1 . A recent study on parents who beat their children indicated that physical punishment still happens far more frequently than previously (先前地) thought but that physical punishment was ineffective. 73 percent of the children who were hit waited less than 10 minutes before acting out again.
Many parents deal with their children’s mistakes by taking away toys and separating them fro their playmates. But for strong-willed kids like I was,none of these methods were effective.
Like many kids, I wasn’t bad; I was bored. Fortunately, my father realized this fairly early an developed a new form of “discipline (原则)” that produced immediate results and long-term positive effects.
Looking back as an adult, my father’s method of making me read the encyclopedia (百科全书) whenever I did something wrong was the best thing he could have done.
He would tell me a topic and say, “Learn about the aardvark (土豚) and I’m going to test you shortly after.” It was punishment in the sense that I was forced to stop whatever I was doing, but it also had a purpose in that it kept my mind occupied and presented the type of mental challenge I clearly lacked.
Although unwillingly, I went to learn absolutely everything there to know about aardvarks because I was going to figure out every question he could throw at me. If it weren’t for my driving need to prove him wrong, it may not have worked as well as it did.
So that’s just it: It was effective. It helped me change my behavior in that moment and it conditioned me to seek out books when I was bored. Obviously, that happened frequently and apparently and it worked. I grew up to become a successful lawyer and a famous writer as well.
To this day, Dad’s the only one who can beat me.
1. What is the probable main idea of Paragraph 1?| A．It reports the result of a recent study about the encyclopedia. |
| B．Physical punishment is useless to deal with children. |
| C．Physical punishment only happened previously. |
| D．73 percent of the children love physical punishment |
| A．Because they produce immediate results and long-term positive effects. |
| B．Because they prefer to break the “discipline” set by their parents. |
| C．Because they are always regarded as bad kids both at home. |
| D．Because they often find it’s boring in their everyday life. |
| A．His father angrily took away his favorite toys. |
| B．His father separated him from his playmates. |
| C．His father forced him to do some reading and tested him later. |
| D．His father ordered him to learn about the aardvark and quizzed him shortly after. |
| A．Children who are mentally challenged are more likely to be successful. |
| B．Parents ought to develop a new form of physical punishment to educate their kids. |
| C．It’s absolutely necessary to punish strong-willed kids physically. |
| D．The stricter parents are, the fewer mistakes children will make. |
2 . In recent years, Britain has seen a rise in interest in learning and teaching Chinese as a second language. In 2015, Britain’s Department for Education devoted 10 million pounds to Chinese teaching in state schools across the country. Hundreds of pupils are taking part in the program, which aims to make at least 5, 000 young people fluent in Chinese by 2022.
A Chinese-English nursery named Hatching Dragons was established in London in 2015, accepting babies from as young as 6 months to 5 years old. Two years later, the first bilingual (双语的) English and Chinese primary school was opened at Kensington, London.
Petts Wood Mandarin-English Preschool, which opened Friday at Bromley in southeastern suburb of London, is the first Chinese immersion (沉浸式) preschool founded in Britain. After three years of planning and preparation, the school has drawn expert opinions on Chinese immersion learning from Europe, the US and China. It offers Chinese and English bilingual immersive education for children aged 2 to 5.
Bromley Councillor Kim Botting, who has visited China three times, is very interested in Britain-China education exchanges. He called the school a wonderful and fantastic thing for the community while attending the opening ceremony on Friday.
The local community showed huge interest and support to the newly established preschool. Xu Zhi, head teacher of Petts Wood, said the preschool offered up to 25 places and six children registered (before the opening, with many families signed up for trial lessons in the next few weeks.
“I had the idea of establishing a bilingual preschool three years ago when I realized that more and more British families wanted an earlier start for their children’s Chinese learning,” Xu said. “Many high school students in Britain also learn Chinese at school for two or three hours each week, but that is not enough and also a bit late for language learning.”
