L esson 4

THE STORY OF A SHIRT

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One day, when I reached my room, I

heard someone sobbing. I looked
around but did not find anybody.
After trying hard, I found that the
sound was coming fi-omthe facing wall.
I saw that my old shirt, hanging on a
nail, was crying.

I asked - “What is wrong with

you? Why are you crying?”
She spoke - “Just think for a
while and find out the reason of
my crying. You have completely
forgotten me. You have kept me
hanging here for the last one
month. See, howdirty I look! My
colour has also faded.

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 Do you remember the day when your mother had purchased
me? You had liked me a lot. I also liked you. I was very happy.
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I had forgotten all the difficulties I had undergone before meeting
you.”
1said - ‘Today, you seem to be in a mood to talk. Please tell
me your story.”
The shirt replied - “1 was given this
shape by a tailor before reaching the
shop, from where your mother had
purchased me. He had
stitched me from a piece of
cloth. He had taken this
piece from a big roll of cloth.
He had stitched many
shirts like me. Today I do
not know the whereabouts
of all my friends.

Now I have many friends

in this house.
Some are made from
cotton like me.
One is made from silk
and the other one is from
wool. But the three of us
meet only a few times
during the year.

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 You store the silk and woollen shirts in a box during the
summer season. One day, we were very happy when we came
together from laundry. That day, three of us shared our life
stories with each other.
The silk shirt, which is very soft and
light, told her story first. She said that
the thread of the cloth of which it is
made, is a product of saliva of an
insect. It is called silkworm.
Rearing of silkworms is the
occupation of many people. The
silkworm eats leaves of mulberry tree.
Continuous flow of saliva from its
mouth keeps covering its body. By the
time it grows up in the form of ‘pupa’,
it looks like a small ball.

After this, the process of

making silk cloth starts. First
of all, the pupa is boiled in
water.

Then process of threading

starts after removing the dead
worms.

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'’j I Silk cloth is made by weaving this thread. Sometimes, the
thread is dyed before weaving, and sometimes it is dyed after
Sr weaving.

The weaving of silk cloth is mostly done in big factories where

many people are involved in this work. Some people weave
cloth from silk thread in their homes.

Rolls of this silk cloth are

then sold in the markets.
Some people purchase cloth
pieces and get their clothes
stitched from tailors. At other
places, the stitching of clothes
is done on a large scale in big
factories.

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 Here, many people are involved in stitching and packing of
clothes. Some people do the cutting while others do the stitching
work. Some others work on the button holes. Some of the
workers specialise in stitching buttons.
Packing is done by a separate group of workers. After this,
the clothes are sent to shops for sale.

On hearing the story of the silk shirt, the woollen shirt told
that it had also gone through the same process. The only
difference is that its thread is made up of sheep’s wool. Many
people rear sheep. There are thick hair on the body of the
■i sheep. These hair are sheared from time to time. Woollen cloth
is woven from the thread made by spinning of the sheep’s hair.
i The thread spun from
sheep’s hair is thick. This
thread is called wool. Many
people use the wool for
making robes and coats,
which are worn in places
where the climate is very
cold. Many people use
cardigans and pullovers
made from wool.

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 1

• Besides the sheep’s hair, the hair of yak and camel are also
■'Y ' used for making wool.
Find out the names of parts of our country where Yak and
Camel cire found.

I also told my story. 1 told

my friends that my cloth is
made from cotton. It comes
from cotton plant. Farmers
grow cotton plants in their
fields. The cotton seeds are
separated fromthe cotton balls.
Then cotton is spun in the form
of thread.
These threads are used for weaving cotton cloth.
The people who weave the cloth cire called weavers.
My story after this is the same as that of my friends.”
“You have given a valuable information. Now please tell me
how should I take care of you and your friends”- I asked.

‘Taking care of me is very easy.

After using me, I should be washed, dried and ironed properly.
Silk and woollen clothes should be washed in good liquid
soap at home or they can be diy-cleaned.

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 “Oh I look at this picture” some children said.
The roof of the house in this picture is sloping It has also
covered the walls of the house to a great extent.
Yusuf, who had made this picture,
told us that such houses are made
at places where it rains heavily.
Such houses are also seen in hilly
regions where there is heavy
snowfall.
Water does not stop on such
roofs as they are slanting. These
houses do not even become damp.
During snowfall, even the
weight of snow does not affect the walls of the house.
“How do you know all this?” asked one child.
“My uncle lives on the hills. I had gone there during holidays”
- Yusuf replied.
‘This house stands on
wooden poles. It is made
of wood only, and its base
is quite high from the
ground level. The wooden
poles are made of thick
wood.
Such houses are very
beautiful. Their walls are
made of thin and long
wooden pieces.

Such houses are made at places which are generally flooded

due to heavy rains. They are also made near the sea shores.
They are safe from the impact of the sea waves at the time of
sea storms. Such houses are seen in hilly regions as well. X

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 Later, they should be wrapped in a cotton cloth and stored.
They can be easily damaged by insects. Dried leaves of Neem
Tree or Naphthalene balls should be kept inside their storing
places. These help in protecting them frominsects. These clothes
should also be exposed to sunlight from time to time.”

‘Today, you have given me very valuable information. Now

I will take proper care of all my clothes” - I replied.
“Let us start from you only. First, I will wash and dry you in
the shade. I will keep you at the proper place after ironing you.”
“You are a veiy good child. I am very happy now,” said the
cotton shirt.

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WHAT HAVE WE LEARNT?
\
/'ral Work
1. What kind of clothes do you wear in summers?
2. How do you take care of your clothes?
3. Who stitches your clothes?
4. How will you feel, if you do not have any friend?
Written Work

1. Fill in the blanks;

(i) Our clothes are stitched by_________ .
(ii) We get wool from__________ .
(hi) We get silk from_______________.
(iv) We get_______ from the cotton plant.
2. Arrange the following sentences in the correct order in your
notebook ;
(i) Dyeing of cloth.
(ii) SepEirating the seeds from the cotton.
(iii) Stitching of clothes.
(iv) Spinning of cotton into thread.
(v) Weaving the cloth from the thread.
(vi) Selling of the cloth rolls in the market.
3. Why should the clothes be kept clean?
4. How should we take care of silk clothes?
5. How can we protect the woollen and silk clothes from the
insects?
6. Write two differences between the cotton amd the silk clothes.
7. Besides woollen, silk and cotton, which other material can
we use for making our clothes?
8. Besides shirt, what other clothes do we wear?
9. Which occupations are associated - frDm the growing of
cotton to the making of cloth?
10. Name the clothes worn by men and women.
Clothes worn by men Clothes worn by women

11. Fill in the blanks using the words given below;

tailor, washerman, farmer, dyer, weaver V
(i) One who grows cotton in the fields ___
(ii) One who weaves the cloth__________.
(iii) One who stitches the clothes _________
(iv) One who washes the clothes_______ .
(v) One who dyes the clothes________ ,
THINGS TO DO
@ Draw a dress you like the most. Write its name and
colour it.

Narrate the story of the ‘silk shirt’ to your younger

brother/sister or a fiiend.
Collect pieces of a different kinds of cloth. Paste them
on a chart paper. Write their names below.________
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