When you are at odds with someone close to you, the One-Minute Drill can show you how to express your feelings effectively – and how to listen more skillfully. All it requires is two individuals who are committed to improving their relationship.
Set aside at least ten minutes, and then sit facing each other. Decide who will be the Talker and who will be the Listener. It makes no difference, because later you will change roles.
How to perform the One-Minute Drill
For approximately 30 seconds, the Talker can say anything he or she wants. Your job will be to express your thoughts and feelings. You can discuss problems you've had a hard time talking about. Remember to limit yourself to about 30 seconds. When the Talker finishes, the Listener will summarize what the Talker just said, as well as how the Talker was feeling inside, as accurately as possible.
The Talker now gives the Listener a grade between 0 and 100 per cent to indicate how accurate the summary was. If the rating is 95 per cent or more, you can change roles; the new Talker can continue with the same topic or move on to something entirely new.
However, if the grade is below 95 per cent, the Talker should point out what the Listener missed or got wrong, and repeat the process until the overall rating is 95 per cent or more. Then you can change roles and repeat the exercise for as long as you both like.
How it works
Thirty seconds of emotionally charged information is sufficiently challenging for anyone. Express your feelings in strong, clear, direct language, but as your partner will be listening attentively, you won't need to shout, exaggerate or put your partner down.
The Listener should sit and listen respectfully without interrupting. Look into your partner's eyes, but avoid using negative body language. If you like, take a few notes.
So the Talker might say: "When I come home from work, I feel tired and I need some quiet time. But you tell me I'm supposed to spend time with the kids. This makes me feel frustrated. I work hard and I'm exhausted at the end of the day. I feel like I deserve a little time to relax, not listen to more demands."
In response, the Listener might summarize like this: "You just told me that you feel exhausted when you come home at night because you've been working hard all day. When I tell you I want you to spend time with the kids, you feel frustrated and ticked off because you're tired and you need time to relax. You see me as very demanding, and you're probably feeling like I don't appreciate you."
The first time you attempt the One-Minute Drill, you may get a low score. Don't worry, because you'll get up to speed quickly. Once you've tried this exercise a few times, you'll find that you can nearly always get ratings of 95 per cent or better on the first or second try.
【小题1】 Who is the One-Minute Drill intended for?

Do you sometimes argue about what seems to you to be simple fact? Do you argue whether it’s cold outdoors or whether the car in front of you is going faster than the speed limit?

If you get into such arguments, try to think about the story about the six blind men and the elephant. The first blind man who felt the elephant’s trunk said it was like a snake. The second who felt the elephant’s side said it was like a wall, while the third said it was like a spear as he touched the animal’s tusk. The fourth, who got hold of the elephant’s tail insisted that it was like a rope. The fifth man said it looked like a tree as he put his arms around one of the elephant’s legs. The sixth, who was tall and got hold of the elephant’s ears, said it was like a huge fan.

Each man’s idea of the animal came from his own experience. So if someone disagrees with you about a “simple fact”, it’s often because his experience in the matter is different from yours.

To see how hard it is for even one person to make up his mind about a“simple fact”, try this simple experiment. Get three large bowls. Put ice water in one. Put hot water in the second. Put lukewarm water in the third. Now put your left hand in the ice water. Put your right hand in the hot water. After thirty seconds, put both hands in the lukewarm water. Your right hand will tell you the water is cold. Your left hand will tell you it’s hot!

What makes people think about simple facts differently?

A. The fact that simple facts differ from one another.

B. The fact that people have different experience in the same simple fact.

C. The fact that people often disagree with one another.

D. The fact that it’s hard to make up one’s mind about simple facts.

Which of the following temperatures can the word “lukewarm” be applied to?

A. Around 1℃              B. Above 60℃    C. Around 25℃      D. Below 0℃

After reading the last paragraph, we may think of        .

A. Newton’s law                  B. Gallileo’s theory of falling objects

C. Einstein’s theory of relativity      D. Marx’s On Capital

The main idea of this passage is         .

A. people often judge something according to his own experience

B. people often agree about simple facts

C. it’s hard for a person to make up his mind about a simple fact

D. don’t care too much about simple facts

I have only once been in trouble with the law. The whole process of being arrested and taken to court was a rather unpleasant experience at the time, but it makes a good story now. What makes it rather disturbing was the arbitrary circumstances both of my arrest and my subsequent? fate in court.

It happened in February about twelve years ago. I had left school a couple of months before that and was not due to go to university until the following October. I was still living at home at the time.

