CBSE Class 12 English Note Making Passage

Read the given passage and answer the questions that follow :

Research has shown that the human mind can process words at the rate of about 500 per minute, whereas a speaker speaks at the rate of about 150 words a minute. The difference between the two at 350 is quite large.

So a speaker must make every effort to retain the attention of the audience and the listener should also be careful not to let his mind wander. Good communication calls for good listening skills. A good speaker must necessarily be a good listener.

Listening starts with hearing but goes beyond. Hearing, in other words is necessary but in a sufficient condition for listening. Listening involves hearing with attention. Listening is a process that calls for concentration. While listening, one should also be observant. In other words, listening has to do with the ears, as well as with the eyes and the mind. Listening is to be understood as total process that involves hearing with attention, being observant and making interpretations. Good communication is essentially an interactive process. It calls for participation and involvement. It is quite often a dialogue rather than a monologue. It is necessary to be interested and also show or make it abundantly clear that one is interested in knowing what the other person has to say.

Good listening is an art that can be cultivated. It relates to skills that can be developed. A good listener knows the art of getting much more than what the speaker is trying to convey. He knows how to prompt, persuade but not to cut off or interrupt what the other person has to say. At times the speaker may or may not be coherent, articulate and well organised in his thoughts and expressions. He may have it in his mind and yet he may fail to marshal the right words while communicating his thought. Nevertheless a good listener puts him at ease, helps him articulate and facilitates him to get across the message that he wants to convey. For listening to be effective it is also necessary that barriers to listening are removed. Such barriers can be both physical and psychological. Physical barriers generally relate to hindrances to proper hearing whereas psychological barriers are more fundamental and relate to the interpretation and evaluation of speaker and the message.

(a) On the basis of your reading of the above passage, make notes in points only, using abbreviations wherever necessary. Supply a suitable title.

(b) Write a summary of the above passage in 80 words.

 Suggested Answers for the above mentioned question:

(a) Title : The Human Mind

1. Words Process
1.1 Processing 500 w.p.m.
1.2 Speaking 150 w.p.m.
2. Retain the Attn.
2.1 audience 2.2 listener

3. Good Comm.
3.1 Hearing or listening
3.2 Conc.
3.3 Attention
3.4 Interpretation

4. Listening barriers
4.1 Phy. hindrance
4.2 Psy.
(i) interpretation (ii) evaluation

Abbreviations used :
1. w.p.m. – words per minute
2. Attn. – Attention
3. Comm. – Communication
4. Conc. – Concentration
5. Phy. – Physical
6. Psy. – Psychological

(b) Summary Research has proved that the difference between processing and speaking rate is 350 words per minute which is quite large. Therefore, the speaker must retain the attention of the audience so, listener should not wander. A good speaker must necessarily be a good listener. Good listening is an art that can be cultivated. For effective listening physical and psychological barriers must be removed. In short, good communication is necessary for an interactive process.

Read the given passage and answer the questions that follow : 

The term dietary fibres refers collectively to indigestible carbohydrates present in plant foods, the importance of these dietary fibres came into the picture when it was observed that the people having diet rich in these fibres, had low incidence of coronary heart disease, irritable bowel syndrome, dental caries and gall stones.

The food stuffs rich in these dietary fibres are cereals and grains, legumes, fruits with seeds, citrus fruits, carrots, cabbage, green leafy vegetables, apples, melons, peaches, pears, etc.

These dietary fibres are not digested by the enzymes of the stomach and the small intestine whereas most of other carbohydrates like starch and sugar are digested and absorbed. The dietary fibres have the property of holding water and because of it, these get swollen and behave like a sponge as these pass through the gastrointestinal tract. The fibres add bulk to the diet and increase transit time in the gut. Some of these fibres may undergo fermentation in the colon.

In recent years, it has been considered essential to have some amount of fibres in the diet. Their beneficial effects lie in preventing coronary heart disease, and decreasing cholesterol level. The fibres like gums and pectin are reported to decrease post-prandial (after meals) glucose level in blood. These types of dietary fibres are recommended for the management of certain types of diabetes. Recent studies have shown that the fenugreek (Methi) seeds, which contain 40 per cent gum, are effective in decreasing blood glucose and cholesterol levels as compared to other gum containing vegetables.

