D.A.

V GROUP OF SCHOOLS
ASSIGNMENT WORKSHEET - ENGLISH CORE
CLASS: XII
SECTION A (READING)
I Read the passage given below and answer the questions that follow:
(1) Have you ever failed at something so miserably that the thought of
attempting to do it again was the last thing on your mind?
(2) If your answer is yes, then you should understand that you are not a robot.
Unlike robots, we human beings have feelings, emotions, and dreams. We are all
meant to grow despite our circumstances and limitations. Flourishing and trying to
make our dreams come true feels great when life goes our way. But what happens
when it does not? What happens when you fail despite all your hard work? Do you
stay down and accept defeat or do you get up again? If you tend to persevere and
keep going, you have what experts call ‘grit’.
(3) Falling down or failing is one of the most agonising, embarrassing, and
scary human experiences. But it is also one of the most educational, empowering,
and essential parts of living a successful and fulfilling life. Did you know that
perseverance (grit) is one of the seven qualities that has been described as the key
to personal success and betterment in society? The other six are curiosity, gratitude,
optimism, self-control, social intelligence, and zest. Thomas Edison is an example of
grit for trying more than 1,000 times to invent the light bulb. If you are reading this
with the lights on in your room, you will realise the importance of his success. When
asked why he kept going despite hundreds of failures, he merely stated that they had
not been failures, they were hundreds of attempts towards creating the light bulb.
This statement not only revealed his grit but also his optimism for looking at the
bright side.
(4) Grit can be learnt to help you become more successful. One of the
techniques that help is mindfulness. Mindfulness is a practice that makes an
individual stay at the moment by bringing awareness of his or her experience without
judgement. This practice has been used to quieten the noise of fears and doubts.
Through this simple practice of mindfulness, individuals have the ability to stop the
self-sabotaging downward spiral of hopelessness, despair, and frustration.
(5) What did you do to overcome the negative and self-sabotaging feelings of
failure? Reflect on what you did, and try to use those same powerful resources to
help you today.
On the basis of your understanding of the passage, answer the following questions
that follow:
(1) The reason why you are not a robot is that:
(a) You fail miserably at tasks
(b) Failure and success can affect your emotions
(c) You work hard
(d) You have limitations
(2) What is the tone of the following context: “Falling down or failing is one of the
most… educational, empowering, and essential parts of living a successful and
fulfilling life.”?
(a) Humorous (b) Optimistic (c) Horrifying (d) Solemn
(3) Which of the following is relevant for the title of the passage.
(a) Dreams Always Come True
(b) Failure and Grit Go Hand in Hand
(c) Humans vs Robots
(d) Falling Down and Getting Up
(4) ……………… was created after many attempts.
(a) electricity (b) light bulb (c) current (d) tube light
(5) Which of the following sentences makes the correct use of “grit”, as used in the
passage?
(a) Get rid of that grit in your shoes. (b) She had a bit of grit in her eye.
(c) The road had been covered with grit. (d) Her grit never made her give up.
(6) To develop perseverance one must:
(a) become more aware (b) work hard
(c) be in the moment and be aware without judgement (d) seek guidance
(7) How does mindfulness help?
(a) It creates awareness (b) It quietens the noise of fears and doubts
(c) It helps one become successful (d) It helps develop focus
(8) Pick a word from Para 2 which is the synonym of “blooming”.
(9) Pick a word from Para 4 which is the antonym of “pleasure”,
(10) Describe mindfulness.
SECTION B (WRITING)
II You are a student of Laxmi Public School, Model Town, Delhi. The School is
holding its Annual Function at 5.30 p.m. on 24th June, 2024. The Education
Minister has consented to be the Chief Guest. Design an invitation card to be
sent to the parents and other invitees. (Word Limit 50).
 SECTION C (LITERATURE)
III Read the following Extract and answer the following questions:
Poor man! It was in honour of this last lesson that he had put on his fine
Sunday clothes, and now I understood why the old men of the village were
sitting there in the back of the room. It was because they were sorry, too, that
they had not gone to school more. It was their way of thanking our master for
his forty years of faithful service and of showing their respect for the country
that was theirs no more.
i) Why does the narrator refer to M. Hamel as ‘Poor man!’?
a) He empathizes with M. Hamel as he had to leave the village.
b) He believes that M. Hamel’s “fine Sunday clothes” clearly reflected that he was
not rich.
c) He feels sorry for M. Hamel as it was his last French lesson
d) He thinks that M. Hamel’s patriotism and sense of duty resulted in his poverty.
ii Which of the following idioms might describe the villagers’ act of attending the last
lesson
most accurately?
a) ‘Too good to miss’ b) ‘Too little, too late’
c) ‘Too many cooks spoil the broth’ d) ‘Too cool for school’
iii Choose the option that might raise a question about M. Hamel’s “faithful service”.
a) When Franz came late, M. Hamel told him that he was about to begin class
without him.
b) Franz mentioned how cranky M. Hamel was and his “great ruler rapping on the
table”.
c) M. Hamel often sent students to water his flowers, and gave a holiday when he
wanted to go fishing.
d) M. Hamel permitted villagers put their children “to work on a farm or at the mills”
for some extra money.
iv. Choose the option that most appropriately fills in the blanks, for the following
description of the given extract.
The villagers and their children sat in class, forging with their old master a (i)
_____ togetherness. In that moment, the class room stood (ii) _____. It was France
itself, and the last French lesson a desperate hope to (iii) ______ to the remnants of
what they had known and taken for granted. Their own (iv) _______.
a) (i) graceful; (ii) still; (iii) hang on; (iv) country
b) (i) bygone; (ii) up; (iii) keep on; (iv) education
c) (i) beautiful; (ii) mesmerized; (iii) carry on; (iv) unity
d) (i) forgotten; (ii) transformed; (iii) hold on; (iv) identity
IV Answer the following questions in 40 to 50 words.
i) How is the imagery of 'young trees and merry children’ a contrast to the mother?
ii) What is the usual morning scene in the streets of the authoress Anees Jung?
Iii) The words of M. Hamel were a thunderclap to Franz. Elucidate
iv) How do Charley's wife Louisa and his friend Sam react to the narrator’s
observation?
V Answer the following in detail
1. ‘None of them know that it is illegal for children like him to work in the glass
furnaces with high temperatures in dingy cells without air and light’ These words from
‘Lost Spring’ throw light on the grinding poverty that forces many children in India to
lead a life of exploitation whereby they have to slog in subhuman conditions. Driven
by a concern for such children, who lose their childhood and who go through an
unjust treatment, write an article in 100-150 words on ‘Child Labour in India.’
2. What do you infer from Sam’s letter to Charley?
3. “My mother at sixty- six” is an emotional account of the poet about her old mother.
Discuss.