One morning I was in Richmond, a suburb of London near where I lived. I was looking for a temporary job so that I could save up some money to go traveling. As it was a fine day and I was in no hurry, I was taking my time, looking in shop windows, strolling in the park, and sometimes just stopping and looking around me. It must have been this obvious aimlessness that led to my downfall.

It was about half past eleven when it happened. I was just walking out of the local library, having unsuccessfully sought employment there, when I saw a man walking across the road with the obvious intention of talking to me. I thought he was going to ask me the time. Instead, he said he was a police officer and he was arresting me. At first I thought it was some kind of joke.

But then another policeman appeared, this time in uniform, and I was left in no doubt.

“But what for?” I asked.

“Wandering with intent to commit an arrestable offence.” he said.

“What offence?” I asked.

“Theft.” he said.

“Theft of what?” I asked.

“Milk bottles,” he said, and with a perfectly straight face too!

“Oh,” I said.

It turned out there had been a lot of petty thefts in the area, particularly that of stealing milk bottles from doorsteps.

Then I made my big mistake. At the time I was nineteen, had long untidy hair, and regarded myself as part of the sixties’ “youth counterculture”. As a result, I wanted to appear cool and unconcerned with the incident, so I said, “How long have you been following me?” in the most casual and conversational tone I could manage. I thus appeared to them to be quite familiar with this sort of situation, and it confirmed them in their belief that I was a thoroughly disreputable （品行不端的）character.

????????????? A few minutes later a police car arrived.

????????????? “Get in the back,” they said. “Put your hands on the back of the front seat and don’t move them.”

????????????? They got in on either side of me. It wasn’t funny any more.

????????????? At the police station they questioned me for several hours. I continued to try to look worldly and familiar with the situation. When they asked me what I had been doing, I told them I’d been looking for a job. “Aha,” I could see them thinking, “unemployed”.

Eventually, I was officially charged and told to report to Richmond Magistrates’ Court the following Monday. Then they let me go.

I wanted to conduct my own defense in court, but as soon as my father found out what had happened, he hired a very good lawyer. We went along that Monday armed with all kinds of witnesses, including my English teacher from school as a character witness. But he was never called on to give evidence. My “trial” didn’t get that far. The magistrate （法官） dismissed the case after fifteen minutes. I was free. The poor police had never stood a chance. The lawyer even succeeded in getting costs awarded against the police.

And so I do not have a criminal record. But what was most shocking at the time was the things my release from the charge so clearly depended on. I had the “right” accent, respectable middle-class parents in court, reliable witnesses, and I could obviously afford a very good lawyer. Given the obscure nature of the charge, I feel sure that if I had come from a different background, and had really been unemployed, there is every chance that I would have been found guilty. While asking for costs to be awarded, my lawyer’s case quite obviously revolved （回转） around the fact that I had a “brilliant academic record”.

Meanwhile, just outside the courtroom, one of the policemen who had arrested me was gloomily complaining to my mother that another youngster had been turned against the police. “You could have been a bit more helpful when we arrested you,” he said to me reproachfully （责备地）.

What did he mean? Probably that I should have looked outraged and said something like, “Look here, do you know who you’re talking to? I am a highly successful student with a brilliant academic record. How dare you arrest me!” Then they, probably, would have apologized perhaps even taken off their caps, and let me on my way.

1.Judging from the first paragraph, the writer’s attitude towards his story is _______.

A. angry????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? B. sad?????? ?????????????

C. amused?????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? D. more than just one of the above

2.The first man who came up to him was ______.

A. a uniformed policeman???????????????? ????????????? B. a policeman in plainclothes

C. not a policeman?????????????????????? ????????????? D. a good joker

3.The court never asked the author’s English teacher to give evidence because _______.

A. the time for the trial was limited to fifteen minutes only

B. the author wanted to conduct his own defense in court

C. the case was dismissed before the trial reached that stage

D. he was found to be unqualified as a character witness

4.The author believes that he would most probably have been declared guilty if _______.

A. the magistrate had been less gentle?????? ?????????????

B. he had really been out of work

C. he had been born in a lower— class family ?????????????

D. both B and C

5. In the opinion of one of the policeman who had arrested the author, the whole thing might not have occurred if ______.

A. he had protested strongly at the time???? ?????????????

B. he had begged to be allowed to go home

C. he hadn’t wandered aimlessly?????????? ?????????????

D. he had tried to look cool

6.We can see from the passage that the author ______.

