M. A.

Vassalli Junior Lyceum

Half-Yearly Examination 2006/2007

Form 2 English Language Time: 2 hours

Name: __________________________________ Class: __________ Mark:

A. Fill in the blanks with the correct form of the Present Simple or the Present Continuous:

Example: Steve always rides (to ride) his bike in the afternoon.

1. Andy sometimes ______________ (to read) a comic.

2. I ________________ (to phone) my friend at the moment.

3. Listen! Sandy _________________ (to sing) in the bathroom.

4. My sister usually _________________ (to help) in the kitchen.

5. Look! The boys __________________ (to come) home.

6. My mother ___________________ (to make) breakfast now.

7. We never ______________________ (to watch) a video in the morning.

8. They often __________________ (to clean) the bathroom.

9. My grandfather __________________ (to go) for a walk everyday.

10. Cats ___________________ (to eat) mice.

(10 marks)

B. Fill the blanks in the passage with in, at or on:

I was born ______ Seattle, Washington ______ the 19th of April ______ 1961. Seattle is ______ the

State of Washington ______ the United States. That was many years ago... Now, I live ______

Leghorn ______ Italy. I work ______ the British School. I sometimes go to a movie ______ the

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weekend. I meet my friends ______ the movie theatre ______ 8 o'clock or later. ______ summer,

usually ______ August, I go home to visit my family ______ America. My family and I go to the beach

and relax ______ the sun ______ the morning and ______ the afternoon! In the evening, we often eat

______ a restaurant with our friends. Sometimes, we go to a bar ______ night. Then we wake up quite

late ______ the morning the next day.

(10 marks)

C. Complete the sentences with the correct possessive adjectives (my, his, her etc.) or possessive

pronoun (mine, yours, theirs etc.):

1. I’ve got _____________ passport. Where are _____________? (he / we)

2. The battery on _____________ telephone is flat. Can I use ___________? (I / you)

3. I don’t like ______________ house; I prefer ______________. (they / we)

4. Susan asked me to lend her _____________ car. _____________ is being serviced. (I /she)

5. I don’t like _______________ new dress. She doesn’t look good in red. (she)

6. Tom gave me ________________ word to come home earlier tonight. (he)

7. It’s not _______________. It’s _________________. (I / you)

8. When they pay for it, the painting will be _________________. (they)

9. What time is ______________ plane taking off? (we)

10. Heather invited all _____________ friends to the party. (she)

(5 marks)

D. Comprehension

Read carefully the passage on the following page and then answer the questions on it.

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 Hans Muller’s TV Set

Hans Muller’s workshop consisted of a large room at the back of a deserted warehouse, no more
than a vigorous stone’s throw away from the Queensborough Bridge . Most of the building had
been boarded up awaiting demolition and sooner or later Hans would have to move. The only
entrance was across a weed-covered yard used as a parking place during the day and much
5 frequented by the local juvenile delinquents at night. They had never given Hans any trouble, for
Hans was on good terms with everybody. Being a peacable citizen, that suited him very well.

The work that Hans was now engaged on would have deeply puzzled his Bavarian ancestors.
Indeed, ten years ago it would have puzzled Hans himself. And it had all started because a
bankrupt client had given him a TV set in payment for services rendered…

10 Hans had accepted the offer reluctantly, not because he was old-fashioned and disapproved of
TV but simply because he couldn’t imagine where he could find time to look at the thing. “Still”,
he thought, “at least I can always sell it for fifty dollars. But before I do that, let’s see what the
programmes are like…”

His hand had gone out to the switch: the screen had filled with moving shapes – and, like millions
15 of men before him, Hans was lost. He entered a world he had not known existed – a world of
battling spaceships, of exotic planets and strange races – the world, in fact of Captain Zipp,
Commander of the Space Legion.

Only when the tedious recital of the virtues of Crunche, the Wonder Cereal, had given way to an
almost equally tedious boxing match between two muscle-bound characters who seemed to have
20 signed a non-aggression pact, did the magic fade. Hans was a simple man. He had always been
fond of fairy tales – and this was the modern fairy tale, with trimmings of which the Grimm
Brothers had never dreamed. So Hans did not sell his TV set.

Adaptation of Arthur C. Clark’s ‘Security Check’

1. Why would Hans have to move from his workshop? (1 mark)

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2. Underline the correct answer. (1 mark)

For the first time, Hans had discovered …

a. moving shapes. b. television programmes.

c. fairy tales.

