English language is closely related to the Frisian German and Dutch. England is the first country     1     (speak) English and now English is the main language of the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, Ireland, New Zealand, and many island nations in the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean. It is also an     2     (office) language of India, the Philippines, Singapore, and many countries in sub-Saharan Africa     3     include South Africa. English is the first choice of foreign     4     (language) in most countries around the world.     5     third of the world’s population now use English, which is     6     (amaze) to us.   

English belongs     7     the Indo-European family of languages and is therefore related to most other languages spoken in Europe and Western Asia from Iceland to India. During the course of hundreds of years, English words have been     8     (slow) changed from the forms     9     (find) in Sanskrit, Greek, Latin, Russian and German to forms, as in Chinese and Vietnamese. The German and Chinese words for the word “man”     10     (be) a typical example. German has five forms: Mann Mannes, Manne, Männer, Männern. Chinese has one form: ren. English stands in between, with four forms: man, man’s, men, men’s.

In daily life, body language plays an important part in     1     (communicate). By watching body language, we can learn a lot about     2     people are thinking. Just like the words we use, body language also varies from culture to culture. The crucial thing is that body language should be     3     (appropriate) used. For example, making eye contact in some countries is a way     4     (display) interest. In other countries, by contrast, not all eye contact     5     (approve) of.

There are also some     6     (different) in how we touch someone we are talking to. In countries like France and Russia, people may kiss their friends on     7     cheek when they meet. Elsewhere, people favour shaking hands, bowing from the waist, or nodding the head when they meet someone else.

Some body language     8     (have) many different uses. Perhaps the common example is smiling. A smile can help us get through difficult situations. A smile can break down barriers. We can use a smile to apologize, to greet someone, or to ask for help. Experts suggest     9     (smile) at yourself in the mirror to make yourself feel happier. And if we are feeling down or lonely, there is nothing better     10     seeing the smiling face of a good friend.

When I left for the United States to study. I had butterflies in my stomach. I was nervous because I was going to     1     new place with new people and new customs. I couldn't even understand     2     (they)language. Everything was different     3     my own country. There was nobody that I could talk to. I just had my husband,     4     was a new person for me, too.

It was a sad moment when I had to say goodbye to my family and friends. I didn't want     5     (leave)my hometown because I grew up there and had wonderful     6     (memory)of the place. So,     7     (think)about all these changes made me nervous and I was     8     (worry)about my new life. But studying abroad was a     9     (decide)that I made myself. I had to continue and accept the challenge. I looked forward to     10     (visit)my family in the summer vacation.

Did you grow up in one culture, your parents came from another, and you are now living in a     1     (total) different country? If so, then you are a third culture kid.

The term”third- culture kid“    2     (use) in the 1960s for the first time by Dr. Ruth. She first came across this phenomenon while researching North American children     3     (live) in India. In general， third-culture kids benefit(受益)     4     their intercultural experience and they often reach excellent academic results.

Yet many     5     (difficulty) may arise from this phenomenon(现象). Third-culture kids may not be able to adapt     6     ( they) completely to their new surroundings. Also，they often find it hard     7     (develop) new friendship. Additionally, for a third culture kid, it is often     8     (easy) to move to a new country than to return to his homeland. For example, after living in Australia for many years, Louis finally returned to the country     9     she was born. She didn't know anything about current TV shows     10     fashion trends. And she . didn't share the same values as other teens of her age.

A 13-year study of early childhood development    1    （make) by Harvard University has shown that, by the age of three, most children have the big potential     2    （understand) about 1,000 words-most of the language they will use in ordinary conversation for the rest of their lives.

Furthermore, research has shown that while every child is born with a natural curiosity, it can decline     3    （great) during the second and third years of life. Researchers say that the human personality    4    （form) during the first two years of life, and during the first three years children learn the basic skills they will use in all their later learning both at home    5    school.

    6    is generally acknowledged that young people from poorer socio-economic backgrounds tend to do less well in our education system. As a result of the research evidence of the     7    （important) of the first three years of a child's life, a pilot programme     8     focused on parents as the child's first teachers started in the US. As the programme shows, working with the family, rather than bypassing the parents,     9    （be) the most effective way of     10    （help) children get off to the best possible start in life.