P5 RC - Unit 1

Po Leung Kuk
Hong Kong Taoist Association

Yuen Yuen Primary School

2018-2019
Primary 5

Unit 1 – China
English Reading Comprehension Worksheets

Name: ________________________
Class: ________________________

W.S.# Correction
1.1
1.2
1.3
1.4
1.5
1.6

PO LEUNG KUK HONG KONG TAOIST ASSOCIATION 1.1
YUEN YUEN PRIMARY SCHOOL

P. 5 First Term English Reading Comprehension Worksheet

Name: ____________________ ( ) Class: _______ Date: ________________ Grade:_______

Objective: Students can identify and describe the 5 key elements of a modern fiction
passage.

Part 1
Match the following 5 elements of a narrative with its description by connecting the dots.

1. Resolution Describes the scene and creates a
visual picture of the setting and
atmosphere. Characters are also
introduced.

2. Reorientation / Coda Includes a series of expected or
unexpected events.

3. Complication Describes how the protagonist is
prevented from reaching his or her
goals.

4. Series of Events Provides a solution for the problem
or challenge.

5. Orientation Sets the scene and relocates the
character. It sums up the all the
events.

Part 2
Read the following story, Pick Me, and answer the questions by blackening the circles.

Eddie really liked to play dodgeball. He was not the tallest kid, and he was not the
biggest kid. He was not the fastest kid, and he was not the slowest kid. He was the kid
with the best hands.

When his classmates chose teammates for dodgeball, they liked to pick the fast kids
first, because they were good at dodging. Then they would pick the kids with strong arms,
because they were good at getting people out when they threw a ball. Everyone else came
after that.

It was another P.E. lesson where Eddie and his classmates were to play dodgeball.
Just like usual, Eddie got picked last, and it made him sad. Maybe if he was taller or
faster, it would have helped. He knew he had to show his classmates his talents, and that
he was made for a good team.

The teacher reminded everyone of the rules one more time and went to their own side
of the court to get ready. Everyone was so focused that if a needle dropped on the
floor, you would be able to hear it. Then, everything seemed like it happened in slow
motion. The P.E. teacher placed the whistle by his lips, then the sound of the whistle
filled the air and the game started.

1. What happened in the passage above?
¡ a. It introduced the main character of the story and the setting as well as setting the

mood.

¡ b. It introduced how dodgeball was played.

¡ c. It introduced the coach.

¡ d. It focused on Eddie’s problem.

When the game started, the fast kids ran forward and grabbed the balls first. They
threw them, and several people on each team were eliminated. Then, the strong arms came
in handy. The boys with the best arms whizzed the dodgeballs across the court. It stung
if one of them hit you.

Some of the big kids went down. They made easy targets. You could see the fast kids
quickly dodging the flying balls, but they eventually fell, too.

2. What was happening in the second passage?
¡ a. Different students were hit by the dodge ball and were out of the game.
¡ b. Eddie was getting everyone out of the game.
¡ c. Children were running around.
¡ d. The children were having a great time.

As time went by, more and more people were out of the game. That left Eddie
standing alone on the court for his team, holding a red rubber ball. He smiled, even
though his teammates groaned to see him facing four enemies on his own. “Not Eddie,”
they whined, thinking he was useless, but he would show them.

3. The passage above showed the problem of the story. What was the problem?
¡ a. People didn’t like Eddie.
¡ b. Eddie got hurt playing dodgeball.
¡ c. Eddie was the only remaining player on his team.
¡ d. Eddie made his team lose.

4. Which element of a narrative talks about the problem of a story?
¡ a. series of events
¡ b. reorientation
¡ c. resolution
¡ d. complication

When one of the strong arms on the other team threw a ball, he deflected it with his
own and tagged him out with his ball. Now there were only three left on the other team.
The odds were more even now.

He got another ball and approached the center line. A fast kid charged at him,
throwing the ball low. Eddie dropped his own ball and caught the other kid’s ball. The fast
kid was out, and he got one of his teammates back. “John, you’re in!” Eddie shouted over
his shoulder.

