Among the four skills in learning English ,which of these is the “Odd-Man-Out”?The answer is speaking. The other three you can do alone on your own. But you can"t really speak alone! Speaking to yourself can be “dangerous” because men in white coats may come and take you away!
Where can you find people to speak English? And how can you practise speaking when you are alone?At school if you pay to go to a language school ,you should use the chance to speak .If your teacher asks you to speak in pairs or groups with other students ,try to say as much as possible. Don"t worry about your mistakes. Just speak!
Conversation Clubs Many cities around the world have conversation clubs where people can exchange one language for another .Look in your local newspaper to find a conversation club near you .They are usually free although some may charge a small entrance fee.
Shopping Even if you don"t want to buy anything ,you can ask questions about products that interest you in a shop.“How much does this cost?” “Can I pay by cheque?” Often you can start a real conversation—and it costs you nothing!
Cafe and Bars There are often American, Britain, Irish and Australian bars in many large cities .If you can find one, you"ll probably meet many people speaking English as a first or second language.
Language is all around you Everywhere you go, you find language .Shop names, street names ,advertisements ,notices ,and car numbers....When you walk down the street ,practise reading the words and numbers that you see .Say them to yourself .It"s not exactly a conversation ,but it will help you to “think” in English .But don"t speak too loud!
Songs and Video Repeat the words of an English-language song singing with the music until it becomes automatic. It"s good practice for your memory and for the mouth muscles that you need for English.
Above all ,speak as much as possible! Make as many mistakes as possible! When you know that you have made a mistake, you know that you have made progress!
小题1:What does “Odd-Man-Out” probably mean according to the passage?| A．Someone or something appearing different from others. | | B．Someone or something standing out of the group. | | C．Someone or something arranged in pairs. | | D．Someone or something easily mistaken for another. |
小题2:What might happen if you speak to yourself loudly in public?| A．The police will take you away and punish you. | | B．The doctors will force you to stay in hospital. | | C．You will have to pay to escape being punished. | | D．You will be forbidden to be member of the club. |
小题3:Why does the writer say “Make as many mistakes as possible”?Because _______.| A．everyone will make mistakes in learning English | | B．everyone will meet people speaking English with some mistakes | | C．making mistakes is a must in making progress in learning English | | D．making mistakes can make one realize the importance of speaking |
小题4:According to the passage,which way is not likely to be accepted by English beginners?| A．Recite poems loudly along the riverside. | | B．Listen to some English pop songs and video. | | C．Find an Englishman to speak English with. | | D．Take to the TV showing programmes at home. |
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小题1:A
小题2:B
小题3:C
小题4:A |
试题分析：本文讲述了如何提高英语学习者的口语水平的多个技巧和方法。
小题1:A 推理题。根据第一段前3行Among the four skills in learning English ,which of these is the “Odd-Man-Out”?The answer is speaking. The other three you can do alone on your own. But you can"t really speak alone!说明问的是：在四种学习英语的技巧中，那种不一样？故该词是指与别的不一样的事物。故A正确。
小题2:B 推理题。根据文章倒数第三段Say them to yourself .It"s not exactly a conversation ,but it will help you to “think” in English .But don"t speak too loud!可知你自言自语的声音不能太大，否则会引起别人的误会。而且你说话的内容也很奇怪，也许对方会认为你有精神病。故B正确。
小题3:C 推理题。根据文章最后一段Above all ,speak as much as possible! Make as many mistakes as possible! When you know that you have made a mistake, you know that you have made progress!可知犯错了以后你才知道自己有问题，才会更加努力地学习。才会有进步。故C正确。
小题4:A 细节题。根据文章倒数第三段Say them to yourself .It"s not exactly a conversation ,but it will help you to “think” in English .But don"t speak too loud!可知A项这样的活动是专家不建议的。故A正确。
点评：本文讲述了如何提高英语学习者的口语水平的多个技巧和方法。测试考生在阅读基础上的逻辑推理能力，要求考生根据文章所述事件的逻辑关系，对未说明的趋势或结局作出合理的推断；或根据作者所阐述的观点理论，对文章未涉及的现象、事例给以解释。考生首先要仔细阅读短文，完整了解信息，准确把握作者观点。 |
核心考点
试题【Among the four skills in learning English ,which of these is the “Odd-Man-Out”?T】；主要考察你对
题材分类等知识点的理解。
[详细]举一反三
Children find meanings in their old family tales．
When Stephen Guyer’s three children were growing up, he told them stories about how his grandfather, a banker, 1 all in the 1930s, but did not lose sight of what he valued most. In one of the darkest times 2 his strong-minded grandfather was nearly 3 , he loaded his family into the car and 4 them to see family members in Canada with a 5 , “there are more important things in life than money”.
