NCERT Solutions for Class 5th The World Around Us Chapter 4 Our School—A Happy Place
Updated on 2026-09-19
About this chapter
A school is a happy place when it is safe, clean and kind. Mohit says he loves school because he meets his friends, plays games and learns something new every day. A school is where we feel safe and cared for. This chapter asks one simple question: what can we , the students, do to make our school better? A green school looks after four things. Aasha's brother told her what a green school is. It manages its waste. It saves water. It uses electricity carefully. And it keeps the campus green by planting more trees and taking care of them. Any school can become a green school. It does not need money — it needs students who notice things and act. Waste has to be separated before it can be managed. First we reduce — use only what we need. Then we reuse — do not throw away useful things. What is
- Green School
- Make a map of your school
- My school, in my own words
- What each team should observe
- Sitting together after the exploration
- Waste Management
- Things we give to recyclers
- Segregation Game
- In your school and in your home
- Waste and the people who handle it
Quick revision
| Word | What it means | Where it appears | An everyday example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Green school | A school that manages its waste, saves water and electricity, and keeps its campus green | Green School, page 55 | Your school with a compost pit and full water tanks |
| Segregation | Separating waste into groups before throwing it away | Activity 2, page 61 | Peels in the green bin, wrapper in the blue bin |
| Wet waste | Waste that rots — food peels, leftovers, tea leaves, garden waste | Waste Management, page 59 | Banana peel from your tiffin |
| Dry waste | Waste that does not rot — wrappers, plastic, glass, foil | Waste Management, page 59 | An empty biscuit wrapper |
| Compost | Wet waste turned into rich black soil by tiny living things | Green Guardians, page 58 | Compost from the pit used in the school garden |
| Recycler | A person who collects old paper, plastic, glass and metal so they can be made into something new | Page 59 | The kabadiwala who buys old newspapers |
| Sanitation worker | A person whose work keeps our school and streets clean | Discuss, page 62 | The person who sweeps the school corridor |
| Absorb | To take heat in, so the thing becomes hot | Let Us be Cool!, page 62 | A black tile in the Sun |
| Reflect | To throw heat or light back, so the thing stays cooler | Let Us be Cool!, page 62 | A white-painted roof |
| Leak (drip) | Water escaping slowly, drop by drop | Dripping Water, page 63 | A tap that will not close fully |
| Rainwater harvesting | Catching rainwater and storing it or letting it go into the ground | Discuss, page 64 | Roof pipes leading into a school tank |
| Zebra crossing | The white stripes on a road where people may cross safely | Traffic Trackers, page 58 | The crossing outside your school gate |
| Assembly point | The safe open spot where everyone gathers after leaving a building in an emergency | Fire Safety, page 68 | The far end of the playground |
| Fire drill | Practising how to leave a building safely, before a real fire ever happens | Let us practice, page 69 | The whole school walking out in a line |
| Including someone | Making sure nobody is left out of a game, a group or a conversation | Let us reflect 7, page 72 | Calling the new shy child to join your team |
Exercises
- Green School — In-text Questions Page 55–56
- Make a map of your school — Activity 1 Page 56
- My school, in my own words — Write Page 57
- What each team should observe — Be a School Explorer! Page 57–58
- Sitting together after the exploration — Discuss your findings Page 59
- Waste Management — Write Page 59
- Things we give to recyclers — Write and Find out Page 60
- Segregation Game — Activity 2 Page 61
- In your school and in your home — How is wet waste managed? Page 62
- Waste and the people who handle it — Discuss Page 62
- Let Us be Cool! — Activity 3 Page 62
- A white roof — Write Page 63
- Keeping a warming area cool — Discuss Page 63
- Dripping Water — Activity 4 Page 64
- Saving water and catching rain — Discuss Page 64
- Greenery Around Us — Write Page 65
- Water in the shade and water in the Sun — Activity 5 Page 66
- What Mohit said about traffic rules — In-text Question Page 67
- Traffic Signs — Write Page 67–68
- Beyond signboards — Discuss Page 68
- Fire Safety — Write — Fire Safety Page 68–69
- A safe fire drill — Let us practice Page 69
- What We do Matters! — Activity 6 Page 70
- Closing questions — Let us reflect Page 71–72