Coming back home (P2)
I. Pre-reading
Discuss the following questions with your partner.
 Do you want to study abroad?
 If you had the chance to study abroad, would you choose to work abroad or come back home after your graduation? Why?

II. Reading
Read the article and answer the following questions:
1. What factors have contributed to the rising number of returning students from overseas?
1) A balanced life that foreign countries cannot provide;
2) Family bonds；
3) China’s booming economy

2. What sectors are the most popular with returned overseas Chinese students?
The finance and real estate sectors are the most popular with returned overseas Chinese students, followed by culture and entertainment.

3. What measures has the government taken to stop the brain drain?
The government has launched programs to help returnees. The Thousand Talents Plan from 2008, for instance, provides generous salaries and start-up packages to lure the best talent back to China.

III. Language study
1. While the number of Chinese students studying overseas is increasing, reaching 413,900 last year, the number of returnees keeps rising, 47 percent every year on average.
本句中while表示“虽然，尽管”，引导让步状语从句。Reaching…用作伴随状语。

2. In 2010, China overtook Japan to become the world’s second largest economy, helping it to offer its people more opportunities to fulfill their dreams.
本句中helping…短语用作结果状语。

3. The finance and real estate (房地产) sectors are the most popular with returned overseas Chinese students, followed by culture and entertainment, all booming in China in recent years, according to CRI.
过去分词短语followed by …在句中作伴随状语，表示“金融房地产是最受归国留学生喜欢的行业，文化娱乐行业紧随其后”。All booming …是独立主格结构，boom跟主语all在逻辑上是主动关系，所以用v-ing形式。

Inventions of the year (P5)
I. Pre-reading
Discuss the following questions with your partner.
 Which new invention impressed you the most this year? What makes it appealing?
 Which new inventions have changed your life this year? How do they work?

II. Reading
Read the article and choose the best answer for each of the following questions.
1. Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the text?
A. Selfie sticks come in only one size, and come with a handheld bluetooth button.
B. Selfie sticks enable people to take photos at a distance and from better angles.
C. Wireless electricity is a technology that can improve the performance of cellphones.
D. Wireless electricity allows people to charge objects wherever they want.
2. The “super banana” is meant to ____.
A. help Ugandan people get richer
B. take the place of local bananas in Uganda
C. reduce the possibility that children in Uganda get blind
D. add more protein to Ugandans’ diets and make them healthier
3. Which of the following inventions is going to be significant in changing the way we make products?
A. Selfie sticks.  B. Wireless Electricity.
C. The super banana.  D. 3-D Printing.
4. The main purpose of the text is to ____.
A. analyze why the four inventions were made
B. describe the four most popular inventions of 2014
C. attract potential customers to the four inventions
D. introduce four inventions that have made the world better

Key:
1. B。根据“Selfie sticks come in many different shapes and sizes and can hold your camera, or smartphone, at a distance to help you find better photo angles and take better group photos.”可知A有误，B正确。文中提到Wireless electricity的亮点是可以让人们在离电源2.4米以外充电，不需要电线，所以CD有误。
2. C。文中提到乌干达的五岁以下的孩子们失明率较高，是因为他们每天食用的大量香蕉中所含维生素含量太低，尤其是维他命A。所以Dale他们在新研制出的“super banana”里增加了一种基因，使香蕉富含维生素A，从而帮助乌干达人更加健康。
3. D。根据文章的最后一句话可以得此答案。
4. D。根据全文尤其是文章开头两段可以得此答案。

III. After reading
Further thinking:
 Which difficulties in everyday life bother you the most? Put forward one or two new ways to solve them.
 
A great challenge (P6)
I. Pre-reading
Discuss the following questions with your partner.
The Ice Bucket Challenge was very popular across the world this year. What was the reason for the activity? What do you think of it?

II. Reading
Read the article and choose the best answer for each of the following questions.
1. Which of the following descriptions is TRUE of Pete?
A. He played baseball in a motorized wheelchair in the past.
B. He can’t see things clearly without the help of a device.
C. He has to rely on a ventilator to survive because of his injured diaphragm.
D. His brain is the only physical part of his body left working normally.
2. Why did Pete’s roommate take the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge?
A. He loved to do adventurous activities.
B. He expected to win the award offered by the organizers.
C. He wanted to raise some money for Pete.
D. He wanted to see how well he could endure the cold.
3. From what happened to Uncle Dave, it can be inferred that ____.
A. Uncle Dave got very angry at the activity
B. Uncle Dave started his own Facebook page because of the activity
C. Uncle Dave was in charge of the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge
D. a large number of people showed how much they cared for Pete
4. In the last paragraph, the speaker mainly conveys the message that ____.
A. the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge has encouraged her to help those in need
B. it is up to us to choose to live whatever life we want to
C. we shouldn’t blame anybody who can’t handle life’s troubles by themselves
D. we should cherish what we own and be kind to people around us

Key:
1. D。从第2段“ALS robs the human of all their physical parts, but the brain stays”可以看出，患上ALS，人的身体的其它器官都会逐渐失去功能，最后只剩下大脑。
2. C。从第3段“Over the next couple of days, our news feed was full of family and friends taking the challenge.”可以看出，皮特的室友启动这项活动是为了让更多的人参与这项挑战，目的是为了让更多的人关注皮特的情况，这一点从由此带来的成果（本段最后一句）可以看出——很多人在经济上给予皮特帮助。
3. D。戴夫叔叔发来的信息不是生气，更多的是惊讶。他管理着皮特的网站，从“his phone was blowing up”可知，有很多人访问了皮特的网站，他们都是为了表示关心和关爱的。
4. B。最后一段，作者提出从这件事情获得的一种生活态度：“Every morning when you wake up, you can choose to live your day in positivity.”无论发生了什么事，生活是什么样子的，完全是由你自己决定的，何不积极乐观一点呢？

III. Language study
1. Uncle Dave gets a hit every time Pete’s website is gone onto, and his phone was blowing up.
释义：每次有人访问皮特的网站时，戴夫叔叔也会收到一条（提醒）信息，他的手机都要爆了。
分析：go onto sb’s website = visit sb’s website 访问某网站。blow up指“爆炸”，在此用来形容信息量之大。

2. Would any of you blame me if I just was in the fetal (胎儿的) position and pulled the covers over my head every day?
释义：如果我每天只是像胎儿一样蜷缩在那里，并且把被子拉过头顶，你们会有人责备我吗？
分析：胎儿在母体里是蜷缩着的状态，所以在此fetal position指蜷缩在床上的姿势。作者的生活如此艰难，所以即使每天赖在床上不起，也不会有人责备的。