Buds public school

BUDS PUBLIC SCHOOL

ENGLISH

Class : 4 Topic: Comprehension Passages
Name: _______________________________________

Read the following text and do the comprehension questions:

The Great Wall of China

The Great Wall of China, one of the greatest wonders of the world, was first built between 220–206 BC. In fact, it began as independent walls for different states when it was first built, and did not become the "Great" wall until the Qin Dynasty. Emperor Qin Shihuang succeeded in his effort to have the walls joined together to serve as fortification to protect the northern borders of the Chinese Empire from invasion. Afterwards it was rebuilt and maintained over the years, between the 5th century BC and the 16th century.

One of the myths associated with the Great Wall of China is that it is the only man-made structure that can be seen from the moon with the naked eye. The legend originated in Richard Halliburton's 1938 book Second Book of Marvels. However, this myth is simply not true. Richard Halliburton's claim was contradicted by astronauts Neil Armstrongby and Yang Liwei. A more plausible assumption would be to say that the Great Wall can be visible from a low orbit of the earth which is not unique in this regard as many other artificial constructions can be seen from that height.

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1. 
   The Great Wall of China was first built as a single wall. 
   
   1. 
      True
      
   2. 
      False
      
2. 
   The Great Wall of China
   
   1. 
      Was built in a single dynasty
      
   2. 
      Was refurbished during its history
      
3. 
   The Great Wall was first designed
   
   1. 
      to protect the Empire from invasion.
      
   2. 
      to help trade between different provinces.
      
4. 
   The wall can be seen from moon with the naked eye. 
   a. True
   

2. 
   False
   

The Fish hawk

The fish hawk, or osprey, is not as large as the eagle, but he has a hooked bill and sharp claws like the eagle. He is a dark brown in color with black and white spots, and he is about twenty to twenty-two inches long. His breast is mostly white. His tail and wings are long. The fish hawk is often found sitting upon a tree over a pond, lake, or river. He is also found by the seaside. He watches the fish as they swim in the water beneath him, and then he darts down suddenly and catches one of them.

When he catches a fish in his sharp, rough claws, he carries it off to eat, and, as he flies away with it for his dinner, an eagle sometimes meets him. The eagle flies at him fiercely with his sharp bill and claws and compels the hawk to drop the fish. Then the eagle catches the fish as it falls and carries it off. The poor fish hawk, with a loud cry, timidly flies away. He must go again to the water and catch another fish for his dinner. So you see that the eagle is a robber. He robs fish hawks, whose only mode of getting a living is by catching fish.

Answer the following questions:

1. Where do fish hawks live?

2. Why does the fish hawk let the eagle take its fish?

3. How are fish hawks and eagles alike?

4. Why do you think fish hawks live where they do?

THE FOX AND THE LITTLE RED HEN

Once upon a time there was a little red hen. She lived in a little white house, and she had a little green garden. Every day she worked in the house and garden. Near her home lived a family of foxes. One day Mamma Fox said to Papa Fox, “I want a fat hen to eat.” There was nothing in the pantry for the baby foxes, so Papa Fox started out to find something for them all. He ran down the road until he came to the woods. “Surely I will find something here,” he said, but he found nothing to eat in the woods. As he came near the little green garden he said, “Oh, I smell fresh cake. Oh, I smell a little red hen.” Sure enough, there was the Little Red Hen eating her cake. Papa Fox snuck up quietly behind her, grabbed her and put her into the bag on his back; then he ran quickly off down the hill toward his home. The Little Red Hen was so frightened that she could only whisper, “Oh, dear. Oh, dear. Oh, dear.”

Just then she had to sneeze, and when she put her claw into her pocket for her handkerchief, she felt her little scissors. Quick as a flash she took them out and cut a little hole in the bag. Peeping out she saw a great hill just ahead, all covered with stones. As Papa Fox stopped to rest on his way up the hill, with his back turned toward her, she cut a big hole in the bag, jumped out and quickly put a big stone in the bag in her place.
As Papa Fox kept on up the hill, he thought the bag was pretty heavy, but he said, “Never mind, she is a fat little red hen.” Mamma Fox met him at the front door with all the baby foxes. “The water is boiling,” said she. “What have you in your bag?” asked the Baby Foxes. “A fat, little, red hen,” said Papa Fox. As he held the bag over the pot, he said to Mamma Fox, “When I drop her in, you clap on the lid.” So he opened the bag. Splash! went the boiling water. It spilled all over Papa Fox and Mamma Fox and the Baby Foxes. Never again did they try to catch the Little Red Hen.


Questions:

1. What was the little red hen’s house like?

2. Why didn’t the fox know the hen escaped?

3. What do the hen’s actions tell us about her as a character?

4. Why do you think the foxes left the Little Red Hen alone in the future?

GEORGE WASHINGTON AND HIS HATCHET

When George Washington was quite a little boy, his father gave him a hatchet. It was bright and new, and George took great delight in going around and chopping things with it. He ran into the garden, and there he saw a tree which seemed to say to him, "Come and cut me down!" George had often seen his father's men chop down the great trees in the forest, and he thought that it would be fine sport to see this tree fall with a crash to the ground. So he set to work with his little hatchet, and, as the tree was a very small one, it did not take long to come down. Soon after that, his father came home. "Who has been cutting my fine young cherry tree?" he cried. "It was the only tree of its kind in this country, and it cost me a great deal of money." He was very angry when he came into the house. "If I only knew who cut down that cherry tree," he cried, "I would—yes, I would"— "Father!" cried little George. "I will tell you the truth about it. I chopped the tree down with my hatchet." His father forgot his anger. "George," he said, and he took the little fellow in his arms, "George, I am glad that you told me about it. I would rather lose a dozen cherry trees than hear you tell one lie."

Questions:

1. What kind of hatchet did George’s dad give him?

a. Red b. New c. Rusty d. Pretend

2. Why didn’t it take long for George to cut down the tree?

a. George had a friend help him b. The tree was already dead

c. George had a huge axe d. The tree was very small

3. You can tell from the story that

a. George is honest b. George’s father is very poor

c. George loves to be inside d. George’s mother is a great baker

4. How might George’s father have gotten the cherry tree?

a. He found it in the woods b. George gave it to him for his birthday

c. It grew from a magic seed d. It was purchased from a friend from another country


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