Imagine having the
The Chongyang Festival is a
The Chongyang Festival is not only a historical Chinese festival but also
3 . Let’s be friends!
If you feel that making friends as an adult isn’t as easy as it used to be, you’re right. Though it becomes increasingly difficult, healthy friendships make a difference in our life. They can help us age better, deal with stress and live longer lives.
Be optimistic
In a 2022 study, researchers found that people who received an unexpected communication, such as a small gift felt more grateful than the senders thought. Not surprisingly, a positive attitude can help us make friends.
“Write down the names of three to five people you know but would like to be closer to,” suggest experts. Then reach out to each of them: Send a text message, a shared photo, or an article that make you think of them. See if a small action might make a deeper connection.
Branch out
Practice
After the pandemic (疫情), many of us forgot how to socialize.
| A．Make a list |
| B．Send messages |
| C．Friendships don’t just happen. |
| D．Don’t limit yourself to one close friend. |
| E．Social skills are like muscles — we can work them. |
| F．Here are tips for making and deepening friendships. |
| G．But most of the time we don’t realize how much people like us. |
4 . Pack the car and explore what New York State has to offer. Here are four family-friendly destinations where you and the kids can play, learn and have endless amounts of fun.
Sullivan Catskills
This year-round water park features 11 attractions, including an activity pool, a rope bridge challenge and slides. The room is kept at 84 degrees, which prevents any outside Cats-kill cold. It opens from Thursday to Sunday.
Bethel Woods Center for the Arts
It’s a nonprofit organization located at the historic 1969 Woodstock Music Festival site. Guests are welcome to explore the preserved site that held the famous festival. The center also has a museum that features artifacts from Woodstock.
Thomas Cole National Historic Site
The site has been additionally fitted with digital storytelling equipment intended to engage people of all ages, and while original artworks are on display, there are also things to touch and explore.
Vidbel Mountain Homestead
This fifth-generation nonprofit farm cares for several animals, many of which are rescued. The farm works to teach children to care for the resident horses, goats, pigs and dogs. This season, the farm is open to anyone who would like to see the animals, with a special focus on child and adult visitors with special needs or dealing with illness. No admission fee.
1. What’s special about Sullivan Catskills?| A．You can enjoy the beautiful attractions. | B．It’s always warm there. |
| C．People can enjoy some artworks. | D．The park is open seasonally. |
| A．Buy a pet. | B．See a doctor. | C．Enjoy some artworks. | D．Visit some animals. |
| A．History. | B．Art. | C．Geography. | D．Travelling. |
We have three lovely dogs. On the National Day of one year, we drove to my mother’s home for
When night fell that day, we had the dogs
After enjoying the fireworks, we went back to the house
Now all these years later, the three dogs are gone, and all we have are
6 . Are you happy with your appearance?
“Almost all the girls with single-fold eyelids (单眼皮) in our class have had double eyelid operations,” Zeng, a Senior 2 student from Chengdu, told Xinhua. Zeng had the same surgery done this summer.
From popular photo-editing apps to plastic surgery (整形手术), it seems that large eyes, pale skin and a skinny body are the only standard for beauty these days. But can following this standard really make us feel good about ourselves?
“Many teenagers are upset about their appearance because they believe in unrealistic standards of beauty,” experts say.
However, trying to live up to strict standards can make us feel anxious. What troubles us is not just our “imperfect” looks, but the fact that we criticize ourselves too much.
| A．Beauty comes in all shapes and sizes. |
| B．Body image anxiety is common among teenagers. |
| C．Guys care just as much as girls do about their body image. |
| D．Some teenagers might feel negative about their appearance. |
| E．It’s common for teenagers to feel confident about their appearance. |
| F．She and many of her classmates believe bigger eyes look more beautiful. |
| G．Perfect faces and bodies are everywhere in advertising, TV shows and social media. |
7 . Students who are better able to understand and manage their emotions effectively, a skill known as emotional intelligence (EI), do better at school than their less-skilled classmates, according to research published by the American Psychological Association.
“It’s not enough to be smart and hardworking. Students must also be able to understand and manage their emotions to succeed at school,” said Carolyn MacCann, lead author of the study. MacCann and her colleagues analyzed data from more than 160 studies, representing more than 42,000 students from 27 countries, published between 1998 and 2019. The students ranged in age from primary school to college. The researchers found that students with higher EI tended to get higher grades and better achievement test scores than those with lower EI scores. This finding held true even when controlling for intelligence and personality factors. What was most surprising to the researchers was the association held despite different ages.
As for why EI can affect academic performance, MacCann believes a number of factors may come into play. “Students with higher EI may be better able to manage negative emotions, such as anxiety, boredom and disappointment, which can negatively affect academic performance,” she said. “Also, these students may be better able to manage the social world around them, forming better relationships with teachers, classmates and family, all of which are important to academic success.” Finally, the skills required for EI, such as understanding human motivation and emotion, may overlap with (与……重叠) the skills required to master certain subjects, such as history and language, giving students an advantage in those subject areas, according to MacCann.
