Matoshri English Medium School – MOY October 2018 Grade 8 – English Instructionsa. Please write your answers in FULL SENTENCES. b. Please write the correct question number on the side of the page. c. DO NOT COPY THE QUESTIONS. ONLY WRITE THE ANSWERS WITH CORRECT QUESTION NUMBERS. ALL THE BEST!! I. Reading Comprehension [12 marks] Gauri Sawant Gauri Sawant, also known as Khala, was born and raised in Pune and is a transgender living in Mumbai for more than 20 years. You must have seen her in the recent ad of Vicks India. Gauri Sawant is a 37-year-old transgender social activist. Born as Ganesh Suresh Sawant, she was born and raised in a conservative family in Pune. At the very early age of 9, after her mother's death, Gauri realised that she is different from others. After her mother passed away, she was raised by her grandmother. In school, Gauri was always mocked by her classmates, who even used abusive terms to address her. Due to some conflicts with her family, Gauri decided to leave her house when she became an adult. Without the support of her family and no roof to live under, her journey from Ganesh to Gauri wasn't easy. Later in the year 2000, along with Ashok Row Kavi and two others, Gauri formed an NGO of her own called 'Sakhi Char Chowghi' in Malad, Mumbai. Her aim was to provide a space of freedom to all transgenders (hijras) in the city. 16 years down the line, with a team of 150 workers, Gauri provides counselling to transgenders from the Mumbai suburbs. Three years after the Supreme Court recognised transgenders as a third gender, her community is still striving for basic human rights. But after this entire struggle she is also a proud mother. "A mother is a mother. There isn't any assigned gender to be one," says Gauri. Gayatri, her 16-year-old daughter, was left orphaned in 2001 after the death of her mother. Gayatri's grandmother decided to sell Gayatri to a person. Gauri wanted to save the little girl and she decided to adopt her. As a transgender, it wasn't easy for her. When she walked on the streets with Gayatri, she was looked down upon by a few people. But a proud mother, Gauri raised Gayatri like every mother does, fighting all odds. Today, Gayatri studies in a well-known school and lives in a hostel. "I don't feel special. I became a mother because of Gayatri and she is my pillar of strength. I did what every mother does," says Gauri to Mumbai Mirror. When asked about her future goals as a mother, she says, "My father wanted me to be a policeman, but I couldn't. I want Gayatri to achieve her goals. She has all the freedom for what she wants to be. I shall give her everything I can." Answer the following questions1. What is the main idea of the passage? (2) 2. Which of these issues (problems) do you think a transgender faces all the time? a. They face a lot of health issues. b. They are not accepted as a part of the society by most people. c. They do not have enough money d. They cannot speak local language (1.5) Please provide a reason from the text to support your answer. 3. Mention any two character traits of Gauri Sawant. Give reasons for each. 4. “Motherhood is not limited to a gender. Motherhood is a feeling.” (1) (1.5) What is your opinion about the statement mentioned above? 5. What do you think the phrase ‘looked down upon’ means in the second last paragraph of the story? (1.5) a. to support someone b. to think that someone is lesser in some way c. to speak ill of someone intentionally d. to speak highly of someone Also, use ‘looked down upon’ in a sentence of your own. 6. What do you think the word ‘conservative’ means in the second paragraph? a. someone who encourages another person b. someone who is very modern in their way of thinking c. someone who actively participates in any event d. someone who does not like/encourage any change (1.5) Also, use ‘conservative’ in a sentence of your own. 7. Suggest an alternative title for this passage. Why do you think that is a suitable title? (1.5) 8. Identify the figurative language in the sentence below and mention why. (1.5) "I don't feel special. I became a mother because of Gayatri and she is my pillar of strength. I did what every mother does," II. Reading Comprehension [11.5 marks] Adventurous Storyteller Jack London, one of America’s major writers of adventure stories, was born in California, USA in 1876. During his life, London worked at many jobs. His life experiences became the background for his writing. London loved to read. As a teenager, he spent many hours educating himself at the Oakland’s public library which is in California. He attended college at the University of California at Berkeley, but he stayed for only six months. He thought