1. What do we know about Petts Wood Mandarin-English Preschool?| A．It opens to all children aged 2 to 6 in the community. |
| B．It requires all students to register before the opening. |
| C．It is the first Chinese immersion preschool in Britain. |
| D．It employs teachers from Europe, the US and Japan. |
| A．Positive. | B．Doubtful. | C．Unconcerned. | D．Unclear. |
| A．To show the difficulty of learning Chinese. | B．To stress the importance of bilingual learning. |
| C．To praise high school students for their efforts. | D．To explain the necessity of a bilingual preschool. |
| A．A short story. | B．A book review. | C．A news report. | D．A research article. |
3 . Sarah, a friend about my age, is tremendously successful on Wall Street and is highly respected. But she wasn’t very happy and hadn’t been happy for many years. She had few real friends. She worked incredibly long hours and felt physically exhausted a lot of the time. You would think the solution to her unhappiness was obvious. But when I offered it to her, her reply, after some consideration, was astonishing.
“Maybe I would prefer to be special rather than happy.”
She explained: “Anyone can do the things it takes to be happy-go on vacation, spend time with friends and family...but not everyone can accomplish great things.”
That’s when it struck me: people who choose being special over happy are addicts. She was addicted-to work and, underneath that, to success. Maybe that sounds strange to you. You can picture a person desperately hooked on booze, but probably don’t picture someone who is successful and persistent. However, according to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the likelihood of drinking rises with education level and socioeconomic status. But the worst addiction I have seen is work a holism. This term was coined by the psychologist Wayne Oates in 1971 for someone who has “the compulsion (强迫) or the uncontrollable need to work continuously.”
They are caught in a vicious cycle：they become successful by working more than others-and thus more than" “necessary”-but believe they have to keep up that pace to maintain their productivity. The rewards of that productivity give way to a fear of falling behind as the drive to keep running. Soon enough, the work crowds out relationships and outside activities. With little else, work is all that is left to the workaholic, reinforcing (强化) the cycle.
Maybe you can relate to this. I can. We need to get to the bottom of these problems-work a holism and success addiction-that lead us to our unavoidable professional destruction. But more importantly, we need to escape them so we can make the jump to new success.
1. What would possibly be the solution that the author offered?| A．Set up your own company! |
| B．Try to become more outgoing! |
| C．Seek help from professionals! |
| D．Work less and enjoy your life! |
| A．She was fed up with working with workaholics. |
| B．She wasted too much time on unnecessary work. |
| C．She drank more booze than it was healthy for her. |
| D．She couldn’t stop working and she didn’t want to. |
| A．Discovered. | B．Invented. | C．Supplied. | D．Recognised. |
| A．Professional success and reputation. |
| B．Endless working, fear and loneliness. |
| C．Intense relationships with colleagues. |
| D．Enormous enthusiarn to get on in life. |
4 . Braving the elements
On Dec.26, Gelinne, 60, was looking out the back windows of his home at the frozen lake. Then an airplane came into his sight. Gelinne looked up just in time to see that small air plane a few hundred yards away, losing control.
As the plane disappeared behind the trees, Gelinne, a former Navy officer, realized it was going to land in the lake. He flashed on a moment from more than 20 years earlier: Gelinne was at work in a bank. When a fire alarm rang, he escaped from the chaos but has always wondered if he could have stayed inside and helped.
On this day, Gelinne didn’t hesitate. He ran down to the waterfront. The plane had skidded (侧滑) to a stop on the broad, frozen lake, far from shore. It was now sinking. The pilot was standing on the wing. Gelinne knew from his Navy training that even a few minutes in the icy water could kill the pilot.
Gelinne tested the ice with his foot and decided not to take any chances walking on it. So he pulled a boat out from under his back deck.
Then he set off, pushing his boat across the ice. It was tough work. When Gelinne reached the plane, it had broken through the ice and sunk; only its tail was visible. The pilot was standing on a tail wing, submerged up to his chest, surrounded by open water. Gelinne pushed his boat off the ice and into the water, paddling (划) toward the pilot.
Gelinne focused on keeping the pilot calm, joking, “Just hang on to the boat as if you were hugging your wife.” The pilot grabbed the boat’s bow, but Gelinne knew he had to get the pilot out of the water and up onto the shelf of unbroken ice behind him before the man lost too much body heat.
By now a police officer had arrived and radioed for help. A lifeboat appeared, breaking through ice as it arrived. It picked up the pilot and rushed him to safety. Later the boat returned to help Gelinne, now extremely tired, to shore.
