'Sarthak' Knowledge: September 2022

10th-Eng, Syllabus for Half Yearly Exam

Prose - 1. A Letter to God

2. Nelson Mandela

3. Two Stories about Flying

4. From the Diary of Anne Frank

Poems- 1. Dust of Snow

2. Fire and Ice

3. A Tiger in the Zoo

4. How Tells to Wild Animals

5. The Ball Poem

6. Amanda

Suppl.- 1. A Triumph of Suegery

2. The Thief's Story

3. The Midnight Visitor

4. A Question of Trust

5. Footprints without Feet

Composition-

1. Application

2. Business Letters

3. Story Writing

4. Unseen Passage

Grammar -

1. Punctuation

2. Articles

3. Tenses (Verb Forms)

4. Reported Speech

5. Modals

11th-Eng, Half Yearly Exam 2025

4. Draft a suitable advertisement for the sale of your laptop in good working condition to be published in the classified columns of a local newspaper.

FOR SALE: DELL XPS 13 LAPTOP

Excellent condition, fully functional Dell XPS 13 laptop for sale. Ideal for students and professionals.

Key Features:

· Processor: Intel Core i7

· RAM: 16GB

· Storage: 512GB SSD

· Display: 13.4"

· Operating System: Windows 11

· Condition: Gently used, no major scratches or dents, excellent battery life. Comes with original charger and box.

Price: 55,000 (Negotiable)

Genuine buyers only. No time wasters.

Contact: Mohit at 98XXXXXXXX.
Location: Karnal, Haryana.

Q. 6 Why did the narrator and their family embark on a sea journey?

(कथावाचक और उनका परिवार समुद्री यात्रा पर क्यों निकले?)

Ans. The narrator is a 37 years old businessman. His purpose of making the voyage in 1976 was to duplicate the round-the-world voyage, just like Captain James Cook did around 200 years ago. He designed a boat for this purpose, its name was ‘wavewalker.The narrtor and his wife, Mary had spent sixteen years to built their dream boat and to check it.

Q.6 How does the poet, Ted Hughes, portray the arrival of the goldfinch on the end of branch of laburnum tree? (The Laburnum Top)

Ans. At the beginning of the poem, the laburnum tree was empty and silent. When goldfinch came the silence turned into thrills and excitement. Goldfinch in the poem is a sign of happiness. The arrival of goldfinch made the laburnum top lively.

Q.7 Why did King Tut's mummy have to undergo CT scan? (Discovering Tut)

Ans. King Tut's mummy underwent a CT scan to determine the cause of his death and to get detailed images of his body without causing damage. The scan provided a 3D view, allowing researchers to investigate his injuries, health, and any hidden conditions that previous X-rays couldn't fully reveal.

Q.8 What does the phrase ‘strange to tell’ mean?* (The Voice of the Rain)

Ans. The phrase “strange to tell” means that it is quite strange for the poet to believe and express in words that the soft-falling rain replied to his question.

Q.8 What is described by the word 'sleek' the poem? (The Laburnum Top)

Ans. The Goldfinch in the poem has been compared to a lizard that is always alert from all the dangers. This comparison is made to show the movement of Goldfinch when it enters and comes out of the Laburnum Tree.

Q.9 Describe the location where the author and his family lived? (Summer of the..)

Ans. They lived in Garoghlanian tribe. The Garoghlanian family was an Armenian tribe. Eleven centuries ago it was the wealthiest family in that part of the world. This place is famous for honesty. The people are adventurous and active. The story also shows that they love animals.

Q.9 How does the mother come to know about Mrs Dorling and her address? (The Address)

Ans. Mr. Dorling was an old acquaintance of the narrator's mother whom she had not seen for years. The narrator's mother told her daughter that Mrs. Darling had been visiting their house regularly. Every time she took something with her. She provides the address, 46, Marconi Street, so that the narrator can retrieve the items after the war.

Q.10 What was Mrs. Fitzgerald’s opinion about Mrs Pearson's attitude? (Mother's Day)

Ans. Mrs. Pearson advised her to take strong steps and become the mistress of her house. She told her that she should not be so docile. She should act in such a manner that her family members realize their mistake and show respect towards her.

12th-Eng, Question Bank for Half Yearly Exam

For Revision

Exam Date- 04 Oct 2023 (Wednesday)

Syllabus for Half Yearly Exam

Prose - 1. The Last Lesson

2. Lost Spring

3. Deep Water

4. The Rattrap

5. Indigo

Poems- 1. My Mother at Sixty Six

3. Keeping Quiet

4. A Thing of Beauty

5. A Roadside Stand

Suppl.- 1. The Third Level

2. The Tiger King

3. Journey to the End of Earth

4. The Enemy

Composition:1. Notice

2.Unseen Passages

3.Seen Passage (From Prose Book)

