If anyone had told me three years ago that I would be spending most of my weekends camping, I would have laughed heartily. Campers, in my eyes, were people who enjoyed insect bites, ill-cooked meals, and uncomfortable sleeping bags. They had nothing in common with me.   (1)  

The friends who introduced me to camping thought that it meant to be a pioneer.   (2)   We slept in a tent, cooked over an open fire, and walked a long distance to take the shower and use the bathroom. This brief visit with Mother Nature cost me two days off from work, recovering from a bad case of sunburn and the doctor’s bill for my son’s food poisoning.

I was, nevertheless, talked into going on another fun-filled holiday in the wilderness.   (3)   Instead, we had a pop-up camper with comfortable beds and an air conditioner. My nature-loving friends had remembered to bring all the necessities of life.

  (4)   We have done a lot of it since. Recently, we bought a twenty-eight-foot travel trailer complete with a bathroom and a built-in TV set. There is a separate bedroom, a modern kitchen with a refrigerator. The trailer even has matching carpet and curtains.

  (5)   It must be true that sooner or later, everyone finds his or her way back to nature. I recommend that you find your way in style.

Learning English can be a difficult task. While many people learn English in the classroom, the vast majority of English learning takes place outside of it.

__  (1)  __，it is important to know how it is used in everyday life. One of the best things you can do is to read. First ask yourself what you enjoy reading in your native language. If the subject matter is interesting to you, you will be more likely to keep going.

Read a variety of different media in English, from magazines to novels.__  (2)  __. NewYork Times is going to take a more formal approach to the English language than somebodyˈs personal blog.

Consider your English level when selecting reading material.__  (3)  __，but do not frustrate yourself needlessly by selecting a complex text. You can choose to be a side－by－side reader, with the English text on one page and its translation on the other page，if you have only been studying English for a couple of years.

___  (4)  __. So do not look up every word you donˈt know as you read. It will only slow things down and make the reading process much less fun. Instead，rely on what you have already known. When you come across a difficult word or phrase，use context clues to guess at its meaning. Write down or underline any words or phrases you cannot figure out. When you have finished reading, go to your list of new words. Now you can get your dictionary and look them up one by one. __  (5)  __. You will be more likely to keep reading the interesting subject.

Summer is a time to look forward to because there is no school to get you down.  (1)  You just need to stay active, occupied, and have an open mind.

●Read if you feel bored.

Subscribe to a magazine or comic if you don't like books. Reading doesn't have to be boring. Choose whatever age-appropriate book that interests you and start reading.  (2)  In your backyard or on your balcony, on your bed, or out by the lake. Reading doesn't have to be boring.

●Get caught up on schoolwork.

Not all of us are straight "A" students. Take this time to go to the library and review material for the next year in advance.  (3)  No need to rush or stress out. It's just important not to forget anything you learned in the past year over the summer.

●Travel.

If you usually go on vacation in the summer, start packing now! Can't afford to travel far? No problem!   (4)  

Go on a road trip with your friends and family. Find out what's on the other side of that lake. Be creative!

●  (5)  

If summers are hot where you live, you can go to the beach with your family or friends. Also, some water parks have great discounts at times during the summer. But be careful, if there's a heat wave outside, you'd better stay out of the sun, or even go indoors.

When I was a boy,smart phones and computers were not available,and our television only got one channel clearly.Still,the fields,hills,and woodlands around my home never got me bored.  (1)   

I can remember once hiking to a nearby lake.At the backside of it I was amazed to find an old dirt road that I bad never seen before.It was full of potholes and muddy tire tracks and deep woods on both sides.  (2)  

  (3)  The dirt road gave way to a gravel（碎石）one and then a paved one,yet there was still neither a car nor a house in sight.I noticed the sun was starting to go down and I didnˈt want to end up trapped on this road in the dark of night,but I was afraid it would be dark before I could make it back to the lake again.

  (4)  My heart was pounding and my legs were aching.I was almost in tears when I turned one last curve（弯道）and saw something in the distance.It was a house that recognized.

My heart beat fast!  (5)  It was still over a mile away,but my legs felt like feathers and I hurried back to my house in no time with a big smile on my face.Then I ended my adventure with a good nightˈs sleep.

