Year 6
Distance Learning
Reading
Reading comprehension DIFFICULTY : MEDIUM
The following extracts are taken from the diary of Anne Frank between 1942 and 1944, during the time she lived in hiding in Amsterdam with her family.
July 8th 1942: “At three o’clock (Hello had left but was supposed to come back later), the doorbell rang. I didn’t hear it, since I was out on the balcony, lazily reading in the sun. A little while later Margot appeared in the kitchen doorway looking very agitated. “Father has received a call-up notice from the SS,” she whispered. “Mother has gone to see Mr. van Daan” (Mr. van Daan is Father’s business partner and a good friend). I was stunned. A call-up: everyone knows what that means. Visions of concentration camps and lonely cells raced through my head. How could we let Father go to such a fate? “Of course he’s not going,” declared Margot as we waited for Mother in the living room. “Mother’s gone to Mr. van Daan to ask whether we can move to our hiding place tomorrow. The van Daans are going with us. There will be seven of us altogether.” Silence. We couldn’t speak. The thought of Father off visiting someone in the Jewish Hospital and completely unaware of what was happening, the long wait for Mother, the heat, the suspense – all this reduced us to silence.
July 9th 1942: “Here’s a description of the building… A wooden staircase leads from the downstairs hallway to the third oor. At the top of the stairs is a landing, with doors on either side. The door on the left takes you up to the spice storage area, attic and loft in the front part of the house. A typically Dutch, very steep, ankle-twisting ight of stairs also runs from the front part of the house to another door opening onto the street. The door to the right of the landing leads to the Secret Annex at the back of the house. No one would ever suspect there were so many rooms behind that plain grey door. There’s just one small step in front of the door, and then you’re inside. Straight ahead of you is a steep ight of stairs. To the left is a narrow hallway opening onto a room that serves as the Frank family’s living room and bedroom. Next door is a smaller room, the bedroom and study of the two young ladies of the family. To the right of the stairs is a windowless washroom with a sink. The door in the corner leads to the toilet and another one to Margot’s and my room… Now I’ve introduced you to the whole of our lovely Annex!”
grammarsaurus.co.uk Reading comprehension DIFFICULTY : MEDIUM
August 21st 1942: “Now our Secret Annex has truly become secret. Because so many houses are being searched for hidden bicycles, Mr. Kugler thought it would be better to have a bookcase built in front of the entrance to our hiding place. It swings out on its hinges and opens like a door. Mr. Voskuijl did the carpentry work (Mr. Voskuijl has been told that the seven of us are in hiding, and he’s been most helpful). Now whenever we want to go downstairs we have to duck and then jump. After the rst three days we were all walking around with bumps on our foreheads from banging our heads against the low doorway. Then Peter cushioned it by nailing a towel stuffed with wood shavings to the doorframe. Let’s see if it helps!”
October 9th 1942: “Today I have nothing but dismal and depressing news to report. Our many Jewish friends and acquaintances are being taken away in droves. The Gestapo is treating them very roughly and transporting them in cattle cars to Westerbork, the big camp in Drenthe to which they’re sending all the Jews. Miep told us about someone who’d managed to escape from there. It must be terrible in Westerbork. The people get almost nothing to eat, much less to drink, as water is available only one hour a day, and there’s only one toilet and sink for several thousand people. Men and women sleep in the same room, and women and children often have their heads shaved. Escape is almost impossible; many people look Jewish, and they’re branded by their shorn heads. If it’s that bad in Holland, what must it be like in those faraway and uncivilized places where the Germans are sending them? We assume that most of them are being murdered. The English radio says they’re being gassed. Perhaps that’s the quickest way to die. I feel terrible. Miep’s accounts of these horrors are so heartrending… Fine specimens of humanity, those Germans, and to think I’m actually one of them! No, that’s not true, Hitler took away our nationality long ago. And besides, there are no greater enemies on earth than the Germans and Jews.”