Everyone watched in surprise. Now it was two-on-two. Eddie and John each got a ball,
got the slow kid on the other team in their sights and fired. Eddie missed, but his shot led
the other player right into John’s shot. Now it was two-to-one. It didn’t take long to finish
off the last kid. Eddie was a hero. His team rushed in to cheer for him.

5. What was the resolution of the story?
¡ a. Eddie helped bring back his own team mates and helped his team to win.

¡ b. Eddie made his team lose.

¡ c. Eddie was a hero because he saved the day.

¡ d. Eddie hit someone with a ball.

PO LEUNG KUK HONG KONG TAOIST ASSOCIATION 1.2
YUEN YUEN PRIMARY SCHOOL

P. 5 First Term English Reading Comprehension Worksheet

Name: _____________________ ( ) Class: _______ Date: _______________ Grade:_______

Objective: Students can identify the details that contextualize the extended modern
fiction passage’s five main elements.

Read the following story, Welcome to the Neighbourhood, and answer the questions by
blackening the circles.

It was a beautiful quiet morning. The sun was out, but not yet hot. Birds were
calling to one another. Betsy was deeply indulged in her book as she sat on her porch
swing. A moving van broke the silence of the morning as it pulled up the driveway next to
her home.

The old Roger house had been empty for six months, and finally someone was moving in.
Betsy didn’t see any children getting out of the car, just an older woman in a wheelchair.
Betsy thought, she is going to be lonely by herself. The moving men brought all the
furniture into the house. The lady didn’t have too many things. Betsy started feeling sorry
for her, so she went back in her home and asked her mother, “Mom, is it alright if I go over
to say hello to our new neighbour?” Mom replied, “Why don’t you wait until tomorrow so you
can give her a chance to get settled.”

1. What was the passage above describing?
¡ a. It described the setting and the atmosphere of the story as well as introducing the
characters of the story.
¡ b. It described an old lady.
¡ c. It described how helpful Betsy was.
¡ d. It described the neighbour’s home.

2. What happens in the series of events?
¡ a. Any events expected or unexpected that leads to the conflict or leads to the
resolution.
¡ b. The main problem of the story.
¡ c. The events that shows the ending of a story.
¡ d. The events that occur after the resolution.

The next morning Mom and Betsy brought some cookies to their new neighbour to
introduce themselves. The lady came to the door and said her name was Emily Harris. She
invited them into the house. “Please forgive the way the house looks,” said Miss Harris. “I
haven’t had much time to put things away and being in a wheelchair makes it twice as hard.”
Betsy and her mom had a lovely little chat, but only stayed only for a short time. “We don’t
want to hold you up,” said Betsy’s mom. “If you ever need anything, let us know.” “Thanks so
much,” said Miss Harris.

3. Which of the following sentences has the same meaning as, “We don’t want to hold you up”?

¡ a. We don’t want to carry you.

¡ b. We don’t want to waste your time.

¡ c. We don’t like you so we’re leaving.

¡ d. Carrying you is difficult.

Finish reading the rest of the story.

After breakfast the next day, Betsy decided she wanted to help Miss Harris get
settled in. It was Saturday, so she had all day. Betsy really liked Miss Harris. Betsy rang
the doorbell but didn’t get an answer. The door was unlocked, so Betsy peeked in only to
see Miss Harris had tried to reach a shelf and had taken a fall next to her wheelchair.
Betsy ran to Miss Harris and asked her if she was alright. “I think I broke my arm,” said
Miss Harris. “I’ll be right back,” said Betsy. She ran home and told her mom. They called
for an ambulance. They arrived shortly and took Miss Harris to the hospital.

While Miss Harris was gone, Betsy decided to unpack the boxes that were on the floor
and put things away to surprise and help Miss Harris once she returned home. She was
going to need a lot of help now that she broke her arm. When Miss Harris returned home
on Sunday, she was surprised by Betsy’s hard work. “You are a very kind girl,” said Miss
Harris. “I’m so lucky to have bought this house next to you!” Betsy smiled the biggest smile
and said, “Welcome to the neighborhood.”

