Class 9, ch 1 the fun they had

•The first chapter in "Beehive" is **"The Fun They Had"** by Isaac Asimov.

Here are the NCERT solutions for this chapter:

**Chapter 1: The Fun They Had**

**Thinking about the Text**

**I. Answer these questions in a few words or a couple of sentences each.**

1. **How old are Margie and Tommy?**

    * **Answer:** Margie is eleven years old and Tommy is thirteen years old.

2. **What did Margie write in her diary?**

    * **Answer:** Margie wrote in her diary, "Today Tommy found a real book!"

3. **Had Margie ever seen a book before?**

    * **Answer:** No, Margie had never seen a real book before.

4. **What things about the book did she find strange?**

    * **Answer:** She found it strange that the words преступлений stood still instead of moving the way they did on a screen. She also found it strange that when they turned back to the previous page, it had the same words on it that it had when they read it the first time.

5. **What do you think a telebook is?**

    * **Answer:** A telebook is a book that can be displayed on a television screen or computer screen. It is an electronic book.

6. **Where was Margie’s school? Did she have any classmates?**

    * **Answer:** Margie’s school was a room right next to her bedroom. No, she did not have any classmates.

7. **What subjects did Margie and Tommy learn?**

    * **Answer:** Margie and Tommy learned subjects like Geography, History, and Arithmetic.

**II. Answer the following with reference to the story.**

1. **“I wouldn’t throw it away.”**

    * **(i) Who says these words?**

        * **Answer:** Tommy says these words.

    * **(ii) What does ‘it’ refer to?**

        * **Answer:** ‘It’ refers to the real book that Tommy found.

    * **(iii) What is it being compared with by the speaker?**

        * **Answer:** It is being compared with their telebooks, which they thought could be thrown away or deleted after reading, but a real book would be kept.

2. **“Sure they had a teacher, but it wasn’t a regular teacher. It was a man.”**

    * **(i) Who does ‘they’ refer to?**

        * **Answer:** ‘They’ refers to the students who studied in the old kind of schools centuries ago.

    * **(ii) What does ‘regular’ mean here?**

        * **Answer:** ‘Regular’ here means the usual kind of teacher Margie and Tommy had, which was a mechanical teacher.

    * **(iii) What is ‘it’ contrasted with?**

        * **Answer:** ‘It’ (the man teacher) is contrasted with the mechanical teacher that Margie and Tommy had.

**III. Answer each of these questions in a short paragraph (about 30 words).**

1. **What kind of teachers did Margie and Tommy have?**

    * **Answer:** Margie and Tommy had mechanical teachers. These were large, black, and ugly machines with a big screen on which lessons were shown and questions were asked. They had a slot where students had to put their homework and test papers.

2. **Why did Margie’s mother send for the County Inspector?**

    * **Answer:** Margie’s mother sent for the County Inspector because Margie had been doing worse and worse in her geography tests given by her mechanical teacher. Her mother wanted the Inspector to check what was wrong with the teacher.

3. **What did he do?**

    * **Answer:** The County Inspector smiled at Margie, gave her an apple, and then took the mechanical teacher apart. He slowed down the geography sector to an average ten-year level, as it had been geared up too quickly.

4. **Why was Margie doing badly in geography? What did the County Inspector do to help her?**

    * **Answer:** Margie was doing badly in geography because the geography sector of her mechanical teacher was geared a little too quick for her age. The County Inspector slowed it down to an average ten-year level to help her.

5. **What had once happened to Tommy’s teacher?**

    * **Answer:** Once, Tommy’s teacher had been taken away for nearly a month because its history sector had blanked out completely.

6. **Did Margie have regular days and hours for school? If so, why?**

    * **Answer:** Yes, Margie had regular days and hours for school, except Saturdays and Sundays. Her mother believed that little girls learned better if they learned at regular hours.

7. **How does Tommy describe the old kind of school?**

    * **Answer:** Tommy describes the old kind of school as a special building where all the kids went. They learned the same things if they were of the same age, and they had a human teacher who taught them.

8. **How does he describe the old kind of teachers?**

    * **Answer:** Tommy describes the old kind of teachers as men, not regular (mechanical) teachers. They taught the students in a special building, gave them homework, and asked them questions.

