Quick tips for better time management

    Are you a good time manager? If your answer is “no”, here are some tips on how to be a better time manager:

1). Create a daily plan. Plan your day before it starts. The plan gives you a good description of how the day will go on. That way, you will be ready to deal with most of the things you meet. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}

2). Focus. Are you multi-tasking so much that you're just not getting anything done? {#blank#}2{#/blank#} Only focus on what you're doing. You'll be more efficient that way.

3). Stay away from your time wasters. What takes your time away from your work? QQ? Email checking? {#blank#}3{#/blank#} One thing you can do is make it hard to check them — remove them from your browser quick links.

4). {#blank#}4{#/blank#} Don't take on more than you can deal with. For the distractions that come in when you're doing other things, give a firm no. Or do it later.

5). Decide to be early. When you prepare to be on time, you'll either be on time or late. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}However, if you decide to be early, you'll most likely to be on time. For appointments, try to be early. For your deadlines, meet them earlier than required.

A. Learn to say “No”.

B. Most of the time you'll be late.

C. Great ways to know your time spent.

D. Cut off when you need to.

E. Stop checking them so often.

F. Your job for the day is to follow the plan as best as possible..

G. If so, focus on just one key task at one time

    Everyone can benefit a lot from reading books. The following is about the various benefits of reading books.

    {#blank#}1{#/blank#} Whenever you read something, you learn information that you otherwise wouldn't have known. It can be a fact about history or a theory you didn't know. If you want to learn new words, reading books is a great way to enlarge your vocabulary.

    {#blank#}2{#/blank#} Similar to solving puzzles, reading books allows your mind to practice its processing skills. Going without books for too long will turn your mind into a whirl (混乱).

    One of the primary benefits of reading books is its ability to develop your critical thinking skills. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} Wherever you are faced with a similar problem in real life, your mind is able to put its mystery-solving skills to a test.

    One of the real benefits of reading books is that the information in it can be accessed over and over again. For example, reading a cookbook allows you the luxury of reviewing the procedures whenever you need to. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} Don't even think about writing the information down because you may lose the paper you wrote down on sooner or later.

    These are just some of the wonderful benefits of reading books.{#blank#}5{#/blank#} If you can't even go outside, you can download free e-books on line and read them on your computer. That way, you can see how advantageous reading can be for yourself.

A. Reading books will make you smart.

B. You can improve your memory by reading.

C. Reading books provides you with new knowledge.

D. Following a recipe from a cooking show will be difficult.

E. Reading mystery novels, for example, sharpens your mind.

F. Reading keeps your mind in good condition.

G. Why don't you drop by the bookstore or library and pick a book up?

Read the following passage and then answer the questions.

    When thinking back to an experience that has affected me the most, I can't help but recall the first time I performed for a crowd with my band.

    As I stood in the dark, in front of 300 people, my head began to pound and my eyes began to hurt from straining to see the faces before me. No matter how many times I wiped off my hands, they were covered with sweat, making them fumble across the strings of my guitar. Then, in a flash, the spotlights were turned on and the crowd yelled. My heart raced and I knew that the night of my first concert would be exciting and memorable.

    The concert was held annually at Frank's school. Being the largest activity for the students in the spring, we were told to expect the whole school to come to see us play. That fact went over and over in my mind. True, I had played in the school band in concerts for many people, but that was with a large group and I had sat in the back. Here it was just the three of us, all up front. I had had different visions of what performing would be like, but what ended up happening was a pleasant surprise.

    During the first song, the crowd stood in a mixed state of confusion and excitement. I could see nothing but their dark shapes, some swaying to the beat of the bass drum, others standing still, examining our every move. The song ended with hesitant applause.

    Glancing at Frank, the guitarist and singer, I read a message in his eyes. "I don't think they like us." His look pierced through my heart and I almost left the stage, yet kept going anyway. The second and third songs went the same way with the crowd looking at us like monkeys in a zoo. But then the magic started.

