In Time of Silver Rain
Chapter 1.3 — Paraphrase, Meanings & Workshop Solutions
🌧️ Paraphrase of the Poem
This chapter is extracted from the story ‘Odd One In’ by Tithi Tavora. It teaches us to be kind to others and to respect each other’s differences. The story is about Rima, a city girl who tried to bully a new student in her class. Malti, who came from a different state, had taken admission in Rima’s school. She was different from Rima and her friends — she applied oil to her hair, wore a bindi on her forehead, and did not speak English fluently. Instead of helping Malti settle in, Rima and her friends began making fun of her.
As time passed, everyone in the class realised how talented and sweet Malti truly was, and they became friends with her. However, Rima continued to tease her. This hurt Malti deeply, and one day she could not bear it any longer. She ran away from Rima with tears in her eyes, and Rima’s friends scolded her for behaving so badly. Rima then understood her mistake, but she was too proud to admit it, even to herself. The story teaches us that when we realise we are at fault, we should apologise at once and make things right.
📖 Word Meanings
Find the pairs of rhyming words used at the end of the lines in the poem.
Ans:| Word | Rhymes With |
|---|---|
| Rain | Again |
| Again | Plain |
| Heads | Spreads |
| Wings | Sing |
| Cry | Sky |
| Too | New |
Read the poem aloud using proper intonation.
Ans:Students must do this on their own, reading with the correct rhythm, pauses and expression.
If you were to draw a landscape on the basis of this poem, what elements will you show in it? What colours will you use?
Ans:If I were to draw a landscape based on this poem, I would show the earth, rain, green grass, flowers, butterflies, a rainbow, trees, a road, and boys and girls walking along it. I would use bright colours from my whole paint box to show the joy and freshness of the season.
Write one or two sentences about something beautiful, using your own experience or imagination. Then rearrange the words in the sentences in a poetic form. You may write about a beautiful day, a beautiful night, a stream, a crop standing in a field, a graceful bird or animal, etc.
Ans:then I will eat sunflower seeds
so that my cells can regenerate
with hopes of blossoming
into something beautiful —
something so beautiful
that it can take your breath away,
all while giving you oxygen
so that you can breathe!
Fill in the following blanks with reference to the poem: ‘In time of rain when spring and life are …, the butterflies lift … wings to catch a … cry and trees put forth … leaves to sing in … beneath the sky as … boys and girls too … singing down the roadway.’
Ans:In time of rain when spring and life are new, the butterflies lift silken wings to catch a rainbow cry and trees put forth new leaves to sing in joy beneath the sky as passing boys and girls too go singing down the roadway.
Think and answer:
(a) Is the poet talking about heavy rains in the rainy season or rain that has come after a long time?
Ans:The poet is talking about rain that has come after a long time.
(b) Are the boys and girls happy that it is raining?
Ans:Yes, the boys and girls are happy that it is raining.
Find out the following with the help of your teacher and the internet:
- Seasonal rains (monsoon) in India and other countries.
- Rain in countries like the UK, which experience spring, summer, autumn and winter.
Students must do this on their own, with the help of their teacher and the internet.
Talk about your favourite season.
Ans:Though it is hot in summer, I do not mind the heat. I play cricket or football with my friends in the mornings and evenings. I also swim in our swimming pool.
During the day, it is too hot to go outdoors, so I read storybooks or play games on my computer. I love reading, and luckily, most of my friends are also fond of books. We exchange books and comics whenever we can.
I also go on picnics with my friends. We eat and play the whole day and enjoy ourselves a lot. I really love summer, because summer means holidays!
Alliteration is when the same sound occurs at the beginning of two or more words in the same line — for example, ‘Nayna needs new notebooks.’ Find an example of alliteration from the poem, and collect other examples of alliteration.
Ans:An example of alliteration from the poem is: “Green grasses grow.”
Other examples of alliteration:
- Clary closed her cluttered clothes closet.
- Harry hurried home to watch football on TV.
- Rachel ran right until she realised she was running round and round.
- Polly’s prancing pony performed perfectly.
- The boy buzzed around as busy as a bee.