October 20th 1942: “My hands still shaking, though it’s been two hours since we had the scare… The of ce staff stupidly forgot to warn us that the carpenter, or whatever he’s called, was coming to ll the extinguishers… After working for about fteen minutes, he laid his hammer and some other tools on our bookcase (or so we thought!) and banged on our door. We turned white with fear. Had he heard something after all and did he now want to check out this mysterious looking bookcase? It seemed so, since he kept knocking, pulling, pushing and jerking on it. I was so scared I nearly fainted at the thought
grammarsaurus.co.uk Reading comprehension DIFFICULTY : MEDIUM of this total stranger managing to discover our wonderful hiding place…”
February 3rd 1944: “I’ve reached the point where I hardly care whether I live or die. The world will keep on turning without me, and I can’t do anything to change events anyway. I’ll just let matters take their course and concentrate on studying and hope that everything will be all right in the end.”
July 15th 1944: “It’s utterly impossible for me to build my life on a foundation of chaos, suffering and death. I see the world being slowly transformed into a wilderness, I hear the approaching thunder that, one day, will destroy us too, I feel the suffering of millions. And yet, when I look up at the sky, I somehow feel that everything will change for the better, that this cruelty too will end, that peace and tranquillity will return once more. In the meantime, I must hold on to my ideals. Perhaps the day will come when I’ll be able to realise them.”
grammarsaurus.co.uk Questions DIFFICULTY : MEDIUM
1. Match the words from the text to their most appropriate synonym.
agitated destiny
fate gloomy
narrow associates
dismal slim
acquaintances flustered
2. What does Anne suggest a ‘call up’ means?
3. Where was Father when the ‘call up notice’ was delivered?
4. Find and copy the phrase used to describe the staircase at the front part of the house.
5. Who does Anne share a room with inside the secret annex?
grammarsaurus.co.uk Questions DIFFICULTY : MEDIUM
6. Complete the table.
Quote from the text What does it suggest about the characters?
“Mr. Kugler thought it would be better to have a bookcase built in front of the entrance to our hiding place. It swings out on its hinges and opens like a door. Mr. Voskuijl did the carpentry work…”
“And yet, when I look up at the sky, I somehow feel that everything will change for the better, that this cruelty too will end, that peace and tranquillity will return once more.”
7. Sequence the following events in order from 1-5. The first one has been done for you.
German authorities search for hidden bicycles.
The door is replaced with a bookcase to conceal the entrance.
The carpenter comes to fill the extinguishers.
Father receives a ‘call up notice’. 1
Jewish people are being transported to Westerbork camp.
grammarsaurus.co.uk Questions DIFFICULTY : MEDIUM
8. Find an event in the text that makes Anne feel the following emotions:
Emotion Event from the text
fear
anxiety
depression
hope
9. Find and copy an example of sarcasm in the text.
10. Complete the table.
True False
Anne is from Germany.
Jews are not allowed bicycles.
Anne was annoyed with the office staff on October 20th.
The Frank family moved into the annex later than anticipated.
