It’s so beautiful outside that spending the day in the office would be very boring. So why not take the vacations(假期)off? A new survey(调查)found that 31﹪of U.S workers don’t always take all of their vacation days. Americans have 12 vacation days on average(平均)each year, but they give back an average of 3 vacation days each year.
So why don’t they use up their vacation days? Some say they would rather get money back for their unused days; some busy workers say they just can’t leave their work. Americans have fewer vacation days than workers in any other country surveyed.
The French take their vacations seriously. French workers get an average of 39 vacation days, and 40﹪ plan to take at least one there-to-four-week vacation.
Workers in Sweden receive an average of 25 vacation days a year, but they can’t find time to use them all. More workers there return vacation days than any other country surveyed.
British workers have the longest working week in Europe(欧洲),with 23 vacation days --the shortest vacation. So they feel overworked.75﹪ say their weekends or vacations are too short and 40﹪ would sacrifice a day’s pay(工资)for one more vacation day.
【小题1】____________ U.S workers don’t always take all of their vacation days.

Malls (购物中心) are popular places for Americans to go to. Some people spend so much time at malls that they are called mall rats. Mall rats shop until they visit hundreds of stores.
People like malls for many reasons. They feel safe because malls have police stations. Parking is usually free. And the weather inside is always fine. The newest malls have beautiful rest places with waterfalls and large green trees.
The largest mall in the United States is the Mall of America in Minnesota. It covers 4.2 million square feet. It has 350 stores, eight nightclubs, and a large park! There are parking spaces for 12,750 cars. About 750,000 people shop there every week.
The first indoor mall in the United States was built in 1965 in Edina Minnesota. People love doing all their shopping in one place. More malls are built around the country. Now malls are town centers where people come to do many things. They shop, and of course, they also eat in food courts (广场) that have food from all over the world. They see films at theaters. Some people even get their exercise by doing the new sport of “mall walking”. Others go to malls to meet friends.
In some malls, people can see a doctor and even go to the church. In other words, people can do almost everything in malls. Now people can live in their favorite shopping centers in fact.
【小题1】The passage gives ______ reasons why American people like malls.

Some students, parents and teachers in Shanghai were surveyed last month. According to the result of the survey, the generation gap (代沟) between students and parents as well as teachers is becoming wider. Here is what they said.

   Voice of the students:

　 “Our parents hold too high expectations（期望）which put us under lots of pressure. They care too much about our lives and studies,” one student said.

“It’s impolite that some students’ parents read their children’s diaries without permission!” one student said angrily.

“Some of our teachers are so serious that we can’t make friends with them at all,” another student said sadly.

Voice of the parents:

One mother said, “After school, my daughter usually locks herself into her room and spends lots of time talking with others on the phone. And I can’t stand（忍受） her clothes and hairstyle!”

“I thought my son was doing very well in his studies. I didn’t realize I was being cheated by him until I got a call from his teacher,” said a father.

Voice of the teachers:

An English teacher said, “Today, the role of the teacher is to put knowledge into students’ brain. The power (权力) teachers have kept students away from them.”

“Some parents pay too much attention to their children’s grades instead of creating a lively and colorful environment at home,” another teacher said.

“In the past, teachers and students often played games together or talked with each other. Today, only studies and grades are talked about,” said a teacher. “A school should be a place where students can learn not only knowledge, but also how to face failure and frustration（挫折） bravely enough.” 

1. What does the first paragraph mainly tell us?

A. Students like telling how they feel to their classmates.

B. More and more students don’t like to be surveyed.            

C. Some parents don’t like their children’s clothes and hairstyle.

D. There has been a great distance between students and parents as well as teachers.

2.The underlined word “cheated” in the passage means ___________.

A. 欺骗          B. 批评          C. 表扬         D. 揭露

3. What can we infer (推断) from the teachers who were surveyed?

A. Teachers feel what they are doing for students is good.

B. Parents, teachers and educational rules all influence students greatly.

C. Teachers should care more about excellent students.                   

D. Now teachers and students communicate better than before.

4.Which of the following could be the best title for the passage?

A. Unhappy Teenagers                B. Educational Rules

C. The Generation Gap                D. Serious Parents

Millions of British people have ditched the traditional “thank you” and took the place of it with the less formal “cheers”, according to a survey.
Although the common person will say “thank you” nearly 5,000 times a year, one in three are more likely to add a “cheers” or “ta” where it’s needed to show they are fashionable.
One in twenty now say “nice one” instead, while the younger are more likely to offer a “cool” than a “thank you”. “Merci”, “fab” and even “gracias” were also listed as common phrases to use, as “much appreciated(感激)”.
One in twenty who took part in the survey of 2,000 people by the Food Network UK for Thank You Day, which is marked on November 24, 2011, said a formal “thank you” was now not often needed in everyday conversation. More than one in ten adults said they regularly won’t say thank you if they are in a bad mood. Most people stated that saying thank you was something that their parents trained them. A huge 70 percent of those questioned will say thank you to a person’s face without even meaning it, while one fifth avoid(避免)saying it when they know they should.
It seems our friends and family get the stress of our bad manners. Half of them admit (承认) they’re not good at thanking those closest to them. Many of them explain that they don’t say thank you because their family “already know I’m grateful”.
When spoken words won’t do, it falls to a nice text to do the job for most people.
One third will still send a handwritten thank-you note---but 45 percent admit it’s been more than six months since they tried to send one.
A quarter of British people say “thank you” with food, with 23 percent cooking a meal to show their appreciation to someone. Another 15 percent bake a cake.
It follows that 85 percent of people will be angry because of not getting the gratitude (感激)they feel they should receive.
【小题1】Most of the people who took part in the survey say that they say “thank you” _______.

Life for Cathy Taylor’s three children is very busy. Their school days are busy enough. After school, though, Cathy takes the two boys from football to basketball. Then she has to take her daughter to piano lessons. The tired children don’t get home until 7 pm. They have a quick supper, and it’s time for homework.
The Taylors are like many American and British parents. They take their children from activity to activity, and try to fit as much as possible into their kids’ lives. Doctors say many children are under too much pressure. Teachers complain(抱怨) about teaching tired kids in the classroom.
Most children take part in after-school clubs. Activities include sports, language learning, music and math classes. Pushy parents are nothing new, but now parents seem to push their children a lot more. Parents see other children doing a lot of things, and they feel their own children should do the same.
Linda Miller, a mother of three in London, knows all about such pressure. “In some families, competition starts from a very young age,” she says. “Mothers send their kids to all kinds of classes when they are very young. And they are always comparing them with other children. It’s crazy. People shouldn’t push their kids so hard.
Dr Alice Green agrees. She also says that these children may find it hard to think for themselves when they are older. “Parents are trying to plan their kids’ lives for them. When these kids are adults, they might find it difficult to plan things for themselves.” Parents should learn to give their kids a bit more time to themselves. On one hand, children need organized activities. On the other hand, they also need time and freedom to relax, and they need time to do things by themselves.
(   ) 8. Cathy Taylor sends her daughter to       .
A. math classes      B. language school B. sport club       D. piano lessons
(   ) 9. Why do teachers complain about teaching those children in the classroom?
A. Because they are very tired.     B. Because they know a lot of things.
C. Because they are under too much pressure. D. Because they can’t plan things for themselves.
(   ) 10. From the passage, we know children take part in after-school activities because       .
A. they have interest in them            B. their teachers tell them to do so
C. their parents push them to do so          D. they see other children doing these things
(  ) 11. The writer probably thinks that parents should       .
A. compare their children with others    B. plan their children’s lives for them
C. take their children to different classes  
D. give children time and let them do things by themselves