Ancient china - ESL worksheet by kami koukou - Free Printable

Explanation:
Let’s go through each question one by one, using only the text provided.

Question 1:
*The text is: a. a letter to the editor b. a newspaper article c. a website article*

Look at the end of the passage:
“(Adapted from: http://everydaylife.Globalpost.Com/ ancient-Chinas-civilization-13542.html)”

The URL format (http://...) and the phrase “Adapted from” strongly suggest it came from a website article. Letters to the editor are usually signed and personal; newspaper articles may be cited differently and often include a date/byline — here we have a web address. So answer is c.

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Question 2:
*Are these statements true or false?*

a. *Ancient Chinese civilization was cut off from the rest of the world.*
→ The text says: “Little communication with the outside world meant that Chinese civilization and culture was left alone to develop and flourish.”
“Little communication” ≠ *completely cut off*. But the statement says “cut off”, which is too strong. However, in many school-level contexts, “little communication” is interpreted as being *effectively isolated*, and the phrase “left alone to develop” supports this idea. Let’s compare with other options.

b. *Unlike ancient civilizations, the Chinese civilization began next to rivers.*
→ The text says: “As is the case with many ancient civilizations, the Chinese civilization began next to rivers.” So this statement is false — it *was* like other ancient civilizations.

c. *A large number of inventions were unique to Ancient China Civilization.*
→ Text: “Many of those inventions were in use in China long before European civilizations discovered them.” It does not say they were *unique* — just that China used them earlier. Some (like paper, gunpowder) are widely accepted as Chinese inventions, but the text doesn’t claim *all* were unique. Still, the phrase “credited with many inventions that remain in use” + “long before Europeans discovered them” implies uniqueness for those listed. However, the word “large number” is vague. But compared to (a) and (d), let’s hold on.

d. *The system of dynasty rule remained in effect in China until the 20th century.*
→ Text: “Dynasty rule remained in effect in china until 1912 when the Republic of China defeated the Ch’ing Dynasty.”
1912 is in the 20th century, so this is true.

Now back to (a): “cut off” is an overstatement — the text says *little communication*, not *no communication*. In reading comprehension, we must stick strictly to what’s written. So (a) is false.

(b) is clearly false (text says “as is the case with many ancient civilizations…”).

(c): The text lists inventions and says “many… were in use in China long before Europeans discovered them” — this implies they originated in China, i.e., were unique *to China* at that time. So (c) is likely true.

But wait — the question asks: *Are these statements true or false?* — meaning we need to label each as T/F.

Let’s decide definitively:

a. False — because “little communication” ≠ “cut off”. The word “cut off” means no contact, which is too extreme.

b. False - explicitly contradicted.

c. True - the passage credits China with many inventions used long before Europeans knew them → implies uniqueness.

d. True - 1912 is 20th century.

So answers: a–F, b–F, c–T, d–T.

But the question format doesn’t ask to list all — it just says “Are these statements true or false?” and gives a–d. Since it's a multiple-part question, we’ll treat each as separate True/False.

However, in exam context, sometimes they expect you to pick which ones are true/false — but since it's Q2 with subparts, we evaluate each.

We’ll keep this in mind for final answer formatting.

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Question 3:
*In which paragraph is the system of Chinese government mentioned in the text?*

Paragraph 1: talks about geography, rivers, migration, farming.
Paragraph 2: inventions.
Paragraph 3: “Dynasty-style government dominated ancient China from about 1,800 B.C…” → This is where government/dynasty system is discussed.
Paragraph 4: wall and nomads.

So answer: paragraph 3

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Question 4:
Answer the following:

a. *Along which rivers did the ancient Chinese civilization begin?*
→ Paragraph 1: “regular flooding of the Yellow River” and “flooding of the Yangtze River” supported farming. Also: “began next to rivers” — specifically Yellow River (North) and Yangtze River (South). So answer: the Yellow River and the Yangtze River.

b. *Did the Europeans know paper money before the Chinese?*
→ Paragraph 2: “paper money” is listed among Chinese inventions, and it says “long before European civilizations discovered them”. So Europeans learned later → No.

c. *What are the characteristics of the Chinese rulers?*
→ Paragraph 3: “The rulers are often very cruel to and demanding to their subjects.” Also, when one dynasty defeated another, “many people were killed”. So: often cruel and demanding.

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Question 5:
*What or who do the underlined words refer to?*

Underlined words (from text):
- §1: *a land of mystery* → refers to Ancient China (subject of sentence: “Ancient China was a land of mystery…”)
- §2: *them* → “European civilizations discovered them” — “them” refers to the inventions listed just before: paper, silk, matches, etc. So the inventions
- §3: *another* → “When one dynasty defeated another” → refers to another dynasty
- §4: *this ancient civilization* → refers to Ancient China (again, the topic)

So:
a. Land of mystery (§1) → Ancient China
b. them (§2) → the inventions
c. another (§3) → another dynasty
d. this ancient civilization (§4) → Ancient China

Now compile final answers clearly:

1. c
2. a. False b. False c. True d. True
3. paragraph 3
4. a. Yellow River and Yangtze River
b. No
c. Often cruel and demanding to their subjects
5. a. Ancient China b. the inventions c. another dynasty d. Ancient China

Final Answer:
1. c
2. a. False, b. False, c. True, d. True
3. paragraph 3
4. a. Yellow River and Yangtze River; b. No; c. Often cruel and demanding to their subjects
5. a. Ancient China; b. the inventions; c. another dynasty; d. Ancient China