Name and surnames: Paula Pedrero

Group: 4th ESO A Date: Friday 21st of January 2011

Changing their Skies: Stories from Africa

Retold by Jennifer Bassett

1 Which story do these sentences come from? The Rubbish Dump, Cardboard Mansions,
Leaving.
a She began to think again about Stanger, and the past, and her friend Ratnadevi. Cardboard
Mansions
b He saw Mazambezi sitting by the side of the pit looking down into it. The Rubbish Dump
c There were no fruit trees, no birds calling and flying in and out of the trees. Cardboard
Mansions
d Some weeks later answers to the letters began arriving with big shiny prospectuses.
Leaving
e Near the house he stopped and hid the plane under his shirt. The Rubbish Dump
f That was the first time I saw her as a person, and not just as our mother. Leaving
g All through the journey he stood by the window, with his nose against the glass. Cardboard
Mansions
h It was a hard life, with five children and no husband. Cardboard Mansions
i Why did people vomit when they were flying in a plane? The Rubbish Dump
j She waited for the boy, pulling the end of her old green cotton sari over her head.
Cardboard Mansions

2 Are these sentences true (T) or false (F)?

a T Joey kept all his secret things from the airport in his school bag.
b T Dadi-Ma and Chotoo went from Durban to Stanger by train.
c T Aloo’s mother refused to marry again because of her children.
d F The rubbish dump was a long way from Joey’s house.
e T A famous college in America offered Aloo a place with a scholarship.
f T The name Mazambezi meant ‘rubbish collector’.
g F Mr Naidoo was happy to wait for the rent money.
h F Aloo wanted to study agriculture.
i T Dadi-Ma had a little money saved from the good old days.
j F Aloo wanted to marry a white woman.

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3 Fill in the gaps using: into, out, of, around, down.

a We moved to a quiet part of town.

b The smells of the rubbish were all around them.
c Mazambezi held out a toy plane.
d Dadi-Ma sat down on the step to wait.
e Aloo put all the papers into Mr Velji’s hands.

4 Who said this? Who did they say it to? Mazambezi, Dadi-Ma, Joey, Aloo’s mother,
Chotoo, Joey’s mother, Neela, Joey, Dadi-Ma, Aloo.

a ‘I thought you had a terrible headache.’ Joey’s mother to Joey

b ‘They say old man Naidoo going to throw us out.’ Dadi-Ma to Chotoo
c ‘And promise me that you will not smoke or drink.’ Aloo’s mother to Aloo
d ‘Did all that come from the plane?’ Joey to Mazambezi
e ‘Sonny doesn’t beat you, that’s one good thing.’ Dadi-Ma to Neela.

5 Match a number from A with a letter from B to make complete sentences.

A
1 c He was holding out a toy plane,
2 d I remembered her arms around me
3 e Mazambezi was old,
4 a When Mother felt sad,
5 b She sat down by the side of the road,

B
a Aloo and I played card games with her.
b pulling the boy close to her side.
c with AIR RHODESIA written on the side.
d when I was a young child.
e with a lot of grey in his short black hair.

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Setting

Choose the best answer.

1 Aloo’s mother sold the store and moved with her last two children to a quiet part of _____.
a [ ] London b [ ] Dar es Salaam c [ ] Tanga d [ ] America
2 Joey lived near an international _____.
a [ ] school b [ ] house c [ ] airport d [ ] plane
3 Aloo’s mother did not have the money to send him to an American _____.
a [ ] store b [ ] university c [ ] scholarship d [ ] prospectus
4 Dadi-Ma and Chotoo lived in a _____ house in Port Elizabeth.
a [ ] wooden b [ ] new c [ ] large d [ ] shanty
5 _____ was the centre of Chotoo’s life.
a [ ] Sonny b [ ] Mr Naidoo c [ ] Neela d [ ] Dadi-Ma
6 Aloo’s mother wanted him to study hard but she did not want to _____ him.
a [ ] lose b [ ] visit c [ ] pay d [ ] believe
7 The disease of tuberculosis killed Dadi-Ma’s _____ and three of her sons.
a [ ] wife b [ ] husband c [ ] grandson d [ ] friend
8 Mazambezi pushed the rubbish in his wheelbarrow from the airport to the _____.
a [ ] pit b [ ] plane c [ ] house d [ ] school
9 Aloo had a _____ at the university in Dar es Salaam but he did not want to study agriculture.
a [ ] scholarship b [ ] subject c [ ] prospectus d [ ] place
10 Flies _____ over the rubbish pit near Joey’s house, and big birds circled.
a [ ] stepped b [ ] looked c [ ] buzzed d [ ] ran

Characters

Choose the best answer.

