JKBOSE 9th Class English Solutions chapter –  5 THE FUN THEY HAD 

In this chapter, the writer gives an imaginative idea of schools of the future. He conveys it through the imaginary story of two children named Margie and Tommy. Margie is eleven years old and Tommy is 13. Their story is placed in the year 2157. It runs like this:

On the night of 17 May, 2157, Margie made an entry in her diary. She wrote, Today Tommy found a real book! It was a very old book. It was printed on paper. Margie’s grandfather had once told Margie about such books. He had said that when he was a little child, his grandfather had told him of a time when all stories were printed on paper.

Tommy lived in Margie’s neighbourhood. That day he had come to Margie’s house and shown her an old dusty book. He said that he had found the book in the attic of his house. The two children saw that the words stood still at the same place. They didn’t move like the words on their television screen. It appeared to the children something very funny. They turned the page before. It had the same words on it that it had when they read it for the first time. Tommy thought that such a book was just a waste. One could throw it away after reading it. The television screen, on the other hand, could have on it millions of books. Thus one never had to throw it away.

Tommy had found the book in the attic of his house. He told Margie that the book was about school. Margie failed to understand what Tommy said. She didn’t think there was anything to write about school. She had always hated school. But Tommy told her that it was a different kind of school that was mentioned in the book. It was very different from the type of Margie’s school.

Margie’s school was in her own house. Her schoolroom was right next to her bedroom. She had a mechanical teacher to teach her. The teacher had been giving her test after test in geography. Margie had been doing worse and worse in each test. Her mother was very unhappy. She sent for the County Inspector to see what wrong was there.

The County Inspector was a round little man. He had a red face. He had a box full of tools with dials and wires. He smiled at Margie and gave her an apple. Then he took the mechanical teacher apart. Margie had thought that the County Inspector would not know how to put the mechanical teacher together again. But he knew everything all right. He was able to complete the job in about an hour. Now the big screen of the mechanical teacher was on again. It could show all the lessons and the related questions.

Margie didn’t feel so bad about answering the questions. The part she hated most was the slot where she had to put her homework and test papers. She had to write them out in punch code. Then the mechanical teacher calculated the marks in no time. Margie had been made to learn the punch code when she was six years old.

The Inspector smiled after finishing his work. He patted Margie’s head. He said to her mother, “It was not the little girl’s fault. The geography sector was geared a little too quick. I have slowed it up to the level of an average 10-year-old child. The overall pattern of the child’s progress is quite satisfactory.” And he patted Margie’s head again.

But Margie was disappointed. She had been hoping that they would take away 4 the mechanical teacher altogether. Once it had happened with Tommy’s teacher also. It was taken away for nearly a month because history sector had blanked out pletely.

Now when Tommy said that the book was about school, Margie couldn’t quite understand it. She didn’t think anyone would like to write about school. At this, Tommy told her that the book was not about their kind of school. It was about a different kind of school. It was the old kind of school they had many centuries ago. Tommy explained to Margie that those old schools had a teacher, but it was not a regular teacher. “It was a man,” he said.

Now Margie had never heard of a man as a teacher. She had always learnt from a mechanical teacher only. And she had it in her own schoolroom. She had never thought that a teacher could be a man. So she was much surprised. She said that a man couldn’t be as smart as a mechanical teacher. Moreover, she didn’t like having a strange man in her house to teach her.

Tommy laughed on hearing this. He said that a teacher, in those old days, didn’t live in the house of a child. They had a special building where they went to teach. And all the kids went there to learn. Tommy told Margie that all children of the same age were taught the same thing. A mechanical teacher, on the other hand, had to be adjusted to fit the mind of each different boy and girl.

The two children had not yet finished even half of the book, when Margie’s mother called for her. She said that it was time for Margie’s school. She said that it was probably time for Tommy’s school also. Now Tommy tucked the old dusty book under his arm and walked away whistling.

Margie went into her schoolroom. It was right next to her bedroom. The mechanical teacher was on and waiting for her. It was always on at the same time every day, except Saturday and Sunday. Margie’s mother had fixed regular hours for Margie to study. She said that little girls learnt better if they studied at regular hours.

