Chapter 5: Where Do All the Teachers Go?

WORKING WITH THE POEM

Question 1.Answer these questions.

1. Why does the poet want to know where the teachers go at four o’clock?

   Answer:The poet thinks that his teachers are not ordinary persons. He looks upon them as super or special human beings. So he wants to know where they go and what they do after the school hours.

2. What are the things normal people do that the poet talks about?

   Answer:Normal people return to their home, change their clothes, wash their faces and become fresh. They also rest for a while. Some of them go for shopping or help the children with their homework.

3. What does he imagine about
   1. where teachers live?
   2. what they do at home?
   3. the people with whom they live?
   4. their activities when they were children in school?

   Answer:

   1. The boy imagines that teachers live in joint families.
   2. They wash their socks, change into pyjamas and then watch TV.
   3. They live with their parents.
   4. When they were at school going age, they too spelt the words incorrectly, chewed chocolates in the class and were punished.

4. Why does the poet wonder if teachers also do things that other people do?

   Answer:The boy regards his teachers as special persons. They are his ideals, perfect in every respect. So he wonders if they also do things that other people do.

5. How does the poet plan to find out? What will he do once he finds out?

   Answer:The poet plans to get first hand information about his teacher. He plans to follow one of his teachers and find out what he/she does. Then he will record his findings in a poem for the benefit of other children.

Question 2.What do you think these phrases from the poem mean?

• punished in the corner.
• leave their greens.

Answer:

• The teacher keeps an eye on all the students. In case he notices a boy eating chocolates in the classroom or making spelling mistakes, he asks the boy to stand in the corner as punishment.
• Some of the children don’t eat their lunch in full. They leave cooked green vegetables here and there or throw them into the dustbin.

Question 3.What does the child think about his/her teacher?

Answer:For the child, the teacher is an extraordinary or mysterious person.

Question 4.What does he want to know about his teacher? Why?

Answer:The child is inquisitive or curious to know about the routine of his teacher.

Question 5.How does the child compare his own daily activities with that of his teacher?

Answer:The child goes back home in the afternoon, changes his uniform, picks his nose, watches T.V. and lives with his parents.

Question 6.What makes him envy his teacher?

Answer:The child is mischievous. He spells the words wrongly. He is punished if he ever steals a chocolate. He scribbles on the desk and soils his jeans. His teacher is free from such an unpleasant life.

Question 7.How does the child finally decide to observe his teacher’s activities at home?

Answer:The child plans to follow his teacher to his home and find out what he does. He will then write it in a poem for all children to read and understand.