【推荐2】For children, communication with older adults is important when visits with grandparents are called off because of the pandemic(流行病).

Even before COVID-19 sent older adults into hiding, grandparents and great-grandparents could often seem like strangers to kids. Contact might include gifts of toys meant for someone a little younger, forced piano performances by parents, and really bad jokes. So, coming up with what to say to those out -of-touch people through a camera can be hard. It can be a lot of pressure for kids.

Yet keeping up with older relatives has mental and physical health benefits for everyone. According to studies, older adults who participate in programming between generations show more happiness, better self-care. And a strong relationship between grandparents and grandchildren can lessen depressive tendencies(抑郁倾向) in both adults and kids.

Having an actual relationship with a grandparent can also help children develop qualities that make all-around great citizens. “Children are born to be me, me, me,” says Tina-Anne Praas of SKIP, an Ontario-based organization. “But seeing a person who has experienced life stages pulls them away from that thinking. They can gain some worldly points of view.”

Being close with a grandparent can also help children develop communication skills, especially when they’re able to learn about and compare their experiences with a grandparent’s. And it doesn’t carry the pressure of talking to a parent.

Tina-Anne Praas adds that students who were worried about life after graduation eagerly listen to older adults sharing their own experiences from the same time of life, 50-plus years ago. One student says, “My interactions(互动) with my grandparents encouraged me to become a physician.”

1. What causes much stress for kids?

A．Playing the piano in public.

B．Communicating with grandparents online.

C．Buying gifts for other younger children.

D．Being out of touch with parents for a long time.

2. What does the underlined phrase “that thinking” refer to in paragraph 4?

A．Seeing an experienced person.

B．Kids’ own ideas about the world.

C．Children’s care of themselves only.

D．Keeping contact with grandparents.

3. What is Tina-Anne Praas’ attitude towards communication between generations?

A．Supportive.	B．Doubtful.
C．Uncertain.	D．Worried.

4. Grandchildren benefit from older relatives by____.

A．listening to stories online

B．watching what they do daily

C．forming new ideas about themselves

D．communicating and interacting with them

【推荐3】One summer night in a seaside cottage, a boy felt himself lifted from bed. Then, with the swiftness of a dream, he was held in his father’s arms out onto the nearby beach. Overhead the sky blazed with stars. “Watch!” Incredibly, as his father spoke, one of the stars moved. In a line of golden fire it flashed across the astonished heavens. And before the wonder of this could fade, another star leaped from its place, then another, plunging towards the restless sea.

“What’s this?” the child whispered.

“Shooting stars. They come every year on a certain August night. I thought you’d like to see the show.”

That was all: just an unexpected glimpse of something mysterious and beautiful. But, back in bed, the child stared for a long time into the dark, knowing that all around the quiet house, the night was full of the silent music of the falling stars.

Decades have passed, but I remember that night still, because I was the fortunate boy whose father believed that a new experience was more important for a small boy than an unbroken night’s sleep. No doubt I had all the usual childhood entertainment, but those are forgotten now. What I remember is the night of the shooting stars, and the day we rode in a caboose (列车末尾的职工车厢), the telegraph we made that really worked, and the “trophy table” in the dining room where we children were encouraged to exhibit things we had found — anything unusual or beautiful — snake skins, seashells, flowers, arrowheads... I remember the thought-provoking (引人深思的) books left by my bedside that pushed back my horizons and sometimes actually changed my life.

My father had, to a marvellous degree, the gift of opening doors for his children, of leading them into areas of splendid newness. This subtle art of adding dimensions to a child’s world doesn’t necessarily require a great deal of time. It simply involves doing things more often with our children instead of for them or to them.

1. What does the underlined sentence in paragraph 4 mean?

A．The child was still immersed in the beautiful scenery just now.

B．The child was too frightened to fall asleep because of darkness.

C．The child wanted to listen more to the music about falling stars.

D．The child felt grateful to his father for what he showed him.

2. All the things the author remember from his childhood are ________.

A．unusual and novel	B．dangerous and demanding
C．strange and uncommon	D．educational and thought-provoking

3. What can we learn from the last paragraph?

A．Parents should interfere more with their children’s learning.

