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Unseen Passage for Class 6 with Questions

Reading comprehension lesson 21: Science and environment passages · Set 33 · 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.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 happens to lava when it cools?
    (a) It hardens into rock (b) It turns into gas (c) It becomes water (d) It melts again
  2. 2.Every living thing needs food for energy. Plants make their own food using sunlight. A grasshopper eats grass. A frog eats the grasshopper. A snake eats the frog, and an eagle eats the snake. This link of who eats whom is called a food chain. Every food chain begins with a green plant. If one link disappears, the whole chain is affected.

    What is the link of who eats whom called?
    (a) A food chain (b) A water cycle (c) A life cycle (d) A family tree
  3. 3.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 magma called once it comes out?
    (a) crust (b) magma (c) lava (d) steam
  4. 4.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) Schools close (c) It brings snow (d) Crops need its rain
  5. 5.Mangroves are trees that grow in salty water along the coast. Their roots stick out of the mud like knobbly fingers. These roots help the trees breathe in wet, airless soil. Mangrove forests protect the coast from strong waves and storms. They also give shelter to fish, crabs and birds. The Sundarbans, shared by India and Bangladesh, is the largest mangrove forest in the world. It is home to the Royal Bengal tiger. Cutting mangroves leaves the coast open to damage.

    What do mangrove forests protect the coast from?
    (a) Hot sunshine (b) Earthquakes (c) Snowfall (d) Strong waves and storms
  6. 6.Sound is made when something vibrates, or moves quickly back and forth. When you pluck a sitar string, it vibrates and makes a sound. The vibrations travel through the air to our ears. Sound can also travel through water and solids. In fact, it moves faster through solids than through air. Sound cannot travel through empty space, where there is no air. That is why space is completely silent. Loud sounds for a long time can harm our hearing.

    Why is space completely silent?
    (a) It is too cold (b) It is too big (c) It is too dark (d) There is no air
  7. 7.Plastic is cheap, light and strong. But most plastic does not rot away like leaves or fruit peels. A plastic bag may stay in the soil for hundreds of years. Plastic thrown on the road often blocks drains during the monsoon. Cows and other animals sometimes swallow plastic with food scraps. In the sea, turtles can mistake floating bags for jellyfish. We can help by carrying cloth bags and saying no to straws. Sorting dry and wet waste at home also helps.

    What can turtles mistake floating bags for?
    (a) seaweed (b) rocks (c) fish eggs (d) jellyfish
  8. 8.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.

    What gives us seasons, along with the yearly trip?
    (a) The Moon (b) The tilt of the axis (c) The ocean (d) The clouds
  9. 9.Every living thing needs food for energy. Plants make their own food using sunlight. A grasshopper eats grass. A frog eats the grasshopper. A snake eats the frog, and an eagle eats the snake. This link of who eats whom is called a food chain. Every food chain begins with a green plant. If one link disappears, the whole chain is affected.

    Which animal eats the snake?
    (a) A frog (b) A grasshopper (c) An eagle (d) A deer
  10. 10.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.

    Why does magma push its way to the surface?
    (a) It cools down (b) Rain falls on it (c) The wind pulls it (d) Pressure builds up
  11. 11.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.

    When does the monsoon usually reach Kerala?
    (a) Mid March (b) Early January (c) Late October (d) Early June
  12. 12.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

Answer key

  1. It hardens into rock
  2. A food chain
  3. lava
  4. Crops need its rain
  5. Strong waves and storms
  6. There is no air
  7. jellyfish
  8. The tilt of the axis
  9. An eagle
  10. Pressure builds up
  11. Early June
  12. Light travels faster

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