KENDRIYA VIDYALAYA SANGATHAN

HALF YEARLY EXAMINATION-2023-24

Time allowed: 3 hours Maximum Marks: 80

General Instructions:
(i) The Question paper is divided into three sections:
Section A - Reading 20 marks
Section B - Writing and Grammar 30 marks
Section C - Literature 30 marks
(ii) All questions are compulsory.
(iii) You may attempt any section at a time.
(iv) All questions of that particular section must be attempted in the correct order.

Section A
Reading (20 Marks)

1. Read the passage carefully. (8)

1. Mankind’s fascination with gold is as old as civilization itself. The ancient Egyptians

esteemed gold, which had religious significance to them and King Tutankhamun was buried

in a solid gold coffin 3500 years ago. The wandering Israelites worshipped a golden calf and

the legendary king Midas asked that everything he touched be turned into gold.

2. Not only is gold beautiful, but it is virtually indestructible. It will not rust or corrode; gold

coins and products fabricated from the metal have survived undamaged for centuries. Gold

is extremely easy to work with, one ounce, which is about the size of a cube of sugar, can be

beaten into a sheet nearly 100 square feet in size, and becomes so thin that light passes

through it. An ounce of gold can also be stretched into a wire 50 miles long. Gold conducts

electricity better than any other substance except copper and silver and it is particularly

important in the modern electronic industry.

3. People have always longed to possess gold. Unfortunately, this longing has also brought

out the worst in the human character. The Spanish conquistadores robbed palaces, temples
and graves and killed thousands of lndians in their ruthless search for gold. Often the only

rule in young California during the days of the gold rush was exercised by the mob with a rope. Even
today, the economic running of South Africa’s gold mines depends largely on the

employment of black labourers who are paid about £ 40 a month, plus room and board and

who must work in conditions that can only be described as cruel. About 400 miners are

killed in mine accidents in South Africa each year, or one for every two tons of gold

produced.

4. Much of gold’s value lies in its scarcity. Only about 80,000 tons have been mined in the

history of the world. All of it could be stored in a vault 60 feet square or a super tanker.

5. Great Britain was the first country to adopt the gold standard, when the Master of the

Mint, Sir Issac Newton, established a fixed price for gold in 1717. But until the big discoveries

of gold in the last half of the nineteenth century-starting in California in 1848 and later in

Australia and South Africa-there simply wasn’t enough gold around for all the trading

nations to-ink their currencies to the precious metal.

6. An out-of-work prospector named George Harrison launched South Africa in to the gold

age in 1886 when he discovered the metal on a farm near what is now Johannesburg.

Harrison was given a 12 pound reward by the farmer. He then disappeared and reportedly

was eaten by a lion.

7. One of the big gold-mining areas in the Soviet Union is the Kolyma River region, once in

famous for its prison camp. The camp has gone, but in a way nothing has changed. Many

exprisoners have stayed on to work in the mines and are supervised, by ex-guards.

8. Despite the current rush to buy gold, 75 percent of the metal goes into jewellery. Italy is

the biggest user of gold for this purpose and money Italian Jewellers even tear up their

wooden floors and burn them to recover the tiny flecks of gold.

Answer the following questions briefly:

(i) What are the two advantages of gold?

(ii) “The fascination for gold is as old as civilization”. How is it proved by the author?

(iii) Which country is first to adopt the gold standard?

(iv) Where did George Harrison discover gold?

(v) Why is Kolyama River region famous?

(vi) How did the longing to possess gold bring out the worst in the human character?
(vii) How is gold virtually indestructible.

(viii) Which country is the biggest user of gold for jewellery purpose?

2. Read the passage carefully.(12)

1. Education is the beginning of empowerment. It is a key to happy and satisfactory life for

the special children, who are cruelly segregated from the society. In India, there are around

35 million disabled children but less than one per cent have access to education. The most

pressing need is to bestow the precious gift of education on them and let them be the bearer

of torch towards the path of progress.

2. Special children, without education, are a burden on their families as well as society. The

crude discrimination between normal and abnormal children leads to severe psychological

disorders, giving birth to frustration which we all know, is not healthy for any progressing

nation. Several NGOs are working towards the upliftment and betterment of such children,

but again a grave problem that is faced by the volunteers is lack of motivation in such

children and even their families. Those who are from the well-to-do families may not find

themselves in this menace, but those belonging to the lower economic section feel that the

effort to obtain education is simply wastage of time and energy not to say anything about

money.

