English: Comprehension
Grade 4/5
1
Paragraph: The Smallest Country
Read the following paragraph and answer the questions which follow:
You would expect to find cities inside a country, but Vatican City
is the other way around - it is a tiny country inside a city.
Vatican City is located in Rome, Italy. The city is a country in its
own right—it mints its own coins, prints its own stamps and has
its own national anthem and flag. It issues its own
passports and car number plates, even though it has no major
roads for the cars to drive on. The Pope, who is the leader of the Roman Catholic Church,
lives in Vatican City and he is protected by guards who wear fancy, traditional uniforms.
This entire country covers a
total of 44 hectares (less than half a square kilometre) and it has only 546 citizens.
The World’s Best Book, Buster Books, 2008, p 39
1.
What makes Vatican City different from any other city in the world?
(2)
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
2.
Where is Vatican City?
(1)
_____________________________________________________________________
3.
Does Vatican City have a president? Explain your answer.
(2)
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
4.
Give three reasons why any place will be classified as a city.
(3)
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
5.
6.
Circle the correct answer:
a)
Vatican city is exactly half a square kilometre in size.
b)
Vatican city is almost 44 hectares in size.
c)
Vatican city covers less than half a square kilometre.
(1)
What is interesting about the fact that number plates are issued?
(2)
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
7.
Which religion is followed by the population of Vatican City?
_________________________________________________________
(1)
English: Comprehension
Grade 4/5
2
Instructions: How to get an egg into a bottle
Read the following instructions and then answer the questions which follow:
How to get an egg into a bottle
Steps to follow:
You will need: a peeled,
hard-boiled egg, a plastic or glass
bottle with an opening slightly
smaller than the egg, and a large jug
of hot water.
1. Peel the hard-boiled egg carefully. You should
have a smooth, unblemished white oval.
2. Heat the bottle, inside and out, by filling it
with hot water.
3. Pour out the water and then quickly place the
egg pointed side down, in the bottle opening.
1.
Find synonyms in the text for:
(3)
flawless
- ______________________
tremble
- ______________________
plug
- ______________________
2.
List all the items you will need to do
this experiment.
(3)
_______________________________
4. As the air inside the bottle cools, the egg will
slowly move into the bottle.
5. To get the egg out, hold the bottle upsidedown with the egg near the opening. Blow
hard into the bottle with your mouth tight
against the opening. The egg will vibrate, but
then act as a seal, trapping air inside. Point
the bottle away from yourself and watch the
egg fly out!
How to be the best at everything, Buster Book, 2004
_______________________________
______________________________________________________________________
3.
In which one of the steps does the egg actually move inside the bottle?
(1)
______________________________________________________________________
4.
What will happen if the egg is placed at the bottle opening some time after the water
has been poured out? Explain your answer in detail.
(3)
______________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________
5.
What causes the egg to move inside the bottle?
(1)
______________________________________________________________________
6.
Why do you think the bottle opening should be ‘slightly smaller than the egg’?
(2)
______________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________
7.
In your opinion, is this a safe experiment for children to do unsupervised? Give a reason
for your answer. ___________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________ (3)
English: Comprehension
Grade 4/5
3
Schedules and Rosters
Study the school roster below and answer the questions which follow:
Time
Charlie
Sophie
Ellie
Mzizi
Hannah
Suvir
Sashi
Will
7:45 - 8:00
Register
Register
Register
Register
Register
Register
Register
Register
8:00 - 8:30
English Comp
Mental Math
Life Skills
Phys Ed
Lang Dev
English Comp
Life Skills
English Comp
8:30 - 9:30
Science
Technology
Math
Technology
Math
Technology
Other Lang
Science
9:30 - 10:00
Mental Math
Life Skills
Lang Dev
Lang Dev
Lunch
Mental Math
English Comp Lang Dev
10:00 - 11:00 Math
Science
Other Lang
Math
Science
Life Skills
Math
Math
11:00 - 11:30 Life Skills
Mental Math
English Comp
Lunch
English Comp Other Lang
Lang Dev
Other Lang
11:30 - 12:30 Technology
Other Lang
Science
Other Lang
Other Lang
Science
Technology
12:30 - 13:00 Lunch
Lunch
Mental Math
Life Skills
Mental Math Lunch
Lunch
Mental Math
13:00 - 13:30 Lang Dev
Lang Dev
Lunch
English Comp Life Skills
Lang Dev
Mental Math Phys Ed
13:30 - 15:00 H&S
15:00 - 16:00 Other Lang
H&S
Math
H&S
Technology
H&S
Science
H&S
Math
H&S
Technology
H&S
16:00 - 16:30 Phys Ed
16:30 - 18:00 Swimming
Phys Ed
Swimming
Phys Ed
Swimming
Mental Math Phys Ed
Swimming
Swimming
Phys Ed
Swimming
Phys Ed
Swimming
Life Skills
Swimming
H&S
Technology
Science
English Comp—English Comprehension
Lang Dev—Language Development
Other Lang—Other Language
Phys Ed—Physical Education
1.