Berkeley was “not lively enough” and wanted to do something more exciting. London wrote stories about working people and the hard times they had for earning money. He knew and understood their problems. He worked as a sailor, cattleman, factory employee, in railways, and as a gold mine worker - to name just a few of his many jobs. London grew up near the waterfront in Oakland. He loved the water. When he was fifteen years old, he bought a small sailboat called a sloop. Later he sailed to Japan on a schooner, which is a much larger sailing boat. Like many people of the time, London had gone to the Klondike to look for gold. In l897, he headed for Alaska. He didn’t find gold, but he discovered something even more valuable. He discovered that people enjoyed listening to the stories he made up with his vivid imagination. London entertained the miners with numerous stories. Later, using his experiences during the Gold Rush, he created many more colourful stories. London promised to live a full, exciting life. He once said, “I would rather be a superb meteor, every atom of me in magnificent glow, than a sleepy and permanent planet.” Each day, he pushed himself. Once London determined that he was going to be a writer, nothing could stop him. His goal was to write at least one thousand words every day. He refused to stop even when he was sick. In eighteen years, the writer published fifty-one books and hundreds of articles. He was the best-selling and highest-paid author of his time. Many people also considered him to be the best writer. White Fang and The Call of the Wild are his most famous stories and are about surviving in the Alaskan dry land. Readers can enjoy Jack London’s energy and his talent for telling wonderful stories each time they open one of his novels. 9. Based on the information in the passage, why did Jack London not complete college? (½) a. He was hired to sail to Japan. b. He was not interested enough. c. He though Berkley was not ‘lively enough’. d. He spent much of his time writing. 10. What do a sloop and a schooner have in common? a. b. c. d. They were both built in Oakland. They were both used by Jack in Japan. They are both types of boats. They were both made in the early 1900s. (½) 11. Which of these jobs did Jack do? a. sailor, farmer, writer b. cattleman, farmer, gold mine worker c. sailor, cattleman, writer d. sailor, cattleman, factory employee (½) 12. Which word best describes Jack London? a. careful b. handsome c. imaginative d. obedient (1.5) Please give reasons from the passage to support your answer. 13. What is the author’s purpose in writing the passage? a. to speak about boats b. provide information on Jack London’s life c. support the statement that London was the “best writer” till now d. describe life during the Klondike Gold Rush (1) 14. What does the word ‘determined’ mean? a. not allowing anyone or any difficulties to stop you from what you want to do b. to disturb someone so that they cannot focus on anything else c. ignore someone or something d. lose focus from something (1.5) Use the word ‘determined’ in a sentence of your own. 15. What point of view is used in the passage? Mention the reason for your answer. (1) 16. What do you think the word ‘vivid’ means in the fifth paragraph of the passage? (1) 17. What are two big similarities between Jack London and Gauri Sawant? Give evidence from both the passages to support your answer. (2) 18. “I would rather be a superb meteor, every atom of me in magnificent glow, than a sleepy and permanent planet.” Identify the figurative language and mention why. (1) 19. Many people also considered him to be the best writer. Which of these following options is the correct one if the above sentence is changed to comparative degree? (1) a. Many people considered him to be a good writer. b. Many people considered few other writers to be as good as him. c. Many people didn’t consider other writers to be better than him. d. Many people also considered him to be better than any other writer. II. GRAMMAR [11.5 total] (1.5 marks) 20. Please fill in each numbered blank with only one word to make the passage grammatically and contextually correct. Note: You should just write the number of the blank and its answer instead of the entire passage. The Taljai Haunted Mansion In Maharashtra Have you ever 1_____ a place that made you shake with fear on a warm, bright day? The Taljai Haunted Mansion located 2_____ the Taljai forest area, Pune, has a ghostly reputation. Even on a bright, sunny day, there’s no doubt that the mansion looks like the classic haunted house from a 3.