Children may learn new words better when they learn them in the context of other words they are just learning—according to a new research from the University of East Anglia.
Researchers investigated how 18–24-month-olds learn new words—in the context of words they already know well and those they don’t. The findings help explain how children learn new words and suggest a new way that parents and carers could help boost language development.
Previous research suggests that when children hear a word they do not know and see an object they have never seen in the context of some objects that they can already name, such as a toy or a ball, they guess that the new word refers to the new thing.
Dr. Larissa Samuelson from the university wanted to know if the strength of a child’s knowledge of familiar things—how well they know what “cars” or “balls” are, for example—mattered for learning new words and remembering them. They asked 82 children to take part in the study and carry out two experiments among them. And then they got some really surprising findings.
“We had expected that a stronger knowledge of familiar words would be better for learning new words, but we found the opposite was true.” Dr Samuelson said. “This new study suggests another way we might be able to help boost children’s ability to remember new word-object links – by teaching them in the context of other things that they are just learning.”
It seems counterintuitive, but it is perhaps because the less well-known items don’t compete with the new words as much. If they learn new words in the context of playing with well-known items such as a ball or book, they don’t process the new word as much.
1. What is the purpose of the new research?A.To challenge the findings of previous studies. | B.To observe the process of children’s learning. |
C.To better understand children’s word learning. | D.To compare children’s different learning styles. |
A.Their findings are out of expectation. | B.Their research should focus on children. |
C.We should be more patient with children. | D.We need to provide guidance on learning. |
A.Consistent. | B.Encouraging. | C.Impractical. | D.Unreasonable. |
A.Less familiar words help children learn better. |
B.Word-object links contribute to better learning. |
C.New research finds the secrets of raising children. |
D.Children learn better with the help of their parents. |
相似题推荐
London—Sheep, like turkeys and ostriches, are not considered the most clever animals. British scientists said last Wednesday humans may have underestimated the woolly creature. They could be much smarter than we think.
Researchers at the Babraham Institute in Cambridge, southern England, have shown that the animals have a good memory system and are extremely good at recognizing faces—which they think is a sure sign of intelligence.
Behavioral scientist Keith Kendrick and his friends trained 20 sheep to recognize and distinguish 25 pairs of sheep faces and used electrodes (电极) to measure their brain activity , which showed they could remember 50 faces for up to two years .
“If they can do that with faces, they have to have reasonable intelligence; otherwise, what is the point of having a system for remembering faces and not remembering anything else?” Kendrick said in an interview.
So hours of seemingly mindless eating grass may not be so mindless after all.
Kendrick believes sheep got their reputation as dumb (unable to speak, unintelligent) animals because they live in large groups and do not appear to have much individuality and are frightened of just about everything.
“All animals, including humans, once they are frightened, don’t tend to show signs of intelligent action,” he explained.
In research reported in the science journal Nature, Kendrick and his team showed that sheep, like humans, have a specialized system in the brain which allows them to distinguish between many different faces which look extremely similar.
“The most important finding (of the study) is that they are able , both from a behavioral point of view and from looking at the way the brain is organized , to remember a large number of individuals for a very long time,” said Kendrick. “It is a very strange system. They are showing similar abilities in many ways to humans.”
1. From the first paragraph we can find that______. .
A.people used to think sheep are smarter than the other animals |
B.people used to raise sheep in a wrong way |
C.people don’t consider sheep as clever animals |
D.people have done a lot of research on sheep |
A.scientists have learned everything about sheep’s intelligence |
B.scientists have learned a little about sheep’s intelligence |
C.scientists can’t do anything more about sheep’s memory |
D.scientists do not have to research animals’ memory |
A.sheep are among the week animals |
B.it is not right for people to raise sheep in groups |
C.when sheep eat grass in the field their minds may be active |
D.if people feel frightened, they may become braver |
【推荐2】Think of a simple object — a piece of chalk, for example. Are you remembering its name, its shape, its color or its size? Are you remembering what it is used for, or the sound it makes when the teacher writes on the blackboard? Scientists say that memory includes different parts of the brain, such as language and the ability of sense. They believe that you begin to create a memory when you notice something with your senses. Then messages are sent to different brain cells, which join together to form connections. A new connection goes into your short-term memory. It is stored there for about 30 seconds, and then it is either lost or stored in your long-term memory.
Having a good memory means making lots of connections and storing them in your long-term memory. To do this, you need to keep your brain in good shape. Eat plenty of brain food such as fish oil, fruit and vegetables. Laughter also makes your brain more active. Also, don’t forget to exercise. So do some sports or just move around a lot in the house. Finally, get plenty of sleep. This will make your memories grow stronger.