4. Letter/Application

5. Advertisement

6. Report writing

Grammar-1. Verb Form

2. Active and Passive Voice

3. Direct-Indirect Speech

4. Articles

5. Modals

12th-Eng, Stanzas (Poems), Book-Flamingo

Stanza-1
Driving from my parent's home to Cochin

last Friday morning, I saw my mother

beside me

doze, open mouthed, her face

ashen like that of a corpse

and realized with pain
that she was as old as she looked
but soon put that thought away,

and looked at Young Trees sprinting, the merry children

spilling out of their homes

Questions
(1) Kamala Das' mother accompanied her daughter to the airport.....
(a) To receive her younger daughter
(b) To bid her daughter kamala Das farewell/goodbye
(c) To see the airport as she had never been to any
(d) As she had also to board the plain
(ii) The figure of speech used in "ashen like that of a corpse" is
(a) Simile
(b) Metaphor
(c) Alliteration
(d) Paradox
(iii) The phrases 'Young Trees sprinting' and 'merry children spilling'
(a) Dotage (बुढापा)
(b) Death
(c) Youth
(d) Affection.
(iv) Choose the word that rhymes with 'yards'.
(a) wards
(b) check
(c) corpse
(d) merry
(v) Name the poet of the above extract.
(a) John Keats.
(b) Robert Frost
(d) Pablo Neruda.
(c) Kamala Das

Stanza-2
But soon
put that thought away

looked out at young

Trees sprinting, merry children spilling

Out of their home, but after the airport's

security check, standing a few yards away
Questions:
(i) What thought does the poetess put away?
(a) Of getting rich.
(b) of getting poor.
(c) Aging of her mother.
(d) Aging of herself.
(ii) What did the poetess notice when she looked out of the car ?
(a) Youth running on the road.
(b) Children fighting with one another.
(c) Car was running speedily.
(d) None of these.
(iii) Which poetic device has been used in 'young trees sprinting'?
(a) Alliteration
(b) Personification
(c) Pun
(d) None of these.
(iv) What was Kamala Das feared of ?
(a) Losing her mother
(b) Losing her flight
(c) Losing her job
(d) Losing her rapport
(v) What made the poet look out of the car ?
(a) Her laziness
(b) Her lethargy (सुस्ती)
(c) Pathetic condition of her mother
(d) Pathetic condition of her car.

Stanza-

What I want should not be

Confused

With total inactivity

Life is what it is about.

I want no truck with death

Questions:

1. Name the poem and the poet.

2. What does the poet want?

3. According to the poet what is life.

4. With what does the poet want no connection?

5. The poet advocates total inactivity (True/False)

Stanza-

Sometimes I feel myself I can hardly bear

The thought of so much childish longing in vain.

The sadness that lurks near the open window

That waits all day in almost open prayer

For the squeal of brakes, the sound of stopping a car;

Of all the thousand selfish cars that pass,

Just one to inquire what a farmer's prices are.

Questions:

1. Name the poem and the poet.

2. What is the childish longing here?

3. Why have the cars been said selfish?

4. What lurks near the open window?

5. How many cars pass from there?

Stanza-

Aunt Jennifer's tigers prance across the screen,

Bright topaz denizens of a world of green

They do not fear the men beneath the tree:

They pace in sleek chivalric certainty.

Questions:

(i) Name the poem.

(a) My Mother at Sixty Six.

(b) A Thing of Beauty

(d) Aunt Jennifer's Tigers.

(ii) What does the word 'prance' mean in the stanza ?

(a) To walk with proud

(b) To sit idly.

(d) To sit in the sun

(iii) Which poetic device has been used in the line "Aunt Jennifer's tigers prance across the screen" ?

(a) Pun

(b) Personification

(d) Transferred Epithet.

(iv) Why have the tigers been called Aunt Jennifer's tigers ?

(a) For Aunt is the owner of the Tigers.

(b) For Aunt Jennifer has created them on a screen.

(d) For Aunt Jennifer controls them in the ring.

(v) What does the poet mean by "They do not fear the men beneath the tree." ?

(a) They are not afraid of humans.

(b) They are not afraid of anyone.

(d) All of these.

Stanza-

Aunt Jennifer's tigers prance across the screen,

Bright topaz denizens of a world of green

They do not fear the men beneath the tree:

They pace in sleek chivalric certainty.

Questions:

1. Name the poem and the poet?

2. What do the tigers do?

3. What is the colour of the tigers?

4. How can we say that tigers are fearless?

5. How do they walk?

Stanza-

When aunt is dead, her terrified hand will lie

Still ringed with ordeals she was mastered by

The tigers in the panel that she made

Will go on prancing, proud and unafraid.

Questions:

1. Name the poem and the poet.

2. Where were the tigers?

3. Who is the aunt in the stanza?

4. By whom was the aunt mastered by?

5. What will the tigers keep on doing?

12th-Eng, Passages (Prose) Book-Flamingo

Q. 1 After dark she walked by the canal, along a sheltered path lighted only by the glare of the lamps from the wharf across the water and the unceasing drone of the city was muffled and distant. It was a place, she had often played in when she was a child. There was a wooden bench beneath a solitary elm where lovers sometimes came. She sat down to wait. It was the perfect place, she had always thought so, for a meeting of this kind. For those who wished not to be observed. She knew he would approve.	Questions – Q 1 Who is the writer of this story ? Q. 2 What did Sophie do after dark ? Q. 3. Who used to visit that place sometimes ? Q. 4. What was there beneath a solitary elm ? Q. 5. Who is ‘ he ‘ in the last line of this passage ?

