SHANTINIKETAN INDIAN SCHOOL, DOHA – QATAR.

MIDTERM EXAMINATION, SEPTEMBER 2023

CLASS: IX ENGLISH – MARKING SCHEME Time: 3 Hrs.

Date……………. SET 1 Max. Marks: 80

Name……………………… Roll No…………...

Section A: Reading Skills

20 marks
Read the following passage:
1. Sloping hills, green, winding roads through rolling tea gardens, mists slowly
enveloping the hills, silver oaks dancing in the wind, smell of cardamom in
sprawling spice gardens and scenic resorts overlooking the valley; these are some
of the scenes from Munnar, the breathtakingly beautiful hill station of Kerala.

2. Wherever you go through the winding roads, you will find rolling grasslands and
velvet beds of tea gardens all around you. Recently trimmed patches alongside
brown cropped slopes and freshly grown tea, make Munnar the Eden of tea
gardens. I’m not exaggerating; you really won’t find a greater variety of tea
gardens elsewhere in India. But that’s not all, Munnar also has lots of other things
to offer.The Neelakurunji flower [the flower that lights up its forests once in 12
years], the Nilgiri Tahr [a rare breed of mountain goat that is found only in
Munnar] and the Anamudi [the highest peak in South India].

3. Munnar derives its name from the Tamil words munu [three] and aaru [river].
The town is situated at the confluence of Mudrapuzha, Nallathani and Kundala
rivers. It is located near the Tamil Nadu border and is close to both Coimbatore
and Kochi, making it a preferred weekend spot for those residing there. But its
beauty lures people from far and beyond–it’s also a popular destination of foreign
tourists coming to India.

4. It used to be the favourite summer resort of the English, when the British ruled
India. And why not? The town and its surroundings vary in height from 1700m –
2700m above sea level and offer stunning views of hills and valleys. It has a
salubrious climate round the year, which makes it a pleasurable place to spend
your vacation. Even in summer, the temperature varies from 8 degrees – 16
degrees Celsius. In summer, the sudden showers turn its tea gardens into magical
carpets and bestow an ethereal look to the landscape. No wonder many good
resorts have cropped up in the area. A four or five night stay in these resorts can
give you everything from recreational activities and tours to ayurvedic massages
and treks—a total rejuvenation package. We booked ourselves into a resort near
a tea garden. And as far as the eye could see, there was mist and miles of tea
gardens.

Based on the passage, answer the questions below: 10x1=10marks

1. What does one see everywhere in Munnar?

Ans : One can see rolling grasslands and velvet beds of tea gardens everywhere in 1
Munnar.
2. Why is Munnar named as the Eden of tea garden ?
Ans :Munnar is named as the Eden of tea garden because it has the greatest variety of tea 1
gardens in India
3. How did Munnar get its name?
1
Ans : Munnar derives its name from the Tamil words ‘munu’ [three] and ‘aaru’ [river].
4. What was Munnar famous as during the British rule ?
1
Ans :It was famous as the favourite summer resort of the English during the British rule
5. What makes Munnar a popular tourist destination throughout the year ?
Ans : The favourable location and climate makes Munnar a popular tourist destination 1
throughout the year
6. Rain enhances the beauty of Munnar in summer. How ?
Ans : The sudden showers in summer change the tea gardens into magical carpets. This 1
bestows an ethereal look to the landscape..
7. The antonym of the word ‘winding’ in para 1 is
1
(a) meandering (b) convoluting (c) straight (d) curvaceous
8. The antonym of the word ‘salubrious’ in para 4 is
1
(a) inclement (b) agreeable (c) risky (d) unstable
9. Give a word that can replace the word ‘lures’ in para 3.
1
Ans : attracts
10. Give an expression that can replace the expression ‘ethereal look’ in para 4.
1
Ans : other worldly look

Read the following passage:

1. Caged behind thick, glass the most famous dancer in the world can easily be missed in the National
Museum, Delhi. The Dancing Girl of Mohenjo – Daro is that rare artifact that even school children
are familiar with. Our school textbooks also communicate a wealth of our 5000 years heritage of art.
You have to be alert to her existence there, amid terracotta animals to rediscover this bronze image.

2. Most of us have seen her only in photographs or sketches, therefore the impact of actually holding
her is magnified a million times over. One discovers that the dancing girl has no feet. She is a little
over 10 cm tall, the length of a human palm, but she surprises us with the power of great art, the ability
to communicate across centuries.

3. A series of bangles of shell or ivory or thin metal clothes her left upper arm all the way down to her
fingers. A necklace with three pendants bunched together and a few bangles above the elbow and wrist
on the right-hand display almost modern art.

