2.1 Silent reading and written work  (Page 2/4)

(vii) Below are various signs used by the cat to indicate two of its moods. Write the number of the sign below the correct mood:

1. Whiskers are drawn back.

2. Eyes are half-closed.

3. It waves its tail.

4. The ears are upright.

(viii) Is the following statement TRUE or FALSE?

Yawning is a way of showing friendly intentions to lions and tigers.

(c) Cloze procedures. Below is the story of how a cat helped to make motoring safer. Read the extract and fill in the missing words:

One dark night, a man was _____________ his car along a steep, narrow road

which was full of twists and bends. On ____________ side of the road was a wall

of solid rock and on the other side there was nothing, only a sheer ___________

The man ran into such thick ____________ that he could not see where he

was going nor could he see the edge of the road. But then two pin-points of

________shone through the fog. The lights of the _______ had been

reflected in the ___________ of a cat sitting on the fence. He was able to see

the side of the road and was saved from ____________He thought, "I need

hundreds of ___________sitting along the road to help me home." When

he reached the main road, his lights shone on metal tram lines that ran along the

middle of the_________. He remembered the cat's eyes and thought,

"Why not invent road studs with glass ___________ like cats’ eyes in them

and put them in the _____________ of the road?"

The man's name was Percy Shaw. Every motorist who has to drive at night is

__________to him. The cats’-eyes have made roads all over the world

____________to drive along after _____________ .

(d) Cloze procedure.

Read the following extract and write the words on the following page.

LIGHTS OUT

Beverley Hutt of Hamilton in Canada was home (1) one night studying when the lights (2) out. She knew a (3) hadn't blown out because she heard the (4) turn off. Turning (5) , she saw Jojo sitting on the (6) beneath the light switch. She (7) the light back on, and (8) her cat. He then (9) up, stretching his (10) legs straight, crossing one paw carefully (11) the other. Jojo judged the jump so that his (12) were just above the switch when they hit the wall, thereby enabling him to pull the switch as he (13) down.

Jojo isn't the only cat who enjoys (14) with electricity. Another cat, Sammy, also switched on the touch-lamp next to a little (15) bed. Sammy was reaching up to the (16) , touching it to low, then to (17) , and then to high and then finally to the (18) position. He did that (19) times. The (20) had the last word in this nocturnal conversation: she (21) the bulb so that she could (22) peacefully to sleep.

2. WRITTEN WORK

Pretend you are your own cat. Think of all the situations you don't like. Write a letter to your owner, listing your grievances. Write from your heart and try to get as much sympathy from your owner as possible. Explain why you climb up the curtains, scratch the couch, leave hairs on the lounge suite and do all the other things which drive your owner crazy.

You may also write down a few ideas about the things that would make your life brighter, such as tastier food, getting rid of the dog and having more cat treats. You may subtly bribe your owner into making these changes. But don't forget to confess your undying love to your owner, just to keep him/her happy.