| Book Name | : Blossom |
| Subject | : English |
| Class | : 8 (Madhyamik) |
| Publisher | : Prof. Nabanita Chatterjee |
| Chapter Name | : The Man Who Planted Trees (13th Chapter) |
Activity 1
Tick the correct alternative:
(i) The narrator was speaking of his experience
- of recent times
- about forty years ago
- forty years into the future
Answer
about forty years ago
(ii) The land could produce only
- plants of all types
- wild lavender
- oak trees
Answer
wild lavender
(iii) The village where he was camped was inhabited by
- the villagers
- wild animals
- none
Answer
None
(iv) The sound of the wind is compared to
- a flute
- drums
- a wild beast
Answer
a wild beast
Activity 2
Rearrange the following sentences in the correct order and put the numbers in the given boxes.
- The narrator had been walking for three days.
- He came across a dry spring.
- No vegetation grew in the region except wild lavender.
- The narrator’s camp was near an abandoned village.
- He was in search of water.
- He lost all hopes of water when his search produced no result after five hours.
Answer
- The narrator had been walking for three days. (1)
- He came across a dry spring .(5)
- No vegetation grew in the region except wild lavender .(2)
- The narrator’s camp was near an abandoned village .(3)
- He was in search of water .(4)
- He lost all hope of water when his search produced no results after five hours.(6)
Activity 3
Answer the following questions
Why do you think the village was abandoned?
Answer
because The villagers in that area cut the forests gradually. By doing this there had been deforestation. Due to the deforestation, the rainfall was decreasing day by day and so they had to migrate to other places.
Activity 4
Complete the following sentences with information from the text.
- In the text, ‘l’ refers to ______
- The shepherd’s cottage would be the narrator’s shelter for the night since ______
- With a great deal of attention, the shepherd ______
- The impression provided by the shepherd to the narrator was ______
Answer
- In the text, ‘l’ refers to the narrator.
- The shepherd’s cottage would be the narrator’s shelter for the night since the closest village was still more than a day and a half farther on.
- With a great deal of attention, the shepherd examined the acorns one after another, separating the good ones from the bad.
- The impression provided by the shepherd to the narrator was that nothing could disturb him, bringing a feeling of peace to the narrator.
Activity 5
Answer the following questions
- Give two examples of the shepherd’s hospitality towards the narrator.
- State the profession of the people who inhabited the four or five remote villages.
- “I was intrigued.” Why was the narrator ‘intrigued’?
Answer
- Two examples of the shepherd’s hospitality towards the narrator:
- The shepherd gave the narrator a drink when they first encountered each other.
- The shepherd shared his soup with the narrator.
- The profession of people who inhabited the four or five remote villages is that they are woodcutters who make charcoal.
- The narrator was ‘intrigued’ because the shepherd gave them a feeling of peace and nothing seemed to disturb him. This sparked the narrator’s curiosity, making them interested in learning more about the shepherd and his way of life.
Activity 6
Write ‘T’ for true and ‘F’ for false statements in the given boxes. Give supporting statements for each of your answers:
- The next morning the shepherd left his house all by himself.
- Twenty thousand trees had sprouted from among the trees planted by the shepherd.
- The narrator met Elzéard Bouffier after a time span of five years.
- The forest had sprung with the combined effort of the villagers and the shepherd.
Answer
- False. The text mentions that the narrator accompanied the shepherd, so he did not leave his house all by himself. “He invited me to come along with him.”
- True. The text states that out of the one hundred thousand trees planted by the shepherd, twenty thousand had come up. “Of these one hundred thousand, twenty thousand had come up.”
- True. The text mentions that the narrator met Elzéard Bouffier again after a time span of five years. “The next year the war came, in which I was engaged for five years.”
- False. The text explicitly states that the forest had sprung from the hands and soul of the shepherd alone, without the aid of technical aids or the villagers. “When I considered that this had all sprung from the hands and from the soul of this one man – without technical aids.”
Activity 7
Answer the following questions
- How did Elzéard Bouffier plant the acorns?
- How many years later did the narrator revisit the country?
- “I found that the war had not disturbed him at all”-Why do you think that the war had not been able to disturb Elzéard Bouffier?
- What was the narrator’s reaction on seeing the massive oak trees?
Answer
- Elzéard Bouffier planted the acorns by pounding his iron rod into the ground, creating holes in which he placed the acorns. He then covered the holes over with soil, planting the oak trees with great care.