“I’m 60 years old,” Gelinne says. “There was no way I could get him to shore.” Still, he was satisfied he’d gone the right way that day.
1. Why did Gelinne run outside without hesitation?| A．He had rescucing experience. | B．He wanted to offer help in time. |
| C．He needed more time to prepare. | D．He was amazed at what had happened. |
| A．He made a call to the police. | B．He got the pilot out of the water. |
| C．He asked the pilot to grasp the bow. | D．He picked up the pilot onto the shore. |
| A．generous | B．brave | C．curious | D．strict |
| A．Think twice before action. |
| B．One good turn deserves another. |
| C．It’s never too late to make things right. |
| D．One should always be ready to seize chances. |
5 . Most parents are worried the first time they catch their kids out in a lie. According to child and teen psychiatrist Gayani DeSilva, lying can actually be a sign of healthy development in young children. “Kids lie for many reasons, and much of it is normal,” DeSilva says. “People are not born with the knowledge of communicating with others and getting their needs met. They’ll experiment with different communication styles and techniques until they find the ones that work best for them. Lying is one of those techniques.”
As kids get older, they become more aware of how their actions affect others, and many will lie less frequently. In spite of this, parents still need to lead their kids to form a habit of not lying. According to DeSilva, when children lie, look at them directly and ask what they need. After they tell you, gently remind them that telling you directly will be more effective than lying.
It’s also a good idea to model the behavior you want to see in your kids. In other words, don’t lie to your children. This will set you and your children on a course of open communication and trust.
In some cases, lying is a sign of a deeper issue. A child who is neglected will lie more than a child who has attentive and responsive parents. He’s not sure whether he’s loved. He may lie to please others. The same goes for a child who has experienced something unpleasant. He may lie to try to hide his shame, avoid admitting his needs, or to control his surroundings to ensure his safety.
By paying attention to the reasons behind a lie, parents can figure out what need to be done. For example, while Jack might lie about completing his homework in order to play video games, he also might be trying to avoid negative feelings connected with school work, and this is just where parents should start, says therapist Gideon Javna.
1. What can be inferred about lying from DeSilva’s words?| A．It has certain benefits for the healthy growth of kids. |
| B．It shows the understanding between kids and parents. |
| C．It can be an effective means of communication for kids. |
| D．It is so common for kids that parents can completely ignore it. |
| A．By pretending to trust them at first. |
| B．By encouraging them to admit their needs. |
| C．By telling them directly the harm of lying. |
| D．By punishing them for their lying in a safe way. |
| A．It’s common for children to lie |
| B．It’s important to be a generous parent |
| C．lying can damage family relationships |
| D．lying is a reflection of one’s mental trouble |
| A．Ask him to avoid playing video games. |
| B．Turn his attention to other positive things. |
| C．Give him a second chance to finish homework. |
| D．Listen to and help solve his problem related to school work. |
6 . What is the ideal physique(体形)? The answer is ever-changing. But it is to a large extent work of a single company that dominated the past 60 years of body image standards.
Since its creation in 1959, Barbie has been in the leading position of promoting hardly attainable body image standards, for which it was often heavily criticized. Scientific research shows that the probability of achieving a Barbie-like body shape is less than 1 in 100,000!
Mattel, the company behind the Barbie doll, has recognized that the 60s’ idea of good body image is long gone. In an effort to keep up with social change, Mattel is adjusting the dolls' body type and skin color, introducing special editions.
There is now a Barbie in a wheelchair. There is a Barbie Astronaut, Rescuer, or Engineer. In their latest Barbie special edition, Mattel honors the women fighting the COVID-19 pandemic, including Dame Sarah Gilbert. In the hope that Mattel is adapting to modern corporate standards just as well as it is to social change, we’re attracted by what the company's sustainability data may tell us.
What does the data tell us? To answer this question, we’ve launched a sustainability-focused beauty contest-with Mattel as one of the contestants. The company scores relatively well on environmental and social metrics(衡量标准).However, in terms of diversity, Mattel is well below its competitor, Hasbro. This being said, the judges advise that beauty should be equally defined by the inside and the outside.
What does this mean? Be body-positive! As we’re approaching the second quarter of the 21st century, the importance of a healthy relationship between mind and body is being recognized. And with this, body image standards are changing, allowing for more freedom of expression and identity.
