The Wise Parrot — Textbook

Unit 3: My Colourful World

6

The Wise Parrot

Pre-reading

Let us Listen

[Image: A green parrot sitting inside a wire cage on the left, and a green parrot flying freely with open wings in the sky on the right.]

War ended. Some soldiers were defeated. They were sent to prison. After many years they were made free. A British soldier returned to his country on a ship. The ship reached. He got down. His feet touched his motherland. He saw a man selling birds in cages. He went to him, bought all the birds, opened the cages and let the birds fly off into the sky. The birds reached the open sky over the green trees. He danced in joy to see the birds on wings. Tears of happiness rolled down his cheeks. He shouted, 'Freedom is sweeter than sweet pleasure'.

Do you like the soldier in the story? Why?

Because he made the birds in cage, free.

Here is an interesting story for you.

Read it and know who made a caged parrot free.

[Image: A teacher holding books beside a memo pad titled "Note to the Teacher".]

Note to the Teacher

• Tell the story with gestures and action.
• Link the story with the text.

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The Text

While-reading

Let us Read

[Image: A young man in yellow clothing and a merchant in brown attire with a gold necklace standing together near a golden domed cage containing a green parrot.]

1 In a quiet village, a rich merchant kept a bright and talkative parrot in a cage of gold. The parrot had a sharp mind and often pleased the merchant with stories and songs. However, deep inside, the bird longed for the open skies and green trees.

2 One day, the merchant decided to travel far away for business. He thought he would do something to please his pet. He walked up to the cage and said, "My beloved parrot, I am about to travel to a far-off land. What can I bring for you from there?"

[Image: The merchant in blue attire speaking warmly to the green parrot inside its ornate golden cage.]

3. The parrot replied, "Dear master, you look after my needs so well that I have tasted all the tender fruits and chillies. But, I want to taste the joy of flying in the sky. If you really want me to be happy, please let me fly off into the sky."
4. The merchant said, "You are very dear to me and I cannot bear to let you go away. Ask for anything else."
5. The bird sighed. "Since you cannot let me fly, when you see my friends in the jungle tell them that I send them greetings from my cage."
6. The merchant went off on his travels. One day in a forest, he saw a flight of parrots with the same colour as his pet. He walked up to the tree and said, "O beautiful parrots, I have one of your relatives as a pet and I keep it in a cage of gold. It has sent greetings for you all."
7. As the merchant finished speaking, one parrot dropped like a stone from the tree and fell on the ground.

[Image: In a lush forest, the merchant watches in distress as one of the parrots from a flock perched in the tree falls dead to the ground.]

8. The merchant was very sad at this. He hurried away from there.
9. On returning home, he went up to his parrot's cage and described all the wonders and the beauty he had seen on his journey, and how a flight of parrots had come to the forest he was visiting.
10. He then told his pet about the message he had sent and with great sorrow, described how one bird had been so shocked that it fell to the ground.
11. As soon as he finished talking, his own pet parrot fell from the perch to the floor of the cage.
12. The merchant couldn't understand how his beloved pet died so suddenly. He reached into the cage and gently took the still warm body of the bird and placed it on the windowsill.

[Image: Through an open window, the merchant looks on in astonishment as his parrot spreads its wings and flies away into the sky.]

13. As soon as he stepped back, the bird stirred, stretched its beautiful green wings and flew off into the open sky saying, "My friend showed me how I could escape and now I can fly in the sky. Goodbye!"

New Words:

• bright: clever, able to learn things quickly
• far off: very distant
• a flight of: a group of (birds)
• long for: to want something very much
• look after: to take care of
• merchant: a person who buys and sells goods
• perch: a branch where a bird sits
• quiet: with very little or no noise
• sigh: to let out a long deep breath to show sadness
• windowsill: the bottom shelf of a window

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Let us Discuss

1. Where did the merchant live?
2. What did he keep as a pet?
3. The parrot pleased the merchant with... (A) food (B) gold (C) stories (D) songs Tick (✓) correct words.
4. Was the parrot happy in the gold cage?
5. What did it really want?
6. The merchant had to travel far away. What for?
7. The parrot was fond of _______ and _______
8. Did the merchant let the parrot go away? Why?
9. Who sent greetings? To whom?
10. If you were the merchant, would you let the parrot fly away?
11. Which parrot in the story was wise? (A) the parrot in the cage (B) both of the parrots (C) the parrot in the forest (D) none of the parrots Tick (✓) correct words.

