We all wish we had just a bit more time. Just think what you could do with an extra hour or two each day: you could finally stick to an exercise routine, or spring-clean the house, or write your novel, or learn the guitar and so on. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} But I can help you find more hours in your day for the things that really matter.

1）. Get Out of Bed Earlier

If you normally get up at 7: 30 a. m. , try getting up at 7: 00 a. m. That half-hour might not sound like much, but it could be time that you use to exercise, to read that book you've been meaning to finish. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}

2）. Do the Important Tasks First

    Once you get to work, get the important ones done first (not the easy ones, or even the urgent ones). You can afford to spend at least an hour working on big, important tasks rather than on all those little urgent ones. {#blank#}3{#/blank#}The urgent tasks will still get done, and you won't miss the important ones.

3）. Reduce Interruptions

    If colleagues have a habit of hanging around your desk to chat, or if the phone is constantly ringing, you might find that it takes you half the day to finish a simple task like writing a letter. Constant interruptions don't just eat up time, they also break your concentration.

    When you've got a big task to focus on, let your calls go to voicemail. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}Wearing headphones makes it less likely that people will try to strike up a conversation.

4）. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}

    A few minutes chatting, browsing the web, and so on, can easily turn into hours of wasted time over the course of a day. When you're working, work. If your concentration is slipping, take a proper break: go and get a glass of water, or stretch your legs a bit. And if you're facing a difficult task, try breaking it into small steps or stages so that it's easier to deal with.

A. Or simply to get your day off to a calm and organized start.

B. I can't magically make all your days 25 hours long.

C. Would you want me to make your day longer?

D. Take Breaks When Necessary

E. If you have an office door, close it.

F. If you work like this, you'll usually save time.

G. Stay Focused on Your Work

    Ireland now has one of the best education systems in the world. Class sizes are small, exam results are good and most children are happy to stay at school after the minimum(最低的) leaving age of sixteen. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    For years, Ireland had one of the most complicated(复杂的) education systems in the world. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} Classes were large and the teaching was very traditional. As in many countries, teachers used to hit the children if they made mistakes. Fortunately, the punishment was not allowed in 1982.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#} As a result, there were schools for the rich and schools for the poor. Boys and girls went to different schools. Nowadays, most schools are free and only about half the schools are either for girls or boys. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} Girls do better than boys in their exams; more girls go to university and most teachers are women.

    At the end of secondary school, students take their final exams. Compulsory(必修的)subjects are maths, Irish and English. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} Some of these, like business organization, help to prepare them for the world of work. This is very different from the past when Latin and Greek used to be the most important subjects.

A. In many ways, education is now a woman's world.

B. Parents used to pay for their children's education.

C. In addition, they must choose two or three extra subjects.

D. Public schools in Ireland are not run by the government.

E. It is easy to forget that the picture used to be very different.

F. Here, children do not learn any subjects but some basic skills.

G. There were many different kinds of school, but most of them had a lot in common.

    Taking on a part-time job while pursuing a degree is hard work, but there are great benefits from that. Students with part-time jobs can eam their own money, develop good time-management skills, and gain experience in the workplace.

    {#blank#}1{#/blank#}As they come into adulthood, earning an income can increase their confidence. Some students need to work through school to afford tuition.{#blank#}2{#/blank#} Still, the money will be theirs to spend as they wish, and they may appreciate it more because they worked for it.

    Students taking on a job on top of their studies will have less free time than non-working students{#blank#}3{#/blank#} They learn to skip fun activities to finish their responsibilities. This prepares them for life after school when they can't find excuses for work that's not finished in time,

    Often, students take jobs that introduce them to their preferred career after school is over{#blank#}4{#/blank#} Even students who work in places not connected to their majors will look more impressive to potential employers. Employers look for employees who understand the work environment and work well as part of a team{#blank#}5{#/blank#}That will make it much easier for them to change their roles after leaving school.