**IV. Answer each of these questions in two or three paragraphs (100 –150 words).**

1. **What are the main features of the mechanical teachers and the schoolrooms that Margie and Tommy have in the story?**

    * **Answer:** The mechanical teachers in the story are large, black, and ugly machines with a big screen. Lessons are displayed on this screen, and questions are asked. There is a slot where students have to insert their homework and test papers, written in a punch code. These teachers are programmed to teach specific subjects and are adjusted to fit the mind of each individual student. They can be repaired by a County Inspector if something goes wrong.

        Margie's schoolroom was right next to her bedroom. It was a personal space where her mechanical teacher was set up. She didn't have any classmates and had to study alone at fixed times every day, except on weekends. Tommy's schoolroom was likely similar. Their education was very individualized and isolated, relying entirely on technology rather than human interaction or a shared learning environment.

2. **Why did Margie hate school? Why did she think the old kind of school must have been fun?**

    * **Answer:** Margie hated her school mainly because of her mechanical teacher. She found the process of putting homework and test papers into the slot of the mechanical teacher very tedious. Recently, her hatred intensified because the geography sector was geared too quickly, and she was doing worse and worse in her tests, leading to disappointment and scolding from her mother. The lack of human interaction and the monotonous routine also contributed to her dislike.

        She thought the old kind of school must have been fun because all the children from the neighborhood came together, laughing and shouting in the schoolyard. They sat together in the schoolroom and learned the same things, so they could help one another with their homework and talk about it. Most importantly, they had human teachers, which Margie found fascinating. The idea of a shared learning experience and social interaction made the old schools seem very appealing and enjoyable to her.

3. **Do you agree with Margie that schools today are more fun than the school in the story? Give reasons for your answer.**

    * **Answer:** Yes, I agree with Margie that schools today are more fun than the school depicted in the story. In today's schools, students get to interact with human teachers who can understand their emotions, adapt their teaching methods, and provide personal guidance. This human touch is completely missing from the mechanical teachers in the story.

        Moreover, contemporary schools offer a vibrant social environment. Students learn together, play together, share their experiences, and help each other with their studies. This interaction fosters teamwork, communication skills, and friendships, which are crucial for overall development. The school in the story, with its isolated learning in a room next to the bedroom, lacks this vital social dimension. Activities like sports, cultural events, and group projects make learning in today's schools more engaging and enjoyable than the monotonous, individualized instruction Margie received.

**Thinking about Language**

**(Adverbs, Conditional Sentences, etc. - These sections usually involve grammar exercises based on the text.)**

I will provide examples for the "Adverbs" section. If you need solutions for the other grammar exercises (like "If not and unless" or "So and so that"), please let me know.

**I. Find the sentences in the lesson which have the adverbs given in the box below.**

*awfully, sorrowfully, completely, loftily, carefully, differently, quickly, nonchalantly*

1. **awfully:** "They turned the pages, which were yellow and crinkly, and it was **awfully** funny to read words that stood still instead of moving the way they were supposed to – on a screen, you know."

2. **sorrowfully:** "The mechanical teacher had been giving her test after test in geography and she had been doing worse and worse until her mother had shaken her head **sorrowfully** and sent for the County Inspector."

3. **completely:** "They had once taken Tommy’s teacher away for nearly a month because the history sector had blanked out **completely**."

4. **loftily:** "He added **loftily**, pronouncing the word carefully, “Centuries ago.”"

5. **carefully:** "He added loftily, pronouncing the word **carefully**, “Centuries ago.”"

6. **differently:** "But my mother says a teacher has to be adjusted to fit the mind of each boy and girl it teaches and that each kid has to be taught **differently**."

7. **quickly:** "Margie did so with a sigh. She was thinking about the old schools they had when her grandfather’s grandfather was a little boy... The mechanical teacher was flashing on the screen... Margie had to put them in **quickly**." (The exact sentence with "quickly" might vary based on interpretation, but it relates to how fast things happened or how the teacher worked).

    * A more direct one for "quickly": "The Inspector had smiled after he was finished and patted Margie’s head. He said to her mother, “It’s not the little girl’s fault, Mrs Jones. I think the geography sector was geared a little too **quickly**.”

8. **nonchalantly:** "“Maybe,” he said, **nonchalantly**. He walked away whistling, the dusty old book tucked beneath his arm."