1 . Children's Games in Ancient China
During ancient times,children didn't have much to enjoy themselves. However, they came up with interesting games to play in their childhood.
Kicking stone balls
During the Qing Dynasty,kicking a stone ball around was a popular game in the northern part of China, and it was often played in winter to keep warm.
Playing hide-and-seek
Hide-and-seek is a traditional game for children, popular around the nation.There are two ways to play: covering a child's eyes while other kids run around to tease(戏弄) him or, more commonly, others hide and one child must try to find them.
Flying kites
Kites have quite a long history. The earliest kites were made of wood,instead of paper. The three most famous kites are the Beijing kite, Tianjin kite and Weifang kite.Each has its own feature.For example, the bird-shaped kite with long wings is a special kind of the Beijing kite.
Watching shadow plays(皮影戏)
Watching a film during ancient times was going to see a shadow play. The artists control puppets(木偶) behind the lightened screen and tell stories to the music.
1. According to the text, the game of kicking a stone ball was________.| A．played in summer | B．like flying kites |
| C．invented in Beijing | D．popular in North China |
| A．One plays and others watch. | B．Others laugh and one must cry. |
| C．Others hide and one tries to find. | D．One runs and others try to catch. |
| A．Kicking stone balls. | B．Flying kites. |
| C．Playing hide-and-seek. | D．Watching shadow plays. |
2 . For years video games have been criticized for making people more antisocial, overweight or depressed. But now researchers are finding that video games can actually change us for the better and improve both our body and mind.
Games can help to develop physical skills. Pre-school children who played interactive games have been shown to have improved motor skills, for example they can kick, catch and throw a ball better than children who don’t play video games. A study found that those who played video games were 27 percent faster and made 37 percent fewer errors than those who didn't.
Games also benefit a variety of brain functions, including decision-making. People who play action-based games make decisions 25 percent faster than others, according to one study. It was also found that the best gamers can make choices and act on them up to six times a second, four times faster than most people. In another study by researchers from the University of Rochester in New York, experienced gamers were shown to be able to pay attention to more than six things at once without getting confused, compared with the four that most people can normally keep in mind.
There is also evidence that gaming can help with psychological problems. At the University of Auckland in New Zealand, researchers asked 94 young people diagnosed with depression to play a 3D fantasy game called SPARX and in many cases, the game reduced symptoms of depression more than conventional treatment.
1. In what way playing video games benefits very young children?| A．Muscle control. | B．Social interaction. |
| C．Decision-making. | D．The ability to focus. |
| A．Interactive games. | B．Action-based games. | C．3D fantasy games. | D．Violent games. |
| A．Indifferent. | B．Objective. | C．Worried. | D．Critical. |
| A．The effects of different types of video games. | B．The negative effects of playing video games. |
| C．The beneficial effects of playing video games. | D．The effects of games on people's behavior. |
3 . Jigsaw puzzles(拼图游戏)aren't just fun. They can also make you feel less anxious, especially when you put them well together.
While out shopping for Christmas presents, I bought myself a jigsaw puzzle. It was an unusual buy, one that I now recognize as an attempt at dealing with that particular stress many of us experience during the holidays. Don't get me wrong-I love seeing my wife and family. But holiday get-togethers have a way of putting any personal shortcomings at center stage.
Robyn Breen, a dance instructor knows the feeling. Breen suffered from anxiety and she turned to puzzles. It worked, and jigsaws have since become a necessary part of her daily routine. "I thought, Whoa, I feel really good when I'm doing this," she says.
Susan Vandermorris is a clinical neuropsychologist and a global leader in brain health. Any type of puzzle is good for the brain and points to the stress-relieving benefits of jigsaws, in particular, she says. "If you're doing a puzzle, you are, free from the interruptions and stresses of day-to-day life," she explains.
Vandermorris believes that doing puzzles with others has even more health benefits than doing them on your own, adding that it provides a rare opportunity for intergenerational engagement(参与). "Get the teenagers off their smart phones and working on a puzzle with Grandma, and suddenly you've got a really nice family interaction that seems to be harder and harder to come by these days," she adds.
The 23-year-old Jack from Marshfield, Massachusetts, has autism(自闭症)and first took to puzzles as a kid because they "gave him a break from the demands of socializing", says his mother. As Jack grew, so did his puzzling talent and its benefits. In 2014, while still in high school, he completed a 32, 256-piece puzzle(then the largest in the world). "When I completed my first huge puzzle, I invited friends and family to share my achievement," he says.
1. The author bought a jigsaw puzzle to ________.| A．avoid communicating with his family |
| B．fight against some stress during holidays |
| C．present it to his wife as a Christmas gift |
| D．prevent him exposing shortcomings to others |
| A．They are boring. | B．They are difficult. |
| C．They are helpful. | D．They are useless. |
| A．They can cure many psychological diseases. |
| B．They can help make one's dream come true. |
| C．They can raise a person's sense of selflessness. |
| D．They are probably good for those with mental problems. |
| A．Jigsaw Puzzles Can Increase People's IQ |
| B．Many Famous Figures Enjoy Jigsaw Puzzles |
| C．Jigsaw Puzzles Are Necessary for a Healthy Life |
| D．Jigsaw Puzzles Can Relieve Stress and Anxiety |
