General Instructions:
1. All questions are compulsory.
2. Section A: 5 × 1 = 5 marks (comprehension — short answer).
3. Section B: 5 × 2 = 10 marks (comprehension — detailed & vocabulary).
4. Section C: 5 × 3 = 15 marks (story writing).
5. Read the passage carefully. Answers should be in complete sentences.
Passage for Sections A & B
Honey bees are some of the most fascinating and hardworking creatures on Earth. They live in large groups called colonies, which can have up to 60,000 bees. Every colony has three types of bees: the queen, the workers, and the drones.
The queen bee is the most important member of the colony. Her only job is to lay eggs — she can lay up to 2,000 eggs in a single day! The worker bees are all female. They do everything: collecting nectar from flowers, making honey, building the honeycomb, feeding the baby bees, and guarding the hive. Worker bees communicate with each other through a special “waggle dance” that tells other bees where to find flowers. The drones are male bees whose only purpose is to mate with the queen.
Bees are vital to our environment because they pollinate flowers and crops. Without bees, many of the fruits, vegetables, and nuts we eat every day would disappear. Scientists estimate that one-third of the food we eat depends on bee pollination. Sadly, bee populations around the world are declining due to pesticides, habitat loss, and climate change. We must protect these tiny but mighty creatures to protect our own food supply.
Section A — Short Answer Questions [5 × 1 = 5]
Q1.1How many bees can a single colony have?
Q2.1Name the three types of bees in a colony.
Q3.1How many eggs can a queen bee lay in one day?
Q4.1What is a “waggle dance”?
Q5.1Name any two reasons why bee populations are declining.
Section B — Detailed & Vocabulary Questions [5 × 2 = 10]
Q6.2List any four jobs that worker bees do.
Q7.2Why are bees called “vital” to our environment? Explain in your own words.
Q8.2Find words from the passage that mean: (a) very interesting or captivating (b) becoming less or fewer
Q9.2What fraction of our food depends on bee pollination? Why is this fact alarming?
Q10.2Suggest two ways in which people can help protect bees. (Use your own ideas.)
Section C — Story Writing [5 × 3 = 15]
Q11.3What makes a story interesting? List any three elements of a good story.
Q12.3Write a complete short story (80–100 words) using the following hints:
Hints: a thirsty crow … pitcher with little water … beak cannot reach … sees pebbles … drops them one by one … water rises … drinks water.
Give it a title and a moral.
Q13.3Read the story beginning and write the middle and ending (80–100 words):
“Arjun was walking home from school when he noticed a small puppy trapped in a drain. The puppy was whimpering and looked scared…”
Q14.3Write a descriptive paragraph (80–100 words) about the picture described below:
Scene: A rainy day in a village. Green fields, farmers with umbrellas, children playing in puddles, a rainbow in the sky, birds sitting on a wire.
Q15.3Change the ending of the famous story “The Ant and the Grasshopper.” In the original, the grasshopper suffers in winter because he didn’t work in summer. Write a new ending (60–80 words) where the story ends differently. Include a new moral.