Directions: an English composition in 120-150 words according to the instructions given below in Chinese.
假设你是明启中学的李华，你校外籍教师Chris将在文化周期间做一个有关西方艺术的讲座，现就讲座内容征求你校学生的意见。请给Chris写一封电子邮件，邮件必须包含以下内容
• 你喜欢的讲座话题（从音乐、美术、舞蹈、戏剧中任选其一）：
• 选择该话题的原因及关于该话题你感兴趣的内容；
• 希望从中有何收获。
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Directions: Translate the fallowing sentences into English, using the words given in the brackets.
1.他每次进城都给女儿带礼物。（without）
2.你能否得到这工作应该与你的年龄无关。（difference）
3.老师让我代表学校致辞，欢迎在座的贵宾们。（arrange）
4.这家公司正是因为不重视产品更新换代，忽视售后服务，才逐步被市场淘汰的。（It was because...）
阅读下面短文，根据其内容写一篇60词左右的内容概要。
Parents everywhere praise their kids. Jenn Berman, author of The A to Z Guide to Raising Happy and Confident Kids, says, “We’ve gone to the opposite extreme of a few decades ago when parents tended to be more strict.” By giving kids a lot of praise, parents think they’re building their children’s confidence, when, in fact, it may be just the opposite. Too much praise can backfire and, when given in a way that’s insincere, make kids afraid to try new things or take a risk for fear of not being able to stay on top where their parents’ praise has put them.
Still, don’t go too far in the other direction. Not giving enough praise can be just as damaging as giving too much. Kids will feel like they’re not good enough or that you don’t care and, as a result, may see no point in trying hard for their accomplishments.
So what is the right amount of praise? Experts say that the quality of praise is more important than the quantity. If praise is sincere and focused on the effort not the outcome, you can give it as often as your child does something that deserves a verbal reward. “We should especially recognize our children’s efforts to push themselves and work hard to achieve a goal,” says Donahue, author of Parenting Without Fear: Letting Go of Worry and Focusing on What Really Matters. “One thing to remember is that it’s the process not the end product that matters.”
Your son may not be the best basketball player on his team. But if he’s out there every day and playing hard, you should praise his effort regardless of whether his team wins or loses. Praising the effort and not the outcome can also mean recognizing your child when she has worked hard to clean the yard, cook dinner, or finish a book report. But whatever it is, praise should be given on a case-by-case basis and be proportionate(相称的) to the amount of effort your child has put into it.
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Imagine a child standing on a diving board four feet high and asking himself the question: “Should I jump?” This is what motivation or the lack of it can do. Motivation and goal setting are the two sides of same coin. 1. Like the child on the diving board, you will stay undecided.
2. More than that, how should you stay motivated to achieve the goal? First, you need to evaluate yourself, your values, your strengths, your weaknesses, your achievements, your desires, etc. Only then should you set your goals.
You also need to judge the quality and depth of your motivation. This is quite important, because it is directly related to your commitment. There are times when your heart is not in your work. 3. So, slow down and think what you really want to do at that moment. Clarity(清晰) of thoughts can help you move forward.
Another way of setting realistic goals is to analyze your short and long term objectives, keeping in mind your beliefs, values and strengths. Remember that goals are flexible. 4. They also need to be measurable. You must keep these points in mind while setting your goals.
Your personal circumstances are equally important. For example, you may want to be a pilot but can’t become one because your eyesight is not good enough. 5.You should reassess your goals, and motivate yourself to set a fresh goal.
You will surely need to overcome some difficulties, some planned, but most unplanned. You cannot overcome them without ample motivation. Make sure that you plan for these difficulties at the time of setting your goals.
A. This can affect your work.
B. So how should you motivate yourself?
C. However, this should not discourage you.
D. So why should we try to set specific goals?
E. They can change according to circumstances.
F. Motivation is what you need most to do a good job.
G. Without motivation, you can neither set a goal nor reach it.
When prehistoric man arrived in new parts of the world, something strange happened to the large animals. They suddenly became extinct. Smaller species survived. The large, slow-growing animals were easy game, and were quickly hunted to extinction. Now something similar could be happening in the oceans.
That the seas are being overfished has been known for years. What researchers such as Ransom Myers and Boris Worm have shown is just how fast things are changing. They have looked at half a century of data from fisheries around the world. Their methods do not attempt to estimate the actual biomass (the amount of living biological matter) of fish species in particular parts of the ocean, but rather changes in that biomass over time. According to their latest paper published in Nature, the biomass of large predators (animals that kill and eat other animals) in a new fishery is reduced on average by 80% within 15 years of the start of exploitation. In some long-fished areas, it has halved again since then.