grammarsaurus.co.uk 30th april 2020 The Nation’s Hero Captain Tom Moore
By: A. Humphires
Although reaching your 100th birthday is a huge – On top of this, he has also received birthday wishes and rare – achievement, it is rarely celebrated by a from a range of famous people, including Queen whole city, let alone a whole country! However, Elizabeth II and the Prime Minister – Boris Johnson. today, a man who was unknown to the nation just In his video message to Captain Tom, he stated: three weeks ago, has celebrated his landmark birth- "Your heroic efforts have lifted the spirits of the day with the British public in incredible style! entire nation; you've created a channel to enable In order to celebrate his one hundredth birthday, the millions to say a heartfelt thank you to the remark- army veteran - Captain Tom Moore – had decided able men and women in our NHS who have all been to raise money for the NHS Charities Together by doing the most outstanding job." walking one hundred laps of his garden. His aim was to raise money for the NHS that we are lucky As if that wasn’t enough, Tom has also broken a to have in this country. He had not expected to raise World Record this week! When his single, ‘You’ll more than one thousand pounds; donations now Never Walk Alone’, which he sang alongside exceed £30 million! As always, Captain Tom shows Michael Ball and members of the NHS, took the top great humbleness when talking about his astonish- spot last weekend, he became the oldest person to ing achievement. Rather than praising his own ever achieve a number one! It seems that Captain efforts, he said that everyone who had donated was Tom Moore is an unstoppable force and perhaps we “magni cent”! He went on to say, ““Reaching 100 is should all be inspired by his motto: “Tomorrow will quite something. Reaching 100 with such interest in be a good day!” Whilst the donations page will me and huge generosity from the public is very close tonight, Tom and his family want to reassure overwhelming.” the British public that they can still donate directly to the charity Due to the self-isolation restrictions, which are via their urgent appeal currently in place across the country, Tom was page. For now though, unable to celebrate with his friends and family as he I think everyone had planned to. Instead, he stayed at home with his will agree that daughter and her family at their home in Marston this tremendous Moretaine, Bedfordshire. Although the captain, who man deserves a has been made an honorary colonel by the Queen, few days rest! was unable to celebrate with his family, he still had a day that he is unlikely to ever forget! Cards to celebrate his birthday have been ooding in over the last few weeks; it is estimated that he has received over 140,000 cards, which are having to be sorted at a local school. At 08:20, Tom was treated to an RAF ypast featuring a Spit re and Hurricane from the RAF Battle of Britain Memorial Flight.
Questions
1. Who wrote the article? Tick one. (1 mark)
Captain Tom Moore
A. Humphries
Boris Johnson
2. What birthday is Captain Tom celebrating today? (1 mark)
3. a) Who was Captain Tom raising money for? (1 mark)
3. b) How did he raise the money? (1 mark)
4. How much money has Captain Tom raised so far? (1 mark)
5. a) What does it mean by the phrase ‘great humbleness’? (1 mark)
5. b) How has Captain Tom shown that he is extremely humble? (2 marks)
grammarsaurus.co.uk Questions
6. List three ways that Captain Tom celebrated his birthday. (3 marks)
1.
2.
3.
7. Answer true or false to these statements. (3 marks)
True False
Captain Tom received 14,000 birthday cards.
Boris Johnson visited Captain Tom at his home to wish him happy birthday.
Tom Moore became a chart-topper last week.
8. The Queen has decided to make Captain Tom an ‘honorary colonel’. Why do you think this decision was made? Do you agree with it? Why? (3 marks)
grammarsaurus.co.uk During 2019, the name Extinction Rebellion kept popping up on the news more and more – leading many to question and wonder: Who are Extinction Rebellion? In this article, we aim to teach you all about who the group are and what they aim to achieve.
Reading Comprehension Y5 Y6
Who are Extinction Rebellion? Extinction Rebellion say they are an international activist organisation, who use non- violent methods to encourage those in power to take action on climate change and other environmental issues. The group was launched in 2018 and has groups in many countries all over the world. Their logo is an hourglass inside a circle, which they picked to symbolise that time is running out for us to make the necessary changes on Earth to protect human and animal life.
Why did they begin? They started this group as they realised “The science is clear: It is understood that we are facing an unprecedented global emergency. We are in a life or death situation of our own making. We must act now.” They want to stand up and make sure the world’s governments take notice of their actions and act fast in order to save the planet.
Who is in this group? There is a wide cross-section of society in this group, from young to old - from students to retired people to executives. Each has joined as they are keen to get active and spread awareness of what needs to happen in order to stop further destruction of the planet. Despite the fact the movement started in London, it is now worldwide and there are groups in many places across the planet.
grammarsaurus.co.uk Reading Comprehension Y5 Y6
What do they want to achieve? They have three main demands, which they want people in power to take action on. 1. They want the government to declare a “climate and ecological emergency” and work together with other institutions to help spread the message calling for things to change. 2. They want the UK to act now to stop loss of habitat and reduce carbon
emissions to net zero by 2025. 3. They want a special group called a Citizens’ Assembly to be created. It would be made up of people from across society, who would work together to decide how to solve the climate crisis, with advice from experts.
How have they protested?
