Read the following passage and then answer the questions that follow.
We had just returned from the lunch break at 1:30 p.m. The weather was beautiful. The
sun was shooting its rays from the vantage of the cloudless sky.
We had reluctantly trooped back to the classroom; it felt like a punishment. We didn’t
want to abandon the warmth of sunshine for the dull classroom. We had to rush back all
the same. We knew the consequences of being late for Mr. Buregeya’s class.
Habimana came into the classroom and curled himself in a corner. The teacher asked him
what the matter was, but he remained quiet. He was oblivious to all that was happening
in the classroom.
Habimana was not known to be rude. Therefore, it was reasonable to assume he could
not have been ignoring Mr. Buregeya. He was a no-nonsense teacher. Habimana was either
very sick or had received terrible news.
We waited to see how the teacher would react to this challenge to his reputation. He asked
the question again but got no response. He removed his glasses, blew some air onto them
before beginning to clean them. After this, he gently put them down on the teacher’s desk. He
began walking towards the quiet figure. Habimana looked like a foetus in the womb.
He was now standing over him, shockingly calm. We waited for the explosion. He
stretched out his huge arms. Nearer, nearer, he was moving towards Habimama. Surely,
this was the moment!
Then as gently as a feather, he lifted Habimana into his arms. Everyone was staring
open-mouthed. Were we in a dream? Next, he started walking towards the door ... and
then he was out.
There was silence. This was unreal. However, the glasses
were still on the desk and we were still in the room. Therefore, they were real. What was wrong with Habimana? What
had turned a leopard into a lamb? Indeed, it is a strange world.
1. Describe the weather in the afternoon whose events are being discussed.
2. Why did the students feel like they were being punished?
3. What were the likely causes of Habimana’s behaviour?
4. Why was it strange for Habimana to behave that way?
5. What explosion were the students waiting for?
6. Why was everyone staring open-mouthed?
7. “Surely this is the moment”. What moment was it?
8. Why do you think Mr. Buregeya took Habimana into his arms?
9. Did whatever the students expect happen? Give a reason for your answer.
10. ‘Oblivious’ means
A. unbothered
B. unaware
C. unaffected
D. uncaring
11. ‘No nonsense’ here means
A. serious C. sensible
B. tough D. disciplined
12. Give this passage a suitable title
Exercise 4
Read the following passage and then answer the questions that follow.
It is a great day. The new ones started arriving early. Only the best performers come to
Geisha Girls School. Many of them are from private schools. Their teachers are committed.
They never on the streets singing weird songs. Surprisingly, the salaries our teachers
demand never seem to affect their character. For instance, Ahurole still managed two
babies in a year last year.
A few pupils from public schools scrape through the sieve that is the primary-leaving exam
and join Geisha. These are not difficult to spot. They usually report on the first day with their
heads closely cropped. They are usually dressed in tasteless uniforms. Some report with
frocks that remind you of patients in a cabbage farm. Moreover, they are naïve.
Last year, I was just passing by a parent and his daughter when the father parent called me.
‘Hello ... could you show my daughter to the washrooms please?’ he asked.
‘Certainly ... please come,’ I said.
At the lavatories, I motioned her in. As I waited, I heard the doors opening and closing.
I got curious and entered. She was peering into one toilet and then moving on to the next.
‘Is everything alright?’ I asked her.
‘I’m looking for the toilet,’ she answered. ‘I can’t see a hole in any of these!
’I understood her. To her, a toilet was a pit latrine.
‘Could you assist me, please?’ At least she was cultured. Thereafter, we became friends.
Today, she is a graceful fawn.
The newcomers are all over, prancing like birds. They have been brought to school
with flashy cars. The lot from the villages and their Mickey Mouse schools are also
distinguishable. Their parents reach the school either on foot, or on motor bikes. Their
arrival is always met with sniggers and grins, but they have arrived.
Answer the questions below.
1. Give the meanings of the following words as they have been used in the passage
a) weird e) cultured
b) scrape f) fawn
c) cabbage farm g) prancing
d) lavatories h) sniggers
2. Why does the narrator say it is a great day?
A. New children have been born.
B. They were going to receive many visitors.
C. The form ones were reporting.
D. It was a day of rest.
3. Why according to the narrator are many of the students from private schools?
A. Their teachers do not know how to sing.
B. The children are brighter.
C. The teachers spend more time with them.
D. They come from richer families.
4. How best can you describe the narrator?
A. Helpful, but arrogant
B. Social and friendly
C. Friendly and welcoming
D. Helpful, friendly but also spiteful
5. Judging from what we are told about this year’s Form Ones, we can say they are:
A. ambitious. C. knowledgeable.
B. proud. D. achievers.
6. Outline the differences between students who come from academies and those who
come from public schools.
