America's holiday shopping season started on Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving.

{#blank#}1{#/blank#}Shoppers make the most money this time of year, about 20 percent to 30 percent of all revenue all year. About 136 million people shopped during the Thanksgiving Holiday weekend.

{#blank#}2{#/blank#}In an era of instant information, shoppers can use their mobile phones to find deals. Nearly 80 percent of this year's holiday shoppers, or about 183.8 million people, shopped on Cyber Monday.{#blank#}3{#/blank#}Online spending on Black Friday rose 15 percent to hit $2.7 billion this year. Cyber Monday spending increased 12 percent to $3 billion. NBC News reported that for many, shopping online was a more comfortable alternative than crowded malls.

      The shift to online shopping has had a big impact on solid shopping malls. Since 2010, more than 24 shopping malls have closed and anadditional 60 are struggling. Fortune says the weakest of the malls have closed. However, the business in malls is thriving again, it adds.  According to a survey, 94.2percent of malls were full with shops by the end of 2014.{#blank#}4{#/blank#}

      The average American consumer will spend about $805 on gifts. That's about $630.5 billion between November and December – an increase of 3.7percent from last year.

{#blank#}5{#/blank#}That goes toChina's Singles' Day, celebrated on November 11, which posted record sales of$14.3 billion in 2015.

A．More and morepeople shop online nowadays.

B．That is thehighest level in 27 years.

C．It is thebusiest shopping day of the year.

D．One-in-fiveAmericans used a tablet or smart-phone.

E．Thetraditional mall industry can hardly survive.

F．Cyber Mondayfalls on the Monday after Thanksgiving and Black Friday.

G．Nonetheless,Cyber Monday is not the biggest online shopping day in the world.

    Have you ever seen any students whose trousers hang so low you can see their underwear? What do you think of that? Fashionable? Some of today's teenagers are big fans of such a look.{#blank#}1{#/blank#}.

    The headmaster of a school in central Italy has asked students to stop wearing low-rise jeans that expose underwear and part of the body. His request came after a class trip. One day, he saw one boy's baggy trousers slide to his feet {#blank#}2{#/blank#}.

    But in Italy, a nation that takes fashion very seriously, the suggestion caused a debate among parents, teachers and students. The issue is whether the headmaster's request will limit students' freedom—or whether dress in Italian schools is too casual.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#} “We do not want to kick fashion out.” the headmaster explained, “but extremes of fashion like this are not right in school.” Many other schools have now requested that their students also stop wearing such trousers.

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#} Ludovica Gaudio, 14, wore extremely low trousers exposing orange underwear in class. It was cold, so she wore a matching orange scarf. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} “I don't really feel comfortable in those sorts of jeans,” said Sarah Lattanzi, “in winter, when dressed like that, it's quite cold and I am afraid my stomach will ache.”

A. But recently this trend has been at the center of an argument in Italian middle schools.

B. A parents' group praised the move in favor of good taste, while others advised schools to stop worrying about fashion and fix up old school buildings.

C. He pointed out that this way of dressing is not suitable for school.

D. Most students have simply ignored the request.

E. Another 14-year-old said she would probably respect the request, simply for practical reasons.

F. Requests.

G. Schools should pay attention to things more important than students' clothes.

    Expressing gratitude regularly is a wonderful habit to your children. In fact, studies have shown that people who feel gratitude on a daily basis are happier in general. Today we'll discuss ideas to help your children express their gratitude.

    Make a gratitude tree. Start with a large piece of craft paper and draw a tree trunk. Then ask the kids to paint or color it in brown. Each day ask your kids to think of something they're thankful for.{#blank#}1{#/blank#}And they'll have a gratitude tree full of leaves one day.

    Express your thankfulness to the ones you love.{#blank#}2{#/blank#}Print the photos in a 5'×7'size and ask the kids to write a short note on the back explaining why they're grateful to that person. Family members, especially those who don't live nearby, will cherish the present.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#}Pick a regular time, maybe one Saturday a month, and do some voluntary jobs as a family.{#blank#}4{#/blank#}One child may want to spend a day helping to clean up their favorite park while another might want to read books to nursing home residents.

    Go grocery shopping for a family in need. Many stores now offer pre-made bags to donate right at the checkout line. While this is convenient, the larger the role they play in the act of giving, the bigger the effect it will have on your kids.{#blank#}5{#/blank#}

    Taking time as a family to practice gratitude doesn't have to be difficult or time-consuming and the benefits your children will get are long-lasting.

