【推荐1】It is not always easy to stay focused on the things we want or need to do. There are many things that can distract(使分心)us and affect completing the tasks that need to be done. Staying focused may take practice, but it is possible. Here is how.

Set some goals for yourself. When people have a clear goal they are working towards, it helps them to stay focused on accomplishing that goal. It may be helpful if you write down the goal you’re working towards and give yourself a time limit to achieve it. This can help you keep track of your progress along the way.

Get rid of all distractions. This includes turning off the radio, TV and cell phones. If you’re working on a computer, don’t open any extra windows. It’s easy to get distracted if you have distractions readily available to you. Tell people that you don’t wish to be disturbed between certain times so that you can devote your full attention to what you’re doing. You will have to learn how to discipline yourself so that you can stay on track.

Set a fixed time to work on certain tasks. Make sure the times don’t affect with anything else you have to do. It’s also important to set the times for hours when you’re least likely to be disturbed. If you have children, try to focus on what you need to do when they are at school or sleeping. You may have to make some rearrangements in your daily schedule so that you are able to stay focused when you need to.

1. Why should you write down your goal and set a time limit to it?

A．To help you pay attention to it

B．To give you the direction for progress

C．To enjoy a greater sense of achievement

D．To help you know how you are getting along

2. How can you avoid distractions?

A．By practicing self-control

B．By silencing your cell phone

C．By turning the TV down a little bit

D．By keeping all the windows closed

3. What should be avoided when scheduling tasks?

A．Time limits	B．Time conflict
C．Rearrangements	D．Fixed time periods

4. What can be the best title for the text?

A．What to Focus on	B．The Benefits of Focus
C．How to Stay Focused	D．The Importance of Staying Focused

【推荐2】Drowning is the second-most common cause of accidental death in children aging 1 to 14 (just behind motor vehicle accidents.) In a study by a national safety group, 90 percent of children who drowned did so while under the care of an adult or teenager.     1    .

They are gasping(急促吸气)

    2    . And for young children, who are in a horizontal face-down position, they are unable to keep the mouth above the water’s surface at all.

    3    

They have to be able to breathe before they can speak. When people are drowning, their mouths sink below and reappears above the surface of the water. There isn't time for them to exhale, inhale, and call out.

They don’t seem in trouble

Sometimes the most important indicator that people are drowning is that they don’t look like they are drowning. They may just seem to be looking up at the sky, shore, pool deck, or dock. Ask them, “Are you all right?” If they cannot answer at all, they probably are drowning.     4    .

They are trying and failing, to swim in a particular direction

A drowning victim can’t make any forward progress while in the water, according to the American Red Cross. “A young child may appear to be doing a ‘doggy paddle’ but has no forward progress,” according to the official lifeguarding guide.     5    .

A．They can’t call for help

B．They can’t wave for help

C．All efforts are devoted strictly to getting air

D．Here are the steps for you to follow when someone is drowning

E．They could also take in water when drowning victims are gasping for air

F．You may have less than 30 seconds to get to them if they return a blank stare

G．Watch for these signs that someone is in trouble to avoid a tragedy in the making

【推荐3】I always loved jokes and cartoons. They can be serious as they point out the silliness in our lives, convey a wise message of wisdom and at the same time bring a smile. Sometimes there is little difference between a joke and life wisdom.     1    .

I started collecting jokes I received from different sources over a period of some 25 years. For the book I chose for an “Anglo-Saxon” collection. They are typical for the US, Canada, UK, Australia and New Zealand.

Where are they from? Who wrote them?     2    , Most are everywhere, floating anonymously (匿名地)   on the internet, and circulate among friends, e-mails, chat groups and mailing lists. Many come up over a beer.

The language of humor is not universal and translating into another language mostly does not work.     3    . Living in China for a long time, I gave up telling jokes as our Chinese friends find nothing funny in them and they can lead to misunderstandings.     4    . Trying to translate Chinese jokes also would mostly fail to convey anything “funny” for us Westerners; I can say I cannot recall any Chinese joke.

While at a first sight the book may not be interesting to Chinese readers, due to the cultural differences,     5    , as well as to learn a different vocabulary. Also, for those who deal with Westerners, here in China or when abroad, they might surprise their foreign friends by serving them some jokes they can appreciate.

A．Different cultures have a different understanding of what is “funny”

B．Generally speaking, nobody knows the original source

C．they wonder why there are so many about the Westerners

D．Worse, they start asking a million questions of the why and what and how

E．Maybe life is just a big joke

F．Most Chinese are totally unfamiliar with the Western world of jokes, they are puzzled or even shocked

G．it is a nice tool for our friends to learn about typical Western humor

【推荐1】A new generation addiction is quickly spreading all over the world. Weboholism, a twentieth century disease, affects people from different ages. They surf the net, use email and speak in chat rooms. They spend many hours on the computer, and it becomes a compulsive habit. They cannot stop, and it affects their lives.

Ten years ago, no one thought that using computers could become compulsive behavior that could affect the social and physical life of computer users. This obsessional behavior has affected teenagers and college students. They are likely to log on computers and spend long hours at different websites.

They become hooked on computers and gradually their social and school life is affected by this situation. They spend all free time surfing and don't concentrate on homework, so this addiction influences their grades and success at school. Because they can find everything on the websites, they hang out there. Moreover, this addiction to websites influences their social life.

