Question 1: Literary text

Read the following article (adapted from Smithsonian Magazine) and answer the
questions that follow in full sentences.

Why the Cape Town Fire Is a Devastating Loss for South African
Cultural Heritage
The inferno destroyed much of the University of Cape Town’s special
collections, including rare books, films, photographs, and records

By Nora McGreevy
April 20, 2021

1. A wildfire that sparked on the slopes of South Africa’s Table Mountain raged across the
University of Cape Town (UCT) on Sunday and into Monday, damaging or destroying a
number of historic structures and campus buildings.

2. Among the most significant losses were the university’s Plant Conservation Unit offices
and the Jagger Reading Room, which housed priceless artifacts related to African history,
including 19th-century watercolours painted by Indigenous peoples, maps, manuscripts and
government records, according to Nature’s Linda Nordling.

3. The blaze broke out on the lower slopes of nearby Devil’s Peak, around 9 a.m. Sunday,
rapidly spreading down the mountain to the university campus. About 4,000 students were
evacuated from nearby residences and moved to temporary housing. Authorities are currently
investigating the cause of the fire, which was one of several sparked in the area over the
weekend. Authorities are investigating the possibility that an arsonist started at least one of
the blazes. Police took a 35-year-old male suspect into custody on Sunday night.

4. Strong south-easterly winds pushed the fire toward Cape Town’s densely populated
neighbourhoods, where flames engulfed campus buildings and a hillside restaurant attached
to the Rhodes Memorial, which commemorates British colonialist Cecil Rhodes. The blaze
also destroyed Mostert’s Mill, a 225-year-old structure that was the country’s oldest working
windmill.

5. More than 200 firefighters and emergency personnel worked to battle the flames alongside
four helicopters. Three firefighters were hospitalised with serious burns, but no other
casualties were reported. The greatest loss may be felt at the Jagger Reading Room, which
forms part of the UCT Libraries’ Special Collections and holds many unique and
irreplaceable items that tell the story of South African history.

6. Pippa Skotnes, curator of the school’s archive, tells the Times that the university’s African
film collection was among the losses. The archive boasted some 3,500 rare African archival
films and was one of the few of its kind in the world. University librarians had been working
to digitise the films, but the process is extraordinarily time and labour-intensive, so just a
“wafer thin” sliver of the total collections had been preserved.
7. UCT’s Special Collections also include a range of print and audio-visual artifacts related to
African studies. These holdings represent one of the most expansive selections of rare books,
photographs, films, letters, and other primary sources documenting South African history,
including a robust trove of materials related to the fight against apartheid. The Jagger
building itself dated to the 1830s and had recently been renovated. Officials are holding out
hope that the flames failed to reach the bulk of the archive, which is stored in two basement
floors protected by fireproof doors. Many fear that firefighting efforts inadvertently flooded
the basement with water.

1.1. From where was this article taken?

(1)

1.2. Where did this fire originate?

(1)

1.3. List 2 of the most important losses mentioned in the article.

(2)
1.4. Explain the crime of arson.
(1)
1.5. What contributed to making the fire more difficult to contain?
(1)
1.6. Answer true or false. If false correct the statement.
(3)
1.6.1. The blaze caused damage to the Mosert’s Mill.
1.6.2. Firefighters accidentally ruined the archive in the basement of the Jagger
building.

1.7. Give a synonym from the passage for the word, fire.
(1)
1.8. Give an antonym from the passage for the word, restored.
(1)
1.9 Explain the literal and figurative meaning of the term, “wafer thin”. (Paragraph 6)?
(2)
1.10. How do we know that the African film collection was very old?
(1)
1.11. Why were the fireproof doors not able to prevent damage to the archive stored
in the two basement floors?
(2)
1.12. Do you agree with Pippa Skotnes’ reasons for not digitising the African films?
Justify your answer.
(2) 1.13. Do you agree that this particular Cape Town fire was a
devastating disaster even though there were only three casualties? Justify your
answer. (2)
TOTAL QUESTION 1:
____________/20
QUESTION 2: Summary

Reread the comprehension passage and summarise it into 1 paragraph. (100 -

110 words).

