Dec.

2020 II Term Assessment Class 10th English Model Solutions

By Vijay Kumar Heer, TGT Arts, GSSS Ghangot, Distt. Hamirpur (H.P.)

Time Allowed : 3 Hours Maximum Marks : 85

Section-A (Reading)
1. Read the following passage and answer the questions that follow:
a) What was Gandhiji's concept of education?
Ans. Gandhi’s concept of basic education was based on life skills, vocation and life values .
b) How did he want to give practical shape to his concept?
Ans. Gandhiji sought the help of educational experts to give practical shape to his concept.
c) What did he ask educational experts to do?
Ans. Gandhiji asked educational experts to draw up a scheme of basic education according
to the principle that all knowledge, skills and activities which were regarded to be necessary
for the education of the child, should center round some useful craft and the whole process
should be permeated with the spirit of a social and moral philosophy based on truth and
non-violence.
d) What was his concept of basic education?
Ans. The concept of basic education includes all knowledge, skills and activities which were
regarded to be necessary for the education of the child, should center round some useful
craft.
e) How did Government of India react to this scheme?
Ans. The Government of India also accepted the scheme of basic education with some
reservations and wanted all primary education to be gradually remodelled on this
pattern.What is the meaning of the words as per the passage ?
(i) Remodelled: Reshaped, Redesigned
(ii) Gradually: Slowly (with passage of time)
2. Read the following passage and answer the questions that follow :
(a) What do you know about the civilization of Babylon?
Ans. The civilization of Babylon was at peak of progress in past but lost its existence later.
(b) What was the fate of the civilization of Greece?
Ans. The civilization of Greece was highly progressing and paled its shadow later.
(c) What mistake contributed to the downfall of India?
Ans. India grew rich but not powerful. We had wealth, but no power to protect that wealth. As
a result
a number of invaders attacked us, looted us and then left. But some rulers came to stay.
They exploited the country.
(d) What was India's position in ancient time ?
Ans. India was called 'A sparrow of Gold' as it was prosperous and rich country.
(e) Find words from the passage which means the same as :
I. of olden time : ancient
II. attackers : invaders
Section - B (Writing)
3. Write a letter to the editor of a newspaper highlighting the hardships caused to the common
man by rising prices.
Examination Room,
ABC School
H.P.
Dec01, 2020
The Editor,
The Tribune,
Chandigarh.
 Subject:- Letter about hardships caused to the common man by rising prices.

Sir,

I would like to seek the courtesy of your newspaper to publish

this letter on the above subject matter. This will help attracting the attention of the concerned authorities
towards the matter.There is no doubt that the prices in our country raise many folds all at once. It never
happens anywhere in the world. The rising cost of living is creating many problems in the society people
heave been crushed under the impact of high prices of all the commodities. Even the price of wheat keeps
increasing may times in a year. The price of potato has become Rs. Fifty per kilogram and onion is being sold
@ Rs. Eighty per kilogram. All pulses, mustard oil and eatables are being sold at extremely high prices .The
irony of fate is that the so-called economists are busy announcing that the country is making great progress
and its economy is booming. The government should take pity on its people and do the needful immediately
to end exploitation of poor and common persons who are feeling it hard to buy ration for the families.

Thanking you,
Yours truly,
XYZ
OR

You are Reena / Raju . You read in ABC Senior Secondary School. Your father is ill.
There is no one to attend him at home . Therefore, write an application to the
Principal of your school asking for two days leave.
To

The Principal,
ABC Senior Secondary School,
Himachal Pradesh.
Subject: Application for two days leave
Respected Sir,
With due respect, I would like to state that I am student of class 10th in your school. Since
one week, my father is seriously ill. There is no one at home for his care taking . Hence, I
have to stay home for taking care of my father. I would like to request you for two days
leave so that I can take his care. I will make the arrangements for his care and would attend
the school after these two days. I hope that you will grant my request.

Yours sincerely, Dated: 01/12/2020

Reena/Raju.
Roll No….. Class 10th

4. Write a paragraph on the topic, "Good Manners" .

Good Manners
Our courteous conduct creates a memorable image in the mind of our friends. A
well-behaved person interacts politely with others as his main motive is to receive respect.
It is well said that we should return respect if we want to be for a respectable personality.
Greeting acquaintances in a favorable manner and listening to them patiently is a symbol
of a well-mannered person. We are taught manners to behave nicely with everyone we
meet. The behaviors coordinate in us the positive thinking and improve the ability to think
rightfully. They help us differentiate between right and wrong and enable us to make
informed decisions. Being rude is an attempt to hurt others and can impact anyone
psychologically. Such behavior does not qualify us to be a good human being.

