1 Food:

Where Does It Come From?

W
hat did you eat at home There seems to be so much variety
today? Find out what your in the food that we eat. What are these

d
friend ate today. Did you eat food items made of?
the same kind of food yesterday and Think about rice

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today? We all eat different kinds of food cooked at home. We take

h
at different times, isn’t it? raw rice and boil it in

s
water. Just two materials
1.1 FOOD VARIETY

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or ingredients are needed to prepare a

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Activity 1 dish of boiled rice.

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On the other hand, some food items
Ask your friends in the school about the

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are made with many ingredients. To

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items they would be eating during a day.
prepare vegetable curry, we need
See if you can also get this information

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different kinds of vegetables, salt, spices,
from friends staying in different states
oil and so on.

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of India. List all the items in your

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notebook as given in Table 1.1, for as Activity 2

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many friends as possible. Choose some of the items you listed in
Table 1.1 What do we eat? Table 1.1 and try to find out what

b
ingredients are used to prepare these,
Name of the Food items
student/friend eaten in a day by discussing with your friends and

o
elders at home. List them in Table 1.2.

t
Some examples are given here. Add
some more items to this list.

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Table 1.2 Food items and their

o
ingredients

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Food Item Ingredients

Roti/chapati Atta, water

Pulses, water, salt, oil/

Dal
ghee, spices
 What do we find? Do we find some ingredients common
for different food items? Discuss in class.
So, where do these ingredients come from?
1.2 FOOD MATERIALS AND SOURCES
It may be easy for us to guess the sources of some of the
ingredients that we listed in Table 1.2. Fruits and
vegetables, for instance. Where do they come from? Plants,

d
of course! What are the sources of rice or wheat? You may

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have seen paddy or wheat fields with rows and rows of
plants, which give us these grains.

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And then, there are food items like milk, eggs, meat,

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chicken, fish, prawns, beef, pork and such others, which

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come from animals.

Activity 3

R b l
E
Let us take the food items listed earlier

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and try to find out where they come from

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— the ingredients and their sources. Table 1.3 Ingredients used to
Some examples are shown in Table 1.3. prepare food items and

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their sources
Fill in the blanks in Table 1.3 and add

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more examples to this list. Food Item Ingredients Sources
Idli Rice Plant

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Urad dal

Salt

t o
Water

t
Chicken
Chicken Animal
curry

o
Spices

n
Oil/ghee Plants/
Animals
Water
Kheer Milk Animal
Rice Plant
Sugar

2 SCIENCE
 What do we conclude from Activity you ever eaten Flower
3? Plants are the sources of food pumpkin flowers
ingredients like grains, cereals, dipped in rice
vegetables and fruits. Animals provide paste and fried?
us with milk, meat products and eggs. Try it! Bud
Stem
Cows, goats and buffaloes are some Some plants
Leaf
common animals which give us milk. have two or more
Milk and milk products like butter, edible (eatable)

d
cream, cheese and curd are used all over parts. Seeds of

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the world. Can you name some other mustard plants
animals which give us milk? give us oil and Roots

h
the leaves are
1.3 PLANT PARTS AND ANIMAL

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used as a

i
PRODUCTS AS FOOD

l
vegetable. Can

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Plants are one source of our food. Which you think of the

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parts of a plant are these? different parts of a banana plant that

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We eat many leafy vegetables. We eat

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are used as food? Think of more
fruits of some plants. Sometimes roots,

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examples where many parts of a single

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sometimes stems and even flowers. Have plant are used as food.

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Activity 4

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Paheli wants to know if any of our From all the food items you have listed
food comes from sources other in Table 1.3, choose those items whose
than plants and animals. ingredients are obtained from plants.

b
Which part of a plant? Identify these
and list the food items and plant parts

o
as shown in Table 1.4.

t t Table 1.4 Plant parts as food

o
Food item with plant Ingredients/source Plant part which gives
as the major source us the ingredient

n
1. Brinjal curry Brinjal Fruit
Chilli as spice (any other) Fruit
Oil from groundnut, mustard,
soybean, any other plant Seed

2.
3.

FOOD: WHERE DOES IT COME FROM? 3

 Do you know where honey comes

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Do not try to test unknown plants
from, or how it is produced? Have you

e
around you to see if they are edible!
seen a beehive where so many bees keep
Some plants could be poisonous.

h
buzzing about?
Bees collect nectar

s
Activity 5

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(sweet juices) from

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Take some dry seeds of moong or chana.
flowers, convert it

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Put a small quantity of seeds in a

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into honey and
container filled with water and leave this

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store it in their

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aside for a day. Next day, drain the water
hive. Flowers and

C
completely and leave the seeds in the

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their nectar may be
vessel. Wrap them with a piece of wet
available only for a

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cloth and set aside. The following day,
part of the year. So,

r
do you observe any changes in the seed?
bees store this

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nectar for their use
all through the

b
year. When we find
such a beehive, we collect the food stored

o
by the bees as honey.

t
1.5 WHAT DO ANIMALS EAT?

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A small white structure may have grown Do you have cattle or a pet that you
out of the seeds. If so, the seeds have

o
take care of? A dog, cat, buffalo or a
sprouted. If not, wash the seeds in water, goat? You will then surely be aware of

n
drain the water and leave them aside the food, the animal eats. What about
for another day, covered with a wet cloth. other animals? Have you ever observed
The next day, see if the seeds have what a squirrel, pigeon, lizard or a small
sprouted. insect may be eating as their food?
After washing these sprouted seeds,
you can eat them. They can also be
Activity 6
boiled. Add some spices and get a tasty Several animals are listed in Table 1.5.
snack to eat. For some of them, the type of food they

4 SCIENCE
 plant products in Group 1. These are
called herbivores. There are some
animals which eat other animals.
Place these in Group 2. These animals
are called carnivores. Do you find
some animals which eat both plants
and animals? Place them in Group 3.
These are called omnivores. Prepare

d
a table as in Table 1.6 and enter

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these separately in the three columns,
eat is also given. Fill in the blanks in
as shown.

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the table.

s
Table 1.6
Activity 7

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Herbivores Carnivores Omnivores
Have a look again at Table 1.5 and group

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Cow Lion Dog

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the animals entered here as follows.

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Place animals which eat only plants or

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Table 1.5 Animals and their Food

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Name of the Food the

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animal animal eats

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Grass, oilcake,

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Buffalo hay, grains

Small animals,
Cat

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birds, milk
Paheli wants to know where you
Rat
would place human beings,

o
Lion while filling Table 1.6.
T iger

Spider

t t
o
House lizard

n
We know that there are many
Cow amongst us, who do not get sufficient
Human beings food. We need to find ways by which
more food can be grown in the country.
Butter fly
That will not be enough; we will need to
Crow find ways to ensure that this food is
made easily available to each and every
Others
one of us.

FOOD: WHERE DOES IT COME FROM? 5

 Ingredients
Edible
Nectar
Sprouted seeds

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Herbivore
Car nivore
Omnivore

he
T lis
E R b
u
„ There is a lot of variation in the food eaten in different regions of India.

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„ The main sources of our food are plants and animals.

p
„ Animals which eat only plants are called herbivores.

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„ Animals which eat only animals are called carnivores.

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„ Animals which eat both plants as well as other animals are called
omnivores.

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o
1. Do you find that all living beings need the same kind of food?

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2. Name five plants and their parts that we eat.

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3. Match the items given in Column A with that in Column B

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Column A Column B

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Milk, curd, paneer, ghee, eat other animals

Spinach, cauliflower, carrot eat plants and plant products

Lions and tigers are vegetables

Herbivores are all animal products

6 SCIENCE
 4. Fill up the blanks with the words given:
herbivore, plant, milk, sugarcane, carnivore
(a) Tiger is a ____________________ because it eats only meat.
(b) Deer eats only plant products and so, is called ______________.
(c) Parrot eats only _________________ products.
(d) The ________________ that we drink, which comes from cows, buffaloes and
goats is an animal product.

d
(e) We get sugar from ___________________.

SUGGESTED PROJECTS AND ACTIVITIES

he
T s
1. You must have seen a garden lizard around your home. Next time when-

i
ever you see it, observe carefully and find out what it takes for food. Is the

l
food different from that of a house lizard?

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2. Make a list (with pictures, when possible) of food items generally taken by

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people of different regions of India. Place these on a large outline map of

u
India to display in your classroom.

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3. Find out the names of plants that grow in water and which are eaten

p
as food.

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4. In Chapter 10, you will find out ways of measuring length of curved lines.

r
In your mathematics classes you will learn to prepare bar graphs. After

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you learn these, try the following interesting project. Prepare some sprouts
of moong as discussed in the chapter. Wash them in water everyday and
drain all the water. Let them grow for a week until the whole of the seeds
grow into young plants. Measure the lengths of the sprouts everyday using

b
a string. Take care that they do not break. Prepare a bar graph of the
number of sprouts having lengths in different ranges.

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THINGS TO THINK ABOUT

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1. Does everyone around you get enough food to eat? If not, why?
2. What are the ways we can think of to avoid wastage of food?

no

FOOD: WHERE DOES IT COME FROM? 7

 2 Components of Food

I
n Chapter 1, we made lists of the curd, butter milk and pickles. Some
food items that we eat. We also examples of meals from different regions

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identified food items eaten in are given in Table 2.1. Select food items
different parts of India and marked you depicted on the map in Chapter 1.

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these on its map. Add some more meals to this list and

h
A meal could consist of chapati, dal enter these in Table 2.1.

s
and brinjal curry. Another may be rice, Sometimes, we may not really have

T i
sambar and a vegetable preparation of all this variety in our meals. If we are

l
lady’s finger (bhindi). Yet another meal travelling, we may eat whatever is

R b
could be appam, fish curry and available on the way. It may not be

E
vegetables. possible for some of us, to eat such a

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variety of items, most of the time.

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There must be some reason though,
why meals usually consist of such a

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distribution. Do you think that our body

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needs different kinds of food for some
special purpose?
Activity 1 2.1 WHAT DO DIFFERENT FOOD

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Our meals usually have at least one item ITEMS CONTAIN?
made of some kind of grain. Other items We know that each dish is usually made

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could be a dal or a dish of meat and up of one or more ingredients, which
vegetables. It may also include items like we get from plants or animals. These

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Table 2.1 Some common meals of different regions/states

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Region/
Item of grain Item of Vegetables Others

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State dal/meat
Rajma Sarson saag Curd, ghee
Punjab Makki (cor n) roti (Kidney beans) (Mustard leaf curry)

Andhra Tuar dal and Butter milk, ghee,

Pradesh Rice rasam (charu) Kunduru (dondakai) pickle (aavakai)

8 SCIENCE
ingredients contain some components A dilute solution of iodine can be
that are needed by our body. These
prepared by adding a few drops of
components are called nutrients. The
tincture iodine to a test tube half filled
major nutrients in our food are named
carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins with water.
and minerals. In addition, food contains Copper sulphate solution can be
dietary fibres and water which are also pr epar ed by dissolving 2 gram (g) of
needed by our body. copper sulphate in 100 millilitre (mL)

d
Do all foods contain all these
of water.

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nutrients? With some simple methods
we can test whether cooked food or a 10 g of caustic soda dissolved in

h
raw ingredient contains one or more of 100 mL of water makes the required

T s
these nutrients. The tests for presence solution of caustic soda.

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of carbohydrates, proteins and fats

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are simpler to do as compared to the the form of starch and sugars. We can

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tests for other nutrients. Let us do these easily test if a food item contains starch.

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tests and record all our observations Activity 2

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in Table 2.2.

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For carrying out these tests, you will Test for Starch

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need solutions of iodine, copper Take a small quantity of a food item or

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sulphate and caustic soda. You will also a raw ingredient. Put 2-3 drops of dilute

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need a few test tubes and a dropper. iodine solution on it (Fig. 2.1). Observe
Try these tests on cooked food items if there is any change in the colour of
as well as raw materials. Table 2.2 shows the food item. Did it turn blue-black?

b
you a way to record the observations
from these tests. Some food items are

o
given in this table. You can conduct the

t
tests either with these or any other

t
available food items. Do these tests
carefully and do not try to eat or taste

o
any chemicals.

n
If the required solutions are not
available in readymade form, your
teacher can prepare them as follows.
Let us begin by testing different
food items to see if they contain
carbohydrates. There are many
types of carbohydrates. The main
carbohydrates found in our food are in Fig. 2.1 Testing for starch

COMPONENTS OF FOOD 9
A blue-black colour indicates that it test tube (Fig. 2.2). Shake well and let
contains starch. the test tube stand for a few minutes.
Repeat this test with other food items What do you see? Did the contents of
to find out which of these contain starch. the test tube turn violet? A violet colour
Enter all your observations in Table 2.2. indicates presence of proteins in the
food item.
Test for Protein
Now, you can repeat this test on other
Take a small quantity of a food item for
food items.

d
testing. If the food you want to
Table 2.2 Nutrients present in some

e
test is a solid, you first need to
make a paste of it or powder it. food items

h
Grind or mash a small quantity
Starch Protein Fat

s
of the food item. Put some of this Food item

T
(present) (present) (present)

i
in a clean test tube, add 10 drops

l
Raw potato Yes

R
of water to it and shake the

b
test tube. Milk Yes

E
Now, using a dropper, add

u
Groundnut Yes
two drops of solution of copper

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Uncooked
sulphate and ten drops of powdered

e
solution of caustic soda to the

N
rice

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Cooked rice

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Dry coconut
Uncooked

b
tuar dal
(powdered)

o
Cooked dal

t
A slice of any
vegetable

o t A slice of any
fruit

n
Boiled egg
(white
portion)

Fig. 2.2 Testing for protein

10 SCIENCE
Test for Fats fats and carbohydrates are also
Take a small quantity of a food item. called ‘energy giving foods’ (Fig. 2.3
Wrap it in a piece of paper and crush it. and Fig. 2.4).
Take care that the paper does not tear. Proteins are needed for the growth
Now, straighten the paper and observe and repair of our body. Foods
it carefully. Does it have an oily patch?
Sweet potato Potato Sugarcane
Hold the paper against light. Are you
able to see the light faintly, through Papaya

d
this patch?

e
An oily patch on paper shows that Wheat

h
the food item contains fat. The food Melon
items may sometimes contain a little

s
Mango

T i
water. Therefore, after you have rubbed Rice

l
an item on paper, let the paper dry for a

R
while. If there were any water that may

b
Bajra Maize

E
have come from food, it would dry up
Fig. 2.3 Some sources of carbohydrates

u
after some time. If no oily patch shows

C
up after this, the food item does not

p
contain any fat.

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What do these tests show? Are fats,

r
proteins and starch present in all the

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food items that you tested? Does a food
item contain more than one nutrient?
Nuts

b
Do you find any food item that does not
contain any of these nutrients?

o
We tested food items for three
Groundnuts Til

t
nutrients — carbohydrates, proteins
(a)
and fats. There are also other nutrients

t
like vitamins and minerals that are

o
present in different food items. Why do Meat
we need all these nutrients?

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2.2 WHAT DO VARIOUS NUTRIENTS DO
FOR OUR BODY?
Carbohydrates mainly provide energy
to our body. Fats also give us energy.
In fact, fats give much more energy (b)
as compared to the same amount of Fig. 2.4 Some sources of fats: (a) plant sources
carbohydrates. Foods containing and (b) animal sources

COMPONENTS OF FOOD 11
Gram Moong Dal small quantities. Vitamin A keeps our
skin and eyes healthy. Vitamin C helps
Beans
body to fight against many diseases.
Vitamin D helps our body to use
calcium for bones and teeth. Foods that
are rich in different vitamins are shown
in Fig. 2.6 to Fig. 2.9.
Minerals are needed by our body in

d
small amounts. Each one is essential

e
Peas Soyabeans

h
(a)

T is
Meat

R b l Fig. 2.6 Some sources of Vitamin A

Fish

C E u
N e p
Paneer
© e r Eggs
Liver
Fig. 2.7 Some sources of Vitamin B

Guava

b
Orange
(b)
Fig. 2.5 Some sources of proteins: (a) plant Tomato

o
sources and (b) animal sources

t
containing proteins are often called

t
‘body building foods’ (Fig 2.5). Lemon
Vitamins help in protecting our body

o
Amla
against diseases. Vitamins also help in Fig. 2.8 Some sources of Vitamin C

n
keeping our eyes, bones, teeth and gums
healthy.
Vitamins are of different kinds
known by different names. Some of these
are Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin D,
Vitamin E and K. There is also a group
of vitamins called Vitamin B-complex.
Our body needs all types of vitamins in Fig. 2.9 Some sources of Vitamin D

12 SCIENCE
 Some sources of
iodine
Our body also prepares Vitamin D
in the presence of Sunlight

e d Some sources of

h
phosphorous

T lis
R
for proper growth of body and to

b
maintain good health. Some sources of

E
different minerals are shown in Fig. 2.10.

u
Most food items, usually, have more

C p
than one nutrient. You may have noticed

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this, while recording your observations

r
in Table 2.2. However, in a given raw

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Some sources
material, one particular nutrient may
of iron
be present in much larger quantity than
in others. For example, rice has more

b
carbohydrates than other nutrients.
Thus, we say that rice is a “carbohydrate

o
rich” source of food.

t
Besides these nutrients, our body

t
needs dietary fibres and water. Dietary Some sources
fibres are also known as roughage. of calcium

o
Roughage is mainly provided by plant

n
products in our foods. Whole grains and
pulses, potatoes, fresh fruits and
vegetables are main sources of roughage.
Roughage does not provide any nutrient
to our body, but is an essential
component of our food and adds to its
bulk. This helps our body get rid of
undigested food. Fig. 2.10 Sources of some minerals

COMPONENTS OF FOOD 13
 Water helps our body to absorb think that, what we need for a balanced
nutrients from food. It also helps in diet would depend on the amount of
throwing out some wastes from body as physical work that we do?
urine and sweat. Normally, we get most Prepare a chart of whatever you eat
of the water that our body needs from over a period of a week. Check whether
the liquids we drink — such as water, all the nutrients mentioned are present
milk and tea. In addition, we add water in one or the other food items being
to most cooked foods. Let’s see if there eaten within a day or so.

d
is any other source which provides water Pulses, groundnut, soybean,

e
to our body. sprouted seeds (moong and Bengal
gram), fermented foods (South Indian

h
Activity 3
foods such as idlis), a combination of

T s
Take a tomato or a fruit like lemon. Cut flours (missi roti, thepla made from

li
it into small pieces. Do your hands get cereals and pulses), banana, spinach,

R
wet while doing so? sattu, jaggery, available vegetables and

b
Carefully observe whenever other such foods provide many

E
vegetables and fruits are being cut,

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nutrients. Therefore, one can eat a
peeled, grated or mashed at your

C
balanced diet without expensive food

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home. Do you find any fresh vegetables materials.

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or fruits that do not contain some Eating the right kind of food is not

r
amount of water? enough. It should also be cooked

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We see that many food materials
themselves contain water. To some
extent, our body needs are met by this

b
Paheli wonders whether animal
water. Apart from this, we also add water food also consists of these
while cooking many food items.

o
different components and do

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2.3 BALANCED DIET they also need a balanced diet?
The food we normally eat in a day is our

t
diet. For growth and maintenance of

o
good health, our diet should have all

n
the nutrients that our body needs, in
right quantities. Not too much of one
and not too little of the other. The diet properly so that its nutrients are not
should also contain a good amount of lost. Are you aware that some nutrients
roughage and water. Such a diet is called get lost in the process of cooking and
a balanced diet. preparations?
Do you think that people of all ages If the vegetables and fruits are
need the same type of diet? Do you also washed after cutting or peeling them, it

14 SCIENCE
may result in the loss of some vitamins. fats — fried food like samosa and poori,
The skins of many vegetables and fruits malai, rabdi and peda.
contain vitamins and minerals. Do you think he was right? No, of
Similarly, repeated washing of rice and course not! It can be very harmful for
pulses may remove some vitamins and us to eat too much of fat rich foods and
minerals present in them. we may end up suffering from a
We all know that cooking improves condition called obesity.
the taste of food and makes it easier to
2.4 DEFICIENCY DISEASES

d
digest. At the same time, cooking also

e
A person may be getting enough food to
results in the loss of certain nutrients.
eat, but sometimes the food may not
Many useful proteins and considerable

h
contain a particular nutrient. If this
amounts of minerals are lost if excess

s
continues over a long period of time, the

T
water is used during cooking and is

i
person may suffer from its deficiency.

l
then thrown away.

R
Deficiency of one or more nutrients can
Vitamin C gets easily destroyed by

b
cause diseases or disorders in our body.
heat during cooking. Would it not be

E
Diseases that occur due to lack of

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sensible to include some fruits and raw
nutrients over a long period are called

C
vegetables in our diet?

p
deficiency diseases.
Boojho thought that fats would be

e
If a person does not get enough

N
the best foods to eat, all the time. A katori

r
proteins in his/her food for a long time,
of fat will give much more energy than

© e
he/she is likely to have stunted growth,
a katori of carbohydrate rich food, isn’t
swelling of face, discolouration of hair,
it? So, he ate nothing but food rich in
skin diseases and diarrhoea.

b
If the diet is deficient in both
carbohydrates and proteins for a long

o
period of time, the growth may stop

t
completely. Such a person becomes very

t
lean and thin and so weak that he/she
may not even be able to move.

o
Deficiency of different vitamins and

n
minerals may also result in certain
diseases or disorders. Some of these are
mentioned in Table 2.3.
All deficiency diseases can be
prevented by taking a balanced diet.
In this chapter, we asked ourselves
the reason why widely varying food from
different regions had a common

COMPONENTS OF FOOD 15
Table 2.3 – Some diseases/disorders caused by
deficiency of vitamins and minerals
Balanced diet
Vitamin/ Deficiency
Symptoms
Mineral disease/disorder Beriberi
Poor vision, loss of Carbohydrates
vision in darkness
Vitamin A Loss of vision (night), sometimes
complete loss of vision Energy

d
Vitamin Weak muscles and Fats

e
Beriberi very little energy to
B1
work Minerals

h
Bleeding gums,
Nutrients

s
Vitamin C Scurvy wounds take longer

T i
time to heal
Proteins

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Bones become soft

R
Vitamin D Rickets
and bent

b
Roughage

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Bone and tooth Weak bones, tooth

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Calcium
decay decay Scurvy

C p
Glands in the neck Starch

e
appear swollen,

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Iodine Goiter Vitamins
mental disability in

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children

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Iron Anaemia Weakness
distribution. This distribution, we find, ensures that

b
our meals have a balance of the different nutrients
needed by the body.

t o
o
„

t
The major nutrients in our food are carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins
and minerals. In addition, food also contains dietary fibres and water.

n
„ Carbohydrates and fats mainly provide energy to our body.
„ Proteins and minerals are needed for the growth and the maintenance
of our body.
„ Vitamins help in protecting our body against diseases.
„ Balanced diet provides all the nutrients that our body needs, in right
quantities, along with adequate amount of roughage and water.
„ Deficiency of one or more nutrients in our food for a long time may cause
certain diseases or disorders.

16 SCIENCE
 1. Name the major nutrients in our food.
2. Name the following:
(a) The nutrients which mainly give energy to our body.
(b) The nutrients that are needed for the growth and maintenance of our body.
(c) A vitamin required for maintaining good eyesight.
(d) A mineral that is required for keeping our bones healthy.

d
3. Name two foods each rich in:

e
(a) Fats

h
(b) Starch

s
(c) Dietary fibre

T li
(d) Protein

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4. Tick (√) the statements that are correct.

b
(a) By eating rice alone, we can fulfill nutritional requirement of our body. ( )

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(b) Deficiency diseases can be prevented by eating a balanced diet. ( )

C p
(c) Balanced diet for the body should contain a variety of food items. ( )
(d) Meat alone is sufficient to provide all nutrients to the body. ( )

N r e
5. Fill in the blanks.

© e
(a) ______________ is caused by deficiency of Vitamin D.
(b) Deficiency of ______________ causes a disease known as beri-beri.
(c) Deficiency of Vitamin C causes a disease known as ______________.

b
(d) Night blindness is caused due to deficiency of ____________ in our food.

t o
t
SUGGESTED PROJECTS AND ACTIVITIES

o
1. Prepare a diet chart to provide balance diet to a twelve year old child. The

n
diet chart should include food items which are not expensive and are com-
monly available in your area.
2. We have learnt that excess intake of fats is harmful for the body. What about
other nutrients? Would it be harmful for the body to take too much of proteins
or vitamins in the diet? Read about diet related problems to find answers to
these questions and have a class discussion on this topic.
3. Test the food usually eaten by cattle or a pet to find out which nutrients are
present in animal food. Compare results obtained from the whole class to
conclude about balanced diet requirements for different animals.

COMPONENTS OF FOOD 17
 3 Fibre to Fabric

P
aheli and Boojho won the first curtains, tablecloths, towels and
prize in a Science Quiz dusters were made from different kinds

d
competition held at their school. of fabrics. Even their school bags and
They were very excited and decided to the gunny bags were made from

e
use the prize money to buy clothes for some kind of fabric. They tried to

h
their parents. When they saw a large identify these fabrics as cotton, wool,

s
variety of cloth material, they got silk or synthetic. Can you also identify

T i
confused (Fig. 3.1). The shopkeeper some fabrics?

l
explained that some clothes or fabrics

R
3.1 VARIETY IN FABRICS

b
were cotton and some were synthetic.

E
He also had woollen mufflers and Activity 1

u
shawls. There were many silk sarees as
Visit a nearby tailoring shop.

C p
well. Paheli and Boojho felt very excited.
Collect cuttings of
They touched and felt these different

N e
fabrics leftover after
fabrics. Finally, they bought a woollen

r
stitching. Feel and

© e
muffler and a cotton saree.
touch each piece
After their visit to the cloth shop,
of fabric. Now,
Paheli and Boojho began to notice
try to label some

b
various fabrics in their surroundings.
of the fabrics as
They found that bed sheets, blankets, Fig.3.2 Enlarged view
cotton, silk, wool of a piece of fabric

o
or synthetic after

t
asking for help from the tailor.

t
Do you wonder what these different
fabrics are made of? When you look at

o
any fabric, it seems a continuous piece.

n
Now, look at it closely. What do you
notice (Fig. 3.2)?
Activity 2
Select a piece of cotton fabric you
labelled in Activity 1. Now, try to find a
loose thread or yarn at one of the edges
Fig. 3.1 A cloth shop and pull it out (Fig. 3.3). If no loose

18 SCIENCE
 You might have observed something
similar when you try to thread a
needle. Many a time, the end of the
thread is separated into a few thin
strands. This makes it difficult to pass
the thread through the eye of the
needle. The thin strands of thread that
we see, are made up of still thinner

d
Fig. 3.3 Pulling a thread from a fabric
strands called fibres.

e
Fabrics are made up of yarns and
yarns are visible, you can gently pull yarns are further made up of fibres.

h
one out with a pin or a needle. Where do these fibres come from?

T s
We find that a fabric is made up of The fibres of some fabrics such as

i
yarns arranged together. What are these

l
cotton, jute, silk and wool are obtained

R
yarns made of? from plants and animals. These are

b
3.2 FIBRE called natural fibres. Cotton and jute

E u
are examples of fibres obtained from
Activity 3

C
plants. Wool and silk fibres are obtained

p
Take out a yarn from a piece of cotton from animals. Wool is obtained from the

N e
fabric. Place this piece of yarn on the fleece of sheep or goat. It is also obtained

r
table. Now, press one end of the yarn from the hair of rabbits, yak and

© e
with your thumb. Scratch the other end camels. Silk fibre is drawn from the
of the yarn along its length with your cocoon of silkworm.

b
nail as shown in Fig. 3.4. Do you find For thousands of years natural fibres
that at this end, the yarn splits up into were the only ones available for making
fabrics. In the last hundred years or so,

o
thin strands (Fig. 3.5)?

t
fibres are also made from chemical

o t
Fig.3.4 Splitting the yarn into thin strands
Boojho has seen in the
museums, items like the

n
one shown here. These
were worn by warriors. He
wants to know if these
are made of some
kinds of fibre.

Fig. 3.5 Yarn split up into thin strands

FIBRE TO FABRIC 19
substances, which are not obtained seen a cotton field that is ready for
from plant or animal sources. These are picking? It looks like a field covered with
called synthetic fibres. Some examples snow (Fig.3.6).
of synthetic fibres are polyester, nylon From these bolls, cotton is usually
and acrylic. picked by hand. Fibres are then
separated from the seeds by combing.
3.3 SOME PLANT FIBRES
This process is called ginning of cotton.
Cotton Ginning was traditionally done by hand

d
Have you ever made wicks for oil lamps? (Fig.3.7). These days, machines are also

e
What do you use for making these used for ginning.

h
wicks? This cotton wool is also used for
filling mattresses, quilts or pillows.

T is
Take some cotton wool, pull it apart

l
and look at its edges. What do you

R
observe? The small, thin strands that

E b
you see are made up of cotton fibres.

u
Where does this cotton wool come

C
from? It is grown in the fields. Cotton

p
plants are usually grown at places Fig. 3.7 Ginning of cotton

N e
having black soil and warm climate. Can

r
you name some states of our country

© e
Jute
where cotton is grown? The fruits of the
Jute fibre is obtained from the stem of
cotton plant (cotton bolls) are about the
the jute plant (Fig 3.8). It is cultivated

b
size of a lemon. After maturing, the bolls
during the rainy season. In India, jute is
burst open and the seeds covered with
mainly grown in

o
cotton fibres can be seen. Have you ever
West Bengal, Bihar

t
and Assam. The

t
jute plant is
normally harvested

o
when it is at

n
flowering stage.
The stems of the
harvested plants
are immersed in
water for a few
days. The stems rot
and fibres are
Fig.3.6 Field of cotton plants separated by hand. Fig. 3.8 A jute plant

20 SCIENCE
 d
Fig. 3.9 Making yarn from cotton

e
To make fabrics, all these fibres are Fig. 3.11 Charkha

h
first converted into yarns. How is popularised by Mahatma Gandhi as part
it done?

s
of the Independence movement. He

T i
3.4 SPINNING COTTON YARN encouraged people to wear clothes made

R l
You can try making cotton yarn yourself. of homespun yarn and shun imported

b
cloth made in the mills of Britain.
Activity 4

E
Spinning of yarn on a large scale is

u
Hold some cotton wool in one hand. done with the help of spinning

C p
Pinch some cotton between the machines. After spinning, yarns are

e
thumb and forefinger of the used for making fabrics.

