chief1 College A New Experience 2 how to read

College - A New Experience

1. College is a new and different experience for me. I'm away from home, so I have many things

to adjust to. Being on my own, talking with friendly people, and having Fridays off -- these are

just some things I like about college.

2.

Living

at

college,

first

of

all,

gives

me

a

sense

of

responsibility,

of

being

on

my

own.

My

parents

aren't

around

to

say,

you're

not

going

out

tonight

or

you

finish

your

homework?

Everything

I

do

has

to

be

my

decision,

and

that

gives

me

the

responsibility

of

handling my own life. During the second week I was at college, I had to go out and look for a

bank where I could open an account. Before that I looked in the phone book since I had no clue

about any banks around here or where they were located. Someone told me about a good bank:

Continental Federal Savings. I went to the bank and made decisions for myself -- whether to have

a checking or savings account and whether or not to get a MASTER card. That was one example

of having responsibility now that I'm on my own and of making my own decisions.

3.

Friendly

people:

that's

another

aspect

I

like

about

college.

On

my

first

day

(and

even

now)

people were nice to me. I came to Marymount University here in Virginia from New York and --

even though I'd been here before -- I was a bit confused about where I was going. My mother and

I drove in, not knowing the building we were supposed to go to, and the guard was especially nice:

with a smile, he told us what building we were looking for and where we could park our car. My

room was on the first floor of New Gerard, and I knew I had to go through some glass doors -- but

my

mother and I didn't know which ones. Some upperclassmen saw

me and asked,

you a

new student?

that's

where

we're

going.

Even

now

I

feel

comfortable

in

the

dorm

because

there

are

friendly

people around to talk with.

4. Finally -- to add to my likes of college -- I love having Fridays off; I wouldn't be able to cope

with five days of classes in a row. Also, I love to sleep in. One Thursday night, my roommate and

I and the people across the hall went to Georgetown. We got in rather early the next morning, and

my roommate (Juanita) and I decided to sleep in, something I couldn't do in high school.

5. I do like things about college -- being on my own, talking with friendly people, having Fridays

off, but this doesn't mean I don't think about things at home. Although I like college, I can still get

homesick: New York is a pretty good place, too.

New Words

adjust

v.

调整，适应于

responsibility

n.

责任，责任心

tonight

ad. on or during the night of today

在今夜

n. the night of today

今夜

handle

v. 1. to deal with; control

处理，应付，操纵

2. to treat

对待，处理

account

n. 1.

账目，账户

2. a written or spoken report or story

报道，叙述

clue

n. something that helps to find an answer to a question, difficulty, etc.

线索，暗示

locate

v. to fix or set in a certain place

把

...

设置在，使

...

坐落于

continental

a.

大陆的

federal

a.

联邦的，联邦制的

savings

n.

储蓄（金）

aspect

n. a certain side of many- sided state of affairs, idea, plan, etc.

（问题、事物等的）方面

confuse

v.

使

...

困惑，把

...

弄糊涂

upperclassman

n.

（美）高年级学生，大学三（四）年级学生

dorm

n. (=dormitory)

集体寝室，宿舍

cope

v. to deal successfully (with something)

妥善处理

roommate

n.

住同室的人

homesick

a. feeling a great wish to be at home, when away from it

想家的，患怀乡病的

Phrases and Expressions

adjust to

适应于

on one's own

独立地

have ... off

休假

first of all

首先

look for

寻找

open an account

开账户

make a decision

作出决定

now that

既然，因为

find out

了解到，发现

add to

给

...

增添

cope with

处理

in a row

连续地

sleep in

迟起，睡懒觉

Proper Names

Continental Federal Savings

大陆联邦储蓄银行

MASTER card

万事达信用卡

Marymount University

玛丽芒特大学

Virginia

弗吉尼亚州（美国州名）

New York

1.

纽约州（美国州名）

2.

纽约市（美国城市）

New Gerard

新吉拉德大楼

Georgetown

乔治敦区（华盛顿市内西部一住宅区）

Juanita

胡安妮塔（人名）

Text B

PRE-READING TASK

Exercise 1

Before reading the passage, think over the questions to see if you can answer them.

1. How do you read a textbook?

2. Do you like to take notes while reading?

3. Do you often review what you have just read? Why or why not?

Now read the passage and compare your answers with the suggestions of the author's.

How to Study Read

1. Most students don't know how to study read. They usually open their textbooks to the assigned

page and start reading. But before long, their minds have wandered off somewhere. Or they read

and mark up the pages by underlining everything that seems important. Study reading is different

from regular reading. You are expected to remember more, and in most cases, will be tested on

what you read. Here is a four-step method for study reading that can help improve comprehension

and promote retention of what is read.

Step One: Prepare to Read

2. It's important to prepare yourself to read. Much time can be lost when you try to plunk yourself

into reading an assigned chapter when your mind isn't ready. Because you can think faster than

you can read, your mind can easily go into daydreams or other thoughts if you aren't ready to read

an assignment. The wisest thing to do is to skim over the chapter to be read. Let the title sink in.

Read an opening paragraph or two to see what the chapter is about. Then read the headings and

subheadings. Next read the summary or the last couple of paragraphs. It may not make a lot of

sense, but your mind will begin to clear out other thoughts. You'll begin to think about the content

of the chapter. If there are study questions at the end of the chapter, read those. Having questions

about what you are reading helps concentration and gives you a purpose for reading.

Step Two: Read

3. After

you've looked over the chapter,

you are ready

to read. If

you don't have any questions

about the content of the chapter, make some up. You can do this by turning the title and headings

into questions. If you are reading a long chapter, don't try to read too much at once. It's better if

you read from one heading to the next. Then stop and follow Step Three below. If there are no

headings in the chapter, read about two pages; then stop and follow Step Three below.

Step Three: Examine What You Read

4. By reading only short passages and then stopping, you stand a better chance of concentrating on

the chapter's content. The third step is now to examine what you read. Put the textbook aside, and

write some notes in your own words. In a few key words or phrases, write down the major points

you just read. Research shows that doing this aids comprehension and retention for future tests. If

you don't believe in taking reading notes, at least try to recite to yourself the key points you just

read. When you are satisfied you understand what you read, then read from the next heading to the

next, stopping every once in a while to take notes or go over what you read. Follow this step until

you are finished with the chapter. Though this may seem slow, as you practice this study reading

technique, you'll discover it's really faster because you don't waste time by losing concentration or

having to reread what you've read.

Step Four: Plan to Review

5.

This

last

step

does

not

take

place

immediately

after

you

read,

but

it's

very

important

for

remembering what

you read and can mean the difference between a C and an A on a test. You

should

make

a

definite

plan

to

review

your

reading

notes

every

week.

As

you

move

through

a

course,

you

have

more

and

more

to

learn.

You

can't

remember

it

all.

In

fact,

unless

we

review

every week what has been studied before, we can forget over 80 percent of what we read. So plan