Mattel’s efforts in product diversity are a welcome step in the right direction, as the doll has its very own influence. We believe that Barbie’s future lies in the empowerment(赋予力量)of today’s youth, contributing toward a generation of confident individuals.
1. How does scientific research evaluate a Barbie-like body shape?| A．It needs much luck to achieve it. |
| B．It's almost impossible to achieve it. |
| C．There is increasing probability of achieving it. |
| D．It's a breakthrough in attainable body image standards. |
| A．To score well on social metrics. |
| B．To launch a beauty contest. |
| C．To keep pace with the times. |
| D．To define what is real beauty. |
| A．Positive. | B．Negative. | C．Uncertain. | D．Uninterested. |
| A．The Future of Barb |
| B．New Metrics for Body Image |
| C．A Deep Dive into Barbie’s World |
| D．A Great Change in Body Image Standards |
7 . For many teenagers, the weekend is a time to relax and socialize.
Saturday jobs have been a way for young people to earn money and get some work experience for years.
In 1999, almost half of all 16 and 17-year-olds in the UK were doing some kind of paid work. By 2019, this number had almost been reduced by half. This has left some people wondering whether the Saturday job is dying out. Some adults say that this means young people are missing out on valuable life skills and experiences.
Yes — it prepares teenagers for life. Having a weekend job means that teenagers can start earning their own money.
| A．No—there are other things to do. |
| B．For others, it is time to go to work. |
| C．So should teenagers work at weekends? |
| D．They include timekeeping and teamwork. |
| E．No—it can do a lot of harm to teenagers. |
| F．So what do you think of teenagers working on weekends? |
| G．This will make them more independent from their parents for money. |
8 . Online secondhand store thredUP has shown its tenth yearly Resale Report, which shows that the secondhand clothing industry is growing rapidly in the United States, as well as around the world. The secondhand market in the US is expected to more than double by 2026.
When choosing what to buy, people are increasingly experienced in what can be resold. More than one-fifth of Generation Z shoppers say they’ll pay more for the clothes that they know they can resell, and more than half of them resold clothes last year.
This is a much healthier opinion than storing out-of-style or ill-fitting clothes in a closet (衣柜). As resale becomes easier thanks to mobile technology and online stores, increasing numbers of customers hope to turnover their closets. This helps the industry and keeps the market full of fresh finds, bringing people back for more.
Buying or selling things secondhand helps to reduce people’s worry about the environment. As thredUP reported in 2021, buying or selling things secondhand reduces a product’s carbon Footprint (碳排放量) by 82%. It requires far less water to produce. Besides, it’s a good way to save money.
Aja Barber said in her book: “Clothing is produced at a fast speed, so it is important that resale become a key part of people’s lifestyles. Accepting reuse is not always easy when we are faced with many choices — many of which encourage the buying of cheap, single-use clothes-but the rise of online resale is enabling people to make different choices and do so with pride and joy.”
It’s great to hear that resale is being accepted by more people, which can help us save money while protecting our planet.
1. What can we say about secondhand clothing according to the report?| A．It is a fast-growing industry. | B．It makes the market full of anxiety. |
| C．It is accepted by most people. | D．It is more comfortable than new clothing. |
| A．Unclear. | B．Worried. | C．Doubtful. | D．Supportive. |
| A．The dangers of carbon footprint. | B．The ways of reducing people’s worry. |
| C．The advantages of buying used clothes. | D．The causes of environmental problems. |
| A．The clothing industry causes a lot of waste. |
| B．Online resale is changing people’s shopping habits |
| C．People are confused when faced with many choices. |
| D．Dressing styles are closely connected with social life |
9 . As Tiger King 2 appeals to viewers, some fans feel sad about having to pay much for another streaming service subscription. And they take pity on the once-hot video technology which is now more likely to be a temporary coaster (杯垫) for your coffee: DVDs were once the future, but now the industry can hardly be turned around.
DVD sales once reached $16.3 billion and were 64% of the U.S. home video market. That was 2005.
However, this year just 300 million DVDs are expected to be sold worldwide, down from an average of 2 billion every year between 2005 and 2009. Instead, a rise in customers buying on-demand and digital copies of films and the launch of streaming services are what have reduced the DVD industry to such a state.
