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Question
Why did author preferred boots made by Mr Gessler than that of big firms?
Solution
The author preferred boots made by Mr Gessler than that of big firms because Mr Gessler’s boots were durable, were made from best leathers and they fitted perfectly well. The author was very attached to Mr Gessler.
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RELATED QUESTIONS
Thinking about the Poem
How many common features can you find in stanza 2? Pick out the words.
Thinking about Poem
What is the meaning of “anchoring earth” and “earth cave”?
Read the following extracts from the story, and try to puzzle out the meanings of the encircled words from other words and phrases in the extract. Write the clues in the empty boxes. Then give your own explanation of the encircled word.
When the liner had finally vanished over the horizon, I was absolutely alone in the stormy night sea. First I thought I had to swim one way, then another. It was not even midnight yet, and I had no hope at all of finding my way in this terrible night time ocean. I began to feel afraid. Waves of fear rolled through me, starting from my hands and feet, attacking my heart and then reaching through my neck to my head. Waves broke over me and water went into my snorkel. I realised I would not be able to last even half an hour in such a condition.
I saw individual stars, but I could not distinguish the constellations they belonged to. Then dawn came and put out all my stars and I felt my solitude more keenly. The sky was grey at first, then blue-violet shades appeared. In a few minutes, the colours became brighter, with dark red strips cutting across the sky!
The rising sun came up over the ocean. I was surrounded by large waves. The clouds turned pink and swept across the sky in all directions. It was a windy day.
There was no land visible. I grew alarmed. Had I made a mistake in my calculations? Perhaps the current had carried me a long a way off the course during the night?
An hour passed, perhaps two. "Landlll" I could not deny myself the pleasure of shouting the magic word aloud and of hearing my own voice. Perhaps it was my ghostly island of Siargao? I almost felt I had succeeded - now at least I had hope.
The sun looked out for the last time, as if it was saying goodbye to me, and hid itself away again. In a few minutes the sky was filled with all the colours of a rainbow, the bright shades changing and merging as I watched. At first the clouds became deep red and then their edges turned bright orange. A little while afterwards, the clouds turned lilac and dark violet. Darkness fell swiftly. My second lonely night in the ocean began. The stars came out unnoticed. I changed course and headed for the south west. As it turned out, this was an unforgivable mistake.
Evening was approaching. The ocean around me was full of life; large fish often leapt out of the water and big birds flew right above my head. I could see the island distinctly now. A line of dancing palms stretched the length of its shore. The sides of the mountain were covered in many different shades of green.
An hour passed, perhaps more. It was extraordinarily quiet. Then suddenly to my horror, I discovered my island had noticeably begun to move north and was drifting further and further in that direction right before my eyes. Before I had worked out what was happening and could sharply change my course towards the north, the southern tip of the island had appeared in front of me and, beyond that, open ocean stretched to the very horizon. I was totally at the mercy of the current and realised to my alarm that it was slowly carrying me past the land.
My third night in the ocean crept up unnoticed. This third night in the ocean was very dark, much darker than the two previous ones. I almost decided to die as I had no hope of seeing another dawn. I was suddenly aware of a quiet voice: "Swim to the sound of the breakers."
Indeed, there had been a distant rumbling for some time, although I had paid no attention to it. Now, I started listening and I thought it sounded like the characteristic noise of jet aeroplanes constantly landing and taking off. The voice inside kept insisting that I should swim towards this thunder of waves.
At last I obeyed. Again I heard an approaching rumble. What I suddenly saw at a distance of about 30 or 40 metres has imprinted itself on my memory forever. It was a gigantic wave with steep, very slowly falling crests. Never in my life had I seen such an enormous wave - it even seemed to be touching the sky. It moved very slowly and was fantastically beautiful.
The wave did not break over me as I assumed it would. An irresistible force dragged me up its steep slope right to the very foot of the falling crest. Instinctively I clutched my mask snorkel and managed to take a deep breath. The crest started to break over me and pulled me under it. For a moment, I found myself in the air
under the crest as ifin a cave. Then my body was in a swirling current of water; the inner power of the wave made me recover several times, twisting me in all directions before it subsided.
