Reading is the key to school success and, like any skill, it takes practice. A child learns to walk by practicing until he no longer has to think about how to put one foot in front of the other. An excellent sportsman practices until he can play quickly, correctly and without thinking. Educators call it “automaticity (自动性)”.

A child learns to read by sounding out the letters and finding the meaning of the words. With practice, he stumbles less and less, reading by the phrase (短语). With automaticity, he doesn't have to think about the meaning of words, so he can give all his attention to the meaning of the text.

It can begin as early as first grade. In a recent study of children in Illinois schools, Alan Rossman of Northwestern University found that automatic readers in the first grade not only read almost three times as fast as the others, but also got better results in exams.

According to Rossman, the key to automaticity is the amount (数量) of time a child spends reading, not his IQ. Any child who spends at least 3.5 to 4 hours a week reading books, magazines or newspapers will probably reach automaticity. It can happen if a child turns off TV just one night for reading at home.

You can test yourself by reading something new which is suitable (适合) for your level. If you read aloud with expression, with a sense of the meaning of the sentences, you probably are an automatic reader. If you read brokenly, one word at a time, without expression or meaning, you need more practice.

1.Children with “automaticity” can read faster because they don’t have to think about ________.

A．how to read the words                   B．the meaning of the words

C．reading by themselves                   D．the meaning of the text

2.Rossman tells that any child who ________  will possibly be an automatic reader.

A．turns off TV one night 4 weeks

B．reads books by the word quickly

C．spends an hour reading every day

D．gets the same grades as others in exams

3.The underlined word “stumble” in the passage means “________” in Chinese.

A．结结巴巴地读                         B．全神贯注地读

C．心不在焉地读                          D．声情并茂地读

4.The best title for the passage is  “________”.

A．IQ Is the Key to the Automaticity

B．TV Is Bad for Children's Reading

C．Automaticity Depends on Practice

D．Automatic Reads Will Be Successful

 

 

When you are learning English, you find it not clever to put an English sentence, word for word, into your own language. Take the sentence "How do you do?" as an example. If you look up each word in the dictionary, one at a time, what is your translation (翻译)? It must be a wrong sentence in your own language.

Languages do not just have different sounds, they are different in many ways. It's important to master(掌握) the rules(规则) for word order (顺序) in the study of English, too. If the speaker puts words in a wrong order, the listener can't understand the speaker's sentence easily.Sometimes when the order of words in an English sentence is changed, the meaning of the sentence changes. But sometimes the order is changed, the meaning of the sentence doesn't change.

Let's see the difference between the two sentences:"She only likes apples. " "Only she likes apples. "

When you are learning English, you must use it as the English speaker does.

1.From the passage we know that _______when we are learning English.

A. we shouldn't put every word into our own language

B. we should look up (查阅) every word in the dictionary

C. we need to put every word into our own language

D. we must read word by word

2. The writer thinks it is________in learning English.

A. difficult to understand different sounds

B. possible to remember the word order

C. important to master the rules in different ways

D. easy to master the rules for word order

3.We can learn from the passage that_______.

A. the meaning of an English sentence always changes with the order of the words

B. the order of words can never change the meaning of an English sentence

C. sometimes different order of words has a different meaning

D. if the order of words is different, the meaning of the sentence must be different

 

Do you have a dictionary? I think almost everyone has one.But ,how often do you use a dictionary? I don't believe that everyone makes good use of it.You may come across lots of new words in your study and you will ask someone for the answers. But if you have a dictionary ,

please don't let it sleep.You should make better use of it .It can tell you not only the meaning of the words but also the use of them.What's more, it can tell you how to use them.

It is true that dictionaries are very useful and important to us.They are like silent teachers. When you have a question, you can turn to them.They will give you the right answer.They are also like a trusted friend and stay with you forever. You can learn a lot from them .

Don't be lazy. Don't let your dictionary sleep any more. You will find it is a new world if you walk to it.

1.Does everyone make good use of the dictionary?

A．No,they aren't.     B．No,they don't.      C．Yes,they do.        D．I don't know.

2.What does a student often do if he comes across lots of new words in the study?

A．He will look them up in the dictionary.

B．He will ask his parents.

C．He will ask someone for the answers.

D．I don't know.

3.What can a dictionary tell you?

A. The meaning of the words.               B. The use of the words.

C. How to use the words.                   D. A,B and C.

4.What are dictionaries like according to the passage?

A．They are like silent teachers and trusted friends.    B．They are of medium height.

C．They are very cute.                      D．They are very beautiful.

5.Which is TRUE according to the passage?

