Rayat Shikshan Sanstha, Satara Std-XII First Semester Examination 2024-25

 Rayat Shikshan Sanstha, Satara

Std-XII

First Semester Examination 2024-25

Marks - 50                   Sub - English

Section- I Prose

(Reading for Comprehension, Language study, Summary)

1. A) Read the extract and complete the activities given below.

He had left his village without any previous thought or plan. If he had continued there he would have carried on the work of his forefathers namely, tilling the land. living, marrying, and ripening in his cornfield and ancestral home. But that was not to be. He had to leave home without telling anyone, and he could not rest till he left it behind a couple of hundred miles. To a villager it is a great deal, as if an ocean flowed between.

He had a working analysis of mankind's troubles: marriage, money, and the tangles of human ties. Long practice had sharpened his perception. Within five minutes understood what was wrong. He charged three pies per question, never opened his mouth till the other had spoken for at least ten minutes, which provided him enough stuff for a dozen answers and advices. When he told the person before him, gazing at his palm, "In many ways you are not getting the fullest results for your efforts," nine out of ten were disposed to agree with him. Or he questioned "Is there any woman in your fam- ily, maybe even a distant relative who is not well disposed towards you?" Or he gave an analysis of character: "Most of your troubles are due to your nature. How can you be otherwise with Saturn where he is? You have an impetuous nature and a rough exterior." This endeared him to their hearts immediately, for even the mildest of us loves to think that he has a forbidding exterior.

The nuts vendor blew out his flare and rose to go home. This was a signal for the astrologer to bundle up too, since it left him in darkness except for a little shaft of green light which strayed in from somewhere and touched the ground before him. He picked up his cowrie shells and paraphernalia and was putting them back into his bag when the green shaft of light was blotted out. He looked up and saw a man standing before him.

A1. Choose two sentences from the following that describes the gist of the extract.

a) The astrologer was efficient in his job.

b) The astrologer travelled a long distance.

c) The astrologer charged very less for giving his opinion.

d) The astrologer was a good listener and that helped him to read the minds of his customers

Answer :- 

b) The astrologer travelled a long distance.

d) The astrologer was a good listener and that helped him to read the minds of his customers

A2.Complete the following:

i) The nuts vendor ..........

ii)He picked up ......

iii)he had continued there

 iv) within five minutes

Answer :- 

i) The nuts vendor blew out his flare and rose to go home.

ii)He picked up his cowrie shells and paraphernalia and was putting them back into his bag. 

iii)he had continued there he would have carried on the work of his forefathers namely tilling the land , living, marrying and ripening in his cornfield.

 iv) within five minutes understood what was wrong. 

A3.Give reason.

"The astrologer never opened his mouth till the other had spoken for at least ten minutes. Give reasons behind his act.

Answer :-

 i) He was good at reading people. 

ii) He obtained information from their talk.

iii) He could understand their problems. 

iv) He could analyse their character. 

A4. Do you believe in astrology ? justify your answer.

Answer :- No I don’t believe in astrology  because believing in astrology is one type of superstitions.

A5.Do as directed:

i) He could not rest till he left it behind a couple of hundred miles.

(Choose the correct able to form of the sentence from the options given below.)

a) He is not able to rest till he left it behind e couple of hundred miles.

b) He was not able to rest till he left it behind a couple of hundred miles.

c) He has not been able to rest till he left it behind a couple of hundred miles

d) He will not able to rest till he left it behind a couple of hundred miles.

Answer :- b) He was not able to rest till he left it behind a couple of hundred miles.

ii) The nuts vendor blew out his flare and rose to go home.

(Choose the correct simple sentence form of the sentence from the options given below.)

a) The nuts vendor blowing out his flare, rose to go home.

b) Blowing out his flare the nuts vendor to rose to go home.

c) Blowing out his flare, the nuts vender rose to go home.

d) Blowing out his flare and the nuts i vendor rose to home.

Answer :- c) Blowing out his flare, the nuts vender rose to go home.

A6.Vocabulary:

Find words from the extract which meas

1) inherited from an ancestor. = Ancestral 

2) material.= paraphernalia 

3) members of past generations. = forefathers 

4) impulsive. = impetuous 

B) Language study.

Do as directed

1) Netra is always interested in school excursions.

(Choose the correct Rhetorical question form of the sentence from the given options)

1) Hasn't Netra always been interested in school excursions?