- The narrator revisited the country after a time span of five years.
- The war had not been able to disturb Elzéard Bouffier because he was dedicated to his mission of planting trees. He continued his work even during the war, focusing on his task of reforesting the land. His commitment to his purpose provided him with a sense of purpose and resilience, shielding him from the disturbances of the war.
- The narrator’s reaction on seeing the massive oak trees was one of awe and speechlessness. The sight of the flourishing forest, grown from the hands and soul of one man, left a profound impression on the narrator. It made him realize the tremendous impact that an individual’s efforts and dedication can have, and he was struck by the power of creation and positive change.
Activity 8(a)
Combine the following pairs of sentences by using infinitives:
- My mother went to Agra. She wanted to visit the Taj Mahal.
- The man held a meeting. He wanted to select a manager for the factory.
- She was too tired. She could not work.
- The school has appointed a new teacher. He would teach Bengali to the students.
Answer
- My mother went to Agra to visit the Taj Mahal.
- The man held a meeting to select a manager for the factory.
- She was too tired to work.
- The school has appointed a new teacher to teach Bengali to the students.
Activity 8 (b)
Fill in the blanks with the present perfect continuous tense of the given verbs:
- The dog ____ (bark) since last night.
- The man ____ (read) the newspaper for two hours.
- The students ____ (prepare) themselves for the quiz competition for several months.
- Mother ____ (cook) dinner for all of us throughout the evening.
Answer
- The dog has been barking since last night.
- The man has been reading the newspaper for two hours.
- The students have been preparing themselves for the quiz competition for several months.
- Mother has been cooking dinner for all of us throughout the evening.
Activity 8 (c)
Change the underlined verbs into the past continuous tense:
(i) He said that he had tried to contact us over phone since 8 o’clock that day.
Answer
He said that he had been trying to contact us over phone since 8 o’clock that day.
(ii) For a long time they had planned to visit the caves of Ajanta and Ellora.
Answer
For a long time, they had been planning to visit the caves of Ajanta and Ellora.
(iii) The actor who had played the part of Netaji became ill after the show.
Answer
The actor who had been playing the part of Netaji became ill after the show.
(iv) My sister explained that she got up late because she had studied till midnight.
Answer
My sister explained that she got up late because she had been studying till midnight.
Activity 8 (d)
Change the following sentences into Indirect speech:
- Mohan said, “My brother will leave tomorrow”.
- My friend said to me, “I will be grateful if you help me now.”
- The child said to his father,” Please give me a toy.”
- “Oh! what a hot day it is today,” said Rita.
- “May we save our good earth!” said the teacher
Answer
- Mohan said his brother would leave the next day.
- My friend told me that he would be grateful if I helped him then.
- The child requested his father to give him a toy.
- Rita exclaimed that it was very hot that day.
- The teacher wished that we save our good earth.
Activity 9
Find words in the third section of the text which mean the following:
- a way of improving an unpleasant or difficult situation – Remedy
- to repeatedly hit at something – Pound
- a place with no people in it – Abandoned
- left with no words – Speechless
Activity 10 (a)
Write an imaginary conversation between yourself and a tree which you had planted and which has grown green and tall.
Answer
Me: Hello, beautiful tree! Look at how tall and green you’ve become.
Tree: Thank you! It feels amazing to grow and thrive.
Me: I’m so proud of you. You’ve brought life and beauty to this place.
Tree: It’s all thanks to your care and planting me. I’m grateful.
Me: Seeing you grow brings me joy. You’re a testament to the wonders of nature.
Tree: Together, we’ve created something wonderful. Thank you for giving me a chance to grow.
Activity 10 (b)
Suppose your friend, who lives in a hostel, is missing his/her friends and family. He/she is feeling very lonely and sad. Write a letter inspiring him/her to cope with his/her present situation.
Answer
[Friend’s Name]
[Friend’s Address]
[City, State, ZIP]
I received your letter last week and got to know that you have been feeling in hostel. I know this is the first time for you being away from your family and friends. But remember we always there for you. This time too shall pass soon. Don’t forget you aim and focus on that. We too miss you here. Try doing new things and meet people. Explore near by areas as much as you can. There are days when you might feel to come, then do come home and meet your loved ones. And remember don’t cry ever. Keep writing to us.
Hope to see you soon.
Yours lovingly
Minu