B．Parents should push their children to try to do everything on their own.

C．Parents should devote energy to exploring new things for their children.

D．Parents should encourage children to be curious and explore new things in life.

4. What’s the best title for this passage?

A．Limitless knowledge	B．Father, the hero of my life
C．Curiosity aroused that night	D．The unusual things in my life

【推荐1】There’s more fresh water hidden below Earth’s surface in underground aquifers (含水层) than any other source besides the ice sheets. That groundwater earns an unshakably important place for rivers worldwide, keeping them running even when droughts bring their waters low.

But in recent decades humans have pumped trillions of gallons out of those underground reservoirs. In a new research, water experts and scientists are taking a global look at where groundwater is already being extracted at such a rate that it has caused water levels to drop so much in rivers and streams that they will slip into the ecological danger zone.

Much of that water is being removed much faster than it can be refilled. That has enormous potential consequences for people and crops in areas that don’t get enough rain. But far before those impacts emerge, the effects will fiercely hit rivers, streams, and the habitats around them. Hundreds of rivers and streams around the world would become so water-stressed that the entire ecological system would hit a danger point, says Inge de Graaf, the lead author of the research. “We can really consider this ecological effect like a ticking time bomb,” she says. “If we pump the groundwater now, we don’t see the impacts until like 10 years further or even longer.”

But the severity of the impacts might still be underestimated. As a baseline, they used the global water demand in 2010 and spun their climate model forward to predict how stresses on groundwater systems might develop. But as populations swell and the demand for food rises, those stresses could skyrocket for reasons other than climate change, speeding along the extraction from underground water sources.

The effects of over-pumping groundwater take years, if not decades, to become visible. Changes in rain have immediate, obvious effects on river flow. When it pours, rivers often rage. But groundwater is hidden and changes don’t always manifest in the place where the pumping occurs and are programmed to “wait for the perfect moment”. That makes aquifer management issues extra challenging. In the meantime, rivers and streams are the signal that says we’re using water in an unsustainable fashion, we need to take a hard look at what we’re doing.”.

1. The underground water is of critical importance to rivers due to the fact that ________.

A．it helps to maintain the same water level of rivers

B．it stops the running of rivers during dry spells

C．it leaves rivers drying out due to droughts

D．it ensures the flow of rivers throughout the year

2. The phrase “slip into the ecological danger zone” (in the second paragraph) suggests that ________.

A．it is thrilling to explore the ecological danger zone

B．pumping underground water is convenient though dangerous

C．the underground water level has dropped to an alarming level

D．the constant drop of water level prevents people feeling secure

3. Why does the author say “the severity of the impacts might still be underestimated” (in the fourth paragraph)?

A．Because the water demand data in 2010 was not accurate.

B．Because the water demand has soared ever since 2010.

C．Because the water demand was not stressful in 2010.

D．Because the water demand prediction didn’t consider climate change.

4. Over-pumping groundwater doesn’t show immediate effect because _________.

A．the changes are waiting for a heavy rain

B．underground water is used sustainably

C．the changes take longer to come to light

D．underground water is inexhaustible

【推荐2】LIANG TAO.sold 80 pink Givenchy bags in 12 minutes.Becky Fang sold 100 Mini Cooper cars in just five.Both are wanghong,literally"red-hot on the web".Every day millions of Chinese search social media for wanghong posts or tune in to live-streams for wanghong's opinions on everything.The fans are helping this new Chinese Internet star to make money out of their popularity and to shake up the country's e-commerce industry in the process.

A few of wanghong have been hired by luxury brands.Jaeger-LeCoultre, a Swiss watchmaker,hired Papi Jiang for a video ad targeting young urbanites(都市人），including her 27m fans on Sina Weibo,a Twitter-like microblog. Zhang Yi of iiMedia Research,a consulting firm,estimates that up to 15%of sales on shopping sites like Taobao or social-media apps such as WeChat are influenced by wanghong's public support.The length of a dress might be decided by a survey of a wanghong's fans;its launch date might be based on the number of hits,shares or comments it collects,some of which can cause last-minute design changes.

