Why play games? Because they are fun, and a lot more besides. Following the rules...planning your next move...acting as a team member...these are all “game” ideas that you will come across throughout your life.

Think about some of the games you played as a young child, such as rope－jumping and hide－and－seek. Such games are entertaining and fun. But perhaps more importantly, they translate_life_into_exciting_dramas that teach children some of the basic rules they will be expected to follow the rest of their lives, such as taking turns and cooperating(合作)．

Many children's games have a practical side. Children around the world play games that prepare them for work they will do as grown－ups. For instance, some Saudi Arabian children play a game called bones. Which sharpens the hand－eye coordination(协调)needed in hunting.

Many sports encourage national or local pride. The most famous games of all, the Olympic Games, bring athletes from around the world together to take part in friendly competition. People who watch the event wave flags, knowing that a gold medal is a win for an entire country, not just the athlete who earned it. For countries experiencing natural disasters or war, an Olympic win can mean so much.

Sports are also an event that unites people. Soccer is the most popular sport in the world. People on all continents play it—some for fun and some for a living. Nicolette Iribarne, a Californian soccer player, has discovered a way to spread hope through soccer. He created a foundation to provide poor children with not only soccer balls but also a promising future.

Next time you play your favorite game or sport, think about why you enjoy it, what skills are needed, and whether these skills will help you in other aspects of your life.

1. Through playing hide－and－seek, children are expected to learn to ________.

A. be a team leader     B. obey the basic rules

C. act as a grown－up    D. predict possible danger

2. The underlined part in Paragraph 2 most probably means that games can________.

A. describe life in an exciting way

B. turn real－life experiences into a play

C. make learning life skills more interesting

D. change people's views of sporting events

3. According to the passage, why is winning Olympic medals so encouraging?

A. It inspires people's deep love for the country.

B. It proves the exceptional skills of the winners.

C. It helps the country out of natural disasters.

D. It earns the winners fame and fortune.

4. Iribarne's goal of forming the foundation is to ________.

A. bring fun to poor kids

B. provide soccer balls for children

C. give poor kids a chance for a better life

D. appeal to soccer players to help poor kids

5. What can be inferred from the passage?

A. Games  benefit people all their lives.

B. Sports can get all athletes together.

C. People are advised to play games for fun.

D. Sports increase a country's competitiveness.

I love charity(慈善) shops and so do lots of other people in Britain because you find quite a few of them on every high street. The charity shop is a British institution, selling everything from clothes to electric goods, all at very good prices. You can get things you won't find in the shops anymore. The thing I like best about them is that your money is going to a good cause and not into the pockets of profit-driven companies, and you are not damaging the planet, but finding a new home for unwanted goods.

The first charity shop was opened in 1947 by Oxfam. The famous charity's appeal to aid postwar Greece had been so successful it had been flooded with donations(捐赠物). They decided to set up a shop to sell some of these donations to raise money for that appeal. Now there are over 7,000 charity shops in the UK. My favourite charity shop in my hometown is the Red Cross shop, where I always find children's books, all 10 or 20 pence each.

Most of the people working in the charity shops are volunteers, although there is often a manager who gets paid. Over 90% of the goods in the charity shops are donated by the public. Every morning you see bags of unwanted items outside the front of shops, although they don't encourage this, rather ask people to bring things in when the shop is open.

The shops have very low running costs: all profits go to charity work. Charity shops raise more than ￡110 million a year, funding（资助）medical research, overseas aid, supporting sick and poor children, homeless and disabled people, and much more. What better place to spend your money? You get something special for a very good price and a good moral sense. You provide funds to a good cause and tread lightly on the environment.

The author loves the charity shop mainly because of _______.

   A. its convenient location

   B. its great variety of goods

   C. its spirit of goodwill

   D. its nice shopping environment

The first charity shop in the UK was set up to ____.

   A. sell cheap products

   B. deal with unwanted things

   C. raise money for patients

   D. help a foreign country

Which of the following is TRUE about charity shops?

   A. The operating costs are very low.

   B. The staff are usually well paid.

   C. 90% of the donations are second-hand.

   D. They are open twenty-four hours a day.

Which of the following may be the best title for the passage?

