116 CBSE Term II English Language & Literature 10th

Ans. (c) Valli picked up the small details about the bus journey 3. What did Valli find out about the bus journey? How
by listening to the conversations of neighbours and asking did she find out these details? NCERT
a few careful questions about the bus and journey.
Ans. Valli found out that the town was six miles away from her
(ii) What was Valli’s overwhelming desire? village. The trip to town would take forty five minutes
(a) To have friends (b) To travel by bus and the fare of one way was thirty paise.
(c) To top the class (d) None of these Valli found out these details by listening carefully to the
Ans. (b) Valli’s overwhelming desire was to travel by bus. conversations between her neighbours and people who
(iii) Choose the option that can describe Valli with regularly ride the bus. She also asked a few questions
reference to above extract. from them.
(i) Curious (ii) Intelligent 4. How did Valli save money to travel by bus?
(iii) Active listener (iv) Irritating CBSE 2013
(v) Cautious (vi) Interrupting Ans. Valli saved the money to travel by bus by controlling
Codes every temptation to buy peppermints, toys, balloons and
(a) (ii), (iii) and (vi) (b) (i), (ii), (iii) and (v) even a ride on the merry-go round at the village fair to
(c) (iii), (iv), (v) and (vi) (d) (i), (ii) and (iv) save money for her bus journey.
Ans. (b) Valli was curious, intelligent, active listener and 5. Why does the conductor call Valli ‘madam’? NCERT
cautious.
Ans. The conductor calls Valli ‘madam’ because she behaved
(iv) Select the correct option for (i) and (ii). like a mature woman. She declined his help and was very
1. Valli listened to the conversations between her quick in her answers to the conductor’s questions. The
neighbours and the regular passengers of the bus. conductor was amused at her behaviour and to tease her
2. Valli wanted to travel in the bus. calls her ‘madam’.
(a) Both 1 and 2 cannot be inferred from the extract
6. Describe the bus in which Valli sat.
(b) 2 is true 1 is false.
Ans. The bus in which Valli sat was new. Its outside was
(c) 1 contradicts 2. (d) 2 is the cause for 1.
painted a gleaming white with some green stripes along
Ans. (d) (2) is the cause for (1), i.e., Valli wanted to travel in the the sides. Inside, the overhead bars shone like silver.
bus, so she used to listen the conversations between her
There was a beautiful clock above the windshield and its
neighbours and the regular passengers of that bus.(d) 2 is
seats were soft and luxurious.
the cause for 1.
(v) The synonym of ‘discreet’ is 7. Why does Valli stand up on the seat? What does
(a) Carefully (b) Details she see now?
(c) Cautious (d) Regularly Ans. Valli stands up on the seat because she found her view
Ans. (c) The synonyms of discreet is ‘cautious’.
blocked by the canvas that covered the lower part of the
window. In order to have a better view, she stood up on
the seat and looked over the canvas.
PART 2 Valli can now see that the road was narrow. On one side
of the road was a canal beyond which there were palm
Subjective Questions trees, grasslands, distant mountains and the blue sky. On
the another side, she sees that there was a deep ditch and
many acres of green fields.
! Short Answer Type Questions
8. During her journey, Valli absorbed the natural
1. Who was Valli? Why did she keep standing in front beauty and clapped her hands in happiness on
of the door? seeing a young cow running very fast. What does
Ans. Valli was an eight year old girl who was very curious. this reveal about Valli? CBSE Question Bank 2021
Valli kept standing in front of the door as there were no Ans. During her journey, Valli absorbed the natural beauty and
playmates of her age. So, she used to keep on watching clapped her hands in happiness on seeing a young cow
the street outside her house. running very fast. This shows that although Valli was a
2. What was the most fascinating thing that Valli saw mature and a responsible girl, she was still a child at
on the street? CBSE 2019 heart.