The screen was lit up. The mechanical teacher was going to give a lesson in arithmetic. It was about the addition of proper fractions. The mechanical teacher directed Margie to put her previous day’s homework in the proper slot. Margie did this with a sigh. The mechanical teacher started with the lesson. But Margie was still thinking about the old schools they had when her grandfather’s grandfather was a little child.

Margie was thinking about the fun the children had in those old schools. All the kids from the whole neighbourhood came there. They laughed and shouted in the schoolyard. They sat together in the schoolroom. They went home together at the end of the day. All kids of the same age learnt the same thing. Thus they could help each other in the homework. They could talk to each other about it. Thus Margie kept thinking about the fun children could have in those schools of old days.

इस पाठ में लेखक भविष्य के स्कूलों के सम्बन्ध में एक काल्पनिक विचार प्रस्तुत करता है। इसे वह मार्गी और टामी नामक दो बच्चों की काल्पनिक कहानी के द्वारा प्रस्तुत करता है। मार्गी की आयु ग्यारह वर्ष की है, और टामी तेरह वर्ष का है। कहानी को वर्ष 2157 में स्थापित किया गया है। यह इस प्रकार से है—

17 मई 2157, की रात को मार्गी ने अपनी डायरी में एक प्रविष्टि की। उसने लिखा, ‘आज टामी को एक वास्तविक पुस्तक मिली !’ यह एक बहुत पुरानी पुस्तक थी। यह कागज़ के ऊपर छपी हुई थी। मार्गी के दादा ने उसे एक बार ऐसी पुस्तकों के बारे में बताया था। उसने कहा था कि जब वह एक छोटा बच्चा हुआ करता था, तो उसके दादा ने उसे ऐसे समय के बारे में बताया था जब सब कहानियां कागज़ के ऊपर छापी जाती थीं।

टामी मार्गी के पड़ोस में रहा करता था। उस दिन वह मार्गी के घर आया था और उसे एक पुरानी धूल भरी पुस्तक दिखाई थी। उसने कहा कि उसे वह पुस्तक उसके मकान की अटारी में मिली थी। दोनों बच्चों ने उस पुस्तक के पन्ने पलटे। पन्ने पीले हुए पड़े थे और सिलवटों से भरे थे। दोनों बच्चों ने देखा कि शब्द एक जगह निश्चल पड़े थे। वे उनके टैलीविज़न की स्क्रीन पर के शब्दों की भांति गति नहीं कर रहे थे। बच्चों को यह बात बहुत हास्यजनक प्रतीत हुई। उन्होंने पूर्व वाले पन्ने को पलटा । इस पर वही शब्द थे जो वहां तब थे जब उन्होंने इसे पहली बार पढ़ा था। टामी ने सोचा कि ऐसी पुस्तक मात्र एक रद्दी की चीज़ थी । इसे पढ़ने के बाद फेंका जा सकता था। इसके विपरीत टैलीविज़न की स्क्रीन के ऊपर लाखों-लाखों पुस्तकें हो सकती थीं। इस प्रकार व्यक्ति को इसे फेंकने की ज़रूरत कभी नहीं होती थी ।

टामी को यह पुस्तक अपने घर की अटारी में मिली थी। उसने मार्गी को बताया कि पुस्तक स्कूल के बारे में थी। मार्गी को टामी की बात समझ न आई । वह नहीं समझती थी कि स्कूल के विषय में लिखने को कोई बात हो सकती है। वह स्कूल से सदा से ही घृणा करती थी। किन्तु टामी ने उसे बताया कि पुस्तक में जिस स्कूल का वर्णन किया गया था, वह एक भिन्न किस्म का स्कूल था । यह मार्गी के स्कूल से बहुत भिन्न था।

मार्गी का स्कूल उसके अपने घर में था। उसका स्कूली कमरा उसके शयनकक्ष के बिल्कुल बगल में था। उसे पढ़ाने के लिए एक यांत्रिक अध्यापक था। यह अध्यापक उसे भूगोल में टेस्ट के बाद टेस्ट देता रहा था। मार्गी प्रत्येक टेस्ट में अधिकाधिक ख़राब प्रदर्शन करती रही थी। उसकी माँ बहुत अप्रसन्न थी। उस ने मण्डल निरीक्षक को यह पता करने के लिए बुला भेजा कि वहां क्या ख़राबी थी ।

