Reading to dogs is an unusual way to help children improve their literacy skills（读写能力）. With their shining brown eyes, wagging tails, and unconditional love, dogs can provide the nonjudgmental listeners needed for a beginning reader to gain confidence（自信心）,  according to Intermountain Therapy Animals（ITA）in Salt Lake City. The group says it is the first program in the country to use dogs to help develop literacy in children, with the introduction of Reading Education Assistance Dogs （READ）.

       The Salt Lake City Public Library is sold on the idea. “Literacy specialists admit that children who read below the level of their fellow pupils are often afraid of reading aloud in a group, often have lower self-respect, and regard reading as a headache,” said Lisa Myron, manager of the children’s department.

       Last November the two groups started “Dog Day Afternoon” in the children’s department of the main library. About 25children attended each of the four Saturday-afternoon classes, reading for half an hour. Those who attended three of the four classes received a “pawgraphed” book at the last class.

       The program was so successful that the library plans to repeal it in April, according to Dana Thumpowsky, public relations manager.

59．What is mainly discussed in the text?

       A．Children’s reading difficulties.              B．Advantages of raising dogs.

       C．Service in public library.        D．A special reading program.

60．Specialists use dogs to listen to children reading because they think__________.

       A．dogs are young children’s best friends

       B．children can play with dogs while reading

       C．dogs can provide encouragement for shy children

       D．children and dogs understand each other

61．By saying “The Salt Lake City Public Library is sold on the idea”, the writer means the library ______________.

       A．uses dogs to attract children           B．accepts the idea put forward by ITA

       C．has opened a children’s department        D．has decided to train some dogs

62．A “pawgraphed” book is most probably _________.

       A．a book used in Saturday classes             B．a book written by the children

       C．a prize for the children                   D．a gift from parents

Read the following text and choose the most suitable heading from A-F for each paragraph. There is one extra heading which you do not need.

A. Reasons for the use of Podcasting

B. Definition and origin of Podcast

C. Importance of Podcasting at school

D. Advantage of Podcasts over other audio media

E. Podcasts—a further step from voice recordings

F. Devices needed for Podcasting

_______

Recently a group of second-graders visited our school library to work on a “holidays around the world” project. The children created pictures showing holiday customs and then created voice recordings explaining what they drew. The incident showed very clearly the effectiveness of student-created voice recordings. Now imagine taking things one step further and creating Podcasts in a classroom setting.

________

The term Podcast refers to an audio recording, linked to the Web, that can be downloaded to a personal MP3 player. The word is created from broadcast and from iPod ---the wildly popular MP3 player from Apple.

________

Using audio with students isn’t new, of course. Teachers have used audiobooks at listening centers and recorded student voice on tape or CD for many years. Voice and music are the original media for teaching. Podcasts, however, can reach a much wider audience in a time frame outside the school days. Booktalking, an old way of getting kids excited about books, gets a tech assistance with Podcasting. Students can do some booktalking themselves; book review Podcasts seem to be another natural way for students to share what they know, providing an alternative to the book report.

________

    There are a number of excellent reasons for using Podcasting. Teachers made audio Podcasts, including visuals or video clips for any content area instruction and review. Some teachers have begun to record themselves teaching important concepts; this creates an account of information online for kids to access when they’re stuck on a homework assignment. Audio and video files can also function as assessment tools. Imagine being a classroom teacher in September who can actually hear how his or her students were reading in June the school year before.

________

You don’t need an iPod to make a Podcast. If you have a computer, a microphone, and some free software, you can make a Podcast. While an MP3 player is a popular and useful gadget, your audience doesn’t need MP3 players to listen, either: your students and their families can use the computer to play back what you’ve recorded.

Reading to dogs is an unusual way to help children improve their literacy skills （读写能力）With their shining brown eyes, wagging tails, and unconditional love, dogs can provide the nonjudgmental listeners needed for a beginning reader to gain confidence （自信心） , according to Intermountain Therapy Animals (ITA) in Salt Lake City. The group says it is the first program in the country to use dogs to help develop literacy in children, with the introduction of Reading Education Assistance Dogs (READ).

The Salt Lake City Public Library is sold on the idea. “Literacy specialists admit that children who read below the level of their fellow pupils are often afraid of reading aloud in a group, often have lower self-respect, and regard reading as a headache,” said Lisa Myron, manager of the children’s department.

