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AN
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Reading A : Dr. Dwarakanath Kotnis
LA
Reading B : Be Thankful (Poem)
Reading C : The Dead Rat
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T
ER
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 Gratitude

A
AN
NG
LA
TE
T
ER

Mother Teresa receiving 1979 Nobel Peace Prize.

SC

1. Why do you think Mother Teresa was awarded Nobel Peace Prize?
2. Do you know the name of any Indian who may have rendered any significant services
in another country and is still remembered and honoured by the people there?
Oral Discourse: Talk on - “Mention different ways to express our gratitude towards
the people who serve the society.”

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 A Reading

A
Dr. Dwarakanath Kotnis

AN
No other Indian can claim the kind of adulation and respect Dr. Dwarakanath Kotnis
enjoys in China. Coming from a family of doctors, Dr. Kotnis had always dreamt of
becoming a physician. And the War of Resistance gave him the perfect opportunity to
make himself useful in the battle field. He dedicated his entire life working as a battlefront
doctor in China and rendered his selfless service to the injured Chinese soldiers during

NG
the Second Sino-Japanese War. Dr. Kotnis’ contribution towards humanity will be
remembered for ever.

Dr. Dwarakanath Kotnis was born in a lower

middle class family on October 10, 1910 in
LA
Sholapur, Maharashtra. A vivacious kid by nature, Dr.
Kotnis forever aspired to become a doctor. After
completing his graduation in medicine from G. S.
Medical College, Bombay, he went on to pursue his
TE

post-graduation internship. However, he put aside his

post-graduation plans when he got the chance to join
the medical aid mission to China.
Dr. Kotnis always wanted to travel around the
T

world and practise medicine in different parts of the

globe. He started his medical expedition in Vietnam, and then, moved on to Singapore and
ER

Brunei. In 1937, the communist General Zhu De requested Jawaharlal Nehru to send Indian
physicians to China during the Second Sino-Japanese War to help the soldiers. The President
of the Indian National Congress, Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose accepted the request and
made arrangements to send a team of volunteer doctors. A medical team of five doctors
SC

was sent as a part of Indian Medical Mission Team in September 1938. The medical team
comprised of M. Atal, M. Cholkar, D. Kotnis, B.K. Basu and D. Mukerji. After the war, all
other doctors except Dr. Kotnis, returned to India. However, Dr. Kotnis decided to stay
back and serve at the military base. He initially started his work in Yan’an and then went to
the anti-Japanese base area in North China where he worked in the surgical department of
the Eighth Route Army General Hospital as the physician-in-charge.

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 It was while working with the soldiers that Dr. Kotnis lost his heart to a Chinese
woman, Guo Qinglan. They were working in the same hospital. Dr.Kotnis was a doctor and

A
Guo, a nurse. In November 1941, Kotnis married Guo and a son was born on August 23,
1942. They named the boy “Yin Hua” combining the Chinese characters “Yin” for India and

AN
“Hua” for China.
He worked as a lecturer for sometime in the Military area at the Dr. Bethune Hygiene
School. He took over the post of the first president of the Bethune International Peace
Hospital after Dr. Norman Bethune passed away.

NG
During a long-drawn out battle against Japanese troops in 1940, Dr. Kotnis performed
operations for 72 hours non-stop without any sleep and his small team conducted 50
operations everyday for a fortnight. In those harsh times, Mrs. Guo proved an ideal soul-
mate but was modest about her contribution. Dr. Kotnis played a major role in controlling
LA
a virulent strain of plague that hit Chinese soldiers. In the process, he did not fall back from
trying out a vaccine on himself. The hardships of suppressed military life and the stresses
that were especially relevant to the front-line doctors finally began to tell on Dr. Kotnis.
He died of epilepsy on December 9, 1942 at the age of 32, and was buried in the Heroes
TE

Courtyard, Nanquan Village.