मण्डल निरीक्षक छोटे कद वाला एक गोल-मटोल आदमी था । उसका लाल चेहरा था और उसके पास तारों और डायलों से युक्त औज़ारों से भरा एक पूरा बक्सा था । वह मार्गी को देखकर मुस्करा दिया और उसे एक सेब दिया। फिर उसने यांत्रिक अध्यापक को खोल कर अलग कर दिया। मार्गी ने ऐसा सोचा था कि मण्डल निरीक्षक को पता नहीं चलेगा कि इसे दोबारा कैसे जोड़ा जाए। किन्तु वह हर बात को पूरी तरह जानता था। वह लगभग एक घण्टे में काम पूरा करने के योग्य हो गया। अब यांत्रिक अध्यापक की बड़ी स्क्रीन फिर से चमकने लगी थी। यह सभी पाठ तथा उनसे सम्बन्धित प्रश्न दिखा सकती थी।

मार्गी को प्रश्नों के उत्तर देना इतना बुरा नहीं लगता था । वह हिस्सा जिस से वह सब से ज्यादा घृणा करती थी वह छिद्र था जहां उसे अपना होमवर्क और अपने टेस्ट पेपर डालने होते थे। इन्हें उसे पंच कोड में लिखना होता था। फिर यांत्रिक अध्यापक अंकों की पल भर में जांच कर देता था। मार्गी को पंच कोड तब सिखलाया गया था जब वह छः वर्ष की थी ।

अपना काम समाप्त करने के बाद निरीक्षक मुस्करा दिया। उसने मार्गी का सिर थपथपाया और उसकी मां से कहा, “यह छोटी लड़की का दोष नहीं था। भूगोल वाला भाग कुछ ज्यादा ही तेज गति पर रखा गया था। मैंने इसे धीमा करके एक साधारण दस वर्षीय बच्चे के स्तर पर कर दिया है। कुल मिला कर बच्ची का प्रगति का क्रम काफ़ी सन्तोषजनक है।” और उसने मार्गी के सिर को दोबारा थपथपा दिया।

किन्तु मार्गों को निराशा हुई। उसने तो यह आशा लगाई हुई थी कि यांत्रिक अध्यापक को पूरी तरह से हटा कर ले जाएंगे। ऐसा एक बार टामी के अध्यापक के विषय में भी हुआ था। यह लगभग एक महीने के लिए वहां से ले जाया गया था क्योंकि इतिहास वाले भाग ने पूरी तरह काम करना बन्द कर दिया था।

अब जब टामी ने कहा कि वह पुस्तक स्कूल के बारे में थी, तो मार्गी को बात पूरी तरह समझ न आई। वह ऐसा नहीं समझती थी कि कोई भी व्यक्ति स्कूल के बारे में लिखना पसन्द करेगा। इस पर टामी ने उसे बताया कि पुस्तक उनके जैसे स्कूल के बारे में नहीं थी। यह एक भिन्न स्कूल के बारे में थी। यह पुरानी किस्म के स्कूल के बारे में थी जो अनेक शताब्दियां पूर्व हुआ करता था। टामी ने मार्गी को समझाया कि उन पुराने स्कूलों में एक अध्यापक हुआ करता था, किन्तु यह कोई नियमित अध्यापक नहीं होता था। ‘यह एक आदमी हुआ करता था, उसने कहा।

अब मार्गी ने एक मनुष्य के अध्यापक होने के बारे में कभी नहीं सुना था। उसने सदा एक यांत्रिक अध्यापक से ही सिखलाई प्राप्त की थी और वह इसे अपने ही स्कूली कमरे में रखती थी। उसने यह कभी नहीं सोचा था कि एक आदमी अध्यापक हो सकता था। इसलिए उसे बहुत हैरानी महसूस हुई। उसने कहा एक आदमी यांत्रिक अध्यापक के जितना ज्ञानी नहीं हो सकता था। इसके अतिरिक्त उसे यह पसन्द नहीं था कि उसे पढ़ाने के लिए कोई अजनबी व्यक्ति उसके घर पर रहे।

यह सुन कर टामी हंस दिया। उसने कहा कि उन दिनों कोई अध्यापक किसी बच्चे के घर पर नहीं रहा करता था। वहां एक विशेष भवन हुआ करता था जहां वे पढ़ाने के लिए जाया करते थे और सभी बच्चे वहां सीखने के लिए जाया करते थे। टामी ने मार्गी को बताया कि एक ही आयु के सभी बच्चों को एक जैसी चीज़ पढ़ाई जाती थी। इसके विपरीत एक यांत्रिक अध्यापक को प्रत्येक भिन्न लड़के और लड़की के दिमाग़ के अनुसार बिठाना पड़ता था।

