NCERT Solutions Class 6 English

Chapter 9: Desert Animals

Summary:
“Desert Animals” provides insights into the unique adaptations of animals that inhabit desert ecosystems. The chapter introduces various desert animals such as the camel, scorpion, snake, and vulture, highlighting their physical characteristics, behaviors, and survival strategies in harsh desert environments. It emphasizes the importance of biodiversity and conservation efforts to protect these fascinating creatures.

Solutions:

  1. Reading Comprehension:
  • Question 1: What is the main focus of the chapter “Desert Animals”?
    • Answer: The main focus of the chapter is to explore the adaptations and survival strategies of animals living in desert ecosystems.
  • Question 2: Name three desert animals mentioned in the chapter and describe one adaptation of each.
    • Answer:
    • Camel: The camel has long eyelashes and nostrils that can close to protect against sandstorms.
    • Scorpion: The scorpion has a thick exoskeleton and burrows underground to avoid extreme temperatures.
    • Snake: Snakes have scales that help reduce water loss, and some species are nocturnal to avoid the heat of the day.
  • Question 3: How do desert animals conserve water?
    • Answer: Desert animals conserve water through various adaptations such as minimizing water loss through urine and feces, reducing metabolic activities during the day, and obtaining moisture from their food.
  • Question 4: Why are vultures important in desert ecosystems?
    • Answer: Vultures play a crucial role in desert ecosystems by scavenging carcasses, which helps prevent the spread of diseases and maintains ecological balance.
  • Question 5: What is the significance of biodiversity in desert ecosystems?
    • Answer: Biodiversity in desert ecosystems ensures ecological resilience, provides essential ecosystem services, and supports human livelihoods through various resources.
  1. Vocabulary:
  • Word 1: Adaptation
    • Meaning: A change or adjustment in structure or behavior by an organism to become better suited to its environment.
  • Word 2: Ecosystem
    • Meaning: A biological community of interacting organisms and their physical environment.
  • Word 3: Conservation
    • Meaning: The protection, preservation, management, or restoration of wildlife and natural resources.
  • Word 4: Biodiversity
    • Meaning: The variety of life forms present in different habitats or ecosystems.
  1. Writing:
  • Write a short paragraph about your favorite desert animal and explain why you find it fascinating.
  1. Grammar:
  • Rewrite the following sentences using the correct tense:
    • Original: Desert animals has many unique adaptations.
    • Rewritten: Desert animals have many unique adaptations.

This is a brief overview of the solutions for Chapter 9: “Desert Animals” in Class 6 English.

WORKING WITH THE TEXT

A. 1. Talk to your partner and say whether the following statements
are true or false.
(i) No animal can survive without water.
(ii) Deserts are endless sand dunes.
(iii) Most snakes are harmless.
(iv) Snakes cannot hear, but they can feel vibrations through
the ground.
(v) Camels store water in their humps.

Answer-

A. True or False Statements

  1. (i) No animal can survive without water. True
  2. (ii) Deserts are endless sand dunes. False
  3. (iii) Most snakes are harmless. True
  4. (iv) Snakes cannot hear, but they can feel vibrations through the ground. True
  5. (v) Camels store water in their humps. False
  1. Answer the following questions.
  2. (i) How do desert animals survive without water? (1)
    (ii) How do mongooses kill snakes? (6)
    (iii) How does the hump of the camels help them to survive when
    there is no water? (9)

B. Answer the Following Questions

  1. How do desert animals survive without water?
    • Desert animals have developed various ways to survive without water. Gerbils, for instance, stay cool in underground burrows during the hottest parts of the day. Darkling beetles collect moisture on their legs, which trickles down into their mouths.
  2. How do mongooses kill snakes?
    • Mongooses kill snakes by making a nuisance of themselves, continually dodging the snake’s strikes until the snake gets tired. Once the snake is exhausted, the mongoose dives in for the kill.
  3. How does the hump of the camels help them to survive when there is no water?
    • The humps of camels store fat, which nourishes them when food is scarce. When camels have nothing to eat for several days, their humps shrink as the fat is used up.

B. Read the words/phrases in the box. With your partner find their
meaning in the dictionary.

harsh conditions harmless survive intruder
threatened predators prey continually

Fill in the blanks in the following passage with the above words/
phrases.

All animals in forests and deserts struggle to ———————————
in ———————————————— . Though most of the animals
are ———————————, some are dangerous when ———————————.
If an ————————————— is noticed, they attack or bite to save
themselves. They struggle ——————————— for food and water.
Some animals are called ————————————— because they
—————————— on other animals.

