Do you know how many languages there are in the world? There are about 5,500, but many of them are not considered very ________ . English is considered one of the most important languages because many people ________ it, not only in the UK and the US, but in other countries of the world. About 375 million speak it ________ their own language, and another 750 million use it as a ________ language. It is ________ to say how many people are learning it. Millions of boys and girls in schools are trying to do so.

Many English children ________ French. French is also a very important language. Some children learn German,________ , Japanese and Russian, of which Chinese is getting more and more popular.

Which is the best way to learn a language? We know that we all learnt the ________ language well when we were ________ . If we learn a second language in the same way, it may not seem so difficult. What does a small child do? He ________ what people say, and he tries to guess what he hears. When he wants something, he has to ________ it. He is using the language, ________ and talking in it at all times. If people use a second language all the time, they will learn it ________．

In school, you learn to read, to write, to hear and to ________. It is best to learn all new words through the ________ . You can read them, spell them and speak them later.

For many people today, reading is no longer relaxation. To keep up their work they must read letters, reports, trade publications, interoffice communications, not to mention newspapers and magazines: a never-ending flood of words. In ______ a job or advancing in one, the ability to read and comprehend ______ can mean the difference between success and failure. Yet the unfortunate fact is that most of us are ______ readers. Most of us develop poor reading ______

at an early age, and never get over them. The main deficiency ______ in the actual stuff of language itself — words. Taken individually, words have ______ meaning until they are strung together into phrases, sentences and paragraphs. ______, however, the untrained reader does not read groups of words. He laboriously reads one word at a time, often regressing to ______ words or passages. Regression, the tendency to look back over ______ you have just read, is a common bad habit in reading. Another habit which ______ down the speed of reading is vocalization — sounding each word either orally or mentally as ______ reads.

To overcome these bad habits, some reading clinics use a device called an ______, which moves a bar (or curtain) down the page at a predetermined speed. The bar is set at a slightly faster rate ______ the reader finds comfortable, in order to “stretch” him. The accelerator forces the reader to read fast, ______ word-by-word reading, regression and subvocalization, practically impossible. At first ______ is sacrificed for speed. But when you learn to read ideas and concepts, you will not only read faster, ______ your comprehension will improve. Many people have found

______ reading skill drastically improved after some training. ______ Charles Au, a business manager, for instance, his reading rate was a reasonably good 172 words a minute ______ the training, now it is an excellent 1, 378 words a minute. He is delighted that he can ______ a lot more reading material in a short period of time.

Do you know how many languages there are in the world? There are about 1,500, but many of them are not considered very _______. English is considered one of the most important languages because many people _______it, not only in England and America, _______ in other countries of the world. About 200, 000, 000 speak it _______their own language, and another 230, 000, 000 use it as a second language. It is _______ to say how many people are learning it. Millions of boys and girls in schools are trying to do so.

Many _______ children study French. French is also a very important language. _______ children study German, Russian, Japanese and Chinese.

Which is the best way to learn a language? We know that we all learnt our own language well when we were _______. If we learn a second language in the _______ way, it may not seem so difficult. What does a small child do? It ________ what people say, and it tries to guess what it hears. When it wants something, it has to ________ it. It is using the language, ________ and talking in it all of the time. If people use a second language all the time, they will learn it ________.

In school, you learn to read, to write, to hear and to ________. It is best to learn all new words through the ________. You can read them, spell them and speak them later.