Choosing the right job is probably one of the most important decisions we have to make in life, and it is frequently one of the hardest decisions we have to make. One important question that you might ask yourself is: “How do I get a good job?”

    {#blank#}1{#/blank#}. There are people who can answer an insignificant advertisement in the local paper and land the best job in the world; others write to all sorts of places all over the country, and never seem to get a reply at all. Still others believe that the in person, door-to-door approach is by far the best way to get a job; and then there are those who, through no active decision of their own, just seem to be in the right place at the right time. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}. He used to spend a lot of his free time down by the sea watching the tall ships, but never thinking that he might one day sail one of them. His father was a farmer, and being a sailor could never be anything for the boy but an idle dream. One day, on his usual wandering, he heard the captain of the ship complaining that he could not sail because one member of his crew was sick. Without stopping to think, the lad（少年）offered to take his place. {#blank#}3{#/blank#}

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#}. If the lad had gone home to ponder（考虑） his decision for a week, he may have missed his chance. It is one thing to be offered an opportunity; it is another thing to take it and use it well.  Sometimes we hear stories about people who break all the rules and still seem to land plum jobs（美差）. When you go for a job interview or fill out an application, you are expected to say nice things about the company to which you are applying. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}. And within a year this person had become general manager of the company.

A. This story also illustrates the importance of seizing an opportunity when it presents itself.

B. People find jobs in a variety of ways.

C. It's almost impossible to find a good job by answering advertisement in newspapers

D. Take for example the young man who wanted to be a sailor.

E. But there was one person who landed an excellent job by telling the interviewer all the company's faults.

F. He spent the rest of his life happily sailing the ships he had always loved.

G. It is very important to seize an opportunity when it presents itself.

Overcome Culture Shock in the Classroom

    Culture shock occurs in a classroom when students are exposed to a new situation.{#blank#}1{#/blank#}. However, it can also happen to students moving from a small town to a large city, to home-schooled students starting formal school education or to students progressing from one level of education to another. There are several strategies that teachers can use to help students overcome culture shock.

    Make group rules

    Brainstorm(集体讨论) group rules with the class as a whole to create a safe space and good learning environment.{#blank#}2{#/blank#}. Rules could include respecting differences, listening when someone is speaking and not teasing, for example.

    Provide a partner

    Find a partner for the new student in the adjustment period.{#blank#}3{#/blank#}. A good partner is someone who is friendly, outgoing and patient. The partner should show the new student around the school, spend time with him or her after class and eat lunch with him or her.

    Know the source of a problem

    Identify problems early and work with the student and his or her family to deal with them. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}. It can also be caused by overseas or home school environment. Students and parents need to be aware of all the rules and customs that apply.

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#}

    Create lessons that include information about different countries and traditions. These could include story reading, geography, cultural studies and history. Encourage the student to share some information about himself or herself.

A. Create special lessons

B. Respect other cultures

C. They have lost their own language and culture

D. Explain the rules and require everyone to follow them

E. A partner can help him or her quickly adapt to the new environment

F. Classroom culture shock is often caused by the very different environment of a classroom

G. Typically, this happens when a new immigrant(移民) arrives in a classroom for the first time

Getting the Cheapest Flights

    After interviewing 10 travel agents in the area, we've compiled (汇编) the very best tips for finding the cheapest flights.

    Book your flight 21 days before you want to fly. Booking a flight is like playing a game of chicken. Airlines want to get the most money possible for their tickets and have difficult computer programs that adjust their prices automatically. Booking too early, you might miss out on some major deals. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}The best advice is to book your flight 21 days before your planned departure date to get the best deals.

{#blank#}2{#/blank#}Most airlines update their reservation systems on Tuesday at 7 p.m. GMT. People tend to buy their tickets on weekends, so airlines make changes on one of the slowest days of the week—Tuesday.

    Fly on Tuesday or Wednesday. Tuesday and Wednesday are the least busy days at airports, and are also the cheapest days to fly. {#blank#}3{#/blank#}Friday and Sunday are the peak flying days of the week, and are the worst, and most expensive days to fly.

Book early for international flights. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}You can also try flying into smaller airports, which sometimes have better deals.

    Eat your cookies（网络标记). Delete your Internet browser cookies if you've visited an airline site within the last 30 days. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}

    Compare prices. Use travel search engines, in addition to airline websites, to make sure you're getting the best deal possible.

