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Instructions to UG Students:
In this webpage you can find the lessons, grammar topics, vocabulary items, speaking and writing tasks based on the First Semester English curriculum prescribed by Osmania University for BA, BCom and BSc Students.
Each Lesson has pre-reading questions and activities. Attempt all of those before you read the lesson. You will have a better idea about the context of the lesson if you go through the Pre-reading questions. You have an audio of each lesson. You can listen to it and then move on to post-listening questions. Try to take notes while reading/listening. That will help you for your exams. Also, the Navigation Support Documents (NSD) given along with each topic provides supplementary reading material related to each topic. This website will definitely help develop your LSRW skills in English. Do not restrict yourselves to what you learn in English classrooms. Read widely, watch English news, expose yourselves with English. What we learn in our English classes should not be restricted only to the classrooms. You need to put those ideas into action. Our education should help develop social consciousness.
All the best!
The English Turf
The English Turf
First Semester English Textbook prescribed by Osmania University for BA, BCom and BSc Students
In the Bazaars of Hyderabad
In the Bazaars of Hyderabad
Sarojini Naidu
Pre-reading Questions
Can you recollect the different markets that you have visited?
Have you been to any of the markets in Hyderabad?
Are the markets in Hyderabad different from the markets in your village or town. How?
Do you think markets have something unique related to the place in which it is situated?
Pre-reading Activity
Brainstorm, discuss with your friends/family and find out the differences between traditional markets and the modern supermarkets. What do you think are the results of this change. Think about it. Write down your observations and show it to your teacher.
About the Poem
It was written during the Indian independence struggle, particularly during Swadeshi movement. It meant that there was no need for foreign products in the Indian market.
Click here to listen to the poem
While-listening, fill in the blanks given below
First Stanza
1.Richly your __________ are displayed by merchants
2.Turbans are of ___________
3.__________ of purple brocade.
4.Mirrors with panels of _______
5. ____________with handle of Jade.
Second Stanza
What do the vendors weigh?
What do the maidens grind?
What do the pedlars call?
Third Stanza
The Goldsmiths make _______________and bells for the feet of pigeons.
The bells are ____________as dragon-fly's wing
The Goldsmiths make ________________ for dancers and ___________ for the King.
Fourth Stanza
What do the fruitmen cry?
What do the musicians play?
What do the magicians chant?
Fifth Stanza
What do the flower-girls weave with?
Crowns for ____________
____________ to garland his bed.
_______________ to perfume the sleep of the dead.
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Post-reading Questions
After reading the poem attentively, describe the bazaar in your own words.
What are the special features of the Bazaar in the poem? How can you compare with a bazaar in your town?
Post-reading Activity
(Individual) Find out about the involvement of Sarojini Naidu in Indian Independence struggle. Listen to her speech here.
2, Watch the following videos, read about Swadeshi movement in the past and Make in India initiative in the present. Are there any similarities? What are the differences? Write a paragraph of 5 sentences on your findings.
You can start the paragraph with the following lines
Swadeshi movement was part of Indian independence movement while Make in India is a recent initiative of Government of India. Swadeshi movement aimed to....
The Eyes are Not Here
The Eyes are Not Here
Ruskin Bond
Pre-reading Questions
Have you travelled by train?
Where have you travelled by train?
Can you recollect something interesting about that journey?
Did you meet any special person in that journey?
Did you meet physically and visually challenged people in train?
Have you ever interacted with a visually challenged person?
What did you find special about that person?
Pre-reading activity
Blindfold yourself for 3 minutes and observe around yourself keenly. What differences do you find from your normal state. Express yourself. Engage in free writing. For 3 minutes write whatever comes into your mind in English. Also speak to your friends and family about this experience.
The Eyes are Not Here by Ruskin Bond.pdfWhile-reading Questions
The narrator travelled lonely to ______________
_______________________saw the girl off
The speakers eyes were sensitive to _______________
The girl was getting down at ___________________
_________________________will be meeting her in the station
The narrator says that aunts are usually________________
The girl told the narrator looks ________________
The narrator compares the smell from the girl with ___________________
The narrator asked the man about the girl's________________-
The passenger told that the girl's eyes were useless because___________________
Click here to listen to the story
While listening, look for the following words and understand its meaning from the context.
startle 2. formidable 3. pretence 4. panting 5. venture
6. tantalising 7. gallant 8. linger 9.stammer 10. reverie
Post-reading Questions
How can you say that both the narrator and the girl are blind? How do they try to mislead each other? Do they succeed in their attempts?
