Reading and Optional Choices阅读七选五

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1

A good book can be satisfying. If reading is a habit youd like to get into， there are some ways to develop it.

● Realize that reading is enjoyable if you have a good book. If you have a difficult book and you are forcing yourself through it， it will seem like a task.

● Set time. You should have some time during every day when youll read for at least 5 to 10 minutes.  For example， make it a habit to read during breakfast and lunch and even dinner if you eat alone.

● Always carry a book.  When I leave the house， I always make sure to have my car keys and one book at hand. The book stays with me in the car， and I take it into the office and to appointments and pretty much everywhere I go.

●  Find a place in your home where you can sit in a comfortable chair. There shouldnt be a television or a computer near the chair， and no music or no noisy family members/roommates. If you dont have a place like this， create one.

● Reduce time on television/the Internet. If you really want to read more， try cutting back on time on TV or the Internet.  But remember： you could use every minute you reduce of the Internet or TV for reading. This could create hours of book-reading time.

A. Go to bookstores.

B. Find a quiet place.

C. This may be difficult for some people.

D. Wherever you go， take a book with you.

E. Have some tea or coffee while you read.

F. It means you will read no matter how busy you are.

G. If this happens， give up the book and find another one you love.

1. _______  2. _______  3. _______  4. _______  5. _______

2

Ways to Impress Your Teacher

Being successful in high school can be difficult and requires great effort. One of the most important ways to achieve success in your academic career （学业） is making sure your teacher has a good impression of you.

● Ask questions in class.  The questions will vary widely depending on the class youre in. Consider your teachers lecture or the material you were assigned， and then identify information that was not explained well.

●  Although doing your homework will not be marked， doing it well and handing it in on time will earn you the respect of your teacher， and will make you be prepared for class discussions. If you forget to do your homework， dont make up an excuse. Take responsibility and tell the truth.

● Pay attention to details. If your teacher asks you to bring a specific book to class， bring it. Hand in your assignments on time， and be prepared for tests. Take a few minutes each evening to study what youve learned in class.

● Offer to help your teacher in class. If your teacher is rearranging the desks or hanging posters up， ask him if he needs help.  Encourage your friends to help your teacher， too.

A. Do your homework.

B. Be attentive in class.

C. Learn to help each other in class.

D. Doing these shows that you are paying attention.

E. Your thoughtfulness and kindness will impress him.

F. Below are some of the best ways to impress your teacher.

G. Your teacher will be very impressed if you ask thoughtful questions.

1. _______  2. _______  3. _______  4. _______  5. _______

3

High School Study Skills

High school is one of the most fantastic experiences of your life！  This is the time when you begin to develop the skills that you will use in college and in the working world. As you go forward in these important years， you should change your study habits and skills.

In high school， teachers will introduce some new ideas beyond textbooks. This means students must learn to take notes with careful attention—or the information will be lost！ The key to taking good notes is to pick the most important things to write down.

Learn how to listen better.  In order to take good class notes， you need to listen carefully in class and mark each word that is repeated. Once you learn to become an active listener， you will be able to study much better.

Get ready for class discussions. As you are preparing for the next day， write down anything that might be worth a good discussion.  When classroom discussions do arise， you should record important points on different opinions. This is the sort of thing that will pay off on your test.

Get more organized. In junior school you learned to use many folders （文件夾）， and you met different teaching styles.   You will have to become more organized when it comes to keeping track of homework. Its important to keep checklists to complete all of your tasks.

A. Improve note-taking skills.

B. This continues in high school.

C. Be prepared to discuss further.

D. Think about what to note down in class.

E. Remember to increase your time for discussion.

F. In fact， high school sets the stage for college and adulthood.

G. One skill that doesnt get so much attention is the ability to really listen！

1. _______  2. _______  3. _______  4. _______  5. _______

4

Simple Ways to Improve Your Written English

Lots of people think it is really difficult to improve their written English. Dont worry; here are some simple steps that you can take to improve your written English.

● Increase your vocabulary.

