How do you feel when you have to make a speech in front of class? What about when you go to a birthday party? Do you get really shy?
Shyness means feeling nervous or afraid when you’re around other people. Experts have found that more than 80% of middle school students feel afraid to be the center of attention. Some kids are born shy. Some become shy later because of their life experiences(经历).
It’s OK if it takes you a while to feel yourself again when you go to a new place or meet new people. In fact, everybody gets a little shy sometimes. It’s just a case of how much.
Most people have red faces and talk in broken sentences when they get shy. But some become so shy that they won’t go to a restaurant because they are too nervous to order and pay for their food. Some are afraid of meeting new people, so they seldom go outside. This kind of shyness can be bad for a person.
If shyness doesn’t stop you from doing something you want to do, being shy isn’t a very big problem. Some experts say shy people are cleverer because they think more and talk less. Shy people are also good at working with others because they think more for other people. Some great people in history were shy, too.
You see, being shy isn’t all bad. But remember not to let good opportunities(机会) pass by just because of it! If you have to sing a song at a birthday party or practice your spoken English in front of others, just do it! There’s nothing to be afraid of.
【小题1】The underlined phrase “to feel yourself again” in the third paragraph means “________”.

Cats are the most popular pets among Americans. So it is not surprising that there are a lot of expressions about cats. Some cats like to catch small birds, like canaries (金丝雀). If someone looks very proud and satisfied with himself, we say “he looks like the cat that ate the canary.”
Sometimes, a cat likes to play with a small animal it catches. So if you “play cat and mouse” with someone, it means that you change between different kinds of behavior when dealing with another person. For example, a girl might offer something sweet to her little brother and then take it away when he reaches for it.
Americans might say that something is “the cat’s miaow” or “the cat’s pajamas(睡衣)” to describe something that is the best or finest. “A copycat” is someone who acts just like someone else or copies another person’s work. “A fat cat” is a person with a lot of money.
If you tell about something that is supposed to be a secret, we say you “let the cat out of the bag”. If you are not able to speak or answer a question, someone might ask you if “the cat has got your tongue(舌头)”
Have you ever watched children in a classroom when their teacher leaves for a few minutes? “When the cat’s away, the mice will play” means people sometimes act badly when there is no supervision (监管).
You may have heard the expression “curiosity killed the cat”. This means caring too much about things that are not your business might cause problems.
If you have ever had cats as pets, you know it is difficult to train them or to get them to do something. Cats are not like Sheep or cows that can be moved in a group. So we say a difficult or impossible job is like “herding (放牧) cats “
【小题1】 What can we learn from the passage?