4. What was the complication of the story?
¡ a. Miss Harris lost some of her belongings.

¡ b. Betsy stole something from Miss Harris.

¡ c. Miss Harris fell and broke her arm.

¡ d. Betsy called the ambulance to help Miss Harris.

5. What was the resolution of the story?
¡ a. Betsy saw Miss Harris had fallen and quickly called the ambulance to help her.
¡ b. Betsy and Miss Harris became friends.
¡ c. Miss Harris fell and broke her arm.
¡ d. Miss Harris made a new friend.

PO LEUNG KUK HONG KONG TAOIST ASSOCIATION 1.3
YUEN YUEN PRIMARY SCHOOL

P. 5 First Term English Reading Comprehension Worksheet

Name: _____________________ ( ) Class: _______ Date: ______________Grade:_______

Objective: Students can identify the mood of the passage through word choice.
Part 1
The following passage is an excerpt from the story, The Tidy Drawer. Mom and Abby were
searching for a change purse that was inside a kitchen drawer. While they were searching,
they found various items in the drawer and started to play with them. Read the excerpt and
answer the questions by blackening the circles.

"Wotch thish?" Abby asked, holding up a flat rubbery thing. It was hard to speak
through the vampire teeth.

"It's a Whoopee Cushion," Mum grinned and said. "You blow it up and sit on it. It
makes farting noises." She blew it up and gave it to Abby.

Suddenly there was a knock at the back door. A voice called out. "Hello, it's only me.
I've let myself in."

It was their nosy neighbour, Mrs Hislop. She was always interfering and complaining.
Mrs Hislop entered the kitchen. Her mouth dropped open.
"We're jush wooking for the change pursh," Abby explained.
"Yes, well, er," Mrs. Hislop said, "I just wanted a word about your fence. Some of it
has blown down on my side."
At that moment Abby sat on the Whoopee Cushion and let out an enormous, rude
noise. Wow-Wow jumped off his seat and ran away.
"Well!" said Mrs. Hislop and hurried from the room and out of the house.
When the door banged shut Abby and Mum burst out laughing until Mum's moustache
hung on by a whisker and Abby's vampire teeth dropped out.
Abby came to sit on her Mum's knee.
"It's fun doing this together," she said.
"Maybe. But we still haven't found the change purse." They both looked at the
enormous heap of things spread over the kitchen table.

1. What happened in the excerpt?
¡ a. Mom and Abby were playing together.
¡ b. A neighbour walked into Mom and Abby’s kitchen while they were playing with the
items they found in the drawer.
¡ c. Mom and Abby found the change purse.
¡ d. Mom laughed at Abby’s vampire teeth.

2. Which of the following can replace the word grinned?

¡ a. pursed her lips ¡ c. a big smile
¡ b. frowned ¡ d. stared

3. What was the rude sound from the Whoopee Cushion when Abby sat on it?

¡ a. a loud quack ¡ c. a loud bang

¡ b. a loud farting noise ¡ d. a loud pop

4. What does burst out laughing from the passage mean?

¡ a. Someone giggling
¡ b. Someone laugh until they were crying

¡ c. Someone laughing loudly after trying to hold it in
¡ d. Someone trying to hold their laugh

5. Based on the excerpt and all the previous questions, what was the mood of the excerpt?

¡ a. The mood was very spooky. ¡ c. The mood was light hearted and fun.

¡ b. The mood was mysterious. ¡ d. The mood was very dark and eerie.

Part 2
The following passage is an excerpt from the story, Saving June. Read the excerpt and
answer the questions by blackening the circles.

Rose followed the voice hesitantly. Glancing around, she slowly went down the
winding staircase and through a corridor, growing increasingly skittish as the lamp
flickers, and her shadow looming in the narrow hallway in the eerie silence. The voice
stopped as Rose came to a wooden door. Rose put her hand on the door, unsure of what
to do. She had never seen this part of the ship before. Taking a deep breath, she push
opened the door, and it slowly creaked open.

