COIMBATORE SAHODAYA SCHOOLS COMPLEX

PRE BOARD EXAMINATION (DEC 2024)

B

Grade: X Max. Mark: 80 marks

Date: English Duration : 3 hrs.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
General Instructions:
The Question paper is divided into three sections:
Section A – Reading 20 marks
Section B – Writing and Grammar 20 marks
Section C – Literature and Sup. Reader 40 marks
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Section A- Reading
1. Read the passage carefully:
(1) Parents of teenagers or preteens should realize the normal struggles with fads, music and other
efforts of independence occur in every family. Once they know that, they can relax more and worry
less about how their children are "turning out". Chances are they will be just fine, and the challenging
teen will grow up to be a responsible adult.
(2) In the early years of children's lives, parents are the most important figures in their world. Their
approval, love and support are critical to children. Consequently, much of what children do and say is
aimed at maintaining that love and approval. As children get older and have more contact with people
other than their parents, their behaviour and attitude will be influenced by other people.
(3) When children are young, many parents maintain control over most aspects of their child's life.
These parents choose their child's clothes, friends, hobbies and so on. As children grow older, they
realize they can never grow into adults without having control of their lives. Consequently, teens
begin to fight for control.
(4) For teens, this struggle for adulthood is terribly risky because they risk losing the most important
thing in their lives - the love of parents. At the same time, parents may feel rejected, hurt and anxious
about teens' abilities to care for themselves. Their struggle is stressful because everyone cares so
greatly about each other.
(5) A common complaint from teens is that parents "want me to be the way they want me to be" In
other words, many parents want a certain career, appearance or college for their teen. These parents
experience varying amounts of disappointment and sometimes anger because their children tail to
live up to the parents expectations.
(6) Accepting teens as individuals who will have to make their own decisions about now to be an
adult in the world can be extremely hard to do. But the healthy teen will grow up and do just that.
Parents who reject their teen tor failing to follow the parents plans or who reject some aspect of their
teen's he may find themselves painfully alienated from this Deron who they care about so much.
(7) A survey was conducted where 500 teenagers were asked a question "What is the one thing your
parents can do to make you happier?". The responses of the teenagers were presented in the form a
pie chart.
 On the basis of your reading answer the following questions: (10m)
i). What are the normal struggles between parents and teenagers?
(a) Efforts of independence (b) Efforts of dependence
(c) Efforts of pre-dependence (d) Efforts of affection

ii). What can the parents do when they know how their children are turning out?
(a) Sing (b) Dance (c) Clap (d) Relax

iii). What is the challenging teen likely to grow up into?

(a) A responsible citizen (b) A responsible adult
(c) A responsible lawyer (d) A responsible social worker

iv). Who are the most important figure in the world in the early years of children's lives?
(a) Parents (b) Siblings (c) Friends (d) Teachers

v). Which of these pictorials is the closest representation of the people saying 'Nothing'?

vi). Which of these statements is correct?

(a) Teens begin to fight for respect. (b) Teens begin to fight for trust.
(c) Teens begin to fight for money. (d) Teens begin to fight for control.

vii). Why is the struggle for adulthood terrible risky?

(a) They risk losing the bond of friends. (b) They risk losing the trust of siblings.
(c) They risk losing the love of parents. (d) They risk losing the respect for teachers.

viii). 8. Which word in the passage means same as 'isolate' (used in para 6)?
(a) Reject (b) Accept (c) Alienate (d) Grow

ix). Substitute the word ‘anxious’ with ONE WORD similar in meaning, in the following sentence
from para 4.
At the same time, parents may feel rejected, hurt and anxious about teens' abilities to care for
themselves.

x). List any two reasons for the following, based on information in praragraph 3. Consequently,
teens begin to fight for control.
1.___________ 2.__________
xi. Find the word from the passage which means “ answer”.
xii. Find the word from the passage which means “ agreement”.

2.Read the passage carefully:

1. Most people can remember a phone number for up to thirty seconds. When this short amount of time
of, however, the numbers are erased from the memory. How did the information get there in the first
place? Information that makes its way to the short-term memory (STM) does so via the sensory storage
area. The brain has a filter which only allows stimuli that is of immediate interest to pass on to the STM,
also known as the working memory.

2. There is much debate about the capacity and duration of the short- term memory. The most accepted
theory comes from George A. Miller, a cognitive psychologist who suggested that humans can remember
approximately seven chunks of information. A chunk is defined as a meaningful unit of information, such
as a word or name rather than just a letter or number. Modern theorists suggest that one can increase the
capacity of the short-term memory by chunking, or classifying similar information together. By
organizing information, one can optimize the STM, and improve the chances of a memory being passed
on to long-term storage.