1) Is Netra always interested in school excursions ?

iii) Was Netra always interested in school excursions?

iv) Isn't Netra always interested in school excursions?

Answer :-iv) Isn't Netra always interested in school excursions?

2) They all stood around and looked at him.

(Choose the correct alternative to write it with 'not only - but also.)

i) They all not only stood around but also looked at him.

ii) They all stood not only around but also looked at him.

iii) Not only they all stood around but also looked at him.

iv) They all stood not around only but also looked at him.

Answer :-i) They all not only stood around but also looked at him.

3) Spot the error and rewrite the correct sentence.

1) Summers in Delhi are extreme hot. 

Answer :-1) Summers in Delhi are extremely  hot.

2. A) Read the extract and complete the activities given below. The nests of parrots were neatly crafted holes in the trunks of palm trees. I continued to wonder how they made these holes on the hard trunks until I saw the patient work of the woodpeckers. They were the carpenters and their long, sharp and strong beaks, chisels. They make the holes (in search of worms inside the weak spots of the trunks) and the parrots occupy them. If I heard the sound tak, tak, tak, I knew it was a woodpecker chiselling a hard trunk. I would go after him. It seems that the woodpecker is the only bird which can walk perpendicularly on the tree trunks! How beautiful the sight was! Its strong legs, red crest, the dark red stripe on the face and black beak and the tak, tak, tak sound used to captivate me.

One of the coconut trees near the pond was thunderstruck. It was a headless trunk for a long time and there were at least three parrot nests on its top. I have seen many parrots entering the holes and coming out to bring food to their little ones. One day, I saw the tree was being cut. I rushed to the site and begged the tree cutters to spare the trunk as it was the home of many a parrot. But I was laughed at and the tree fell with a great thud. I ran to the top end to see two just hatched chicks thrown out of their nest and smashed to death. I looked into all the nests and saw smashed eggs in two of them and one little chick in the other one. Fortunately, the little one survived the fall. I brought it home. The chick can be identified as a parrot only by the shape and colour of its beak. No feathers had come out. I carefully fed it with milk and within two weeks it began to eat bananas; and two months later, it started to fly and I let him fly away. But he wouldn't fly long. He used to linger on the coconut trees in our compound and when I reached home from school, he would fly down and land on my head!

I would show him my finger and he would jump on to it from my head and drink the milk I offered him in a little plate. By putting the sharp end of the upper beak stationary in the plate, he would drink the milk by moving his tongue and lower beak to and fro. Then he would fly on to my shoulder and eat paddy from my palm. He put each grain between his upper and lower beaks and deftly removed the chaff, pressing the lower beak against the upper beak; and swallowed the rice. After filling his little stomach he would go into his cage and sleep putting his head inside his right wing. I would close the cage and put it near my pillow. At 6 sharp in the morning, he would start to be restless and the moment I opened the cage, he would fly on to my head and from there to my hand and then would drink some milk in haste and fly away like an arrow.

A1. Read the following statements and pick out the correct statements:

a) The writer didn't care for the little chick.

b) The writer begged the tree-cutter to spare the trunk of coconut tree.

c) The nests of parrots were neatly crafted by the woodpecker.

d) The parrot swallowed rice without removing the chaff.

Answer :-

 False 

True 

True 

False 

A2.Complete the flowchart which shows the activities done by the writer to bring the chicks at home.

The writer saw a tree was being cut

Answer :-

The writer saw a tree was being cut

Writer begged the tree-cutter to spare the trunk 

Writer was laughed at and the tree fell with a great thud. 

Writer brought little chick to his home. 

A3.Describe the daily routine of the parrot after getting up early in the morning.

Answer :- After getting up early in the morning writer opened the cage and parrot would fly on his head

A4.Birds should be protected, but not caged. Explain.

Answer :- Yes birds should be protected but only in natural  habitat so that they can experience the freedom of life. Caged birds are like prisoners. 

A5. Do as directed:

1) After filling his stomach he would go into his cage.

(Choose the correct option from the following which shows correct transformation of above sentence by using 'used to')

1) After filling his stomach be used to go into his cage.

i) After filling his stomach he used to went into his cage.

iii) After going into cage he used to fill his stomach.

iv) After filling his stomach used to he would go into his cage.

Answer :- 1) After filling his stomach he used to go into his cage.

2) I saw the patient work of woodpecker.