Some dietary fibres increase transit time and decrease the time or release of ingested food in colon. The diet having less fibres is associated with colon cancer and the dietary fibres may play a role in decreasing the risk of it. The dietary fibres hold water so that stools are soft, bulky and readily eliminated. Therefore high fibre intake prevents or relieves constipation.

The fibres increase motility of the small intestine and the colon and by decreasing the transit time there is less time for exposure of the mucosa to harmful toxic substances. Therefore, there is a less desire to eat and the energy intake can be maintained within the range of requirement. This phenomenon helps in keeping a check on obesity. Another reason in helping to decrease obesity is that the highfibre diets have somewhat lower coefficients of digestibility.

The dietary fibres may have some adverse effects on nutrition by binding some trace metals like calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, zinc and others and therefore preventing their proper absorption. This may pose a possibility of nutritional deficiency especially when diets contain marginal levels of mineral elements. This may become important constraints on increasing dietary fibres. It is suggested that an intake of 40 grams dietary fibres per day is desirable.

(a) On the basis of your reading of the above passage make notes on it in points only, using recognisable abbreviations wherever necessary. Also suggest a suitable title.

(b) Write a summary of the above in about 80 words.

 Suggested Answers for the above mentioned question:

(a) Title-Significance of Dietary Fibres

1. Importance
1.1 Essential ingredient of bal. diet
(i) Suggested intake-40 gms./day
1.2 Contains gums & pectin
(i)↓
P.P. Blood sugar levels
1.3 Diet rich in fibres
(i) ↓ incidence of CHD
(ii) Controls irritable bowel syndrome
(iii) ↓ Dental caries

2. Source
2.1 Cereals & grains
2.2 Fruits
(i) Citrus fruits
(ii) Fruits with seeds
2.3 Green leafy vegetables

3. Physiological outcome
3.1 Not digested by enzymes in body
3.2 Hold water
(i) gets swollen → relives constipation
3.3. Increases transit time in gut
(i) ↓ risk of colon cancer
(ii) checks obesity

4. Adverse effects
4.1 Binds trace elements
(i) hampers absorption- nutritional deficiency
Abbreviations and symbols used :
1. bal. – balance
2. gms. – grams
3. & – and
4. P.P. – Post Prandial
5. CHD – Coronary Heart Disease
6. ↓ – lowers
7. → – lead to

(b) Summary Dietary fibres are indigestible carbohydrates, essential ingredients of balanced diet with a suggested intake of 40 grams per day. Fibres are rich in gums and pectin that lower Post Prandial blood sugar levels. Diet rich in fibres lowers incidence of Coronary Heart Diseases, controls irritable bowel syndrome and dental caries. The main source of it are cereals and grains, fruits both citrus and with seeds and green leafy vegetables. It is not digested by the enzymes in the body, holds water and increases transit time in the gut there by relieving constipation, checking obesity and lowering the risk of colon cancer. It binds trace elements that hamper their absorption leading to nutritional deficiency which seems to be the only adverse effect.

Read the following passage and answer the questions that follow :

There is within each individual a spark of the divine, call it the atman, the soul, the Bothichitta or by whatever name. It is this spark that energizes human consciousness…... Every individual has a unique value, because he represents a special correlation of forces revolving around a spiritual core of which he may or may not be conscious. Yoga helps us join this inner spiritual core with the all pervading divine. Four main paths of yoga are identifiable; the yoga of wisdom or jnana yoga, of love or bhakti, of work or karma and of psycho-spiritual disciplines or raja yoga.

Jnana yoga involves intellectual discrimination between the real and the unreal, to access reality that lies behind the manifested universe. It is somewhat like the concept of Plato who said that all we see are shadows of reality thrown on the wall of the cave, while remaining unaware both of the actual figures and the light that shines on them from behind. This yoga is a movement into a new dimension of awareness in which we see the unity behind the diversity of the world around us. This vision of oneness—which the Upanishads call ‘Ekatvam’—transforms the ordinary human being into a seer, one who sees the integral unity behind the multifarious and bewildering multiplicity of our daily existence. Sri Ramana Maharishi was a jnana yogi.

