Passage 3

Passage 3: Let children learn to judge their own work. A child learning to talk does not learn by being corrected at the same time: if corrected too much, he will stop talking. He notices a thousand times a day the difference between the language he uses and the language those around him use. Bit by bit, he makes the necessary changes to make his language like other people. In the same way the children learn to do all the other thing s. They learn to do without being taught – to – talk, run, climb, whistle, ride a bicycle – compare their own performances with those of more skilled people, and slowly make the necessary changes. But in school we never give a child a chance to find out his mistake himself, let alone correct them. We do it all for him. We act as if we thought that he would never notice a mistake unless it was pointed out for him or correct it unless he was made to. Soon he became dependent on teachers. Let him do it himself. Let him work out, with the help of other children if he wants it. What this word says, what the answer is to that problem, whether this is a good way of saying or doing this or not. If it is the matter of right answers, as it may be in mathematics or science, give him the answer book. Let him correct his own papers. Why should we teachers waste time on such routine work? Our job should be to help children when he tells us that he can’t find the way to get the right answer. Let’s end all this nonsense of grades exams, marks. Let us throw them all out, and let children learn what all educated people must someday learn, how to measure their own understanding, how to know what they know or do not know. Let them get on this job in the same way that seems most sensible to them, with our help as school and used for the rest of one’s life is nonsense in a word as complicated and rapidly changing as ours. Anxious parents and teacher say, “but suppose they fail to learn something essential, something they will need to get on in the world?” don’t worry, if it is essential, they will go out into the world and learn it. 1. What does author think is the best way for children to learn things? A. By copying what other people do. B. By making mistakes and having them corrected. C. By asking questions D. By answering questions 2. What does the author think teachers should NOT do? A. They give children correct answer. B. They point out children’s mistakes for them. C. They allow children to mark their own work, D. They encourage children to copy from one another. 3. The passage suggests that learning to speak and to ride a bicycle is……….. A. not really an important skill. B. more important than other skills. C. basically different from learning to do other things. D. basically the same as learning other skills. 4. Exams grades, marks should be abolished because children’s progress should only be estimated by ………………….. A. educated persons B. the children themselves C. teachers D. parents 5. The author fears that children will grow up into adults who are …………….. A. too dependent on others B. too critical of themselves C. unable to think for themselves D. unable to use basic skills Passage 4: Bulbs are ideal for new gardeners, including children, because they are easy to plant and they always flower well in their first season. They need comparatively little attention, provided that the soil has been properly prepared, and the place where they are planted is chosen with care. They will last for many years and give you an annual show of flowers that are often so richly colored or beautifully formed as to be in a class apart from other garden flowers. However, it is a mistake to buy bulbs without any plan of what effect you really want from them. I have written this book to help in selecting the most suitable bulbs for the typical, small, modern garden of non-specialist gardeners, and have made some suggestions to help readers who may not have had a garden before. Too many books for beginners tell new gardeners how to grow a few ‘sensible’ kinds of plants and leave the more interesting kinds to adventurous experts. For the first few years of gardening life, one should, it seems, concentrate on learning simple techniques while admiring the gardens of more experienced neighbors. In fact, as a learner-gardener you need not fear that your efforts will necessarily show your inexperience, because (and here I give away a most closely-guarded secret), provided the bulbs come from a really reliable source, it is possible to produce as good results in your first year of gardening as in your eightieth. There are some difficult bulbs that will disappoint you, notably some lilies and a few miniature daffodils, but there are often no more attractive that the really easy ones. Therefore, be bold with bulbs; they are a sound investment for any garden. Never be content to plant the bulbs by themselves. The majority looks best when planted among other kinds of plants, because they have unattractive leaves, which are thus hidden. There are a few bulbs, such as standard daffodils, which are, however, at their best grown in short grass. 