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NCERT Solutions for Class 5th The World Around Us Chapter 8 Closing questions — Let us reflect

Book page 143 – 144 Updated on2026-09-19

Q1.
1. Have you ever reused or recycled an old piece of cloth? What did you or your family make from it?
Answer

Yes. In most Indian homes an old piece of cloth is never simply thrown out — it is turned into something else.

Sample answer: “Yes, we have. My mother's old cotton saree became two things. The good part of it was cut and stitched into a godhadi — a soft quilt for my little sister, with three layers of old cloth stitched together with long running stitches. The border was cut off and stitched into a jhola that we take to the market. My old school shirts, once they became too small, were cut into square cleaning cloths for the kitchen. My father's torn kurta went to the cobbler, who used a piece of it as lining inside a bag he was repairing.”

Here are the usual ways old cloth is used again:

What the cloth wasWhat it becomes
A shirt or frock that no longer fitsPassed on to a younger brother, sister or neighbour who can wear it
An old sareeA quilt (godhadi, kantha), a petticoat, a cloth bag, a curtain, a floor mat
A worn towel or bedsheetKitchen cloths, dusters, floor-wiping cloths
Small scraps from a tailor's shopQuilt squares, coasters, doll clothes, a pouch, stuffing for a cushion
An old woollen sweaterUnwound and the wool knitted again into socks, a cap or mittens
Torn jeans or thick clothA pencil pouch, a bag, patches on the knees of other trousers
Very worn clothCleaning rags, a mop, a duster for the blackboard
Why this matters: Every piece of cloth carries a great deal of work inside it. Somebody grew the cotton, somebody spun the thread, somebody wove it, somebody stitched it. Using the cloth again means all that work goes on being useful. It also means one less new thing has to be made, and one less thing goes into the rubbish heap.
Q2.
2. If one thread breaks in a stitched cloth or in a woven mat, what might happen? Why is each thread important?
Answer

The cloth or the mat starts coming apart at that place — and it can keep opening further. Each thread is important because every thread is holding the threads next to it in place.

In a woven mat:

  1. One thread snaps.
  2. The threads that were crossing it lose their grip and become loose.
  3. A hole appears, and the loose threads begin to slip out.
  4. If nothing is done, the hole grows bigger and the mat unravels.

In stitched cloth:

  1. The stitching thread snaps at one point.
  2. The stitch beside it comes loose, then the next, then the next.
  3. The two pieces of cloth separate along the seam.
  4. Because the whole seam was made from one thread, the whole seam can open.
Why each thread is important: Cloth is not one solid sheet. It is many threads, each passing over and under the others, so every thread holds its neighbours and is held by them. Not one thread is doing the whole job — and not one thread is useless either. Take one out and the ones beside it have nothing to grip. That is the whole idea of weaving: strength comes from working together.
What to do about it: Stitch up a small tear at once. Knot the ends of a seam properly. And notice how the same idea works in a family, in a class and in a village — no single person does everything, but if one person's part is missing, the work near them starts falling apart too.
Q3.
3. Visit a tailor's shop or a handloom store with an adult. What tools or machines did you see being used there?
Answer

Go with an adult, greet the person working there, and ask before you touch anything. Ask two questions at every tool: “What is this called?” and “What do you use it for?” Write the answers down on the spot.

Sample answer — my visit to the tailor's shop near our street

Tool or machineWhat it is used for
Sewing machineThe needle goes up and down very fast while the cloth is fed under it. It stitches in a minute what a hand would take an hour to do.
Bobbin and bobbin caseA small reel of thread that sits under the machine. A machine stitch needs two threads — one from the top, one from the bobbin below.
Big scissors (kainchi)Cutting cloth. The tailor never uses these on paper, because paper blunts them.
Measuring tape (inch tape)Measuring the customer — chest, waist, length, shoulder, sleeve.
Tailor's chalkMarking the cutting lines on the cloth. The mark brushes off later.
Pins and pin cushionHolding two pieces together before they are stitched.
Needles and thimbleHand stitching; the thimble protects the finger that pushes the needle.
Reels of thread of many coloursSo the stitching matches the colour of the cloth.
Iron and ironing tablePressing the seams flat, so the finished garment sits properly.
Paper patterns and a dummy (mannequin)The pattern gives the shape to cut; the dummy is used to check the fit.