4. She speaks of the undaunted, ever hopeful human spirit. She reminds us that it is important to visit
museums in our country to experience the impact that a work of art leaves on our senses, to find among
all the riches one particular vision of beauty that speaks to us alone.

Based on the passage, answer the questions below: 10x1=10mks

11. In the museum Dancing Girl is kept among:
(i) dancing figures
(ii) bronze statues 1
(iii) terracotta animals
(iv) books
12. One discovers that the dancing girl has no:
(i) ears
(ii) eyes 1
(iii) feet
(iv) hands

13. She reminds us:

(i) of the never-say-die attitude of humans
(ii) why museums in our country are exciting
(iii) why she will make us money 1
(iv) of dancing figures

14. The Dancing Girl belongs to:

(i) Mohenjo-daro
(ii) Greek culture 1
(iii) Homo sapiens
(iv) Tibet
15. The jewellery she wears:
(i) consists of bangles of shell or ivory or thin metal.
(ii) a necklace 1
(iii) Both (i) and (ii) are correct
(iv) Neither (i) nor (ii) is correct

16. The size of the dancing girl is equal to the length of human:
(i) body
(ii) hand 1
(iii) ear
(iv) palm

17. The synonym of the word ‘among’ in pan 1 is:

(i) amid
(ii) communicate 1
(iii) rediscover
(iv) heritage

18. The synonym of the word ‘undaunted’ is:

(i) hopeless
(ii) unafraid 1
(iii) fearful
(iv) scared
19. This great art has power because:
(i) It appeals to us despite a passage of time
(ii) It is small and can be understood. 1
(iii) It is seen in pictures and sketches
(iv) It’s magnified a million times
20. Which information is not given in the passage?
(i) The girl is caged behind glass
(ii) She is a rare artefact 1
(iii) School books communicate the wealth of our heritage
(iv) She cannot be rediscovered as she’s bronze

Section B: Grammar 10 marks

The following passage has not been edited. There is an error in each line against
which a blank is given. Write the incorrect word and the correction in your answer
sheet against the correct blank number. The first has been done for you as an 6
example. Answer any 6 out of the 8 questions:
21.
INCORRECT CORRECT

Developed on India over 5000 years eg. On in

On August 5, 1996 Leander Paes becomes the first (a) becomes became

Indian to won an individual medal in (b) won win

44 years when he defeated Fernando of Brazil on (c) On in

an excited match at Atlanta. Leander’s father (d) excited exciting

have won a bronze medal in the Munich (e) have had

Olympic 1972 in hockey. But Leander gets (f) gets got

it in a individual event. Later, he dedicated (g) a an

the medal for his coach for helping him out. (h) For to

Read the conversation given below and complete the paragraph that follow: 4
22. Teacher: Why have you been absent all these days?
Raju: I had gone to my aunt’s home, sir and fell ill there.
Teacher: Why didn’t you send in an application?
Raju: My father did speak to the principal on the phone, sir.

The teacher asked Raju (a) …………… all those days. Raju replied politely that
(b)……….. and had fallen ill. At this, the teacher asked again why (c) ………….. an
application. Raju replied respectfully that his father (d) …………

ANSWER:
(a) why he had been absent.
(b) he had gone to his aunt’s home
(c) he had not sent in
(d) has spoken to the principal on phone.

Section C: Creative Writing Skills 10 marks

23. Given below is the beginning of a story. Complete it in about 80 words
 When Raju reached his house from the school, he saw a crowd gathered in front of it.
Shocked and disturbed he started running towards it. Many thoughts were flashing in 5
his mind ……………………………………………………………………….
Or
You went for a heritage walk to a ruined ancient monument. The place was neglected
and encroached upon. Write a dairy entry of what you saw and what you imagine the
place would have been like, in its heydays.
(80 words)

24. Write a paragraph on the topic, ‘knowledge is power’ in about 100-120 words.

OR

Write a short descriptive paragraph on the famous Indian music composer Sir AR
Rahman in 100-120 words on the basis of the following inputs.

Indian composer-singer-songwriter-music producer-musician and philanthropist-born in

Chennai on 6 January 1967- graduated from Trinity College, Oxford University- famous
in integrating Indian classical music with electronic music- world music and traditional
5
orchestral arrangements-recipient of the Padmashri and the Padma Vibhushan awards-
two Oscars and a Golden Globe-a notable humanitarian and philanthropist- donates and
raises money for a number of causes and charities.

Section D: Literature 40 marks

25 Read the following extracts and answer the questions that follow:

And both that morning equally lay

In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.

(a) Which poem are these lines taken from?

(i) Wind
(ii) The Road not Taken
(iii) Rain on the Roof
(iv) None of these

(b) Who is the poet?