11th-Eng, Stanzas (Prose) Book-Hornbill

11th-Eng, Passages (Prose) Book-Hornbill

10th-Eng, Stanzas (Poems) Book-First Flight

Stanza - 1

Belinda lived in a little house,

With a little black kitten and a little grey mouse,

And a little yellow dog and a little red wagon,

And a realio, trulio, little pet dragon.

*1. Where did Belinda live?*

Ans. in a little white house

*2. What was the colour of the kitten ?*

Ans. Black

*3. Which animals were living with Belinda ?*

Ans. A kitten, a mouse, a dog and a dragon

*4. Rhyming words*

Ans. House - mouse

Wagon - dragon

*5. Rhyming scheme*

Ans. a a b b

*Stanza - 2*

Belinda was as brave as a barrel full of bears,

And Ink and Blink chased lions down the stairs,

Mustard was as brave as a tiger in a rage,

But Custard cried for a nice safe cage.

*1. How is Belinda described ?*

Ans. As brave as a barrel full of bears

*2. How did Ink and Blink show their strength?*

Ans. By chasing lions down the stairs

*3. How did Mustard show his bravery?*

Ans. As tiger in rage (anger)

*4. What did Custard cry for?*

Ans. For a nice safe cage

*5. Name of the poem and the poet.*

Ans. Poem - The Tale of Custard the Dragon

Poet - Ogden Nash

10th-Eng, Passages (Prose), Book-First Flight

Board Paper-2017, SET-A

5.Read the passage given below and answer the questions that follow. Do any two passages :

(a) All through the night, Lencho thought only of his one hope : the help of God, whose eyes, as he had been instructed, see everything, even what is deep in one's conscience. Lencho was an ox of a man, working like an animal in the fields, but still he knew how to write. The following Sunday, at daybreak, he began to write a letter which he himself would carry to town and place in the mail. It was nothing less than a letter to God.

Questions : 1 × 5 = 5

(i) Name the chapter and its author.

(ii) What kind of a man was Lencho ?

(iii) To whom did Lencho write a letter ?

(iv) What was Lencho's purpose in writing the letter ?

(v) Find words from the passage which mean the same as :

(a) hard working man

(b) in the early morning

(b) On the day of the inauguration, I was overwhelmed with a sense of history. In the first decade of the twentieth century, a few years after the bitter Anglo-Boer war and before my own birth, the white skinned peoples of South Africa patched up their differences and erected a system of racial domination against the dark-skinned peoples of their own land. The structure they created formed the basis of one of the harshest, most inhumane, societies the world has ever known. Now, in the last decade of the twentieth century, and my own eighth decade as a man, that system had been overturned forever and replaced by one that recognized the rights and freedoms of all peoples, regardless of the colour of their skin.

Questions : 1 × 5 = 5

(i) Name the chapter and its author.

(ii) What was the author overwhelmed with on the day of inauguration ?

(iii) What kind of system did the white-skinned people of South Africa create ?

(iv) What did the new system recognize ?

(v) Find words from the passage which mean the same as :

(a) overflowed

(b) pitiless

There was no answer. The radio was dead too. I had no radio, no compass, and I could not see where I was. I was lost in the storm. Then, in the black clouds quite near me, I saw another aeroplane. It had no lights on its wings, but I could see it flying next to me through the storm. I could see the pilot's face – turned towards me.

I was very glad to see another person. He lifted one hand and waved.

"Follow me," he was saying. "Follow me."

"He knows that I am lost," I thought. "He's trying to help me."

He turned his aeroplane slowly to the north, in front of my Dakota, so that it would be easier for me to follow him. I was very happy to go behind the strange aeroplane like an obedient child.

Questions : 1 × 5 = 5

(i) Name the chapter and its author.

(ii) How do you know the pilot was completely lost in the storm ?

(iii) Where did the writer see another plane ?

(iv) What did the pilot of Dakota do when the other pilot gave him a signal ?

(v) Find words from the passage which mean the same as :

(a) instrument for telling direction

(b) to come after

Board Paper-2017, SET-B

5.Read the passage given below and answer the questions that follow. Do any two passages :

(a) "Writing in a diary is a really strange experience for someone like me. Not only because I've never written anything before, but also because it seems to me that later on neither I nor anyone else will be interested in the musings of a thirteen-year-old school girl. Oh well, it doesn't matter. I feel like writing, and I have an even greater need to get all kinds of things off my chest.

'Paper has more patience than people,' I thought of this saying on one of those days when I was feeling a little depressed and was sitting at home with my chin in my hands, bored and listless, wondering whether to stay in or go out. I finally stayed where I was, brooding. Yes, paper does have more patience, and since I'm not planning to let anyone else read this stiff-backed notebook grandly referred to as a 'diary', unless I should ever find a real friend, it probably won't make a bit of difference.

