Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti

Annual Examination: 2020-21

Subject – English Core
Class – XI
Max. Marks : 80 Time: 3 Hrs.
General Instructions :
1.This paper is divided into two parts : A and B .
2. All questions are compulsory.
3. Separate instructions are given with each section and question, wherever necessary. Read these instructions
very carefully and follow them.
4. Do not exceed the prescribed word limit while answering the questions.
PART : A ( 40 Marks )
READING
1. Read the passage given below.
1. The Art of Living is learnt easily by those who are positive and optimistic . From humble
and simple people to great leaders in history, science or literature , we can learn a lot about
the art of living , by having a peep into their lives. The daily routines of these great men not
only reveal their different , maybe unique life styles, but also help us learn certain habits
and practices they followed. Here are some: read , enjoy and follow in their footsteps as it
suits you.
2. A private workplace always helps. Jane Austen asked that a certain squeaky hinge should
never be oiled so that she always had a warning whenever someone was approaching the
room where she wrote. William Faulkner , lacking a lock on hi study door ,detached the
door- knob and brought it into the room with him. Mark Twain’s family knew better than
to breach his study door – they would blow a horn to draw him out. Graham Greene went
even further , renting a secret office; only his wife knew the address and the telephone
number . After all everyone of us needs a workplace where we can work on our creation
uninterruptedly . Equally we need our private space too !

3. A daily walk has always been a source of inspiration. For many artists , a regular stroll
was essentially a creative inspiration. Charles Dickens famously took three hour walks
every afternoon and what he observed on them fed directly into his writing . Tchaikovsky
could make do with a two-hour journey but would not return a moment early ; convinced
that doing so would make him ill. Ludwig van Beethoven took lengthy strolls after lunch
carrying a pencil and paper . with him . 19 th century composer Erik Satie did the same on
his long hikes from Paris to the working class suburb where he lived , stopping under street
lamps to jot down ideas that came on his journey. It’s rumored that when those lamps
were turned off during the war years, his music declined too. Many great people had
limited social life too. One of Simone de Beauvoir’s close friends puts it this way. There
were no receptions , parties. It was an uncluttered kind of life ,a simplicity deliberately
constructed so that she could do her work . To Pablo the idea of Sunday was an ‘at home
day’.

4. The routines of these thinkers are difficult. Perhaps it is because they are so unattainable .
The very idea that you can organize your time as you like is out of reach for most of us .
Like Francine Prose who began writing when the school bus picked up her children and
stopped when it brought them back.: or T.S.Eliot who found it much easier to write once he
had a day job in a bank than he had as a starving poet and even F.Scott Fitzerald , whose
 early books were written in his strict schedule as a young military officer. Those days were
not as interesting as the nights in Paris that came later, but they were much more
productive and no doubt on his liver .

5. Being forced to follow someone else ‘s routine may irritate , but it makes easier to stay on
the path. Whenever we break that trail ourselves or take an easy path of least resistance,
perhaps what’s most important is that we keep walking.

On the basis of your understanding of the above passage , answer ANY TEN questions
from the eleven given below. (1x10=10)

(A) The passage is about :

(i) how to practise walking
(ii) walking every day
(iii) the life of a genius
(iv) what we can learn from the life of geniuses.

(B) The writers in the past ------

(i) followed a perfect daily routine.
(ii) enjoyed the difficulties of life
(iii) taught us a lot
(iv) wrote a lot in books

(C) In their daily routines ------------------

(i) they had unique life styles
(ii) they read books and enjoyed them.
(iii) they did not get any privacy
(iv) they did not mind visitors

(D) Some artists resorted to walking as it was :

(i) an excuse
(ii) a creative inspiration
(iii) essential for improving their health
(iv) helpful in interaction with others.