During the summer of 2019, the group staged two weeks of protest, which brought
London to a standstill. The group always aim to “peacefully occupy the centres of power and shut them down” and they want to do this by causing “major disruption”. They hope the disruption is noticed and that the media will report about them and their disruption, so that people become more aware of the environment crisis and also to put pressure on governments to do more to deal with the issue of climate change. In London, more than 1,400 people were arrested and over 70 people were charged with offences, including criminal damage and obstruction of a highway. Some of London’s busiest routes were brought to a complete standstill for more than 11 days. During the summer, the group also held similar protests in different cities, using five colourful boats to stop traffic in Manchester, Cardiff,
Glasgow, Bristol and Leeds.
What have Extinction Rebellion protesters been doing? Lots of young people have been taking part in the protests There are many ways members have protested, which include some of the following: • blocked traffic • glued themselves to trains
grammarsaurus.co.uk Reading Comprehension Y5 Y6
• jumped on top of tube trains in London • chained themselves outside politicians’ houses • planted trees on Waterloo Road in London • protested at Heathrow Airport, causing delays to some flights • sprayed fake blood at a government building from the top of a fire engine
Backlash to Extinction Rebellion Whilst the group firmly believes they can help stop climate change, some critics have said that the group’s demands are unrealistic. Researchers at the Centre for Alternative Technology said that it would be a huge challenge to get to zero emissions by 2025, but that they support ambitious goals. Flights would have to be restricted and many people would have to drastically change their behaviour - for example, by eating less meat and dairy in their diets, or changing how they travel. In order to get enough renewable energy to replace gas boilers, Britain would need thousands of extra wind turbines.
What have people said about the protests? Home Secretary Sajid Javid has said the climate activists have “no right to cause misery” and the Met Police “must take a firm stance”. Ken Marsh, chairman of the Metropolitan Police Federation, said: “This is very, very difficult for us because my colleagues have never come across the situation that they are faced with at the moment. They are dealing with very, very passive people, probably quite nice people, who don’t want confrontation whatsoever with the police or anyone else - but who are breaking the law.” The group has been criticised not only for causing disruption, but also for wasting public money, after London police boss Cressida Dick said April’s protests had cost the police an extra £7.5 million.
grammarsaurus.co.uk DIFFICULTY : HARD QUESTIONS
1. What do you think being an ‘activist’ means?
2. What does the Extinction Rebellion logo look like and mean?
3. Are the following statements fact or opinion?
Fact Opinion Extinction Rebellion use non-violent methods to spread awareness of their cause
People all over the world believe in what they are doing
The movement started in London
4. True or false?
Many different types of people have joined Extinction Rebellion.
5. True or false?
Extinction Rebellion is now a global organisation.
grammarsaurus.co.uk DIFFICULTY : HARD
6. What would the Citizens’ Assembly do?
7. How do Extinction Rebellion wish to use the media?
8. Tick as many boxes as you can to show what Extinction Rebellion have done during their protests
Jumped on fire engines
Stopped traffic
planted trees
Glued themselves to buses
Delayed flights
9. Why do you think the group use colourful boats to stop traffic?
10. What do you think backlash means?
grammarsaurus.co.uk DIFFICULTY : HARD
11. Who is backlashing against Extinction Rebellion? Explain how you know.
12. Do you think Sajid Javid agrees or disagrees with what the protestors are doing?
Give a reason for your opinion.
grammarsaurus.co.uk DIFFICULTY : HARD ANSWERS
1. What do you think being an ‘activist’ means?
An activist is a person who campaigns to bring about political or social change to the world.
2. What does the Extinction Rebellion logo look like and mean?
An hourglass inside a circle, which they picked to symbolise that time is running out for us to make the necessary changes on Earth to protect human and animal life.
3. Are the following statements fact or opinion?
Fact Opinion Extinction Rebellion use non-violent methods to spread awareness of their cause
People all over the world believe in what they are doing
The movement started in London
4. True or false?
Many different types of people have joined Extinction Rebellion.
True
5. True or false?
Extinction Rebellion is now a global organisation.