To express yourself clearly， you need a good active vocabulary. Thats not just being able to know lots of words—it means actually being able to use them correctly.

Tip： When you learn a new word， try to learn all the forms of that word.

●

People often say that they learn to write best by reading. Reading in English is useful in many ways. It is a great way to get an idea of the different styles of writing and see how to use words properly.

Tip：  Learning shouldnt be boring. Read each text several times to make sure you understand how to use new words and expressions in the text.

● Improve your grammar.

Grammar is very important because it improves the quality of your writing.

Tip：  The first time， look for general mistakes and the second time look for mistakes with the particular grammar point you are studying at the moment.

● Just do it！

The best way to improve your writing is to get a pen and paper and write. Be prepared to write several versions （版本） of each text.

A. Read widely and often.

B. Always check your writing twice.

C. Know much about your vocabulary.

D. Remember， practice makes perfect！

E. Choose books or articles that interest you.

F. Use simple languages and shorter sentences to show your ideas.

G. Do this by learning new words with example sentences， not just word lists.

1. _______  2. _______  3. _______  4. _______  5. _______

5

Florence Nightingale was named after her birthplace， Florence， Italy. When she was almost a year old， she returned with her family to England.

Florence often helped her mother deliver （遞送） food to the poor and sick.  Her family was shocked because nursing was not a respected profession.

But Florence was determined. She studied books on medicine. Later， she visited hospitals in France， Germany and Ireland and learned everything she could.

In 1854， Britain was at war with Russia. Florence went to a British hospital in Scutari and she was shocked. The hospital left men lying on the floor， and rats were running everywhere.  Many soldiers died before receiving help.

The doctors wouldnt listen to Florence because they didnt like the idea of women in army hospitals—until one day 500 unexpected casualties （傷员） arrived.  Florence made changes， making sure the men were washed and their injuries were cared for. Every night she would check the patients with her lamp.

When she returned home after the war， a fund had been set up in her honor. Many of the soldiers she had nursed had made contributions.

After years of hard work， Florence Nightingale saw cleaner and more cheerful hospitals.  All of this was because of the “lady with the lamp”.

A. Nursing became an honored profession.

B. There was no running water and no heat.

C. She knew she had much to learn about nursing.

D. Florence saw the soldiers health had improved.

E. As she grew older， she decided to become a nurse.

F. They soon realized that Florence could give a hand.

G. Upon returning home， she was an expert on hospital management.

1. _______  2. _______  3. _______  4. _______  5. _______

6

Life is filled with regrets.  When we look back， we always wish that we had made better choices. Then what can we do to avoid future regrets？

Make better plans.

If you start to do something， you need to make a plan before doing it. The earlier， the better.  Youll also know what you should do and what you shouldnt do.

You can go around more often. More outdoor activities can keep you relaxed and active. You also need to be kind. “Thank you.” can bring a smile to someones face. Learn to say sorry and dont be angry with others.

Find the right friend.

A friend may make your life and can break your life as well.  Good friends will always make your ideas better.

Never fear failure.

Everybody fails. Even the greatest person failed. We should not fear failure， because failure is not the end of the road.

Life is good. We dont have to live in our past， but we do hope that we can plan better， live better and work better when we have the chance to do so.

A. Live a more active life.

B. Build up your confidence.

C. Almost all of us have no difficulty telling our regrets.

D. We had many dreams when we were young children.

E. So you have to think twice when you choose a friend.

F. You will know what comes first and what comes last.

G. We should take failure as a chance and improve ourselves.

1. _______  2. _______  3. _______  4. _______  5. _______

7

If you live in New York， you can always come across a special sight—public trash cans contain various colorful flowers.  They have been all over the city and putting a smile on peoples faces.

They are the work of Lewis Miller， a designer who uses leftover flowers and plants from weddings and other events.  At that time he and his team， brought 2，000 flowers to a party to create some colorful scenes. The positive energy they got from people encouraged him to continue the project. Now he creates what he calls “Flower Flashes”.