Dr. Worm acknowledges that the figures are conservative. One reason for this is that fishing technology has improved. Today's vessels (船)can find their prey using satellites and sonar, which were not available 50 years ago. That means a higher proportion of what is in the sea is being caught, so the real difference between present and past is likely to be worse than the one recorded by changes in catch sizes. In the early days, too, longlines (多钩长线) would have been more filled with fish. Some individuals would therefore not have been caught, since no baited hooks (带饵钩)would have been available to trap them, leading to an underestimate of fish stocks in the past. Furthermore, in the early days of longline fishing, a lot of fish were lost to sharks after they had been hooked. That is no longer a problem, because there are fewer sharks around now。
Dr. Myers and Dr. Worm argue that their work gives a correct baseline, which future management efforts must take into account. They believe the data support an idea current among marine biologists, that of the “shifting baseline". The idea is that people have failed to detect the massive changes which have happened in the ocean because they have been looking back only a relatively short time into the past. That matters because theory suggests that the maximum sustainable yield （产量）that can be cropped from a fishery comes when the biomass of a target species is about 50% of its original levels。. Most fisheries are well below that, which is a bad way to do business.
1.The extinction of large prehistoric animals is noted to suggest that____.
A.large animals were easily hurt in the changing environment
B.small species survived as large animals disappeared
C.large sea animals may face the same threat today
D.slow-growing fish outlive fast-growing ones
2.By saying these figures are conservative , Dr. Worm means that____ .
A.fishing technology has improved rapidly
B.the catch-sizes are actually smaller than recorded
C.the marine biomass has suffered a greater loss
D.the data collected so far are out of date
3.Dr. Myers and other researchers hold that____ .
A.people should look for a baseline that can't work for a longer time
B.fisheries should keep the yield below 50% of the biomass
C.the ocean biomass should restore its original level
D.people should adjust the fishing baseline to changing situation
4.The writer seems to be mainly concerned with most fisheries’____ .
A.biomass level B.management efficiency
C.catch-size limits D.technological application
History Fair Competition
Understanding history is vital to understanding ourselves as a people and as a nation. History is much more than the study of dusty old objects and events long past. Thornton Middle School History Fair Competition makes understanding history exciting, engaging, and fun!
This Year’s Theme
All participants must address how communication or transportation technology has promoted the quality of life for Americans throughout history. To many people, technology means computers, hand-held devices, or vehicles that travel to distant planets. However, technology is also the application of scientific knowledge to solve a problem, touching lives in countless ways.
Individuals or groups may enter one of the follow ing categories:
• Performance
• Documentary (纪实作品)
• Essay Writing
Category Requirements
Performance: A dramatic presentation of the topic no more than 10 minutes long. If special clothes are used, they should truly represent a given period.
Doc umentary: A visual presentation (such as a video, slide show, or computer project) no more than 10 minutes long. A desktop computer, screen, projector, and loudspeakers will be available. Students must provide their presentations on CDs before Friday, March 23.
Essay Writing : An academic paper of 2,000 to 2,500 w ords. No illustrations ( 图解)are allowed. Please do not include covers. A list of references must be included.
Important Dates
February 5 Submit a first draft of your essay, performance script ( 剧本), or documentary highlights.
February 19 A committee of teachers will evaluate materials and give opinions. Students then have an opportunity to improve their products.
March 9 Submit a final draft of your essay.
March 15 Performance and documentary committee preview
March 24 Thornton Middle School History Fair Competition
7:00 A.M. — 9:00 A.M. Participants signing in at the gym
10:00 A.M. — 6:00 P.M. Competition and judges’ review
7:00 P.M. Awards ceremony and picnic
1.What is the theme of this year ’s competition?
A.Technology advances science.
B.Science interacts w ith technology.
C.Science has made the study of history easy.
D.Technology has improved the life of Americans.
2.What w ould a participant have to do with an essay of 1,500 words to meet the category requirement?
A.Include more information in the essay. B.Remove the references.
C.Provide a cover for the essay. D.Explain the details w ith illustrations.
3.What will the committee of teachers do on February 19?
A.Preview performances and documentaries.
B.Make comments on the materials.
C.Improve the participant’s first draft.
D.Collect a second proposal from the participant.
