Q1.
Let us Read — The Tinkling Bells. Read the story and enjoy it.
Answer
Here is the whole story in order. Read it aloud once, then read it again slowly and stop at each part to picture it in your mind.
- Chinna and Tara (page 9). Chinna is a little boy in a village. He studies in grade 4. He likes reading storybooks and learning new things. He has many friends, but most of all he loves his pet kid, Tara. Tara is five months old and milky white.
- The bells at Chacha’s shop (page 9). Coming back from school one day, Chinna stops at Chacha’s shop. He sees a pair of beautiful, shiny tinkling bells. He goes in and politely asks the shopkeeper to show them to him.
- The money is missing (page 10). Chacha says, “Ten rupees please.” Chinna puts his hand in his pocket — and the money Dadaji gave him yesterday is gone. He searches all his pockets. He gives the bells back and walks home sad.
- Amma makes it better (page 11). At home he drops his bag and rests his head on the table. His mother Kamala asks gently, “What happened, Chinna?” He hugs her and cries. She wipes his tears and says she will give him money for the bells — but he must be careful with money in future.
- At the market (page 12). They buy apples, mangoes, tomatoes and brinjals. Chinna wants pineapples too. They cost forty-five rupees each. Kamala buys two and pays with a hundred-rupee note, and asks Chinna to take the change.
- Ten rupees extra (page 12). The fruit seller gives Chinna two ten-rupee notes. Only ten rupees were due. Hiding a mischievous smile, Chinna runs to his mother and whispers, “Can I buy the bells and some chocolates?”
- Amma says no (page 13). “That’s very bad. It is stealing,” says Kamala. Then she asks the question that changes everything: “How did you feel when you found your money missing?” Chinna says he felt very sad and angry. She says the fruit seller will feel the same.
- The honest boy (page 13). Chinna looks at his mother thoughtfully. He runs back and returns the extra money. The fruit seller is very happy and praises him: “You are an honest boy.”
- The bells at last (page 13). Pleased with his honesty, Kamala takes him to Chacha’s shop. Chacha is about to close. “Wait!” calls Chinna. Chinna pays ten rupees and they walk home happily. The bells tinkle in his pocket. Tara comes running out, and Chinna ties the bells around her neck.
What the story is really about: Kamala never scolds Chinna or punishes him. She only asks him to remember his own feeling. Chinna knows how it feels to lose money, so he can imagine how the fruit seller would feel. That is why he gives the money back. Being honest is easier when you put yourself in the other person’s place.
Do You Know? (pages 9 and 14): Goats under the age of six months are called kids. The word is used for a young child too. So if someone says, “Look at that kid playing in the field,” they might mean a baby goat, not a human child!
Tip while reading aloud: The story has many speaking parts — Chacha, Chinna, Kamala and the fruit seller. Change your voice a little for each one. Say Chinna’s whisper on page 12 softly, the way he really said it.