• The neem tree is millions of years old and has spread from India to Asia, Africa and even parts of America.
• The powder of neem seeds can stop mosquitoes and locusts — a natural, cost-effective way to protect crops and homes.

(Choose any two facts you found most surprising.)

1. Amber played in the shade of the neem tree (Neem Baba).
2. Neem seed powder protects crops from locusts, termites and other crop-eating insects.
3. Spraying / putting neem seed powder is a cost-effective method to stop mosquitoes from breeding in stagnant water.
4. One reason doctors advise neem leaves for measles is that neem leaves destroy germs and stop itching, and do not let germs breed.

The leaves, bark, flowers, fruits and roots of the neem tree can all be used to make medicines to cure many diseases.

The neem tree’s story makes us think because it has so many names in different languages, it is extremely old (millions of years), and it has countless uses — in medicine, farming, cleaning and daily life. Even more surprising, Neem Baba says many of its qualities are still to be discovered. One ordinary-looking tree holding so much value is what makes the story thought-provoking.

Amber speaks to Neem Baba as if the tree were a person. Giving human qualities (talking, feeling, acting) to a non-living thing or an animal is called personification. Examples:

• The leaves whispered in the wind.
• The flowers danced merrily in the breeze.
• The old neem tree welcomed the tired traveller.

Why: The mother asks many eager questions (statements 1 & 3). She calls his work “wonderful” and “great work,” so she never dislikes it (2 is wrong). Rahul happily agrees to “tell others to do the same,” so he is inspired, not worried (4 is broadly correct; 5 is wrong).

• Speak (leaf card): Collect four dry leaves. On a card, draw and colour each leaf’s shape; inside, write the tree’s name and one use. Describe the steps aloud, then let classmates guess the leaf.
• Write (a tree you like): Title it, e.g. “The Old Banyan by My School”. Say where it is (roadside/park), how it looks (tall trunk, wide green leaves, small flowers) and why you like it (shade, birds, beauty, medicine).
• Explore (names of neem): The Latin name comes from Azad Darakhte Hindi → Azadirachta indica. The Indian names belong to several languages — e.g. Nimb / Nim (Hindi), Nimbe (Kannada), Leemba, Nimori, Nimbamond, Nimo (regional languages). Confirm the exact ones with your teacher.

1. The bird changed its house two times. True
(Shell → nest → out beyond the tree: it moved twice.)

2. The neighbours tell the bird about the world. False
(“I don’t know how the world is made, and neither do my neighbours” — they don’t know either.)

(i) Who lived in the nest along with the baby bird? Its mother.

(ii) The bird thought the world was made of straw because ___.

(iii) Which word tells us the bird was warm and comfortable? The word “nestled”.

(i) Why did the bird think the world was made of leaves? Because when it fluttered out of its nest, all it could see around itself were leaves — it had not yet flown beyond the tree, so it believed the whole world was made of leaves.

(ii) What does ‘I said’ mean?

(iii) Fill in the blanks: The bird felt it had been very blind because it could not SEE the leaves from INSIDE the nest.

Because the bird first lived inside the egg. The egg’s shell was small, round and pale blue, so the bird thought the whole world was just like the shell around it.

It fluttered out among the leaves of the tree — stepping out of the nest into the wider world for the first time.

It said it was “quite fit for grown-up labours” — that is, it had grown up and was ready for adult work. It was also honest and humble, admitting that it still did not know how the world is really made.

The neighbours were most likely the other birds and small creatures living in and around the same tree. We think so because the poem ends, “I don’t know how the world is made, and neither do my neighbours” — showing they were fellow living things nearby who were just as curious about the world.

New rhyming words (with fell): bell, tell, sell, spell, smell, cell.

• The birdhouse is made of brown, wooden planks.
• It has a pointed red roof on top.
• The little entrance hole is small and round.
• The house is hanging from a thin branch.
• Fresh green leaves grow around the branch.
• A small bird peeps happily out of the round door.

I’m a parrot, my name is Paro,
My feathers are bright and they glow.
In the morning, I spread my wings,
Fly around and see wonderful things.
Come with me through the skies so blue,
To places old and places new.
Among the trees, where the breeze is light,
Many new stories, oh, what a sight!

• Speak (which bird are you): e.g. “I am a peacock. I am blue and green in colour. I live in forests and dance in the rain. My message to humans: please protect our trees and homes.”
• Write (how the world looks): To a baby — the world is a warm, big place of faces, milk and soft blankets. To a fish — the world is all water, plants and light coming from above; land looks far and strange.

Explore — Workers who build houses:

1. Where in the kitchen did her grandmother find the cures? In the everyday spices and herbs kept in the kitchen (like haldi, methi, adrak).

2. One weather-related common illness: cough and cold (fever is also acceptable).

3. What relationship did the speaker have with her grandmother? A close and loving one — the grandmother lovingly taught her the natural home cures, which she now passes on.

Daadi soaked methi seeds overnight and drank the water in the morning to manage her sugar level and her body weight.

So that this useful traditional knowledge spreads and helps more people, and these simple home remedies are not forgotten but passed on to others.

To go into the kitchen and try to identify the herbs and spices — but to always consult an elder before using them.

Because Daadi learnt these cures from her own grandmother when she was a child, and now she is sharing them with her grandchildren, Vikram and Vaibhavi — the knowledge travels from grandmother → Daadi → grandchildren.

Because spices are natural, cheap and easily available in our own kitchen, and they give relief from common illnesses like cough, cold and stomach trouble. Knowing about them helps us stay healthy and keeps our valuable traditional knowledge alive.

(Colour, texture and taste can vary a little — describe what you observe.)

Ajay: Anand had fever last week. He should take good rest.

Suman: Yes, he must, or he will fall ill again.

Ajay: He can take grandmother’s natural cures.

Suman: Yes, we need to remember how effective they are.

(Other sensible combinations are also possible, as long as each modal is used only once.)

Cure 1. To prepare this home remedy, you just need ginger and honey. First, take a piece of fresh ginger, grate it and take the juice from it. Take about two teaspoons of this juice and add two and a half teaspoons of honey. Mix it properly. Warm the mixture slightly on very low heat for a minute. Then you can have it about three to four times a day to get relief from cough. Have patience, as natural cures for cough with ginger and honey might take some time to show results.

Cure 2. To prepare the second home remedy for cough, take about 10 grams each of long pepper, dried ginger and basil leaves. Add four to six small cardamoms and grind to get a fine powder. If you take this powder with an equal amount of honey, it will give you relief from cough.

Tulsi — The Wonder Herb. Tulsi belongs to the basil family and was first found in north central India, though it now grows almost everywhere in India. It is lovingly called the Queen of Herbs because of its many medicinal uses. Tulsi can decrease glucose and cholesterol levels and treat breathing and digestion problems. It is even used to make herbal mouth wash and toothpaste. We can eat its leaves raw or add them to tea — Tulsi tea calms the mind and protects us from many pollutants.

Riddle 1 (“When your tummy felt funny… granny used me… brought back your smile”) → Asafoetida (Heeng) — it soothes gas and tummy trouble.

Riddle 2 (“I come from under the ground… thousands of years… cure your cold”) → Ginger (Adrak) — a root used in cooking for over 4000 years that also cures cough and cold.

Write your own riddle (sample):
I am golden and bright, I give colour to your food,
I heal your cuts and pains and lift your mood.
Who am I? — Turmeric (haldi)