Answer

1.survive , harsh conditions.

2. harmless, threatened.

3.intruder

4. continually

5. predators , prey

SPEAKING

Look at these sentences

l Deserts are the driest places on earth.
l Gerbils spend the hottest part of the day in cool underground
burrows.
Now form pairs. Ask questions using a suitable form of the word in
brackets. Try to answer the questions too.
Do you know

  1. Which animal is the ___________ (tall)?
  2. Which animal runs the ___________ (fast)?
  3. Which place on earth is the ___________ (hot) or the
    ___________ (cold)?
  4. Which animal is the ___________ (large)?
  5. Which is the ————————————— (tall) mountain in the world?
  6. Which is the ___________ (rainy) place on earth?
  7. Which is the ____________ (old) living animal?
    Can you add some questions of your own?

Answer-

.Which animal is the tallest?

  • The giraffe is the tallest animal.

Which animal runs the fastest?

  • The cheetah is the fastest animal.

.Which place on earth is the hottest or the coldest?

  • The hottest place is Death Valley, USA, and the coldest place is Antarctica.

Which animal is the largest?

  • The blue whale is the largest animal

  1. Which is the tallest mountain in the world?

    • Mount Everest is the tallest mountain in the world.

    Which is the rainiest place on earth?

    • Mawsynram in India is the rainiest place on earth.

    Which is the oldest living animal?

    • The Greenland shark is one of the oldest living animals.

THINKING ABOUT LANGUAGE

A. Look at these sentences.

l Most snakes are quite harmless, but a few are poisonous.
l Most snakes lay eggs, but the rattlesnake gives birth to its
young.
Now write five sentences like these using ‘most’ and the clues below.

  1. (90% of) people are honest (10%) are dishonest.
    —————————————————————————————————————
    —————————————————————————————————————
  2. (Lots of) fruit have plenty of sugar, (some) citrus fruit are low in
    sugar.
    —————————————————————————————————————
  3. (Every soft drink except this one) has lots of ‘empty calories’.
    —————————————————————————————————————
    —————————————————————————————————————
  4. (The majority of) films are romances, (a few) are on other topics.
    —————————————————————————————————————
    —————————————————————————————————————
  5. (A majority of) people agree that he is a good leader, (just a few)
    disagree.
    ————————————

Answer‘

-1. Most people are honest, but a few are dishonest.

. 2.Most fruits have plenty of sugar, but some citrus fruits are low in sugar.

-3. Most soft drinks have lots of ‘empty calories’, but this one does not.

-4. Most films are romances, but a few are on other topics.

-5. Most people agree that he is a good leader, but just a few disagree.

B. Look at these sentences

l Animals cannot survive for long without water.
l So desert animals have to find different ways of coping.
The first sentence says what cannot happen or be done; the second
tells us what must, therefore, be done, what it is necessary to do.
Complete these sentences using cannot and have to/has to.

  1. You —————————— reach the island by land or air; you
    —————————— go by boat.
  2. We —————————— see bacteria with our eyes; we ——————————
    look at them through a microscope.
  3. He—————————— have a new bicycle now; he ———————
    wait till next year.
  4. Old people often —————————— hear very well; they
    —————————— use a hearing aid.
  5. Road users —————————— do what they wish; they
    ————— follow the traffic rules.
  6. She —————————— accept this decision; she ———————
    question it.
  7. You —————————— believe everything you hear; you
    —————————— use your own judgement.

Answer-

Complete the sentences using “cannot” and “have to/has to”:

  1. You cannot reach the island by land or air; you have to go by boat.
  2. We cannot see bacteria with our eyes; we have to look at them through a microscope.
  3. He cannot have a new bicycle now; he has to wait till next year.
  4. Old people often cannot hear very well; they have to use a hearing aid.
  5. Road users cannot do what they wish; they have to follow the traffic rules.
  6. She cannot accept this decision; she has to question it.
  7. You cannot believe everything you hear; you have to use your own judgement.

WRITING

Imagine you are journeying through a desert. Write a couple of
paragraphs describing what you see and hear.

Answer

Journeying Through a Desert

As I journeyed through the vast desert, I could feel the intense heat of the sun beating down on me. The sand stretched out endlessly in all directions, shimmering in the sunlight like a golden sea. Occasionally, I spotted small bushes and hardy desert plants clinging to life in this harsh environment. In the distance, I saw a group of camels, their humps swaying rhythmically as they trudged across the dunes. The only sounds were the whisper of the wind and the distant call of a desert bird. It was a landscape of stark beauty and quiet solitude, where every living thing was a testament to the resilience of life.

