Children as young as few months are exposed to French and Spanish before many of them can even speak English. Educators use special songs and visual (视觉的) aids to ensure that when a child is ready to talk, the languages will not be so foreign. "Children have a unique capacity to learn many languages at the same time," said Thibaut. "Already at nine months, a child can tell the differences between the sounds he or she has heard since birth and the sounds he or she has never heard yet." Thibaut says the best time to expose children to language is from birth to 3 years old. For the last 30 years, the school has been using what it calls the Thibarut Technique, a system that combines language lessons with child's play.
"I always wanted to learn Spanish, but by the time I got to high school it was too late to pick it up and speak fluently," said Marc Lazare, who enrolled his son at the school. "I figured at this age, two, it's a perfect time for him to learn."
Aside from learning a language, the kids also gain a tremendous sense of confidence. One young student boasted that aside from French, she can speak five languages (though that included "monkey" and "lion"). The school gives children the tools to communicate, and sometimes that gives them an advantage over their parents. "I think they sometimes speak French when they think I won't understand them," said parent Foster Gibbons.
Depending on the age group, classes run from 45 minute up to 2 hours. Even when students are not in class, the program is designed to make sure the learning continues at home. Tapes and books are included so kids can practice on their own.
The word "bilingual" in the first paragraph probably means ______
A.capable of using two languages
B.both clever and confident
C.aware of their own limitations and strengths
D.independent of their parents
- Can I speak to Mr. Rose?
- _________ Can I take a message for him?
A.This is he.
B.I am afraid he is not in.
C.Who are you?
D.Sorry. Do you know him?
A. No, you can’t
B. Sorry, he isn’t in.
C. Who are you?
D. Why do you want to speak to him?
-- Hello. I'd like to speak to Mr. Reynolds.
-- _____.
A. I'm sorry he's not in right now
B. No, you can't
C. Sorry, you can't
D. Ok, go on
A、Sorry, you can’t.
B、I don’t know.
C、No, you can’t.
D、Would you mind calling back later?
A、He's good at fixing things.
B、He can speak good German.
C、He does the washing-up after supper.
D、He's a language teacher.
回答题:
Directions:There are 20 blanks in the following passage, and for each blank there are 4 choices marked A, B, C and D at the end of the passage. You should choose ONE answer that best fits into the passage. Then mark the corresponding letter on the Answer Sheet with a single line through the center.
Sometimes it is better not to know the56of a country that you are visiting57it is to know just a little of it. The58is this:the natives of your59country will often rush to 60you if you seem completely lost and helpless. But they will usually misunderstand your small61to speak their language. They will think that you know62more than you do.
For example, I once asked three people63carefully memorized phrasebook Spanish how to get to a bus station in Mexico City.64each of them poured out a flood of65Spanish.
The result was66I didn' t understand a word and67around for an hour before I found
the station. 68I had missed the bus. The next time I encountered a(n)69like this in an-other city, I was a lot70, so I acted dumbly. Trying to look very pitiful, I71a stranger and asked simply, "Bus station?" He 72told me how to get there; he showed me to the 73walking three blocks out of his74to help a poor, dumb and helpless75.、
材料题请点击右侧查看材料问题
A.conventions
B.customs
C.people
D.language
【B1】
A.application
B.use
C.utility
D.usage
Passage 2
A study of art history might be a good way to learn more about a culture than is possible to learn in general history classes. Most typical history courses concentrate on politics, economics and war. But art history focuses on much more than this because art reflects not only the political values of a people, but also religious beliefs, emotions and psychology. In addition, information about the daily activities of our ancestors can be provided by art. (78) In short, art expresses the essential qualities of a time and a place, and a study of it clearly offers us a deeper understanding than can be found in most history books.
In history books, objective information about the political life of a country is presented; that is, facts about politics are given, but opinions are not expressed. Art, on the other hand, is subjective(主观的): it reflects emotions and opinions. The great Spanish painter Francisco Goya was perhaps the first truly “political” artist. In his well-known painting The Third of May, 1808, he criticized the Spanish government for its abuse (滥用) of power over people.
In the same way, art can reflect a culture’s religious beliefs. For hundreds of years in Europe, religious art had been almost the only type of art that existed. Churches and other religious buildings were filled with paintings that described people and stories from the Bible. Although most people couldn’t read, they could still understand the Bible stories in the pictures on church walls. By contrast, one of the main characteristics of art in the Middle East was (and still is) its absence of human and animal images. This reflects the Islamic belief that statues (雕像) are not holy.
6. More can be learned about a culture from a study of art history than general history because ___.
A. art history shows us nothing but the political values
B. general history only focuses on politics
C. art history gives us an insight (洞察力) into the essential qualities of a time and a place
D. general history concerns only religious beliefs, emotions and psychology
1.The reason some children are backward in speaking today is that ____.
A、they do not listen carefully to their mothers
B、their brains have to absorb too much language at once
C、their mothers do not respond to their attempts to speak
D、their mothers are not intelligent enough to help them
2.By "critical times" the author means ____.
A、difficult periods in the child's life
B、moments when the child becomes critical towards its mother
C、important stages in the child's development
D、times when mothers often neglect their children
3.Which of the following is NOT implied in the passage____.
A、The faculty of speech is inborn in man.
B、Children do not need to be encouraged to speak.
C、The child's brain is highly selective.
D、Most children learn their language in definite stages.
4.It the mother does not respond to her child's signals ____.
A、the child will never be able to speak properly
B、the child will stop giving out signals
C、the child will invent a language of its own
D、the child will make little effort to speak
5.Which of the following is true according to the passage____.
A、By the age of a year and a half the child's vocabulary is still under 100 words.
B、By the age of four children still make many grammatical mistakes.
C、The author does not believe that children select and analyse their language.
D、All children of high IQ start to speak early.