N r
other hand. Now, gently start 3.5 YARN TO FABRIC

© e
pulling out the cotton, while
There are many ways by which fabrics
continuously twisting the
are made from yarns. The two main
fibres (Fig. 3.9). Are you able

b
processes are weaving and knitting.
to make a yarn?
The process of making yarn Weaving

o
from fibres is called spinning. In Activity 2, you might have noticed

t
In this process, fibres from a that a fabric is made up of two sets of

t
mass of cotton wool are drawn yarns arranged together. The process of
out and twisted. This brings arranging two sets of yarns together to

o
the fibres together to form make a fabric is called weaving. Let us

n
a yarn. try to weave some paper strips.
A simple device used
for spinning is a hand
Activity 5
spindle, also called takli Take two sheets of paper of different
(Fig. 3.10). Another hand colours. Cut square pieces of length and
operated device used for width equal to 30 cm from each sheet.
spinning is charkha Fig. 3.10 Now, fold both the sheets into half. On
(Fig. 3.11). Use of charkha was A Takli one sheet draw lines as shown in the

FIBRE TO FABRIC 21
 (a) (b)

d
(c) (d)

e
Fig. 3.12 Weaving with paper strips

h
Fig 3.12 (a) and on the other as shown
in Fig.3.12 (b). Cut both the sheets

T is
along the dotted lines and then unfold.

l
Weave the strips one by one through the

R b
cuts in the sheet of paper as shown in

E
Fig.3.12 (c). Fig. 3.12 (d) shows the

u
pattern after weaving all the strips.

C p
Fig 3.14 Knitting

N e
used to make a piece of fabric (Fig. 3.14).

r
Have you ever pulled the yarn from a

© e
torn pair of socks? What happens? A
single yarn gets pulled out continuously

b
as the fabric gets unravelled. Socks and
many other clothing items are made of
knitted fabrics. Knitting is done by

t o
hand and also on machines.

t
Fig. 3.13 Handloom

o
In a similar manner, two sets of yarn
are woven to make a fabric. The yarns Paheli wants to know if you have

n
are much thinner than our paper strips, seen any fabrics that are made
of course! Weaving of fabric is done on of the fibres on the outer covering
looms (Fig. 3.13). The looms are either of coconut. What are these
hand operated or power operated. fibres normally used for?
Knitting
Have you noticed how sweaters are
knitted? In knitting, a single yarn is

22 SCIENCE
 Weaving and knitting are used for is also a plant that gives natural fibres.
making different kinds of fabric. In ancient Egypt, cotton as well as flax
These fabrics are used for a variety of were cultivated near the river Nile and
clothing items. were used for making fabrics.
In those days, stitching was not
3.6 HISTORY OF CLOTHING MATERIAL
known. People simply draped the fabrics
Have you ever wondered what materials around different parts of their body.
people used in ancient times for clothes?
Many different ways of draping fabrics

d
It appears that in those times people
were used. With the invention of the

e
used the bark and big leaves of trees or sewing needle, people started stitching
animal skins and furs to cover
fabrics to make clothes. Stitched clothes

h
themselves.
have gone through many variations

T s
After people began to settle in since this invention. But, is it not

li
agricultural communities, they learnt to amazing that even today saree, dhoti,

R
weave twigs and grass into mats and lungi or turban is used as an un-stitched

b
baskets. Vines, animal fleece or hair were piece of fabric?

E u
twisted together into long strands. These Just as there is a large variety in the

C
were woven into fabrics. The early Indians food eaten all over our country, a large

p
wore fabrics made out of cotton that grew variety exists also in fabrics and

N e
in the regions near the river Ganga. Flax clothing items.

Cotton wool
© e r
b
Fabric

o
Fibre
Knitting
Spinning
t t
no
Weaving
Yar n

„ There is a variety of clothing material or fabric, such as, cotton, silk,

wool and polyester.

FIBRE TO FABRIC 23
 „ Fabrics are made from yarns, which in turn are made from fibres.
„ Fibres are either natural or synthetic. Cotton, wool, silk and jute are
some natural fibres, while nylon and polyester are some examples of
synthetic fibres.
„ Fibres like cotton and jute are obtained from plants.
„ The process of making yarn from fibres is called spinning.
„ Fabric from yarns is made by weaving and knitting.

e d
h
1. Classify the following fibres as natural or synthetic:

s
nylon, wool, cotton, silk, polyester, jute

T i
2. State whether the following statements are true or false:

R l
a) Yarn is made from fibres.

b
b) Spinning is a process of making fibres.

E u
c) Jute is the outer covering of coconut.

C
d) The process of removing seed from cotton is called ginning.

p
e) Weaving of yarn makes a piece of fabric.

N e
f) Silk fibre is obtained from the stem of a plant.

© e r
g) Polyester is a natural fibre.
3. Fill in the blanks:
a) Plant fibres are obtained from_________ and ________ .

b
b) Animals fibres are __________ and ___________ .
4. From which parts of the plant cotton and jute are obtained?

t o
5. Name two items that are made from coconut fibre.
6. Explain the process of making yarn from fibre.

o t
n
SUGGESTED PROJECTS AND ACTIVITIES

1. Visit a nearby handloom or powerloom unit and observe the weaving or knitting
of fabric.
2. Find out if any crop is grown in your region for obtaining fibre. If yes, what is
it used for?
3. India has been a major producer of cotton and its fabric. India exports cotton
fabrics and items to many other countries. Find out, how it helps us?

24 SCIENCE
 4. Do you know that famous Sufi Saint and poet Kabir, was a weaver? Find out
about his life and teachings.
5. You can do an activity to identify the yarns of a fabric under the supervision
of your teacher or parents. Pull out six to eight yarns from the fabric. Hold one
end of the yarn with a tong and bring the other end over the flame of a candle.
Observe carefully. Do the yarns shrink away from the flame? Do the yarns
melt or burn? What type of odour is given off? Note down your observations.
If these are cotton yarns, they burn but do not shrink or melt. The burning
yarn gives an odour similar to burning paper. The silk yarn shrinks away

d
from the flame and burns but does not melt. It has the odour of charred meat.

e
The wool yarn also shrinks and burns but does not melt. It has a strong odour
of burning hair. The synthetic yarns shrink and burn. They also melt and

h
give out an odour similar to burning plastics.

T lis
E R b
C p u
e
Boojho knows that burning of

N r
cotton yarn gives an odour similar

© e
to burning paper. He is wondering
if he can assume that paper is also
made from plants.

b
t o
o t
n
FIBRE TO FABRIC 25
 4
4.1 OBJECTS AROUND
Sorting Materials into Groups
US
We saw that our food and clothes have we were looking for objects that are
so much variety in them. Not just food edible. We might include all the items

d
and clothes, there is such a vast variety that we have listed in Tables 1.1, 1.2

e
of objects everywhere. We see around us, and 1.3 in Chapter 1. We might also

h
a chair, a bullock cart, a cycle, cooking find that some of those round shaped

s
utensils, books, clothes, toys, water, objects we just listed out, are also in

T i
stones and many other objects. All these this group.

R l
objects have different shapes, colours Let us say, we wish to make a group

b
and uses (Fig. 4.1). of objects that are made of plastics.

E
Look around and identify objects Buckets, lunch boxes, toys, water

u
that are round in shape. Our list may containers, pipes and many such

C p
include a rubber ball, a football and a objects, may find a place in this group.

N e
glass marble. If we include objects that There are so many ways to group objects!

© er
are nearly round, our list could also In the above examples we have grouped
include objects like apples, oranges, and objects on the basis of their shape or the
an earthen pitcher (gharha). Suppose materials they are made from.
All objects around us are made of one

b
or more materials. These materials may
be glass, metal, plastics, wood, cotton,

to
paper, mud or soil. Can you think of
more examples of materials?

t
Activity 1

o
Let us collect as many objects as

n
possible, from around us. Each of us
could get some everyday objects from
home and we could also collect some
objects from the classroom or from
outside the school. What will we have
in our collection? Chalk, pencil,
notebook, rubber, duster, a hammer,
Fig. 4.1 Objects around us nail, soap, spoke of a wheel, bat,

26 SCIENCE
matchbox, salt, potato! We can also list
objects that we can think of, but, cannot
Boojho wants to know, whether
bring to the classroom. For example,
we found some materials that
wall, trees, doors, tractor, road.
were used for making more than
Separate all objects from this
one type of an object.
collection that are made from paper or
wood. This way we have divided all objects
into two groups. One group has the

d
objects that are made from paper or wood Column 1 that are known to you. Now,

e
while the other group has the objects try and think of everyday objects you
that are not made of these materials. know, that are made mainly of these

h
Similarly, we could separate the things materials, and list them in Column 2.

T s
that are used for preparing food.

i
Table 4.2 Different types of objects

l
Let us be a little more systematic. List that are made from the same

R
all objects collected, in Table 4.1. Try to material

b
identify the materials that each one is

E
Objects made of

u
made of. It would be fun to make this a Material these materials

C
large table – collecting information

p
about as many objects as possible. It Chair, table,

e
Wood plough, bullock cart

N
may seem difficult to find out the and its wheels, ...

© er
materials out of which some of these
Books, notebooks,
objects are made. In such cases, discuss Paper newspaper, toys,
with your friends, teacher and parents calendars,...

b
to identify the materials. Leather
Table 4.1 Objects and the materials
Plastics

o
they are made of

t
Cotton
Objects Materials they are

t
made of

o
Steel, glass, plastics What do we find from these tables?
Plate (thali)
(any other) First, we grouped objects in many

n
Pen Plastics, metal different ways. We then found that
objects around us are made of different
materials. At times, an object is made of
a single material. An object could also
be made of many materials. And then
Activity 2 again, one material could be used for
Table 4.2 lists some common materials. making many different objects. What
You can also add more materials in decides which material should be used

SORTING MATERIALS INTO GROUPS 27

for making any given object? It seems Appearance
that we need to know more about Materials usually look different from
different materials. each other. Wood looks very different
4.2 PROPERTIES OF MATERIALS from iron. Iron appears different from
copper or aluminium. At the same time,
Have you ever wondered why a tumbler
there may be some similarities between
is not made with a piece of cloth? Recall
iron, copper and aluminium that are not
our experiments with pieces of cloth in
there in wood.
Chapter 3 and also keep in mind that

d
we generally use a tumbler to keep a Activity 3

e
liquid. Therefore, would it not be silly,
Collect small pieces of different materials –

h
if we were to make a tumbler out of cloth
paper, cardboard, wood, copper wire,

s
(Fig 4.2)! What we need for a tumbler is

T
aluminium sheet, chalk. Do any of these

i
glass, plastics, metal or other such

l
appear shiny? Separate the shiny
material that will hold water. Similarly,

R
materials into a group.

b
it would not be wise to use paper-like
Now, observe as the teacher cuts each

E
materials for cooking vessels.

u
material into two pieces and look at the

C
freshly cut surface (Fig. 4.3). What do

p
you notice? Does the freshly cut surface

N e
of some of these materials appear shiny?

© er
Include these objects also in the group
of shiny materials.
Do you notice such a shine or lustre

b
in the other materials, cut them anyway
as you can? Repeat this in the class with

o
as many materials as possible and make

t
a list of those with and without lustre.
Instead of cutting, you can rub the

t
surface of material with sand paper to

o
see if it has lustre.
Fig. 4.2 Using a cloth tumbler

n
We see then, that we choose a
material to make an object depending
on its properties, and the purpose for
which the object is to be used.
So, what are all the properties of
materials that would be important for
their usage? Some properties are Fig. 4.3 Cutting pieces of materials to see if they
discussed here. have lustre

28 SCIENCE
 Materials that have such lustre are beakers. Fill each one of them about two-
usually metals. Iron, copper, aluminium thirds with water. Add a small amount
and gold are examples of metals. Some (spoonful) of sugar to the first glass,
metals often lose their shine and salt to the second and similarly, add
appear dull, because of the action of air small amounts of the other substances
and moisture on them. We therefore, into the other glasses. Stir the contents
notice the lustre, only on their freshly of each of them with a spoon. Wait for a
cut sur face. When you visit an few minutes. Observe what happens to

d
ironsmith or a workshop, look out for the substances added to water (Fig. 4.4).

e
freshly cut surfaces of metal rods to see Note your observations as shown
if they have lustre. in Table 4.3.

h
Hardness

T i s
When you press different materials with

l
your hands, some of them may be hard

R b
to compress while others can be easily

E
compressed. Take a metal key and try

u
to scratch with it, the surface of a piece

C p
of wood, aluminium, a piece of stone, a
nail, candle, chalk, any other material

N e
Fig. 4.4 What disappears, what doesn’t?
or object. You can easily scratch some

© er
Table 4.3 Mixing different solid
materials, while some cannot be
materials in water
scratched so easily. Materials which can
be compressed or scratched easily are Disappears in water/

b
Substance does not disappear
called soft while some other materials
which are difficult to compress are called Disappears completely in

o
Salt water
hard. For example, cotton or sponge is

t
soft while iron is hard. Sugar

t
In appearance, materials can have
Sand
different properties, like lustre,

o
hardness, be rough or smooth. Can you Chalk
powder

n
think of other properties that describe
the appearance of a material? Sawdust

Soluble or Insoluble? You will notice that some substances

have completely disappeared or
Activity 4 dissolved in water. We say that these
Collect samples of some solid substances substances are soluble in water. Other
such as sugar, salt, chalk powder, sand substances do not mix with water and
and sawdust. Take five glasses or do not disappear even after we stir for a

SORTING MATERIALS INTO GROUPS 29

long time. These substances are We notice that some liquids get
insoluble in water. completely mixed with water. Some
Water plays an important role in the others do not mix with water and form
functioning of our body because it can a separate layer when kept aside for
dissolve a large number of substances. some time.
Do liquids also dissolve in water?
Activity 5
Boojho suggests that we

d
Collect samples of vinegar, lemon juice,
mustard oil or coconut oil, kerosene or also check if the liquids that we

e
any other liquid. Take a glass tumbler. used in Activity 5, mix well with

h
Fill it up to half with water. Add a few some liquid other than water.

s
spoonfuls of one liquid to this and stir

T
Paheli is curious to know

i
it well. Let it stand for five minutes.

l
whether gases also dissolve

R
Observe whether the liquid mixes with in water.

b
water (Fig. 4.5). Repeat the same with

E
other liquids, as many different liquids

u
as are available to you. Write your

C
Some gases are soluble in water

p
observations in Table 4.4. whereas others are not. Water, usually,

N e
Table 4.4 Solubility of some has small quantities of some gases

© er
common liquids in water dissolved in it. For example, oxygen gas
dissolved in water is very important for
Mixes well/
Liquid Does not mix the survival of animals and plants that

b
live in water.
Vinegar Mixes well
Objects may float or sink in

o
Lemon juice
water

t
Mustard oil While doing Activity 4, you might have

t
Coconut oil noticed that the insoluble solids

o
separated out from water. You may have
Kerosene
also noticed this with some liquids in

n
Activity 5. Some of these materials that
did not mix with water, floated to the
surface of water. Others may have sunk
to the bottom of the tumbler, right? We
notice many examples of objects that
(a) (b) float in water or sink (Fig. 4.6). Dried
Fig. 4.5 (a) Some liquids mix well with leaves fallen on the surface of a pond, a
water while (b) some others do not stone that you throw into this pond, few

30 SCIENCE
 hide behind a glass window? Obviously
not, as your friends can see through that
and spot you. Can you see through all
the materials? Those substances or
materials, through which things can be
seen, are called transparent (Fig. 4.7).
Glass, water, air and some plastics are
Figure 4.6 Some objects float in water while
examples of transparent materials.
others sink in it

d
Shopkeepers usually prefer to keep
drops of honey that you let fall into a

e
biscuits, sweets and other eatables in
glass of water. What happens to all transparent containers of glass or

h
of these?

s
Boojho would like you to give him

T i
five examples each, of objects that float

R l
and those that sink in water. What

b
about testing these same materials to

E
see if they float or sink in other liquids

u
like oil?

C p
Transparency

N e
Fig. 4.8 Transparent bottles in a shop
You might have played the game of hide

© er
plastic, so that buyers can easily see
and seek. Think of some places where
these items (Fig. 4.8).
you would like to hide so that you are
On the other hand, there are some
not seen by others. Why did you choose

b
materials through which you are not
those places? Would you have tried to
able to see. These materials are called

o
opaque. You cannot tell what is kept

t
in a closed wooden box, a cardboard
carton or a metal container. Wood,

t
cardboard and metals, are examples of

o
opaque materials.
Do we find that we can group all

n
materials and objects, without any
confusion, as either opaque or
transparent?
Activity 6
Take a sheet of paper and look through
Fig. 4.7 Looking through opaque, transparent or it towards a lighted bulb. Make a note
translucent material of your observation. Now, put 2-3 drops

SORTING MATERIALS INTO GROUPS 31

of some oil and spread it on the sheet of whether palm of your hand is opaque,
paper. Look again towards the lighted transparent or translucent?
bulb through that portion of the paper We learnt that materials differ in their
on which the oil has been spread. Do appearance and the way they mix in
you find that the bulb is more clearly water or other liquids. They may float
visible than before? But, can you see or sink in water or may be transparent,
clearly through the oiled paper? Is opaque or translucent. Materials can be
everything on the other side of it visible? grouped on the basis of similarities or

d
Perhaps not. The materials through differences in their properties.

e
which objects can be seen, but not Why do we need to group materials?
clearly, are known as translucent. In everyday life, we often group materials

h
Remember the oily patch on paper when for our convenience. At home, we

T s
we tested food items for presence of fats? usually store things in such a manner

l i
That was translucent too! Can you that similar objects are placed together.

R
think of some more examples of Such an arrangement helps us to locate

b
translucent materials? them easily. Similarly, a grocer usually

E u
We can therefore group materials as keeps all type of biscuits at one corner

C
opaque, transparent and translucent. of his shop, all soaps at another while

p
Paheli suggests grains and pulses are stored at some

N e
covering the glass other place.

© er
of a torch with your There is another reason why we find
palm at a dark such grouping useful. Dividing
place. Switch on materials in groups makes it convenient

b
the torch and to study their properties and also
observe the other observe any patterns in these properties.
Fig. 4.9 Does torch

o
light pass through side of the palm. We will study more about this in

t
your palm? She wants to know higher classes.

o t
n
Hard Opaque
Insoluble Rough
Lustre Soluble
Material T ranslucent
Metals T ransparent

32 SCIENCE
 „ Objects around us are made up of a large variety of materials.
„ A given material could be used to make a large number of objects. It is
also possible that an object could be made of a single material or of
many different types of materials.
„ Different types of materials have different properties.
„ Some materials are shiny in appearance while others are not. Some are
rough, some smooth. Similarly, some materials are hard, whereas some

d
others are soft.

e
„ Some materials are soluble in water whereas some others are insoluble.
„ Some materials such as glass, are transparent and some others such

h
as wood and metals are opaque. Some materials are translucent.

T s
„ Materials are grouped together on the basis of similarities and differences

i
in their properties.

R l
„ Things are grouped together for convenience and to study their

b
properties.

C E u
p
1. Name five objects which can be made from wood.

N e
2. Select those objects from the following which shine:

© er
Glass bowl, plastic toy, steel spoon, cotton shirt
3. Match the objects given below with the materials from which they could be
made. Remember, an object could be made from more than one material and a

b
given material could be used for making many objects.

Objects Materials

to
Book Glass

t
Tumbler Wood

o
Chair Paper

n
Toy Leather

Shoes Plastics

4. State whether the statements given below are True or False.

(i) Stone is transparent, while glass is opaque.
(ii) A notebook has lustre while eraser does not.
(iii) Chalk dissolves in water.
(iv) A piece of wood floats on water.

SORTING MATERIALS INTO GROUPS 33

 (v) Sugar does not dissolve in water.
(vi) Oil mixes with water.
(vii) Sand settles down in water.
(viii) Vinegar dissolves in water.
5. Given below are the names of some objects and materials:
Water, basket ball, orange, sugar, globe, apple and earthen pitcher
Group them as:

d
(a) Round shaped and other shapes

e
(b) Eatables and non eatables
6. List all items known to you that float on water. Check and see if they will float on

h
an oil or kerosene.

s
7. Find the odd one out from the following:

T l i
a) Chair, Bed, Table, Baby, Cupboard

R
b) Rose, Jasmine, Boat, Marigold, Lotus

E b
c) Aluminium, Iron, Copper, Silver, Sand

u
d) Sugar, Salt, Sand, Copper sulphate

N C e p
© er
SUGGESTED ACTIVITY
1. You may have played a memory game with your friends. Several objects are
placed on a table, you are asked to observe them for a few minutes, go into

b
another room and write down the names of all objects that you can remember.
Play this game, with a difference! Ask all the participants in the game to
remember objects with some particular property while playing this memory

o
game — remember and write down the names of objects that were made of

t
wood or objects that are edible and so on. Have fun!
2. From a large collection of materials, make groups of objects having different

t
properties like transparency, solubility in water and other properties. In later
chapters you will also learn about properties of materials related to electricity

o
and magnetism. After making different groups from the collected materials,
try and find out if there are any patterns in these groups. For instance, do all

n
materials which have lustre conduct electricity?

34 SCIENCE
 5 Separation of Substances

T
here are many instances when we
notice a substance being
separated from a mixture
of materials.
Tea leaves are separated from the
liquid with a strainer, while preparing
tea (Fig. 5.1).

Fig. 5.2 Butter is taken out by churning milk or

curds
than mango or guava? Imagine you are
given a glass of sand with salt mixed in
Fig. 5.1 Separating tea leaves with a strainer
it. Impossible, even to think of
Grain is separated from stalks, while
separating salt from this mixture by
harvesting. Milk or curd is churned to
picking out grains of sand by hand!
separate the butter (Fig. 5.2). As we
learned in Chapter 3, we gin cotton to
separate its seeds from the fibre. But, why would we need to
Perhaps you might separate substances like this
have eaten salted at all, is what Paheli wants
daliya or poha. If you to know.
found that it had
chillies in it, you may
have carefully taken
them out before eating.
Activity 1
Suppose you are given a basket In Column 1 of Table 5.1, are given a
containing mangoes and guavas and few processes of separation. The purpose
asked to separate them. What would you of separation and the way separated
do? Pick out one kind and place them components are used is mentioned in
in a separate container, right? Column 2 and 3 respectively. However,
Seems easy, but what if the materials the information given in Columns 2 and
we want to separate are much smaller 3 is jumbled up. Can you match each
 Table 5.1 Why do we separate substances?

Separation Purpose for which we do What do we do with the

process the separation separated components?

1) Separate a) To separate two different, i) We throw away the soild

stones from rice but useful components. component.

2) Chur ning milk b) To remove non-useful ii) We throw away the

to obtain butter components. impurities.

3) Separate tea c) To remove impurities or iii) We use both the

leaves har mful components. components.

process with its purpose and the way of paper? Are there pieces of stone,
separated components are used? husks, broken grain and particles of any
We see that, befor e we use a other grain in it? Now, remove with your
substance, we need to separate harmful hand the pieces of stone, husks and
or non-useful substances that may be other grains from it.
mixed with it. Sometimes, we separate This method of handpicking can
even useful components if we need to be used for separating slightly larger
use them separately. sized impurities like the pieces of dirt,
The substances to be separated may stone, and husk from wheat, rice or
be particles of different sizes or pulses (Fig. 5.3). The quantity of such
materials. These may be solids, liquids impurities is usually not very large.
or even gases. So, how do we separate In such situations, we find that
substances mixed together if they have handpicking is a convenient method of
so many different properties? separating substances.
5.1 METHODS OF SEPARATION
We will discuss some simple methods of
separating substances that are mixed
together. You may come across some of
these methods being used in day to day
activities.
Hand Picking
Activity 2
Fig. 5.3 Handpicking stones from grain
Bring a packet of grain purchased from
a shop to the classroom. Now, spread Threshing
the grain on a sheet of paper. Do you You must have seen bundles of wheat
find only one kind of grain on the sheet or paddy stalks lying in fields after

36 S CIENCE
harvesting the crop. Stalks are dried in this mixture on a plate or a newspaper.
the sun before the grain is separated Look at this mixture carefully. Can the
from them. Each stalk has many grain two different components be made out
seeds attached to it. Imagine the easily? Are the sizes of particles of the
number of grain seeds in hundreds of two components similar? Would it be
bundles of stalk lying in the field! How possible to separate the components by
does the farmer separate grain seeds handpicking?
from those bundles of stalks? Now, take your mixture to an open
One may pluck mangoes or guavas ground and stand on a raised platform.
from the trees. But, grain seeds are Put the mixture in a plate or sheet of
much smaller than mangoes or guavas. paper. Hold the plate or the sheet of
So, plucking them from their stalks paper containing the mixture, at your
would be impossible. How does one shoulder height. Tilt it slightly, so that
separate grain seeds from their stalks? the mixture slides out slowly.
The process that is used to separate What happens? Do both the
grain from stalks etc. is threshing. In components — sand and sawdust (or
this process, the stalks are beaten to free powdered leaves) fall at the same place?
the grain seeds (Fig. 5.4). Sometimes, Is there a component that blows away?
Did the wind manage to separate the
two components?
This method of separating
components of a mixture is called
winnowing. Winnowing is used to
separate heavier and lighter components
of a mixture by wind or by blowing air.

Fig. 5.4 Threshing

threshing is done with the help of

bullocks. Machines are also used to
thresh large quantities of grain.
Winnowing
Activity 3
Make a mixture of dry sand with
sawdust or powdered dry leaves. Keep Fig. 5.5 Winnowing

S EPARATION OF SUBSTANCES 37
This method is commonly used by
farmers to separate lighter husk particles
from heavier seeds of grain (Fig. 5.5).
The husk particles are carried away
by the wind. The seeds of grain get
separated and form a heap near the
platform for winnowing. The separated
husk is used for many purposes such
as fodder for cattles.
Sieving
Fig. 5.7 Pebbles and stones are removed from
Sometimes, we may wish to prepare a sand by sieving
dish with flour. We need to remove
to separate pebbles and stones from
impurities and bran that may be present
sand (Fig. 5.7).
in it. What do we do? We use a sieve
and pour the flour into it (Fig. 5.6). Activity 4
Sieving allows the fine flour particles
Bring a sieve and a small quantity of
to pass through the holes of the sieve
flour from home, to the class. Sieve the
while the bigger impurities remain on
flour to separate any impurities in it.
the sieve.
Now, make a fine powder of chalk pieces
In a flour mill, impurities like husk
and mix it with the flour. Can we
and stones are removed from wheat
separate the flour and the powdered
before grinding it. Usually, a bagful of
chalk by sieving?
wheat is poured on a slanting sieve. The
Sieving is used when components of
sieving removes pieces of stones, stalk
a mixture have different sizes.
and husk that may still remain with
wheat after threshing and winnowing. Sedimentation, Decantation
and Filtration
Sometimes, it may not be possible to
separate components of a mixture by
winnowing and handpicking. For
example, there may be lighter impurities
like dust or soil particles in rice or
pulses. How are such impurities
separated from rice or pulses before
cooking?
Fig. 5.6 Sieving
Rice or pulses are usually washed
You may have also noticed similar before cooking. When you add water to
sieves being used at construction sites these, the impurities like dust and soil

38 S CIENCE
particles get separated. These impurities Did all the tea leaves remain in the
go into water, which becomes a little strainer? This process is called filtration
muddy. Now, what will sink to the (Fig. 5.1). Which method of separating
bottom of the vessel — rice or dust? tea leaves from prepared tea is better,
Why? Have you seen that the vessel is decantation or filtration?
tilted to pour out the dirty water? Let us now consider the example
When the heavier component in a of water that we use. Do all of us, at
mixture settles after water is added to all times, get safe water to drink?
it, the process is called sedimentation. Sometimes, water supplied through taps
When the water (along with the dust) is may be muddy. The water collected from
removed, the process is called ponds or rivers may also be muddy,
decantation (Fig. 5.8). Let us find a especially after rains. Let us see if we
few other mixtures that can be separated can use some method of separation to
through sedimentation and remove insoluble impurities like soil
decantation. from the water.
The same principle is used for
Activity 5
separating a mixture of two liquids that
do not mix with each other. For example, Collect some muddy water from a pond
oil and water from their mixture can be or a river. If it is not available, mix some
separated by this process. If a mixture of soil to water in a glass. Let it stand for
such liquids is allowed to stand for some half an hour. Observe the water
time, they form two separate layers. The carefully and note your observations.
component that forms the top layer can Does some soil settle at the bottom
then be separated by decantation. of water? Why? What will you call this
Let us again consider a mixure of a process?
solid and liquid. After preparing tea, Now, slightly tilt the glass without
what do you do to remove the tea leaves? disturbing the water. Let the water from
Try decantation. It helps a little. But, the top flow into another glass (Fig. 5.8).
do you still get a few leaves in your tea? What will you call this process?
Now, pour the tea through a strainer. Is the water in the second glass still
muddy or brown in colour? Now filter
it. Did the tea strainer work? Let us try
filtering the water through a piece of
cloth. In a piece of cloth, small holes or
pores remain in between the woven
threads. These pores in a cloth can be
used as a filter.
Fig. 5.8 Separating two components of a mixture If the water is still muddy, impurities
by sedimentation and decantation can be separated by a filter that has even

S EPARATION OF SUBSTANCES 39
smaller pores. A filter paper is one such
filter that has very fine pores in it.
Fig. 5.9 shows the steps involved in
using a filter paper. A filter paper folded
in the form of a cone is fixed onto a
funnel (Fig. 5.10). The mixture is then
poured on the filter paper. Solid
particles in the mixture do not pass
through it and remain on the filter.

Fig. 5.11 Heating a beaker containing salt water

and disappear completely? Now, add two

spoons of salt to water in another beaker
and stir it well. Do you see any change
in the colour of water? Can you see any
salt in the beaker, after stirring? Heat
the beaker containing the salt water
(Fig. 5.11). Let the water boil away. What
Fig. 5.9 Folding a filter Fig. 5.10 Filtration
paper to make a cone using a filter paper is left in the beaker?
In this activity, we used the process
Fruit and vegetable juices are usually of evaporation, to separate a mixture of
filtered before drinking to separate the water and salt.
seeds and solid particles of pulp. The The process of conversion of water
method of filtration is also used in the into its vapour is called evaporation.
process of preparing cottage cheese The process of evaporation takes place
(paneer) in our homes. You might have continuously wherever water is present.
seen that for making paneer, a few drops Where do you think, salt comes
of lemon juice are added to milk as it from? Sea water contains many salts
boils. This gives a mixture of particles mixed in it. One of these salts is the
of solid paneer and a liquid. The paneer common salt. When sea water is allowed
is then separated by filtering the mixture to stand in shallow pits, water gets
through a fine cloth or a strainer. heated by sunlight and slowly turns into
Evaporation water vapour, through evaporation. In
a few days, the water evaporates
Activity 6 completely leaving behind the solid salts
Heat a beaker containing some water. (Fig. 5.12). Common salt is then
Allow the water to boil. If you continue obtained from this mixture of salts by
heating, would the water turn into steam further purification.

