There is no doubt about it．The best way to learn new words is to do it unconsciously．I don’t mean while you’re unconscious．I mean while you are unconscious of the fact that it is sinking in.

　 That is how I learnt the 30,000 words in my vocabulary by living in an English-speaking world, mother tongue．I just pick them up．But some of them may be misunderstood．Now, to misunderstand does not mean not to understand．To misunderstand is to understand but incorrectly.

　 The 5 % mislearnt of all the words we “know” will be the least frequently used words, as the more frequently used words are less likely to be mislearnt．Some of the misunderstandings may live with all our lives, without knowing that we got them wrong.

　 Many English teachers think that this natural method of learning words in one’s own mother tongue can be used for a second language learning．They teach their students how to play the Guessing Game．“There is no time to look up in your dictionaries all the new words you come across,” they will say．“You have to practise guessing what the word means from the context.”

　 This method of guessing in a second language learning does not work．It may succeed in many cases, but results in hundreds or thousands of wrongly-guessed meanings of words.

　 And what’s more, there are more separate meanings than there are words themselves．Our learners’ dictionaries usually have many meanings．A good dictionary is what makes self-learning possible.

　 Don’t guess! Look it up!

1．It is certain that the best way to learn new words is _____________.

　　 A．to learn them by oneself

　　 B．to learn by living in an English-speaking world and using them frequently

　　 C．to guess them from the context

　　 D．to get more separate meanings of each word

2．The underlined word “them” in Paragraph 2 refers to _________.

　　 A．the 30,000 words　　 B．English teachers

　　 C．misunderstood words D．frequently used words

3．Which of the following is most likely NOT true?

　　 A．Some of the words the writer knows must have been misunderstood.

　　 B．Most of the 30,000 words the writer learned are frequently used ones．

　 C．How many words the writer got wrong are not known.

　　 D．All the words the writer knows were learned by reading them.

4．It can be inferred that _________.

　 A．when somebody is conscious, he or she usually can’t learn new words by heart

　 B．we must use the words as often as possible in order to master them

　 C．it’s the best way to learn new words that one should only guess their meanings from the context

　 D．only dictionaries can help us learn language well

How to improve my life? Many people think that they have to accept whatever life throws at them. They'll say, "This is my fate, my destiny. I cannot change it."

Of course not! You don't have to suffer needlessly. Your destiny depends on you, not on any other external factors.

I know someone who says she just accepts what life gives her because she has done everything she can to improve it. Guess what her lifestyle is? She wakes up in the morning, goes to work, comes back home, relaxes, chats with people, watches TV, then goes to sleep. Next day, the same routine cycle follows.

Huh! Is this what she calls "doing her best"? She believes she has tried her best and just accepts it in her heart that this is the life that God has intended for her to live; that her luck can only change if God wills it.  Of course God wants us to be happy and live our life to the fullest, but we have to do our share of exerting(运用) the effort to live the life of our dreams.

Remember that you reap what you sow. You just don't sit around and wait for a million dollars to fall from the sky. You have to get off the couch, get your eyes off the TV screen, get your hands off the phone. Don’t expect your luck to change unless you do something about it. If something goes wrong, don't just regard it as a temporary setback; but use it as feedback. Learn your lesson, make the most of the situation, and do something to solve the problem. It's not enough to think positively; you also have to act positively.

If someone's life is in the trouble, do you just hope and pray that things will turn out fine? Of course not! You get to do anything you can to save the person. So it is with your own life. It is not enough to hope for the best, but you have to do your best. In other words, don't just stand (or sit) there, do something to improve your life.

1.According to the woman mentioned in Para.3, her life ____________. 

A．Doesn't need improving                  B．couldn't be improved

C．will be better some day                   D．Will be worse in the future

2.What does the author think of the woman's life?

A．positive           B．satisfying          C．colorful           D．passive

3.Which of the following statements is the author's opinion?

A．Your temporary problem is not discouraging.

B．Your luck can be changed by your efforts

C．You can only achieve success when God wills it.

D．You should treat yourself in the way you treat friends.

4.In Para.5, the author emphasized the importance of _____________.

A．positive action      B．positive thinking    C．hope for the best   D．intention to succeed

5.The text is mainly written to advise you to ____________.