In order to cherish the memory of Dr. Kotnis, the Chinese government built a memorial
hall for him in Shijiazhuang city, Hebei
Province in 1976. No single Indian has been
so much revered by ordinary Chinese as this
T

doctor from a middle class family in

ER

Northern India. Along with the Canadian Dr.

Norman Bethune, he continues to be revered
by the Chinese people. In April 2005, both
their graves were covered completely in
flowers donated by the Chinese people
SC

during the Qingming Festival, a day used by

the Chinese to commemorate their ancestors. A small museum there has a hand book which
contains words that Kotnis wrote in his “Passage from India to China”, some of the
instruments that the surgeons used at their time and many photographs of doctors.
Both China and India honoured him with stamps in 1982 and 1993 respectively.

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 On a later occasion, Kotnis’ family
stood before his grave in North China

A
Martyrs’ Memorial Cemetery, Hebei
Province. The family also toured Shijiazhuang

AN
and visited the Dr Bethune International Peace
Hospital, where Kotnis once served as its
director. In exclusive interviews with China
Daily in Beijing and Shanghai, the family

NG
members shared their memories of the
doctor, not only as a hero but also as a loved
brother, husband and an adventurous young
man.
“He was vivacious, and liked singing.
LA
Sometimes I couldn’t stop laughing when he
told jokes,” said Guo, recalling Kotnis with a
smile.
TE

The tragic tale was to continue even after

Dr. Kotnis’ death. Their son Yin Hua who was
three months old when Dr. Kotnis died, also
passed away when he was just 25. Mrs. Kotnis
moved to Dalian in the 60s and lived there
T

since. Despite the two premature deaths Mrs.

Kotnis never let weeds cover her India connection. She visited the country at least half a
ER

dozen times and maintained her links with the Kotnis family.
Mrs. Kotnis had been an honoured guest at many high-level diplomatic functions
between China and India such as the banquet Dalian Mayor Bo Xilai hosted for then Indian
President K.R. Narayanan in June 2000 and during the visit of then Indian Prime Minister
SC

Vajpayee to Beijing in June 2003. She was a regular invitee at the Indian Embassy functions
in China. In November 2006, she accompanied Chinese President Hu Jintao on a state visit
to India. She died on 28 June 2012.
While Kotnis is venerated in China, with textbooks recounting his story to children
and a Beijing hospital even creating a medical team in his memory, very little is known of

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 him in the land of his birth. ‘Few in Mumbai or the rest of the country know about the
doctor who served in China during the 1938 Sino-Japanese war and died there in 1942,’

A
says his septuagenarian younger sister Vatsala.

AN
NG
LA
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However, Dr. Kotnis became famous in his hometown after his death with the
publication of his best-selling biography “One Who Never Returned” written by a film
journalist, Khwaja Abbas Ahmed in 1945 and the screening of the 1946 classic Bollywood
movie “Dr.Kotnis Ki Amar Kahani”, directed by V.Shantaram.
T

Echoing Vatsala is Leena Fernandes, the general secretary of the Mumbai chapter of
the Indo- China Friendship Association: ‘Friendly ties between India and China have their
ER

own significance, even on a humanitarian level. The selfless service rendered by Dr.
Dwarakanath Shantaram Kotnis, a proud son of India, during the Sino-Japanese war and to
wounded Chinese soldiers is an evergreen symbol of the human relationship between the
people of India and China.’
SC

Added Kotnis’ elder sister Manorama, sitting in their 60-year apartment crowded
with Chinese memorabilia: ‘Had it not been for the renowned filmmaker V. Shantaram and
the Amar Chitra Katha comic book and maybe a few others, Indians would have never known
how our brother, who served in Mao Zedong’s Red Army, saved lives during the war.’