दोनों बच्चों ने अभी आधी पुस्तक भी समाप्त नहीं की थी कि जब मार्गी की मां ने उसे आवाज़ लगा दी। उसने कहा कि अब मार्गी के स्कूल का समय हो गया था। उसने कहा कि संभवतया यह टामी के स्कूल का समय भी था। अब टामी ने अपनी पुरानी धूल भरी पुस्तक अपनी बांह के नीचे टिकाई और सीटी बजाता हुआ वहां से चला गया।

मार्गी अपने स्कूली कमरे में चली गई। यह उसके शयनकक्ष के बिल्कुल बग़ल में था। यांत्रिक अध्यापक चालू हुआ पड़ा था और उसकी प्रतीक्षा कर रहा था। यह रविवार और शनिवार के अतिरिक्त प्रतिदिन उसी समय पर चालू हो जाता था। मार्गी की मां ने मार्गी के पढ़ने के लिए नियमित घण्टे निश्चित कर रखे थे। वह कहती थी कि छोटी लड़कियां बेहतर सीख जाती हैं यदि वे नियमित समय पर अध्ययन करें।

स्क्रीन प्रकाशित हुई पड़ी थी। यांत्रिक अध्यापक गणित का पाठ सिखाने जा रहा था। यह भिन्न के जोड़ के बारे में था। यांत्रिक अध्यापक ने मार्गी को निर्देश दिया कि वह अपने पूर्व के दिन का होमवर्क उपयुक्त छिद्र में डाल दे। मार्गी ने गहरी सांस लेते हुए ऐसा कर दिया। यांत्रिक अध्यापक ने पाठ शुरू कर दिया। किन्तु मार्गी अब भी उन पुराने स्कूलों के बारे में सोच रही थी जो तब हुआ करते थे जब उसके दादा का दादा एक छोटा बच्चा हुआ करता था।

मार्गी उस मजे के बारे में सोच रही थी जो उन पुराने स्कूलों में बच्चे लिया करते थे। पूरे पड़ोस के सभी बच्चे वहां आया करते थे। वे स्कूल के आंगन में हंसते और शोर मचाते। वे स्कूली कमरे में इकट्ठे मिलकर बैठते । दिन समाप्त होने पर वे इकट्ठे मिल कर घर जाते। एक ही आयु के सभी बच्चे एक जैसी बात सीखते। इस प्रकार वे होमवर्क करने में एक-दूसरे की मदद कर सकते थे। वे इसके विषय में एक-दूसरे से बातें कर सकते थे।

इस प्रकार मार्गी उस मजे के बारे में सोचती रही जो बच्चे उन पुराने दिनों के स्कूलों में उठाया करते थे।

(Page 29) It was a very old book. Margie’s grandfather once said that when he was a little boy his grandfather told him that there was a time when all stories were printed on paper.

They turned the pages, which were yellow and crinkly, and it was awfully funny to read words that stood still instead of moving the way they were supposed to – on a screen, you know. And then when they turned back to the page before, it had the same words on it that it had when they read it the first time.

(A) (i) What old book has been referred to here ?

(ii) What did Margie’s grandfather tell her ?

(iii) How did the pages of the book look ?

(B) Choose the most appropriate options :

(i) The pages of the old book were …….. .

(a) yellow (b) crinkly (c) both (a) and (b) (d) faded.

(ii) It was very funny to read words that were ………. .

(a) still (b) moving slowly (c) moving very fast (d) changing fast.

(iii) In very old times, the stories were ………. .

(a) not printed (b) passed on by words of mouth (c) printed on paper (d) written on palm leaves.

(C) What would the children see when they turned back to the page before ?

(A) (i) It was a book that Tommy had found in the attic of his house.

(ii) He told her that according to his own grandfather, there had been a time when all stories were printed on paper.

(iii) The pages of the very old book looked yellow and crinkly.

(B) (i) (c) both (a) and (b) (ii) (a) still (iii) (c) printed on paper.