(Choose the correct alternative of 'Present Perfect tense as an answer rewrite.)

1) I seen the patient work of woodpecker. i) I had seen the patient work of woodpecker.

iii) I have seen the patient work of woodpecker.

iv) I am seeing the patient work of woodpecker.

Answer :- iii) I have seen the patient work of woodpecker.

A6. Make meaningful sentences of your own by using the given words. 2

1) linger

 Oxford Languages

Answer :-"we are thankful that she didn't linger on and suffer"

ii) restless

Answer :-"she's restless because of her worries about her daughter"

B) Summary Writing:

Write a 'summary' of the above extract by using the following points.

* Writer's observation of woodpecker the tree cutting incident- care for the chick routine of the parrot-

Section-II Poetry

3. Read the extract and complete the activities given below: 8

All things were joyful on that day; The sea-birds scream'd as they wheel'd round, And there was joyance in their sound.

The buoy of the Inchcape Bell was seen

Adarker speck on the ocean green, Sir Rolph the Rover, walk'd his deck, And he fix'd his eye on the darker speck.

He felt the cheering power of spring, It made him whistle, it made him sing; His heart was mirthful to excess, But the Rover's mirth was wickedness.

His eye was on the Inchcape float; Quoth he, "My men, put out the boat, And row me to the Inchcape Rock,

And I'll plague the Abbot of Aberbrothok. The boat is lower'd, the boatmen row.

And to the Inchcape Rock they go: Sir Ralph bent over from the boat, And he cut the Bell from the Inchcape float.

A1. Pick out there two lines from the extract that show the joyful atmosphere. 

Answer :- Following lines show the joyful atmosphere 

All things were joyful on that day; The sea-birds scream'd as they wheel'd round, And there was joyance in their sound.

A2.Explain:

Answer :-

"I'll plague the Abbot of Aberbrothok."

Explain the above line from the extract.

Answer :- The Rover was in the joyful mood but he wanted to trouble Abbot by cutting the Inchcape Bell he placed. Ralph decided to undo his good work. 

A3. What do you learn from the actions of the good and the evil from the extract ?

Answer :- I learned that " as you sow so shall you reap " from good as well as evil work from the extract. 

Answer :-

A4. Name and explain the figure of speech in the following line: 2

"The Sun in the heaven was shining gay."

Answer :- It is an example of imagery 

The Sun shown bright and made the morning cheerful. 

Or

Metaphor 

Section III - Writing Skills

4. A) Complete the activities as per the instruction given below:

1) E-mail Writing:

Draft an email in a proper format to be sent to a famous and distinguished personality in order to invite him/her for the 'Prize Distribution' programme organized by the college authorities to be held at your junior college campus. Give complete programme schedule and details about the event.

--OR--

2) Appeal:

Your college has organised a Blood Donation Camp in connection with Republic Day, Youngsters are expected to donate blood. Prepare an appeal with the help of the following points.

An effective slogan

Use a logo or a picture

Blood donation - worthy cause

No loss of strength

Most Precious act. Time, venue and date

B) Speech:

Points:

I) As a president of a laughter club you are asked to render a speech on the advantages of laughing. Prepare a speech with the help of the following

Describe the advantages of laughing

Give day to day examples

Give some scientific reasons

--OR--

Expand the following idea with the help of the points given below

II) Expansion of Idea:

(100 to 150 words):

'The wise man has long ears and a short tongue!'

- Listening adds to your knowledge

- Speaking to the points catches attention.

- One should be a good listener

Section IV (Litarary Gener-Novel)

5. Complete the activities as per the instructions given below:

I) Match the column 'A' with 'B'.

Column A                    Column B

1) Virgil                       d) Ecologues

2 Immigrant author  c) Kazual Ishigura

3 John Bunyan     b) The Pilgrim's                                                      progress

iv) Marry shelley        a) Frankenstein

II) Choose the correct alternatives and rewrite the Sentences:

a)............ do not have any trace of the ancient classical heritage.

i) Drama and novel

ii) Poem and novel

iii) The Periodical Essay and novel

b) The novel as a litavary genre has a history of about ............ years.

1) One thousand years

Two thousand years

iii) Three Thousand years

c) ...............has been described as the world's first novel.

i) Tale of Genji

ii) Morte De Authur

iii) The canterbury Tales

d) The word 'epistolary derives from the ............. word.

i) Spanish

i) Latin

ii) Italian