S1 Eng 2: Comprehension & Usage Page 1 of 9 pages

FUKIEN SECONDARY SCHOOL

S1 First Term Uniform Test (2019-2020)
English Paper 2: Reading Comprehension & Usage

Question Paper
(1 hour 15 minutes)

Date: 29th October 2019 Name:

Time: 9:45a.m.- 11:00a.m. Class: S1_____ No:_________

Total score: 100

Instructions to candidates:
1. Write your Name, Class and Class Number in the spaces provided on this cover AND on
the cover of the Answer Sheets.

2. This paper consists of three parts: Part I (Reading Comprehension), Part II (Usage)
and Part III (Bonus). Answer ALL questions.
3. Mark ALL answers on the Answer Sheets given.
4. For Multiple Choice Questions (MCQ), write the correct letter in the space provided.
5. Each question carries 1 mark unless otherwise specified.

S1 Eng 2: Comprehension & Usage Page 2 of 9 pages

Part I: Reading Comprehension (40 marks + 5 bonus marks)
Read the two passages below and answer the questions that follow.
Passage A (17 marks + 2 bonus marks)
1

10

15

20

25

30
Five Good Reasons Teenagers Should Play Sports
More and more teenagers are not playing sports these days and that’s not good!
It’s a bit worrying to know that while most teenagers 13-17 are physically able to
play, only 40 percent of them do. Unfortunately, this may be because today’s young
people only like activities such as, playing computer games or browsing on their
phones! If you’re a pre-teen or teen and you haven’t played a sport yet, now’s the
perfect time to give it a try! As well as sports being enjoyable, there are several other
good reasons to join a sport. Below are just five of them.
1. You’ll be healthier.
Sports require you to move your body, and it’s a commonly-known fact that exercise
is good for your health. According to the Mayo Clinic, physical activity helps control
weight, combats health conditions and diseases, improves mood, boosts energy and
promotes better sleep.
2. You’ll be smarter.
Many studies reveal that playing sports can actually boost your brainpower. This
shouldn’t be too surprising as exercise increases its blood flow which stimulates brain
growth. Plus, playing a sport actually does require you to think, keeping your mind
sharp and alert.
3. You’ll learn teamwork and sportsmanship.
In sports, individuals learn to rely on each other and motivate one another to
accomplish a common goal. Though individual sports are great, team sports actually
do teach you a life lesson: the success of a team depends on how well the players
work together. Not even the “star” player can win the game alone.
4. You’ll make friends.
When you join a sports team, you will make more friends. Because teammates share
so many fun and exciting moments, your friendships should last long even after you
finish playing.
5. You’ll learn to focus and manage your time.
Playing a sport requires teenagers to develop two important skills: focus and time
management. Focus and time management are important for achieving your goals.
‘The ball is in your court!’ Pick a sport ... today!

S1 Eng 2: Comprehension & Usage Page 3 of 9 pages

1. Who is this article written for?
2. Give 2 activities from the text that students enjoy doing instead of sports. (2 marks)
3. What do the following words refer to? (3 marks)
a. them (line 4)
b. you (line 10)
c. its (line 16)
4. Give 4 reasons why sport is good for teenagers’ mental and physical health. (4 marks)
5. According to the article, decide if the following statements are true (T), false (F)
or not given (NG). Write the letters in the boxes provided on the Answer Sheets.
(4 marks)
a. Playing sport at school will help you get a better job in the future.
b. Sixty percent of teenagers don’t play sport.
c. One benefit of sport is that you may become cleverer.
d. Playing team sports does not improve teamwork.
6. Which word in paragraph 3 means ‘increase’?
7. Which two reasons for playing sport could help you with your exams?
(2 marks)
Bonus question
8. In line 31, there is the idiom ‘the ball is in your court’. Explain what this means.
(2 marks)

S1 Eng 2: Comprehension & Usage Page 4 of 9 pages

Passage B (23 marks + 3 bonus marks)
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20

