English Test for JSS1, First Term

English Test for JSS1

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Part 1: Comprehension

Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions

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After getting married, a couple usually looks forward to having children. The children that the husband and wife want must be healthy. Their joy increases as they nurture the children to adulthood and they become responsible citizens in the society. How can this dream be achieved? Modern science has helped to reduce the death rate among children and mothers. In the past, many children died before the age of five. They were called abiku or ogbanje because of the belief in their repeated cycle of birth, death and re-birth.

Nowadays, modern science has stopped the belief in abiku or ogbanje. People now know that children die of five killer diseases namely: whooping cough, measles, diarrhoea, chicken pox and small pox. Modern science has developed vaccines which are given to newly born babies to protect them against
these diseases. Children now live beyond the age of five and grow up to become healthy adults.

Another problem arose when the colonial masters came with infant formula to feed new babies. When babies were born in the hospital of the white men, they were immediately separated from their mother in the ward. They were fed with infant food prepared and kept in sterilized bottles. Fortunately, experts have discovered the disadvantage in feeding babies with infant formula. The artificial food is not as rich in nutrients as the mother's breast milk. The breast milk contains all the nutrients a child needs to fight diseases.

Nowadays, it is advised that a mother should breastfeed her child for the first six months of their lives. Moreover, when a mother breastfeeds her child, there is a bond between them that develops into strong love later in life. The mother too benefits from breastfeeding her child for many months. She quickly regains her normal shape after child birth. A woman who breastfeeds her children is also not likely to suffer from breast cancer later in life. We can now thank modern science which is helping couples to give birth to healthy children and raise them to adulthood.

Please read on "the gods are not to blame here."

 

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Questions

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1. After marriage, a couple usually looks forward to _____

A. buying a car

B. building a house

C. having children

D. getting a job

2. In the first paragraph the word "nurture" means _____.

A. caution

B. encourage

C. discourage

D. train

 

3. In the past, many children died before the age of five because _____.

A. they were killed by five childhood diseases

B. their parents were poor

C. they were ogbanje

D. they did not like their parents

 

4. Who introduced the feeding of children with infant formula?

A. The doctors

B. The nurses

C. The colonial masters

D. The parents

 

5. The nutrients in paragraph four means _____.

A. natural food substances

B. medicine

C. liquid food substances

D. artificial food substances

Please read on figures of speech here.

 

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Part 2: Vocabulary Development

In the following passage, the numbered gaps indicate missing words. Against each number in the list below the passage, four options are given in the columns lettered A to D. For each question, choose the word that is most suitable to fill the numbered gap in the passage.

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When my elder brother decided to __6__ a current account with United Bank for Africa, he walked into one of its __7__ and obtained the necessary __8__ which he completed and returned to the __9__. He was then given paying-in __10__.

Soon, he started issuing __11__ to people with whom he transacted business. Whenever his signature was irregular, his cheque was not __12__. Once, he wanted to obtain a __13__ and the bank insisted on __14__.

	A	B	C	D
6	start	open	begin	close
7	branches	offices	premises	houses
8	bills	booklets	applications	forms
9	principal	director	manager	chairman
10	papers	bonds	tallies	slips
11	cheques	money	numbers	contracts
12	accepted	honoured	paid	received
13	credit	debit	loan	balance
14	witness	guarantor	collateral	interest

 

Please read on idioms here.

 

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Part 3: Oral

Choose the word which does not rhyme with others in each line

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	A	B	C	D
15	man	many	mad	sang
16	bag	men	bet	beg
17	rack	sang	farm	cap
18	back	trap	land	grass
19	bury	bad	hand	pan
20	dark	clap	cart	heart

 

Please read on transitive and intransitive verbs here.

 

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Part 4: Literature-in-English

Somayina: The Smart Little Orphan by Chigbo A. Ugwuoke

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21. What impressed the grandmother about Somayina was his _____.

A. spoken English

B. intelligence

C. tenderness

D. endurance

 

22. Somayina was able to deliver the strayed goat from Lamido's beatings by _____.

A. singing Cheke leke for Lamido

B. dancing for Lamido

C. promising to give Lamido his bread and akara the following day

D. carrying Lamido's heavy load for him

 

23. Somayina discovered during the visit to his grandfather that the latter was _____.

A. lame

B. deaf

C. dumb

D. blind

 

24. The repair of the roof of grandpa house took _____ day(s).

A. one

B. five

C. four

D. three

 

25. The mission of the village councillor to grandma was to _____.

A. check up on her welfare

B. persuade her to enrol Somayina in school

C. request her tax payment

D. deliver a gift to her

 

26. The location of Ginika's home is _____.

A. Udokamma

B. Port-Harcourt

C. Banana Island

D. Elkoro

 

27. The adopting parents of Lamido are _____.

A. Monica and Clement

B. Ginika and Clement

C. Lady Osisiego and Clement

D. Clement and Egonnal

 

28. Ginika visited grandma in order to _____.

A. deliver a message to her from her boss

B. return the money she borrowed from grandma

C. take Somayina to Port-Harcourt

D. take grandma to the hospital

 

29. Which one is NOT correct in this group?

A. Saraki is Gozie's tutor

B. Uncle Spike is Chief Osisiego's housekeeper

C. Gozie is a cripple

D. Gozie and Somayina became friends instantly they met

 

30. The gift given to Somayina by the kind gateman of the company where he went to look at the sky was _____.

A. five chicks

B. two puppies

C. three guinea pigs

D. four guinea pigs

Please read on the proverbs and their meanings in "the gods are not to blame" here.

 

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Theory

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Essay 

• Mobile phones should be allowed in school. Write for or against the topic.

You can read on phrase in English here.

 

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Structure and Use of English

Complete each of the sentences below with the correct form of verb in the bracket

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• Last December, we (swim) in the river.

• Mustapha (go) to the market yesterday.

• If I (be) you, I would not give up.

• Did he come? Yes, he (come).

• Yesterday, toys (lie) all over the hall.

• The hen (lay) an egg last night.

• He (break) most of those plates.

Please read on nouns and adjectives here.