Small talk

Small talk is the short conversations that we have at parties, while we wait in line at the store, at family events or work. Sometimes we make small talk with people we already know but not well.   (1)  

Small talk is important. However, some people are not good at small talk. Making small talk doesn’t have to be either awkward or boring. Here are some tips to improve your small-talking ability.

  (2)  

If you have seen a really good movie or have read a really good book, you can talk about that. You can talk about something that you recently learned. When you are sharing the same experience with someone, it’s easy to start a conversation. You simply notice and comment on what’s going on around you. For example, if you are at a party and a song comes on that you like or that reminds you of something, you can talk about that.

Ask open-ended questions.

  (3)   If you ask questions that need more details to answer, the conversation will go on longer. For example, if you are at a summer pool party, don’t ask a person if they like summer. Instead, ask them what they like or dislike about summer. So, instead of getting a one-word answer, you might have the chance to share in a memory.

Become a student.

Nobody knows everything. So, as someone is answering one of your open-ended questions, they bring up something about which you know nothing. So, tell them! This lets the other person become the teacher. They feel good about sharing their knowledge and you get to learn something.   (4)  

Don’t ask, “So, what do you do?”

Some people do not like their jobs. Or maybe they don’t want to talk about it. So, instead of asking, “What do you do for a living?” ask something like, “So, what have you been doing these days?” or “So, what have you been up to?”

One general question can lead to an opportunity to share something you have in common. So, ask questions. Ask people about their families, their passions, their ambitions or even their fears.   (5)   Asking too many questions may make people feel they are in an interview rather than in a conversation.

根据短文内容，从短文后的选项中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项。选项中有两项为多余选项。

Before there was the written word, there was the language of dance. Dance expresses love and hate, joy and sorrow ,life and death, and everything else in between.

         (1)  We dance from Florida to Alaska, from north to south and sea to sea. We dance at weddings, birthdays , office parties and just to fill the time.

       “I adore dancing,” says Lester Bridges, the owner of a dance studio in Iowa. “I can't imagine doing anything else with my life." Bridges  runs dance classes for all ages. "Teaching dance is wonderful.   (2)  It's great to watch them. For many of them, it's a way of meeting people and having a social life."

         (3)  "I can tell you about one young couple," says Bridges. “They're learning to do traditional dances. They arrive at the class in low spirits and they leave with a smile.   (4)  ”

       So, do we dance in order to make ourselves feel better, calmer, healthier? Andrea Hillier says,“Dance, like the pattern of a beating heart, is life. Even after all these years, I want to get better and better.  (5)   I find it hard to stop! Dancing reminds me I'm alive."

Have you asked yourself the question “what do I really want to do with my life”? The question can come when you’re 18 or when you’re 50, and it’s always a difficult process to work through. It’s not hopeless, though!      (1)     .

Think about where you’ll be in five years.

The question works in either job interviews or financial plans.  (1)  Thankfully, that’s okay, and sometimes just trying to answer the question is all you need.

Write your personal beliefs.

The ideas might sound a little silly on the surface.  (2)  Silly or not, the ideas are to give yourself a call to action to define how you want to do things.

Volunteer or shadow someone in a job you’re interested in.

Want to write a book? Go to grad school!  (3)  Just take a couple days to try on the lifestyle. To do this, you can try volunteering or shadowing someone at their job.

  (4)  

Sometimes, the best way to really figure out what you want to do with yourself is good old trial and error. In a lot of cases, this just means trying out various side projects you’re interested in with all the free time you have.

Taking good notes is a time-saving skill that will help you to become a better student in several ways.　  (1)  　  Second, your notes are excellent materials to refer to when you are studying for a test. Third, note-taking offers variety to your study time and helps you to hold your interest.

You will want to take notes during classroom discussions and while reading a textbook or doing research for a report. 　  (2)  　 Whenever or however you take notes, keep in mind that note-taking is a selective process.　  (3)  　

The following methods may work best for you.

●Read the text quickly to find the main facts and ideas in it.

●Carefully read the text and watch for words that can show main points and supporting facts.

●Write your notes in your own words

●   　  (4)  　

●Note any question or ideas you may have about what was said or written.

As you take notes, you may want to use your own shorthand(速记). When you do, be sure that you understand your symbols and that you use them all the time.　  (5)  　

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