The speaker seems to be an imaginative person. Give examples to support this statement.
Post-reading Activity
Find what Ruskin Bond says about writing here. Take notes while watching the video and discuss the notes with your friends.(While taking notes you just have to write points. no need to write complete sentences. You can also use short forms)
https://prathambooks.org/blog/ruskin-bonds-tips-for-writers/
Google search and read about the real life stories of empowerment of visually challenged people (E.g.: You can use the search keywords "story of visually handicapped Sub-Collector of Andhra" and "the story of a Visually Challenged Telugu Boy Feature In Forbes Asia Under 30 ‘Super Achievers’ List")
Nouns
Nouns
Can you identify the nouns in the following passages.
Nouns as you know are words used to identify any of a class of people, place, things, ideas or feelings. For Example, Rajitha, Boy, Children, Love, Village, Chevella, etc.
I had a compartment to myself up to Rohana and then the girl got in. The couple who saw her off were probably her parents..."Are you going to Dehra?" I asked...My aunty is meeting me there....I love the hills especially in October...I moved easily along the berth and felt the window ledge...You are a very gallant young man...The train drew slowly into the station. Outside there was the shouting of porters and vendors and a high-pitched female voice near the carriage door which must have belonged to the girl's aunt.
In class today we read the touching story of a conversation between a blind narrator and a girl he met during a train journey. The twist at the end successfully conveyed the irony of the situation to the reader-both the narrator and his co-passenger had lost their sight, but were able to successfully mislead each other!
'In the Bazaars of Hyderabad' is a popular lyric by Sarojini Naidu which romanticizes the common man's pursuits and aspirations. The setting here is the crowded market place of Hyderabad and the poem seems to be a dialogue between the customers and the vendors of the bazaar. The poem invokes the rich colours, smells, sounds, and tastes of a rich and varied cultural milieu. The poem also has a political backdrop. During the freedom struggle, the Congress launched the Swadeshi movement, urging Indians to boycott cheaply manufactured British products and to rely on Indian bazaars. The colonial administration had banned the publication of Indian newspapers and Naidu clearly used her poems to propagate these ideas.
Our sun is, in fact, a rather unimportant number of a huge system of stars, or galaxy, consisting of atleast a hundred thousand million stars. We can see a part of his galaxy stretching across the sky as a pale white band of stars called the Milky way. In India it is sometimes called the heavenly Ganga.
Word Roots
Identify the prefixes and suffixes of the words given in bold. (Prefixes are the fragments that appear at the beginning of the word)
(Suffixes are the fragments that appear at the end of the word)
As I was totally blind...I was unable to tell what the girl looked like. I wondered if I would be able to prevent her from discovering that I was blind. ..Thank goodness it is a short journey...A man getting into the compartment...You must be disappointed. He was sounding puzzled ...She had beautiful eyes-...She was completely blind...
Identify the root of the words given in bold. (Now, you know prefix and suffix so go find root words)
Root words.pdf************************
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If
If
Rudyard Kipling
Pre-reading Questions
Who in your life do you generally go to for advice?
What have they advised you regarding the values in life?
Make a list of such advices that you remember receiving?
Self introspect and find out which advices are really relevant to you at this point of life
Pre-reading Activity
Create a blog of your own. Talk about the advices you received in your life and your responses to it. Tell how you liked/did not like the advice. Share your blog with your friends and family
About the Poem
The poem basically consists of an unknown speaker giving advice to a young boy about how to become a man which is why it's often read at graduation and commencement ceremonies.
Click here to listen to the poem
While-reading/listening Answer the following questions
Stanza-1
What do you have to do when all are blaming you?
What to do when all men doubt you?
Does he need to deal in lies or hatred?
Should he look too good and wise?
Stanza-2
What should you do with your dreams?
What should you do with your thoughts?
Who are imposters?
