Issue 290
山东烟台一中 曲君
北京第80中学 孟英
New kind of food (P2)
I. Pre-reading (Discussion)
1. Have you heard of Yuan Longping, the famous Chinese agricultural scientist, and his "hybrid rice (杂交水稻)"？
2. China has the largest population in the world. Do you think if we have enough food to support the whole country?

II. While reading
1. Decide the following statements true or false.
1) Chinese government has allowed people to plant GM grains.
2) There is no evidence to show GM food is harmful to people's health.
3) GM food is more popular in European countries than in the U.S.A.
4) GM crops have more advantages than non-GM crops.

Choose the best answer:
1. Some people worry that GM food ____.
A. will do harm to their bodies
B. will be expensive
C. is as safe as non-GM food
D. is not able to grow well
2. GM food is food whose ____ has been changed.
A. Shape B. color C. size D. gene
3. Which is NOT true of GM rice according to the scientist?
A. It can cause some diseases.
B. It can resist pests.
C. It can produce more food.
D. It has advantages over non-GM rice.
4. We can tell from the story that ____.
A. Most European countries welcome GM food
B. China is the country that most welcomes GM crops
C. The UK is the biggest producer of GM corn in the world
D. The US has sold many GM soybeans to China

2. Vocabulary in use
Fill in the blanks with the proper forms:
expert resist concern by contrast advantage
1. Some scientists think GM food has more _______ over non-GM food.
2. A balanced diet will increase your ability to _____ infection (感染).
3. He is really a(an) ______ at making model planes.
4. The air pollution problem has caused widespread ______ over the world.
5. Joe has a bad temper (脾气), _________, his wife is very kind and tender.

III. Post-reading
1. In your opinion, is GM food safe to eat or not? Give your reasons.
2. Lack of food is a big problem in some African countries. Do you have any good ideas to help solve this problem?

US kids take test to find future career (P3)
I. Pre-reading (Discussion)
1. How much do you know about yourself? Have you ever talked about your character with your parents, teachers or friends? Why or why not?
2. Everybody has his/her own dream. What is yours?

II．While reading
1.Mark the following statements true or false.
1) US public schools started the new learning plans last year.
2) The new learning plans are used to help students think about their strong and weak points.
3) Daniella Martins is a 14-year-old girl in Linwood Middle School.
4) Daniella's dream is to take up singing in the future.
5) Matchmaker is an online career test to help students find their possible abilities.
6) Most students dislike the career test at first.

Vocabulary in use
Choose the best answer
1. This old method is _____ used in medical treatment today.
A. few B. little C. somewhat D. rarely
2. Tom is an actor, so acting is his ____.
A. living B. career C. business D. skill
3.Teachers and parents may discover the students' interests, skills etc. from the useful ____ in the career test.
A. style B. goal C. preparation D. information
4. Professor Wang is so kind to his students and he always _____ them to make progress.
A. decides B. guides C. encourages D. charges

Post-reading
1. It is said the most difficult thing is to know yourself. Do you agree with this? Discuss it with your partner.
2. Is it really helpful for the middle school students to take this kind of career test?

See how much I love you (P6)
Pre-reading (Discussion)
1. Do you like playing games?
2. Can you guess the meaning of the word "SHMILY"?
3. Which game is the most special for you? Why?
While reading
Judge true or false.
1. The writer's parents were married for over half a century.
2. The word "SHMILY" was written on all the furniture.
3. It took the writer a long time to fully appreciate the game.
4. The writer knew the meaning of the "SHMILY" at last.

Choose the best answer:
1. What is the game that grandparents often play?
A. One writes a note in a place for the other to find.
B. One hides in a place for the other to find.
C. One does an important thing for the other.
D. One reads a book for the other.
2. Which of the following is true according to the passage?
Only grandma hid "SHMILY" around the house.
The grandparents stopped playing the game when they were old.
The grandparents loved each other very much.
Grandpa didn't like playing the game.
3. Why was the room painted yellow?
A. Because grandma liked a yellow room.
B. Because grandma could always enjoy sunshine.
C. Because it was not easy to find the word in the yellow room.
D. Because the doctor advised to do that.
4. What's the best title for this passage?
A. My grandparents.
B. The game and my grandparents.
C. My grandparents' interesting life.
D. A game of love

Vocabulary in use
Fill in the blanks with correct forms:
as…as…, too…to…, one…the other…, so that, as soon as
1) The camera is ____ old _____ use.
2) Will you please call me _________ you get there.
3) Liu Xiang is _____ famous ____ Yao Ming.
4) Tom is friendly to everyone ________ he will have lots of friends.
5) I have two pens. ____ is red, _________ is blue.

Post-reading
1. What can you learn from the passage?
2. Can you understand the meaning of "SHMILY" in the passage? How do you know that?

Lion or lamb? (P8)
Pre-reading (Discussion)
1. How many seasons are there in a year? What are they?
2. Which season do you like best? Why?
3. How do you understand the meaning "March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb"?
While reading
Judge true or false.
1. February is an ugly winter month.
2. If March begins with cool weather and clear skies, there will be bad storms at the end of the month.
3. The original expression in Paragraph 1 may come from the animals.
4. April is very useful for the flowers of spring.

Choose the best answer:
1. How many months are mentioned in the passage?
A. Two. B. Three. C. Four. D. Five
2. If March begins with warm weather and clear skies, you will _____.
A. see beautiful flowers.
B. watch out for bad storms at the end of the month
C. see the snow on the ground
D. watch out the lions
3. Which of the following is true according to the passage?
A. The days in February are long and bright.
B. April is a month trapped between winter and spring.
C. "March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb" tells us something about the weather.
D. Some people have different ideas about it.

Vocabulary in use
Fill in the blanks with correct forms:
between…and…, at the end of, no longer, begin with, on the way
1) We _________ letters when we learn English.
2) They'll have an exam ____________ June.
3) Mike sits ________ Lily ______ Tony.
4) Bob met a friend ___________ home.
5) He is _________ a naughty boy.

Post-reading
Search for the other interesting proverbs of the twelve months on the Internet.

Key: P2 TTFT ADAD advantages, resist, expert, concern, by contrast
P3: FTTTTT DBDC
P6: FFTT ACBD too…to, as soon as, as…as, so… that, one…the other
P8: TFFT BBC begin with, at the end of, between …and, on the way, no longer