MERCHANTTAYLORS SCHOOL

11+OFFICIALPRACTICEPAPER

ENGLISH
TimeAllowed:60minutes Instructions: Thispaperisintwoparts

acomprehension and your own composition. You should spend about halfanhouroneach part.

SECTIONONE:COMPREHENSION 30Minutes Thisextractisfrom Tunnels byRoderickGordonandBrianWilliams. In this passage,WillandChester areexploringastrange,undergroundcitythey havediscoveredwhentheyarecapturedbystrangers. Readthepassagecarefullyallthewaythroughandthenanswerthe questionsthatfollowintheanswerbooklet.
Willgazedupat thearchingroofofthecavernabovethem.Youknow,bynowwe mustnearlybeundertheHighStreet.

Peeringintothewindowsandsoakingupthestrangenessoftheancientshops,they keptwalking,drivenbytheircarelesscuriosityuntiltheycametoaplacewherethe
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tunnel split into three. The centre fork appeared to descend into the earth at a markedangle.

Right,thatsit,Chestersaidresolutely.Wereleavingnow.Imnotgoingtogetlost downhere.Allhisinstinctswerescreamingthattheyshouldturnback.

Allright,Willagreed,but

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Hewasjuststeppingoffthepavementontothecobbledroadwhentherewasanear splittingcrashofiron onstone.Inablindingflash,fourwhitehorsesboredown on him, sparks spraying from their hooves, breathing hard and pulling behind them a sinisterblackcoach.Willdidnthavetimetoreact, asthatveryinstanttheywereboth yankedofftheirfeetandhoistedintotheairbythescruffsoftheirnecks.

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A single man held them both, dangling helplessly, in his huge gnarled hands. Interlopers!themanshouted,hisvoicefierceandgravellyasheliftedthepairupto hisfaceandinspectedthemwithalookofrepugnance.Willtriedtobringhisspade up to beat him off, but it was wrestled from his grip. Will caught sight of a five pointed star of orangegold material stitched into the mans coat. Their massive,

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menacingcaptorwasclearlysomesortofpoliceman.

Help, Chester mouthed silently at his friend, his voice deserting him as they were buffetedaboutinthemansvicelikegrip.

Wevebeenexpectingyou,theman rumbled.

Putmedown!Willtriedtoswivelaround,kickingoutattheman.

Nousewriggling.Themanhoistedthestrugglingboyevenhigherintheair.Insheer desperation, Chester tried to headbutt the man. He jerked his face away, but not
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beforeChester,withawildswingofhisarm,hadswipedhishelmet. ButWillhardly noticed any of this. His attention had been seized by a tall, thin individual standing besidealamppost,whosehardfacewassetatopastarkwhitecollarandlong,dark coat that reflected the light as if it was made from polished leather. He stood out strikingly from the squat people about him, his shoulders slightly bent over like a

35 highlystrungbow.HiswholebeingemanatedevilandhisdarkeyesneverleftWills,

whofeltawaveofdreadwashoverhim.

1. Putthefollowingeventsintheorderinwhichtheyoccurintheextract.Numberthem fromonetofive,whereonehappensfirstandfivehappenslast. Willnoticesthemanspolicebadge Ahorseandcarriagearrives Chestersuggeststhattheyleave Willseesthetall,thinmanwatchingthem Willsspadeistakenfromhim

[5] 2. Lookatlines18.Inyourownwords,explainhowtheboysfeelastheyexplorethe undergroundcity. [2] 3. ThewriterdescribesChestersfeelingsabouttheplaceinline8:Allhisinstincts werescreamingthattheyshouldturnback. Whatkindofpicturedoesthisline createinyourmind?

[4]

4. Whatdoyouthinkthewritermeansinline3whenhesaysthattheboyswere soakingupthestrangenessoftheancientshops?
[4] 5. Circlethewordorphrasewhichhastheclosestmeaningtorepugnance (line1)

Disgust

Confusion

Bitterness

Pity

Hatred

[2]

6. Carefullyreadlines1014. Explainhowthewritercreatesanatmosphereofshock andconfusionhere. Includetwoquotesfromtheselinesinyouranswer. [5]

7. Explaininyourownwordshow WillandChesterarecaptured. [5] 8. Thinkoftwowordsthat,inyouropinion,bestdescribetheattackontheboys. Givecreditforanytwosensiblesuggestions [4] 9. Lookbackatthewholepassage.Findthreepointsinthetextwherethewriter createsasinisterorfrighteningatmosphereforthereader.Foreachexample,give theline(s)youhavechosenandexplainhowthewritermakesitascarymoment. [9]

ENDOFSECTIONONE.

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SECTION2:Composition30Minutes

Writeinfullsentencesandorganiseyourworkintoparagraphs.Marksareavailable foraccuratespellingandpunctuation.Youshouldspendtimeplanningandchecking yourwork.Chooseoneofthefollowingideas:

Either: 1)Whathappensnext? CarryonfromwheretheTunnelsextractfinishes. Startwiththeline,Hiswhole beingemanatedevilandhisdarkeyesneverleftWills,whofeltawaveofdread washoverhimandcontinuethestory.Youdonthavetoendthestorywrite34 detailedparagraphsinwhichyoudescribewhathappensnext.

Or: 2)AninterestingorunusualplaceIhavevisited. Writeanarticleforyourschoolmagazineaboutaninterestingplaceyouhavevisited recently.Youmightliketoexplainwhatyoufounddifferentorunusualaboutthe place,whatkindsofthingsyousawandexperiencedandtheimpacttheplacehad onyou. Rememberthatyouarewritingforpeopleofyourownage. Or: 3)AnEncounterwithaVillain. Writeanaccountinwhichyouencounteravillainouscharacter.Youshouldmake updetailsabouthis/herappearance,theircharacter,andwhattheysayanddo.Try tousedescriptiontoentertainandexcitethereader. Or: 4)AMysteriousDiscovery. Youdiscoveredsomethingverystrangeonyourwayhomefromschoolyesterday. Writealettertoyourfriendinwhichyouexplainwhatyoufoundindetail:whereyou were,whathappened,howyoufeltandwhatyoudid.

ENDOFSECTIONTWO.

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