40 S CIENCE
 notice steam coming out from the spout
of the kettle?
Take a metal plate with some ice on
it. Hold the plate just above the spout
of the kettle as shown in Fig. 5.13. What
do you observe? Let all the water in the
kettle boil off.
When the steam comes in contact
with the metal plate cooled with ice, it
Fig. 5.12 Obtaining salt from sea water condenses and forms liquid water. The
water drops that you observed falling
Use of more than one method from the plate, were due to condensation
of separation of steam. The process of conversion of
We have studied some methods for water vapour into its liquid form is
separation of substances from their called condensation.
mixtures. Often, one method is not Did you ever see water drops
sufficient to separate the different condensed under a plate that has been
substances present in a mixture. In such used to cover a vessel containing milk
a situation, we need to use more than that has just been boiled?
one of these methods. After all the water has evaporated,
Activity 7 what is left behind in the kettle?
We have thus, separated salt, sand
Take a mixture of sand and salt. How and water using processes of
will we separate these? We already saw decantation, filtration, evaporation and
that handpicking would not be a condensation.
practical method for separating these. Paheli faced a problem while
Keep this mixture in a beaker and recovering salt mixed with sand. She
add some water to it. Leave the beaker has mixed a packet of salt in a small
aside for some time. Do you see the sand
settling down at the bottom? The sand
can be separated by decantation or
filtration. What does the decanted liquid
contain? Do you think this water
contains the salt which was there in the
mixture at the beginning?
Now, we need to separate salt and
water from the decanted liquid. Transfer
this liquid to a kettle and close its lid.
Heat the kettle for some time. Do you Fig. 5.13 Evaporation and condensation

S EPARATION OF SUBSTANCES 41
amount of sand. She then tried the
method suggested in Activity 7, to
recover the salt. She found, however,
that she could recover only a small part
of the salt that she had taken. What
could have gone wrong?
Can water dissolve any
amount of a substance?
Fig 5.14 Dissolving salt in water
In chapter 4, we found that many
substances dissolve in water and form would have remained mixed with the
a solution. We say that these substances sand and could not be recovered. She
are soluble in water. What will happen could solve her problem by using a
if we go on adding more and more of larger quantity of water.
these substances to a fixed quantity of Suppose, she did not have sufficient
water? quantity of water to dissolve all the salt
in the mixture. Is there some way that
Activity 8
water could be made to dissolve more
You will need a beaker or a tumbler, a salt before the solution gets saturated?
spoon, salt and water. Pour half a cup Let us try and help Paheli out.
of water in the beaker. Add one
teaspoonful of salt and stir it well, until
Activity 9
the salt dissolves completely (Fig 5.14). Take some water in a beaker and mix
Again add a teaspoonful of salt and stir salt in it until it cannot dissolve any
well. Go on adding salt, one teaspoonful more salt. This will give you a saturated
at a time, and stir. solution of salt in water.
After adding a few spoons of salt, do Now, add a small quantity of salt to
you find that some salt remains this saturated solution and heat it. What
undissolved and settles at the bottom do you find? What happens to the
of the beaker? If yes, this means that undissolved salt in the bottom of the
no more salt can be dissolved in the beaker? Does it dissolve, now? If yes,
amount of water we have taken. The can some more salt be dissolved in this
solution is now said to be saturated. solution by heating it?
Here is a hint as to what might have Let this hot solution cool. Does the
gone wrong when Paheli tried to recover salt appear to settle at the bottom of the
large quantity of salt mixed with sand. beaker again?
Perhaps the quantity of salt was much The activity suggest that larger
more than that required to form a quantity of salt can be dissolved in water
saturated solution. The undissolved salt on heating.

42 S CIENCE
 Does water dissolve equal amounts Table 5.2
of different soluble substances? Let us
Number of spoons of
find out. Substance substance that
Activity 10 dissolved in water

Take two glasses and pour half a cup Salt

of water in each of them. Add a teaspoon Sugar
of salt to one glass and stir till the salt
dissolves. Go on adding salt, one
teaspoon at a time, till the solution We have discussed a few methods of
saturates. Record the number of spoons separating substances. Some of the
of salt that dissolved in the water, in methods of separation presented in this
Table 5.2. Now, repeat the same chapter are also used in a science
activity with sugar. Repeat this with laboratory.
some other substances that are soluble We also learnt that a solution is
in water. prepared by dissolving a substance in a
What do you notice from Table 5.2? liquid. A solution is said to be saturated
Do you find that water dissolves different if it cannot dissolve more of the
substances in different amounts? substance in it.

Chur ning Saturated solution

Condensation Sedimentation
Decantation Sieving
Evaporation Solution
Filtration Threshing
Handpicking Winnowing

 Handpicking, winnowing, sieving, sedimentation, decantation and

filtration are some of the methods of separating substances from their
mixtures.

S EPARATION OF SUBSTANCES 43
  Husk and stones could be separated from grains by handpicking.
 Husk is separated from heavier seeds of grain by winnowing.
 Difference in the size of particles in a mixture is utilised to separate
them by the process of sieving and filtration.
 In a mixture of sand and water, the heavier sand particles settle down
at the bottom and the water can be separated by decantation.
 Filtration can be used to separate components of a mixture of an insoluble
solid and a liquid.
 Evaporation is the process in which a liquid gets converted into its vapour.
Evaporation can be used to separate a solid dissolved in a liquid.
 A saturated solution is one in which no more of that substance can be
dissolved.
 More of a substance can be dissolved in a solution by heating it.
 Water dissolves different amount of soluble substances in it.

1. Why do we need to separate different components of a mixture? Give two

examples.
2. What is winnowing? Where is it used?
3. How will you separate husk or dirt particles from a given sample of pulses before
cooking.
4. What is sieving? Where is it used?
5. How will you separate sand and water from their mixture?
6. Is it possible to separate sugar mixed with wheat flour? If yes, how will you do it?
7. How would you obtain clear water from a sample of muddy water?
8. Fill up the blanks
(a) The method of separating seeds of paddy from its stalks is called ___________.
(b) When milk, cooled after boiling, is poured onto a piece of cloth the cream
(malai) is left behind on it. This process of separating cream from milk is an
example of ___________.
(c) Salt is obtained from seawater by the process of ___________.
(d) Impurities settled at the bottom when muddy water was kept overnight in a
bucket. The clear water was then poured off from the top. The process of
separation used in this example is called ___________.
9. True or false?
(a) A mixture of milk and water can be separated by filtration.
(b) A mixture of powdered salt and sugar can be separated by the process of
winnowing.

44 S CIENCE
 (c) Separation of sugar from tea can be done with filtration.
(d) Grain and husk can be separated with the process of decantation.
10. Lemonade is prepared by mixing lemon juice and sugar in water. You wish to
add ice to cool it. Should you add ice to the lemonade before or after dissolving
sugar? In which case would it be possible to dissolve more sugar?

SUGGESTED PROJECTS AND ACTIVITIES

1. Visit a nearby dairy and report about the processes used to separate cream
from milk.
2. You have tried a number of methods to separate impurities like mud from
water. Sometimes, the water obtained after employing all these processes could
still be a little muddy. Let us see if we can remove even this impurity completely.
Take this filtered water in a glass. Tie a thread to a small piece of alum.
Suspend the piece of alum in the water and swirl. Did the water become clear?
What happened to the mud? This process is called loading. Talk to some elders
in your family to find out whether they have seen or used this process.

THINGS TO SEE

“The winnowers”, painted by Gustav Courbet in 1853

Reproduced with permission from Museè de Beaus Arts, Nantes, France

S EPARATION OF SUBSTANCES 45
 6 Changes Around us

W
hat fun if you suddenly get Can some of the changes be grouped
some magical powers to together?

d
change anything around you! How can we group various changes?
What are the things you would want to It might help, if we find some similarities

e
change? between them.

h
6.1 C AN ALL C HANGES A LWAYS B E

T s
REVERSED?

R li Activity 1

b
Take a balloon and blow it. Take care

E u
that it does not burst. The shape and
size of the balloon have changed

C p
(Fig. 6.1). Now, let the air escape the

N e
balloon.

© e r
We do not have magical powers, of
course. But, we can still change a few
things around us, perhaps many things.

b
Can you list a few things you can
change around you, with no magic

o
involved?

t
Many changes are taking place

t
around us on their own. In the fields,
the crops change from time to time.

o
Fig 6.1 A balloon changes its size and shape on
Sometimes, leaves fall from trees, change blowing air into it

n
colour and dry out. The flowers bloom
and then wither away. Are any changes Activity 2
happening in your body? Your nails Take a piece of paper and fold it as
grow, your hair grows, you grow taller shown in Fig.6.2. You have changed the
and your weight increases as you grow. sheet of paper into a toy aeroplane. You
Did you realise earlier that so many may have lots of fun in flying this plane.
changes are taking place around you all Once you are tired of it, unfold the
the time? paper again.

46 SCIENCE
 Activity 4
Take the same balloon, which you used
in Activity 1. Blow it to its full size and
tie its mouth with a string tightly. Prick
it with the pointed tip of your pencil.
Oops! It burst.
Fig 6.2 A toy aeroplane made by folding paper
Activity 5

d
Activity 3 Take the same piece of paper, which you

e
Take some dough and make a ball. Try used in Activity 2. Draw an aeroplane

h
to roll out a roti (Fig. 6.3). May be you on it and cut along its outline (Fig.6.4).
are not happy with its shape and

T is
wish to change it back into a ball of

l
dough again.

E R b
C u
Fig. 6.4 An aeroplane cut out of paper

N e p Activity 6

r
Fig 6.3 A ball of dough and a rolled out roti Roll out a roti from the ball of dough

© e
again and bake it on a tawa (Fig.6.5).
Now, think about the three changes
you observed in Activity 1, 2 and 3.

b
What do they have in common?
Was it possible to get the balloon back

o
to its original shape and size?

t
Was the size of the paper same as
Fig 6.5 A roti

t
before and after making an aeroplane?
Was it possible to get back the ball of Suppose, you are asked the same

o
dough again? three questions which you answered

n
What do you conclude? In each of after Activity 3. What would your
the three activities, is it possible to get answers be, now?
back to the material with which we We see that, the changes which have
started our activity? If the answer is yes, occurred in the Activity 4, 5 and 6 can
it means that the changes occurring in not be reversed.
these activities can be reversed. Now, let You use a pencil and an eraser. With
us repeat the same activities with repeated use, their shape and size
a difference. changes. Can we reverse this change?

CHANGES AROUND US 47
You must have seen a potter working 6.2 COULD THERE BE OTHER WAYS
on his wheel. He shapes a lump of clay TO BRING A CHANGE?
into a pot. Can this change be reversed? We all have seen the tools which are used
He then bakes the pot in an oven. Now, to dig the soil (Fig. 6.6 ). Have you ever
can this change be reversed? seen how the iron blade in these tools
Some common changes are given in is fixed to the wooden handle?
Table 6.1. Which of these changes, do The iron blade of these tools has a
you think can be reversed? ring in which the wooden handle is

d
We find that one way we can group fixed. Normally, the ring is slightly

e
changes is to see if they can be smaller in size than the wooden handle.
reversed.

h
To fix the handle, the ring is heated and
it becomes slightly larger in size

s
Table 6.1 Some common changes

T i
(expands). Now, the handle easily fits

l
Can be into the ring. When the ring cools down

R
Change Reversed

b
it contracts and fits tightly on to

E
Raw egg to boiled egg Yes/No the handle.

Batter to idli

C p u
N e
Wet clothes to dry clothes

© e r
Woollen yar n to knitted
sweater

b
Grain to its flour

Cold milk to hot milk

t o
Straight string to coil
string

t
Fig. 6.6 Tools are often heated before fixing

o
Bud to flower wooden handles

n
Milk to paneer Such a change is also used for fixing
the metal rim on a wooden wheel of a
Cow dung to biogas
cart as shown in Fig.6.7. Again the
Stretched rubber band to metal rim is made slightly smaller than
its nor mal size the wooden wheel. On heating, the rim
expands and fits onto the wheel. Cold
Solid ice cream to molten water is then poured over the rim, which
ice cream
contracts and fits tightly onto the wheel.

48 SCIENCE
 Paheli wants to know if
you have ever seen a
blacksmith making some
tools. How does a
blacksmith change a
piece of iron into different tools? A
piece of iron is heated till it becomes
red-hot. It then becomes soft and is

d
beaten into a desired shape. What

e
Fig. 6.7 Cart wheel with metal rim fixed to it change has taken place in iron, on

h
being heated?
When we heat water in a pan, it

T s
begins to boil after some time. If we Activity 7

li
continue to heat further, the quantity

R
of water in the pan begins to decrease. Take a small candle and measure its

b
The water changes into its vapour. length with a scale. Now, fix it at a

E
In Activity 7, Chapter 5 you have suitable place and light it. Let it burn

u
observed that water vapour gets changed for some time. Now blow out the candle

C p
into liquid water when it is cooled. We and measure its length again (Fig.6.8).

e
Can the change in the length of the

N
all have noticed melting of ice. Ice melts
candle be reversed? If we were to take

r
when it is heated. What does it change

© e
into? Is it possible to change this water some wax in a pan and heat it, can this
back into ice? change be reversed (Fig. 6.9)?
Let us observe some more changes.

b
t o
Fig.6.8 Burning of a
candle

t
Boojho has often noticed that road
construction workers heat a black

o
material (tar) for repairing a road.

n
He wants to know whether the
change caused in tar, by
heating, is reversible?

Fig.6.9 Heating wax

CHANGES AROUND US 49
 Repeat Activity 7 with an incense the change due to dissolving salt in
stick. Wait till it burns away completely. water be reversed?
What are the changes that occur in the Paheli asks if you have ever seen curd
incense stick? The stick burns to being set. A small quantity of curd is
produce some new material. These are added to warm milk. The milk is stirred
ash and some gases. We cannot see and is set aside for a few hours at a warm
these gases but can sense them due to place. In a few hours, the milk changes
their pleasant smell. Can this change into curd. Can this change be reversed?

d
be reversed? And what about the We find that a few ways to bring about

e
change, which occurred in the a change in a substance could be, by
matchstick you used for lighting the heating it or by mixing it with some

h
candle or incense stick? other substance. We also find that some

T s
So far we have discussed the changes changes can be reversed, while some

li
occurring in a given object or its others cannot be reversed. There must

R
material. What about the changes be many other ways of changing things

b
that occur when two substances are around us. It is possible that some of

E u
mixed together? them could be reversed. Thus, changes

C
In Chapter 4, we dissolved salt in around us could be grouped as those

p
water. Do you think a change occured that can be reversed or cannot be

N e
in salt or in water? Is it possible to reversed. In higher classes, you will

r
reverse this change? Wait, in Chapter learn more about the ways in which

© e
5, we learnt how to separate salt from changes can be made and the way these
its solution in water. So, can we say that can be grouped.

b
o
Changes

t
Contraction

t
Evaporation

noExpansion
Melting

„ Some changes can be reversed and some cannot be reversed.

„ A change may occur by heating a substance or by mixing it with some
other.

50 SCIENCE
 1. To walk through a waterlogged area, you usually shorten the length of your
dress by folding it. Can this change be reversed?
2. You accidentally dropped your favourite toy and broke it. This is a change you
did not want. Can this change be reversed?
3. Some changes are listed in the following table. For each change, write in the
blank column, whether the change can be reversed or not.

d
S. No. Change Can be reversed (Yes/ No)

e
1. The sawing of a piece of wood

h
2. The melting of ice candy

s
3. Dissolving sugar in water

T li
4. The cooking of food

R
5. The ripening of a mango

E b
6. Souring of milk

u
4. A drawing sheet changes when you draw a picture on it. Can you reverse this

C p
change?
5. Give examples to explain the difference between changes that can or cannot be

N e
reversed.

r
6. A thick coating of a paste of Plaster of Paris (POP) is applied over the bandage

© e
on a fractured bone. It becomes hard on drying to keep the fractured bone
immobilised. Can the change in POP be reversed?
7. A bag of cement lying in the open gets wet due to rain during the night. The

b
next day the sun shines brightly. Do you think the changes, which have occurred
in the cement, could be reversed?

t o
SUGGESTED PROJECTS AND ACTIVITIES

t
1. Take a lemon, a paintbrush and a piece of paper. Cut the lemon and squeeze

o
out its juice in a cup. Dip the brush in the lemon juice and write a message
on the paper. Let the paper dry and you find that the letters of your message
become invisible. Now, press the paper with hot iron or warm it by holding it

n
above the flame of a candle (Take care that it does not catch fire). As the
paper gets warm, invisible letters change into dark brown colour. Identify the
changes that can be reversed.
2. Observe preparation of dishes at your home. Identify two changes that can
be reversed.
3. Maintain a record for one year of the seasonal changes in vegetables, clothing,
nature and events around you. Identify the changes that can or cannot be
reversed.

CHANGES AROUND US 51
 7 Getting to Know Plants

G
o outside and observe all the plants of different kinds. Can you label
plants around you. Do you see the stem, branches, roots, leaves, and
that some plants are small, flowers of the plant shown in Fig.7.1?

d
some very big, while some are just Colour the parts of the plant.

e
patches of green on the soil?

h
Some have green leaves,
while some others have

T i s
reddish ones. Some have

l
huge red flowers, some have

R b
tiny blue ones, while some

E
have none. We do see a

u
variety of plants existing all

C p
around us — near our
homes, in the school

N e
ground, on the way to the

© er
school, in the parks and
gardens, isn’t it? Fig. 7.2 A Nature walk!
Let us get to know the different

b
parts of any plant. This will help us Let us now go on a Nature walk,
understand the differences between make friends with many different

o
kinds of plants and examine them

t
closely (Fig. 7.2).

t
7.1 HERBS, SHRUBS AND TREES

o
Activity 1

n
Look closely at the stem and branches
of:
1. Plants much smaller than you.
2. Plants that are about your size, and
3. Plants which are much taller than
you.
Feel their stem and try to bend them
Fig. 7.1 Parts of a plant gently to see if they are tender or hard.

52 SCIENCE
 Table 7.1 Categories of plants
Column 3
Plant Column 1 Column 2 Column
name Height Where do the branches 4
Stem
appear
Higher up
Green Tender Thick Hard At the base on the Category
of the stem stem of plant

Shorter
Tomato than me Yes Yes Herb

d
Much

e
Mango taller Yes Yes Yes T ree
than me

h
Slightly

T s
Lemon taller Yes Yes Shrub

i
than me

R b l
C E u
p
Take care that the stem does not break. 2 and 3 for many more plants. Fill

N e
Hug the tall plants to see how thick their Column 4 after you have studied later

© er
stems are! part of this section.
We also need to notice from where the Based on these characters most
branches grow in some plants — close to plants can be classified into three

b
the ground or higher up on the stem. categories: herbs, shrubs and trees. An
We will now group all the plants we example of each is shown in Fig.7.3.

o
observed, in Table 7.1. Some examples

t
are shown. You can fill the Columns 1,

t
Suggestion: Work in groups of 4-5
students in doing activities suggested

o
in this Chapter so that a minimum

n
number of plants are uprooted.
Use weeds with soft stems for the (a)
activities. Do you know what weeds
are? In crop fields, lawns, or in pots,
often some unwanted plants or
weeds start growing. Have you seen
farmers removing these weeds from (b) (c)
their fields? Fig.7.3 (a) Herb, (b) shrub and (c) tree

GETTING TO KNOW PLANTS 53

 Plants with green and tender stems are different from the herbs, shrubs
are called herbs. They are usually short and trees.
and may not have many branches Perhaps there are some plants in
[Fig.7.3 (a)]. your school or at home that you take
Some plants have the stem care of. Write down the names of any
branching out near the base. The stem two trees, shrubs, herbs or creepers
is hard but not very thick. Such plants growing in your house or school.
are called shrubs [Fig .7.3(b)].
7.2 STEM

d
Some plants are very tall and have

e
hard and thick brown stem. The stems Activity 2
have branches in the upper part, much

h
We would require a glass, water, red ink,
above the ground. Such plants are
a herb, and a blade for this activity.

T s
called trees [Fig.7.3(c)].

i
Pour water to fill one-third of the

l
Based on the above characteristics
glass. Add a few drops of red ink to the

R
can you now correctly classify the plants

b
water. Cut the base of the stem of the
listed by you and complete column 4 in

E u
Table 7.1?

C e p
Paheli wonders what kind of stem — the

N
money plant, beanstalk, gourd plants and

© er
grape vines have. Do observe some of these
plants. How are these different from a herb,
a shrub or a tree? Why do you think

b
some of them need support to climb
upwards? Fig. 7.5 What does the stem do?

o
herb and put it in the glass as shown in

t
Fig.7.5. Observe it the next day.

t
Do any of the parts of the herb appear

o
to have red colour? If yes, how do you
Plants with weak think the colour reached there?

n
stems that cannot stand You can cut the stem across and
upright and spread on look for the red colour inside the stem
the ground are called ( Fig. 7.6) .
creepers, while those From this activity we see that water
that take support on moves up the stem. In other words, stem
neighbouring structures conducts water. Just like the red ink,
and climb up are called Fig. 7.4 minerals dissolved in water also move
climbers ( Fig.7.4 ). These Climbers up in the stem, along with the water.

54 SCIENCE
 7.3 LEAF
Look at leaves of plants around you and
draw them in your notebook. Are all the
leaves the same in size, shape and
colour?
How are they attached to the stem?
(a) (b)
The part of a leaf by which it is attached
Fig. 7.6 (a) Cutting the stem, (b) its enlarged view
to the stem is called petiole. The broad,

d
The water and minerals go to leaves and green part of the leaf is called lamina

e
other plant parts attached to the stem, (Fig. 7.8). Can you identify these parts
of the leaves in plants around you? Do

h
through narrow tubes inside the stem.
Paheli did this activity with herbs all the leaves have petioles?

T i s
having white flowers. She put one

l
Lamina Petiole
branch with a white flower in the water

R b
in glass A and added a few drops of red

E
ink to the water. She did a funny thing

u
with another branch. She split it half

C p
way along its length and put the two
Fig. 7.8 A leaf
ends in the water in glasses B and C

N e
Let us get to know the leaf better by
(Fig. 7.7). She put a few drops of red

© er
taking its impression! If you thought
that leaves cannot sign, here is an
activity which will make you think again.

b
Activity 3
Put a leaf under a white sheet of paper

o
or a sheet in your notebook. Hold it in

t
place as shown in Fig. 7.9. Hold your

t
Fig. 7.7 Paheli’s flowers
pencil tip sideways and rub it on the

o
ink in glass B and blue ink in glass C. portion of the paper having the leaf below
She wants you to guess what would it. Did you get an

n
happen to the flower in glass A and the impression with
flower put jointly in B and C. some lines in it?
When you had cut across the stem Are they similar to
in Activity 2, did you notice a number those on the leaf?
of spots of red colour arranged in a ring These lines on
inside the stem? Does this explain the the leaf are called
results that Paheli obtained? Try this veins. Do you see Fig. 7.9 Taking an
activity yourself! a thick vein in the impression of a leaf

GETTING TO KNOW PLANTS 55

Midrib Veins

(a) (b)

d
Fig. 7.10 Leaf venation (a) reticulate and
(b) parallel Fig. 7.11 What does the leaf do?

e
middle of the leaf? This vein is called the Are there any droplets of water in any

h
midrib. The design made by veins in a of the bags? Which bag has the droplets?

s
leaf is called the leaf venation. If this How do you think they got there? [Don’t

T l i
design is net-like on both sides of forget to remove the polythene bag after

R
midrib, the venation is reticulate the activity!]

b
[Fig. 7.10 (a)]. In the leaves of grass you Water comes out of leaves in the form

E u
might have seen that the veins are parallel of vapour by a process called

C
to one another. This is parallel venation transpiration. Plants release a lot of water

p
[(Fig. 7.10 (b)]. Observe the venation in into the air through this process. We will

N e
as many leaves as you can without learn more about this in Chapter 14.

© er
removing them from the plant. Draw the Why did we tie a bag around the
pattern and write names of some plants leaves? Would we have seen the water
having reticulate and parallel venation. from the transpiration of plants

b
Shall we now find out some of the otherwise? What makes the water
functions of a leaf? appear on the polythene bag? In

o
Chapter 5, we noticed water changing
Activity 4

t
into different forms in some of our
We will require a herb, two transparent activities. Can you think of these and

t
polythene bags and some string. name the process that makes water

o
Do this activity during day time on a drops appear on the polythene bag?
sunny day. Use a healthy, well watered Leaves also have another function.

n
plant that has been growing in the sun, Let us study this.
for this activity. Enclose a leafy branch
of the plant in a polythene bag and tie
Activity 5
up its mouth as shown in Fig. 7.11. Tie We would require a leaf, spirit, a beaker,
up the mouth of the empty polythene test tube, burner, water, a plate and
bag and keep it also in the sun. iodine solution for this activity.
After a few hours, observe the inner Put a leaf in a test tube and pour
surface of the bags. What do you see? spirit to completely cover the leaf. Now,

56 SCIENCE
 ultimately gets stored in different parts
of plant as starch.
How do we know that the leaf has
prepared the starch and not received it
from another part of the plant? To test
this, the above activity can be repeated
with a little difference.
Place a potted plant with green

d
leaves, in a dark room for a day or two.

e
Fig. 7.12 What does the leaf contain? Now, cover a portion of a leaf of the plant
completely with black paper and leave

h
put the test tube in a beaker half filled
the plant in the Sun for a day. Remove
with water. Heat the beaker till all the

T s
the leaf covered in black paper and

i
green colour from the leaf comes out

l
repeat the test for starch.
into the spirit in the test tube. Take out

R
What do you see? Which part of the

b
the leaf carefully and wash it in water.
leaf shows the presence of starch? Does

E
Put it on a plate and pour some iodine

u
this help us understand that leaves
solution over it (Fig. 7.12).

C
produce starch in the presence

p
Note: Since the activity involves the of sunlight?

N e
use of spirit and heating, it is advised We see that the stem supplies leaf

© er
that it is demonstrated by the teacher with water. The leaf uses the water to
in the class. make food. The leaves also lose water
through transpiration.How do the stem
What do you observe? Compare your

b
and leaves get the water? That is where
observations with those done in the roots come in!
Chapter 2, when you tested food for

o
presence of different nutrients. Does this 7.4 ROOT

t
mean that the leaf has starch in it? Look at Fig. 7.13. Who do you think is

t
In Chapter 2, we saw that a slice of watering their plant correctly, Paheli or
Boojho? Why?

o
raw potato also shows the presence of
starch. Potatoes get this starch from

n
other parts of the plant and store it.
However, leaves prepared their food in
the presence of sunlight and a green
coloured substance present in them. For
this, they use water and carbon dioxide
from air. This process is called
photosynthesis. Oxygen is given out in
this process. The food prepared by leaves Fig. 7.13 Watering the plants

GETTING TO KNOW PLANTS 57

 Which part of the plant is in the soil? Activity 7
Let us learn more about this part from
We would require seeds of gram and
the following activities.
maize, cotton wool, katori and some
Activity 6 water.
You would require two pots, some soil, Take two katoris. Place some wet
khurpi (for digging), blade or a pair of cotton wool in them. Put 3 or 4 seeds
scissors and water. This activity is to be of gram in one and maize in the other.
Keep the cotton wet by sprinkling

d
done in groups of 4-5 students.
Select two weeds of the same kind water every day, until the sprouts have

e
from an open ground and dig them out. grown into young plants. After a week

h
Take care that their roots do not break. try to separate the young plants from
the cotton wool (Fig. 7.15).

s
Plant one of the weeds in the soil in pot

T i
A [Fig. 7.14 (a)]. Cut off the roots from

R l
the other weed and plant it in the soil

b
in pot B [Fig. 7.14 (b)]. Water them

E
regularly. Observe the plants after a

u
week. Are both plants healthy?

N C e p
© er
Fig. 7.15 Young plants grown on cotton wool

Was it easy to separate the cotton wool

b
from the roots? Why?
In Activity 6, we could not easily pull

o
out the plants from the soil, right? We

t
dug them out. The roots help in holding
the plant firmly in the soil. They are said

t
(a) (b) to anchor the plant to the soil.

o
You have seen that there are different
Fig. 7.14 (a) Weed with roots, and
kinds of stems and leaves. Do the roots

n
(b) without roots
also show a variety? Let us find out.
Both the plants are watered
regularly, but, one is without roots, isn’t
Activity 8
it? Does this activity help you Study Fig. 7.16 (a) and (b) carefully.
understand an important function of the Now, look at the roots of the gram plants
root? you have pulled out from the cotton
Let us do an activity to study another wool. Do they look like the roots shown
function of root. in Fig. 7.16 (a) or those in Fig. 7.16 (b)?

58 SCIENCE
 For roots of the kind shown in
Fig.7.17 (a), the main root is called tap
root and the smaller roots are called
lateral roots. Plants with roots as shown
in Fig. 7.17 (b) do not have any main
(a) root. All roots seem similar and these
(b)
are called fibrous roots.
Fig 7.16 (a) Roots of_______________ Separate the weeds you have collected

d
(b) Roots of_______________ into (a) those that have tap roots and

e
How about the roots of the maize plant? (b) those that have fibrous roots. Look
Write ‘gram’ or ‘maize’ in the blank at the leaves of the plants in Group (a).

h
spaces in the figure after matching the What kind of venation do they have?

T s
roots with the figures. What kind of venation do you see for

l i
In what way are the roots of gram plants of Group (b)?

R
and maize similar? In what way are they Do you notice that leaf venation and

b
different? There seem to be two different the type of roots in a plant are related

E u
types of roots, isn’t it? Are there also in a very interesting way? In Table 7.2,

C
other types of roots? Let us find out. can you match the type of leaf venation

p
and the type of roots for some plants
Activity 9

N e
you have studied in all the activities

© er
Go to an open ground where many so far?
weeds are growing. Dig out a few weeds,
wash the soil off the roots and observe
Boojho has a brilliant idea! If he

b
them. Do you find that all the weeds wants to know what kind of roots a
that you have dug out have either the plant has, he need not pull it out.
kind of roots shown in Fig. 7.17 (a) or

o
He just has to look at its leaves!

t
as in Fig. 7.17 (b)?

o t Table 7.2 Types of roots and types of

leaf venation

n
Name of Type of leaf Type of
plant venation roots

We have learnt that roots absorb

(a) (b) water and minerals from the soil and
Fig. 7.17 (a) Taproot and (b) fibrous roots the stem conducts these to leaves and

GETTING TO KNOW PLANTS 59

other parts of the plant. The leaves Which colour did you use for the
prepare food. This food travels through flower in Fig. 7.1? Are all flowers
the stem and is stored in different parts colourful? Have you ever seen flowers
of a plant. We eat some of these as roots— on the plants of grass, wheat, maize,
like carrot, radish, sweet potato, turnip mango or guava? If you see any flowers
and tapioca. We also eat many other in these plants, are they brightly
parts of a plant where the food is stored. coloured?
Do you agree that stem is like a two Let us study a few flowers closely.

d
way street? Write down what goes up
When choosing flowers to study, avoid

e
the stem and what comes down,
using marigold, chrysanthemum or
in Fig. 7.18.

h
sunflower. You will learn in higher
classes that they are not single flowers,

T i s
but, groups of flowers.

R b l Activity 10

E
We would require one bud and two fresh

u
flowers each, of any of the following–

C p
datura, china rose, mustard, brinjal,

e
lady’s finger, gulmohur. Also a blade, a

N
Fig. 7.18. A stem as a two way street!