If jnana yoga is the way of the refined intellect, bhakti yoga is the way of the heart lit by love and adoration of a personalised aspect of the divine…… The opening of the heart centre is one of the most powerful methodologies for achieving direct contact with the divine……

Karma yoga’s apects have been expounded in the ‘Gita’. Act we must, whether it is the subconscious activities within our bodies, or the conscious acts that we perform in our daily lives. Without such action human civilisation itself would never have developed. But the major question is as to how these actions can be reconciled with the spiritual quest. Karma yoga addresses this concept. Every action that we undertake, big or small, must be dedicated to one’s chosen divinity. Every act becomes worship. Rather than being obsessed with the results we must act from what we consider to be highest level of our consciousness, inwardly dedicate that act of the divine and leave the results to unfold as they may. Actions flowing from hatred and fanaticism, cruelty and exploitation, can never be considered karma yoga because by definition they are incapable of being offered to the divine. Again good deeds by themselves, while preferable, do not constitute karma yoga unless there is a clear and unequivocal dedication to one’s chosen deity. Swami Vivekananda and Mother Teresa were Karma yogis.

Raja yoga is the royal path which involves psycho-spiritual practices including physical and breathing exercises that are known as yoga around the world. But only if they are directed ultimately beyond these to the quickening of spiritual consciousness. The basic theory revolves around the existence of a self-conscious spiritual power that is located at the base of the spine. With discipline and practice, this power can start to move up the spine, energising, as it rises, seven chakras or plexuses, which bring about incremental transmutation of consciousness, until finally the blazing light of this power—the Kundalini, the serpent power—pours into the cortex thus completing the process of spiritual transmutation. These four yogas are not necessarily mutually exclusive.

Excerpted from the writer’s ‘I Believe’.

(a) On the basis of your reading of the passage make notes on it using recognizable abbreviations (min. 4) wherever necessary. Use a format you consider appropriate. Supply a suitable title. 

(b) Write a summary of the passage in about 80 words.

More Note-Making for Class 12 English with Answers......

Read the passage given below and answer the questions that follow : 

People tend to amass possessions, sometimes without being aware of doing so. They can have a delightful surprise when they find something useful which they did not know they owned. Those who never have to change house become indiscriminate collectors of what can only be described as clutter. They leave unwanted objects in drawers, cupboards and attics for years in the belief that they may one day need them. Old people also accumulate belongings for two other reasons, lack of physical and mental energy, and sentiment. Things owned for a long time are full of associations with the past, perhaps with the relatives who are dead, and so they gradually acquire a sentimental value.

Some things are collected deliberately in an attempt to avoid wastage. Among these are string and brown paper, kept by thrifty people when a parcel has been opened. Collecting small items can be a mania. A lady cuts out from newspaper sketches of model clothes that she would like to buy if she had money. As she is not rich, the chances are that she will never be able to afford such purchases. It is a harmless habit, but it litters up her desk.

Collecting as a serious hobby is quite different and has many advantages. It provides relaxation for leisure hours, as just looking at one’s treasure is always a joy. One doesn’t have to go out for amusement as the collection is housed at home. Whatever it consists of - stamps, records, first editions of books, China - there is always something to do in connection with it, from finding the right place for the latest addition to verifying facts in reference books. This hobby educates one not only in the chosen subject, but also in general matters which have some bearing on it.

There are other benefits also. One gets to meet like-minded collectors to get advice, compare notes, exchange articles, to show off one’s latest find, etc. So, one’s circle of friends grows. Soon the hobby leads to travelling, perhaps a meeting in another town, possibly a trip abroad in search of a rare specimen, for collectors are not confined to one country. Over the years one may well become an authority on one’s hobby and will probably be asked to give informal talks to little gatherings and then, if successful, to larger audiences.

(a) On the basis of your understanding of the above passage make notes on it, using headings and subheadings. Use recognisable abbreviations wherever necessary - (minimum four) and a format you consider suitable. Also supply an appropriate title to it.

(b) Write a summary of the passage in about 80 words.