25

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35
Bigfoot's Big Day
1. He lay in his cold icy cave. There was a light shining in from the morning
sun. He was waking up from his sleep. He is massive and tall with wide
shoulders and strong arms. His eyes are like the night. The fur on his body is
dark brown and smells dirty.
2. He got up and walked to the cave entrance. He lifted his arms and stretched
his large hands up into the sky. He then yawned which showed his sharp
teeth.
3. Every day he walks down to his favourite place, a clear blue lake where he
drinks water. Sometimes he catches a fish. There is another area nearby where
he finds berries, leaves and insects. He isn’t a fussy eater.
4. As he was eating a piece of fish, he heard a different sound. He hid behind
a large tree. There were two creatures walking near the lake. They looked a
little like him but they were smaller and didn’t have as much hair.
5. “Who are they? Where do they come from? And why are they here? They
are really off the beaten track! No one ever comes here,” he thought to
himself. He decided to come out of his hiding spot to take a closer look.
6. He saw, it was two American hikers. They had decided to spend some time
in the forest walking. “O God! Do you see that?” said Jim.
7. “Yah I do!” replied David. “Is it a bear?”
8. “No. I think it’s Bigfoot! Get the tranquiliser gun out!” shouted Jim. Jacob
aimed and fired the gun. The creature kept on running for 10 metres and then
dropped.
9.They started running, their hearts were beating very quickly. It WAS
Bigfoot! It was now asleep because they had shot it with the tranquiliser gun.
Together they picked it up, sat it up, and tied it to a tree. They decided to
camp there for the night. They sat by the fire as the creature slept. They
started to think about what they had done. They didn’t want to keep the
creature. They should let it go. If they told the police or scientists, they would
just take the animal and do testing on it. David and Jim didn’t want that to
happen.
10. That evening Bigfoot woke up. They decided to give him a chocolate bar.
He seemed to really love it! That night, as they were asleep in the tent,
Bigfoot cut the rope with his sharp teeth. He ran to their tent and pulled the
tent door open. Jacob screamed because he was so scared! The Bigfoot just
looked at them and grabbed the last two chocolate bars from the floor. Jim
thought he saw the creature smile. Then Bigfoot ran quickly back into the
darkness of the forest.

S1 Eng 2: Comprehension & Usage Page 5 of 9 pages

1. What kind of text is this?
A. An article
B. A blog entry
C. A story
D. A diary entry
2. Which picture looks like the creature from the story?

3. Where did the creature live?

4. What is the simile in paragraph 1? Explain its meaning. (2 marks)
5. What does ‘two creatures’ refer to in line 13?
6. According to the story, decide if the following statements are true (T), false (F)
or not given (NG). Write the letters in the boxes provided on the answer sheets.
(4 marks)
a. The creature had seen humans before.
b. Bigfoot caught a fish every day.
c. ‘The two creatures’ were not as big as Bigfoot.
d. There was more than one of these creatures living in the forest.
7. Where did the creature hide when he heard the two men?
8. Where were the two men from?
9. What were the two men doing in the forest?
10. What do the following words refer to? (3 marks)
a. His (line 4)
b. they (line 15)
c. it (line 26)
11. What are the hikers worried will happen to the creature if they give it to the police?
A.. B. C. D.

S1 Eng 2: Comprehension & Usage Page 6 of 9 pages

12. In line 16 the creature said to himself that the men ‘are really off the beaten track!’
What does this phrase mean?
A. The men were hiking in a popular area of the forest.
B. The men were tired.
C. The men were not hiking in a popular area of the forest.
D. The men were having a hiking competition.
13. Find the words that mean: (3 marks)
a. very big (Paragragh 1)
b. fell over (Paragragh 8)
c. appeared (Paragragh 10)
14. Why is the word ‘WAS’ in capital letters in paragraph 9?
15. Why did the men use a ‘tranquiliser gun’ to shoot the creature?
Bonus question
16. Why is the final paragraph funny? Explain. (3 marks)

Part II: Usage (60 marks)

Section A (12 marks)
Complete the following dialogue with the correct forms of the verbs in brackets. You may
need to add the word “not” to complete the meaning.

Katie: Perry, (1) __(you/ have)__ an extra pencil and eraser?

Perry: I (2) __(be)__ sure. Let me look in my pencil case.
Katie: Hey, is that a new notebook? I (3)__(see)__ it before.
Perry: Yes, it is. I (4)__(buy)__ it last week.
Katie: It (5)__(have)__ an interesting picture on the cover.
Perry: Thanks. It is called a Zentangle. I (6)__(draw)__ it with my new coloured

pencils.

Katie: Wow! You (7)__(use)__ a lot of different colours. They (8)__(look)__ really

great together! Can you teach me?

Perry: Sure, but I (9)__(work)__ on my homework right now. (10)__(you/ be) free

after school?

Katie: Yes, but I need to be home by 6p.m.

S1 Eng 2: Comprehension & Usage Page 7 of 9 pages

Perry: Don't worry. It (11)__(take)__ long. I (12)__(wait)__for you in the library at

4 p.m. And here, you can have this pencil and eraser.

Katie: Great! See you later!

Section B (12 marks)
Tina is interviewing a tourist about his trip to Hong Kong. Read the conversation below and
form questions based on the underlined answers. One has been done for you as an
example.
(2 marks each)
Tina: Good morning. I am conducting a survey on people's travel experience in

Hong Kong. Could you spare me a few minutes?