3. When making a conscious effort to memories something, such as information for an exam, many
people engage in “rote rehearsal”. By repeating something over and over again, one is able to keep a
memory alive. Unfortunately, this type of memory maintenance only; succeeds if there are no
interruptions. As soon as a person stops rehearsing the information, it has the tendency to disappear.
When a pen and paper are not handy, people often attempt to remember a phone number by repeating it
aloud. If the doorbell rings or the dog barks to come in before a person has the opportunity to make a
phone call, he will likely forget the number instantly. Therefore, rote rehearsal is not an efficient way to
pass information from the short-term to long-term memory. A better way is to practise “elaborate
rehearsal”. This involves assigning semantic meaning to a piece of information so that it can be filed
along with other preexisting long-term memories.

4. Encoding information semantically also makes it more retrievable. Retrieving information can be done
by recognition or recall. Humans can easily recall memories that are stored in the long-term memory and
used often; however, if a memory seems to be forgotten, it may eventually be retrieved by prompting. The
more cues a person is given (such as pictures), the more likely a memory can be retrieved. This is why
multiple-choice tests are often used for subjects that require a lot of memorisation.

On the basis of your reading answer the following questions: (10m)

(i) According to the passage, how do memories get transferred to the STM?
(ii) Where can memory be stored?
(iii) Why does the author mention a dog’s bark?
(iv) What is rote rehearsal? Is it useful?
(v) How do theorists believe a person can remember more information in a short time?
(vi) How can a lost memory be retrieved?
(vii) What is ‘remove of rehearsal’?
(viii) What is an efficient way to pass information from the short-term to long-term memory and how is it
efficient?
(ix)Find the word from the passage which means “philosopher”.
(x) Find the word from the passage which means “chance”.
(xi) Find the word from the passage which means “immediately”.
(xii) Find the word from the passage which means “ recover”.

SECTION B : WRITING SKILLS & GRAMMAR

3.Complete any ten of the following, as directed. (10x1=10m)

i. Fill in the blank by choosing the correct option to complete the following sentence. The party workers
were busy campaigning the polls.
(a) ahead by (b) ahead out (c) ahead of (d) ahead in

ii. Read the conversation between two friends and report the sentence by reporting the correct reply.
Divya: So, after living in Bangalore for a decade, are you satisfied?
Madhav: I love the city as it has its own charm.
Divya asked Madhav if after living for a decade in Bangalore was he satisfied. Madhav told her that he
loved the city as (a)________________________________

iii. Replace the underlined words from the option given.

You look happy. You may have heard about your promotion.
(a) might have (b) could have
(c) must have (d) No correction

iv. Anshita, who has been suffering due to tooth pain was asked the following question by Anannya.
Report Anannya's question.
Why don't you go to the doctor?

v. Select the option that identifies the error and supplies the correction for the following line: A little
political thinkers think that liberty and equality can’t go together.
Option No. ERROR CORRECTION
A. can’t couldn’t
B. think thinks
C. A little Some
D. go goes

vi. Fill in the blank by using the correct form of the word in the bracket, for the given portion of a letter:
Subject: Increase of noise pollution in East Bangalore
Respected Sir/Ma’am,
I am writing to you _____ (bring) to your notice the increasing effect of noise pollution in our
neighbourhood and in the surrounding area.

vii. Identify the error in the given sentence from a book review and supply the correction. Money is
certainly necessary to survive. But is money the more important part of life? Use the given format for
your response:
ERROR CORRECTION

viii. Choose the correct option to replace the highlighted one. I will come tomorrow unless I have to look
after the kids.
(a) until (b) must (c) whenever (d) No correction

ix. Transform the following direct speech into reported speech:

“Who now”, they had asked, “will listen to our troubles and protect us from the wild animals?

x. Fill in the blank by using the correct form of the word in the bracket.
The level of intoxication ________ (vary) from subject to subject.

xi. Complete the given sentence, by filling in the blank with the correct option: Two years have passed
since he _________ here.
(a) has come (b) come
(c) came (d) had come

xii. Complete the given sentence about the reaction of some friends, by selecting the correct option:
The group of friends ____________ excited at the prospect of their upcoming adventure.
A. are B. has C. is D. were.

