VIBGYOR HIGH

FIRST TERM EXAMINATION

2015 - 2016

GRADE: 6(CIE) Max. Marks: 50

SUBJECT: English Date: 10.09.15

Paper No: 2 Time: 1hour

Name of Candidate:

Candidate No: Centre No:

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Write your Centre number, candidate number and name in the spaces at the top of this
page.

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This document consists of 10 printed pages

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Section A: Reading

Spend 30 minutes on this section.

Read this passage from ‘Why the Whales Came’ by Michael Morpurgo and then
answer the questions

“We mustn’t talk to him. We’re not supposed to.”

Gracie and Daniel have been warned to stay away from the Birdman.

Dragging Daniel behind me I ran for the door which opened in front of us just as we
reached it. Prince [the Birdman’s dog] was suddenly around our legs, jumping up at us
and shaking himself all over us; and blotting out the light from the doorway was the
black, hooded silhouette of the Birdman with a kittiwake [bird] perched on his shoulder.
Above him I could see the sky was white with screeching gulls. Daniel and I backed
away towards the stove knocking over a chair as we went. Prince followed us sniffing at
the bread in Daniel’s hand.

‘Hungry, were you?’ came the voice from inside the sou’wester1 [waterproof hat].‘Plenty
of bread, always make plenty of bread. Bake one a day. Always have plenty in reserve
in case I get ill. I keep the freshest till last, on the top shelf – you can have some of that
if you like.’ The kittiwake lifted off his shoulder and landed clumsily amongst the
carvings on the table, knocking one of them over. He hopped on one leg; the other
seemed curled up and stunted and he would not use it. The Birdman shut the door
behind him, pulled off his sou’wester and shook it dry.

‘Bit of a bluster out there I can tell you,’ he said. The words he spoke were unformed
and unfinished. They seemed yawned out rather than spoken and then thrown out from
the top of his mouth. He heaved his black cape off his shoulders wincing as he did so,
folded it and laid it carefully on the floor. All his movements were painfully slow and stiff.
He whistled sharply and Prince left us at once and sat down on the cape, looking from
the Birdman to us and back again as if waiting for someone to say something, but no-
one said a word.

We must have spent a full minute looking at each other. The old man I saw in front of
me was not at all as I had expected him to be. All my life I had thought he would have a
predatory look of an ancient crow under the shadow of his sou’wester. I could hardly
have been more wrong. Only the tired stoop of his body and the loose, mottled skin of
his forearm betrayed his age. His face was the colour of a well-worn polished brown
boot. The skin was creased but still young and supple – not that you could see much of
his face for it was almost entirely hidden by a head and beard of wild white hair. But it
was his eyes that marked him out from any other man I had ever seen, for they drew
you into them somehow so that you could not look away even if you wanted to.

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‘So, at last we meet,’ he said, breaking the long silence. ‘I’m glad you came. I was afraid
you never would you know.

Glossary

Sou’wester - Waterproof hat.

1. Read these statements about the Birdman, a character from ‘Why the Whales
Came’.

Tick (_) two boxes that we know are TRUE from the passage.

He had a beard of wild white hair.

He stood upright and tall.

He wore a checked hat.

His black hair covered his face.

His forearm had loose mottled skin. [2]

2. Which of the Birdman’s features was particularly remarkable? [1]

3. The Birdman said he always made plenty of bread. Why was this? [1]

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4. When the kittiwake flew from the Birdman’s shoulder and landed on the table,
it hopped on one leg. Why? [1]

5. Was the Birdman angry to find the children in his home?

Tick (√ ) one box.

Yes

No

Give a reason from the passage to support your answer. [1]

6. Birds, like the kittiwake on the Birdman’s shoulder at the beginning, usually fly away
from humans.

What does this tell you about the Birdman? [1]

7. Do you feel sorry for the Birdman?

Tick (√ )one box

Yes

No

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Explain your answer.

Words and phrases from the passage to support your answer. [2]

8. Why did the children back away when the door opened? [1]

9. What do you think the weather was like outside when the Birdman arrived? [2]

Select evidence from the passage to support your answer.

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10. From whose point of view is this story narrated? [2]

______________________________________________________________________

Explain how you know this

11. All my life I had thought he would have a predatory look of an ancient crow
under the shadow of his sou’wester.

(a)Tick (√) one box to say which technique is being used here. [1]

Alliteration

Imagery

Metaphor

Simile

Personification

(b) Explain what you think the underlined phrase means. [2]

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12.(a) The passage is a short extract from the book, ‘Why the Whales Came’.

From the evidence in this extract, which genre do you think the story is?

Tick (√) the correct answer. [1]

Biography

Legend

Real life story

Science fiction

Traditional tale

(b) Name two general features of the genre you choose for 12(a) [2]

1.

2.

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 Section B: Writing

Spend 30 minutes on this section.

12. Read this introduction to a story.

The house was not at all like Hari had expected. He had listened to people telling bad
stories about the person who lived there. He now wondered how they were going to feel
when they found out that the person was really a good, kind person. Also, when they
found out what had happened, he thought they would be very sorry about everything
that had been said.

Now continue the story yourself to explain what has happened to change Hari’s
opinion of the person.

Ideas to help you:

Characters There are at least 2 characters:

• Hari
• The mysterious person

Setting The house.

Do the events happen anywhere else? At school? In a shop? By a
river?
Plot What are the ‘bad stories’?
How did Hari get to know the person?
What happened to make him think of the person as ‘good and kind’
Remember to include as much detail as you can in your story. It can be any genre that
you like.

PLANNING

Spend up to 5 minutes making notes in this box to plan your story.

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Write your story here.

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Content [5] Punctuation [4]

Purpose and audience [4] Vocabulary [3]

Text structure [5] Spelling [4]

Sentence structure [5]

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