A. Collect it one day ahead.

B. Tuesday is the best day of the week.

C. Pay in cash when you receive your ticket.

D. Booking too late, you might be shocked to see prices skyrocket.

E. The best deals for international flying are found 11-12 weeks in advance.

F. As an added bonus, you'll also have less people to deal with at the airport.

G. It's been discovered that some airlines will raise prices for previous visitors to their websites.

    Do you ever feel like you've got a great idea, one that makes you feel unbelievably inspired and want to change the world? {#blank#}1{#/blank#} We've all been there. And we'll all be there again and again throughout life. So take a deep breath, and try these techniques:

    Start small.

    So often, we feel the need to take great leaps and bounds. Every day needs to be filled with productivity. But we reach a point where we get overwhelmed(不知所措的) by all the things we have to do. Break it down. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} Take a baby step. Once you get going, it will be harder to stop.

    Do the thing you're afraid of.

    Often when we get overwhelmed, it's because the task ahead is daunting（吓人的）. There's no easy way around it. The more we think about it, the more frightened we feel. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} Most of the time, things are never as bad as we imagined them in our minds.

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#}

    The biggest misunderstanding is that we have to do everything on our own. But that's simply not true. Success never comes without support. So reach out. Call a friend. Ask for advice. Your community will be more than happy to help, and you'll feel better.

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#} The harder you work for something you believe in, the better you will feel about it. And once you learn how to handle hitting a brick wall, it will get easier to deal with the next time around.

A. Ask for help.

B. Don't give up.

C. No one wants to live with regrets.

D. No one can do everything all at once.

E. So stop thinking about it, and just do it.

F. But once you start working on your idea, you start doubting yourself.

G. Remember that if it's not easy, it probably means it's worth it.

How to Remember What You Read

    Reading is important. But the next step is making sure that you remember what you've read! {#blank#}1{#/blank#} you may have just read the text. But the ideas, concepts and images（形象）may fly right out of your head. Here are a few tricks for remembering what you read.

    {#blank#}2{#/blank#} 

    If the plot, characters, or word usage is confusing for you, you likely won't be able to remember what you read. It's a bit like reading a foreign language. If you don't understand what you're reading, how would you remember it? But there are a few things you can do... Use a dictionary; look up the difficult words.

    Are you connected?

    Does a character remind you of a friend? Does the setting make you want to visit the place? Does the book inspire you and make you want to read more? With some books, you may feel a connection right away. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} How willing are you to make the connections happen?

    Read it; hear it; be it!

    Read the lines. Then, speak them out loud. And, put some character into the words. When he was writing his novels, Charles Dickens would act out the parts of the characters. He'd make faces in the mirror and change his voice for each character. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} 

    How often do you read?

    If you read frequently, you'll likely have an easier time with remembering what you're reading and what you've read. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} As you make reading a regular part of your life, you'll make more connections, stay more focused and understand the text better. You'll learn to enjoy literature- as you remember what you read!

A. Are you confused?

B. Practice makes perfect.

C. What's your motivation?

D. Memory is sometimes a tricky thing.

E. Marking helps you remember what you read.

F. But other books require a bit more work on your part.

G. You can do the same thing when you are reading the text!

    The pine tree is a special kind of tree.{#blank#}1{#/blank#}This is because many people put pine trees in their homes at Christmas time. They decorate the tree with colored lights, and put Christmas presents under the tree. Pine trees are different from other trees because most other trees lose their leaves in winter.{#blank#}2{#/blank#}So pine trees are also called evergreens.{#blank#}3{#/blank#}They have hard, thin leaves called needles. Pine trees also have pine cones. Pine cones look like hard berries. If you walk in a forest, you will see many pine cones on the ground.{#blank#}4{#/blank#}When the seeds fall to the ground, a new tree starts to grow. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}The wood is used to make furniture and boats. Many kinds of birds build their nests in pine trees. The seeds of pine trees are food for small animals such as squirrels and mice and for bigger animals such as rabbits and black bears. The needles are good food for large animals such as deer and moose when they cannot find anything to eat in the winter. If you walk in a forest of pine trees, the air has a wonderful smell. In winter, the white snow on the dark green trees looks very beautiful.

A. Pine trees stay green all year long, even in winter.

B. Pine trees do not have soft leaves like the maple tree.

C. Some people call the pine tree a Christmas tree.

D. Pine trees are very beautiful all year round.

E. Pine trees are valuable for many reasons.

F. Inside the pine cones are seeds.

G. The seeds inside the pine cones are the favorite food for some animals.