Questions : 1 × 5 = 5

(i) Who is the writer of these lines ?

(ii) What is the age of the writer ?

(iii) What does she say about writing in a diary ?

(iv) How does she refer to the diary ?

(v) Find words from the passage which mean the same as :

(a) thoughts

(b) forbearance

(b) Today, Monday, Wanda Petronski was not in her seat. But nobody, not even Peggy and Madeline, the girls who started all the fun, noticed her absence. Usually Wanda sat in the seat next to the last seat in the last row in Room Thirteen. She sat in the corner of the room where the rough boys who did not make good marks sat, the corner of the room where there was most scuffling of feet, most roars of laughter when anything funny was said, and most mud and dirt on the floor. Wanda did not sit there because she was rough and noisy. On the contrary, she was very quiet and rarely said anything at all. And nobody had ever heard her laugh out loud. Sometimes she twisted her mouth into a crooked sort of smile, but that was all.

Questions : 1 × 5 = 5

(i) Name the chapter and its author.

(ii) Where did Wanda Petronski usually sit ?

(iii) How did most of the boys create fun in the classroom ?

(iv) What kind of a girl was Wanda ?

(v) Find words from the passage which mean the same as :

(a) creating noise by thumping shoes

(b) on the other hand

(c) While the class was circling the room, the monitor from the principal's office brought Miss Mason a note. Miss Mason read it several times and studied it thoughtfully for a while. Then, she clapped her hands. "Attention, class. Everyone back to their seat." When the shuffling of feet had stopped and the room was still and quiet, Miss Mason said, "I have a letter from Wanda's father that I want to read to you." Miss Mason stood there a moment and the silence in the room grew tense and expectant. The teacher adjusted her glasses slowly and deliberateIy. Her manner indicated that what was coming –– this letter from Wanda's father –– was a matter of great importance. Everybody listened closely as Miss Mason read the brief note.

Questions : 1 × 5 = 5

(i) Name the chapter and its author.

(ii) What happened when the class was circling the room ?

(iii) Why did Miss Mason read the letter of Wanda's father several times ?

(iv) What happened when she said that she wanted to read the letter to the class ?

(v) Find words from the passage which mean the same as :

(a) serious

(b) short

Board Paper-2017, SET-C

5. Read the passage given below and answer the questions that follow. Do any two passages:

(a) The baker made his musical entry on the scene with the 'jhang, jhang' sound of his specially made bamboo staff. One hand supported the basket on his head and the other banged the bamboo on the ground. He would greet the lady of the house with "Good morning" and then place his basket on the vertical bamboo. We kids would be pushed aside with a mild rebuke and the loaves would be delivered to the servant. But we would not give up. We would climb a bench or the parapet and peep into the basket, somehow. I can still recall the typical fragrance of those loaves. Loaves for the elders and the bangles for the children. Then we did not even care to brush our teeth or wash our mouths properly. And why should we ? Who would take the trouble of plucking the mango-leaf for the toothbrush ? And why was it necessary at all ? The tiger never brushed his teeth. Hot tea could wash and clean up everything so nicely, after all !

Questions : 1 × 5 = 5

(i) Name the chapter and its author.

(ii) How did the baker make his musical entry ?

(iii) What can the author still recall ?

(iv) What did the author and other kids do to look into the baker's basket ?

(v) Find words from the passage which mean the same as :

(a) helped (b) welcome

(b) The climb to the Brahmagiri hills brings you into a panoramic view of the entire misty landscape of Coorg. A walk across the rope bridge leads to the sixty-four acre island of Nisargadhama. Running into Buddhist monks from India's largest Tibetan settlement, at nearby Bylakuppe, is a bonus. The monks, in red, ochre and yellow robes, are amongst the many surprises that wait to be discovered by visitors searching for the heart and soul of India, right here in Coorg.

Questions : 1 × 5 = 5

(i) Name the chapter and its author.

(ii) What view is seen from the Brahmagiri hills ?

(iii) How can we reach Nisargadhama island ?

(iv) Why do visitors visit Coorg ?

(v) Find words from the passage which mean the same as :

(a) beautiful

(b) full of mist

(c) "I have been reading as much as I could about tea," Rajvir said. ''No one really knows who discovered tea but there are many legends." "What legends ?" "Well, there's the one about the Chinese emperor who always boiled water before drinking it. One day a few leaves of the twigs burning under the pot fell into the water giving it a delicious flavour. It is said they were tea-leaves." "Tell me another !" scoffed Pranjol. ''We have an Indian legend too. Bodhidharma, an ancient "Buddhist ascetic, cut off his eyelids because he felt sleepy during meditations. Ten tea plants grew out of the eyelids. The leaves of these plants when put in hot water and drunk banished sleep.

Questions : 1 × 5 = 5

(i) Name the chapter and its author.

(ii) What kind of water did the Chinese emperor drink ?

(iii) What happened when a few leaves of the twigs fell into the water kept for boiling ?

(iv) How could the sleep be banished ?