(C) When they went back to the previous page, they would find that it had the same words on it they had read earlier; they had not changed at all.

(Page 30) Margie always hated school, but now she hated it more than ever. The mechanical teacher had been giving her test after test in geography and she had been doing worse and worse until her mother had shaken her head sorrowfully and sent for the County Inspector.

He was a round little man with a red face and a whole box of tools with dials and wires. He smiled at Margie and gave her an apple, then took the teacher apart.

1. What did Margie hate more than ever ?

2. What had the mechanical teacher been doing ?

3. How did Margie fare in her tests ?

4. Who sent for the County Inspector and why ?

5. How did the County Inspector look ?

6. What did the County Inspector bring with him ?

1. She hated school more than ever.

2. It had been giving Margie test after test in geography.

3. She fared worse and worse in her tests.

4. Margie’s mother sent for the County Inspector because Margie had been doing badly in her geography tests.

5. He was a round little man with a red face.

6. He brought with him a whole box of tools with dials and wires.

(Page 30) Margie had hoped he wouldn’t know how to put it together again, but he knew how all right, and, after an hour or so, there it was again, large and black and ugly, with a big screen on which all the lessons were shown and the questions were asked. That wasn’t so bad. Margie hated most was the slot where she had to put homework and test papers. She always had to write them out in a punch code they made her learn when she was six years old, and the mechanical teacher calculated the marks in no time.

(A) (i) What does ‘he’ in the passage refer to ?

(ii) What had Margie hoped ?

(iii) What was the man able to do ?

(B) Choose the most appropriate options :

(i) How did the mechanical teacher look after the repair ?

(a) large (b) black (c) ugly (d) all of these three.

(ii) The big screen mentioned here showed …….. .

(a) all the lessons (b) questions Margie had to answer

(c) old books (d) both (a) and (b)

(iii) Margie had to write her answers ……

(a) very quickly (b) in her own time (c) in a punch code  (d) very neatly.

(C) How had she to write her tests and homework ?

(A) (i) The word ‘he’ refers to the County Inspector.

(ii) She had hoped that the County Inspector won’t know how to put the mechanical teacher together again.

(iii) He very easily set the mechanical teacher right.

(B) (i) (d) all of these three (ii) (d) both (a) and (b) (iii) (c) in a punch code.

(C) She had to write them in a punch code which she had learnt when she was

six years old.

(Page 30) The Inspector had smiled after he was finished and patted Margie’s head. He said to her mother, ‘It’s not the little girl’s fault, Mrs. Jones. I think the geography sector was geared a little too quick. Those things happen sometimes. I’ve slowed it up to an average ten-year level. Actually, the overall pattern of her progress is quite satisfactory.’ And he patted Margie’s head again.

1. Which Inspector has been referred to in these lines ?

2. What had the Inspector done ?

3. Who was Mrs. Jones ?

4. It’s not the little girl’s fault.’ What was not the little girl’s fault ?

5. What was wrong with the geography sector ?

6. How did the Inspector correct this wrong ?

1. He was the County Inspector.

2. He had set the mechanical teacher right.

3. She was Margie’s mother.

4. She was not doing well in her geography tests. It was not her fault.

5. It was geared a little too quick.

6. He slowed it up to an average ten-year level.

(Page 31) Tommy screamed with laughter. You don’t know much, Margie. The teachers didn’t live in the house. They had a special building and all the kids went there.”

‘And all the kids learned the same thing?’

‘Sure, if they were the same age.’

‘But my mother says a teacher has to be cuto girl it teaches and that each kid has to be taught differently.”

(A) (i) What did Margie not know much about ?

(ii) What did Tommy tell Margie about the old schools ?

(iii) Where did all the children go and why ?

(B) Choose the most appropriate options :

(i) The word ‘screamed’ here means …………. .

(a) laughed (b) exclaimed (c) shrieked (d) giggled.

(ii) The tense of ‘learned’ here is ……  .

(a) past perfect (b) past indefinite (c) past continuous (d) past progressive.

(iii) The teachers of old schools ……. .

(a) lived in kids’ houses (b) lived in their own house (c) taught in a special building (d) were very loving.

(C) What did Margie’s mother say ?

(A) (i) She did not know much about the schools of very old times.

(ii) He told Margie things about the teachers and kids in old kind of schools.

(iii) They went together to school to learn.

