Taking paternity leave (陪产假) shortly after the birth of a new son or daughter may be the key to developing strong father-child bonds that last for years, says new research from Ball State University.
“We find that 9-year-olds report greater satisfaction with father involvement,” said Richard Petts, a Ball State sociology professor who carried out the research with Chris Knoester at the Ohio State University and Jane Waldfogel at Columbia University. “They feel closer to their fathers and report better communication with their dads if their fathers take paternity leave, and especially if their fathers take two or more weeks of leave.”
“We found evidence that part of the reason why two or more weeks of paternity leave may lead to 9-year-olds expressing greater satisfaction seems to be that longer periods of paternity leave-taking link to parental relationship satisfaction,” said Petts.
The study is the latest in a series examining the effects of parental leave in the development of children and its influence on the family. It is also the first research known to assess the associations between paternity leave and children’s opinions of father-child relationship quality in the United States, Petts said.
Petts said the findings of the study will help families and policymakers (政策制定者) who aim to strengthen families and improve higher quality father-child relationships.
The present structure (结构) of paternity leave in the United States provides limited opportunities for fathers to take leave and, in fact, often discourages fathers from taking leave, he said.
“The possibility to take leave is often limited to higher-income families,” Petts said. “A lack of a national paid family leave policy limits access to important benefits for American families. The present structure may be increasing inequalities.” Petts said that providing equal access to paternity leave may help to change these patterns and strengthen family relationships.
1.How was the research probably carried out?
A.By tracking families. B.By talking with mothers.
C.By interviewing the kids. D.By recording children’s behavior.
2.What is found about paternity leave?
A.It makes young kids become dependent.
B.It is determined by parental relationships.
C.It encourages men to become better fathers.
D.It improves father-child relationship quality.
3.What do we know about the research?
A.It is welcomed by young fathers. B.It is the first to study parental leave.
C.It is probably helpful to policymakers. D.It is more important than similar studies.
4.What is the problem with the present structure of paternity leave in the US?
A.Paid paternity leave is only two weeks long.
B.There is no policy to encourage paternity leave.
C.Low-income families think little of paternity leave.
D.High-income fathers are too busy to take paternity leave.
My wife and I were at a crowded grocery store not long ago. It was a weekday evening, cold and wet-and tense. People were carelessly blocking aisles, complaining and cutting one another off with their carts.
Things got worse at the checkout line. The cashier scanned a man’s discount card, but he misread the savings on her screen as an additional charge. He decided she was acting deliberately and began to argue.
“She is being spiteful (恶意的) !” he yelled. “This is unbelievable.”
Other customers looked away as the cashier tried to reason with him. She called a manager, who accompanied him to customer service. Shaken, she moved to the next customer in line.
We’ve all witnessed uncomfortable scenes like this in public places. The grocery scene was another example of how our trust in others has eroded. But it was also a teachable moment on how we can rebuild our faith-starting with just one person.
Back at the grocery store, my wife and I reached our uneasy cashier. I grabbed a bottle of water from a nearby cooler and handed it to her. “We felt bad about how that man treated you and wanted to buy this for you.” I said. Her face lit up, and we talked as she scanned our items. She told us she had been working that evening through severe foot pain and would be having surgery later that week. We wished her well in her recovery, and she thanked us as we left.
Those are the balancing acts, the moments of responding social and emotional pain with healing, which will add up to restore trust among people. You can start that pattern in someone else’s life, even in a place as ordinary as the neighborhood grocery store.
1.Why did the man at the checkout line argue with the cashier?
A.The cashier called a manager to help her.
B.Someone jumped the queue waiting to check out.
C.There was something wrong with his discount card.
D.He believed the cashier charged him more on purpose.
2.The underlined word “eroded” in Paragraph 5 probably means ________.
A.changed B.increased
C.faded D.formed
3.The author bought a bottle of water for the cashier because ________.