True
6. What would the Citizens’ Assembly do?
They would work together to decide how to solve the climate crisis, with advice from experts.
7. How do Extinction Rebellion wish to use the media?
They want the media to report on their action so that their message is spread
through the country and people will join their cause.
grammarsaurus.co.uk DIFFICULTY : HARD
8. Tick as many boxes as you can to show what Extinction Rebellion have done during their protests
Jumped on fire engines
Stopped traffic
planted trees
Glued themselves to buses
Delayed flights
9. Why do you think the group use colourful boats to stop traffic?
Possible reasons: - Boats stand out on roads as they are not meant to be there - Boats are big and hard to move - Boats symbolise the sea/ocean and how they are changing due to climate change - Symbolising sea levels rising Children make also make other plausible suggestions.
10. What do you think backlash means?
When people are critical or negative about your cause/group/movement OR people who do not like or believe in what Extinction Rebellion are doing.
11. Who is backlashing against Extinction Rebellion? Explain how you know.
Some critics have said that the group’s demands are unrealistic and therefore will be hard to achieve. Other critics think they are wasting the public’s money as it is costing lots to police their protests. Researchers at the Centre for Alternative Technology said that it would be a huge challenge to get to zero emissions by 2025, but they are not against the actions of the group, just one of their aims may be too ambitious.
12. Do you think Sajid Javid agrees or disagrees with what the protestors are doing?
Give a reason for your opinion.
I think he disagrees with what they are doing as he does not like that they are causing misery to Londoners. He thinks that the police should be hard on them if they are breaking the law. grammarsaurus.co.uk Reading Comprehension
Who is he? Mohamed, often shortened to Mo, Salah is arguably one of the best football players in the world. He was born on 15th June 1992 in Gharbia, Egypt. Currently, he plays his club football for Liverpool Football Club and internationally for his country of origin, Egypt. Despite playing for Liverpool in a very competitive league full of rivalry, he is well liked by football fans all over England and across the world. Liverpool fans have dubbed him the Egyptian King.
What does he do? Mo Salah plays football professionally. He plays in a forward position or sometimes as a right winger. On top of his football career, he also does a lot of charity work, especially in Egypt. He has given away many thousands of pounds to the Egyptian government and other organisations to help improve the lives of others. In his home village of Basyoun, the Mohamed Salah Charity Foundation has helped build schools and mosques. Also, he has helped 450 families from his village financially by giving them a monthly allowance. Remarkably, after he fronted a drug addiction campaign in Egypt, the Ministry of Social Solidarity's hotline received a 400% increase in calls and the promotional videos starring Salah were watched more than eight million times in just three days.
Mo’s journey to international fame Success did not come easy to Mohamed and the struggles he faced early in his career at several different clubs demonstrate his resilience and resolve. He played for two years for El Mokawloon in
grammarsaurus.co.uk Reading Comprehension the Egyptian Premier League. In 2012, he transferred to the Swiss football club, FC Basel. In 2014, he transferred to Chelsea, but struggled to make a mark and secure a regular place in the first team. Subsequently, he was moved to Fiorentina on loan, then moved to Roma before signing for Liverpool in 2017. At Liverpool, he has found and sustained world-class form. This form and success has propelled him to new heights and gained him several accolades, including the Golden Boot, which is an award for scoring the most goals in a competition. Salah won this award for both the 17/18 and 18/19 Premier League seasons.
Why is he inspirational? Mo’s journey to professional football is one of dedication, determination and sheer grit. As a child, he used to travel nine hours to and from his village every day to train with the youth club El Mokawloon in Cairo (capital of Egypt). He had to change five buses to reach the academy, but his passion for playing football kept him motivated and focussed. He is renowned for having a very professional attitude both on and off the pitch. Mohamed is an iconic figure and not only for fans of his football club. More impressively, he is a given God-like status in his home country of Egypt where the whole country is incredibly proud of Mo’s success and achievements. In 2017, the footballer's 95th-minute penalty against Congo secured a 2 – 1 win, which saw the Egyptian national team qualify for the World Cup for the first time since 1990. Streets and schools in Egypt are named after him. Another indicator of his national hero status is when there was a presidential election in Egypt in 2018, over one million people voted for Mohamed Salah despite him not being a candidate! Despite all this adoration, he comes across as a humble, intelligent and funny man, who does not taken himself too seriously. In 2018, he became the first Egyptian footballer to be named the Professional Footballers' Association Player of the Year. He is only the second African footballer to win the award, after Leicester City's Algerian midfielder Riyad Mahrez in 2016.
