[PDF] ICAS Practice Questions English Paper F.pdf | Plain Text

\b PAPER DO NOT OPEN THIS BOOKLET UNTIL INSTRUCTED. STUDENT’S NAME: Read the instructions on the ANSWER SHEET and fill in your NAME, SCHOOL and OTHER IN\bORMATION. Use a 2B or B pencil. Do NOT use a pen. Ru\b out any mistakes completely. You MUST record your answers on the ANSWER SHEET. ENGLISH Mark only ONE answer for each question. Your score will \be the num\ber of correct answers. Marks are NOT deducted for incorrect answers. Use the information provided to choose the BEST answer from the four possi\ble options. On your ANSWER SHEET fill in the oval that matches your answer. Questions may sometimes \be placed next to each other. Make sure you read ACROSS the page and answer the questions in the correct order. You are NOT allowed to use a dictionary or an electronic translator. Practice Q uestions I n t e r n a t i o n a l C o m p e t i t i o n s and Assessments for S\bhools

ICAS English Practice Questions Paper F © EAA 2 Read Vikings – the untold story and answer questions 1 to 8. Vikings – the unto\ ld story Viking history and stories about Vikings are often dominated by dramatic events and personalities but what of everyday Viking life? Summer in the year 986, Hordaland fylke, Norway. Home of Olaf and Helde Nordstrom and their 14–year–old son, Erik. ‘This porridge has lumps, Helde!’ Olaf bellowed. Erik smirked. He knew what was coming and it wouldn’t be pleasant. Fun though. Helde emerged from the cooking space at the far end of the house. It was some 20 metres to Olaf ’s seat by the window but Helde covered the distance – plaits flying, her bulk wiping out the grass sods stacked neatly by the fireplace – in milliseconds. Erik shifted quickly, just enough to keep out of the way but still retain a clear view. Another happy family scene was about to unfold in the Nordstrom household! At times Erik pondered his father’s neural capacity. Perhaps it helped if one worked in the kitchen, as Erik did every morning, observing Helde’s mounting frustration. Clay pots cracking, spilling their contents over hot coals, Helde savagely pouring porridge dregs into yet another ‘second-hand’ pot, all the while cursing her husband for buying cheap pots, Olaf upstairs in Viking Valhalla – oblivious. On a bad day, the hot coals, caked in porridge, spluttered into lifelessness. A very bad day. Not unlike today! Erik watched as Olaf the Awful (his nickname) sat impassively as the dogs licked the porridge dripping from his shoulder, down his arm, onto the dirt floor (another bone of contention). ‘Incongruous ,’ Erik thought, simultaneously marvelling at the extent of his vocabulary. ‘Here we have one of the most feared Vikings in the neighbourhood bloodied and bowed before breakfast. Now this is the stuff of legends!’

3 ICAS English Practice Questions Paper F © EAA 1. Why are some words in the text written in italics? (A) They indicate that the information can be disregarded. (B) They have been written by someone other than the author. (C) They provide information which sets the scene for the narrative. (D) They confirm the previous statement about the stories of Vikings. 2. Helde could be described as (A) clumsy and reckless. (B) youthful and amusing. (C) impatient and volatile. (D) friendly and good-natured. 3. How did Erik respond to the events at breakfast? (A) He was amazed by his mother’s actions. (B) He was amused by his father’s behaviour. (C) He was nervous about the effects of the violence. (D) He was annoyed at being expected to help with the meal. 4. Which sentence is meant to be ironic? (A) ‘He knew what was coming and it wouldn’t be pleasant.’ (B) ‘Another happy family scene was about to unfold in the Nordstrom household!’ (C) ‘At times Erik pondered his father’s neural capacity.’ (D) ‘Not unlike today!’ 5. The word ‘incongruous’ means (A) devastating. (B) extraordinary. (C) unclean. (D) absurd. 6. Which word from the text has a meaning OPPOSITE to ‘agitatedly?’ (A) ‘quickly’ (B) ‘savagely’ (C) ‘impassively’ (D) ‘simultaneously’