    Our fourth song we had was written for the occasion and it was as if it were the beginning of a trip that we would take with the crowd of onlookers. The funk bass and driving drums seemed to pick these people up like puppets and do with them what they pleased. The crowd danced and jumped and clapped, in and out of beat. Our music was giving these people a reason to lose their inhibitions and for a short time, enjoy themselves. By the end of the second to last song the crowd was at our mercy. Finally creating a situation that I had only dreamed of, during the last song the crowd began to sing the words. But it was not just any song, it was a song we had written. This sent my heart racing and I couldn't help smiling and even laughing. The song ended and an echoing roar came over the crowd.

    The concert was to me part of a childhood dream. My friends and I were responsible for giving 300 people a good time for an evening. They sang my words and they hummed my tune, and all helped to make the dream come true. That night back in my room, I sat up all night. I saw the bodies dancing in front of me and heard their screams. Even though I may perform in college and in the future, this feeling is one I may never feel again.

House Sitting

    In many countries of the world people do what is called house sitting. It means that if owners of the house are going away, they want someone to come into their home and look after the house and maybe pets while they are away.

    In Australia, many people travel. After people retire, they might buy a van and travel all over the country. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    So if someone wants to travel or go away for some reason, they might want someone in their home to care for it and keep the gardens tidy. House sitters might have to care for pets. Also, quite a few people have swimming pools in their back yard and they need cleaning. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} I feel it is a great way of seeing the country, because you go and stay in a new city, get to meet new people, and have time to go sightseeing in a new area.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#} There are websites where you find the advertisements by people who want to travel, and by replying to the advertisement, you can make arrangements to go and look after their home. There are some requirements to be a house sitter. You must be a trusted person, so that the home owner knows you will not steal anything. You must be able to go when the house owner wants you to go, so you need lots of free time. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} You need to be good with pets, able to care for cats and dogs, or other pets they may have.

    Some house sitting Jobs are just for a few days or a couple of weeks while the house owner have a short holiday. Sometimes it is for much longer. We have had one house sit for six months, while the home owner travelled to Europe.

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#} Then you can travel to many different countries and stay there. One of the important things to get are references from the home owners where you have stayed. A reference is a written letter to say that you are trustworthy and have looked after their home well. You can show these letters to prospective house sitting Jobs and they know you will do a good job.

A. I have done house sitting many times.

B. Thousands of people do this all the time.

C. It is also possible to do house sitting in other countries.

D. Generally you have many opportunities to get a house sitting job.

E. You must take a little care over what your description says about you.

F. This is an international house sitting service for all city and country areas.

G. You must have a good car, so you can travel to different parts of the country.

Top Healthy Homework Habits

    Your homework habits might be affecting your grades. Are you feeling tired, painful, or bored when it comes to homework time? {#blank#}1{#/blank#} You can change the way you feel by taking better care of your mind and your body.

    ◆{#blank#}2{#/blank#}

    Studies show that teens natural sleep patterns are different from those of adults. This often causes sleep loss among teens, since they tend to have trouble going to sleep at night, and have trouble waking in the mornings. You can avoid some of the problems that come with sleep deprivation by changing some of your nighttime habits.

    ◆Improve your eating habit

    Do you feel tired or dizzy a lot of the time? If you sometimes avoid working on a project because you just don't have the energy, you can increase your energy level by changing your diet. {#blank#}3{#/blank#}

    ◆Improve your memory

    A great way to improve your homework habits is to improve your memory with brain exercise. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} But there is one mnemonic (记忆的) method that has been around since ancient times. Ancient accounts show that early Greek and Roman orators used the "loci" (轨迹) method of remembering long speeches and lists. You may be able to use this method to enhance your memory at test time.

    ◆Fight the urge to procrastinate (拖延)

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#} Don't fall for it! Procrastination is like a little white lie we tell ourselves. We often think we'll feel better about studying later if we do something fun now, like playing with a pet, watching a TV show, or even cleaning our room. It's not true.