NAME: _________________________________________________________ SECTION: _______________

Grade 9 Central Azucarera de Tarlac High School - Main

INDEPENDENT READERS L.E.A.R.N. (Learning to Enjoy the Art of Reading in the New Normal)

1
VOCABULARY
EN9V-If-11: Arrive at meaning of words through word formation (clipping, blending, acronymy, compounding, folk
etymology, etc.)

Analyze the underlined word formation in each item then, choose the letter/s that best defines it. Write your answer on the
space provided before the number.

________ 1. Online classes, work-from-home arrangements, and webinars are the new trend in the new normal.
A. conspiracies B. plans C. tricks
________ 2. Japan successfully held graduation ceremonies amid COVID-19 pandemic by using cyborgs.
D. bionic humans E. humans F. robots
________ 3. Some people are getting worried about the resumption of daily activities after the enhanced community
quarantine.
G. continuation H. prohibition I. reenactment
________ 4. Unfortunately, some netizens are expressing shameful criticisms to every person they notice on social media.
J. internet bashers K. internet judgers L. internet citizens
________ 5. There were ads on social media that remind us of the new normal.
M. gossips N. magazines O. updates
________ 6. Most people are unhappy now that the quarantine is lifted.
P. happy Q. satisfied R. troubled
________ 7. After the lockdown, they immediately attended to their unfinished business transactions.
S. incomplete T. unpolished U. uninterested
________ 8. Some people who have travelled abroad tested positive on their preliminary rapid test.
V. early W. following X. late
________ 9. The protesters abroad disregarded the pandemic and gathered publicly.
Y. forgot Z. neglected AB. persuaded
________ 10. Some argued that most of the decisions made are impractical and irresponsible.
CD. unimportant EF. unobtainable GH. unrealistic

2
VOCABULARY
EN9V-Ig-12.3: Note types of context clue (restatement, definition, synonyms, antonyms) used for a given word
or expression.

Analyze the underlined word/s in each sentence to determine whether the context clue shows restatement, definition,
synonym, or antonym. Write your answer on the space provided before the number.

____________________ 1. Pandemic is when a worldwide spread of disease is experienced.

____________________ 2. Epidemic is when a rapid spread of disease affects limited number of people belonging
to the same population.
____________________ 3. Because of the pandemic, streets are now empty although they were once crowded with
people.
____________________ 4. COVID-19 is an infectious disease that has widespread among major countries in the world.
____________________ 5. The hospital’s physician or doctor died because of COVID-19.

Identify the meaning of the underlined word in each item by using context clues. Choose the letter of your answer then,
write it on the space provided before the number.