(v) Find words from the passage which mean the same as :

(a) myths

(b) branches

Board Paper-2017, SET-D

5. Read the passage given below and answer the questions that follow. Do any two passages :

(a) With the opening of that sack began a phase of my life that has not yet ended, and may, for all I know, not end before I do. It is, in effect, a thraldom to otters, an otter fixation, that I have since found to be shared by most other people, who have ever owned one. The creature that emerged from this sack on to the spacious tiled floor of the Consulate bedroom resembled most of all a very small, medievally-conceived, dragon. From the head to the tip of the tail he was coated with symmetrical pointed scales of mud armour, between whose tips was visible a soft velvet fur like that of a chocolate-brown mole. He shook himself, and I half expected a cloud of dust, but in fact it was not for another month that I managed to remove the last of the mud and see the otter, as it were, in his true colours.

Questions : 1 × 5 = 5

(i) Name the chapter and its author.

(ii) Which creature emerged from the sack ?

(iii) What started for the author with the opening of the sack ?

(iv) How did the otter look like ?

(v) Find words from the passage which mean the same as :

(a) a large bag (b) came

(b) There was a girl named Valliammai who was called Valli for short. She was eight years old and very curious about things. Her favourite pastime was standing in the front doorway of her house, watching what was happening in the street outside. There were no playmates of her own age on her street, and this was about all she had to do. But for Valli, standing at the front door was every bit as enjoyable as any of the elaborate games other children play. Watching the street gave her many new unusual experiences. The most fascinating thing of all was the bus that travelled between her village and the nearest town. It passed through her street each hour, once going to the town and once coming back. The sight of the bus, filled each time with a new set of passengers, was a source of unending joy for Valli.

Questions : 1 × 5 = 5

(i) Name the chapter and its author.

(ii) Tell about Valli's favourite pastime.

(iii) How many playmates of her age did Valli have ?

(iv) What was the most fascinating thing for Valli ?

(v) Find words from the passage which mean the same as :

(a) eager

(b) hobby

(c) Gautama Buddha (563 B. C. – 483 B. C.) began life as a prince named Siddhartha Gautama, in northern India. At twelve, he was sent away for schooling in the Hindu sacred scriptures and four years later he returned home to marry a princess. They had a son and lived for ten years as befitted royalty. At about the age of twenty-five, the Prince, heretofore shielded from the sufferings of the world, while out hunting chanced upon a sick man, then an aged man, then a funeral procession, and finally a monk begging for alms. These sights so moved him that he at once became a beggar and went out into the world to seek enlightenment concerning the sorrows he had witnessed.

Questions : 1 × 5 = 5

(i) Name the chapter and its author.

(ii) Who studied the holy books in the passage ?

(iii) At what age was he married ?

(iv) When did he see a sick and old man ?

(v) Find words from the passage which mean the same as :

(a) pious

(b) religious books

Unseen Passages

PASSAGE-1

Read the passage given below and answer the questions that follow.

Once upon a time there was a wise old man who lived in a small village. He was known throughout the land for his wisdom and his ability to solve any problem that came his way. One day, a young man came to the wise old man and said, "I have a problem. I have been wronged by someone and I want revenge. What should I do?" The wise old man replied, "Before you seek revenge, you should ask yourself if it is worth it. Revenge may make you feel better in the short term but it will not bring you true happiness." The young man thought about this for a moment and then asked, "But what if I don't seek revenge? Won't people think that I am weak?" The wise old man replied, "True strength comes from within. It takes more courage to forgive than it does to seek revenge. If you can find it in your heart to forgive those who have wronged you. you will find true happiness." The young man thought about this for a moment and then thanked the wise old man for his advice. He left the village feeling much better than he had before.

Questions :

1. Where did the wise man live?

(a) Palace (b) Village

(c) town          (d) city
2.What does 'wronged' mean?
(a) ill-treated   (b) angered
(c)loved            (d) made happy

3. What did the old man tell him to do?
(a) He told the man to meditate.

(b) he told the man to get revenge
(c) He told the man to forgive the other person
(d) he told the man to find ways to feel strong
4. From where does true strength come?(a) From meditation (b) from Yoga
(c) from within (d) from exercise
5. Did the man thank the old man for his help?

(a) Yes (b) No
(c) Maybe
(d) Not stated in the passage
6. What lesson do we learn from the story?
7. What was the quality of old man that led to his fame?
8. Why was the young man seeking revenge?
9. How can one find true happiness?
10. Give a suitable title to the story.

Answer
1. (b) Village
2. (a) ill-treated
3.(c) He told the man to forgive the other person.
4. (c) from within
5. (a) Yes
6. We should forgive others for their mistakes
7. So that people not consider him weak
8. So that people not consider him weak
9. When he forgives others for their mistakes
10. Forgiveness is the key of happiness

PASSAGE-2

A sparrow is a small bird which is found throughout the world. There are many different species of sparrows. Sparrows are only about four to six inches in length. Many people appreciate their beautiful song. Sparrows prefer to build their nests in low places-usually on the ground, clumps of grass, low trees and low bushes. In cities they build their nests in building nooks or holes. They rarely build their nests in high places. They build their nests out of twigs, grasses and plant fibres. Their nests are usually small and well-built structures.

