Year 9, it's that time again -- midterms!
As usual, I will be assessing your understanding and mastery of the English language, which means you will be tested on the grammar we have reviewed so far this semester, and then I will ask you to put it all together in some writing about The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas.
The best way to study for this midterm will be to review the weekly grammar quizzes, as well as The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas. Here are blank versions of the quizzes you have had so far for you to study:
Grammar Quiz #1: Noun + Verb Agreement
Copy down the following sentences. Underline the subject; circle the predicate. Check if each subject and predicate agrees (if there is noun + verb agreement).
1.We are reading The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas.
2.It’s about a boy named Bruno during WW2.
3.Bruno is the son of a Nazi commandant.
4.His father works for the Fury.
5.Who is the Fury?
Conjugate the following verbs in the present tense:
1.to be
I ____
we _______
you _____
they ________
it / she / he ______
2.to play
I ____
we _______
you _____
they ________
it / she / he ______
Directions: Create sentences in the present tense using the following nouns as subjects and verbs as predicates. Conjugate as necessary.
Ex. Ms. Nina, to read
Ms. Nina reads every day.
1.I, to be
2.There, to be
3.One Direction, to sing
4.She, to want
5.Americans, to eat
Grammar Quiz #2: Noun + Verb Agreement & Conjugation
Directions: Conjugate the following 4 verbs:
1. [to be]
I ____
you____
we____
they____
she/he/it__
2. [to have]
I ____
you____
we____
they____
she/he/it__
3. [to do]
I ____
you____
we____
they____
she/he/it__
4. [choose your own verb]
I ____
you____
we____
they____
she/he/it__
Directions: Complete each sentence with the correct conjugation in the present tense:
1.Bruno [to be] confused about what he [to see] out the window.
2.He [to decide] that there [to be] only one thing to do: [to talk] to Father.
3.Father [to explain] to Bruno that the people [to be] not “people as we [to understand] them”.
4.Bruno [to accept] this answer hesitantly.
5.But he does not [to like] this answer.
Directions: Complete each sentence with the correct conjugation in the present tense. Then underline the subject and circle the predicate to make sure you've conjugated correctly:
1.I, [to think]
2.Father, [to hate]
3.Mother, [to agree in the negative form]
4.[to be], Nazis …? (Make this a question in the present tense)
5.We, the readers, [to want]
Now underline the subject & circle the predicate. Check your n+v agreement.
Grammar Quiz #3: Verb Consistency
Directions: Edit the following text for verb consistency. Pay attention – it switches depending on the story’s perspective. Be sure to check for noun + verb agreement.
It’s tea time with grandma again. Generally, I loathed this day, making up excuses as to why I couldn’t make it for our monthly appointment: “Oh no, Gram!” I would say. “I had so much homework – my English teacher was a total witch! Next month, okay?”
But gram’s hearing is bad. Sometimes having “so much homework” would be heard “going home from work!” To which she would responded, “Jo Jo, why are you working? You were only 14! There were laws against child labor!”
I didn’t understand “bad hearing,” having the cunning ears of a fox, myself. But I figured it must be like stuffing cotton in your ears and wearing giant, furred earmuffs while trying to hear over the white noise of Primal Scream vomiting goth-metal music into a microphone in the background. Everyone was just mostly muted – unless you shout. “NO, GRANDMA! I HAVE HOMEWORK, NOT REAL WORK. SEE YOU NEXT MONTH!” I scream compassionately over the phone. I hung up before she could respond, lest a guilt trip run me over like a high-speed train. Guilt was liable to do that, you know.
But today I’m out of excuses. And ma said gram was “failing,” which apparently was not the same as when I’m failing. For me, it meant I couldn’t charm Ian into letting me copy my maths homework; to gram, it means her lungs. Her actual body was failing. Woah, I thought. God giving you an F is way worse than Ms. Schneider giving me an F.
As if reading my thoughts, Gram pierces me with one of her crystal gazes – her eyes glittered the exact color of Coca-Cola – and said, “Time is a funny thing, Johanna. Mine was almost up. But before I went, before I board that train to the Next Stop, I have a story for you. A story you must never forgot. A story you must carried with you. It just may save your life, Jo Jo…”
She paused, as if for dramatic effect, before relating a story that will change everything.
