D.A.

V SCHOOL,PALLIKARANAI
PERIODIC TEST -1 (2023-24)
ENGLISH
CLASS: VIII MAX MARKS:50
DATE:27.7.23 TIME :1 ½ HRS
GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS:
(i) This paper is divided into three sections: A,B and C. All questions are
compulsory.
(ii) Separate instructions have been given with each section and question,
wherever necessary. Read the instructions very carefully and follow them.
(iii) Do not exceed the prescribed word limit while answering the questions.
Section -A
(READING-10 MARKS)
I. Read the following passage carefully and answer the following questions. (10 x1=10)

1) Many great inventions are initially greeted with ridicule and disbelief. The
invention of the airplane was no exception. Although many people who heard
about the first powered flight on December 17, 1903 were excited and impressed,
others reacted with peals of laughter. The idea of flying an aircraft was repulsive to
some people. Such people called Wilbur and Orville Wright, the inventors of the
first flying machine, impulsive fools. Negative reactions, however, did not stop the
Wrights. Impelled by their desire to succeed, they continued their experiments in
aviation.

2)Orville and Wilbur Wright had always had a compelling interest in aeronautics
and mechanics. As young boys they earned money by making and selling kites and
mechanical toys. Later, they designed a newspaper-folding machine, built a printing
press, and operated a bicycle-repair shop. In 1896, when they read about the death
of Otto Lilienthal, the brothers’ interest in flight grew into a compulsion.

3)Lilienthal, a pioneer in hang-gliding, had controlled his gliders by shifting his body
in the desired direction. This idea was repellent to the Wright brothers, however,
and they searched for more efficient methods to control the balance of airborne
vehicles. In 1900 and 1901, the Wrights tested numerous gliders and developed
control techniques. The brothers’ inability to obtain enough lift power for the
gliders almost led them to abandon their efforts.

4)After further study, the Wright brothers concluded that the published tables of
air pressure on curved surfaces must be wrong. They set up a wind tunnel and
began a series of experiments with model wings. Because of their efforts, the old
tables were repealed in time and replaced by the first reliable figures for air
pressure on curved surfaces. This work, in turn, made it possible for the brothers
to design a machine that would fly. In 1903 the Wrights built their first airplane,
which cost less than $1,000. They even designed and built their own source of
propulsion-a lightweight gasoline engine. When they started the engine on
December 17, the airplane pulsated wildly before taking off. The plane managed to
stay aloft for 12 seconds, however, and it flew 120 feet.

5)By 1905, the Wrights had perfected the first airplane that could turn, circle, and
remain airborne for half an hour at a time. Others had flown in balloons and hang

Page 1 of 4
gliders, but the Wright brothers were the first to build a full-size machine that could
fly under its own power. As the contributors of one of the most outstanding
engineering achievements in history, the Wright brothers are accurately called the
fathers of aviation.
1. The idea of flying an aircraft was ______ to some people.
1. Boring 2. repulsive 3.exciting 4.needless
2. Pick a word from Para 1 which means ‘acted without thinking’
3. The Wrights’ interest in flight grew into a ______.
1. financial empire 2.plan 3. Compulsion 4. foolish thought

4. Lilienthal’s idea about controlling airborne vehicles was _________ the

Wrights.

1. proven wrong by 2.disliked by 3.accepted by 4.improved by

5. The old tables were _________ and replaced by the first reliable figures for air
pressure on curved surfaces.

1. Destroyed 2. approved 3. not used 4. repealed

6. The Wrights designed and built their own source of ___________

1.force for moving forward 2. force for turning around 3.force for going
backward 4.None of the above

7. In 1896, when they read about the death of____________ the brothers’
interest in flight grew into a compulsion.

8. Wrights tested numerous _______________and developed control techniques.

9. _____________was set up to begin a series of experiments with model wings.

10. What were the Wrights called?

Section-B
II (Writing and Grammar) (15 marks)
1. ‘There is an irregular supply of water in your locality’. Write a letter to the Editor
of a Newspaper requesting the concerned authorities to look into the concern.
(1x5=5)
(Or)
The lake near your house is contaminated with plastic bottles and covers’. Write a
letter to the Editor of a National daily highlighting the issue and its consequences.

2. A trendy clothing brand is planning to have a huge online sale at the end of the
month. Create an Advertisement in 50 words giving all necessary details.
(1x3=3)
(or)
A popular bookstore is planning for a discount sale. Create an Advertisement in 50
words giving all necessary details.

Page 2 of 4
III Complete the sentences using the correct form of the words given in the
brackets (3x1=3)

1. I have ______been able to play games well. (always/every time /all the time)
2. Many educated youths__________ up the responsibility to teach
underprivileged children (Took up/ had/have taken)
3. Kids who are educated ______communicate effectively(could/can/may)

4. The following passage has not been edited. There is one error in each line.
Write the incorrect word in the error column and the correct word next to
that in your answer sheet. One has been done for you. (4x1=4 marks)

QNO Passage Error Correction

Eg Almonds is an excellence Is are
source of vitamin-E,
A Madhubani Painting is one in
the many traditional
B Indian art forms. It is but
known as Mithila or Godhna
C Paintings. This art developed
by Mithila or Madhubani
district
D of Bihar or then spread to
villages around Madhubani

SECTION -C
LITERATURE (25marks)
IV Explain with reference to the context answer the following extracts.
(10x1=10)
1. “Suddenly she reached out and took my hand. Her eyes were filled with tears.
“You told me you’d come home by Christmas, dearest,” she said. ”And here you
are .”
a. Mention the Lesson from which the extract is taken and the give the Author
name?
b. Find out the synonym of unexpectedly from the extract?
c. “she” is referred to ___________in the above lines.
d. List the remarkable Christmas present?

2. The Djinn rolled himself up in his dust-cloak, and took a walk across the Desert,
and found the Camel looking at his own reflection in a pool of water.” “My friend,”
said the Djinn, “what’s this I hear of your doing no work?”
a. Explain ‘Reflection in a pool of water’.
b. ‘My Friend’ is referred to as ___________.
c. List the word that indicates a light jacket?

Page 3 of 4
3. “Not I!
My heart was so light
That I sang day and night,
For all nature looked gay.”
a. Do you know what makes cricket happy?
b. Enlist the rhyme scheme used in the above lines.
c . Whom does ” I “refer to you ?

V Answer any FIVE the following question in 30-40 words. (5x2=10)

1. Hans Wolf and Jim Macpherson had great careers. Explain.
2. Give your opinion on the Ant’s principles?
3.‘The camel is living in the middle of the Desert ‘.Elaborate
4.The three animals worked hard. Describe their hardship.
5.Draw a character sketch on Tilly Smith.
6. Mention two things that are (i) clear from the height. (ii) not clear from the height
from the poem Geography Lesson
7. Do animals get premonition before a Tsunami?
VI Answer any ONE detail in about 100-120 words. (1x5=5)
1.Enumerate Rudyard Kipling’s view on the camel who got a hump?
Or
2.How did the natural calamities affect Almas’s mother and Aunt?
*****

Page 4 of 4