6. Which of the following descriptions can best explain what “Glancing around…” mean?
¡ a. looking around quickly
¡ b. dancing around
¡ c. running around
¡ d. hiding in different places

7. What do the words hesitantly and skittish have in common?
¡ a. Both words are adjectives.
¡ b. Both words showed how the character was very excited.
¡ c. Both words showed how the character was afraid.
¡ d. Both words described the setting.

8. What type of mood did the author create?
¡ a. a very spooky and mysterious mood
¡ b. a light hearted and humorous (funny) mood
¡ c. a romantic mood
¡ d. a dark, evil mood

PO LEUNG KUK HONG KONG TAOIST ASSOCIATION 1.4
YUEN YUEN PRIMARY SCHOOL

P. 5 First Term English Reading Comprehension Worksheet

Name: _____________________ ( ) Class: _______ Date: ______________ Grade:_______

Objective: Students can identify the author’s message for the whole, or a selected piece
of text.

Read the following story and answer the questions by blackening the circles.

The Waiting Room

By Andrew Frinkle

There were very few things that Tim liked less than waiting. His mother was a saint
with ridiculous amounts of patience. She could sit for hours without complaining. He could
not. Therefore, the worst place in the world for him to have to spend time was the waiting
room at any office or business.

Today, Tim sat at the waiting room in the auto shop. His mother had taken their
vehicle in early on Saturday morning for an oil change. That may or may not have included a
tire rotation, whatever that meant. Tim didn’t know much about cars, after all. Tim had
already examined the vending machines. It was a habit of his to put his fingers into the
coin returns of vending machines. Some silly people forget to collect their change, so he
often found coins there. That was nice. Today he had found nothing, though.

After that, he had played with the drinking fountain and examined the coffee pot,
which was empty. Sugar packets were fun to play with for about five seconds, but then
mom told him to stop. So, he put down the pink, blue and white packets and the plastic
creamers and went back to sit.

Sitting made him try to see if he could rock the chair back and forth. It was hard to
do because the chair had such broad legs. It was a sturdy chair, but that didn’t mean it
might not have loose screws. He tried to unscrew each with his fingernail, but had no
success.

Sighing, Tim wondered what else he could do to waste time until the car was done. The
TV was on, but it was on a news channel, speaking of the sort of boring things that adults
liked to know about. Mom wouldn’t let him climb the counter to get up to the TV to change
the channels, either.

1. Which of the following best describes Tim at the auto shop?

¡ a. He is patient and caring. ¡ c. He is energetic and bored.

¡ b. He is focused and calm. ¡ d. He is happy and fun-loving.

2. What do you think, “There were very few things that Tim liked less than waiting” means?

¡ a. Tim only likes a few things. ¡ c. Tim hates waiting.
¡ b. Tim doesn’t like many things. ¡ d. Tim enjoys waiting.

3. Which of the following did Tim not find interest in?

¡ a. coffee maker ¡ c. magazine

¡ b. vending machine ¡ d. TV

4. What was the first part of the story about? What was the message?

¡ a. Tim thought it was fun playing with all the different things he could find at the auto

shop.
¡ b. Tim is learning to be patient.

¡ c. It is boring to wait if there is nothing interesting to do.
¡ d. TV

Finally, Tim decided to pick up a magazine. They had a lot of articles about popular
stars and celebrity news, but he didn’t care about that stuff. He finally found one on
science and animals. It was actually pretty neat. The pictures were startlingly colorful and
interesting. In fact, he got so into it that his mother had to shake him to let him know the
car was done.

“See?” She said. “Waiting doesn’t have to be boring. You just have to keep yourself
occupied. I read a few chapters in my book, too.” Tim nodded and smiled, his head still full
of the pictures he’d seen. She was right.

5. What happened in the end of the story?
¡ a. Tim couldn’t find anything interesting to do and got angry.
¡ d. Mom told Tim to stop fooling around and he did.
¡ c. Tim was bored until he found an interesting magazine to read and thought time went
by very quickly.
¡ d. Tim took out his novel to read.