This poses a new challenge for retailers(零售商），whose supply chains must respond even more quickly to wanghong's opinions.Whereas previously a company would look for a celebrity to match its image,wanghong and their admirers are shaping goods.

Another challenge comes directly from wanghong themselves.They increasingly make money not merely from online support or advice but by launching their own e-commerce stores.Sales of goods accounted for just under half of wanghong earnings of 53bn yuan($8bn)in 2016,estimates Analysis,a Chinese market-research firm(the rest came mostly from live-show tips and adverts).

Some wanghong are going a step further.In November Becky Fang launched her own clothing line.Part of her motivation,she says,was that the brands she supported did not always match the trends she was sharing with her followers.By creating her own brand,Becky's Fantasy,she has full control of the quality.She also gains a new income. For the time being only 3-5%of wanghong follow Becky Fang's example,iiMedia Research estimates.But it expects the model to become an industry in its own right, including entertainment and e-commerce,and driven by online data..

1. Why can wanghong use their popularity to make money?

A．Because they are Internet stars.

B．Because they use social media.

C．Because their opinions influence fans..

D．Because they can shake the e-commerce industry.

2. What is the characteristic of the products supported by wanghong?

A．They are fans-based.

B．They are social-media-based.

C． They are design-shared.

D． They are youth-targeted.

3. What are the challenges for retailers?

A．Online support and advice.

B．Increasing sales of goods online.

C．Quick responses to the.market changes.

D．Wanghong's opinions and e-commerce stores.

4. Why do some wanghong create their own brands?

A．Because they want.to attract more fans.

B．Because they want to share with their followers.

C．Because they want to set up a new industry model.

D．Because the brands they speak for can't satisfy their fans.

5. What's the writer's attitude to wanghong?

A．supportive	B．objective
C．indifferent	D．worried

【推荐3】It is said that most people have not more than 30 friends at any given time, and 400 over the whole of their lives. However, on social networking sites, most users have about 150 friends. If these numbers are correct, then friendship means different things in different situations.

Also, there are no rules about friendship. There are no instructions about how to make friends, how to keep friendships going, and how to finish friendships if we want to move on. People have very different opinions about this: some people would die for their friends and they value them more than family. Others say that friends are temporary, only there to help each other until they are no longer needed. If people with such different views become friends, this can lead to problems.

Because of these different definitions of friendship, it is easy to be unhappy about our friendships. We may want them to be deeper or closer, or we may want to have more friends in our lives. Sometimes we simply do not have the time to develop our friendships, or we fear we have left it too late in life to start. If we move to another country or city, we have to find ways to make new friends again.

This dissatisfaction shows us how important friendships are for most of us. We should not think that it could be too late to build friendships. We also need to understand that the need to be around other people is one that is shared by many. Therefore, we should not be too frightened about starting to talk to people who in the future may become our friends: it is likely that they too would like to get closer to us. Remember what people say: strangers are friends we have not met yet.

1. In Para.1, the numbers are used to _______.

A．show the ways of making friends

B．introduce the topic

C．explain the reason

D．persuade readers to make more friends

2. What is the main idea of Para. 2?

A．There is a rule about making friends.

B．People with different views can become friends.

C．Friendships mean different things to different people.

D．Some people would die for their friends if they need to.

3. According to Para.3, sometimes people are afraid that _______.

A．they spend too much money with friends

B．they are too old to make friends

C．they have too many friends

D．they spend too much time with friends

4. We can learn from the passage that most of us _______.

A．need to have friends	B．build friendships late in life
C．are dissatisfied with our friends	D．are frightened to talk to people

5. What is the author’s attitude towards talking to a stranger?

A．Uninterested.	B．Cautious.
C．Doubtful.	D．Positive.

【推荐1】How Should School Education Be Reformed?

The state of public school facilities in the United States is a matter of great concern to educators and administrators. While the mission of public schools has expanded beyond education to include social support and extra-curricular activities, the academic schedule has changed little in more than a century. A report on time and learning released today by the state education committee says saving school time for academic teaching and moving away from the time-limited tradition of education are crucial steps in the school reform process.