Grammar Quiz #4: Present vs. Past Tense Rules
1. When do you use the past tense? What is the rule?
2. Draw the timeline for the past tense:
3. Write an example sentence in the simple past tense.
4. When do you use the present tense?
Write down the rule,
give an example sentence, and
draw the timeline for all the rules you know.*
Directions: In a Calvin and Hobbes cartoon, the teacher and Calvin use the present tense in their dialogue. Explain the reason they use the present tense for the following examples:
Ex. You have a question? Reason = right now. .
5. What assurance do I have that this education is adequately preparing me for the 21st century? (In other words, How do I know that your class is any good?)
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
6. I want opportunity!
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
7. In that case, young man, I suggest you start working harder.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
8. Then forget it.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
Directions: Read the following sentences. Explain why each uses the present tense:
9. Plants require water and sunlight to survive.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
10. Every Monday, we study grammar.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Grammar Quiz #5: The Present Perfect Tense
1. Why do we use the present perfect tense? Explain all the reasons:
2. What is the timeline for the present perfect tense?
3. How do we form the present perfect tense (using which words)?
Write the following sentences into the present perfect, then explain why each sentence is in the present perfect:
Ex. She / like / chocolate since she was young.
She has liked chocolate since she was young. / How long
4. I / know / Jack and Jill for 4 years.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
5. Htet Htet / travel / half the world.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
6. She / see / The Interview.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
7. They / steal / Batman’s car!
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
8. It / be / 10 years since I graduated from high school.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
9. The baby / fall down / the stairs!
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
10. Charlotte / go / to Singapore.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
11. Charlotte / be / to Singapore.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
12. Scott / hold / a Burmese Python.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
13. I / never skydive.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
14. Jake / fly / an airplane.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
15. Explain the difference in meaning between the following two sentences:
I have been a vegetarian for 5 years.
I was a vegetarian for 5 years.
Grammar Quiz #6: Present Perfect Tense versus the Past Simple Tense
This quiz will be part of your midterm. Be sure to know all the rules for the present perfect tense and the past simple tense. Also be sure to know when to use the present perfect and when to use the simple past. Here is a helpful worksheet to review instead:
Directions: Decide whether to use the past simple or the present perfect to fill in the blanks.
1. A: Did you like the movie "Star Wars?"
B: I don't know. I (see, never) _______________________ that movie.
2. Sam (arrive) _______________________ in San Diego a week ago.
3. My best friend and I (know) _______________________ each other for over fifteen years. We still get together once a week.
4. Stinson is a fantastic writer. He (write) _______________________ ten very creative short stories in the last year. One day, he'll be as famous as Hemingway.
5. I (have, not) _______________________ this much fun since I (be) _______________________ a kid.
6. Things (change) _______________________ a great deal at Coltech, Inc. When we first (start) _______________________ working here three years ago, the company (have, only) _______________________ six employees. Since then, we (expand) _______________________ to include more than 2000 full-time workers.
7. I (tell) _______________________him to stay on the path while he was hiking, but he (wander) _______________________ off into the forest and (be) _______________________ bitten by a snake.
8. Listen Donna, I don't care if you (miss) _______________________ the bus this morning. You (be) _______________________ late to work too many times. You are fired!
9. Sam is from Shan State, which is hundreds of miles from the coast, so he (see, never) _______________________the ocean. He should come with us to .
10. How sad! George (dream) _______________________ of going to California before he died, but he didn't make it. He (see, never) _______________________the ocean.
11. In the last hundred years, traveling (become) _______________________much easier and very comfortable. In the 19th century, it (take) _______________________two or three months to cross North America by covered wagon. The trip (be) _______________________very rough and often dangerous. Things (change) _______________________a great deal in the last hundred and fifty years. Now you can fly from New York to Los Angeles in a matter of hours.
12. Jonny, I can't believe how much you (change)_______________________since the last time I (see) _______________________you. You (grow) _______________________at least a foot!
13. This tree (be) _______________________planted by the settlers who (found) _______________________our city over four hundred years ago.
14. I (visit, never) _______________________Africa, but I (travel) _______________________to South America several times. The last time I (go) _______________________to South America, I (visit) _______________________Brazil and Peru. I (spend) _______________________two weeks in the Amazon, (hike) _______________________for a week near Machu Picchu, and (fly) _______________________over the Nazca Lines.