6. Reread the whole story. What is the message of the story?
¡ a. Waiting is a waste of time.
¡ b. It is boring to wait.
¡ c. Waiting is not so bad depending on what you do.
¡ d. Listen to your mom.

PO LEUNG KUK HONG KONG TAOIST ASSOCIATION 1.5
YUEN YUEN PRIMARY SCHOOL

P. 5 First Term English Reading Comprehension Worksheet
Name: _____________________ ( ) Class: _______ Date: ______________ Grade:_______

Objective: Students can identify the details that support the mood and the author’s
message.

Read the following story and answer the questions by blackening the circles.

Tossing the Rope Part 1

By Jay Hugh – age 10

All I do all day is look for clams. I’m very good at it, an expert. As far as I can
remember I’ve always scoured for clams and that’s all we ate.

“I wish more people lived on this island,” I mumbled to myself. Mom and dad say I
should be thankful towards our ancestors who found this clam rich island. I’m getting sick
of eating the same thing every day.

“Dinner time!” I dragged myself over to my parents.
“Ming Xia!” I knew that warning tone.
I took my plate and topped it with clams. “Clam salad again?” I groaned. Father
always told me the importance of clams. I couldn’t help but wonder why food on the other
island smells so wonderful, but not here. I’m sure they eat something that tastes as
delicious as it smells. My dad taught me that there are countless tiny islands in this area.
Each island has one animal or produce unique to the island. I once saw a white bird that
can’t fly that sings every morning and wakes everyone up.
I had a wonderful dream. Maybe the boy on the island to the north is sick of eating
that wonderful smelling bird too. There was only one way to find out. I waited until the
boy could see that I was throwing something important at him. I stuffed a clam in a leaf
and threw it as hard as I can towards the island. It didn’t reach him right away but
drifted ashore. He looked at me then opened the parcel. He looked confused so I did a
gesture of putting the clam in my mouth. He put it in his mouth and hollered in delight.
He ran to his hut and emerged with something. He picked a leaf from his tree. He threw
it to me and I caught it. I opened it up. The great smell enveloped me in a second.

1. What is the name of the narrator of the story?

¡ a. I ¡ c. Ming Xia
¡ b. the boy ¡ d. The narrator doesn’t have a name.

2. What did the character do every day?
¡ a. He went fishing every day.

¡ b. He just sat on the beach and relaxed every day.
¡ c. He harvested clams every day.

¡ d. He daydreamed every day.

3. What were the details that described the setting of the story?

¡ a. The narrator lived on an island.
¡ b. There were countless islands that surrounded the narrator’s island.

¡ c. Each island only had one specific type of food to eat.
¡ d. All of the above

4. What did the narrator eat every day and how did he feel about it?
¡ a. The narrator only ate fish.

¡ b. The narrator ate a variety of food every day and he couldn’t get enough of it.
¡ c. The narrator ate clams every day and he loved it.

¡ d. The narrator ate clams every day and he was sick of it.

5. What can replace the word hollered, in the sentence “He put it in his mouth and hollered in

delight.” ¡ b. shouted ¡ c. sang ¡ d. mumbled
¡ a. whispered

6. What was the message of Part 1 of Tossing the Rope?
¡ a. It is not healthy to eat the same thing every day.

¡ b. It is boring to eat the same thing every day.
¡ c. We should be happy with what we have.

¡ d. Being hungry is a horrible feeling.

PO LEUNG KUK HONG KONG TAOIST ASSOCIATION 1.6
YUEN YUEN PRIMARY SCHOOL

P. 5 First Term English Reading Comprehension Worksheet

Name: _____________________ ( ) Class: _______ Date: ______________ Grade:_______

Objective: Students can identify the details that support the mood and the author’s
message.

Read the following story and answer the questions by blackening the circles.