4. You are a resident of Mana Jardin Apartment, Sarjapur, Bangalore. Your residential area is flooded
with roadside dwellers who are deprived of basic civic amenities like electricity, public toilets, and
shelter. Write a letter to the Editor of The Times of India, highlighting the problems of these roadside
dwellers, and the problems posed by them to the public. Give suggestions for improvement.
5m
 OR
B. You have a newly constructed Pet store in your area, and as the owner of the store, write a letter to
M/s. Kotakal Furnitures, Chennai placing the order of the required furniture and other types of equipment
that you would need in your store. 5m

V. Attempt ANY ONE from A and B given below.

A. Given below is a newspaper report on the state of cancer prevailing in India. You have been asked to
write an analytical paragraph on ‘Cancer - a silent killer’ Taking information from the clipping given
below together with your own ideas, write this paragraph in 100-120 words. “In India, cities are more
cancer-prone than rural areas. In the early 1990s, we expected one out of 10- 15 urban Indians to get
cancer in their lifetime, that is every second or third family would have to face this disease. This is partly
due to high levels of benzene in the air and also that the metros are exposed to high levels of pesticides in
their foods. In order to check the steady growth of cancer in the country, the Government shall have to
give priority to preventive action. At the same time measures to undertake improvement in facilities for
the treatment of cancer shall have to be adopted.” 5m
OR
B. The following pie chart shows the comparison of different kinds of energy production in France in two
different years. Study the pie charts and summarise them into an analytical paragraph of 100-120 words.
5m

SECTION C : LITERATURE TEXTBOOK AND SUPPLEMENTARY READER

6. Read the given extracts and answer the questions for ANY ONE of the following: 5m

(A) The baker usually collected his bills at the end of the month. Monthly accounts used to be recorded
on some wall in pencil. Baking was indeed a profitable profession in the old days. The baker and his
family never starved. He, his family and his servants always looked happy and prosperous. Their plump
physique was an open testimony to this. Even today any person with a jackfruit-like physical appearance
is easily compared to a baker.
(a) Where did the baker record his accounts?
(b) Why did the baker and his family never starve?
(c) Which work in the extract is a synonym of ‘build’?
(d) How can a baker be identified in Goa?
(e) Give the synonym of “ economic” from the above lines.

OR
(B)It was just ten minutes until the time of the flight, and the airport was five miles distant.
I put the miserable Mij back into the box, holding down the lid with my hand.
(a) How far was the airport?
(b) How was Mij carried to the airport?
(c) Find the exact word from the extract which means ‘at a distance’.
(d) Why did the author could not help Mij despite its weary condition?
(e) Mention the author of the above lines.

7. Read the given extracts and answer the questions for ANY ONE of the following: 5m

A. (I am Rapunzel, I have not a care;

life in a tower is tranquil and rare;
I’ll certainly never let down my bright hair)
(a) Does Amanda live on a tower?
(b) Why will Amanda not let down her bright hair?
(c) What is the underlying poetic device used in this stanza?
(d) Find from the passage a word which means the same as ‘serene’.
(e) Why is the above stanza given in parentheses?
OR
B. He should be snarling around houses At the jungle’s edge,
Baring his white fangs, his claws,
Terrorising the village!
(a) What does the poet try to suggest through these lines?
(b) How does the tiger scare the people?
(c) Why does ‘he’ snarl?
(d) How does ‘he’ show his presence?
(e) Mention the poet of the above lines.

8.Answer ANY FOUR of the following five questions, in about 40-50 words. 4x3=12m

i. How does a leopard behave when he sees someone?

ii. Why did the poet not offer the boy money to buy another ball?
iii. What arguments did Mr.Keesing laugh at?
iv. How does Natalya excite Lomov to the point of verbal fighting?
v. Why did the woman in control room get shocked when the writer asked about another aeroplane?

9. Answer ANY TWO of the following three questions, in about 40-50 words. 2x3=6m

i. How did Mme Loisel now know the life of necessity?

ii. Mention any two striking qualities of Noodle.
iii. How was Griffin a lawless man?

10. Answer ANY ONE of the following two questions, in about 100-120 words. 1x6=6m

Life is full of trials and tribulations. Kisa Gotami also passes through a period of grief in her life. How
does she behave in those circumstances?
OR
The poet has successfully used humour to be able to ‘tell’ or identify ‘wild animals’. How do you think
we need lots of it in our daily life?

11. Answer ANY ONE of the following two questions, in about 100-120 words. 1x6=6m

Dr Urquhart contributed significantly to Ebright’s growth as a scientist. Explain

OR

‘Dowry is negation of the girl’s dignity’. Discuss with reference to the story ‘Bholi’.