(E) To Pablo the idea of Sunday was an ----

(i) at home day
(ii) off day
(iii) at a mall day
(iv) at friend’s place day

(E) Beethoven took along with him during his long walk :
(i) Pen and paper
(ii) Pencil and bag
(iii) Water bottle
(iv) Pencil and paper

(F) Composer Erik Satie used to ---

(i) Compose music after his walk
(ii) Write his ideas under street lamp
(iii) Sleep immediately after his walk
(iv) have lunch in late evening .
 (H) When did F. Scott Fitzgerald write his early books ?
(i) During his regular stroll
(ii) In his secret office
(iii) During his strict schedule
(iv) In his study room

(I) Pick out the word or phrase from the passage which means the same as ‘ noisy’.
(i) Squeaky
(ii) Detaching
(iii) Blowing
(iv) Breaching

(J) What does the word ‘ unattainable’ ( para 4) mean in the passage.?
(i) Not available
(ii) Not achievable
(iii) Unreachable
(iv) Impossible

(K) The noun form of ‘ organize’ is ----

(i) Organizing
(ii) Organization
(iii) Organized
(iv) None of these

2. Read the passage given below.

1. Corona viruses are a large family of viruses, including some that cause the
common cold to some that cause major diseases such as the Severe Acute
Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) and the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome
(MERS). They were discovered in the 1960s. The name "corona virus" is
derived from the Latin corona, meaning crown or wreath. The name refers to
the characteristic appearance of the infective form of the virus, which is
reminiscent of a crown or a solar corona. The corona virus outbreak came to
light when on December 31, 2019, China informed the World Health
Organization (WHO) of a cluster of cases of pneumonia of an unknown cause
in Wuhan City in Hubei province.
2. On January 9, 2020, the WHO issued a statement saying Chinese researchers
have made “preliminary determination” of the virus as a novel corona virus.
This type of corona virus is often called 2019-nCoV, novel corona virus, or
COVID-19. It is believed that the virus was transmitted from animals to
humans. Some of the first cases were diagnosed in people who had visited a
market selling live seafood and animals. Unfortunately, when viruses are
transmitted from animals to people, it can take scientists a lot of time before
they can develop a vaccine or medicines to cure it.
 Some of the symptoms of the corona virus are fever, cough, runny nose, sore
throat, headache, and trouble breathing.
3. The virus can be more serious in some people, especially if they are sick or have
health problems. Some early reports reveal that children seem to be getting
corona virus at much lower rates than adults. Even if they get infected, the
symptoms are milder. However, most people who get severely infected are those
with a weak immune system, like the elderly. Corona virus may be life-
threatening for these people. They may develop more serious respiratory tract
illnesses that may be fatal.
4. The virus appears to spread mainly from person to person. The transmission
occurs when someone comes into contact with an infected person. The spread
may also be caused by coming into contact with something an infected person
has touched and then touching our mouth, nose or eyes. There is no specific
vaccine or medication to cure the disease, but generally, symptoms will go away
on their own. However, experts recommend seeking medical care early if
symptoms feel worse than a standard cold.
5. Doctors can relieve symptoms by prescribing pain or fever medication. As far as
antibiotics are concerned, they are useless to treat corona virus. A set of
preventive measures are usually followed in case someone gets infected. This
includes keeping infected people in quarantine for a certain period, generally
fourteen days.

On the basis of your understanding of the passage , answer ANY EIGHT

questions from the nine given below. 1x8=8 Marks
A. The name 'corona virus' is derived from ----------
(i) Latin corona , crown or wreath
(ii) Latin corona , wreath or virus
(iii) Latin corona , crown or solar corona
(iv) Latin corona , virus or crown

B. Common cold is the cause of the following diseases --------

(i) Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome
(ii) Middle East Respiratory Syndrome
(iii) Pneumonia
(iv) Both i and ii
C. The symptoms of the corona virus are ------
(i) fever and cough
(ii) runny nose and sore throat
(iii) headache and trouble breathing
(iv) all of these

D. It is believed that the virus was transmitted -------

(i) from humans to animals
(ii) from birds to animals
(iii) from animals to humans
(iv) from birds to humans