H &S—Homework & Study
Which three subjects or activities do all the students have together?
(3)
______________________________________________________________________
2.
Which of the subjects or activities are exactly an hour long?
(4)
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
3.
In which time-slot will most students have Physical Education?
(1)
_____________________________________________________________________
4.
Which student will have lunch the earliest? At what time will this be?
(2)
_____________________________________________________________________
5.
For which two activities has the longest time been allocated?
(2)
_____________________________________________________________________
6.
A maximum of 3 students are allowed in the Mathematics class. In which time-slot are
there more than 3 students?
Name the students.
(2)
_____________________________________________________________________
7.
There are two errors on Suvir’s roster. Can you find them?
(2)
____________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
8.
How long is the school day?
_______________________________________________________
(1)
English: Comprehension
4
Grade 4/5
Paragraph: The Smallest Country– Memo
Read the following paragraph and answer the questions which follow:
1.
What makes Vatican City different from any other city in the world?
(2)
Vatican City is a country inside a city and not a city inside a country as is usually the
case with other cities in the world.
2.
Where is Vatican City?
(1)
Vatican City is in Rome, Italy.
3.
Does Vatican City have a president? Explain your answer.
(2)
No, Vatican City has the Pope, who is the leader of the Roman Catholic Church and also
the leader of Vatican City.
4.
Give three reasons why any place will be classified as a city.
5.
Any three of the following: It makes its own coins, it prints stamps, it has a national
anthem and flag, it issues passports and it issues special number plates for cars.
Circle the correct answer:
(1)
6.
a)
Vatican city is exactly half a square kilometre in size.
b)
Vatican city is almost 44 hectares in size.
c)
Vatican city covers less than half a square kilometre.
(3)
What is interesting about the fact number plates are issued?
(2)
It is interesting that cars are issued with number plates, but the city has no big or major
roads for cars to drive on.
7.
Which religion is followed by the population of Vatican City?
(1)
The population of Vatican City is Christians, belonging to the Roman Catholic Church.
Instructions: How to get an egg into a bottle—Memo
1.
Find synonyms in the text for:
flawless
- unblemished
tremble
- vibrate
plug
- seal
2.
List all the items you will need for this experiment:
(3)
(3)
You will need a peeled, hard-boiled egg, plastic or glass bottle with an opening smaller than
the egg and a large jug of hot water to do this activity.
English: Comprehension
Grade 4/5
5
Instructions: How to get an egg into a bottle—Memo
3.
In which of the steps does the egg actually move inside the bottle?
(1)
In Step 4, the egg will move inside the bottle.
4.
5.
What will happen if the egg is placed at the bottle opening some time after the water
had been poured out? Explain your answer in detail.
(3)
Step 3 specifies that the egg should be placed quickly at the opening of the bottle, this
is because the hot air (vapour) from the hot water that was in the bottle should not
escape. If the hot air escapes, the egg will not be sucked into the bottle and the
experiment will fail.
What causes the egg to move inside the bottle?
(1)
The air that starts to cool inside the bottle, will cause the egg to move in slowly.
6.
Why do you think the bottle opening should be ‘slightly smaller than the egg’?
(2)
If the bottle opening was the same size or bigger than the egg, this experiment would
not be needed as you could then just push the egg inside the bottle!
7.
In your opinion, is this a safe experiment for children to do unsupervised? Give a reason
for your answer. No, the first reason why this is not safe for children to do unsupervised,
is because you have to use hot water. When the egg has to be taken out of the bottle, it
can also fly out and possibly hurt someone.
(3)
Schedules and Rosters
1.
Which three subjects or activities do all the students have together?
(3)
Register period, Homework and Study and Swimming
2.
Which of the subjects or activities are exactly an hour long?
(4)
Science, Maths, Technology and Other Languages
3.
In which time-slot will most students have Physical Education?
(1)
16:00—16:30
4.
Which student will have lunch the earliest? At what time will this be?
(2)
Hannah will have lunch from 9:30 to 10:00
5.
For which two activities has the longest time been allocated?
(2)
For homework and study (one hour, thirty minutes) and for Swimming (1h30min)
6.
A maximum of 3 students are allowed in the Mathematics class. In which time-slot are
there more than 3 students? Name the students.
(2)
The 10:00—11:00 slot , Charlie, Mzizi, Sashi and Will
7.
There are two errors on Suvir’s roster. Can you find them?
(2)
His Life Skills time-slot is an hour long and should be 1/2 hour and his Other Language
time-slot is only half an hour and should be an hour.
8.
How long is the school day? 10 hours and 15 minutes
(1)