CBSE 2019 English Communicative Question Paper for Class 10

About this paper

This is the CBSE Class 10 English (Communicative) board paper from 2019, code 1/1/1 (Series JMS/1, Set 1). It carries 80 marks over three hours, with 15 minutes of reading time, and has 11 compulsory questions in three sections: Reading (20 marks), Writing and Grammar (30 marks) and Literature (30 marks). The first reading passage is adapted from Milkha Singh's autobiography, describing his first flight to Australia; the second is on peer pressure. Writing offers a letter to the editor on a ban on crackers or an article on increasing population in cities, followed by a 200–250 word story. Literature draws on Julius Caesar, The Letter, Two Gentlemen of Verona, A Shady Plot, The Dear Departed, Virtually True, The Diary of a Young Girl and The Story of My Life. Questions only.

Exam

CBSE Class 10

Subject

English

Year

2019

Paper code

1/1/1

Maximum marks

80

Time allowed

3 hours

Questions

11

Pages

11

Answers included

No, questions only

Paper pattern

• Section A (Reading)

  20 marks

  Questions 1–2: a passage from Milkha Singh's autobiography with any eight of nine one-mark questions (8 marks), and a passage on peer pressure with short answers, fill-in-the-blanks and word search (12 marks)

• Section B (Writing and Grammar)

  30 marks

  Questions 3–7: letter to the editor or article (8), story writing (10), gap filling (4), omission (4) and sentence reordering (4)

• Section C (Literature)

  30 marks

  Questions 8–11: extract-based questions (4), four short answers out of five (8), a long answer on The Dear Departed or Virtually True (8) and a long answer on the novels (10)

Topics covered

• Reading comprehension
• Letter to the editor
• Article writing
• Story writing
• Gap filling, omission and sentence reordering
• Julius Caesar
• The Letter
• Two Gentlemen of Verona
• The Frog and the Nightingale
• The Dear Departed
• The Diary of a Young Girl
• The Story of My Life

Questions from this paper

1. Why are teenagers more likely to be affected by peer pressure?
2. Write a letter in 100–120 words to the Editor of The Hindu, Chennai, discussing the advantages and disadvantages of a ban on crackers.
3. Why was Nicola not willing to share his 'plans' with the narrator?
4. For Mrs Slater and Mrs Jordan, greed for money is more important than their love for their father. Comment.
5. In 'The Diary of a Young Girl', what opinion did Anne have of the adults who lived in the Annexe?
6. In 'The Story of My Life', how did Helen's interaction with Dr Bell change her outlook on the world around her?