Let us do these activities before we read.
I. Work in pairs and guess the invention.
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1. I am a concept invented by ancient Indian mathematicians. I add value to numbers. Without me, calculations in the modern digital world would be impossible. Who am I?
Zero
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2. I am an ancient Indian practice, now popular globally. I focus on physical and mental well-being. What am I?
Yoga
II. Discuss in groups of four what you think the world today would have been like without inventions and discoveries.
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This is a discussion activity meant for students to share their imagination and thoughts in groups.
III. Fill the grid given below with missing letters to complete the words. These words display qualities of an inventor.
- 1. C R E A T I V I T Y
- 2. C U R I O S I T Y
- 3. R I S K T A K I N G
- 4. D E T E R M I N A T I O N
- 5. I M A G I N A T I O N
Let us discuss
I. Complete the cause-and-effect table given below.
| Causes | Effects |
|---|---|
| 1. Anand set up his burglar alarm and rigged it to work when the door was opened softly. | Papa, who always opens the door softly, was thoroughly soaked and angry. |
| 2. Anita warned Anand that she would not be involved if he got a shelling for his scheme. | Anita was able to avoid any responsibility as Anand faced the consequences alone. |
| 3. We watched the movie 'Back to the Future'. | Anand: Decided that he had to make a time machine too. |
| 4. Papa firmly said 'NO' to trying out the time machine. | They could not try out the time machine that day at all. |
II. Do you think Anand was able to keep his promise regarding the time machine? If yes, why? If no, why not?
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No, Anand was not able to keep his promise. The time machine was accidentally started by the intruder (Boppa) when he went into Anand's room and tried to locate the light switch.
Let us discuss
Arrange the following events in the correct order of occurrence.
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1. The door swings open, and they see Boppa, standing there with an evil grin.
2. Boppa is nowhere to be found, but his green scarf is lying near the time machine.
3. Mrs. Sharma, her husband, and Dr. Mohan unlock the door and enter the house to help the children.
4. Anita wakes Anand up, informing him that someone is trying to get into the house.
5. Anand misleads Boppa into entering his room instead of his father's room.The correct order is: 4, 1, 5, 3, 2.
Let us think and reflect
I. Read the extracts given below and answer the questions that follow.
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1. Before beginning this story, let me put you in the picture. I am Anita, fourteen years old. My brother Anand, one year younger than me, caused all that hoo-ha with his burglar alarm. The trouble with him is that he thinks he is a scientist. He loves tinkering with all sorts of electrical gadgets, tools, dynamos, planks of wood, and things like that. And he keeps creating 'inventions' that never work out as they are supposed to.
(i) Complete the following sentence suitably by choosing the correct option from those given in the brackets. When Anita says, "... let me put you in the picture", she wants to summarise (introduce/ summarise) the situation for the benefit of the readers. -
(ii) Anand loves 'tinkering' with all sorts of electrical gadgets. This means that he enjoys _______ gadgets.
Answer: A. dismantling and creating
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(iii) Which of the following options most suitably describes Anand's personality?
Answer: B. creative and experimental
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(iv) Based on the extract, compare what Anita thinks of her brother Anand with what he thinks of himself.
Anita thinks that Anand causes trouble, gets on people's nerves, and creates inventions that never work out. However, Anand thinks of himself as a genius and a professional scientist.
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2. I was about to direct him upstairs, when Anand said quickly, "The one next to this one." "You silly goose!" I said angrily as soon as the man had gone. "That's your room. He'll come back as mad as mad can be." "At least it will give us some time to think of something," Anand said. "He'll take a while to locate the light switch. Let's shout." All of a sudden there was a crash followed by a loud scream. More strange noises emerged from the next room-a few muffled thumps, an eerie whine, and a low, humming sound.
(i) Complete the sentence given below with a suitable reason. Anita was angry with Anand because he misled the intruder into entering his own room, fearing the man would return extremely angry. -
(ii) Which action of Anand shows his presence of mind?
Anand quickly misleading the intruder to his own room instead of his father's room, giving them time to think and shout for help, shows his presence of mind.
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(iii) What might be the cause of the strange noises emerging from the next room?
Answer: B. Anand's time machine getting activated
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(iv) Which of the following best describes the atmosphere in this extract?