But there are still 300 million of the things, even if your collection is gathering dust on the bookshelf. While pop psychology would suggest that older generations hold on to their love of the physical disc, instead, those aged 25 to 39 are more likely than most to watch DVDs. They’re often collectors.
“DVDs are a sign of our identity and our personality,” says Tony Gunnarsson, an analyst of TV, video, and advertising. That’s why England-based radio producer Tom Green still stores around 300 DVDs, including the whole seasons of The Simpsons. They represent a part of my life, and a part of me,” Green says. Others continue to keep DVDs because of the excellent audio (声音的) quality.
For DVDs, to undergo a renaissance (复兴) similar to that experienced by cassette tapes will require a big shift. “We need to wait for the generation that have a fascination with DVDs to control the mainstream culture, but it seems to be nowhere in sight,” says Tom Green. “And the public see DVDs as nothing but outdated media.” Even so, there is a solid group of DVD consumers. And that’s perhaps why producers keep making DVDs and why committed collectors collect their discs.
1. What does the author intend to stress in Paragraph 1?| A．The fall of DVDs. |
| B．A possible way of reusing DVDs. |
| C．A recent trend in the film industry. |
| D．The big expenses of video streaming services. |
| A．It celebrated a shift in digital copies of films. |
| B．It suffered from an oversupply of DVDs. |
| C．It entered 64% of the U. S. households. |
| D．Its sales reached the peak. |
| A．They both appreciate the charm of DVDs. |
| B．They are both professional DVD advertisers. |
| C．They are both passionate about collecting things. |
| D．They both praise the audio quality of streaming services. |
| A．They may control the mainstream culture. |
| B．They can greatly benefit many collectors. |
| C．They are as important as cassette tapes. |
| D．They are hard to make a comeback. |
10 . China’s population growth is set to turn negative by 2025, as low birthrates and aging will bring long-term challenges, the National Health Commission, said in an article published on Monday.
The growth rate of China’s population has been slowing down in recent years. Official data shows that last year, the total population of China shrank to the lowest amount in about six decades. Local data shows that at least 11 of the 31 provincial-level regions in China had already experienced negative growth in population last year, mostly in the Northeast, Northwest and Central China.
“The fertility level has been falling continuously, dropping to below 1.3 in recent years,” said the article. “A low fertility rate will become the major risk to China’s balanced population development. Meanwhile, the society has been aging fast with people aged 60 and older over 30 percent around 2035,” it said. China’s families have also gotten smaller with 2.62 members per family in 2021, down from 3.1 a decade ago.
A survey led by the commission indicates that in 2021, Chinese women planned to have an average of 1.64 children, compared with 1.76 in 2017 and 1.73 in 2019. Those of the post-1990s and the post-2000 generations, who have the highest fertility potential, said they planned to have fewer children at 1.54 and 1 .48, respectively. “Heavy economic burden, lack of child care and females’ concerns over career development have become the major challenges to fertility,” the article said.
In a push to address the problem, the central government announced last year all couples will be allowed to have up to three children. Several policies were put in place to encourage births. Besides, more affordable nursery care centers will be set up and there are supportive measures from reducing tax for raising children and providing fertility subsidies (补贴) to favorable housing policies introduced by the government. In the future, more efforts will be devoted to creating a fertility friendly society.
1. What does the underlined word “fertility “ in paragraph 4 mean?| A．Thestandard of human health. |
| B．Thebirthrate of a population. |
| C．Thetotal population of a region. |
| D．Thenegative growth in population. |
| A．To highlight that there are an rising number of old people in China. |
| B．To present the positive aspects of the Chinese governmental policies. |
| C．To stress present situation of China’s negative growth in population. |
| D．To indicate it is impossible to change the downtrend of the population. |
| A．They will be burdened with great financial stress. |
| B．They may have no extra energy to care for babies. |
| C．They are anxious about the future of their career. |
| D．They’d rather have more time for entertainment. |
| A．China to see population shrink by 2025 |
| B．Females’ refusal to raising children recently |
| C．Causes behind the small population of China |
| D．A survey on the growth rate of China’s population |
