Topic outline

    • Just For Fun

      About the passage

      Read to understand

      A. Answer these questions with reference to the context.

      1. ‘I wonder what or who she is tattling about?’

               a)   Who spoke these words? When and where were they spoken?

      Ans. Simran spoke these words. They were spoken at the rehearsal, when Sonia asked to speak to Mrs Debroy privately.

               b)   Who is the ‘she’ mentioned here?

      Ans. ‘She’ refers to Sonia.

               c)   Why were these words said about her?

      Ans. These words said about Sonia because she had earlier informed Mr Sinha about Avantika taking the roses from the exhibition.

       

      2. ‘Ooohhh! How would he do that?’

               a)   Who said this?

      Ans. Simran said these words.

               b)   Who is the ‘he’ spoken about here?

      Ans. ‘He’ refers to the villager who had spread rumour about the wise man.

               c)   What prompted such a reaction from the speaker?

      Ans. The wise man told the villager to go and collect the feathers he had scattered and put them back in the pillow. The task was quite an impossible because all the feathers would have blown away in the wind. Simran understood this. Hence, she exclaimed, ‘How would he do that’.

       

      3. ‘I think we need to speak to Ms Guha.’

               a)   Who is the speaker?

      Ans. Simran is the speaker.

               b)   Who does ‘we’ refer to?

      Ans. ‘We’ refers to Simran and her two friends, Divya and Avantika.

               c)   What does the speaker want to talk about?

      Ans. The speaker wanted to talk about a rumour they spread about Sonia.



      B. Answer these questions.

      1. Why were the girls rehearsing a skit?

      Ans. The girls were rehearsing a skit to perform on Children’s Day. The skit was about fashionable cats visiting grooming parlours.

       

      2. What did the girls start doing when Mrs Debroy left?

      Ans. The girls started guessing who or what Sonia is tattling about to Mrs Debroy. They started planning how they could get Sonia into trouble for ‘spilling the beans’ to Mr Sinha about Avantika.

       

      3. Why did the villager in the story spread a rumour about the wise man?

      Ans. The villager didn’t like the advice he was given by the wise man.

       

      4. Why did Avantika feel that Ms Guha told the story especially for Simran, Divya, and herself?

      Ans. Avantika felt Ms Guha was especially telling them something through the story because it reflected the situation faced by the three girls—they too spread a rumour about Sonia.

       

      5. Why did the three girls want to talk to their teacher?

      Ans. The three girls wanted to talk to their teacher because after listening to the story, the three girls felt guilty of spreading rumour about Sonia and wanted to say sorry.



      Discuss and write

      1. Would you say that Avantika was not a hateful girl at heart? Justify your response.

      Ans. Avantika was not a hateful girl at heart. She just wanted to teach Sonia a lesson because Sonia had earlier informed Mr Sinha about Avantika taking the roses from the exhibition. Later when Avantika realized her mistake after listening to the story, she regretted spreading lies about Sonia and wanted to say sorry to her.

       

      2. It is human nature to talk about other people. When is it a positive thing, and how can it become negative?

      Ans. The majority of people tend to gossip with friends, family and people they trust and like, which indicates closeness. Some examples of good gossip can include talking about how well a colleague or family member did on a project or exam, warning a friend if there is concerning behaviour directed towards them, or a mother warning a child about potential danger when she knows that a peer engages in inappropriate behaviours etc. Examples of ‘bad’ gossip include spreading malicious rumours or adding to the truth in a negative way that can benefit the individual doing the gossiping.