NAME........................ ROLL NO...........

Dr. K.N. MODI GLOBAL SCHOOL

HALF YEARLY EXAMINATION (2019-20)
SUBJECT-ENGLISH
Class-VIII
Time:3Hrs. M.M-80
General Instructions:
1. Do neat and clean work.
2. The paper is divided into three sections ----A, B and C. All the sections are compulsory.
3. Separate instructions are given with each section and question, wherever necessary.
4. Marks are indicated against each section.
Section A Reading ---- 20Marks.
Section B Writing and Grammar-30 Marks.
Section C Literature --- 30 Marks.
SECTION-A (READING)
Q1.Read the paragraph carefully and answer the following questions. (10 marks)
SO, YOU WANT TO BE A CARTOONIST?

What writers struggle to express through numerous newspaper columns, the cartoon manages in a pointed
one-liner. Little wonder then, that the first thing most of us like to see when we pick up a newspaper is the
cartoon. Simple though it may seem, making a cartoon is an art that requires a combination of hard work,
training and a good sense of humor. Cartoonists say that the cartoons that make us laugh the most are in fact
the cartoons that are hardest to make. Even celebrated cartoonists like R.K.Laxman admit that making a
cartoon is not a piece of cake. Laxman says he has to wait for over six hours, which includes spending a lot of
time scanning newspapers and television channels before any idea strikes him.

So how does one become a cartoonist? Who of us has the talent to make it? How can we master the rib-
tickling strokes and the witty one-liners? How can we make people smile or laugh? There are few colleges or
schools for cartoonists. Most cartoonists come from art colleges, while some learn the craft on their own.
Most established cartoonists are of the view that no institute can teach you to make a cartoon. "You can pick
up the craft, you may learn to sketch and draw in institutes, but no one can teach anyone how to make a good
cartoon," says UdayShanker, a cartoonist with Navbharat Times. While basics, like drawing and sketching can
be learnt in an art college, and are important skills, these alone, do not make a good cartoonist. Because it's a
question of one's creativity and sense of humour; two qualities one simply may not have. The advice
established cartoonists give is that just because you can sketch, don't take it for granted that you will become a
cartoonist.
Read the questions given below and write the option you consider the most appropriate in your answer
sheet.
(a) What, according to Laxman, is the challenge in creating a good cartoon?
(i) waiting for the right thought
(ii)browsing newspapers to emerge.
(iii)getting the right kind of
(iv)good drawing and sketching training.
 (b) Which of these words BEST describes this passage?
(i) humorous
(ii)technical
(iii) challenging
(iv)informative
(c) Of the many qualities that cartoonists should have, which of the following is not referred
to directly but can be inferred from the passage? 
(i)knowledge of current
(ii)knowledge of educational technologies.
(iii)knowledge of news and
(iv)knowledge of different current affairs.
(d) According to the passage, which group of people is of the opinion that one cannot learn
tomake a cartoon in institutions?
(i)many struggling writers.
(ii)highly creative artists.
(iii)well-respected cartoonist.
(iv)all newspaper editors.
(e) "Don't take it for granted that you will become a cartoonist." Choose the option that is
closest in meaning to the sentence.
(i) Don't assume that you will
(ii) Don't hope that you will become a cartoonist.
(iii) Don't believe that you will
(iv) Don't imagine that you will become a cartoonist.
(f)How does one become a cartoonist?
(g)Why does R.K Lakshman say that to be a cartoonist is not a piece of cake?
(h)Write the synonym of comedyfrom the passage. (Para-2)
(i)Write the antonym of unessential from the passage. (Para-2)
(j)What is the central theme of the passage?
Q2. Read the paragraph carefully and answer the following questions. (10 marks)
WELL.RESCUED
UlhasMandlik, 35, a power-loom owner from Maharashtra, and his mother were homeward-bound one
evening when heavy rain forced them to take shelter beneath a bridge. Not far away, a small group of
labourers huddled together under a part of the cement housing above a 16 meter deep well used to pump
water for irrigation.
Suddenly, Mandlik and his mother heard the labourers scream. When the two got to the well, they were
told that a five year old boy named Hariya had fallen in through a side opening in the structure. Ignoring
his mother's fears, Mandlik quickly knotted together lengths of flimsy rope belonging to the labourers
and asked them to lower him into the dark well. "I hope the rope holds," he thought. As he descended,
Mandlik noticed the metal rungs on the wall of the well. He grabbed hold of one and started climbing
down, when he saw the boy clinging to a pipe running up the well's centre. Grabbing the child, Mandlik
started to climb praying that the old rungs wouldn't give away and plunge them both into the churning
water below. Their luck held and within a few minutes, Mandlik clambered to ground level and handed
over Hariya to his sobbing father.
 The man fell at Mandlik's feet and offered him some money as a reward. Refusing the cash, Mandlik took
Hariya and his family to a nearby eatery and offered them steaming tea to warm them up. Several
organisations have honouredMandlik for his bravery and presence of mind on that wet day three years
ago. "I am happy I was at the right place at the right time," he says," and was able to return a little boy to
his family."
Read the questions given below and write the answers.
(a) What first drew Ulhas and his mother to the well?
(b) How did Mandlik save the child?
(c) What could be learning from the passage?
(d) Which of the expressions best describes Ulhas in view of this incident?
(e) How did Hariya's father express on receiving his son?
(f)Why did Mandlik refuse the money?
(g) What did Mandlik do to make them warm up?
(h) Write the synonym of toil from the passage.(para-1)
(i)Write the antonym of disgrace from the passage.(para-3)
(j)Write the antonym of dryness from the passage.(para-1)