How to face the truths twisted by knaves?
How to respond when things you gave your life breaks apart?
Stanza-3
1.How do we have to go about our winnings and risks?
2. How to respond when there is nothing in you?
3. What is the phrase that you have to stick on to during difficult times?
Stanza-4
How do you have to talk with crowds?
How do you have to walk with kings?
When is the earth yours?
Post-reading/listening Questions
1.Summarise the poet's message in your own words.
Post-reading Activity
If you were given a chance to be born as a famous personality in any of the historical time periods, whom would you choose to be? Why? Tell us in detail.
Find out the meanings of the expressions given in the table below. Column A has expressions taken from the poem. From Column B, you identify their meanings:
On Saying Please
On Saying Please
A.G. Gardiner
Pre-reading Questions
Do you think that good manners are essential for living in a society?
List a few words of courtesy that we use in our daily life. Explain the purpose of using each.
How can we be polite and considerate to our fellow beings? Give examples from your life
Pre-reading Activities
Do you use words of Etiquettes in your mother tongue on daily basis?
Do you say such words in English?
Create a chart, paste relevant pictures and present the best words of courtesy that we can use in real life scenario (personal and professional)
About the Lesson
In this essay we come across the themes of courtesy, civility, morality, responsibility and control. A.G Gardiner mentions that simple words of courtesy like ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ help us to live in a society without friction.
On Saying Please.pdfWhile-reading Task
Find out the meaning of the following words from the context:
1.complainant 2. discourtesy 3. assault 4. acquit 5.martyrdom 6.endorse 7.courtesy 8.acknowledge 9.uncouth 10.modest
Post-reading Tasks (You can pause at the end of each section and answer the comprehension questions)
Read paragraph 1 and answer the question given below
Why did the lift man threw a passenger out of the lift?
Read paragraph 2 and answer the question given below
Discourtesy is not a legal offence. Does that mean one can be violent to a person just because he/she did not like their behaviour?
Read paragraph 3 and answer the question given below
1.There is no allowance for moral and intellectual damages. Why?
Read paragraph 4 and answer the questions given below
How would have the lift man felt when the passenger did not say please?
Why would have the lift man not said please?
Read paragraph 5 and answer the question given below
What is the first requirement of civility?
Read paragraphs 6 & 7 and answer the question given below
How is the conductor in the lesson different from others?
Read paragraph 8 and answer the question given below
What gave the writer a lesson on natural courtesy and good manners?
Read paragraph 9 and answer the question given below
How would the lift man made his revenge sweeter like Chesterfield?
Click here to listen to the audio of the lesson
More Questions
Write a summary of the lesson in 400 words.
Post reading/listening Activities
A. G. Gardiner is a British writer and he sets his essay in Britain. You might have observed that British etiquettes demand courtesy all the time. What differences do you observe regarding this in India? Do you think we have to certainly use the words of courtesy in our life too. Certainly yes. So let's continue saying thank you, please, sorry, excuse me etc.
Watch this video on Cross cultural communication
Take notes on cross cultural communication
What is cross cultural communication?
Why is it important?
What are some of the tips for effective cross cultural communication?
Pronouns
Pronouns
Identify the pronouns in the following passage (pronoun is a word that substitute a noun)
I may be uncivil...The law does not compel me to say please...dye my hair...law cannot become the guardian of our manners...We are bound to endorse the verdict...he can have the service of asking...You are annoyed...he handled his bundle of tickets...I said it was very kind of him...I assured him that he hadn't hurt me...I hope the lift man will agree that his revenge was much more sweet than if he had flung the fellow into the mud.
Prefixes and Suffixes.pdf**********************
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Ulysses
Ulysses
Alfred Tennyson
Pre-reading Questions
What are some of the things you love to do?
Imagine you are not able to do it due to some difficult situations. How would you feel?
What do you mean by "a life of purpose"?
What is a long term goal you wish to achieve?
Pre-reading Activity
Imagine yourself as Ulysses. You have become old. Still you feel very energetic and active. You have a lot of dreams to be accomplished. Think what all it could be and write a monologue based on your thoughts in your own words
Eg: I dont like to be idle...