(i) Coates Kinney
5
(ii) Subramania Bharathi
(iii) Robert Frost
(iv) None of these

(c) The poet decided that:

(i) he would take the second road and leave the first one for some other day
(ii) he would take the frequently trodden road
(iii) he would go back and decide later on
(iv) he would take the first road

(d) ‘Leaves no step had trodden black’ implies:

(i) that the road was not taken by anyone
(ii) that it was not a safe road
(iii) that the poet was not interested in taking the road
 (iv) None of the above

(e) ‘Should ever come back’ shown that the poet was:
(i) confident (ii) indecisive (iii) optimistic (iv) pessimistic

OR
He came to the door of a cottage,
In travelling around the Earth,
Where a little woman was making cakes,
And baking them on the hearth;
And being faint with fasting,
For the day was almost done,
He asked her, from her store of cakes,
To give hint a single one.
Questions :
(i) Where did St. Peter come?
(ii) What was the little woman doing?
(iii) Why was St Peter faint?
(iv) What did he ask the woman for?
(v) Name the poem and the poet.
Answers :
(i) He came to the door of a cottage.
(ii) She was baking cakes.
(iii) He was faint with fasting.
(iv) He asked the woman to give him a cake.
(v) The Legend la Northland’ by Phoebe Cary.

26
(i)To the little girl, he was a figure to be feared and avoided. Every morning
before going to work he came into her room and gave her a casual kiss.

(a) Who was the little girl?

Ans: Kezia
(b) Who does ‘he’ refer to in this extract?
Ans: He refers to the father of the little girl, Kezia.
(c) What were the feelings of the little girl towards him?
Ans: The little girl was afraid of him and tried to avoid him.
(d) What did ‘he’ do before going to work every morning?
Ans: Before going to work every morning, he came to the room of the little girl
and casually kissed her.
(e) What does this gesture show about him?
5
 Ans: This gesture shows that he loved her girl but was not very expressive in his
affection.

OR

(ii)Soon Bismillah started accompanying his uncle, Ali Bux, to the Vishnu
temple of Benaras where Bux was employed to play the shehnai. Ali Bux
would play the shehnai and Bismillah would sit captivated for hours on
end. Slowly, he started getting lessons in playing the instrument and would
sit practicing throughout the day.

(a) Who was Ali Bux?

Ans: Ali Bux was Bismillah’s maternal uncle.
(b) What was his profession?
Ans: He was employed to play the Shehnai in the Vishnu temple of
Varanasi.
(c) Why did Bismillah Khan accompany his uncle?
Ans: Bismillah Khan accompanied his uncle to learn from him how to
play Shehnai.
(d) How did Ali Bux attract Bismillah Khan?
Ans: Ali Bux attracted him by playing fascinating and melodious tunes of
Shehnai.
(e)How did his uncle help him in learning to play Shehnai?
Ans: His uncle started giving him lessons in playing Shehnai for practice
Answer any three out of four questions below in about 40 – 50 words: 3x3=9 marks

27 (i) What harm does wind do when it blows hard?

Answer:
When a strong wind blows, it destroys everything. It breaks the shutters of the 3
windows, scatters the papers, throws the books off the shelves, and tears the pages of
the books.
(ii) Why did Kezia feel that her father was like a giant?
Answer:
Kezia felt that her father was like a giant because he had very big hands and neck. His
3
mouth seemed big especially when he yawned. He had a loud voice and would often call
out orders. In addition, his stem and cold behaviour made the little girl think of him as a
giant.
(iii) Why did Margie think that children in olden days had fun while studying in school?
Answer:
Margie attended a tele-school, which was just a machine in the room next to her bedroom
and she studied alone unlike the students of the schools in the bygone times. She found
her present school much too mechanical, boring, monotonous and demanding, and she 3
hated it. She felt that learning was more fun in those days because hundreds of children
had the opportunity of congregating and studying together with the help of human
teachers and printed books. Schools were large buildings where students learned the
same things, so they could help one another with the homework and talk about it.
 (iv) ‘And the melancholy darkness gently weeps in rainy tears.’ Explain the phrase
‘melancholy darkness’. What does it do?
Answer:
“Melancholy darkness” refers to the dark rain bearing clouds. The poet imagines that the
clouds covering the sky are gloomy and depressed because they are heavy and grey. The
poet further imagines that the clouds are weeping and their tears are falling down as rain 3
drops.

Answer any three out of four questions below in about 40 – 50 words: 3x3=9 marks

28
(i) “Everything suddenly looked black”. Why does Evelyn say so?
Answer. When Evelyn was advised to use hearing aids and join the school for the deaf,
she felt that her future was bleak and dark. She was depressed, as all hope for great 3
achievements seemed to have vanished. She had now become a disabled child who
could not have easy access to normal life.

