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A child’s birthday party doesn’t have to be a hassle; it can be a basket of fun, according to Beth Anaclerio, an Evaston mother of two, ages 4 and 18 months.
“Having a party at home usually requires a lot of running around on the part of the parents, and often the birthday boy or girl gets lost in wild excitement. But it really doesn’t have to be that way,” said Anaclerio. Last summer, Anaclerio and her friend Jill Carlisle, a Northbrook mother of a 2-year –old, founded a home party-planning business called “A Party in a Basket.” Their goal is to help parents and children share in the fun part of party planning, like choosing the subject or making a cake, while they take care of everything.
Drawing on their experiences as mothers, they have created 10 ready-to-use, home party packages. Everything a family needs to plan a party, except the cake and ice cream, is delivered to the home in a large basket.
“Our parties are aimed for children 2 to 10, ” Anaclerio said, “and they’re very interactive （互动） and creative in that they build a sense of drama based on a subject. For example, at the Soda Shoppe party the guests become waiters and waitresses and build wonderful ice cream creations.”
The standard $ 200 package for eight children includes a basket filled with invitations, gifts, games and prizes, paper goods, a party planner and the like. For more information, call Anaclerio at 708-864-6584 or Carlisle at 708-205-9141.
1.The main purpose of writing this text is ________.
A．to share information about party planning
B．to introduce the joys of a birthday party
C．to announce a business plan
D．to sell a service
2.The most important idea behind the kind of party planning described here is that ________.
A．parents are spared the trouble of sending invitations
B．guests play a part in the preparation of a party
C．it brings parents and children closer together
D．it provides a subject of conversation
3.What does the underlined word “hassle”(paragraph 1) probably mean ?
A．a situation causing difficulty or trouble
B．a plan requiring careful thought
C．a party designed by specialists
D．a demand made by guests
4.Which of the following is most likely to be a party planner?
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
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Parents should stop blaming themselves because there’s not a lot they can do about it. I mean the teenager problem. Whatever you do or however you choose to deal with it, at certain times a wonderful, reasonable and helpful child will turn into a terrible animal.
I’ve seen friends deal with it in all kinds of different ways. One strict mother insisted that her son, right from a child, should stand up whenever anyone entered the room, open doors and shake hands like a gentleman. I saw him last week when I called round. Sprawling himself (懒散地躺) on the sofa in full length, he made no attempt to turn off the loud TV he was watching as I walked in, and his greeting was no more than a quick glance at me. His mother was ashamed. “I don't know what to do with him these days,” she said. “He’s forgotten all the manners we taught him.”
He hasn’t forgotten them. He’s just decided that he’s not going to use them. She confessed (坦白) that she would like to come up behind him and throw him down from the sofa onto the floor.
Another good friend of mine let her two daughters climb all over the furniture, reach across the table, stare at me and say, “I don’t like your dress; it’s ugly.” One of the daughters has recently been driven out of school. The other has left home.
“Where did we go wrong?” her parents are now very sad. Probably nowhere much. At least, no more than the rest of that unfortunate race, parents.
1.This text is most probably written by ______.
A．a doctor for mental health problems
B．a headmaster of a middle school
C．a parent with teenage children
D．a specialist in teenager studies
2.The underlined word “it” in the second paragraph refers to ______.
A．the advice that parents want their children to follow
B．the change from good to bad that’s seen in a child
C．the opinion that a child has of his parents
D．the way that parents often blame themselves
3.From the second example we can infer that the parents of the two daughters ______.
A．pay no attention to them
B．feel helpless to do much about them
C．have come to hate them
D．are too busy to look after them
4.What is the author's opinion about the sudden change in teenage children?
A．Parents should work more closely with school teachers.
B．Parents should pay still sore attention to the change.
C．Parents have no choice but to try to accept it.
D．Parents are at fault for the change in their children.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
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Meeting people from another culture can be difficult. From the beginning, people may send the wrong signal. Or they may pay no attention to signals from another person who is trying to develop a relationship.
Different cultures emphasize (强调) the importance of relationship building to a greater or lesser degree. For example, business in some countries is not possible until there is a relationship of trust. Even with people at work, it is necessary to spend a lot of time in "small talk", usually over a glass of tea, before they do any job. In many European countries -- like the UK or France -- people find it easier to build up a lasting working relationship at restaurants or cafes rather than at the office.
Talk and silence may also be different in some cultures. I once made a speech in Thailand. I had expected my speech to be a success and start a lively discussion; instead there was an uncomfortable silence. The people present just stared at me and smiled. After getting to know their ways better, I realized that they thought I was talking too much. In my own culture, we express meaning mainly through words, but people there sometimes feel too many words are unnecessary.
Even within Northern Europe, cultural differences can cause serious problems. Certainly, English and German cultures share similar values; however, Germans prefer to get down to business more quickly. We think that they are rude. In fact, this is just because one culture starts discussions and makes decisions more quickly.
People from different parts of the world have different values, and sometimes these values are quite against each other. However, if we can understand them better, a multicultural environment will offer a wonderful chance for us to learn from each other.
1.In some countries, eating together at restaurants may make it easier for people to _______.
A．get to know each other B．share the same culture
C．develop closer relations D．keep each other company
2.The author mentions his experience in Thailand to show that _________.
A．the English prefer to make long speeches
B．people from Thailand are quiet and shy by nature
C．too many words are of no use
D．even talk and silence can be culturally different
3.According to the text, how can people from different cultures understand each other better?
A．By sharing different ways of life.
B．By recognizing different values.
C．By accepting different habits.
D．By speaking each other' s languages.
4.What would be the best title for the text?
A．Cross-Cultural Differences
B．Multicultural Environment.
C．How to Build Up a Relationship
D．How to Understand Each Other.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析