Paper Boats

What comes to mind when you think about 'paper boats'?

What do you think someone might hope for when they send a paper boat down a stream?

Read the given paragraph and match the highlighted words with their meanings given in the box below.

I love to play beside a 1. running stream at a short distance from my grandparent's house. I love to see it 2. skipping along to join a river. On the river, I can see boats with 3. bulging sails moving swiftly. Some of them take the people from one shore to the other while in some of them people can be seen 4. lading things too. I can spend hours watching the busy river and dreaming about them, 5. burying my head in my pillow at night.

Box: loading speedily flowing swelling putting bouncing

Choose the correct words from the brackets to complete the summary of the poem given below.

The poet sends paper boats down a 1. ____ (stream/river) each day, writing his name and the name of his 2. ____ (school/village) on them. He hopes that someone in a 3. ____ (strange/familiar) land will find them and know who he is. The poet fills his boats with 4. ____ (rose/shiuli) flowers from his garden, hoping they will be safely carried to another land at 5. ____ (night/morning). As he launches his boats, he imagines that the 6. ____ (clouds/birds) in the sky are like friends, racing with his boats. At night, he dreams that his paper boats continue to 7. ____ (swim/float) under the midnight stars, with the fairies of sleep sailing in them, their baskets full of 8. ____ (dreams/fruits).

Choose the correct option for the following.

The theme of the poem is ____.

1. innocence
2. imagination
3. ignorance
4. playfulness
5. travel

Identify whether the following statement is true or false.

The setting of the poem is a natural, outdoor environment.

Complete the following sentence by choosing the correct word given within the brackets.

The tone is ____ (sad and serious/gentle and wishful) and the mood is ____ (thoughtful/boring).

Identify the examples of alliteration from the poem.

Fill in the blanks with suitable words from the poem.

1. The repetition of words ____ and ____ emphasises the passage of time.
2. The poet uses imagery like ____ and ____ to create a clear picture in the minds of the readers.

Match the descriptions in Column 1 with what they symbolise in Column 2. Column 1:

1. the child's innocence, dreams, hopes, and messages sent out into the world
2. purity, beauty, and the start of a new day
3. the vast universe and the child's dreams continuing through the night

Column 2: (i) midnight stars (ii) paper boats (iii) shiuli flowers

Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow.

When night comes I bury my face in my arms and dream that my paper boats float on and on under the midnight stars. The fairies of sleep are sailing in them, and the lading is their baskets full of dreams.

Answer the following questions.

The poet has used phrases like 'blooms of the dawn' and 'fairies of sleep' in the poem. In the same way we can create phrases. Now, select words from Column 1 and Column 2 and combine them with 'of'. Write as many phrases as possible in Column 3.

| Column 1 | of | Column 2 | Column 3 | | wings | | the birds | wings of the wind | | waves | | the wind | | | dreams | | the evening | | | songs | | the children | | | glimmers | | the rain | | | cries | | the stars | | | tears | | the thunder | | | roars | | the ocean | | | shadows | | the clouds | |

Match the words from the text given in Column 1 with their opposites in Column 2. Column 1:

1. strange
2. dawn
3. launch
4. bulging
5. float
6. lading

Column 2: (i) halt (ii) emptying (iii) sink (iv) dusk (v) ordinary (vi) shrinking

Create any craft item using eco-friendly materials. Make a presentation in front of your classmates and teacher about the craft item you have made.

Your presentation should include the following information:

• Introduction of the item
• Description of how you made it
• Reason why you like the craft
• Conclusion

Use the phrases given below to make your presentation.

A diary entry is a personal document. It records an individual's account of a day of her or his life expressing the thoughts, feelings and opinions in the individual's mind.

The guidelines to compose a diary entry include:

• mentioning day, date and time of writing it
• beginning with a general sentence describing the day or feelings towards an event or experience
• giving details
• concluding with a final remark

Now, write a diary entry expressing your joy experiencing a rainy day. You may begin as given below:

Friday, 15 July 20XX 6:30 p.m. Dear Diary, It was quite humid today. On my journey back from school, I wished that it would rain. And it did! ...

Solve the riddles given below. Share your answers with your classmates and the teacher.

1. I have water that you cannot drink, People come to see how in me the Sun sinks. I can be rough, I can be calm, I hold within myself plenty of charm. My depths tell a never-ending tale. Who am I with dolphins and the whale?

2. I sit in stillness, but move with the wind, My surface mirrors the world you are in. The trees around me live happily, In me, you can take a dip daily. Home to ducks, frogs, fish, and all, Can you guess what I am, after all?

3. I gently travel through valleys deep, My soft murmur can make you sleep. Little paper boats float on me in rain The merry laughter of the kids I gain. You may sit beside me without any fear, Who am I who skips along, crystal clear?

4. I have a bed, but I do not sleep. I have a bank, but no money I keep. I carry stories, old and new, High mountains to the oceans blue. I journey far to meet the sea, Can you guess, who I can be?

Talk to your elders at home. Find out what games they played when they were young. Learn a game from them and share with your friends preferably in small groups.