YEAR 6 ENGLISH LANGUAGE REVISION PAPER FIRST TERM EXAM 1 SECTION A: READING - TEXT A - DRIEST PLACE ATACAMA DESERT If you like dry places, you should go to the Atacama Desert in Chile. There are some parts where it has not rained for 400 years! Other parts get less than one-third of an inch of water every year, and most of that water comes from fog, not rain. There is also a place in the desert called the Valley of the Moon, where dusty peaks of sand and salt look like a scene from a movie that takes place on the moon. This desert is one of the driest places on Earth, it is as dry as a bone. 2 Why is the Atacama Desert so dry? It is actually found between two of the wettest places on Earth: the Pacific Ocean and the Amazon River. But, the Andes Mountains are in the way. They trap any rain that falls and hold it over the Amazon Rain Forest. The desert, on the other side of the mountains, gets none. Another interesting fact about the Atacama is that it is a cold desert. The average elevation, or height above sea level, is close to 8,000feet. This picture shows the Atacama Desert in Chile. The Atacama is one of the driest places on Earth. FACT FILE: Virtually rainless The average rain fall in the region is just one millimeter per year. World s largest supply of Sodium Nitrate Another interesting fact about the Atacama Desert in Chile is that is contains the world s largest natural supply of sodium nitrate. Mars like soil Soil samples on Mars are similar to samples taken from the Chile, South America desert. 3 Do not think that there is no life in this desert. As in all harsh places on Earth, some plants and animals have found ways to survive there. A few small plants grow in this dry place. They have very long roots that reach the water deep in the ground. These plants feed insects and a few animals, such as foxes and llamas. 4 There are a few salt lakes in the desert that were made with water from the last ice age. Big flocks of flamingos fly to the salty lakes. They do not drink the water. Instead, they eat a type of red algae that grows there. Their diet is what makes them bright pink. The flamingos also build nests and raise their young on the salt. 5 One other animal has found a way to live in the Atacama: human beings. They live in tiny villages scattered in the desert. They also live in large towns along the coast of the Pacific Ocean. Most of these towns serve as shipping ports. Many tourists arrive in these towns and take day trips into the huge, dry desert all around them. Word bank: llamas: a large, wooly pack animal related to camel. ice age: a period of time long ago when sheets of ice, glaciers covered much of earth. flamingo: a tall pink wading bird with long legs and neck. diet: the kind of food that an animal usually eats. Page 1 of 14
These questions are about text A, Driest Place Atacama Desert. Answer ALL questions. For multiple choice questions, put a cross in each correct box answer. If you change your mind, put a line through the box in another box. to indicate your and then put cross 1. Which of the following is the BEST description of the Atacama Desert? A It is a very large desert with mountains on one side. B C D It is one of the driest places on Earth. It is one of the driest places on Earth, and it is a desert in Chile near the Andes Mountain. It is very dry, but some animals still live there, including human beings. 2. Read the following sentence from the text and answer the question. As in all harsh places on Earth, some plants and animals have found ways to survive there. What is a synonym for harsh? A. healthy B. safe C. useless D. severe 3. Which of the following is an opinion? A Flamingos eat algae from the salt lakes in the Atacama Desert. B The Atacama Desert is the hardest place on Earth to live. C The Atacama Desert has some villages and towns. D Some animals cannot live in the Atacama Desert. 4.Why is colon used in this sentence? It is actually found between two of the wettest places on Earth: the Pacific Ocean and the Amazon River. Page 2 of 14
A to introduce that something follows, like an example B to make the sentence long C to extend the sentence D to separate items in a list of events 5. It does not rain much in the Atacama Desert.The desert gets most of its water from A. rain B.fog C. river D. sea 6. Why has the word dry been repeated in the text? ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7. Write out the phrase from paragraph 1 which describes the Valley of the Moon. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 8. Read the following sentence from the story and answer the question. There is also a place in the desert called the Valley of the Moon, where dusty peaks of sand and salt look like a scene from a movie that takes place on the moon. Which of the following is the definition of peaks as it is used in the sentence? A. the height of achievement B. mountains C. quick looks D. curious glances 9. Which word in the text is antonym to driest? Write out the word. Page 3 of 14
10. Put a tick to show whether each sentence is true or false. True False Atacama desert is a cold desert. Most of the water in the desert comes from Pacific Ocean. Flamingos drink the water from the salty lakes. Human beings live in tiny villages scattered in the desert. A few animals,such as hyenas and foxes are fed by desert plants. 11. Why is the Atacama Desert so dry? Tick two boxes. it has fog it has dusty peaks and salt lakes because of the Andes Mountains its elevation is close to 80000feet the Amazon Rain Forest gets the rain 12. This desert is one of the driest places on Earth, it is as dry as a bone.. Identify the figure of speech and explain its effect from the given sentence. Figure of Speech----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Example--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Explanation---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Page 4 of 14