Suggested Answers for the above mentioned question:

2. (a) Title-Collecting - A Hobby
1. Reasons why old people accu. belongings
1.1 Lack of phy. & mental energy
1.2 Sentiments

2. Collctng. things
2.1 Avoid wastage
2.2 Mania

3. Collctng. as a serious hobby
3.1 Relxn. for leisure hours.
3.2 Amusnt.
3.3 Source of edu. 

4. Other benefits of collctng.
4.1 Growth of frnd. circle
4.2 Travelling
4.3 Meeting in another town
4.4 Able to address audience

Abbreviations used :
1. accu. – accumulating
2. phy. – physical
3. Collctng. – Collecting
4. Relxn. – Relaxation
5. Amusnt. – Amusement
6. edu. – education
7. frnd. – friend

(b) Summary

People unknowingly collect different kind of things. They leave unwanted objects in drawers and cupboards for years believing that they may use them in the future. The two reasons why old people accumulate belongings are due to the lack of physical and mental energy and sentiment. Collecting small items can be to avoid wastage or it can be a mania. There are many advantages for those who have collecting as a serious hobby. It gives relaxation for leisure hours, amusement and it is a source of education. The other benefits of collecting are: there would be a growth of friend circle, it leads to travelling, meetings in another towns and even one can become an authority on one’s hobby and will be able to address gatherings and audiences.

More Note-Making for Class 12 English with Answers......

Read the given passage and answer the questions that follow :

Effective speaking depends on effective listening. It takes energy to concentrate on hearing and to concentrate on understanding what has been heard.

Incompetent listeners fail in a number of ways. First, they may drift. Their attention drifts from what the speaker is saying. Second, they may counter. They find counter arguments to whatever a speaker may be saying. Third, they compete. Then, they filter. They exclude from their understanding those parts of the message which do not readily fit with their own frame of reference. Finally they react. They let personal feelings about speaker or subject override the significance of the message which is being sent.

What can a listener do to be more effective? The first key of effective listening is the art of concentration. If a listener positively wishes to concentrate on receiving a message his chances of success are high. It may need determination. Some speakers are difficult to follow, either because of voice problems, or because of the form in which they send a message. There is then a particular need for the determination of a listener to concentrate on what is being said. 

Concentration is helped by alertness. Mental alertness is helped by physical alertness. It is not simply physical fitness, but also positioning of the body, the limbs and the head. Some people also find it helpful to their concentration if they hold the head slightly to one side. One useful way for achieving this is intensive note-taking, by trying to capture the critical headings and subheadings the speaker is referring to.

Note-taking has been recommended as an aid to the listener. It also helps the speaker. It gives him confidence when he sees that listeners are sufficiently interested to take notes; the patterns of eye contact when the note-taker looks up can be very positive; and the speaker’s timing is aided—he can see when a note-taker is writing hard and can then make effective use of pauses.

Posture too is important. Consider the impact made by a less competent listener who pushes his chair backwards and slouches. An upright posture helps a listener’s concentration. At the same time it is seen by the speakers to be a positive feature amongst his listeners. Effective listening skills have an impact on both the listener and the speaker.

(a) On the basis of your reading of the above passage, make notes on it using headings and subheadings. Use recognisable abbreviations wherever necessary.

(b) Write a summary of the passage in not more than 80 words using the notes made and also suggest a suitable title.

Suggested Answers for the above mentioned question:

11. (a) 1. Eff. spk. rely on
1.1 Effective listening
1.2 Energy to conc. on hearing
1.3 Conc. on understanding what has been heard

2. Causes of failure for incomp. listening
2.1 drift in attention
2.2 face argument
2.3 complete
2.4 reaction/react

3. Factors affecting listening
3.1 Art of conc.
(a) Alertness
(b) Positioning of body
(c) Note taking
3.2 Determination
3.3 Voice problem

4. Imp. of note taking
4.1 Helps the speaker
4.2 Gives Confi.
4.3 Develops (+)ve eye contact

5. Imp. of Posture
5.1 Dev. int.
5.2 Increase level of conc.
5.3 Dev. (+)ve feature

Abbreviations and symbols used :
1. Confi. – Confidence
2. (+) ve – positive
3. Imp. – Importance
4. int. – interest
5. Dev. – Develop
6. Eff. – Effective
7. Spk. – Speaking
8. conc. – concentrate
9. incomp. – incomplete

(b) Summary Effective speaking and effective listening goes hand in hand. It is an art which depends upon a lot of factors like concentration, determination and clarity of voice. Incompetent listeners fail due to lack of attention, counter arguments, competition, etc. Alertness is a mental state of mind, which plays a pivotal role in this. Note taking, which includes eye contact is another important factor. The way a person maintains his/her posture is equally important to leave an important impact on both the speaker and listener.