7. Using what you have said in (6), we can say the Rwandan society is highly st---i--
ed. (fill in the missing five letters)
8. How do you think the narrator feels about Ahurole? Give a reason for your answer.
9. What do you think the narrator means by ‘Mickey Mouse schools’?
C. Language use
Exercise 5
Classify the following nouns as either countable or non-countable.
a) air g) book m) pair
b) coffee h) meat n) politics
c) grass i) water o) soil
d) herd j) oil p) cloud
e) maize k) mouse q) swarm
f) paint l) wife
Exercise 6
Use the following words to make correct sentences.
1. some 4. a little
2. a few 5. little
3. few 6. any
Exercise7
Use relative pronouns to fill in the gaps in the following sentences.
1. I like people ........... tell the truth.
2. Where is the pen ........... I gave you?
3. Is it true God helps those ........... help themselves?
4. I know the man ........... the thieves conned.
5. This is the man ........... came to see you this morning.
6. The house ........... they live in is very small.
7. This is the mason ........... built this classroom.
8. ........... of these books is yours?
9. You make up your mind ........... to believe.
10. This is the child ........... mother was arrested.
Exercise 8
Use the correct alternative to complete the following sentences.
1. It _____ (rains/has rained) very heavily during the months of March and April.
2. Cows _____ (are grazing/have grazed) in the field as we talk.
3. My mother always _____ (has prepared/prepares) a great meal during my birthday.
4. She is _____ (swimming/swims) every day as she prepares for the games.
5. Some people _____ (keep/have kept) dogs as pets.
6. Farmers _____ (work/are work/have worked) very hard for a living.
7. Our History teacher is _____ (organising/organise) a trip for us to the Parliament.
8. I have _____ (eaten/eat) a banana.
9. The wind _____ (is uproot/has uprooted) a lot of trees.
Exercise 9
Use the following words in their past tenses to make correct sentences.
1. love 5. want
2. shoot 6. see
3. tear 7. walk
4. smell 8. flee
Exercise 10
Rewrite the sentences below correctly using the words in the brackets.
1. Being foolish is (bad) than being poor.
2. He is the (more) irritating man I have ever met.
3. We ended up driving (fast) than we wanted in order to make it home before nightfall.
4. That was the (less) appetising meal she has ever cooked.
5. Mt Kilimanjaro is the (high) mountain in Africa.
6. Martin Luther is one of the (great) black leaders.
7. I am (educated) than you but I know you are (wise)
8. China’s economy is the second (big) economy in the world today.
Exercise 11
Identify the adverbs in the following sentences.
1. I visit my mother frequently.
2. It seldom rains in the desert.
3. He arrived here before you.
4. The teachers are going to Kigali tomorrow.
5. I have my birthday on Tuesday next week.
6. It is raining heavily.
7. Today is Independence Day.
8. The college holds a graduation ceremony twice a year.
Exercise 12
Write down ten correct sentences, five in the passive voice and five in the active voice.
Exercise 13
Underline the relative clauses in the following sentences.
1. Nothing is more feared than a new idea, which has never been tried.
2. It is an open secret that he is to contest for that seat.
3. This is the goat whose kid was eaten by hyenas.
4. That is the secret that he had told her.
5. He pretended to know the answer, which we knew he didn’t.
6. Students whose marks are low may have to repeat a year.
7. We looked for the man who left his phone behind.
8. It is not clear which record he broke.
D. Writing
Exercise 14
1. Write a recipe of your favourite meal.
2. Describe a tour you took to any place of interest.
3. Describe the economic activities carried out in your home area.
4. Explain why we should always eat healthy foo
1. Would you say the two friends are communicating? Give a reason for your answer.2. With the help of your teacher, find out the meanings and the pronunciation of thewords in bold in the conversation. What do we call such words? How do you think theyhave affected the communication between the friends?
1. Describe the weather in the afternoon whose events are being discussed.2. Why did the students feel like they were being punished?3. What were the likely causes of Habimana’s behaviour?4. Why was it strange for Habimana to behave that way?5. What explosion were the students waiting for?6. Why was everyone staring open-mouthed?7. “Surely this is the moment”. What moment was it?8. Why do you think Mr. Buregeya took Habimana into his arms?9. Did whatever the students expect happen? Give a reason for your answer.10. ‘Oblivious’ meansA. unbotheredB. unawareC. unaffectedD. uncaring11. ‘No nonsense’ here meansA. serious C. sensibleB. tough D. disciplined12. Give this passage a suitable title