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Unseen Passage for Class 6 with Questions

Reading comprehension lesson 21: Science and environment passages · Set 18 · 12 questions
TalentJR

Reading tip (Cause and effect): Find the topic of the passage in the first sentence. Look for cause-and-effect words: because, so, as a result. Work out new science words from the sentence that explains them.

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  1. 1.Green plants make their own food. This process is called photosynthesis. Leaves take in carbon dioxide from the air through tiny holes. Roots take up water from the soil. A green substance in the leaves, called chlorophyll, traps sunlight. Using the energy of sunlight, the leaf turns water and carbon dioxide into sugar. Oxygen is given out into the air. Animals and people breathe in this oxygen.

    What do leaves take in from the air?
    (a) water (b) sugar (c) oxygen (d) carbon dioxide
  2. 2.A magnet attracts things made of iron, nickel or cobalt. Every magnet has two ends called poles: a north pole and a south pole. If you bring two north poles together, they push each other away. A north pole and a south pole pull towards each other. In short, like poles repel and unlike poles attract. A magnet hung freely always points north and south. Sailors once used this idea to make the compass. Magnets also work inside fans, speakers and fridge doors.

    Which way does a freely hung magnet point?
    (a) North and south (b) Only east (c) East and west (d) Up and down
  3. 3.The monsoon is a seasonal wind that brings rain to India. In summer, the land heats up faster than the sea. Moist winds then blow from the sea towards the land. The south-west monsoon usually reaches Kerala in early June. Over the next few weeks, it spreads across most of the country. Farmers wait eagerly for it because many crops need its rain. Rice, for example, grows in fields full of water. A weak monsoon can mean a poor harvest.

    Why do farmers wait eagerly for the monsoon?
    (a) It is cool (b) It brings snow (c) Schools close (d) Crops need its rain
  4. 4.A magnet attracts things made of iron, nickel or cobalt. Every magnet has two ends called poles: a north pole and a south pole. If you bring two north poles together, they push each other away. A north pole and a south pole pull towards each other. In short, like poles repel and unlike poles attract. A magnet hung freely always points north and south. Sailors once used this idea to make the compass. Magnets also work inside fans, speakers and fridge doors.

    What are the two ends of a magnet called?
    (a) edges (b) tips (c) sides (d) poles
  5. 5.The Sun gives us a huge amount of energy every day. Solar panels can turn sunlight into electricity. They are made of special cells that work when light falls on them. Many homes in India now have solar panels on their roofs. Some villages use solar lamps after dark. Solar energy does not make smoke, so it keeps the air clean. Unlike coal, it will never run out. However, panels make less power on cloudy days.

    What do solar panels turn sunlight into?
    (a) coal (b) water (c) smoke (d) electricity
  6. 6.The Earth spins like a top on an imaginary line called its axis. One full spin takes about twenty-four hours. As the Earth spins, one half faces the Sun and has day. The other half faces away and has night. The Earth also moves around the Sun. One trip around the Sun takes about 365 days, which is one year. The tilt of the Earth’s axis gives us seasons. So spinning gives us day and night, while the tilt and the yearly trip give us seasons.

    How long does one trip around the Sun take?
    (a) About 30 days (b) About 24 hours (c) About 365 days (d) About 100 days
  7. 7.Bees visit flowers to collect sweet nectar. While they feed, yellow dust called pollen sticks to their hairy bodies. When a bee flies to the next flower, some pollen rubs off. This carrying of pollen is called pollination. Pollination helps plants make fruits and seeds. Mangoes, apples and many vegetables depend on it. Without bees, farmers would harvest far less food. So bees are tiny helpers of every farm.

    What is the yellow dust on flowers called?
    (a) nectar (b) honey (c) wax (d) pollen
  8. 8.A volcano is an opening in the Earth’s crust. Deep under the ground, rocks are so hot that they melt. This melted rock is called magma. When pressure builds up, magma pushes its way to the surface. Once it comes out, it is called lava. Lava can be hotter than 1,000 degrees Celsius. When it cools, it hardens into new rock. India’s only active volcano is on Barren Island in the Andaman Sea.

    What is melted rock under the ground called?
    (a) magma (b) ash (c) crust (d) lava
  9. 9.The Moon is Earth’s only natural satellite. It goes around the Earth once in about a month. The Moon does not have its own light. It shines because it reflects light from the Sun. As it moves, we see different amounts of its lit side. These changing shapes are called phases. On a full moon night, we see the whole bright face. On a new moon night, we can hardly see it at all.

    How often does the Moon go around the Earth?
    (a) Once a week (b) About once a month (c) Once a year (d) Once a day
  10. 10.Lightning is a giant spark of electricity in the sky. It happens when electric charges build up inside storm clouds. A flash of lightning heats the air around it very quickly. The hot air expands with a loud bang, which we hear as thunder. Light travels much faster than sound. That is why we see the flash before we hear the thunder. During a thunderstorm, stay indoors and away from tall trees. Standing under a tree is not safe, as lightning often strikes tall objects.

    Why do we see the flash before we hear the thunder?
    (a) Sound travels faster (b) Light travels faster (c) Clouds block sound (d) Thunder is quiet
  11. 11.A vaccine helps the body fight a disease before the disease attacks. It contains a weak or harmless form of a germ. The body’s defence system learns to recognise it. It then makes special fighters called antibodies. Later, if the real germ enters, the body knows how to beat it quickly. Children in India get vaccines against polio, measles and other diseases. Most vaccines are given as injections, but the polio vaccine can be given as drops. Vaccines have saved millions of lives.

    What does a vaccine contain?
    (a) Only vitamins (b) A weak form of a germ (c) Sugar and salt (d) Strong medicine
  12. 12.A magnet attracts things made of iron, nickel or cobalt. Every magnet has two ends called poles: a north pole and a south pole. If you bring two north poles together, they push each other away. A north pole and a south pole pull towards each other. In short, like poles repel and unlike poles attract. A magnet hung freely always points north and south. Sailors once used this idea to make the compass. Magnets also work inside fans, speakers and fridge doors.

    What happens when two north poles are brought together?
    (a) They pull together (b) They stick (c) They melt (d) They push away

Answer key

  1. carbon dioxide
  2. North and south
  3. Crops need its rain
  4. poles
  5. electricity
  6. About 365 days
  7. pollen
  8. magma
  9. About once a month
  10. Light travels faster
  11. A weak form of a germ
  12. They push away

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