All parents know that young children are always energetic, eager to run, jump and play. Turning that natural energy into competitive sports can help keep kids active and healthy as they grow. Competitive sports such as soccer ， track ， basketball and swimming can also help kids learn important life lessons about teamwork and fair play. 1 ． .

Learning How to Compete

Joining in sports teaches children and teenagers how to compete in the real world. As they grow older, they'll face competition in school, in the workforce and other areas of life. But these competitions don't have to be negative （负面的） or unhealthy. 2 ． .

Understanding the Value of Exercise

3 ． .In addition ， many children who are active in sports are encouraged to eat healthier foods ， such as fruits and vegetables.

Improving Self-respect

Improved self-respect is another benefit of competitive youth sports. 4 ． . Even when he doesn't win, he can learn a valuable lesson: that you can't win every time.

Losing with his team can also increase self-esteem, as he learns to hold his head high and feel proud for trying his best.

5 ．

Youth sports can help stop negative behavior, such as joining a gang （帮派） , because competitive sports provide a way of expressing their energy, friendship and controlled attacking behaviour. Teens who have positive influences and friends feel less of a need to join in risky behaviors.

A ． Reducing Risky Behavior

B ． Developing Character Values

C ． Here are the benefits of competitive sports for youth

D ． If you try your hardest, you have a better chance to succeed

E.When a child wins a game with his team, he feels recognized

F.Taking part in competitive youth sports burns calories and helps to keep slim

G.Playing sports can help kids understand how competition works in a friendly environment

When it comes to video games, female players normally have certain preferences and expectations. Realizing the great potential in the female gaming market gaming companies have started offering them unique experiences.

Blade & Soul

Platforms: Windows, PS4and iOS

Blade & Soul offers a high degree of freedom in character customization, where players can choose a specific race and profession to conquer their enemies. Paying attention to the concept of individual gamer's individuality, this game offers various ways for gamers to customize their appearance and weapons to create a more realistic experience within cyberspace.

Cooking Mama

Platforms: Xbox 360, Nintendo 3DS, PS4, windows and iOS

Cooking Mama has been a pioneer in the virtual cooking genre among female gamers for a few years now. Its latest version, Cooking Mama 5: Bon Appetit, continues to offer gamers a fun cooking experience. Additionally, the cooking' mama, a lovable character worldwide, teaches players practical skills beyond the kitchen such as gardening and camping.

Onimusha

Platforms: Play Station, Wii and iOS

Onimusha is an action-adventure game series that tells the tales of Japanese historical figures with combat and puzzle solving. In order to attract female gamers, creator Keiji Inafune designed the main characters around Takeshi Kaneshiro, a handsome Japanese actor who has a big female fan base worldwide.

World of Warcraft

Platforms: Windows, PS4, Xbox 360 and iOS

World of Warcraft has been publishing fantasy novels to attract a more diverse set of gamers. The game keeps players glued to their keyboards by offering a compelling main storyline as well as attractive subplots. It also offers great music, which is helpful in getting rid of stress. It's no wonder so many females are willing to challenge the stereotype that World of Warcraft is just for guys.

1 ． What do you know about Blade & Soul?

A ． It is based on a realistic experience.

B ． It features in fights with various enemies.

C ． It focuses on the uniqueness of the character.

D ． It has the greatest potential in the female gaming market.

2 ． If you are to learn some practical skills, which game will you choose?

A ． Blade & Soul B ． Cooking Mama C ． Onimusha D ． World of Warcraft

3 ． What do the four games have in common?

A ． They are intended for male players. B ． They keep players addicted to the games.

C ． They are supported by multiple platforms. D ． They all have storylines and subplots.

I was 16 years old the day I skipped school for the first time. It was easily done: Both my parents left for work before my school bus arrived on weekdays, so when it showed up at my house on that cold winter morning, I simply did not get on. The perfect crime!

And what did I do with myself on that glorious stolen day, with no adult in charge and no limits on my activities? Did I get high? Hit the mall for a shoplifting extravaganza ( 狂欢 )?

Nope. I built a warm fire in the wood stove, prepared a bowl of popcorn, grabbed a blanket, and read. I was thrilled and transported by a book—it was Hemingway’s The Sun Also Rises —and I just needed to be alone with it for a little while. I ached to know what would happen to Jake Barnes and Lady Brett Ashley and Robert Cohn. I couldn’t bear the thought of sitting in a classroom taking another biology exam when I could be traveling through Spain in the 1920s with a bunch of expatriates ( 异乡客 ).

I spent that day lost in words. Time fell away, as the room around me turned to mist, and my role—as a daughter, sister, teenager, and student—in the world no longer had any meaning. I had accidentally come across the key to perfect happiness: I had become completely absorbed by something I loved.

Looking back on it now, I can see that some subtle things were happening to my mind and to my life while I was in that state of absorption. Hemingway’s language was quietly braiding itself into my imagination. I was downloading information about how to create simple and elegant sentences, a good and solid plot. In other words, I was learning how to write. Without realizing it, I was hot on the trail of my own fate. Writing now absorbs me the way reading once did and happiness is their generous side effect.

1 ． Why did the author skip school on that day?