When you want to remember new information, you must pay special attention. Use your senses — sight, smell hearing and touch — and keep repeating the information. To do well in your exams this year, turn off the TV, silence your mobile, and review your work regularly. To remember something special, use your imagination to create visual connections. For example, you need to take a pencil, an eraser, your ID card and chips to your next exam. Imagine the ID card as the body of an animal, the pencil its long neck, and the eraser its head. Your animal is hungry, so now imagine it eating a bag of chips. It may sound crazy, but its fun and it works. Another way is to do something different to your room. Turn a picture upside-down, or tie a sock around the door handle to remind yourself of something to remember!
1. What’s the author’s intention of giving an example in the beginning?A.To show the importance of chalk. | B.To lead in the topic of this article. |
C.To let readers remember the word. | D.To make readers know his favorite. |
A.Plenty of sleep. | B.Enough exercise. | C.Good shape of your brain. | D.Laughter. |
A.how to remember new information | B.how to do well in exams |
C.why to review your work | D.what to eat to make memories stronger |
A.Memory has nothing to do with languages. | B.A picture of eating chips is the most useful. |
C.Our brain is dificult to keep in good shape | D.Laughter can help to improve our memory |
【推荐3】There’s always been debate about the best time of day to work out. For the longest time I’ve heard that exercising in the morning is ideal, but others say a nighttime workout benefits them more. I was one of those evening exercisers when I was working in an office regularly but have since shifted to late morning workouts. Is one time really better than another, and why?
Regardless of when you work out, there are many health benefits from moving regularly, like improving your heart health, getting stronger or even improving your endurance. Most people decide to exercise when it best fits their schedule, so oftentimes they can’t help the time of the day they choose to be active.
Research has shown, however, that the time of day you choose to exercise can affect your workout in various ways. The best time to work out is whenever you can. We don’t all have schedules that allow for a 90-minute workout. If your only time of day to exercise is before work, then morning is best. If you reserve physical activity for packed evenings, there’s a good chance you won’t ever get to it. Likewise, if you can only squash 20 minutes of exercise into your day right before you get ready for bed, that’s the best time to work out. I want to add a note on consistency, though. The best time to exercise is whenever you can, but the best time of day to exercise is the time you can stick with for days, weeks and months.
The fact of the matter is that people who exercise invariably see better weight loss and fitness results in the long-term. Research also suggests that your body can adapt to regular training schedules, so if you work out every morning, you will probably get a lot better at working out in the morning, and the same in regard to night workouts. That all said, morning workouts and night workouts both have their advantages and disadvantages as evidenced by decades of scientific research.
1. Why does the author talk about the debate?A.To give background knowledge. | B.To introduce the topic of the text. |
C.To show the author’s attitude. | D.To show people’s puzzlement when exercise. |
A.In the morning. | B.In the evening. | C.After work. | D.The time you can stick to. |
A.Choosing the proper place. | B.Choosing favorite sport. |
C.Working out regularly. | D.Exercising 20 minutes a day. |
A.The various ways to exercise | B.The common forms of exercising |
C.The best time of a day for exercising | D.The good reasons for exercising |
【推荐1】Along with the progress of reform and opening up, the Chinese film industry has also made remarkable achievements and become in a flourishing(繁荣的) state in economic growth. It has recorded social changes in the past decades through the medium of the film. The film market of China has been much better than that of North America, becoming the largest in the world during the first season of 2019.
In the original stage of reform and opening up, old Chinese movies were rescreened and foreign movies dubbed(译制). Audiences’ enthusiasm for movies was lighted up by both these practices. In 1979, the attendance of Chinese moviegoers reached a record high of 29.3 billion. However, televisions and other entertainment activities sprang up in the late 1980s and drew many audiences away from movies when the film market faced a danger.
The employment of a socialist market economy in China in 1992 brought energy again to the film industry. With the introduction of free competition and reforms, it made an abundant recovery and experienced rapid growth. In the same period, China began to introduce overseas movies into the home market, especially those from Hollywood. Despite the argument that foreign movies occupy the space of home-made ones, Chinese movies with increasingly higher quality have gained a firm foothold in the local market with box offices setting several new records.
The development of the Internet has added new energy to the Chinese film industry. In 2015, the powerful Internet companies, one called Tencent and another Alibaba, developed their own film arm and began to adapt popular online stories for movies. With big data, more accurate marketing skills can target specific audiences to satisfy their personal preferences. Yet the development of online cinemas may pose threats to the survival of offline ones. Now the film industry is exploring more advanced film screening technologies to provide audiences with an improved movie experience.