Their work all starts with lots of pictures of empty garbage cans， located in busy areas of the New York. Lewis usually keeps an eye out for nearby interesting buildings. Then， early in the morning， Lewis and his team will travel to the chosen trash can and decorate it with flowers and plants.

“Theyre our flowers to New York，” said Irini Greenbaum， a designer. “Thats really the message—to gift flowers to New Yorkers for no other reason than to make them smile. If theyre really early risers and they come while were making them， they ask us what its for， and we say， ‘Its for you.  ”

After finishing the job， they leave a sign near each of their colorful vases， so that curious people can search online and find more information about it.  However， he says that seeing the smile on peoples faces when they see the flower trash cans is all the reward （報酬） he needs.

A. The cans look like a huge vase.

B. Some of them truly dont believe us.

C. You should say “Thank you” to the designer.

D. Lewis came up with the idea in October 2016.

E. Everything is paid for out of Lewis own pocket.

F. In fact， there are many preparations they have to make.

G. People are satisfied with what the designers have done.

1. _______  2. _______  3. _______  4. _______  5. _______

8

Five Tips for Safe Running

We all know that exercise is good for our health. But some kinds of exercise may be better than others. Running， for example， may help to protect against heart disease and other health problems.

Running is good exercise， but it can be hard on the body.

Take it easy. Do not run too much， too soon or too fast. Most people get running injuries when they push themselves too hard.  Muscles （肌肉） and joints （關节） need time to recover.

Listen to your body. Most running injuries do not come unexpectedly.  They may include body aches， sore muscles and pain that does not go away.

There is no single best shoe for every runner. You should find the shoe that offers the best fit and support for your feet. More importantly， you should replace your shoes every 500 to 800 kilometers.

Take good notes. Take time after each run to write down what you did and how you felt. Look for patterns， things that happen over again. These notes will help you find the best exercise for you.

Cross train.   So physical fitness experts suggest some form of cross training to improve muscle balance and to help you stay injury free. They say swimming， yoga， and riding a bicycle are good exercises to combine with running. These exercises are easier on the body.

A. Get good running shoes.

B. Usually， there are warning signs.

C. Running may also help you live longer.

D. It is difficult to find good running shoes.

E. Here are five ideas to reduce the risk of injury.

F. As we said earlier， running is hard on your body.

G. The body needs time to get used to increase in distance or speed.

1. _______  2. _______  3. _______  4. _______  5. _______

9

Maybe you are an ordinary student.  This is not necessarily so. Anyone can become a better student if he or she wants to. Heres how：

◆ Plan your time carefully. When planning your work， you should make a list of things that you have to do. First arrange your time for eating， sleeping， dressing， etc.; then decide a good， regular time for studying.  A weekly schedule （日程安排） may not solve all your problems， but it will force you to realize what is happening to your time.

◆ Make good use of your time in class.  Listening carefully in class means less work later. Taking notes will help you remember what the teacher says.

◆ Study regularly. When you get home from school， go over your notes and review the important points that your teacher is going to discuss the next day.  If you do these things regularly， the material will become more meaningful， and you will remember it longer.

◆ Develop a good attitude towards tests. The purpose of a test is to show what you have learned about a subject. The world wont end if you dont pass a test， so dont be over-worried.

You will probably discover them after you have tried these.

A. This will help you understand the next class.

B. You probably think you will never be a top student.

C. Dont forget to leave enough time for entertainment.

D. There are other methods that might help you with your study.

E. No one can become a top student unless he or she works hard.

F. Take advantage of class time to listen to everything the teacher says.

G. Make full use of your time to take notes of what the teacher says in class.

1. _______  2. _______  3. _______  4. _______  5. _______

10

If youre in your 20s or even 30s， you might feel a lot of uncertainty all the time. You may be not sure what your life purpose is.  This is normal.

We all want to have a certain life purpose. We all want to feel were on the right path. We all want to perfect our habits， our daily life， or even ourselves. We all want to feel more certain， and perfect in what were doing.

There is a struggle between the comfort of certainty and perfection and the fear of uncertainty and being suboptimal （不最理想的）.