   A. What to Buy a Charity Shops.

   B. Charity Shop: Its Origin & Development.

   C. Charity Shop: Where You Buy to Donate.

   D. The Public's Concern about Charity Shops.

Everywhere you look, large quantities of information in the world are pouring. This data flood is already starting to transform business, government, science and everyday life. It has great potential for good — as long as consumers, companies and governments make the right choices about when to restrict the flow of data, and when to encourage it.
A few industries have led the way in their ability to gather and take advantage of the data. Credit-card companies monitor every purchase and can identify cheats with a high degree of accuracy. Stolen credit cards are more likely to be used to buy hard liquor than wine, for example, because it is easier to overlook. Insurance firms are also good at combining clues to spot doubtful claims: dishonest claims are more likely to be made on a Monday than a Tuesday, since policyholders (保险客户) who stage accidents tend to assemble friends as false witnesses over the weekend. By combining many such rules, it is possible to work out which cards are likeliest to have been stolen, and which claims are untrue. By analyzing “basket data”, supermarkets can make promotions to appeal to particular customers’ preferences. The oil industry uses supercomputers to help them before drilling wells.
But the data flood also poses risks. There are many examples of databases being stolen: disks full of social-security data go missing, laptops loaded with tax records are left in taxis, credit-card numbers are stolen by online purchase. The result can be privacy made public, identity stolen and cheats permitted large space. Rather than owning and controlling their own personal data, they very often find that they have lost control of it.
The best way to deal with the data flood is to make more data available in the right way, by requiring greater transparency in several areas. First, users should be given greater access to and control over the information held about them, including whom it is shared with. Google allows users to see what information it holds about them, and lets them delete their search histories or modify the targeting of advertising, for example. Second, organizations should be required to disclose details of security breaches (安全漏洞), as is already the case in some parts of the world, to encourage bosses to take information security more seriously. Third, organizations should be subject to an annual security check, with the resulting grade made public (though details of any problems exposed would not be). This would encourage companies to keep their security measures up to date.
64. What is the best title for this passage?  
A. Information Flood             B. Benefits of Data Flood
C. Harms of Data Flood          D. How to Use Data in a Right Way
65. From the passage we can infer that _____.
A. lots of data are lost because of hardware problems
B. online purchases are becoming more and more popular
C. credit cards are not so secure to use and will go out of use very soon
D. insurance firms have to investigate before they confirm their policyholders’ claims
66. Which of the following is the writer’s opinion about how to deal with the data flood?
A. Personal information should be used for public benefits.
B. The users should be given the right to access public information.
C. Companies should update their measures to guarantee their data safety.
D. Organizations should keep their resulting grade of security checks unknown to the public.
67. From the passage we can conclude that _____.
A. the data flood makes peoples’ life less convenient and more expensive
B. companies and insurance firms are responsible for the data flood
C. the information flood is more useful to organizations than to individuals
D. the information flood has both positive and negative influence on modern life

Free On-line Short Stories For Kids: Trevor The Taxi

In this children's story, suited to younger children, we have an adventure with Trevor. He is a taxi. Trevor loves his life:

“Sometimes he takes patients to the nursing home, where they can get better after being ill, and sometimes he takes people home when they have been shopping, and Stan puts all their packages inside Trevor's boot, so they will not get wet or broken.”

The black cab, in this adventure, goes far beyond the call of duty whilst he achieves his wildest dreams! What could this be? Well you will just have to read this short story for yourself!

Free On-line Short Stories For Kids: The Girl Who Believed In Fairies

The fairy queen is upset and the elves just don't know what to do:

“Oh dear, oh dear," sobbed the queen, getting her hankie all wet with her constant crying. For the twelfth time that day, Elgie the chief elf took her hankie and wrung it out on to the carpet of grass that grew all around the palace.”

How will they manage to help the queen? Why was she so unhappy? There is only one person that can help! Can she do it? This is a lovely fairy tale that will glow the embers of your heart - only for young girls!

Free On-line Short Stories For Kids: The Envious Kings

This story is suitable for 6 years and upwards.

Unfolding in the story pages of this recommendation is a children's story about two kings who were competing with each other:

“In spite of the easy life that the two kings had, they were not happy, for each of them kept thinking that the other one had a bigger and better palace, or owned more horses, or had more jewels or even had creamier milk.”

They were both petty and, through their envy, they caused themselves much trouble. Who do you think saved the day? Well, you will just have to read the story to find out!

Free On-line Short Stories For Kids: The Wise Old Woman

This story is probably suited to the 8 years old age range and upwards, although would appeal to adults, alike.

Here I introduce you to one of my kids on-line stories listed on the writing and literature section of Hubpages. In this parable you will find a magical world of wisdom involving trees, people and someone very special.

“As she stood and watched, the knowledge melted into her and the sapling grew...The magical transition took her breath away and as she watched on with ore, she noticed something strange.”

So, what was this strangeness and magical transition? Let me leave you with wonderment ... and a click of the link!

Free On-line Short Stories For Kids: Unusual Stories - Faffenburger's Odyssey

This story is probably more suited to the older child. So who is Faffenburger? Well with one of these free on-line short stories for kids, we enter into a different realm. A world of nonsense as Faffenburger moves within alpha and omega. This is a rather unusual story as you will find out!

“My friend, Henry Faffenburger stomped down the long lane on his short stumpy legs, moonlight glancing off his bald-spot, which was a little surprising as there was no moon that night. As he rounded the bend, he saw a pair of headlights coming toward him. They drew level, and stopped. A small man with yellow eyes emerged from the darkness behind the lights, and enquired if Faffenburger would like a lift.

"Where are you going ?" asked my friend. "Wherever you want to go", replied the owner of the yellow eyes.”

So, the adventure begins! Where will they go? Alpha, Omega or just the middle? After all, it was a long summer - especially the middle! Take a closer look at this - you might find something a little more strange and a little more hidden that you have noticed before. Intrigued? Well you should be with Faffenburger's Odyssey!

1.Which story is more well-received by young girls?

A．Trevor The Taxi                         B．Faffenburger's Odyssey

C．The Wise Old Woman                    D．The Girl Who Believed In Fairys

2.You can find the description of a night scene in _______?

A．The Envious Kings                       B．The Girl Who Believed In Fairies

C．The Wise Old Woman                    D．Faffenburger's Odyssey

3.According to the passage, the kings in “The Envious Kings” can be described as_______?

A．Jealous           B．powerful          C．rude             D．ugly

4.Who will most probably find the passage useful?

A．parents with children                    B．children who love to surf the Internet

C．teachers in high school                   D．experts who concern children