Connie Lau hates smoking. “It smells awful, and it’s so bad for you. It breaks my heart to see my friends smoking. I try to get them to give up smoking.” She says.

So why does Connie walk into convenience stores and try to buy cigarettes? She is testing to see if stores will sell cigarettes to a kid who is younger than 18. “You have to be 18 to purchase cigarettes, and I’m 16, so if they sell to me, they’re breaking the law,” Connie says.

Connie isn’t a vigilante (治安队员); She works with local police in her town of Castro Valley, California. Officers drive her to stores, and she goes in alone to try to buy cigarettes. If the person behind the counter sells her a pack, an officer comes in and writes the business a ticket for breaking the law.

Most stores obey the law and don’t sell her cigarettes. The law requires that customers show ID if store employees ask them to. “When they ask your age, you can’t lie,” Connie says. “Most stores don’t sell to me. In a year, we’ve visited almost 150 stores and had only 15 sales.”

Working undercover can be scary, even with police nearby. Connie said one cashier refused to sell her cigarettes and then got angry when he found out her age. He threatened to call the authorities. “To calm him down, the police went in to explain that I was undercover,” she says.

Most teens wouldn’t think of going undercover for the police. What’s Connie’s motivation (动机)? For starters, she can’t stand smoking. But she also believes it’s important for young people like her to try to make a real impact in their communities. In her view, teens can do more than get good grades in school, do chores at home, and do well in out-of-class activities.

Every time she stops the sale of cigarettes to children, she’s helping to uphold the law. “A single teenager can make a big difference,” Connie says. “For the most part, when stores get caught, they learn their lesson and don’t do it again.”

1.According to the law what age of person can the store be allowed to sell cigarettes to?

A．Under 18.         B．More than 18.      C．16.              D．More than 16.

2.Connie goes to convenience stores to ________.

A．discover whether stores can sell cigarettes to kids

B．see which stores can sell cigarettes to her friends

C．look for her friends

D．arrest the smokers

3.What would happen if an owner sells cigarettes to kids?

A．The owner would be arrested.             B．The owner would be fined.

C．The kids would be punished.               D．The kids would be removed from school.

4.One reason that Connie works undercover is that ________.

A．she wants more smokers to quit smoking

B．she wants to get good grades in school

C．she hopes to make a difference in the area

D．she hopes to be excellent in out-of-class activities

5.Which of the following might be the main idea of the text?

A．Smoking can be forbidden with the help of a girl.

B．A good way to stop a store from selling cigarettes to kids.

C．Connie Lau — a brave girl who goes undercover for the policeman.

D．Connie Lau goes undercover to stop stores from selling cigarettes to kids.

Dear editor,

I am writing to ask what has happened to our young people.They are not as polite or hard-working as my generation（一代人I will give you two examples.

Last Friday, I got on the underground at 9:15 a.m. It was very crowded so there was no free seat.There were some boys sitting on the seats near me.I didn't know why they were not at school.They were talking and laughing loudly. It was difficult for me to read my newspaper with all the noise.At the next stop, a pregnant（怀孕的）woman and her daughter got on with lots of shopping bags.I expected the boys to let them sit down.They saw the woman but they did nothing.I had to ask them to give the woman and her daughter seats.   They did so but gave me a rude look.

Last Saturday, I had dinner with my friend’s family.I was glad to see his children, who I hadn't seen for ten years.During the dinner, I started talking about world politics with the children.It soon became clear that they didn't know much about it.They couldn't tell me the name of the King of Spain or President of Italy.All they knew about was the Internet or which singers were the most beautiful.In my days, students knew the kings, the queens and the presidents of every country in Europe.

I worry about the future of Germany.How could these young people become good workers and parents? They sit around McDonald's after school instead of going to the library like I did at their age.Maybe they have too much money.Perhaps some readers can give us some ideas about what to do with this “lost generation”.

Yours sincerely,

Frantz Vogts.

1.Mr. Vogts writes this letter to the editor to _______.

2.When Mr Vogts met the boys on the underground , he_______.

3.Mr Vogts was disappointed at the dinner because _______.

4.By saying “lost generation”, Mr Vogts refers to ________.

If by any chance someone comes to see me, ask them to have a __________.