About the Poem
The poem is a dramatic monologue spoken by Ulysses, a character who also appears in Homer's Greek epic The Odyssey and Dante's Italian epic the Inferno
Click here to listen to the poem
While-reading/listening Questions
Who is the idle king matched with an aged wife?
What are "barren crags"?
Who cannot just hoard, sleep, feed and call it life?
What does it mean by "I will drink life to its lees"?
What has the speaker done throughout his life?
What has the speaker seen and known with a hungry heart?
what does he call all experience?
What does the speaker yearns for with regard to knowledge?
Who is Telemachus?
How does the speaker introduce him?
What does the speaker say looking at the port?
What does the speaker say tell to his friends?
Why does the speaker say " heroic hearts made weak by time and fate, strong in will"?
Ulysses.pdfPost-reading/listening Questions
Summarise the poem in your own words (400-500 words)
Post-reading/listening Activity
Identify your Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Challenges. a personal SWOC analysis in a note book. Show it to your teacher. Make a daily timetable to help you work towards your goal.
Seeing People Off
Seeing People Off
Max Beerbohm
Pre-reading Questions
How do you feel when you bid goodbye to your dearest friends daily?
How about saying a goodbye when you know that you will not see them again for a while?
Can you narrate such an experience
Recall a time when you had to drop someone at the railway station. How was the farewell? Did you feel sad, awkward?
Pre-reading Activity
·Do you see off people in your village during different occasions (going to college, short trip with friends, going to hostel for studies, woman going for delivery, woman leaving home after marriage?)
About the Lesson
This lesson talks about the difficulty one generally faces while bidding good bye to our dearest ones who are prepared to go to a far away place.
Seeing People Off.pdfClick here to listen to the audio of the lesson (You can either listen to audio of the lesson or read it. Pause at the end of each section and answer the comprehension questions)
While-reading/listening, look out for the meanings of the following words while reading/listening to the lesson
lamentably 2.intimacy 3.reciprocate 4.yawn 5.conviction 6.engagement 7.sober 8.explicit 9.bewildered 10.inhospitable 11.resentment 12.grudge
Post-reading/listening Questions
Read section 1 and answer the question given below
When do we fail to see a friend off?
Read section 2 and answer the questions given below
Why cannot we leave the leave taking?
How is the awkwardness of leave taking moment described by the writer?
Read section 3 and answer the questions given below
Why did the writer turn up at Euston?
Why was the writer calling it a perfect farewell?
Read section 4 and answer the questions given below
Whom did the writer notice?
Who was Hubert le Ros? Describe him and his personality in your own words/
Read section 5 and answer the questions given below
Why did the writer felt it strange to see the Hubert le Ros in the station?
What did he return to the writer?
Read section 6 and answer the question given below
What difference did the author notice between Ros's previous and present circumstances?
Read section 7 and answer the question given below
How did the author's farewell at the rain station differ from le Ros's send off?
Read section 8 and answer the questions given below
What did the writer want from Hubert le Ros
Post-reading/listening activity
How do you bid good bye to friends or relatives who go to far away place to study or work. How different is the situation in your culture and the one presented in the lesson. Narrate about a farewell you attended. How did you feel then? Write about it in your own words. Let it be a paragraph.
Identify adjectives from the sentences given below (adjectives are words that modifies or describes nouns)
1.He made amusing caricatures.
2. It was a longish journey.
3. On a cold grey morning of last week...to see off an old friend
4. We gaze at each other as dumb animals
5. My wandering eye alighted on a... middle aged man
6.The young lady was American
7.He seemed magnetic
8. His gaze was beautiful
9. He was an excellent actor
10.I should be a very rich man
Homonyms, Homogrphs & Homophones
Homonyms, Homogrphs & Homophones
He always tells lies She went to the bank to withdraw money
I wanted to lie down I was sitting on the bank of the river
HOMONYMS-same spelling and same pronunciation
The wind is strong tonight I watched the match live
I forgot to wind the watch I live in an apartment
HOMOGRAPHS- same spelling different pronunciation and meanings
Do not waste paper
He tied a shawl on his waist
I am bored of board games
HOMOPHONES-same pronunciation, different spellings and meanings
Homo-.pdfWhat are homonyms, homographs and homophones?
