Part I (Santosh Yadav)

Thinking about the Text 

I. Answer these questions in one or two sentences each. (The paragraph numbers within brackets provide clues to the answers.)

Q1. Why was the ‘holy man’ who gave Santosh’s mother his blessings surprised?
Answer: The ‘holy man’ was surprised because he assumed Santosh’s mother wanted a son. However, the grandmother told him that they did not want a son, which was an unusual request in their traditional society.

Q2. Give an example to show that even as a young girl Santosh was not ready to accept anything unreasonable.
Answer: As a young girl, Santosh showed her unwillingness to accept anything unreasonable by wearing shorts instead of traditional Indian dresses. She believed that if she was on a correct and rational path, others had to change, not her.

Q3. Why was Santosh sent to the local school?
Answer: Santosh was sent to the local village school in accordance with the prevailing custom of the family, even though her parents were affluent landowners and could afford to send her to a school in Delhi.

Q4. When did she leave home for Delhi, and why?
Answer: She left home for Delhi when she was sixteen. She left because she was under pressure to get married and she wanted to get a proper education, threatening her parents that she would never marry if she wasn’t educated.

Q5. Why did Santosh’s parents agree to pay for her schooling in Delhi? What mental qualities of Santosh are brought into light by this incident?
Answer: Santosh’s parents agreed to pay for her schooling in Delhi when she informed them that she would work part-time to pay her fees herself. This incident highlights her strong determination, self-reliance, and independent spirit.

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

Q1. How did Santosh begin to climb mountains?
Answer: From her room at Kasturba Hostel, Santosh used to watch villagers climbing the Aravalli Hills. One day she decided to check it out herself and found some mountaineers. They motivated her to take up climbing, and there was no looking back for her after that.

Q2. What incidents during the Everest expedition show Santosh’s concern for her team-mates?
Answer: During the Everest expedition, Santosh showed her concern by providing special care to a climber who was dying at the South Col. She was also able to save another climber, Mohan Singh, by sharing her oxygen with him.

Q3. What shows her concern for the environment?
Answer: Santosh’s concern for the environment is evident from her fervent environmentalism. After scaling Mt Everest for the second time, she collected and brought down 500 kilograms of garbage from the Himalayas.

Q4. How does she describe her feelings at the summit of the Everest?
Answer: At the summit, Santosh said the feeling was indescribable. It was a spiritual moment for her when she unfurled the Indian tricolour and held it aloft on the ‘roof of the world’. She felt proud as an Indian.

Q5. Santosh Yadav got into the record books both times she scaled Mt Everest. What were the reasons for this?
Answer: The first time she scaled Mt Everest, she became the youngest woman in the world to achieve the feat at barely twenty years of age. The second time, she set a record as the only woman to have scaled Mt Everest twice.

III. Complete the following statements.

1. From her room in Kasturba Hostel, Santosh used to ………………
2. When she finished college, Santosh had to write a letter of apology to her father because ………………
3. During the Everest expedition, her seniors in the team admired her ……………… while ……………… endeared her to fellow climbers.

Answers:

1. … see the villagers going up the hill and suddenly vanishing after a while.
2. … she was going directly for training and not home which she should have done.
3. … climbing skills, physical fitness and mental strength while working together endeared her to fellow climbers.

IV. Pick out words from the text that mean the same as the following words or expressions. (Look in the paragraphs indicated.)

1. took to be true without proof
   ………………………………
2. based on reason; sensible; reasonable
   ………………………………
3. the usual way of doing things (para 3):
   ………………………………
4. a strong desire arising from within (5):
5. the power to endure, without falling
   ill (7): …………………….

Answer:

1. took to be true without proof : assumed
2. based on reason; sensible; reasonable: rational
3. the usual way of doing things (para 3): custom
4. a strong desire arising from within : urge
5. the power to endure, without falling
   ill (7): endurance

Part II (Maria Sharapova)

Thinking about the Text 

Working in small groups of 4-5 students, go back over the two passages on Santosh Yadav and Maria Sharapova and complete the table given below with relevant phrases or sentences.

Answer:

Thinking about Language

Look at the following sentences. They each have two clauses, or two parts each with their own subject and verb or verb phrase. Often, one part (italicised) tells us when or why something happened.

• I reached the market when most of the shops had closed. (Tells us when I reached.)
• When Rahul Dravid walked back towards the pavilion, everyone stood up. (Tells us when everyone stood up.)
• The telephone rang and Ganga picked it up. (Tells us what happened next.)
• Gunjan has been with us ever since the school began. (Tells us for how long he has been with us.)