A.he thought the cashier might feel a little bit thirsty
B.he knew she had gone through much trouble recently
C.he wanted to restore the trust between her and the man
D.he wanted to comfort her after the terrible experience just now
4.The last paragraph in the passage is intended to ________.
A.add a warning B.make a suggestion
C.introduce a topic D.present an argument
Castle Rock, Colorado, is in the Front Range between Denver and Colorado Springs. The town was first settled in the 1870s and named for the rock formation on its western edge. More than 5,400 acres of open space, 250 acres of parks and 57 miles of trails surround the town. Castle Rock offers many activities throughout the year.
Douglas County Fairgrounds
The Douglas County holds a rodeo every August. Many activities are held in the city during the rodeo, including 4-H exhibits, animal shows and the farm yard, a hands-on educational area providing information about animals and agriculture. Local singing and dancing acts perform on the Community Stage. Carnival rides and games ensure that children have fun.
Town Recreation
Activities Castle Rock Recreation Center features 84,000 square feet of fun, including a leisure pool complete with water slides, spa and lazy river. Rent one of the meeting rooms and host your child’s birthday party. Introduce your child to cooking basics through classes such as Little Chefs, Holiday Cooking Arts, Just Desserts and Iron Chefs. Discounts with membership cards.
Metzler Ranch Park
Metzler Ranch Park features many outdoor activities for children. Kids can join a youth baseball or softball league, ride a bike along the paved path or swing and climb on the playground equipment. Bring your child’s in-line skates and glide along one of two in-line hockey rinks or try out skills at the lighted skate park. Discounts book online.
Theatre of Dreams
Theatre of Dreams is a 72-scat theater that presents magic and illusion entertainment. Two professional magicians founded the theater. Children especially enjoy the family-oriented shows. The facility can be rented for special events such as birthday parties and bar mitzvahs. Reserve in advance.
1.Which of the following offers ice sport?
A.Town Recreation. B.Metzler Ranch Park.
C.Theatre of Dreams. D.Douglas County Fairgrounds.
2.What do Town Recreation and Theatre of Dreams have in common?
A.They have various classes for kids. B.They offer discounts for the members.
C.They provide service for special events. D.They are not open to kids unaccompanied.
3.Who would most probably be interested in Castle Rock?
A.College graduates. B.Retired citizens.
C.Newly-married couples. D.Parents with kids.
假设你是晨光中学的学生李津。你校将与英语友好校举办一场在线会议，探讨如何利用网络学习英语，请你根据以下提示写一篇发言稿。
(1) 介绍你是如何利用网络学英语的(至少2点)；
(2) 简单谈谈你对利用网络学习英语的看法；
(3) 请友好校的学生分享他们的经验。
注意：80-100词；已给出的开头和结尾不计入总词数。
词汇：网上学习：online study
Good morning, dear friends. My name is Li Jin. I’d like to take this opportunity to talk about how I learn English on the Internet.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Thank you.
It’s been said that life turns on small things. Sometimes it’s hard to see how small choices can change your life. But when put together over time, the little things can make the biggest difference.
The theme of Success for Teens is “Little Things Matter”. The book helps teens identify small,positive choices they can make in their lives to help them reach their goals. Lots of teens don’t realize how the little choices in their lives can have lasting effects. Often they focus on the bigger events, such as a major exam, a big game or competition, or choosing a college. The little things, however, can go unnoticed unless your teen understands how important they can be.
The little things that lead to success are mostly easy to do. Help your teen identify a few areas in everyday life where he or she can make small, positive choices. It might be as simple as getting up on time, prioritizing(按重要性排列) their schoolwork, putting in an extra 10 minutes of practice or using some spare time to help someone else.
Nineteen-year-old Kyle Freas used to be on his school baseball team and would play every day after school. When the season was over, he had an empty three hours a day, so he started spending one third of such extra time daily looking for ways to help other kids. Over the past few years, his project has raised thousands of dollars to help abused, homeless and sick children. Kyle spent just a little time each day doing something that ended up benefiting a lot of kids. The important thing to understand is that Kyle made the small and positive decisions necessary for success. Make sure your child understands that even though the results of the positive choices may not be seen right away, they are building on each other and taking him or her on a path that will lead to success.