(B) (i) (c) shrieked (ii) (b) past indefinite (iii) (c) taught in a special building.

(C) She said that the mechanical teacher has to be adjusted to the requirements of the kids and therefore, the kids have to be taught differently.

(Page 31) Margie went into the schoolroom. It was right next to her bedroom, and the mechanical teacher was on and waiting for her. It was always on at the same time every day except Saturday and Sunday, because her mother said little girls learned better if they learned at regular hours.

The screen was lit up, and it said: “Today’s arithmetic lesson is on the addition of fractions. Please insert yesterday’s home work in the proper slot.

1. Where was Margie’s schoolroom ?

2. Where was the mechanical teacher ?

3. What was the mechanical teacher doing ?

4. What days did the mechanical teacher work ?

5. What did Margie’s mother say about learning by little iwl tak berionet ?

6. What screen was lit up ?

1. It was right next to her bedroom.

2. It was in Margie’s schoolroom.

3. It was waiting for Margie.

4. It worked all days of the week except Saturday and Sunday.

5. She said that little girls learnt better if they learnt at regular hours.

6. The television screen was lit up.

(Page 31) Margie did so with a sigh. She was thinking about the old schools they had when her grandfather’s grandfather was a little boy. All the kids from the whole neighbourhood came laughing and shouting in the schoolyard, sitting together in the schoolroom, going home together at the end of the day. They learned the same things, so they could help one another on the homework and talk about it.

1. What did Margie do with a sigh ?

2. What was she thinking about ?

3. When did they have old schools ?

 4. Who came to learn to the old schools ?

5. What did the kids do in the schoolyard ?

6. What did they do at the end of the day ?

7. How could children help one another in old schools ?

8. Do you think Margie liked the old kind of schools ?

9. Find in the passage a word which is the opposite of ‘separately.

1. She inserted her previous day’s homework in the mechanical teacher’s slot.

2. She was thinking about the old schools.

3. They had old schools when her grandfather’s grandfather was a little child.

4. All the kids from the whole neighbourhood came there.

5. They laughed and shouted there.

6. They went home together at the end of the day.

7. They could help one another on the homework.

8. Yes, she liked the old kind of schools.

9. separately → together.

Ans.— She wrote, “Today Tommy found a real book !”

Ans.— No, she had never seen a book before.

Ans.— The words in the book stood still. And the pages showed the same words when they were turned back.

Ans.— A telebook is a book that can be read on the television screen.

Ans.— It was right next to her bedroom. Margie didn’t have any classmate.

Ans.— They learnt geography, history and arithmetic.

Ans.— (i) Tommy says these words.

(ii) ‘It’ refers to the television screen.

(iii) It is being compared with a real book.

Ans.— (i) It refers to the people of many centuries ago.

(ii) It means here something of a lasting nature.

(iii) It is contrasted with a mechanical teacher.

Ans.— They didn’t have any men as their teachers. Their teachers were a kind of machine attached to their television screen. They called them mechanical teachers.

Ans.— Margie was not doing well in her geography tests. She was doing worse and worse in each test. That was why her mother sent for the County Inspector.

Ans.— The County Inspector pector saw that the mechanical teacher was geared a little too quick for Margie. So he took it apart and slowed it up.

Ans.— Margie’s mechanical teacher was geared a little too quick for her. The Country Inspector slowed it up for Margie.

Ans.— It had blanked out completely. To set it right, it had to be taken away for nearly a month.

Ans.— Margie had regular days and hours for school. Her mother thought that little girls learnt better that way.

Ans.— Tommy says that the old kind of school was a separate building away from one’s house. Children from all the neighbourhood went there to learn.

Ans.— Tommy says that the old kind of teachers were men. They didn’t live in the child’s house. They had a special building. All kids went there and learnt

from them.

Ans.— The mechanical teachers are not men. They are a sort of gadgets. They are attached to the television screen. Their speed can be adjusted according to the age or mental level of the child. They are kept at the child’s home. They flash their lessons on the television screen and the child learns from them. They check the child’s progress by giving them tests. The schoolrooms in the story are the rooms in the houses of different children. Each child has his own classroom in his house. The child keeps

a mechanical teacher in his room and learns from it.

