A hobby is an investment（投资） of time. It also can be an investment of money and commitment. Many people choose to develop more than one type of hobby.   (1)   When it comes to choosing the hobby, consider the following factors.

Hobbies are usually an activity of some sort that brings out a certain skill that you have. When you have a talent like painting or woodworking, it can be easy to determine which hobby suits your skill.  (2)  Skill can be developed and challenged as you go along. It is not a necessary requirement. A hobby is fitting because you love it, not because you’re a professional（专业的）at it.

Some people particularly enjoy taking part in hobbies that they can do in a group with others. It can be a lot more fun to become a member of a hobby group than to sit alone in your basement（地下室）.   (3)    It’s important to share interests and network with other hobby enthusiasts （有热情的人）that do what you do.

Hobbies are generally an activity that you undertake because of the joy it brings you. Of course many people have discovered the joy that also comes with a hobby that earns you a living.  (4)    Just make sure you make the choice that fits your lifestyle and personal preference.

  (5)   But most of the skilled hobbies like art, building or writing have a series of lessons or tutorials（学习辅导，教程） that you can take to further your skills. In some cases it’s a really good idea to take lessons, especially if you are clueless as to where or how to begin. Step by step books for most hobbies can often be found in bookstores as well.

Get ahead by taking advantage of summer

Summer provides the best opportunity for future college applicants to separate themselves from the crowd. As the number of students who apply to colleges continues to rise, so too does the need for students to make an effort to distinguish themselves. Here are some great options to get you off to a head start:

A taste of college at home

Some universities and colleges offer a variety of advanced classes during the summer. Students can find a class that is not offered at their high school, which can help them find the pace of the real class more comfortable when they eventually start to take it.

Recently, online classes for credit（学分）are gaining popularity. One resource students can access is the Virtual High School – my.vhslearning.org. It is a nonprofit organization for online education that offers 24 AP courses, as well as dozens of other classes.

A taste of college far away

Experiencing a real college campus during a one-week or multi-week summer program is a great way to get a better understanding of whether the college is a good fit. Many of these programs offer hands-on experiences or guest lectures from experts.

Some are under the mistaken impression that attending a summer program at a good school gives them an advantage in the admissions process. “I don’t know that they are impressive just because a student did an academic program,” Greg Zaiser, head of admissions at Elon University, told The Charlotte Observer. “What impresses us the most is that students have identified something they want to study after the program.”

Community service

Volunteering is a great way to show interest in something you care about. It also lets you give back to your community, explore a career path and grow personally. Find ways to volunteer what matches your interests. Check out opportunities at hospitals or libraries; teach your favorite sport to disadvantaged youths; or work with animals.

   It is easy for some people to learn a second language. However, others have difficulty in learning a new language. What can you do to help yourself learn a second language, such as English?   (1)  

    Feel positive about learning English.   (2)   Be patient. You do not have to understand everything all at once. It is natural to make mistakes when you learn something new. We can learn from our mistakes. In other words, do not worry about making mistakes.

    Practice your English. For example, write a diary every day. You will form a habit of writing it in English, and you will feel comfortable expressing your ideas in English.   (3)   In addition, you must speak English every day. You can practice with your classmates outside class.

      (4)   You can write this in your journal. After each class, think about what you did. Did you answer a question correctly? Did you understand something the teacher explained? Perhaps the lesson was difficult, but you tried to understand it.

    You must be positive about learning English and believe that you can do it. It is important to practice every day and make a record of your achievements.   (5)  

  Coffee is one of the most popular drinks around the world. ____  (1)  ____ Experts think that there are more flavors of coffee than there are of wine. Coffee contains caffeine, something that raises our awareness, keeps us from falling asleep or simply gives us a kick in the morning or after lunch.

   ____  (2)  ____ For a long time doctors have told people not to drink too much coffee, because it may lead to heart problems, high blood pressure, and headaches.

   Scientists have now found out that it is the quality of coffee and the way it is made that hold the key to our health. ____  (3)  ____ Among other things, this is linked to the consumption of a strong coffee. Experts also point out that different roasts and types of coffee beans have different effects on our health. Milk and sugar change the different levels of caffeine in a cup of coffee.

   A new study by a Harvard research group says that there is no link between coffee and health problems. Drinking several cups of strong coffee a day is not connected with early death or other heart diseases. Coffee has many advantages, as the new study suggests. While alcohol makes people sleepy and slow moving, coffee gives them energy. ____  (4)  ____

   Although a lot still needs to be uncovered about coffee, it seems to reduce the risk of cancer and diabetes (糖尿病). ____  (5)  ____ But reports show that people who drink coffee may develop Parkinson's disease later in life, or maybe not at all.