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 Glossary

A
adulation (n) : admiration; praise
vivacious (adj) : cheerful

AN
virulent (adj) : dangerous
shy away (phr.v) : avoid something that you dislike
epilepsy (n) : a disease of the nervous system that causes a person to
fall unconscious

NG
revered (v) : respected or admired deeply
commemorate (v) : keep a great person, event etc. in people’s memories
venerated (v) : respected
septuagenarian (n) : a person who crossed 70 years
memorabilia (n) :
LA
objects that are collected in memory of persons and events

n
Comprehensio
TE

I. Answer the following questions.

1. Why was Dr. Kotnis sent to China?
2. What was Dr. Kotnis’ contribution to the Dr. Bethune International Peace
Hospital in China?
T

3. Why did Dr. Kotnis opt to stay back in China?

4. How did the Chinese show their gratitude towards Dr. Kotnis?
ER

5. Why was Mrs. Kotnis a regular invitee at the Indian Embassy functions in
China?
6. What sort of person , do you think, was Dr. Kotnis ? What are your impressions
about him?
SC

II. Read the passage about Dr. Kotnis again and fill in the form given
below.
1. Name :
2. Year of birth :
3. Place of birth :
4. Occupation :
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 5. Nationality :
6. Wife’s name :

A
7. Places of work and the positions held :
8. Honours given by China and India :

AN
9. Date of death :

Vocabulary

I. Here are some words that are related to the word ‘doctor’.

NG
In how many ways can you classify the following words?
neurologist MBBS syringe treatment
white coat ambulance MD crocin
clinic LA physician hospital patient
profession : physician
specialization : neurologist
qualification : MBBS, MD
dress code : white coat
TE

medicines : crocin
place of work : clinic, hospital
service : treatment
tools : syringe
T

related vehicle : ambulance

target group : patient
ER

Mapping these meanings through words is called semantic mapping. A set of

words related in meaning are said to belong to the same semantic field.
e.g. bus, driver, conductor, ticket etc.
Write four words that belong to and that you can associate with the
SC

following words.
1. space (a) (b) (c) (d)
2. business (a) (b) (c) (d)
3. occupation (a) (b) (c) (d)
4. travel (a) (b) (c) (d)

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 II. Read the sentence given below.
Dr. Kotnis lost his heart to a Chinese woman.

A
What does the expression ’lose heart’ mean?
‘Lost his heart’ means ‘fell in love’.

AN
Here is one more expression using the word ‘heart’.
‘Eat your heart out’. (suffer from envy or jealousy)
e.g: I am going to New York next week. Eat your heart out!
e.g: When he hears about your promotion he will eat his heart out.

NG
III. Match the following.
A B
1. have a heart ( ) sadness
2. broken heart ( ) no feelings
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3. heavy heart ( ) a very deep thank you
4. take to heart ( ) be merciful
5. a heart of stone ( ) lost love
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6. thanks from the bottom of my heart( ) take seriously

Grammar

Coordination is a grammatical process by which two or more words,phrases or

T

clauses of the same rank are conjoined.

A conjunction that joins parts of a sentence (words, phrases or clauses) that are
ER

grammatically equal or similar in importance and structure is called a Coordinating

Conjunction.
e.g: and, but, or, nor, for, yet, so.
Coordinate Conjunctions: and, but, or, yet, so, neither..nor, either..or, not only..but
SC

also, both etc.

Subordinate Conjunctions: when, before, after, since, while, as, till, until,
whenever, as long as, as soon as, no sooner..than, scarcely.... then, hardly ... when,
wherever, because, inorder that, so..that, if, though, even though, whereas, as if,
whether..or etc.

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 Compound sentence and Complex sentence
Observe the following sentences.

A
1. Dr. Kotnis was a doctor and Guo, a nurse.
2. I could not stop laughing when he told jokes.

AN
What are the main clauses in each sentence?
How many subordinate clauses are there in sentences 1 and 2?
Dr. Kotnis was a doctor and Guo, a nurse. (two main clauses)
I could not stop laughing when he told jokes. (one main clause and one subordinate

NG
clause)
‘I could not stop laughing’ is a main clause, ‘when he told jokes’ is a subordinate
clause.
A sentence which consists of two or more main clauses combined with
coordinate conjunctions is called a Compound Sentence.
LA
A sentence which consists of one main clause and one or more subordinate
clauses combined with subordinate conjunctions is called a Complex Sentence.
Read the following sentences. Identify the clauses and say whether they are
TE

main clauses or subordinate clauses.

