We talk continuously about how to make children more “resilient (有恢复力的)”, but whatever we’re doing, it’s notworking. Rates of anxiety disorders and depression are rising rapidly among teenagers. What are we doing wrong?
Nassim Taleb invented the word “antifragile” and used it to describe a small but very important class of systems that gain from shocks, challenges, and disorder. The immune (免疫的) system is one of them: it requires exposure to certain kinds of bacteria and potential allergens (过敏原) in childhood in order to develop to its full ability.
Children’s social and emotional abilities are as antifragile as their immune systems. If we overprotect kids and keep them “safe” from unpleasant social situations and negative emotions, we deprive (剥夺) them of the challenges and opportunities for skill-building they need to grow strong. Such children are likely to suffer more when exposed later to other unpleasant but ordinary life events, such as teasing and social rejection.
It’s not the kids’ fault. In the UK, as in the US, parents became much more fearful in the 1980s and 1990s as cable TV and later the Internet exposed everyone, more and more, to those rare occurrences of crimes and accidents that now occur less and less. Outdoor play and independent mobility went down; screen time and adult-monitored activities went up.
Yet free play in which kids work out their own rules of engagement, take small risks, and learn to master small dangers turns out to be vital for the development of adult social and even physical competence. Depriving them of free play prevents their social-emotional growth. Norwegian play researchers Ellen Sandseter warned: “We may observe an increased anxiety or mental disorders in society if children are forbidden from participating in age adequate risky play.”
They wrote those words in 2011. Over the following few years, their prediction came true. Kids born after 1994 are suffering from much higher rates of anxiety disorders and depression than did the previous generation.
What can we do to change these trends? We can’t guarantee that giving primary school children more independence today will bring down the rate of teenage suicide tomorrow. The links between childhood overprotection and teenage mental illness are suggestive but not clear-cut. Yet there are good reasons to suspect that by depriving our naturally antifragile kids of the wide range of experiences they need to become strong, we are systematically preventing their growth. We should let go—and let them grow.
1.Why does the author mention the immune system in Paragraph 2?
A.To stress its importance. B.To analyze the cause of anxiety.
C.To question the latest discovery. D.To help understand a new word.
2.Parents overprotect children because ________.
A.they are concerned about their children’s safety
B.they want to keep children from being teased
C.parent-monitored activities are a must
D.children are not independent enough
3.According to the author, free play can ________.
A.promote children’s resilience
B.strengthen children’s friendship
C.reduce children’s risky behavior
D.develop children’s leadership skills
4.Which of the following does the author probably agree with?
A.Stop trying to perfect your child.
B.It takes great courage to raise children.
C.Prepare the child for the road, not the road for the child.
D.The more exposed the children are to the risks, the more resilient they would become.
There are more species of beetles than any other form of life. About 380 000 species of beetles are known to exist, and more are discovered all the time. There are several theories about why there are so many beetles, but fossils evidence shows that beetle species die out less than other animals, Beetle species exist in such huge number because beetles are true survivors. They refuse to die out.
One of the reasons beetles survive so well is their body design. Most beetle species have two pairs of wings. The front pair of a beetle’s wings are hard and thick. They are not used for flying. These protect the back set of wings and the beetle’s stomach. Instead, some species of beetles have lost the ability to fly, but they are still equipped with front wings. The wings protect the beetle’s soft parts from harm. These features help protect beetles, which makes them less likely to die out if they are faced with new predators (捕食性动物).
Beetles can also eat a wide range of foods. Beetle species live all over the world, and they have many different types of food available to them. Most beetles are omnivores. That means they eat both plants and animals. Their mixed diets help beetles adapt to many different habitats. Over the course of time, food sources, like certain plants and animals, do not exist anymore. Others spring up. The beetle survives because it can find something to eat, no matter what.
Finally, beetles are good at moving quickly over long distance. Any change in an animal’s environment can be dangerous to it. For example, many species died out during the Ice Age, when Earth’s temperature dropped for a long time. However, some species can avoid dangerous environment changes by moving to a new place. Research shows that beetles respond quickly to shifts in temperature. They can move to safer environments.
Beetles’ bodies and habits help give them an edge over other creatures. They are unlikely to die out. As a result, beetles make up nearly one quarter of all animal species. There are more types of beetles on Earth than there are types of plants. Some types of beetles that exist today were around during the Permian period of history, 284 million years ago. Beetles, clearly, are here to stay.
1.What is important about a beetle’s front wings?
A.They are used to catch the prey.
B.They enable the beetle to fly.
C.They help the beetle move quickly.
D.They protect the soft body parts.
2.How do beetles respond to changes of habitats?
A.They are adaptable to the food change.
B.They can change their body temperature.
C.They are adaptable to the freezing cold weather.
D.They can use their wings to fight against the cold.
3.What is the most probable title of the passage?
A.The Ice Age affected the beetles
B.Different habitats affected the beetles
C.Beetles: the six-legged survivors
D.Beetles: the unique predators
Jeremy looked across the hot, grassy plain South Africa was a long way from the cool, green countryside of his hometown in Oregon.
“Ready?” Dad asked.
“Yes,” Jeremy answered. They climbed into the old truck. Jeremy seldom spent time with his father, a famous wildlife photographer. The work seemed mostly hot and boring.
As the truck ran across the rough dirt, Dad chatted with their guides, Mkhulu and Bheki. They spoke Zulu, which Jeremy couldn’t understand, though they also spoke English. He watched for animals. “There!” he shouted, pointing. Mkhulu slowed the truck. Jeremy realized he had been pointing at a rock.
As the truck jumped up and down over a ditch, there was a big crash. “Wait!” Jeremy shouted. The door had fallen off. Bheki threw the door into the back of the truck. “Now we can see better,” Dad laughed.
