One summer night, a boy felt himself lifted from bed by his father. Dazed with sleep, he saw stars flashing across the heavens. “What is it?” the child whispered. “Shooting stars. They come every year in August.” Decades have passed, but I remember that night still, because I was the fortunate boy whose father believed a new experience was more important than an unbroken night’s sleep.
Some parents like my father have the gift of opening doors for their children. This art of adding dimensions to a child brings the reward: the marvelous moment when the spark bursts into a flame that will burn brightly on its own one day. At a Golf Association tournament, a ten-year-old girl played creditably. “How long have you been interested in golf?” someone asked. “I got it for my ninth birthday,” she said.“ Your father gave you a set of clubs?” “No,” she said, “he gave me golf.”
I have a friend, a psychiatrist, who says there are two types of people: those who think of life as a privilege and those who think of it as a problem. The first type is enthusiastic and energetic. The other type is suspicious and self-centered. And he adds, “Tell me about your childhood and I can tell you which type you are likely to be.”
The real purpose, then, of trying to open doors for children is to build eager and outgoing attitudes, which is the most valuable legacy we can pass on to the next generation. But why don’t we work harder at it? Probably because sometimes we don’t have the awareness or the selflessness or the energy. And yet, for those of us who care what becomes of our children, the challenge is always there but the opportunities also come repeatedly. Many years have passed since that night. And next year, when August comes with its shooting stars, my son will be seven.
1. Why does the author mention the girl in Paragraph 2?| A．To show parental impact on children’s passion. |
| B．To suggest hobbies always start from the small. |
| C．To highlight the importance of diverse experiences. |
| D．To prove true passion usually arises from the reward. |
| A．Setting an example for. | B．Broadening the horizons of. |
| C．Providing attentive care for. | D．Narrowing the possibilities of. |
| A．Stability in upbringing builds confidence. |
| B．Parenting styles requires professional guidance. |
| C．Childhood experience determines adult happiness. |
| D．One’s personality is related to childhood experiences. |
| A．The author is always addicted to shooting stars. |
| B．It is a once-in-a-lifetime chance to motivate kids. |
| C．The author will go to see shooting stars with his son. |
| D．It is impossible to unlock kids’ potential without eagerness. |
相似题推荐
【推荐1】When I was forced to put up with my son’s sense of humor, which included turning every word he read onto his family members, the search was on. Could I, as a supportive and patient parent I attempt to be, find a right book for my son? A book that encourages my son to tell a joke that won’t have his mouth washed out with soap? I had to admit I wasn’t confident.
Now, I have a book Jake the Fake Keeps It Real at hand. In fact, Jake is not a perfect kid. The first book in the series, Jake the Fake Keeps It Real, opens with Jake’s explaining how he cheated on the admission of an arts and music academy for gifted kids.
So when Jake realizes that to fit in at art school, he has to come up with some strange ideas, I almost died laughing. Not only did I think that was funny, so did my son. As a matter of fact, Jake the Fake Keeps It Real turned out to be a great distraction (使人分心的事物) from my son’s being disrespectfully funny. And I would rather my son imitate Jake by chewing (咀嚼) the same piece of gum for six hours and then writing a play about it.
I succeeded in one thing: Finding a fittingly funny role model for my son.
The end of the book, chapter 13, where Jake, no-talented, has to perform in the school talent show (obviously if you blow it, you have to quit school and work on a fishing boat). Jake sits down at the piano and knows he can’t do it, so he stands up from the piano.
Here’s where the book really wins my son’s heart for life, because maybe one day, my son might say, as Jake says after his mother praises his talent show appearance and hugs him tightly, “She’s pretty cool sometimes, my mom.”
1. How did the author find her son’s humour?| A．Suitable. | B．Impolite. | C．Interesting. | D．Boring. |
| A．A gifted kid. | B．An honest boy. |
| C．The author’s son. | D．A character in a novel. |
| A．Ignore. | B．Defeat. | C．Copy. | D．Entertain. |
| A．He would be a good fisherman. | B．He would devote himself to music. |
| C．He might ask his teacher to forgive him. | D．He might be punished for his mistake. |
【推荐2】When Emma first announced about a month ago that she wanted to cut off all her hair, I cried. Not in front of her, of course. In front of her ,1 asked why and then told her to find a picture on the Internet that she could show to a hairdresser.