As usual, I will be assessing your understanding and mastery of the English language, which means you will be tested on the grammar we have reviewed so far this semester, and then I will ask you to put it all together in some writing about The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas.
The best way to study for this midterm will be to review the weekly grammar quizzes, as well as The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas. Here are blank versions of the quizzes you have had so far for you to study:
Grammar Quiz #1: Noun + Verb Agreement
Copy down the following sentences. Underline the subject; circle the predicate. Check if each subject and predicate agrees (if there is noun + verb agreement).
1.We are reading The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas.
2.It’s about a boy named Bruno during WW2.
3.Bruno is the son of a Nazi commandant.
4.His father works for the Fury.
5.Who is the Fury?
Conjugate the following verbs in the present tense:
1.to be
I ____
we _______
you _____
they ________
it / she / he ______
2.to play
I ____
we _______
you _____
they ________
it / she / he ______
Directions: Create sentences in the present tense using the following nouns as subjects and verbs as predicates. Conjugate as necessary.
Ex. Ms. Nina, to read
Ms. Nina reads every day.
1.I, to be
2.There, to be
3.One Direction, to sing
4.She, to want
5.Americans, to eat
Grammar Quiz #2: Noun + Verb Agreement & Conjugation
Directions: Conjugate the following 4 verbs:
1. [to be]
I ____
you____
we____
they____
she/he/it__
2. [to have]
I ____
you____
we____
they____
she/he/it__
3. [to do]
I ____
you____
we____
they____
she/he/it__
4. [choose your own verb]
I ____
you____
we____
they____
she/he/it__
Directions: Complete each sentence with the correct conjugation in the present tense:
1.Bruno [to be] confused about what he [to see] out the window.
2.He [to decide] that there [to be] only one thing to do: [to talk] to Father.
3.Father [to explain] to Bruno that the people [to be] not “people as we [to understand] them”.
4.Bruno [to accept] this answer hesitantly.
5.But he does not [to like] this answer.
Directions: Complete each sentence with the correct conjugation in the present tense. Then underline the subject and circle the predicate to make sure you've conjugated correctly:
1.I, [to think]
2.Father, [to hate]
3.Mother, [to agree in the negative form]
4.[to be], Nazis …? (Make this a question in the present tense)
5.We, the readers, [to want]
Now underline the subject & circle the predicate. Check your n+v agreement.
Grammar Quiz #3: Verb Consistency
Directions: Edit the following text for verb consistency. Pay attention – it switches depending on the story’s perspective. Be sure to check for noun + verb agreement.
It’s tea time with grandma again. Generally, I loathed this day, making up excuses as to why I couldn’t make it for our monthly appointment: “Oh no, Gram!” I would say. “I had so much homework – my English teacher was a total witch! Next month, okay?”
But gram’s hearing is bad. Sometimes having “so much homework” would be heard “going home from work!” To which she would responded, “Jo Jo, why are you working? You were only 14! There were laws against child labor!”
I didn’t understand “bad hearing,” having the cunning ears of a fox, myself. But I figured it must be like stuffing cotton in your ears and wearing giant, furred earmuffs while trying to hear over the white noise of Primal Scream vomiting goth-metal music into a microphone in the background. Everyone was just mostly muted – unless you shout. “NO, GRANDMA! I HAVE HOMEWORK, NOT REAL WORK. SEE YOU NEXT MONTH!” I scream compassionately over the phone. I hung up before she could respond, lest a guilt trip run me over like a high-speed train. Guilt was liable to do that, you know.
But today I’m out of excuses. And ma said gram was “failing,” which apparently was not the same as when I’m failing. For me, it meant I couldn’t charm Ian into letting me copy my maths homework; to gram, it means her lungs. Her actual body was failing. Woah, I thought. God giving you an F is way worse than Ms. Schneider giving me an F.
As if reading my thoughts, Gram pierces me with one of her crystal gazes – her eyes glittered the exact color of Coca-Cola – and said, “Time is a funny thing, Johanna. Mine was almost up. But before I went, before I board that train to the Next Stop, I have a story for you. A story you must never forgot. A story you must carried with you. It just may save your life, Jo Jo…”
She paused, as if for dramatic effect, before relating a story that will change everything.
