1 . I grew up in a three-bedroom brick house in the Park Hill section of North Little Rock, Ark. It was a sweet, ordinary little home but reminded me of so much love.
I’ve always felt I was raised by a beautiful fairy. My mom, Nellie, was soft-spoken and had an extraordinary smile. My father, Maurice, was a train conductor and his declining health was the most defining aspect of my childhood. When I was 8, the doctors told us that Dad had a severe heart condition and we needed to care for him. I developed magical thinking, which was vital to my later acting. I’d say to myself that if I did this and that, my daddy would live.
After high school, I attended Hendrix College in Arkansas. When I was a freshman, they cast me in a school’s big play. At the end, one of the drama professors said, “You don’t really belong here. You belong in New York. They’d know what to do with you.” He gave me a list of schools. He pointed to the Neighborhood Playhouse and said it was small but Sandy Meisner, the man who ran it was great. I auditioned (试镜) and a month later, I was accepted. Mom and I started crying.
After moving to New York, my big break came six years later, in 1977. I took a meeting about a movie called “Goin’ South,” with Jack Nicholson. After the audition, they said I wasn’t quite right. Back in reception, I wanted to apologize for being stubborn. Jack was standing there. He said, “Are you waiting to see me?” I told him I was but I didn’t have a script. He gave me one and told me I’d have 10 minutes with him the next day. I made it to a screen test in L. A. Later, I was in Jack’s office and asked if someone could approve my hotel expenses. Jack was smoking a cigar. He said, “Don’t worry about it, kid. You’ re on the payroll.”
Today, my husband, actor Ted Danson, and I spend most of our time in Ojai, Calif. I also love the wildness of the mountains. I still own my childhood home in Arkansas. I haven’t been able to part with it. Emotionally, the love from our parents is still there.
1. What motivated the author to develop her ability to acting?| A．Her family’s poor housing. | B．Her father’s serious disease. |
| C．Her mother’s gift for acting. | D．Her confidence in learning subjects. |
| A．Her mother refused her to become an actress. |
| B．Her performance was common in high school. |
| C．She was declined by manager Sandy Meisner. |
| D．She was highly praised by the drama professor. |
| A．Indifferent. | B．Critic. | C．Impressive. | D．Neutral. |
| A．To prove the excellent environment she lives. |
| B．To stress the beautiful scenery of her hometown. |
| C．To show her gratitude to her beloved parents. |
| D．To attract more people to enjoy the mountains. |
2 . Writing groups support successful academic writing for students and visiting scholars whose first language is not English or whose educational culture is not North American. Registration for Summer Writing Groups is open. Groups will begin meeting in mid-May.
What happens in a writing group?
Small groups (4-6 writers) meet for a hour every week with an English Language Specialist who guides the group. Each week: one or more members share a draft of something they are writing. They ask group members for feedback. Group members ask questions, respond to the text, make suggestions for clarification or revision. The specialist teaches writing techniques, strategies, and grammar points where appropriate.
Who can join a writing group?
Our writing group welcome the students across the world who speak English as an additional language, including graduate students and visiting scholars working on any kind of English teaching or translating!We also provide the great chance to the students and scholars whose educational culture is not North American, regardless of first language.
When can I join a writing group?
There’s no limit on the number of semesters you can participate in writing groups. Some students participate in writing groups from their first semester of course work until they complete their dissertations (学位论文). Some join for a while, take a break, and then rejoin in a following semester. Some groups work together for several semesters or even years! Groups are scheduled every semester according to the participants’ availability.
How do I join a writing group?
Register now for Summer Writing Groups! We will send you a link to a Doodle poll in early May, so you can tell us what times will work for you during the Summer. Group members will begin meeting in mid-May.
1. Who can join the writing groups?| A．A Chinese exchange student. | B．An American scholar. |
| C．A Japanese chemistry teacher. | D．An Indian bridge engineer. |
| A．By learning in a writing class. | B．By discussing typical works. |
| C．By establishing principles. | D．By being taught by specialists. |
| A．About two weeks. | B．About three weeks. | C．About four weeks. | D．About five weeks. |
3 . You may well remember the last time you made a fool of yourself when asked a question in front of the entire class or when you felt you stood out, either positively, like scoring a perfect goal in a soccer game, or negatively, like wearing a piece of clothing that made you look entirely out of place.
These situations differ greatly, but one thing is for sure: in none of them did people pay attention to you to the extent that you might have thought they did. We estimate our own significance from our perspective, colored by the fact that we are all the center of our own universes, which is the noted “egocentric bias”, represented by the spotlight effect.
A study conducted by Tom Gilovich and other researchers found the participants greatly overestimated the number of people who might have noticed an embarrassing T-shirt they were wearing. But when required to view a recording of a third person wearing an embarrassing T-shirt, they got the estimate of the number of people who noticed it nearly right. What seems to shift the memorability of the T-shirt in our eyes, then, is us.
