Unseen Passage for Class 5 – Mixed
Reading tip (Scan, then read closely): Read the passage once for the main idea. Scan for the key word of the question. Read that sentence closely and choose the option it proves.
NameDateTime takenScore ___ / 12
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1.Kamala Devi grew up in a village in Bihar where there were no books. She learned to read only after she got married, with help from her daughter. Reading made her feel she could see the whole world. In 2005, she cleared one room of her house and filled it with old books. She asked people in the town to give away books they did not need. Soon, children came every evening to read and do homework. Today the library has over three thousand books. The village calls her “Kitab Amma”.
Who helped her learn to read? (a) Her mother (b) Her husband (c) Her teacher (d) Her daughter -
2.Deepa wanted to bake a cake for her mother’s birthday. She had never baked before. Her neighbour Aunty Rosa offered to help her. They mixed flour, sugar, butter and eggs in a big bowl. Deepa added some cocoa to make it a chocolate cake. The cake baked in the oven for forty minutes. The kitchen smelled wonderful. When Mother came home, Deepa shouted, “Surprise!” Mother was so happy that she hugged both of them.
How long did the cake bake? (a) Ten minutes (b) Forty minutes (c) Two hours (d) Twenty minutes -
3.The Rann of Kutch is a huge salt desert in Gujarat. During the monsoon, it is flooded with sea water. When the water dries up in winter, a thick white layer of salt is left behind. On a full-moon night, the white land seems to glow. Every winter, a festival called Rann Utsav is held there. Visitors stay in tents and enjoy folk music and crafts. Flamingos come to the wetlands nearby to breed. Wild asses, found almost nowhere else, also live in this area.
Where do visitors stay? (a) In boats (b) In hotels (c) In caves (d) In tents -
4.Noor Bano learned sewing from her grandmother in Lucknow. After her husband fell ill, she needed to earn money for the family. She started stitching school uniforms on an old sewing machine at home. Her work was neat, and soon many parents came to her. She taught five women from her lane to sew as well. Together, they opened a small shop called Noor Stitches. Now they make uniforms for three schools. Noor Bano says that a skill grows when it is shared.
Why did she need to earn money? (a) She wanted a car (b) She moved city (c) She lost her shop (d) Her husband fell ill -
5.As a child in Kochi, Sherin loved watching the big blue buses go by. Her uncle was a bus driver, and he sometimes let her sit in the front seat. People laughed when she said she would drive a bus one day. Sherin learned to drive a scooter, then a car, and then a heavy vehicle. She practised for months and passed a difficult driving test. At twenty-four, she became the first woman bus driver in her depot. She says, “Never let anyone laugh away your dream.”
What did Sherin learn to drive first? (a) A truck (b) A car (c) A bus (d) A scooter -
6.The Thar Desert lies mostly in Rajasthan, in the north-west of India. It is a land of sand dunes, thorny bushes and very little rain. Days in summer are extremely hot, but nights can be cool. Camels are useful here because they can walk on sand and go without water for days. That is why the camel is called the ship of the desert. People store rainwater in tanks and step-wells. Jaisalmer, a city of golden stone, stands in this desert.
In which state does most of the Thar Desert lie? (a) Gujarat (b) Rajasthan (c) Haryana (d) Punjab -
7.Uncle Shankar has driven the school bus in Mysuru for twenty-two years. He knows the name of every child who rides with him. He keeps a notebook with all their birthdays. On each birthday, he plays a song and gives the child a toffee. He never drives fast, even when the bus is late. Once, he stopped the bus to help an old woman cross the road. Many of his first students now send their own children on his bus. They say he is part of their family.
What does he give on a birthday? (a) A toffee (b) A balloon (c) A book (d) A cake -
8.Rekha always loved fixing things. As a girl in Indore, she opened up old radios and clocks to see how they worked. After school, she joined a training course for motor mechanics. She was the only girl in a class of thirty. At first, some customers did not trust her to repair their scooters. Rekha did not give up and worked carefully. Slowly, people saw that her repairs lasted longest. Today she runs her own garage and trains other girls.
What did Rekha open up as a girl? (a) Old radios and clocks (b) New phones (c) Old cameras (d) Toy cars -
9.Arjun wanted to win the school running race. Every evening, he ran three rounds of the playground. His grandfather timed him with an old watch. On the day of the race, Arjun started fast. Near the end, his friend Tenzin tripped and fell. Arjun stopped to help him up. They crossed the finish line together, last of all. The principal gave them a special prize for kindness.
How many rounds did Arjun run every evening? (a) Five (b) Two (c) Three (d) Four -
10.Dasan was a fisherman in a coastal village in Tamil Nadu. He knew the sea better than anyone in his village. One stormy night, a small boat with three young fishermen was caught in big waves. Everyone else was too scared to go out. Dasan tied a rope to his own boat and rowed into the storm. After an hour, he came back pulling the small boat behind him. All three young men were safe. Since then, Dasan has trained many villagers to swim and save lives at sea.
How long was Dasan out at sea? (a) Ten minutes (b) A whole day (c) Two nights (d) An hour -
11.Grandma Sushila could not read the small letters in her newspaper. Her glasses had broken last week. Her grandson Dev had an idea. Every morning before school, he read the news aloud to her. Grandma listened and asked many questions. Dev learned new words and began to read faster. After a month, Grandma got new glasses. But she still asked Dev to read to her on Sundays.
How did reading aloud help Dev? (a) He got new glasses (b) He began to read faster (c) He slept early (d) He won a prize -
12.Joseph loved flying kites on the terrace. On Makar Sankranti, the sky over Ahmedabad was full of colourful kites. Joseph’s kite was yellow with a green tail. It flew higher than all the others. Suddenly, the string broke and the kite drifted away. Joseph felt sad for a moment. Then his neighbour, Aunty Farida, gave him a new kite. Joseph smiled and flew it with her son till sunset.
Who gave Joseph a new kite? (a) His teacher (b) Aunty Farida (c) His father (d) His sister
Answer key
- Her daughter
- Forty minutes
- In tents
- Her husband fell ill
- A scooter
- Rajasthan
- A toffee
- Old radios and clocks
- Three
- An hour
- He began to read faster
- Aunty Farida
Free reading comprehension lessons, practice and worksheets at talentjr.in/reading-comprehension