 Include the main idea and important details only. Remember that your paragraph
must be written in your own words. Up to 7 marks will be awarded for
important details.
 Your paragraph must be written in full sentences and be grammatically correct.
Up to 3 marks will be awarded for correct word count, correct grammar, spelling,
and punctuation.
 Count and write down the number of words used at the end of your paragraph.

 Correct number of own words.  Too many words. Too many  Too many/few words. Not in
 Sentences are grammatically borrowed words. own words.
correct.  Most sentences are  Several grammatically
 No spelling or punctuation grammatically correct. incorrect sentences.
errors.  A few spelling or punctuation  Several spelling or
errors. punctuation errors.

3 2 1

Pay attention to the rubric below.

TOTAL QUESTION
2:___________/ 10
QUESTION 3: Visual text
Study the poster and answer the questions that follow.
3.1. What caused the home to catch alight?
(1)
3.2. Were the man and his dog saved? Justify your answer.
(1)
3.3. Why do you think the words, Home fires are preventable, are in a larger font
than the words below it?
(1)
3.4. Explain how the idiom, to go up in smoke, is depicted in the image.
(2)
3.5. What is the main message of the poster?
(1)
3.6. How does the image persuade the reader to think twice about his/her actions?
(2)
3.7. According to the poster, where will one find research on fire prevention?
(1)
3.8. How would you use colour to make the poster more effective?
(1)

TOTAL QUESTION
3:________/ 10
Question 4 – Language Structures and Conventions

4.1. Classify the nouns listed in the table into one of the following categories
below. Write answers on your answer paper.
(1)

Common Noun Compound Common Noun Complex Noun

Proper Noun Abstract Noun

Noun Category
4.1.1. Devil’s Peak (Paragraph 3)
4.1.2. wafer thin (Paragraph 6)

4.2. Write the sentence below in the Simple Present Tense.

(1)
4.2.1. The Jagger building had been renovated.

4.3. Write the sentence below in the Simple Past Tense.

(1)
4.3.1. The Jagger Reading Room had been holding many unique and irreplaceable
items.

4.4. Identify the punctuation used in the word below.

(1) Nature
4.5. The headline below is a statement. Change it into a simple sentence
question. (1)
4.5.1 Why the Cape Town Fire Is a Devastating Loss for South African Cultural
Heritage.

4.6. Identify the subject, finite verb, and object in the sentence below.
(3) 4.6.1. The Plant Conservation Unit and the Jagger Reading Room
experienced significant losses.

4.7. Write the sentence in singular. You will need to add an article and make
sure that there is agreement with the subject and the verb.
(3) 4.7.1 Authorities are currently investigating the
cause of the fire.

4.8. Give the correct form of the adjective.

(1) 4.8.1. The fire has caused a bad loss of all the fires in 2020.

4.9. Write the root word of the underlined word.

(1) 4.9.1. Flames engulfed campus buildings.

4.10. Write the sentence below in direct speech.

(2) 4.10.1. Linda Nordling said that the Jagger Reading Room had
housed priceless artifacts.

4.11. Write the sentence below in reported speech.

(2) 4.11.1. Reporters confirmed, “The blaze broke out on the lower slopes of
nearby Devil’s Peak.”

4.12. Identify the sentence below as a simple or compound sentence

(1) 4.12.1. These holdings represent one of the most expansive
selections of rare books, photographs, films, letters, and other primary sources
documenting South African history.

4.13. Use the sentences below to write a compound sentence.

(1) 4.13.1. Three firefighters were hospitalised with serious burns. More
than two hundred firefighters worked to battle the flames.

4.14. Write the sentence below in the passive voice.

(1) 4.14.1. Firefighters inadvertently flooded the basement with water.
TOTAL QUESTION
4:________/ 20

THE END!