1. Which threat did the Chinese film market face in the late 1980s?A.Popularity of televisions. |
B.Development of online cinemas. |
C.A slowdown in economic growth. |
D.Introduction of overseas movies. |
A.The space of Chinese movies. |
B.The Chinese film industry. |
C.The socialist market economy. |
D.The introduction of reform and opening up. |
A.Online cinemas will replace traditional ones sooner. |
B.The film screening technology is the key to films’ success. |
C.The Internet is a two-edged sword for the film industry. |
D.Movies made by Tencent and Alibaba are most successful. |
A.The Ever-changing Film Market |
B.Popular Online Films |
C.Advanced Film Technologies |
D.Flourishing Chinese Film Industry |
【推荐2】Walk down any British shopping street and you will find shops with strange names. Why is the barbers called "Shearlock Combs"? Why is the opticians (眼镜店)called "Eyediology"? And who decided to name the butchers "Meat you there" and the fish and chip shop "The Plaice to Come"? What's going on?
The British love puns (双关语)----as do many other nationalities. Puns are jokes based on words that sound the same. You've probably noticed that many words in English which are spelt in different ways and have different meanings are pronounced in the same way. Think about the name of the restaurant: "plaice" is a kind of fish, so our restaurant is "the place" to eat fish. Butchers sell meat ——so we'll "meet you there" ——and opticians look after our eyes in a scientific way --- so eyed-iology (ideology) is a name that fits. Hairdressers shear (cut) your locks (hair) and comb it —— say the three words together quickly and you have the name of a famous detective. In shop titles and adverts, puns are used to get our attention.
Puns are very old. The ancient Egyptians and Romans liked to pun. Shakespeare uses many puns in his plays ——King Richard the Third (the son of York) brings "glorious summer" ——just think about a word that has the same sound as son.
Many people enjoy a good pun (pun / fun for all the family! ) —— others hate them. Puns aren't really designed to make you laugh. Here are some puns that might leave you asking for no more puns. Have you heard about the bears who voted in the North Pole? Or the cheetah (猎豹) who couldn't be trusted at cards? Or how about the clever little Australian animal that had lots of koalaifications or the camel with no humps (驼峰) that was called Humphrey (and so was free of humps ... ).
Puns can be funny, but they sometimes make important points. Here' s a fashion tip: "skinny genes make skinny jeans": so don't worry if your jeans don't fit --- it's your family's fault!
1. Where can you probably enjoy fish and chips, judging from the name?A.Shearlock Combs. | B.Eyediology. |
C.The Plaice to Come | D.Meat you there. |
A.It's a long-established tradition. |
B.They help create a relaxed atmosphere. |
C.They show the products are of high quality. |
D.They are good for catching people's attention. |
A.By giving examples. | B.By making comparisons. |
C.By following the order of time. | D.By describing causes and effects. |
A.To compare the use of puns in different countries. |
B.To introduce some popular puns in Britain. |
C.To stress it is important to understand puns. |
D.To explain why puns are common in Britain. |
【推荐3】Eat like a king in the morning, a prince at noon, and a peasant at night. This saying is all about the importance of breakfast. And now scientists can tell us just why it’s so important. According to a study carried out at Imperial College London, UK, skipping the first meal of the day not only means you eat more at lunch, but also that your brain wants to find more unhealthy foods.
The study suggests that there is a special part of our brain called the orbitofrontal cortex, which plays an important part in making choices about what we eat. It is used for identifying the taste of food, especially when skipping breakfast. It is more likely to target high-calorie foods when you’re on an empty stomach.
Scientists did an experiment on this. Dr Tony Goldstone from Imperial College London, scanned the brains of 21 men and women, around the age of 25. On the first day, these people skipped breakfast before the scans. On the second day, they had cereal, bread and jam as breakfast. After the scan on both days, they had their lunch.
When the volunteers had skipped breakfast, they ate around 20 percent more at lunch, compared with days when they had eaten breakfast. Their brain scans also showed the orbitofrontal cortex was especially responsive to high-calorie foods. “We believe that bit identifies the value of foods — how pleasant, how delicious something is,” Goldstone told The Guardian.
1. From Paragraph 1, we learn that ________.A.scientists found out why eating breakfast is important |
B.it’s easy to lose weight without breakfast |
C.there’s no need to have good food for supper |
D.eating breakfast makes your brain smarter |
①The volunteers skipped breakfast. ②The volunteers had lunch.
③The volunteers had a brain scan.
A.①②③ | B.③②① | C.①③② | D.③①② |
A.of the usual breakfast | B.more than the usual breakfast |
C.of the usual lunch | D.more than the usual lunch |
A.Breakfast still most important | B.Three meals a day |
C.Experiments on breakfast | D.Experiments on lunch |