© er
glass slide or a sheet of paper, a
In the next section, we will study magnifying glass and water.
about the structure of a flower. Observe Fig. 7.20 carefully. Look at
the prominent parts of the open flower.

b
7.5 FLOWER
These are the petals of the flower.
You are shown three branches of a rose Different flowers have petals of different

o
in Fig 7.19 (a), (b) and (c). Which one colours.

t
will help you best to recognize the plant? Where do you think the petals are in a

t
closed bud? Which is the most prominent
part in a bud? Did you see that this part

o
is made of small leaf-like structures? They

n
Petals

(a) (b) (c)

Sepals
Fig 7.19 Rose: (a) A leafless branch
(b) A branch with leaves
(c) A branch with leaves and flowers Fig. 7.20 Bud and flower

60 SCIENCE
 Table 7.3 Observations on flowers

Number Number Are the sepals Stamens are Pistil

Name of and colour and colour joined together they free or Present/
flower of petals of sepals or separate? joined to petals? absent

Rose Many 5 (Colour?) Separate Free Present

(Colour?)

d
are called sepals. Take a flower and illustration and identify the stamens and
observe its petals and sepals. Now, pistil in your flower.

e
answer the following questions: Look at Fig 7.23 carefully. It shows

h
How many sepals does it have? the different kinds of stamens present

s
Are they joined together?

T i
What are the colours of the petals

R l
and the sepals?

b
How many petals does your flower

E
have?

u
Are they joined to one another or are

C p
they separate?

N e
Do the flowers with joined sepals have Fig. 7.21 A bell shaped flower

© er
petals that are separate or are they joined
together?
Make a table based on the
observations of the whole class

b
(Table 7.3). Add observations to this
table, from a field trip to a locality where Stamens Pistil

o
there are plants with flowers. Fill the

t
last two columns after you have gone
Fig. 7.22 Parts of a flower

t
through the entire section.

o
To see the inner parts of the flower
clearly, you have to cut it open, if its

n
petals are joined. For example, in datura
and other bell shape flowers, the petals
have to be cut lengthwise and spread Anther
out so that the inner parts can be seen
clearly (Fig. 7.21).
Filament
Remove the sepals and petals to see
the rest of the parts. Study the Fig. 7.22
carefully, compare your flower with the Fig. 7.23 Parts of a stamen

GETTING TO KNOW PLANTS 61

 in different flowers. Can Ovules
Style Stigma you recognise both the
parts of the stamens in
your flower? How many
stamens are there in
Ovary
your flower? Draw one
stamen and label its
parts.

d
The innermost part

e
Fig. 7.24 Parts of of a flower is called the
a pistil pistil. If you cannot see

h
Fig. 7.26 Inner structure of an ovary
it completely, remove the remaining (a) longitudinal cut, (b) transverse cut

T s
stamens. Identify the parts of the pistil

i
w a y s a s s h o w n i n F i g . 7 . 2 5 . To

l
with the help of Fig. 7.24.

R
Draw a neat, labelled diagram of the prevent them from drying, put a drop

b
pistil of your flower. of water on each of the two pieces of

E
the ovary, you have cut.

u
Activity 11 Observe the inner parts of the ovary

C p
Let us now study the structure of the using a lens (Fig. 7.26). Do you see some

N e
ovary of a flower (Fig. 7.24). It is the small bead like structures inside the

© er
lowermost and swollen part of the pistil. ovary? They are called ovules. Draw and
We will cut this part to study how it looks label the inner parts of the ovary in your
inside! Look at Fig. 7.25 (a) and (b) notebook.
carefully to understand how to cut the On your field trip, try to find out the

b
ovary of a flower. names of as many of the flowers as you
Take two ovaries from different can by asking the gardener or any other

o
person. Remember, not to pluck more

t
flowers. Cut them in two different
flowers than you need. Based on what

t
you have filled in Table 7.3, answer the

o
following questions.
Do all flowers have sepals, petals,

n
stamens and pistils? Are there flowers that
do not have any of these? Are there flowers
which have parts other than these?
Did you find any flowers which have
sepals and petals that look similar?
(a) (b) Did you find any flowers in which
Fig. 7.25 Cutting an ovary (a) longitudinal cut the number of sepals is different from
and (b) transverse cut the number of petals?

62 SCIENCE
 Do you now agree that the structure We have studied some features and
of the flower is not always the same? functions of leaves, stems and roots.
The number of sepals, petals, stamens We studied the structure of different
and pistils may also be different in flowers. We will learn about the function
different flowers. Sometimes, some of of flowers in higher classes. We will also
these parts may even be absent! learn about fruits in higher classes.

Climbers Petiole

e d
h
Conduct Photosynthesis

T i s
Creepers Pistil

R l
Fibrous roots Reticulate venation
Herbs

E u b Sepal

C
Lamina Shrubs
Lateral roots

N e p Stamen

© er
Midrib Taproot
Ovule T ranspiration

b
Parallel Venation T rees

o
Petal Veins

t t
o
„ Plants are usually grouped into herbs, shrubs, trees, and climbers based
on their height, stems and branches.

n
„ The stem bears leaves, flowers and fruits.
„ A leaf usually has a petiole and a lamina.
„ The pattern of veins on the leaf is called venation. It can be reticulate or
parallel.
„ Leaves give out water vapour through the process of transpiration.
„ Green leaves make their food by the process of photosynthesis using
carbon dioxide and water in the presence of sunlight.

GETTING TO KNOW PLANTS 63

 „ Roots absorb water and minerals from the soil and anchor the plant
firmly in the soil.
„ Roots are mainly of two types: tap root and fibrous roots.
„ Plants having leaves with reticulate venation have tap roots while plants
having leaves with parallel venation have fibrous roots.
„ The stem conducts water from roots to the leaves (and other parts) and
food from leaves to other parts of the plant.
„ The parts of a flower are sepals, petals, stamens and pistil.

e d
h
1. Correct the following statements and rewrite them in your notebook.

s
(a) Stem absorbs water and minerals from the soil.

T i
(b) Leaves hold the plant upright.

R l
(c) Roots conduct water to the leaves.

b
(d) The number of petals and sepals in a flower is always equal.

E u
(e) If the sepals of a flower are joined together, its petals are also joined

C
together.

p
(f) If the petals of a flower are joined together, then the pistil is joined to the

N e
petal.

© er
2. Draw (a) a leaf, (b) a taproot and (c) a flower, you have studied for Table 7.3.
3. Can you find a plant in your house or in your neighborhood, which has a long
but a weak stem? Write its name. In which category would you classify it?

b
4. What is the function of a stem in a plant?
5. Which of the following leaves have reticulate venation?

o
Wheat, tulsi, maize, grass, coriander (dhania), China rose

t
6. If a plant has fibrous root, what type of venation do its leaves likely to have?

t
7. If a plant has leaves with reticulate venation, what kind of roots will it have?

o
8. Is it possible for you to recognize the leaves without seeing them? How?

n
9. Write the names of the parts of a flower.
10. Which of the following plants have you seen? of those that you have seen, which
one have flowers?
Grass, maize, wheat, chilli, tomato, tulsi, pipal, shisham, banyan, mango, jamun,
guava, pomegranate, papaya, banana, lemon, sugarcane, potato, groundnut
11. Name the part of the plant which produces its food. Name this process.
12. In which part of a flower, you are likely to find the ovary?
13. Name two flowers, each with joined and separated sepals.

64 SCIENCE
 SUGGESTED PROJECT AND ACTIVITIES
1. BECOME A LEAF EXPERT
Do this activity with a number of leaves over a period of a few weeks. For
every leaf that you wish to study, pluck it and wrap it in a wet cloth and take
it home. Now, put your leaf in a newspaper and place a heavy book on it. You
can also put it under your mattress or a trunk! Take out the leaf after a
week. Paste it on a paper and write a poem or story about it. With your leaf
collection pasted in a book (a Herbarium), you can become quite an expert
about leaves!

d
2. Names of plant parts are hidden in this grid. Search for them by going up,

e
down, or even diagonally forward as well as backward. Have fun!

h
O V U L E L Y T S T E M

T s
V E I N W Q H E R B P I

l i
A N I M A L Z E X R N D

R b
R F I L A M E N T M U R

E u
Y A R A B L C O D B E I

C
L E E U O F O L G H I B

e p
A L H I I R J A L K U R

N
© er
T M T N O T P P Q R R A

E E N S T U F E H V W N

P Y A M G I T S Z Z N C

b
F L O W E R E H T N A H

o
S T A M E N N S E P A L

t t
no

GETTING TO KNOW PLANTS 65

 8 Body Movements

S
it absolutely still. Observe the Table 8.1 How do animals move
movements taking place in your from place to place?
body. You must be blinking your

d
Body part used
eyes, time to time. Observe the for moving How does

e
Animal from place to t he animal
movements in your body as you move?
place

h
breathe. There are so many movements
that happen in our bodies. Cow Legs Walk

T i s
When you are writing in your Humans

l
notebook which part of the body are you

R
Snake Whole body Slither

b
moving? Or, when you turn and look at

E
your friend? Different parts of your body Bird

u
move while you remain at the same Insect

C p
place, in these examples. You also move
from one place to another — you get up Fish

N e
and go to your teacher or to the school

© er
compound, or go home after school. You
walk, run, skip, jump and move from Walk, run, fly, jump, creep, crawl,
place to place. slither and swim – these are only a few

b
Let us see how animals move from of the ways in which animals move from
place to place by filling up Table 8.1, one place to another. Why are there so

o
after discussing with our friends, many differences in the way that

t
teachers and parents. animals move from place to place? Why
is it that many animals walk while a

t
snake slithers or crawls and a fish

o
swims?
Boojho wonders about movements

n
in plants. He knows they do not
8.1 HUMAN BODY AND ITS MOVEMENTS
move from place to place, but, do Let us look closely at some of our own
they show any other kind of movements to begin with, before looking
movements? at all these varieties of movements in
animals.
Do you enjoy doing physical exercise
at school? How do you move your hands
and legs while doing different exercises?

66 SCIENCE
Let us try some of the many movements, Why is it that we are able to move a
our body is capable of. few parts of our body easily in various
Bowl an imaginary ball at an directions and some only in one
imaginary wicket. How did you move direction? Why are we unable to move
your arm? Did you rotate it at the some parts at all?
shoulder in a circular movement? Did
Activity 1
your shoulder also move? Lie down and
rotate your leg at the hip. Bend your Place a scale length-wise on your arm

d
arm at the elbow and the leg at the knee. so that your elbow is in the centre
(Fig. 8.1).

e
Stretch your arm sideways. Bend your
arm to touch your shoulder with your Ask your friend to tie the scale and

h
fingers. Which part of your arm did you your arm together. Now,

s
try to bend your elbow.

T
bend? Straighten your arm and try to

i
Are you able to do it?

l
bend it downwards. Are you able to do

R
it?

b
Try to move the various parts of your

E u
body and record their movements in
Fig. 8.1 Can you bend your

C
Table 8.2.

p
arm now?

N e
© er
Table 8.2 Movements in our body
Movement
Body Part
Rotates Rotates Does not

b
completely partly/turns Bends Lifts move at all

o
Neck Yes

t
Wrist

t
Finger

o
Knee

n
Ankle
Toe
Back
Head

Elbow

Ar m Yes

BODY MOVEMENTS 67
 Did you notice that we are able to
bend or rotate our body in places where
two parts of our body seem to be joined
together — like elbow, shoulder or neck?
These places are called joints. Can you
name more such joints? If our body has
no joints, do you think it would be
possible for us to move in any way at

d
all? Fig. 8.2 Making a ball and socket joint

e
What exactly is joined together at
paper cylinder into it as in Fig. 8.2. You
these joints?

h
can also stick the cylinder on the ball.
Press your fingers against the top of
Put the ball in a small bowl. Is the ball

T s
your head, face, neck, nose, ear, back of

i
rotating freely inside the bowl? Is the

l
the shoulder, hands and legs including
paper cylinder also rotating?

R
the fingers and toes.

b
Now, imagine that the paper cylinder
Do you get a feel of something hard

E
is your arm and the ball is its end. The

u
pressing against your fingers? The hard
bowl is like the part of the shoulder to

C
structures are the bones. Repeat this

p
which your arm is joined. The rounded
activity on other parts of your body. So
end of one bone fits into the cavity

N e
many bones!
(hollow space) of the other bone

© er
Bones cannot be bent. So, how do
(Fig.8.3). Such a joint allows movements
we bend our elbow? It is not one long
in all directions. Can you name another
bone from the upper arm to our wrist. It
such joint you can think of, recollecting

b
is different bones joined together at the
the body movements we tried at the
elbow. Similarly, there are many bones
beginning of this section?

o
present in each part of the body. We

t
can bend or move our body only at those
points where bones meet.

t
There are different types of joints in

o
our body to help us carry out different
movements and activities. Let us learn

n
about some of them.
Ball and socket joints
Activity 2 Fig. 8.3 A ball and socket joint

Roll a strip of paper into a cylinder. Make Pivotal Joint

a small hole in an old rubber or plastic The joint where our neck joins the head
ball (under supervision) and push the is a pivotal joint. It allows us to bend

68 SCIENCE
our head forward and backward and
turn the head to our right or left. Try
these movements. How are these
movements different from those of our
arm that can rotate a complete circle in
its ball and socket joint? In a pivotal
joint a cylindrical bone rotates in a ring.
Hinge joints

d
Open and close a door a few times. Fig. 8.5 Hinge joints of the knee

e
Observe the hinges of the door carefully. and socket joint? We saw this kind of

h
They allow the door to move back movement at the elbow in Activity 1.

s
and forth. What we have constructed in Fig. 8.4 is

T i
Activity 3 different from a hinge, of course. But, it

R l
illustrates the direction in which a hinge

b
Let us look at the kind of movement allows movement. The elbow has a hinge

E
allowed by a hinge. Make a cylinder with joint that allows only a back and forth

u
cardboard or thick chart paper, as movement (Fig. 8.5). Can you think of

C p
shown in Fig. 8.4. Attach a small pencil more examples of such joints?
to the cylinder by piercing the cylinder

N e
at the centre, as shown. Make a hollow Fixed joints

© er
half cylinder from cardboard such that There are some bones in our head that
the rolled up cylinder can fit inside it are joined together at some joints. The
easily. The hollow half cylinder with the bones cannot move at these joints. Such

b
rolled up cylinder sitting inside it, allows joints are called fixed joints. When you
movement like a hinge. Try to move the open your mouth wide, you can move

o
rolled up cylinder. How does it move? your lower jaw away from your head,

t
How is this movement different from isn’t it? Try to move your upper jaw,

t
what we saw with our constructed ball now. Are you able to move it? There is a
joint between the upper jaw and the rest

o
of the head which is a fixed joint.

n
We discussed only some of the joints
that connect parts of our body.
What gives the different parts of the
body their different shapes?
If you wanted to make a doll, what
will you make first? Perhaps a
Fig. 8.4 Directions of movement allowed by a hinge framework to give the doll shape before
like joint making its outer structure, isn’t it? All

BODY MOVEMENTS 69
 Feel the bones in your forearm,
upper arm, lower leg and upper leg. Try
to find the number of bones in each part.
Similarly, feel the bones of your ankle
and knee joints and compare these with
the X-ray images (Fig. 8.7).

e d
T s h
R l i
b
Fig 8.7 X-ray images of ankle and knee joints

E
Fig. 8.6 The Human skeleton

u
Bend your fingers. Are you able to
the bones in our body also form a

C
bend them at every joint? How many

p
framework to give a shape to our body.
bones does your middle finger have?

N e
This framework is called the skeleton
Feel the back of your palm. It seems to

© er
(Fig. 8.6.)
have many bones, isn’t it (Fig. 8.8)? Is
How do we know that this is the
your wrist flexible? It is made up of
shape of a human skeleton? How do we
several small bones. What will happen
know the shapes of the different bones

b
if it has only one bone?
in our body? We can have some idea
about the shape and number of bones

o
in some parts of our body by feeling

t
them. One way we could know this

t
shape better would be to look at X-ray

o
images of the human body.
Did you or anyone in your family

n
ever have an X-ray of any part of your
body taken? Sometimes when we are
hurt, or have an accident, doctors use Fig. 8.8 Bones of the hand
these X-ray images to find out about
any possible injuries that might
Activity 4
have happened to the bones. The X- Take a deep breathe and hold it for a
rays show the shapes of the bones in little while. Feel your chest bones and the
our bodies. back bone by gently pressing the middle

70 SCIENCE
 Fig. 8.11 Shoulder bones

d
Make your friend stand with his

e
hands pressed to a wall. Ask him to and
Fig. 8.9 The rib cage
try to push the wall. Do you see two bones

h
of the chest and back at the same time. standing where his shoulders are? They

s
Count as many ribs (bones of the chest)

T
are called shoulder bones (Fig 8.11).

i
as possible. Observe Fig. 8.9 carefully

l
Observe Fig. 8.12 carefully. This

R
and compare with what you feel of the structure is made of pelvic bones. They

b
chest bones. We see that the ribs are enclose the portion of your body

E
curiously bent. They join the chest bone

u
below the stomach. This is the part
and the backbone together to form a

C
you sit on.

p
box. This is called the rib cage. Some

N e
important internal parts of our body lie

© er
protected inside this cage.
Ask a friend to touch his toes without
bending his knees. Put
your fingers at the centre

b
of his back. Can you feel Fig. 8.12 Pelvic bones.
some long and hard

o
The skull is made of many bones
structure? Starting from

t
joined together (Fig. 8.13). It encloses
the neck, move your and protects a very important part of

t
fingers downwards on the the body, the brain.

o
back of your friend. What We discussed the many bones and
you feel is his backbone. the joints of our skeleton. There are

n
It is made of many small
bones (Fig. 8.10). The rib
cage is joined to these
bones.
If his backbone were
made up of only one long
Fig. 8.10 The bone will your friend be
backbone able to bend? Fig. 8.13 The skull

BODY MOVEMENTS 71
some additional parts of the skeleton
that are not as hard as the bones and
which can be bent. These are called
cartilage.
Feel your ear. Do you find any hard
bony parts that can be bent (a)
(Fig. 8.14)? There do not seem to be any
bones here, isn’t it? Do you notice

d
anything different between the ear lobe
(b)

e
and the portions above it (Fig. 8.15), as
you press them between your fingers?

h
Fig. 8.16 Two muscles work together to move
a bone

T i s
Touch it with the other hand. Do you

R l
feel a swollen region inside your upper

b
arm? This is a muscle. The muscle

E
bulged due to contraction (it became

u
smaller in length). Now bring your arm

C p
back to its normal position. What

e
Fig. 8.14 Upper part of

N
happened to the muscle? Is it still
ear has cartilage Fig. 8.15 The ear lobe

© er
contracted? You can observe similar
You do feel something in the upper parts contraction of muscles in your leg when
of the ear that is not as soft as the ear you walk or run.
lobe but, not as hard as a bone, isn’t it? When contracted, the muscle

b
This is cartilage. Cartilage is also found becomes shorter, stiffer and thicker. It
in the joints of the body. pulls the bone.

o
We have seen that our skeleton is Muscles work in pairs. When one of

t
made up of many bones, joints and them contracts, the bone is pulled in

t
cartilage. You could see, bend and move that direction. The other muscle of the

o
many of them. Draw a neat figure of the pair relaxes. To move the bone in the
skeleton in your notebook. opposite direction, the relaxed musle

n
We have learnt about the bones in our contracts to pull the bone towards its
body and about joints that help us move original postion, while the first relaxes.
in different ways. What makes the bones A muscle can only pull. It cannot push.
move the way they do? Let us find out. Thus, two muscles have to work together
Make a fist with one hand, bend your to move a bone (Fig. 8.16).
arm at the elbow and touch your Are muscles and bones always
shoulder with the thumb (Fig. 8.16). Do required for movement? How do other
you see any change in your upper arm? animals move? Do all animals have

72 SCIENCE
bones? What about an earthworm or a contractions, the earthworm can move
snail? Let us study the manner of through soil. The body secretes a slimy
movement, that is, the gait of some substance to help the movement.
animals. How does it fix parts of its body to
the ground? Under its body, it has a
8.2 “GAIT OF ANIMALS”
large number of tiny bristles (hair like
Earthworm structures) projecting out. The bristles
are connected with muscles. The bristles
Activity 5

d
help to get a good grip on the ground.

e
Observe an earthworm moving on soil The earthworm, actually, eats its way
in a garden. Gently lift it and place it through the soil! Its body then throws

h
on a piece of blotting or filter paper. away the undigested part of the material

T s
Observe its movement (Fig. 8.17). Then that it eats. This activity of an earthworm

l i
place it on a smooth glass plate or any makes the soil more useful for plants.

R
slippery surface. Observe its movement Snail

b
now. Is it different from that on paper?

E
Activity 6

u
Do you find that the earthworm is able

C
to move easily on a hard slippery

p
Collect a snail from a garden. Have you
surface?
seen the rounded structure it carries on

N e
The body of an earthworm is made
its back (Fig. 8.18)?

© er
up of many rings joined end to end. An

b
o
Fig. 8.18 A snail

t
Fig. 8.17 Movement of earthworm
This is called the shell and it is the

t
earthworm does not have bones. It has outer skeleton of the snail, but is not

o
muscles which help to extend and made of bones. The shell is a single unit
shorten the body. During movement, and does not help in moving from place

n
the earthworm first extends the front to place. It has to be dragged along.
part of the body, keeping the rear Place the snail on a glass plate and
portion fixed to the ground. Then it fixes watch it. When it starts moving,
the front end and releases the rear end. carefully lift the glass plate along with
It then shortens the body and pulls the the snail over your head. Observe its
rear end forward. This makes it move movements from beneath.
forward by a small distance. Repeating A thick structure and the head of the
such muscle expansions and snail may come out of an opening in

BODY MOVEMENTS 73
the shell. The thick structure is its foot,
made of strong muscles. Now, carefully
tilt the glass plate. The wavy motion of
the foot can be seen. Is the movement of
a snail slow or fast as compared to an
earthworm?
Cockroach

d
Activity 7

e
Observe a cockroach (Fig. 8.19). Fig. 8.20 Skeleton of a bird

h
Cockroaches walk and climb as well
bony parts of the forelimbs are modified
as fly in the air. They have three pairs

s
as wings. The shoulder bones are strong.

T i
of legs. These help in walking. The body
The breastbones are modified to hold

l
is covered with a hard outer skeleton.

R
muscles of flight which are used to move

b
This outer skeleton is made of different
the wings up and down (Fig. 8.20).

E u
Fish

C p
Activity 8

N e
Make a paper boat. Put it in water and

© er
Fig. 8.19 A cockroach push it with one narrow end pointing
forward [Fig. 8.21 (a)]. Did it go into the
units joined together and that permits water easily? Now hold the boat

b
movement. sideways and push it into the water
There are two pairs of wings attached from the broad side [Fig. 8.21 (b)]. Are

o
to the breast. The cockroaches have you able to make the boat move in water

t
distinct muscles — those near the legs when you push it from this side?
move the legs for walking. The breast

t
muscles move the wings when the

o
cockroach flies.

n
Birds
Birds fly in the air and walk on the (a)

ground. Some birds like ducks and

swans also swim in water. The birds can
fly because their bodies are well suited
for flying. Their bones are hallow and
light. The bones of the hind limbs are (b)
typical for walking and perching. The Fig. 8.21 Playing with boats

74 SCIENCE
 Fish also have other fins on their
body which mainly help to keep the
balance of the body and to keep
direction, while swimming. Did you ever
notice that under water divers wear fin
like flippers on their feet, to help them
move easily in water?
How do snakes move?

d
Fig. 8.22 Fish
Have you noticed that the shape of a Have you seen a snake slither? Does it

e
boat is somewhat like a fish (Fig 8.22)? move straight(Fig. 8.24)?

h
The head and tail of the fish are smaller Snakes have a long backbone. They

s
than the middle portion of the body – have many thin muscles. They are

T i
the body tapers at both ends. This body connected to each other even though they

l
are far from one another. They also

R
shape is called streamlined.

b
The shape is such that water can flow interconnect the backbone, ribs and skin.

E
around it easily and allow the fish to The snake’s body curves into many

u
move in water.The skeleton of the fish loops. Each loop of the snake gives it a

C p
is covered with strong muscles. During forward push by pressing against the

e
ground. Since its long body makes

N
swimming, muscles make the front part

© er
of the body curve to one side and the many loops and each loop gives it this
tail part swings towards the opposite push, the snake moves forward very fast
side. The fish forms a curve as shown and not in a straightline.
in Fig. 8.23. Then, quickly, the body and We have learned about the use of

b
tail curve to the other side. This makes bones and muscles for the movements
a jerk and pushes the body forward. A of different animals. Paheli and Boojho

o
have many questions in their sacks

t
series of such jerks make the fish swim
ahead. This is helped by the fins of about the different movements in

t
the tail. animals. So must you be having many
unanswered questions buzzing in your

no
Fig. 8.23 Movement in Fish Fig. 8.24 Movement in a snake

BODY MOVEMENTS 75
minds? The ancient Greek philosopher place? Why two legs for humans and
Aristotle, in his book Gait of Animals, four for cows and buffaloes? Many
asked himself these questions. Why do animals seem to be having an even
different animals have the body parts number of legs, why? Why is the
that they do have and how do these bending of our legs different from that
body parts help animals to move the of our arms?
way they do? What are the similarities So many questions and perhaps
and differences in these body parts we have looked for some answers

d
between different animals? How many through our activities in this chapter

e
body parts are needed by different and we need to look for many
animals for moving from place to more answers.

T s h
R l i
E u b
N C e p
© er
b
Backbone

to Muscle

t
Ball and socket joint Outer skeleton

o
Bristles Pelvic bones

n
Cartilage Pivotal joint
Cavity Rib cage
Fixed joint Shoulder bones
Gait of animals Skeleton
Hinge joint Streamlined

76 SCIENCE
 „ Bones and cartilage form the skeleton of the human body. It gives the
frame and shape to the body and helps in movement. It protects the
inner organs.
„ The skeleton comprises the skull, the back bone, ribs and the breast
bone, shoulder and hipbones, and the bones of hands and legs.
„ The bones are moved by alternate contractions and relaxations of two
sets of muscles.

d
„ The bone joints are of various kinds depending on the nature of joints
and direction of movement they allow.

e
„ Strong muscles and light bones work together to help the birds fly. They

h
fly by flapping their wings.

s
„ Fish swim by forming loops alternately on two sides of the body.

T i
„ Snakes slither on the ground by looping sideways. A large number of

l
bones and associated muscles push the body forward.

R b
„ The body and legs of cockroaches have hard coverings forming an outer

E
skeleton. The muscles of the breast connected with three pairs of legs

u
and two pairs of wings help the cockroach to walk and fly.

C p
„ Earthworms move by alternate extension and contraction of the body
using muscles. Tiny bristles on the underside of the body help in gripping

N e
the ground.

© er
„ Snails move with the help of a muscular foot.

b
1.

to
Fill in the blanks:

t
(a) Joints of the bones help in the ——————— of the body.

o
(b) A combination of bones and cartilages forms the _______ of the body.
(c) The bones at the elbow are joined by a ______________________ joint.

n
(d) The contraction of the _____________ pulls the bones during movement.
2. Indicate true (T) and false (F) among the following sentences.
(a) The movement and locomotion of all animals is exactly the same. ( )
(b) The cartilages are harder than bones. ( )
(c) The finger bones do not have joints. ( )
(d) The fore arm has two bones. ( )
(e) Cockroaches have an outer skeleton. ( )

BODY MOVEMENTS 77
 3. Match the items in Column I with one or more items of Column II.

Column I Column II

Upper jaw have fins on the body

Fish has an outer skeleton

Ribs can fly in the air

Snail is an immovable joint

d
Cockroach protect the heart

e
shows very slow movement

h
have a streamlined body

T s
4. Answer the following:

l i
(a) What is a ball and socket joint?

R
(b) Which of the skull bones are movable?

E b
(c) Why can our elbow not move backwards?

C
THINGS TO THINK ABOUT

p u
N e
© er
We discussed the many movements our bodies are capable of. Healthy bones,
muscles, joints and cartilages are needed by the body for all these movements.
Some of us suffer from conditions that could make these movements not so easy. In
a whole class activity, try to find ways that one would manage everyday activities, if
any one of our body movements was not possible. In Activity 1, for instance, you

b
tied a scale on your arm and disabled the elbow movement. Think of other ways of
restricting normal body movements and find ways that everyday activities could

o
then be managed.

t t
no

78 SCIENCE
 9 The Living Organisms and
Their Surroundings

P
aheli and Boojho went on of some kind or the other (Fig. 9.1). Paheli
vacation to many places of started thinking and reading about far

d
interest. One such trip took away places. She read that people have
them to the river Ganga in Rishikesh. even found tiny living organisms in the

e
They climbed the mountains of the openings of volcanoes!

h
Himalayas, where it was very cold. They

s
saw many kinds of trees on these

T i
mountains — oaks, pines and deodars,

l
very different from the ones near their

R b
home on the plains! In yet another trip,

E
they travelled to Rajasthan and moved

u
on camels through the hot desert. They

C p
collected different kinds of cactus plants
from this trip. Finally, they went on a

N e
trip to Puri and visited the sea beach,

r
Fig. 9.1 Search for living organisms

© e
dotted with casuarina trees. While
recollecting all the fun that they had on 9.1 ORGANISMS AND THE
these trips, a thought struck them. All SURROUNDINGS WHERE THEY LIVE

b
these places were so different from one Another thought that occurred to Paheli
another, some were cold, some very hot and Boojho was about the kinds of living

o
and dry, and some places so humid. And organisms that were present in different

t
yet all of them had many organisms locations that they had visited. The
(living creatures) of various kinds. deserts had camels, the mountains had

t
They tried to think of a place on Earth goats and yak. Puri had some other

o
where there may not be any living creatures — crabs on the beach and
creatures. Boojho thought of places near such a variety of fish being caught by

n
his home. Inside the house, he tried the the fishermen at the sea! And then,
cupboards. He had thought that there there did seem to be some creatures like
may not be any living organisms here, ants that were present in all these
but he found one tiny spider in the different locations. The kinds of plants
cupboard. Outside the home too, there found in each of these regions were so
did not seem to be any place, he could different from the plants of the other
think of, that did not have living creatures regions. What about the surroundings
in these different regions? Were they will discuss the table as we travel
the same? through many more interesting places.
Activity 1 9.2 HABITAT AND ADAPTATION
Let us start with a forest. Think of all What do you find from the plants and
the plants, animals and objects that can animals listed in Activity 1? Did you find
be found there. List them in Column 1 a large variety in them? Look at what you
of Table 9.1. List things, animals and have entered in the column for the desert

d
plants, found in the other regions that and the column for the sea in Table 9.1.

e
are also shown in the table. You can Did you list very different kind of
collect the examples scattered through organisms in these two columns?

h
this chapter to fill Table 9.1. Discuss What are the surroundings like, in

s
these two regions?

T
also with your friends, parents and

i
teachers, to find more examples to fill In the sea, plants and animals are

R l
the tables. You can also consult many surrounded by saline (salty) water. Most

b
interesting books in libraries that talk of them use the air dissolved in water.