The 6 took on a new meaning recently when Mr. Guyer downsized to 7 house from a more expensive and comfortable one. He was 8 that his children, a daughter, 15, and twins, 22, would be upset．To his surprise, they weren’t. 9 , their reaction echoed (共鸣) their great-grandfather’s．What they 10 was how warm the people were in the house and how 11 of their heart was accessible.
Many parents are finding that family stories have surprising power to help children
12 hard times. Storytelling experts say the phenomenon reflects a growing 13 in telling tales, evidenced by a rise in storytelling events and festivals.
A university 14 of 65 families with children aged from 14 to 16 found kids’ ability to 15 parents’ stories was linked to a lower rate of anger and anxiety.
The 16 is telling the stories in a way children can 17 . We’re not talking here about the kind of story that 18 , “ When I was a kid, I walked to school every day uphill both ways, barefoot in the snow.” Instead, we should choose a story suited to the child’s 19 , and make eye contact (接触) to create “a personal experience”. We don’t have to tell children 20 they should take from the story and what the moral is.
| 小题1: | | A．missed | B．lost | C．forgot | D．ignored |
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| 小题2: | | A．when | B．while | C．how | D．why |
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| 小题3: | | A．friendless | B．worthless | C．penniless | D．homeless |
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| 小题4: | | A．fetched | B．allowed | C．expected | D．took |
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| 小题5: | | A．hope | B．promise | C．suggestion | D．belief |
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| 小题6: | | A．tale | B．agreement | C．arrangement | D．report |
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| 小题7: | | A．large | B．small | C．new | D．grand |
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| 小题8: | | A．surprised | B．annoyed | C．disappointed | D．worried |
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| 小题9: | | A．Therefore | B．Besides | C．Instead | D．Otherwise |
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| 小题10: | | A．talked about | B．cared about | C．wrote about | D．heard about |
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| 小题11: | | A．much | B．many | C．little | D．few |
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| 小题12: | | A．beyond | B．over | C．behind | D．through |
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| 小题13: | | A．argument | B．skill | C．interest | D．anxiety |
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| 小题14: | | A．study | B．design | C．committee | D．staff |
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| 小题15: | | A．provide | B．retell | C．support | D．refuse |
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| 小题16: | | A．trouble | B．gift | C．fact | D．trick |
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| 小题17: | | A．perform | B．write | C．bear | D．question |
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| 小题18: | | A．means | B．ends | C．begins | D．proves |
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| 小题19: | | A．needs | B．activities | C．judgments | D．habits |
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| 小题20: | | A．that | B．what | C．which | D．whom |
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Cheektowage Central Middle School can be a lot of fun. It has game nights and student dances, after-school activities, and sports teams. However, students at the school must earn the right to join in the fun. If they don’t do their homework, participate in class, and behave at all times, they’re banned(禁止) from participating in after-school activities.
Students and parents say the threat of being excluded(排除在外) appears to be working. Kenny T. of Reno, Nev., says it taught him that actions have consequences: “I learned that I need to be balanced in both my work and athletics to be rewarded for working hard.” Parent Sondra LaMacchia told The New York Times that her 14-year-old daughter is learning responsibility at Cheektowaga Central. The teen used to perform poorly in her studies, but then she was banned from a school dance. The message got through loud and clear. “It’s nobody’s fault but hers,” LaMacchia said.
Although exclusion may help teach responsibility, some psychologists say it can also be threatening, especially for students who often cause, or may cause, trouble in school. They might become more aggressive and antisocial, which is exactly what schools like Cheektowaga Central want to prevent.