Examples
Exercises from the textbook
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On His Having Arrived at the Age of Twenty-three
On His Having Arrived at the Age of Twenty-three
John Milton
Pre-reading Questions
What is your ambition in life?
What are your short term and long term goals?
How do you prepare yourself to reach the goal?
Pre-reading Activity
Imagine how you want to see yourself when you arrive at the age of 23.
How will your life be? What do you want yourself to achieve at that age
Do you think you have sufficient opportunities to achieve that? Any setbacks?
Write down in a diary on how you can work towards that brighter picture. Find out ways in which you can make the journey smoother.
About the Poem
The poem On His Being Arrived at the Age of Twenty- three is a sonnet written in an autobiographical form. It contains the poet’s reflections on his late maturing.
Click here to listen to the poem
While-reading/listening Questions
1._______________ is the subtle thief of youth
2. He has stolen on his wing my________________
3. My hasting days fly on with _________________
4. ______________ did not show bud or blossom
5. ______________________- might deceive the truth
6. My ______________--appears less
7. enduth means_______________
8. ____________________shall be in strictest measure
9. The will of heaven and time leads me toward_______________
10._____________-is my great Task master
Post-reading/listening Questions
Write a summary of the poem in your own words.
Post-reading/listening Activity
Do you know any young inspirational personality in your locality/village /town. Tell us why he/she you find him/her an inspiration.
Shyness My Shield
Shyness My Shield
M.K. Gandhi
Pre-reading Questions
Do you know anyone who is shy to speak?
Are you hesitant to speak in public?
How do you feel when you have to speak before a large group?
Do you voluntarily speak up in public or should somebody force you to speak?
How can you get rid of this hesitancy?
Pre-reading activity
Engage in free writing about an embarrassing experience you had while speaking in public. Wash away your fears and try to understand that everyone goes through these kinds of awkward situations sometime or the other.
About the Lesson
“Shyness, My Shield” is an essay written by Mahatma Gandhi. This essay was extracted from Gandhiji’s autobiography “The story of My experiments with Truth”.
Shyness My Shield.pdfPost-reading/listening Questions
Read section 1 and answer the questions given below
M.K. Gandhi was elected to the Executive Committee of _________________
______________ called M.K. Gandhi a drone. Why?
I sat quite silent. Not that I never felt tempted to speak. But__________________________. Why?
When a serious question came up for discussion, Gandhiji says 'I thought it wrong to be absent, and felt it cowardice to register a silent vote.' What light does this throw on Gandhi's attitude to shyness?
Read section 2 and answer the questions given below
______________________ was the President of the society
_____________________ was an advocate of then-new Birth Control movement
M.K. Gandhi considered Dr. Allison's views regarding artificial birth control ________________
Hills was against Dr. Allison because _______________________
Read section 3 and answer the questions given below
Why did M.K. Gandhi resign from the executive committee?
This shyness I retained throughout my stay in ___________________-
Read section 4 and answer the questions given below
M.K. Gandhi went to Ventnor with _____________
Mr. Howard was the author of ______________________
To speak ________________ would have been out of question for me.
_______________ read the speech for me. I was ashamed of myself and sad at heart for my incapacity.
Mr. Howard invited Gandhi to speak at a meeting for ___________________
Read section 5 and answer the questions given below
How was M.K. Gandhi's last attempt to make public speech? Was he successful in his attempt?
Read section 6 and answer the questions given below
It was in ________________________ that M.K. Gandhi got over his shyness.
How does shyness become an advantage for M.K.Gandhi?
What are Gandhi's views on speaking versus staying silent? Do you agree with his views?