Read the passage and answer the questions that follow :

The sharp fall in the Indian stock markets has affected investors in some less obvious ways. As the Sensex fell from its peak of 21,000 in January to 13,000 in a span of six months, it is not just that the investors have lost—in some cases the value of their investments would have gone down by more than a third. An equally significant loss lies in the shrinking of opportunities for investments, including some within the stock market. A key question today is whether one should remain invested hoping for a market revival in the near future, and it cannot be answered unequivocally. Barring some exceptions, even the experienced and professionally qualified mutual fund managers, portfolio managers, and other kinds of investment advisers could not read the markets any more accurately than ordinary investors. Their advice and guidance were eagerly lapped up when the stock prices were on a seemingly inexorable climb. Even if forthcoming, they are much less relied upon nowadays. Mutual funds, the officially recommended investment option for the lay investor, have not delivered on their promises. Many of their once-successful schemes are languishing, having fared worse than their benchmark indices. There has understandably been a decline in the quantum of assets they manage. The fact that the decrease is still within manageable proportions has more to do with the lack of other avenues available to their investors.

Certain well known weaknesses of the Indian capital market have come to the fore and are contributing to the uncertainty. The retreat of foreign institutional investors from the equity markets has created a void. Forecasting stock price trends has become more complex as global clues will have to be factored into the calculations to a greater extent. The absence of a vibrant corporate bond market is keenly felt. Deposits with banks have been the traditional investment avenue for those seeking a safe and regular return. With inflation ruling well above 11.5 percent, most bank deposits that carry a maximum interest of 9.5-10 percent are yielding negative returns. That in turn can discourage savings, with its attendant deleterious consequences for capital formation and the economy. Only medium-term reform of the financial sector can help banks cut down on their transaction costs and narrow the spread between their lending and deposit rates. It is no doubt a welcome development that the LIC and the private insurance companies are reaching out to wider sections to mobilise contractual savings. For policymakers, it is imperative to develop safe and attractive short-term investment avenues as well.

(a) On the basis of your reading of the passage make notes on it using recognizable abbreviation (Min. 4) wherever necessary. Supply a suitable title. 5

(b) Write a summary of the passage in about 80 words.

More Note-Making for Class 12 English with Answers......

Read the given passage and answer the questions that follow :

The outcasts were not allowed to mount the platform surrounding the well, because if they were ever to draw water from it, the Hindus of the three upper castes would consider the water polluted. Nor were they allowed access to the nearby brook as their use of it would contaminate the stream. They had no well of their own because it cost a lot of money to dig a well in a hilly town. Perforce they had to collect at the foot of the uppercaste Hindu well and depend on the bounty of some of their superiors to pour water into their pitchers. More often than not there was no upper-caste Hindu present. Most of them were rich enough to get the water-carriers to supply them with plenty of fresh water every morning for their baths and kitchens, and only those came to the well who were either fond of an open-air bath or too poor to pay for the water-carriers’ services. So the outcasts had to wait for a chance to bring some uppercaste Hindu to the well, for luck to decide that he was kind, for Fate to ordain that he had time — to get their pitchers filled with water. They crowded round the well, congested the space below its high brick platform, morning, noon and night, joining their hands in servile humility to every passer-by; cursing their fate, and bemoaning their lot, if they were refused the help they wanted; praying, beseeching and blessing, if some generous soul condescended to listen to them, or to help them. 

When Sohini reached the well there were already about ten other outcasts waiting. But there was no one to given them water. She had come as fast as she could to the well, full of fear and anxiety that she would have to wait her turn since she could see from a distance that there was already a crowd. She didn’t feel disappointed so much as depressed to realise that she would be the eleventh to receive water. She had sensed the feeling in her brother’s soul. He was tired. He was thirsty. She had felt like a mother as she issued from her home to fetch water, a mother going out to fetch food and drink for her loved ones at home. Now as she sat in a row with her fellow sufferers, her heart sank. There was no sign of anyone passing that way who could be a possible benefactor. But she was patient. She had in her an inbred fortitude, obvious in her curious reserve, in her docile and peaceful bearing.