I realised that I had to try to keep my body on the crest and I quickly took up a horizontal position. This time the wave quickly grabbed me and carried me at great speed for quite a long distance on its crest.
I got up to the surface easily and swam in the direction the waves were heading. "Somewhere there, beyond the reef, there should be a lagoon," I hoped.
Suddenly, I felt something hard under my feet. I could stand up to my chest in water! Around me I could see random currents of water, splashes of foam and phosphorescent spray, all swirling about. Before I fully came to my senses, another large wave approached and carried me some distance further. I was up to my waist in water when a new wave picked me up, taldng me several metres forward. Now the depth of the water was only up to my knees. I had enough time to take a few tentative steps, to catch my breath and look around.
I surfaced at the foot of very tall palm trees. I left a trail of luminous water and my body glittered like some princess's ball-gown. Only now did I feel completely safe. The ocean was behind me ....
(a) I saw individual stars, but I could not distinguish the constellation they belonged to. Then dawn came and put out all my stars.
Therefore, constellation means ................... 
(b) Indeed there had been a distant rumbling for some time, although I had paid no attention to it. Now that I started listening to it I thought it sounded like the characteristic noise of jet airplanes constantly landing and taking off.
Therefore, rumbling means ............
(c) It was a gigantic wave with steep, very slowly falling crests. Never in my life had I seen such an enormous wave. It seemed to be touching the sky.
Therefore, gigantic means ............
(d) The wave did not break over me as I assumed it would. An irrsistible force dragged me up its steep slope, right to the very foot of the falling crest.
Therefore , irrisistible means.....................
(e) For a moment, I found myself caught in the air under the crest, as if in a cave . Then , my body was in the swirling current of water ; the inner power of the wave made me recover several times , twisting me in all directions before it subsided .
Therefore , swirling means..........
(f) All around me I could see random currents of water splashes of foam and phosphorescent spray of luminous water and my body glittered like some princess's ball gown.
Therefore, phosphorescent means .................
Listen to the extract on Tigers read by teacher/ student which is given below , and as you listen, complete the summary given below.
Save Tigers
The price of human greed is being paid by yet another animal species the Tiger. Today the tiger population is getting depleted at an alarming rate. According to a recent survey, one tiger is being poached everyday. If the present state of affairs is allowed to continue, the next generation will not get to see the majestic animal even in the zoo.
It is high time that action is taken to protect and conserve the tigers in order to maintain the ecological balance. Stringent laws against poachers must be enforced. It is over 40 years since the tigers became our national animal. As a result, the species was to be protected. Ironically, they are closer to extinction now than ever before. Children, scientists, conservationists, NGOs and institutions in India and world wide have put their heart and soul into trying to save the tiger. Yet there is little we all have been able to do. The responsibility and the power of protection lies with the government, specifically the forest department.
Let us not forget that if we destroy nature, ultimately we will be destroyed ourselves.
Tiger, an apex predator is an indicator of our ecosystem's health. Saving the tiger means we save the forest, since tiger cannot live in places where trees have vanished, and in turn secure food and water for all.
Tigers are now an endangered species. Today there are about 5000 to 7,400 left in the world. Three types of tigers - The Bali, Javan and Caspian tigers have become extinct. The two reasons why tigers are endangered are: Habitat loss and illegal killing.
Illegal Killing
One of the most concerning threat to our national animal that needs to be recognised is poaching. Tigers are killed to make rugs and coats out of their skins.
In many Asian cultures medicines made from tiger's body organs are believed to cure diseases.
Habitat Loss
Forests where tigers live are cut by humans for farming, building houses and roads. This leads to tigers becoming homeless and without any food. Since other animals also die when forests are cut, it leads to tigers becoming weak and their ultimate death.
Project Tiger
Project Tiger is a wildlife conservation project initiated in India in 1972 to protect the Bengal Tigers. It was launched on April 1, 1973 and has become one of the most successful wild life conservation ventures. The project aims at Tiger conservation in specially constituted Tiger reserves representative of various bio geographical regions through out India. It strives to maintain a viable conservation based on tiger population in their natural environment.