Ans.— Margie had always hated school. But now she had begun to hate school more than ever. Her mechanical teacher gave her test after test. In each test, she did worse and worse. That was why Margie hated school. etan But she thought the old kind of schools were great fun. Children from the whole neighbourhood went there together. They played, laughed and shouted in the schoolyard. They learnt the same things at school. They could Miche help each other on their homework. That was why Margie liked the old kind of schools.

Ans.— The school in the story is a dull place. There is no human touch in it. Everything is mechanical. The teacher is a mere gadget. It flashes lessons on the television screen. Thus there are no human feelings in the whole process. The child remains all alone in his schoolroom. That is why Margie hates school.

But she likes the old kind of schools. In those schools, children from the whole neighbourhood played and learnt together. They learnt the same things at school. I agree with Margie that schools today are more fun than the school in the story.

1. Close to perfection ……….. .

2. A student who is good at studies, games and other curricular activities……. .

3. Behaviour, outlook, presentation and mental make – up comprise our ………. .

4. Painting, music and sculpture are …….. .

5. Enterprising means …….. .

Ans.— 1. ideal

            2. all rounder

            3. personality

            4. fine arts

            5. hard – working

1. Find sentences in the lesson which have the adverbs given below.

awfully  sorrowfully  completely loftily carefully differently   quickly  nonchalantly

1. Awfully — They turned the pages, which were yellow and crinkly, and it was awfully funny to read words ………. you know.

2. Sorrowfully — The mechanical teacher ……. until her mother had shaken her head sorrowfully and sent for the County Inspector.

3. Completely — They had once taken Tommy’s teacher away for nearly 152 a month because the history sector has blanked out completely.

4. Loftily and carefully — He added loftily, pronouncing the word carefully, “Centuries ago.”

5. Differently — “But my mother say…………and that each kid has to be taught differently.”

6. Quickly — “I didn’t say I didn’t like it,” Margie said quickly.

7. Nonchalantly — “Maybe,” he said nonchalantly.

(i) The report must be read ………. so that performance can be improved.

(ii) At the interview, he answered our questions ……….. shrugging his shoulders.

(iii) We all behave ………. when we are tired or hungry.

(iv) The teacher shook her head …….. when Ravi lied to her.

(v) I ………. forgot about it.

(vi) When I complimented her on her success, she just smiled ………. and turned away.

(vii) The President of the Company is ………..  busy and will not be able to meet you.

(viii) I finished my work ……… so that I could go out to play.

Ans.— (i) carefully (ii) loftily (iii) differently (iv) sorrowfully (v) completely (vi) nonchalantly (vii) awfully (viii) quickly.

(i) angry ……………….. .

(ii) happy ……………… .

(iii) merry …………….. .

(iv) sleep ……………… .

(v) ease ……………….. .

(vi) noise ……………… .

(vii) tidy ……………….. .

(viii) gloomy …………

(ix) thoughtful ……….

(x) beautiful ………….

Ans.— (i) angrily (ii) happily (iii) merrily (iv) sleepily (v) easily (vi) noisily

(vii) tidily  (viii) gloomily (ix) thoughtfully (x) beautifully.

(i) If I don’t go to Anu’s party tonight, …….

(ii) If you don’t telephone the hotel to order food, ………

(iii) Unless you promise to write back, I ………..

(iv) If she doesn’t play any games, ………

(v) Unless that little bird flies away quickly, the cat ………

नोट- If / Unless वाले किसी भी उपवाक्य में future tense का प्रयोग नहीं किया जाता है, जबकि मुख्य वाक्य में future tense का प्रयोग किया जा सकता है।

Ans.— (i) …… he will be angry.

(ii) ……… you will have to go hungry.

(iii) …….. won’t correspond with you in future.

(iv) ……….. she won’t be able to improve her health.

(v) ……. will eat it up.

To	HFI@yahoo.com.
From	Neerja Sa Neerja Sangar@rediff.com
Date	8 September 2016, 15:36
Subject	New Revised Volume of Issac Asimov’s short stories, ‘Ignited Minds’ by A.P.J. Abdul Kalam

Dear sir, Please send me the above-mentioned book through VPP at my 66, Royal Enclave, Ludhiana (Pb.) postal address. It is a new revised volume of Asimov’s short stories, Ignited Minds by A.P.J. Abdul Kalam. Neerja Sangar Tel. 00764 – 20300 Fax : 0101 – 2108200