Parents who buy the watch may discover that it is one thing for kids to tell time;________

Who can buy a put-off ticket according to the talk？

A．A man and his wife

B．Parents with their 12-year-old daughter

C．A girl of 6 with her parents

D．A little boy who travels alone

There was a time when parents who wanted an educational present for their children would buy a typewriter, a globe or a set of encyclopedia(百科全书). Now those【C1】______seem hopelessly old-fashioned: this Christmas,【C2】______a lot of personal computers under the tree.【C3】______that computers are their key to success, parents are also frantically insisting that children【C4】______taught to use them in school -- as early as possible.

The problem for schools is that when it【C5】______computers, parents do not always know best. Many schools are【C6】______parental impatience and are purchasing hardware【C7】______sound educational planning so they can say, "Ok, we' ve moved into the computer age." Teachers【C8】______themselves caught in the middle of the problem -- between parent pressure and【C9】______educational decisions. Educators do not even agree【C10】______how computers should be used. A lot of money is going for computerized educational materials【C11】______research has shown can be taught【C12】______with pencil and paper. Even those who believe that all children should【C13】______to computer warn of potential【C14】______to the very young,

The temptation remains strong largely because young children【C15】______so well to computers. First graders have been【C16】______willing to work for two hours on math skills. Some have an attention span of 20 minutes.【C17】______school can afford to go into computing, and that creates【C18】______another problem: division between the haves and have-nots.

Very few parents【C19】______for computer instruction in poor school districts,【C20】______there may be barely enough money to pay the reading teacher.

【C1】

A．items

B．books

C．sets

D．series

uy a typewriter, a globe or an encyclopedia set.

Now those 【21】______ seem hopelessly old-fashioned: this Christmas, there were a lot of 【22】______ computers under the tree. 【23】______ that computers are their key to success, parents are also frantically insisting that children 【24】______ taught to use them on school—as early as possible. The problem for schools is that when it 【25】______ computers, parents don’t always know best. Many schools are 【26】______ parental impatience and are purchasing hardware without 【27】______ educational planning, so they can say, OK, we've moved into the computer age. Teachers 【28】______ themselves caught in the middle of the problem — between parent pressure and 【29】______ educational decisions.

Educators do not even agree 【30】______ how computers should be used. A lot of money is going for computerized educational materials 【31】______ research has shown can be taught 【32】______ with pencil and paper. Even those who believe that all children should 【33】______ to computer warn of potential 【34】______ to the very young.

The temptation remains strong largely because young children 【35】______ so well to computers. First graders have been 【36】______ willing to work for two hours on math skills. Some have an attention span of 20 minutes.

【37】______ school, however, can afford to go into computing, and that creates 【38】______ another problem: a division between the have’s and havenot’s. Very few parents ask 【39】______ computer instruction in poor school districts, 【40】______ there may be barely enough money to pay the reading teacher.

【21】

A．items

B．toys

C．sets

D．series

Text

There was a time when parents who wanted an educational present for their children would buy a typewriter, a globe or an encyclopedia set(一套百科全书).

Now those【C1】______seem hopelessly old-fashioned: this Christmas, there was a lot of【C2】______computers under the tree.【C3】______that computers are their key to success, parents are also frantically insisting that children【C4】______taught to use them in school--as early as possible.

The problem for schools is that when it【C5】______computers, parents don't always know best. Many schools are【C6】______parental impatience and are purchasing hardware【C7】______sound educational planning, so they can say, "OK, we've moved into the computer age." Teachers【C8】______themselves caught in the middle of the problem--between parent pressure and【C9】______educational decisions.

Educators do not even agree【C10】______how computers should be used. A lot of money is going for computerized educational materials【C11】______research has shown can be taught【C12】______with pencil and paper. Even those who believe that all children should【C13】______to computer warn of potential【C14】______to the very young.

The temptation remains strong largely because young children【C15】______so well to computers. First graders have been【C16】______willing to work for two hours on math skills. Some have an attention span of 20 minutes.【C17】______school can afford to go into computing, and that creates【C18】______another problem: a division between the haves and have-nots. Very few parents ask【C19】______computer instruction in poor school districts,【C20】______there may be barely enough money to pay the reading teacher.