Manners are defined differently in various cultures, but being

thankful for their favor is a universal rule. A simple thank you can leave a positive impact
on the other person and can create new friendships between two individuals. It can
develop proper understanding and maintain harmony between them.
Or
Write a paragraph on the topic," Value of Discipline".

Value of Discipline
Discipline is indispensable for living a successful life. Success and realization of dreams go
hand in hand with discipline. There is no achievement that was accomplished without
discipline. All great men of all times who great phenomenal success have been men and
women of discipline. Albert Einstein, Charles Darwin, Isaac Newton, Socrates, Thomas
Edison, Abraham Lincoln, Charlie Chaplin, Henry Ford, Bill Gates, Mahatma Gandhi, and the
like all became disciplined first, successful later.

Being disciplined means knowing optimal time-management, self-control, knack of making

best choices, being focused, zero procrastination, always making more attempts in the field
you want to advance, upright moral character, and observing morals and ethics. A
disciplined person does not have to be told to do the good things; he himself does them.
Anyone who is not disciplined can’t hope to be an achiever at all!

Discipline is a must for students and youngsters particularly. Discipline is the first and
foremost thing for a student. No student can achieve academic brilliance without discipline.
Only a disciplined student will be able to cope up with the challenges of education. Only a
disciplined student can manage his time optimally. He utilizes his free time in studies only
that make him brilliant in his subjects as well as other areas. Discipline and time
management are indispensable for all aspiring human beings.

5. You are Ruhi/Rahul Head girl/Head boy of ABC Govt. Sr.Sec. School. Your
school is going to organize an inter school singing Competition. Write a notice for
your school Notice board inviting names of all interested students.
NOTICE

ABC SEN. SEC. SCHOOL, H.P.

01-12-2020

Inter School Singing Competition

It is to inform the students from classes 9th to 12th that our

school is organizing a inter school singing competition on 30th june, 2019. Interested
students can give their names to their class teachers as soon as possible. The theme of
competition is Patriotic songs... Dress code.. casuals. Timing 10:30 A.M. to 12:30 P.M.

For further details contact undersign..