Project Tiger was Indira Gandhi's pet project. The main achievements of this project are excellent recovery of the habitat and consequent increase in the tiger population in the reserve areas, from a mere 268 in 7 reserves in 1972 to above one thousand in 28 reserves in 2006.
Tigers being at the apex of the food chain can be considered as the indicator of the integrity of the ecosystem. They can be found in a wide range of habitats, from the evergreen and monsoon forests of the Inda-Malayan realm to the mixed coniferous - deciduous woodlands of the Far east Russia and the mangrove swamps of the Sundarbans, shared by India and Bangladesh.
Tigers are mostly nocturnal but in the northern part of its range, the Siberian subspecies may also be active during the day at winter-time. All wild tigers live in Asia, others live in the humid jungles of Sumatra. The body length is 140 - 280 cm and the tail length is 60 to 95 cm. The upper part of the animal ranges from reddish orange to ochre and the under parts all whitish. The body has a series of black stripes of black to dark grey colour.
It was a summer evening,
Old Kaspar's work was done,
And he before his cottage door
Was sitting in the sun,
And by him sported on the green
His little grandchild Wilhelmine.
She saw her brother Peterkin
Roll something large and round,
Which he beside the rivulet
In playing there had found;
He came to ask what he had found,
That was so large, and smooth, and round.
Read the lines given above and answer the question that follow.
What did Peterkin find?
This woman had been despised, scoffed at, and angrily denounced by nearly every man, woman, and child in the village; but now, as the fact of, her death was passed from lip to lip, in subdued tones, pity took the place of anger, and sorrow of denunciation.
Neighbours went hastily to the old tumble-down hut, in which she had secured little more than a place of shelter from summer heats and winter cold: some with grave-clothes for a decent interment of the body; and some with food for the half-starving children, three in number. Of these, John, the oldest, a boy of twelve, was a stout lad, able to earn his living with any farmer. Kate, between ten and eleven, was bright, active girl, out of whom something clever might be made, if in good hands; but poor little Maggie, the youngest, was hopelessly diseased. Two years before a fall from a window had injured her spine, and she had not been able to leave her bed since, except when lifted in the arms of her mother.
“What is to be done with the children?” That was the chief question now. The dead mother would go underground, and be forever beyond all care or concern of the villagers. But the children must not be left to starve.
Read the extract given below and answer the question that follow.
What did the neighbours do to help?
What comment did Potter make wizen Braithwait? hurt himself? What did he mean by that comment How did Pamela react to Potter's remark?
Do the following activity in groups.
Go to the library and collect information about the lifestyle of people in desert areas— their food, clothes, work, social customs, etc. Share this information with the group.
Complete the following sentences.
(i) Toto climbed up the curtains when ————————————————————————————————
(ii) _________________________________________________———————————————————————, I became one of the tiger’s favourites.
iii) Timothy had clean habits, ___________________ ————————————————————————————————————
The following sentence has two blanks. Fill in the blanks with appropriate forms of the word given in brackets.
It isn’t__________ that_________ should always be the mother of invention. (necessary)
The following sentence has two blanks. Fill in the blanks with appropriate forms of the word given in brackets.
Hermits are_________men. How they acquire their________ no one can tell. (wise)
Imagine you are the hermit. Write briefly the incident of your meeting the king. Begin like this: One day I was digging in my garden. A man in ordinary clothes came to see me. I knew it was the king...
Answer the following question
What did the king ask Gopal to do to prove that he was clever?
How the author and his friend spent the entire day?
What should be done to save trees?
Write two pairs of rhyming words from the poem.
Which word is the opposite of ‘badly’?
Answer the following question.
What was the villagers’ reaction when the aunt explained her case to them?
Read aloud the two paragraphs that describe the boy and the old man at the Lucky Shop.
Why does Maya think Mr Nath is a crook? Who does she say the Sunday visitor is?