Tourist: Sure!
Tina: Thank you so much! First of all, __(e.g.)__?
Tourist: I am from Australia.
Tina: Oh, that's a beautiful country. __(1)__?
Tourist: I come to Hong Kong twice a year.
Tina: Oh, nice! __(2)__?
Tourist: I arrived yesterday.
Tina: __(3)__?
Tourist: I will be here for just 3 days.
Tina: Oh, such a short trip! __(4)__?
Tourist: I'm travelling with my daughter.
Tina: __(5)__?
Tourist: I am just planning to see some friends and take my daughter to Disneyland.
We've been here before and we've done most of the other attractions.

Tina: Oh I see. __(6)__?

Tourist: I like the Peak best. The view from there is amazing!
Tina: That’s the end of the survey. Thank you very much for your help. Enjoy your

stay!

S1 Eng 2: Comprehension & Usage Page 8 of 9 pages

Section C (12 marks)
Decide which of the choices below would best complete the article. Write the letter only.

It's Never Too Late to Start

_(1)_ you have a dream? A goal in life? Maybe you want to sing or make music.
Maybe you want to write a book or start a business. The dream stays in your head, _(2)_
you
don't do anything about it.
The years _(3)_ by. Suddenly, you are 30, 40, or older. Is it too late to realise your
dream? No, you are _(4)_ too old to go after your dreams. Many people don't let age stop
them. If they want to do something, they just do it.
For example, Gladys Burrill _(5)_ her first marathon at 86. She became _(6)_ when
she finished the Honolulu Marathon. _(7)_ was 92 then.
Life is _(8)_ change, so don't be afraid to take your first step. _(9)_ is your dream? No
matter what it is, you _(10)_ do it! You just have to believe in yourself and keep working on
it. So, what are you _(11)_ for? Stop thinking and start doing something about it. You _(12)_
that you have nothing to fear!
1 A. Do 2 A. also 3 A. are going 4 A. occasionally
B. Are B. unless B. goes B. never
C. Must C. or C. go C. often
D. Need D. but D. is going D. sometimes
5 A. has run 6 A. famous 7 A. He 8 A. for
B. runs B. famously B. She B. in
C. ran C. fame C. His C. to
D. is running D. infamous D. Her D. about
9 A. What 10 A. don't 11 A. wait 12 A. see
B. Where B. can B. waiting B. sees
C. When C. won't C. think C. are seeing
D. How D. have D. thinking D. will see
Section D (12 marks)
Read the blog entry. Fill in each blank with ONE suitable word from the vocabulary list for
Units 1 & 2. You may need to change the word form.

13th October, sunny

Today I had my first __(1)__ game in my new school. I’ve always been an NBA fan
but only started to play the sport a year ago. Mr Lam is such a good __(2)__ and I’ve learned

S1 Eng 2: Comprehension & Usage Page 9 of 9 pages

so much under his guidance. He told me that I was a good __(3)__ and encouraged me to
participate in the game, so I decided to give it a try.
At 12:20 p.m., right after we finished our lesson, I left my __(4)__ and ran to the
playground to get ready for the game. Probably because it was my first competitive match, I
was so __(5)__ and my hands were shaking! The seats were packed with __(6)__, who
were
all cheering. It seemed that the whole school had come down to watch us. Besides teachers
and schoolmates, Mr. Ng, our __(7)__ was also there! And of course, our PE teacher was
also
there as the __(8)__ to enforce the rules of the game.
I did not expect to win, but under the great leadership of our __(9)__, Tommy, our team
won! He’s my role model. I wish to be like him one day, leading the school team in other big
matches! I was so happy when I received my first ever gold __(10)__ from Mr. Ng!
The only unhappy thing today was that I completely forgot about my homework and my
class teacher gave me __(11)__. I had to stay in the library till 5 p.m. and write a 100-word
essay as __(12)__.
Section E (12 marks)
Refer to pages 5 & 6 of the Answer Sheets
Part III: Bonus (10 marks)
Fill in each blank with ONE suitable word from Vocabooster. Pay attention to the word form.
Dear Agony Aunt,
I am so stressed. I am really afraid __(1)__ the coming exams. Because I'm taking
__(2)__ in so many extracurricular activities, I have no time to do my revision. When I have
time, I can't __(3)__ on my studies. Maybe I'm just bad __(4)__ it. I'm really angry __(5)__
myself. What should I do?

Stressed-out Boy

Dear Stressed-out Boy,

I understand how you feel. It is easy to __(6)__ mistakes when you are too busy. It
doesn't mean you're bad. If you think you can't handle so many activities, you may need to
cut some __(7)__. Give yourself time and take a __(8)__. It will then be much easier to
__(9)__ on. And don't forget. Your teachers are always there to help. Don't be afraid to
__(10)__ questions.

Agony Aunt

End of Paper