A. has broken the law only once

B. has never broken the law

C. has broken the law on more than one occasion

D. once broke the law without knowing it

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Private English Tutor Wanted

Senior Chinese manager is looking for a one-on-one English tutor for several hours per week. He would like to learn British pronunciation, so UK nationals will be preferred. Tutors should be fairly flexible to suit his busy schedule and be of professional appearance. Pay is to be discussed directly and will be very high for the right candidate. Teaching experience is not a must.

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CALLING – Teacher/Librarian!  

We are a small Kindergarten to Grade 6 international school in Beijing. We need a teacher/ librarian. The teacher we are looking for will: - Be a Chinese /English speaking librarian.

Qualifications

Be self-starters, active team players,

Have a positive attitude and love to work with kids

Provide an exciting and innovative library program to students.

If you meet the above qualifications, please send your CV and a current picture to principalinchina@yahoo.ca .

The purpose of the advertisements is________.

A. to start a business

B. to employ English teachers

C. to provide the latest jobs

D. to help people find a suitable job

According to the first advertisement, we can learn that_______.

A. English Teacher agency charges teacher for this service

B. you must go online to offer your basic information first

C. you may call to get more information about the job

D. once you English Teacher agency, you will get a job

In the third advertisement, the private English tutor should________

A. be an English language expert from UK

B. speak American English

C. have rich teaching experience

D. have the ability to deal with changing situations

If you didn’t pass the interview for Teacher/Librarian, the probable reason should be that ________.

A. you like working with children

B. you have a strong team spirit

C. you lack teaching experience

D. you can only speak English

The underlines word “CALLING” in the fourth advertisement most means_________.

A. job or profession     B. wish     C. interest     D. chance

As a young boy, I sometimes traveled the country roads with my dad. He was a rural mill carrier, and on Saturdays he would ask me to go with him. Driving through the countryside was always an adventure: There were animals to see, people to visit, and chocolate cookies if you knew where to stop, and Dad did.
In the spring, Dad delivered boxes full of baby chickens, and when 1 was a boy it was such a fun to stick your finger 'through one of the holes of the boxes and let the baby birds peck on your fingers.
On Dad' s final day of work, it took him well into the evening to complete his rounds because at least one member from each family was waiting at their mailbox to thank him for his friendship and his years of service. "Two hundred and nineteen mailboxes on my route." he used to say, "and a story at every one. " One lady had no mailbox, so Dad took the mail in to her every day because she was nearly blind. Once inside, he read her mail and helped her pay her bills.
Mailboxes were sometimes used for things other than mail. One note left in a mailbox read. "Nat, take these eggs to Marian; she's baking a cake and doesn't have any eggs. " Mailboxes might be buried in the snow, or broken, or lying on the groom:. bat the mail was always delivered On cold days Dad might find one of his customers waiting for him with a cup of hot chocolate. A young wrote letters but had no stamps, so she left a few button on the envelope in the mailbox; Dad paid for the stamps. One businessman used to leave large amounts of cash in his mailbox for Dad to take to the bank. Once, the amount came to 8 32,000.
A dozen years ago, when I traveled back to my hometown on the sad occasion of Dad’s death,  the mailboxes along the way reminded me of some of his stories. I thought I knew them all, but that wasn't the case.
As I drove home, I noticed two lamp poles, one on each side of the street. When my dad was around, those poles supported wooden boxes about four feet off the ground. One box was painted green and the other was red, and each had a long narrow hole at the top with white lettering: SANTA CLAUS, NORTH POLE. For years children had dropped letters to Santa through those holes.
I made a turn at the comer and drove past the post office and across the railroad tracks to our house. Mom and I were sitting at the kitchen table when I heard footsteps. There, at the door, stood Frank Townsend, Dad's postmaster and great friend for many years. So we all sat down at the table and began to tell stories.
At one point Frank looked at me with tears in his eyes. " What are we going to do about the letters this Christmas?" he asked.
"The letters?"
'I guess you never knew. "
"Knew what?"
" Remember, when you were a kid and you used to put your letters to Santa in those green and red boxes on Main Street? It was your dad who answered all those letters every year. "
I just sat there with tears in my eyes. It wasn’t hard for me to imagine Dad sitting at the old table in our basement reading those letters and answering each one. I have since spoken with several of the people who received Christmas letters during their childhood, and they told me how amazed they were that Santa had known so much about their homes and families.
For me, just knowing that story about my father was the gift of a lifetime.
【小题1】It can be inferred from the passage that the writer regarded his travels with Dad us_____.