1.What does the underlined part “turns on” in the first paragraph mean?
A.takes away B.depends on
C.sets aside D.puts out
2.We can learn from Paragraph 2 that .
A.dealing with big events is the most important in one’s life
B.little choices seldom have lasting effects on one’s life
C.teens should try to focus their attention on big choices
D.many teens fail to realize the importance of little choices
3.Which of the following words can be used to describe Kyle Freas?
A.Kind-hearted. B.Creative.
C.Naughty. D.Self-confident.
4.The writer mainly discussed the relationship between .
A.little choices and big choices B.teens’ goals and their actions
C.positive and negative decisions D.small positive choices and success
5.The text is most probably written for .
A.teenagers B.parents
C.pupils D.teachers
At Blossom End Railroad Station, 22-year-old Stanley Vine sat, waiting for his new employer. The surrounding green fields were so unlike the muddy landscape of war-torn France. After four horrible years as an army private (列兵) fighting in Europe, Stanley had returned to England in February 1946. Armed now with some savings and with no prospects for a job in England, he answered a newspaper ad for farm help in Canada. Two months later he was on his way.
When the old car rumbled toward the tiny station, Stanley rose to his feet, trying to make the most of his five foot, four inch frame. The farmer, Alphonse Lapine, shook his head and complained, “You’re a skinny thing.” On the way to his dairy farm, Alphonse explained that he had a wife and seven kids. “Money’s tight. You’ll get room and board. You’ll get up at dawn for milking, and then help me around the farm until evening milking time again. Ten dollars a week. Sundays off.” Stanley nodded. He had never been on a farm before, but he took the job.
From the beginning Stanley was treated horribly by the whole family. They made fun of the way he dressed and talked. The humourless farmer frequently lost his temper, criticizing Stanley for the slightest mistake. The oldest son, 13-year-old Armand, constantly played nasty tricks on him. But the kind-hearted Stanley never responded.
Stanley never became part of the Lapine family. After work, they ignored him. He spent his nights alone in a tiny bedroom. However, each evening before retiring, he lovingly cared for the farmer’s horses, eagerly awaiting him at the field gate. He called them his gentle giants.
Early one November morning Alphonse Lapine discovered that Stanley had disappeared, after only six months as his farmhand. In fact no one in the community ever heard of him again. That is, until one evening, almost 20 years later, when Armand, opened an American sports magazine and came across a shocking headline, “Millionaire jockey, Stanley Vine, ex-British soldier and 5-time horse riding champion, began life in North America as a farmhand in Canada.”
1.Stanley Vine decided to go to Canada because ________.
A.he wanted to escape from war-torn France
B.he wanted to serve in the Canadian army
C.he couldn’t find a job in England
D.he loved working as a farmhand
2.Which of the following is True according to the passage?
A.Stanley joined the French army when he was 18 years old.
B.On the farm Stanley had to milk the cows 14 times a week.
C.The Lapine family were rich but cruel to Stanley.
D.Stanley read about the job offer in a newspaper.
3.What can we infer from the passage?
A.When Stanley first met his employer, he tried to impress him but failed.
B.Stanley had never worked on a farm, so he made a lot of mistakes.
C.Stanley’s weekly salary was not enough for him to live on.
D.Stanley left the farm by train, without telling anyone why he did so.
4.What did Stanley like doing after work each day?
A.Hitch-hiking to different towns. B.Caring for the farmer’s horses.
C.Wandering around the farm alone. D.Preparing meals on the farm.
5.Why was Armand so astonished when he read about Stanley in the magazine?
A.He didn’t know Stanley had been a British soldier.
B.He had no idea Stanley had always been a wealthy man.
C.He didn’t know his father paid Stanley so little money.
D.He didn’t expect Stanley to become such a success.