(a) On the basis of your reading of the above passage, make notes using headings and subheadings. Use recognisable abbreviations, wherever necessary.

(b) Make a summary of the above passage in not more than 80 words using the notes made and also suggest a suitable title.

 Suggested Answers for the above mentioned question:

(a) 1. Outcasts faced caste prejudices
1.1 weren’t allowed to draw water from well or brook
1.2 upper caste Hindus believed they would pollute water

2. Poverty aggrated. their water woes
2.1 no separate well for them
2.2 too poor to afford their own well
2.3 depnd. on bounty of Hindus
2.4 had to wait long

3. Easy access to water for the rich
3.1 rich enged. water carriers
3.2 others drew water directly from well

4. Sohini’s plight
4.1 long que. at well
4.2 her brother thirsty and tired
4.3 upper caste Hindus not sighted
4.4 rsgd. herself to fate

Abbreviations used :
1. weren’t – were not
2. aggrated. – aggravated
3. depnd. – depended
4. enged. – engaged
5. que. – queue
6. rsgd. – resigned

(b) Title – The Plight of Outcasts Summary The outcasts totally depended on the mercy of the upper caste Hindus to get water. They were not allowed to use the well or brook. They didn’t even have a separate well. The outcasts had to wait for a gentle person to get water, whereas upper caste people would get it directly. When Sohini came to the well to get water, there was already a queue. Her brother was thirsty and tired and she was determined to get water so resigned herself to wait, trusting her fate.

Read the following passage and answer the questions that follow :

Over the Memorial Day weekend, a nine-year-old Bronx girl named Lauren went grocery shopping with her mom. In an aisle, a man banged into Lauren’s left arm with his cart, tearing away part of a big mole. She bled heavily.

After a trip to the emergency room at Our Lady of Mercy Medical Centre, a dermatologist sent the remainder of the mole for biopsy. On June 10, Lauren returned to the hospital with her mother. She had melanoma, a skin cancer rare in children, and very serious at any age.

At the suggestion of the doctor, her mother took Lauren to Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Centre. Surgery would be performed to remove the tissue around the mole. On further examination, a specialist also recommended scans on her lungs and liver, and the removal of lymph nodes from her arm, Lauren’s mother said.

Nearly a month later, every syllable of the diagnosis is still electric. “She doesn’t have a cold that is just going to get better,” said her mother, Amanda. Even so, no treatment has started. Two dates for surgery have been scheduled, then

postponed; on Tuesday, she had a third date, for Friday. None of the delays has anything to do with the urgency of her condition, which is beyond dispute.

So far, Lauren’s care has been stalled by the gnarled bureaucracy that guards the treasure of health care and—possibly—by the charged question of what services the American public should provide to non-citizens, according to her family and the office of U.S. Sen. Charles E. Schumer.

Lauren was born in Ireland. In 2000, when she was just one year old, her parents brought her to the United States. All involved overstayed their visas. They are here as—take your linguistic choice—undocumented immigrants or illegal aliens. But at least in New York state, the government decided long before they came that even foreign-born children without proper papers could receive health care.

In 1991, the state created Children’s Health Plus, insurance for kids who did not qualify for ordinary government insurance, either because their families made more than the income limits or because they were in the United States without legal papers. Both the Democrats and the Republicans in Albany agreed that children should not suffer because of decisions made by the adults in their lives.

From age 4, Lauren had regular checkups and childhood shots through Fidelis Care, a managed care company that was set up by the Roman Catholic bishops of New York under contract with the state to provide Child Health Plus insurance. Fidelis says its goal is to provide the “finest quality health care to everyone in New York State who does not have access to health insurance.”

A few days after Lauren’s diagnosis, her mother said, she learned from the insurance company that there was a problem because the child was not a legal resident.

“Around the 14th of June, I got the call that since she did not have any status, her request was being denied,” Amanda said. “I never heard anything about this until she got sick. They said it was a new policy, just out.”

Fidelis said that this was a completes misunderstanding, and that the only issue was getting up-to-date paperwork for Lauren. —New York Times New Service.