Answer: (c) C and E
II. Complete the table with the suitable traits of the characters based on evidence from the text.
| Character | Traits | Evidence from the text |
|---|---|---|
| Anand | 1. bothersome | And this is not the first time he's got on Papa's nerves or frightened someone half to death in the house. |
| Anand | 2. creative | He loves tinkering with all sorts of electrical gadgets, tools, dynamos, planks of wood, and things like that. And he keeps creating 'inventions' that never work out as they are supposed to. |
| Anand | 3. confident | "Nothing will go wrong this time. I've planned it out carefully. See the blueprint." |
| Anita | 1. responsible | "We're old enough to look after ourselves, Ma..." |
| Anita | 2. curious | "But how does the alarm know that a burglar is opening the door?" |
| Anita | 3. careful | "Now clean up this mess before anyone gets home." |
III. Answer the following questions.
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1. What prompted Anand to create the burglar alarm?
A recent rush of thefts in the colony prompted Anand to create the burglar alarm.
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2. How did Anand's father become the target of the burglar alarm?
Anand rigged the alarm to trip and drop a water bag only when the door was opened gently, which is exactly how his father always opens the door.
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3. How did Anand's parents and sister react to his ideas?
His father was strictly against his experiments and locked up his tools. His mother was sympathetic but kept a wary eye on her kitchen gadgets. His sister was sceptical and wanted to stay out of trouble.
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4. How did Anand behave when he was on his 'inventing binges'?
He would take apart household gadgets to collect parts, create a lot of noise with hammering and sawing, and go around looking like a savage without even combing his hair.
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5. Why did Mr. Sharma not believe Anand when he spoke about his time machine?
Mr. Sharma thought it was just Anand's wild imagination and smiled indulgently, not believing a time machine could actually exist.
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6. Give an ending to this story, explaining what might have happened to Boppa.
Frightened by the loud crash and eerie humming of the time machine in the dark room, Boppa panicked, dropped his scarf, and escaped through the window into the night, never to return.
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7. How did Anand's inventions disturb the peace and safety of his family, and what lesson does this teach us?
His inventions caused rackets, soaked his father, destroyed household gadgets, and created chaos. It teaches us that creativity and experimentation should be done responsibly and safely, without causing trouble for others.
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8. How does Anita's behaviour towards Anand show her maturity and concern for the family?
She warns him to clean up his messes, refuses to take part in schemes that will anger their father, and stays awake late, staying alert when she hears strange noises to protect the house.
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9. How do the funny and frightening moments in the story make it more interesting to read?
The funny moments, like Papa getting soaked, provide humour, while the frightening moments, like the intruder breaking in, build suspense, keeping the reader highly engaged.
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10. How does the unexplained disappearance of Boppa encourage the reader's imagination?
It leaves an open mystery, making the reader wonder if Anand's time machine actually worked and transported Boppa to the past, or if he just ran away.
Let us learn
I. Read the sound words used in the story in Column 1. Complete Column 2 by matching expressions from the box given below.
| Column 1 | Column 2 |
|---|---|
| (i) Crash | sudden loud sound of breaking |
| (ii) Humming | a continuous low and soothing sound |
| (iii) Hissed | whispered angrily |
| (iv) Hammering, sawing, clattering | constant and loud construction noises |
II. 1. Match the words in Column 1 with the correct pairs in Column 2 to make binomials.
| A | Ans | B |
|---|---|---|
| (i) safe | ( E ) | A. break |
| (ii) odds | ( F ) | B. cons |
| (iii) make | ( A ) | C. never |
| (iv) pros | ( B ) | D. take |
| (v) now | ( C ) | E. sound |
| (vi) give | ( D ) | F. ends |
2. Complete the following sentences with suitable binomials from 1.
- (i) This project will be a make or break moment for our team's success.
- (ii) After a long journey, we were relieved to arrive home safe and sound.
- (iii) Every friendship works well when there is a balance of give and take.
- (iv) She organised all the odds and ends in the cupboard, to make space for new clothes.
- (v) Before making a decision, it is important to weigh the pros and cons carefully.
- (vi) This is our final chance to perform on stage, it is now or never.
