According to the US’ Office for National Statistic(统计), women reaching the end of their childbearing years had about 1.9 children each in 2004, compared with 3.1 for those women in 1976. Numbers from the UK’s Office for National Statistics show a similar matter across the Atlantic: the percentage of one-child families in Britain had risen from 18 percent in 1972 to 26 percent in 2007.

But even though only children are becoming increasingly common, the stereotype(偏见) that they’re selfish, spoilt(宠坏的) and short of social skills holds strong. Even parents of only children are made to feel guilty about having only one child. Worried that they’re being selfish and endangering their child’s future, they rush to online trying to get advice. Soon, however, they ask themselves: is this social stereotype really reasonable?

“There have been hundreds and hundreds of research studies that show that only children are no different from their mates,” Susan Newman, a social psychologist(心理学家) at Rutgers University in the US, told ABC News.

A perfect example is Natalie Portman. “I had the only attention of my parents. And you know what? If I had had brothers or sisters I would have never become an actress,” she told Naanoo, an online magazine. “My mother has been with me to every audition(试听) and every acting class. With more children that would have never been possible. They would have been jealous(妒嫉) of me.”

This raises another question: why are only children still get such suspicion(质疑)?

“There is a long-lasting belief that’s been around probably since humans first existed that to have just one child is somehow dangerous, both for you and for the continuation of your race,” Toni Falbo, a professor of educational psychology at Texas University’s Population Research Center, told The Guardian. “In the past a lot of children died. You’d have had to be crazy to only have one.”

 Times, of course, have changed and baby’s death has largely disappeared. So what do only children themselves say? Kayley Kravitz, a blogger for The Huffington Post, grew up as an only child and highly praises the experience. “Being an only child taught me the most valuable skill of all: the ability to be alone,” she said.
1  What does the writer probably think of only children?

A. They are big problems.

B. They usually have more free time.

C. They are almost the same as others.

D. They can learn more social skills from their parents.

2  What does the word " guilty " in paragraph 2 mean probably?

A. Sorry.                 B. Happy.                    C. Disappointed.                   D. Proud.

3  What can we infer from the passage?

A. There were more only children in 2007.

B. Only children have more ability to be alone.

C. People usually have stereotypes on only children.

D. Modern medical technology makes only children more acceptable.

4  The writer mainly wants to tell us that________.

A. only children are social problems we should face directly

B. the parents were worried because of the stereotype

C. only children have more problems than others

D. there are more and more only children

If you have failed in the past to try to make big changes in life，try again now，one tiny step at a time．
Every year it’s the same．As December comes to an end，you think about the new year and all the ways you want to improve your life. But as you start to write down your hopes for the new year，you think about the last year．You excitedly write down all the changes you are going to make，but by the end of January those ideas get lost in your busy life．
Here’s a suggestion：Forget the too big，hard-to-achieve goals(目标) and just think about the small ones．“We often think that we have to do everything in big steps, even though it’s so hard for us to reach it．” said Robert Maurer，who recently wrote the book One Small Step Can Change Your Life．“What we try to do is to begin with such a small step that we can’t find any excuse not to do it．”
“Kaizen”，a Japanese word，is used to mean to change behavior and attitudes（态度）．During World War Il，American factory managers were able to increase productivity by trying small, continuous improvements instead of sudden changes．After the war，the idea was brought to a rebuilding Japan．It made Japan develop fast. The Japanese called it “kaizen”, which means “improvement”．
Maurer studied the idea and did some experiments with it. “Kaizen” could possibly help people succeed in doing everything
【小题1】Robert Maurer wrote a book to tell us           .

If you have failed in the past to try to make big changes in life，try again now，one tiny step at a time．

Every year it’s the same．As December comes to an end，you think about the new year and all the ways you want to improve your life. But as you start to write down your hopes for the new year，you think about the last year．You excitedly write down all the changes you are going to make，but by the end of January those ideas get lost in your busy life．

Here’s a suggestion：Forget the too big，hard-to-achieve goals(目标) and just think about the small ones．“We often think that we have to do everything in big steps, even though it’s so hard for us to reach it．” said Robert Maurer，who recently wrote the book One Small Step Can Change Your Life．“What we try to do is to begin with such a small step that we can’t find any excuse not to do it．”

“Kaizen”，a Japanese word，is used to mean to change behavior and attitudes（态度）．During World War Il，American factory managers were able to increase productivity by trying small, continuous improvements instead of sudden changes．After the war，the idea was brought to a rebuilding Japan．It made Japan develop fast. The Japanese called it “kaizen”, which means “improvement”．

Maurer studied the idea and did some experiments with it. “Kaizen” could possibly help people succeed in doing everything

1.Robert Maurer wrote a book to tell us           .

A．we should do everything in big steps

B．how to change one’s life with one small step

C．we should try a lot of sudden changes

D．how to find a small step without any excuse

2.The writer of the passage suggests we should           .

A．make changes at the end of the year

B．do few experiments with “kaizen”

C．do things with hard-to-achieve goals

D．take a tiny step to achieve big goals

3.Which of the following is TRUE from the passage?

A．Robert Maurer studied “kaizen” and found it helpful.

B．You can achieve your goals if you are not too busy.

C．You can’t find any excuse not to reach a big goal.

D．“Kaizen” was brought to Japan during World WarⅡ.

If you have failed in the past to try to make big changes in life，try again now，one tiny step at a time．
Every year it’s the same．As December comes to an end，you think about the new year and all the ways you want to improve your life. But as you start to write down your hopes for the new year，you think about the last year．You excitedly write down all the changes you are going to make，but by the end of January those ideas get lost in your busy life．
Here’s a suggestion：Forget the too big，hard-to-achieve goals(目标) and just think about the small ones．“We often think that we have to do everything in big steps, even though it’s so hard for us to reach it．” said Robert Maurer，who recently wrote the book One Small Step Can Change Your Life．“What we try to do is to begin with such a small step that we can’t find any excuse not to do it．”
“Kaizen”，a Japanese word，is used to mean to change behavior and attitudes（态度）．During World War Il，American factory managers were able to increase productivity by trying small, continuous improvements instead of sudden changes．After the war，the idea was brought to a rebuilding Japan．It made Japan develop fast. The Japanese called it “kaizen”, which means “improvement”．
Maurer studied the idea and did some experiments with it. “Kaizen” could possibly help people succeed in doing everything

1. 1.

   Robert Maurer wrote a book to tell us           

   1. A.
      we should do everything in big steps
   2. B.
      how to change one’s life with one small step
   3. C.
      we should try a lot of sudden changes
   4. D.
      how to find a small step without any excuse
2. 2.

   The writer of the passage suggests we should           

   1. A.
      make changes at the end of the year
   2. B.
      do few experiments with “kaizen”
   3. C.
      do things with hard-to-achieve goals
   4. D.
      take a tiny step to achieve big goals
3. 3.

   Which of the following is TRUE from the passage?

   1. A.
      Robert Maurer studied “kaizen” and found it helpful
   2. B.
      You can achieve your goals if you are not too busy
   3. C.
      You can’t find any excuse not to reach a big goal
   4. D.
      “Kaizen” was brought to Japan during World WarⅡ