What makes one person more intelligent than another? What makes one person a genius, like the brilliant Albert Einstein, and another person a fool? Are people born intelligent or stupid, or is intelligence the result of where and how you live? These are very old questions and the answers to them are still not clear.

We know, however, that just being born with a good mind is not enough. In some ways, the mind is like a leg or an arm muscle. It needs exercise. Mental exercise is particularly important for young children. Many child psychologists (心理学家) think that parents should play with their children more often and give them problems to think about. The children are then more likely to grow up bright and intelligent. If, on the other hand, children are left alone a great deal with nothing to do, they are more likely to become dull and unintelligent.

Parents should also be careful with what they say to young children. According to some psychologists, if parents are always telling a child that he or she is a fool or an idiot, then the child is more likely to keep doing silly and foolish things. So it is probably better for parents to say very positive things to their children, such as “That was a very clever thing you did.” or “You are such a smart child.”

1.The words “intelligent” and “brilliant” in the first paragraph probably mean _______ while “dull” in the second paragraph means ________.

2.According to the context we can guess that a genius is ________ while an idiot is ________.

3. A person ________ is more likely to become a genius.

4. It is better for parents ________.

5.Which of the following is NOT true according to the article?

“Linda, if beating yourself up were an Olympic sport, you’d win a gold medal!”
Annabel, my close friend, stunned me with that frank observation after I told her how I had mishandled a situation with a student in a third-grade class where I was substituting. “I should never have let him go to the boy’s room without a pass! It was my fault he got into trouble with the hall monitor! I’m so stupid!”
My friend burst out laughing, and then made her “Olympic” comment. After a brief period of reflection I had to admit that she was right. I did put myself down an awful lot. Why, just during the previous day I had called myself “a slob” for having some papers spread out on my desk, “ugly” when I left the house without makeup and “an idiot” when I left the house for an emergency substitute job without my emergency lesson plan.
In a more reflective tone, Annabel said, “I once took a workshop at church where the woman in charge had us list all the mean things we say about ourselves.”
“How many did you have on your list?” I asked.
“Fifteen,” she confessed. “But then the teacher said, ‘Now turn to the person next to you and say all the items on your list as if you were speaking to that person!’ ”
My jaw dropped. “What did you do?”
“Nothing. Nobody did. We all just sat there, until I said, ‘I could never say these things to anyone else!’ ”
“And our teacher replied, ‘Well, if you can’t say them to anyone else, then don’t ever say them to yourself!’ ”
My friend had a point. I would never insult a child of God---and I’m God’s child, too!
God, today let me be as kind to myself as I would be to another of Your children.
【小题1】 What does Annabel mean by the first sentence of the passage?

She is a bit shy and _______ stand up and answer the teacher’s questions.

1. A.
   dares not
2. B.
   doesn’t dare
3. C.
   dare not to
4. D.
   dares not to

She is a vegetarian. She will __________ if you mention eating meat in front of her.

Blair: Blair was the first to appear in movies in history. In 1905, Blair appeared in the movie Rescued by Rover (义犬救主). It is a British film that a baby is kidnapped by an old woman, but the faithful family dog Rover saves the baby at last.

Though Rover is a common name, it became popular because of the dog hero in the movie.

Lassie: lassie used to be the most famous dog in the world. She is a character who has starred (扮演) in many movies, TV shows and books over the years.

Lassie was created by Eric Knight and made her way into a short story in a newspaper in 1913 and into a novel in 1940.

Laika: Laika is the first animal that has orbited the earth. On November  3, 1957, Laika was sent to space in the Soviet Union’s Sputnik 2.(苏联人造地球卫星2号). The Soviets admitted soon after the launch that the spacecraft would not return. It meant that the poor animal would die. People argued a lot about Laika’s death. Several countries issued stamps in memory of Laika. She became the first animal to give her life for the exploration of space.

Rin Tin Tin: Rin Tin Tin is the first American dog movie star. He first appeared in WhereThe North Begins in 1925. Rin Tin Tin went on to make 25 movies, he even signed his own contracts with paw prints(爪印). During his best time, he earned about 5 million dollars for those people who worked for him.

Snoopy: snoopy may be the most famous cartoon dog in the world. As a hunting beagle (猎犬) from Charles Schultz’ popular newspaper comic strip (连环漫画)， Peanuts, snoopy first appeared in 1950. Though snoopy was at first a minor figure, he grew to become the strip’s best-known character. He is famous for always sleeping on top of his doghouse and sometimes dressing up and pretending himself as a World War I airplane pilot. Snoopy appeared in the Peanuts comic strips until Schultz’s retirement ( and death ) in February of 2000.

1.According to the passage how many dogs starred in movies?

A. 2          B. 3         C.4           D.5

2.Two dogs created by artists are_.

A. Rin Tin Tin and Snoopy    B. Blair and Lassie   C. Rin Tin Tin and Lassie

D. Snoopy and Lassie

3.Which dog is most worth respecting?

A. Laika.  B. Snoopy   C. Lassie.   D. Rin Tin Tin.

4. Which of the following is the most reasonable?

A. Blair- the first dog movie star; Laika-the greatest dog; Snoopy-No.1 cartoon dog star.

B. Rin Tin Tin- the first dog movie star; Laika-the most disappointing dog; Snoopy-No.1 cartoon dog star.

C. Rin Tin Tin- a dog millionaire; Blair- the first dog movie star; Laika-the most well-known cartoon dog.

D. Laika-the greatest dog; Rin Tin Tin- the first dog movie star; Laika-the most well-known cartoon dog.