Ruhi/Rahul

Head Girl/ Head Boy

Or
 Describe how you celebrated Diwali this year.
Diwali Celebration
Diwali or Deepavali is one of the most important festivals in the Hindu calendar and is celebrated in
India and the world over with great pomp and enthusiasm . This year COVID 19 caused lockdown
and many other problems. The crackers were banned by Supreme Court of India. So we decided to
celebrate safe Diwali. We weared N 95 masks and used lights to decorate the house. No crackers
were used. We celebrated Green Diwali. People sprang clean their homes, decorated them with
beautiful rangoli (patterns made of coloured powder or rice), weared new clothes, offered prayers
at home and at temples and greet each other with gifts and sweets..The purpose of Diwali is to
spread light and remove our “inner darkness” or ignorance. This is usually symbolised by lighting of
diyas (earthern lamps) in the house and outside. It’s a beautiful tradition. However, while customs
and traditions must be maintained, we must also revisit some of things we may do rather
ritualistically and weigh the kind of effects they may have on the environment.
Section - C (Grammar)
6.Rewrite the following fill in the blanks with proper sentence connectors.
Ans. He left his hiding place when it became dark. He took a taxi since there were no buses due
to a strike by the employees .
7.Fill in the blanks with the correct tense of the verb in brackets:
i. It has been raining for 2 hours .
ii. I always get up early in the morning .
iii. You meet them tomorrow .
8.Do as directed:
i. He is a very clever boy.
ii. Death keeps no calender.
iii. Does he read in 10th Class ?
iv. A song was sung by her.
v. I asked Ram whether he knows Sita.
Que.9 Fill in the blanks with suitable modals: 3
i. We must obey the rules .
ii Would that I were a king !
Iii May you live long !
iv. Anyone can make mistakes.
10. There is a word missing in each line/sentence . Write the missing word along
with the one that comes before and the one that comes after it: 3
e.g. He is fond music . (fond of music)
i. The cow feeds on grass
ii. He believes in God .
iii. He presided over the meeting.
Section - D (Literature) (33)
11. Read the passage carefully and answer the questions that follow: 5
Marriage gifts are meaningless without the sweet bread known as the bol, just as a party
or a feast loses its charm without bread. Not enough can be said to show how important a
baker can be for a village. The lady of the house must prepare sandwiches on the occasion of
her daughter's engagement. Gifts and bolinhas are a must for Christmas as well as other
festivals. Thus, the presence of the baker's furnace in the village is absolutely essential.
a) What is the name of chapter ?
Ans. The name of chapter is’ A Baker from Goa’.
b) What makes marriage gifts meaningless ?
Ans. Marriage gifts are meaningless without the sweet bread known as the bol,
c)When does the party or a feast lose its charm ?
 Ans. A party or a feast loses its charm without bread.
d) What has the lady of the house to do on the occasion of her daughter's engagement ?
Ans. The lady of the house must prepare sandwiches on the occasion of her daughter's
engagement
e) What is a must for Christmas ?
Ans. The bolinhas are a must for Christmas as well as other festivals.
12. Read the stanza given below and answer any three questions that follow:
The fog comes on little cat
feet. It sits looking over
harbour and city on silent
haunches and then moved
on.:
a) How does the fog come ?
Ans. The fog comes slowly and lightly.
b) Name the poem and the poet ?
Ans. The poem’Fog’ has been composed by Carl Sandburg.
c) Where does the fog look and how ?
Ans. The fog comes on little cat feet. It sits looking over harbour and city on silent
haunches and then moves on.
d) What does the fog do in the end ?
Ans. The fog moves from harbour towards the city at the end.
13. Answer the following questions in 80 -100 words.
Who was Valli ? What was her favourite past time ?
Ans. Valli's favorite pastime was to stand near the front door of her house and observe
everything that was going on in the street. The street was full of activities that were enough
to keep her engaged and amused. She observes that the most interesting scene was riding
on the bus and she plans to take a ride. As per her plan, she saves money for the journey
and travel on the bus.
Or
What does the Buddha make Kisa Gotami understand and how?
Ans. Kisa Gotami was devastated by the death of her only son and wandered door to door,
seeking help. Someone directed her to Sakyamuni, the Buddha, who asked her to bring a
handful of mustard seeds. This raised a hope in Gotami’s heart that her son could be
revived. But the condition imposed by Sakyamuni was that the seeds should be from a
house where people had not lost a loved one to death. Kisa Gotami’s futile search made her
realize the bitter truth that sorrows are a part and parcel of life and one can attain peace
only by acceptance.
Or
1
How did Mandela's 'hunger for freedom change his life ?
Ans. Mandela realized in his youth that it was not just his freedom that was being curtailed,
but the freedom of all blacks. The hunger for his own freedom became the hunger for the
freedom of his people. This desire of a non-racial society transformed him into a virtuous
and self-sacrificing man. Thus, he joined the African National Congress and this changed
him from a frightened young man into a bold man.
14. Answer any two of the following questions:
a) How does the poet compare the fog with a cat ?
Ans. The poet compares the fog to a cat. The silent steps of a cat and the way it sits on its
haunches is very similar to the way fog comes and surrounds the city and looks over it.
b) What is 'Dust of Snow’? What does the poet say has changed his mood?
 Ans. he 'dust of snow' means the fine particles or flakes of snow. The sudden shower in
the form of the dust of snow changed the poet's mood. The poet's mood changed from
sad to happy. He felt refreshed and wanted to enjoy the rest of the day.
c) Is Amanda an orphan? Why does she say so?
Ans. Amanda says so because she wants to be alone and enjoy being herself. She wants to
roam around in the street alone and pattern dust wit her bare feet. She finds silence
'golden' and freedom 'sweet'. It is for this reason that she calls herself an orphan.
15. What does the author say about the people of Coorg ?
Ans. The writer says that the people of Coorg are independent and brave. They are of
Greek or Arabic descent. According to a story, a part of Alexander's army did not return
and was settled here. It is like the kuffia worn by the Arabs and the Kurds.
Or
Give a brief character sketch of Lencho .
Ans. Lencho is the main character of the story “The Letter to God.” He is a poor farmer who
is the sole bread-earner of the family. He had faith in God. Lencho lived in a small house
which was situated on the crest of a low hill in the valley. Throughout the morning
Lencho sat in his house and waited for the rain to come. He wished for the rain or the
shower for his field in which he had grown his crops. Lencho wrote the letter to God as
he thought that he would be the only one to help him in his bad times. He wrote a letter
addressing to God to send him 100 pesos so that he and his family can survive in such a
difficult situation.

