Reading is a very important skill. 阅读也是一种提高你的英语的好方法。However, to make sure what you read isn't too difficult, it's important to know what makes texts difficult and how you can improve your understanding of them. Here are some suggestions.

    ①Understand the purpose of your reading. The way you read depends on the purpose of your reading. The kind of reading you do in class or for your homework is different from how you read a novel for pleasure in the summer holidays.

    ② Find background information. Find something out about the topic you are going to read.

    The more background information you have, the easier it'll be to understand the text.

    ③Increase your vocabulary（词汇）. The more vocabulary you have, the easier your reading will be.

    ④ Use your dictionary correctly. A common mistake is to read everything very slowly and carefully, looking up each unknown word. Sometimes this is necessary, for example, when reading exam questions. However, it takes a long time and can be very boring; it can even make understanding more difficult!

    If you've followed the above advice and still can't understand a text, then it's simply too hard for you. Stop reading and ask someone to help you. 没有人想要放弃。However, you'll just be wasting your time if you continue to work at a text that's beyond you.

    A few days ago,I ran into(撞上)a stranger as he passed by.I said sorry to him, and he said,“Excuse me too,I wasn't even watching for you.”We were very polite,this stranger and I. Then we went on our way after saying goodbye.

    Later in the kitchen at home,as I cooked our meal,my daughter Betty walked up to me, very quietly.When I turned around(转身),I nearly knocked her down.“Get out of the way!”I shouted angrily.She ran away,crying.

    That night,when I lay in bed,my husband said to me,“You were so rude to Betty.Go and look around on the kitchen floor,and you'll find some flowers there.Betty brought those for you.She picked them herself－pink,yellow,and your favorite blue.”

    When I heard this,I thought deeply:While meeting with a stranger,I was calm and polite;but with my daughter,I was not patient(耐心的).I felt sad and tears began to fall.

    I quietly went to Betty's bed.“Wake up,my dear,”I said.“Are these the flowers you picked for me?”She smiled,“I found them by the tree.I knew you'd like them,especially the blue.”I said,“I am so sorry that I treated(对待)you that way today.”And she whispered,“Mommy,that's okay－I still love you anyway.”I kissed her and said,“I love you too and I do love the flowers.”

    That day Betty gave me a lesson on how to get along with each other in the family.I spent much time on work before and didn't realize how important family life was.I decided to do better in the future.

根据短文内容完成下列各题。

    Here are two old stories from Chinese history. The Chinese people have told them for many years.

    One is a story about Cao Cao's son, a clever boy named Cao Chong. One day, Cao Caogot a huge elephant from Sun Quan and he wanted to know the weight of it. Because there wasn't a scale large enough, some soldiers advised him to(A)it up. But Cao Cao didn't want to kill the elephant. Just then, Cao Chong came up with a great idea. He asked some soldiers to lead the elephant onto about. As the heavy animal walked onto it, the boat went lower into the water. After Cao Chong drew a line on the side of the boat to mark how low it went, the elephant was taken off the boat. (B)The boat was filed with rocks until the water reached the line on the boat. Cao Chong then weighed the rocks. The rocks and the elephant were of the same weight. (C)曹操对他的儿子生常满意。

    The other story is about a wise man named ZhugeLiang. He was asked to make 100, 000 arrows (箭)within 10days. He told (D) his soldiers to fill 20 large boats with many straw men. In the early morning of the third day, the soldiers said the boats towards the camps of Cao Cao's army on the other side of the river. They shouted and boat their drums loud. When Cao Cao's soldiers heard the sounds, they thought they were (E)attack. However, they could not see through the thick tog on the river. Cao Caoordered his soldiers to shoot arrows towards the sounds of the drums and the shouting. Zhuge Liang got enough arrows and then sailed back successfully.

    What can you do when someone hurts you? Most people may be angry or even fight with the one who hurts him or her. But it's not a good idea. The best way is to forgive him or her. Although it is not easy for us to forgive people who hurt us, it is possible. "Forgiveness makes people hopeful. And it is good for our health," says Fredric, Ph. D. the writer of the book called Forgive for God.

    But how can we forgive others?

    First, think of something beautiful and try to get yourself happy.

Second, don't wait for others to say sorry to you. If some people hurt you, they won't say sorry to you. They may just want to hurt you or they just don't see things the same way.

    Third, try to see things in others' shoes. You can write a letter to yourself from the offender's (冒犯者)point. That can make you understand others better and make yourself happier.

    At last, don't forget to forgive yourself. For some people, forgiving themselves is the biggest challenge(挑战). And it also makes you more confident.

    There was a park near my home. Many people said there was nothing special there. One afternoon I went into the park. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} "Which way should I go?" I asked myself. The two paths(小路) were different from each other.

    The left one was wide and clean. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} The flowers were very beautiful. I decided to take this path. But wait! I looked at the right one. It was not clean. For a long time I couldn't decide which path to choose.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#} It wasn't nice, but I didn't want to give up. At last I came to the end of the path. Ah! There was a small garden there. It was beautiful. I thought it was the nicest part of the park. When I told them what I had seen in the park, they just smiled at me without saying a word.

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#}

    My trip to the park made me understand something about life. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} You may get a big surprise!