Post reading/listening Activity
Click here to listen to the audio of the lesson
While-listening look for the meanings of these words from the context
tongue-tied 2. banter 3.mustered 4.entitled 5.ascertain 6.extempore 7. coherently 8. impromptu 9. mishap 10.pester
Listen to the audio of the lesson and write a short summary in your own words (start by mentioning about the writer and the title, then write main points of each section, present the material from writer's point of view and write clearly in simple language)
Have you attempted speaking on stage? How was the experience? How do do you feel after reading about Gandhiji's experiences. Here are a few tips to help you become a better speaker
Choose a topic that is relevant in the present day society
Read on the topic, analyse who, when , where etc. of the topic
Find supporting ideas
Develop your speech by writing notes
Organise and outline your speech
Prepare well
Deliver the speech with confidence
Practice will make you perfect
Identify articles in the passage and observe why the speaker used a, an or the in that particular place
Meantime a serious question came up for discussion...The discussion arose somewhat in this wise. The President was a puritan. Dr Allison was an advocate. My last effort was to make a public speech in England...The vegetarians hailed the new experiment with delight. My hesitancy of speech, which was an annoyance, is now a pleasure.
Collocation
Collocation
He gave a firm handshake
She paid a visit to his grandmother
A collocation is a combination of words that are commonly used together
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Speaking Tasks
Speaking Tasks
Getting Someone's attention and Interrupting
Rani: Pardon me, but could you tell me which bus goes to the railway station from here?
Stranger: 47B
Rani: Thanks. I'm sorry I interrupted your conversation
Stranger: That's okay
The following are a few phrases which will help you in interrupting people
Listen to the conversation and find out how one of the speakers is interrupting when the other person is engaged in his/her own work
Situation-1
Two teachers are talking to each other. You interrupt their conversation to ask one of them about a project submission deadline.
Raju: __________________________________
Teachers: Good afternoon!
Raju:__________________________when the project submission is?
Teacher1: It is on the coming Monday. You have a week's time to work on it.
Raju: Ok madam. Thank you!
Situation-2
You interrupt an office meeting to inform one person about an urgent phone call
Meena: So we will be presenting your reports on this Friday. Be prepared with your presentations everyone.
Ramkumar:_______________________________, but you have an urgent phone call.
Meena. That's all right Ramkumar.
Giving Instructions and Seeking Clarifications
Meena: Excuse me, sir. I'm sorry, but I didn't really understand the definition of a subset.
Teacher: Right. let me explain it again. if every element in Set Ais also an element of Set B, then A is called a subset of B. Have I made that clear now?
Meena: Yes madam. Thank you
Listen to the conversation and learn how to give instructions and also seek clarifications
Task-1
Complete the following instructions to make a paper whistle
_______________________, take a rectangular sheet of paper
_____________________, fold it in half
______________________, fold the edge of each half backwards to meet at the middle fold
__________________, cut out a hole in the middle fold
___________________, hold the pleated paper firmly to your mouth and blow hard to make the sound of a whistle
Task-2
Give instructions to make a tea/ a coffee
Asking for and Giving Opinions
Latha: What do you think of the change in timings?
Ashwin: I like it because it is convenient for me. I can take up part-time job in the evenings
Latha: I guess you are right. I too get a lot of time for myself in the evenings
Listen to the conversation and observe how the speakers ask for opinions.
Agreeing and Disagreeing with Opinions
Saritha: The buses are overcrowded these days, aren't they?
Dinesh: Yes. They aren't enough buses
Saritha: Exactly. And the service is poor
Dinesh: You've said it. Sometimes we have to wait for an hour for the bus
Listen to the conversation and observe how to agree/disagree. This will surely help you in Group Discussions
Task-1
Write suitable expressions for agreement
1.Opinion: Children shouldn't be given too much pocket money
Response: I agree with you
2. We must cycle to College everyday
Response:_________________________________________
3. It's our duty to look after the elderly people in our family
Response:_________________________________________
4. I think we should have more courses in art, music and drama
Response:_________________________________________
5. We shouldn't be cutting down trees. We should find ways of transplanting them.
Response:_________________________________________
Task-2
Your friends believe that the films produced today are inferior to those produced forty years ago. How will you tell that you disagree with them?
You can use phrases like "I dont think..." "I'm sorry but I disagree.." "Actually I quite like..." "It seems to me that..."
2021-22.pdfNotes & Model Question Paper
Notes & Model Question Paper
First Semester.pdfNote: The Lessons in the Section are taken from the textbooks prescribed by Osmania University for First, Second and Third years, The English Turf edited by C. Muralikrishna and Y.L.Srinivas , English in Use and English in Action edited by T.Vijay Kumar, K. Durga Bhavani, Y.L. Srinivas.
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