Ans. The most fascinating thing that Valli saw on the street was Valli may have behaved like adults while boarding the bus
the bus that travelled between her village and the nearest but her childish nature and joy gets revealed when she
town. It passed through her street each hour, once going reacts by clapping her hands on seeing a cow running in
to the town and once coming back. front of the bus.
CBSE Term II English Language & Literature 10th
9. Why didn’t Valli want to make friends with the
elderly woman? NCERT
Ans. Valli did not want to make friends with the elderly woman
because she looked quite repulsive. She had big earholes
and was wearing ugly earrings. Apart from this, she was
chewing betel and it seemed that the juice of the betel
would spill out of her mouth.
10. Valli didn’t like the way adults treated her during her
bus journey. Describe how you would feel and react
if you were to find yourself in a similar situation.
CBSE Question Bank 2021
Ans. In a situation wherein adults are constantly ordering me
during a journey, I would also react like Valli did because I
would consider myself to be responsible enough to take the
journey by myself. Just like Valli thought that she could
take care of herself, I would also think the same and so,
would dislike being interrupted by elders.
11. What did Valli see on her way that made her laugh?
NCERT
Ans. Valli saw a young cow, running very fast in the middle of
the road in front of the bus. The horn of the bus frightened
the animal. The more the driver horned, the more faster
the cow ran in front of the car. This all seemed very funny
to Valli and she laughed heartily.
12. Why didn’t Valli get off the bus when the bus
stopped at the town?
Ans. When the nearest town had reached, everyone got off the
bus except Valli because she wanted to return home in the
same bus. She only wanted to take a ride on a bus. So, she
gave the conductor the fare to return home in the same
bus.
13. Why didn’t Valli want to go to the stall and have a
drink? What does this tell you about her?
Ans. Valli didn’t want to go to the stall and have a drink because
she did not have the money to pay for it.
This tells us about her that she was a well-mannered and
self-respecting girl.
14. How did Valli feel on seeing the dead cow on the
road? CBSE 2014
Ans. On seeing the dead cow on the road, Valli felt sad. She
thought that a lovable, beautiful creature just a little while
ago had now suddenly lost its charm and its life. It looked
so horrible and frightening. After that, she did not even
look outside the bus.
! Long Answer Type Questions
1. Age is not a barrier when it comes to doing
something different and great. Which characteris-
tics of Valli help her achieve the wonder of visiting
the town at such a tender age? CBSE 2014
117
Ans. In today’s era, age is no more a barrier. Children are
doing wonders at a very young age. Same goes with
Valli. At an age of 8 years, Valli was able to pursue her
dream all alone by travelling in the bus to town. She
was no different from others, except that she had certain
characteristics that made her fulfil her dreams.
Valli was a very confident and a bold girl. She had a
knowledge of proper planning and execution. She
controlled her wishes to save money for the bus ride.
Also, she was a very good observer and learner. All these
qualities made her realise the dream of visiting the
town. Hence, one should always remember that there is
no age to learn and experience new things.
2. Once we decide to achieve something, so many
difficulties come in our way. With focused
attention we can make that achievement. How did
Valli succeed in fulfilling her desire of riding a
bus? CBSE 2017
or How did Valli fulfill her desire to ride a bus to the
town and back? CBSE 2020
Ans. It is true once we decide to achieve something, many
difficulties came in our way to stop us from doing our
best to achieve our goals. However, with focused
attention we can make our achievement. The story
‘Madam Rides the Bus’ proves this fact to be true.
In the story, Valliammai or Valli, an eight year old girl
develops a strong desire to take a ride on the bus that
travelled from her street everyday. As a confident and
bold girl Valli not only gathered all knowledge about the
journey but also meticulously planned her trip.
With extreme self-control, Valli saved the money she
would require for a round trip in the bus. She controlled
her desire to buy peppermints, toys, balloons and even
did not take a ride on the merry-go-round in the village
fair. Then she properly plans to take the journey quietly
when her mother is taking her afternoon nap. Finally,
she was able to fulfill her dream.
