How many tests do you have to take at school for a day? How do you usually prepare for them or are you really able to prepare for each of them well? Understanding how your brain works can be very helpful for you.

Our memory is in fact made up of three parts—sensory memory, short-term memory and long-term memory. Sensory memory takes in information from our five senses and stays for only a few seconds. Short-term memory is where we store the new information that we have just taken in. However, the information also won’t stay there very long if we don’t keep doing something to that information. In other words, we turn it into long-term memory, which includes everything from all our best friends’ birthdays to our favourite poems. When studying, either for tests or other purposes, you are trying to turn the information from the books into long-term memory.

Remember that our brain works better when we are interested in a subject, already have basic knowledge about it, and know that we are going to need it for future use. So helpful methods include speaking out the ideas loud in your own words or draw a picture of the information. Also, remember that our brain can deal with limited information at one time, so filling your brain with materials for several tests in one night isn’t a good idea.

【小题1】In which part of a magazine can you read this passage?

A．Art.

B．Sports.

C．History.

D．Science.

【小题2】Lucy did badly in the History test. Which is the best advice according to the passage?

A．You’d better turn what’s written on books into your long-term memory.

B．To do well on the tests, you must build up your short-term memory.

C．Being good at short-term memory is helpful for learning history.

D．Remember to use your sensory memory as it’s the first step in learning.

【小题3】How does the writer organize Paragraph 3?

A．By telling stories.	B．By explaining the reasons.
C．By making questions.	D．By comparing differences.

【小题4】What is the main idea of this passage?

A．The best way to prepare for several tests at a time.

B．Different parts of the brain work in different ways.

C．Better use of the brain leads to better learning results.

D．How the brain turns sensory memory into long-term memory.