grammarsaurus.co.uk Reading Comprehension
This became a great source of pride for Egyptians, who had the news splashed over their front pages and took to social media in their thousands to praise their greatest export on his excellent achievement.
What is significant about the fact he is a Muslim footballer? In the same way he is adored by Scousers (people from Liverpool) and Egyptians, Mohamed is well loved and respected by Muslims world over. He is a devout Muslim and is proud of his Islamic faith. He openly prays before the start of every game and he often performs Sujood - the Islamic act of prostration, which means lying on the ground – when he has scored a goal. He always observes Ramadan, which is the ninth month of the Muslim year, during which strict fasting is observed from dawn to sunset. Through his charity work, he has made more people familiar with the practice of Zakat - the Muslim obligation to donate a percentage of your income to benefit people less fortunate than yourself. For these reasons, many people feel he has positively reframed public perceptions of Muslims and Islam around the world.
What does his future hold? The Mo Salah effect has no end at present. His influence on children and young people all over the globe is unprecedented and he is a great example to others about how if you work hard, you can make it despite your humble beginnings. They see Salah has achieved wonderful things and they realise they can do it too.
grammarsaurus.co.uk DIFFICULTY : HARD QUESTIONS
1. Mohamed Salah is (circle the correct answer)
Egyptian Scouser English
2. What do you think arguably means? Use the context of the sentence to help you.
3. Name three things that Salah has done for others through his charity work.
1.
2.
3.
4. ‘The promotional videos starring Salah were watched more than eight million times in just three days.’
Why do you think the videos were so popular?
5. What do you think resilience and resolve means and how do you think Mohamed Salah demonstrated it?
grammarsaurus.co.uk grammarsaurus.co.uk DIFFICULTY : HARD 6. How do you win the Golden Boot award?
7. What footballing event propelled Salah to having God-like status in Egypt?
8. Name the three practices of Islam that are common in Salah’s life and explain what happens at/for this practice.
Name of practice What happens
9. Why do you think supporters from rival teams may like Salah?
10. Why do you think it is important that Mo Salah is open about the fact he is a Muslim?
grammarsaurus.co.uk DIFFICULTY : HARD ANSWERS
1. Mohamed Salah is (circle the correct answer)
Egyptian Scouser English
2. What do you think arguably means? Use the context of the sentence to help you.
People may argue or disagree with this point of view or fact.
3. Name three things that Salah has done for others through his charity work.
Name any three from the following –
Given away thousands of pounds to the Egyptian government and other
organisations/ helped build schools/ helped build mosques/ helped 450 families with
a monthly allowance/ fronted a drug addiction campaign.
4. ‘The promotional videos starring Salah were watched more than eight million times in just three days.’
Why do you think the videos were so popular?
Children answer with an answer similar to – so many people watched the video as they
like Salah and were interested to see him acting in a different role than a footballer/
they were intrigued to see Salah’s involvement in a drug addiction campaign
5. What do you think resilience and resolve means and how do you think Mohamed Salah demonstrated it?
Children answer with an answer similar to – To be resilient means to keep on trying
to succeed even if you have had some setbacks. / He never gave up despite things not
going his way. / He showed resolve by never giving up until he achieved his potential.
/ He had firm determination to achieve his goals and didn’t give up until he did.
grammarsaurus.co.uk DIFFICULTY : HARD 6. How do you win the Golden Boot award?
By scoring more goals than any other player in one football season.
7. What footballing event propelled Salah to having God-like status in Egypt?
Scoring the 95th-minute penalty against Congo secured a 2 – 1 win and this helping
the Egyptian national team qualify for the World Cup.
