1 . “Why does grandpa have ear hair?” Just a few years ago my child was so curious to know “why” and “how” that we had to cut off her questions five minutes before bedtime. Now a soon-to-be fourth grader, she says that she dislikes school because “it’s not fun to learn.” I am shocked. As a scientist and parent, I have done all to promote a love of learning in my children. Where did I go wrong?
My child’s experience is not unique. Psychologist Susan Engel notes that curiosity—defined as “spontaneous (自发的) investigation and eagerness for new information” —drops greatly in children by the fourth grade.
In Wonder: Childhood and the Lifelong Love of Science, Yale psychologist Frank C. Keil details the development of wonder—a spontaneous passion to explore, discover, and understand. He takes us on a journey from its early development, when wonder drives common sense and scientific reasoning, through the drop-off in wonder that often occurs, to the trap of life in a society that denies wonder.
As Keil notes, children are rich in wonder while they are rapidly developing causal mechanisms (因果机制) in the preschool and early elementary school years. They are sensitive to the others’ knowledge and goals, and they expertly use their desire for questioning. Children’s questions, particularly those about “why” and “how,” support the development of causal mechanisms which can be used to help their day-to-day reasoning.
Unfortunately, as Keil notes, “adults greatly underestimate (低估) young children’s causal mechanisms.” In the book, Wonder, Keil shows that we can support children’s ongoing wonder by playing games with them as partners, encouraging question-asking, and focusing on their abilities to reason and conclude.
A decline in wonder is not unavoidable. Keil reminds us that we can accept wonder as a positive quality that exists in everyone. I value wonder deeply, and Wonder has given me hope by suggesting a future for my children that will remain wonder-full.
1. How does the author introduce the topic of the passage in paragraph 1?| A．By listing some statistics. | B．By presenting an explanation. |
| C．By making some comparison. | D．By asking some questions. |
| A．They annoy their parents too often. |
| B．They ask too many strange questions. |
| C．Their desire for fun disappears quickly. |
| D．Their desire to learn weakens sharply. |
| A．They control children’s sensitivity. |
| B．They slightly change in early childhood. |
| C．They hardly support children’s reasoning. |
| D．They develop by children’s questioning. |
| A．A news report. | B．A book review. |
| C．A research paper. | D．A children’s story. |
Oh , Jia Ling,
YOLO(You Only Live Once), directed by Jia, hit the screen on the first day of the lunar Loong year , raising audience's
The story behind YOLO is that Jia stepped away from the public while filming it, and along with rumors that the actress lost 110 pounds,
It was not until she finished the movie
YOLO is an interesting movie about how people find and learn to love
3 . 300-Word-Fable Contest 2024
Our domestic annual fable contest is back for its eighth year. As ever, we look forward to reading yours! Listed below are some take-home messages for you!
The Rules:
Please make sure that stories are new, not published before and exactly 300 words long (not including the title). Entries may be used in all print and electronic media. Contributions can become world copyright (版权) of Granta. The judges ' decision is final.
Entry is open only to people living in the UK. It is not open to employees of Granta and all others associated with this contest, their immediate families and relatives living in an employee's household.
Terms and Conditions:
There are three categories-one for adults and two for schools: one for teenagers aged 12-18 and one for children under 12.
In the adults category, the winner will receive £1,000 and two runners-up will each receive £250. In the 12—18s and under-12s categories, the winners will each receive a selection of STAEDTLER products worth £150. The two runners-up in both categories will each receive a Kindle E-Reader.
Please submit your fables by 5 pm on February 19.
The editorial team will pick a shortlist of entries, which this year will be published by our partner nicereading. com. Winners of the categories will have an opportunity to write a longer version of their fables for inclusion in the book.
Highlights to keep in mind: the three best fables in each category will be posted on-line at granta.co.uk on February27. You can vote for your favourite, and the one with the most votes wins the top prize. Voting will close at 5 pm on March 19 and the winning list will be published in our June issue.
