Why is the Sky so high?
গল্পের সারসংক্ষেপ (Story Summary)
অনেক দিন আগে, আকাশ পৃথিবীর এত কাছে ছিল যে মানুষ তাকে ছুঁতে পারত। আকাশ ছোটদের সাথে খেলত, তাদের ছুঁড়ে দেওয়া বল ফিরিয়ে দিত এবং একসঙ্গে হাসত। সেই সময় এক বৃদ্ধা একটি ছোট্ট মাটির কুঁড়েঘরে বাস করতেন। তিনি সারাদিন তার ঘর পরিষ্কার করতেন।
এক গ্রীষ্মের দিনে চারিদিকে ধুলো উড়ছিল। বৃদ্ধা তার ঘর ঝাঁট দিতে শুরু করলে প্রচুর ধুলো ওঠে। সেই ধুলো আকাশে নাকে-মুখে ঢুকে যাওয়ায় তার হাঁচি-কাশি শুরু হয়। আকাশের হাঁচি ছিল বজ্রপাতের মতো, আর তার চোখ থেকে জল পড়ে বৃষ্টি নামত। বৃদ্ধা রেগে গিয়ে আকাশকে বৃষ্টি থামাতে বলেন, কিন্তু ধুলোর কারণে আকাশ তা পারছিল না। বৃদ্ধা আরও জোরে ঝাঁট দিতে থাকলে আকাশ ধুলো থেকে বাঁচতে উপরে উঠে যায় এবং আর কখনো নিচে নেমে আসেনি। তবে সে আজও দূর থেকে ছোটদের খেলা দেখে হাসে।
বাংলায় ব্যাখ্যা (Bengali Explanation)
এই লোককথাটি কল্পনাপ্রবণভাবে ব্যাখ্যা করে যে আকাশ কেন এত উঁচুতে। গল্পটি বলে যে একসময় আকাশ মানুষের খুব কাছের বন্ধু ছিল। কিন্তু এক বৃদ্ধার ঝাঁট দেওয়ার ফলে সৃষ্ট ধুলোর কারণে আকাশ বিরক্ত হয়ে উপরে চলে যায়। এই গল্পটি প্রকৃতির সাথে মানুষের সম্পর্ক এবং আমাদের কাজের ফল কী হতে পারে, তা সহজভাবে বোঝায়। এটি শিশুদের কল্পনাকে উসকে দেয় এবং প্রাকৃতিক ঘটনা, যেমন বজ্রপাত ও বৃষ্টিকে এক নতুন রূপ দেয়।
Words from the Story
অনুশীলনী
বইয়ের সব প্রশ্নের সমাধান
Activity 1 ▼
Write ‘T’ for true and ‘F’ for false statements in the given boxes:
(a) Mimi and Raju were not excited about hearing the story. [F]
(b) Once upon a time, children played with the sky. [T]
(c) The sky and the children were very happy then. [T]
(d) At that time, the sky was far away from the earth. [F]
Activity 3 ▼
Complete the following sentences with words from the text:
(a) The old woman lived in a mud hut.
(b) The hut was beside a paddy field.
(c) One hot summer day there was dust everywhere.
(d) The old woman swept her hut with a broom.
Activity 4 ▼
Complete the following table:
| Who/What | Did the following |
|---|---|
| (i) The old woman | cleaned her hut |
| (ii) The sky | coughed and sneezed |
| (iii) Dust | rose all around in brown clouds |
| (iv) Water from the sky's eyes | fell as drops of rain |
Activity 5 ▼
Arrange the following sentences in the correct order:
[4] (a) The sky flew out of reach of the old woman's broom.
[5] (b) The sky could take it no more.
[1] (c) The old woman ordered the sky to stop raining.
[3] (d) The old woman kept on sweeping.
[2] (e) The sky could not stop raining.
Activity 6 ▼
Answer the following questions:
(a) Why was the old woman angry at the sky?
The old woman was angry at the sky because raindrops fell onto the areas she had just swept clean.
(b) What did the sky do to avoid the dust?
To avoid the dust, the sky flew up, out of reach of the old woman's broom.
(c) Why did the woman keep on sweeping?
The woman kept on sweeping because she wanted to keep her hut clean from all the dust.
(d) Is the sky your friend? Give reasons for your answer.
Yes, the sky is my friend. It gives us rain for our crops, the sun for light and warmth, and the beautiful moon and stars at night.
Activity 7 ▼
Activity 7(a): Circle the Proper Nouns
(a) Mira is a girl
(b) My uncle lives in Kolkata
(c) The Statesman is a famous newspaper
(d) Piku went to Agra to see the Taj Mahal
Activity 7(b): Underline the Proper Nouns
There lived a young boy in a village. His name was Rajib. He studied in class VI. His sister Bihu studied in class IV. One day they went to visit the zoo in Kolkata. They also visited the Victoria Memorial. They enjoyed the day very much.
Activity 7(c): Underline the Neuter Gender
(a) The old woman swept with her broom.
(b) The calendar is on the wall.
(c) The teacher is writing on the blackboard.
(d) The lion lives in the forest.
Activity 7(d): Underline the Common Gender
(a) The servant is sweeping the floor.
(b) The students are going out for a picnic.
(c) The king was a kind person.
(d) The son of my neighbour is my classmate.
Activity 8 ▼
(a) My pet cat has green eyes.
(b) The old man was coughing the entire night.
(c) After the rain, there was no dust on the road.
(d) We should always try to avoid telling lies.
(e) The bird flew off to the sky.
village: Our village has many green fields.
broom: She cleaned the room with a broom.
stop: Please stop making that noise.
play: The children love to play in the park.
A Conversation about the Story
Mimi: That was a funny story! Can you imagine the sky playing with children?
Raju: It would be amazing! But I feel a little bad for the old woman. She just wanted to keep her hut clean.
Mimi: True, but she was a bit grumpy. She made the sky sneeze and cry! His sneeze was thunder and his tears were rain. That's so cool!
Raju: I guess the story teaches us that our actions can have big consequences. The sky went up so high just because of her sweeping. But it's nice that he is still our friend and watches us from far away.
"Why is the Sky so high?" Quiz
Test your knowledge with 50 questions from this lesson!