3.
Questions
1. What word would you use to describe the old woman?
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2. Give one reason why no one would know if she is dead?
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3. What two details in the poem indicate that the woman was poor?
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4. Do you think that the title of the poem is suitable? Give one reason to support your
answer.
Questions
1. (a) Who did Henry Thomas marry?
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(b) Is she still alive?
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2. (a) How many children did Henry Thomas and his wife have?
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(b) Who is the eldest child?
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3. Are all of Henry Thomas’ children still alive? Give details to support your answer.
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4. How many grandchildren are there in the family?
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5. (a) Who is the eldest grandchild in the family?
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(b) Who is is/are the youngest grandchild/grandchildren in the family?
Tues, Oct 31, 2023
Read the following poem and then answer the questions that follow
An African Thunderstorm David Rubadiri
From the west
Clouds come hurrying with the wind
Turning sharply
Here and there
Like a plague of locusts 5
Whirling,
Tossing up things on its tail
Like a madman chasing nothing.
Pregnant clouds
Ride stately on its back, 10
Gathering to perch on hills
Like sinister dark wings;
The wind whistles by
And trees bend to let it pass.
In the village 15
Screams of delighted children,
Toss and turn
In the din of the whirling wind,
Women,
Babies clinging on their backs 20
Dart about
In and out
Madly;
The wind whistles by
Whilst trees bend to let it pass. 25
Clothes wave like tattered flags
Flying off
To expose dangling breasts
As jagged blinding flashes
Rumble, tremble and crack 30
Amidst the smell of fired smoke
And the pelting march of the storm.
1. Refer to line 6: ‘Like a plague of locusts’. What does this mean?
2. Refer to line 9: 'Like a madman chasing nothing.'
3. What literary device is ‘Toss and turn’?
4. What effect is, "‘The Wind whistles by/And trees bend to let it pass.’
What impression of the wind is conveyed by this description?
EXCERPT FROM: “FIRST” (A SHORT STORY)
First, you ought to know that I’m “only” fourteen. My mother points this out often. I can make
my own decisions when I’m old enough to vote, she says. Second, I should tell you that she’s right—I’m
not always responsible. I sometimes take the prize for grade-A dork. Take last weekend, for instance. I
was staying at Dad’s, and I decided it was time I learned to drive. It was Sunday morning, 7 A.M., and I
hadn’t slept well. I’d been up thinking about an argument, which I’ll tell you about in a minute. Well,
nobody was up yet in the neighborhood, so I thought it couldn’t hurt to back the car out of the garage and
drive around the block. But Dad has a clutch car. The R on the shift handle was up on the left side, right
next to first gear. I guess you can guess the rest.
Dad’s always been understanding. He didn’t say, “Okay, little Miss Know-It-All, you can just
spend the rest of the year paying this off,” which is what Mom would have said. Instead, Dad worried
about what might have happened to me. To me. And that made me feel more guilty than anything. I think
he’d be a better number-one caregiver, but I can’t say things like that to Mom. To her, I have to say, “But
Mom, Dad’s place is closer to school. I could ride my bike.”
To which she replies, “Amy Lynn, you don’t own a bike. Remember? You left it in the yard, and
it was stolen. And you haven’t got the patience to earn the money to replace it.”
QUESTIONS
1. How does the narrator show how she feels about her dad and mom?
a. through specific detail
b. by asking questions that make a point but don’t invite a direct answer
c. through similes and metaphors
d. by contrasting her parents’ typical reactions
2. The first-person point of view in this story
a. hides the narrator’s feelings.
b. shows the thoughts and personality of the narrator.
c. makes the narrator seem cold and distant.
d. lets you hear the thoughts of all the characters.
3. The narrator feels guilty because she
a. made her dad worry.
b. ruined the car.
c. broke the law.
d. didn’t tell her mom about the car incident.
4. The narrator says she “sometimes take[s] the prize for a grade-A dork.” This word choice means to show
a. that she doesn’t know proper English.
b. that she can’t judge her own actions.
c. her age and culture.
d. that she thinks she’s better than other “dorks.”
5. The quotation marks around “only” suggest that the narrator
a. is almost fifteen.
b. thinks fourteen is old enough for some things.
c. wishes she were older.
d. thinks fourteen is a lousy age.
6. The narrator’s tone is
a. emotional and familiar.
b. stuck up and superior.
c. angry and sad.
d. pleasant and charming.
7. The main conflict between the narrator and her mother is about whether she
a. can make her own decisions.
b. should live with her mom or her dad.
c. should be allowed to drive.
d. should pay for things she loses or breaks.
8. The narrator’s mom thinks the narrator is
a. too attached to her dad.
b. too emotional.
c. too shy.
d. irresponsible.
9. The narrator feels that her mom
a. is too busy to care for her.
b. should never have divorced her dad.
c. makes too many rules.
d. cares more about things than about people.
TOPIC: Idioms
Out of four alternatives given for idioms/phrases underlined in the following sentences, choose
one which expresses the meaning of the idiom/phrase.
1. A fair-weather friend always tries to fish in troubled waters of his friends and benefactors.
A. To borrow money
B. To steal belongings of
C. To get benefits in bad situations.
D. To extend a helping hand.
2. His arrogant behavior with others has left him high and dry.
A. To be penniless
B. To be very sick.
C. To be very famous
D. Isolated.
3. All the residents of the colony painted the town red on the eve of festival.
A. To white wash buildings
B. To renovate buildings
C. To celebrate nosily in public places.
D. To create nuisances.
4. The chairman pulled a long face when the house did not accept the suggestions put forth by
him.
A. To look disappointed
B. To get annoyed
C. To be agitated
D. To make a quarrel.
5. The fair and square policy of the chairman of the committee has made him very popular
among the residents of the town.
A. Clever and Deceitful
B. Honest
C. Ambiguous
D. Relevant and practical.
6. Due to his bad habit of borrowing money from others, he will be in the mire one day.
A. to be punished
B. To be imprisoned
C. To be insulted
D. to be in trouble.
7. I do not like his habit of mincing matters.
A. Not to speak plainly.
B. To brag about
C. To be talkative
D. To show off.
8. The chairman of the corporation plays second fiddle to the minister.
A. To extend a helping hand
B. To play a secondary role.
C. To be guiding person.
D. To be facilitator.
9. In order to become a successful administrator in the office, an executive has to keep his ears
to the ground.
A. To be very polite
B. To encourage backbiting
C. To keep informed about happening in surrounding.
D. To have a strict control over all.
10. He had to go through the motion of starting with this new project as he was least interested
to take up it.
A. To complete quickly.
B. To do a work without enthusiasm
C. To do without any interest.
D. To work at a slow speed
1. Grouping stars by their constellations is a handy way of mapping the sky.
a) funny
b) nice
c) convenient
d) simple
2. Centuries ago, a nomadic tribe besieged the temple to loot its treasure.
a) wild
b) barbarous
c) brave
d) roving
3. It was a momentous moment in the history of the nation.
a) insignificant
b) important
c) sudden
d) transient
4. This is not an exhaustive list of collocations.
a) complete
b) tiring
c) useful
d) adequate
5. The committee decided to expel the new member.
a) detain
b) remove
c) preserve
d) reserve
6. The teacher berated his students.
a) praised
b) advised
c) reproached
d) supervised
7. When the leadership changed, his position in the organization became precarious.
a) secure
b) exalted
c) uncertain
d) important
8. There was no doubt that the judgment was fair.
a) upright
b) insincere
c) biased
d) inconsiderate
9. Her silence was taken as tacit agreement.
a) hostile
b) implied
c) overt
d) general
Activity 2
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