Should schools exclude students from activities to get them to behave? I believe teens need school activities and that inclusion can be the answer. For some troubled students, activities can be their motivation to stay in school. “Activities such as sports may be the only thing keeping certain students in school,” says Duace Wood, a teacher at Mohonasen High School in Rotterdam, N.Y. Getting involved in after-class activities keeps troublesome students in class. Even if they don’t do as well as their classmates, they are still learning. The more time they spend at school, the less time they have to even think about starting trouble. Teams also provide support and role models, and they help build the confidence that students need to succeed. If students who don’t behave are banned from activities, they might give up on school altogether.
小题1:Paragraph 2 is developed by _______.| A．analyzing causes | B．giving examples | | C．examining differences | D．following the time order |
小题2:Parent Sondra LaMacchia supports the policy of exclusion because _______.| A．it provides role models | | B．her daughter is aggressive | | C．her daughter hates taking exercise | | D． it helps teach responsibility |
小题3:In Paragraph 3 and 4, the author mainly talks about________.| A．students who are good at sports | | B．students who often cause trouble | | C．teens who do well in their studies | | D．teens who always behave themselves |
小题4:What is the author’s attitude towards the school’s policy of exclusion?| A． Negative | B．Sympathetic | C．Satisfied | D．Supportive |
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The scientific world continues to be amazed by the speed of the development of cloning. Some scientists now suggest that the cloning of humans could occur in the near future. Despite the benefits of cloning, however, certain ethical (道德的) questions concerning the possible abuse (滥用) of cloning have been raised. At the heart of these questions is the idea of humans influencing life in a way that could harm society, either morally or in a real physical sense. Some people object to cloning because it allows scientists to "act like God" in the handling of living organisms.
The cloning of Dolly raised the debate over this practice to a whole new level. It has become obvious that the technology for cloning Dolly could also be used to clone humans. A person could choose to make two or ten or a hundred copies of himself or herself by the same techniques used with Dolly. An active debate about the morality of cloning humans arises. Some people see benefits from the practice, such as providing a way for parents to produce a new child to replace one dying of a fatal disease. Other people worry about humans taking into their own hands the future of the human race.
At the beginning of the twenty-first century, many scientists say the controversy over the ethics of cloning humans is overstressed because of the unpredictability (不可预测性) of cloning in general. While scientists have cloned animals such as sheep, mice, cows, pigs, and goats, fewer than 3 percent of all those cloning efforts have succeeded. The animal clones that have been produced often have health problems. Scientists believe the rapid reprogramming in cloning can introduce random (任意的) errors into a clone’s DNA. Those errors have altered individual genes in minor ways, and the genetic defects (缺陷) have led to the development of major medical problems. Some scientists say this should make human cloning out of the question, but others argue that cloning humans may actually be easier and safer than cloning animals. Whatever, I agree that further research in the field of cloning is needed.
小题1:Some people are against cloning of humans because they think _________.
A．the practice takes too much time and money
| B．the cloning technology is still not mature
| C．humans control the future of the human race
| D．the population in the world will be too large |
小题2:Some scientists think the debate over ethics of cloning humans is overstressed because ____.
A．cloning of human beings is completely impossible
| B．the result of cloning can’t be predicted in general
| C．cloning of animals is a failure
| D．there are big errors in a clone’s DNA |
小题3:We can learn from the text that _______.
A．cloning of humans is a very controversial issue
| B．the cloning of Dolly begins to raise the debate over cloning of humans
| C．there are medical problems in cloning animals
| D．cloning humans is easier and safer than cloning animals |
小题4:The text is mainly about _______.
A．the benefits of cloning
| B．the ethics of cloning
| C．the history of cloning
| D．the defects of cloning |
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Your Car Is Ready for Take-off
The flying car has been talked about for many years，but now it appears that the idea is about to become a reality.
An international company has built a two-seater plane that, at the touch of a button ，transforms into a car perfectly suitable for driving on public roads. It has been designed so that the wings fold up automatically； and it takes just 15 seconds to switch between flying and driving. With its wings fully open and the propeller(螺旋桨）spinning, it can take off from any airfield.
Flying cars are quicker than traditional ones for travelling from city to city，and they can run on ordinary fuel. Another big advantage is that they are cool ，like something you would see in an action film. At the moment 9 however, the flying car’s wheels are illegal to leave the ground. That is not because of technical reasons or problems with the design. It is because the various road and aircraft authorities simply cannot agree on whether it is a car or a plane.
