**Vocation** = a person's job or work they do daily. **Key Words from the Poem:** Hawker (street seller), Gardener (grows plants), Watchman (night guard), Lantern (light carried by watchman), Spade (digging tool), Lane (narrow path), Gong (sound at school), Giant (huge creature). **The Poem Structure:** Written by Rabindranath Tagore, it has three parts showing three different jobs. The speaker sees each worker at different times: hawker at 10 a.m., gardener at 4 p.m., watchman at night. **Grammar to Remember:** 'I wish I were' (used when speaking about dreams). Subject-verb agreement: 'The watchman walks' (singular), not 'The watchman walk'. **Don't Confuse:** Hawker ≠ shop keeper. Hawker walks and sells on street; shop keeper sits in a shop. Vocation = paid work; household chores are not vocations. **Important Lesson:** The poem teaches respect for all kinds of work and workers. Every job has value and freedom in its own way.
Q1. At what time of the morning does the speaker meet the hawker?
Answer: A — The poem clearly states 'When the gong sounds ten in the morning and I walk to school by our lane, Every day I meet the hawker.'
Q2. What does the word 'vocation' mean?
Answer: B — Vocation refers to a person's job or the work they do regularly in their life.
Q3. Why does the child wish to be a gardener?
Answer: B — The poem says the gardener 'does what he likes with his spade' and nobody tells him what to do or when to work.
Q4. What tool does the gardener use in the poem?
Answer: C — The poem mentions 'He does what he likes with his spade' when describing what the gardener does.
Q5. What does the watchman carry while walking at night?
Answer: B — The poem states 'The watchman swings his lantern and walks with his shadow at his side.'
Q6. What does the child compare the street lamp to?
Answer: B — The poem says 'the street-lamp stands like a giant with one red eye in its head.'
Q7. When does the speaker see the watchman?
Answer: C — The poem begins the third part with 'Just as it gets dark in the evening and my mother sends me to bed, I can see the watchman.'
Q8. What does the hawker cry while walking in the lane?
Answer: B — The poem clearly states that the hawker is 'crying, Bangles, crystal bangles!'
Q9. Fill in the blank: A _______ is a narrow path where people walk.
Answer: B — Lane is a narrow path mentioned in the poem; it is where the hawker walks and where the speaker meets him.
Q10. Why does the child not want to go to bed like other children?
Answer: B — The poem states the child wishes 'I were a watchman walking the streets all night, chasing the shadows with my lantern' and the watchman 'never once goes to bed in his life.'
What is a vocation?
A vocation is a person's job or the work they do every day.
Who is the speaker in the poem?
The speaker is a school child who walks to school and back home.
Why does the child want to be a hawker?
Because the hawker has no fixed time, no road to follow, and can spend the day freely crying 'Bangles, crystal bangles!'
What does the gardener do in the poem?
The gardener digs the ground with a spade and does what he likes without anyone stopping him.
What does the child compare the street lamp to?
The child compares the street lamp to a giant with one red eye in its head.
What does the watchman carry while walking?
The watchman carries a lantern while walking up and down the lane at night.
What time does the child see the hawker?
The child sees the hawker at ten in the morning when walking to school.
What word means a narrow path?
Lane is a narrow path, like the small street where the hawker walks.
What is a spade used for?
A spade is a gardening tool used for digging the ground and moving soil.
Why does the child admire people with different jobs?
Because each person has freedom in their work and does things the child wishes to do.
Who wrote the poem 'Vocation'? [1 mark]
The poet's name is mentioned at the end of the poem. Look for the name of a famous Indian poet.
Match the following workers with their tools: 1. Hawker — a) Lantern 2. Gardener — b) Spade 3. Watchman — c) Bangles [2 marks]
Read the poem carefully to see what each worker uses or carries. Hawker sells bangles, gardener digs with spade, watchman carries lantern.
Why does the child in the poem admire people with different vocations? Explain with two reasons from the poem. [3 marks]
Think about what freedom each worker has. The hawker has no fixed time or place; the gardener can do what he likes; the watchman never goes to bed. Look for the phrases 'I wish I were' in the poem.
The speaker in the poem sees three different workers at three different times of the day. Describe what the speaker sees and feels about each worker. (You may draw and label a picture of one worker with your answer if you wish.) [5 marks]
Part 1: Hawker at 10 a.m. — why does the child want to be like him? Part 2: Gardener at 4 p.m. — what freedom does he have? Part 3: Watchman at night — what does the child think about him? Use the phrases from the poem to support your answer.
True or False: The child wants to be a hawker because he will earn a lot of money. Give a reason for your answer. [2 marks]
Read the first part of the poem again. The child says 'There is nothing to hurry him on, there is no road he must take, no place he must go to.' Money is not mentioned. The child wants freedom, not money.
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