SOF IEO Class 7 free mock test and sample paper

A message left on the table

MESSAGE To: Ananya From: Meera (through her brother) Time: 4.15 p.m., Thursday Ananya, Meera rang while you were at the dentist. Friday's practice has been moved from the school ground to the municipal field, because the school ground is being marked for Sports Day. Practice is now at 6.30 a.m. instead of 7, as the municipal field must be given up by eight. She says to bring the blue kit bag, not the red one — the spare ball is in it. She will not be at home this evening, so do not ring back before nine. — Kabir

A letter to a cousin

18 Anjali Street Belgaum Dear Nandini, Your parcel reached us on Tuesday, and the jar of pickle did not break — I was sure it would. Thank you. You will laugh at what has happened here. Do you remember the mango tree behind the kitchen, the one everybody said was finished? It has flowered. Grandfather stood under it for a full ten minutes on Monday morning without saying anything at all, and then went indoors and told us he had always known it would come back. We are painting the veranda before the rains. If you can come in the last week of May, you can help — and if you cannot, come anyway. Write soon, Uma

Advertisement: weekend cycle clinic

THE WEEKEND CYCLE CLINIC Bring your bicycle. Leave with it working. Every Saturday and Sunday, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., behind the community hall on Second Cross Road. • Brakes checked and adjusted — free • Punctures mended — ₹ 20 • Chain cleaned and oiled — ₹ 15 • Wheels straightened — ₹ 40 All work is done while you wait, usually in under twenty minutes. Our mechanics are students of the polytechnic, and every rupee we take goes towards the cost of tools. No appointment is needed. Come early: on most Sundays the queue closes by noon.

The lantern on the wall

Every evening for as long as anyone could remember, the old woman at the end of the lane hung a lit lantern on her outside wall. It cost her oil she could not spare, and more than one neighbour told her so. "There is a street lamp forty paces away," said the tailor. "Nobody needs your lantern." She said nothing, and went on hanging it. In the third week of the rains the power failed for four nights together. On the first of those nights, a boy carrying medicine from the town found the lane only because of the small yellow light at the end of it, and did not have to feel his way past the open drain. Nobody said anything to the old woman afterwards. But the tailor, who had a lantern of his own, began to hang it out too.

The Ant and the Dove

An ant went down to a stream to drink and, leaning too far over the bank, was swept away by the current. A dove sitting in a tree above saw it struggling. She quickly plucked a leaf and let it fall into the water beside the ant. The ant climbed onto the leaf and floated safely to the bank. A few days later a bird-catcher came creeping through the grass with a net, meaning to trap the dove as she sat on her branch. The ant saw what he was about to do. Just as he raised the net, she bit him sharply on the heel. He cried out and dropped the net, and the startled dove flew off to safety. The ant had repaid the dove's kindness.

Three-day school trip — itinerary

CLASS VII FIELD TRIP — MAHUAGARH Three days, two nights. Carry one bag each. DAY 1 06:00 Assemble at the school gate. Roll call. 06:30 Buses leave. 11:00 Reach the guest house. Leave luggage. 12:30 Lunch. 15:00 Walk to the reservoir. Sketching. 19:30 Dinner, then lights out at 21:30. DAY 2 06:00 Wake up. 07:30 Leave for the limestone caves. Carry water. 13:00 Packed lunch at the caves. 16:00 Return. Free time. 18:00 Talk by the forest officer. DAY 3 08:00 Breakfast, then pack. 09:30 Buses leave for the school. 14:00 Expected arrival. Parents to collect from the gate.

The Limestone Caves — visitor brochure

THE LIMESTONE CAVES AT MAHUAGARH Five caves are open to visitors. The first three can be walked through in ordinary shoes; the fourth and fifth are reached by a flight of ninety wet steps and are not advised for those who find stairs difficult. Timings: 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., closed on the first Monday of every month. Tickets: ₹ 30 for adults, ₹ 10 for children under twelve, free for school parties of twenty or more who book a fortnight in advance. Guides are available at the entrance and speak Hindi, Marathi and English. Photography without flash is allowed everywhere except in the fifth cave, where the paintings are easily damaged by light. Please carry drinking water. There is no canteen inside the park.

The bus that waited

The last bus out of the town left at 8.40, and Ravi, who had stayed behind to finish a drawing, reached the stand at 8.44. The bus was still there. The driver was standing beside it with his arms folded, looking at the road, and the conductor was counting change he had already counted twice. "You are late," the driver said, without turning round. "I know," said Ravi. "Get in." It was only when the bus pulled out that Ravi noticed the seat behind the driver was empty, and understood that the driver's own son, who worked at the printing press, had not come. They waited another two minutes at the level crossing, and the boy came running up the embankment and swung himself aboard. Nobody said anything about the four minutes.

The lantern on the wall

Every evening for as long as anyone could remember, the old woman at the end of the lane hung a lit lantern on her outside wall. It cost her oil she could not spare, and more than one neighbour told her so. "There is a street lamp forty paces away," said the tailor. "Nobody needs your lantern." She said nothing, and went on hanging it. In the third week of the rains the power failed for four nights together. On the first of those nights, a boy carrying medicine from the town found the lane only because of the small yellow light at the end of it, and did not have to feel his way past the open drain. Nobody said anything to the old woman afterwards. But the tailor, who had a lantern of his own, began to hang it out too.