Tick Tock Till Bedtime

Almost one-third of British parents work too late to say goodnight to their children at least three nights a week, a survey claims.

A poll of 1,000 working parents found more than seven in ten relied on partners or parents to read their children a bedtime story each night. And one-fifth have said goodnight via video chat when they cannot be there in person. Thirty-four per cent said they felt guilty for missing this time, and three in ten said they struggled to explain to their children why they needed to stay at work.

The research was commissioned by job website Indeed which partnered with children's author Giles Paley-Phillips to create a bedtime story that makes the challenges faced by working parents more understandable for children.

Tick Tock Till Bedtime explains the highs and lows that come with the working week, and how this can affect whether a parent makes it home for bedtime or not.

Bill Richards, Indeed's managing director, said: “After family and health, we know a job is one of the most important parts of our adult lives, and having children can change our priorities for what we want from our career. We can see from our own data that there has been a fundamental behavioural switch in modern working: beyond pay, most workers optimise for happiness.”

The research found eighteen per cent of late-running parents gave their children sweet treats to make up for staying at work too long. One in four workers blamed “presenteeism (全勤主义)”—feeling obliged (被迫的) to stay at work longer than necessary—for their late arrival home. Fifty-seven per cent said they regularly had to stay at work beyond their contracted hours. When it came to missing bedtime, four in ten felt they lacked the tools to explain their jobs in child-friendly terms, and almost half said their children had “no understanding” of what their jobs involved.

Nearly half of the parents surveyed said they had considered a career change in an effort to find more flexible hours. And when it came to working parents' wish lists (愿望单) for new roles, flexible working hours topped opportunity for progression (发展) and holiday allowance.

Mr Richards added: “We created Tick Tock Till Bedtime to celebrate having a family as one of life's key milestones, and to open up conversations about recalibrating (重新调整) work/life balance.”

Indeed has created a downloadable (可下载的) version of Tick Tock Till Bedtime and an animation (动画片). There will also be a limited print run of the story.

Reading Comprehension

Choose the correct answer for each question.

1. Who is Indeed's managing director?

A. Bill Richards.

B. Giles Paley-Phillips.

C. A working parent.

D. An adolescent psychologist.

2. About how many parents rely on partners or parents to read their children a bedtime story each night?

A. 1/3.

B. 1/5.

C. 3/10.

D. 7/10.

3. What does the word “contracted” mean in paragraph 6?

A. Specified.

B. Casual.

C. Extra.

D. Leisured.

4. Which statement is NOT true according to the passage?

A. 1/5 of parents have said goodnight via video chat when they cannot be there in person.

B. 18% of late-running parents gave their children sweet treats for their working too long.

C. Most parents surveyed said they had considered a career change.

D. 4/10 felt they lacked the tools to explain their jobs in child-friendly terms.

5. What does “they” refer to in the second sentence of the second paragraph?

A. Professions.

B. Partners.

C. Children.

D. Parents.

答案：ADACD

Vocabulary 基础词

survey [ˈsɜːveɪ]

n./vt. 调查；测量

记 联想记忆：surve(看作serve，服务)+y→前期调查是为后期工作服务的→调查

搭 sample survey 抽样调查

rely [rɪˈlaɪ]

v. 依赖；依靠；信任；信赖

英 to need or depend on sb/sth

例 The success of this project relies on the expert's help in the end. 这项工程的成功依赖于最后时刻专家的帮助。

via [ˈvaɪə]

prep . 途经；经由；通过，凭借

记 词根记忆：vi(道路)+a→途经

chat [tʃæt]

vi./n. 聊天；闲聊

记 联想记忆：猫(cat)戴着帽子(hat)聊天(chat)

例 Duerr likes to chat with his e-pals on the internet. 杜尔喜欢上网与网友聊天。

guilty [ˈɡɪlti]

adj. 犯罪的；有罪的；内疚的，羞愧的

英 having done sth illegal; being responsible for sth bad that has happened

记 来自guilt(n. 内疚；犯罪)

explain [ɪkˈspleɪn]

v. 解释，说明

记 词根记忆：ex(出)+plain(明白的)→明白地说出→解释

partner [ˈpɑːtnə(r)]

n. 配偶；伙伴；搭档；合伙人 vt. 做…的同伴

英 the person that you are married to or having a sexual relationship with

记 联想记忆：part(部分)+ner→生活的一部分→配偶

fundamental [ˌfʌndəˈmentl]

adj. 基本的；基础的；不可或缺的；十分重要的

记 词根记忆：fund(基础)+a+ment(表名词)+al(…的)→基础的；基本的

modern [ˈmɒdn]

adj. 现代的；近代的；新式的

记 发音记忆：“摩登”→时尚的→现代的

happiness [ˈhæpinəs]

n. 幸福；快乐

记 来自happy(adj. 幸福的；愉快的)

treat [triːt]

vt. 治疗；对待；款待 n. 款待；招待；美味食物

英 to behave in a particular way towards sb/sth

例 Jean treats everything I say as a joke. 琼把我说的每件事都当成了笑话。

version [ˈvɜːʃn]

n. 版本；改写本；变体；说法

记 词根记忆：vers(转)+ion(表名词)→从原文转化出的不同版本→版本

Vocabulary 进阶词

poll [pəʊl]

n. 民意调查；政治选举，大选；(参加)投票 vt. 对…进行民意调查；获得…选票

英 the process of voting at an election; the process of counting the votes

记 联想记忆：大选(poll)费用(toll)上涨幅度惊人

搭 public opinion poll 民意调查 conduct a poll on 对…进行民意调查

commission [kəˈmɪʃn]

n. 委托；佣金 vt. 委托制作

英 to officially ask sb to write, make or create sth or to do a task for you

搭 in/out of commission 可/不可使用的

priority [praɪˈɒrəti]

n. 优先(权)，重点；优先考虑的事

英 sth that you think is more important than other things and should be dealt with first

搭 have priority over 比…有优先权 top priority 当务之急

switch [swɪtʃ]

n. 开关；转换；转变 v. (使)改变；转变；转换；对调

blame [bleɪm]

vt. 责怪，责备；把…归咎于 n. 责任；责备

英 to think or say that sb/sth is responsible for sth bad

搭 be to blame (for) (对…)负有责任 blame sth on sb/sth 把…归咎于…

allowance [əˈlaʊəns]

n. 津贴；允许量，限额；体谅；零花钱

英 the amount of sth that is allowed in a particular situation

记 词根记忆：allow(允许)+ance(表名词)→允许量

milestone [ˈmaɪlstəʊn]

n. 里程碑；转折点

记 组合词：mile(英里)+stone(石头)→标记英里数的石头→里程碑

conversation [ˌkɒnvəˈseɪʃn]

n. 会话，谈话

记 来自converse(vi. 交谈，谈话) oGYv/rShRfVdp4HixIafVE1wPQmMTD5CJc3avmtIloCgVrsqERaJd3bAdYtWlTsp