1. John suffers from Asthma but attends school regularly.
2. We like songs but they like games.
3. Japan attacked China in 1937 and wounded many soldiers.
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4. If the rain stops, we will go out.

ER

5. She was unhappy or she was upset.

6. The shops were closed because there was a strike.
Editing
Read the following passage. Every numbered sentence has an error.
SC

Identify and edit it.

(1)Tenali Rama Krishna was not see in the royal court. (2)The king sent guards to
search for him and bring him to the court, but they could not find them. (3)They went to the
court and reporting this to the king. (4)The King grew worried and asked the guards to
search more careful. (5)After some day, the guards found Tenali Rama Krishna.

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 Writing

A
Developing Headlines.

AN
When writing a news report for a newspaper, or your school News Board, the
headline is the first and foremost impression you make on your reader. Therefore,
writing a headline is a critical and creative art.
Most of the people read only the headlines while reading a newspaper, to get the

NG
gist of the news.
● Headlines often contain a noun phrase with no verb.
● Head lines may have noun strings (several nouns put together).
● Various changes are made in the headlines.
LA
● The simple tense form is used instead of the continuous or perfect form.
● The infinite form refers to the future.
● The auxiliary verb is dropped in the passive form.
● Articles are dropped; full-stops are not placed after headlines.
TE

● Head lines may contain initials and abbreviations.

e.g: Prime Minster’s advice
e.g: Man snatches woman’s chain
e.g: Andhra Pradesh State Board Examination results declared
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e.g: Hyderabad celebrates kite festival

ER

e.g: Chief Minister to inaugurate Craft Bazars

e.g: Passengers injured seriously in Nellore train accident
e.g: India to host SAARC meet in U.P

I. Now write a headline for each of the following news reports.

SC

Remember to pick out only the main idea or words from the sentence.
Hyderabad: with an alarming rise in cases of missing people, especially women
and children since 2009, the Police have stepped up measures to trace them in co-
ordination with various agencies and police forces.
____________________________________________________________

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 The full moon that rises on this Friday night, August 31, 2012, will be a Blue Moon.
That’s what it has been dubbed as in modern folklore of the west. But will it actually

A
be blue?
____________________________________________________________

AN
“ If you look at the last three months, I am really practising well. I am looking
forward to playing my first game after a year.”
____________________________________________________________
Next time your cell phone runs out of battery, you can charge it by just holding it in

NG
your hands as the scientist claims to have developed a new technology that turns
body heat into electricity.
____________________________________________________________

II Look at the picture where students are serving in an old age home.
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TE
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ER
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Discussion points.
1. Do old people go to old age homes on their own or are they forced to go there?
2. What are the conditions which make people leave their own homes and go to an old
age home?

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 3. In what way are the conditions at an old age home different from those at home?
4. Are there any ways to prevent old people from going to old age homes?

A
III. Now write an article based on the following hints.
● What are old age homes?

AN
● Why do old people go there?
● Facilities at old age homes
● Compare facilities at home and old age homes

NG
Listening

Listen to your teacher. She/he will read out an announcement made

by the Headmaster of a Govt. High School. Answer the following
questions.
LA
1. What is the announcement about?
2. Who are the special guests joining their mission?
TE

3. What are the students asked to do in the programme?

4. Why does the Headmaster call it a mission?

Oral Activity
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If you get an opportunity to propose a ‘Vote of Thanks’ after completing the

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Enrolment Drive Programme, how would you do it?