________ 1. The health workers practice social distancing. They are the ideal, obedient, and concerned citizens.
A. imperfect B. flawed C. model D. normal
________ 2. Even in a time of pandemic, you will see how people lend a helping hand to those in great need.
A. borrow B. give C. receive D. take
________ 3. The frontliners such as healthcare professionals, police officers, and other volunteers sacrifice a lot to help
those in need.
A. get B. lose C. offer D. suffer
________ 4. The nurses posed for a wacky picture to share some optimism although we are experiencing a pandemic.
A. caution B. despair C. negativity D. positivity
________ 5. A study that looked into the origin of the outbreak was conducted by researchers. Their research will help
others in seeking for a vaccine.
A. data B. lesson C. study D. topic
34
FLUENCY: EN9F-IIc-3.11.1: Use the correct production of English sounds: vowel sounds, consonant
& sounds, diphthongs, etc.
READING COMPREHENSION: EN9RC-Ia-16: Share prior knowledge about a text topic.
Read the given materials below then answer the questions that follow. Record yourself while reading these materials.
It could be a VOICE MESSAGE or VIDEO.
ACT II, SCENE I FROM THE MERCHANT OF VENICE BY WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE
Portia expresses sadness over the terms of her father’s will,
which stipulates that she must marry the man who correctly
chooses one of three caskets.
MOROCCO
Mislike me not for my complexion.
My people, dwelling neighbors to the sun,
Are given shadowed skin for our relief.
Now, seeing thee, so wondrous fair, I wish
To be the cloth of black or sable fur
On which the jeweler sets his fairest stone,
The better to display its dazzlement
PORTIA
I have no fear of unfamiliar hues.
A woman’s heart will sooner judge the face
By graces only seen in words and deeds.
Besides, the lottery of my destiny
Bars me the right of voluntary choosing:
By matching wits against my father you,
Not I, will choose what face my husband wears
MOROCCO
But thou art not indifferent to the choice?
PORTIA
In sober truth I tell you, sir, that I
Am pleased no less by you than any other
Of the wooers who have come to call on me.
MOROCCO
For that I thank you, lady. Now, I pray,
Lead me to the caskets, to the test
That will decide my future happiness.
PORTIA
Lesser men have left without attempting it,
For there’s a penalty to choosing wrong.
1. What might be the story about between Portia and
Morocco?
A. Morocco is one of the suitors of Portia who wants to
marry her through luck.
B. Morocco is a rich man who is destined to marry
Portia.
C. Portia is in love with someone else even before
Morocco came into picture.
D. Portia dislikes Morocco and attempts to kill him by
leading him to choose the wrong casket.
2. What could be inferred when Morocco said,
“mislike me not for my complexion”?
A. Misunderstanding happens during first time
encounter.
B. One never gets a second chance to make a first
impression.
C. People tend to judge based on color.
D. There's more to this than meets the eye.
3. When Portia said, “I have no fear of unfamiliar
hues”, what does this line signify about Portia?
A. She is being polite and honest.
B. She is well-educated; hence, she knows good
manners.
C. She has a strong and intimidating personality.
D. She is considerate; she is open-minded.
4. What social reality did the author try to highlight
based on the dialogue of the two characters?
A. intercultural marriage
B. the wealthy marrying their own
C. unrequited love
D. romantic affair
5. What is the main problem that Portia has to deal
with?
A. Portia against Morocco
B. Portia against her father’s will
C. Portia against her lover
D. Portia against the standards of the society
34
FLUENCY: EN9F-IIc-3.11.1: Use the correct production of English sounds: vowel sounds, consonant
& sounds, diphthongs, etc.
READING COMPREHENSION: EN9RC-Ia-16: Share prior knowledge about a text topic.

Read the given materials below then answer the questions that follow. Record yourself while reading these materials.
It could be a VOICE MESSAGE or VIDEO.

CAGED BIRD BY MAYA ANGELOU

A free bird leaps 6. What is being contrasted in the poem?

on the back of the wind
and floats downstream
till the current ends
and dips his wing
in the orange sun rays
and dares to claim the sky.
But a bird that stalks
down his narrow cage
can seldom see through
his bars of rage
his wings are clipped and
his feet are tied
so he opens his throat to sing.
The caged bird sings
with a fearful trill
of things unknown
but longed for still
and his tune is heard
on the distant hill
for the caged bird
sings of freedom.
The free bird thinks of another breeze
and the trade winds soft through the sighing trees
and the fat worms waiting on a dawn bright lawn
and he names the sky his own
But a caged bird stands on the grave of dreams
his shadow shouts on a nightmare scream
his wings are clipped and his feet are tied
so he opens his throat to sing.
The caged bird sings
with a fearful trill
of things unknown
but longed for still
and his tune is heard
on the distant hill
for the caged bird
sings of freedom.
A. bird and nature
B. caged bird and free bird
C. narrow cage and open cage
D. song of the two birds
7. What is ironic about the caged bird?
A. The caged bird sings.
B. The caged bird is unheard.
C. The caged bird flies across the horizon.
D. The caged bird waits for the free bird.
8. What do the two birds symbolize?
A. beauty and ugliness
B. hope and despair
C. independence and captivity
D. poor and rich
9. What general idea might this poem be about?
A. Hope is found in the midst of desperation.
B. Some are blessed with talent while others long to
be noticed and recognized.
C. The sorrowful plight of the oppressed that long for
freedom
D. The rich enjoy pleasures of life while the poor
suffer.
10. What overall feeling is created by the poem? It
evokes ….
A. discontentment
B. dismay
C. loneliness
D. sympathy
34
FLUENCY: EN9F-IIc-3.11.1: Use the correct production of English sounds: vowel sounds, consonant
& sounds, diphthongs, etc.
READING COMPREHENSION: EN9RC-Ia-16: Share prior knowledge about a text topic.