Female sparrows lay four to six eggs at a time. The eggs are white with reddish brown spots. They hatch between eleven to fourteen days. Both the male and female parents care for the young. Insects are fed to the young after hatching. The large feet of the sparrows are used for scratching seeds. Adult sparrows mainly eat seeds. Sparrows can be found almost everywhere, where there are humans. Many people throughout the world enjoy these delightful birds.

The sparrows are some of the few birds that engage in dust bathing. Sparrows first scratch a hole in the ground with their feet, then lie in it and fling dirt or sand over their bodies with flicks of their winds. They also bathe in water, or in dry or melting snow. Water bathing is similar to dust bathing, with the sparrow standing in shallow water and flicking water over its back with its wings, also ducking its head under the water. Both activities are social, with up to a hundred birds participating at once, and is followed by preening and sometimes group singing.

Questions

(a) The chief food for the adult sparrow is _________

(b) Sparrows live wherever _________

(d) Sparrows in high places_________

(e) _________ take care of the young sparrows.

(f) Sparrows take bathe in _________

(g) Bathing for the sparrows is a _________

(h) Bathing is followed by_________ and_________

(i) meaning of preening.

Answer

(a) seeds.

(b) there are humans.

(d) rarely build their nests in high places.

(e) Both parents.

(f) dust, water Or snow.

(g) social activity. , ‘

(h) preening and group singing.

(i) clean oneself

PASSAGE-3

Read the passage given below and answer the questions that follow:

1. Karnataka Education Department's decision to conduct board exams for classes 5 and 8 has trigged a fresh controversy in the state. This created panic among crons of parents and students. The question whether or not students of classes 5 and 8 in Karnataka can be made to write board exams is being debated. Students, parents and teachers are waiting for some clarity to emerge.

2. On March 12, the Supreme Court set aside the interim order of a division bench of the High Court of Karnataka, which has given the state government a green signal to conduct board exams for the summative assessment of students of classes 5th and 8th. However, the Supreme Court stopped the exams of these classes.

3. The Supreme Court considered this idea in violation of the provisions contained in section 30 of the RTE ACT, which states that no child is required to pass any board exam till completion of elementary education that is class 1 to 8.

4. The controversy's roots are in 2020-21 and 2021-2022 academic years when schools were closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. After the pandemic, the government launched 'Kalika Chetarike - a programme to address gaps in learning caused by the lockdown. To determine the programme's success, the Karnataka state examinations and Assessment Board introduced an exam for classes 5 and 8 in 2022-23.

5. The registered unaided Private School Management Associations challenged this in High Court. They questioned the method of assessment without framing rules according to the Right to Education Act 2009, as amended in 2019. The court declined to accept the government's contention that it did not fame the rules as the year-end assessment process came under the provisions of the Karnataka Education Act for the state syllabus. The Associations then moved to the Supreme Court.

Questions

(1) The Karnataka Education Department has decided to conduct exams for

(a) 5th (b) 8th

(2) On the basis of your reading of the passage, find the incorrect statement.

(a) The Supreme Court Stopped the board exams of classes 5th and 8th

(b) According to RTE Act, no child is required to pass any board exams till completion of elementary education.

(d) In 2020-2021 and 2021-2022 the school were closed due to Brain tumor pandemic.

(3) On the basis of the passage, study the two statements, I and II given below:

(i) The lockdown was imposed in 2020-2021 and 2021-22

(ii) The Karnataka State Examinations and Assessment Board introduced exams for classes 5th and 8th in 2022-23.

Choose the correct option:

(a) I is true II is false

(b) II is true I is false

(d) Both I and II are false

(4) Complete the following sentence by choosing the most appropriate option. The idea of conducting the board exams for classes 5th and 8th was challenged by.
(a) The Government Aided Schools Managements Associations
(b) The Registered Aided private schools Managements Associations
(c) The Registered Unaided Private schools Managements Associations
(d) The Supreme Court of India

5) Who suffered a lot due to the idea of conducting board exams for the students of classes 5th and 8th

(a) parents, teachers and students

(b) parents and students

(d) All of these

(6) Find the synonym of dispute" from the para 5 of the text.

(7) What was the purpose of launching the programme 'Kalika Chetarike?

(8) Complete the following sentence.

The interim order of the Karnataka High Court was in favour of ......

(9) Find the antonym of 'failure' from para 4.

(10) What does the section 30 of the Right to Education Act state?

Answer

1. (c) Both 'a' and 'b'

2. (d) In 2020-2021 and 2021-2022 the school were closed due to Brain tumor pandemic.

3. (c) Both I and II are true

4. (c) The Registered Unaided Private schools Managements Associations

5. (b) parents and students

6. Contention

7. Kalika Chetarike - a programme to address gaps in learning caused by the lockdown.

8. conducting board exams for classes 5 and 8

9. Success

10. Ans. It states that no child is required to pass any board exam till completion of elementary education.

PASSAGE-4

1. A recent survey has brought back focus on teenage smoking. According to the survey 80% of smokers form the habit when they are minors. It is estimated that one out of five teenage smokers smoke about 10 cigarettes everyday. What is more, teenage smokers are no longer satisfied with nicotine and are increasingly taking to deadly contraband like marijuana and cannabis.