Common public speaking problems

The use of “I feel”, “I think” and “maybe”

Does this situation seem familiar to you? Your English is progressing well, the grammar is now familiar, the reading comprehension is no problem, and you are speaking quite fluently． ___(1)___

First of all, remember that you are not alone．Listening is probably the most difficult job for almost all learners of English as a foreign language．The most important thing is to listen as often as possible．

___(2)___ The Internet is really a useful tool for English students．You can download The RealPlayer from RealMedia.com．The RealPlayer allows you to use the Internet like a radio station．

Once you have begun to listen on a regular basis, you might still be frustrated（受阻）by limited understanding.___(3)___

By remaining calm, allowing yourself not to understand, and not to translate while listening, your brain is free to concentrate on the most important thing: understanding English in English．

What color do you like best ? Do you like yellow, orange, and red?   (1)  Do you prefer grays and blues? Then you are probably quiet, shy, and you would rather follow than lead. You tend to be pessimist .At least, this is what psychologists tell us, and they should know, because they have been seriously studying the meaning of color preference, as well as the effect that colors have on human beings.   (2)  If you happen to love brown, you did so, as soon as you opened your eyes, or at least as soon as you could see clearly.

     (3)  A yellow room makes most people feel more cheerful and more relaxed than a dark green one; and a red dress brings warmth and cheer to the saddest winter day.  (4)  A black bridge over the Thames River , near London, used to be the scene of more suicides (自杀) than any other bridge in the area until it was repainted green .The number of suicide attempts immediately fell sharply. Perhaps it would have fallen even more if the bridge had been done in pink or baby blue.

    (5)  It is an established fact that factory workers work better, harder, and have fewer accidents when their machines are painted orange rather than black or gray.

Does this situation seem familiar to you? Your English is progressing well, the grammar is now familiar, the reading comprehension is no problem, and you are speaking quite fluently． __(1)____

First of all, remember that you are not alone．Listening is probably the most difficult job for almost all learners of English as a foreign language．The most important thing is to listen as often as possible．

 __(2)____ The Internet is really a useful tool for English students．You can download The RealPlayer from RealMedia.com．The RealPlayer allows you to use the Internet like a radio station．

Once you have begun to listen on a regular basis, you might still be frustrated（受阻）by limited understanding. __(3)____

By remaining calm, allowing yourself not to understand, and not to translate while listening, your brain is free to concentrate on the most important thing: understanding English in English．

It may help you to know that there is no such thing as a perfect speech. At some point in every speech, every speaker says something that is not understood exactly as he has planned. ___  (1)  ___ Why? Because the listeners do not know what the speaker plans to say. ___  (2)  ___ If you lose your place for a moment, wrongly change the order of a couple of sentences, or forget to pause at a certain point, no one will be any the wiser. When such moments occur, donˈt worry about them. Just continue as if nothing happened.

Even if you do make an obvious mistake during a speech, that donˈt really matter. If you have ever listened to Martin Luther Kingˈs famous speech－“I have a dream”， you may notice that he stumble(结巴) his words twice during the speech. ___  (3)  ___ Why? Because you were fixing your attention on its message rather than on his way of speech­making.

People care a lot about making mistakes in a speech because they regard speech­making as a kind of performance rather than as an act of communication. They feel the listeners are like judges in an ice­skating competition. But, in fact, the listeners are not looking for a perfect performer. They are looking for a well­thought­out speech that expresses the speakerˈs ideas clearly and directly. ___  (4)  __

As you work on your speech, donˈt worry about being imperfect. ___  (5)  ___

Most people buy a lot of gifts just before Christmas. But some people think we buy too much. They have started a special day called Buy Nothing Day.   (1)    .

   Buy Nothing Day is November 29. It’s 25 days before Christmas. It’s after Thanksgiving and often the first day of Christmas shopping.      (2)    .

   The idea for Buy Nothing Day started in Vancouver, British Columbia.    (3)     . In California, parents and children get together to read stories, sing songs, and paint pictures. The children talk about why they don’t need a lot of toys. This year, in Manchester, England, people dressed up in costumes to tell people that we buy too much.

    In Albuquerque, New Mexico, high school students wanted to tell other students about Buy Nothing Day. They organized a spaghetti dinner to give people information about Buy Nothing Day.   (4)    . They made posters and talked to other students about it.     (5)     . The students at high schools liked the idea of this new tradition. Next year, they want to have another dinner to tell more people about Buy Nothing Day.