Weighed down by study? Pushed to the limit by the fast pace of life ? Frightened by the possible war ? Well, you’re not alone. Men and women in France are seeking relief using the world’s best medicine-----laughter.

In the past year, more than 15 laughter clubs have been set up across the country. People of all ages go to release their stress with an hour group laughs. “People telephoned me and said they have forgotten what it is to laugh. They want to find a place where they can escape all their problems for a while. So they come,” said 40—year—old Jocelyne Le Moan. She usually takes a class of around 60 people through a series of laughter techniques.

Her pupils range from teenagers to 70 years old, but most are middle---aged white collars seeking 60 minutes of relaxation at the end of a busy day. Le Moan takes them through the “Lion Laugh”and the “Laugh Contest”, where participants “speak”to each other in different ways. And instead of talking, they break into fits of laughter. At the end there are 15 minutes of “meditation”, when they lie on their backs and let the laughs burst out of their mouths.

“I love it. It’s an experience that has changed my life. Through it I rediscovered the child’s laugh inside me,”Said Romain Jouffroy, 24. “US President George W. Bush should give it a try. He has lost his laugh,”she joked . Like Jouffroy, many laughter club members find themselves changed into children again, and why not ? The average preschooler laughs up to 400 times a day.

The average adult only a day seven to 15.

The physical benefits of laughter are already well—recognized. Doctors say the act of laughing releases good chemicals into the blood—stream, while the quick breathing that accompanies it helps massage（按摩）the digestive organs and strengthens the heart.

“A full hour is like having your inside go jogging！One finishes out of breath, but feels revitalized（产生新活力. And on top of that , you’ve had a laugh,”said doctor Alexisd’ Estaing.And many participants in Paris also emphasize the psychological benefits. They believe that laughter is a way of making oneself feel more confident.

1.Which of the following is not included among the benefits of laughing?

A．It can make people rediscover their children’s laugh.

B．It can release good chemical into blood streams.

C．It can make you feel self—confident.

D．It can cure the illness of people.

2.The writer suggested that you should_____________.

A．take the world’s best medicine.

B．talk to each other about what troubles you.

C．learn series of laughter techniques.

D．have a good laugh after a busy day.

3.From the passage , we can conclude the following but___________.

A．Jocelyne Le Moan is a teacher of the club.

B．the members are mostly middle---aged white collars.

C．people always need some way to relax in life.

D．laugh freely and everything goes well.

4.Which of the following is not the reason why so many people join the laughter clubs ?

A．Those members feel too much pressure on them.

B．They want to find a place to relax themselves.

C．Laughters help massage the digestive organs.

D．The members don’t know how to laugh.

A father in Wuhan, nicknamed "Eagle Dad" for his controversial parenting style, has dismissed critics' claims that he pushes his 4-year-old son too hard.

Police officer Wang Shaoyan came under the spotlight this month after his child took part in an 18-kilometer race in the Hubei provincial capital.

Some parents attacked his methods of extreme physical training, while others reacted strongly to his admission that he regularly exposes the youngster to cold showers. "I just want my son to reach his full potential," Wang said, adding that 4-year-old son not only runs 3 km every day he also takes cold showers from time to time to strengthen his body's resistance and willpower.

"He has never taken any sick leave from kindergarten," he said proudly. However, some parents find his methods too extreme.

"I'm not sure a 4-year-old is prepared for such intense training," said Zhang Ruxia  a woman who gave birth to two boys in October in Tianjin. "You can have good intentions to train your child at an early age but you also have to consider whether he can take it." Wang responded by saying children are too young to make decisions, and it is up to parents to lead them on the right path.

"I read many materials before and the whole process is step-by-step without pushing or imposing on my son," Wang said. The father said he was not acting rashly but following a scientific way of education. He said the doubts about his methods reflect the declining standards of modern education.

"Many people in Japan give their children cold showers too ,and no one is fussing about it，" he said. The traditional way of education applied by most of his peers might not necessarily help bring the best out of a child he said.

Wang said in addition to the physical training, he has also laid out a detailed and particular program to strengthen the intelligence of the child. "I have hired some university students to expand his knowledge in natural sciences, while playing the video for English-language teaching as well," he said.

1.For what reason was Wang made known to the public?

A. He employed some college students to teach his son.

B. He made his kid take a long distance race.

C. He exposed his 4-year-old to cold showers.

D. He forced his youngster to run 3 km every day.

2.Which statement is supported by the parents who hold the opposite opinion?

A. Extreme physical training can explore children's full potentials.

B. Taking cold showers regularly is beneficial for children's development.

C. It's up to parents to lead children on the right path.

D. The way to educate children should agree with their age.

3.What does the phrase "fussing about” probably mean in the 8th paragraph?

A. Minding about.      B. Paying attention to.

C. Laughing at.  D. Talking about.

4.In Eagle Dad’s opinion, his extreme parenting was questioned because____.

