Question

Reading is the key to school success and, like any skill, it takes practice. A child learns to walk by practicing until he no longer has to think about how to put one foot in front of the other. An excellent sportsman practices until he can play quickly, correctly and without thinking. Educators call it “automaticity (自动性)”.

A child learns to read by sounding out the letters and finding the meaning of the words. With practice, he stumbles less and less, reading by the phrase (短语). With automaticity, he doesn’t have to think about the meaning of words, so he can give all his attention to the meaning of the text.

It can begin as early as first grade. In a recent study of children in Illinois schools, Alan Rossman of Northwestern University found that automatic readers in the first grade not only read almost three times as fast as the others, but also got better results in exams.

According to Rossman, the key to automaticity is the amount (数量) of time a child spends reading, not his IQ. Any child who spends at least 3.5 to 4 hours a week reading books, magazines or newspapers will probably reach automaticity. It can happen if a child turns off TV just one night for reading at home.

You can test yourself by reading something new which is suitable (适合) for your level. If you read aloud with expression, with a sense of the meaning of the sentences, you probably are an automatic reader. If you read brokenly, one word at a time, without expression or meaning, you need more practice.

1.“Reading is the key to school success” means that reading            .

A. helps school develop faster

B. is a key to a successful school

C. helps students go to a key school

D. can improve students’ learning results

2.Children with “automaticity” can read faster because they            .

A. know how to read the words

B. do not have to think while reading

C. read by themselves without any help

D. pay attention to the meaning of the text

3.Rossman tells that any child who             will possibly be an automatic reader.

A. turns off TV one night 4 weeks

   B. reads books by the word quickly

   C. spends an hour reading every day

   D. gets the same grades as others in exams

4.The underlined word “stumble” in the passage means “           ” in Chinese.

   A. 结结巴巴地读                       B. 全神贯注地读

   C. 心不在焉地读                       D. 声情并茂地读

5.The best title for the passage is “           ”.

   A. IQ Is the Key to the Automaticity

   B. TV Is Bad for Children’s Reading

   C. Automaticity Depends on Practice

   D. Automatic Reads Will Be Successful

Answer

1.D

2.D

3.C

4.A

5.C

【解析】本文属于说明文。作者对自动性阅读做了介绍，并对自动性阅读的重要性以及的如何来培养，做了具体的说明。从运动健将的熟练技法，到小孩儿读书的越来越熟练，表明了自动性阅读也需要大量的练习。有专家建议每天读书一小时，可逐渐培养自动性阅读。

1.“Reading is the key to school success”本句话的意思是：阅读是学生成功的关键。前三个选项都不符合句意。第四选项，can improve students’ learning results阅读可以提高学生的学习结果，最佳。

2.从第二段With automaticity, he doesn’t have to think about the meaning of words, so he can give all his attention to the meaning of the text.的这句话中，可以得到答案。

3.通过第四段的最后两句，可以推测出spends an hour reading every day最恰当。

4.从第二段中，可以看出：小孩儿读书的样子，一字一个字地、结结巴巴地读，时间长了，才由不连贯到逐渐流畅。

5.作者的观点自始至终都是在谈：自动性读书依赖于练习。