NCERT Solutions for Poem Chivvy Class 7 English Honeycomb
"Chivvy" by Michael Rosen describes how parents and elders attempt to impose rules upon children. He describes how they ask children to sit or stand according to their wishes. They ask them to speak up rather than help them. Chivvy talks about how adults keep telling kids what to do and what not to do. Grown-ups tell them how to eat, how to sit, how to speak, etc. In the final lines of the poem, adults expect children to make their own decisions, whereas at all other times they expect children to listen and follow their instructions blindly.
Chapter Name | Chivvy NCERT Solutions |
Class | CBSE Class 7 |
Textbook Name | Honeycomb |
Related Readings |
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Page No: 70
Working with the Poem
Question 1: Discuss these questions in small groups before you answer them.
(i) When is a grown-up likely to say this? Don’t talk with your mouth full.
Answer:
A grown-up will likely say this to a child while they are eating, when they are trying to speak with food still in their mouths.
(ii) When are you likely to be told this? Say thank you.
Answer:
The expectation is that we should thank people who help us or give us something when we receive it.
(iii) When do you think an adult would say this? No one thinks you are funny.
Answer:
Whenever a child acts weird or does something funny and tries to attract attention, an adult would tell him - no one thinks you are funny.
Question 2: The last two lines of the poem are not prohibitions or instructions. What is the adult now asking the child to do? Do you think the poet is suggesting that this is unreasonable? Why?
Answer:
The adult constantly advises the child what to do or what not to do. In the last two lines, the adult expects the child to make his own decisions as if he hadn't been given advice on what to do and what not to do. Yes, the poet suggests that this is unreasonable because a child has no choice but to follow instructions and prohibited actions regarding everything he does. The pronoun he refers to the child in a general sense without specifying its gender.
Question 3: Why do you think grown-ups say the kind of things mentioned in the poem? Is it important that they teach children good manners, and how to behave in public?
Answer:
In order to teach good manners to their children, adults say such things. Parents want their children to be responsible citizens and behave properly in public. Children should be taught all these things so that they will be able to behave properly in society, at home, and with their elders and young ones. We can learn a lot from our elders.
Question 4: If you had to make some rules for grown-ups to follow, what would you say? Make at least five such rules. Arrange the lines as in a poem.
Answer:
I would make rules like: Don't abuse anyone.
Schedule a time slot for fun and game. Keep the neighbourhood clean.
Don't smoke or spit publically. No physical punishments.