A. he didn’t take it step by step in a scientific way

B. the highly tense work-out was misunderstood

C. modern education is not challenging enough

D. some parents were jealous of his success

I had the meanest mother in the whole world. While other kids ate candy for breakfast, I had to have cereal, eggs or toast. When others had cokes and candy for lunch, I had to eat a sandwich. As you can guess, my supper was different from the other kids' also. But at least, I wasn't alone in my sufferings. My sister and two brothers had the same mean mother as I did.

    My mother insisted upon knowing where we were at all times. You'd think we were on a chain gang. She had to know who our friends were and where we were going. She insisted if we said we'd be gone an hour, that we be gone one hour or less — not one hour and one minute.

    We had to wear clean clothes and take a bath everyday. The other kids always wore their clothes for days. We reached the height of insults because she made our clothes herself, just to save money.

    The worst is yet to come. We had to be in bed by nine each night and up at eight the next morning. We couldn't sleep till noon like our friends. So while they slept --- my mother actually had the nerve to break the Child Labor Law. She made us work. We had to wash dishes, make beds, learn to cook and all sorts of cruel things. I believe she laid awake at night thinking up mean things to do to us.

    Through the years, things didn't improve a bit. We could not lie in bed, "sick" like our friends did, and miss school. Our marks in school had to be up to par. Our friends' report cards had beautiful colors on them, black for passing, red for failing. My mother, being as different as she was, would settle for nothing less than ugly black marks.

    As the years rolled by, first one and then the other of us was put to shame. We were graduated from high school. With our mother behind us, talking, hitting and demanding respect, none of us was allowed the pleasure of being a drop-out.

    My mother was a complete failure as a mother. Out of four children, a couple of us attained some higher education. None of us have ever been arrested or divorced. Each of my brothers served his time in the service of this country. She forced us to grow up into God-fearing, educated, honest adults. Using this as a background, I am now trying to raise my three children. I am filled with pride when my children call me mean. Why? Because now I thank God every day for giving me the meanest mother in the whole world.

What can we infer from the passage?

A. The author is not happy to have such a mean mother.       

B. The author's mother broke the Child Labor Law to make money.

C. The author's mother failed to educate her children to be honest adults

D. The author is strict with her children.

Why couldn’t the author eat candy for breakfast?

  A. Because she preferred cereal, eggs or toast to candy.

  B. Because her mother couldn’t afford for candy.

  C. Because her mother thought it not good to eat candy for breakfast.

  D. Because her mother had to gave candy to the author’s sister and two brothers.

The author’s mother made her children work because _________ .

   A. she had trouble falling into sleep

   B. she could not keep such a big family without her children’s help

   C. she was teaching her children to live by themselves.

   D. she had no time to do housework.

We find that bright children are rarely held back by mix-ability teaching. On the contrary, both their knowledge and experience are enriched. We feel that there are many disadvantages in streaming pupils. It does not take into account the fact that children develop at different rates. It can have a bad effect on both the bright and the not-so-bright child. After all, it can be quite discouraging to be at the bottom of the top grade!

Besides, it is rather unusual to grade pupils just according to their intellectual ability. This is only one aspect of their total personality. We are concerned to develop the abilities of all our pupils to the full, not just their academic ability. We also value personal qualities and social skills, and we find that mixed ability teaching contributes to all these aspects of learning.

In our classrooms, we work in various ways. The pupils often work in groups: this gives them the opportunity to learn to co-operate, to share, and to develop leadership skills. They also learn how to deal with personal problems as well as learning how to think, to make decisions, to analyze and evaluate, and to communicate effectively. The pupils learn from each other as well as from the teacher.

Sometimes the pupils work in pairs; sometimes they work on individual tasks and assignments, and they can do this at their own speed. They also have some formal class teaching when this is proper. We encourage our pupils to use the library, and we teach them the skills they need in order to do this efficiently. And advanced pupil can do advanced work. It doesn’t matter what age the child is. We expect our pupils to do their best, not their least, and we give them every encouragement to obtain this goal.

1.By “held back” (the underlined part of the first sentence) the author means “______”.

A．drawn to their studies                    B．prevented from advancing

C．made to remain in the same class           D．forced to study in the lower class

2.The author argues that a teacher’s chief concern should be the development of the pupil’s ______.

A．total personality                        B．intellectual ability

C．personal qualities                       D．communicative skills

3.Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the third paragraph?

A．Pupils also learn to develop their reasoning abilities.

B．Pupils also learn how to participate in teaching activities.

C．Group work gives pupils the opportunity to learn to work together with others.

D．Group work provides pupils with the opportunity to learn to be good organizers.

1. The child enjoyed _____ up the wooden bricks then knocking them down.

   A. adding           B. pushing         C. piling           D. forming

2. John was very upset because he was _____ by the police with breaking the law.

   A. accused          B. arrested        C. sentenced        D. charged   

3. It isn't quite _____ that he will be present at the meeting.

   A. sure             B. right           C. exact            D. certain