E
of animals, plants and minerals of There is very little water available in

u
different regions. the desert. It is very hot in the day time

C p
T ry and include many plants, and very cold at night in the desert. The

N e
animals and objects, big and small, in animals and plants of the desert live on

r
each of the columns in this table. What the desert soil and breathe air from the

© e
kind of objects will we find that may not surroundings.
be animals or plants? Perhaps parts of The sea and the desert are very
plants like dried leaves, or parts of different surroundings and we find very

b
animals, like bones. We may also find different kind of plants and animals in
different kinds of soils and pebbles. these two regions, isn’t it? Let us look

o
Water in the oceans may have salts at two very different kinds of organisms

t
dissolved in it as discussed in Chapter from the desert and the sea – a camel

t
5. There could be many more objects. and a fish. The body structure of a camel
As we go through the chapter, keep helps it to survive in desert conditions.

o
adding more examples to Table 9.1. We Camels have long legs which help to

n
Table 9.1 Animals, plants and other objects found in different surroundings

In the forest On mountains In the desert In the sea Any other?

80 SCIENCE
keep their bodies away from the heat of We have taken only two examples
the sand (Fig. 9.2). They excrete small from a very wide variety of animals and
amount of urine, their dung is dry and plants that live on the Earth. In all this
they do not sweat. Since camels lose variety of organisms, we will find that
very little water from their bodies, they they have certain features that help
can live for many days without water. them live in the surroundings in which
Let us look at different kinds of fish. they are normally found. The presence
Some of these are shown in Fig. 9.3. of specific features or certain habits,

d
There are so many kinds of fish, but, do which enable a plant or an animal to

e
you see that they all have something live in its surroundings, is called
common about their shape? All the ones adaptation. Different animals are

h
shown here have the streamlined shape adapted to their surroundings in

T s
that was discussed in Chapter 8. This different ways.

li
shape helps them move inside water. The surroundings where organisms

R
Fish have slippery scales on their bodies. live is called a habitat. The organisms

b
These scales protect the fish and also depend for their food, water, air, shelter

E u
help in easy movement through water. and other needs on their habitat.

C
We discussed in Chapter 8, that fish Habitat means a dwelling place (a

p
have flat fins and tails that help them home). Several kinds of plants and

N e
to change directions and keep their body animals may share the same habitat.

r
balance in water. Gills present in the The plants and animals that live on

© e
fish help them to use oxygen dissolved land are said to live in terrestrial
in water. habitats. Some examples of terrestrial

b
We see that the features of a fish help habitats are forests, grasslands, deserts,
it to live inside water and the features of coastal and mountain regions. On the
a camel help it to survive in a desert. other hand, the habitats of plants and

t o
o t
n
Fig. 9.2 Camels in their surroundings Fig. 9.3 Different kinds of fish

THE LIVING ORGANISMS AND THEIR SURROUNDINGS 81

 There are some changes that can happen in an organism over a short period
of time to help them adjust to some changes in their surroundings. For instance,
if we live in the plains and suddenly go to high mountain regions, we may
experience difficulty in breathing and doing physical exercise for some days.
We need to breathe faster when we are on high mountains. After some days,
our body adjusts to the changed conditions on the high mountain. Such
small changes that take place in the body of a single organism over short
periods, to overcome small problems due to changes in the surroundings, are

d
called acclimatisation. These changes are different from the adaptations that

e
take place over thousands of years.

h
animals that live in water are called Collect some dry moong seeds. Keep

s
aquatic habitats. Ponds, swamps,

T
a small heap of seeds aside and soak

i
lakes, rivers and oceans are some the rest in water for a day. Divide the

R l
examples of aquatic habitats. There are soaked seeds into four parts. Keep one

b
large variations in forests, grasslands, part completely submerged in water for

E
deserts, coastal and mountain regions 3-4 days. Do not disturb the dry seeds

u
located in different parts of the world. and those submerged in water. Keep one

C p
This is true for all aquatic habitats part of soaked seeds in a sunny room

N e
as well. and another in a completely dark

r
The living things such as plants region like a cupboard that does not

© e
and animals, in a habitat, are its biotic allow any light to come in. Keep the last
components. Various non-living things part in very cold surroundings, say, in
such as rocks, soil, air and water in a refrigerator or with ice around them.

b
the habitat constitute its abiotic Set these three parts to germinate by
components. Sunlight and heat rinsing them and draining the water

o
also form abiotic components of every day. What do you notice, after a

t
the habitat. few days? Do the seeds in all the five

t
We know that some plants grow from parts germinate equally? Do you find
seeds. Let us look at some abiotic factors slower or no germination in any

o
and their effect on seeds as they grow of these?

n
into young plants. Do you find that abiotic factors like
Activity 2 air, water, light and heat are very
important for growth of plants. In fact,
Recall Activity 5 in Chapter 1 — we made these abiotic factors are important for
sprouts from moong and chana seeds. all living organisms.
When the seed turned into a sprout, it We find that organisms exist in very
germinated. This was the beginning of cold as well as very hot climates and
a new plant, from the seed. surroundings, isn’t it? How do they

82 SCIENCE
manage to survive? That is where,
adaptation comes in.
Adaptation does not take place in a
short time. Over thousands of years, the
abiotic factors of a region change. Those
animals which cannot adapt to these
changes die out, and only the adapted
ones survive. Animals adapt to different

d
abiotic factors in different ways. The

e
result is variety of organisms present in
different habitats.

h
Fig. 9.4 Desert animals in burrows
Let us look at some habitats, the

T s
abiotic factors of these, and the

li
adaptations of animals to these habitats.

R b
9.3 A JOURNEY THROUGH DIFFERENT

E
HABITATS

u
Some Terrestrial Habitats

C p
Deserts

N e
We discussed the abiotic factors of a

r
desert and the adaptations in camels Fig. 9.5 Some typical plants that grow in desert

© e
to these. What about other animals
and plants that are found in deserts? some parts of the two plants, as was
done for Activity 4 in Chapter 7, where

b
Do they have the same kind of
adaptations? we studied transpiration in plants.
There are desert animals like rats Leave the potted plants in the sun and

o
observe after a few hours. What do you

t
and snakes, which do not have the long
legs that the camel has. To stay away see? Do you notice any difference in the

t
from the intense heat during the day, amount of water collected on the two
polythene bags?

o
they stay in burrows deep in the sand
(Fig 9.4). These animals come out only Desert plants lose very little water

n
during the night, when it is cooler. through transpiration. The leaves in
Fig. 9.5 shows some typical plants desert plants are either absent, very
that grow in a desert. How are these small, or they are present in the shape
adapted to the desert? of spines. This helps in reducing loss of
water from the leaves through
Activity 3 transpiration. The leaf-like structure
Bring a potted cactus and a leafy plant you see in a cactus is, in fact, its stem
to the classroom. Tie polythene bags to (Fig. 9.5). Photosynthesis in these plants

THE LIVING ORGANISMS AND THEIR SURROUNDINGS 83

is usually carried out by the stems. The also present on mountains. They may
stem is also covered with a thick waxy have different kind of adaptations to
layer, which helps to retain water. Most survive on the mountains.
desert plants have roots that go very Animals living in the mountain regions
deep into the soil for absorbing water. are also adapted to the conditions there
Mountain regions (Fig. 9.7). They have thick skin or fur to
protect them from cold. For example, yaks
These habitats are normally very cold
have long hair to keep them warm. Snow

d
and windy. In some areas, snowfall may
leopard has thick fur on its body
take place in winters.

e
There is a large variety of plants and

h
animals living in the mountain regions.

s
Have you seen the kind of trees shown

T i
in Fig. 9.6?

R b l
C E u
p
(a)

N r e
© e
b
Fig. 9.6 Trees of a mountain habitat

o
If you live in a mountain region or

t
have visited one, you may have seen a (b)

t
large number of such trees. But, have
you ever noticed such trees naturally

o
growing in other regions?

n
How are these trees adapted to the
conditions prevailing in their habitat?
These trees are normally cone shaped
and have sloping branches. The leaves Fig. 9.7 (a) Snow
of some of these trees are needle-like. leopards, (b) yak
This helps the rainwater and snow to and (c) mountain
goats are adapted
slide off easily. There could be trees with to mountain
shapes very different from these that are habitats (c)

84 SCIENCE
including feet and toes. This protects its survive? It’s light brown colour helps it
feet from the cold when it walks on the to hide in dry grasslands when it hunts
snow. The mountain goat has strong for prey (animals to eat). The eyes in
hooves for running up the rocky slopes front of the face allow it to have a correct
of the mountains. idea about the location of its prey.
As we go up in the mountainous A deer is another animal that lives in
regions, the surroundings change and forests and grasslands. It has strong teeth
we see different kinds of adaptations at for chewing hard plant stems of the

d
different heights. forest. A deer needs to know about the

e
Grasslands presence of predators ( animals like lion
that make it their prey ) in order to run

h
A lion lives in a forest or a grassland
away from them and not become their

s
and is a strong animal that can hunt

T
prey. It has long ears to hear movements

i
and kill animals like deer. It is light

l
of predators. The eyes on the side of its

R
brown in colour. Look at the picture of
head allow it to look in all directions for

b
a lion and that of a deer (Fig. 9.8). How
danger. The speed of the deer helps them

E
are the eyes placed in the face for these

u
to run away from the predators.
two animals? Are they in the front or

C
There are many other features of a

p
on the side of the face? Lions have long
lion, a deer or other animals and plants

e
claws in their front legs that can be

N
that help them to survive in their

r
withdrawn inside the toes. Do the
habitat.

© e
features of a lion help it in any way to
Some Aquatic Habitats
Oceans

b
We already discussed how fish are
adapted to live in the sea. Many other

o
sea animals have streamlined bodies to

t
help them move easily in water. There
are some sea animals like squids and

t
(a) octopus, which do not have this

o
streamlined shape. They stay deeper in

n
the ocean, near the seabed and catch
any prey that moves towards them.
However, when they move in water they
make their body shapes streamlined.
These animals have gills to help them
use oxygen dissolved in water.
(b) There are some sea animals like
Fig. 9.8 (a) Lion and (b) deer dolphins and whales that do not have

THE LIVING ORGANISMS AND THEIR SURROUNDINGS 85

gills. They breathe in air through absorption of nutrients and water from
nostrils or blowholes that are located the soil. However, in aquatic plants, roots
on the upper parts of their heads. This are much reduced in size and their main
allows them to breathe in air when they function is to hold the plant in place.
swim near the surface of water. They can The stems of these plants are long,
stay inside the water for a long time hollow and light. The stems grow up to
without breathing. They come out to the the surface of water while the leaves and
surface from time to time, to breathe in flowers, float on the surface of the water.

d
air. Did you ever see this interesting Some aquatic plants are totally

e
activity of dolphins in television submerged in water. All parts of such
programme or films on ocean life? plants grow under water. Some of these

h
plants have narrow and thin ribbon-like

s
Ponds and lakes

T
leaves. These can bend in the flowing

i
Have you seen plants growing in ponds,

l
water. In some submerged plants, leaves

R
lakes, rivers and even some drains? Go
are often highly divided, through which

b
on a field trip to a nearby pond, if possible,
the water can easily flow without

E
and try to draw the kinds of plants that

u
damaging them.
are seen there. How are the leaves, stems

C
Frogs usually have ponds as their

p
and roots of these plants placed?
habitat. Frogs can stay both inside the

e
Some of these plants have their roots

N
pond water as well as move on land.

r
fixed in the soil below the water
They have strong back legs that help

© e
(Fig. 9.9). In terrestrial plants, roots
them in leaping and catching their prey.
normally play a very important role in the
They have webbed feet which help them

b
swim in water.
We have discussed only a few
common animals and plants compared

t o
to the wide variety that live in the
different habitats. You may have also

t
noticed the very wide variety in plants

o
around you, when you prepared a
herbarium as part of the suggested

n
activities in Chapter 7. Imagine the kind
of variety that you could see in a
herbarium of leaves of plants from all
regions of the Earth!
Fig. 9.9 Some aquatic plants float on water. 9.4 LIVING THINGS AROUND US
Some have their roots fixed in the soil at the
bottom. Some aquatic plants are compltely We went on a journey through different
submerged in water. habitats and discussed many plants and

86 SCIENCE
animals. In Activity 1, we listed objects, Paheli and Boojho found the poem
plants and animals found in different so very funny, because they knew that
surroundings. Suppose we stop a while a chair or a table is not alive and it
and think which examples in our list cannot talk, walk or suffer from the
are living? Let us think of examples from usual problems that all of us face.
a forest. Trees, creepers, small and big A chair, table, stone or a coin. We
animals, birds, snakes, insects, rocks, know that they are not alive. Similarly,
soil, water, air, dry leaves, dead animals, we do know that we are alive and so are

d
mushrooms and moss may be only some all the people of the world. We also see

e
of the objects that are present in the animals around us that are so full of
forest. Which of these are living? life — dogs, cats, monkeys, squirrels,

h
Think of objects that you can see insects and many others.

T s
around you at this moment and group How do we know that something is

li
them as living and non-living. In some living? Often, it is not so easy to decide.

R
cases, it is easy for us to know. For We are told that plants are living things,

b
example, objects like chair or a table in but they do not appear to move like a

E u
our homes we know that they are not dog or a pigeon. On the other hand, a

C
alive. Paheli was reading this rhyme car or a bus can move, still we consider

p
from Complete Nonsense written by them as non-living. Plants and animals

N e
Edward Lear: appear to grow in size with time. But

r
then, at times, clouds in the sky also

© e
seem to grow in size. Does it mean that
clouds are living? No! So, how does one

b
distinguish between living and non-
e Chair, living things? Do living things have
able to th
Said the T ware,
ardly be a some common characteristics that

o
’You can h e heat,
er from th
’How I suff

t
my feet! make them very different from the
fr o m c h ilblains on
’And lk, non-living?
a little wa
’If we took le talk!

t
have a litt You are a wonderful example of a living
’We might air!’
s take the
’Pray let u

o
Chair. being. What characteristics do you have
able to the
Said the T e table,
hair to th which make you different from a non-
Said the C not able!

n
n o w we a re
y o u k living thing? List a few of these
’Now lk,
shly you ta
’How fooli nnot walk
!’
characteristics in your notebook. Look at
e n y o u k now we ca
’Wh a sigh,
able with your list and mark those characteristics
Said the T try,
no harm to
’It can do s you, that you have listed, which may also be
ny legs a
’I’ve as ma o n two?’ found in animals or plants.
y c a n ’t w e walk
’Wh
Some of these characteristics are
perhaps common to all living things.

THE LIVING ORGANISMS AND THEIR SURROUNDINGS 87

Do all living things need food? pups of a dog grow
In Chapters 1 and 2, we learnt that all into adults. A
living things need food and how chicken hatched
essential it is to animals and to us. We from an egg, grows
have also learnt that plants make their into a hen or a cock.
own food through the process of (Fig 9.11).
photosynthesis. Animals depend on Plants also grow.
plants and other animals for their food. Look around you

d
Food gives organisms the energy and see a few plants

e
needed for them to grow. Organisms also of a particular type.
Some are very small

h
need this energy for other life processes
that go on inside them. and young, some Fig. 9.11 A chicken

s
are grown. They grows into an adult

T i
Do all living things show

l
may all be in different stages of growth.

R
growth? Look at the plants after a few days and

b
Does the kurta you had four years back, weeks. You may find that some of them

E u
still fit you? You cannot wear it any have grown in size. Growth seems to be
more, isn’t it? You must have grown

C
common to all living things.

p
taller during these years. You may not Do you think, non-living things

N e
realise it, but you are growing all the cannot show growth?

r
time and in few more years you will
Do all living things respire?

© e
become an adult. (Fig 9.10).
Young ones of animals also grow into Can we live without breathing? When
adults. You would surely have noticed we inhale, the air moves from outside to

b
the inside of the body. When we breathe
out, the air moves from inside our body

o
to outside. Breathing is part of a process

t
called respiration. In respiration, some
of the oxygen of the air we breathe in, is

t
used by the living body. We breathe

o
out the carbon dioxide produced in this

n
process.
The process of breathing in animals
like cows, buffaloes, dogs or cats is
similar to humans. Observe any one of
these animals while they are taking rest,
and notice the movement of their
abdomen. This slow movement indicates
Fig. 9.10 A baby grows into an adult that they are breathing.

88 SCIENCE
 Respiration is necessary for all living they adjust to the changed bright
organisms. It is through respiration that surroundings. Your favourite food,
the body finally obtains energy from the bright light and a thorn, in the above
food it takes. situations are some examples of changes
Some animals may have different in your surroundings. All of us respond
mechanisms for the exchange of gases, immediately to such changes. Changes
which is a part of the respiration process. in our surroundings that makes us
For example, earthworms breathe respond to them, are called stimuli.

d
through their skin. Fish, we have learnt, Do other animals also respond to

e
have gills for using oxygen dissolved in stimuli? Observe the behaviour of
water. The gills absorb oxygen from the animals, when the food is served to

h
air dissolved in water. them. Do you find them suddenly

T s
Do plants also respire? Exchange of becoming active on seeing the food?

li
gases in plants mainly takes place When you move towards a bird, what

R
through their leaves. The leaves take in does it do? Wild animals run away when

b
air through tiny pores in them and use bright light is flashed towards them.

E u
the oxygen. They give out carbon Similarly, cockroaches begin to move to

C
dioxide to the air. their hiding places if the light in the

p
We learnt that in sunlight, plants kitchen is switched on at night. Can you

N e
use carbon dioxide of air to produce give some more examples of responses

r
their own food and give out oxygen. of animals to stimuli?

© e
Plants produce their food only during Do plants also respond to stimuli?
the daytime whereas respiration in Flowers of some plants bloom only at

b
them takes place day and night. The night. In some plants flowers close after
amount of oxygen released in the sunset. In some plants like mimosa,
process of food preparation by plants commonly known as ‘touch-me-not’,

t o
is much more than the oxygen they use leaves close or fold when someone
in respiration. touches them. These are some examples

t
of responses of plants towards changes
Do all living things respond to

o
in their surroundings.
stimuli?
Activity 4

n
How do you respond, if you suddenly
step on a sharp object like a thorn, while Place a potted plant in a room a little
walking barefoot? How do you feel when away from a window through which
you see or think about your favourite sunlight enters some time during the
food? You suddenly move from a dark day (Fig. 9.12). Continue watering the
place into bright sunlight. What plant for a few days. Does the plant grow
happens? Your eyes shut themselves upright, like plants out in the open?
automatically for a moment till Note the direction in which it bends, if

THE LIVING ORGANISMS AND THEIR SURROUNDINGS 89

 Do all living things
reproduce their
own kind?
Have you ever seen nests
of some birds like
pigeons? Many birds lay
their eggs in the nest. Some of the eggs
may hatch and young birds come out

d
of these (Fig. 9.13).

Fig. 9.12 Plant respond to light

he
T s
it is not growing upright. Do you think,

li
this may be in response to some

R
stimulus?

b
(a) (b)
All living things respond to changes

E
Fig. 9.13 (a) Birds lay eggs which after hatching

u
around them.
produce (b) young ones

C p
Living organisms and excretion
Animals reproduce their own kind.

N e
All living things take food. Not all the
The mode of reproduction may be

r
food that is eaten is really used, only a
different, in different animals. Some

© e
part of it is utilised by the body. What
animals produce their young ones
happens to the rest? This has to be
through eggs. Some animals give birth
removed by the body as wastes. Our body

b
to the young ones (Fig. 9.14).
also produces some wastes in other life
Plants also reproduce. Like animals,
processes. The process of getting rid of

o
plants also differ in their mode of
these wastes by the living organisms is

t
reproduction. Many plants reproduce
known as excretion.
through seeds. Plants produce seeds,

t
Do plants also excrete? Yes, they do.
However, the mechanisms in plants are a

o
little different. Some harmful or poisonous

n
materials do get produced in plants as
wastes. Some plants find it possible to
store the waste products within their
parts in a way that they do not harm the
plant as a whole. Some plants remove
waste products as secretions.
Excretion is another characteristics Fig. 9.14 Some animals which give birth to
common to all living things. their young ones

90 SCIENCE
 Living things produce more of their
own kind through reproduction. It
takes place in many different ways, for
different organisms.
Do all living things move?
In Chapter 8, we discussed the various
ways in which animals move. They move
Fig. 9.15 A seed from a plant germinates into a

d
new plant from one place to another and also show

e
other body movements.
which can germinate and grow into new What about plants? Do they also

h
plants (Fig.9.15). move? Plants are generally anchored in

s
Some plants also reproduce through soil so they do not move from one place

T i
parts other than seeds. For example, a to another. However, various substances

R l
part of a potato with a bud, grows into a like water, minerals and the food

b
new plant (Fig 9.16). synthesised by them moves from one

E
part of the plant to other. Have you

u
noticed any other kind of movement in

C p
plants? Opening or closing of flowers?

e
Do you recall how some plants show

N r
movement in response to certain

© e
stimuli?
We also have some non-living
things moving, of course. A bus, car, a

b
Fig. 9.16 A new plant grows from a bud of potato small piece of paper, clouds and so on.
Plants also reproduce through Is there something different in these

o
movements from the movements of

t
cuttings. Would you like to grow a plant
living beings?
in this way yourself?
There is such a variety of living

t
Activity 5 organisms, but, all of them show some

o
Take a cutting from a rose or a menhdi common characteristics, as we have

n
plant. Fix it in the soil and water it discussed. Yet another common
regularly. What do you observe, after a characteristic is that living beings die.
few days? Because organisms die, organism types
It may not be easy to grow plants from can survive over thousands of years only
cuttings. Do not be disappointed if your if they reproduce their own kind. One
cutting does not grow. Talk to a gardner, single organism may die without ever
if possible, on the care to be given to reproducing, but, the type of organism
cuttings to make them grow into plants. can exist only if there is reproduction.

THE LIVING ORGANISMS AND THEIR SURROUNDINGS 91

 We see that, all living things seem to stay in a shop for months and not show
have some common characteristics. any growth or some of the other
They all need food, respire, respond to characteristics of life. However, we bring
stimuli, reproduce, show movement, the same seed and plant it in soil, water
grow and die. it and it turns into a whole plant. Did
Do we find some non-living things that the seed — need food, did it excrete,
also show some of these characteristics? grow or reproduce when it was in the
Cars, bicycle, clocks and the water in shop for many months?

d
the river move. The moon moves in the We see that there can be cases when

e
sky. A cloud grows in size right in front we cannot easily say that a thing has all
of our eyes. Can such things be called the characteristics that we have discussed,

h
living? We ask ourselves, do these objects for it to be called living.

T s
also show all the other characteristics

i
“What then is life?”

l
of living things?

R
Push your hand deep inside a sack of
In general, something that is living

b
wheat. Do you find it is warm inside?
may have all the characteristics that we

E
There is some heat being produced

u
have discussed, while non-living things
inside the sack of wheat. The seeds

C
may not show all these characteristics

p
respire and in that process give out
at the same time.
some heat.

N e
Is this always true? Do we always find
We see that respiration is a process

r
that living things definitely show all the

© e
that takes place in seeds even when
characteristics of the living that we have some of the other life processes may not
discussed? Do we always find that non- be very active.

b
living things may show only some of these It may not be very easy to answer
characteristics and never all of them? our question — “what then is life”?
To understand this a little better, let

o
However, looking at all the diversity of

t
us look at a specific example. Consider living beings around us, we can
any seed, say, moong. Is it living? It can conclude that “life is beautiful”!

o t
n
Adaptation Habitat
Aquatic habitat Living
Biotic component Reproduction
Excretion Respiration
Growth Stimulus

92 SCIENCE
 „ The surroundings where plants and animals live, is called their habitat.
„ Several kinds of plants and animals may share the same habitat.
„ The presence of specific features and habits, which enable a plant or an
animal to live in a particular habitat, is called adaptation.
„ There are many types of habitats, however, these may be broadly grouped
as terrestrial (on the land) and aquatic (in water).

d
„ There is a wide variety of organisms present in different habitats.

e
„ Plants, animals and microorganisms together constitute biotic
components.

h
„ Rocks, soil, air, water, light and temperature are some of the abiotic

s
components of our surroundings.

T i
„ Living things have certain common characteristics — they need food,

l
they respire and, excrete, respond to their environment, reproduce, grow

R
and show movement.

E u b
C p
1. What is a habitat?

N e
2. How are cactus adapted to survive in a desert?

r
3. Fill up the blanks

© e
(a) The presence of specific features, which enable a plant or an animal to live
in a particular habitat, is called .
(b) The habitats of the plants and animals that live on land are called

b
habitat.
(c) The habitats of plants and animals that live in water are called

o
habitat.

t
(d) Soil, water and air are the ———— factors of a habitat.
(e) Changes in our surroundings that make us respond to them, are

t
called .

o
4. Which of the things in the following list are nonliving?
Plough, Mushroom, Sewing machine, Radio, Boat, Water hyacinth, Earthworm

n
5. Give an example of a non-living thing, which shows any two characteristics of
living things.
6. Which of the non-living things listed below, were once part of a living thing?
Butter, Leather, Soil, Wool, Electric bulb, Cooking oil, Salt, Apple, Rubber
7. List the common characteristics of the living things.
8. Explain, why speed is important for survival in the grasslands for animals
that live there. (Hint: There are few trees or places for animals to hide in
grasslands habitats.)

THE LIVING ORGANISMS AND THEIR SURROUNDINGS 93

 SUGGESTED PROJECTS AND ACTIVITIES
1. Many magazines and newspapers talk about possibility of life outside the
Earth. Read these articles and have a discussion in the class about what
could be defined as life outside Earth.
2. Visit a local zoo and find out what special arrangements are made for the
animals that have been brought there from different habitats.
3. Find out where are the habitats of the polar bear and the penguin. For each
animal, explain two ways in which it is well adapted to its habitat.

d
4. Find out which animals live in the foot-hills of the Himalayas. Find out if the

e
types and varieties of animals and plants changes as one goes higher into
the mountain regions of the Himalayas.

h
5. Make a habitat album. Try to obtain pictures of animals and plants that you

s
have listed in Activity 1 and paste these under different habitat sections in

T i
the album. Draw the leaf shapes and structures for trees found in these

l
different regions and include these in the album. In addition, draw the

R
patterns of branching found in trees of these different regions and include

b
these also in the album.

C E u
N e p
© e r What is

b
its
name
and

o
habitat

t t
no

94 SCIENCE
10 Motion and Measurement of
Distances

T
here was a general discussion imitated the shapes of the animals living
among the children in Paheli and in water. Recall our discussions of this

d
Boojho's class about the places streamlined shape of fish in Chapters
they had visited during the summer 8 and 9.

e
vacations. Someone had gone to their Invention of the wheel made a great

h
native village by a train, then a bus, and change in modes of transport. The

s
finally a bullock cart. One student had design of the wheel was improved over

T i
travelled by an aeroplane. Another spent thousands of years. Animals were used

l
many days of his holidays going on to pull vehicles that moved on wheels.

R b
fishing trips in his uncle's boat. Until the beginning of the 19th

E
The teacher then asked them to read century, people still depended on

u
newspaper articles that mentioned animal power to transport them from

C p
about small wheeled vehicles that moved place to place. The invention of steam
on the soil of Mars and conducted engine introduced a new source of

N e
experiments. These vehicles were taken power. Railroads were made for steam

© e r
by spacecraft all the way to Mars! engine driven carriages and wagons.
Meanwhile, Paheli had been reading
stories about ancient India and wanted

b
to know how people travelled from one
place to another in earlier times.

o
10.1 STORY OF TRANSPORT

t
Long ago people did not have any means

t
of transport. They used to move only on

o
foot and carry goods either on their back
or using animals.

n
For transport along water routes,
boats were used from ancient times. To
begin with, boats were simple logs of
wood in which a hollow cavity could be
made. Later, people learnt to put
together different pieces of wood and
give shapes to the boats. These shapes Fig 10.1 Means of transportation
Later came automobiles. Motorised boats On the teacher's suggestion, they
and ships were used as means of transport decided to measure the length of the
on water. The early years of 1900 saw the desk, make a mark exactly in the middle
development of aeroplanes. These were of it and draw a line to separate the two
later improved to carry passengers and halves of the desk.
goods. Electric trains, monorail, Both of them are very fond of
supersonic aeroplanes and spacecraft are playing gilli danda with their friends.
some of the 20th century contributions. Boojho brought a set of gilli and danda

d
Fig. 10.1 shows some of the different with him.

e
modes of transport. Place them in the Here is how they tried to measure
correct order — from the earliest modes the length of the desk using the danda

h
of transport to the most recent. and the gilli (Fig. 10.2).

T s
Are there any of the early modes of The desk seems to be having a

li
transport that are not in use today? length equal to two danda lengths and

R
two lengths of the gilli. Drawing a line

b
10.2 HOW FAR HAVE YOU TRAVELLED?
in the middle of the desk leaves each

E
HOW WIDE IS THIS DESK?

u
of them happy with a half of the desk
How did people know how far they have

C
equal to a danda and a gilli in length.

p
travelled? After a few days, the marked line gets

N e
How will you know whether you can wiped out. Boojho now has a new set

r
walk all the way to your school or whether of gilli and danda as he lost his old

© e
you will need to take a bus or a rickshaw one. Here is how, the length of the
to reach your school? When you need to desk seems to measure using the gilli
purchase something, is it possible for you

b
and danda (Fig. 10.3).
to walk to the market? How will you know
the answers to these questions?

o
It is often important to know how far

t
a place is, so that we can have an idea

t
how we are going to reach that place —
walk, take a bus or a train, a ship, an

o
aeroplane or even a spacecraft! Fig. 10.2 Measuring the length of a desk with
gilli and danda

n
Sometimes, there are objects whose
length or width we need to know.
In Paheli and Boojho's classroom,
there are large desks which are to be
shared by two students. Paheli and
Boojho share one desk, but, frequently
end up fighting that the other is using Fig. 10.3 Measuring the length of the desk with
a larger share of the desk. a different set of gilli and danda

96 SCIENCE
 Hello! Now, when measured with the before such standard scales were made
new set of gilli and danda, the desk and he has been trying to follow different
length seems to be about two danda methods of measuring distances.
lengths, one gilli length with a small There are so many occasions when we
length still left out. This is less than one come across a need to measure lengths
gilli length. Now what? and distances. The tailor needs to measure
What would you suggest Paheli and the length of the cloth to know if it is
Boojho do, to measure the length of the enough to stitch a kurta. A carpenter

d
whole desk? Can they use a cricket needs to measure the height and width

e
wicket and bails to measure the length of a cupboard to know how much wood
or do you think that this might create he would need to make its door. The

h
the similar problem? farmer needs to know the length and

T s
One thing they could do is to take a breadth or the area of his land to know

li
small length of string and mark two points how much seed he can sow and how

R
on it. This will be a string length. They much water would be needed for his crops.

b
can measure the width of the desk in Suppose, you are asked how tall you

E u
string lengths (Fig. 10.4). How can they are? You want to tell the length of a

C
use the string to measure distances less straight line from the top of your head

p
than the length of a string? They can fold to the heel of your feet.

