A graded reader is a book containing simplified languages used to help learners master the language. Readers come in different levels, from beginners to advanced. English learners need to choose a reader that is suitable for their level.

Why use readers? Lots of research shows that extensive reading improves all aspects of language learning, including vocabulary, speaking skills, fluency(流利),writing skills and reading comprehension.

Reading is a way of learning English without classes or a teacher. It helps develop learner independence. And while reading graded readers, learners don’t have to run to a dictionary because the language is at their level.

How do I get started? The entire class can read the same book or different books at different times.

How do I know the right level? If your class is all reading the same book, choose one that is appropriate for their level. If your students are reading different books, you can have a selection of books at different levels. In this case, don’t worry too much about the level. A learner who is interested in detective stories might read a higher level book if the motivation(动机)is there.

How to read the book depends on students’ age, motivation and class time available. Some classes like to read silently, others like to read aloud in small groups and some enjoy being read to by the teacher. Be sensitive to the class and ask for their opinions.

Some pre-reading activities are needed. Before students open a book, it is important to spark interest in the story and in the whole process of reading. For example, ask them to guess what the story is from cover, chapter titles and let students put them in the best order, or discuss the author.

During reading, choose a suitable chapter or chapters that can be broken down to make a comic strip (连环漫画). Or students select a part of the book to make into a radio play. Students can also become journalists and report on parts of the story. Choose a piece of action and have students write it up. Besides, students can role-play an interview with a character.

61. Who do you think the passage is written mainly for?

    A．Students.         B．Parents.                  C．Teachers.         D．Pupils.

62. When do you think students can become journalists and report on parts of the story?

A．Before reading.                                          B．During reading.

C．During warming up.                                   D．After reading.

63. From the passage, we can learn that      .

A．readers can make classroom fun

B．reading can help develop learners dependence

C．some pre-reading activities are not needed

D．extensive reading improves all aspects of language learning

76. Betty runs a bed and breakfast somewhere in the picturesque countryside. She’s planning to purchase an eco-friendly dish soap with the natural fragrance of aloe. If the producer cares about nature conservation, she will put more trust in this brand.

77. Anne is a full-time housewife who always manages to live within her means. For example, she prefers to choose the dish soap that holds out for very long. Besides, the soap with the fragrance of flowers or fruit is much more to her taste.

78. Marilyn works as a regional representative of a major company. Occupied with her business as she is, she often spares some time after work to prepare some desserts. She is keen on trying something new; she is allergic to certain flower and fruit fragrant scents. She needs a dish soap with no harm to her skin.

79. Margaret has just moved in a fully furnished apartment. But the cupboard in the kitchen is relatively smaller. Thus, she will have no other alternative but to purchase smaller dining items, such as dish soap in a smaller bottle. Furthermore, she is an environmental activist.

80. Kitty serves as a kitchen steward of a fancy restaurant, in charge of cleaning large quantities of oily dishes every day. She suggests the owner select a dish soap worth the money. It is, by all means, an ideal choice for her if it features super cleaning power and meanwhile can keep the hands soft, but not dry.

A. Life Tree Dish Soap

A few drops of Life Tree Dish Soap will do a nice job on dishes. It comes in a smaller bottle than other dish soaps, which makes it more convenient for users. Life Tree does not use animal ingredients and is without a smell. So if you’re looking for a really environmentally friendly dish soap, look at Life Tree.

B. Method Dish Soap

Method Dish Soap works safely when used to wash dishes. It is concentrated, so a little goes a long way. You just need to lift and squeeze it to get a small amount of the soap from the bottle. The soap comes in various fruit fragrances (香味), such as orange and green apple.

C. Bio Pac Dish Soap

Bio Pac Dish Soap , with aloe (芦荟) and tea tree oil, has a fresh smell. It contributes a lot to green cleaning, for it is made of natural ingredients. What’s more, the company gives 10 percent of its profits to wilderness protection.

D. Seventh Generation Dish Soap

Seventh Generation Dish Soap cleans as well as any other soap. Also, it’s very environmentally friendly. The product is gentle on your hands. For those who are sensitive to certain fragrances, like flowers and fruit, Seventh Generation is a great choice.

E. Citrus Fresh Dish Soap

   Pleasantly fresh and cheap, the wonderful formula (配方) of the soap delivers extraordinary cleaning power to handle even the most difficult jobs. But with extras of aloe, calendula and other natural skin softeners, it actually helps prevent skin dryness and trouble while you do the dishes.

F. Dish Soap—Mint Sage, 16 oz

   An all-natural dishwashing soap that has long-lasting suds (泡沫) cleans without the harsh ingredients in it that can irritate (刺激) sensitive skin. This unique dish soap contains natural borax and the fragrance of flowers that work together to make things clean.

I live in a big city with a lot of homeless people．luckily there're small ways of helping them and you needn't have a lot of _1__.One way to help is to buy their monthly magazine.__2___doing this one day, I got to_3__a young homeless man．He was often__4__the magazine at the train station．He was a poor farmer from another country．After a while, I discovered that his___5_was close to mine．It_6__that we were born in the same month.

I met him last year__7__after his birthday, and after congratulating him, without__8__, I asked if he had had a good day. He__9_and said that he hadn't really celebrated. I felt so___10_．I just couldn't bear the thought of this nice, young man being__11__on his 25th birthday with no presents, no cake, nothing! So I went home and looked in my yarn（亚麻） basket.__12_for me, I had enough yarn__13__. I set to work and knitted（编织） a_14__for the young man. The yarn had become a little dirty_15__I didn't knit very often. Then I washed the yarn so the scarf（围巾） would be__16__when he got it.