1. Who will determine entries to become the world copyright of Granta?| A．The judges. | B．The writers. |
| C．The experts. | D．The audience. |
| A．A British man of 20. | B．A staff of Granta. |
| C．One of the organizers. | D．A brother of the staff. |
| A．At least eight days. | B．At least one month. |
| C．At most one month. | D．At most two months. |
4 . When the Uzbek girl Dilsora firstly met what seemed more like a Western-style dragon than a Chinese one, a beast to run away from her rather than a friend to be respected, she was at a loss about it. “Before college, I caught an interview on TV featuring an Uzbek student studying in China, she tweeted. However, I didn’t have the slightest idea that this language would be my future major in college. Then, when I started studying it at college, oh, jeez …pretty challenging! ” Nevertheless, as with a dragon story, there is a twist in the tail, and Dilsora’s despair gave way to nobler principles. “Give up? Nope! Instead, I pressed on with Chinese. ” she added with a giggle, “My mother also encouraged me all the way! ”
Gradually, her feelings toward Chinese changed in the second year of college after Dilsora got a scholarship to study at Northeast Normal University in Changchun for a year, which proved a big turn on the pages of her fulfilling life.
“The first time I came to China, amazingly engaging were the locals, by whom I was totally fascinated. In spite of myself, I fell in love with Chinese culture. ” Since then she has got master's and doctoral degrees, becoming a college teacher in Beijing, teaching Uzbek to Chinese students. In her spare time, being an all-nighter, she often loses herself in Chinese masterpieces. Two years later, on Instagram, she even set up a Chinese Reading Club to attract more to read.
“Although I am ordinary, ” just as she, now the boss of the Reading Club, matter-of-factly put it, “since I’ve come this far, I am to come further. Harvesting the best outcome is my lasting dream. ” Those primary schoolers hearing the tale of Dilsora devoting so much to Chinese learning might be several times more likely to learn Chinese hard than those who didn’t, as Jimu news staff predicted.
Besides, Dilsora has answered another calling: translating books by Chinese president into Uzbek. She said the leader’s foresight has impressed her greatly.
1. What does the underlined words “a twist in the tail” in paragraph 1 refer to?| A．The turning point of a story. | B．The turning movement of a dragon’s tail. |
| C．The highest point of a story. | D．The dancing movement of a dragon’s tail. |
| A．Defeated but determined | B．Relieved but regretful |
| C．Excited but challenged | D．Exhausted but content |
| A．Mother’s love is endless. |
| B．While in Roman, do as the Romans do. |
| C．Nothing is difficult for those who will try. |
| D．East or west, home is the best. |
| A．Dilsora’s personal dream. | B．Dilsora’s family background. |
| C．Chinese leaders’ works. | D．Chinese leaders’ hobbies. |
5 . Camille Mahlknecht, 9, has some big fun planned for this weekend. She and other residents of Agoura Hills, California, plan to pick up trash during their city’s annual cleanup. At the same time, Wissam Raed,12, will be busy volunteering too. Thousands of miles away in Lebanon, Wissam plans to put on a play at an orphanage and bring potted plants to elderly people at a senior citizen center.
Some other children like Nathan White, 10, have personal reasons for volunteering. Nathan’s grandmother died of a heart attack. To help raise money for medical research, Nathan participated in Jump Rope for Heart. He and five other boys took turns jumping rope for two and half hours and collected more than US$1200 in donations for the American Heart Association.
Millions of children around the globe lend a hand to their communities every year. Schools and parents also contribute to the rise in youth service. For example, many schools offer community service activities for students to join. Teachers either combine volunteer work with classroom lessons or make service work a requirement. Parents, on the other hand, encourage their kids to volunteer and do it with them.
Community service is particularly important in this depression time. As the need for monetary support and other aid has increased, many charitable organizations have experienced a significant drop in donations. Camille and other children who volunteer thousands of hours annually can fill in some of the gaps.
According to research, kids who start volunteering are twice as likely to continue doing good deeds when they are adults. So, grab a paintbrush, a trash bag, or whatever you need to help your community. You’ll love how you feel after helping others. Even dirty work can be lots of fun, if it’s for a good cause.
1. What’s the writer’s purpose of writing this passage?| A．To recommend youth service programs to schools. |
| B．To ask charity organizations to serve the community. |
| C．To urge children to take part in volunteering activities. |
| D．To propose alternatives for doing community services. |
| A．Community service is gaining popularity among children. |
| B．Families and schools help to make community service popular. |
| C．Children now depend more on their teachers than on their parents. |
| D．Nathan White had a special reason to raise money for medical research. |
| A．It raises money for school activities. |
| B．It teaches children to take care of the sick. |
| C．It gives charity organizations some needed help. |
| D．It encourages parents and teachers to work together. |
| A．Community service can help prevent juvenile delinquency (青少年犯罪)． |
| B．Children will probably leave school and work as volunteers. |
| C．Organizing sports events for the school is a kind of community service. |
| D．Children who do volunteer work are more likely to grow up to be caring adults. |