They stopped near a watering hole. Mkhulu said he was friends with the elephants that sometimes gathered here. Maybe they’d see some.
Before long, Jeremy felt vibrations. Elephants! A small group walked towards the water. Dad jumped out of the truck and focused his camera on the largest elephant.
Jeremy spotted a very young elephant walking between two adults. It was tiny, by elephant standards. The two elephants beside the baby kept stopping to wait for it. Jeremy watched as they neared the water. Several larger elephants Jumped in the water.
Jeremy lost sight of the baby. Where was it? Then he saw. It was in water up to its eyes. Its mouth was underwater. It held it its trunk up above the water. The baby was in trouble. “Look!” said Jeremy. The bank was too steep for the baby. It couldn’t climb out of the water. Other elephants tried pushing it, without success.
Jeremy took the loose door from the back of the truck. Mkhulu saw what Jeremy was planning and ran to help. Together they dragged the door down to the water’s edge, Mkhulu calmed the mother elephant, gently explaining that they were bringing a ramp for the baby.
The mother knew Mkhulu and trusted him. She seemed to sense that they meant to help. Jeremy pushed the door onto the bank, angling it so the baby could walk up it to safety. The baby stepped onto the door. Its mother pushed. Three more steps, and they were up. The elephants gathered around the baby, touching it with their trunks.
“Boy, Jeremy,” Dad said. “That is one of the most exciting photo shoots I’ve ever done! I’m glad you came along.”
1.From the story, we know ________.
A.Jeremy had a very strong liking for nature
B.Jeremy’s father loved taking pictures of wild animals
C.Jeremy made a ramp for the baby elephant by himself
D.Jeremy and his father were in the green countryside of Oregon.
2.What was the main problem in the story?
A.The door fell off the truck.
B.Jeremy mistook a rock for a wild animal.
C.The baby elephant got stuck in the water.
D.Jeremy found his father’s work hot and boring.
3.According to the passage, how was the baby elephant saved?
A.Jeremy helped save it by making a ramp.
B.Mkhulu dived into the water and rescued it.
C.The mother elephant pushed it out of the water.
D.Mkhulu helped Jeremy put the door into the back of the truck.
A natural disaster is a major harmful event resulting from natural processes of the Earth. In recent years, owing to either cyclical (循环的) changes or human activities, there has been a rise in natural disasters. Earthquakes, typhoons, floods and hurricanes have caused a lot of deaths around the world. On the one hand, natural disasters always bring great sadness to people, but on the other hand, natural disasters make people fully aware of the mistakes of themselves and begin to rethink what they have done. A natural disaster can cause loss of life or property damage, and typically leave some economic damage in its wake, the severity of which depends on the stricken population’s ability to recover.
Take the typhoon which hit Japan this summer as an example. This September Super Typhoon Chebi (飞燕) visited Japan, causing dozens of deaths, more than 600 injuries and losses worth countless dollars. Bridges and roads were washed away, houses and buildings damaged, leaving many people homeless. Furthermore, tens of thousands of visitors were forced to stay in the airport. Although the government of Japan had taken some precautions, the typhoon did bring much trouble to people there.
（写作内容）
1. 以约30个单词概括上文内容；
2. 以约120个单词就“作为学生应该做些什么来减少自然灾害造成的损失”的话题写篇作文，并包括以下要点：
（1）保护环境从自身做起，并提高公众的环保意识；
（2）掌握有关自然灾害的更多知识；
（3）建议政府提供更多的资金进行相关的研究。
（写作要求）
1. 写作过程中不能直接引用原文语句；
2. 作文中不能出现真实姓名和学校名称；
3. 不必写标题。
（评分标准）
内容完整、语言规范、语篇连贯、词数适当。
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阅读下面短文，在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。
What is clone? The noun “clone” and the verb “to clone” are not used consistently. In biology a clone is a cell or an organism, which is 1. (genetic) the same as another cell or organism. Many simple organisms such as bacteria reproduce themselves by 2. (copy) their DNA and splitting (分裂) in half. The verb “to clone” refers 3. the process of creating cloned cells or organisms. The process differs, 4. (depend) on the kinds of cells used in the cloning procedure and the desired result. Usually, 5. scientists clone an animal, they take the nucleus (核) of a cell and place it into an egg cell from 6. the nucleus has been removed. The egg cell then divides to produce 7. embryo that develops an animal if the procedures work as 8. (plan). Different from other cloning cases, Dolly was created from a specialized adult cell, 9. from a very early embryonic cell in which no specialized 10. (tissue) begin to develop.
There are so many interesting and creative hobbies that can improve your life and make you smarter.
1. As the saying goes, reading gives us somewhere to go when we have to stay where we are. It enriches your knowledge and makes you feel better about yourself.
Learning a new language is a most unique and challenging hobby. It enables your brain to perform better, improves your memory and reduces the risk of brain decline. 2.
Playing chess makes you smarter by exercising both sides of your brain. 3. And it helps improve your memory and builds your self-confidence.
Writing makes your brain work. 4. Writing things down can improve your emotions and your ability to communicate with others and it will make you a more interesting person.
Exercising regularly keeps both your body and your brain functioning. A good blood circulation in your body means a good blood circulation of your brain, which means an increased brain function. 5.
Learning to play the piano or any other musical instrument teaches you patience and perseverance because it takes a lot of effort and a lot of time.
A. It teaches you to think.
B. Smiling will make you healthier and look cooler.
C. Moreover, a new language means new opportunities.
D. Positive thinking can help you to do your best each day.
E. Besides, exercising reduces stress and helps you sleep better.
F. Playing the game raises your IQ and encourages your creativity.
G. Reading teaches you new things about new places and new people.
