Question

One of the latest trend（趋势） in American Childcare is Chinese au pairs. Au Pair in Stamford, for example, has got increasing numbers of request for Chinese au pairs from aero to around 4,000 since 2004. And that’s true all across the country.

“I thought it would be useful for him to learn Chinese at an early age” Joseph Stocke, the managing director of s company, says of his 2-year old son. “I would at least like to give him the chance to use the language in the future,” After only six months of being cared by 25-year-old woman from China, the boy can already understand basic Chinese daily expressions, his dad says.

Li Drake, a Chinese native raising two children in Minnesota with an American husband, had another reason for looking for an au pair from China. She didn’t want her children to miss out on their roots.” Because I am Chinese, my husband and I wanted the children to keep exposed to(接触) the language and culture.” she says.

“Staying with a native speaker is better for children than simply sitting in a classroom,” says Suzanne Flynn, a professor in language education of Children.” But parents must understand that just one year with au pair is unlikely to produce wonders. Complete mastery demands continued learning until the age of 10 or 12.”

The popularity if au pairs from China has been strengthened by the increasing numbers of American parents who want their children who want their children to learn Chinese. It is expected that American demand for au pairs will continue to rise in the next few years.

1.What does that term” au pair” in the text mean?

A. A mother raising her children on her own

B. A child learning a foreign language at home

C. A professor in language education of children

D. A young foreign woman taking care of children.

2.Li Drake has her children study Chinese because she wants them ______.

A. to live in China some day

B. to speak the language at home

C. to catch up wit other children

D. to learn about the Chinese culture

3.What can we infer from the text?

A. Learning Chinese is becoming popular In America,

B. Educated woman do better in looking after children

C. Chinese au pairs need to improve their English Skills.

D. Children can learn a foreign language well in six months.

 

Answer 1

1.D

2.D

3.A

【解析】

试题分析: 本文属于说明文体裁。在文中作者提出美国现在存在的一种潮流趋势，即越来越多的美国人希望孩子能够学汉语，而且他们都希望孩子能够在家里和来自中国的学生学习汉语，他们认为这样在生活中通过交流来学习汉语要比在学校学习有优势。

1.误选项为A， 因为文中多次提到学汉语的儿童。但是根据文章第三段….had another reason for looking for an au pair from China. 和文章第四段“Staying with a native speaker is better for children than simply sitting in a classroom,”可以推断美国家长希望孩子能够在家和来自中国的人们学英语，由此判断au pair是指住在家里可以教给孩子语言的年轻人。故答案选D。

2.”可知她让孩子学汉语的原因是想让孩子了解中国的文化。故答案选D。

3.判断推理。作者在文章首段提到美国的潮流就是小孩子在家学习汉语，而且给出了具体的数字证明，再通过文章末段It is expected that American demand for au pairs will continue to rise in the next few years可知.美国对au pairs的需求将会继续增长，由此判断A选项内容正确。

考点：考查社会文化类短文阅读。