Studying too much?

Most people work or study from Monday to Friday. The weekend is usually a time of rest. But today’s Chinese teenagers can hardly rest during the weekends.

According to a survey, 24% of the Grade 8 students in Beijing have classes at the weekend．Over 40% of the middle school students have less than eight hours’ sleep each night because of study.

And this doesn’t happen only in Beijing. Ji Chunying is a Grade 9 student in Guangzhou. The 14-year-old girl has to get up at 6:45am on Saturday. Then she has classes all the day. On Sunday, she goes to extra（额外）classes for math and physics. But Ji doesn’t complain. She says her classmates all work very hard．

Finding time to have fun

Zhao Ming, 13, is from Zhanjiang, Guangdong. Zhao’s weekend is less busy. But he still spends Saturday in school. On Sunday, after finishing homework, he plays basketball. “I feel happy because I still have time to do the things I like,” he said．Some students are much luckier. Ding Yi, a Grade 8 student from Laiwu, Shandong, is one of them. During the weekend, Ding usually gets up at 8:00am. Then she spends some time doing homework. After that she is free to go shopping or watch TV. “My teacher said I don't need to push myself too much. Learning well at school is enough,” Ding said．“I feel pretty lucky.”

1．Over 40% of the middle school students have less than eight hours’ sleep each night because of ___________.

  A．playing computer games              B．playing with friends

C．watching TV                       D．busy study

2．How many students are mentioned（提及） in this passage?

  A．2.               B．3.              C．4.              D．5.

3．Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

   A．Some middle school students can enjoy their weekend．

   B．All the students in China are busy studying at the weekend．

   C．Every student in China has to go to extra classes at the weekend．

   D．No student complains about his busy weekend．

4．The passage mainly tells us that _____________.

   A．Students should do more homework at the weekend

   B．All the students in China must have classes at the weekend

   C．Students should have more time to take a rest at the weekend

   D．No student can play with his friends out of classes

5．The above passage may be a _______.

A．story of science   B．school notice     C．short play        D．news report

Sundays in New York can be very pleasant. Since Saturday nights are traditionally party nights, Sunday mornings are traditionally mornings of rest, which means having a long sleep. We stay in bed until 9, 10 or even 11 o’clock is not unusual, then jump out of bed, pull on clothes, run to the nearest corner news agency, buy the New York Times or Daily News, return home, put some classical music or popular songs on the record player, climb right back into bed to read the paper.

If the weather is bad, you might immediately turn to the Entertainment part of the paper to see what movies are on. Sunday afternoons are a popular time for seeing a film, but movies are expensive in New York, so choosing takes time and care.  Read the movie reviews to discover what the critics （评论家） think. No one wants to make an expensive mistake.

But if the weather is good, you might go through the part which lists outdoor activities. Almost every Sunday there are “street fairs （集市 ）”. There will be food for sale made by local people or restaurants; hand-made things for sale; music offered by a local band; and perhaps dancing. If the fair is in Little Italy, you can expect （期待） to find tasty Italian food.

And if the day is really warm, a walk through Central Park can offer many sights, sounds and smells.  Groups of people go around the park, enjoy different activities and are often looking for others to join in. There will be pick-up baseball games; singing under the trees; dancing near a famous monument; boating on the lake.

If you are a student and live at home, you have probably spent your day in this way, putting off （推迟）your study until the sun goes down. If you are a student living away from home, it’s also likely that you’ve done the same because generally most New Yorkers save Sundays for playing. Call too early and you’ll wake us up; call too late and you’ll find us out.

1. The writer says that New Yorkers go to bed late on __________.

    A. Wednesday nights                      B. Friday nights

    C. Saturday nights                        D. Sunday nights

2. To choose a good movie, the writer suggests that _______.

    A. you find out the latest movie

B. you look up in the newspaper

C. you check which one gets good reviews

D. you ask those who have already seen it

3. Which of the following does NOT the street fair offer?

    A. Local and foreign food                   B. Sports and games

    C. Things made by hand                    D. Music and dancing

4. We can learn from the passage that _________.

    A. you can only find outdoor activities in the newspapers

B. a student living alone in New York prefers to study on Sundays

    C. most New Yorkers would spend Sundays with their families

    D. it’s not a good idea to call New Yorkers on Sundays