Apply to an American college

This week，we talked about the application process for American colleges and universities．This is part eight in our Foreign Student Series．

Earlier，we explained how to begin a search for schools by going to one of the American educational advising centers around the world．We also discussed the rules for entering in the United States．And we talked about programs that can be completed online．

But if your goal is to come to the United States to study，then it is time to make a list of colleges or universities that interest you．Be sure to choose more than one．Directors of foreign student admissions say students should apply to at least three schools．

Some students want to attend a small college．Others want to go to a big university．If a really big university appeals to you，then there are ones like Ohio State．That university in Columbus，Ohio，in the Midwest，has almost fifty—two thousand students．There are students this year from around one hundred fifty countries．

Ohio State provides international students with an application on its Web site．You can pay the application charge online with a credit card．Or you can print the forms and mail them with the payment．

Many colleges and universities have their applications and also their catalogs online．

You should start on your applications at least two years before you want to begin studies．

Completing a college application can take some time．But answering all t he questions is not enough．Another important step is taking admissions tests．The SAT is the college entry test that American high school students most commonly take．Another one is the ACT．

Colleges and universities may also require international students to take the TOEFL——the Test of English as a Foreign Language．

If you have a general question for our Foreign Student Series，write to special @ voanews．com．

1．What purpose do Paragraph 1 and 2 serve in the passage?

    A．To provide background information of the topic．

    B．To attract reader’s attention to the topic．

    C．To remind the readers of the last few parts mentioned of the topic．

    D．to offer basic advice on the topic．

2．The underlined part“Ohio State”refers to ___________in the passage．

    A．one of the states in America

    B．a(chǎn) university in America

    C．a(chǎn)nother name for“Columbus，Ohio”

    D．the name of a web site

3．Besides a college application，you are required to take ___________test（s）if you’re not an    American．

    A．two              B．three             C．only one              D．no

4．What will the author most probably talk about next time?

    A．A list of colleges or universities that interest you．

    B．The rules for entering in the United States and programs to be completed online．

    C．How to connect American educational advising center．

    D．More detailed information about tests to take．

Earlier, we explained how to begin a search for schools by going to one of the American educational advising centers around the world. We also discussed the rules for entering in the United States. And we talked about programs that can be completed online.

But if your goal is to come to the United States to study, then it is time to make a list of colleges or universities that interest you. Be sure to choose more than one. Directors of foreign student admissions say students should apply to at least three schools.

Some students want to attend a small college. Others want to go to a big university. If a really big university appeals to you, then there are ones like Ohio State. That  university in Columbus, Ohio, in the Midwest, has almost fifty two thousand students. There are students this year from around one hundred fifty countries.

Ohio State provides international students with an application on its Web site. You can pay the application charge online with a credit card. Or you can print the forms and mail them with the payment.

Many colleges and universities have their applications and also their catalogs（目錄）online.

You should start on your applications at least two years before you want to begin studies.

Completing a college application can take some time. But answering all the questions is not enough. Another important step is taking admissions tests. The SAT is the college entry test that American high school students most commonly take. Another one is the ACT.

Colleges and universities may also require international students to take the TOEFL the Test of English as a Foreign Language.

If you have a general question for our Foreign Student Series, write, to special @ voanews. com.

56．What purpose does Paragraph 1 serve in the passage?

   A．To provide background information of the topic.

   B．To attract readers’ attention to the topic.

   C．To reminds the readers of a related article to the topic.

   D．To offer basic knowledge of the topic.

57．According to this passage, “Ohio State” is           .

   A．one of the  states in America                    B．the name of a Web site

   C．a(chǎn)nother name for “Columbus, Ohio”          D．a(chǎn) university in America

58．Besides a college application, you are required to take            test(s) if you’re not an American.

   A．one                         B．two                     C．three                   D．four

59．What will the author most probably talk about next?

  A．SAT.                       B．ACT.                   C．FSS.                   D．TOFEL.

Earlier, we explained how to begin a search for schools by going to one of the American educational advising centers around the world. We also discussed the rules for entering in the United States. And we talked about programs that can be completed online.

But if your goal is to come to the United States to study, then it is time to make a list of colleges or universities that interest you. Be sure to choose more than one. Directors of foreign student admissions say students should apply to at least three schools.