Grammar Quiz #4: Present vs. Past Tense Rules
1. When do you use the past tense? What is the rule?
2. Draw the timeline for the past tense:
3. Write an example sentence in the simple past tense.
4. When do you use the present tense?
Write down the rule,
give an example sentence, and
draw the timeline for all the rules you know.*
Directions: In a Calvin and Hobbes cartoon, the teacher and Calvin use the present tense in their dialogue. Explain the reason they use the present tense for the following examples:
Ex. You have a question? Reason = right now. .
5. What assurance do I have that this education is adequately preparing me for the 21st century? (In other words, How do I know that your class is any good?)
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
6. I want opportunity!
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
7. In that case, young man, I suggest you start working harder.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
8. Then forget it.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
Directions: Read the following sentences. Explain why each uses the present tense:
9. Plants require water and sunlight to survive.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
10. Every Monday, we study grammar.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Grammar Quiz #5: The Present Perfect Tense
1. Why do we use the present perfect tense? Explain all the reasons:
2. What is the timeline for the present perfect tense?
3. How do we form the present perfect tense (using which words)?
Write the following sentences into the present perfect, then explain why each sentence is in the present perfect:
Ex. She / like / chocolate since she was young.
She has liked chocolate since she was young. / How long
4. I / know / Jack and Jill for 4 years.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
5. Htet Htet / travel / half the world.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
6. She / see / The Interview.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
7. They / steal / Batman’s car!
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
8. It / be / 10 years since I graduated from high school.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
9. The baby / fall down / the stairs!
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
10. Charlotte / go / to Singapore.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
11. Charlotte / be / to Singapore.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
12. Scott / hold / a Burmese Python.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
13. I / never skydive.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
14. Jake / fly / an airplane.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
15. Explain the difference in meaning between the following two sentences:
I have been a vegetarian for 5 years.
I was a vegetarian for 5 years.
Grammar Quiz #6: Present Perfect Tense versus the Past Simple Tense
This quiz will be part of your midterm. Be sure to know all the rules for the present perfect tense and the past simple tense. Also be sure to know when to use the present perfect and when to use the simple past. Here is a helpful worksheet to review instead:
Directions: Decide whether to use the past simple or the present perfect to fill in the blanks.
1. A: Did you like the movie "Star Wars?"
B: I don't know. I (see, never) _______________________ that movie.
2. Sam (arrive) _______________________ in San Diego a week ago.
3. My best friend and I (know) _______________________ each other for over fifteen years. We still get together once a week.
4. Stinson is a fantastic writer. He (write) _______________________ ten very creative short stories in the last year. One day, he'll be as famous as Hemingway.
5. I (have, not) _______________________ this much fun since I (be) _______________________ a kid.
6. Things (change) _______________________ a great deal at Coltech, Inc. When we first (start) _______________________ working here three years ago, the company (have, only) _______________________ six employees. Since then, we (expand) _______________________ to include more than 2000 full-time workers.
7. I (tell) _______________________him to stay on the path while he was hiking, but he (wander) _______________________ off into the forest and (be) _______________________ bitten by a snake.
8. Listen Donna, I don't care if you (miss) _______________________ the bus this morning. You (be) _______________________ late to work too many times. You are fired!
9. Sam is from Shan State, which is hundreds of miles from the coast, so he (see, never) _______________________the ocean. He should come with us to .
10. How sad! George (dream) _______________________ of going to California before he died, but he didn't make it. He (see, never) _______________________the ocean.
11. In the last hundred years, traveling (become) _______________________much easier and very comfortable. In the 19th century, it (take) _______________________two or three months to cross North America by covered wagon. The trip (be) _______________________very rough and often dangerous. Things (change) _______________________a great deal in the last hundred and fifty years. Now you can fly from New York to Los Angeles in a matter of hours.
12. Jonny, I can't believe how much you (change)_______________________since the last time I (see) _______________________you. You (grow) _______________________at least a foot!
13. This tree (be) _______________________planted by the settlers who (found) _______________________our city over four hundred years ago.
14. I (visit, never) _______________________Africa, but I (travel) _______________________to South America several times. The last time I (go) _______________________to South America, I (visit) _______________________Brazil and Peru. I (spend) _______________________two weeks in the Amazon, (hike) _______________________for a week near Machu Picchu, and (fly) _______________________over the Nazca Lines.