The committee’s report, entitled Time Prisoner, described fixed clocks and calendars in American education as a fundamental design problem that urgently needs to be changed. “Time should serve children instead of children serving time.” the report says. The two-year committee found that holding American students to world-class standards will require more time for classroom instruction. “We have been asking the impossible of our students that they learn as much as their foreign peers while spending half as much as in core academic subjects.” it states.

The committee compared the relationship between time and learning in Japan, Germany and the United States and found that American students received less than half of the basic academic education received by Japanese and German students. On average, American students can earn a high school diploma if they spend only 41 percent of their school time on academics, says the report. American students spend an average of three hours a day on core academics such as English, math, science, and history, the committee found. Their report recommends offering a minimum of 5.5 hours of academics every school day.

The nine-member committee also recommended extending the daily school hours beyond the traditional six hours. “If schools want to continue offering important activities outside the academic core, as well as serving as a center for family and community services, they should keep school doors open longer each day and each year.” says John Hodge Jones, education official of schools in Murfreesboro, Tenn., and chairman of the committee. The typical school year in American public schools is 180 days. Eleven states allow school years of 175 days or less, and only one state requires more than 180 days.

“For over a decade, education reformers have been working excitedly to improve our schools,” says Milton Goldberg, executive director of the committee. “But... if reform is to truly take hold, the six-hour, 180-day school year should go into museums — an exhibit from our education past.”

1. Compared with the academic courses more than a hundred years ago, the academic courses now ___________.

A．include some extra-curricular activities

B．remain much of what they used to be

C．demand students’ more contribution of time

D．focus more on education of social support

2. The researches by the committee mentioned in the passage are most concerned about __________.

A．the fashion of education management

B．the elements of school education

C．the changes in education in the recent century

D．the time devoted to academic learning

3. As it is mentioned in the passage, schools in the U.S.A do the following except __________.

A．provide important outside-academic activities

B．have competition with schools of other countries

C．arrange six-hour teaching and learning every day

D．serve social units such as family and community

4. Executive director of the committee Milton Goldberg would most probably disagree that ___________.

A．the time of school day and school year should be reduced

B．what the education reformers have done is not good enough

C．visiting museums can improve students’ academic learning ability

D．social support and extra-curricular activities should be cancelled

【推荐2】One of the marks of the Millennial Generation involves a passion for education. However, American students tend to rank unfavorably when compared with their peers in other nations globally. In his fascinating book The World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-first Century, the author Thomas L. Friedman describes how American students have fallen behind those of other nations in such subjects as math and engineering.

Meanwhile students in the U.S. are excellent at becoming couch potatoes: 65% of Americans are overweight. “We’re simply killing ourselves,” John Ratey says in his book Spark. “What’s even more disturbing is that inactivity is killing our brains too.” Low expectations produce expected results whether we are talking about the general population or students in local church ministries.

Let’s enter the Naperville school district near Chicago. In this single district, of the 19,000 sophomores (二年级学生), only 3% are overweight (compared to 30% nationally). But the students in this district reveal prowess (专长) in more ways than in fitness. In 2015 their 8th graders participated in the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study, an international study of students’ achievement. Ratey observes that in a time students in China, Japan and Singapore rank consistently above American students, while the Naperville class ranked sixth in math and first in science globally. What happened in this school district? There are several factors, as one reason hardly ever explains such a remarkable performance. But one issue stands out: each school day in Naperville begins with a “class” called Zero Hour in which students begin not with study but with exercise.

Ratey comments, “The essence of physical education in Naperville is teaching fitness instead of sports. The underlying philosophy is that if PE lessons can be used to instruct kids how to monitor and maintain their health and fitness, then the lessons they learn will serve them for life.”

Could it be that fitness is the most inexpensive means of increasing test scores? What has happened in Naperville did not begin with a brilliant educator with a Mensa-level IQ. It started with a PE teacher who read about the growing unhealthiness of American students. You can read Ratey’s book to get the details but in brief, the Naperville students no longer take gym classes with meaningless topics like learning the dimensions (面积) of a volleyball court. They start with Zero Hour running a mile with heart rate monitors. Here is what is discovered: learning is significantly improved when students begin with exercise. If you know students struggling with academics, or perhaps someone discouraged or even depressed (沮丧的) by academic setbacks, encourage them to try exercising. Help them get up, get active, and start their day by getting their body going.