Her passion, self-dependence and self-respecting
nature helped her to take the journey safely. Thus, it is
true that with focussed attention, determination and
planning one can achieve everything in life.
3. What kind of person is Valli? Illustrate your
answer from the text that you have read. CBSE 2012
or “Valli was a mature girl ahead of her age.” Justify the
statement with instances from the text. CBSE 2020
Ans. Valliammai or Valli was an eight year old curious girl
who developed a strong desire to take a bus ride. In the
story, Valli emerged as a clever, sensitive, self-respecting
and fun loving girl. With determination and passion she
worked towards fulfilling her desire.
Not only did she just gather all the information she
would require for the bus journey but also sacrificed
many things to achieve it. She controlled her simple
118
desires of buying toys, balloons, etc to take a ride on the
bus. During the bus journey, Valli proved to be mature,
confident, bold and practical girl beyond her age. She was
full of excitement and enthusiasm with which she enjoyed
the scenes outside the bus.
Even the cow filled her with extreme joy. Valli was also a
keen observant intelligent and sensitive girl, she was
Ans. (i) Valli kept on standing at the doorway to watch the
friendly, polite as well as careful. She not only refuses to
take a cold drink from a strange man but also shows her
good manners while talking to the conductor.
Her nature is evident when she is saddened by the dead
cow lying by the roadside. All these characteristics shows
that Valli is different from other children of her age.
4. Valli’s dream was to enjoy a ride on the bus to the
nearest town. What preparations did she make to
realise her dream? CBSE 2019
Ans. Valli planned her bus ride by listening carefully to
2. Read the extract to attempt the questions that
conversations between her neighbours and people who
regularly used the bus. She also asked a few questions
from them.
She found out that the town was six miles from her
village, the bus fare was thirty paise for one way and the
bus trip took forty-five minutes. She also thought that if
she stayed in the bus and came back by the same bus, it
would cost her sixty paise.
She saved up the fare by controlling herself from buying
toys, peppermints etc. She did not even take a ride on
the merry-go round at the village annual fare to save
money. Finally, she was able to save sixty paise for her
journey.
Ans. (i) The bus passed through Valli’s street once in an hour.
! Extract Based Questions
1. Read the extract to attempt the questions that
follow.
But for Valli, standing at the front door was every
bit as enjoyable as any of the elaborate games other
children played. Watching the street gave her many
new unusual experiences.
CBSE Term II English Language & Literature 10th
(i) Why did Valli kept on standing at the doorway?
(ii) How did Valli feel while standing at the doorway?
(iii) Find a word from the extract which means ‘not very
common’.
(iv) How was Valli different from children of her age?
(v) What did other children do on street?
happenings of the street outside.
(ii) Watching the street gave Valli many new experiences.
She felt joyous standing at the doorway.
(iii) ‘Unusual’ from the extract means ‘not very common’.
(iv) Valli was different from children of her age as she
was not interested in playing any elaborate games.
(v) Other children used to play elaborated games on the
street.
follow.
The most fascinating thing of all was the bus that
travelled between her village and the nearest town.
It passed through her street each hour, once going
to the town and once coming back. The sight of the
bus, filled each time with a new set of passengers,
was a source of unending joy for Valli.
(i) How many times did the bus pass?
(ii) What was the source of unending joy for Valli?
(iii) Find a word from the extract which means ‘ever
casting’.
(iv) What was the most fascinating thing for Valli?
(v) What happened when Valli see the bus everyday?
(ii) The sight of the bus, filled each time with a new set
of passengers, was a source of joy for Valli.
(iii) ‘Unending’ from the extract means ‘ever lasting’.
(iv) The most fascinating thing for Valli was watching the
bus that travelled between her village and the nearest
town.
(v) Valli slowly developed a desire to ride the bus on
seeing the bus passing through her village everyday.