11 Dadi-Ma hated living in the city and she did not _____ her time in Stanger.
a [ ] forget b [ ] think c [ ] remember d [ ] believe
12 _____ was in his last year at school and a clever student.
a [ ] Mr Datoo b [ ] Mr Velji c [ ] Aloo d [ ] Aloo’s uncle

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 13 Joey loved the noise and roar of the _____.
a [ ] planes b [ ] wheelbarrow c [ ] cars d [ ] flies
14 Sonny got into a fight and the police _____ him.
a [ ] helped b [ ] paid c [ ] beat d [ ] arrested
15 Aloo’s mother was only thirty-three when her _____ died.
a [ ] daughter b [ ] mother c [ ] son d [ ] husband
16 Mazambezi looked through the _____, finding bits of food left from aeroplane meals.
a [ ] balcony b [ ] field c [ ] rubbish d [ ] house
17 _____ was one of the school officers and looked like a clever man.
a [ ] Mr Datoo b [ ] Mr Velji c [ ] Aloo d [ ] Aloo’s uncle
18 _____ was a young woman when she came from India to South Africa.
a [ ] Chotoo b [ ] Dadi-Ma c [ ] Sonny d [ ] Neela
19 Aloo wanted to study medicine in _____.
a [ ] London b [ ] Dar es Salaam c [ ] Tanga d [ ] America
20 Joey spent all his free time on the _____ at the airport.
a [ ] balcony b [ ] wheelbarrow c [ ] rubbish d [ ] sleeping mat

Dialogue

Who said this?

21 ‘If you don’t pay, you go.’
a [ ] Chotoo b [ ] Dadi-Ma c [ ] Sonny d [ ] Mr Naidoo
22 ‘You’ve been to that smelly rubbish pit!’
a [ ] Joey b [ ] Mazambezi c [ ] Joey’s mother d [ ] Joey’s father
23 ‘If you send him, you will lose your son.’
a [ ] Aloo’s mother b [ ] Aloo c [ ] Mr Datoo d [ ] Mr Velji
24 ‘We just sit out there, and talk and laugh.’
a [ ] Chotoo b [ ] Dadi-Ma c [ ] Sonny d [ ] Mr Naidoo
25 ‘Are we so unimportant to you?’
a [ ] Aloo b [ ] Aloo’s mother c [ ] Mr Velji d [ ] Mr Datoo

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 26 ‘I sit here every day and look into the pit.’
a [ ] Joey b [ ] Joey’s father c [ ] Joey’s mother d [ ] Mazambezi
27 ‘When I get there, I will know where to go.’
a [ ] Chotoo b [ ] Dadi-Ma c [ ] Sonny d [ ] Mr Naidoo
28 ‘Can’t we borrow some money?’
a [ ] Aloo b [ ] Aloo’s mother c [ ] Mr Velji d [ ] Mr Datoo
29 ‘We go by train.’
a [ ] Chotoo b [ ] Dadi-Ma c [ ] Sonny d [ ] Mr Naidoo
30 ‘What have you got this time?’
a [ ] Joey b [ ] Mazambezi c [ ] Joey’s mother d [ ] Joey’s father

Vocabulary

Choose the best answer.

31 an official document to show that you can go into a country
a [ ] visa b [ ] wheelbarrow c [ ] novel d [ ] rent
32 a long piece of very thin metal
a [ ] wheelbarrow b [ ] yard c [ ] pile d [ ] wire
33 a container made of thin sticks; you use it for holding or carrying things
a [ ] cardboard b [ ] bundle c [ ] basket d [ ] wheelbarrow
34 to take air in through your nose and mouth
a [ ] buzz b [ ] breathe c [ ] sob d [ ] grunt
35 a book that tells a story about people and things that are not real
a [ ] exam b [ ] document c [ ] prospectus d [ ] novel
36 a light open shoe
a [ ] sandal b [ ] sari c [ ] balcony d [ ] toy
37 to make a short rough sound, like a pig makes
a [ ] hang b [ ] buzz c [ ] grunt d [ ] sob
38 knowing and understanding a lot about many things
a [ ] barefoot b [ ] wise c [ ] horrible d [ ] lined

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 39 to make a picture of something in your mind
a [ ] believe b [ ] vomit c [ ] sob d [ ] imagine
40 something that is not clean
a [ ] dirt b [ ] bundle c [ ] cardboard d [ ] plastic

Plot

Choose the best answer.

41 Ratnadevi’s house in Stanger was pulled down _____.
a [ ] three years ago b [ ] when it was dark c [ ] a long time ago d [ ] in the future
42 Aloo’s mother went to Mr Velji for _____ about Aloo’s scholarship.
a [ ] money b [ ] education c [ ] college d [ ] advice
43 Joey followed Mazambezi to the rubbish pit and _____ something horrible.
a [ ] fell into b [ ] vomited c [ ] visited d [ ] opened
44 Sonny lost his job and there was no money for the _____.
a [ ] factory b [ ] rubbish c [ ] street d [ ] rent
45 Joey was afraid that _____ would find the toy plane.
a [ ] his father b [ ] the white man c [ ] his mother d [ ] Mazambezi
46 Aloo began to think about his future because of Mr Datoo’s visit from _____.
a [ ] Tanga b [ ] America c [ ] Dar es Salaam d [ ] London
47 Dadi-Ma wanted _____ to do something with his life, to escape from life in the shanties.
a [ ] Mr Naidoo b [ ] Sonny c [ ] Neela d [ ] Chotoo
48 Aloo wrote to universities in America, but his _____ did not take his plan seriously.
a [ ] sister b [ ] uncle c [ ] mother d [ ] teacher
49 Mazambezi gave Joey a _____.
a [ ] book b [ ] toy plane c [ ] meat can d [ ] wheelbarrow
50 Dadi-Ma did not want _____ to see them and ask for his rent.
a [ ] Mr Naidoo b [ ] Sonny c [ ] Chotoo d [ ] Neela

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