1. Why should new gardeners try growing bulbs? A. They are cheap, so a great many can be grown B. Once planted, little after-care is needed C. They will grow anywhere in the garden D. their flowers get better and better each year. 2. What is this book on gardening about? A. Planting an easily maintained garden. B. Up-to-date information on new bulbs C. General advice for beginner gardeners D. The choice of bulbs for small gardeners 3. Inexperienced gardeners are often told what they should……………… A. experiment with different plants B. ask their experienced neighbors for advice C. learn by visiting other gardens D. plant a few types of plants 4. Bulbs are described as an investment because ……………………………….. A. they go on flowering all summer B. they flower year after year C. the beginner can learn from them D. they make other plant look good 5. Some lilies and miniature daffodils are different forms other bulb s because they are ………………. A. particularly attractive in color B. difficult to grow successfully C. disappointing when they flower D. rare and very eye-catching Passage 8: A combination of sewage, salt, air pollution, sun, sand and wind may destroy the huge statue on the outskirts of Cairo. This statue of the Sun God has the body of a lion and the face of a human being. It is five thousand years old, but it is too badly damaged to be completely saved. The statue had already been dug out of the sand three times. However, the latest problems are much more serious. First, there are no proper drains and water pipes in the neighborhood and the underground passages round the statue have become blocked. Too much water has been running into the stone statue for several years. As a result, tiny pieces of salt have been left on the stone and have damaged it. Secondly, air pollution from the increasing amount of traffic in Cairo is also destroying the ancient statue. The air is so full of poisonous gases that it is making the stone crumble and decay even faster. Thirdly, the statue is being damaged by extremes of temperature. For example, although the air is very cold at night, during the day the stone of the statue becomes very hot under the strong sun. Other natural forces such as severe sandstorms attack the statue. Finally, the tourists who visit the statue every day also cause a lot of damage. 1. The underground passage round the statue are full of A. waste and water B. gold and water C. silver and copper D. drains and water pipes 2. Part of the statue looks like a lion and part like A. the sun B. the moon C. a star D. a person 3. The statue was build ……….. years ago. A. 50 B. 500 C. 5,000 D. 50,000 4. What have polluted the air near the statue? A. The weather and the temperature. B. The sun and the moon. C. Proper drains and water pipes. D. Cars, buses and lorries. 5. Cairo is in. A. France B. Iran C. Egypt D. Japan Passage 9: In the spring of 1934, storms swept across the Great Plains, but they were not rainstorms. They were the result of sun and drought and a terrible wind that blew millions of tons of topsoil from 300,000 square-miles in Kansas, Texas, Oklahoma, Colorado, and New Mexico. This was the Dust Bowl. It choked cattle and sickened the people who stayed. Three hundred and fifty thousands settlers fled, many becoming part of a slow, sad caravan along Route 66 to California. But wind and drought were not the only factors that combined to create the Dust Bowl. Only fifty years earlier, a carpet of buffalo grass had covered the Great Plains, protecting the soil and retaining the moisture in the ground. By the turn of the century, farmers had settled, homesteading in regions that had been used as range land. The increased demand for wheat during World War I encouraged farmers to plow and plant even wider areas. Forty percent of the land that they plowed up had never been exposed to rain, wind, or sun before .When the drought and wind came, the land had been prepared for disaster. 1. The author mentions all of the following as having contributed to the disaster except: A. Wind B. Drought C. Homesteading D. Rain 2. The word “fled “in line 7 is closest in meaning to which of the following phrases? A. passed way B. became ill C. ran way D. gave up 3. The word “It” in line 5 refers to A. topsoil B. the Dust Bowl C. wind D. result 4. With which of the following topics is the passage primarily concerned? A. The Dust Bowl C. Homesteading B. The Great Plains C. World War I 5. Where did many of the homesteaders go when they abandoned their farms? A. To Kansas B. To Texas B. To New Mexico D. To California Passage 10: The ecosystems of the Earth provide an array of free public services that are essential for the support of civilizations. They maintain the quality of the atmosphere ,provide food from the sea , manufacture and replenish soils , recycle wastes and nutrients , control the overwhelming majority of crop pests and disease vectors , and so on . People have no idea how to take over these activities satisfactory .They do know , however , that the theory once advanced in the nineteenth century – that the productivity of the land can be infinitely increased by the application of capital , labor , and science- is wrong . History has shown that once the natural life-support systems of a civilization have been sufficiently damaged, they can’t usually be repaired. The ancient deforestation and overgrazing of the Mediterranean region is a famous example. And today, a global civilization is ruining the global environment. 1. The word “They” in line 2 refers to ......................................... A. ecosystems B. civilizations C. sea D. people 2. The author mentions the Mediterranean region as an example of A. the ability of nature to remedy human destruction. B. the ability of people to make use of natural resources C. the manner in which people replenish the environment D. the effects of human abuse of natural resources 3. What is the main topic of this passage? A. Free public services. B. Support needed for civilizations. C. The value of ecosystems. D. The vastness of the Earth. 4. The author suggests that civilizations can survive only if they .................................... A. greatly expand scientific research. B. do not destroy the balance of natural processes C. replant the forests in the Mediterranean region. D. invent new procedures to replace obsolete ecosystems. 5. The author suggests that the difference between the ancient and the modern situation is that today the problem is ....................................................... A. world- wide B. better understood C. more manageable D. economic ... - tailieumienphi.vn