I. Identify the two parts in the sentences below by underlining the part that gives us the information in brackets, as shown above.

Q1.Where other girls wore traditional Indian dresses, Santosh preferred shorts. (Contrasts her dress with that of others.)
Answer:
Where other girls wore traditional Indian dresses, Santosh preferred shorts.

Q2.She left home and got herself enrolled in a school in Delhi. (Tells us what happened after the first action.)
Answer:
She left home and got herself enrolled in a school in Delhi.

Q3.She decided to fight the system when the right moment arrived. (Tells us when she was going to fight the system?)
Answer:
She decided to fight the system when the right moment arrived.

Q4. Little Maria had not yet celebrated her tenth birthday when she was packed off to train in the United States. (Tells us when Maria was sent to the US?)
Answer:
Little Maria had not yet celebrated her tenth birthday when she was packed off to train in the United States

II. Now rewrite the pairs of sentences given below as one sentence.

Q1. Grandfather told me about the old days. All books were printed on paper then.
Answer: Grandfather told me about the old days when all books were printed on paper.

Q2. What do you do after you finish the book? Perhaps you just throw it away.
Answer: After you finish the book, perhaps you just throw it away.

Q3.He gave the little girl an apple. He took the computer apart.
Answer: He took the computer apart after he gave the little girl an apple.

Q4. You have nothing. That makes you very determined.
Answer: The fact that you have nothing makes you very determined.

Q5.I never thought of quitting. I knew what I wanted.
Answer: I never thought of quitting because I knew what I wanted.

Dictation
Read the passage once. Then close your books. Your teacher will dictate the story to you. Write it down with the correct punctuation and paragraphing.

The Raincoat
After four years of drought in a small town in the Northeast, the Vicar gathered everyone together for a pilgrimage to the mountain, where they would pray together and ask for the rain to return.

The priest noticed a boy in the group wearing a raincoat.

“Have you gone mad ?” he asked. “It hasn’t rained in this region for five years, the heat will kill you climbing the mountain.”

“I have a cold, father. If we are going to ask God for rain, can you imagine the way back from the mountain ? It’s going to be such a downpour that I need to be prepared.”

At that moment a great crash was heard in the sky and the first drops began to fall. A boy’s faith was enough to bring about a miracle that not even those most prepared truly believed in.

(translated by James Mulholland)
Answer:
Do it yourself.

Speaking

Imagine that you are Santosh Yadav, or Maria Sharapova. You have been invited to speak at an All India Girls’ Athletic Meet, as chief guest. Prepare a short speech to motivate the girls to think and dream big and make an effort to fulfil their dreams, not allowing difficulties or defeat to discourage them. Thefollowing words and phrases may help you.

• Self confident/confidence/sure of yourself
• self assured/assurance/belief in yourself
• morale/boost morale/raise morale
• giving somebody a boost/fillip/lift
• demoralising/unsure of yourself/insecure/ lack confidence

Answer:
Good Morning Everybody !

I am glad to see all the participants at this platform. Your life solely depends on the sincere efforts you are ready to make. Your indomitable faith in your potential, strong determination and hard work can help you in bringing laurels to your family, nation and yourself. One must not lose confidence while trying to achieve a challenging task. Those who devote themselves completely to their goals and are self-confident attain considerable success within a short span of time. Their achievements boost their morale and become a source of fascination to others. My advice to you is to maintain the spirit of sportsmanship and do miracles in whatever field you are.

Thanks

Writing

Which of these words would you use to describe Santosh Yadav? Find reasons in the text to support your choices, and write a couple of paragraphs describing Santosh’s character.

Answer:

Santosh Yadav’s character can be described by the words: determined, resourceful, independent, adventurous, considerate, and persevering.

Santosh was a determined and independent girl from a young age. She refused to live life according to the traditional customs of her family and village. When her parents pressured her to marry at sixteen, she stood her ground and insisted on getting a proper education. She was also resourceful, as she threatened to work part-time to pay for her schooling, which ultimately convinced her parents to support her. Her adventurous spirit and perseverance are evident in her decision to pursue mountaineering. She enrolled in a course at the Nehru Institute of Mountaineering without her father’s permission and went on an expedition every year, developing a remarkable resistance to cold and altitude.

Her considerate nature also made her a beloved team-mate. During her first Everest mission, she not only showed concern for a dying climber at South Col but also shared her oxygen with a fellow climber, Mohan Singh, to save his life. She was also a fervent environmentalist who brought down 500 kilograms of garbage from the Himalayas. Her courage, grit, and kind-heartedness allowed her to become a world-renowned mountaineer and an inspiration to many.