HIS FIRST FLIGHT

Read the following extracts carefully and answer the questions that follow.

Q1.

The young seagull was alone on his ledge. His two brothers and his sister had

already flown away the day before. He had been afraid to fly with them. Somehow

when he had taken a little run forward to the brink of the ledge and attempted to

flap his wings he became afraid. The great expanse of sea stretched down beneath,

and it was such a long way down miles down. He felt certain that his wings would

never support him; so he bent his head and ran away back to the little hole under

the ledge where he slept at night.

(a) Why was the young seagull afraid?

(b) What did the young seagull feel about his wings?

(c) Pick out the word from the passage that means the same as ‘the verge’. (d) Pick

out the word from the passage which means ‘a narrow flat piece of rock that

sticks out from a cliff’.

Ans:

(a) The young seagull was afraid of flying over the sea.

(b) The young seagull felt that his wings would never support him.

(c) The word is ‘brink’.

(d) The word is ‘ledge’.

Q2.

That was twenty-four hours ago. Since then nobody had come near him. The day

before, all day long, he had watched his parents flying about with his brothers and
sister, perfecting them in the art of flight, teaching them how to skim the waves

and how to dive for fish. He had in fact, seen his elder brother catch his first

herring and devour it, standing on a rock, while his parents circled around raising a

proud cackle. And all the morning the whole family had walked about on the big

plateau midway down the opposite cliff taunting him for his cowardice.

(a) The young seagull had been alone for how much time?

(b) Why was the whole family taunting the young seagull?

(c) Find the word which can be replaced by ‘consume’ in the passage?

Ans:

(a) For twenty four years, the young seagull was alone.

(b) The whole family was taunting the young seagull for his cowardice.

(c) The word is ‘devour’.

(d) The word is ‘cowardice’.

(d) The word ‘bravery’ is an antonym of ………

. Q3.

He stepped slowly out to the brink of the ledge, and standing on one leg with the

other leg hidden under his wing; he closed one eye, then the other, and pretended

to be falling asleep. Still they took no notice of him. He saw his two brothers and

his sister lying on the plateau dozing with their heads sunk into their necks. His

father was preening the feathers on his white back.

Only his mother was looking at him. She was standing on a little high hump on the

plateau, her white breast thrust forward.

Now and again, she tore at a piece of fish that lay at her feet and then scrapped

each side of her beak on the rock.

(a) What did the young seagull do out of his ledge?

(b) What was seagull’s father doing? (c) Find out the word in the passage

which mean the same as ‘to sharpen’. (d) What does plateau mean?
Ans:

(a) The young seagull pretended to be falling asleep and watched his

brothers and sister lying on the plateau.

(b) The seagull’s father was preening the feathers on his white back.

(c) The word is ‘preening’.

(d) A plateau is an area of land that is higher than the land around it.

Short Answer Type questions (3 Mark)

Q1.

Why did the young seagull not go with the rest of his family?

Ans:

The young seagull did not go with the rest of his family because he was afraid to

fly.

Q2.

How did seagull’s parents try to make him fly?

Ans:

Seagull’s parents tried everything to make him fly. They screamed, scolded and

threatened to let him starve on the ledge unless he flew away.

Q3.

What had the young seagull watched his parents doing the day before?

Ans:

The day before the young seagull had watched his parents flying about with his

brothers and sister, perfecting in the art of flying and teaching them how to skim

the waves and how to dive for fish.

Q4.

What was the young seagull’s mother doing before him? Ans:

The young seagull’s mother was standing on the plateau, her white breast thrust

forward. She tore a piece of fish that lay at her feet, and then she scrapped each
side of her beak on the rock.

Q5,

When did the seagull get over his fear of flying over the sea?

Ans:

The seagull was afraid of flying over the sea because he thought that he would

drown. His family decided to teach him a lesson. They left him unattended. The

mother tore at a piece of fish that lay at her feet now and then in his front. Since

the seagull was hungry too much, he was compelled to attempt his first flight in

order to get food. He was successful. This is when he got over his fear flying over

the sea.

Q6.

Describe the young seagull’s expression when he saw his mother with food. Ans:

The young seagull uttered a joyful scream because he thought that his mother was

bringing food for him. He tried to come nearer to her as she flew across.

