中学生拓展课程系列
2008-7
上海外语教育出版社
曹娟，沈建平 注
101
阅读既是理解和吸收语言文化信息的重要手段之一，又是语言文化信息的最便捷的输入源。我国教育部新制定的全日制义务教育和普通高级中学《英语课程标准》对学生的阅读技能从三级到九级提出了明确的要求。在目前国内外的各种英语测试中，阅读理解所占的比重越来越大。为此，我们特向你推荐“中学英语拓展阅读丛书”（Timed Readings Plus）。本丛书含有以下3个子系列：社会科学（Social．Studies）、自然科学（Science）及数学（Mathematics），由上海外语教育出版社从美国McGraw Hill Glencoe公司引进出版。社会科学和自然科学各有10个分册，社会科学每册有24课，自然科学每册有25课，每课两篇阅读材料；数学有5个分册，每册有15课，每课两篇阅读材料。本丛书语言地道，知识面广，信息量大，能有效训练学生的阅读理解能力，提高他们的阅读速度。每课的第一篇阅读材料篇幅长400单词左右，侧重训练学生的快速阅读能力；阅读理解题则主要检查学生是否能在快速阅读后掌握阅读材料中的事实和材料所传达的思想。每课中的第二篇阅读材料较短，着重训练学生的阅读技巧，如：从上下文中猜测生词的含义，找出作者的观点，得出中心思想，排列事件顺序，推断作者的论点等。因此，我们认为它是一套训练学生阅读速度及阅读理解能力并能同时开拓他们视野的拓展型丛书，适合外国语学校初二及以上年级学生和非外国语学校高中学生课内、外使用。 怎样使用本系列丛书呢？我们有以下的一些阅读策略供大家参考。 1．阅读时，要集中注意力。 2．用一分钟阅读标题，并思考以下问题：我是否了解这一话题？我从这个话题中能学到什么？这个话题引起了我怎样的思考？ 3．重点阅读文章第一句和最后一句，因为第一句和最后一句往往是作者提出自己观点和总结全文观点的关键句子。 4．快速阅读全文以获得材料所传达给你的信息。如遇到含有姓名、日期或数字等的内容，你应该放慢速度，以便记住这些内容。 怎样才是一个快速阅读者？
《中学英语拓展阅读丛书》包含社会科学、自然科学和数学三个系列。社会科学和自然科学各10册，数学有5个分册。只要坚持每天阅读，你的阅读能力一定会有明显提高。我们期盼你在趣味盎然的阅读环境中培养阅读能力、遨游知识天地，学习地道英语。 《社会科学系列（4）》为社会科学系列第三分册，适合外国语学校及外语特色学校初中三年级学生使用。
致学生致老师1 A The Blues1 B Muddy Waters2 A The Significance of Harvest: Harvest Festivals2 B Chusok3 A The Great Seal of the United States3 B Uncle Sam4 A The Ice Age in North America4 B The Finger Lakes of New York State5 A Lewis and Clark and Their Relations with Native Americans5 B Sacagawea6 A The Social Impact of Television6 B Television and Children7 A From a Bill to a Law7 B What Is THOMAS? 8 AKing Tutankhamun8 B Imhotep and the Step Pyramid of Djoser9 A The History of Soccer9 B The Oneidas: First American Soccer Team10 A Life in the Stone Age10 B Stone Age Tools11 ASpace Technology and Geography11B The Global Positioning Satellite System12 A Historical Fiction12 B Avi: Writer of Historical Fiction13 A The Storming of the Bastille13 B Bastille Day14 AFranklin Delano Roosevelt and the New Deal14 B WPA Workers15 AP.hotojournalism: Telling the Story Through Pictures15 B Dorothea Lange and Her Migrant Mother16 ACity Management: Responsibilities of a Mayor16 B Fiorello LaGuardia17 A The Plains Indians and the Buffalo17 B Plains Indians Powwows18 A Everyday Life in the Middle Ages18 B Medieval Clothing19 A The Euro: Coin of the European Union19 B Travel and Money20 AKeeping Workers Safe on the Job20 B The Triangle Shirtwaist Fire21 A Farming and Towns in the Ancient Middle East21 B Catal Huyuk22 ARenaissance Sports and Games22 B Children's Games of the Renaissance23 A Confederate Women Spies23 B The Moon Sisters24 A Early Days of the Grand Canal24 B A Trip Down the Grand Canal附录Answer KeyReading RateComprehension ScoreComprehension Skills Profile
From a Bill to a The draft version of a proposed law is called a bill. Only the United States Congress can in- troduce bills and pass laws. There are two houses of Congress， the House of Representatives and the Senate. A bill must get a majority vote in both to become law. Passing a bill is not easy. Read this example of how an education bill is managed. First， a member of Congress introduces the bill. Then it is sent to a committee in the House and another in the Senate. Both committees specialize in education issues and laws. These committees may or may not consider the bill. Committee members decide which bills to consider. If members decide to consider the bill， a committee may hold public hearings （听证会）. Education experts and concerned citizens will share their expertise， offer advice， and answer questions. After the hearings， committee members hold a "mark-up" session. There， com- mittee members make changes in the bill. Then they vote on whether to send the bill to the full Congress. If they do send the bill to Congress， there is no rule that forces Congress to consider it. That is up to the leaders of the majority political party —— the Speaker of the House and the Senate Majority Leader. If party leaders decide to consider the education bill， it is debated separately in each house of Congress. Members of each house may make changes. In time， all of the changes are made. The members of each house vote on the revised version of the bill. If it gets a majority vote in both houses， it passes. The bill passed by the House is likely to be somewhat different from the bill passed by the Senate. The two bills must be reconciled （调和的，相一致的）. That is， their differences must be resolved. So the two versions are sent to a conference committee. This committee has members from both houses of Congress. The members decide on a final acceptable ver- sion of the bill. The compromise bill is voted on again by all members of each house. If it gets a majority vote in both houses of Congress， the bill passes。
遨游知识天地学习地道英语 你听说过环境建筑学吗？你知道转基因技术基于怎样的原理吗？我们每天点击的互联网是在哪种巧合下诞生的？欧洲中世纪城堡中一天的生活是怎样的？中国古代的造纸术分哪几个步骤？你一定想知道这些问题的答案吧。翻开这套“中学英语拓展阅读丛书”，你就走进了一个五彩斑斓的奇妙世界。 《中学英语拓展阅读丛书》由外教社从美国著名出版机构麦格劳一希尔（McGraw Hill）公司引进，语言地道，知识面广，信息量大，是一套既注重培养学生英语阅读能力，又致力开阔他们视野的拓展型丛书。整套书编写理念先进，编排设计科学，难度逐级递升，既适合外国语学校及外语特色学校初二至高三年级的学生使用，也适合普通中学同等水平的学生使用。 我们期盼你在趣味盎然的阅读环境中培养阅读能力，邀游知识天地，学习地道英语。