Prepare ‘Vote of Thanks’ to thank Mr. Rajkumar, Mrs. Christina, and all other
participants.
Clues:
SC

Introduction of the programme

About the participants and the service they offered during the programme.
Their role in making the programme a great success.
Thanking each and everyone referring to their role in the programme.
Requesting the extension of their service in future.

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 B Reading

A
Be Thankful

AN
Be thankful that you don't already have everything you desire,
if you did, what would there be to look forward to?
Be thankful when you don't know something,
for it gives you the opportunity to learn.

NG
Be thankful for the difficult times,
during those times you grow.
Be thankful for your limitations,
because they give you opportunities for improvement.
LA
Be thankful for each new challenge,
because it will build your strength and character.
Be thankful for your mistakes,
they will teach you valuable lessons.
TE

Be thankful when you're tired and weary,

because it means you've made a difference.
It's easy to be thankful for the good things,
a life of rich fulfillment comes to those who
T

are also thankful for the setbacks.

Gratitude can turn a negative into a positive.
ER

Find a way to be thankful for your troubles,

and they can become your blessings.

n
Comprehensio
SC

Answer the following questions.

1. The poet depicts different situations/aspects of life where we need to be thankful.
What are they?
2. Do you agree to the poet’s ideas? Yes / No? Give reasons.
3. How do difficulties help us grow? When will troubles become blessings?

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 C Reading

A
The Dead Rat

AN
In the city of Ujjain there was a young merchant named Madananka. He lost his
father when he was in his teens. So, it was his mother who brought him up with great affection
and love. Unfortunately, he turned out to be a vagabond. His mother hoped that he would
become normal and settle down if he was married, and so, she found a suitable girl and they
were married. But Madananka became worse.

NG
One day, Madananka absconded from his house, deserting his mother and pregnant
wife. His mother grieved for him. The daughter-in-law after some time gave birth to a son.
He was named Ratnanka. Though poor, Ratnanka was brought up with affection and care and
given good education.
LA
One day, when he was ten years old his grandmother said to him, “My lad! Your
father left all of us in misery. We two women have brought you up with whatever little
money and jewellery we had. Now, we don’t have anything to fall back upon. You are quite
TE
T
ER
SC

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 grown up, so you take up some business to eke out a living. In the neighbouring village
there is a well-to-do merchant named Yakshadatta, who lends money to the poor but capable

A
persons. You go to him. Explain to him our condition and borrow some money so that you
can start some business for our livelihood.”

AN
Following the instructions of his grandmother, Ratnanka went to Yakshadatta. At
that time Yakshadatta, the rich merchant, was taking a stroll. Knowing him to be Yakshadatta,
Ratnanka approached him and said, “Sir, I am a poor merchant boy. My father deserted us
before I was born. My grandmother and my mother have brought me up with great difficulty.

NG
We have heard of your fame and generosity in helping people of our poor status. I request
you to lend me some money for business and I promise to repay the amount soon.”
Hearing Ratnanka, Yakshadatta laughed, looked around and pointing towards a dead
rat lying in the street, said, “Lo my boy! That dead rat is the capital which I can lend you. You
LA
take it away and do some trade with it. To an intelligent man it will fetch millions and even
if I give millions to an unintelligent man it will be of no use. Ratnanka thought for a minute
and then took the dead rat as a favour from Yakshadatta. He made a cup out of a leaf and
TE

placed the dead rat in that cup. He carried it through streets crying, “A rat for sale!” One
merchant, who was taming a cat in order to get rid of the rats that were a menace in his shop,
purchased that dead rat as prey for his cat and gave him a handful of bengalgram.
Ratnanka took the bengalgram home and soaked it in water. Next morning, he added
some salt and pepper to the soaked and swollen bengalgram, took drinking water in an
T

earthen pitcher, went outside the city and sat under the shade of a tree and offered each
ER

woodcutter some bengalgram and cold water. The hungry and thirsty woodcutters were
pleased with Ratnanka’s service, gave him two pieces of firewood each. By evening the
pieces piled up into a big heap, which Ratnanka sold away for two rupees in the city. Out of
the two rupees Ratnanka gave one to his grandmother towards savings and with the other
SC

rupee purchased a Kuncham (a kind of measuring unit for grains) of bengalgram. Out of
this he soaked one kilo everyday and sat under the same tree with cold water. In this way he
collected many cart-loads of fuel within a month. Fortunately, there were incessant rains
for ten days and as a result there was a scarcity of firewood in the city. The firewood which
Ratnanka had collected fetched him a hundred gold coins. With that money Ratnanka opened