The postman in the story "A Letter to God" was of a very humble
and kind in nature. When he saw that a person had written a letter addressing to the God
he read the letter and decided to help the innocent person. He very well knew that there is
no address of God to which he will deliver Lencho's letter. Hence he decided to not let
Lencho's emotions down and help him by contributing money. But after seeing Lencho
second letter everyone including the postman felt very sad as he had complained to God
about the people working the post office.
Or
How was the pilot of old Dakota rescued ?
Ans. The pilot of the old Dakota was rescued by a black aeroplane.The plane had crossed
Paris when he started seeing clouds ehich made it unsafe to travel by air because there
were chances of a storm. He knew he pass them as it wad impossible to go above them or
escape them with the amount of fuel that was left in the last tank .then a black aeroplane
help the pilot of the old dakota.
16. Why was Matilda unhappy ?
Ans. Matilda was always unhappy in her early married life because she was born in a
family of clerks which seemed to be an error of destiny. She had high aspirations. She felt
grieved at her miserable condition. She thought that she was born for all delicacies and
luxuries of the world.
Or
How did Ausable get rid of Max ?
Ans. Ausable was a secret agent who handled Max cleverly. He told Max that he would
complain to the hotel authorities. There was a knock and he said it is the police. Max asked
Ausable to send the police back and in the meantime Max would go and wait on the
balcony which was not there and Max fell down directly from building. This is how Ausable
got rid of Max.
Or
What was the problem of Tricki ? How did Mr. Harriot save his life ?
 Ans. Tr icki was overweight and fat dog because it did not make much movement. Herriot
saved triki's life by saying to Mrs. Pumphrey that he got too fat and due to that he is ill and
if he will not be cured quickly then he can also loose hi life hearing this Mrs. Pumphrey
asked the doctor for the solution he said her for the surgery and said he will keep him for
14 days hearing this Mrs. Pumphrey was shocked but she was not having any way so she
was forced to send Tricki for the surgery and the doctor kept the dog for a water diet for
two days and after that he started to give him a little amount of food the doctor knew that
Tricki was not I'll but due to taking large amount of food he gained the weight and after 14
days the dog's owner came and took the dog with her.
17. Write the character sketch of Anil.
Ans. Anil was a kind , simple and easy going young man. He was tall and lean stature and
interested in sports like Wrestling . He was not very rich and could not offered to employee
Hari as a cook. He had the patience and goodness to not only teach Hari to cook but also
to read , write and add numbers. Though he knew that Hari was stealing little bits of
money from him , he ignored this fact.Anil was a writer who wrote for magazines and made
money in fits and starts. He was a very trusting person. Even when he earned a large
amount of money , he kept the money under his mattress and not under lock and key. He
was generous and paid Hari when he got some money. Hari had tried to steal the money
from him. He was forgiving and he forgave Hari - the theft and continued to be good to
him.
Or
Write the character sketch of the secret agent Ausable ?
Ans. Ausable is an interesting character.He is the main protagonist.The writer had portrayed
him as a secret agent .But his looks didn't assembled to a secret agent as he was a short
man with short height .He had British accent.He spoke French and Germany passably.He
had a sharp and witty mind as he was able to handle another secret agent named Max.He
even made Max believe that there was a balcony outside the window from where anyone
could collapse even though there was no balcony and hence he saved all the secret papers
from Max.
Or
How did Ebright's mother help him ?

Ans. Richard Ebright’s mother helped him by encouraging his interest in learning.
She took him on trips, bought him telescopes, microscopes, cameras, mounting materials
and other equipments, and helped him in many other ways. If he did not have anything to
do, she found things for him to learn. Even the book that became a turning point in his life
was given to him by his mother. Hence, it can be said his mother played a crucial role in the
making of the scientist.