ABC Education · 11+ Practice
Week 6 · English Practice Paper
Reading: 70 marks · Writing: 30 marks · Suggested time: 90 minutes.
Section A: SPaG (Multiple Choice)
Question 1
[2 marks]Which punctuation mark should go at the end of the following sentence? 'What time does the film start' a) Full stop b) Question mark c) Exclamation mark d) Comma
Question 2
[2 marks]Which of the following could go at the end of the following sentence? 'Get out of here right now' a) Either a full stop or a question mark b) Question mark only c) Exclamation mark only d) Either full stop or exclamation mark
Question 3
[2 marks]Which piece of punctuation is missing from the following sentence? Marcus said the exit is over there. a) Full stop b) Question mark c) Comma d) Speech marks
Question 4
[2 marks]Which sentence is punctuated correctly? a) They said that they were going to the park, I waited outside. b) They said, that they were going to the park. I waited outside. c) They said that they were going, to the park, I waited outside. d) They said that they were going to the park. I waited outside.
Question 5
[2 marks]Which sentence is punctuated correctly? a) 'Where are you going, Sam,' asked Priya. b) 'Where are you going, Sam', asked Priya. c) 'Where are you going, Sam?' asked Priya. d) 'Where are you going Sam?' asked Priya.
Question 6
[2 marks]Which sentence is punctuated correctly? a) Its not your fault; youre doing fine. b) It's not your fault; you're doing fine. c) Its not your fault; you're doing fine. d) It's not you're fault, your doing fine.
Question 7
[2 marks]In the following sentence, what type of word is 'shouting'? 'Even teachers, shouting instructions and blowing whistles, could not calm the crowd.' a) Noun b) Verb c) Adjective d) Adverb
Question 8
[2 marks]Which word is a VERB in the following sentence? 'They admitted, rather sheepishly, that they had once believed themselves brave enough to walk the plank.' a) admitted b) rather c) themselves d) sheepishly
Question 9
[2 marks]Which word in the following sentence is an ADJECTIVE? "Help him, help him!" shouted Leo, staring in terror at the churning river below. a) terror b) staring c) below d) churning
Question 10
[2 marks]Which are the correct words in the sentence? He gave her some useful ___: don't ___ ___ spelling. a) advise / practice / you're b) advice / practise / your c) advice / practice / you're d) advise / practise / your e) advice / practise / you're
Question 11
[2 marks]Which are the correct words for the sentence? I cannot ___ spiders; ___ my least ___ creature. a) bare / their / favorite b) bear / there / favourite c) bare / they're / favourite d) bear / they're / favourite e) bear / their / favourite
Question 12
[2 marks]Which are the correct words for the sentence? Being ___ isn't ___; you just need to be ___. a) patiant / neccessary / reasonable b) patient / necessary / resonable c) patient / necessary / reasonable d) patiant / necessary / reasonible e) patient / neccessary / reasonable
Question 13
[2 marks]Which words are correct for the sentences? This is ___! ___ the best day of my life! a) incredable / Its / definately b) incredible / It's / definitely c) incredible / Its / definitely d) incredible / It's / definately e) incredable / It's / definitely
Reading Passage
The Crossing
"Turn left at the third cloud, and keep flying till you see the light." That, Cassius had told Elsie, was the way to the Evershore; but even birds, carrying charts and checking them at every gust, could not have found it with directions like that. Cassius, you see, simply said whatever came into his head. (line 5) At first his companions trusted him completely, and so wonderful were the thrills of flying that they wasted whole hours diving round lighthouses or any other tall thing that caught their fancy.
Tom and Ruby raced each other, Ruby getting a head start. (line 10) They remembered, rather bitterly, that not so long ago they had thought themselves daring simply for jumping off the garden wall.
Not long ago. But how long ago? They had been flying over open water for some time now, and this thought had begun to trouble Elsie seriously. Tom thought it was their second sea and their fourth night. (line 15)
Certainly none of them pretended to be tired — they simply were, and that was dangerous, because the moment they drifted off, down they dropped. The terrible thing was that Cassius found this hilarious. "There he goes again!" he would call out cheerfully, as Ruby suddenly plunged like a stone. (line 20)
"Catch her, catch her!" cried Elsie, staring in horror at the merciless waves far below. Eventually Cassius would swoop down and snatch Ruby up just before she struck the water, and it was wonderful the way he managed it; but you got the feeling it was his own cleverness that fascinated him, not the saving of anyone's life. He was also easily bored, and whatever game had gripped him one moment would suddenly lose its charm the next, so there was always a chance that the next time you fell, he might simply let you go. (line 25)
He could sleep mid-air without falling, simply by lying flat and drifting, though this was partly because he weighed so little that a decent gust from behind sent him gliding faster still.