A. Others will set the money aside to pay back student loans.

B. Other students may have to get help from their parents.

C. Students having part-time jobs usually get employed easily after graduation.

D. Having a part-time job helps students to get accustomed to the professional world.

E. They tend to be better planners as they make sure they complete every task on deadline.

F. Students who take part-time jobs will have more money than they would have otherwise.

G. This allows them to gain experience in the business and begin meeting people in that field.

New Year's Day in China

    National holidays in China are those festivals decided by the government that everyone gets to enjoy. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} These holidays fall into two types: those that all citizens enjoy nationwide, and those that some citizens enjoy. New Year's Day is one that is enjoyed by people all over the country.

    {#blank#}2{#/blank#} They celebrate the New Year like people all over the world. Since ancient times, the day has been called “Yuandan” by the Chinese. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} “Dan” means “day”，so joined together the words mean “first day of a year”. For 3,000 years，China has greeted Yuandan with joyful ceremonies.

    Because of the different longitudes (经度) upon which countries lie in the world, the time of the celebration changes. China is the twelfth country to celebrate the event and the people are rewarded with one day's vacation. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} And organizations and schools hold parties to let everyone enter the joyful atmosphere of the festival. Sincere good wishes are sent by people's smiles and wonderful performances at parties. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}

A. “Yuan” means “at the beginning”.

B. Many colorful programs are shown on TV.

C. It's a day for the working people worldwide.

D. New Year's Day is a big holiday for the Chinese people.

E. Everyone has the right to get off work during these holidays.

F. You can read about how, where，and when to watch the program.

G. Great hopes for an excellent year are planted in everyone's mind.

    Do you ever draw? Most of us don't. The reason we usually leave drawing to the artists is that we're not very good at it. Who wants to do anything they're bad at? {#blank#}1{#/blank#}. Studies have found drawing has many benefits, artist or not. Here are just a few reasons for picking up a pen or pencil of any kind.

    It pushes you to be patient. We're used to things happening fast these days. Drawing is not fast. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} That's OK, and as something comes together over time, you'll be reminded of the value of patience. Drawing is an object lesson that not everything good comes quickly, which is an easy thing to forget.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#} A few of my drawings are really kind of great. Í can look at them with pride. But plenty of my little drawings ate nonsense or unfinished. It doesn't matter. I still have the experience of drawing and the benefits that brings. Even if you're not naturally "good" at drawing, you'll get better over time if you practice. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} Your drawing doesn't have to mean anything or do anything useful, Sometimes you will even fail. No big deal.

    It makes memories stick, I draw in order to capture (捕获) moments from my life. I'm not great at drawing, but that's not the point. Sometimes I draw the view from the window of my hotel room-whether it's a great view or not. Remember, the idea is to capture the moment, not create a masterpiece. Other times I draw from my dinner table. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}

A small robot may help children who are recovering from a long-term illness in the hospital or at home. These children may feel isolated(分离的) from their friends and classmates. However, there is a piece of good news for them. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} —Through the robot, the children can hear their teachers and friends.

Anyone who has had a long-term illness knows that recovering at home can be lonely. This can be especially true of children. They may feel left out. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} This isn't good for their recovery. They need friends. But their friends can't come to play with them because they have to attend school. Now the robot can be their friend. The robot is called AVl. AVl goes to school for a child who is unable to leave home while recovering from a long-term illness. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} They carry the robot between classes and put the robot on the child's desk.

{#blank#}4{#/blank#} The founders of No Isolation are Karen Dolva and Marius Aabel. Dolva explains how the robot AVl works. She says from home the child uses a phone to start the robot. Then they use the phone to control the robot's movements. At school, the robot becomes the eyes, ears and voice of the child.

The best part is that students can take part in classroom activities from wherever they are recovering -- whether at home or on the hospital bed. The robot is equipped with speakers, microphones and cameras, which makes communicating easier. It means they can communicate with their teachers and classmates easily. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}

A. So they won't feel left out at all.

B. They just want to recover quickly.

C. As a result, they can get really sad.

D. The robot can take their place at school.

E. And the child's school friends must help.

F. So who invented the good "friend" for children?

G. A Norwegian company called No Isolation created the robot.