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 A
AN
NG
LA
a firewood stall and began dealing in timber. From timber to cloth, from cloth to grain and
TE

from grain to diamonds, his business progressed rapidly. Within a couple of years Ratnanka
became one of the leading merchants in that city.
One day, Ratnanka got a rat made of gold, weighing one kilo. Its eyes were made
of rubies, ears of sapphires and it had a diamond chain round its neck. It was kept in a silver
trap and carried in a procession with pomp. Ratnanka was leading the procession. When he
T

reached the residence of Yakshadatta, he asked the procession to halt. Hearing the band
and the noise of the procession, Yakshadatta came out of his house and enquired what all
ER

that pomp and hub-bub was about.

Ratnanka addressed Yakshadatta thus: “Sir, I became a millionaire by your grace.
Two years back when I came to you for a loan you gave me a dead rat. Your wise saying and
SC

the capital which I borrowed from you made me a rich man. Now I have come to repay your
debt in the shape of a golden rat. Kindly accept this as a symbol of my gratitude.”
Yakshadatta was amazed to hear his story. He was very pleased with the intelligence
and gratitude of Ratnanka.
- P.C. Roy

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 Glossary

A
vagabond (n) : a person who has no home and usually no job, and who travels
from place to place

AN
abscond (v) : escape; or to go away suddenly and secretly in order to escape
stroll (n) : a slow, relaxed walk
generosity (n) : the nature of giving money, time, gifts, etc.
eke out (phr.v) : earn

NG
menace (n) : something that is likely to cause harm
incessant (adj) : never stopping , especially in an annoying or unpleasant way

on
Comprehensi

1.
LA
Answer the following questions.
What did the mother do to make Madananka normal and settled in life?
2. What kind of man was Yakshadatta?
TE
3. What did Ratnanka do with the dead rat?
4. How did the firewood which Ratnanka had collected fetch him a hundred gold coins?
5. How did Ratnanka show his gratitude to Yakshadatta?
6. How did Ratnanka help the woodcutters?
T

Study Skills
ER

Read the biographical write up on Dr. Kotnis again and write the timeline
of the events referred to, in your notebook. A few events are shown here.
1. 1910 – Kotnis was born
...
SC

2. 1976 – Chinese Government built a memorial hall for Dr. Kotnis

...

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 Project Work

A
Visit any five old people of your locality and interview them.
Before you conduct the interview, prepare a questionnaire centred around the

AN
following items.
1. Name
2. Age
3. Gender

NG
4. Social background
5. Who takes care of them at home
6. Health conditions
7. Further support they need
LA
Write a report based on the interview and present it before the class.

Self Assessment
How well have I understood this unit?
TE

9 ) in the appropriate box.

Read and tick (9
Indicators Yes Somewhat No
I read and understood the text:
A. Dr. Dwarakanath Kotnis
B. Be Thankful
T

C. The Dead Rat

I was able to know the meanings of phrases and write them in my
ER

own sentences given under 'Vocabulary'.

I was able to identify and understand combining the sentences with
coordinate and subordinate conjunctions given under 'Grammar'.
I was able to identify and write the headlines of news given
under 'Writing'.
SC

I was able to write an article given under 'Writing'.

I was able to prepare a vote of thanks given under 'Oral Activity'
I listened to and understood ‘An Announcement in a School’
and answered the questions given under 'Listening'.
I was able to interview old people and write a report
given under 'Project Work'.

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