Sample answer — my visit to the handloom weaver

Tool or part of the loomWhat it is used for
The loom (karghā)The big wooden frame on which the cloth is woven. It holds one whole set of threads tight and straight.
Warp beam and the warp threadsThe long threads that run the length of the cloth. They are wound on a roller at the back and stay still.
ShuttleA smooth boat-shaped piece of wood carrying a spool of thread. The weaver throws it from side to side, so the thread crosses the warp — that is the weft.
Heddles and treadles (foot pedals)Pressing a pedal lifts every second warp thread, opening a gap for the shuttle to fly through. This is how “over and under” happens hundreds of times a minute.
Reed or combPushed forward after each throw, to press the new thread tight against the cloth already woven.
Cloth beamThe roller in front, on which the finished cloth is wound as it grows.
Charkha or bobbin winderWinds thread onto the small spools that go inside the shuttle.
The weaver's hands and feetBoth feet work the pedals and both hands throw the shuttle and pull the reed — all at the same time, all day.
What to notice above everything else: Neither of these is easy work. The weaver keeps a rhythm going with hands and feet together for hours. The tailor must measure a real person and cut cloth that cannot be joined back if the cut is wrong. Both are skilled trades that take years to learn. Say thank you before you leave, and if you can, buy something small.
Did you know? Handloom weaving uses no electricity at all. That is one reason it is called eco-friendly and sustainable — and it gives work to over 45 lakh people in India, most of them women and artisans in villages.
Q4.
4. Find out what kind of weaving or stitching work is famous in your area or state. Name it.
Answer

Almost every state of India is known for some cloth of its own. Ask an elder, ask a shopkeeper who sells sarees, or look at what people wear on festival days in your town.

How to find out:

  1. Ask at home: “Is there any cloth or embroidery that our region is famous for?”
  2. Ask in a cloth shop which local weave people ask for at wedding time.
  3. Look at what your grandmother's best saree or your grandfather's shawl is called.
  4. Write down the name, where it is made, and one thing that makes it special.

Sample answer: “In our state, Punjab, the famous work is Phulkari. Phul means flower and kari means work — so the name means flower work. Women embroider bright silk thread on a plain cloth, usually from the back, so that the front fills up with red, yellow, pink and orange flowers and geometric shapes. It is worn as a dupatta or an odhni, and a Phulkari is traditionally given to a girl at her wedding. My grandmother has one that her mother made for her.”

Some famous weaving and stitching traditions of India — the chapter names several of these:

State or regionFamous weaving or stitching work
Tamil NaduKanjeevaram silk sarees (weaving); Toda embroidery of the Nilgiris
KashmirPashmina shawls (weaving); Kashmiri embroidery with its paisley design
Odisha and GujaratIkat weaving; Patola sarees from Patan, Gujarat
Uttar PradeshChikankari of Lucknow; Banarasi silk sarees of Varanasi
RajasthanBanjara embroidery, Gota work, Bandhani tie-and-dye
PunjabPhulkari embroidery
West Bengal, Odisha, TripuraKantha embroidery, made with rows of running stitches
MeghalayaKhneng embroidery
Gujarat (Kachchh)Kala cotton weaving, mirror-work embroidery
Assam and the North-EastMuga and eri silk weaving, done on looms at home
Madhya PradeshChanderi and Maheshwari sarees
Andhra Pradesh and TelanganaPochampally ikat, Kalamkari
Bihar and JharkhandTussar silk weaving, Sujani embroidery
MaharashtraPaithani sarees; godhadi quilts made of old cloth
KeralaKasavu — white cotton with a gold border
Why every place has its own cloth: Weavers used whatever grew nearby — cotton in the black soil regions, silk where mulberry grows, wool in the cold mountains. Then each region added its own patterns and colours, and passed them down from parent to child. So a cloth is not only a cloth. It tells you where it came from.
Q5.
5. We should not throw the old clothes away. Why?
Answer

Because an old cloth is still useful, it cost a great deal of work to make, and throwing it away only adds to waste.

  • Somebody else can still wear it. A shirt that has become small for you fits a younger child perfectly. Passing clothes on is an old habit in Indian homes, and it costs nothing.
  • It can be made into something new. Old sarees become quilts. Old shirts become cleaning cloths and bags. The book tells us of the old Indian tradition of joining small pieces of cloth into beautiful quilts.
  • Making cloth takes a lot of work. Someone grew and picked the cotton, someone spun it into thread, someone wove it on a loom, someone stitched it. Throwing the cloth away throws away all of that work.
  • Making cloth takes a lot of water and land. A cotton crop needs land, water and months of care. Using cloth for longer means less new cloth has to be made.
  • Cloth waste does not disappear. Cotton rots away slowly, but synthetic cloth like nylon and polyester stays in the ground for years and years. A heap of thrown clothes is a heap that stays.
  • Somebody needs it. Old but clean clothes given to a person who needs them are worth far more than they are in a rubbish bin.
Give it away → someone wears it
Cut and stitch it → a quilt, a bag, a duster
Throw it away → nothing at all comes of it
The idea behind it: Every cloth carries the work of a farmer, a spinner, a weaver and a tailor. To respect that work is to use the cloth as long as it can be used, and then to make something else out of it. This is what our grandmothers did without anyone teaching them the word — recycle.
Q6.
6. Below are the jumbled-up steps of the life cycle of a moth. Read and number them from 1 to 6 in the correct order. ( ) Adult moth comes out of the cocoon. ( ) Eggs hatch into tiny caterpillars. ( ) Silk moth lays eggs. ( ) The cycle begins again. ( ) Caterpillars eat mulberry leaves and grow big. ( ) Caterpillars spin cocoons around themselves.
Answer

Here is the correct order. The numbers go in the circles printed in your book.