3. Another factor which is hindering the path of education for such children is the lack of

opportunities or facilities available in schools. Even if the parents do send such children to

school, the schools themselves are sadly lacking the facilities to cater to their needs. The

government has started the ‘Integrated System of Education’ that enables the disabled to

study with normal children in normal circumstances with few facilities for them. Yet again

we find psychological barriers amongst impaired children that they cast themselves in a

hard mould. Special schools have also been established by the government and NGOs to meet

specific needs of such children but their number is pitiably low as compared to the normal

schools.

4. There is an urgent need to strike at the roots of this neglect to enable the disabled.

-Kavita Goel (Offspring), The Times of India

A. Answer the following questions briefly:

(i) Who are special children?

(ii) Why is education important for ‘special children’?

(iv) What is the hindrance on the path of education for ‘special’ children?

B. Find a word in the passage which conveys similar meaning as the following:

(i) separated

(ii) authorization

(iii) bias

(iv) with something absent or lessened

Section B

Writing and Grammar(30 marks)

3. You decide to write an article in the school magazine on how it is important to save

the planet, Earth. Write the article in about 180 words.(5)

4. Writing story with the help of the clues given below. Given a suitable title. (10)

Shantanu has to return home – he waits for the train at the wrong station – misses his train –

spends whole night at railway station – catches a train next morning – travels in the general

compartment – finally reaches home.

5. Choose the best word from the options given below and complete the following

passage.(3)

Nearly 100 million years ago (i) ___ the middle of what is now Mongolia, (ii) ___ was a

series of events including a massive volcanic eruption. The ashes (iii) ___ scattered over

the wet soil of the land (iv) ___ sticky mud. Meat- eating dinosaurs and other creatures

in the area (v) ___ , for food (vi) ___ an early and sudden death as they sank in the mud.

(i) (a) in (b)on (c) over (d) at

(ii) (a) their (b)there (c) here (d) that

(iii) (a) those (b)that (c) which (d) thus

(iv) (a) form (b)formed (c) forming (d) forms

(v) (a) looking (b)looked (c) looks (d) look

(vi) (a) meet (b)meeting (c) meets (d) met

6. The following passages have not been edited. There is an error in each of the lines
against which a blank is given. Write the incorrect word and the correction in the space

provided. (4)

Incorrect correct

Folk tales offer lots of advice.

Much of them deliver the message (a)_______

quite clear. There is a story about (b) _______

Birbal not being allowed to attending (c) _______

the king’s free lunch. The reasons was (d) _______

which he was not dressed properly. (e) _______

This happened in spite of the high intellectual abilities (f) _______

The advice thus conveyed was: (g) _______

“Don’t judge the book by its cover.” (h)_______

7. Rearrange the following to form meaningful sentences. (3)

(a) should / water / be / before / boiled / drinking / filtered / and

(b) chew /food / your / you /should /properly /swallowing /before

(c) Nitya /as /works /a /engineer /software /Gurgaon /in

8. Look at the comic strip and complete the passage given below. (5)

The child called out to his mother to (a) ……………………… . The mother replied that (b)
……………………… . She asked her son if (c) ……………………… . Her son replied in the affirmative. He
added that (d) ……………………… . The mother then wanted to know what (e) ……………………… .

Section C

Literature and Long Reading Text (30 marks)

(i) ‘Those who saw it said the dog knew instantly.’

(a) What does ‘it’ stand for?

(b) What do you mean by ‘instant’? What did the dog know instantly?

(c) Which characteristics of the dog are highlighted in the above line?

(ii) “A voice so thrilling ne’er was heard

10. Answer the following questions in about 30-40 words each. (2x5=10)

(a) Why did the grandmother think of learning to read and write at the age of sixty-two?

(b) Describe Mr. Bramble as he has been described in the story.

(c) Why did the poet leave the first road?

(d) Why does the poet want the passers-by to “stop here or gently pass”?

(e) Do you think Private Quelch learnt a lesson when he was chosen for cookhouse duties?

11. What was the ‘next objective’ set by Chuck Hooper? How and with whose help did he

hit the target? (4)

Or

Describe the sound and music created by the brook during its journey.

12. At first, Private Quelch was a hero in the eyes of his fellow soldiers. Support this observation with
suitable examples from the story in about 100 words. (4)

OR

What is the theme or the message of the poem ‘The Road Not Taken’?

13. After Duke’s death, Marcy was asked to write an article for the local newspaper. She decides to
write on the topic – ‘A dog is a man’s best friend’. Write it for her in about 150 words.

OR

You are Juliette. You feel duped and cheated by Gaston. You decide to take legal action
against him. Write a letter to your friend in about 150 words, sharing this incident and the
action you plan to take against him.
(6 )