Without question, the most stressful years for parents are when their children are between 13 and 20. With young children, control seems to be quite easy. If a child doesn’t do what he is told to do, he is just made to do it. If a child is leaving the house and doesn’t listen when the parent calls him back, the parent simply goes after the child picks him up and brings him back. But as the child grows older and bigger, parents can’t do that any more. They can’t just pick the child up and bring him back. With older children, control is best achieved when the parents do those things the children want. In this way, the things do the controlling for you. For example, parents may think it is necessary for the child to clean his own room, but the child may think it’s no use and refuses to clean his room. It is important for parents to understand how their use of control must change as their children grow older.
1. Many children do what they are ___________to do ___________ they are under the age of thirteen.
2. A child sometimes _______________to his parents when he grows older.
3.If a child leaves the _______ without permission (同意), he will be brought _________.
4.When a child __________ to clean his room, he may think it’s not _________.
5.It’s important for parents to ___________ their children and __________ their way of controlling as time goes on.
A. they should spend sometime
B. the students are not expected
C. they had so many choices
D. many of them told me
E. many of them expressed disappointment
In my spoken English class, I asked the students about their university life. To my surprise, 1.. After their highly controlled(控制) high school lives, they were having difficulty getting used to (习惯) the free time in the university. When I asked them to describe their high school lives, 2. they got up at six in the morning and studied until ten or even later at night. Most of this time was spent doing lots of homework.
When they entered the university, in my opinion, 3. to spend all their waking hours studying. They should also take an active part in social activities. They should learn to divide their time outside of class between sport sand clubs. What’s more, 4. watching TV and chatting with their roommates. But what surprised me most was that many of them did not seem happy because5.. They felt that they should be doing something else what ever they were doing. That’s why they were not happy.
To those students, my advice is: Get used to it and learn to make decisions for yourselves.
I usually get up at 5:00. I make coffee, go to my desk and work. When my boys get up, I’m theirs. I follow the min to the kitchen and make them breakfast. While they’re eating, I make their lunch, pick out their school clothes and get the little one dressed.
My wife takes them to school. I bring them home. I am not the only father at the school gate. The boys and I walk the 12 blocks home unless the weather is terrible. Then we take the subway. I remind them of looking out, like an animal looking after their babies.
At home, they play on the computer and the little one will draw, sometimes for hours. When their mother comes home, they run to her. She has been in the official day and tired, but her attention is all on them.
I have made dinner. We sit down and eat together. After they do their homework, Karen takes them to bed. I listen to the noise of the boys’ and their mother’s voice.
One afternoon when we were on the way home from school, the boys and I stopped at the clothing store. The saleswoman looked at the boys and said to me in a low voice, “You’re Mr. Mom, aren’t you?” I felt very angry. I’m not Mr. Mom. That’s not how I look at myself. The boys have a mother, a wonderful mother. She works outside the home, I work in the home. We are parents together. I’m a father!
1.The first paragraph talks about_____________.
A. what the children have for breakfast B. how busy the man is in the morning
C. why the man cooks lunch D. when the children go to school
2.We know from the second paragraph that_____________.
A. they take the subway to school when the weather is bad
B. the man drives a car and his wife walks to work
C. the man goes to meet the boys before school is over
D. it doesn’t take them long to arrive home
3.Paragraph 3 tells us that __________.
A. the children’s mother is very strict with them
B. the man’s wife works in an office very near the school
C. the children’s mother used to be back hours later than them.
D. the man has three or more children and the youngest loves drawing
4.We learn from the last two paragraphs________________.
A. what the saleswoman said has hurt the man a lot
B. before the children get to sleep, the man’s wife tells stories
C. what the man hast o do from morning to night everyday
D. the man’s wife is Karen and she talks a lot
5.This passage tells us_____________.
A. never to call a man Mr. Mom
B. the man doesn’t enjoy working at home
C. something about the children’s school life
D. what kind of people the man and his wife are
The expression “down to earth” means being open and honest. It is easy to get on with some one who is down to earth. A down-to-earth person is the opposite of someone who acts important or proud.
Down-to-earth people could be important members of society. But they do not consider themselves to be better than others who are less important. A person who is filed with his own importance and pride is said to have his nose in the air.
Americans use another expression that is similar in some ways to down to earth. The expression is both feet on the ground. Someone with both feet on the ground is a person with a good understanding of reality（现实）. He may have dreams, but he does not allow them to have influence on his understanding of what is real.
The opposite kind of person is one who has his head in the clouds. Someone with his head in the clouds is a person whose mind is not on what is happening in real life. Such a person may be called a day－dreamer.
When we have both our feet on the ground, and when we are down to earth, we do not have our noses in the air. We act honestly and openly to others. Our lives are like the ground below us— solid(牢固的) and strong.
1.A down-to-earth person could be_____________.
A. social and proud B. good and opposite C. real and important D. strong and changeable
2.The expression “has one’s nose in the air” means_____________.
A. 眉飞色舞 B. 目中无人 C. 瞻前顾后 D. 春风得意
3.This passage mainly talks about_____________.
A. the use of some expressions B. dreams and achievements
C. the lifestyle of honest people D. honesty and understanding
4.If you want to understand what is real in life, you have to_____________.
A. get along with other people easily B. learn from those who are down to earth
C. be a good dreamer with quick mind D. have both your feet on the ground
5.If you only consider your own importance, __________.
A. you’ll think you are better than others
B. your life will be like the solid and strong ground
C. you’ll be hated by down-to-earth people
D. your life will be filed with love
For years scientists have been arguing about whether nature or nurture (后天) decides what people will be like. Is it nature— what people are (41) with— that decides what they will be like? (42) is it nurture —what(43) to people when they are born —that decides what they will be like?
Scientists have been studying twins to (44) if they can find the answer, because twins start out with the (45) DNA. Sometimes twins don’t live together at birth and grow up in different (46) and different places— so the nature is the same for both, but the nurture is different.
When scientists (47) these twins in their later life, they some times find some surprising (48).
Jim Springer and Jim Lewis were adopted（收养）by two different families at birth. They first met each other again thirty-nine years (49) and discovered they had a lot in (50). Both had been (51) twice. Their first wives were both named Linda and their second wives were both named Betty!
Each twin had a son — one called his son James Alan and the (52) called his son James Alan, too. Their children each had a dog called “Toy”. They even arrived at their first (53) in the same color of car.
So far twin (54) seem to show that both nature and nurture are important. What we have from birth, and how and where we live help to build (55) we are.
1.A. born B. grown C. taught D. made
2.A. So B. And C. If D. Or
3.A. pretends B. happens C. falls D. depends
4.A. hear B. win C. see D. plan
5.A. nice B. same C. full D. free
6.A. families B. cities C. countries D. nations
7.A. believe B. suggest C. receive D. compare
8.A. numbers B. discoveries C. results D. decisions
9.A. ago B. later C. forward D. behind
10.A. common B. fact C. danger D. trouble
11.A. mentioned B. married C. succeeded D. interviewed
12.A. either B. else C. other D. only
13.A. competition B. education C. purpose D. meeting
14.A. studies B. movies C. challenges D. mysteries
15.A. what B. when C. where D. who
According to the latest reports on TV and in the newspaper, food safety is becoming a ____________ serious worldwide problem.
A. more and more B. little by little C. now and then D. one by one
