Unit 4 Timetables and Schedules
Reading Comprehension
Passage A
Quality Time
You’ve just been given a major (主要的) task and want to do it well, but it seems that the minute you
get started, you’re interrupted （打断）. First, Jane stops by. Then, it’s the phone. Later, your boss tells
you to drop everything—she’s got a rush job. And you have that meeting at three!
All these things are important. If only you could rearrange（重新安排）them without breaking your concentration
（注意力. And you can! We’ve heard about quality time at home—why not quality time（黄金时间）on the job?
Being by finding out those parts of the day during which you’re most creative（有创造力的）.
You may work best in the morning or in the afternoon. No matter—just find your time and build a wall around it.
Say that for you （例如）, quality time begins at ten. Focus on （集中）your major task then, and don’t
let anything interrupt you. If you have a secretary（秘书）, tell her or him to hold all calls and visitors; if you don’t,
try to ask a colleague（同事）to help you. The point is that both outsiders and colleagues will know that you will not
will notwill notwill notwill notbe available（可找到的）for a part of each day. Why? Because you are working!
Prepare for this special block of time as carefully as you would for an important meeting. Don’t waste precious（宝贵的）minutes searching for memos or notes. Be ready to begin precisely at ten, and get the most out of（充分利用）every second. You might like to use your block simply for thinking about a project, problem or a new idea.
Start small—maybe thirty or forty minutes, three times a week, building up（逐渐增加）to at least an hour.
Sure, you’ll have to chip away（削去）at your block a little sometimes, but guard that hour as you would anyothervaluedpossession（财产）.anyothervaluedpossession（财产）anyothervaluedpossession（财产）.
A. When you are given a major task. B. When a friend stops by.
C. When your boss gives you a rush job to do. D. When you have a meeting.
2. You work during your quality time.
A. most quietly B. most carefully
C. best D. worst
3. When you focus on your major task, you’d better ask your secretary to .
A. get every thing ready for you B. attend meetings instead of you
C. hold all calls and visitors D. write down memos and notes
4. You should let other people know that you are not available during your quality time because .
A. you are busy B. a visitor has come
C. your boss has a rush job D. you are working
5. Building a wall around it in paragraph 3 is similar in meaning to .
A. guard it B. create it
C. focus your attention on it D. get ready for it
Passage B
The Importance of Punctuality
Punctuality is important in American business, academic（学术的）, and social settings（环境）. The importance is taught to young children in school. The use of bells is the signal（信号）to the child that punctuality and time are to be respected（尊重）. An amusing（有趣的）report of a schoolchild’s experience with time appeared in a recent newspaper article:
As a child, my mother used to tell me how important it was to be at school when the first bell rang. Preparations（准备）for my “on-time” appearance（出现）began the night before. I was asked to go to bed early so I could wake up wide-eyed at 7 a.m. with enough time to get ready. Although I usually managed to watch my favorite TV cartoons, I knew that in one hour I had to get dressed, eat breakfast, brush my teeth, comb my hair, and be on my way to school or I would be breaking an important rule of Mom’s, the school’s or of the world’s. It was hard to tell which.
People who keep appointments are considered dependable（可靠的）. If people are late to job interviews, appointments, or classes, they are often viewed as unreliable and irresponsible（不负责的）. In the business world, “time is money” and companies may fine their executives（经管人员）for being late for business meetings. Of course, it is not always possible to be punctual. Social and business etiquette（礼仪）also provides rules for rules for late arrivals. Calling on the telephone if one is going to be more than a few minutes late for scheduled appointments is considered polite and is often expected. Although arriving thirty minutes late to some parties is acceptable, keeping a friend waiting beyond ten to twenty minutes is considered rude.
1. The use of bells in schools helps children understand the importance of .
A. money B. study C. punctuality D. teacher
2. When should children make necessary preparations for the next day’s on-time appearance?
A. in the morning B. in the afternoon
C. in the evening D. at midnight
3. People who are late for appointments are often considered .
A. unreliable B. dishonest
C. unfriendly D. unlucky
4. In the business world, executives might need to for being late for business meetings.
A. do extra work B. leave the company
C. clean the office D. pay a fine
5. It is not acceptable to be late for some parties.
A. 10 minutes B. 20 minutes
C. 30 minutes D. 40 minutes
Key to the exercises
阅读
Passage A
1-5 ACCDA
Passage B
1-5 CCADD