| A．At home. | B．On a bus. | C．In a park. |
1. Which race did the woman take part in?
| A．The three-kilometer one. |
| B．The five-kilometer one. |
| C．The ten-kilometer one. |
| A．Primary school students. |
| B．High school students. |
| C．College students. |
1. What is the man probably doing?
| A．Promoting a product. |
| B．Hosting a program. |
| C．Conducting a survey. |
| A．Because of a school project. |
| B．Because of a health problem. |
| C．Because of her parents’ words. |
| A．See movies. | B．Read books. | C．Do exercise. |
| A．She becomes braver. |
| B．She sleeps better. |
| C．She concentrates more. |
9 . Argentina lies in the South America. There are many festivals in Argentina during the year. Therefore, you can enjoy the different interesting festivals when traveling there.
First of all, we should talk about the Tango (探戈) Festival inArgentina, which is held in the capital of this country — Buenos Aires, from February to March. You ought to know that Argentina is the home of tango, so Argentinians admire this dance very much. Even if you cannot dance perfectly, you should join the people and try to perform this dance.
The next festival in Argentina is Open Polo (马球) Tournament. You should go to Palermo to see this festival in Argentina. This festival is held every year and is the most important polo tournament in Argentina.This kind of sport is considered the most important in Argentina.
Attending this festival in Argentina, you will be able to communicate with different people and admire the fascinating competition between the teams of different countries, such as Argentina, England, Australia, as well as the US. This festival in Argentina is usually held between November and December every year. So don’t miss the opportunity if you travel to Argentina at this time.
The other festival in Argentina is the Semana Musical Liao Liao. This is a festival of classical music. The festival was created in 1993 and is held at the Liao Liao Hotel, near Bariloche. The festival is held yearly in October. So if you admire this kind of music, you should travel toArgentina in October.
There are also many carnivals in Argentina in summer. Of course, it’s impossible to put everything about festivals in Argentina into just one article. We hope that you have found this article interesting and eye-catching.
1. What would be the best title for the passage?| A．Entertainments in Argentina | B．Festivals in Argentina |
| C．Travel to Argentina | D．A brief introduction to Argentina |
| A．is organized by the government |
| B．welcomes everyone to take part in it |
| C．is held in summer |
| D．holds parties for different dances |
| A．Open Polo Tournament. | B．Every carnival in Argentina. |
| C．The Tango Festival. | D．The Semana Musical Liao Liao. |
| A．Buenos Aires in spring | B．Palermo in April |
| C．Palermo in winter | D．Bariloche in October |
10 . Tony Hawk, who I thought was bigger than life, came in the room and then the interview began.
As the world’ s greatest skateboarder (滑板手) , he talked about how his life was not always so miraculous (奇迹般的). He mentioned one day he was skating on top of the world, and the next day the sport of skateboarding fell right on its face. Life for Tony has had its ups and downs, and what brought him back up was the way he believed in himself. One of the most tragic events in Tony’ s life was that his father passed away. Although he suffered such pain, he never lost sight of his dream. He put his energy into his dream, which helped him overcome his sadness.
One part of Tony that completely impressed me is the way he accepts himself. His goal is never to do better than others, but to do his best. If he does the best he can, it doesn’t matter how anyone else takes him.That’s true and wise. As for me, I play baseball and things aren’t going so well, but I’m trying my hardest because that’s life. It’s how you approach those bad days that will keep you on top.
Confidence brought Tony to the next level. During our meeting he continually talked about the importance of following one’ s dream. He also said, along with that, one needs to have a strong faith in one’s own ability to achieve that dream, no matter what challenges are presented.
By the end, I didn’t see the same guy who had walked through the door an hour earlier. Now I view him as more than a world-class skateboarder. He is also a normal person who has dealt with many of the same problems we all face, but the difference is that he is always able to rise above his problems by having faith in his dream.
1. What does the underlined part “fell right on its face” in paragraph 2 mean?| A．finished. | B．continued. | C．happened. | D．failed. |
| A．has the same view of life as Tony Hawk |
| B．doesn’ t want to play baseball anymore |
| C．wants to be as successful as Tony Hawk |
| D．accepts Tony Hawk’ s suggestion |
| A．His achievement. |
| B．His unusual experience. |
| C．His determination to realize his dream. |
| D．His confidence in winning the game. |
| A．Simple. | B．Real. | C．Lucky. | D．Dangerous. |