And then I went to the shower and cried. I cried not because she wanted to cut her long hair, but because she wanted to “cut it all off like a boy”. For some reason，that was the straw (稻草)that broke the dam.
Emma hasn’t worn dresses since she was two. She hates them. Now, at ten, she’s usually wearing mesh(网状）shorts and a packers T-shirt or jersey(运动衫)一or something old and stained and acquired for free. When she’s “dressing up” she wears skinny jeans and a plaid(格子图案的)button-down with her black and green Converse high-tops.
I admit her fashion sense has always made me a little sad. When I found out I was having a girl, I ran home and painted the nursery two shades of pink while fantasies of girls’ weekends and shopping trips were dancing in my head .I’d teach her how to do her hair and paint her nails. I couldn’t wait to start the journey with my very own mini-me. But it turns out you don’t give birth to dolls, and instead of a mini-me. I got a completely separate and independent human being with ideas and dreams of her own. And yes, that made me a little sad.
It also makes me extremely proud, although I’ve fought hard against the label tomboy(假小子). I’ve always been in the pride of my daughter’s strong sense of self and amazed at how early it developed. 6tShe9s been refusing dresses since before she could speak!”
1. What was the writer’s straw that broke the dam?| A．Her daughter refused to find a picture on the Internet. |
| B．She had to pretend to be happy before her daughter. |
| C．Her daughter wanted to cut off all the long hair like a boy. |
| D．Her daughter wanted to try a different hair style. |
| A．Emma’s hating of dresses. | B．Emma’s present dressing style. |
| C．Emma’s spending on clothes. | D．Emma’s changing tastes on fashions. |
| A．Sorrowful. | B．Angry. | C．Happy. | D．Proud. |
| A．A girl that is not respectful of her parents. |
| B．A girl that is lost in the ever changing time. |
| C．A girl that is badly affected by her parents. |
| D．A girl with a strong personality and sense of self. |
【推荐3】The middle child, I think, is now an “endangered species”. According to a study, in 1976, 65 percent of mothers between aged 40 and 44 had three or more children. Today, nearly two-thirds of women with children have only one or two. Middle children will soon be the tiniest.
As a middle child, I am disappointed at the potential disappearance of middle children. I’m the middle of three — two boys, one girl — so I’m what’s sometimes regarded as a “classic middle child”.
Being a middle child is not something you are eager for. As one middle child said to me, “There is a thing called middle-child syndrome (综合征). I certainly was always aware that the middle was not a position to be admired, even as I came to see typical middle-child features in myself. Middle children are natural mediators (和事佬); I avoid disagreements and habitually act as the family peace-maker. Middle children tend to be private but also long for love; I keep to myself but do not exactly hate attention.”
According to studies, middles traditionally receive less economic and emotional support from their parents. They also typically have less close relationships with their mothers and fathers compared with other brothers or sisters, so they tend to have more friends to fill the feeling gap.
In a study conducted by the City College of New York in which participants were asked to choose words they associate with the first, last, and middle kids, positive words such as caring and ambitious were cited concerning all three birth orders. Only middles, however, were described with such negative terms as overlooked and confused. More importantly, middles may be many things and they were the only birth order with which no one connected the term “overindulged”. It is true: their parents couldn’t allow them to do or have whatever they want, especially when they are old enough, and they don’t ask for everything either even if they are eager to own it occasionally.
1. Why does the author mention the study in paragraph 1?| A．To inform a definition. |
| B．To introduce the topic. |
| C．To make a comparison. |
| D．To support his opinion. |
| A．It is dangerous for middles to suffer from it. |
| B．It clearly shows the typical features of middles. |
| C．It is what non-middle kids admire and wish for. |
| D．It is the result of the unsuccessful parenting style. |
| A．John, 3, asking his mother for dressing him. |
| B．Mary, 8, busy in focusing on her preference. |
| C．Paul, 12, unwilling to have breakfast by himself. |
| D．Nancy, 17, afraid to challenge the math problems. |
| A．They are always in low spirits. |
| B．They stress the protection of privacy. |
| C．They are ignored but independent. |
| D．They support the family economically. |
【推荐1】There Are 4 Types of Anger: Which One Is Yours?