More studies than can be counted have noted the positive ripple effect of exercise on dealing with depression, on eating better, on developing discipline, and on one’s general character. Now it seems that it also can directly affect academic performance. Students serious about becoming better learners should probably not start in the library at a desk with a pile of books but at home or the gym with some running shoes or a set of weights.

And who knows? They may discover they’re smarter than they thought.

1. What’s the main purpose of the first two paragraphs?

A．To show the author’s concern for American students’ academic performance.

B．To introduce to us two books which have something to do with education.

C．To inform us that the number of overweight children in America is huge.

D．To list the reasons for comparing students in America with those of other nations.

2. We can infer from Paragraph 3 that _____.

A．the students in Naperville keep fit in more ways than we expected

B．it’s worthwhile to pay a visit to the Naperville school district

C．the Naperville students’ fitness contributes greatly to their higher test scores

D．students in some Asian countries do better academically than American ones

3. It can be inferred from the passage that Ratey _____.

A．knows how to monitor and maintain students’ health and fitness

B．sings high praise of Thomas L. Friedman’s book on American education

C．may mention the Naperville students’ gym classes

D．has been devoting himself to students’ overall development worldwide

4. In the last paragraph but one, the “ripple effect” indicates the fact that _____.

A．exercise can build up one’s general character

B．exercise produces more than one positive effect

C．exercise is the best way to improve students’ test scores

D．exercise has a long-term effect on students’ academic performance

5. We can learn from the passage that _____.

A．during Zero Hour students themselves spend time working out before class

B．forty-five minutes of exercise a day may be the magic number to lose weight

C．during Zero Hour heart rate monitors are used to prevent students’ laziness

D．fitness-based exercise makes our brain more ready to learn

6. What is the author’s advice according to the passage?

A．To improve education, employ brilliant educators with high IQs.

B．Spend as much time as possible on sports.

C．Produce expected results with low expectations of students.

D．To help young people academically, get them moving.

【推荐3】The thing that sets children apart from adults is not their ignorance，nor their lack of skills．Rather，it's their enormous capability for joy．A friend told me a story．One day，when she went to get his 6-year-old son from soccer practice，her kid greeted her with a sad face．The teacher had criticized him for not focusing on his soccer drills．The little boy walked out of the school with his head and shoulders hanging down．He seemed wrapped in sadness．But before reaching the car door，he suddenly stopped，crouching(蹲伏)down to look at something on the sidewalk．“Mom，come here! This is the strangest bug I’ve ever seen．It has ，1ike， a million legs．It’s amazing!”The little face was overflowing with indescribable excitement．

Nowadays，however，when we walk into a classroom，especially in a high school，we’ll be choked by towering books and papers，and hiding behind them are a group of motionless creatures，pens in hand，minds dry，just as the hollow men portrayed by T．S．Eliot．Their pursuit of joy has given way to their hunger for grades．Laughter and happiness are a distant memory for them．

Although joy is an unaffordable luxury in today’s increasingly fierce competition，administrators and teachers need a mindset shift from crushing students with assignments to getting them to take pleasure in productive activities which develop their important qualities，like perseverance and obligation．The assumption that pleasure is the enemy of competence and responsibility makes no sense educationally．

Adults tend to talk about learning as if it were medicine：unpleasant，but necessary and good for you．Why not think of learning as if it were food—something so valuable to humans that they want to experience it as a pleasure?

1. How is Paragraph 1 mainly developed?

A．By describing a procedure．	B．By analyzing the process．
C．By giving an example．	D．By collecting data．

2. What does the author intend to do in Paragraph 2?

A．Summarize the previous paragraph．	B．Provide some advice for the readers．
C．Introduce the main topic for discussion．	D．Clarify some puzzling questions．

3. What does the text suggest administrators and teachers do?

A．Stop giving students homework．

B．Involve students in meaningful activities．

C．Supply students with luxuries．

D．Arouse students’fond memories．

4. What is the text mainly about?

A．Joy is the spokesperson for learning．	B．Pleasure is the enemy of progress．
C．Education is the paradise for parents．	D．Exams are a never-ending war．