Embedded Files
Download Math 30 SQPs pdf
Question - 1
What was Valli's favourite pastime?
Answer:Valli was an eight-year-old girl who was very curious about things. She didn't have any playmates near her house. So, her favourite pastime was standing in the front doorway of her house, watching what was happening in the street outside.
Question - 2
What was the source of unending joy for Valli? What was her strongest desire?
Answer:Valli enjoyed standing by the doorway watching the view outside, but the most fascinating thing of all was the bust that travelled between her village and the nearest town. It passed through the street each hour, once going to the town and once coming back. The sight of the bus filled each time with a new set of passengers, was a source of unending joy for Valli. Day after day, she watched the bus and gradually a tiny wish crept into her head and grew there. She wanted to ride on the bus, even if just once. This wish grew stronger and stronger until it was an overwhelming desire.
Question - 3
What did Valli find out about the bus journey? How did she find out these details?
Answer:Valli listened to her neighbours who used the bus regularly and picked up a few details, like, how far the village was from the town, how much was the fare one way, and the time it took for the trip. She asked some discreet questions to not raise any suspicion. Over days and months, she found out that the town was 6 miles away. The fare one way was just 30 paise which apparently wasn't much, and the trip took 45 minutes. She even found out about her return journey that if she stayed on the bus and paid another 30 paise, she could come back to her village on the same bus.
Question - 4
What do you think Valli was planning to do?
Answer:Valli was planning to take a bus ride to the town that was 6 miles from the village and the fare was 30 paise one way.
Question - 5
Why does the conductor call 'Valli Madam'?
Answer:Valli talked in an authoritative manner because she was aware that she was just a little girl and no one would take her seriously if she showed any hesitation. This condescending mannerism amused the conductor. He wanted to humour her and thus called her 'Valli Madam'.
Question - 6
Why did Valli stand up on the seat? What did she see then?
Answer:This was the first bus ride for Valli and everything around her astounded her. She found the interior of the bus quite intriguing but soon discovered that the outside was equally interesting. She wanted to look outside but the canvas blind cut off her vision. So, she stood up on the seat and peered over the blind. The bus was going over a canal and the road was very narrow on one side, there was the canal and beyond it were palm trees, grassland, distant mountains and the blue sky. On the other side, was a deep ditch and then acres and acres of green fields(greenery) everywhere she saw.
Question - 7
What does Valli tell the elderly man when he calls her a child?
Answer:Valli was warned by an elderly man when she stood up on the seat. She felt humiliated at being chastised by a stranger. She knew that since she had paid for the seat she had equal rights on the bus as any other passenger, and should not be talked down by anyone. So, she told the elderly person that there wasn't any child in the bus and that she had paid her bus fair.
Question - 8
Why didn't Valli want to make friends with the elderly woman?
Answer:Valli found the woman absolutely repulsive with large holes in her earlobes and the large earrings she could smell the betel juice that was threatening to spill over her lips at any moment. She couldn't bear to even look at the old woman and on top of it, the woman was very nosy.
Question - 9
How did Valli save up money for her first journey? Was it easy for her?
Answer:Valli saved every coin that came her way. She made great sacrifices by controlling her childish urges of having candies, toys and joy rides. This must have been difficult for a child of her age when she sees other children enjoying and spending their money on things that are every child's desire.
Question - 10
Why didn't she get off the bus at the bus station?
Answer:Valli had a deep desire to take a bus ride from her village to the town. Her days and nights revolved around planning the trip. She knew exactly what she had to do once she took the trip. So, when the situation arrived, she was given a choice to get off the bus, but she did not agree with that, as it wasn't a part of her plan. She was smart enough to know that it would be safer for her to remain seated by the ticket back home and wait for the bus to start again.
Question - 11
What does Valli's behaviour tell us about her?
Answer:Valli was a self-respecting, determined and smart girl. She didn't agree with the adults on the bus that she was just a child, helpless and in need of assistance. She knew her rights and was proud of the fact that she had paid for the fare herself. She was wiser beyond her age because she didn't agree with the conductor to get off the bus and explore, though it seemed very tempting. She even rejected the offer for a cold drink, this tells us that Valli is capable of taking calculated risks, a very mature thing to do indeed.
Google Sites
Report abuse