English Reading Comprehension For Grade 5 Children

• Passage-1: My Nephew
• Passage-2: Bu-cola
• Passage-3: Yusri and Yusra
• Passage-4: Mother
• Passage-5: Pangolins
• Passage-6: Earthquakes
• Passage-7: When Your Time Comes
• Passage-8: Collecting Fossils
• Passage-9: The Bicycle
• Passage-10: The Egg and the Bottle
• Passage-11: Sasha’s Night Alone
• Passage-12: About The Cat
• Passage-13: Isle Of Jormuguar
• Passage-14: Shoes: Taking One Step at A Time

Passage 4 - Mother

Read the following passage carefully.

[1]

“Why don’t you go and play with your game and leave me alone?” Saiful’s mother said, as she continued to type furiously on her laptop. She turned away, indicating that he had been dismissed. Standing up, Saiful placed the card he had made for his mother on the table and walked away. It had taken him two weeks to design and produce the perfect birthday card. On the front of the card he had drawn his mother’s favourite flower, a rose.

[2]

Saiful went to his room and sat on the bed, reflecting over his relationship with his mother. Life had been tough for both of them ever since Saiful’s father died when Saiful was just two years old. His mother, then only twenty-three, took on the full responsibility of being both his mother and father. They were very poor and lived in a one-bedroom flat in a rundown part of town.

[3]

Saiful’s mother was determined to make life better for her son, so she got a job in a local printing company as a clerk. After school, his mother would meet Saiful at the gates and they would go to her office. He would sit by her desk and play quietly with his cars, while she carried on with her work. Her employer didn’t mind him being there, as long as she did her work well.

[4]

At 5.00pm, they would leave the office and, if the weather was nice, head to the park by the river. In the park there was a small playground with only a slide, a few swings and a see-saw, but to Saiful it was a magical place. He loved running around in the open space and playing ball or hide-and-seek with his mother. She would also push him on the swing – higher and higher until he felt like he was flying.

[5]

After a short walk home, his mother would make dinner with the little food they had, while Saiful did his homework at the kitchen table. Every now and then, his mother would stop cooking to help him with a tricky Maths problem or to spell a difficult word. After dinner, as they didn’t own a television, she would tell him wonderful stories full of magic and mystery.

[6]

Things slowly began to change when his mother was given a higher position in the company and soon she was earning more money. They moved out of their small apartment and into a much bigger house. Saiful was sad to leave his playground behind as there wasn’t one near the new house. His mother employed a driver to take Saiful to school and back. She also hired a maid to cook his meals. Often, he didn’t get to see his mother until late in the day, so he kept himself busy with the laptop, mobile phone and games console she had bought him. To help him with his school work, several tutors would come to the house and teach him one-on-one. As a result, Saiful’s school grades improved.

[7]

However, if Saiful was honest with himself, the new home and his mother’s gifts could not take away his loneliness. She had very little time for him now and worked from one stressful deadline to the next. Sometimes, he would already be asleep by the time she came home, exhausted and ready for bed. Saiful missed the mother he used to know, but wasn’t quite sure how to get her back.

[8]

As Saiful wiped a tear off his face, he heard a quiet knock on the door. It was his mother, standing there holding his card in her hands, her eyes glistening with tears. Suddenly he knew, here was his chance to talk.

Questions

Answer the following questions. Marks allotted is given at the end of the question.

From paragraph 1

(1) At the beginning of the story, what was Saiful’s mother doing?
   A. Playing a game
   B. Typing on a computer
   C. Cleaning a table
   D. Drawing a picture

(2) Which word in this paragraph means ‘showing’?
   A. Furiously
   B. Indicating
   C. Dismissed
   D. design

From paragraph 2

(3) Give the meaning of the word ‘reflecting’ in line 7 in not more than 7 words.

(4) Give the meaning of the word ‘tough’ in line 8 in not more than 7 words.