(ii) How had Iswaran controlled the elephant?

Answer:
3
He did so by hitting him hard on the third toenail, which had temporarily paralyzed its
nervous system. He called it the Japanese art of karate or ju-jitsu.
(iii) The Lost Child is the story of a small child who gets lost in a fair or an exhibition.
Do you think the title of the story is appropriate?
Answer:
Yes, the title appropriately captures the essence of the story. It highlights the plight of a
3
little child who is lost in a fair and it captures the emotions that the child goes through
on being separated from his parents. It shows how the child who a moment ago is excited
at the sights and sounds of the fair suddenly loses interest in all these sights once he
realizes that he is lost.
(iv) How did Toto manage to escape from the closet? What does this reveal about the
monkey?
Answer:
He pulled out the peg he had been tied to from the wall inside the closet and escaped
from it. This reveals how intelligent, resourceful and mischievous the monkey was. 3

29 Answer any one out of the two questions below in about 100 - 120 words:
6 marks
(i)Write a note on the element of humour in the story the snake and the mirror

Answer: Although the story “The Snake and the Mirror” by Vaikom Muhammad
Basheer is the narration of a serious incident, it is not devoid of the element of humour.
This humour is generated by way of contrasts employed by the writer. The doctor
reveals his pride and arrogance by telling us how highly he rated his looks and his
profession as a doctor. This pride and arrogance stand in contrast to his admittance that
he felt feeble and foolish when encountered by the snake. Again, his desire to marry a
fat and u wealthy lady-doctor who cannot run after him when he commits some silly
mistake stands in contrast to the thin and agile lady, with the physique of a sprinter,
whom he finally marries.Further, the doctor pokes fun at himself when he tells that the
 thief did not take away his dirty vest because he had a sense of cleanliness. His remark
about the snake that perhaps it was making some decision about growing a mustache or
using eyeshadow and mascara or wearing a vermilion spot on its head is also very witty
and humorous. Thus, even a serious incident is made interesting by the doctor’s witty
treatment of a very dangerous situation. 6

OR
(ii)Why was St. Peter forced to curse the greedy little woman? Can you justify the action
of St. Peter?

Answer: St. Peter was a holy man. He was a Christian saint. He spent his time moving
around places and preaching the people there. Saints generally bless the people. They
don’t curse them. However, these holy men resort to cursing when people defy good
sense and become evil. The little woman in the story was extremely selfish and greedy.
After much travelling and preaching, St. Peter had become tired. He had become weak
and hungry after the fast. He came to the cottage of the little woman for food. Seeing her
baking cakes, St. Peter asked her to give one from her store of cakes. The greedy woman
made a very little piece of cake for him. Even that small piece looked too large to be
given away to the saint. Hence, she went on making it smaller and smaller. The hungry
St. Peter cursed the selfish and greedy woman. She was cursed to be a woodpecker boring
and struggling for her scanty food. St. Peter was justified in cursing her. She had deprived
a tired and hungry saint even from a small piece of cake. She was rightly punished for
her greed.
30 Answer any one out of the two questions below in about 100-120 words:

(i)What happens when the poet listens to the patter of the rain? Do you think that rain is
a narrative tool in the poet’s life?
Answer:
The raindrops play music on the roof and create a tinkling sound on the shingles. To the
poet this music is blissful. At the beginning of the poem there is certain tinge of sadness,
and the poet talks of ‘melancholy darkness/ Gently weeps in rainy tears.’ However, as he
lies in his cozy bed, a feeling of bliss washes over him. Every raindrop on the tiles of the
roof creates a rhythm with the poet’s heartbeat.
The poet tries to focus on listening to the pitter-patter on the roof whereas his mind
weaves the recollections of fond memories of yester years. Rain bears a subtle link with
all aspects of life. It serves as a powerful narrative tool in the poet’s life as it evokes
fantasies and nostalgia in the poet. He recalls his mother in a poignant manner.

OR
6 marks
(ii)Kezia’s efforts to please her father resulted in displeasing him. Elaborate.
Answer:
Kezia was very scared of her father and stuttered while answering his casual queries
because she was trying so hard to say the words properly. This annoyed him and he
rebuked her for looking wretched and on the brink of suicide. When she was sent to talk
to him on Sunday afternoons, she always found her mother absorbed in reading and father
sleeping on the sofa in their drawing-room. She would sit on a stool and wait for him to
wake up.
He would then mockingly call her “a brown owl.” Once she unknowingly destroyed
some of his important papers while stuffing a pin-cushion which she wanted to present
to him on his birthday. This made him very angry and he beat her up badly. Therefore,
Kezia’s efforts to please her father often resulted in displeasing him very much