← Science and environment passages lesson New set →

Unseen Passage for Class 6 with Questions

Reading comprehension lesson 21: Science and environment passages · Set 65 · 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.

NameDateTime takenScore ___ / 12
  1. 1.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) Light travels faster (b) Clouds block sound (c) Sound travels faster (d) Thunder is quiet
  2. 2.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 is standing under a tree unsafe?
    (a) Trees fall in rain (b) Leaves are wet (c) It strikes tall objects (d) Birds live there
  3. 3.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 special fighters does the body make?
    (a) antibodies (b) vaccines (c) injections (d) germs
  4. 4.The Sun heats water in seas, rivers and lakes. The water turns into an invisible gas called water vapour. This change is called evaporation. High in the sky, the vapour cools and turns into tiny drops of water. These drops join together to form clouds. When the drops become too heavy, they fall as rain. This is called precipitation. Rainwater flows back into rivers and seas, and the cycle begins again.

    Why do the drops fall as rain?
    (a) They become too hot (b) The Sun pulls them (c) The wind blows them (d) They become too heavy
  5. 5.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) carbon dioxide (b) water (c) oxygen (d) sugar
  6. 6.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.

    True or false: Solar energy will run out one day.
    (a) True (b) False
  7. 7.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) Strong waves and storms (c) Earthquakes (d) Snowfall
  8. 8.Every winter, thousands of birds fly to India from colder lands. These travellers are called migratory birds. Many of them come from Siberia and Central Asia. They escape the freezing cold and find food in our lakes and wetlands. Bharatpur in Rajasthan and Chilika Lake in Odisha are famous places to see them. Flamingos, cranes and ducks are among the visitors. In spring, the birds fly back to breed. Protecting wetlands keeps their winter homes safe.

    When do these birds come to India?
    (a) During the monsoon (b) Every spring (c) Every winter (d) Every summer
  9. 9.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.

    What heats up faster in summer?
    (a) The sea (b) The land (c) The rain (d) The clouds
  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.

    What do we hear as thunder?
    (a) Rain hitting roofs (b) Hot air expanding (c) Clouds crashing (d) Trees falling
  11. 11.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) An eagle (b) A frog (c) A deer (d) A grasshopper
  12. 12.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.

    Where do mangroves grow?
    (a) In salty coastal water (b) On high mountains (c) In deserts (d) In cold forests

Answer key

  1. Light travels faster
  2. It strikes tall objects
  3. antibodies
  4. They become too heavy
  5. carbon dioxide
  6. False
  7. Strong waves and storms
  8. Every winter
  9. The land
  10. Hot air expanding
  11. An eagle
  12. In salty coastal water

Free reading comprehension lessons, practice and worksheets at talentjr.in/reading-comprehension