Every summer, no matter how urgent work schedule is, I take off one day exclusively for my son. We call it dad-son day. This year our third stop was the amusement panic, where we discovered that he was tall enough to ride one of the fastest roller coasters (过山车)in the world. We experienced through face-stretching turns and circles for ninety seconds. Then, as we stepped off the ride, in a calm voice, he remarked that it was not as exciting as other rides he’d been on. As I listened, I began to sense something seriously out of balance.

Throughout the season, I noticed similar events all around me. Parents found it hard to find new stimulations for cold kids. Surrounded by ever-greater stimulation, their young feces were looking disappointed and bored

Facing their children's complaints of "nothing to do", parents were spending large numbers of dollars for various forms of entertainment In many cases the money seemed to do little more than buy relief from the terrible complaint of their bored children. This set me thinking the obvious question: "How can it be so hard for kids to find something to do when there's been such a range of stimulating entertainment available to them?"

What really worries me is the strength of the stimulation. I watch my little daughter's &ce as she absorbs bloody special effects in movies.

Why do children facing such excitement seem starved for more? Thai was, I realized, the point I discovered during my own adolescence that what creates excitement is not going fast, but going faster. Excitement has less to do with speed than changes in speed.

I am concerned about the increasing effect of years at these levels of feverish activity. It is no mystery to me why many teenagers appear uninterested and burned out, with a "been there, done that" air of indifference toward much of life. As increasing numbers of friends’ children are advised to take medicine to deal with inattentiveness at school or anti-depressants (抗抑郁药)to help with the loss of interest and joy in their lives—I question the role of kids’ boredom in some of the diagnoses (处方).

My own work is focused on the chemical imbalances and biological factors related to behavioral and emotional disorders. These are complex problems. Yet I’ve been reflecting more and more on how lie pace of life and the strength of stimulation may be contributing to the rising rates of psychological problems among children and adolescents in our society.

1.The reason why the author felt surprised in the amusement park was that ________.

A．his son was not as excited by the roller coasters ride as expected

B．his songs enjoyed turns and circles with his face stretched

C．his son appeared upset but calm while riding the roller coasters

D．his son could keep his balance so well on the fast moving roller coasters

2.According to the author, children will probably feel excited ________.

A．if their parents allow them to ride roller coasters very often

B．since parents spend money on the same form of entertainment

C．after they take anti-depressants according to the diagnoses

D．if they are often exposed to more stimulating entertainment

3.From his own experience, the author came to the conclusion that children seem to expect _______.

A．a much wider variety of sports facilities

B．activities that require complicated skills

C．the change of the forms of recreation

D．more challenging physical exercise

4.In order to relieve children's boredom, the author would probably suggest ________.

A．adjusting the pace of life and strength of stimulation

B．promoting the practice of dad-son days

C．consulting a specialist in child psychology

D．balancing school work with after school activities

Every summer, no matter how urgent work schedule is, I take off one day exclusively for my

son. We call it dad-son day. This year our third stop was the amusement panic, where we discovered

that he was tall enough to ride one of the fastest roller coasters (过山车)in the world. We experienced through face-stretching turns and circles for ninety seconds. Then, as we stepped off the ride, in a calm voice, he remarked that it was not as exciting as other rides he’d been on. As I listened, I began to sense something seriously out of balance.

Throughout the season, I noticed similar events all around me. Parents found it hard to find new stimulations for cold kids. Surrounded by ever-greater stimulation, their young feces were looking disappointed and bored

Facing their children's complaints of "nothing to do", parents were spending large numbers of dollars for various forms of entertainment In many cases the money seemed to do little more than buy relief from the terrible complaint of their bored children. This set me thinking the obvious question: "How can it be so hard for kids to find something to do when there's been such a range of stimulating entertainment available to them?"

What really worries me is the strength of the stimulation. I watch my little daughter's &ce as she absorbs bloody special effects in movies.

Why do children facing such excitement seem starved for more? Thai was, I realized, the point I discovered during my own adolescence that what creates excitement is not going fast, but going faster. Excitement has less to do with speed than changes in speed.

