CHAPTER 1 ANSWER KEY STUDENT BOOK (MCB) LISTENING TEXTS .

THEME: CULTURE AND ENVIRONMENT

Warm Up

Free response

Comprehension

A. 1.

The festival of Vesak is usually celebrated in

May in India and Southeast Asia. It is a feast in

honour of the Buddha and people’s hearts are

filled with fervour as they flock to the temples

to pay their respects. At sundown on the first

day of the festival, many lanterns of various

colours begin twinkling in homes everywhere.

2.

Patiya got his idea for the lantern from the

ones he had seen in the city the previous year

when his grandmother and he had gone to

see the festival illuminations there. Some of

the lanterns had seemed as big as houses,

and Patiya had been unable to forget them.

3.

The first difficulty that Patiya faced was the

thought that he would not be able to afford

enough paper to cover the huge lantern. Granny

solved the problem by telling Patiya that they

would dig up their crop of sweet potatoes, sell

them at the market and then use that money

to buy paper for the lantern.

4.

Granny and

Patiya began working on the lantern one day

before Vesak. There wasn’t enough room on the

small porch for the lantern and two persons.

So Granny got inside the framework and sat

on the floor, cutting the paper. Patiya stood

on a chair outside and pasted the pieces of

paper on the framework. Granny kept cutting

out paper flowers and trimming. Patiya kept

taking them from her by reaching into the

top of the lantern and pasting them on the

lantern in the way he thought they looked best.

5.

The people of the village celebrated Vesak

by going to the temple early in the morning

and participating in a ceremony where they

prayed wholeheartedly. In the evening, they

hung up the bright paper lanterns they made

with a lot of care over the last month.

6.

The

last challenge was that, in his excitement, Patiya

had closed the last opening on the lantern

that was being left open for Granny’s exit. He

had therefore pasted Granny in. Granny asked

Patiya not to worry. She lit the candles and sat

down to meditate patiently inside the lantern.

Granny’s patience helped them overcome the

difficulty.

7.

As Granny meditated inside

the lantern, there appeared the shadow of an

aged woman in deep meditation against one

side of it. All the villagers came to see the grand

lantern sometime during that night. And they

stood in silence watching the lovely sight, the

glowing lantern and the meditating shadow

from within it.

B. 1.

to form the diamond-shaped framework of

the lantern.

2.

to watch Patiya make his

huge lantern.

3.

into a shop and bought

all the paper needed for decorating the

lantern.

4.

cut the paper into beautiful

patterns

5.

the lantern as big as a house.

C. 1.

Yes, Patiya and his grandmother shared

a special bond of friendship and affection.

Whenever Patiya had an

y problem,

like

the time

he thought he wouldn’t have enough paper

to cover the lantern, he approached Granny.

Granny was always pa

tient with Patiya and did

her best to keep him happy. Despite having a

lot to do, she eagerly helped Patiya to make

his lantern. They worked together on the

lantern like an efficient and happy team. When

she was pasted in, Granny did not complain

but patiently meditated inside the lantern.

These instances show her immense love for

her grandchild.

2.

The text brings out

the value of hard work and determination in

achieving goals that we have set for ourselves.

If Patiya didn’t have enough determination, his

lantern, that was as big as a house, would never

have been built. He painstakingly made the

framework for the huge lantern all by himself.

Seeing his hard work, Granny decided to help

him and they worked tirelessly day and night to

finish the lantern. The success and admiration

they received in the end was a result of this

hard work.

Know your Values

Free response.

Sample answer—

Yes, I am proud of my culture and heritage. I can

participate in traditional festivals, gather more

knowledge about my culture and pass it on to

others to ensure that it is preserved. I would also

learn about other cultures and traditions. Yes, it is

important to preserve traditions because they add

to our cultural identity and to the diversity of the

nation.

Grammar

A. 2.

is, sending – finite verb

3.

is – finite verb;

Eating – non-finite verb, G

4.

prefers – finite

verb; watching, reading – non-finite verb, G

5.

tell – finite verb; to bite – non-finite verb, I

6.

wants – finite verb; to become, to help –

non-finite verb, I

B. 2.

forget, to call, went, to buy

3.

confusing, made, to write

4.

request, to help

5.

am/was teaching, to paint

6.

saw, was picking, to make

Vocabulary

A.

2.

briskly

3.

sundown

4.

silent

5.

rising

6.

exit

B.

2.

invisible

3.

disadvantage

4.

incomplete

5.

disappeared

6.

unpleasant

Spelling

A.

1.

brought

2.

plough

3.

neighbour

4.

straight

5.

through

B.

1.

comb

2.

debt

3.

plumber

4.

autumn

5.

doubt

6.

column

7.

receipt

8.

cupboard

9.

honest

10.

honour

11.

Wednesday

12.

handkerchief

Pronunciation

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

Writing

Kimbissa,

Sigiriya,

Sri Lanka

19 May 2017

Dear Arjie,

How are you? How did you celebrate Vesak this year?

I remember how Granny and I went to the city to

meet you last Vesak and how we admired the huge

lanterns there. On my return home, I had decided to

make a lantern just like the ones I saw in the city.

This Vesak, I actually did it. Let me tell you all about

the making of my lantern.

First, I made a huge framework for the lantern by

tying up strips of bamboo to form the diamond-

shaped framework of the lantern. It was very

difficult work as I had no one to help me. It took

me almost twenty days to get the framework ready.

Then, Granny and I went to the shop to buy paper.

We needed a lot of paper to cover the lantern, so we

decided to use the money that we got from selling

our crop of sweet potatoes. I chose yellow, blue and

red paper and tinsel to adorn my lantern.

By this time, there was only one day left for Vesak

and I was worried that the lantern would not be

completed in time for Vesak. Determined not to let

that happen, I began to cover the framework with

paper. Granny was of grea

t help. The framework was

so big that she sat inside it and cut out beautiful

patterns out of paper while I pasted them on

the lantern. We worked night and day, without a

moment of rest. Finally,

on the evening of Vesak,

my lantern was complete. It looked so beautiful

and it was big as a house. But I had made a terrible

mistake. In my excitement, I had pasted Granny in!

I could not bear the thought of tearing my lantern.

But dear Granny found a solution to this too. She

lit the candles within the lantern and started

meditating within it. She sacrificed her comfort for

my happiness.

That night, all the people from the village came to

see my lantern. They praised and admired it. Most

people fell silent in awe at the meditating shadow

of Granny that could be seen against one side of the

lantern. It was such a serene sight.

This Vesak was easily my happiest, as you can

imagine. Do let me know all that you did for Vesak

too. I shall be waiting to hear from you.

Love,

Patiya