Let me let you in on a secret： no one is free from this struggle. Look at the most successful people you can think of—Bill Gates， Obama， Taylor Swift.  Do you think they have certainty and a feeling of reaching perfection？ Not a chance. There is not one of us alive， not me or anyone else， who ever feels certainty about their purpose or path. If they do， theyre fooling themselves.

No one ever feels theyve found the perfect daily life， the perfect version of themselves.

We all feel uncertainty all day and we all struggle with it. Some people have grown more comfortable with it than others， but in general no one likes uncertainty.

Thats perfectly OK， perfectly normal. Dont run from it. Instead， stay with this uncomfortable， unattractive uncertainty. Its here in you， a part of this moment， a part of you but not the whole of you.

A. Because it doesnt exist.

B. Do you think they have it all figured out？

C. This uncertainty youre feeling is unpleasant.

D. See if you can tell what youre uncertain about.

E. But if theyre honest， they dont feel that certainty.

F. So concentrate on what you actually have in front of you.

G. You may be uncertain about what ways you should take in life.

1. _______  2. _______  3. _______  4. _______  5. _______

11

Many of us dont pay much attention to the importance of eye care. It is said that if you take care of your eyes， then you can surely be healthy.  Natural eye care should be put in a number one place.

There are several causes leading to poor eyesight like not enough food， genes and aging.  If you happen to work in front of the computer， it is best to take a break every once in a while.

Something dirty can cause redness and they will make you feel uncomfortable. It is bad for your eyes， too. If this happens， the best way is to clean your eyes by using cold water.  For example， sunglasses are not just for fashion but they can also serve as a great way to protect your eyesight from UV rays.

Remember that vitamins A， C and E are good for eyes. Try to eat food groups that have these vitamins. And you should do eye exercises because exercise protects your eyesight， too. If a person exercises regularly and eats the right kind of food， his eyes will stay in good condition for a long time.

In a word， eye care is very important， no matter how old a person is.

A. Such behavior will do harm to our eyes.

B. We need to do something to protect our eyesight.

C. Thats why our eyes should be given lots of care.

D. Eating healthy food will do good to your eyesight.

E. You must also try your best to protect your eyes from harmful things.

F. All above are natural ways of eye care that can help us keep healthy eyes.

G. Televisions， computers and reading are also the causes of having poor eyesight.

1. _______  2. _______  3. _______  4. _______  5. _______

12

The Coffee Story

Kaldi was tired but he couldnt sleep. His goats （山羊） were awake and very noisy. “Why cant they sleep？” Kaldi thought.  They were eating some green plants with little red fruits on them. Kaldi decided to taste the fruits. He ate the soft part of each fruit and the hard things in the center.  He was not tired. He felt more awake and did not want to sleep.

Those hard things were coffee beans， and Kaldi discovered them in Ethiopia more than 1，000 years ago.  Perhaps it is true， perhaps not. Nobody knows. But we know that coffee grew first in Ethiopia， and we know that somebody discovered it there more than 1，000 years ago.

Arab farmers began to grow coffee plants. People learnt to make a drink from the beans，  and they called it qahwa.

For 400 years， only the Arabs knew about qahwa. Then people in Turkey learnt about it. Soon after that， western Europeans began to drink it， and in 1652 the first coffee shop in London opened.

Some famous coffee-growing countries are Brazil， Colombia， Indonesia and， of course， Ethiopia. Coffee is one of the worlds favorite drinks thanks to Kaldi and his goats.

A. At least thats the traditional story.

B. After a minute he began to feel different.

C. Many Arab farmers grew coffee to make money.

D. Now farmers grow coffee in many parts of the world.

E. Coffee was such an important drink during that period.

F. He couldnt understand the problem so he watched the animals carefully.

G. After that， Arab travelers took coffee plants to Egypt and other Arab countries.

1. _______  2. _______  3. _______  4. _______  5. _______

13

Listening seems to appear so naturally that putting a lot of efforts into it doesnt seem necessary.  Here are some practical methods that you can use to improve your listening skills.