You’re passive-aggressive (被动攻击型)
You make mountains out of molehills (小题大做)
You find the fault in every situation, and regard each conversation as an argument you have to win. Maybe you were made to look or feel inferior（卑微的） growing up. To pay off, you become more aggressive. Instead of feeling like a victim, you learn to be the "rejecter".
Your fuse (保险丝) is short and you burst into anger
When you lose the ability to control a situation, it may set off aggression, violent behavior or explosive outbursts that are not necessary to the situation.
When it comes to your religious, political or other beliefs—yours are right, the others are wrong; yours are good, the others are bad. So when others go against your beliefs, you're on the offensive because your beliefs are correct, and therefore your anger is reasonable. Even if your intentions are good, anger gets you in trouble when you allow it get out of control.
| A．Your morals fuel your anger |
| B．Anger itself is not a bad emotion |
| C．You give an enthusiastic "sure, no problem!" |
| D．It's how you use your anger that makes it good or bad |
| E．And you feel you have the right to do whatever you want |
| F．You put down or reject others first before it can be done to you |
| G．Getting stuck in traffic, for example, may lead you to yell at other drivers |
【推荐2】In a recent study of 19-month-olds, University of Chicago doctoral student Lauren Howard found that children who heard various languages in their neighborhoods were more receptive to people who spoke languages other than their parents ‘language.
“We measured imitation. At this age, that’s how they show us their willingness to learn, ”explained Howard. The lead author of the report titled Neighborhood Linguistic Diversity Predicts Infants' Social Learning. The experiments tested how well the babies could learn new tasks from a non- English speaker.
The study, which included 82 children from the Chicago and Washington areas, was in the November issue of Cognition.
“Babies are not only affected by parents and caregivers--- previous studies proved that --but also by people they hear at the store or on the bus, "Howard said. “Incidental exposure matters.”
The study indicates that kids in diverse communities may grow up to have open minds. Good news for families living in such neighborhoods--- but can other families do something to increase children's cultural exposure？
Cultural diversity can be within reach, even in unlikely areas. Although she grew up in not very diverse"， Julie, 23， said she picked up much knowledge about other languages and cultures from the many students her family hosted through the AFS-USA international student exchange program.
“It’s the little differences that make you more understanding and less judgmental, ”Julie said “Yuilya from Kazakhstan, for example, was very disciplined because she couldn't go to college unless her grades were good. Matias from Paraguay wasn't used to being on time because his culture is more laid-back. ”
For families unable to host a student for a whole year, AFS-USA offers other volunteer opportunities, such as being “welcome families ”to ease students ’ transitions（过渡）.
But there are countless ways to expose kids to other countries, said Lucas, author of “Growing Up Global: Raising Children to Be at Home in the World.”
Just a few of her tips: Take the kids to foreign films. Try exotic restaurants. Put a world map on the wall. Help your children’s teachers make global classrooms. Encourage the kids to invite friends of other cultures for dinner. “They’ll thank you later, "Lucas said.
1. What does Howard stress by saying "Incidental exposure matters"？| A．Babies are also influenced by people outside their home |
| B．Parents fail to realize the importance of incidental learning |
| C．Parents and caregivers have more influence on babies |
| D．Babies learn little knowledge at the store or on the bus. |
| A．She frequently volunteered in some welcome families |
| B．She lived in neighborhoods with various language learn |
| C．She was a member of the AFS-USA program |
| D．She learned from the foreign students living in her home |
| A．Curious | B．Happy |
| C．Tolerant | D．anger |
| A．How to improve children’s behavior |
| B．How to teach children foreign languages |
| C．How to better communicate with children. |
| D．How to help children seek diversity |
【推荐3】Taste is such a subjective matter that we don’t usually conduct preference tests for food. The most you can say about anyone’s preference is that it’s one person’s opinion. But because the two big cola companies-Coca-Cola and Pepsi Cola-are marketed so aggressively, we’ve wondered how big a role taste preference actually plays in brand loyalty. We set up a taste test that challenged people who identified themselves as either Coca-cola or Pepsi fans: Find your brand in a blind tasting.
We invited staff volunteers who had a strong liking for either Coca-Cola Classic or Pepsi, Diet Coke, or Diet Pepsi. These were people who thought they’d have no trouble telling their brand from the other brand.