A．We should let the dictionary sleep.          B．Dictionaries are like our mothers.

C．Dictionaries are very useful to us.           D．We can see the film in the dictionary.

 

Jim, a successful businessman, told the experience of his childhood. When he was 12, his parents died. He was alone and didn't get on well with others. People always laughed at him. No one showed kindness to him. His only friend was a dog named Tige. He gave his dog enough to eat and drink, but sometimes he was not polite to it. He didn't know that an unkind word sometimes could cut one's heart like a knife.

One day as he walked down the street, a young lady was walking in front of him. Suddenly one of her bags dropped from her arms. As she stopped to pick it up, she dropped other bags. He came to help her. “Thank you, dear! You are a nice little boy!” she said kindly, smiling.

A special feeling came to him. These were the first kind words he had ever heard. He watched her until she went far away, and then he whistled (吹口哨) to his dog and went directly to the river nearby.

“Thank you, dear! You are a nice little boy” he repeated the woman's words. Then in a low voice he said to his dog, “You are a nice little dog!” Tige raised its ears as if it understood.

“Unum! Even a dog likes it!” he said. “Well, Tige, I won't say unkind words to you any more.” Tige waved its tail happily.

The boy thought and thought. Finally he looked at himself in the river. He saw nothing but a dirty boy. He washed his face carefully. Again he looked. He saw a clean nice boy. He was amazed. From then on, he had a new life.

After telling this, the businessman stopped for a while, and then he said, “Ladies and gentlemen, this is the very place where that kind woman planted in me the first seed (种子) of kindness. All of us should learn about kindness. What a great power it has!"

1.The boy repeated the words “Thank you, dear! You are a nice little boy!” because______

A. he was thinking about the words   

B. he didn't understand the words

C. he wanted to talk to his dog   

D. he liked talking to himself

2.What made the boy start his new life?

A. The people laughing at him.   

B. The kind words spoken to him.

C. The hard life.           

D. His lovely dog.

3.He was feeling __-__when he whistled to his dog.

A. funny  B. sad   C. lonely   D. excited

4.Which of the following is Right according to the passage?

A. He never took goog care of his friend ,Tige.

B.H usually had many friends around him.

C. He helped a young lady when her bag dropped.

D. He often washed his dirty face in lake.

5.What’s the best tile (题目)of this passage?

A.A Dog and a Boy     B. A poor Boy’s Childhood

C. A businessman and a Boy   D. The Power of Kindness

 

Reading is the key to school success and, like any skill, it takes practice. A child learns to walk by practicing until he no longer has to think about how to put one foot in front of the other. An excellent sportsman practices until he can play quickly, correctly and without thinking. Educators call it “automaticity (自动性)”.

A child learns to read by sounding out the letters and finding the meaning of the words. With practice, he stumbles less and less, reading by the phrase (短语). With automaticity, he doesn’t have to think about the meaning of words, so he can give all his attention to the meaning of the text.

It can begin as early as first grade. In a recent study of children in Illinois schools, Alan Rossman of Northwestern University found that automatic readers in the first grade not only read almost three times as fast as the others, but also got better results in exams.

According to Rossman, the key to automaticity is the amount (数量) of time a child spends reading, not his IQ. Any child who spends at least 3.5 to 4 hours a week reading books, magazines or newspapers will probably reach automaticity. It can happen if a child turns off TV just one night for reading at home.

You can test yourself by reading something new which is suitable (适合) for your level. If you read aloud with expression, with a sense of the meaning of the sentences, you probably are an automatic reader. If you read brokenly, one word at a time, without expression or meaning, you need more practice.

1.“Reading is the key to school success” means that reading            .

A. helps school develop faster

B. is a key to a successful school

C. helps students go to a key school

D. can improve students’ learning results

2.Children with “automaticity” can read faster because they            .

A. know how to read the words

B. do not have to think while reading

C. read by themselves without any help

D. pay attention to the meaning of the text

3.Rossman tells that any child who             will possibly be an automatic reader.

A. turns off TV one night 4 weeks

   B. reads books by the word quickly

   C. spends an hour reading every day

   D. gets the same grades as others in exams

4.The underlined word “stumble” in the passage means “           ” in Chinese.

   A. 结结巴巴地读                       B. 全神贯注地读

   C. 心不在焉地读                       D. 声情并茂地读

5.The best title for the passage is “           ”.

   A. IQ Is the Key to the Automaticity

   B. TV Is Bad for Children’s Reading

   C. Automaticity Depends on Practice

   D. Automatic Reads Will Be Successful