______ movie with its old building look. The dark windows of the huge stone building, give an eerie feeling. History says that this was 4______ by the Peshwas and they gifted it to their loyal Sardar (General) named Thuve. The rest of the story is 5______up by people who say that Thuve killed a woman who 6._______a dancer, in the playroom of the mansion and then hanged himself to death. Though never7_____, it is believed that the basement playroom still comes alive after 8______ with the 9______ of the dancing girl’s ghungroos (in English- anklets) going “cham, cham”. Well, doesn’t this remind us of the funny movie Bhool Bhoolaiya where people believed it to be a ghost but it turned out to be a human 10______ a disease after all? 21. Please change the tenses as indicated. (½ x 4 = 2) (Please award no marks in case of any grammatical errors and unnecessary changes in the sentences.) (i) (ii) (iii) (iv) I eat, sleep, and work daily. (Please change to past perfect tense.) I have kept his book safely for five months. (Please change to simple future tense.) It hadn’t occurred to me to give you a call. (Please change to simple present tense.) When I go to the market, I see them signing outside. (Please change to past continuous tense.) 22. Please convert the following to passive voice: I was writing a letter to Gaurav bhaiya. (1) 23. Please convert the following to active voice: (1) The students who stood up for the right cause were appreciated by everyone. 24. Choose the option which suggests a correct spelling change to the words in the sentence below. When they felt that their family home had become unmanagable because of their age, they wanted to stay nearby. (½) a. b. c. d. Change ‘unmanagable’ to ‘unmanageable’ Change ‘become’ to ‘became’ Change ‘their’ to ‘there’ Change ‘nearby’ to ‘nearly’ 25. Choose the word similar to the meaning of the underlined word. Also, use it to write a sentence of your own. (1) The five-year old kid in my neighbourhood is really outgoing and fun to be with. Another word for outgoing is ___________. a. b. c. d. brave friendly smart polite 26. Choose the word opposite to the meaning of the underlined word. He is known for being ___________. How can you expect him to be polite? a. b. c. d. Non-polite Unpolite Impolite Inpolite (½) 27. What figurative language is used in the sentences below? Please provide a reason for your answer. (1.5) a. My legs were hurting, so I was walking as slow as a snail. (1) b. She sells sea shells by the sea shore. (½) 28. Please use proper punctuations and rewrite the sentence(1) I met my friend in the market she asked me why have you become so thin 29. In which sentence is the phrase “cut off” correctly used? (½) a. Bad network ensured that our conversation was cut off several times in between. b. The doctor advised Rashmi to cut off on her intake of between-meal snacks. c. Authorities have cut off many trees to make way for the metro in Bangalore. d. We cut off the park to school as it was a shorter route. 30. Please choose the grammatically correct sentence. (½) a. Let the never striking fear of the game keep you from playing out. b. Never let the striking game of the fear keep you from playing. c. Let the playing game of the fear keep you from never striking. d. Never let the fear of striking out keep you from playing the game. 31. Please choose the grammatically correct sentence. a. b. c. d. (½) Baahubali was more stronger than all other characters in the film. Baahubali was more strong than any other character in the film. Baahubali was stronger than all other characters in the film. Baahubali was strongest than any other character in the film. III. WRITING [15 marks] 32. Please choose any one of the following options to write an essay: [10 marks] (i) Share your opinion, through a persuasive essay, in 250 words on the topic below: Muslims should go back to Pakistan and not be allowed in India. OR (ii) Share your opinion, through a persuasive essay, in 250 words on the topic below: It is sometimes right for the government to restrict freedom of speech. 33. Please choose any one of the following to write a letter. (150-200 words) [5 marks] (i) Write a letter to any one of the teachers (who used to teach you and now stays in Kashmir) informing him/her of the Art Mela happening in December, 2018. Also inform that you want him/her to lead a club for the Mela. Please mention what the club will it be and for how long you want him/her to train you so that you can sell the items during the Mela. OR (ii) Write a letter to the principal of your school expressing your interest in becoming a member of the Students’ Council. Instructions for letter-writing: Please use the right format of the letter. Please include the necessary details. Please make your letter interesting for the reader.