Send the non-verbal （非語言的） message that you are listening. When someone is talking to you， make eye contact， and show the speaker you are listening by nodding your head.  Experts agree that non-verbal messages can be three times as powerful as verbal messages.

Avoid making early comments. Because a listener can listen at a faster rate than most speakers talk， there is a tendency （趋势） to make comments quickly.  It is especially important to avoid early comments when listening to a person with whom you disagree. When listeners begin to disagree with a senders messages， they tend to misunderstand the remaining information.

Ask questions. Effective listeners make certain they have correctly heard the message that is being sent. They can get additional information by asking questions. Open-ended questions are the best.  Form your questions in a way that makes it clear that you have not yet drawn any conclusions.

Turn off the TV and your computer. When listening， try to provide a private and quiet setting where you sit side by side with others. If thats not allowed， suggest a later meeting in a satisfying environment.

A. Concentrate on what others are saying.

B. Create a comfortable listening environment.

C. They can require the speaker to tell more information.

D. This person shows interest in you and what youre saying.

E. This tendency perhaps has a bad influence on effective listening.

F. But hard work and effort is exactly what effective listening requires.

G. Make sure your body language sends the message that you are listening.

1. _______  2. _______  3. _______  4. _______  5. _______

14

Stress is a popular cause of major diseases affecting people worldwide. It is so common that people have begun to search for the best and easiest ways to reduce stress.

Exercise for a better life.

Regular runners say that there is no better feeling than the one you get when you finish your daily run. Exercising is an effective way for you to remove stress from your life.  And it can also lift your mood. An additional benefit of exercising is that it keeps you fit and healthy！

Organize it.

Keeping your workplace and home organized is also a way for you to avoid stressful situations. Working in a messy area keeps your brain thinking on several different things at the same time.

Manage your time wisely.

Sticking to your schedule gives you focus and a goal to work on. It also helps you avoid missing out on deadlines which are a great source of stress. Managing your time wisely means managing your stress.

In a word， we shouldnt let stress stop us living a normal and healthy life. Stress will naturally appear due to the modern way of life.  Dont let stress get the better of you and make you lead an unhappy life.

A. Avoid stressed people.

B. Find out what causes your stress.

C. Plan your day ahead and stick to it.

D. Here are some ways to say goodbye to stress.

E. And it gets hard to concentrate on just one thing.

F. But just like fire， if we control stress it cant hurt us.

G. Regular exercise gives you time to think things over.

1. _______  2. _______  3. _______  4. _______  5. _______

15

Almost everyone likes to eat apples. Apples grow in nearly every part of the world. The United States produces more apples than any other country except France. The states of Washington and New York grow the most apples.   New York is on the east coast and Washington is on the west near Canada.

Apples are red， yellow or green. They are very popular in the United States.  Most American people are often too busy or too tired to cook dinner， so they often have their dinners very simply. Apple juice is also a popular drink and apple pie is the favorite sweet dish for many Americans.

The trees there produce nearly seven billion apples every year—almost one apple for every man， woman and child in the whole world.

For example， “You are the apple of my eye. ” means “You are actually the one I love best and care most.” In China， it is a custom in some places for the marrying couple to hold an apple in each ones hand， promising that their marriage will be “safe” without anything bad and that their marriage will never be broken. “To apple polish” often refers to a man who fawns （奉承） on somebody for the purpose of getting some benefits. So you can easily get “apple polisher”. However， “in apple-pie order” usually has the same meaning as “in good order”.  In fact， its another saying about “compare two things that cant be compared”.

A. The state of Washington is proud of its apples.

B. Apples play an important part in peoples health.

C. There are many stories and sayings about apples.

D. The apples in France are better than those in America.

E. It is likely that you hear about “compare apples and oranges”.

F. Perhaps this is why “New York” is often called “Big Apple” by some people.

G. Many people like to carry apples to work or to school to eat with their lunches.

1. _______  2. _______  3. _______  4. _______  5. _______