A．understand yourself                     B．improve your life

C．believe in yourself                      D．change your normal way

 

How to improve our life? Many people think that they have to accept whatever life throws at them．They'11 say," my destiny（命运）．I cannot change it．"

Of course not! You don't have to suffer needlessly．Your life depends on you, not on any other external（外部的）factor．

I know a woman who says she just accepts what life gives her because she has done everything she can to improve it．Guess what her lifestyle is．She wakes up in the morning, goes to work comes back home, relaxes, chats with people, watches TV, and then goes to sleep．Next day, the same routine cycle follows．

Huh! Is this what she calls "doing her best"'? She believes she has tried her best and just accepts for her heart that this is the life that has been intended for her, and that her luck can only change if God wills it．She hasn't realized that we have to do our share of making the effort to live the life of our dreams．

     Remember that you harvest what you sow．You have to get off the sofa, get your eyes off the TV screen, get your hands off the phone （unless it contributes to your success）, and get your mind and body to work! Don't expect your luck to change, unless you do something about it．If something goes wrong, don't just regard it as a temporary setback; instead, learn your lesson, make the most of the situation, and do something to solve the problem．It's not enough to think positively; you also have to act positively．

If someone's life is in trouble, do you just hope and pray that things will turn out fine? Of course not! You get to do anything you can to save the person．So it is with your own life．It is not enough to hope for the best, but you have to do your best．In other words, don't just stand （or sit ）there, do something to improve your life ．

1．According to the woman mentioned in Para3, her life  ________.

    A．doesn't need improving                     B．couldn’t be improved

    C．will be better some day                       D．will be worse in the future

2．What does the author think of the woman's life?

    A．Passive．          B．Positive．         C．Colorful．       D．Boring．

3．Which of the following statements is the author's opinion?

    A．Your temporary problem is not discouraging．

    B．Your luck can be changed by your efforts．

    C．You can only achieve success when God wills it ．

    D．You should treat yourself in the way you treat friends．

4．In Para．5, the author emphasized the importance of_______.

       A．hope for the best                             B．intention to succeed

       C．positive thinking                              D．positive action

Below is a discussion on http://www.TalkingPoints.com/.

Stuck on a desert island?

Started on 23rd April by Steve                   Posts 1 – 7 of 42

Post 1

Steve

USA Hi, everyone. What would you miss most and least if you were stuck on a desert island? For me, it would be the changing seasons in New England. I guess this will sound stupid but I’d probably miss the rain, too. I would not miss getting up at six every day to go to work, though! What about you?

Post 2

Tomas

Germany Good question. Steve, I think I’d miss different types of bread, and shopping at the supermarket. I’d miss the food most. What would I miss least? My mobile phone---I’d like to be completely quiet --- at least for a little while

Post 3

Paola

Italy I would miss the company of people because I know I’d like to have someone to share experiences with. I’d go mad on my own. And I sure would not miss junk (垃圾)mail--- I hate coming home every evening and a pile of junk mail in my post box.

Post 4

Miko

Japan Hi, I would miss Manga cartoon, the internet and Japanese food, like sushi. I’d also miss TV shows and shopping for clothes… In fact, I’d miss everything.

Post 5

Roger

UK I would miss my daily newspaper and listening to the news on TV and radio. I’d feel very cut off if I didn't know what was happening in the world. What I’d miss least would be traffic jams in the city, particularly my journey to work.

Past 6

Jayne Why hasn't anyone mentioned their family? I’d be lost without my husband and two kids. They’re the most important for me. And I can’t get started in the morning without a cup of black coffee. I wouldn't miss doing the housework! 

Post 7

Jaime

Mexico It would have to be music. I couldn't live without my music. I wouldn't miss going to school at all or doing homework!

1.Who would miss his or her family most?

A．Jaime            B．Jayne             C．Miko             D．Paola.

2.Which of the following people would feel most uncomfortable without the news media?

A．Steve.            B．Jaime             C．Roger.            D．Tomas

3.How many of them mentioned that they would miss food or drink?

A．One             B．Two              C．Three            D．Four

4.Where is the passage probably taken from?

A．Newspaper        B．Internet           C．Textbook          D．Magazine