【C1】

A．items

B．toys

C．sets

D．series

of things that record companies have to be careful with when they come out with new CDs.

M: What do you mean？

W: Well, they have to be very careful not to offend people -- especially parents with young kids who might buy a CD that contained violent content or used strong language.

M: How can that be avoided？

W: Well, don't you remember when that woman -- some senator's wife, I think, made a fuss over this issue？ It's not really a law, but music companies are now encouraged to put a warning label on albums that describe violence or use strong language.

M: I don't understand. Doesn't that reduce the musician's freedom of speech？

W: Not really. Musicians still have a right to free speech, but the message on the label says, "Buyer, be careful: if you get upset by violence and ugly language, don't buy this album." You agree with that, don't you？

M: I don't know. I still think the whole thing is funny and unreasonable. Musicians should have the right to say what they want to say without having to have a warning label put on their music, I mean, who gets to decide what is considered offensive and what isn't, we don't need a sticker to tell us what to do!

(20)

A．Record companies should pay attention not to offend people.

B．Record companies should be very careful with their employees.

C．People should be very careful with their new CDs.

D．Parents should forbid children to buy new CDs.

“You’re trying to control my life,” says my nine-year-old son. (我9岁的儿子说：“你在试着控制我的生活，”)“I don’t know why you think you can do that, but you can’t.” I received this bit of information after I asked Gabriele to put his dirty socks in the basket. And I get no sympathy from my mother, who says,“You let him have his way from the beginning.”

It’s true. I have always asked Gabriele’s opinion, found out how he felt about things - treated him as my peer, not my child. And what have I got from my troubles？ A lot of back talk. At least I’m not alone; it’s a complaint heard among parents across the country.

It’s not just that we’re confused by the contradictory advice offered in parenting books. The fact is, in an effort to break away from how we were raised - to try something more liberal than our parents’ “do it because I say so”approach - our generationhas gone too far. “Today’s parents want to be young, so they try to be friends with their children,”says Kathy Lynn, a parenting educator.

“When it comes to discipline, our society has gone from one extreme to the other,”says Ron Moorish, a behavior. specialist. “We used to use the strap, to intimidate. Then we had permissiveness, and now it’s about giving children choices and allowing them to learn from their own experiences.”

Real discipline, says Moorish, is about teaching. “By correcting our children when they do something wrong, we teach them how to behave properly,”he says. But this only works, he emphasizes, if parents regain their position of authority. Children will always be children. The key is for parents to choose to take the time to guide and teach their kids.

Rita Munday, a mother of four children, couldn’t believe the dramas that played out in the children’s shoe store she operated. She often saw children insist on having the high-priced, brand-name shoes. And even when the mother didn’t want to spend the money, she would give in when the kid started acting up and throwing shoes around.

Rhonda Radice, Munday’s younger colleague, is one parent who has bucked the trend and is proud of it. “I don’t negotiate with them. You can’t. I’ve seen parents come into the store and bribe their children to behave. You shouldn’t have to buy love and respect.”

1.The author’s way of treating her son ____________.

A.is shared by many parents

B.is encouraged by her mother

C.proves to be quite successful

D.shows little concern for the child

2.It can be inferred from the passage that __________.

A.parents should learn to make friends with their children

B.parents need to follow the advice of parenting books

C.today’s children enjoy more freedom than the previous generation

D.today’s parents are better at raising children than the previous generation

3.According to the passage, to have “discipline”means that parents should ___________.

A.adopt the “do it because I say so”approach

B.teach their children to understand the rules

C.negotiate with their children for a decision

D.never allow their children to have their ways

4.If Ronda Radice is the parent who has “bucked the trend”, which of the following can also be cited as the example for “bucking the trend”？

A.Parents buy whatever their children want.

B.Parents treat their children as their equals.

C.Parents make decisions for their children.

D.Parents maintain authority over their children.

5.The main point of the passage is to __________.