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Post-reading

Visual Memory Development Technique (VMDT) :

Close your eyes and put your index finger on the pictures showing:

Whole: (a) parrots in the forest

(b) parrots in the golden cage

(c) the parrot flew off into the sky

Part: (a) his own parrot fell from the perch

(b) the message he had sent

(c) on the window sill

(d) stretched its beautiful green wings

(e) I can fly in the sky

[Image: A green parrot sitting on a perch inside a wire birdcage.]

Let us Listen and Speak

1. Your teacher will read the paragraph given below. Listen carefully. She/he will ask you some questions. Try to answer.

Birds are beautiful creatures with feathers and wings. Due to many reasons, many types of birds are in danger. To save these birds and their species, bird sanctuaries have been built. There are more than 72 bird sanctuaries in India. The Vedanthangal Bird Sanctuary, located in Tamil Nadu, is the oldest bird sanctuary in India. The Bharatpur Bird sanctuary, located in Rajasthan, is the largest bird sanctuary in our country. Nalbana Bird Sanctuary in Chilika Lake in Odisha is a very important sanctuary for migratory birds.

[Image: A teacher holding books next to a note reading "Note to the Teacher", alongside an outline drawing of children reading beneath a tree.]

Note to the Teacher

Ask factual questions based on the above paragraph.

(i) Bird sanctuaries protect _______ in danger.

(ii) India has about _______ number of bird sanctuaries.

(iii) Name: (Write in the box)

(a) the oldest bird Sanctuary in India.

(b) the largest bird Sanctuary in India.

(c) the famous bird Sanctuary in Odisha.

2. Listen and repeat

[Image: A parrot inside a wire cage on the ground, and another parrot flying freely through the clouds.]

3. Look at the pictures below. There are two birds. Which bird would you want to be and why? Share your views with the class.

Note to the Teacher

• Encourage the learners to share their views with the class.
• Ensure that the learners pronounce the words clearly, distinguishing between the 'ai' and 'oi' sounds.

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Let us Read

1. Read the story and tick (✓) in the box for the right sentences and cross (×) for the wrong sentences.

• (i) The rich merchant kept the parrot in an iron cage. [ ]
• (ii) The parrot was not happy in the cage. [ ]
• (iii) The parrot sent gifts for other parrots. [ ]
• (iv) The parrot in the forest fell to the ground and died. [ ]
• (v) The parrot in the forest was wiser than the parrot in the cage. [ ]
• (vi) The merchant looked after the parrot well. [ ]
• (vii) The merchant put the Warm body of the parrot on a chair. [ ]

2. Match the characters (Who) in Column A with their statements (What) given in Column-B.

3. Read the text again. You can find four pictures given for four situations. The situations are given below in a table. Write the picture number in the blank boxes.

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Let us Write

1. Here are some groups of words from the story, 'The Wise Parrot'. But they are not in correct order. Arrange them as you see them in the story. Write the serial number in the box.

• [ ] one parrot fell to the ground
• [ ] seemed dead
• [ ] parrot in a golden cage
• [ ] flew off into the sky
• [ ] pet parrot got the sad news
• [ ] greetings to his friends
• [ ] fell to the floor of the cage
• [ ] not happy
• [ ] heard the message
• [ ] put the body of the bird on the windowsill

2. Match the word groups under 'A' with the words under 'B' correctly.

3. Birds fly. Nikhil flew his kites. The parrot has flown away.

The underlined words are different forms of 'fly'.

'Fly' is a verb or action word. We use it in 3 forms.

Form 1 is fly, form 2 is flew, form 3 is flown.

In other words form 1 is verb 1 ($V_1$), form 2 is verb 2 ($V_2$) and form 3 is verb 3 ($V_3$).

Every English verb has 3 forms: $V_1$, $V_2$, $V_3$.

In sentence 3, $V_3$ of 'fly' is used after 'has'.

$V_3$ is usually used after has/have/had.

Use 3rd form of the verb in brackets and complete the sentences.