Some students want to attend a small college. Others want to go to a big university. If a really big university appeals to you, then there are ones like Ohio State. That university in Columbus, Ohio, in the Midwest, has almost fifty – two thousand students. There are students this year from around one hundred fifty countries.

Ohio State provides international students with an application on its Web site. You can pay the application charge online with a credit(信用) card. Or you can print the forms and mail them with the payment.

Many colleges and universities have their applications and also their catalogs（目錄）online.

You should start on your applications at least two years before you want to begin studies.

Completing a college application can take some time. But answering all the questions is not enough. Another important step is taking admissions tests. The SAT is the college entry test that American high school students most commonly take. Another one is the ACT.

Colleges and universities may also require international students to take the TOEFL – the Test of English as a Foreign Language.

If you have a general question for our Foreign Student Series, write, to special @ voanews. com.

1．What purpose does Paragraph 1 serve in the passage?

　 A．To provide background information of the topic.

　 B．To attract readers’ attention to the topic.

　 C．To reminds the readers of a related article to the topic.

　 D．To offer basic knowledge of the topic.

2．According to this passage, “Ohio State” is　　　　　 .

　 A．one of the states in America　　　　　　　 B．the name of a Web site

　 C．a(chǎn)nother name for “Columbus, Ohio”　　　　 D．a(chǎn) university in America

3．Besides a college application, you are required to take 　　　　　 test(s) if you’re not an American.

　 A．one　　　　 B．two　　　　 C．three　　　 D．four

4．What will the author most probably talk about next?

　 A．SAT.　　　　 B．ACT.　　　　 C．FSS.　　　　 D．TOFEL.

5. The passage is mainly dealt with ______________.

A.    how to pay the application charge .

B.    the rules for entering for American colleges and universities.

C.    Some information on applications for American colleges and universities.

D.    when to start one’s applications for American colleges and universities.

Teaching a child to read at a young age gives him a valuable start in life. Reading is the basic part of education and a child’s reading ability will influence his school success greatly. Learning difficulties, many of which begin from poor reading skills, can damage a school child’s confidence and affect his future achievement. Young children are programmed to learn and they can learn better with encouragement. Ten to twenty minutes of reading a day still leaves plenty of time for play.

Many parents are concerned that learning to read is too challenging a task for a pre-school child, but they should also remember that most children learn to speak by the time they are 3. Learning a language is probably the single most challenging task any individual can undertake, yet children do it without formal instruction, achieving the fluency much better than adult language students.

There is a window of opportunity in terms of IQ development, which is most open during a child’s early years. A scientific study, carried out by Dr. Peter Huttenlocher at the University of Chicago, showed that the number of connectors, called synapses（神經(jīng)元突觸）, between the nerve endings in a newborn baby’s brain is similar to the number in the average adult brain. These synapses increase rapidly during early childhood. By 12-24 months a child’s brain has about 50% more synapses than the average adult brain. After that the synapses which are not in use begin to atrophy（衰退）. For most people, from age 16, the number remains steady. It begins to drop again as we move into our golden years. Doing intellectual activities at a young age, such as learning to read, can stimulate（刺激）and preserve these connectors in the brain resulting in a long-term beneficial（有益的）effect on IQ development.

Another notable study is probably the Milwaukee project. This study took a group of babies, all of whose mothers had low IQs, and gave them special training for seven hours a day, five days a week, until they started first grade. By the age of 6 these children had an average IQ 30 points higher than their contemporaries. The overwhelming conclusion is that the early intellectual stimulation can have a positive, long-term effect on a child’s brain development.

From birth you should talk to and explain things to your baby. Reading to him can be a wonderful way of spending quality time with your child. The enjoyment of books and being familiar with the idea of print will pave the way for（為……鋪平道路）learning to read later.

If your child is a fast learner you can help him realize his potential by introducing him to the joy of the printed word at an early age. This will lay the foundations（基礎(chǔ)）for both a high achieving school career and a lifelong love of reading. If your child shows early signs of reading difficulties, your efforts may help him get rid of such problems before he goes to school.

