NCERT Solutions for Class 8 English
The Tsunami NCERT Solutions for Class 8 English Honeydew Chapter 2
The Tsunami NCERT Text Book Questions and Answers
The Tsunami Comprehension check-I
Say whether the following are true or false.
1. Ignesious lost his wife, two children, his father-in-law, and his brother-in-law in the tsunami. True
2. Sanjeev made it to safety after the tsunami. False
3. Meghna was saved by a relief helicopter. False
4. Almas s father realised that a tsunami was going to hit the island. False
5. Her mother and aunts were washed away with the tree that they were holding on to. True
The Tsunami Comprehension check-II
Answer the following in a phrase or sentence.
Question 1.
Why did Tilly’s family come to Thailand?
Answer:
Tilly’s family came to celebrate Christmas at a beach resort in southern Thailand.
Question 2.
What were the warning signs that both Tilly and her mother saw?
Answer:
Tilly and her mother saw that the water was swelling and kept shrinking the beach area.
Question 3.
Do you think Tilly’s mother was alarmed by them ?
Answer:
No, I don’t think Tilly’s mother was alarmed.
Question 4.
Where had Tilly seen the sea behaving in the same strange fashion?
Answer:
Tilly had seen the sea behaving in the same strange fashion in class in a video of a tsunami that had hit the Hawaiian Islands in 1946.
Question 5.
Where did the Smith family and the others on the beach go to escape from the tsunami?
Answer:
The Smith family and the others on the beach went to the third floor of the hotel to escape from the tsunami.
Question 6.
How do you think her geography teacher felt when he heard about what Tilly had done in Phuket?
Answer:
I think her geography teacher felt very proud and relieved when he heard about what Tilly had done in Phuket.
The Tsunami Comprehension check-III
Answer using a phrase or a sentence.
Question 1.
In the tsunami 150,000 people died. How many animals died?
Answer:
According to reports, very few animals died in the tsunami.
Question 2.
How many people and animals died in Yala National Park?
Answer:
Sixty people and two animals died in Yala National Park.
Question 3.
What do people say about the elephants of Yala National Park?
Answer:
People at Yala National Park had observed three elephants running away from the Patanangala beach.
Question 4.
What did the dogs in Galle do?
Answer:
The dogs in Galle refused to go on their daily run on the beach.
The Tsunami Working with the text
Discuss the following questions in class. Then write your own answers.
Question 1.
When he felt the earthquake, do you think Ignesious immediately worried about a tsunami? Give reasons for your answer. Which sentence in the text tells you that the Ignesious family did not have any time to discuss and plan their course of action after the tsunami struck?
Answer:
No, Ignesious did not immediately worry about a tsunami when he felt the earthquake. When the earthquake struck, he kept his television set on the floor to prevent it from breaking. The following sentence in the text tells us that the Ignesious family did not have any time to discuss and plan their course of action after the tsunami struck:
When the tremors stopped, they saw the sea rising. In the chaos and confusion, two of his children caught hold of the hands of their mother’s father and mother’s brother, and rushed in the opposite direction.
Question 2.
Which words in the list below describe Sanjeev, in your opinion?
(Look up the dictionary for words that you are not sure of.)
In my opinion, Sanjeev was brave, heroic and selfless.
Use words from the list to complete the three sentences below. Solved
Answer:
i. I don’t know if Sanjeev was cheerful, humorous or ambitious .
ii. I think that he was very brave, heroic and selfless.
iii. Sanjeev was not heartless, careless or brash.
Question 3.
How are Meghna and Almas s stories similar?
Answer:
Both Meghna and Almas’s lost their families in the tsunami, but survived it themselves.
They were saved by holding on to a wooden door, and a log of wood respectively.
Question 4.
What are the different ways in which Tilly s parents could have reacted to her behaviour? What would you have done if you were in their place?
Answer:
Tilly’s parents could have ignored her warnings, and continued to play at the beach. Or, they could have tried to escape the island.
I would have done the same thing they did if I were in their place.
Question 5.
If Tilly s award was to be shared, who do you think she should share it with— her parents or her geography teacher?
Answer:
If Tilly’s award was to be shared, she should share it with her geography teacher.
Question 6.
What are the two different ideas about why so few animals were killed in the tsunami? Which idea do you find more believable?
