Paper : ICSE Class X Important Questions : English (2004)

General Instructions

1. Attempt all four question.
2. The intended marks for questions or parts of questions are given in brackets.
3. You are advised to spend not more than 35 minutes in answering Question 1and 20 minutes in answering Question 2.

Question 1
(Do not spend more than 35 minutes on this question.) 
Write a composition (350-400 words) on any one of the following:- [25]

(a) You have lived in your ancestral house since birth. The house is to be sold so that flats may be built. Narrate the circumstances that led to this decision and describe your feelings about moving out of this house.

(b) Write about two deeds you have done, one of which gave you immense joy and satisfaction, while the other was a cause of deep regret.

(c) 'Teenagers today are more worldly-wise than their parents.' Express your views for or against the statement.

(d) Write a short story which illustrates the truth of the statement, 'Self-help is the best help.'

(e) Study the picture given below. Write a story or a description or an account of what it suggests to you. Your composition may be about the subject of the picture or may take suggestions from it; however there must be a clear connection between the picture and your composition.

Question 2  
(Do not spend more than 20 minutes on this question.)
Select one of the following:- [10]

(a) Your mother has won the National Award for Meritorious Teachers. Write a letter to a friend giving details of the award, this award ceremony and the celebrations that followed.

(b) Your school had contributed a large sum of money to the Prime Minister's Relief Fund to help the victims of an earthquake. You visited the place recently and were shocked to see these poor living conditions of the victims. Write a letter to the Officer In-charge of the Prime Minister's Relief Fund, drawing his attention to the plight of the people in the affected area.

Question 3
Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions that follow:-

From the edge of a steep ridge, I peered down into the Red stone Valley. Like 

many summer days in north-west Alaska, the morning had begun bright and wind-

swept, but now a dark cloud was drifting in form the east. I decided to move on.

Camp was still three kilometers down the hill.

It has been eighteen years since I had first come to this vast untamedwilderness. Still there was the lure of the place-the chance to live, more and

breathe. Settled in Ambler, a small village in the Kobuk Valley, I'd found life among

the Inupiat Eskimos as rich and textured as the Arctic landscape around us. 

However, even a bright summer day could mean trouble.

As I slung my pack on to my shoulders, a big Arctic Mosquito thudded against my cheek. There had been a few of them through the day, but it was early in the season the ice had melted just two weeks before and I'd scarcely noticed the mosquitoes. But now as I wound down the ridge, the last breeze faded and they  were on me. Rising in clouds from the soggy Tundra, they pelted against my face. I  BR> looked for the repellent in my pack, but in vain. 

I was flailing away, nailing five or six at a whack, but there were thousands mobbing me now. They were diving in nose-first, piercing me right through my clothes, dozens at a time. Four hands wouldn't have been enough. Years of Alaskan experience had taught me what to do in a situation like this. I turned up my collar, cinched my pack straps tight and sprinted.

When I saw my tent, I was still going strong, so were the mosquitoes. They trailed me in a whining veil. Each time I slowed down, the attack resumed. Pausing just long enough to unzip the screen door. I dived through to safety. It took me fifteen minutes to hunt down the hundred or so that entered the tent with me. After I'd cornered the last one, I took stock and tried to relax. My hands and neck were smeared with blood, and every centimeter of the exposed skin was punctured. Outside, the insistent wail was nearly deafening mosquitoes settled over the tent, making a strange pattern on the nylon mesh. Not until later that night, when a cold rain swept in and scattered the mob, did I stick my own itching nose outside again. Local legend has it that an animal, or human being for that matter, caught in one of these mosquito attacks, can be sucked dry. Blood thirsty though they are, the big Arctic mosquitoes are frail creatures.

These infamous 'Alaska state bird', averaging a little over half a centimeter in length, can't even withstand a substantial breeze. They'd wither under bright  sunlight. Too hot or too cold, too much or too little rain, they run for cover.

They spend most of their brief lives hiding under leaves, waiting for the right feeding conditions. A still, humid, cloudy evening is perfect. The upper Kobuk Eskimos know how to handle mosquitoes. As soon as the river is clear of ice, many Ambler people load up their boats and head for the chilly, wind swept coast to spend the summer. Of course, they also fish and hunt seals, but its no coincidence that this annual migration sidesteps the worst of the mosquito season.

(a) Five words are given below. Give the meaning of each word as used in the passage. One word answers or short phrases will be accepted. [5]

1. peered
2. lure 
3. soggy
4. smeared
5. legend

(b) Answer the following questions briefly in your own words:

1. Why did the author feel that he should move on? []2]
2. Where did the author come from? Why did he come to this particular place?[2]
3. Why did the author consider the Arctic mosquitoes 'frail creatures'? [2]
4. According to the author: [2]
   (a) Why was a 'still humid, cloudy evening perfect' and for whom?
   (b) In which season was the mosquito menace at its peak?
5. Why did the Ambler people head for the chilly wind-swept coast? [2]

(c) In not more than 60 words of your own, describe how the mosquitoes came upon the author and how he managed to escape from them. [5]

Question 4
(a) Rewrite the following sentences correctly according to the instructions given after each. Make other changes that may be necessary, but do not change the meaning of each sentence. [5]

(i) The thieves stole everything from the merchant and left him for dead.
(Begin: Having .....................................)

(ii) Prerna consulted her parents before accepting the job offer.
(Begin: Prerna did not ............................)

(iii) The driver lost his job because of rash driving.
(Begin: If the driver .......................)

(iv) Very few doctors in the hospital are as dedicated as he is.
(Begin: He is .....................................) 

(v) The Principal dealt with the miscreants firmly.
(Begin: The Principal was ................)

(b) Fill in the blanks with appropriate words: [5]

1. He may turn _______ when we least expect him.
2. The Jewel was sold _______ thrice its cost price.
3. They took _______ the company with all its liabilities.
4. The new manager gets _______ well with his colleagues.
5. Please contact me _______ 9 a.m. and 10. a.m.
6. Priya was knocked _______ by a speeding car.
7. Pursued by his enemies, he swam _______ the river to safety.
8. They drove him _______ the city in their new ear.
9. _______ other things, they found an old sword near the ruins of the building.
10. He flew _______ a rage when he was challenged.

(c) In the following passage fill in each of the numbered blanks with the correct form of the word given in brackets. Do not copy the passage, but write in correct serial order the word or phrase appropriate to the blank space. [5]

Example (0): went

I (0) _______ (go) into the Administrative Block and (1) _______ (be) then (2) _______ (lead) into the office of the superintendent. He was (3) _______ (sit) there, reading the newspaper. The large desk in front of him was (4) _______ (pile) high with a great assortment of papers, most of which looked official and scientific, a heap of them partially (5) _______ (come) towards me and (9) _______ (stare) at me, (10) _______ (breathe) heavily through his nose.

(d) Join the following sentences to make one complete sentence without using 'and', 'but', or 'so': [5]

1. He got married suddenly. This took everyone by surprise.
2. He completed the work on time. There were many obstacles.
3. Ritu's plan is perfect. She wants every one to realise this.
4. Sophia is a quiet girl. She is an introvert.
5. I met Sheila's mother. She works in a school near by.