In this age of Internet chat, videogames and reality television. there is no shortage ofmindless activities to keep a child occupied. Yet. despite the competition, my 8-year-olddaughter Rebecca wants to spend her leisure time writing short stories. She wants to enterone of her stories into a writing contest. a competition she won last year.

　　As a writer I know about winning contests. and about losing them]know what it islike to work hard on a stononly 1o receive a rejection slip from the publisher. I also knowthe pressure of trying to live叩to a reputation createdprevious victories. What if shedoesn't win the contest again? That's the strange thing about being a parent. So many ofour own past scars and dashed hopes can surface. A revelation(啟示)came last weekwhen I asked her, 'Don't you want to win again?" "No." she replied. "1 just want to tellthe story of air angel going to first grade.'

　　I hadjust spent weeks correcting her stories as she spontaneously (1_I發(fā)地)told themTelling myself that I was merely an experienced writer guiding the young writer acrossthe hall. I offered suggestions for characters, conflicts and endings for her tales. The storyabout a fearful angel starting first grade was quickly "guided" by me into the tale of alittle girl with a wild imagination taking her first music lesson. I had turned her contestinto my contest without even realizing it.

　　Staying back and giving kids space to grow is not as easy as it looks. Because I knowvery little about farm animals who use tools or angels who go to first grade.]hadaccept the fact that I was co-opting借NJ) my daughter's experience.

　　While stepping back was difficult for me. it was certainly a good first step that I witquickly follow with more steps. putting myself far enough a way to give her room but

　　close enough to help if asked. All the while I will be reminding myself that children need

　　room to experiment. grow and find their own voices.

　　1. What do we learn from the first paragraph?

　　A) A lot of distractions compete for children's time nowadays

　　B) Children do find 1015 of fun in many mindless activities.

　　C) Rebecca is much too occupied to enjoy her leisure time.

　　D) Rebecca draws on a lot of online materials for her writing.

　　2.at did the author say about her own writing experience?

　　A) She was constantly under pressure of writing more

　　B) Most of her stories had been rejected by publishers.

　　C) She did not quite live up to her reputation as a writer.

　　D) Her way to success was full ofpains and frustrations.

　　3. Why did Rebecca want toenter this year's writing contest?

　　A) She had won a prize in the previous contest

　　B) She wanted to share her stories with readers.

　　C) She was sure of winning with her mother's help.

　　D) She believed she possessed real talent for writing

　　4. The author took great pains to refine her daughter's stories because

　　A) she wanted to help Rebecca realize her dreams of becoming a writer一一

　　B) she was afraid Rebecca's im agmation might run wild while writing

　　C)she did not want to disappoint Rebecca who needed her help so much

　　D) she believed she had the knowledge and experience to offer guidance

　　5.What's the authors advice for parents?

　　A) Children should be given every chance to voice their opinions

　　B) Parents should keep an eye on the activities their kids engage in

　　C) Children should be allowed freedom to grow through experience

　　D) A writing career. though attractive, is not for every child to pursue

　　【答案】1-5 ACBDC