English Half Yearly - Class 10 Haryana Board English

Class 10 English: Literature, Grammar, and Reading Skills Rapid Revision

Exam Structure and Syllabus Overview

The English exam is divided into four main sections: Literature, Grammar, Writing Skills, and Reading Skills. The highest weightage is given to Literature, which includes two books: "First Flight" and "Footprints Without Feet." The rapid revision covers all chapters from both books, Grammar, and Reading Skills (Unseen Passage), while Writing Skills are addressed separately.

• Literature: "First Flight" and "Footprints Without Feet" (all chapters and poems)
• Grammar: Articles, Punctuation, Figures of Speech, Reported Speech
• Reading Skills: Unseen Passage (MCQ-based)
• Writing…

Class 10 English: Literature, Grammar, and Reading Skills Rapid Revision

Exam Structure and Syllabus Overview

The English exam is divided into four main sections: Literature, Grammar, Writing Skills, and Reading Skills. The highest weightage is given to Literature, which includes two books: "First Flight" and "Footprints Without Feet." The rapid revision covers all chapters from both books, Grammar, and Reading Skills (Unseen Passage), while Writing Skills are addressed separately.

• Literature: "First Flight" and "Footprints Without Feet" (all chapters and poems)
• Grammar: Articles, Punctuation, Figures of Speech, Reported Speech
• Reading Skills: Unseen Passage (MCQ-based)
• Writing Skills: Not included in this session

Literature: Key Prose Summaries and Exam Points

A Letter to God (G.L. Fuentes)

This story centers on Lencho, an innocent and hardworking farmer whose crops are destroyed by a hailstorm. His unwavering faith in God leads him to write a letter asking for help.

• Key Characters: Lencho (farmer), Postmaster (kind, helpful)
• Themes: Faith, hope, innocence, irony, kindness
• Plot Points:
  • Lencho’s crops are destroyed by hail; he writes to God for 100 pesos.
  • The postmaster collects 70 pesos and sends them, signing as "God."
  • Lencho, believing God cannot make mistakes, accuses the post office staff of stealing the rest.
• Exam Keywords: Destroy, solitary house, crest, faith, irony (helping person gets blamed)
• Important Q&A:
  • Why did Lencho write to God? (Faith after crop destruction)
  • What does Lencho’s reaction reveal? (Unquestioning faith in God, distrust in humans)
  • Why did the postmaster help? (Impressed by faith, wanted to preserve it)

Nelson Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom

An extract from Mandela’s autobiography describing his inauguration as South Africa’s first black president, marking the end of apartheid.

• Key Terms: Discrimination, racial discrimination, apartheid, democracy
• Themes: Equality, justice, freedom, obligations, transformation
• Plot Points:
  • 10 May 1994: Mandela’s oath-taking in Pretoria.
  • Two national anthems sung (for black and white communities) to symbolize equality.
  • Mandela’s twin obligations: to family and to his people.
  • Freedom’s meaning evolves from personal liberty to collective rights.
• Exam Keywords: Apartheid, obligations, democracy, equality
• Important Q&A:
  • What did freedom mean to Mandela as a boy? (Personal liberty)
  • What are Mandela’s twin obligations? (Family and society)
  • Why two anthems? (To show equality)

Two Stories About Flying

His First Flight

A young seagull is afraid to fly due to lack of courage. His family encourages him, and hunger finally forces him to take his first flight.

• Key Points: Lack of courage, family encouragement, hunger as motivation, overcoming fear
• Lesson: Courage helps overcome fear.

The Black Aeroplane

A pilot flying from Paris to London faces a storm, loses navigation instruments, and is mysteriously guided to safety by a black aeroplane, which cannot be traced later.

• Key Points: Mystery, guidance, faith, survival
• Exam Q&A: Why was the pilot mysterious? (No other plane was seen on radar)

From the Diary of Anne Frank

Anne Frank, a Jewish girl during WWII, writes a diary due to loneliness and lack of a true friend. She describes her school life, teachers, and her talkative nature.

• Key Points: Loneliness, diary as friend (named Kitty), punishment essays by Mr. Keesing, humor in writing
• Exam Q&A: Why did Anne keep a diary? (No true friend)
• Paper has more patience than people: Diary listens without judgment.

Poetry: Central Ideas and Exam Points

Dust of Snow (Robert Frost)

A crow shakes snow from a hemlock tree onto the poet, changing his sad mood to joyful.

• Key Symbols: Crow, hemlock tree (negative in nature), healing power of nature
• Central Idea: Small incidents can have deep meaning; nature heals.
• Exam Q&A: How did dust of snow change the poet’s mood? (Refreshed, saved the day from sadness)

Fire and Ice (Robert Frost)

The poem discusses two destructive human emotions—desire (fire) and hatred (ice)—as possible causes for the world’s end.

• Key Points: Fire = uncontrolled desire/greed; Ice = hatred/coldness
• Central Idea: Both emotions can destroy relationships and society.
• Exam Q&A: What do fire and ice represent? (Desire and hatred)

A Tiger in the Zoo

Contrasts the life of a tiger in captivity (helpless, restricted) with its natural life in the jungle (powerful, free).

• Key Points: Plight (suffering), contrast, cruelty of captivity
• Exam Q&A: How would a tiger behave in the jungle? (Hunt, display strength, freedom)

How to Tell Wild Animals

A comic poem describing wild animals with humorous identification tips.