I am concerned about the increasing effect of years at these levels of feverish activity. It is no mystery to me why many teenagers appear uninterested and burned out, with a "been there, done that" air of indifference toward much of life. As increasing numbers of friends’ children are advised to take medicine to deal with inattentiveness at school or anti-depressants (抗抑郁药)to help with the loss of interest and joy in their lives—I question the role of kids’ boredom in some of the diagnoses (处方).

My own work is focused on the chemical imbalances and biological factors related to behavioral and emotional disorders. These are complex problems. Yet I’ve been reflecting more and more on how lie pace of life and the strength of stimulation may be contributing to the rising rates of psychological problems among children and adolescents in our society.

1.The reason why the author felt surprised in the amusement park was that ________.

2.According to the author, children will probably feel excited ________.

3.From his own experience, the author came to the conclusion that children seem to expect _______.

4.. In order to relieve children's boredom, the author would probably suggest ________.

I'd gone from a tiny village school with a total of 60 students, to a huge school, with thousands of pupils．I was a little fish in a very big ????? . I lived too much of my first year ?????? doing anything wrong．I just decided to be the wallflower when it discussion and answering questions．I was always the one that ??????? Class???? ?? didn't look the teacher in the eye??? ? ? they asked me to answer．I listened well, and ?? ? ??? everything in, but I always liked to be a spectator（旁观者）．It's hard not t0???? ?????? what others may think of you when you are speaking in front of many ????? ? ???? ．It did take long for me to feel teachers and make friends with classmates．Some people???? ? with straight into a new learning environment．?

Some people ????? straight into a new learning environment. ????? , most are nervous and feel they don't fit in．It's completely???? ?? , so it should not be a worry to you．Be ??? ? ??? and you will adapt to the new school．School life is ??? ???? you make obit．Some ????? it; some Iike it．-But it's only when you leave that you can really appreciate how school ????? you into the person you become．

It's so important to ? ??? yourself out of your comfort zone．If you're shy, tell yourself you’ I raise your _ ? ?? at least once every lesson; if you're quick-minded, try to give other people a （n）?? ?? In time, you will ___it will do you benefit from it .

1.A．class?????? B．school ????????????? C．lake ????????????? D．house

2.A．in fear of?? B．in favor of ????????????? C．in honor of ????????????? D．in danger of

3.A．got to???? B．referred to ????????????? C．turned to ????????????? D．came to

4.A．sharply??? ????????????? B．purposely ????????????? C．hopelessly ????????????? D．searchingly

5.A．in case??? B．so that ????????????? C．the moment ????????????? D．soon after

6.A．wrote???? ????????????? B．brought ????????????? C．took ????????????? D．got

7.A．doubt????? B．apply ????????????? C．check ????????????? D．care

8.A．teachers?? B．classmates ????????????? C．adults ????????????? D．friends

9.A．angry????? B．popular ????????????? C．disappointed ????????????? D．comfortable

10.A．slide???? B．fit ????????????? C．change ????????????? D．turn

11.A．Therefore B．Instead ????????????? C．However ????????????? D．Meanwhile

12.A．normal??? B．strange ????????????? C．awkward ????????????? D．interesting

13.A．proud???? B．practical ????????????? C．private ????????????? D．positive

14.A．what????? B．how ????????????? C．which ????????????? D．when

15.A．like??? ????????????? B．ignore ????????????? C．accept ????????????? D．hate

16.A．forces???? B．develops ????????????? C．places ????????????? D．teaches

17.A．push????? B．take ????????????? C．kick ????????????? D．remove

18.A．voice???? ????????????? B．question ????????????? C．hand ????????????? D．head