2. Initially, smoking starts from curiosity but soon becomes a habit. Oblivious of the fatal dangers involved, nascent smokers ignore even the statutory warning inscribed on the pack.

3. Forming the habit of smoking in an early age is often attributed to a whole lot of psychological reasons but the problem is also precipitated by the glamorous representation of smoking by stars on the silver screen, linking it with style.

4. Peer pressure is another big reason for minors taking up smoking. Besides, locally manufactured tax free cigarettes also push them towards this habit. These cigarettes are particularly popular among the youth, as they are available at a significantly lower price than the legally manufactured cigarettes. According to a FICCI report on these cigarettes, the government suffers huge revenue loss annually due to them, while youths fall victim to smoking. While in the short term smokers get sick due to common ailments, in the long run their lungs get badly affected. Diseases such oral cancer are associated with tobacco use in any form.

5. Smokers can quit smoking by monitoring some of their food habits. Food rich in vitamin C reduces the urge to smoke. Also milk, celery, carrot, fruits and vegetables when taken before smoking, compel the smoker to quit the habit.

Questions:
(1) Why have teenagers started consuming contraband and have not remained satisfied with nicotine consumption only ?
(a) It is cheaper than the cigarettes.
(b) It does not have harmful impact on health.
(c) People consuming contraband are not looked down upon by the society.
(d) Not mentioned in the passage.
(ii) Why are locally manufactured cigarettes sold at a lower price ?
(a) Because they are popular.
(b) No tax is levied on these cigarettes.
(c) The manufacturers of these cigarettes intend to capture a bigger market share.
(d) They have a limited market and therefore cannot be sold at a higher price.
(iii) Which of the following is false in context of the passage?
(a) Most of the smokers start smoking at an early age.
(b) Smoking leads to psychological diseases leading to a weak memory.
(c) People drawn to smoking are charmed by big stars showing smoking on the screen.
(d) Smoking affects lungs if the habit is not got rid of at an early stage.
(iv) Which of the following has been mentioned about the FICCI report in the passage ?
(a) Tax free cigarettes help keep a vigil on frequent smokers as they are sold at few shops only
(b) More and more people indulge in smoking as tax free cigarettes remain available at a reduced price.
(c) Tax free cigarettes cause a huge revenue loss to the government.
(d) Only (b) and (c).
(v) Which of the following food items do not help smokers get rid of smoking ?
(a) Vegetables
(b) Fruits
(c) Celery
(d) Chocolate,
(vi) Who ignores the statutory warming inscribed on the pack of cigarettes ?
(vii) Find the word which is most nearly the same in meaning as the word 'annually.
(viii) Find the word which is most nearly the same in meaning as the word 'nascent'.
(ix) According to the passage the smokers can quit smoking by........
(x) Initially, smoking starts from curiosity but soon becomes a habit. is another big reason for minors taking up smoking.

Answer

(i) (d) Not mentioned in the passage.

(ii) (b) No tax is levied on these cigarettes.

(iii) (b) Smoking leads to psychological diseases leading to a weak memory.

(iv) (c) Tax free cigarettes cause a huge revenue loss to the government.

(v) (d) Chocolate.

(vi) Nascent smokers ignore the statutory warning inscribed on the pack of cigarettes.

(vi) yearly

(viii) growing

(ix) monitoring some of their food habits.

(x) peer pressure

PASSAGE-5

1 Rights and duties are two sides of the same coin. One can't exist without the other. Duties Without rights are mere slavery. Similarity, rights without duties amount to lawlessness. any civilized society, rights and duties must go side by side.

2 But in today's world, everybody talks much about his rights. There is a great hue and cry Bur rights are infringed. But nobody seems to bother much about his dution. That is why there is a great unrest in our present-day life. Actually duties come first, and rights afterwards Many a time, one man's right is another man's duty and vice versa. For example, every man has the right to have an undisturbed sleep. So it becomes the duty of his neighbour not to tune his radio at too high a pitch. If we want to enjoy our rights, we should act such a way that the rights of others are not trespassed. It can happen only if we take dus account of our duties also. In short, rights and duties are complementary things and na contradictory.