N e
1 1 1 How long is this broom?

r
the string and mark it into , and How wide is this desk?
2 4 8

© e
'string lengths'. Now, perhaps Paheli and How far is it from Delhi to Lucknow?
Boojho can measure the exact length of How far away is the Moon from the

b
the desk using the string. Earth?
You would say that they should use All these questions have one thing
the scale in their geometry box and solve in common. They all concern distance

t o
their problem? Yes, Of course! between two places. The two places may
Boojho has been reading about the be close enough, like the two ends of a

t
way people used to measure distances table or they may be far apart, like

o
Jammu and Kanyakumari.
Let us do a few measurements to see

n
what exactly we need to do, when we
measure distances or lengths.
10.3 SOME MEASUREMENTS
Activity 1
Fig. 10.4 Measuring the length of the desk with Work in groups and each of you do this
string lengths activity one by one. Using your foot as a

MOTION AND MEASUREMENT OF DISTANCES 97

unit of length, measure the length and Table 10.2 Measuring width of a table
breadth of the classroom. It is possible
Who measured the Number of
that while measuring these you may find width of the table? handspans
some part remains to be measured as it
is smaller than your foot. Use a string
to measure the length of a part of your
foot as you did before. Record your
observations in Table 10.1.

d
Table 10.1 Measuring length and

e
breadth of classroom with some known quantity. This known
fixed quantity is called a unit. The result

h
Name of Le ng t h of t he W i dt h of t he of a measurement is expressed in two
student classroom classroom

s
parts. One part is a number. The other

T i
part is the unit of the measurement. For

R l
example, if in Activity 1, the length of

b
the room is found to be 12 lengths of

E
your foot, then 12 is the number and

u
Activity 2 'foot length' is the unit selected for the

C p
Work in a group and each of you use measurement.

N e
your handspan as a unit to measure Now, study all the measurements

r
the width of a table or a desk in the recorded in Table 10.1 and 10.2. Are all

© e
classroom (Fig. 10.5). the measurements for the room using
everybody's foot, equal? Are everybody's
measurement, by handspan, of the

b
width of the table equal? Perhaps the
results could be different as the length

o
of your handspan and that of your

t
friends may not be the same. Similarly,

t
the length of the foot may be slightly
Fig. 10.5 Measuring the width of a table with a different for all the students. Therefore,

o
handspan when you tell your measurement using

n
Here too, you may find that you your handspan or length of foot as a
need string lengths equal to your unit to others, they will not be able to
handspan and then fractions of understand how big the actual length
this string length to make the is, unless they know the length of your
measurement. Record all observations handspan or foot.
in Table 10.2. We see therefore, that some standard
We see that, measurement means the units of measurement are needed, that
comparison of an unknown quantity do not change from person to person.

98 SCIENCE
10.4 STANDARD UNITS OF have caused confusion in measurement.
MEASUREMENTS In 1790, the French created a standard
In ancient times, the length of a foot, unit of measurement called the
the width of a finger, and the distance metric system.
of a step were commonly used as For the sake of uniformity, scientists
different units of measurements. all over the world have accepted a set of
The people of the Indus valley standard units of measurement. The
civilisation must have used very good system of units now used is known as

d
the International System of Units (SI
measurements of length because we see

e
units). The SI unit of length is a metre.
evidence in excavations of perfectly
A metre scale is shown in Fig.10.6. Also

h
geometrical constructions.
shown is the 15 cm scale in your

s
A cubit as the length from the elbow

T
geometry box.

i
to the finger tips was used in ancient

l
Each metre (m) is divided into 100
Egypt and was also accepted as a unit

R
equal divisions, called centimetre (cm).

b
of length in other parts of the world.
Each centimetre has ten equal divisions,

E
People also used the "foot" as a unit

u
called millimetre (mm). Thus,
of length in different parts of the world.

C
1 m = 100 cm

p
The length of the foot used varied
1 cm = 10 mm
slightly from region to region.

N e
For measuring large distances, metre
People measured a yard of cloth by

r
is not a convenient unit. We define a

© e
the distance between the end of the
larger unit of length. It is called
outstretched arm and their chin. The
kilometre (km).
Romans measured with their pace

b
1 km = 1000 m
or steps. Now, we can repeat all our
In ancient India, small length measurement activities using a

o
measurements used were an angul standard scale and measure in SI units.

t
(finger) or a mutthi (fist). Even today, we Before we do that, we do need to know
can see flower sellers using their forearm

t
the correct way of measuring lengths
as a unit of length for garlands in many and distances.

o
towns of India. Many such body parts
10.5 CORRECT MEASUREMENT

n
continue to be in use as unit of length, OF

when convenient. LENGTH

However, everyone's body parts could In our daily life we use various types of
be of slightly different sizes. This must measuring devices. We use a metre scale

Fig.10.6 A metre scale and a 15 cm scale

MOTION AND MEASUREMENT OF DISTANCES 99

for measuring length. A tailor uses a taking measurements from the zero
tape, whereas a cloth merchant uses a mark of the scale. You can use any
metre rod. For measuring the length of other full mark of the scale, say,
an object, you must choose a suitable 1.0 cm [Fig.10.8 (b)]. Then you must
device. You cannot measure the girth of subtract the reading of this mark
a tree or the size of your chest using a from the reading at the other end.
metre scale, for instance. Measuring For example, in Fig.10.8 (b) the
tape is more suitable for this. For small reading at one end is 1.0 cm and

d
measurements, such as the length of at the other end it is 14.3 cm.

e
your pencil, you can use a 15 cm scale Therefore, the length of the object is
from your geometry box. (14.3-1.0) cm = 13.3 cm.

h
In taking measurement of a length,

T s
we need to take care of the following:

li
1. Place the scale in contact with the

R
object along its length as shown in

b
Fig.10.7.

E u
2. In some scales, the ends may be

C
broken. You may not be able to see

p
(a)
the zero mark clearly (Fig.10.8 (a)].

N e
In such cases, you should avoid

© e r
b
o
(b)

t
Fig. 10.8 (a) Incorrect and (b) correct method of
(a) placing the scale with broken edge

t
3. Correct position of the eye is also

o
important for taking measurement.

n
Your eye must be exactly in front of
the point where the measurement is
to be taken as shown in Fig.10.9.
Position 'B' is the correct position
of the eye. Note that from position
(b) 'B', the reading is 7.5 cm. From
Fig. 10.7 Method of placing the scale along the positions 'A' and 'C', the readings
length to be measured (a) correct and (b) incorrect may be different.

100 SCIENCE
 (A) (B) (C) at the results in column 3 where the
measurements are done using a
standard scale. The results may be close
to each other now, but, are they exactly
equal? If not, why do you think there is
a difference? After all, everybody is using
the same scale and not different hand
spans. This could be due to small errors

d
in taking observations. In higher classes

e
Fig. 10.9 B is the proper position of the eye for we will learn about the importance of
knowing and handling such errors in

h
taking reading of the scale
measurement.

T s
Activity 3

i
10.6 MEASURING THE LENGTH OF A

l
Measure the height of your classmate CURVED LINE

R b
using hand span and then by using a We cannot measure the length of a

E
metre scale. For this, ask your classmate curved line directly by using a metre

u
to stand with his back against a wall. scale. We can use a thread to measure

C p
Make a mark on the wall exactly above the length of a curved line.
his head. Now, measure the distance

N e
from the floor to this mark on the wall Activity 4

r
with your handspan and then with a

© e
Use a thread to measure the length of
metre scale. Let all other students the curved line AB (Fig.10.10). Put a
measure this length in a similar way. knot on the thread near one of its ends.

b
Record all observations in Table 10.3. Place this knot on the point A. Now,
Table 10.3 Measurement of height place a small portion of the thread along

o
the line, keeping it taut using your

t
Who measured Height in H eig h t i n fingers and thumb. Hold the thread at
the height? handspans cm
this end point with one hand. Using the

t
other hand, stretch a little more portion

o
of the thread along the curved line. Go

n
Study carefully results obtained by
different students. The results in
A
B
column 2 may be different from each
other as the length of the handspan may
Fig.10.10 Measuring the length of a curved line
be different for different students. Look with a thread

MOTION AND MEASUREMENT OF DISTANCES 101

on repeating this process till the other How did you decide whether an object
end B of the curved line is reached. is in motion or at rest?
Make a mark on the thread where it You might have noticed that the bird
touches the end B. Now stretch the is not at the same place after some time,
thread along a metre scale. Measure the while the table is at the same place. On
length between the knot in the beginning this basis you may have decided whether
and the final mark on the thread. This an object is at rest or in motion.
gives the length of the curved line AB. Let us look at the motion of an ant

d
We see that we need a lot of care to closely.

e
ensure that we are measuring distances
Activity 6
and lengths correctly. And, we need

h
some standard units and devices with Spread a large sheet of white paper on

T s
which we measure these distances and the ground and keep a little sugar on it.

li
can convey our results to others. Ants are likely to be attracted to the

R
sugar and you will find many ants

b
10.7 MOVING THINGS AROUND US
crawling on the sheet of paper soon. For

E
Activity 5 any one ant, try and make a small mark

u
with a pencil near its position when it

C
Think of some objects you have seen

p
recently. List them in Table 10.4. A has just crawled on to the sheet of paper

N e
school bag, a mosquito, a table, people (Fig. 10.11). Keep marking its position

r
sitting on desks, people moving about? after a few seconds as it moves along on

© e
May be a butterfly, dog, cow, your hand, the sheet of paper. After some time,
a small baby, a fish in water, a house, a shake the paper free of the sugar and
the ants. Connect the different points

b
factory, a stone, a horse, a ball, a bat, a
moving train, a sewing machine, a wall you have marked, with arrows, to show
clock, hands of a clock? Make your list the direction in which the ant was

t o
as large as you can.
Which of these are moving? Which

t
are at rest?

o
Table10. 4 Objects in rest and motion

n
Objects at rest Objects in motion

House A flying bird

Second's hand of the

Table
clock

Clock

Fig. 10.11 Motion of an ant

102 SCIENCE
moving. Each point you have marked In all these examples we see that the
shows where the ant moved to, in objects move along a straight line. This
intervals of a few seconds. type of motion is called rectilinear
Motion seems to be some kind of a motion.
change in the position of an object
Activity 7
with time, isn't it?
In Activity 5, where did you place Take a stone, tie a thread to it and whirl
objects like a clock, a sewing machine it with your hand. Observe the motion

d
or an electric fan in your grouping of of the stone. We see that the stone moves

e
objects? Are these objects moving from along a circular path.
one place to other? No? Do you notice In this motion, the distance of the

h
movement in any of their parts? The stone from your hand remains the same.

T s
blades of the fan or the hands of a This type of motion is called circular

li
clock— how are they moving? Is their motion (Fig. 10.13).

R
movement similar to that of a train? Let

b
us now look at some types of motion to

E u
help us understand these differences.

C p
10.8 TYPES OF MOTION

e
You may have observed the motion of a

N r
vehicle on a straight road, march-past

© e
of soldiers in a parade or the falling
of a stone (Fig. 10.12). What kind
of motion is this? Sprinters in a

b
100-metre race (a)
also move along a

o
straight track. Can

t
you think of more
such examples from

t
your surroundings?

o
(b) (c)
(a)

n
Fig. 10.13 Some objects in circular motion

The motion of a point marked on the

blade of an electric fan or the hands of
a clock are examples of circular motion.
The electric fan or the clock by
(b) themselves are not moving from one
Fig.10.12 Some examples of rectilinear motion place to another. But, the blades of the

MOTION AND MEASUREMENT OF DISTANCES 103

 fan rotate and so do
the hands of a
clock. If we mark a
point anywhere on
the blades of a fan or
on the hands of a
clock, the distance of
this point from the

d
centre of the fan or

e
the clock, will remain the same as
they rotate.

h
(a)
In some cases, an object repeats its

T s
motion after some time. This type of

li
motion is called periodic motion. Take

R
the stone tied with a string that you

b
used in Activity 6. Now, hold the string

E u
in your hand and let the stone hang

C
from it. Pull the stone to one side with (b) (c)

p
the other hand and let it go. This is a

N e
pendulum. Something to have a lot of

r
fun with and something that will help

© e
us understand about periodic motion.
Motion of a pendulum, a branch of a

b
tree moving to and fro, motion of a child
(d) (e)
on a swing, strings of a guitar or the
surface of drums (tabla) being played,

o
Fig. 10.14 Examples of periodic motion

t
are all examples of periodic motion where
an object or a part of it repeats its motion

t
after a fixed interval of time (Fig. 10.14).
Did you observe a sewing machine

o
Boojho is not sure why we say that as a part of Activity 5? You must have

n
the distance of the stone from your observed that it remains at the same
hand is the same when we whirl it location while its wheel moves with a
around. Can you help him circular motion. It also has a needle that
understand this? Remember moves up and down continuously, as
that the stone is held long as the wheel rotates, isn't it? This
with a string. needle is undergoing a periodic motion.
Have you observed closely, the
motion of a ball on the ground? Here,

104 SCIENCE
the ball is rolling on the ground – The change in this position can
rotating as well as moving forward on be determined through distance
the ground. Thus, the ball undergoes a measurements. This allows us to know
rectilinear motion as well as rotational how fast or slow a motion is. The
motion. Can you think of other movement of a snail on the ground, a
examples where objects undergo butterfly flitting from flower to flower, a
combinations of different types of river flowing along on clear rounded
motion? pebbles, an aeroplane flying high up

d
We did many measurement activities in the air — making jet trails, moon

e
and discussed some kinds of motion. going around the Earth, blood flowing
We saw that motion is a change in the inside our bodies, there is motion

h
position of an object with time. everywhere around us!

T lis
Circular motion

E R b
u
Distance
Measurement

N C e p
r
Motion

© e
Periodic motion
Rectilinear

b
motion
SI units
Units of
measurement
t o
o t
n n

n
Different modes of transport are used to go from one place to another.
In ancient times, people used length of a foot, the width of a finger, the
distance of a step as units of measurement. This caused confusion and
a need to develop a uniform system of measurement arose.
n Now, we use International System of Unit ( SI unit). This is accepted all
over the world.
n Metre is the unit of length in SI unit.

MOTION AND MEASUREMENT OF DISTANCES 105

 n Motion in a straight line is called rectilinear motion.
n In circular motion an object moves such that its distance from a fixed
point remains the same.
n Motion that repeats itself after some period of time, is called periodic motion.

1. Give two examples each, of modes of transport used on land, water and air.

d
2. Fill in the blanks:

e
(i) One metre is ______________ cm.

h
(ii) Five kilometre is ______________ m.
(iii)Motion of a child on a swing is ______________.

T is
(iv) Motion of the needle of a sewing machine is ______________.

R l
(v) Motion of wheel of a bicycle is______________.

b
3. Why can a pace or a footstep not be used as a standard unit of length?

E u
4. Arrange the following lengths in their increasing magnitude:

C
1 metre, 1 centimetre, 1 kilometre,1 millimetre.

p
5. The height of a person is 1.65 m. Express it into cm and mm.

N e
6. The distance between Radha's home and her school is 3250 m. Express this

r
distance into km.

© e
7. While measuring the length of a knitting needle, the reading of the scale at one
end is 3.0 cm and at the other end is 33.1 cm. What is the length of the needle?
8. Write the similarities and differences between the motion of a bicycle and a

b
ceiling fan that has been switched on.
9. Why could you not use an elastic measuring tape to measure distance? What

o
would be some of the problems you would meet in telling someone about a distance

t
you measured with an elastic tape?
10. Give two examples of periodic motion.

o t
SUGGESTED PROJECTS AND ACTIVITIES

n
1. Draw a map of your classroom. Roll a ball on the floor. In your map mark the
points where the ball started and where it stopped. Show also the path it
moved along. Did the ball move along a straight line?
2. Using string and a scale, let each student measure the length of his/her foot.
Prepare a bar graph of the foot length measurements that have been obtained
for the whole class.

106 SCIENCE
 11 Light, Shadows and
Reflections

W
e see so many objects around all, it is an opaque object. If you are
us, colourful and different. able to see clearly through an object, it

d
On the way to school we see is allowing light to pass through it and
things like buses, cars, cycles, trees, is transparent. There are some objects

e
animals and sometimes flowers. How do through which we can see, but not very

h
you think, we see all these objects? clearly. Such objects are known as

s
Think of the same places at night translucent.

T i
time if it were completely dark. What will
Activity 1

l
you see? Suppose you go inside a

R
Look around you and collect as many

b
completely dark room. Are you able to
objects as you can — an eraser, plastic

E
see any objects in the room?

u
But, when you light a candle or a scale, pen, pencil, notebook, single sheet

C
of paper, tracing paper or a piece of

p
torch you can see the objects present in
the room, isn’t it? Without light, things cloth. Try to look at something far away,

N e
cannot be seen. Light helps us see through each of these objects (Fig. 11.1).

r
Is light from a far away object able to

© e
objects.
The torch bulb is an object that gives travel to your eye, through any of the
out light of its own. The Sun, is another objects?

b
familiar object that gives its own light. Record your observations in a table
During the day, its light allows us to as shown in Table 11.1.

o
see objects. Objects like the sun that We see that a given object or material

t
give out or emit light of their own are could be transparent, translucent or
called luminous objects.

t
What about objects like a chair, a

o
painting or a shoe? We see these when
light from a luminous object (like the

n
Sun, a torch or an electric light) falls on
these and then travels towards our eye.
11.1 T RANSPARENT , O PAQUE AND
TRANSLUCENT OBJECTS
Recall our grouping objects as opaque,
transparent or translucent, in Chapter Fig. 11.1 Observing objects that do or do not
4. If we cannot see through an object at allow light to pass through them
 Table 11.1
View through the object Object is opaque/
Object/material possible (fully/ partially/ transparent/
not at all) translucent
Pencil
Rubber ball
Sheet of writing paper Not very sure?

d
opaque depending on whether it allows the outline of the shadow while you are

e
light to pass through it completely, holding the object. Draw outlines of the

h
partially or not at all. shadows of other objects in a similar

s
way.

T
11.2 WHAT EXACTLY ARE SHADOWS?

i
Now, ask some other friends to

R l
Activity 2 identify the objects from these outlines

b
Now, one by one hold each of the opaque of shadows. How many objects are they

E
objects in the sunlight, slightly above able to identify correctly?

u
the ground. What do you see on the Do you observe your shadow in a

C p
ground? You know that the dark patch dark room or at night when there is no

e
light? Do you observe a shadow when

N
formed by each on the ground is due
there is just a source of light and

r
to its shadow. Sometimes you can

© e
identify the object by looking at its nothing else, in a room? It seems we
shadow (Fig. 11.2). need a source of light and an opaque
Spread a sheet of paper on the object, to see a shadow. Is there anything

b
ground. Hold a familiar opaque object else required?
at some height, so that its shadow is Activity 3

o
formed on the sheet of paper on the

t
This is an activity that you will have to
ground. Ask one of your friends to draw
do in the dark. In the evening, go out in

t
an open ground with a few friends. Take

o
a torch and a large sheet of cardboard
with you. Hold the torch close to the

n
ground and shine it upwards so that its
light falls on your friend's face. You now
have a source of light that is falling on
an opaque object. If there were no trees,
building or any other object behind your
Fig. 11.2 Sometimes shadow of an object gives friend, would you see the shadow of
an idea about its shape your friend's head? This does not mean

108 SCIENCE
 a building, or other such surfaces act
as a screen for the shadows you observe
in everyday life.
Shadows give us some information
about shapes of objects. Sometimes,
shadows can also mislead us about the
shape of the object. In Fig. 11.4 are a few
shadows that we can create with our

d
Fig. 11.3 A shadow is obtained only on a hands and make-believe that they are

e
screen shadows of different animals. Have fun!

h
that there is no shadow. After all, the Activity 4

s
light from the torch is not able to pass Place a chair in the school ground on a

T i
through his body to the other side. sunny day. What do you observe from

R l
Now, ask another friend to hold the the shadow of the chair?

b
cardboard sheet behind your friend. Is Does the shadow give an accurate

E
the shadow now seen on the cardboard picture of the shape of the chair? If the

u
sheet (Fig. 11.3)? chair is turned around a little, how does

C p
Thus, the shadow can be seen only the shape of the shadow change?

e
on a screen. The ground, walls of a room,

N
Take a thin notebook and look at its

r
shadow. Then, take a rectangular box

© e
and look at its shadow. Do the two
shadows seem to have a similar shape?
Take flowers or other objects of

b
different colours and look at their
shadows. A red rose and a yellow rose,

o
for instance. Do the shadows look

t
different in colour, when the colours of

t
the objects are different?
Take a long box and look at its

o
shadow on the ground. When you move

n
the box around, you may see that the
size of the shadow changes. When is the
shadow of the box the shortest, when
the long side of the box is pointed
towards the Sun or when the short side
is pointing towards the Sun?
Let us use this long box, to prepare
Fig 11.4 Shadows of animals hidden in your hand a simple camera.

LIGHT, SHADOWS AND REFLECTIONS 109

11.3 A PINHOLE CAMERA pinhole camera are in bright sun shine.
Surely we need a lot of complicated stuff Move the smaller box forward or
to make a camera? Not really. If we just backward till you get a picture on the
wish to make a simple pin hole camera. tracing paper pasted at the other end.
Are these pin hole images different
Activity 5 from their shadows?
Take two boxes so that one can slide Look through your pin hole camera
into another with no gap in between at the vehicles and people moving on

d
them. Cut open one side of each box. the road in bright sun light.

e
On the opposite face of the larger box, Do the pictures seen in the camera
make a small hole in the middle show the colours of the objects on the

h
[Fig. 11.5 (a)]. In the smaller box, cut other side? Are the images erect or

T s
out from the middle a square with a side upside down? Surprise, surprise!

li
of about 5 to 6 cm. Cover this open Let us now image the Sun, with our

R
square in the box with tracing paper pin hole camera. We need a slightly

b
(translucent screen) [Fig. 11.5 (b)]. Slide different set up for this. We just need a

E u
the smaller box inside the larger one large sheet of cardboard with a small
with the hole, in such a way that the

C
pin hole in the middle. Hold the sheet

p
side with the tracing paper is inside up in the Sun and let its shadow fall on

N e
[Fig. 11.5 (c)]. Your pin hole camera is a clear area. Do you see a small circular

r
ready for use. image of the Sun in the middle of the

© e
Holding the pin hole camera look shadow of the cardboard sheet?
through the open face of the smaller Look at these pin hole images of the
box. You should use a piece of black

b
Sun when an eclipse is visible from your
cloth to cover your head and the pinhole location. Adjust your pin hole and
camera. Now, try to look at some distant screen to get a clear image before the

o
objects like a tree or a building through

t
eclipse is to occur. Look at the image as
the pinhole camera. Make sure that the

t
objects you wish to look at through your

no
(a) (b) (c)
Fig. 11.5 A sliding pin hole camera

110 SCIENCE
the eclipse begins. You will notice a part Paheli has another thought. Surely,
of the Sun's image gradually becoming all these results that we are seeing,
darker as the eclipse starts. Never ever formation of shadows and pinhole
look directly at the Sun. That could images are possible only if light moves
be extremely harmful for the eyes. in a straight path?
There is an interesting pin hole
Activity 6
camera in Nature. Sometimes, when we
pass under a tree covered with large Let us use a piece of a pipe or a long

d
number of leaves, we notice small rubber tube. Light a candle and fix it

e
patches of sun light under it (Fig. 11.6). on a table at one end of the room. Now
These circular images are, in fact, pin standing at the other end of the room

h
hole images of the Sun. The gaps look at the candle through the pipe

T s
between the leaves, act as the pin holes.

li
These gaps are all kinds of irregular

R
shapes, but, we can see circular images

b
of the Sun. Try to locate images of the

C E u
p
(a)

N r e
© e
b
o
(b)

t
Fig. 11.7 Looking through a pipe pointed
(a) towards and (b) a little away from a candle

t
Fig. 11.6 A natural pinhole camera. Pinhole
[Fig. 11.7 (a)]. Is the candle visible? Bend

o
images of the Sun under a tree!
the pipe a little while you are looking at

n
Sun when an eclipse occurs next. That the candle [Fig. 11.7 (b)]. Is the candle
could be so much fun! visible now? Turn the pipe a little to your
Boojho has this thought. We saw right or left. Can you see the candle now?
upside down images of people on the What do you conclude from this?
road, with our pinhole camera. What This suggests that light travels along
about the images of the Sun? Did we a straight line, isn’t it? That is why,
notice them to be upside down or when opaque objects obstruct it, a
anything like that? shadow forms.

LIGHT, SHADOWS AND REFLECTIONS 111

11.4 MIRRORS AND REFLECTIONS adjust the direction of the torch so that
We all use mirrors at home. You look into the patch of light falls on another friend
the mirror and see your own face inside standing in the room.
the mirror. What you see is a reflection This activity suggests that a mirror
of your face in the mirror. We also see changes the direction of light that falls
reflections of other objects that are in on it.
front of the mirror. Sometimes, we see Here is an activity that shows light
reflections of trees, buildings and other travelling along straight lines and

d
objects in the water of a pond or a lake. getting reflected from a mirror.

e
Activity 7 Activity 8

h
This activity should be done at night or Fix a comb on one side of a large thermo

s
Col sheet and fix a mirror on the other

T
in a dark room. Ask one of your friends

i
side as shown in Fig. 11.9. Spread a

l
to hold a mirror in his/her hand at one

R
corner of the room. Stand at another dark coloured sheet of paper between

b
corner with a torch in your hand. Cover the mirror and the comb. Keep this in

E
sunlight or send a beam of light from a

u
the glass of torch with your fingers and
switch it on. Adjust your fingers with a torch through the comb.

C p
small gap between them so that you can What do you observe? Do you get

N e
get a beam of light. Direct the beam of a pattern similar to that shown

r
the torch light onto the mirror that your in Fig. 11.9?

© e
friend is holding. Do you see a patch of This activity gives us an idea of the
light on the other side (Fig. 11.8)? Now, manner in which light travels and gets
reflected from a mirror.

b
t o
o t
n
Fig. 11.9 Light travelling in a straight line and
Fig. 11.8 A mirror reflects a beam of light getting reflected from a mirror

112 SCIENCE
 Luminous
Mirror
Opaque
Pinhole camera

d
Reflection

e
Shadow

h
T ranslucent
T ra n s p a r e n t

T lis
E R b
n

C p u
Opaque objects do not allow light to pass through them.

N e
n Transparent objects allow light to pass through them and we can see
through these objects clearly.

© e r
n Translucent objects allow light to pass through them partially.
n Shadows are formed when an opaque object comes in the path of light.
n Pinhole camera can be made with simple materials and can be used to

b
image the Sun and brightly lit objects.
n Mirror reflection gives us clear images.

o
Images are very different from shadows.

t
n

n Light travels in straight line.

o t
n
1. Rearrange the boxes given below to make a sentence that helps us understand
opaque objects.

OWS AKE OPAQ UE O BJEC T SM

SHAD

LIGHT, SHADOWS AND REFLECTIONS 113

 2. Classify the objects or materials given below as opaque, transparent or
translucent and luminous or non-luminous:
Air, water, a piece of rock, a sheet of aluminium, a mirror, a wooden board, a
sheet of polythene, a CD, smoke, a sheet of plane glass, fog, a piece of red hot
iron, an umbrella, a lighted fluorescent tube, a wall, a sheet of carbon paper,
the flame of a gas burner, a sheet of cardboard, a lighted torch, a sheet of
cellophane, a wire mesh, kerosene stove, sun, firefly, moon.
3. Can you think of creating a shape that would give a circular shadow if held in
one way and a rectangular shadow if held in another way?

d
4. In a completely dark room, if you hold up a mirror in front of you, will you see a
reflection of yourself in the mirror?

SUGGESTED ACTIVITIES

he
s
1. Make a row of your friends — A, B, C and D, standing in a line. Let one friend

T i
stand in front facing them and holding out a mirror towards them (Fig. 11.10).

R l
Now, each person can tell who they are able to see in the Mirror. A,B, C, or D.

b
If, A is able to see B in the mirror then, can B also see A in the mirror? Similarly,

E
for any two pairs amongst A,B,C, or D?

u
If A is not able to see B in the mirror, then, is B able to see A in the mirror?

C p
Similarly, for any two pairs amongst A,B,C, or D?

N r e
© e
b
t o
t
Fig. 11.10

o
This activity tells us something about the way light travels and gets reflected

n
from mirrors. You will learn more about this in higher classes.
2. Daayan-Baayan—Take a comb in your right hand and bring it up to your hair
and look at yourself in the mirror. There is your familiar face, grinning at you ☺
Wait, try and find out which is the hand holding the comb, in your mirror
reflection. Is it the right hand or the left? You were holding it in your right hand,
isn't it?
While a pin hole camera seems to be giving us upside down images, a mirror
seems to be turning right hand into left hand and the left into right hand. We
will learn more about this in the higher classes.

114 SCIENCE
 3. Magic Device—In the chapter on
symmetry in your Mathematics
textbook, you might have made an
interesting device Kaleidoscope, that
uses reflections. Now, let us make
another device, a periscope, that uses
reflections to see around corners! Ask
one of your freinds to stand in the
corridor just out side the entrance to
the classroom with a mirror in hand.

d
Ask another friend also holding a mirror,
to stand in the middle of classroom in

e
front of the entrance. Now ask your Fig. 11.11 Seeing around corners!
friends to ajust their mirrors in such a

h
way that the image of object on the other side of the corridor becomes visible to
you while you are standing inside the class (Fig. 11.11).

T is
You can make a simple periscope by placing two mirrors in a ‘Z’ shaped box as

l
shown in Fig. 11.12.

R
Mirror 1

E u b
N C e p
Fig. 11.12 A periscope Mirror 2

© e
THINGS TO THINK ABOUT
1. r
Opaque objects cast shadows, isn't it? Now, if we hold a transparent object in

b
the Sun, do we see anything on the ground that gives us a hint that we are
holding something in our hand?

o
2. We saw that changing colour of opaque objects does not change the colour of

t
their shadows. What happens if we place an opaque object in coloured light?
You can cover the face of a torch with a coloured transparent paper to do this.

t
(Did you ever noticed the colours of evening shadows just as the Sun is setting?)

o
THINGS TO READ

n
Rudyard Kipling's "Just So Stories" and in particular, the story of "How the Leopard
got its spots" where he mentions stripy, speckly, patchy-blatchy shadows. Here
are a few lines from this story, that has a lot of shadows.
...after ever so many days, they saw a great, high, tall forest full of tree trunks
all 'sclusively speckled and sprottled and spottled, dotted and splashed and
slashed and hatched and cross-hatched with shadows. (Say that quickly aloud,
and you will see how very shadowy the forest must have been.)
'What is this,' said the Leopard, 'that is so 'sclusively dark, and yet so full of
little pieces of light?'

