life
C. The joy of getting in touch with foods
D. The responsibility to protect our earth
