68

11. From Here to There

The Train

Come on children, let’s play a game

Climb aboard the chugging train!

Blow your whistles and take your seats

Onto shoulders, if you please!

Forward, backward, backward forward,

But in a line, don’t run outward!

Stay in line, and shut your eyes

With open eyes, you’ll nothing spy.

Chhuk Chhuk chhuk, the train is on its way

Stop stop stop, all the stations say!

On roads of iron, we move to and fro,

Here come the lights, and there they go.

Across the meadows, over the hills,

Past aging farmers, temples, mills.

Past village wells and a lush green field

With broken walls, and a potato field

69

Chhuk Chhuk chhuk, the train is on its way

Stop stop stop, all the stations say!

Smoky clouds,

Fairs and crowds.

Village fairs,

Riders on mares.

Flocks of birds,

Clustered huts.

Bridges and paths,

Dhobi ghats.

Small tea-shops,

Puddles and flocks.

Chhuk Chhuk chhuk, the train is on its way

Stop stop stop, all the stations say!

(Extracts from the Hindi poem ‘Railgadi’ by HARENDRANATH CHATTOPADHYA)

Ω How did you like the poem?

# Have you ever travelled in a train? When?

# Can a train move anywhere? Why?

# What is meant by ‘roads of iron’?

⇒ # What places did the train pass by? Make a list.

_____ _____ _____

# Which vehicles have you travelled in ? Write their names in your notebook.

70

Come, let's meet some children and find out how they spent their vacations.

I went to my uncle who lives in Delhi. Earlier, we used to go from the railway station to his house in a bus . But this time it was great fun. We went by the train which went through an underground tunnel. We did not even come to know that cars were running on the road above the tunnel.

It was my bua’s wedding. I met many relatives. We had a good time eating, drinking and playing. Bhaiya came from America in an aeroplane . Imagine, he came from so far but reached here in one day! Bua looked very beautiful when she was going in the home .

I went to my nani ’s house in Kerala. Where she lives, there is water everywhere. From the station, we could have taken a bus or a car to reach her house. Instead, we took a boat straight to her house. It felt a little strange but we had fun.

71

	We went to Shimla during the vacations. The bus moved on the zig-zag roads on high mountains. It was very scray when we looked down. We had to walk long distances in Shimla. My dadi would get tired very quickly. We would make her ride on the camel . I never got tired, I enjoyed walking.
	My khala lives very close to our house. Whenever I feel like going to her, I quickly climb on my bicycle and rush to her place. Ma and Chhotu have to take a rickshaw to go to nani ’s house.
	I went to my mamaji’s village. From the railway station, there is no bus going to his village. So we went in a . We crossed lush green fields on the way to the village. I loved the sounds of the bells tied around the necks of the bulls.

** Discussions need to be initiated on caring and compassion towards animals in the surroundings.

72

⇒ # Which all vehicles did the children travel in?

_________ _________ _________

# How would you choose to go from your house to the places written below? Write in the box.

Your	Market
	Friend’s
	Nani’s House
	Across the
	Across a river
	Relative who
	School

# How would you keep yourself safe while travelling?

** Children would have seen many vehicles in their real life or in films, books, etc. These experiences may help in a discussion. Take up activities as per the contexts of children to help them ensure their safety while travelling. For example, children for urban areas may be introduced to road safety and traffic rules.

73

⇒ Write in front of each picture what the vehicle is used for. In the spaces provided, draw the pictures of some other vehicles. Write their names and what they are used for. Are all these vehicles used for our travel?

Vehicle	Used for

74

Vehicle	Used for

75

¶ Names of some vehicles are given in the centre of a wheel. Join these on one side to the number of wheels each vehicle has and on the other, join them to what is used to run them.

76

ΩΩΩ § Find out from your elders - How did people travel fifty years ago? Were the present means of travel available at that time also?

Ω ? Can you imagine which vehicles people will use for travel twenty years from now? Ask your family members and friends and fill in the table. You can add more -

Whom you asked	Their Answers
You	_____
Friend	_____
Chacha	_____
Teacher	_____
_____	_____
_____	_____
_____	_____

A discussion based on the information obtained from the elders will help the children to understand the changes that have come in vehicles over time. That is why in the book, children have been encouraged to ask their grandparents again and again so that they understand the changes that have taken place with time.

77

¶ Your own train

With the help of the pictures make a toy-train using empty matchboxes.

⇒ If anybody makes a ‘chhuk-chhuk’ sound you know at once that it is being made for a train.

From the sounds given below can you tell which vehicle it is ? One example is given.

Chhuk–Chhuk -- Train

Peen-Peen -- _____

Pon–Pon -- _____

Tup-Tup -- _____

Gharr–Gharr -- _____

Tring–Tring -- _____

Ω # These are the sounds of single vehicles. How does it sound when many vehicles run together on the road making different noises? Isn't there a lot of noise?

# Where have you heard the maximum noise?

# Do you like so much noise? Why?

** To make the toy train, tins can be used in place of matchboxes. For making wheels, bottle caps or buttons can be used.