Answer:
There are two different ideas about why so few animals were killed in the tsunami. Many people believe that animals possess a sixth sense and know when the earth is going to shake. Some experts believe that animals’ more acute hearing helps them to hear or feel the earth’s vibration. They can sense an approaching disaster long before humans realize what’s going on. The latter idea is more believable.
The Tsunami Working with language
Question 1.
Go through Part-1 carefully, and make a list of as many words as you can find that indicate movement of different kinds. (There is one word that occurs repeatedly —count how many times!) Put them into three categories.
fast movement slow movement neither slow nor fast
Can you explain why there are many words in one column and not in the others?
| Fast Movement | Slow Movement | Neither slow nor fast |
| rushed out | walking | floating |
| swept away | recede | |
| wash away | ||
| jumped into |
The word ‘swept away’ and ‘rushed out’ occurs five times in the passage. The reason that there are a lot of words in the first column is that it is a story about a tsunami taking place. It is an event full of actions, and so an active vocabulary is required for the same.
Question 2.
Fill in the blanks in the sentences below (the verbs given in brackets will give you a clue). Solved
i. The earth trembled, but not many people felt the trembling, (tremble)
ii. When the zoo was flooded, there was a lot of confusion and many animals escaped into the countryside, (confuse)
iii. We heard with relief that the lion had been recaptured, (relieve)
iv. The zookeeper was stuck in a tree and his rescue was filmed by the TV crew, (rescue)
v. There was much excitement in the village when the snake charmer came visiting, (excite)
Question 3.
Say whether the following sentences are in the Active or the Passive voice. Write A or P after each sentence as shown in the first sentence.
i. Someone stole my bicycle. A
ii. The tyres were deflated by the traffic police. P
iii. I found it last night in a ditch near my house. A
iv. It had been thrown there. P
v. My father gave it to the mechanic. A
vi. The mechanic repaired it for me. A
The Tsunami Speaking and writing
Question 1.
Suppose you are one of the volunteers who went to the Andaman and Nicobar Islands for relief work after the tsunami. You work in the relief camps, distributing food, water and medicine among the victims. You listen to the various stories of bravery of ordinary people even as they fight against odds to bring about some semblance of normalcy in their lives. You admire their grit and determination. Write a diary entry.
(Encourage the students to use their creativity and formulate their own answers.)
Answer:
31 December, 20XX
The killer tsunami struck these islands five days ago. But the victims are being brought in even now. Each one has a story to tell. And it makes me feel so sad and overwhelmed. I am so awed by the strength of human spirit that the people here are demonstrating. People are coming to each others’ aid. They are fighting against odds to bring some semblance of normalcy in their lives.
It is hard for them to believe that their lives could take such a fatal turn. It is their faith in God and themselves that is getting them through. I talk to the victims often who have lost so many loved ones in this tragedy. It is difficult for them to cope and they are traumatized. Couselling sessions are being organized for them every day.
There is a scarcity of food, clothes and medical supplies. I know that there are campaigns being organized all over the country for the flood victims. I really wish that things would improve and that I can be of help to the people here.
Question 2.
The story shows how a little girl saved the lives of many tourists when a tsunami struck the beach, thanks to the geography lesson that she had learnt at school. She remembered the visuals of a tsunami and warned her parents. Do you remember any incident when something that you learnt in the classroom helped you in some way outside the classroom? Write your experiences in a paragraph of about 90-100 words or narrate it to the whole class like an anecdote.
Answer:
There are many times that I feel that things I have learnt in the classroom help me in some way outside the classroom. For example, every year we observe the ‘Fire Safety Week’ in our school. There was a fire drill in the school, and we were escorted to the fire exit. After that we all gathered in the playground area. Over there, we were given a demonstration by firefighters on how to use a fire extinguisher, and the ways in which we can prevent a fire.
They also told us that if someone catches fire, we must immediately put a blanket over them to cut the supply of oxygen to the fire. I was listening to all this with a lot of interest. I had no idea that all this information would come in handy so soon. A couple of weeks later, there was a short circuit in one of the shops in my neighbourhood. When I heard the commotion and came outside, I saw a man whose back was on fire. In all confusion,
everybody was gathered around him trying to find water to thfow on that man. I rushed inside my house, and immediately got hold of a blanket. Then I ran outside and my mother very carefully wrapped the man in the blanket. The fire soon died down and the man was immediately rushed to the hospital. Gladly, he survived without any life-altering changes. He thanked me and my mother profusely when he recovered and we went to see him at the hospital. I am so glad that I paid attention to the fire instructors.