NCERT Class 5 English Santoor Chapter 02 Gone with the Scooter PDF Download

Chapter 2: Gone with the Scooter

Let us Read

It was a summer afternoon. Gopi was sitting in the veranda, reading a book.

Suddenly, he heard something rustling past and falling with a thud in the garden. He wondered what it could be. Perhaps, it was a mango falling from the tree. Immediately, Gopi put his book aside, got up, and ran into the garden.

He searched in between the thick grass near the garden fence. But, he found nothing. He looked among the bushes. Nothing was there again. Then, his eyes fell on a heap of dry leaves. There was a white ball on the heap. Gopi reached out and took the ball in his hands. It was a hockey ball.

Gopi wondered, "Whose ball could this be?" He looked around, and peeped outside the gate, but could see no one. Just then he heard his mother calling. "Gopi! What are you doing out in the garden? It's very hot. Come inside."

Gopi went inside, and drank a glass of water. He lay down on the mat, and said to himself, "I can't keep this ball for myself. I will ask around."

In the evening, Gopi went to the nearby playground where all his friends regularly gathered to play hockey.

"Friends, this afternoon I found a ball. Did any of you lose your ball recently?"

Manoj said, "I lost a ball four months ago."

Gopi said, "So, the ball that I found cannot be yours."

Ramani said, "Then the ball is mine."

"How do you know?' asked Gopi. "What colour is it?"

"Show me the ball and I will tell you," said Ramani smilingly.

Another friend Deepak boasted that his father had bought him a brand-new football the previous day. "The ball I found is a hockey ball," said Gopi.

Everyone laughed. Gopi took out the ball from his pocket. Manoj grabbed it and tossed it over to Deepak.

Seeing this, Gopi said at the top of his voice, "Stop! I say, stop! Let's play before it gets dark."

Manoj went to the goalpost as he liked to be a goalkeeper. Gopi stood at the centre of the field holding the hockey stick. He passed the ball to Deepak, who drove the ball towards Ramani. Ramani dribbled the ball with the stick and it went to Jay.

"Come on Jay, play the shot and drive it towards the goalpost," Manoj said loudly.

Jay tightened his wrist around the stick with the flat side touching the ball. He hit the ball so hard that it went past the playground gate and fell into the basket of a passing scooter. The scooterist who was unaware of what had happened, drove past. By the time the children ran to the gate, the scooter was gone ... and so was the ball. They looked at each other and burst into laughter.

Teacher's Note

Notice how Gopi's honesty shapes the story. When he finds the ball, he doesn't keep it - he decides to ask around. Later, when Ramani jumps to claim it without checking, Gopi questions her. This shows that Gopi thinks carefully before giving things away. How would the story have been different if Gopi had simply given the ball to the first person who claimed it?

New Words

dribble rustling grab boast unaware thud

Let us Think

A. Answer the following questions.

1. What was Gopi doing on the veranda?
2. What sound did Gopi hear before he went to the garden?
3. Describe Gopi's search for the ball.
4. Complete the table given below.

   S. No.	Dialogue	The dialogue was said by	The dialogue was said to
   a.	The ball I found is a hockey ball.
   b.	My father bought me a brand-new football.
   c.	I lost a ball four months ago.
   d.	Show me the ball and I will tell you.

5. Who grabbed the ball from Gopi? How did the game start?
6. Why did everyone laugh at the end of the story?

Teacher's Note

The ending of this story is unexpected and funny. The ball that Gopi found, decided not to keep, and carefully tried to return to its owner - disappears on a passing scooter! Sometimes in life, despite our best efforts and good intentions, things don't turn out the way we planned. The children's laughter shows they can appreciate the humor in this surprising turn of events.

Key Points

• Gopi finds a hockey ball in his garden and searches for its owner instead of keeping it for himself.
• When friends gather to play, they begin a game with the ball, but it accidentally lands in the basket of a passing scooter and disappears.
• The story shows how unexpected and funny things can happen, even when people try their best to do the right thing.

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