13. Give two ways how the big flocks of flamingos survive in the Atacama Desert. 1------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 14. How has the writer used language to present the Atacama Desert as driest places on Earth? You should try to include examples from the text to support your answer. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Page 5 of 14
TEXT B - BLACK BEAUTY Black Beauty is the story of a black horse in England in the 1800s. In this extract, Black Beauty has been harnessed to a cart to take his owner, or master, and his caretaker named John on an trip into town. 1 One day late in the autumn my master had a long journey to go on business. When we got to the town of course I had a good wait, but as the master's business engaged him a long time we did not start for home till rather late in the afternoon. It had been raining a great deal, and while it had stopped raining, the wind was blowing very hard across the moonlit sky. The great branches were swaying about like twigs, and the rushing sound was terrible. So back we went and round by the crossroads, but by the time we got to the bridge it was very nearly dark; we could just see that the water was over the middle of it; but as that happened sometimes when the floods were out, master did not stop. We were going along at a good pace, but the moment my feet touched the first part of the bridge I felt sure there was something wrong. I dare not go forward, and I made a dead stop. Go on, Beauty, said my master, and he gave me a touch with the whip, but I dare not stir; he gave me a sharp cut; I jumped, but I dare not go forward. 2 There s something wrong, sir, said John, and he sprang out of the dog-cart and came to my head and looked all about. He tried to lead me forward. Come on, Beauty, what s the matter? Of course I could not tell him, but I knew very well that the bridge was not safe. Just then the man at the toll-gate on the other side ran out of the house, tossing a torch about like one mad. Hoy, hoy, hoy! halloo! stop! he cried. What s the matter? shouted my master. The bridge is broken in the middle, and part of it is carried away; if you come on you ll be into the river. 3 Thank God! said my master. You Beauty! said John, and took the bridle and gently turned me round to the right hand road by the river side. The sun had set long time; the wind seemed to have lulled off after that furious blast which tore up the tree. It grew darker and darker, stiller and stiller. I trotted quietly along, the wheels hardly making a sound on the soft road. For a good while neither master nor John spoke, then master began in a serious voice. I could not understand much of what they said, but I found they thought, if I had gone on as the master wanted me, most likely the bridge would have given way under us, and horse, chaise, master, and man would have fallen into the river; and as the current was flowing very strongly, and there was no light and no help at hand, it was more than likely we should all have been drowned. Page 6 of 14
These questions are about the text B, Black Beauty. Answer ALL questions. For multiple choice questions, put a cross in each correct box answer. If you change your mind, put a line through the box in another box. to indicate your and then put cross 15. From whose point of view is the story narrated? A Anna Sewell B John C Black Beauty D None of these 16. What is the main problem in the story? A. The storm causes a large branch to fall and nearly hit Black Beauty and the men. B. The man wanted black beauty to cross the bridge, but he knows it is out. C The bridge breaks and is washed away by rising river. D. The master must go into town for business by the rising water. 17. Which of these sentences explains how the problem is solved? A We were going along at a good pace, but the moment my feet touched the first part of the bridge I felt sure there was something wrong. B Of course I could not tell him, but I knew very well that the bridge was not safe C The bridge is broken in the middle, and part of it is carried away; if you come on you'll be into the river." D Thank God! said my master. You Beauty! said John, and took the bridle and gently turned me round to the right hand road by the river side." Page 7 of 14
18. Why is semi-colon used in this sentence? Go on, Beauty, said my master, and he gave me a touch with the whip, but I dare not stir; he gave me a sharp cut ; I jumped, but I dare not go forward.. A to show that the sentence related B to make the sentence long C to extend the sentence D to separate items in a list of events 19. What genre is this extract? A Historical fiction B Science fiction C Classic Fiction D Realistic Fiction 20. Read the following: Hoy, hoy, hoy! halloo! stop! he cried. Why has the writer used the exclamation mark? A To show excitement B To show desperation C To show anger D To show confusion 21. Black Beauty knew that something was wrong: A when Black Beauty went round by the crossroads B when the floods were out C when it was very nearly dark D when his feet first touched the bridge Page 8 of 14