We eventually located 19 regular cola drinkers and 27 diet cola drinkers. Then we fed them with four unidentified samples of cola one at a time, regular colas for the one group, diet versions for the other. We asked them to tell us whether each sample was Coke or Pepsi; then we analyzed the records statistically to compare the participants’ choices with what mere guesswork could have accomplished.
Getting all four samples right was a tough test, but not too tough, we thought, for people who believed they could recognize their brand. In the end, only 7 out of 19 regular cola drinkers correctly identified their brand of choice in all four trials. The diet-cola drinkers did a little worse-only 7 out of 27 identified all four samples correctly.
Both groups did better than chance would predict, but nearly half the participants in each group made the wrong choice two or more times. Two people got all four samples wrong. Overall, half the participants did about as well on the last round of tasting as on the first, so tiredness, or taste burnout, was not a factor. Our preference test results suggest that only a few Pepsi participants and Coke fans may really be able to tell their favorite brand by taste and price.
1. According to the passage the preference test was conducted in order to ______.| A．reveal which cola is more to the liking of the drinkers |
| B．show that a person’s opinion about taste is mere guesswork |
| C．find out the role taste preference plays in a person’s drinking |
| D．compare the ability of the participants in choosing their drinks |
| A．people’s tastes differ from one another |
| B．few people had trouble telling Coca-Cola from Pepsi |
| C．Coca-Cola and Pepsi are people’s two most favorite drinks |
| D．there is not much difference in taste between Coca-Cola and Pepsi |
| A．blind tasting is necessary for identifying fans |
| B．the competition between the two colas is very strong |
| C．the purpose of taste test is to promote the sale of colas |
| D．the improvement of quality is the chief concern of the two cola companies |
| A．being badly damaged by fire |
| B．being seriously burnt in the skin |
| C．being unable to burn for lack of fuel |
| D．being unable to function because of too much use |
| A．show that taste preference is highly subjective |
| B．argue that taste testing is an important marketing strategy |
| C．emphasize that taste and price are closely related to each other |
| D．recommend that blind tasting be introduced in the quality control of colas |
Proudly reading my words, I glanced around the room, only to find my classmates bearing big smiles on their faces and tears in their eyes. Confused, I glanced toward my stone-faced teacher. Having no choice, I slowly raised the report I had slaved over, hoping to hide myself. “What could be causing everyone to act this way?”
Quickly, I flashed back to the day Miss Lancelot gave me the task. This was the first real task I received in my new school. It seemed simple: go on the Internet and find information about a man named George Washington. Since my idea of history came from an ancient teacher in my home country, I had never heard of that name before. As I searched the name of this fellow, it became evident that there were two people bearing the same name who looked completely different! One invented hundreds of uses for peanuts, while the other led some sort of army across America. I stared at the screen, wondering which one my teacher meant. I called my grandfather for a golden piece of advice; flip (掷) a coin. Heads—the commander, and tails—the peanuts guy. Ah! Tails, my report would be about the great man who invented peanut butter, George Washington Carver.
Weeks later, standing before this unfriendly mass, I was totally lost. Oh well, I lowered the paper and sat down at my desk, burning to find out what I had done wrong. As a classmate began his report, it all became clear, “My report is on George Washington, the man who started the American Revolution.” The whole world became quite! How could I know that she meant that George Washington?
Obviously, my grade was awful. Heartbroken but fearless, I decided to turn this around. I talked to Miss Lancelot, but she insisted: No re-dos; no new grade. I felt that the punishment was not justified, and I believed I deserved a second chance. Consequently, I threw myself heartily into my work for the rest of the school year. Ten months later, that chance unfolded as I found myself sitting in the headmaster’s office with my grandfather, now having an entirely different conversation. I smiled and flashed back to the embarrassing moment at the beginning of the year as the headmaster informed me of my option to skip the sixth grade. Justice is sweet!
1. What did the author’s classmates think about his report?
| A．Controversial. | B．Ridiculous. |
| C．Boring. | D．Puzzling. |
| A．He was unfamiliar with American history. |
| B．He followed the advice and flipped a coin. |
| C．He forgot his teacher’s instruction. |
| D．He was new at the school. |
| A．annoyed | B．ashamed |
| C．ready | D．eager |
| A．by redoing his task |
| B．through his own efforts |
| C．with the help of his grandfather |
| D．under the guidance of his headmaster |
【推荐2】Lakshmi grew up in India in the first half of the twentieth century, seeing many people around her who did not get enough food, were often sick and died young.