NumberThe step, as printed in the bookOrder to write
Adult moth comes out of the cocoon.The moth breaks out of its silk case5
Eggs hatch into tiny caterpillars.Small caterpillars come out of the eggs2
Silk moth lays eggs.The very beginning1
The cycle begins again.The new moth lays eggs and it all starts over6
Caterpillars eat mulberry leaves and grow big.They eat and eat and grow fast3
Caterpillars spin cocoons around themselves.Each one wraps itself in silk thread4

Now read it in the right order:

  1. Silk moth lays eggs.
  2. Eggs hatch into tiny caterpillars.
  3. Caterpillars eat mulberry leaves and grow big.
  4. Caterpillars spin cocoons around themselves.
  5. Adult moth comes out of the cocoon.
  6. The cycle begins again.
2 and 3. Caterpillar eats mulberry leaves, grows big 1. Eggs laid on a leaf 4. Cocoon silk wrapped all round 5. Adult moth comes out of the cocoon Life cycle of the silkworm 6. The moth lays eggs and the cycle begins again.
The four stages go round and round. That is why it is called a cycle — it has no end.
How to work out the order for yourself: Ask which step must come before another. Caterpillars cannot hatch before eggs are laid, so “lays eggs” must be first. A caterpillar must grow before it can spin a cocoon. A moth can only come out of a cocoon after the cocoon has been made. And the moth that comes out lays the next eggs — so the last step joins back to the first. That is exactly what a life cycle means: a pattern of growth and change that repeats.
Where the silk comes in: The silk we wear is the thread of step 4 — the cocoon. The cocoons are put in hot water, the thread is gently pulled out, and it is spun into silk yarn. One cocoon holds one very long, very fine, unbroken thread.
Q7.
7. Bring 5 – 6 pieces of different types of clothes from home or nearby tailors (leftover scraps). Observe the material closely and complete the table. Ask an elder or search in your book to find out whether it is made from cotton, wool, silk, jute, polyester or nylon.
Cloth Piece No.How does it feel? (smooth, rough)Thick/ThinShiny (Yes/No)Stretchy (Yes/No)What do you think it is made of?
1
2
3
4
5
Answer

How to test each piece:

  1. Feel it. Close your eyes and rub it between your fingers. Is it smooth, rough, soft or scratchy?
  2. Hold it up to the light. If light passes through easily, it is thin. If not, it is thick.
  3. Turn it in the light. Does it shine, or does the light just sink into it?
  4. Pull it gently in two directions. Does it stretch and then come back, or does it stay as it is?
  5. Ask an elder what the cloth is, and check the label if there is one. Then match it with the fibres on pages 136 and 137.

Sample answer — my filled table

Cloth Piece No.How does it feel? (smooth, rough)Thick/ ThinShiny (Yes/No)Stretchy (Yes/No)What do you think it is made of?
1Soft and smooth, but not slipperyThinNoNoCotton — a piece of an old shirt
2Very smooth and slippery, cool to touchThinYesNoSilk — a scrap of a saree border
3Soft but a little scratchy, warm at onceThickNoYesWool — a piece of an old sweater
4Rough and hairy, prickles the handThickNoNoJute — a bit of a gunny bag
5Smooth and a little slippery, does not soak up waterThinYesA littlePolyester — from a school bag lining
6Very smooth, almost like plastic, makes a rustling soundThinYesYesNylon — a piece of an old umbrella cloth

Your table will hold your own pieces, so your answers may be different. What matters is that every column is filled after really touching and looking, not by guessing.

A quick guide to help you decide:

If the cloth is…It is most likely
Soft, dull, thin, soaks up water quickly, creases easilyCotton
Smooth, shiny, cool, very lightSilk
Thick, fluffy, warm, a little stretchyWool
Coarse, hairy, stiff, brownishJute
Smooth and slightly shiny, does not crease, dries very fastPolyester
Very smooth and slippery, strong, rustles, water rolls offNylon
Why the tests work: How a cloth feels comes straight from the fibre it is made of. Wool is warm because the woolly fibres trap air. Cotton soaks up sweat because the fibres take in water. Nylon and polyester are made in a factory and do not take in water at all, so they dry fast but feel hot to wear in summer. So the way a cloth behaves tells you what it is made of — and it also tells you when to wear it.
Careful: Many clothes today are a mixture of two fibres — cotton with a little polyester, for example. If a piece feels like cotton but does not crease at all, it is probably a mixture. Do not worry if you cannot be sure; write what you think and then ask an elder.
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