22. Find a word or phrase in paragraph 1 which tells the reader that the event is happening at night. 23. Which word in the text is synonymous to send to sleep? Write out the word. 24. Number these events (1 5) so they are in the right order: A. John got out of the cart. B. The man from the toll-gate yelled about the bridge. C. Black Beauty and the cart reached the bridge. D. John and the master knew that Black Beauty kept them from drowning. E. Black Beauty stopped and wouldn t cross. 25. What did the master do when Black Beauty wouldn t go across the bridge? Tick two boxes. pat Black Beauty and looked sad turned to look at Black Beauty angrily touched Black Beauty with the whip walked with Black Beauty gave Black Beauty a sharp cut 26. The great branches were swaying about like twigs, and the rushing sound was terrible. Identify the figure of speech and explain its effect from the given sentence. Figure of Speech----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Example--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Explanation---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Page 9 of 14
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 27. Give two reasons why a reader might want to carry on reading this story. 1------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 28. How has the writer used language to build up tension and interest for the reader? Refer to the whole text. Page 10 of 14
SECTION B : Grammar and punctuation Answer ALL questions. 29. Join the underlined word/s to the correct grammar points. Sentence This desert,one of the driest place on Earth, is found in South America. A few small plants grow in this dry place. Atacama Desert is a cold desert. Big flocks of flamingos fly to the salty lakes. There are a few salt lakes in the desert. Other parts get less than one-third of an inch of water every year The bridge was broken in the middle. Black Beauty trotted quietly. Black Beauty was trained to pull a rider on the back. Black Beauty was unable to speak, but tried to make noise to make them understand. Parts of Speech preposition adverbial Noun phrase adjective article verb Noun connective adverb Verb phrase 30. Change from active to passive voice. Plants feed a few animals, such as foxes and llamas. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 31. Underline the subordinate clause in the sentence below. If you like dry places, you should go to the Atacama Desert in Chile. 32. Circle a noun phrase and underline an adjective from the sentence below: There are a few salt lakes in the desert that were made with water from the last ice age. 33. Underline the relative clause in the sentence below. There is also a place in the desert called the Valley of the Moon, where dusty peaks of sand and salt look like a scene from a movie. Page 11 of 14
34. Choose one word from the box below. Diet Current Peak a) Write a sentence that uses this word as a noun.... b) Write a sentence that uses the same word as an adjective.... 35. Label the statements with V (verb), S (subject),o (object),c (compliment) and A (adverbial) to show the parts of the sentence. 1. Atacama Desert is a cold desert... 2. The rain is trapped over the Amazon Rain Forest 36. Write out the sentence with the correct punctuation. are you really safe asked john 37. Change the direct speech into reported speech. "There is something wrong," said John. ----- 38. Insert commas in the correct places in the sentence below. Black Beauty got a good supper that night a good bran mash some crushed beans and some oats. 39. Put brackets around the relative clause in the following sentences. Black Beauty who was very obedient touched the first part of the bridge and felt sure about the danger. Page 12 of 14
40. Look at each sentence and work out why commas have been used. Draw a line to match each sentence to the correct reason. Sentence When John saw the bridge was broken, he took the bridle and gently turned Black Beauty round to the right hand road by the river side. Black Beauty, who was extremely intelligent, knew that something was wrong. Foxes,llamas and big flocks of flamingos are found in salt lakes of Atacama desert. Reason To separate items in a list To mark the end of a subordinate clause To mark the start and end of a relative clause 41. Complete the sentences below by inserting a relative clause where a space has been left. The master... appreciated and praised Black Beauty's intelligence for saving his life. 42. Change the sentence below from the past tense to the present tense. When we went to the town of course, I had a good wait.... SECTION C: Writing Tasks 43. Write a letter to your friend describing about the place you have visited during your holidays. Give a lively description of the place; why you like the place; what interesting things you did there and any other information that may be of interest to your friend. provide readers with information that will support the purpose of the task use a style of writing appropriate for the task use a style of writing appropriate for the audience Page 13 of 14
44. Writing Task: It was a wild, dark, stormy night. The old cottage looked deserted so Mary went in.. These words are the beginning of a story. Continue with the story, finishing at an exciting point for the reader. Remember to include: how the cottage look from inside what happened inside the cottage any characters involved.. Page 14 of 14