Whatif Poem



Are there times when your mind fills with fear? Have you ever
thought,“What if something dangerous happens to me or the
people around me?” “What if the world stops revolving around
the sun?” “What if the sun does not rise in the morning?”
Here is a poem which talks about some more such “Whatifs”.


Last night, while I lay thinking here,
Some Whatifs crawled inside my ear
And pranced and partied all night long
And sang their same old Whatif song:
Whatif I’m dumb in school?
Whatif they’ve closed the swimming-pool?
Whatif I get beat up?
Whatif there’s poison in my cup?
Whatif I start to cry?
Whatif I get sick and die?
Whatif I flunk that test?
Whatif green hair grows on my chest?
Whatif nobody likes me?
Whatif a bolt of lightning strikes me?
Whatif I don’t grow taller?
Whatif my head starts getting smaller?
Whatif the fish won’t bite?

Whatif the wind tears up my kite?
Whatif they start a war?
Whatif my parents get divorced?
Whatif the bus is late?
Whatif my teeth don’t grow in straight?
Whatif I tear my pants?
Whatif I never learn to dance?
Everything seems swell, and then
The night-time Whatif strikes again!
SHEL SILVERSTEIN

WORKING WITH THE POEM

  1. (i) Who is the speaker in the poem?
    (ii) With your partner list out the happenings the speaker is worried
    about.
    (iii) Why do you think she/he has these worries? Can you think
    of ways to get rid of such worries?

Answer-

i) Who is the speaker in the poem?

  • The speaker in the poem is a child who is lying in bed at night, filled with worries and fears about various things that might happen.

(ii) List out the happenings the speaker is worried about.

  • The speaker is worried about:
    • Being unable to perform well in school (being dumb in school)
    • The swimming pool being closed
    • Getting beaten up
    • Having poison in their cup
    • Starting to cry
    • Getting sick and dying
    • Failing a test (flunking a test)
    • Growing green hair on their chest
    • Being disliked by everyone
    • Getting struck by lightning
    • Not growing taller
    • Their head getting smaller
    • Fish not biting when fishing
    • The wind tearing up their kite
    • A war starting
    • Their parents getting divorced
    • The bus being late
    • Their teeth not growing in straight
    • Tearing their pants
    • Never learning to dance

(iii) Why do you think she/he has these worries? Can you think of ways to get rid of such worries?

  • The child has these worries because it is common for children to feel anxious about various aspects of their lives, especially things they have little control over. These worries often surface at night when they are alone with their thoughts.
  • To get rid of such worries, the child can:
    • Talk about their fears with a parent or friend to gain perspective.
    • Write down their worries and rationalize each one.
    • Practice relaxation techniques like deep breathing or meditation.
    • Focus on positive thoughts and outcomes.
    • Engage in activities that bring joy and relaxation before bedtime.

Read the following line.

Some Whatifs crawled inside my ear
Can words crawl into your ear? This is an image. The poet is trying
to make an image of what she/he experiences. Now with your
partner try and list out some more images from the poem.

Answer-

The line “Some Whatifs crawled inside my ear” uses imagery to describe the intrusive and persistent nature of the speaker’s worries. Other images from the poem include:

  • “Pranced and partied all night long” – This creates a visual of worries being active and lively, not letting the speaker rest.
  • “Sang their same old Whatif song” – This suggests that these worries are repetitive and familiar to the speaker.

3. In groups of four discuss some more ‘whatifs’ that you experience
in your day to day life and list them out.
(i) —————————————————————————————————
(ii) —————————————————————————————————
(iii) —————————————————————————————————
(iv) —————————————————————————————————
(v) —————————————————————————————————
(vi) —————————————————————————————————
(vii) —————————————————————————————————
(viii) —————————————————————————————————

Answer-

in groups of four, discuss and list out some more ‘Whatifs’ that you experience in your day-to-day life.
(i) Whatif I forget my homework?
(ii) Whatif my friends don’t like me anymore?
(iii) Whatif I miss the bus to school?
(iv) Whatif I get lost in a new place?
(v) Whatif I can’t find my favorite book?
(vi) Whatif I make a mistake in my presentation?
(vii) Whatif my favorite team loses the game?
(viii) Whatif I have a bad dream?