For those who are conditioned to think that learning only happens in a classroom, the world of self-learning can be a little daunting. How do we best take   1   of these new opportunities?

Your interest in the subject is the essential driver of success. You can’t learn what you do not want to learn. Emotion is an important part of the learning   2   . If you are even moderately interested in a subject, give yourself  a chance. The key is to get started. If you can create some pleasurable   3  , you may find that the subject grows on you.

Don’t expect to understand things, much less remember them, the first time you study them. Trust that things will get clearer   4   your brain comes to grips with new information. It is like a cross-word puzzle. As you start to put the pieces together, or string the words together, the full picture becomes clearer. The brain learns all the time, but    5    its own schedule. Learning does not take place according to a schedule laid down by a curriculum or teacher. Some things are easier to learn than others. Some things just take    6   to click in. Keep at it, and you will gradually find that things that seem difficult at first , will become easy with time.

Your brain is struggling to form patterns to    7    new input from your learning activities. Sometimes, no matter how long you focus on one subject, your brain is not going to pick it up. If you are stuck, move   8   . Then cover the same general information from a different source, a different book, or a podcast, or an online lecture or a video. Try to become a  grazing learner, roaming the countryside,     9   a feedlot learner, just standing there in one spot. The broader your base, the easier it is to learn. Just as the “rich get richer”, the more you know,     10   you can learn.

Take full advantage of the Internet, iTunes, and     11   mobile devices, not to mention good old-fashioned books and magazines. Learn during “dead time”. Listen in your car, on the train, or   12   jogging. Have your learning with you while waiting in the doctor’s office, or listen while checking out at the supermarket. Anytime is     13  time. Remember, you are learning through exposure, not by nailing things down. It is more like moisture accumulation in a    14   , rather than building a brick wall.

The more varied your learning content, and the more varied the ways in which you learn, the       15 the puzzle will become. Different learning activities suit different people, at different times of the day. Vary your activities in order to keep your interest level   16    . Even if listening and reading work best for you, treat yourself to the odd video lecture, or get-together with other learners. This will renew your batteries.

The “loneliness of the distance learner” is a thing of the   17  . Join a learning community on the web, where members share their knowledge and experience. Search for the communities that suit your interests and learning style. You will find encouragement, advice and stimulus from fellow learners,        18    from tutors, teachers and coaches. In these communities, you can measure your progress against your own goals, or compare your experience     19    that of other learners. You can even teach and help others, which is a great way to learn.

Never has it been easier nor more exciting to be a learner. Let constant learning be a major part of your life-style. The   20        will be constant, personally, socially, and professionally.

(   ) 1. A. advantage    B. place                C. possession         D. example

(   ) 2. A. progress      B. process             C. pressure            D. proposal

(   ) 3. A. roads          B. streets              C. routines            D. building

(   ) 4. A. with           B. if                     C. unless               D. as

(   ) 5. A. on              B. to                    C. with                 D. for

(   ) 6. A. shorter               B. sooner              C. longer              D. lower

(   ) 7. A. take with     B. com with          C. go with            D. cope with

(   ) 8. A. down          B. on                    C. away                D. off

(   ) 9. A. more than   B. less than           C. rather than               D. other than

(   ) 10. A. less           B. quicker             C. lower                      D. more

(   ) 11. A. same         B. similar             C. familiar            D. various

(   ) 12. A. while               B. before              C. after                 D. if

(   ) 13. A. playing     B. learning            C. talking             D. speaking

(   ) 14. A. cloud               B. sky                  C. earth                D. sea

(   ) 15. A. cleaner      B. clearer              C. harder              D. lower

(   ) 16. A. down               B. up                    C. in                    D. out

(   ) 17. A. present      B. day                  C. past                  D. night

(   ) 18. A. as long as B. as far as            C. as well as          D. as soon as

(   ) 19. A. without     B. with                 C. to                    D. beyond

(   ) 20. A. awards      B. words               C. remarks            D. rewards

For those who are conditioned to think that learning only happens in a classroom, the world of self-learning can be a little daunting. How do we best take   1   of these new opportunities?