8. Name the three practices of Islam that are common in Salah’s life and explain what happens at/for this practice.
Complete the table like:
Name of practice What happens
Sujood Act of prostration (lying on the ground)
Strict fasting is observed from dawn to sunset Ramadan (for a month)
A Muslim obligation to donate a percentage of your Zakat income to benefit people less fortunate than yourself.
9. Why do you think supporters from rival teams may like Salah?
Children answer with an answer similar to - They see and appreciate his talent. The
article tells us he is humble, so he does not show off about his talents. People enjoy
watching him play football as he is so good at it.
10. Why do you think it is important that Mo Salah is open about the fact he is a Muslim?
Children answer with an answer similar to - It is important that Salah is open about
his religion as it helped the general public to see what a Muslim acts and behaves like
and realise they have more in common than differences with them. It helps people to
learn about the religion as they see certain acts and prayers of Islam being
performed on the pitch.
grammarsaurus.co.uk grammarsaurus.co.uk Worksheet
Shakespeare is famous for writing plays but he also wrote many sonnets. Sonnets are poems with fourteen lines. They follow a meter called iambic pentameter.
Here is one of his most famous sonnets and its modern translation.
Sonnet 18: Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer’s Day?
Original Modern translation
Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day? Shall I compare you to a summer day?
Thou art more lovely and more temperate: You’re lovelier and milder.
Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May, Rough winds shake the pretty buds of May,
And summer’s lease hath all too short a date; and summer doesn’t last nearly long enough.
Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines, Sometimes the sun shines too hot,
And often is his gold complexion dimm'd; And often its golden face is darkened by clouds.
And every fair from fair sometime declines, And everything beautiful stops being beautiful,
By chance or nature’s changing course untrimm'd; Either by accident or simply in the course of nature.
But thy eternal summer shall not fade, But your eternal summer will never fade,
Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow’st; Nor will you lose possession of your beauty,
Nor shall death brag thou wander’st in his shade, Nor shall death brag that you are wandering in the underworld,
When in eternal lines to time thou grow’st: Once you’re captured in my eternal verses.
So long as men can breathe or eyes can see, As long as men are alive and have eyes with which to see,
So long lives this, and this gives life to thee. This poem will live and keep you alive.
grammarsaurus.co.uk QUESTIONS
1. What is the poet comparing the person to? (1 mark)
2. Why do you think he selected this as a comparison? (2 marks)
3. What weather interferes with the new buds on the trees? Circle one. (1 mark)
the sun the rain the wind the snow
4. ‘And often is his gold complexion dimm'd;’ Explain fully what this line from the poem means. Use the modern version to support you. (2 marks)
5. Circle the word that is closest in meaning to the word ‘eternal’. (1 mark)
short-lived never-ending temporary elegant
6. How might summer ‘lose possession of its beauty’? (2 marks)
grammarsaurus.co.uk grammarsaurus.co.uk 7. a) How is Shakespeare ensuring that the person who is the focus of his poem stays alive forever? (1 mark)
b) How will this keep them ‘alive’ forever? (2 marks)
8. Look at both versions of the poem to help you find the synonyms of the words in the grid below. (4 marks)
thee you’re
thou face
complexion you
fair beautiful
grammarsaurus.co.uk grammarsaurus.co.uk ANSWERS
1. What is the poet comparing the person to? (1 mark)
a summer’s day
2. Why do you think he selected this as a comparison? (2 marks)
• Summer is seen as a positive season • There is new life – nature is in full bloom • The weather is better – the sun is more likely to shine and there is less chance of bad weather • You often associate the summer with happiness • It is lighter in the summer for longer – this can make life seem brighter
3. What weather interferes with the new buds on the trees? Circle one. (1 mark)
the sun the rain the wind the snow
4. ‘And often is his gold complexion dimm'd;’ Explain fully what this line from the poem means. Use the modern version to support you. (2 marks)
This means that the sun is often made to disappear when clouds cover it and block the light. This would give the appearance that the sun’s face had become darker.