Q7.

Why did the young seagull feel very miserable on the ledge?

Ans:

The young seagull felt very miserable on the ledge as he was alone and his family

had already flown away. He was feeling very hungry and had nothing to eat. His

condition was worsening because he could not even dive for fish.

Q8.

How did the young seagull and his family celebrate his first flight? [CBSE 2016]

Ans:

When the young seagull started flying and got over his fear, his family screamed

around him out of joy. They praised him and offered him scraps of dog-fish out of

delight as he made a successful attempt

Q9.
Describe the first flight of the young seagull.

Ans:

The young seagull dived at the fish due to hunger and fell outwards and

downwards into space. He thought of getting drowned but his wings spread

outwards automatically. He moved downwards and outwards and landed safely on

the sea and floated on it without any fear. By

Long Answer (5 Marks)

Q1.

How did the mother make the young seagull come out of his fear and teach him the

art of flying? (Or)

How did the seagull family help the young seagull overcome his fear and fly?

(Or)

Why was the young seagull afraid of flying? What compelled the seagull to finally

fly?

(Or)

Describe the tricks used by the seagull family to help the young seagull overcome

his fear and fly.

Ans:

The young seagull was afraid of flying because he thought that his wings won’t

support him and he would drown. When his family left him alone of the ledge, he

felt alone and was very hungry. They tried hard to make him fly but he never

showed the courage to try. His mother knowingly tore a piece of fish near him and

flew across to him with it. She came close to him but did not go nearer. Already

mad by hunger, he dived at the fish but fell into space. After sometime his wings

spread outwards and he began to fly. His family landed on the sea ahead of him.

They beckoned him so he landed on the sea and began to sink into water but when

his belly touched the water, he floated without any fear and difficulty.
Q2.

Do you think that the seagull’s family loved him? Justify their attitude towards

him? Ans:

The young seagull had two brothers and a sister. His parents flew with them to

leave him alone on the ledge as he could not muster up the courage to fly with

them. His parents could have fed him.

But, they refused to give him any food. They wanted him to fly and dive for his

food. They threatened to let him starve. They did so because they loved him. The

parents were right in what they did because they wanted to teach him the

importance of confidence and self-reliance. One can’t depend on their parents all

his life to be fed. Thus, it was important for him to learn to fly, dive and search his

own food. So, the attitude the seagull family showed to him was actually their

love, care and concern for him.

Q3.

Why was the young seagull pretending to be asleep? What did he actually observe

while doing so?

Ans:

The young seagull came to the brink of the ledge. He stood there on one leg with

the other leg hidden under his wing. He closed his one eye, then the other, and

pretended to be falling asleep. He did so because he wanted to know whether they

were interested in him or not but he observed that his family was not noticing him.

He saw his brothers and sister lying on the plateau. They were dozing. His father

was preening the feathers on his white back. Only his mother was looking at him.

Now and then, she tore at a piece of fish that lay at her feet. Then she scrapped

each side of the back on the rock.

Q4.

How did the young seagull get over his fear of sea water and what was his family’s
reaction on it?

Ans:

The young seagull had made his maiden flight successfully. When he was near the

sea he was flying straight over it. He observed a vast green sea all around him. He

turned his beak sideways and cawed amusedly. His family was very happy and

landed ahead of him. They beckoned to him.

When he landed on the sea, he began to sink but he tried in despair and his belly

touched the water and he sank no further. He was floating on water. This way he

got over his fear of seawater and his family praised him a lot and offered him the

dog-fish as a reward.

Q5.

Fear and lack of confidence stop one from learning new things. Do you agree?

How did these two traits of the young seagull make him coward? How did he

overcome these short comings?

Ans:

Yes, It is true that fear and lack of confidence stop one from learning new things as

in the story; the young seagull lacked the value of courage and confidence in his

character. He was too scared of flying. His family tried hard to make him fly but he

refused to do so because of his fear of sinking in the seawater. They even scolded

him for his cowardice. They tried to tempt him with food but he was not willing to

learn flying. Once he dived, his fear disappeared and he enjoyed his first flight. It

is a fact that unless we try for something and overcome our fear, we can’t learn

anything. Confidence and motivation are two most important traits that make any

learning possible.