CBSE Sample Papers for Class 9 SA2 English Communicative Solved 2016 Set 5
SECTION-A
(Reading)
1.(a) Read the passage carefully and complete the sentences that follow:
An important reason for ants’ success is their ability to talk-not with words but with tastes and smells. Their vocabulary is made up of a mixture of substances they produce in various parts of their bodies and emit via their glands. The so-called pheromones are signals that other ants can smell and taste. The messages they communicate set off a specific kind of behaviour; fetching food, for instance, or looking after the brood or feeding the queen. Furthermore, ant-talk is not limited to food. Ants use a hundred different scents to communicate a hundred different messages. With such a sophisticated array of messenger fragrances, ants organize complicated tasks with close-to- perfect efficiency.
Every ant is a specialist with a vocation of its own. The queen has one of the biggest workloads-laying eggs round the clock. Despite the presence of queen, an ant colony is not a monarchy. The word ‘queen’ is actually a misnomer. “She doesn’t reign over the others,” says Holldobler, “She’s a machine for laying eggs.” From morning till night she produces her daughters, the sterile workers of the colony. Males don’t have to do much and the queen only produces them when reproduction time is approaching. Their main job is to fertilize the winger females. After that they die.
Messengers don’t have much free time either. When you see a handful of ants scurrying around in the kitchen without any apparent purpose, it doesn’t mean they’ve lost their bearings. They’re scouts foraging for food. Once they’ve found something edible, they report back to base, depositing their chemical spores on the way. “Food located, please collect,” is the taste and smell message for the other members back at the nest.
- Ants can communicate with______________ .
- They are clever enough to______________ .
- The queen-ant has nothing to do but________________ .
- Male ants are produced at______________ .
- Stray ants are often on a mission________________ .
(b)Read the following passage carefully :
- So beautiful was she that when the young Fisherman saw her he was filled with wonder, and he put out his hand and drew the net close to him, and leaning over the side he clasped her in his arms. And when he touched her, she gave a cry like a startled seagull, and woke, and looked at him in terror with her mauve amethyst eyes, and struggled that she might escape. But he held her tightly to him, and would not suffer her to depart.
- And when she saw that she could in no way escape from him, she began to weep, and said, T pray thee let me go, for I am the only daughter of a King, and my father is aged and alone.’
- But the young Fisherman answered, T will not let thee go save thou makest me a promise that whenever I call thee, thou wilt come and sing to me, for the fish delight to listen to the song of the Sea-folk, and so shall my nets be full.’
- ‘Wilt thou in very truth let me go, if I promise thee this ?’ cried the Mermaid.
- ‘In very truth I will let thee go,’ said the young Fisherman.
- So she made him the promise he desired, and sware it by the oath of the Sea-folk. And he loosened his arms from about her, and she sank down into the water, trembling with a strange fear.
- Every evening the young Fisherman went out upon the sea, and called to the Mermaid, and she rose out of the water and sang to him. Round and round her swam the dolphins, and the wild gulls wheeled above her head.
1.On the basis of your reading of the passage complete the following statements :
(a)The young fisherman pulled the Mermaid out____________________ .
(b)The Mermaid found herself too helpless ____________________ .
2.Answer the following questions.
(a)Where was the Mermaid found ?
(b)What promise did the Mermaid make ? Did she back out of it ?
3.Find the word from the passage which means the same as ‘shaking.
2.Read the passage carefully and on the basis of your study of the passage answer the questions given below :
Unfortunately the mountains in India are experiencing an inexorable decline in the resource base for local subsistence and a terrible deterioration in the already fragile environment. The results are landslides and frequent floods in the densely populated plains in the south of the Himalayan region in the Ganga and Brahmaputra basins. In the Kumaon Himalayas, in the last few decades, there has been unprecedented growth in human population and a corresponding rise in developmental activities, including housing, industry, agriculture, mining and communications. Consequently, there has been a rapid shrinkage in the size of the remaining natural habitats and forests.
The tourism industry has succeeded in adding an impetus to the immense deforestation activities. Together with the construction of roads and buildings the movement of heavy vehicles is mounting degenerating pressure on the already weakened mountains. Trekking is the latest craze with the youth. Trekking for them means just climbing up and down over treacherous terrain, and not following the basic rules of civics and hygiene that go with this sport. Trekking enthusiasts thus leave in their wake mounds of garbage – an ecological destruction. As a result, even remote places like Yamunotri, Gangotri, Kedarnath and Gaumukh have been subjected to destruction.
Since the essence of eco-tourism lies in admiration of nature and outdoor recreation, it encompasses a wide range of activities such as trekking, hiking, mountaineering, bird-watching, boating, rafting, biological explorations and visiting wildlife sanctuaries. In that it is akin to adventure tourism with the difference that whereas adventure tourism looks for thrill, eco-tourism ensures satisfaction. Its inspirational and emotional aspects are valued because it does not aim at consumptive erosion of natural resources.
India is one of the seven biodiverse countries of the world and has a rich cultural heritage. It has a vast potential for eco-tourism that needs to be tapped for economic benefits as well as for healthy conservation and preservation of nature. In the International Year of Eco-tourism, some important decisions were taken by the government and private sectors to promote eco-tourism.
It is becoming evident that increased tourism to sensitive natural areas in the absence of appropriate planning and management can become a threat to the integrity of both eco-systems and local cultures. An increasing number of visitors to ecologically sensitive areas can lead to significant environment degradation. Likewise, local communities and indigenous cultures can be harmed in numerous ways by an influx of foreign visitors and wealth.
