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Unseen Passage for Class 5 – Mixed

Reading comprehension lesson 20: Class 5 practice test · Set 33 · 12 questions
TalentJR

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.

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  1. 1.Imran’s school started a vegetable garden behind the library. Each class got a small patch of land. Class 5 planted tomatoes, spinach and beans. Imran watered the plants every day during the lunch break. One week, insects began to eat the spinach leaves. The teacher showed them how to spray water mixed with neem. The insects went away. In winter, the class cooked a spinach soup for the whole school.

    What did the class cook in winter?
    (a) Tomato soup (b) Spinach soup (c) Bean curry (d) Vegetable rice
  2. 2.In Goa, Christmas is a big festival celebrated on 25 December. Weeks before, families clean and paint their homes. They hang paper stars outside their windows. Many homes make a crib, a small model of the place where Jesus was born. On Christmas Eve, people go to church for midnight Mass. Families share special sweets like kulkuls and neureos with neighbours. Streets glow with lights, and choirs sing carols. Friends of all faiths join in the fun.

    What do people hang outside their windows?
    (a) Paper stars (b) Kites (c) Clay lamps (d) Flower garlands
  3. 3.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.

    Why did no one else go out?
    (a) They were too scared (b) They had no boats (c) They were asleep (d) They were away
  4. 4.Zoya was nervous about singing at the school function. Her hands shook whenever she practised in front of others. Her music teacher told her to look at one friendly face in the crowd. On the big day, Zoya walked onto the stage. She found her grandmother sitting in the front row. Grandma smiled and nodded. Zoya took a deep breath and began to sing. When she finished, the hall filled with loud clapping.

    Where was her grandmother sitting?
    (a) Near the door (b) At the back (c) In the front row (d) On the stage
  5. 5.Ladakh is a cold desert high in the Himalayas. It gets very little rain or snow, so the mountains are mostly bare and brown. Winters are freezing, and temperatures can drop far below zero. The air is thin at this height, so visitors must rest on their first day. People grow barley and apricots in the short summer. Yaks give milk, wool and help to carry loads. Buddhist monasteries, called gompas, stand on hilltops. Pangong Lake changes colour from blue to green during the day.

    What kind of desert is Ladakh?
    (a) A cold desert (b) A sandy desert (c) A hot desert (d) A salt desert
  6. 6.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 slept early (b) He won a prize (c) He got new glasses (d) He began to read faster
  7. 7.Diwali is called the festival of lights. It is celebrated in October or November, on the darkest night of the month. Before Diwali, people clean their homes and buy new clothes. In the evening, rows of small clay lamps called diyas are lit everywhere. Many families draw rangoli patterns with coloured powder at the door. People share sweets with neighbours and friends. Many people now choose green celebrations without loud crackers. The lights stand for the victory of good over evil.

    What is Diwali called?
    (a) The festival of kites (b) The festival of lights (c) The festival of colours (d) The harvest festival
  8. 8.The library in Kiran’s school had a dusty corner full of old books. Nobody went there. Kiran asked the librarian if she could tidy it. With two friends, she wiped the shelves and sorted the books by subject. They made colourful labels and a small reading mat. They named the corner “The Treasure Shelf”. Now younger children sit there every lunch break. The librarian says it is the busiest corner of the library.

    What did they name the corner?
    (a) The Dusty Corner (b) The Book Mat (c) The Reading Room (d) The Treasure Shelf
  9. 9.Durga Puja is the biggest festival of West Bengal. It is held in autumn, usually in October. Artists spend months making clay idols of Goddess Durga. The idols are placed in large decorated tents called pandals. For five days, people visit pandals, pray and enjoy music and food. Many pandals are built to look like palaces or temples. On the last day, the idols are carried to a river and immersed in the water. People say goodbye and hope the goddess returns next year.

    What happens on the last day?
    (a) Idols are immersed (b) A fair begins (c) Pandals are built (d) Idols are made
  10. 10.Durga Puja is the biggest festival of West Bengal. It is held in autumn, usually in October. Artists spend months making clay idols of Goddess Durga. The idols are placed in large decorated tents called pandals. For five days, people visit pandals, pray and enjoy music and food. Many pandals are built to look like palaces or temples. On the last day, the idols are carried to a river and immersed in the water. People say goodbye and hope the goddess returns next year.

    Durga Puja is the biggest festival of which state?
    (a) Punjab (b) Kerala (c) Gujarat (d) West Bengal
  11. 11.Meghalaya is a hilly state in north-east India. Its name means “the abode of clouds”. Some places in Meghalaya get more rain than almost anywhere else on Earth. In the villages near Cherrapunji, people have made living root bridges. They guide the roots of rubber fig trees across streams. Over many years, the roots grow thick and strong enough to walk on. Some bridges are hundreds of years old. Unlike wooden bridges, they grow stronger with time.

    What does “Meghalaya” mean?
    (a) Land of rivers (b) Hill of flowers (c) Home of tigers (d) Abode of clouds
  12. 12.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) Toy cars (d) Old cameras

Answer key

  1. Spinach soup
  2. Paper stars
  3. They were too scared
  4. In the front row
  5. A cold desert
  6. He began to read faster
  7. The festival of lights
  8. The Treasure Shelf
  9. Idols are immersed
  10. West Bengal
  11. Abode of clouds
  12. Old radios and clocks

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