SECTION-B (WRITING AND GRAMMAR)

Q3.You are Aman or Ashwin of class 8 and you have decided to go on a picnic with your friends with the
permission of your parents. Write a message to your friend to ask him or her to go with you
on the trip. Give other necessary details also. (5marks)

Q4.Make a complete readable story from the outlines given below.

Sheena was a beautiful girl who used to live with her grandparents because……………… (5marks)

Q5.Fill in the blanks with the correct form of the verbs. (5 marks)
(a)She ------------- (play) tennis, while her mother and sister ------ (cook) the meal.
(b)Last Saturday, Radha---------- (go) to explore her new car after she------------ (finish) her work.
(c) Physics________ (be) my favourite subject.
Q6.Rewrite these sentences in the future perfect tense. (5marks)
(a) It takes us very long to reach the office.
(b)Why don’t you tell your mother?
(c) You will go to your school next week.
(d)It is not possible for me to attend the party
(e)Somebody is tapping our phone.
Q7.Fill in the blanks with the correct form of the verb. (5marks)
(a) If we heat ice, it _______(melt).
(b) If my teacher permits me,I _____join this trip to Delhi.
(c) If I _____some oranges, I would make orange cake.
(d) If he had asked me,I _______given him a book.
(e)If you _______water, it becomes a solid. (Freeze)

Q8. Write a paragraph in about 80-100 words. (Any one) (5marks)

(a)Reading –a wonderful habit
(b)Women empowerment
 SECTION-C(LITERATURE)
Q.9 Read the extract carefully and answers the questions that follow: (4marks)
The sun glistened on the sand, and the sea waves broke waywardly.
A child sat playing with shells.
He raised his head and seemed to know me and said,
“I hire you with nothing”.
From henceforward that bargain struck in child’s play
Made me a free man.
(a) Who is hiring whom?
(b)“I hire you with nothing.” What is the meaning of this line?
(c) How did the speaker feel after talking to the child on the beach?
(d) Name the poem and the poet.
OR
In the heat of the midday the houses stood with shut doors.
I wandered along the crooked lane.
An old man came out with his bag of gold.
He pondered and said, "I will hire you with my money."
He weighed his coins one by one, but I turned away.
(a)What is the name of the poem and the poet?
(b)Why did the poet turned away?
(c) What did the old man have in his bag?
(d)Where did the poet wander?
Q10. Answer the following questions. (10marks)
(a)How do you think Bipin Babu reacted when he found out that Chunilal had tricked him?
(b) Who was Chunilal? What did he want from BipinBabu?
(c) What are the qualities that played a major role in the author’s climb?
(d)What were the “symbol of reverence” left by members of team on Everest?
(e)Why do you think the desk had been sold, and when?
Q11. Fill in the blanks with the appropriate words based on your textbook ‘Honeydew’. (4marks)
(a)BipinBabu injured his right knee at __________
(b)Bipin went to Ranchi in the year_____________
(c) The king came holding ____________ in his chariot.
(d) An old man came out with his bag of____________.
Q12. Write the meaning of the following words: (5marks)
(a) Naught
(b) Bargain
(c) Pondered
(d) Going nuts
(e) Chariot
Q13. Write True or False for the following sentences: (4marks)
(a)Bipin was an irresponsible person._______
(b)ParimalGhosh arranged a car for Bipin to take him to the Hudroo Falls.______
(c)Dinesh Chandra was an old physician.______
(d) The fair maid wanted to hire the speaker with a smile.______

Q14. Value Based Question: (3marks)

According to you what is happiness? How can you help others to be happy?