3. It is difficult to agree on which rights should be guaranteed to a citizen. For example, does a child have the right to be educated in his/her mother tongue ? Some enthusiasts may say, "Certainly. But others may say that while everyone must have a right to education the govemment should not be forced to spend money to employ special teachers for the language of every group and community. Take another example. Does every adult have right to job 7 Some will say, "Yes." Others will disagree and say that this is a privilege, na a right. They say that in these days of population explosion, it is not possible for any government to ensure full employment

4 There can be disagreement on such controversial issues, but there can be no disagreement on such things as the freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom from want and freedom from fear. Every nation worth the name must ensure these rights for her citizens

Questions
1. Which of the following statements is correct? (a) Rights and duties are complementary.
(b) Rights and duties are contradictory.
(c) Rights come before duties.
(d) Our rights are the duties of our neighbour.
2. What is difficult to agree on?
(a) Whether a citizen should have any rights.
(b) Whether a citizen should do his or her duty.
(c) Whether rights and duties should go side by side.
(d) Which rights should be guaranteed to a citizen.
3. A civilized person cares.......
(a) more for his rights than his duties.
(b) more for his duties than his rights.
(c) more for his own rights than the rights of his neighbour.
(d) more for his domestic duties than his official duties.
4. Give the synonym of Trespass
(a) encroach.
(b) surpass
(c) overtake.
(d) disagree.
5. What is meant by vice versa'?
(a) et cetra, of cetra.
(b) for example.
(c) in the opposite way to what just has been said.
(d) in the way that has been agreed to by all
6. Why are rights and duties called two sides of the same coin ?
7. Why is there a great unrest in our present-day life ?
8. What do you think comes first rights or duties ?
9. Give one example from the passage to show that one man's right is another man's duty.
10. What is the opposite of 'controversial ?

1. (a) Rights and duties are complementary.

2. (d) Which rights should be guaranteed to a citizen.

3. (b) more for his duties than his rights.

4. (a) encroach.

5. (c) in the opposite way to what just has been said.

6. Rights and duties are called two sides of the same coin because one can't exist without the other. Duties without rights are mere slavery. Rights without duties lead to lawlessness.

7. Everybody talks much about his rights. But nobody seems to bother much about his duties. That is why there is a great unrest in our present-day life.

8. Our duties certainly come first.

9. Every man has the right to have an undisturbed sleep. So it becomes the duty of his neighbour not to tune his radio at too high a pitch.

10. unanimous.

PASSAGE-6

1.In the quest for equal rights for women in all spheres of life , every act that

justifies hierarchy , othering, and a patriarchal mindset must be shunned totally.

Seeking the right to choose her own identity, Ms Divya Modi Tongya, had

petitioned the Delhi High Court that she be allowed to revert to her maiden name

after her divorce comes through.

2. She landed in court after running into a barrier in the form of a government

notification which said a married woman who wants to use her maiden name

after divorce must either furnish divorce papers or a no objection certificate from

her husband. The Delhi high Court has sought the Union government’s response

by May 28, the next date of hearing. In her plea Ms Modi Tongya states that the

notification is “ gender biased” and creates unnecessary restrictions for women

who seek to exercise their constitutional right to choose their name- in her case a

change of surname – by violating Articles 14, 19, and 21. The very idea of an NOC

is objectionable, divorce proceedings or not, and reflective of a deep-seated

misogyny that wants to control an individual’s preference . Ms Modi Tongya

should be able to choose whichever surname she is comfortable with and not

have to fight for it.

3. Women have often complained of harassment when they have taken the

path less trodden. For instance, women who have decided not to opt for their

husband’s surname after marriage face a barrage of unnecessary questions and a

mountain of paperwork while, say, opening a bank account ,or during a child’s

admission in school, or applying for a passport .

4. A society that is already battling caste-based hierarchies should not add to

the discrimination by giving an upper hand to anyone in a relationship, but to

work towards safer spaces without gender bias , difference and humiliation.

5. In India, the most populous country in the world, stark gender disparities

persists, both politically and socially. Women do most of the unpaid work at

home, and often edged out of the labour force for various reasons. What a girl or

a woman can – and cannot- do, is often laid down by the men in the family;

sometimes women too acquiesce to such indignities in the name of tradition.

The United Nations has said that the greatest human rights challenge in the world

right now is achieving gender equality and empowering women and girls. Paying

lip service to rhetoric that women are equal without effecting change on the

ground with legislative backing and strong social frame-works defeats the

purpose.

(i) Who filed a suit in the Delhi High Court?

(a) The women of India

(b) Ms Divya Modi Tongya

(d) Union Government

(ii) According to the passage the Indian society is largely -------

(a) Patriarchal

(b) matriarchal

(d) Both ‘A’ and ‘B’

(iii On the basis of the passage, study the two statements, I and II given below:

(I) Men’s views are preferred to that of women’s

(II) Women do most of the unpaid work at home.

Choose the correct option:

(a) I is true II is false

(b) II is true I is false

(d) Both I and II are false

(iv) According to the notification a married woman can change her surname …….

(a ) Whenever she wants

(b ) Her husband’s consent is necessary

(c ) She cannot change her surname

(d ) None of the above

(v) According to the passage, who decides the do’s and don’ts for women?

(a ) The men in the family

(b ) The women in the family

( c) The children in the family

(d ) The Union government

(vi) Find the word from para 2 which means ‘ hatred or prejudice against women’.

(vii ) Find the antonym of ‘ honour’. (para 4)

(viii ) Complete the following sentence:

The union government notification violates the Articles

(ix ) What is the greatest human rights challenge?

(x ) Who has to face a bombardment of unnecessary questions?

PASSAGE-7

PASSAGE-8

PASSAGE-9

PASSAGE-10

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