19.A．answer ????????????? B．chance ????????????? C．hug ????????????? D．smile

20.A．forget??? B．forgive ????????????? C．realize ????????????? D．remember

Paris has the Eiffel Tower; New York has the Statue of Liberty; and Brussels, the Manneken Piss．
Think of the Belgian capital and, if anything, you think of the small peeing (撒尿) boy—a 60-meterhigh bronze figure standing on a block, supplying a constant stream of water to the basin under him．
Some might laugh．But for Jacques Stroobants, the statue is up there with the best of them．
“I’m proud of him．People come from all around the world to see him,” says 60-year-old Stroobants with a fatherly glance at the little boy．
As the most famous landmark of Brussels, Manneken Piss has a very special place in the heart of Belgians．
The original Manneken Piss dates back to 1388, but the statue tourists see today dates from 1619 when the city built a second one after the original was destroyed．
Many stories go round Manneken Piss．Nobody knows why he was made．One story is that he saved Brussels by putting out the flames of a deadly fire with his well-aimed piss．But the most believable story is that the boy, the son of a wealthy man, was kidnapped (绑架)．The father had a statue built in honor of the way his son was found—peeing against a tree．
Perhaps best-known for his naked beauty, the “peeing boy” has also been clothed in some of the finest clothes money can buy．
Stroobants has been changing his clothes for the last 29 years．On average, he has clothes on 300 days a year．And on special days, he pees beer．
A few of the ways he’s been dressed are：a football player, Mozart and an army general．Now, he has more than 600 pieces of clothes．
There is no strict charge for those wishing to provide clothes for the little boy．But certain conditions must be met．
“The clothes cannot include either advertising or political message,” said Stroobants, because they would cheapen the national treasure．
But Manneken Piss is still something local people can make money from—by selling all kinds of souvenirs．
72．Which of the following is NOT true about Manneken Piss?
A．It has a history of more than 600 years.                    
B．It stands in Brussels.
C．It is best known for the clothes he wears.                 
D．It is 60 meters high.
73．The Manneken Piss has a special place in the heart of Belgians because _______．
A．it’s good looking with water running constantly
B．it brings joys to people who see it
C．it helps people make money
D．it’s a symbol of the city
74．We can learn from the passage that ________．
A．for most of the year, the boy is naked
B．Stroobants is probably in charge of taking care of the statue
C．people can provide any clothes for Manneken Piss free of charge
D．people make money by advertising Manneken Piss
75．The local people can get money by selling _______．
A．objects that remind the tourists of a trip         
B．clothes that Manneken Piss has worn
C．anything that is related to Manneken Piss       
D．stone figures that resemble Manneken Piss

On the whole, it’s not something we parents shout about, but one in four of us does it. Hiring private tutors for our children is now widespread.
“It’s expensive, but worth it,” says Ashan Sabri, whose daughter Zarreen, is having tuition in biology and chemistry in preparation for A-levels this summer. “My husband and I tried to tutor her at home, but we found all our knowledge was out of date and we were only confusing Zarreen. We also tried a group revision course but all the children were sitting in a room for different kinds of exams. On the whole, we think one-to-one tuition works best.”
The real reason is: does tutoring do any good?
“It’s not the magic bullet,” says Professor Judith Ireson, author of a 2005 Institute of Education report on the subject. “It’s still up to the child to do the learning. If he or she isn’t interested, sending them to a private tutor won’t do any good. However, we did find that students who had private tuition in mathematics during the two years before GCSE achieved on average just under half a grade higher than students who did not have a tutor.”
In which case, surely it’s time to break open the champagne? Not necessarily, says Elaine Tyrrell, head of The Rowans School, Wimbledon, a preparation school which regularly gets children into the best private schools.
“While we recommend private tutoring for a few children whose first language isn’t English, we don’t encourage it for the others. With the level of education they get here, children really ought to be able to pass the entrance exams without any extra teaching. And our worry is that they might just get used to getting help from last-minute tutoring, but, once they actually get to that school, they won’t be able to cope.”
But Mylene Curtis, owner of Fleet Tutors, one of the biggest tutoring agencies in the country, holds a different view.
“In some respects, the hurdles children have to leap in order to get into these schools are set at a higher level than the reality,” says Curtis. “We often find that, once a child has got into a school, the standard of work isn’t as high as was feared. The trick is to do well enough in the exam to win a place.”
【小题1】What does Ashan Sabri think of the group revision course?