5. Circle the word that is closest in meaning to the word ‘eternal’. (1 mark)
short-lived never-ending temporary elegant
6. How might summer ‘lose possession of its beauty’? (2 marks)
• summer might end and the leaves might fall off the tree, flowers die and nature seems to retreat. • the world looks less beautiful as there is less colour in nature as autumn and
then winter take over.
grammarsaurus.co.uk grammarsaurus.co.uk 7. a) How is Shakespeare ensuring that the person who is the focus of his poem stays alive forever? (1 mark)
He is writing about her in a poem
b) How will this keep them ‘alive’ forever? (2 marks)
The poem will survive longer than him or his beloved. Shakespeare states that as long as people are alive and can see then they will be able to read this sonnet and therefore remember the person he is writing about.
8. Look at both versions of the poem to help you find the synonyms of the words in the grid below. (4 marks)
thee you’re
thou face
complexion you
fair beautiful
grammarsaurus.co.uk grammarsaurus.co.uk Synonym practice questions The Lost World
We slowly and cautiously set forth into the unknown. After a few hundred yards of thick forest, we entered a region where the stream widened out and formed a considerable bog. High reeds grew thickly before us, with tree-ferns scattered amongst them, all of them swaying in a brisk wind. Suddenly Lord John, who was walking first, halted.
“Look at this!” said he. “This must be the trail of the father of all birds!”
An enormous three-toed track was imprinted in the soft mud before us.
“I’ll stake my good name,” said Lord John, “that the track is a fresh one. See, here is the mark of a little one too!” “But what of this?” cried Professor Summerlee, triumphantly, pointing to what looked like the huge print of a five-fingered human hand appearing among the three-toed marks. “Not a bird.”
“A beast?” “No; a reptile – a dinosaur! Nothing else could have left such a track.”
Summerlee’s words died away into a whisper, and we all stood in motionless amazement. Following the tracks, we passed through a screen of brushwood and trees. Beyond was an open glade, and in this were five of the most extraordinary creatures that I have ever seen. Crouching down among the bushes, we observed them at our leisure.
There were, as I say, five of them, two adults and three young ones. In size they were enormous. Even the babies were as big as elephants, while the two large ones were far beyond all creatures I have ever seen. They had slate-coloured skin, which was scaled like a lizard’s and shimmered where the sun shone upon it. All five were sitting up, balancing themselves upon their broad, powerful tails and their huge three-toed hind feet, while with their small five-fingered front feet they pulled down the branches upon which they browsed. I can only bring their appearance home to you by saying that they looked like gigantic kangaroos with skins like black crocodiles.
I do not know how long we stayed gazing at this marvellous spectacle. From time to time the little ones played round their parents in unwieldy gambols, bounding into the air and falling with dull thuds upon the earth. The strength of the parents seemed to be limitless, for one of them, having some difficulty in reaching a bunch of foliage, put his forelegs round the trunk of the tree and tore it down as if it had been a sapling. Then it slowly lurched off through the wood, followed by its mate and its three enormous infants. We saw the glistening grey gleam of their skins between the tree-trunks, and their heads high above the brushwood. Then they vanished from our sight. I looked at my comrades. The two professors were in silent ecstasy.
“What will they say in England of this?” Professor Summerlee cried at last. “They will say that you are a liar,” said Professor Challenger, “exactly as you and others said of me.” “In the face of photographs?” “Faked, Summerlee! Clumsily faked!” “Who’s to blame them? For this will seem a dream to ourselves in a month or two,” said Lord John. “What were they?” “Iguanodons,” said Summerlee. “England was once alive with them when there was plenty of good lush green-stuff to keep them going.” “I don’t know what anyone else thinks, but this place makes me feel very uneasy…” said Lord John.
I had the same feeling of mystery and danger around us. In the gloom of the trees there seemed a constant menace and as we looked up into their shady foliage, vague terrors crept into one’s heart. The iguanodons we had seen were lumbering, inoffensive brutes which were unlikely to hurt anyone, but what other creatures might there not be – ready to pounce upon us from their lair among the rocks or brushwood?
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