The spotlight effect doesn’t apply merely to appearance but to actions. In another part of the same study, the student participants similarly overestimated how much importance their classmates in a group discussion attached to their performance. Having an accurate idea of how much our performance matters to other people is vital. Overestimating how impressed our classmates are with our positive performance can cause us to have a ballooning sense of self-importance. Yet understanding fewer people than we realize actually care about our negative performance or errors can be incredibly freeing.
If we continuously fall into the trap of the spotlight effect, it may harm our mental health. We may respond with inaction to opportunities we want to participate in based on a mistaken assumption that others will analyze and judge us for them. The comforting truth is that just reminding ourselves of the fact that others almost never notice us as much as we think they do can be enough to counteract the spotlight effect.
1. What occasions are mentioned in paragraph 1?| A．When you are judged. | B．When you feel noticed. |
| C．Highlights of your life. | D．Your embarrassing moments. |
| A．To make a comparison. |
| B．To apply the spotlight effect. |
| C．To stress the essence of evaluation. |
| D．To analyze external factors’ effect on thinking. |
| A．gain respect | B．feel liberated |
| C．take pride in ourselves | D．break down mentally |
| A．Act out. | B．Find fault with. | C．Cancel out. | D．Take notice of. |
4 . NPR’s STUDENT PODCAST CHALLENGE IS BACK — WITH A FOURTH — GRADE EDITION!
Microphone? Check. Headphones? Ready. A story you just can’t stop talking about? Got it! Yup, it’s time again for NPR’s Student Podcast (播客) Challenge. And we’re here to announce the opening bell of year six of this annual competition.
In our first half-decade, we’ve listened to podcasts from more than 80,000 young people all over the country. Students have deeply poured into their microphones personal stories about their families or their identities and serious issues, like how changing climate is impacting lives. On our end, we’ve listened to your feedback each year — great suggestions that have brought our ongoing College Podcast Challenge, and a special prize last year for the best podcast about mental health.
This year, we’ve got a big new change: Since the beginning, the contest has been open for students in grades five through twelve. But this year we are introducing our first-ever fourth grade contest! The sixth annual Student Podcast Challenge is now open for entries and will close on May 3, 2024. Our judges will choose winners in three categories: grade four, grades five through eight, and grades nine through twelve.
As in the past, entries must be submitted by a teacher, educator, or tutor who is 18 years or older. And don’t forget all the tips, advice and lesson plans we’ve compiled over the years, especially the rules around the maximum length of eight minutes, and about the use of music. The podcast should be completed independently. After years of listening to student podcasts, we’ve learned that shorter is better.
1. What is the theme of best podcast of the 5th Podcast Challenge?| A．Climate issues. | B．Identity crisis. | C．Mental health. | D．Family matters. |
| A．The fourth grade contest is set. |
| B．Grade five have their own category. |
| C．Elementary teachers’ entries are welcome. |
| D．The feedback for the programme is required. |
| A．The length of 7 minutes. | B．Submission by your tutor. |
| C．Being accompanied by music. | D．Being created with your friends. |
5 . You may have visited antique stores and found cutting-edge goods in second-hand furniture stores, but have you ever stooping? On the streets of big cities at night, some young people are “looking for something”. Obsessed with the spiritual core of the old thing recycling, they fell in love with it. But what exactly is stooping?
In fact, this English word originally meant “bending over”, and now refers to a way of life of picking up discarded items and renovating and recycling old things, which originally emerged in New York and other foreign big cities.
Since the beginning of last year, the trend of “stooping” has spread to many big cities in China and many young people look for second-hand items such as discarded furniture on the streets, take home and repurpose them with a new look. In order to make the flow of information better, some “stoopers” have also built communities where group members can share “treasures” on the street with each other.
Mikiko, 27, is reportedly one of the first people in China to get involved in practicing stooping. At first, she posted online things that people no longer use, want to throw away, or exchange at home, and slowly hundreds of messages flooded in and since then, stooping has become more and more popular among young people. Mikiko admitted that she was surprised that the concept has become a hit on social media, as older generations often stigmatize picking up things from the street or using second-hand goods. “People like my mom consider stooping as’rubbish-picking’, and people will be looked down upon by doing this.” She even created an app called “Grecycle” where people can give away or take unwanted items for free, hoping people may realize that stooping can also be about doing good and helping others.
This generation of young people has given “new life” to old things, practiced social responsibility in their own environmentally friendly ways in life, and also contributed to the circular economy and sustainable society.
