Average doll released (P4)
I. Pre-reading
Discuss the following question with your partner.
Barbie dolls appeal to a lot of girls. What do you think makes the dolls so popular with girls?

II. Reading
Read the article and answer the following questions.
1. Why did Nickolay Lamm make the Lammily doll? (No more than 14 words)

2. How is the Lammily doll different from Barbie dolls? (No more than 12 words)

3. What does Lamm mean when he says, “why not give dolls a real treatment?” in the second-to-last paragraph? (No more than 15 words)

4. Translate the following sentence into Chinese:
“Getting kids used to the idea that these things are completely normal and not ‘flaws’ to be ashamed of can only be a good thing.”

5. What is the author’s attitude toward the Lammily doll? (One word)

Key:
1. Because he doesn’t agree with the unrealistic beauty standards of Barbie dolls. / Because he wanted to suggest that it’s okay to look like a normal person.
2. It is modeled after an average young American woman with real-life features.
3. Rather than having perfect looks and skin, dolls should look natural with real-life marks.
4. 这些东西是完全正常的，并不是令人感到羞愧的“缺陷”，让孩子们接受这个观念绝对是件好事。
5. Supportive/Approving/Positive.

III. After-reading
Further thinking:
What do you think of Lamm’s idea to create Lammily? Do you agree with his idea that “Average is beautiful”? Why or why not?
 

Social media has issues (P5)
I. Pre-reading
Discuss the following questions with your partner.
 How has the rise of social media changed many people’s lives?
It has influenced how people get their news, how they communicate with friends and loved ones, and the way they treat their work and private lives.
 Do you think the information on social media is reliable? Why or why not?

II. Reading
Read the article and choose the best answer for each of the following questions.
1. What is the author’s main purpose in writing the article?
A. To recommend popular social networking sites.
B. To point out the advantages and disadvantages of social media.
C. To analyze why information gathered from social media isn’t said to be trustworthy.
D. To remind readers of things they should watch out for when using social media.
2. According to the study, social media might “misrepresent the real world” because ____.
a. many people choose only the stories they like
b. there might be a few fake accounts among them
c. not everyone takes part in social media activities
d. the design of a website can create “Internet bias”
e. people’s online behavior might be different from what they do in real life
A. abc       B. abe C. bcd       D. cde
3. Which word best describes the tone of the last two paragraphs?
A. Warning.
B. Encouraging.
C. Pessimistic.
D. Enthusiastic.
4. How does the author make the main points of the study clear?
A. With comparisons.
B. Through examples.
C. Through cause and effect analysis.
D. By setting down general rules.

Key:
1. C。本文主要讲述的是计算机科学家们发现，从社交媒体上收集到的信息并不完全可信。
2. C。文章第五、第六段列举的数据说明不是所有人都参与网上的社交媒体，c正确；第七、第八段说明，网站可能在设计上有推荐某些话题的功能，这样人们可能直接就读这些话题的相关文章而不是自己选择要看的内容，这样会导致 “网络偏见”，所以d正确；第九段的主要意思是网络上的账号有些是假的，所以也会造成统计的误差，b正确。综上，正确答案为C。
3. A。最后两段提到，这个发现比我们想象的要更重要，因为很多社交媒体总结的数据会被政府和大众参考，从而影响他们的决定，所以下次你再说“我在微博上看见了，这是真的”时，请三思，这时语气应该是warning。
4. B。文章举了一些例子来进行论述，比如第六、第八段。

III. After-reading
Writing:
Nowadays, social media has become an essential part of our lives. How has it influenced our lives? What should we pay attention to when using social media? Write a short article describing the impact of social media and things we should pay attention to when we are using it.

Christmas cheer (P6)
I. Pre-reading
Discuss the following questions with your partner.
What is the best gift you have ever received from your parents? Why did you like it the best?

II. Reading
Read the article and choose the best answer for each of the following questions.
1. The author was in low spirits before his father came back because ____.
A. he was worried about his father’s safety
B. it was the beginning of a new year and he didn’t want to grow up
C. he couldn’t have the Christmas gift he wanted
D. he didn’t want to be dragged out in the cold
2. What inspired the father to help the Jensens?
A. He talked to Widow Jensen and got to know how much trouble she was in.
B. He saw the little child digging for wood out in the cold.
C. Widow Jensen had to raise more children than he did.
D. Their neighbors were not nice or helpful.
3. The author finally understood why his father did so when ____.
A. he saw the difficult situation the family was in
B. he put the meat on the table
C. Widow Jensen invited them into her house
D. he saw how moved Widow Jensen was by their gifts
4. What did the author learn from that Christmas?
A. Helping those in need makes us feel good.
B. Christmas gifts are unimportant for poor people.
C. We should live in harmony with people around us.
D. Being helpful sometimes brings people good luck.

Key:
1. C。从第1段“feeling like the world was over for me because there hadn't been enough money to buy me the rifle that I'd wanted that year”可知，作者感到世界末日来临了一样，是因为没钱买步枪，圣诞节得不到自己想要的礼物，所以不开心。
2. B。从“He went into the woodshed and came out with an armload of wood”可以看出父亲直接取到的是木头，而从下文的“I rode by just today… Little Jakey was out digging around in the woodpile. They're out of wood,”可知，父亲途径Jensen家的时候，看见那么小的孩子在外面挖木头，于是可以推断出是这件事激发了父亲要帮助这一家人的想法。
3. D。从最后一段“I wasn't the same person when I went back out to get the wood. I had a big lump in my throat, and there were tears in my eyes too.”可知，作者几近哽咽，并评判自己跟进来的时候完全不是一个人了，所以应该受到了Widow Jensen接受礼物时的感动的影响，才明白父亲为什么要这么做的道理。
4. A。全文都是在讲他们是怎么帮助有需之人的，作者从这件事得到“Just then the rifle seemed very unimportant”这个结论，说明作者意识到帮助的意义之大。

III. Language study
1. Not only wasn’t I getting the rifle for Christmas, but now Pa was dragging me out in the cold.
释义：我不仅没有得到圣诞节想要的步枪，而且还被爸爸拉出去受冻。
分析：当not only用于句首且强调的成分不是主语时，其所在的分句要用部分倒装结构，即把助动词、情态动词提到主语的前面。例如：Not only did he turn up late, he also forgot his books.

2. It shouldn’t have been our concern.
释义：这本不应该是我们关心的事。
分析：shouldn’t have done表示某种行为不该发生但是发生了。如：She shouldn’t have left the hospital so soon, as she had not yet recovered.

3. She bit her lower lip to keep it from trembling and then tears filled her eyes and started running down her cheeks.
释义：她咬住下嘴唇不让它颤抖，然后眼泪夺眶而出、滑落脸颊。
分析：该句中人物的表情描写很生动，值得背诵。