From paragraph 3

(5) What shows that Saiful’s mother was determined to make life better for him?

(6) Saiful’s mother’s employer did not mind Saiful being in the office. Why?

From paragraph 4

(7) What did Saiful and his mother do in the playground? Pick 2 answers.
   A. Played on the swing
   B. Had a picnic
   C. Went flying
   D. Played games

(8) Explain, in your own words, why the playground was a magical place to Saiful.

From paragraph 5

(9) Pick out and copy the two phrases that show Saiful and his mother were poor.

From paragraph 6

(10) Find another word in this paragraph that is similar in meaning to ‘employed’.

(11) How can we tell that, after getting a higher position , Saiful’s mother had less time to take care of him? Give two details.

(12) Why did Saiful’s grades begin to improve?

From paragraph 7

(13) Explain the reasons for Saiful’s loneliness.

(14) What does the word ‘her’ (line 40) refer to?

From paragraph 8

(15) How was Saiful feeling at the end of the passage? Explain your answer.

From the whole passage

(16) Read the sentences below carefully and write True or False against each.
   a) Saiful’s mother cared for him.
   b) When they moved to the bigger house, Saiful missed the playground that was near his old house.
   c) Saiful’s mother was a good employee.
   d) Saiful designed the birthday card for his mother with great care.
   e) Saiful’s mother’s favourite flower was a rose.

(17) Order the following events in the story according to how they happen in the passage by numbering them.
   a) Saiful designed a birthday card for his mother
   b) Saiful’s mother got a job
   c) Saiful and his mother moved to a bigger house
   d) Saiful’s mother told him stories.

(18) Give a summary of the passage in not more than 160 words. Write about how Saiful’s life changed and how his feelings about. Begin with the following words:
“Saiful’s father passed away…..”

Answer Key

(1) B
(2) B
(3) thinking about
(4) Difficult and challenging
(5) Saiful’s mother got a job in a local printing company as a clerk.
(6) Saiful’s mother did her work well.
(7) A. Played on the swing D. Played games
(8) Saiful felt as though he could fly.
(9) the little food they had, didn’t own a television
(10) hired
(11) His mother employed a driver to take Saiful to school and back. She also hired a maid to cook his meals.
(12) To help him with his school work, several tutors would come to the house and teach him one-on-one.
(13) She had very little time for him now and worked from one stressful deadline to the next. Sometimes, he would already be asleep by the time she came home, exhausted and ready for bed
(14) Saiful’s mother as he knew her earlier when they were poor
(15)Safiul was feeling relieved and happy at the end of the passage because his mother had tears in her eyes as she came to his room which meant that she had realised how much effort and time he had invested in designing such a meaningful card for him. He felt that he could talk to her finally about his feelings of loneliness.
(16)
   a) Saiful’s mother cared for him. True
   b) When they moved to the bigger house, Saiful missed the playground that was near his old house. True
   c) Saiful’s mother was not a good employee. False
   d) Saiful designed the birthday card for his mother carelessly. False
   e) Saiful’s mother’s favourite flower was a rose. True
(17)
   a) Saiful designed a birthday card for his mother (4)
   b) Saiful’s mother got a job (1)
   c) Saiful and his mother moved to a bigger house (3)
   d) Saiful’s mother told him stories.(2)
(18) Saiful’s father passed away when he was two years old, and after that his mother brought him up with difficulty. She got a small job, but they lived a poor life since the money was never enough. However, his mother spent a lot of time playing with Saiful, helping him with school work and telling him stories. Therefore he was happy. As time passed, Saiful’s mother got a better position in the company and they grew rich. Saiful’s mother did not have time for him now. He now had a driver, maid and tutors to help him, but he was very lonely since his mother did not have time for him. On his mother’s birthday, Saiful designed a beautiful card for her, but at first she sent him away. But later she realised how much effort was put into the card and came to him. Now Saiful realised that he can talk about his loneliness to his mother openly.