Tossing the Rope Part 2

“Father, mother!” They emerged furious for I’m not helping them to harvest clams.
Before they could scold me I took out the piece of whatever it was and shoved it in their
mouths. They squealed with excitement. Mother’s eyes filled up with tears and father
exclaimed that this must be the chicken he’s only heard of from elders. Whatever it was,
was exploding with flavor. The juice was running out of my mouth and the scrumptious
meat was tinted with flavor. I ran back to the island and kept throwing clams just as I did
earlier hoping he would send more of the delicious meat. I learned that sharing benefits
me!

The other islands were too far so Dad helped me to throw clam leaves. The
neighbours at the west sent us a large parcel filled with large leaves I’ve never seen
before. I carefully opened the package and to my great surprise there was a bundle of
plant I’ve never seen. It came with writing on it. I didn’t understand but the drawings
showed a man putting the plant in the ground and watering it.

“Well at least we ought to give it a try?” We planted it near our pond and waited,
day after day. Dad suggested eating the vegetables instead of planting them but I
insisted and begged to continue waiting. What was once a corn cob became 5 then 10 we
decided it was time to bite into it. We hurriedly pulled away the green bits and gazed at
the pure caramel yellow corn. We each took a bit out of it. It burst in my mouth. The
corn tasted so sweet!

Trading between islands was prospering. Everyone started trading what they had and
never knew what they will get in return. It was quite common to see parcels floating in
the water. Eventually with all the ropes connecting the islands I came up with a crazy idea
to bring the islands closer. I gave everyone a strip of corn stalk and I asked that everyone
pull at the same time. Some say I was crazy. Everyone pulled so hard that the ground
shook and I could feel the ground move underneath us. Inch by inch the separate islands
were connecting. The sand rose. Waves brewed and the people shivered against the
onslaught of quakes. Shadows appeared and shadows to figures finally figures to faces.
Their cheery and smiling faces were very comforting to see. By now the little boy I

shared my clams with was now a young teenager. One of the those flightless birds
sauntered over to our side of the island and a muddy pink thing came nosing in our clams
and started gobbling it up. A once separated delta was now untied as Hong
Kong/XiangGang, the city of scrumptious scent.

Years had passed before I returned to the beach that started everything. I looked
around the different areas picturing how things were before all the islands united to Hong
Kong. I chuckled as I sighted the old fashioned huts and the decorated clam shells.
Sharing truly connected us like never before. I am proud that my children and their
children can enjoy this great city.

“Grandpa! Grandpa!”
“Yes, my dear?”
“Can you tell us how you connected the Pearl River Delta?”
“Of course.”
“All I did all day is look for clams…”

1. Continuing from Part 1 of Tossing the Rope, what tradition did the narrator start?
¡ a. The narrator introduced trading between the islands.
¡ b. The narrator introduced a communication tool between the different islands.
¡ c. The narrator started to eat all the food from other islands.
¡ d. The narrator started to farm.

2. How did the people from other islands respond to this new tradition?
¡ a. The other islanders did not like it.
¡ b. The other islanders thought it was a great idea.
¡ c. The other islanders were angry at the boy so they started to throw food back at
him.
¡ d. The other islanders were unsure of it.

3. What was the result from the narrator’s action?
¡ a. Trading brought the islands together.
¡ b. Farming began.
¡ c. People were angry that people started to combine the islands together.
¡ d. People started to throw food into the water.

4. What was the atmosphere like in the story?
¡ a. The mood was very dull.
¡ b. There was a lot of anger among the islands.
¡ c. There was a sense of fear and nervousness among the characters.
¡ d. There was a sense of excitement and joy among the people in all the islands.

5. Based on the last two paragraphs of the story starting at “Years had passed…” how did the
main character feel about the decision of throwing the first clam towards his neighbouring
island?
¡ a. The narrator regret what he did.
¡ b. The narrator was proud of his accomplishments.
¡ c. The narrator loves his grandchildren.
¡ d. The narrator wish he never did it.

6. Reread Tossing the Rope (Part 1 and 2). What is the overall message of the story?
¡ a. When islands come together, they form Hong Kong.
¡ b. Working together brings success and people together.
¡ c. People pulled ropes together to form Hong Kong.
¡ d. Sharing makes people happy.