Your interest in the subject is the essential driver of success. You can’t learn what you do not want to learn. Emotion is an important part of the learning   2   . If you are even moderately interested in a subject, give yourself  a chance. The key is to get started. If you can create some pleasurable   3  , you may find that the subject grows on you.

Don’t expect to understand things, much less remember them, the first time you study them. Trust that things will get clearer   4   your brain comes to grips with new information. It is like a cross-word puzzle. As you start to put the pieces together, or string the words together, the full picture becomes clearer. The brain learns all the time, but    5    its own schedule. Learning does not take place according to a schedule laid down by a curriculum or teacher. Some things are easier to learn than others. Some things just take    6   to click in. Keep at it, and you will gradually find that things that seem difficult at first , will become easy with time.

Your brain is struggling to form patterns to    7    new input from your learning activities. Sometimes, no matter how long you focus on one subject, your brain is not going to pick it up. If you are stuck, move   8   . Then cover the same general information from a different source, a different book, or a podcast, or an online lecture or a video. Try to become a  grazing learner, roaming the countryside,     9   a feedlot learner, just standing there in one spot. The broader your base, the easier it is to learn. Just as the “rich get richer”, the more you know,     10   you can learn.

Take full advantage of the Internet, iTunes, and     11   mobile devices, not to mention good old-fashioned books and magazines. Learn during “dead time”. Listen in your car, on the train, or   12   jogging. Have your learning with you while waiting in the doctor’s office, or listen while checking out at the supermarket. Anytime is     13  time. Remember, you are learning through exposure, not by nailing things down. It is more like moisture accumulation in a    14   , rather than building a brick wall.

The more varied your learning content, and the more varied the ways in which you learn, the       15 the puzzle will become. Different learning activities suit different people, at different times of the day. Vary your activities in order to keep your interest level   16    . Even if listening and reading work best for you, treat yourself to the odd video lecture, or get-together with other learners. This will renew your batteries.

The “loneliness of the distance learner” is a thing of the   17  . Join a learning community on the web, where members share their knowledge and experience. Search for the communities that suit your interests and learning style. You will find encouragement, advice and stimulus from fellow learners,        18    from tutors, teachers and coaches. In these communities, you can measure your progress against your own goals, or compare your experience     19    that of other learners. You can even teach and help others, which is a great way to learn.

Never has it been easier nor more exciting to be a learner. Let constant learning be a major part of your life-style. The   20        will be constant, personally, socially, and professionally.

(   ) 1. A. advantage    B. place               C. possession        D. example

(   ) 2. A. progress      B. process             C. pressure            D. proposal

(   ) 3. A. roads          B. streets              C. routines            D. building

(   ) 4. A. with           B. if                     C. unless               D. as

(   ) 5. A. on                  B. to                    C. with                 D. for

(   ) 6. A. shorter               B. sooner              C. longer              D. lower

(   ) 7. A. take with     B. com with          C. go with            D. cope with

(   ) 8. A. down          B. on                    C. away               D. off

(   ) 9. A. more than   B. less than           C. rather than               D. other than

(   ) 10. A. less           B. quicker             C. lower                      D. more

(   ) 11. A. same        B. similar             C. familiar            D. various

(   ) 12. A. while               B. before              C. after                 D. if

(   ) 13. A. playing     B. learning            C. talking             D. speaking

(   ) 14. A. cloud               B. sky                  C. earth               D. sea

(   ) 15. A. cleaner      B. clearer              C. harder              D. lower

(   ) 16. A. down               B. up                    C. in                    D. out

(   ) 17. A. present      B. day                  C. past                  D. night

(   ) 18. A. as long as B. as far as            C. as well as          D. as soon as

(   ) 19. A. without     B. with                 C. to                    D. beyond