LIGHT, SHADOWS AND REFLECTIONS 115

12 Electricity and Circuits

W
e use electricity for many are also used in alarm clocks,
purposes to make our tasks wristwatches, transistor radios, cameras

d
easier. For example, we use and many other devices. Have you ever
electricity to operate pumps that lift carefully looked at an electric cell? You

e
water from wells or from ground level might have noticed that it has a small

h
to the roof top tank. What are other metal cap on one side and a metal disc

s
purposes for which you use electricity? on the other side (Fig. 12.1). Did you

T i
List some of them in your notebook. notice a positive (+) sign and a negative

l
Does your list include the use of (–) sign marked on the electric cell? The

R b
electricity for lighting? Electricity

E
makes it possible to light our homes,

u
roads, offices, markets and factories

C p
even after sunset. This helps us to
continue working at night. A power station

N e
provides us with electricity. However, the Fig.12.1 An Electric Cell

© e r
supply of electricity may fail or it may not
metal cap is the positive terminal of the
be available at some places. In such
electric cell. The metal disc is the
situations, a torch is sometimes used for
negative terminal. All electric cells have

b
providing light. A torch has a bulb that
two terminals; a positive terminal and a
lights up when it is switched on. Where
negative terminal.

o
does the torch get electricity from?
An electric cell produces electricity

t
12.1. ELECTRIC CELL from the chemicals stored inside it.

t
Electricity to the bulb in a torch is When the chemicals in the electric cell
provided by the electric cell. Electric cells are used up, the electric cell stops

o
Caution You might have seen the danger sign shown here displayed on poles,

n
electric substations and many other places. It is to warn people that
electricity can be dangerous if not handled properly. Carelessness in
handling electricity and electric devices can cause severe injuries and
sometimes even death. Hence, you should never attempt to experiment
with the electric wires and sockets. Also remember that the electricity
generated by portable generators is equally dangerous. Use only electric
cells for all activities related to electricity.

116 SCIENCE
 Filament
Caution: Never join the two terminals
of the electric cell without connecting
them through a switch and a device
like a bulb. If you do so, the chemicals
in the electric cell get used up very fast
and the cell stops working.

Terminals way that they do not touch each other.

d
(a) (b) The electric bulbs used at home also

e
have a similar design.
Fig.12.2 (a) Torch bulb and (b) its inside view

h
Thus, both the electric cell and the
producing electricity. The electric cell bulb have two terminals each. Why do

T is
then has to be replaced with a new one. they have these two terminals?

l
A torch bulb has an outer case of

R
12.2. A B ULB C ONNECTED TO AN
glass that is fixed on a metallic base [Fig.

b
ELECTRIC CELL
12. 2 (a)]. What is inside the glass case

E
Let us try to make an electric bulb light

u
of the bulb?
up using an electric cell. How do we do

C p
Activity 1 that?

N e
Take a torch and look inside its bulb.
Activity 2

r
You can also take out the bulb with the

© e
help of your teacher. What do you Take four lengths of electric wire with
notice? Do you find a thin wire fixed in differently coloured plastic coverings.
the middle of the glass bulb [Fig. 12.2 Remove a little of the plastic covering

b
(b)]? Now switch the torch on and from each length of wire at the ends.
observe which part of the bulb is This would expose the metal wires at

o
glowing. the ends of each length. Fix the exposed

t
The thin wire that gives off light is parts of the wires to the cell and the
bulb as shown in Fig 12.3 and Fig. 12.4.

t
called the filament of the bulb. The
filament is fixed to two thicker wires,

o
which also provide support to it, as

n
shown in Fig. 12.2 (b). One of these thick
wires is connected to the metal case at
the base of the bulb [Fig. 12.2 (b)]. The
other thick wire is connected to the
metal tip at the centre of the base. The
base of the bulb and the metal tip of the
base are the two terminals of the bulb.
These two terminals are fixed in such a Fig.12.3 Electric cell with two wires attached to it

ELECTRICITY AND CIRCUITS 117

 Write 'Yes' or 'No' for each arrangement
in your notebook.
Now, carefully look at the
arrangements in which the bulb glows.
Compare these with those in which the
bulb does not glow. Can you find the
reason for the difference?
Keep the tip of your pencil on the

d
wire near one terminal of the electric cell

e
Fig.12.4 Bulb connected to two wires
for the arrangment in Fig. 12.5 (a). Move
You can stick the wires to the bulb the pencil along the wire all the way to

h
with the tape used by electricians. Use the bulb. Now, from the other terminal

T s
rubber bands or tape to fix the wires to of the bulb, move along the other wire

li
the cell. connected to the cell. Repeat this

R
Now, connect the wires fixed to the exercise for all the other arrangements

b
bulb with those attached to the cell in in Fig. 12.5. Did the bulb glow for the

E u
six different ways as has been shown in arrangements in which you could not

C
Fig. 12.5 (a) to (f). For each arrangement, move the pencil from one terminal to

p
find out whether the bulb glows or not. the other?

N r e
© e
b
(a)

t o (b) (c)

o t
n
(d) (e) (f)
Fig.12.5 Different arrangements of electric cell and bulb

118 SCIENCE
12.3 AN ELECTRIC CIRCUIT An electric bulb may fuse due to
In Activity 2 you connected one terminal many reasons. One reason for a bulb to
of the electric cell to the other terminal fuse is a break in its filament. A break
through wires passing to and from the in the filament of an electric bulb means
electric bulb. Note that in the a break in the path of the current
arrangements shown in Fig. 12. 5 (a) between the terminals of the electric cell.
and (f), the two terminals of the electric Therefore, a fused bulb does not light
cell were connected to two terminals of up as no current passes through its

d
the bulb. Such an arrangement is an filament.

e
example of an electric circuit. The electric Can you now explain why the bulb
did not glow when you tried to do so

h
circuit provides a complete path for
electricity to pass (current to flow) with the arrangements shown in Fig.

T s
12.5 (b), (c), (d) and (e)?

i
between the two terminals of the electric

l
cell. The bulb glows only when current Now we know how to make a bulb

R
light up using an electric cell. Would

b
flows through the circuit.
you like to make a torch for yourself?

E
In an electric circuit, the direction of

u
current is taken to be from the positive Activity 3

C
to the negative terminal of the electric

p
Take a torch bulb and a piece of wire.
cell as shown in Fig.12.6. When the

N e
Remove the plastic covering at the two

r
ends of the wire as you did before. Wrap

© e
one end of a wire around the base of an
electric bulb as shown in Fig. 12.7. Fix
the other end of the wire to the negative

b
terminal of an electric cell with a rubber
band. Now, bring the tip of the base of

o
the bulb that is, its other terminal, in

t
contact with the positive terminal of the

t
Fig.12.6 Direction of current in an electric
circuit

o
terminals of the bulb are connected with

n
that of the electric cell by wires, the
current passes through the filament of
the bulb. This makes the bulb glow.
Sometimes an electric bulb does not
glow even if it is connected to the cell.
This may happen if the bulb has fused.
Look at a fused bulb carefully. Is the
filament inside it intact? Fig. 12.7 A home made torch

ELECTRICITY AND CIRCUITS 119

 a drawing pin into the ring at one
end of the safety pin and fix it on the
Paheli has another thermo Col sheet as shown in Fig. 12.8.
arrangement of the cell Make sure that the safety pin can be
and the bulb. Will the rotated freely. Now, fix the other drawing
torch bulb glow in pin on the thermo Col sheet in a way
the following that the free end of the safety pin can
arrangement? touch it. The safety pin fixed in this way

d
would be your switch in this activity.

cell. Does the bulb glow? Now move the

bulb away from the terminal of the

he
T s
electric cell. Does the bulb remain

li
lighted? Is this not similar to what you

R
do when you switch your torch on or

b
off?

E u
12.4 ELECTRIC SWITCH Fig 12.9 An electric circuit with a switch

C p
We had an arrangement for switching Now, make a circuit by connecting
an electric cell and a bulb with this

e
on or off our home made torch by

N
moving the base of the bulb away from switch as shown in Fig.12.9. Rotate the

© e r
the tip of the cell. This was a simple safety pin so that its free end touches
switch, but, not very easy to use. We the other drawing pin. What do you
can make another simple and easier observe? Now, move the safety pin away.

b
switch to use in our circuit. Does the bulb continue to glow?
The safety pin covered the gap
Activity 4

o
between the drawing pins when

t
You can make a switch using two you made it touch two of them. In
drawing pins, a safety pin (or a paper this position the switch is said to be 'on'

t
clip), two wires and a small sheet of (Fig. 12.10). Since the material of the

o
thermo Col or a wooden board. Insert safety pin allows the current to pass

n
Fig. 12.8 A simple switch Fig. 12.10 A switch in ‘on’ position

120 SCIENCE
through it, the circuit was complete. this position, the switch is said to be
Hence, the bulb glows. 'off' as in Fig. 12.9.
On the other hand, the bulb did not A switch is a simple device that either
glow when the safety pin was not in breaks the circuit or completes it. The
touch with the other drawing pin. The switches used in lighting of electric
circuit was not complete as there was a bulbs and other devices in homes work
gap between the two drawing pins. In on the same principle although their
designs are more complex.

d
Boojho has drawn the inside
12.5 E LECTRIC C ONDUCTORS AND

e
of the torch as in Fig. 12.11.
When we close the switch, INSULATORS

h
the circuit is completed and In all our activities we have used metal

s
the bulb glows. Can you wires to make a circuit. Suppose we use

T i
draw a red line on the figure a cotton thread instead of a metal wire

R l
indicating the complete circuit? to make a circuit. Do you think that the

b
bulb will light up in such a circuit?

E
What materials can be used in electric

u
circuits so that the current can pass

C p
through them? Let us find out.

N e
Reflector
Activity 5

r
Disconnect the switch from the electric

© e
circuit you used for Activity 4. This would
leave you with two free ends of wires as

b
shown in Fig. 12.12 (a). Bring the free
ends of the two wires close, to let them

o
touch each other. Does the bulb light up?

t
You can now use this arrangement to test
whether any given material allows current

t
to pass through it or not.

no
(a) (b)
Fig. 12.12 (a) A conduction tester (b) Testing
whether the bulb glows when the tester is in
Fig. 12.11 Inside view of a torch contact with a key

ELECTRICITY AND CIRCUITS 121

 Collect samples of different types of Insulators do not allow electric current
materials such as coins, cork, rubber, to pass through them. With the help of
glass, keys, pins, plastic scale, wooden Table 12.1, name the materials that are
block, pencil lead, aluminium foil, conductors of electricity and also those
candle, sewing needle, thermo Col, paper which are insulators.
and pencil lead. One by one bring the Conductors ______, ______, _________
free ends of the wires of your tester in Insulator _________, _______, ________
contact with two ends of the samples What do you conclude? Which

d
you have collected [Fig. 12.12 (b)]. Make materials are conductors and which are

e
sure that the two wires do not touch insulators? Recall the objects that we
each other while you are doing so. Does grouped as those having lustre, in

h
the bulb glow in each case? Chapter 4. Are they the conductors? It

T s
Make a table in your notebook

i
now seems easy to understand why

l
similar to Table.12.1, and record your copper, aluminum and other metals are

R
observations. used for making wires.

b
Let us recall Activity 4 in which we

E
Table 12.1 Conductors and insulators

u
made an electric circuit with a switch
Object used in Material Bulb

C
(Fig.12.9). When the switch was in the

p
place of the it is glows?
switch made of (Yes/No) open position, were the two drawing pins

N e
Key Metal Yes not connected with each other through

r
the thermo Col sheet? But, thermo Col,

© e
Eraser Rubber No
you may have found is an insulator.
Scale Plastic What about the air between the gap?

b
Matchstick Wood
Since the bulb does not glow when there
is only air in the gap between the drawing
Glass bangle Glass

o
pins in your switch, it means that air is

t
Iron nail Metal also an insulator.
Conductors and insulators are

t
What do you find? The bulb does not
equally important for us. Switches,
glow when the free ends of the wires are

o
electrical plugs and sockets are made of
in contact with some of the materials you
conductors. On the other hand, rubber

n
have tested. This means that these
and plastics are used for covering
materials do not allow the electric current
electrical wires, plug tops, switches and
to pass through them. On the other hand,
other parts of electrical appliances,
some materials allow electric current to
which people might touch.
pass through them, which is indicated
by the glowing bulb. Materials which Caution: Your body is a conductor of
allow electric current to pass through electricity. Therefore, be careful when
them are conductors of electricity. you handle an electrical appliance.

122 SCIENCE
 „ Electric cell is a source of electricity.
„ An electric cell has two terminals; one is called positive (+ ve) while the
other is negative (– ve).
„ An electric bulb has a filament that is connected to its terminals.
„ An electric bulb glows when electric current passes through it.
„ In a closed electric circuit, the electric current passes from one terminal of
the electric cell to the other terminal.

d
„ Switch is a simple device that is used to either break the electric circuit or

e
to complete it.

h
„ Materials that allow electric current to pass through them are called
conductors.

T is
„ Materials that do not allow electric current to pass through them are called

l
insulators.

E R b
u
Bulb Filament
Conductors

N C e p
Insulator

r
Electric cell Switch

© e
Electric circuit Ter minal

b
o
1. Fill in the blanks :

t
(a) A device that is used to break an electric circuit is called _______________.

t
(b) An electric cell has _______________ terminals.

o
2. Mark 'True' or 'False' for following statements:
(a) Electric current can flow through metals.

n
(b) Instead of metal wires, a jute string can be
used to make a circuit.
(c) Electric current can pass through a sheet
of thermo Col.
3. Explain why the bulb would not glow in the
arrangement shown in Fig. 12.13.

Fig. 12.13

ELECTRICITY AND CIRCUITS 123

 4. Complete the drawing shown in Fig 12.14 to
indicate where the free ends of the two wires
should be joined to make the bulb glow.
5. What is the purpose of using an electric switch?
Name some electrical gadgets that have switches
built into them.
6. Would the bulb glow after completing the circuit
shown in Fig. 12.14 if instead of safety pin we
use an eraser? Fig. 12.14

d
7. Would the bulb glow in the circuit shown in Fig. 12.15?

he
T lis
E R b Fig. 12.15

u
8. Using the "conduction tester" on an object it was found that the bulb begins to

C p
glow. Is that object a conductor or an insulator? Explain.
9. Why should an electrician use rubber gloves while repairing an electric switch

N e
at your home? Explain.

r
10. The handles of the tools like screwdrivers and pliers used by electricians for

© e
repair work usually have plastic or rubber covers on them. Can you explain
why?

b
SOME SUGGESTED ACTIVITIES

o
1. Imagine there were no electric supply for a month. How would that affect your

t
day to day activities and others in your family? Present your imagination in
the form of a story or a play. If possible stage the play written by you or your

t
friends in school.
2. For your friends, you may set up a game "How steady is your hand?". You will

o
need a cell, an electric bulb, a metal key, two iron nails ( about 5 cm in length),
about one and a half metre long thick metal wire (with its plastic insulation

n
scraped off ) and few pieces of connecting wires. Fix two nails nearly one metre
apart on a wooden board so that these can be used as a hook. Fix the wire
between the nails after inserting it through the loop of the key. Connect one
end of this wire to a bulb and a cell. Connect the other terminal of the cell to
the key with a wire. Ask your friend to move the loop along the straight wire
without touching it. Glowing of the bulb would indicate that the loop of the key
has touched the wire.
3. Read and find out about Alessandro Volta who invented the electric cell. You
may also find out about Thomas Alva Edison who invented the electric bulb.

124 SCIENCE
13 Fun with Magnets

P
aheli and Boojho went to a place sticking to the holder. In some pencil
where a lot of waste material was boxes, the lid fits tightly when we close

d
piled into huge heaps. Something it even without a locking arrangement.
exciting was happening! A crane was Such stickers, pin holders and pencil

e
moving towards the heap of junk. The boxes have magnets fitted inside

h
long hand of the crane lowered a block (Fig. 13.2). If you have any one of these

s
over a heap. It then began to move. items, try to locate the magnets hidden

T i
Guess, what? Many pieces of iron junk in these.

l
were sticking to the block, as it moved

R b
away (Fig. 13.1)!

C E u
N e p
© e r
b
o
Fig. 13.2 Some common items that have
magnets inside them

t
Fig. 13.1 Picking up pieces of iron from waste
How Magnets Were Discovered

t
They had just read a very interesting
book on magnets and knew immediately It is said that, there was a shepherd

o
that there must be a magnet attached named Magnes, who lived in ancient

n
to the end of the crane that was picking Greece. He used to take his herd of
up iron from the junk yard. sheep and goats to the nearby
You might have seen magnets and mountains for grazing. He would take
have even enjoyed playing with them. a stick with him to control his herd. The
Have you seen stickers that remain stick had a small piece of iron attached
attached to iron surfaces like almirahs at one end. One day he was surprised
or the doors of refrigerators? In some to find that he had to pull hard to
pin holders, the pins seem to be free his stick from a rock on the
 d
Fig. 13.4 Magnets of different shapes

e
magnets are prepared in different

h
shapes. For example, bar magnet,

s
horse-shoe magnet, cylindrical or a ball-

T i
ended magnet. Fig.13.4 shows a few

l
Fig.13.3 A natural magnet on a hillside! such magnets.

R b
mountainside (Fig. 13.3). It seemed as Activity 1

E
if the stick was being attracted by the

u
Take a plastic or a paper cup. Fix it on
rock. The rock was a natural magnet

C
a stand with the help of a clamp as

p
and it attracted the iron tip of the shown in Fig. 13.5. Place a magnet

N e
shepherd's stick. It is said that this is inside the cup and cover it with a paper

r
how natural magnets was discovered. so that the magnet is not visible. Attach

© e
Such rocks were given the name a thread to a clip made of iron. Fix the
magnetite, perhaps after the name of that other end of the thread at the base of
shepherd. Magnetite contains iron.

b
the stand. (Mind you, the trick involved
Some people believe that magnetite was here, is to keep the length of the thread
first discovered at a place called

o
sufficiently short.) Bring the clip near
Magnesia. The substances having the

t
the base of the cup. The clip is raised in
property of attracting iron are now known air without support, like a kite.

t
as magnets. This is how the story goes.
In any case, people now have

o
discovered that certain rocks have the

n
property of attracting pieces of iron. They
also found that small pieces of these
rocks have some special properties.
They named these naturally occurring
materials magnets. Later on the process
of making magnets from pieces of iron
was discovered. These are known as Fig. 13.5 Effect of magnet - a paper clip
artificial magnets. Nowadays artificial hanging in air!

126 SCIENCE
13.1 MAGNETIC AND NON-MAGNETIC materials from which these objects are
MATERIALS made. Is there any material common in
all the objects that were attracted by
Activity 2 the magnet?
Let us walk in the footsteps of Magnes. We understand that magnet attracts
Only, this time, we will change the certain materials whereas some do not
positions of the magnet and the iron. get attracted towards magnet. The
There will be a magnet at the end of our materials which get attracted towards

d
shepherd's stick. We can attach a small a magnet are magnetic – for example,

e
magnet to a hockey stick, walking stick iron, nickel or cobalt. The materials
or a cricket wicket with a tape or some which are not attracted towards a

h
glue. Let us now go out on a "Magnes magnet are non-magnetic. What

T s
walk" through the school playground. materials did you find to be non-

li
What does our "Magnes stick" pick up magnetic from Table 13.1? Is soil a

R
from the school ground? What about magnetic or a non-magnetic material?

b
objects in the classroom?

E u
Collect various objects of day-to-day

C
use from your surroundings. Test these

p
with the "Magnes stick". You can also
Boojho has this question for you.

N e
take a magnet, touch these objects with
A tailor was stitching buttons on

r
it and observe which objects stick to the

© e
his shirt. The needle has slipped
magnet. Prepare a table in your
from his hand on to the floor.
notebook as shown in Table 13.1. and
Can you help the tailor to
record your observations.

b
find the needle?
Look at the last column of Table 13.1
and note the objects that are attracted

o
by a magnet. Now, make a list of

t t
Table 13.1 Finding the objects attracted by magnet

Material which the object is made of Attracted by Magnes

o
Name of
(Cloth/plastic/ aluminium/ wood/ stick/ magnet
the object
glass/ iron/ any other (Yes/No)

n
Iron ball

Scale

Shoe
Iron

Plastic

Leather
Yes

No

FUN WITH MAGNETS 127

Activity 3 If you fill this table and send it to
Rub a magnet in the sand or soil. Pull Paheli and Boojho, they can compare
out the magnet. Are there some particles the amount of iron filings found in soil
of sand or soil sticking to the magnet? from different parts of the country. They
Now, gently shake the magnet to remove can share this information with you.
the particles of sand or soil. Are some 13.2 POLES OF MAGNET
particles still sticking to it? These might We observed that iron filings (if they are
be small pieces of iron (iron filings)

d
present) stick to a magnet rubbed in the
picked up from the soil.

e
soil. Did you observe anything special
Through such an activity, we can about the way they stick to the magnet?

h
find out whether the soil or sand from a
given place contains particles that have Activity 4

T is
iron. Try this activity near your home, Spread some iron filings on a sheet of

l
school or the places you visit on your paper. Now, place a bar magnet on this

R b
holidays. Does the magnet with iron sheet. What do you observe? Do the iron

E
filings sticking to it, look like any one filings stick all over the magnet? Do you

u
of those shown in Fig. 13.6? observe that more iron filings get attracted

C
Make a table of what you find. to some parts of the magnet than others

p
(Fig. 13.7)? Remove the iron filings

N e
(a)
sticking to the magnet and repeat the

© e r (b)

b
(c)

o
Fig. 13.6 Magnet with (a) many iron filings

t
(b) few iron filings and Fig. 13.7 Iron filings sticking to a bar magnet
(c) no iron filings sticking to it.

t
activity. Do you observe any change in
Table 13.2 Magnet rubbed in sand.
the pattern with which the iron filings

o
How many iron filings?
get attracted by different parts of the

n
Name of location Did you find iron magnet? You can do this activity using
filings sticking to
(Colony and
the magnet? pins or iron nails in place of iron filings
town/ city/ and also with magnets of different shapes.
village) ( M any/ very few/
none) Draw a diagram to show the way iron
filings stick to the magnet. Is your drawing
similar to that shown in Fig. 13.6 (a)?
We find that most of the iron filings
are attracted towards the two ends of a

128 SCIENCE
 Paheli has this puzzle for you.
You are given two identical bars
which look as if they might be
made of iron. One of them is a
magnet, while the other is a
simple iron bar. How will

d
you find out, which one

e
is a magnet?

T
bar magnet. These ends are the poles of

s h Fig. 13.8 The chariot with direction finding statue

li
the magnet. Try and bring a few magnets Let us make such a direction finder

R
of different shapes to the classroom. Check for ourselves.

b
for the location of the poles on these

E
Activity 5

u
magnets using iron filings. Can you now
Take a bar magnet. Put a mark on one

C
mark the location of poles in the kind of

p
magnets shown in Fig. 13.4? of its ends for identification. Now, tie a

N e
thread at the middle of the magnet so
13.3 FINDING DIRECTIONS

r
that you may suspend it from a wooden

© e
Magnets were known to people from stand (Fig. 13.9). Make sure that the
ancient times. Many properties of magnet can rotate freely. Let it come to
magnets were also known to them. You rest. Mark two points on the ground to

b
might have read many interesting show the position of the ends of the
stories about the uses of magnets. One magnet when it comes to rest. Draw a

o
such story is about an emperor in China

t
named Hoang Ti. It is said that he had
a chariot with a statue of a lady that

t
could rotate in any direction. It had an

o
extended arm as if it was showing the

n
way (Fig. 13.8). The statue had an
interesting property. It would rest in
such a position that its extended arm
always pointed towards South. By
looking at the extended arm of the
statue, the Emperor was able to locate
directions when he went to new places Fig. 13.9 A freely suspended bar magnet
on his chariot. always comes to rest in the same direction

FUN WITH MAGNETS 129

line joining the two points. This line
shows the direction in which the magnet
In which direction is the main
was pointing in its position of rest. Now,
gate of your school situated from
rotate the magnet by gently pushing one
your classroom?
end in any direction and let it come to
rest. Again, mark the position of the two
ends in its position of rest. Does the
magnet now point in a different end or the North pole of the magnet. The

d
direction? Rotate the magnet in other other end that points towards the South

e
directions and note the final direction is called South seeking end or the South
in which it comes to rest. pole of the magnet. All magnets have two

h
Do you find that the magnet always poles whatever their shape may be.

T s
comes to rest in the same direction? Usually, north (N) and south (S) poles

li
Now can you guess the mystery behind are marked on the magnets.

R
the statue in the Emperor's chariot? This property of the magnet is very

b
Repeat this activity with an iron bar useful for us. For centuries, travellers

E
have been making use of this property

u
and a plastic or a wooden scale instead
of magnets to find directions. It is said

C
of a magnet. Do not use light objects for

p
this activity and avoid doing it where that in olden days, travellers used to find

N e
there are currents of air. Do the other directions by suspending natural

r
materials also always come to rest in the magnets with a thread, which they

© e
same direction? always carried with them.
We find that a freely suspended bar Later on, a device was developed
magnet always comes to rest in a based on this property of magnets. It is

b
particular direction, which is the North- known as the compass. A compass is
South direction. Use the direction of the usually a small box with a glass cover

o
rising sun in the morning to find out on it. A magnetised needle is pivoted

t
the rough direction towards east, where inside the box, which can rotate freely

t
you are doing this experiment. If you (Fig. 13.10). The compass also has a dial
stand facing east, to your left will be

o
North. Using the Sun for finding

n
directions may not be very exact, but, it
will help to make out the direction
North from the South, on your line.
Using this you can figure out which end
of the magnet is pointing to the North
and which points to the South.
The end of the magnet that points
towards North is called its North seeking Fig. 13.10 A compass

130 SCIENCE
with directions marked on it. The more time. Remember that the pole of
compass is kept at the place where we the magnet and the direction of its
wish to know the directions. Its needle movement should not change. You can
indicates the north-south direction also use an iron nail, a needle or a blade
when it comes to rest. The compass is and convert them into a magnet.
then rotated until the north and south You now know how to make a
marked on the dial are at the two ends magnet. Would you like to make your
of the needle. To identify the north-pole own compass?

d
of the magnetic needle, it is usually
Activity 6

e
painted in a different colour.
Magnetise an iron

h
13.4 MAKE YOUR OWN MAGNET needle using a bar

s
There are several methods of making magnet. Now, insert

T i
magnets. Let us learn the simplest one. the magnetised

R l
Take a rectangular piece of iron. Place needle through a

b
it on the table. Now take a bar magnet small piece of cork or

E
and place one of its poles near one edge foam. Let the cork

u
of the bar of iron. Without lifting the float in water in a

C p
bar magnet, move it along the length of bowl or a tub. Make Fig. 13.12 A
compass in a cup

e
the iron bar till you reach the other end.

N
sure that the needle

r
Now, lift the magnet and bring the pole does not touch the water (Fig. 13.12).

© e
(the same pole you started with) to the Your compass is now ready to work.
same point of the iron bar from which Make a note of the direction in which
you began (Fig. 13.11). Move the magnet the needle points when the cork is

b
again along the iron bar in the same floating. Rotate the cork, with the needle
direction as you did before. Repeat this fixed in it, in different directions. Note

o
process about 30-40 times. Bring a pin the direction in which the needle points

t
or some iron filings near the iron bar to when the cork begins to float again
check whether it has become a magnet.

t
without rotating. Does the needle always
If not, continue the process for some point in the same direction, when the

o
cork stops rotating?

n
13.5 A TTRACTION AND R EPULSION
BETWEEN MAGNETS
Let us play another interesting game
with magnets. Take two small toy cars
and label them A and B. Place a bar
magnet on top of each car along its
Fig.13.11 Making your own magnet length and fix them with rubber bands

FUN WITH MAGNETS 131

Fig. 13.13 Do opposite poles attract each other? Fig. 13.14 Repulsion between similar poles?

(Fig. 13.13). In car A, keep the south each other. Record your observations in
pole of the magnet towards its front. each case.
Place the magnet in opposite direction What do we find from this activity?

d
in car B. Now, place the two cars close Do two similar poles attract or repel each

e
to one another (Fig. 13.13). What do you other? What about opposite poles — do
observe? Do the cars remain at their they attract or repel each other?

h
places? Do the cars run away from each This property of the magnets can also

T s
other? Do they move towards each other be observed by suspending a magnet

li
and collide? Record your observations and bringing one by one the poles of

R
in a table as shown in Table 13.3. Now, another magnet near it.

b
place the toy cars close to each other

E u
such that the rear side of car A faces

C
the front side of car B. Do they move

p
Boojho has this question for you.
as before? Note the direction in which What will happen if a magnet is

N e
the cars move now. Next, place the car
brought near a compass?

r
A behind car B and note the direction

© e
in which they move in each case
(Fig 13.14). Repeat the activity by
placing cars with their rear sides facing A Few Cautions

b
Table 13.3 Magnets loose their properties if they

o
are heated, hammered or dropped from
How do the

t
cars move? some height (Fig. 13.15). Also, magnets
Position of the cars Moavweatyofwro
ards/ become weak if they are not stored

t
m
each other/ properly. To keep them safe, bar

o
not move at all
Front of car A facing

n
the front of car B
Rear of car A facing
the front of car B
Car A placed behind
car B
Rear of car B facing Fig. 13.15 Magnets lose their property on
rear of car A heating, hammering and droping

132 SCIENCE
 Fig. 13.16 Store your magnets safely

magnets should be kept in pairs with For horse-shoe magnet, one should keep
their unlike poles on the same side. a piece of iron across the poles.

d
They must be separated by a piece of Keep magnets away from cassettes,

e
wood while two pieces of soft iron should mobiles, television, music system,

h
be placed across their ends (Fig. 13.16). compact disks (CDs) and the computer.

T lis
E R b
Compass

C p u
N e
Magnet

© e r
Magnetite
North pole

b
South pole

t o
o t
n
„ Magnetite is a natural magnet.
„ Magnet attracts materials like iron, nickel, cobalt. These are called magnetic
materials.
„ Materials that are not attracted towards magnet are called non-magnetic.
„ Each magnet has two magnetic poles—North and South.
„ A freely suspended magnet always aligns in N-S direction.
„ Opposite poles of two magnets attract each other whereas similar poles
repel one another.

FUN WITH MAGNETS 133

 1. Fill in the blanks in the following
(i) Artificial magnets are made in different shapes such as __________,
__________ and ____________.
(ii) The Materials which are attracted towards a magnet are called________.
(iii) Paper is not a ______ material.
(iv) In olden days, sailors used to find direction by suspending a piece of

d
___________.

e
(v) A magnet always has __________ poles.
2. State whether the following statements are true or false

h
(i) A cylindrical magnet has only one pole.

T is
(ii) Artificial magnets were discovered in Greece.

l
(iii) Similar poles of a magnet repel each other.

R b
(iv) Maximum iron filings stick in the middle of a bar magnet when it is brought
near them.

E u
(v) Bar magnets always point towards North-South direction.

C p
(vi) A compass can be used to find East-West direction at any place.
(vii) Rubber is a magnetic material.

N r e
3. It was observed that a pencil sharpener gets attracted by both the poles of a
magnet although its body is made of plastic. Name a material that might have

© e
been used to make some part of it.
4. Column I shows different positions in which one pole of a magnet is placed near
that of the other. Column II indicates the resulting action between them for

b
each situation. Fill in the blanks.

o
Column I Column II

t
N-N _________

t
N - _________ Attraction

o
S-N _________

_________ - S Repulstion

n
5. Write any two properties of a magnet.
6. Where are poles of a bar magnet located?
7. A bar magnet has no markings to indicate its poles. How would you find out
near which end is its north pole located?
8. You are given an iron strip. How will you make it into a magnet?
9. How is a compass used to find directions?
10. A magnet was brought from different directions towards a toy boat that has

134 SCIENCE
 been floating in water in a tub. Affect observed in each case is stated in
Column I. Possible reasons for the observed affects are mentioned in
Column II. Match the statements given in Column I with those in Column II.

