THE INDIAN COMMUNITY SCHOOL, KUWAIT
FIRST MID TERM- MODEL PAPER
ENGLISH CLASS- VII
TIME ALLOWED: 1 ½ HOURS
MAX.MARKS: 40
SECTION- A: READING (10 MARKS)
Q1. Read the following passage and answer the questions:
(5m)
Penguins are one of the world’s most interesting birds. They waddle when they walk, and have
flippers instead of wings. The bones in a penguin’s flippers are heavier and more solid than those
in the wings of a flying bird. This helps the penguin “fly” through the water. The penguin’s black
back and white front has an important function, too -- camouflage in the water. Penguins blend in
with the sea from above and with the sky from below. This makes it harder for predatory birds,
leopard seals, sea lions, orcas and sharks to see them. Many people think all penguins live in the
cold and ice of Antarctica. However, only 6 of the 17 species or types of penguins live in
Antarctica. The others live in parts of New Zealand, Australia, South Africa and South America
and on the Falkland and Galapagos Islands. Let’s talk about two of the penguin species – the
Emperor penguin of Antarctica and the Galapagos penguin of the Galapagos Islands. The Emperor
penguin is the world’s largest penguin. Its oily outer feathers help keep it dry. Its dense inner down
feathers and thick fat layer helps keep it warm. Emperor penguins also often huddle in groups to
conserve heat. A mother Emperor penguin lays only one egg at a time. After the mother Emperor
penguin lays the egg she travels to open sea to feed on fish, squid and krill (shrimp-like ocean
crustaceans). The father stays behind with the egg. He keeps it warm and protected by balancing
it on his feet and covering it with feathered skin called a brood pouch. The mother returns two
months later, regurgitates food for the newly hatched chick, then stays with it while the father goes
out to sea to feed. The Galapagos penguin lives in an area much warmer than Antarctica. The
Galapagos Islands are on the Equator, 600 miles west of the South American country of Ecuador.
This is as far north as any penguin lives in the wild. The Galapagos penguin is one of the smallest
and also one of the most endangered of all penguins. It shares the Galapagos Islands with many
other unusual animals including the giant Galapagos tortoise and the blue-footed booby. Instead
of having to stay warm the Galapagos penguin must find ways to stay cool. The best way is to
spend the heat of day in cool water currents hunting small fish and krill. When a Galapagos penguin
does get out of the water it often spreads its flippers to cool off. It might also pant like a dog. And
it shades its feet by standing with its body hunched forward.
Questions:
1. What helps penguin “fly” through the water?
2. Give one specialty of Emperor penguin of Antarctica and the Galapagos penguin of the
Galapagos Islands.
3. Why are Penguins called one of the world’s most interesting birds?
4. What is the important function of the penguin’s black back and white front body?
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5. Which is the smallest and also one of the most endangered of all penguins?
Q2. Read the poem and answer the questions that follow.
(5m)
I lay in sorrow, in deep distress;
My grief a proud man heard;
His looks were cold, he gave me gold,
But not a kindly word
My sorrow passed – I paid him back
The gold he gave to me;
Then stood erect and spoke my thanks
And blessed his charity.
I lay in want, and grief and pain;
A poor man passed my way,
He bound my head, he gave me bread,
He watched me night and day.
How shall I pay him back again
For all he did to me?
Oh, gold is great, but greater far
Is heavenly sympathy.
1. How did the proud man help the poet when he was 'in deep distress'?
2. What he did not give the poet?
3. How did the poor man take care of the poet?
4. Which word in the poem means “giving money to a person who is in need”?
5. Give a suitable title to the poem.
SECTION- B- WRITING-8 MARKS + GRAMMAR-7 MARKS=15 MARKS
WRITING-8 MARKS
Q3. Write a paragraph on “My Role Model”
(4m)
Q4. Write a letter to your friend inviting him/her to celebrate your sister’s birthday.
(4m)
GRAMMAR-7 MARKS
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Q5. Fill in the blanks with correct modals.
(3m)
(Should, may, can)
1. __________ I go out, madam.
2. I ____ sing a song.
3. You ______ obey your parents.
Q6. Change into passive voice.
(2m)
1. George feeds his cat.
2. Maya answered the question.
Q7. Fill in the blanks choosing the correct phrasal verbs given.
(2m)
(burst out, look up)
1) When I go to Kerala, I am planning to ………………………. all my old friends.
3) The children ………………………in laughter.
SECTION- C- LITERATURE-15 MARKS
Q8. Read the extract and answer the questions.
(2m)
“She probably won’t, but just in case I brought a tranquilizer gun.”
1. Who is the speaker?
2. Who is ‘she’ in the above lines?
Q9. Answer the following questions briefly.
(6m)
1. Why do you think Fowler had gone to meet Ausable?
2. What did Pertab Singh and the Englishman speak about?
3. Why does the poet in No Men Are Foreign say ‘in which we all shall lie’?
Q10. Do you think what Pertab Singh did was easy or difficult? Support your answer with enough
reasons.
(4m)
Q11. Give the character sketch of Ausable from the lesson, ‘THE MIDNIGHT VISITOR’ in about
50 words.
(3m)
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