I met him on my own birthday as I was going shopping. I had17___to meet him so I had__18_the scarf and a piece of my own birthday_19__around with me. He was very happy with these gifts and so was I. The __20__in his eyes was the best present he could have given me.

1．A．work                B．energy             C．money            D．experience

2．A．in                  B．on                 C．besides           D．by

3．A．realize              B．ignore              C．know             D．recognize

4．A．selling               B．reading            C．covering         D．buying

5．A．birthday             B．house             C．height           D．hobby

6．A．said                 B．found             C．guessed         D．meant

7．A．long                B．shortly            C．ever             D．even

8．A．shopping             B．helping            C．praising          D．thinking

9．looked up                B．turned up          C．looked down     D．got down

10．A．foolish             B．excited            C．clever           D．worried

11．A．cake              B．happy             C．alone            D．hungry

12．A．suddenly          B．luckily            C．badly            D．however

13．A．used              B．done             C．left              D．produced

14．A．scarf             B．cap              C．sock            D．glove

15．A．when             B．because           C．so              D．and

16．A．different          B．dry               C．wet             D．clean

17．A．liked             B．hoped            C．promised        D．agreed

18．A．made             B．thrown           C．received          D．carried

19．A．cake             B．present           C．song            D．party

20．A．light              B．pain              C．sight            D．tear

My mother has been a true inspiration to me and changed the way I look at life. Since my birth she has made it evident that I would become ___16___ and that I would be one of the great ones. She has taught me that I can do anything if I put my ___17___ to it.

As a young boy, I struggled to achieve tasks that came ___18___ to others. I had problems with writing, reading and especially speaking. I didn’t talk the way ___19___ kids did and did not respond to questions or stay alert（警觉的）to my surroundings. My reading was poor ___20___ with teachers helping me, and my speech was hard to ___21___. My writing was not at the ___22___ it should have been. Even simple things like knowing my left from my right or being able to snap my fingers (弹手指) were ___23___.

My mother ___24___ all my challenges and as a professor with a PH.D, decided to ___25___ the situation early in my development. She didn’t want me to ___26___. After a while, we did indeed get over all the problems that had ___27___ me. She spent hours every day ___28___ me everything I needed to know, determined to help me learn. ___29___ her I would not be anywhere close to the level I am now.

In addition, she gave ___30___ for my life. She told me what to do and what not to do. Her expectations have always been high ___31___ she knows that I can do it. For that, I thank her. She would not allow her son to be incapable. She never ___32___ on me, and to this day she tells me education is a must. I will be a ___33___ person if I continue to follow her lead. She encourages me to study hard for my ___34___ and attend college.

She used her gifts as a ___35___ to help a child—her child—and now I have the opportunity to become something.

1.                A．everything      B．nothing         C．anything  D．something

2.                A．mind           B．brain           C．feelings   D．work

3.                A．smoothly       B．strongly         C．frequently D．easily

4.                A．average        B．ordinary        C．normal   D．common

5.                A．just            B．ever           C．even D．only

6.                A．hear           B．write           C．read D．understand

7.                A．level           B．length          C．speed    D．degree

8.                A．problems       B．excuses         C．worries   D．duties

9.                A．suffered        B．observed       C．removed  D．tolerated

10.               A．study          B．find           C．change    D．keep

11.               A．fight           B．struggle        C．strike D．challenge

12.               A．interrupted     B．disturbed       C．terrified   D．troubled

13.               A．teaching        B．giving          C．supporting D．reminding

14.               A．Without        B．Except         C．Besides   D．Beyond

15.               A．information     B．advice         C．promise   D．expectation

16.               A．before         B．though         C．because   D．unless

17.               A．set up          B．gave up        C．pushed up D．looked up

18.               A．rich           B．famous         C．successful D．powerful

19.               A．training        B．grades         C．experiments    D．abilities

20.               A．woman         B．doctor         C．sister D．teacher

Who says constant texting is just a bad habit? The teenager with the fastest thumbs in the country was crowned on Wednesday at the LG US National Texting Championship in New York City, winning ＄50,000 after a series of fierce texting battles.
16-year-old Austin Wiershke comes from Rhinelander, Wisconsin of the United States. He took home the top prize at the fifth annual texting event, beating 11 other competitors in the final, including last year’s champion Brianna Hendrickson from Brooklyn, New York.
Wiershke, who was wearing a gray shirt and having Justin Bieber’s hairstyle, sailed through each level of the competition by typing passages of text on a QWERTY keyboard rapidly without any mistaken. One special round even included being blindfolded(蒙眼) on the state to make up phrases by memory.
“I’m extremely nervous,” Wiershke said while waiting for the results after the final round. “I’m getting ready to hear Brianna’s name. When I heard my name was announced, I really couldn’t believe my ears.” After the announcement was made, confetti(五彩纸屑) dropped from the ceiling and Wiershke was met on the stage by the singer who said that she liked texting very much. She was Ashley Tisdale, a famous and beautiful singer, who awarded him his check.
In August, a film on Music Television called “Thumbs” took a behind-the –scenes look at the teenager’s life. It shows how he practiced texting to be the fastest. The film followed a series of young texting competitors, including Brianna Hendrickson, in the weeks leading up to this year’s LG US National Texting Championship. Besides showing the always –connected lifestyle of these teenagers nationwide, the mover also shows the studies, sports , dreams and friendships among these competitors.
【小题1】What is the main idea of this passage?