LESSON 1

THE TINY TEACHER

1. How long does it take for a grub to become a complete ant?
2. Why do the worker ants carry the grubs about?
3. What jobs are new ants trained for?
4. Name some other creatures that live in anthills.
5. Mention three things we can learn from the ‘tiny teacher’. Give reasons for
choosing these items.
Answers:

1. The grubs take in three to six weeks to become cocoons and then to be a
complete ant.
2. The grubs are carried about daily for airing, exercise and sunshine.
3. The new ants learn their duties from old ants as workers, soldiers, builders,
cleaners, etc.
4. Some other creatures that live in anthills are beetles, lesser breeds of ants and the
open fly.
5. We can learn from the tiny ants the lessons of hard work, sense of duty and
discipline, cleanliness, loyalty and care for the young ones. These lessons are
necessary for the happiness and smooth working of the society.

LESSON 2

BRINGING UP KARI
Answer the following questions:

Question 1:
The enclosure in which Kari lived had a thatched roof that lay on thick tree stumps.
Examine the illustration of Kari’s pavilion on page 8 and say why it was built that way.
Answer:
Kari’s pavilion was built under a thatched roof having its support on a thick tree trunk.
The support was necessary to save the roof from falling down when he moved about
and bumped against the bamboo poles.

Question 2:
Did Kari enjoy his morning bath on the river? Give a reason for your answer.
Answer:
Yes, Kari loved to be taken to the river for his bath. He lay down on the sand bank. The
narrator rubbed his body with clean sand. Then he washed his body with water. He
used to make sounds joyfully.
Question 3:
Finding good twigs for Kari took a long time. Why?
Answer:
The narrator had to work hard to gather soft new twigs for Kari. He had to climb all kinds
of trees. If the twigs were deformed, Kari refused to eat them.

Question 4:
Why did Kari push his friend into the stream?
Answer:
Kari pushed his friend (the narrator) into the stream because a boy was drowning in the
water. Kari himself could not save and carry the boy to the shore.

Question 5:
Kari was like a baby. What are the main points of comparison?
Answer:
Kari was like a human baby. He had to be taught a few lessons to become good. Like a
baby he too played some mischief. He used to steal away the fruits from the dining-
table.

Question 6:
Kari helped himself to all the bananas in the house without anyone noticing it. How did
he do it?
Answer:
Kari was a mischievous but intelligent creature. He started taking away the bananas
kept on the dining-table. He used his black long trunk to steal fruits, through the window.

Question 7:
Kari learnt the commands to sit and to walk. What were the instructions for each
command?
Answer:
Kari learnt the commands to sit down or stand up and walk fast or slow. The word
“Dhat” was the command to sit down. The word ‘Mali’ was the command to walk.

Question 8:
What is “the master call?” Why is it the most important signal for an elephant to learn?
Answer:
The master-call was a strange kind of hissing like a snake and howling like a tiger. It
sounded like a fight between a snake and a tiger. The sound had to be made in the
elephant’s ear. It was a necessary signal for Kari to uproot trees and make a passage
through the dense forest for the house.

LESSON3
 THE DESERT
Question 1:
A camel can do without water for days together. What is the reason given in the text?
Answer:
The reason is that the camel sweats very little. It can therefore retain the water it drinks
for long periods of time.

Question 2:
How do the smaller desert animals fulfill their need for water?
Answer:
The smaller desert animals spend the day in the underground burrows to escape the
heat. Some of them eat other animals and get the water they need from the moisture in
the meat. Others eat plants and get the water they need from plant juices.

Question 3:
In a desert the temperature rises during the day and falls rapidly at night. Why?
Answer:
In humid climates, the air has moisture that protects the earth’s surface from the heat of the sun.
Since deserts have no moisture cover, they heat up rapidly during the day and cool off rapidly at
night.