　　A. message B. letter C. sentence D. notice

A motivational strategy that parents can employ with their kids, is to frame tasks and responsibilities in the context of what the end benefit is for them．I call this strategy WIIFM （"What's in it for me?" ）．

When a teen can combine an understanding of WIIFM with a sense of passion about achieving a goal, barriers will start to fall away．At our teen summer camps, we arrange an event near the end of the 10-day session that helps campers identify an important life goal and mentally break through their biggest barrier to achieving the goal． We pass around 12-by-12-inch pine boards．We tell campers that this activity is not about breaking a piece of wood．It's about how you can get what you want in your life．It's about breaking

barriers to grab on to your goals．

They have the power to break through any barrier．It has nothing to do with body size or physical condition．The skinniest, smallest teens will break through the board almost as easily as the big ones．

We talk to the campers about the reasons they might have had for not reaching their goals in the past．Maybe they got lazy and decided it wasn't worth the effort．Maybe they failed and let their fear of failure hold them back．But this exercise is about putting the past where it belongs．Today is about making new choices．

By this point in the program, we ask them to think of the goal they've set or themselves and write their goals on the boards．Then they write the possible obstacles which may hold them back on the opposite sides．An inch of pine now stands between them and their dreams．

The facilitators and their teammates gather around．The support is strong．One by one, they break through the barriers and grab their goals! All around us teens are laughing, crying, hugging, and holding up the broken pieces of their boards．The confidence shown on their faces is beautiful．

While arranging such an activity in one's home is almost unrealistic for parents, the value of helping a teen break through a personal hairier simply by being there as moral support can not be overestimated．More help for parents in the form of videos and articles is available at our website, in our blogs and in a monthly e-newsletter．

1.The 12-by-12-inch pine boards are used as ______．

    A．materials to test one's muscles                    B．signs of goals in one's life

    C．assessments to show one's progress                 D．symbols of barriers in one's life

2.We can learn from the passage that through the event the campers ______．

    A．become hard-working                                B．get moral support

    C．gain confidence                                    D．set right goals

3.Which is the best title for the passage?

    A．The Power of WIIFM                  B．What's in It for Me

    C．The Importance of Goals                            D．Motivational Strategies

4.The passage is intended for ______．

    A．teens        B．parents         C．campers     D．tutors

Children start out as natural scientists, eager to look into the world around them. Helping them enjoy science can be easy; there’s no need for a lot of scientific terms or expensive lab equipment. You only have to share your children’s curiosity(好奇). Firstly, listen to their questions. I once visited a classroom of seven-year-olds to talk about science as a job. The children asked me “textbook questions” about schooling, salary(薪水) and whether I liked my job. When I finished answering, we sat facing one another in silence. Finally I said, “Now that we’re finished with your lists, do you have questions of your own about science?”

After a long pause, a boy raised his hand, “Have you ever seen a grasshopper(蚱蜢) eat? When I try eating leaves like that, I get a stomachache. Why?”

This began a set of questions that lasted nearly two hours.

Secondly, give them time to think. Studies over the past 30 years have shown that, after asking a question, adults typically wait only one second or less for an answer, no time for a child to think. When adults increase their “wait time” to three seconds or more, children give more logical(符合逻辑的), complete and creative answers.

Thirdly, watch your language. Once you have a child involved in a science discussion, don’t jump in with “That’s right” or “Very good”. These words work well when it comes to encouraging good behavior(行为). But in talking about science, quick praise can signal that discussion is over. Instead, keep things going by saying “That’s interesting” or “I’d never thought of it that way before”, or coming up with more questions or ideas.

Never push a child to “Think”. It doesn’t make sense, children are always thinking, without your telling them to. What’s more, this can turn a conversation into a performance. The child will try to find the answer you want, in as few words as possible, so that he will be a smaller target(目标) for your disagreement.

Lastly, show; don’t tell. Real-life impressions of nature are far more impressive than any lesson children can learn from a book or a television program. Let children look at their fingertips through a magnifying glass(放大镜), and they’ll understand why you want them to wash before dinner. Rather than saying that water evaporates(蒸发), set a pot of water to boil and let them watch the water level drop.

According to the passage, children are natural scientists, and to raise their interest, the most important thing for adults to do is _______.

A. to let them see the world around

B. to share the children’s curiosity

C. to explain difficult phrases about science

D. to supply the children with lab equipment

In the last sentence of the first paragraph, the word “lists” could best be replaced by ______.

A. any questions                          B. any problems

C. questions from textbooks         D. any number of questions

According to the passage, children can answer questions in a more logical, complete and creative way if adults ________.

A. ask them to answer quickly

B. wait for one or two seconds after a question

C. tell them to answer the next day

D. wait at least for three seconds after a question

In which of the following paragraph(s) does the author tell us what to say to encourage children in a science discussion?

A. The second and third.      B. The fourth and fifth.

C. The fifth and sixth.        D. The seventh.

The author mentions all of the following techniques for adults to share with their children’s curiosity except that adults should ________.

A. tell their children stories instead of reciting(背诵) facts

B. offer their children chances to see things for themselves

C. be patient enough when their children answer questions

D. encourage their children to ask questions of their own