Column I Column II

Boat gets attracted towards the magnet Boat is fitted with a magnet with north
pole towards its head

Boat is not affected by the magnet Boat is fitted with a magnet with south
pole towards its head

d
Boat moves towards the magnet if north
pole of the magnet is brought near its Boat has a small magnet fixed along its
length

e
head

Boat moves away from the magnet when

h
Boat is made of magnetic material
north pole is brought near its head

s
Boat floats without changing its direction Boat is made up non-magnetic material

R
SOME SUGGESTED ACTIVITIES
T li
E b
1. Using a compass, find the direction in which windows and entrance to your

u
house or class room open.

C
2. Try to place two equal sized bar magnets one above the other such that their

p
north poles are on the same side. Note what happens and write your

N e
observations in your note book.

r
3. Few iron nails and screws got mixed with the wooden shavings while a

© e
carpenter was working with them. How can you help him in getting the nails
and screws back from the scrap without wasting his time in searching with
his hands?

b
4. You can make an intelligent doll, which picks up the things it likes (Fig.
13.17). Take a doll and attach a small magnet in one of its hands. Cover this
hand with small gloves so that the magnet is not visible. Now, your intelligent

o
doll is ready. Ask your friends to bring different objects near the doll's hand.

t
Knowing the material of the object you can tell in advance whether the doll
would catch it or not.

o t
nTHINGS TO READ
Fig. 13.17 An intelligent doll

Gulliver's Travels which has this fantasy of the whole island of Laputa, floating
in air. Could magnets be involved?

FUN WITH MAGNETS 135

14 Water

S
uppose for some reason your each activity by you and other family
family gets only one bucket of members. You may use a mug, a glass,
water everyday for a week. a bucket or any other container to

d
Imagine what would happen? Would you measure the amount of water used.

e
be able to cook, clean utensils, wash Table 14.1 Estimation of the
amount of water used by a

h
clothes or bathe? What are the other
activities you would not be able to do? family in a day

T i s
What would happen if we do not have

l
easy access to water for a long period Amount of
Activity

R
water used

b
of time?
Drinking

E
Apart from drinking, there are

u
so many activities for which we use Brushing

C p
water (Fig. 14.1). Do you have an idea
about the quantity of water we use in a Bathing

N e
single day? Washing utensils

© er
Washing clothes

Toilets

b
Cleaning floor

o
Any other

t
Total water used in
a day by a family

o t
Fig. 14.1 Uses of water
You now have a rough idea as to how
much water your family uses in a day.

n
14.1 HOW MUCH WATER DO WE USE? Using this information, calculate the
amount of water needed by your family
Activity 1 in a year. Now, divide this amount by
List all the activities for which you use the number of members of your family.
water in a day. Some activities are listed This will give an idea of the amount of
in Table 14.1. Make a similar table in water needed by one member of your
your notebook. Throughout the day, family in a year. Find the number of
measure the amount of water used for people that live in your village or town.

136 SCIENCE
You may now get an idea of the amount water from a river, spring, pond, well or
of water needed by your village or town a hand pump”. Some others might say,
in a year. “We get water from taps”. Have you ever
wondered where water in the taps comes
from? Water that we get from taps is also
Boojho wonders whether people
drawn from a lake or a river or a well
living in different regions of our
(Fig. 14.2). It is then supplied through
country get the same amount of
a network of pipes.
water. Are there regions where

d
people do not get adequate amount

e
of water? How do they manage?

T s h
l i
You have listed a number of activities

R b
for which you use water. Do you think,

E
our water requirement is limited to

u
activities like these? We use wheat, rice,

C p
pulses, vegetables and many other food
items everyday. We know that some of

N e
Fig. 14.2 Water in taps comes from rivers, lakes
the fibres that we use for making fabric

© er
or wells
come from plants. Is water not needed
Each of us may be getting water into
to grow these? Can you think of some
our homes in different ways. But, finally,
more uses of water? Water is used in

b
all of us get water from the same sources
industries for producing almost all the
such as ponds, lakes, rivers and wells.
things that we use. So, we need water

o
We have discussed some of the
not only for our daily activities but also

t
sources of water. Where does the water
for producing many things.
come from, to fill these ponds, lakes,

t
rivers and wells?

o
Paheli wants to tell you that
about two glasses of water

n
are required to produce Boojho wants you to imagine a
each page of a book. day in your life when water supply
through taps is not available. So,
you have to fetch it yourself from
14.2 WHERE DO WE GET WATER a far away place. Would you
FROM? use the same amount of water
Where do you get the water that you as on any other day?
use? Some of you may say, “We draw

WATER 137
 That is where the water cycle
comes in!
14.3 WATER CYCLE
Disappearing Trick of Water
How many times have you noticed that
water spilled on a floor dries up after
some time? The water seems to disappear.

d
Similarly, water disappears from wet

e
Fig. 14.3 Oceans cover a major part of the earth clothes as they dry up (Fig. 14.4). Water
from wet roads, rooftops and a few other

h
Do you know that about two thirds
of the Earth is covered with water? Most places also disappears after the rains.

T s
Where does this water go?

i
of this water is in oceans and seas

l
(Fig. 14.3).

R b
The water in the oceans and seas has

E
many salts dissolved in it — the water

u
is saline. So, it is not fit for drinking

C p
and other domestic, agricultural and

e
industrial needs. You might have heard

N
© er
the famous lines of the poem “Rime of
the Ancient Mariner” written by S.T.
Coleridge in 1798:
“Water water every where

b
Nor any drop to drink” Fig. 14.4 Clothes drying on a clothes-line

Here the poet has described the Do you remember Activity 6 in

o
plight of sailors on a ship lost in the Chapter 5 in which water with salt

t
ocean. dissolved in it was heated? What did we

t
Yet, oceans play an important role find? The water evaporated and the salt

o
in supplying the water that we use. Do was left behind. This activity gives us
you find this surprising? After all, the an idea that, on heating, water changes

n
water that we use is not salty. Many of into its vapour. We also realise from this
us live in places far away from the activity, that water vapour does not carry
oceans. Does the water supply in these away the salt with it. Water vapours so
places also depend on the oceans? How formed become a part of the air and
does the ocean water reach ponds, lakes, cannot usually be seen. We also found
rivers and wells, which supply us water? that heating is essential to convert water
How come the water from these sources into its vapour. However, we have seen
is not saline anymore? that water changes into its vapour also

138 SCIENCE
from the fields, roads, rooftops and the shade, though it could have taken
other land areas. We also discussed in more time? Does the heat from the
Chapter 5 that to obtain salt, water from sunlight reach here? Yes, during the
the sea is left in shallow pits to let the daytime all the air surrounding us gets
water evaporate. From where does this heated. This warm air provides heat for
water get the heat it needs to evaporate? evaporation of water in the shade. Thus,
Let us find out. evaporation takes place from all open
surfaces of water. As a result, water
Activity 2

d
vapour gets continuously added to air.
Take two similar plates. Place one of the

e
However, evaporation of water is a slow
plates in sunlight and keep the other process. That is why we rarely notice its

h
under shade. Now, pour equal amount loss from a bucket full of water. In

s
of water in each of the plates (Fig. 14.5).

T
sunlight, evaporation takes place faster.

i
You can use a cap of a bottle to measure

l
On heating water on a burner, its

R
water. Make sure that water does not evaporation takes place even faster. Is

b
spill over. Observe the two plates after there any other process through which

E
every 15 minutes. Does the water seem

u
water vapour gets transferred into air?
to disappear? From which plate does it

C
Loss of Water by Plants

p
disappear first? What is the source of

e
You have learnt in Chapter 7 that plants

N
heat for this evaporation?

© er
During the daytime, sunlight falls on need water to grow. Plants use a part of
the water in oceans, rivers, lakes and this water to prepare their food and
ponds. The fields and other land areas
also receive sunlight. As a result, water

b
from all these places continuously
changes into vapour. However, the salts Boojho has been reading about

to
dissolved in the water are left behind. transpiration. He asked himself -
In Activity 2, did you find that water how much water is lost through

t
also disappeared from the plate kept in transpiration by wheat plants
that give us one kilogram of

o
wheat? He found out that this is

n
nearly 500 litres, that is, roughly
25 large sized buckets full of
water. Can you now imagine the
amount of water lost by plants
of all the forests, crops and
grasslands together?

Fig.14.5 Evaporation of water in sunlight and in

shade

WATER 139
retain some of it in their different parts.
Remaining part of this water is released
by the plants into air, as water vapour Paheli has noticed dew on leaves of
through the process of transpiration. Do grass on winter mornings. Did you
you remember observing transpiration notice something similar on leaves
of water by plants in Activity 4 in or metal surfaces like iron grills and
Chapter 7? gates on a cold morning? Is this
Water vapour enters the air through also due to condensation? Do you

d
the processes of evaporation and see this happening on hot
summer mornings?

e
transpiration. Is it lost for ever? No, we
get it back again, as we will see.

h
How are clouds formed?
Activity 3

T l i s
The process of condensation plays an

R
important role in bringing water back

b
Take a glass half filled with water. Wipe
to the surface of earth. How does it

E
the glass from the outside with a clean

u
happen? As we go higher from the
piece of cloth. Add some ice into the

C
surface of the earth, it gets cooler. When

p
water. Wait for one or two minutes.
the air moves up, it gets cooler and
Observe the changes that take place on

N e
cooler. At sufficient heights, the air
the outer surface of the glass (Fig.14.6).

© er
becomes so cool that the water vapour
From where do water drops appear
present in it condenses to form tiny
on the outer side of the glass? The cold
drops of water called droplets. It is these
surface of the glass containing iced water,

b
tiny droplets that remain floating in air
cools the air around it, and the water
and appear to us as clouds (Fig. 14.7).
vapour of the air condenses on the

o
It so happens that many droplets of
surface of the glass. We noticed this

t
water come together to form larger sized
process of condensation in Activity 7 in

t
Chapter 5.

no
Fig. 14.6 Drops of water appear on outer
surface of the glass containing water with ice Fig. 14.7 Clouds

140 SCIENCE
 Boojho has noticed fog near the
ground in winter mornings. He
wonders if this is also condensation
of water vapour near the
ground. What do you
think?

drops of water. Some drops of water

e d
Fig. 14.8 Rain water flows down in the form of

h
streams and rivers
become so heavy that they begin to fall.

s
The rainwater also fills up the lakes

T
These falling water-drops are, what we

i
and ponds. A part of the rainwater gets

l
call rain. In special conditions, it may

R
absorbed by the ground and seems to
also fall as hail or snow.

b
disappear in the soil. Some of this water
Thus, water in the form of vapour

E
is brought back to the air by the process

u
goes into air by evaporation and
of evaporation and transpiration. The

C
transpiration, forms clouds, and then

p
rest seeps into the ground. Most of this
comes back to the ground as rain, hail

N e
water becomes available to us as ground
or snow.

© er
water. Open wells are fed by ground
14.4 BACK TO THE OCEANS water. Ground water is the source for
What happens to the water that rain and many lakes as well. It is also this ground
snow bring to different regions of earth? water which is drawn by a handpump

b
Almost all land surfaces are above the or a tubewell. The more handpumps or
level of oceans. Most of the water that tubewells that are used in an area, the

o
falls on the land as rain and snow deeper we need to dig to find this ground

t
sooner or later goes back to the oceans. water. The loss in the level of ground

t
This happens in many ways. water due to over use, is worrisome.

o
Snow in the mountains melts into Paheli wants to share a concern with
water. This water flows down the you. In those areas where the land has

n
mountains in the form of streams and little or no vegetation, the rainwater flows
rivers (Fig. 14.8). Some of the water that away quickly. Flowing rainwater also
falls on land as rain, also flows in the takes the top layer of the soil away with
form of rivers and streams. Most of the it. There are few areas where most of the
rivers cover long distances on land and land is covered with concrete. This
ultimately fall into a sea or an ocean. reduces the seepage of rainwater into the
However, water of some rivers flows ground which ultimately affects the
into lakes. availability of ground water.

WATER 141
 We now know that water brought
back to the surface of the earth by rain,
hail or snow, goes back to oceans. Thus,
water from the ocean and surface of the
earth goes into air as vapour; returns
as rain, hail or snow and finally goes
back to the oceans. The circulation of
water in this manner is known as the

d
water cycle (Fig.14.9). This circulation

e
of water between ocean and land is a
continuous process. This maintains the

h
Fig. 14.10 A scene after heavy rains
supply of water on land.

s
In our country, most of the rainfall

T i
14.5 WHAT IF IT RAINS HEAVILY? occurs during the monsoon season.

l
The time, duration and the amount of Rains bring relief especially after hot

R b
rainfall varies from place to place. In summer days. The sowing of many crops

E
some parts of the world it rains depends on the arrival of monsoon.

u
throughout the year while there are However, excess of rainfall may lead

C p
places where it rains only for a few days. to many problems (Fig. 14.10). Heavy

N e
© er
b
to
o t
n
Fig. 14.9 Water cycle

142 SCIENCE
 heard about droughts occurring in some
parts of our country or the world. Are
you aware of the difficulties faced by
the people living in these areas? What
happens to the animals and the
vegetation in these conditions? Try and
find out about this by talking to your
parents and neighbours and by

d
reading about it from newspapers
Fig. 14.11 A scene of a flooded area

e
and magazines.
rains may lead to rise in the level of water 14.7 HOW CAN WE CONSERVE WATER?

h
in rivers, lakes and ponds. The water

s
Only a small fraction of water available

T
may then spread over large areas causing

i
on the Earth is fit for use of plants,

l
floods. The crop fields, forests, villages,
animals and humans. Most of the water

R
and cities may get submerged by water

b
is in the oceans and it cannot be used
(Fig. 14.11). In our country, floods cause

E
directly. When the level of the ground

u
extensive damage to crops, domestic
water decreases drastically, this can not

C
animals, property and human life.

p
be used any more. The total amount of
During floods, the animals living in

e
water on Earth remains the same, but,

N
the water also get carried away with the

© er
the water available for use is very limited
waters. They often get trapped on land
and is decreasing with over usage.
areas and die when floodwater recedes.
The demand for water is increasing
Rains also affect the animals living in
day-by-day. The number of people using

b
the soil.
water is increasing with rising
14.6 WHAT HAPPENS IF IT DOES NOT population. In many cities, long queues

o
RAIN FOR A LONG PERIOD? for collection of water are a common site

t
Can you imagine what would happen if (Fig. 14.12). Also, more and more water

t
it does not rain in a region for a year or is being used for producing food and by
the industries. These factors are leading

o
more? The soil continues to lose water
by evaporation and transpiration. Since

n
it is not being brought back by rain,
the soil becomes dry. The level of water
in ponds and wells of the region goes
down and some of them may even dry
up. The ground water may also become
scarce. This may lead to drought.
In drought conditions, it is difficult
to get food and fodder. You might have Fig. 14.12 A queue for collecting water

WATER 143
to shortage of water in many parts of
the world. Hence, it is very important
that water is used carefully. We should
take care not to waste water.
14.8 RAINWATER HARVESTING
One way of increasing the availability
of water is to collect rainwater and store
it for later use. Collecting rainwater in

d
this way is called rainwater harvesting.

e
The basic idea behind rainwater
Fig. 14.13 Rooftop rainwater harvesting

h
harvesting is “Catch water where it falls”.

s
What happens to the rainwater that the rooftop to a storage tank, through

T i
falls in places that are mostly covered pipes. This water may contain soil

l
with concrete roads and buildings? It from the roof and need filtering

R b
flows into the drains, isn't it? From there before it is used. Instead of collecting

E
water goes to rivers or lakes, which could rainwater in the tank, the pipes

u
be far away. A lot of effort will then be can go directly into a pit in the

C p
required to get this water back into our ground. This then seeps into the

e
homes as the water did not seep into soil to recharge or refill the ground

N
© er
the ground. water (Fig. 14.13).
Discussed here are two techniques 2. Another option is to allow water
of rainwater harvesting: to go into the ground directly
1. Rooftop rainwater harvesting: In this from the roadside drains that

b
system the rainwater is collected from collect rainwater.

to
o
Clouds
t Hail

n
Condensation Ocean
Drought Rainwater harvesting
Evaporation Snow
Flood Water vapour
Ground water Water cycle

144 SCIENCE
 „ Water is essential for life.
„ Water vapour gets added to air by evaporation and transpiration.
„ The water vapour in the air condenses to form tiny droplets of water, which
appear as clouds. Many tiny water droplets come together and fall down as
rain, snow or hail.
„ Rain, hail and snow replenish water in rivers, lakes, ponds, wells and soil.
„ The circulation of water between ocean and land is known as the

d
water cycle.

e
„ Excessive rains may cause floods while lack of it for long periods may
cause droughts.

h
„ The amount of usable water on earth is limited so it needs to be used

T s
carefully.

R l i
E u b
C p
1. Fill up the blanks in the following:

e
(a) The process of changing of water into its vapour is called _________________.

N
© er
(b) The process of changing water vapour into water is called _________________.
(c) No rainfall for a year or more may lead to _________________ in that region.
(d) Excessive rains may cause _________________.

b
2. State for each of the following whether it is due to evaporation or condensation:
(a) Water drops appear on the outer surface of a glass containing cold water.

o
(b) Steam rising from wet clothes while they are ironed.

t
(c) Fog appearing on a cold winter morning.

t
(d) Blackboard dries up after wiping it.

o
(e) Steam rising from a hot girdle when water is sprinkled on it.
3. Which of the following statements are “true” ?

n
(a) Water vapour is present in air only during the monsoon. ( )
(b) Water evaporates into air from oceans, rivers and lakes but not from the
soil.( )
(c) The process of water changing into its vapour, is called evaporation.( )
(d) The evaporation of water takes place only in sunlight.( )
(e) Water vapour condenses to form tiny droplets of water in the upper layers of
air where it is cooler.( )

WATER 145
 4. Suppose you want to dry your school uniform quickly. Would spreading it near
an anghiti or heater help? If yes, how?
5. Take out a cooled bottle of water from refrigerator and keep it on a table. After
some time you notice a puddle of water around it. Why?
6. To clean their spectacles, people often breathe out on glasses to make them
wet. Explain why the glasses become wet.
7. How are clouds formed?
8. When does a drought occur?

e d
h
SUGGESTED PROJECTS AND ACTIVITIES

T i s
1. List three activities in which you can save water. For each activity describe

l
how you would do it.

R
2. Collect pictures relating to floods or droughts from old magazines or

b
newspapers. Paste them in your notebook and write about the problems that

E
people would have faced.

u
3. Prepare a poster on ways of saving water and display it on your school notice

C p
board.

N e
4. Write a few slogans of your own on the topic ‘Save Water’.

© er
b
to
o t
n
146 SCIENCE
15 Air Around us

W
e have learnt in Chapter 9 that
all living things require air.
But, have you ever seen air?

d
You might not have seen air, but, surely

e
you must have felt its presence in so
Fig. 15.2 Making a simple firki

h
many ways. You notice it when the
leaves of the trees rustle or the clothes Move it a little, back and

T i s
hanging on a clothes-line sway. Pages forth. Observe, what happens.

l
of an open book begin fluttering Does the firki rotate? What makes a firki

R b
when the fan is switched on. The moving rotate — moving air, isn’t it?

E
air makes it possible for you to fly your Have you seen a weather cock

u
kite. Do you remember Activity 3 in (Fig. 15.3)? It shows the direction in

C p
Chapter 5 in which you separated the which the air is moving at that place.
sand and sawdust by winnowing?

N e
Winnowing is more effective in moving

© er
air. You may have noticed that during
storms the wind blows at a very high
speed. It may even uproot trees and blow

b
off the rooftops.
Have you ever played with a firki

o
(Fig. 15.1)?

t
Fig. 15.3 A weather cock

t
15.1 IS AIR PRESENT EVERYWHERE

o
AROUND US?
Close your fist — what do you have in

n
it? Nothing? Try the following activity
Fig. 15.1 Different types of firki to find out.
Activity 1 Activity 2
Let us make a firki of our own, following Take an empty glass bottle. Is it really
the instructions shown in Fig. 15.2. empty or does it have something inside?
Hold the stick of the firki and place it Turn it, upside down. Is something
in different directions in an open area. inside it, now?
 Fig. 15.4 Experiments with an empty bottle.

Now, dip the open mouth of the bottle

into the bucket filled with water as

d
shown in Fig. 15.4. Observe the bottle.

e
Does water enter the bottle? Now tilt the
bottle slightly. Does the water now enter Fig. 15.5 Mountaineers carry oxygen cylinders

h
the bottle? Do you see bubbles coming with them

T s
out of the bottle or hear any bubbly

i
15.2 WHAT IS AIR MADE UP OF?

l
sound? Can you now guess what was

R
in the bottle? Until the eighteenth century, people

b
Yes! You are right. It is “air”, that was thought that air was just one substance.

E
Experiments have proved that it is really

u
present in the bottle. The bottle was not
not so. Air is a mixture of many gases.

C
empty at all. In fact, it was filled

p
completely with air even when you What kind of a mixture is it? Let us find

N e
turned it upside down. That is why you out about some of the major

© er
notice that water does not enter the components of this mixture, one by one.
bottle when it is in an inverted position, Water vapour
as there was no space for air to escape.
We have learnt earlier that air contains

b
When the bottle was tilted, the air was
water vapour. We also saw that, when
able to come out in the form of bubbles,
air comes in contact with a cool surface,
and water filled up the empty space that

o
it condenses and drops of water appear

t
the air has occupied.
on the cooled surfaces. The presence of
This activity shows that air occupies
water vapour in air is important for the

t
space. It fills all the space in the bottle.
water cycle in nature.

o
It is present everywhere around us. Air
has no colour and one can see through Oxygen

n
it. It is transparent.
Activity 3
Our earth is surrounded by a thin
layer of air. This layer extends up to In the presence of your teacher, fix two
many kilometres above the surface of small candles of the same size in the
the earth and is called atmosphere. middle of two shallow containers. Now,
Why do you think, mountaineers fill the containers with some water. Light
carry oxygen cylinders with them, while the candles and then cover each one of
climbing high mountains (Fig. 15.5)? them with an inverted glass (one much

148 SCIENCE
 component in the air, which does not
support burning. The major part of air
(which does not support burning candle)
is nitrogen. It takes up nearly four-fifth
of the space that air fills.
Carbon dioxide
In a closed room, if there is some
Fig. 15.6 Air has oxygen material that is burning, you may

d
have felt suffocation. This is due to

e
taller than the other) as shown in Fig. excess of carbon dioxide that may be
15.6. Observe carefully what happens to

h
accumulating in the room, as the
the burning candles and the water level. burning continues. Carbon dioxide

T s
Do the candles continue to burn or

i
makes up a small component of the air

l
go off? Does the level of water inside around us. Plants and animals consume

R
glasses remain the same?

b
oxygen for respiration and produce
The burning of the candle must be

E
carbon dioxide. Plant and animal matter

u
due to presence of some component of on burning, also consumes oxygen and

C
air, isn’t it? Do you find any difference

p
produces mainly carbon dioxide and a
in your observation with the two glasses few other gases.

N e
of different heights? What can be the

© er
reason for this? Dust and smoke
Burning can occur only in the The burning of fuel also produces
presence of oxygen. We see that, one smoke. Smoke contains a few gases and

b
component of air is oxygen. Now, the fine dust particles and is often harmful.
amount of air and hence its oxygen That is why you see long chimneys in

o
component inside each glass in our factories. This takes the harmful smoke

t
experiment, is limited. When most of and gases away from our noses, but,
this oxygen is used up by the burning brings it closer to the birds flying up in

t
candle, it can no longer burn and blows the sky!

o
out. Also, some of the space occupied Dust particles are always present
by the oxygen inside the glass becomes in air.

n
empty and the water rises up to fill or Activity 4
occupy this space.
Find a sunny room in your school/
Nitrogen home. Close all the doors and windows
In Activity 3 did you observe that a with curtains pulled down to make the
major part of air is still present in the room dark. Now, open the door or a
glass bottle even after the candle blew window facing the sun, just a little, in
out? This indicates the presence of some such a way that it allows sunlight to

AIR AROUND US 149

 e d
h
Fig. 15.7 Observing presence of dust in air with Fig.15.8 Policemen regulating traffic at a crowded

s
sunlight crossing often wear a mask

T l i
enter the room only through a slit. Do you recall being scolded by your

R
Look carefully at the incoming beam parents when you breathe through your

b
of sunlight. mouth? If you do that, harmful dust

E u
Do you see some tiny shining particles may enter your body.

C
particles moving in the beam of sunlight We may conclude, then, that air

p
(Fig. 15.7)? What are these particles? contains some gases, water vapour and

N e
During cold winters you might have dust particles. The gases in air are

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observed similar beam of sunlight filter mainly nitrogen, oxygen, small amount
through the trees in which dust particles of carbon dioxide, and many other
appear to dance merrily around! gases. However, there may be some

b
This shows that air also contains variations in the composition of air from
dust particles. The presence of dust place to place. We see that air contains

o
particles in air varies from time to time,

t
and from place to place.
We inhale air when we breathe

t
through our nostrils. Fine hair and Paheli wants to know, why

o
mucus are present inside the nose to the transparent glass of
prevent dust particles from getting into windows, if not wiped off

n
regularly, appears hazy?
the respiratory system.
Boojho wants to know, why
during an incident of
Boojho is asking you, why
fire, one is advised to
do you think, the policeman
wrap a woollen blanket
in Fig. 15.8 is wearing a
over a burning object.
mask?

150 SCIENCE
 carbon dioxide,
water vapour
and other gases
Here is a question from Paheli, “Will
the tiny air bubbles seen before the
oxygen
water actually boils, also appear if
Nitrogen we do this activity by reheating
boiled water kept in an air tight
bottle?” If you do not know

d
the answer you may try doing

e
it and see for yourself.
Fig.15.9 Composition of air

h
mostly nitrogen and oxygen. In fact,

s
vessel. Do you see tiny bubbles on the

T
these two gases together make up 99%

i
inside (Fig. 15.10)?

l
of the air. The r emaining 1% is

R
constituted by carbon dioxide and a few These bubbles come from the air

b
other gases, water vapour and dust dissolved in water. When you heat the

E
water, to begin with, the air dissolved in

u
particles (Fig. 15.9).
it escapes. As you continue heating, the

C p
15.3 H OW DOES O XYGEN B ECOME water itself turns into vapour and finally
AVAILABLE TO ANIMALS AND PLANTS

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begins to boil. We learnt in Chapters 8
LIVING IN WATER AND SOIL?

© er
and 9, that the animals living in water
Activity 5 use the dissolved oxygen in water.
The organisms that live in soil also
Take some water in a glass vessel or

b
need oxygen to respire, isn’t it? How do
beaker. Heat it slowly on a tripod stand. they get the air they need, for
Well before the water begins to boil, look

o
respiration?
carefully at the inner surface of the

t
Activity 6

t
Take a lump of dry soil in a beaker or a

o
glass. Add water to it and note what
happens (Fig. 15.11). Do you see

n
bubbles coming out from soil? These
bubbles indicate the presence of air in
the soil.
When the water is poured on the
lump of soil, it displaces the air which
is seen in the form of bubbles. The
organisms that live inside the soil and
Fig. 15.10 Water contains air! the plant roots respire in this air. A lot

AIR AROUND US 151

 survive for long without animals. They
would consume all the carbon dioxide
in the atmosphere. We can see that both
need each other, as the balance of
oxygen and carbon dioxide in the
atmosphere is thus maintained. This
shows the interdependence of plants
and animals.

d
We can now appreciate, how important
Fig. 15.11 Soil has air in it

e
air is for life on earth. Are there any other
of burrows and holes are formed in deep uses of air? Have you heard about a

h
soil by the animals living in the soil. windmill? Look at Fig. 15.12.

T s
These burrows also make spaces

l i
available for air to move in and out of

R
the soil. However, when it rains heavily,

b
water fills up all the spaces occupied by

E u
the air in the soil. In this situation,

C
animals living in the soil have to come

p
out for respiration. Could this be the

N e
reason why earthworms come out of the

© er
soil, only during heavy rains?
Have you ever wondered why all the
oxygen of atmosphere does not get used

b
up though a large number of organisms
are consuming it? Who is refilling the

o
oxygen in the atmosphere? Fig. 15.12 A windmill

t
15.4 HOW IS THE OXYGEN IN THE The wind makes the windmill

t
ATMOSPHERE REPLACED? rotate. The windmill is used to draw

o
In Chapter 7, we read about water from tubewells and to run flour
photosynthesis. In this process, plants mills. Windmills are also used to

n
make their own food and oxygen is generate electricity. Air helps in the
produced along with it. Plants also movements of sailing yachts, gliders,
consume oxygen for respiration, but parachutes and aeroplanes. Birds,
they produce more of it than they bats and insects can fly due to the
consume. That is why we say plants presence of air. Air also helps in the
produce oxygen. dispersal of seeds and pollen of
It is obvious that animals cannot live flowers of several plants. Air plays an
without plants. Similarly, plants can not important role in water cycle.

152 SCIENCE
 Atmosphere
Carbon dioxide
Composition of air
Oxygen

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Nitrogen

e
Smoke

h
Windmill

T l i s
E R b
u
„ Air is found everywhere. We cannot see air, but we can feel it.

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„ Air in motion is called wind.

N e
„ Air occupies space.

© er
„ Air is present in water and soil.
„ Air is a mixture of nitrogen, oxygen, carbon dioxide, water vapour and a few
other gases. Some dust particles may also be present in it.
„ Oxygen supports burning and is necessary for living organisms.

b
„ The envelope of air that surrounds the earth is known as atmosphere.

o
„ Atmosphere is essential for life on earth.

t
„ Aquatic animals use dissolved air in water for respiration.
Plants and animals depend on each other for exchange of oxygen and carbon

t
„
dioxide from air.

n
1.
o What is the composition of air?
2. Which gas in the atmosphere is essential for respiration?
3. How will you prove that air supports burning?
4. How will you show that air is dissolved in water?
5. Why does a lump of cotton wool shrink in water?

AIR AROUND US 153

 6. The layer of air around the earth is known as ___________.
7. The component of air used by green plants to make their food, is ___________.
8. List five activities that are possible due to the presence of air.
9. How do plants and animals help each other in the exchange of gases in the
atmosphere?

SUGGESTED PROJECTS AND ACTIVITIES

d
1. On a clear glass window facing towards an open area, fix a small rectangular

e
strip of paper. Remove the strip after a few days. Do you notice a difference
between the rectangular section that was left covered with paper and the

h
rest of the glass window? By repeating this exercise every month, you can

s
have an idea about the amount of dust present in air around you at different

T i
times of the year.

R l
2. Observe the leaves of trees, shrubs or bushes planted by the roadside. Note

b
whether their leaves have some dust or soot deposited over them. Take similar
observations with the leaves of trees in the school compound or in a garden.

E
Is there any difference in deposition of soot on leaves of trees near the roadside?

u
What could be the possible reasons for this difference? Take a map of your

C p
city or town and try to identify regions in the map where you have noticed
very thick layer of soot on the plants by the roadside. Compare with results

N e
obtained by other classmates and mark these areas on the map. Perhaps

© er
the results from all the students could be summarised and reported in
newspapers.

b
to
o t
n
154 SCIENCE