ICAS English Practice Questions Paper F © EAA 4 7. From whose point of view is this story told? (A) Olaf’s (B) Erik’s (C) Helde’s (D) the author’s 8. The tone of this text is (A) authoritative. (B) respectful. (C) thoughtful. (D) humorous. For questions 9 and \910 choose the best words to co\bplete the passage. SPACE EXPLORATION Space exploration actually began when humans first looked at the sky and wondered about the drama above: why the Sun rose each morning, why the Moon looked different at different times and why some stars were brighter than others. Throughout history, philosophers, writers, scientists and engineers have speculated about the nature of our universe. The first astronomical records, (9) 4000 years ago in Mesopotamia, were used more for astrology than for science. Wars, for example, were planned according to the relative positions of Mars and Saturn. (10) , understandably, gave astrologers great power. 9. (A) kept with remarkable accuracy (B) stored and surprisingly accurate (C) astonishingly accurate even when (D) with great accuracy even today compared to 10. (A) The ability to offer such advice (B) When they offered such advice (C) The reason for offering such advice (D) Because they could offer such advice

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A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y Z ’– / FIRST NAME to appear on certificate LAST NAME to appear on certificate Are you male or female? Male Female Does anyone in your home usually speak a language other than English? Yes No School name: Town / suburb: Today’s date: Postcode: CLASS DATE OF BIRTH Day Month Year 0 1 2 3 0 1 0 1 2 3 5 6 7 8 9 4 0 1 2 3 5 6 7 8 9 4 0 1 2 3 5 6 7 8 9 4 0 1 2 3 5 6 7 8 9 4 (optional) U U U U U U U U U U U U U U U U U U U U U U U U U U U U U U U U U U U U U U U U U U U A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T HOW TO FILL OUT THIS SHEET: • Rub out all mistakes completely. • Print your details clearly in the boxes provided. • Make sure you fill in only one oval in each column. EXAMPLE 1: Debbie Bach FIRST NAME LAST NAME ABCD ABCD ABCD ABCD ABCD ABCD ABCD ABCD ABCD ABCD ABCD ABCD EXAMPLE 2: Chan Ai Beng FIRST NAME LAST NAME ABCD ABCD ABCD ABCD ABCD ABCD ABCD ABCD ABCD ABCD ABCD ABCD ABCD EXAMPLE 3: Jamal bin Abas FIRST NAME LAST NAME ABCD ABCD ABCD ABCD ABCD ABCD ABCD ABCD ABCD ABCD ABCD ABCD ABCD ABCD E *046008* Pa Per F I n t e r n a t i o n a l C o m p e t i t i o n s and Assessments for Schools PRACTICE QUESTIONS EInterainolaE tCmt\SrnptlCeEItpsdnl

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ICAS English Practice Questions Paper F © EAA LEGEND Area refers to the particular curriculum area or strand assessed by the question. RL Reading – Literary questions which require students to comprehend and interpret texts such as stories, poems, extracts from novels, reviews, plays RF Reading – Factual questions which require students to understand and interpret information and argument texts, including texts which incorporate diagrams, tables and images from a range of curriculum areas, e.g. reports, editorials, advertisements, explanations TD Textual devices questions which require students to recognise and to interpret textual devices which include figurative and rhetorical language (e.g. metaphor, rhetorical question, pun) and text conventions (e.g. use of different font sizes and types, captions) SYN Syntax questions about accuracy and clarity within sentences or texts (e.g. pronoun reference, tense) and the recognition of grammatical terms (e.g. noun, main clause) VOC Vocabulary questions about the meaning of words or phrases QUESTIONKEYDESCRIPTION OF SKILL AREALEVEL OF DIFFICULTY 1 CInterpret the use of italics for a preface to a narrative TDEasy 2 CInfer a character’s personality from a narrative RLMedium 3 BInfer a character’s attitude and response from events in a narrative RL Medium 4 BIdentify an example of irony in a narrative TDHard 5 DIdentify the meaning of a word: incongruous VOCMedium 6 CIdentify a word from a narrative that is opposite in meaning to a given word VOC Medium 7 BSynthesise a narrative to determine the narrative voice RLEasy 8 DSynthesise a narrative to identify the tone of the text RLEasy 9 AIdentify the option that correctly maintains text cohesion SYN Medium/Hard 10 AIdentify the option that correctly maintains text cohesion SYN Medium/Hard

ICAS English Practice Questions Paper F © EAA Level of difficulty refers to the expected level of difficulty for the question. Easy more than 70% of candidates will choose the correct option Medium about 50–70% of candidates will choose the correct option Medium/Hard about 30–50% of candidates will choose the correct option Hard less than 30% of candidates will choose the correct option