A ． Because her parents left home early. B ． Because it was a cold winter morning.

C ． Because she was fascinated by a novel. D ． Because she hated to take the biology exam.

2 ． What did the author think is the source of true joy?

A ． Reading by the fire. B ． Travelling in Spain.

C ． Breaking the regulations. D ． Being occupied by one’s passion.

3 ． Which can best replace the underlined phrase “ braiding itself into ” in the last paragraph?

A ． Entering. B ． Destroying.

C ． Mending. D ． Blocking.

4 ． What can we infer from the passage?

A ． I was tired of my real-life roles.

B ． I learnt how to write on the internet.

C ． Hemingway skipped school when he was young.

D ． Becoming a writer was my childhood dream.

King Tut, Egypt's famous boy king, was buried with many valuable objects. A dagger （匕首） discovered in his tomb has recently attracted extra attention. Researchers have concluded that the dagger was probably made from a special material.

King Tut was only about nine years old when he became ruler of Egypt more than 3,300 years ago. The young king died when he was just 19. His body was buried in a tomb filled with objects that people believed he would need in the afterlife.

In 1922, Howard Carter discovered Tut's tomb in the Valley of the Kings in Egypt. Up to now, it was the best preserved ancient Egyptian tomb ever found. In 1925, Carter found the dagger which has a gold handle and an iron blade （刀片） .The blade had confused experts because iron was hardly used at that time in ancient Egypt. In fact, it was so rare that it was considered more valuable than gold. Where did the iron for the blade come from?

Around the time of King Tut, ancient Egyptians started using a new word for iron that translates as “iron from the sky”. This led some experts to believe that the iron for the blade came from a meteorite （陨石） .But studies of the dagger carried out in the 1970s and 1990s didn't support that idea.

That's where modern technology comes in. Researchers used a new technique to examine the blade. They discovered that it was made up of iron and other materials found in meteorites. After comparing it to several meteorites, they even found its possible match-a meteorite that landed in northern Egypt thousands of years ago.

Scientists hope the new study will lead to more discoveries about other ancient Egyptian relics. “It would be very interesting to analyze more Pre-iron Age objects and we could gain precious discoveries.” Daniela Comelli, who is a professor, said.

1 ． What do we know about Tut's tomb?

A ． It was built when he was 9. B ． It was perfectly kept when discovered.

C ． It has a lot of iron objects in it. D ． It was the first tomb to be found.

2 ． Scientists pay extra attention to the dagger because ________.

A ． it is King Tut's favourite object B ． its blade is made of iron

C ． it was more valuable than gold D ． it leads to more discoveries

3 ． What does the underlined word “it” in paragraph 5 refer to?

A ． The iron. B ． The material. C ． A meteorite. D ． The blade.

4 ． The researchers used modern technology to show ________.

A ． more valuable objects are hidden in the tombs B ． iron is widely used in ancient Egypt

C ． ancient Egyptian objects are excellent D ． Tut's dagger was likely made from a meteorite

Close your eyes for a minute and imagine what life would be like if you had a hundred dollars less. Also imagine what it would be like spending the rest of your life with your eyes closed. Imagine having to read this page, not with your eyes but with your finger-tips.

With existing medical knowledge and skills, two-thirds of the world's 42 million, blind should not have to suffer. Unfortunately, rich countries possess most of this knowledge, while developing countries do not.

ORBIS is an international non-profit organization which operates the world's only flying teaching eye hospital. ORBIS intends to help fight blindness worldwide. Inside a DC-8 aircraft, there is a fully-equipped teaching hospital with television studio and classroom. Doctors are taught the latest techniques of bringing sight back to people there. Project ORBIS also aims at promoting peaceful cooperation among countries.

ORBIS tries to help developing countries by providing training during three-week medical programs. ORBIS has taught sight-saving techniques to over 3,000 doctors and nurses, who continue to cure tens of thousands of blind people every year. ORBIS has conducted 17 plan programs in China so far. For the seven to ten million blind in China ORBIS is planning to do more for them. At the moment an ORBIS is working on a long-term plan to develop a training center and to provide eye care service to Shanxi Province. ORBIS needs your help to continue their work and free people from blindness.

For just US$38, you can help one person see; for $380 you can bring sight to 10 people; $1,300 helps teach a doctor new skills; and for $13,000 you can provide a training program for a group of doctors who can make thousands of blind people see again. Your money can open their eyes to the world. Please help ORBIS improve the quality of life for so many people less fortunate than ourselves.

1 ． The first paragraph is intended to ________.

A ． direct the public's attention to the blind

B ． advise the public to lead a simple life

C ． introduce a new way of reading

D ． encourage the public to use imagination

2 ． What do we learn about existing medical knowledge and skills in the world?

A ． They are adequate.

B ． They have not been updated.

C ． They are not equally distributed.

D ． They have benefited most of the blind.

3 ． ORBIS aims to help the blind by _______.

A ． teaching medical students

B ． training doctors and nurses

C ． running flying hospitals globally

D ． setting up non-profit organization

4 ． What can be the best title for the passage?

A ． ORBIS Flying Hospital B ． Fighting Blindness

C ． ORBIS in China D ． Sight-seeing Techniques