Last November the two groups started “Dog Day Afternoon” in the children’s department of the main library. About 25 children attended each of the four Saturday-afternoon classes, reading for half an hour. Those who attended three of the four classes received a “pawgraphed” book at the last class.

The program was so successful that the library plans to repeat it in April, according to Dana Thumpowsky, public relations manager.

What is mainly discussed in the text?

A. Children’s reading difficulties.               B. Advantages of raising dogs.

C. Service in a public library.                    D. A special reading program.

Specialists use dogs to listen to children reading because they think _______.

A. dogs are young children’s best friends

B. children can play with dogs while reading

C. dogs can provide encouragement for shy children

D. children and dogs understand each other

By saying “The Salt Lake City Public Library is sold on the idea”, the writer means the library_______.

A. uses dogs to attract children           B. accepts the idea put forward by ITA

C. has opened a children's department    D. has decided to train some dogs

A “pawgraphed” book is most probably _______.

A. a book used in Saturday classes         B. a book written by the children

C. a prize for the children                    D. a gift from parent

     Reading is very important to help you learn English. To learn as much as you can from reading, you need to read different kinds of English. This book provides not only different kinds of English but also a good way to check your reading ability.

    There are four parts in the book:

    Part 1 is Messages: In this part somebody wants to send information in writing to somebody else. There is a test on timetable and a test on text messages.

    Part 2 is People: In this part all the tests are about people. For example, there is an informal letter between friends. There is formal(正式的) English in biography(传记). There is a job application as a model to help with your writing, as well as testing your reading.

     Part 3 is Places: In this part, too, many different kinds of English are shown, some informal and some formal. There is the informal English of a holiday postcard. There is also the formal English in a letter of complaint.

     Part 4 is Things: You will find some descriptive writing in this part. There are descriptions of clothes and of a computer.

    You can do these tests in any order you like, or you can do all the tests with a formal or informal text. I enjoyed writing this book and I hope you enjoy using it.

59. We can find the introduction to a product in ___________.

   A. part 1          B. Part 2            C. Part 3             D. Part 4

60. Which of the following is most probably written in informal English?

   A. A letter of complaint.                                B. A computer handbook.

   C. A letter of a friend.                                          D. A story of a president.

61. The passage is most probably written for _________.

   A. test designers    B. students     C. test-takers    D. teachers

62. What is the best title of the book?

   A. Test Your Reading                                    B. Help with Your Writing

   C. Learn Different Kinds of English               D. Practice English in Different Ways

Reading is the key to school success and, like any skill, it takes practice. A child learns to walk by practising until he no longer has to think about how to put one foot in front of the other. A great athlete practises until he can play quickly, accurately, without thinking. Tennis players call that ”being in the zone.” Educators call it “automaticity”.

   A child learns to read by sounding out the letters and decoding the words. With practice, he stumbles less and less, reading by the phrase. With automaticity, he doesn’t have to think about decoding the words, so he can concentrate on the meaning of the text.

   It can begin as early as first grade. In a recent study of children in Illinois Schools, Alan Rossman of Northwestern University found automatic readers in the first grade who were reading almost three times as fast as the other children and scoring twice as high on comprehension tests. At fifth grade, the automatic readers were reading twice as fast as the others, and still outscoring them on accuracy, comprehension and vocabulary.

   “It’s not I.Q. but the amount of time a child spends reading that is the key to automaticity,” according to Rossman. Any child who spends at least 3.5 to 4 hours a week reading books, magazines or newspapers will in all likelihood reach automaticity. At home, where the average child spends 25 hours a week watching television, it can happen by turning off the set just one night in favor of reading.

   You can test your child by giving him a paragraph or two to read aloud—something unfamiliar but appropriate to his age. If he reads aloud with expressions, with a sense of the meaning of the sentences, he probably is an automatic reader. If he reads haltingly, one word at a time, without expression or meaning, he needs more practice.

13．The first paragraph tells us            .

A．what automaticity is                    B．how accuracy is acquired

C．how a child learns to walk               D．how an athlete is trained

14．The Illinois study shows that the automatic reader’s high speed         .

A．costs him a lot of work            B．affects his comprehension

C．leads to his future success         D．doesn’t affect his comprehension

15．A bright child          .

A．also needs practice to be an automatic reader

B．always achieves great success in comprehension tests

C．becomes an automatic reader after learning how to read

D．is a born automatic reader

16．The main idea of the passage is           .

A．how to score high on comprehension tests

B．reading is the key to school success

C．how to test your child’s reading ability

D．automaticity is important for efficient reading