A. It will make the experience much more powerful.

B. Let kids take pictures of themselves with their loved ones.

C. Keep gratitude journals.

D. Volunteer together.

E. If you can find a charity where you deliver the groceries , that's even better.

F. Write it on a green leaf and tape it to the tree trunk.

G. Let family members take turns to pick an activity that means something to them.

    When it comes to the benefit of volunteering, a lot of people think it s all about the warm feeling after helping someone{#blank#}1{#/blank#} As is known, charity work requires a wide variety of people to do a wide variety of things for everything to work. It means that there are some surprising benefits for volunteers. For example, volunteering:

    Teaches you new skills.

    From helping making websites to teaching immigrant kids your native language, or to arranging events for charity, volunteering can really be almost anything. It means that when you get involved in charity work, a lot of the time you will face challenges{#blank#}2{#/blank#}

    Can teach you what truly matters.

    It's a great way to find new perspectives(角度) on life. When you've been at it for a while, you just might find yourself re-evaluating your advantages{#blank#}3{#/blank#} One of my friends went from wanting to be a lawyer to discovering a true passion for teaching

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#}

    Maybe it is not surprising, but what might surprise you is how genuine these friends are. Some of my long-term friends are people I've met through volunteering. I'm not that kind of guy that makes friends purely for connections, but sometimes it's very convenient to have a broad network.

    Summed up in one line: volunteering helps you grow{#blank#}5{#/blank#} You meet a wide variety of people who don't have a lot in common with. You learn to get along with people involved in many different walks in life. You learn to know what you are to do. So if you've ever considered volunteering, what are you waiting for?

A. You might even decide on a completely new path to take in life.

B. Helps you make new friends

C. As it turns out, that's far from the only benefit.

D. Volunteering helps you look outside yourself and your problems.

E. Through overcoming the challenges, you learn completely new skills.

F. Not only as a person, but it helps you develop your skill as well.

G. Can help improve social skills

Why Is Sorting Important When Recycling?

    We all agree that we should recycle more at home, in the office or when out and about. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}Consequently, they can be collected and taken to the right place for recycling. This is what the process of sorting allows us to do.

    {#blank#}2{#/blank#}And the effective sorting needs to happen first, in our own home and second, in sorting plants to which waste is collected. When you put a plastic bottle in the right recycling bag or bin, you are helping sort recyclables so that the right material can be fed into the right recycling process. If sorting does not happen, a lot of recyclable materials can end up in landfills. It will lead to valuable resources lost from our economy.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#}For instance, in Brussels consumers put plastic packaging, cans and beverage cartons in blue bags designed for recyclable packaging; paper in yellow bags for recycling; and glass needs to be taken to specific collection bins. Somewhat differently, in Vienna (Austria), citizens can expect their paper, metal, glass and plastic to be separately collected in different weeks of the year.{#blank#}4{#/blank#}

    Once recyclable materials are collected from your home, they are further sorted in specialized facilities which ensure the quality of the recycling process. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}Traditionally, sorting has been done either manually with workers sorting what can be recycled and picking out the materials to be discarded or mechanically. Today, however, new sorting technologies are being developed in order to speed up the process of sorting but to also cause better results. Exciting technologies using magnets or optical systems are being used to effectively sort materials so more of it can be recycled.

A. For effective recycling we need effective sorting.

B. Packaging at work is the first step towards recycling.

C. This is where different sorting techniques come into play.

D. So citizens need to be aware of their local collection system

E. Collection systems can be very different from country to country.

F. The rest was landfilled or burned even though they could have been recycled or reused.

G. But for materials to be recycled, they first need to find their way to the right waste stream.

    Test-taking tips

    Passing tests is a huge part of succeeding at school. Clearly, if you want to do well on a test, you need to prepare by learning the material(资料) {#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    Just breathe.

    Even the best prepared student sometimes gets nervous before a test. Nervous feelings can cause people to forget facts that they know. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} Breathing deeply is helpful for this. So is moving your body slightly, such as by rolling your shoulders around. Try to arrive for a test a few minutes early, so you can relax before it starts.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#}

    When you are handed a test, look over all the questions before you begin. Read them carefully, noticing details. Also pay attention to how many points each question is worth. Divide your time based on the percentage of your grade each question is worth.

    First answer questions you know and then go back to the difficult ones. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}But try to write an answer for every question on the test, even if you're not sure of the answer. The only exception(例外) is if you will lose points for wrong answers

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#}. If you're not sure whether you should change an answer, it's best not to. More often than not, your first instinct(本能) will be correct.

    Try your best.

    Above all, study well and try your best. If you do that, you can be proud of whatever score you get.

A. Pay attention to the time.

B. Read the test through first.

C. So one important test-taking tip is to try to relax.

D. But other actions can help make test-taking easier.

E. That way you don't spend too long on one question.

F. Check to make sure you have completed the whole test.

G. Try to finish early so you have time to review your answers and correct mistakes.