However, MacCann cautions against widespread testing of students to identify and target those with low EI as it may stigmatize (给……打上烙印) those students. Instead, she recommends interventions that involve the whole school, including additional teacher training and a focus on teacher well-being and emotional skills. “Programs that integrate emotional skill development into the existing curriculum would be beneficial, as research suggests that training works better when run by teachers rather than external specialists,” she said. “Increasing skills for everyone — not just those with low EI—would benefit everyone.”
1. What surprised the researchers most during MacCann’s study?| A．Intelligence mattered more than EI for academic success. |
| B．EI had an effect on learning for students of all ages. |
| C．College students benefited more from EI than pupils. |
| D．Personality affected academic performance greatly. |
| A．High-EI students hardly experience negative emotions. |
| B．High-EI students seldom develop social relationships. |
| C．High-EI students tend to easily focus on their study. |
| D．High-EI students have helpful skills for certain subjects. |
| A．Equipping teachers with emotional skills. |
| B．Designing tests to identify students with low EI. |
| C．Developing special programs for students with low EI. |
| D．Employing emotional specialists to give training to students. |
| A．Should EI be taught in school? |
| B．How can students develop high EI? |
| C．Students with high EI do better in school |
| D．Good students do better in managing emotions |
Ninety-seven Chinese cities have newly become “gigabit cities (数字化城市)” in 2023, meaning they gained the ability
Building gigabit cities is
In gigabit cities, over 99.5 percent of public hospitals
Gigabit cities have greatly promoted the innovation and
9 . In the middle of a hot July afternoon, I became a thief of some sort—a thief of music. For the first time, I created a(n)
I’ve been a pianist since my hands grew big enough to touch the
In music, as in other aspects of life, I believe that true originality
The gift of
| A．original | B．ordinary | C．digital | D．traditional |
| A．transformed | B．translated | C．broke | D．divided |
| A．challenge | B．perform | C．deliver | D．master |
| A．in my mind | B．on purpose | C．by myself | D．on a regular basis |
| A．drum | B．violin | C．piano | D．guitar |
| A．confirmed | B．defined | C．impressed | D．confused |
| A．contribute to | B．adapt to | C．refer to | D．belong to |
| A．ambition | B．pride | C．anxiety | D．soul |
| A．ordinary | B．particular | C．different | D．effective |
| A．rarely | B．always | C．still | D．also |
| A．downloaded | B．reduced | C．recovered | D．changed |
| A．released | B．borrowed | C．copied | D．separated |
| A．sense | B．responsibility | C．imagination | D．creativity |
| A．catch | B．satisfy | C．cure | D．lose |
| A．inspiration | B．balance | C．proposal | D．entrance |
10 . Fragile. Oversensitive. Glued to their phones. Is this what comes to mind when we think of the teens of this generation? While there may be a grain of truth to these stereotypical (刻板印象的) characteristics, there might be more to this generation of teens than what is generally regarded.
Never before have the lives of any generation of teens been as overwhelmed with mobile technology and social media as the teens of this generation. It follows then that there will be unique mental and emotional problems resulting from this new age of technology. As compared to their parents or grandparents who were likely less connected and more isolated, these teens are constantly exposed to their social circles and beyond. It is no wonder then that the mental health of this generation’s teens have been badly affected.
Moreover, as many of the older generations complain, the teens today are more individualistic in contrast to the more community-centered attitude of their parents and grandparents. Gone is the closeness amongst neighbors who are friendly with one another and quick to offer a helping hand when they see another in need. In its place, we have teens who may not even have a clue as to who lives in the unit next to theirs, much less offer a friendly nod or wave when they happen to cross paths with a neighbour.
Yet, the effects of technology on this generation of teens are not all bad. Actually, the very connectedness that social media brings about has led to an opening of minds and a flourishing of dialogue among people of diverse cultures and backgrounds. In comparison, the parents or grandparents of this generation of teens probably did not have the same opportunity to get to know people outside of their social circles at their age, and are thus more likely to have fixed stereotypical opinions of people different from them.
To conclude, the teens of this generation differ in many ways from their past generations, in some ways more positive than others. Every generation is a product of the cultural, political and economic events of their time.
1. What can we learn about the teens of this generation?| A．They are open-minded and tolerant. |
| B．They enjoy the closeness with their neighbors. |
| C．They are a weak and oversensitive generation. |
| D．They dislike people different from themselves. |
| A．High pressure from their academic demands. |
| B．Great distance from their family and relatives. |
| C．Too much time spent on social networking online. |
| D．Huge influence from their parents and grandparents. |
| A．The sharp difference between generations. |
| B．The digital divide that is hard to be bridged. |
| C．The great benefits modern technology has brought. |
| D．The recognition of the community-centered attitude. |
| A．Indifferent. | B．Concerned. | C．Objective. | D．Approving. |