(a) On the basis of your reading of the above passage make notes on it using recognizable abbreviations (Min. 4) wherever necessary. Use a format you consider appropriate. Supply a suitable title. 5

(b) Write a summary of the passage in about 80 words.

More Note-Making for Class 12 English with Answers......

Read the given passage and answer the questions that follow : 

I remember my childhood as being generally happy and can recall experiencing some of the most carefree times of my life. But I can also remember, even more vividly, moments of being deeply frightened. As a child, I was truly terrified of the dark and getting lost. These fears were very real and caused me some extremely uncomfortable moments.

Maybe it was the strange way things looked and sounded in my familiar room at night that scared me so much. There was never total darkness, but a street light or passing car lights made clothes hung over a chair take on the shape of an unknown beast. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw curtains move when there was no breeze. A tiny creak in the floor would sound a hundred times louder than in the daylight and my imagination would take over, creating burglars and monsters. Darkness always made me feel helpless. My heart would pound and I would lie very still so that ‘the enemy’ wouldn’t discover me.

Another childhood fear of mine was that I would get lost, especially on the way home from school. Every morning, I got on the school bus right near my home - that was no problem. After school, though, when all the buses were lined up along the curve, I was terrified that I would get on the wrong one and be taken to some unfamiliar neighbourhood. I would scan the bus for the faces of my friends, make sure that the bus driver was the same one that had been there in the morning, and even then ask the others over and over again to be sure, I was in the right bus. On school or family trips to an amusement park or a museum, I wouldn’t let the leaders out of my sight. And of course, I was never very adventurous when it came to taking walks or hikes because I would go only where I was sure I would never get lost.

Perhaps, one of the worst fears I had as a child was that of not being liked or accepted by others. First of all, I was quite shy. Secondly, I worried constantly about my looks, thinking people wouldn’t like me because I was too fat or wore braces. I tried to wear ‘the right clothes’ and had intense arguments with my mother over the importance of wearing flats instead of saddled shoes to school. Being popular was very important to me then and the fear of not being liked was a powerful one.

One of the processes of evolving from a child to an adult is being able to recognise and overcome our fears. I have learnt that darkness does not have to take on a life of its own, that others can help me when I am lost and that friendliness and sincerity will encourage people to like me. Understanding the things that scared us as children helps to cope with our lives as adults.

(a) On the basis of your reading of the above passage, make notes using headings and subheadings. Use recognisable abbreviations wherever necessary. 

(b) Write a summary of the passage in not more than 80 words using the notes made and also suggest a suitable title.

 Suggested Answers for the above mentioned question:

(a) 1. Recalling childhood moments
1.1. Happy & carefree
1.2. Terrified of darkness & getting lost

2. Childhood fears
2.1. Feeling helpless in the dark
2.1.1. Strange shadows - an unknown beast
2.1.2. Moving curtains
2.1.3. Creaking sounds
2.1.4. Imagining burglars & monsters
2.1.5. Lying still with pounding heart
2.2. Fear of getting lost (on the way back home)
2.2.1. Scanning school buses - familiar faces, same driver
2.2.2. Re-confirming in the bus
2.2.3. Not letting leaders out of sight
2.2.4. Avoiding adventurous acts.
2.2.5. Going with surety of not being lost
2.3. Fear of not being liked
2.3.1. Quite shy
2.3.2. Worried about looks - fat, wore braces, clothes
2.3.3. Wearing right clothes
2.3.4. Flat vs. saddled shoes for school
2.3.5. Imp. of popularity

3. Coping with childhood fears as an adult
3.1. Undg. evolution process - child to adult
3.2. Recognising & overcoming fears
3.3. Accepting help from others
3.4. Role of friendliness & sincerity
3.5. Undg. things that scared

Abbreviations used :
1. & – and
2. acts. – activities 

3. vs. – versus
4. Imp. – Importance
5. Undg. – Understanding

(b) Title : Recalling Childhood Fears as an Adult Summary My childhood was generally happy and had carefree moments. However, darkness scared me with its shadows, unexpected movement of curtains and creaking sounds. It made me feel helpless and I used to lie still, with a pounding heart. I was scared of getting lost. Before boarding my school bus, I scanned it for familiar faces. I was shy and afraid of not being liked by others. As I grew from a child to an adult, I realised that understanding things that scared us as a child helped in coping with life.