Read the passage given below and answer the questions that follow:

1. Politeness has been well defined as benevolence in trifles. It is the desire to put those whom we meet perfectly at their ease, and save them from every kind of petty discomfort and annoyance. The limited part of benevolence called politeness requires only an inclination to make them happy temporarily, while they are in our presence, and when this can be done without any sacrifice on our part or only with a slight sacrifice of personal comfort.

2. Politeness is said to be one of the important characteristics of civilised person. Politeness is the art of choosing among your thoughts. It must be implemented in every walk of life. When we deal with people elder to us we are polite. But, an honest polite person is polite with everyone, people of lower status, workers and even children. Not only with humans but also with animals we must be polite as they are our helpers.

3. Politeness is a skill. Like any other skill, you can master it with practice. The greatest enemy of politeness is ego. To be a polite person, you have to sacrifice your ego. It is difficult for an egoist to be polite. You have to imply politeness in your thinking, speech and actions. Actions work more than words. Polite actions will give fine results. Politeness will reduce your stress and boost you to be productive. Apart from your present benefits, you protect your future. Being polite makes you mentally healthy. In our daily life we come across many incidents with people nearby and ourselves.

4. Different rules of behaviour have to be observed, accordingly as we are in the street or in the drawing- room, at home or at school, in the company of friends or of strangers. There is also to be considered the great diversity of social etiquette which distinguishes one country from another.

5. Politeness, besides being a duty that we owe to others, is a valuable possession for ourselves. It costs nothing, and yet may in many cases bring much profit. The great advantage of this excellence of conduct was very clearly expressed by Dr. Johnson, when he said that the difference between a well-bred and an ill- bred man is that one immediately attracts your liking, the other your dislike. (378 words)

(Abridged from:https://www.shareyouressays.com/3444/563-words-short-essay-on-politeness and https://syedasrarahmed.blogspot.in/2012/02/importance-of-politeness.html)

2.1 On the basis of your reading of the passage, answer any four of the following questions in about 30-40 words each

a. Why is politeness called as limited part of benevolence?

b. List some of the persons we should be polite to?

c. Why is it difficult for an egoist to be polite?

d. What are the benefits of being polite?

e. Which are the rules of behaviour to be observed?

2.2 On the basis of your reading of the passage, fill in any two of the following blanks with appropriate words/phrases.

a. Politeness is an art of choosing.

b. An honest polite person is polite with.

c. To others, we.

2.3 Find out the words that mean the same as under. Attempt any two of the following:

a. insignificant (Paragraph 1)

b. manners (Paragraph 4)

c. civil (Paragraph 5)

Read the passage given below and answer the questions that follow:

1. Cricket is a global passion, played everywhere from Test match arenas to village greens, tropical beaches and dusty back lots. Cricket is the world's second most popular spectator sport after football.

2. The origin of cricket is somewhere in the Dark Ages. All research concedes that the game derived from a very old, widespread and uncomplicated pastime by which one player served up an object, be it a small piece of wood or a ball, and another hit it with a suitably fashioned club. Cricket was first recorded in 16th-century England, and it was played in grammar schools, farm communities and everywhere in between. But things really took off when 18thcentury nobles realised it was a great sport.

3. The oldest surviving set of cricket laws date from 1744 – printed on a handkerchief, naturally. It's now in the MCC Museum at Lord’s in London. The oldest permanent fixture is the annual Eton v Harrow match, played since 1805. A young Lord Byron turned out for Harrow in the first match, though history doesn't record how poetic – or “mad, bad and dangerous” – his bowling was.

5. The first international match was in 1877 when Australia beat England in Melbourne. The match was dubbed a “Test”, since the grueling nature of playing over five days was deemed the ultimate “test” for any side. But it was Australia’s first win on English soil – in 1882 at The Oval in London – that led to matches between the two nations being christened the Ashes. Following the defeat, newspapers published an obituary mourning “the death of English cricket”, adding that “the body will be cremated and the ashes taken to Australia”.

6. A One Day International (ODI) is a form of limited overs cricket, played between two teams with international status, in which each team faces a fixed number of overs, usually 50. The Cricket World Cup is played in this format. The international one-day game is a late twentieth century development. The first ODI was played on 5 January 1971 between Australia and England at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. (344words)

1.1 Attempt any eight of the following questions on the basis of the passage you have read.

a. According to the passage, how did the game of Cricket originate?

b. Where can we find the oldest sets of Cricket laws?

c. Which match did Lord Byron play?

d. When was the first international match played?

e. Which countries played that match?

f. Why the matches between Australia and England were titled “The Ashes”?

g. In which format is the Cricket world cup played?

h. When did the ODIs begin?

i. Which word in paragraph no.5 means the same as „exhausting‟?

You are Sonal/ Samkit of Vidyanjali Public School, Lucknow. You have seen an advertisement in “The Times of India” related to new batches of “Astronomy Club” initiated by National Science Centre, Lucknow starting from the coming fortnight .You wish to join the Club. Write a letter to the Director, enquiring about the venue, duration, fee- structure, activities, transportation etc. Invent other necessary details (100-120 words)

OR

You are the In-charge of the Medical Section of Gyanodaya Public School, Nehru Vihar, Alwar. Your stock of medicines is about to finish .Write a letter to the Director of Jambo Medicare, Delhi, ordering medical items like glucose, crocin, bandages, tincture ,pain-healers, ointments etc. Ask for discount on bulk order .Invent other necessary details. (100-120 words)

Write a short story, in about 200-250 words, with any one set of the cues given in the boxes below. Give a suitable title to the story.

Jasmine, Ali and two other friends decided to go on a picnic to a beach. They packed their bags and were quite excited. They reached the picnic spot and came across a small child who was crying ………..

OR

On October 4, we all were decorating our house to celebrate the most long-awaited festival, Diwali. My heart was filled with excitement to meet my father after a long gap of six years. But a call from the army headquarters left us stunned…

Fill in any four of the following blanks choosing the most appropriate option from the ones given below. Write the answers in your answer –sheet against the correct blank numbers.