A.compare different ways of raising children

B.analyze the problems faced by today’s parents

C.explain the importance of understanding children

D.point out the mistakes made by the older generation

ined not to let a little thing like lack of funds stand in his, way. "My bank said they'd never loan me that sort of money, since I don't really have any assets yet," the recent high school graduate from Littleton, Colo., recalls. Still, Angle was able to secure a loan from the Young Americans Bank in Denver, which caters to the under-22-year-old crowd and permits allowance to be listed as a source of income on loan application. Now, with a new Suzuki, Angle is setting aside most of the income from his ＄6.75-an-hour job at a local McDonald's to pay off his debt.

At mails, movie theaters and even motorcycle dealerships around the country, teenagers like Jon Angle are behaving like the fiscal equivalent of the Energizer Bunny: They keep spending, and spending, and spending. Last year, 12-to-19-year-olds went on their biggest shopping spree ever, ringing up ＄109 billion in purchases, a 38 percent increase over 1990. And the demographics for the teen market are enough to make any orthodontist smile. As the baby boomers' babies hit puberty, the teen population is expected to balloon from 29.1 million to 34.9 million by 2010.

Teens also are earning money. About half of all 16-to-19-year-olds have part-time jobs, according to Teenage Research Unlimited, a market research firm. Combined with allowance from their parents, adolescents average ＄64 in income per week. But that money bums a quick hole in their pockets. For every dollar teens earned last year, they spent 84 cents. And even when they do put aside some of their funds, teenagers save only until they can afford some coveted big-ticket item. Clair Boetticher, 17, from North Dallas, Texas, for example, receives ＄35 in weekly allowance and is earning an extra ＄100 a week this summer working on a ranch. She spends most of money on food, movies and compact disks. And when Boetticher does save, she usually hangs onto the money only enough to buy tickets to a rock concert.

With all this money up for grabs, it is no longer just makers of acne medication who are zeroing in on adolescents. Nike, for example, which consistently ranks as one of the most popular brands among teens, targets its products to consumers between the ages of 14 and 24. And Levi Strauss consults a panel of several hundred teens around the country during its product-development process. If the feedback indicates that the cut on a pair of jeans needs changing, the designers return to the drawing board.

Teens don't just spend their money, they also affect the way their parents shop. When it comes time to buy a family computer, for example, grown-ups often turn to their kids as technology consultants. With an increasing number of children using PCs at school, it's not surprising that parents who buy home computers let their teens influence the decision about two third of the time.

What is the main idea of the passage？

A．American teenagers are spending whatever they can instead of putting aside the money they make.

B．American teenagers affect their parents' shopping habits tremendously.

C．American adolescents typically spend money on famous brands and concert tickets.

D．American businessmen are trying to figure out new ways to tap the potential of adolescentmarket.

A.bought the violin from a shop

B.borrowed the violin from a friend

C.got the violin from his aunt

Sometimes parents buy the best thing in all the labels because it is about

A．price.

B．quality.

C．status.

D．safety.

kids,” states a news report for a new Swiss watch. Children in some countries “learn time slowly” because “they don’t wear watches” and “parents don’t really know how to teach them time”. The kids grow up with this handicap and become adults—and then can’t get to work on time. Is there an answer to this problem？ of course—it’s the Flik Flak, made by a famous Swiss watch company.

The Flik Flak is being marketed as something teaching watch for children aged 4 to 10. The watch itself does not teach kids how to tell time, of course it merely “captures their imagination” by presenting the “hour” hand as a beautiful red girl named Flak and the “minute” hand as a tall blue boy named Flik. Flik points to corresponding “blue“ minutes on the dial, while Flak points to red hour numbers. The characters and the colors combined with parental help, are supposed to teach young children how to tell time.

The watch comes equipped with a standard battery and a nylon band. Peter Lipkin, the United States sales manager for the Flik Flak, calls it Kidproof: if it gets dirty you can throw the whole watch in the washing machine.” The product is being sold in select department stores in Europe, Asia and the United States for a suggested price of $25. Parents who buy the watch may discover that it is one thing for kids to tell time; it’s quite another for them to be on time.

第36题：From the news report we know that ________.

A) parents are patient when teaching children time

B) parents have little idea of how to teach children time

C) children tend to learn time quickly

D) children enjoy wearing the Flik Flak watch