• (i) I have _______ (finish) my homework.
• (ii) My friend has _______ (send) me a gift.
• (iii) I have _______ (taste) honey.
• (iv) Aditya has _______ (write) a letter to his friend.
• (v) Mr. Mohanty has _______ (teach) us English.
• (vi) My father has _______ (buy) a pen for me.
• (vii) We have _______ (play) cricket.

4. The following words have been rearranged into sentences. Choose the correct option and put a tick (✓) mark.

(i) hunts/night/the/silently/tiger/at

Options:

a. The tiger hunts silently at night.

b. Tiger hunts the silently at night.

c. Hunts the tiger at night silently.

(ii) elephants/in/forests/live/large/groups/in

Options:

a. Elephants live large in groups forests.

b. In groups large elephants live in forests.

c. Elephants live in large groups in forests.

(iii) web/a/spider/carefully/its/weaves

Options:

a. A spider carefully weaves its web.

b. Spider carefully weaves its web a.

c. Carefully a spider weaves web its.

(iv) crocodile/waits / the silently/riverbank/the/near

Options:

a. Crocodile waits the silently the near river bank.

b. The silently crocodile waits near the river bank.

c. The crocodile waits silently near the river bank.

(v) a/swims/turtle/slowly/in/ocean/the

Options:

a. A turtle swims slowly in the ocean.

b. Swims turtle slowly an ocean in.

c. The ocean swims a slowly turtle in.

5. Write answers to the following questions, each in a short sentence or two.

• (i) What was the parrot like?
• (ii) What did the parrot do to make its master happy?
• (iii) What did the merchant give the parrot to eat?
• (iv) Who did the merchant see in the forest?
• (v) Who helped the parrot to be free from the cage?

Mental Talk

Riches cannot buy freedom.

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Let us Do

1. A bird feeder is an object used to keep food for birds. You might have seen bird feeders placed outdoors in balconies, gardens, or parks to attract and feed birds. They are filled with seeds, grains, or nuts and placed in safe locations to help birds find food easily.

a. Look at the pictures of bird feeders given below and try to identify the material used to make them.

[Image: Various handmade bird feeders showing a plastic jar feeder with perch sticks, a hanging clay pot feeder, an inverted glass bottle seed dispenser, hanging tea cups, an earthen water dish with a drinking crow, and a milk carton feeder.]

These materials are easily available in our homes.

b. Make a bird feeder with the material of your choice. Fill it up with water, seeds, and grains like millets. With the help of your parents, place it at an appropriate location outside your house.

Happy feeding!

[Image: Illustrations of various birds labeled as follows: parrot, macaw, crow, sparrow, ostrich, pigeon, weaver bird, tailor bird, seagull, flamingo.]

• parrot
• macaw
• crow
• sparrow
• ostrich
• pigeon
• weaver bird
• tailor bird
• seagull
• flamingo

Choose any two of the above and find out a few interesting facts about them.

Just for Fun

Riddle

What always runs, but never walks

Often murmurs, never talks

Has a bed, but never sleeps

Has a mouth, but never eats.

What is it?

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Self-assessment 1

1. You may select more than one box for each point. I can recite the poems with gestures

• [ ] by myself.
• [ ] in a group.
• [ ] by repeating after my teacher.
• [ ] None of the above. I like reading poems quietly.

2. I can understand the new words

• [ ] by using a dictionary.
• [ ] after listening to my teacher's explanation.
• [ ] by reading with my classmates in groups.
• [ ] by reading the entire sentence again.
• [ ] by looking at the pictures.

3. I can answer the questions

• [ ] in my mother tongue.
• [ ] in English.
• [ ] in English with a few words of my mother tongue.
• [ ] in my mother tongue, with a few words of English.

4. I can write a paragraph

• [ ] by myself.
• [ ] after following my teacher's instructions.
• [ ] after reading my friends' work.
• [ ] with my teachers'/friends' help.

5. I was able to do all the activities

• [ ] by myself.
• [ ] with the help of my teacher.
• [ ] with the help of my classmates.
• [ ] with the help of my family members.

[Image: A male teacher wearing glasses holding a book next to a red memo titled "Note to the Teacher".]

Note to the Teacher

• The assessment sheet should be filled by the learners.
• Teachers may include this as a part of their learners' progress trajectory.