It can be difficult to teach your own child because emotional（引起情緒激動(dòng)的）issues arise easily. Online programs for learning to read English are excellent options. They allow children to repeat new materials as many times as they need to, without wearing out the parents’ patience.

1.What does the passage mainly discuss?

A. Children should be taught to read at an early age.

B. Children can read better than most adult students.

C. Children have more synapses than most adults.

D. Children are supposed to learn to read on the Internet.

2.Why does the author mention the study by Dr. Peter Hutten locher?

A. To remove parents’ worry.

B. To explain IQ development.

C. To explain how a baby’s brain works.

D. To show the parents’ wrong ideas.

3.How can children benefit from learning to read at a young age?

A. It can build up great confidence in their mind.

B. It can help preserve the connectors in their brains.

C. It can help produce more connectors in their brains.   

D. It can help them find both their weaknesses and strengths.

4.At the end of this passage the author advises _______.

A. parents not to get angry too often

B. children to enjoy reading as early as possible

C. children not to wear out their parents’ patience

D. parents to get their children to take an online program

　　Lucky is the man who has no “skeleton in his closet”. When a man has done something in his life that he is ashamed of, that he wants to hide, he is said to have a “skeleton in his closet”. Some people may have more than one skeleton.

　　As we have noted many times, it is hard to find out how these expressions begin. Sometimes, we get some hard facts. But more often we have to depend on guesswork. And that is true of this phrase, which came from England.

　　Before 1932, English law did not permit a doctor to cut open a dead human body for scientific examination, unless it was the corpse(尸體) of an executed(處決) criminal.

　　But when it became legal, more and more doctors demanded skeletons for a more scientific study of medicine. It was helping in the advance of modern medicine. The demand had become so strong that men began to rob tombs and sell skeletons to doctors at high prices.

　　We are told that a doctor would usually buy just one skeleton for scientific study. It became very important in his work. But he had to keep it hidden because most people objected to keeping such a thing. As a rule, the doctor would keep his skeleton in some dark corner where it could not be seen, or hide it in a closet.

　　After a time, people began to suspect(懷疑) every doctor of hiding a skeleton in the closet. From this suspicion, the phrase “a skeleton in the closet” took on a broader, more general meaning to describe anything that a man wanted to keep others from discovering. It could be proof of a criminal act, or something much less serious. Well, that is one theory.

　　One writer, however, believes that the phrase might have come from something that really happened. It is his guess that a hidden closet in some old English country home may have turned up a real skeleton, clear proof of some old family shame or crime. Well, one man’s guess is as good as another. But this sounds like a story by the great French novelist, Balzac.

　　Baizac tells us of a man who suspected his wife of having a lover. The husband comes home by surprise. But she hears him and quickly hides her lover in the closet of her bedroom. He enters her room and asks her if she is hiding her lover. He says he will not open the door to the closet if she promises him there is no one there; He will believe her. She answers firmly that she is not hiding anyone in the closet.

　　The husband then begins to build a solid brick wall against the closet. His wife watches, knowing that her lover will never come out alive. But she will not change her story and admit her guilt.   

1. Which of the following situations is suitable for using the phrase “skeleton in the closet” ?

　　A. You have stolen something precious and don’t want it discovered.

　　B. You are a doctor and have to keep a skeleton for research.

　　C. If you have cut open a dead human body for scientific examination you should keep the skeleton secret.

　　D. You have done a crime or done something foolish, but you want to keep other from discovering it.

2. From the text we know that there are _______ theories about how the phrase “skeleton in the closet” came into being.

　　A. one 　　　　　      B. two 　　　　　      C. three 　　　　D. four

3. In Chinese the world “skeleton” means _______.

　　A. 尸體 　　　　　B. 標(biāo)本 　　　　　C. 收藏 　　　　D. 骷髏

4. Which of the following is right according to the text?

　    A. In the 20th century, doctors realized the importance of anatomy(解剖) in the development of medicine.

　　B. The doctors of the ancient times liked to collect as many skeleton as possible.

　　C. The thieves stole skeletons from tombs in order to help the doctors.

　　D. It was legal that corpses of anybody were cut open for scientific examination in history.

5. From the story Balzac told we know that the wife’s lover must have become _______.

A. a corpse 　　　　B. a phrase 　　　　C. a skeleton 　　　D. a secret