"Do try and be nicer to him," Elsie whispered to Tom, while they played Follow the Leader. (line 30)
"Then tell him to stop showing off," said Tom.
When they played Follow the Leader, Cassius liked to skim low over the sea and flick each shark's tail as he passed, the way you might trail your fingers along park railings. None of them could copy this half as well, so it was rather like showing off, especially since he kept glancing back to count how many tails they'd missed. (line 35)
"You must be kind to him," Elsie warned her brother. "What would we do if he decided to leave?"
"We could turn back," said Tom.
"How would we ever find our way without him?" (line 40)
"Well then, we'd just keep going," said Tom.
"That's the awful part, Tom. We'd have to keep going, because none of us knows how to stop."
This was true. Cassius had never once shown them how to land. (line 45)
Tom pointed out that if the very worst happened, all they had to do was keep flying straight, because the world was round, and sooner or later they'd come back to their own window.
"And who's going to catch us food, Tom?" (line 50)
"I pinched a good mouthful from that gull's beak earlier, Elsie."
"After the fifteenth try," Elsie reminded him. "And even though we've gotten better at it, look how we bump into clouds when he isn't nearby to steady us." (line 55)
Cassius wasn't with them just now, and they felt rather lonely up there by themselves. He could travel so much faster than they could that he would often shoot off out of sight to have some adventure they weren't invited to. (line 60) He'd come back laughing about something wildly funny he'd said to a passing comet, but by then he'd have forgotten what it was, or he'd return with strands of cloud-silk still caught in his hair, unable to properly explain where he'd been. It was really rather irritating to children who had never once seen a comet up close.
Reading: The Crossing
Question 1
[2 marks]What is Cassius's response to Ruby falling asleep and dropping? a) He is worried about Ruby falling. b) He ignores it. c) He thinks it is funny. d) He is angry with Ruby for falling asleep.
Question 2
[2 marks]How long have the children been flying? a) One night. b) Two nights. c) Three nights. d) Four nights.
Question 3
[2 marks]In line 6, what does 'trusted him completely' mean? a) They don't trust Cassius. b) They do trust Cassius but only for the moment. c) They are starting to trust Cassius. d) They absolutely trust Cassius.
Question 4
[2 marks]What is the meaning of 'remembered, rather bitterly' in line 10? a) They retold the story of jumping off the wall. b) They remembered when jumping off the wall felt daring. c) They couldn't remember jumping off the wall. d) They compared jumping off the wall to flying in the sky.
Question 5
[2 marks]What is the meaning of the bitterness in line 10? a) They feel angry about flying over water. b) They feel sad about jumping off the wall. c) They think jumping off the wall wasn't as impressive as flying. d) They think jumping off the wall was better than flying.
Question 6
[2 marks]What is the meaning of 'it was his own cleverness that fascinated him' in line 24? a) Cassius is disgusted by his own skill. b) All of Cassius's attention is focused on his own skill. c) Cassius is not interested in his skill. d) Cassius is mildly interested in his skill.
Question 7
[2 marks]Which statement(s) best describe how Elsie feels about Cassius? Circle all that you think are correct. a) Elsie likes Cassius without reservation. b) Elsie worries that Cassius is not responsible. c) She is afraid of Cassius. d) She considers Cassius a friend. e) She is concerned about what would happen if they upset him.
Question 8
[10 marks]How does Tom feel about Cassius? Select two quotations and explain what they suggest about Tom's feelings.
Question 9
[5 marks]In line 20, the sea is described as 'merciless'. Which type of figurative language is being used here? a) Metaphor b) Simile c) Personification d) Adjective. What is the effect?
Question 10
[15 marks]Cassius is clearly more skilled than the rest of the children at flying. What do the children feel about his superior skill? Choose 3 quotations and explain what they suggest about how the children feel about Cassius's skill in flying.
Section B: Writing
Choose ONE of the following:
- Do ONE of the two tasks.
- Pay attention to: spelling, punctuation, grammar, paragraphing, vocabulary, use of description.
Option 1: Write the episode mentioned in the final paragraph: Cassius having an adventure with a passing comet.
- You may include the other children in the story as well.
- Make sure you include description in your story.
Option 2: Write the episode of Elsie, Tom and Ruby finally returning home.
- You may include Cassius in the episode as well.
- Make sure you include description in your story.