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Unseen Passage for Class 6 – Stories

Reading comprehension lesson 23: Stories with characters · Set 16 · 12 questions
TalentJR

Reading tip (Why did they do it?): Find the main character and the problem. For “why”, find the reason written in the story. For feelings, look for words like proud, worried or ashamed.

NameDateTime takenScore ___ / 12
  1. 1.Nisha loved the small river behind her town. Last summer, she noticed it was full of plastic bottles and bags. The fish she used to watch had vanished. She made posters and asked her classmates to help. Twenty students came on the first Sunday. They filled forty sacks with rubbish in one morning. The town council then put up bins and a sign that read, “Keep our river clean.” By the next monsoon, Nisha spotted fish again.

    What does “vanished” mean in the passage?
    (a) Grown bigger (b) Come back (c) Disappeared (d) Become pink
  2. 2.Arjun was always in a hurry. One morning, he took a shortcut across the railway tracks to reach school early. A signalman shouted at him to stop. Seconds later, a goods train thundered past. Arjun’s legs were shaking as he stepped back. The signalman explained that trains are much faster than they look. From that day, Arjun always used the footbridge. He now says it is better to be late than to be sorry.

    Who shouted at Arjun to stop?
    (a) His teacher (b) His mother (c) A signalman (d) A train driver
  3. 3.Before the final maths test, Dev’s classmate offered him a copy of the answers. Someone had taken a photo of the question paper. Dev was worried about the test, but he refused. He studied late with his sister, who explained fractions again. The next day, the teacher announced that the paper had leaked. She gave the class a brand-new paper instead. Dev did well because he truly understood the topic. Those who had learnt the copied answers by heart struggled.

    Which topic did his sister explain again?
    (a) Fractions (b) Decimals (c) Algebra (d) Geometry
  4. 4.Sana lived in a flat in Mumbai with no garden. She longed to grow her own vegetables. Her father found some old paint buckets and filled them with soil. Sana planted chillies, spinach and tomatoes on the terrace. She watered them every morning before school. Pigeons pecked at the seedlings, so she covered them with a net. In two months, she picked her first spinach leaves. Her mother cooked them for dinner, and Sana thought they tasted better than any others.

    What does “longed” mean in the passage?
    (a) Measured (b) Wished very much (c) Feared (d) Forgot
  5. 5.Kabir found a brown wallet near the bus stop. Inside were some money and a card with an address. His friend Sonu said, “Keep it, nobody saw you.” Kabir felt uneasy about that idea. He walked twenty minutes to the address on the card. An old man opened the door and almost cried with relief. The wallet held his pension for the whole month. He thanked Kabir again and again. Kabir walked home feeling lighter than air. Honesty, he learnt, brings its own reward.

    What did Sonu tell Kabir to do?
    (a) Return it (b) Throw it away (c) Give it to police (d) Keep the wallet
  6. 6.Imran’s father grew tomatoes on a small farm. One year, there were too many tomatoes, and prices fell very low. Many farmers threw away their crop. Imran had an idea. With his mother’s help, he turned the extra tomatoes into ketchup and chutney. They sold the jars at the weekly market in their town. Soon, shopkeepers began ordering more. That year, the family earned more than ever before.

    Why did prices fall that year?
    (a) Tomatoes were rotten (b) A storm hit (c) The market closed (d) Too many tomatoes
  7. 7.Kiran’s village had no library. She loved reading but had only four books of her own. One day, she asked her neighbours to share books they had already read. Within a month, she had collected over a hundred books. Her uncle gave her an empty room in his shop to keep them. Kiran made cards to note who borrowed which book. Soon, children came every evening to read. The panchayat later gave money for more shelves.

    What did Kiran ask her neighbours to do?
    (a) Buy shelves (b) Give money (c) Share old books (d) Build a school
  8. 8.Imran’s father grew tomatoes on a small farm. One year, there were too many tomatoes, and prices fell very low. Many farmers threw away their crop. Imran had an idea. With his mother’s help, he turned the extra tomatoes into ketchup and chutney. They sold the jars at the weekly market in their town. Soon, shopkeepers began ordering more. That year, the family earned more than ever before.

    What happened that year?
    (a) They stopped farming (b) They moved away (c) They lost the farm (d) The family earned more
  9. 9.Vihaan was batting in the final over of the colony cricket match. He edged the ball, and it brushed his bat before the keeper caught it. Nobody else heard the sound, and the umpire said not out. Vihaan’s team needed just four runs to win. Still, Vihaan walked off the field on his own. The other team was stunned. They lost the match, but players from both sides shook his hand. Vihaan felt that fair play mattered more than a trophy.

    Why did Vihaan walk off the field?
    (a) It began to rain (b) He was hurt (c) He knew he was out (d) He was tired
  10. 10.Every evening, Asha saw Kamala Aunty struggle up the stairs with heavy bags. Kamala Aunty lived alone on the fourth floor. Asha started carrying her bags whenever she saw her. In return, Kamala Aunty taught Asha to knit. Over the winter, Asha knitted a scarf for her baby cousin. Kamala Aunty said that Asha had brought light into her lonely days. Asha felt that she had gained a grandmother. A small kindness had grown into a big friendship.

    What is the main message of the story?
    (a) Kindness makes friends (b) Winter is cold (c) Stairs are tiring (d) Knitting is hard
  11. 11.Every evening, Asha saw Kamala Aunty struggle up the stairs with heavy bags. Kamala Aunty lived alone on the fourth floor. Asha started carrying her bags whenever she saw her. In return, Kamala Aunty taught Asha to knit. Over the winter, Asha knitted a scarf for her baby cousin. Kamala Aunty said that Asha had brought light into her lonely days. Asha felt that she had gained a grandmother. A small kindness had grown into a big friendship.

    On which floor did Kamala Aunty live?
    (a) The tenth floor (b) The first floor (c) The fourth floor (d) The ground floor
  12. 12.Sana lived in a flat in Mumbai with no garden. She longed to grow her own vegetables. Her father found some old paint buckets and filled them with soil. Sana planted chillies, spinach and tomatoes on the terrace. She watered them every morning before school. Pigeons pecked at the seedlings, so she covered them with a net. In two months, she picked her first spinach leaves. Her mother cooked them for dinner, and Sana thought they tasted better than any others.

    Where did Sana live?
    (a) A flat in Mumbai (b) A farm in Punjab (c) A house in Delhi (d) A hut by the sea

Answer key

  1. Disappeared
  2. A signalman
  3. Fractions
  4. Wished very much
  5. Keep the wallet
  6. Too many tomatoes
  7. Share old books
  8. The family earned more
  9. He knew he was out
  10. Kindness makes friends
  11. The fourth floor
  12. A flat in Mumbai

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