“The government and the authorities have never thought seriously about a flying car, says Alan Price ，the president of the company that has developed it. “I wanted a car that could fly and drive ，but it is difficult to find an organization prepared to insure the vehicle against accidents.
Nevertheless ? the company hopes to produce and deliver its first flying car soon. The company already has orders for 40 of them. The majority the potential customers are older and some are retired。There have even been orders from some people who have no pilot"s license.
The flying car will cost around $ 200.000. “For an airplane ， that’s a very reasonable price， but for a car, It"s quite expensive，” explains Alan. “But it just is not possible to make a $ 10，000 flying car yet. ”
This latest means of transport will not become a mass-market item in the near future，but in the long term it has the potential to change the way you travel. It will become no more expensive than driving your car on the motorway. Travel time could be reduced by more than half.
So the next time you are told to fasten your seat belt, it may be to prepare for take-off.
小题1:We know from the passage that the flying car______| A．has to run on special fuel | B．will replace traditional planes | | C．is popular with the rich | D．can shift between two forms |
小题2:The flying car is presently forbidden to take off because______.| A．many people think driving it not very safe | | B．it’s hard to decide whether it"s a car or a plane | | C．the government and the authorities don’t accept it | | D．there are still some technical problems to be solved |
小题3:We can learn from the passage that______.| A．few people will be able to afford a flying car | | B．flying cars may share the market in the future | | C．traffic jams will disappear because of flying cars | | D．driving a flying car doesn’t require a pilot’s license |
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The use of lotteries (彩票) to allocate (分配) school places is to be reviewed by the British government because more than 20 percent of children are failing to get into their first-choice schools in parts of the country.
The struggle for secondary school places has reached record levels this year, increasing anxiety for hundreds of thousands of families. A report from 43 local authorities suggests that in many areas, up to a fifth of children face disappointment. Families in London are the hardest hit.
This week is admissions week, when about 570,000 families will receive notice about their child’s secondary school acceptance. As the recession (不景气) forces more parents to consider a state education rather than a private one for their children, more than a third of local authorities have noted rises in the number of applications for secondary school places.
This year, just 62 percent of children in Richmond-upon-Thames got into their parents’ first-choice school, down from 64 percent last year. The council said this was caused by an increase in applications.
In another London authority, Tower Hamlet, 71.1 percent of children were admitted to their parents’ first choice school. In Leeds and Warwickshire, 85 percent were successful. In Derby the figure was 81 percent, while in Wiltshire, Stockport and Lincolnshire, the figure was 89 percent.
In many authorities, the figures are similar to those of last year. Exceptions include Brighton and Hove, which introduced a lottery system to allocate oversubscribed places last year. This year, it has seen a 3.5 percent increase in the number of children obtaining their first choice, bringing the total to nearly 88 percent. However, more than 5 percent of children in this area have been allocated a place at a school that was not among any of their choices.
Lotteries are being used at the government’s suggestion by a small number of oversubscribed schools in around twenty-five local authorities. They were meant to prevent middle-class parents from abusing the system by buying or renting homes close to the best schools.
小题1:According to the passage, more and more parents in Britain prefer to send their children to _______.| A．a state school | B．a private school | | C．a school in London | D．a school in Brighton |
小题2:Which of the following statements is true according to the passage?| A．The lottery system is certainly a good way to allocate school places. | | B．Over one in five children fail to get into their first-choice schools in parts of Britain. | | C．The lottery system is welcomed by parents around twenty-five local authorities. | | D．The number of applications for secondly school places is falling this year. |
小题3:In the following places, the highest preferred school admission rate is in _______.| A．Richmond-upon-Thames | B．Brighton and Hove | | C．Lincolnshire | D．Derby |
小题4:The purpose of using lottery system is to ________.| A．keep middle-class parents buying or renting homes close to the best schools. | | B．increase the number of children obtaining their first choice | | C．decrease the number of applications for some good schools | | D．create equality between children from different social classes |
小题5:The passage is most probably taken from _______.| A．a survey on education | B．a textbook on science | | C．a speech on radio | D．an essay on economy |
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