3. Why Hans never had a TV set before? (1 mark)

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4. First, underline the right answer – True OR False. Then give reasons for your answer: (3 marks)

a. Hans was a juvenile delinquent. True/False

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b. Hans bought a TV set from a client. True/False

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c. Hans enjoyed the boxing match. True/False

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5. “Indeed, ten years ago it would have puzzled Hans himself.” What does it refer to? (1 mark)

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6. “Hans had accepted the offer reluctantly...” (line 10)

a. Which offer is being referred to? (1 mark)

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b. Which two things had brought him to accept the offer? (2 marks)

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7. Why didn’t he sell the TV set? (1 mark)

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8. Quote a sentence from the passage describing Hans’s new discovery. (1 mark)

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9. Which was “the modern fairy tale” (line 21) according to Hans? (1 mark)

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10. Find TWO adjectives that describe Hans. (2 marks)

a. ________________ b. ________________

11. Who do you think were… (2 marks)

a. Captain Zipp (line 16)? –

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b. Crunche, the Wonder Cereal (line 18)? –

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12. Find from the passage: (1 mark)

a. another word for young:

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b. the opposite of rich:

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13. Give the meaning of the following words, as used in the passage. (2 marks)

a. services (line 9):

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b. disapproved (line 10):

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E. Literature – Answer all SECTIONS (1, 2 and 3)

SECTION 1 - POETRY

Answer EITHER question 1 OR question 2:

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EITHER

1. Today I had a Rotten Day

Today I had a rotten day.

As I was coming in from play
I accidentally stubbed my toes
and tripped and fell and whacked my nose.
I chipped a tooth. I cut my lip.
I scraped my knee. I hurt my hip.
I pulled my shoulder, tweaked my ear,
and got a bruise upon my rear.
I banged my elbow, barked my shin.
A welt is forming on my chin.
My pencil poked me in the thigh.
I got an eyelash in my eye.
I sprained my back. I wrenched my neck.
I’m feeling like a total wreck.
So that’s the last time I refuse
when teacher says to tie my shoes.

Kenn Nesbitt

1. Why did the poet have a “Rotten Day” and feel like a “total wreck”? (1 mark)

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2. Where do you think the poet was? (1 mark)

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3. What is the lesson the poet learns? (1 mark)

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4. How many verses are there in the poem? Are there any stanzas? How many? (1 mark)

4. _________________________________________________________________________________

5. How many syllables are there in each of the last 4 verses?

5. There are _______ syllables in each of the last 4 verses.

6. Write down two pairs of rhyming words: (2 marks)

________ - ________, ________ - ________.

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7. Mention four body parts mentioned in the poem: (2 marks)

_________, _________, _________ and _________.

8. The person in the poem gives us a detailed list of all the things that happened to him. Why do you
think the poet gives us such a list? (1 marks)

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(10 marks)

OR

2. Poems which were explained and discussed in class this year:

If you choose Question 2 you have to answer all questions in exercises A and B:

A. “Parrot” by Stevie Smith

Far from his jungle green

Over the seas he came
To the yellow skies, to the dripping rain,
To the night of his despair

1. Is the parrot happy in his cage? Quote a verse from the above extract or from the rest of the poem

which shows this. (2 marks)

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2. What kind of illness does the parrot have? (1 mark)

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3. Mention a figure of speech in the poem and write down an example of it. (1 marks)

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B. “Death of a Snowman” by Vernon Scannell

1. Name the figure of speech which is mostly used throughout the whole poem. Why does the poet use

this figure of speech? (2 marks)

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2. The poet compares the snowman to a particular animal. State what animal it is and why the poet

chooses it. (2 marks)

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3. Give the meaning of these verses: (2 marks)

a. “the morning sun swell” – ___________________________________________________________

b. “I caught a severe warm” – __________________________________________________________

(10 marks)

SECTION 2 – PROSE

1. Choose a novel you have read this year and then answer the following questions about it:

Title of the book: ____________________________________________________________ (½ mark)

Author: ____________________________________________________________________ (½ mark)

2. Who is the main character in the book? Write 2 sentences about him/her. (3 marks)

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3. Name a minor character in the book. Say why you think he/she is important in the story. (2 marks)

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4. Which part of the story did you like reading most? Why did you like it? (4 marks)

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(10 marks)

F. COMPOSITION

Choose ONE of the following titles. You should limit your writing to around 200 words.

1. Earthquake!

2. My favourite cousin.

3. Continue this story: Out of the blue, the idea came to me. It was marvellous. It was wonderful…

4. Your closest friend moved to a big city abroad and you have decided to write to him. Write a letter

to see how he is doing in his new country and how he feels about the change. Remember to use the

correct letter format.

5. The text below is a conversation between two school boys during break time. It seems they are up to
something.

Marcus: Stephen, Stephen!

Stephen: What?
Marcus: I’ve been chasing you for three blocks.
Stephen: I know that.
Marcus: Why didn’t you stop?
Stephen: I have to do my homework.
Marcus: You’ve never been in a hurry to do your homework in your life, Stephen!
The truth is you don’t want to help me do you?
Stephen: I don’t know what you’re talking about, Marcus.
Marcus: Yes you do. David Hennington’s going to kill me!
Stephen: No he won’t. He’s never killed anyone yet – he’ll just give you a black eye.
Marcus: See! You know all about it.
Stephen: The whole school knows. You’re really going to get into trouble.
Marcus: Not if you back me up. We’ll just…

After reading the text, continue the conversation among Marcus, Stephen and David Hennington who
joins them later on.

Fill in with the Composition Title Number: ________ (20 marks)

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