E .Which word in the passage means the same as ‘communicated ‘

(i) Diagnosed
(ii) spread
(iii) transmitted
(iv) concerned
F. Which word in the passage is synonym to the word ‘exploratory’
(i) Respiratory
(ii) Preliminary
(iii) Preventive
(iv) Quarantine

G. State True or False (T/F)

(i) The epidemic broke out in the year 2019.
(ii) doctors can relieve symptoms by prescribing fever medication.
(iii) The virus appears to spread from person to person
(iv) The spread may also be caused by coming into contact with an infected person.
(a) i and ii are true.
(b) iii and iv are true
(c) i and iv are false
(d) all are true.
H. Novel corona virus is also called -----------
(i) COVID-19
(ii)2019-nCoV
(iii)Both A and B
(iv) None of these
I . Choose the right practice to be followed during COVID-19 pandemic.

A. (i) and (ii)

B. (ii) and (iii)
C. only (iii)
D. (i), (ii) and (iii)

3. Choose the correct determiner from the brackets . ANY FOUR (1X4=4)
(i) There is -------------- milk in the jug. ( little, a, many )
(ii) Many -------- man died of cholera . (a,an, the )
(iii) Would you lend me --------------- money ? ( many, some, much )
(iv) Only ---------------- persons came to witness the match. ( few, a few, many)
(v) A ---------- knowledge is a dangerous thing . ( little, few, some)

4. Read the following paragraph and fill in the blanks with the correct forms of the verbs given in
the brackets . (1X4=4)

Amit ------ (a) (buy ) a camera from his friend Deepak last month. Deepak --------
(b)(sell) the camera to him for two hundred rupees. Amit --------- (c) (pay) for the camera in
cash. Amit ---------------(d) (know) almost nothing about photography at that time. Deepak --------
------- (e) (give) a book with complete directions.

a. (i )buys (ii) bought (iii) has bought (iv) was buying

b. (i) sells (ii) is selling (iii) sold (iv) had sold

c. (i) paid (ii) pays (iii) is paying (iv) will pay

d. (i) had known (ii) knows (iii) knew (iv) was knowing

e. (i) gave (ii) gives (iii) had given (iv) will give
5. Read the extracts given below and attempt ANY ONE of the two given. (3x1=3)
The Laburnum top is silent , quite still
In the afternoon yellow September sunlight,
A few leaves yellowing , all its seeds fallen.
A. Name the poem and the poet.
(i) The Voice of the Rain and Walt Whitman
(ii) The Laburnum Top and Ted Hughes
(iii) Childhood and Markus Natten
(iv) The Laburnum Top and Shirley Toulson
B. What time of the day is it as described in the stanza ?
(i) It is a September afternoon
(ii) It is a September morning
(iii) It is an autumn morning
(iv) It is a winter afternoon

C. Where does the goldfinch land ?

(i) On the branch of a tree
(ii) At the end of a branch.
(iii) At the dense branches of the tree.
(iv) All of these .

OR

When did my childhood go ?

Was it the time I realized that adults were not
all they seemed to be .

A. What idea does the poet convey in these lines ?

(i) Individuality
(ii) Rationalism
(iii) Hypocrisy
(iv) None of these.

B. When does the poet think he had ceased to be a child ?

(i) When he was eleven years old
(ii) When he was twelve years old
(iii) When he was thirteen years old
(iv) When he started listening to the adults.

C. What do adults differ in their actions ?

(i) They are not so loving as they seem to be
(ii) They talk of love but don’t act accordingly
(iii) They don’t act according to what they preach
(iv) All of these.