Read the given materials below then answer the questions that follow. Record yourself while reading these materials.
It could be a VOICE MESSAGE or VIDEO.

EXCERPT FROM TED TALK, THE DANGER OF A SINGLE STORY, BY CHIMAMANDA ADICHIE
I'm a storyteller.
And I would like to tell you a few personal stories about what I like to call "the danger of the single story." I grew up
on a university campus in eastern Nigeria. My mother says that I started reading at the age of two, although I think four is
probably close to the truth. So I was an early reader. And what I read were British and American children's books.
I was also an early writer. And when I began to write, at about the age of seven, stories in pencil with crayon
illustrations that my poor mother was obligated to read, I wrote exactly the kinds of stories I was reading. All my characters
were white and blue-eyed. They played in the snow. They ate apples. (Laughter) And they talked a lot about the weather,
how lovely it was that the sun had come out. (Laughter) Now, this despite the fact that I lived in Nigeria. I had never been
outside Nigeria. We didn't have snow. We ate mangoes. And we never talked about the weather, because there was no
need to.
My characters also drank a lot of ginger beer because the characters in the British books I read drank ginger beer.
Never mind that I had no idea what ginger beer was. (Laughter) And for many years afterwards, I would have a desperate
desire to taste ginger beer. But that is another story.
What this demonstrates, I think, is how impressionable and vulnerable we are in the face of a story, particularly as
children. Because all I had read were books in which characters were foreign, I had become convinced that books, by their
very nature, had to have foreigners in them, and had to be about things with which I could not personally identify. Now,
things changed when I discovered African books. There weren't many of them available. And they weren't quite as easy to
find as the foreign books.
But because of writers like Chinua Achebe and Camara Laye I went through a mental shift in my perception of
literature. I realized that people like me, girls with skin the color of chocolate, whose kinky hair could not form ponytails,
could also exist in literature. I started to write about things I recognized.
Now, I loved those American and British books I read. They stirred my imagination. They opened up new worlds for
me. But the unintended consequence was that I did not know that people like me could exist in literature. So what the
discovery of African writers did for me was this: It saved me from having a single story of what books are.

11. Which of the following best explains the speaker’s idea of a single story?
A. Single story pertains to limited perspective and incomplete representation of a culture, thus resulting in stereotype.
B. Single story is about repeated plot development and characterization due to popular culture.
C. Single story is about copying and imitating one’s culture; hence, it lacks originality and authenticity.
D. Single story is about being biased that favors one group or country.

12. Which of the following situations best reflect the single story?
A. There weren’t many Africans stories.
B. The speaker started reading at a very young age.
C. When the speaker wrote exactly the kinds of stories she was reading
D. When the speaker admitted she did not know what ginger beer was

13. What is the speaker’s intention in sharing her personal experience?

A. To make the topic more relatable so the speaker can make strong connections with the audience
B. To make her speech more believable since her topic is about children’s literature
C. To sustain audience attention so as not to bore them
D. To make it appear that her experience is a novel one

14. Which of the following validates and supports the speaker’s concept of single story?
A. her early reading experience rich with local and foreign ideas
B. underrepresentation of African culture in Western readings
C. the African authors she views as role models