o Bachani Nagar o Ashok Nagar o Thakur Complex

Malad (E) Kandivli (E) Kandivli (E)

FIRST SEMESTER EXAMINATION 2018-2019 ICSE
Grade : VIII Subject : English-I Marks : 80
Date : 23/10/2018 Time : 2Hrs.
 You will not be allowed to write during the first 15 minutes.
 This time is to be spent in reading the question paper.
 The time given at the head of this paper is the time allowed for writing the answers.
 This paper consists of 5 printed pages.
 Attempt all questions.
 The intended marks for questions or parts of questions are given in brackets [ ].
 You are advised to spend not more than 30 minutes in answering Question 1
and 20 minutes in answering Question 2.

Question 1
(Do not spend more than 30 minutes on this question.)
Write a composition (250 - 300 words) on any one of the following: [20]
(a) Alice visits the wonderland in Alice in Wonderland. Wonderland is the land of
her dreams. What place do you dream about? What does it look like? Does it have
a smell? How does it feel? Do you hear sounds there? Describe the ideal place of
your dreams in such a way that the reader can visualise it too.
(b) Write about a time when you were really frightened. It could be due to some real
or imagined danger. It could also be a time when you were afraid of the
consequences of something you had done or because you had not done something
that you were supposed to do.
(c) Write a short story that begins with: There is no use crying over spilt milk.
(d) There are many ways of reducing stress. Some people have hobbies like reading,
listening to music, etc. Some do physical exercise; others take a walk in the
gardens. Describe your hobby and how it helps you in reducing stress.
(e) Study the picture given below. Write a short story or description or an account of
what the picture suggests to you. Your composition may be about the subject of
the picture or you may take suggestions from it.

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Question 2
(Do not spend more than 20 minutes on this question.)
Select one of the following. [10]
(a) Write a letter to the Municipal Commissioner of your city, pointing out the need
for setting up a public library in your area to cater to the needs of the residents.
(b) You had been rude to your friend and shouted at him/her. Your friend was upset
and went his/her way. Write a letter to him/her apologizing for your behavior and
explaining the reasons for the same.
Question 3 [5+5]
(a) As the Secretary of the ‘Environment Club’ of your school, write a notice for the
school notice board, inviting the students of classes VI to X to submit their entries
for the Poster Making and Slogan Writing Competition on the topic, ‘Green India’.
(b) Write an email to a Biology teacher of your school, requesting him/her to be the
Guest of Honour on the occasion of Environment Day celebrations and judge the
entries. Use the details given in Question 3 (a).

Question 4
Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow. [20]
One day a man saw an old lady, stranded on the side of the road, but even in the
dim light of day, he could sense she needed help. So he pulled up in front of her Mercedes
and got out. Even with the smile on his face, she was worried. No one had stopped to help
for the last hour or so. He didn’t look safe; he looked poor and hungry. He could see that
she was frightened, standing out there in the cold. He said, “I’m here to help you, ma’am.
Why don’t you wait in the car where it’s warm? By the way, my name is Bryan
Anderson.”

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 Well, all she had was a flat tyre, but for an old lady, that was bad enough. Bryan
crawled under the car looking for a place to put the jack. Soon he was able to change the
tyre. She couldn’t thank him enough for coming to her aid. She already imagined all the
awful things that could have happened had he not stopped.
The lady asked how much she owed him. Any amount would have been all right
with her. Bryan never thought twice about being paid. This was not a job to him. This
was helping someone in need, and God knows there were plenty, who had given him a
hand in the past. He told her that if she really wanted to pay him back, the next time she
saw someone who needed help, she could give that person the assistance he/she needed.
A few miles down the road the lady saw a small cafe. The lady noticed the waitress
was nearly eight months pregnant, but she never let the strain and aches change her
attitude. After the lady finished her meal, she paid with a hundred dollar bill. The waitress
quickly went to get change for her hundred dollar bill, but the old lady had gone by the
time the waitress came back. The waitress wondered where the lady could be. Then she
noticed something written on the napkin and under it there were four more $100.
There were tears in her eyes when she read what the lady wrote: “You don’t owe
me anything. Somebody once helped me out, the way I’m helping you. If you really want
to pay me back, here is what you do, do not let this chain of love end with you.”
That night when the waitress got home from work and climbed into bed, she was
thinking about the money and what the lady had written. How could the lady have known
how much she and her husband needed it? She knew how worried her husband was and
as he lay sleeping next to her, she looked at him and whispered soft and low,
“Everything’s going to be all right. I love you, Bryan Anderson.”
There is an old saying, “What goes around comes around.”
(a) Give the meanings of the following words as used in the passage. One word
answers or short phrases will be accepted. [3]
(i) stranded
(ii) crawled
(iii) assistance
(b) Answer the following questions briefly in your own words:
(i) Who did the man see? What did he sense? [2]
(ii) What did the man advise the lady to do? Why? [2]

(iii) What did the lady ask the man after he had helped her? Why did he not
accept? [2]

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(iv) Where did the lady go? What did the lady notice there? [2]
(v) What is the moral of the passage? [1]
(c) In not more than 50 words, describe how the lady helped the waitress. [8]
Question 5
(a) Fill in each of the numbered blanks with the correct form of the word given
in brackets. Do not copy the passage but write in correct serial order the
word or phrase appropriate to the blank space. [4]
Example:
(0) cultivate
It is necessary to (0) _______ (cultivate) good habits and avoid bad ones.
There is a saying that habits are at first cobwebs but afterwards, cables. This (1)
_______ (show) that habits (2) _______ (may) be weak at first, but, once they
become strong, they are difficult to break. Hence, we (3) _______ (try) to acquire
only good habits. Everyone (4) _______ (respect) a man who (5) _______ (have)
good habits. Good habits help one to succeed in life. A person with bad habits is
(6) _______ (despise) and mocked at. Childhood is the right time to instill good
habits in children. If a child (7) _______ (grow) up with bad habits no one can
make him unlearn them. Hence parents should be careful to see that children (8)
_______ (develop) only good habits.

(b) Fill in the blanks with appropriate words: [4]

(i) The soldier was relieved __________ his post.
(ii) The lawyer furnished him __________ the report.
(iii) A terrible storm raged __________ the mountains.
(iv) I attended a quick meeting __________ leaving for the day.
(v) The car went __________ the tunnel.
(vi) She never leaves __________ her phone.
(vii) They have to pay __________ the new chairs.
(viii) As it was raining heavily, a friend of mine called __________ the party.
(c) Join the following sentences to make one complete sentence without using
‘and’, ‘but’, or ‘so’. [4]
(i) The car is not new. It is reliable.
(ii) Raghav made a wish. It was fulfilled immediately.
(iii) The typist was smart. We hired him.
(iv) We remembered the place. We heard the explosion.

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(d) Re-write the following sentences according to the instructions given after
each. Make other changes that may be necessary but do not change the
meaning of each sentence. [8]

(i) Kalidasa is the greatest Indian poet. (Use: greater)

(ii) They rejected our suggestions. (Use: accept)
(iii) The council is holding a meeting tomorrow. (Begin: A meeting…)
(iv) Soham performs his duties diligently. (Use: diligence)
(v) I will never forget this experience. (Begin: This experience…)
(vi) Everyone has heard of Darwin. (End with a question mark.)
(vii) Alice said, “How clever I am!” (Remove the quotation marks.)
(viii) What a brilliant shot! (End with a period.)

***********************THE END***********************
"Eliminate Measles and Rubella, be an MR warrior."

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