6. Read the following paragraphs and attempt ANY TWO of the three given by answering the
questions that follow. ( 3x2=6)
1. When my parents were comfortably settled in the city , they sent for us . That was a turning
point in our friendship . although we shared the same room , my grandmother no longer came to
school with me . I used to go to an English school in a motor bus.
A. Who are ‘we ‘ in the above lines ?
(i) The parents of the author
(ii) The author and his grandmother
(iii) The author and his father
(iv) The people of the city.
B. How did the author go to his English school ?
(i) The grand mother took him to the school
(ii) He went to the school by his car
(iii) He went to the school by a motor bus
(iv) His father took him to the school
C. What does the phrase ‘sent for ‘ mean in the passage ?
(i) Returned
(ii) Called
(iii) Went
(iv) Reached

2. As hills started to push up once more from the rocky wilderness , we passed solitary drokbas
tending their flocks .Sometimes men, sometimes women , these well –wrapped figures would
pause and stare at our car , occasionally waving as we passed.

A. In the passage ‘we ‘ stands for----------

(i) The author and Tsetan
(ii) The author and Lhamo
(iii) The author and Norbu
(iv) The author and other pilgrims

B. What are the wandering people of that region called in the local language ?
(i) Kora
(ii) Drokbas
(iii) Kyang
(iv) None of these

C. Why did the author go to Mount Kailash ?

(i) To complete his kora
(ii) To visit the spot
(iii) To observe the landscapes there
(iv) To meet the pilgrims there.

3. As he gazed at the still form a shiver of horror passed over Andrew . After all that he had
promised. His face heated with his own exertions chilled suddenly.

A. Who is the author of the lesson from which this extract has been taken ?
(i) Marga Minco
(ii) William Saroyan
(iii) A.J.Cronin
(iv) Patric Pringle

B. Who saved the life of the lifeless child ?

(i) Andrew Manson (ii) Joe Morgan
(iii) Dr. Edward Page (iv) None of these.

C. How long ago were they married ?

(i) 15 years (ii) 20 years
(iii) 22 years (iv) 25 years

7. Answer the following questions . ANY FIVE . (5X1=5)

A. Why did the author decide to take up the round the world voyage ?
(i) To see the whole world
(ii) To take his family members to foreign countries
(iii) To duplicate the voyage made earlier by Captain James Cook
(iv) To settle down in a foreign country
B. Who reigned for about nine years and then died unexpectedly ?
(i) Amenhotep III
(ii) Smenkhkare
(iii) Tutankhamun
(iv) Akhetaten

C. What does Nani Palkhivala focus on in his article ?

(i) The importance of water
(ii) The importance of forest
(iii) Climatic conditions
(iv) Deteriorating health of the earth.

D. What does the poem ‘ A Photograph ‘ depict ?

(i) A photograph of the poet
(ii) A tribute to the poet’s mother
(iii) The childhood memories of the poet.
(iv) The cousins of the poet.

E. Why was Taplow given extra work ?

(i) He was an intelligent boy
(ii) He missed a day in the school
(iii) He was late for school that day.
(iv) None of the above

F. Which is the origin of the rain ?

(i) The sky
(ii) The clouds
(iii) The forest
(iv) The Earth

PART B- 40 MARKS
Reading Section - 8 Marks

1. Read the passage given below and answer the questions that follow.

1. Effective speaking depends on effective listening . It takes energy to concentrate on hearing and
concentrate on understanding what has been heard .

2. Incompetent listeners fail in a number of ways. First they may drift . Their attention drifts from
what the speaker is saying. Second , they may counter. They find counter arguments to
whatever a speaker may be saying . Third , they compete . Then they filter. They exclude from
their understanding those parts of the message which do not readily fit with their own frame of
reference . Finally they react. They let personal feelings about the speaker or subject override
the significance of the message which is being sent .

3. What can a listener do to be more effective ? The first key to effective listening is the art of
concentration. . If a listener positively wishes to concentrate on receiving a message , his chances
of success are high. It may need determination . Some speakers are difficult to follow . either
because of voice problems or because of the form in which they send a message . There is then a
particular need for the determination of a listener to concentrate on what is being said .
 4. Concentration is helped by alertness . Mental alertness is helped by physical alertness . It is not
simply physical fitness , but also positioning of the body , the limbs and the head .Some people
also find it helpful to their concentration if they hold the head slightly to one side . One useful
way for achieving this is intensive note-taking , by trying to capture the critical headings and
sub-headings the speaker is referring to .