1. What do we know about “stooping” in this text?| A．It was developed in England. | B．It equals to rubbish-picking. |
| C．It is an expression to show respect. | D．It is a way to turn trash to treasure. |
| A．To show off their good use of items. |
| B．To argue about the misuse of good treasure. |
| C．To share the information of the discarded items. |
| D．To make some comments on the abandoned items. |
| A．Be skilled at. | B．Be ashamed of. |
| C．Be fed up with. | D．Be accustomed to. |
| A．Second-hand stores are worth visiting. |
| B．Big cities offer more job opportunities. |
| C．Young people spend less than older people. |
| D．The young have a stronger eco-awareness. |
I was preparing side dishes to go with our Sunday barbecue when our daughter Rose stormed in the front door and rushed to her room. I glanced out the window and saw our neighbor Lucy walking back to her house across the road. As a mother, my feeling told me something happened between them.
“Rose, come in here. I need some help with dinner.” She came out of her room and stood beside me. She had a stubborn look on her face—the kind kids have when they know they are wrong but have persuaded themselves they are right. “I noticed that Lucy, your classmate, came over but didn’t stay long. Why?” I asked. “I don’t like her,” Rose complained. “I wish she would stop coming over here all the time. She dresses terribly, and sometimes she doesn’t smell good. Her nose is always runny, and her hair is in a mess. None of us like her.”
I knew that she referred to the popular crowd. It was a lot for a senior high student to deal with, trying to fit in with the popular crowd. It might be a shame if one of the girls in that crowd knew Lucy was playing with Rose.
I explained why I felt so sad for Lucy. “You see, baby,” I began, “I know how she felt today when you were sort of cold toward her. I know because that was me when I was in sixth grade. I was the poor kid with hand-me-down clothes, the kid who others looked down on. I also know what it was like to be hungry and see other families having a barbecue out and enjoying themselves. That feeling never goes away.” I went on to tell her that I didn’t want her to be that child or adult who looked down on others. I told her I wanted her to be kind and helpful, not judgmental and hurtful. I noticed Rose had tears in her eyes.
注意：1．续写词数应为100词左右；
2．请按下列格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Minutes later, Rose went to Lucy’s house across the road.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________7 . Our much-loved 100-Word-Story Competition is back! Enter for the chance to win prizes of up to £1,000. It is a chance to show the world your storytelling talents! Entries (参赛作品) are now open.
Rules and conditions
Please ensure that entries are created by yourself, not previously published and exactly 100 words long (not including title)—not a single word shorter or longer! Don’t forget to include your full name, address, email and phone number. We may use entries in all print and electronic media. Multiple entries are allowed per person. We are unfortunately only able to consider UK-based entries. Please submit your stories by 5pm on January 5, 2024 either online or by post.
Terms and prizes
There are three categories—one for adults and two categories for schools: one for children aged 12-18 and one for children under 12. The editorial team will pick a shortlist of entries, and the three best stories in each category will be posted online at our website on February 1,2024. You can vote for your favourite and the one with the most votes will win the top prize. Voting will close on February 29, 2024 and the winning entries will be published in our May 2024 issue, and posted online on April 16, 2024.
★In the adults category, the winner will receive £1,000 and one runner-up will receive £300.
★In the 12-18s category, the winner will receive£200 or a Kind le Paperwhite, and the runner-up will receive a £100 books voucher.
★In the under-12 category, the winner will receive £100 or a Kindle Paperwhite and £100 of book vouchers for their school, and the runner- up will receive a £50 books voucher.
1. To meet the competition rules, the entry must be ______.| A．created originally | B．published openly |
| C．less than 100 words | D．based on the US |
| A．In January. | B．In February. | C．In April. | D．In May. |
| A．£100. | B．£200. | C．£300. | D．£1,000. |
1. How long does the holiday last?
| A．Two days. | B．A week. | C．About a month. |
| A．He did his homework. |
| B．He visited his friends. |
| C．He went shopping. |
| A．Some presents. | B．Fireworks. | C．Some lucky money. |
| A．Tomorrow. | B．In three days. | C．Next week. |
1. What is the main purpose of the talk?
| A．To ask for advice. | B．To attract attention. | C．To express thanks. |
| A．Play basketball. |
| B．Attend a famous university. |
| C．Read some magazines. |
| A．To help him to go to sleep quickly. |
| B．To help him to understand his lessons better. |
| C．To know about the new sports stories. |
| A．She doesn’t care about the speaker. |
| B．She is too strict with the speaker. |
| C．She has ruined the speaker. |
1. What do the speakers have in common?
| A．They don’t have a computer. |
| B．They don’t like to surf the Internet. |
| C．They prefer to watch videos on their phones. |
| A．A comedy. | B．A horror movie. | C．An action movie. |
| A．In a shop. | B．In a movie theater. | C．In the man’s house. |