(   ) 20. A. awards      B. words               C. remarks            D. rewards

For most of the day construction worker Sidney Smith and his brother – in – law Joseph Chambers had been   21  along the banks of Lake Waco with little   22 . Chambers suggested they go home, but Smith　33　　that there were still several hours of daylight　24　　and there was one other place they might try a bit longer before 　25　.
Smith drove his pickup（小货车）a couple of miles along the　26　road to get to the other side of the lake. This road, in the truest sense, was a path wagging in the heavy　27　area. Even with the sun still high in the cloudless sky, the　28　of trees formed a leafy　29　over the road and it suddenly seemed 　30　in the evening.
“A guy could get lost and nobody would ever find him,” said Chambers.
Smith smiled, “We’re　31　there.” He said. A few seconds later, the smile was 　32　　from his face.
“What the hell is that?”
　　He braked to a stop. Less than twenty feet away was what appeared to be a  33 .
　　For several minutes the two men sat in the pickup　34　to decide whether they had happened to　35　someone’s bad practical joke or something far more serious. Smith with his brother-in-law got out of the pickup and 　36　walked towards that thing some distance before them.
It was a young man who was already dead. They had got to tell　37　. Back into the pickup, Smith backed the pickup down the road　38　he could turn around, then　39　back. With the dead young man still on his mind, Smith felt as if he was going to be sick. God, how he　40　　they had given up fishing and gone home early.

For each blank in the following passage there are four words or phrases marked A, B, C and D. Fill in each blank with the word or phrase that best fits the context.
Most people believe they don’t have much imagination. They are    50  .Everyone has imagination, but most of us, once we become adults, forget how to    51  it. Creativity isn’t always   52  with great works of art or ideas. People at work and in their free time   53  think of creative ways to solve problems. Maybe you have a goal to achieve, a tricky question to answer or you just want to expand your mind! Here are three techniques to help you.
Making connections This technique involves taking   54  ideas and trying to find links between them. First, think about the problem you have to solve or the job you need to do. Then find an image, word, idea or object, for example, a candle. Write down all the idea/words   55  with candles: light, fire, matches, wax, night, silence, etc. Think of as many as you can. The next stage is to relate the   56  to the job you have to do. So imagine you want to buy a friend an original   57  ; you could buy him tickets to match or take him out for the night.
NO limits! Imagine that normal limitations don’t   58  . You have as much time/space/money, etc. as you want. Think about your goal and the new   59  .If your goal is to learn to ski,   60  , you can now practise skiing every day of your life （because you have the time and the money）. Now    61   this to reality.  Maybe you can practise skiing ever day in December, or every Monday in January.
Be someone else! Look at the situation from a    62  point of view. Good businessmen use this technique in trade, and so do writes. Fiction writers often imagine they are the   63  in their books. They ask question: What does this character want? Why can’t she get it? What changes must she make to get what she wants? If your goal involves other people, put yourself in their    64  . The best fishermen think like fish!

For Senior 3 students, choosing which college to attend can be the most exciting and thrilling time in their entire school lives. This is also true for an American girl 26  Melanie.
Melanie’s dad, James Porter, who is the chief of police for a Chicago suburb, wants Melanie to  27  nearby Northwestern University, where she’s  28  been accepted. But Melanie, 17, really wants to go to Georgetown University in Washington, D.C, where she’s been wait-listed.
When she gets an unexpected  29  from Georgetown University, she decides to 30 a road trip with a few 31 female friends. Melanie believes it is her first step  32 adulthood. But  33 the fact that this trip is “girls only”, James isn’t  34  with the prospect(期望) of his little princess  35  the world without him. He wants to protect her, so he joins the girls and hopes he can convince Melanie to go to Northwestern.  36  Melanie’s father only has the best of  37 , his presence  38 an endless series of comic encounters（遭遇）.
After following their faulty device  39  into the backwoods (偏远地区), James and Melanie  40  Melanie’s little brother and his pet pig have been hiding in the spare compartment (隔间). What should be a simple tyre change  41  the expensive car rolling down a mountain, forcing them to hike to a nearby hotel…. All these disasters add spice(额外的趣味) to their trip while along the way a father and a daughter  42  get the chance to really  43  each other.
All parents,  44  they have college students or not, can relate to the bittersweet realization that their kids are growing up.  45  what Melanie and James have done, we all can find the delicate (脆弱的) balance between staying connected and letting go.