5. Note-taking has been recommended as an aid to the listener . It also helps the speaker . . It gives
him confidence when he sees that listeners are sufficiently interested to take notes; the patterns
of eye –contact when the note -taker looks up can be very positive ; and the speaker’s timing is
aided – he can see when a note-taker is writing hard and can then make effective use of pauses .
Posture too is important . Effective listening skills have an impact on both the listener and the
speaker .

A. On the basis of your understanding of the passage , male notes on it , using headings and sub
headings . Use recognizable abbreviations wherever necessary . ( Minimum 4 ) and a format you
consider suitable. Also supply a suitable title to it . 05 Marks

B. Write a summary of the above passage in about 50 words . 03 Marks.

2. You are Sugat of D. P. Public school , Nagpur . as the Student Editor of your school magazine ,
draft a notice in not more than 50 words for your school notice –board , inviting
articles / sketches from students of all classes.

OR

You are Health Secretary , Students’ Council , Citizens Public School , Vishakha Nagar , Varanasi.
The council has decided to start a week-long awareness drive about COVID-19 among the
people of the city . Draft a notice in about 50 words asking the Class XI students to enroll for the
drive. 03 Marks

3. Design a poster for donation of old/new books to the Textbook section of the library for
distribution to poor students. ( 50 words ).
OR
Design a poster to promote computer education. ( 50 words ) 03 Marks

4. Your sister has just passed the All India Secondary School Examination of CBSE .She is keen on
joining some institute which may help her in her personality development . She consults her
language teacher on the subject who advises her to join the Centre for Creativity and
Development for this purpose. Now write a letter to the Director of the Centre , seeking
necessary information about her admission to their 8 –week summer course in leadership.
(120-150 words )
OR
As a Librarian of Jyoti Public School , Shujalpur , write a letter to M/S Sohanlal and Brothers
Booksellers , Bhopl ,placing an order for books to be supplied immediately .
( Mention at least 4 titles of the books ) 05 Marks

5. Some people feel that electronic media ( TV news ) will bring about the end of print media
(newspapers ) . What are your views on the issue ? Write a debate in 120-150 words either for
or against this view.
- Use of visuals
- authentic and fast
- not enough news for 24 –hour telecast
- become repetitive and dull
- even scandals become news
- print media- time tested
- editorial comments
OR
Social Media sites are very popular among teenagers . They spend majority of their free time on
these sites, socializing with their friends . prepare a speech to be delivered in the morning assembly
on the topic – “ Social Media - Good or Bad for Children “ . (120-150 words) 05 Marks

- Has positive aspects

- Can break a person
- Fake face book accounts
- Valuable time wasted on social media sites
- Can affect the future

6. Answer the following questions in about 30-40 words each . 2x2=4 Marks
A. Describe the Chinese view of art .
OR
What is the result of the increased demand on the principal biological systems ?

B. How does rain give back life to the earth ?

OR
Explain : “ The sea holiday was her past , mine is her laughter .”

7. Answer the following questions in about 40 words. 1x2=2 Marks

How and when did the narrator come to know of Mrs. Dorling’s address ?
OR
How was Ranga’s homecoming a great event ?

8. Answer the following question in 120-150 words 1x5=5 Marks

The children faced situation more bravely than their elders . Discuss in context to ‘ We are not
afraid to die “ .
OR
Talking about another teacher with a teacher is not a very healthy and encouraging trend .
Justify the statement in the light of Mr. Frank’s encouragement to Taplow’s comments on Mr.
Crocker Harris .

9. Answer the following question in 120-150 words . 1x5=5 Marks

Write a note on the title of the play , “ Mother’s Day “ .

OR
Describe Andrew’s frantic efforts to save the child . How did he succeed in the end ?

Assessment of Speaking and Listening Skills - 20 Marks

Listening Skill - 10 Marks
Speaking Skill - 10 Marks