Comprehension
Mary Wallace Funk (also known as Wally Funk) is an American aviator who has set many
records in her lifetime in her career in aviation and space travel. She was recognized as ‘The
Most Outstanding Woman in America’ in 1965 and is now also the oldest person to have
travelled to space, having travelled there at 82 years old.
Mary was born on February 1, 1939, in Las Vegas, New Mexico. Her mother and father owned a
shop. From a very young age, she was fascinated by planes and even had her first trip to see a
plane when she was only one year old. At the age of seven, she was interested in the mechanics
of planes and began building them out of wood. She had her first actual flying lesson when she
was nine.
At school, Funk was not allowed to take the courses that she wanted because she was a girl,
which she thought was very unfair. Consequently, she left early and went to Stephen’s College
instead. She graduated in 1958 with her pilot’s license and an art degree. After that, she studied
at Oklahoma State University. She earned lots of aviation awards, including the Outstanding
Female Pilot award.
When she was only 20 years old, she became a professional aviator in Oklahoma – she was the
first female flight instructor at a US military base. In 1971, she became the first female Flight
Inspector and in 1974, she became the first female Air Safety Investigator. She also flew in lots
of air races and helped to train hundreds of pilots.
Despite not going to space when she was younger, she set a record in 2021 as the oldest person
in space at the age of 82. When she got back, she said, “I can hardly wait to go again! “Funk has
had many ‘firsts’ in her life and is a great role model for women in stereotypically ‘male’
careers. She has published a memoir, starred in a film about her life and flown over 18,600 hours
in her lifetime.
Read the Comprehension and answer the questions below
Q1 What interests did Wally have at age seven that showed her keen interest in planes? (1)
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Q2 How do you think the nine-year-old Wally felt when she had her first flying lesson? (1)
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Q3 Why did Wally join Stephen’s College? (1)
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Q 4 Wally claimed three firsts during her career. List them below: (2)
a. ____________________________________________________________________________
b. __________________________________________________________________________
c. ____________________________________________________________________________
Q6 The text says that ‘great role model for women in stereotypically ‘male’ careers.’ What do
you think that means? (2)
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Q Would you like to go to space? Explain your reasons. (2)
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Q How do you think the men she trained felt, considering not many women were pilots back
then? (1)
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