They spend more time in front of computers than with their friends. The relation with their friends changes. The virtual life becomes more important than their real life. They have a new language that they speak in the chat rooms and it causes cultural changes in society.

Because of the change in their behavior, they begin to isolate themselves from the society and live with their virtual friends. They share their emotions and feelings with friends who they have never met in their life. Although they feel confident on the computer, they are not confident with real live friends they have known all their life. It is a problem for the future. This addictive behavior is beginning to affect all the world.

1. According to the author, Weboholism is ________.

A．a disease that appears among the youth

B．an obsessive behavior that focuses on the virtual world

C．a kind of compulsive habit that does good to people’s life

D．a compulsive habit which focuses on the real life

2. The underlined phrase in the third paragraph means “________”.

A．be addicted to	B．be interested in
C．be curious about	D．be eager for

3. From paragraph 3 to 5, students hooked on computers usually ________.

①have poor performance in class

②are willing to talk with their families

③are confident enough with their close friends

④prefer to spend long hours in the chat rooms with a new language

A．①②

B．①③

C．①④

D．②④

4. The writer’s attitude towards phenomenon of Weboholism is ________.

A．supportive	B．concerned
C．indifferent	D．neutral

【推荐2】For several days Ⅰ(Jane Eyre) saw little of Mr. Rochester. One evening, I was invited to talk to him after dinner. There was a smile on his lips, and his eyes were shining brightly. As I was looking at him, he suddenly turned around and asked me, "Do you think I'm handsome, Miss Eyre?"

The answer somehow slipped from my tongue before I realized it: "No, sir."

"Ah, you are really unusual! You look like a quiet, serious little person, but you can be almost rude."

"Sir, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have given an immediate answer to such a question about appearances; I should have said that beauty doesn't matter, or something like that."

"No, you shouldn't! I see, you criticize my appearance, and then you stick a sly penknife under my ear! You have honesty and feeling. There are not many girls like you. Perhaps you have awful faults to counterbalance(抵消) your few good points."

I thought to myself that he might have too. He seemed to read my mind, and said quickly, "Yes, you're right. I have plenty of faults. I went the wrong way when I was twenty-one, and have never found the right path again. I might have been as good as you, and perhaps wiser. I am not a bad man, take my word for it, but I have done wrong. It wasn't my character, but circumstances that were to blame. Why do I tell you all this? Because you're the sort of person people tell their problems and secrets to, because you're sympathetic and you give them hope."

"Don't be afraid of me, Miss Eyre," he continued." You don't relax or laugh very much, perhaps because of the effect Lowood has had on you. But in time you will be more natural when you're with me, and laugh, and speak freely. You're like a bird in a cage. When you get out of the cage, you'll fly very high. Good night."

1. Why did Mr. Rochester say "and then you stick a sly penknife under my ear" in paragraph 5?

A．Because Jane had offered some unnecessary explanations.

B．Because Jane had intended to be more critical.

C．Because Jane had regretted having talked to him.

D．Because Jane had intended to kill him with a knife.

2. From what Mr. Rochester told Miss Eyre, we can conclude that he wanted to _____.

A．tell her all his troubles	B．tell her his life experience
C．change her opinion of him	D．change his circumstances

3. Mr. Rochester sounded _____ at the end of the passage.

A．rude	B．cold
C．friendly	D．encouraging

【推荐3】With at least a dozen wildfires going through western North Carolina in the fall of 2016, it would take more than one local fire department to fight the flames. In early November, the federal government sent over a team of firefighters from the Interagency Hotshot Crews.

Most of the Hotshots stayed at Hinton Rural Life Center in Hayesville, North Carolina. The center reached out to the media and community groups, hoping to get four volunteers per day to help things run smoothly for their firefighting guests. They didn’t expect a response quite so unbelievable.

Within two days, over 200 people—about a third of the town’s population—reached out to offer help, according to the center’s website. Meals and accommodation were already being taken care of, so they went above and beyond the basic things. Community members donated over 1,000 goods, including sports drinks, snacks, eye drops and so on.

Even the kids in Hayesville participated, sending thank-you cards, pictures and signs to motivate the Hotshots. The team received over 2,000 thank-you notes. After the fires were put out and the firefighters were preparing to go home, the town threw a parade（游行）to thank them and wish them well.

The firefighters were at a loss by the generosity from Hayesville. They put together their own thank-you in a YouTube video.

“You guys don’t know how much you mean, all the support you guys give us, ’’ says Ron, a firefighter from Oregon, in the video. “Out of four years when I’ve been fighting fire, this is about the most hospitable（好客的）state and county I’ve ever been in. And it brings tears to my eyes just thinking about it.”

1. What is unexpected according to the text?

A．The difficulty in putting out wildfires.

B．The firefighters’ contributions to the town.

C．The locals’ attitude towards the center’s request.

D．The firefighters’ response to the wildfires.

2. What can we know about Hayesville from the text?

A．It is a large town.

B．It is a small town.

C．It is a wealthy town.

D．It’s tough to live in.

3. Why are even the kids in Hayesville mentioned in the text?

A．To show how cute they were.

B．To encourage the firefighters to be grateful.

C．To lead in the reason for creating the YouTube video.

D．To stress the locals’ enthusiasm for the firefighters.

4. What can we infer about the firefighters from the last paragraph?

A．They felt very moved.

B．They were kind to the locals.

C．They were welcome everywhere.

D．They were confident about their work.