• Key Points: Asian Lion (large, tawny), Bengal Tiger (black stripes on yellow), Leopard (spots, leaps), Bear (hugs), Crocodile (weeps), Hyena (smiles), Chameleon (no ears/wings, camouflages)
• Exam Q&A: Difference between crocodile and hyena (tears vs. smiles)

The Ball Poem

A boy loses his ball and experiences his first sense of loss, learning about responsibility and maturity.

• Key Points: Loss is inevitable, emotional attachment, maturity
• Central Message: Loss is unavoidable; one must learn to accept it.

Amanda!

Amanda is constantly nagged by her mother and escapes into her imagination, desiring freedom and solitude.

• Key Points: Nagging, desire for freedom, imaginary worlds (mermaid, orphan, Rapunzel)
• Central Theme: Conflict between parental expectations and a child’s need for freedom.

Footprints Without Feet: Key Prose Summaries

A Triumph of Surgery

Tricki, an overfed dog, becomes ill due to his owner Mrs. Pumphrey’s pampering. Dr. Herriot cures him with a strict diet and exercise.

• Key Points: Overfeeding, lack of exercise, discipline in diet, recovery without medicine
• Exam Q&A: Why was Tricki ill? (Overfeeding, little exercise)
• How was he cured? (Strict diet, exercise, no rich food)

The Thief’s Story

Hari Singh, a young thief, tries to rob Anil but returns the money after realizing the value of trust and education.

• Key Points: Trust, opportunity for change, importance of education
• Exam Q&A: Why did Hari return the money? (Trust and education more valuable than money)

The Midnight Visitor

Ausabel, an unassuming secret agent, outsmarts Max (another agent) by inventing a story about a balcony and using his intelligence to save himself.

• Key Points: Intelligence over appearance, presence of mind, deception
• Exam Q&A: How did Ausabel defeat Max? (Invented balcony story, used waiter’s knock as police)

A Question of Trust

Horace Danby, a respectable locksmith, steals once a year for his love of rare books. He is tricked by a woman pretending to be the house owner and gets caught.

• Key Points: Trust, deception, peculiar thief, love for books, hay fever
• Exam Q&A: Why did Horace steal? (To buy rare books)
• How was he deceived? (Woman pretended to be owner, got him to open safe without gloves)

Footprints Without Feet

Griffin, a brilliant but lawless scientist, discovers how to become invisible but uses his power for selfish and criminal purposes.

• Key Points: Invisibility, misuse of science, lack of morality, theft, irresponsibility
• Exam Q&A: How did Griffin become invisible? (Special drugs, removed body’s visibility)
• Why was he lawless? (No moral responsibility, used science for crime)

Grammar: Key Rules and Examples

Articles

Articles "a" and "an" are used with singular nouns; "a" before consonant sounds, "an" before vowel sounds. "The" is used with unique, specific, or previously mentioned nouns, and with superlatives.

• Examples:
  • an apple, a university (because of "yu" sound), the sun, the tallest boy

Punctuation

Use appropriate punctuation marks: apostrophe, comma, question mark, exclamation mark, full stop. Capitalize proper nouns and sentence beginnings.

• Examples:
  • What is your name?
  • Rahul said, "I am very tired."
  • Alas! He is no more.

Figures of Speech

Special ways of using words to make language expressive.

• Irony: Opposite of expected (e.g., fire station catches fire)
• Apostrophe: Direct address (e.g., O God, help me)
• Hyperbole: Exaggeration (e.g., I called you a thousand times)
• Oxymoron: Contradictory terms together (e.g., quiet rage)
• Onomatopoeia: Sound words (e.g., buzz, ting-tong)
• Repetition: Repeating words (e.g., never never give up)
• Alliteration: Same starting sound (e.g., she sells sea shells)
• Personification: Non-living given human qualities (e.g., the trees are dancing)
• Metaphor: Direct comparison without "like/as" (e.g., she is a shining star)
• Simile: Comparison using "like/as" (e.g., she runs like a deer)

Reported Speech

Changing direct speech to indirect involves removing quotation marks, changing pronouns, and shifting tenses.

• Rules:
  • Present simple → Past simple
  • Present continuous → Past continuous
  • Present perfect → Past perfect
  • Past simple → Past perfect
  • Will → Would, Can → Could, May → Might
  • Today → That day, Tomorrow → Next day, Yesterday → Previous day
• Examples:
  • He said, "I am tired." → He said that he was tired.
  • Ria said, "I have completed my homework." → Ria said that she had completed her homework.

Reading Skills: Unseen Passage

Unseen passages test comprehension through MCQs. Read the passage carefully and answer based on the information given.

• Sample Passage Topic: Discipline is an important quality, helps manage time, follow rules, and achieve goals.
• Sample Questions:
  • What is discipline? (An important quality)
  • What does discipline teach? (To follow rules and manage time)
  • A disciplined student completes work on time.
  • Discipline does not mean lack of freedom.

Exam-Focused Takeaways

• Focus on key themes, keywords, and character traits for literature.
• Practice grammar rules with examples, especially articles, punctuation, figures of speech, and reported speech.
• For unseen passages, practice reading and answering MCQs based strictly on the passage.
• Remember the central ideas and moral lessons of each poem and prose.
• In exam answers, use keywords and concise points as highlighted above.