In the 1960s, she was asked to help manage a program to improve nutrition in her country. At that time, most advice on nutrition came from North American and European countries. Nutritionists suggested foods that were common and worked well for people who lived in these nations.
For example, they told poor Indian women to eat more meat and eggs and drink more orange juice. But Lakshmi knew this advice was useless in a country such as India. People there didn't eat such foods. They weren't easy to find. And for the poor, such foods were too expensive.Lakshmi knew that for the program to work, it had to fit Indian culture. So she decided to adjust the nutrition program. She first found out what healthy middle class people in India ate. She took note of the nutrients (营养物)available in those foods. Then she looked for cheap, easy-to-find foods that would provide the same nutrients.
She created a balanced diet of locally grown fruits, vegetables, and grains. These foods were cheap and could be cooked with simple equipment. Her ideas were thought unusual in the 1960s. For example, she insisted that a diet without meat could provide all major nutrients. Now we know she was right. But it took her continuous efforts to get others to finally accept her diet about 50 years ago. Because of Lakshmi's program, Indian children almost doubled their food intake. And many children who would have been hungry and ill grew healthy and strong.
1. Why did Lakshmi think European nutritionists' advice was useless?| A．It worked well for European people. |
| B．It suggested too many foods for Indians. |
| C．It was not practical in India that time. |
| D．It included foods that didn't exist in India. |
| A．find out nutrients in their food |
| B．learn about Indian culture |
| C．know about their eating habits |
| D．write a report on food nutrients |
| A．Athose foods were too cheap |
| B．it should include some meat |
| C．it provided all major nutrients |
| D．it enabled kids to grow healthy |
| A．She came from a rich family. | B．She disliked middle class people. |
| C．She worked with European nutritionists. | D．She was a determined scientist. |
【推荐3】It is 4:45 am in Samasati village in north-western Zambia and the Chimwanga family, champion beekeepers of the village, are already on their way to collect honey from one of their many hives（蜂房）. Samasati has been famous for beekeeping but it is only in the last ten years that the business has begun to make a difference to the lives of the producers, since they began to trade through an organization guaranteeing them a fair price for their crop.
Samasati is a beautiful place, where nature provides and pollution is non-existent. Here, 61 miles from the nearest telephone or source of electricity, the 322 inhabitants support themselves from the forest and rivers and the only income available to the villagers is from selling their honey.
It is a half-hour walk from the Chimwangas’ house to the hive. On reaching the site, the Chimwangas tear off low, leaf-covered branches from nearby trees. They place these in a pile on the ground as a bundle（捆）and put some dry plants in the middle. A match then sets the plants alight and thick smoke is produced as the fire spreads from the dry plants to the green leaves.
Mr. Chimwanga climbs quickly up the tree trunk and moves carefully along a branch towards the hanging hive, carrying the smoking bundle with him. When he reaches the hive, he waves smoke into the entrance to calm the bees. The bees circle his head continuously. Unafraid, he pulls up a bucket and fills it with the precious delicious honey, fragrant but not too sweet ‒ the result of hundreds of wild flowers the bees have enjoyed in the forest.
This honey is sold straight to the exporting company, North West Bee Products, through Bon Malichi. He is the vital middleman for the beekeepers. Bob believes the honey is Zambia’s future. “Our honey is produced without adding anything.” he says. The honey is transported to Dares Salaam, in neighbouring country Tanzania, for export. Within a month of a Zambian beekeeper climbing to his hive, his honey can be spread on bread anywhere in the world.
1. What are the Chimwanga family going out so early to do?| A．Look for bees. |
| B．Get honey in the forest. |
| C．Make honey for trading. |
| D．Sell their honey crop. |
| A．get light and see the hives clearly |
| B．scare away the bees by thick smoke |
| C．produce smoke to protect him from the bees |
| D．keep warm by the burning plants |
| A．It is popular for its superior quality. |
| B．It has a large quantity of production. |
| C．He can guarantee a fair price for it. |
| D．He can help export it to neighboring countries. |
| A．It enjoys beautiful nature and less pollution. |
| B．It has an abundant supply of electricity. |
| C．It is well known for processing honey. |
| D．It is a small, poor and backward village. |