Any programme for tourism development should have the underlying objective of promoting the positive impacts and mitigating the negative impacts on the social, economic and physical environments of the designated areas. However, this same growth creates significant opportunities for both conservation and local community benefit. Eco-tourism can provide the much-needed revenues for the protection of national parks and other natural areas, revenues that might not be available from other sources. In South and South-East Asia, most of the archaeological and historical preservation taking place can be economically justified because they provide attractions for tourists. In some cases, such as in Sri Lanka, the admission fee paid by tourists is used directly for archaeological research and conservation.
Additionally, eco-tourism can provide a viable economic development alternative for local communities, which may lack other income-generating options. Moreover, eco-tourism can make travellers enthusiastic and effective agents of conservation. Conservation and revitalisation of traditional arts, l handicrafts, dance, music, drama, customs and ceremonies and certain aspects of traditional lifestyles directly feed into tourism.
In the mountain context ecological stability, viable economy, energetic efficiency, resilience, farmers’ security and social justice should be the main indicators of sustainability. Keeping this in mind the planning of any ecotourism policy in its macro, meso and micro dimensions should give utmost importance to the empowerment of the local communities. The inherent qualities of hillmen,which they have developed in the mountain environment – courage, hard work, honesty and the ability to take fast decision – should grow, as these are the capitals of mankind. Only four per cent people live in ten per cent area of hilly terrain all over the world, but they decide the destinies of the forty per cent living in the foothills. This should never be forgotten. This means that the planning and development of tourism infrastructure, its subsequent operation and its marketing should focus on environmental, social, cultural and economic sustainability criteria.
(a)What do you think of deforestation ? What are its consequences ?
(b) Should we discourage tourism in hilly and tribal areas ? What do you think ? Substantiate your answer.
SECTION-B
(Writing & Grammar)
3.Indian woman is yet to be emancipated despite efforts made by social workers like Raja Ram Mohan Roy. Her liberty and welfare continue to be plagued by endless problems. The society, law, media and intelligentsia continue to be helpless spectators. Taking ideas from the visual, together with your own ideas, write an article for your school magazine in minimum 100-120 words on the topic ’Woman Bears and Others Stare’.
4.Write a story that begins with the words “It was my eighteenth
birthday…………………………………………… ” in about 150-200 words.
extremely happy …………………………….. invited my friends ……………………………………… party in the
evening…………………………… received a phone call………………………………………. uncle badly injured
in accident……………………………….. father, mother left…………………………………. happy mood totally
spoiled …………………………… friends came ……………………………… told the truth …………………………………..
offered cup of tea none enjoyed it………………………………………… father informed……………………………….
uncle out of danger felt relieved.
5.Choose the most appropriate options from the ones given below to complete the following paragraph. This is surely (a)_______________ age of fast development and quick changes. We (b)_______________to make necessary adjustments (c)___________________ live happily.
(a)(i) a (ii) an (iii) the (iv) some
(b)(i) need (ii) needed (iii) dare (iv) used
(c)(i) too (ii) in (iii) to (iv) of
6.Look at the following passage. There is one error in each line. Write the incorrect word and the correct word against the correct blank number in your answer sheet. One example has been done for you.
In a country as vast of ours, keeping e.g. of………………. as
a eye on every child is a Herculean (a) …………………………
task. Many children are still employing (b) …………………………
in factories while its childhood goes unnoticed (c) ………………………………
They washed utensils when they should (d) …………………………
play with dolls and get married.
7.Look at the words and phrases given below. Rearrange them to form meaningful sentences :
(а)worshipped / people / saints / by / are / God-fearing
(b)them / of / are / deceitful / some / totally
(c)purpose / in life / to gain / their / is / name / fame / and
(SECTION-C)
(Literature Textbook & Long Reading Text)
8.Read the following extract and answer the questions that follow :
And then the lover,
Sighing like the furnace, with a woeful ballad Made to his mistress’ eyebrow
(a) What does the lover do to please his beloved ?
(b) What is his state of mind ?
(c)What figure of speech is used in the second line here ?
Or
‘Ah, that is very hard, I, I – He might have left me those. They were all I had\
(а) Who speaks these words and to whom ?
(b) What does ‘those’ refer to here ?
(c)What does ‘hard’ mean here ?
9.Answer these questions in 30-40 words each :
(а) Why did the poet go to the dentist ? (Oh I Wish…………….. )
(b)What was strange about the manner in which Mrs Bramble addressed her son ? What did he feel about it ?(Keeping It From Harold)
(c)What do you think of Colonel Allyn ? (Best Seller)
(d)Do you think the Bishop was right in selling the salt cellars ? Why/Why not ? (The Bishop’s Candlesticks)
10.“I descend and embrace the flowers and the trees in a million ways.”
How does the rain cheer up the trees and flowers ? Likewise what should man do to bring cheer to all ? In this context, write a paragraph on the value of selflessness.
Value Points :
- all divine things bring cheer
- we should do selfless acts
- rise above self
- be good to others
Or
“It is kind of them to want to see me”.
In which text are these words spoken ? ’Service to others’ should be the motto of life. How is ’service’ practised to help the people ?
Value Points :
- call of service and duty attended by good people
- others’ sufferings provide opportunities for service
- inner satisfaction by helping others in distress
11.How was Gulliver able to reach the strange island of Laputa ?
Or
Give a character sketch of the king of Luggnagg.
Or
Write a note on the plot of the novel ’Three Men in a Boat’.
Or
What impression do you form of the narrator in ‘Three Men in a Boat’ ?