Listen, Speak, Write and Explore

Class 6 English · Chapter 15: Ila Sachani: Embroidering Dreams with her Feet · NCERT Poorvi section pp. 158–159

Learn

Listening (Kathiawar embroidery): in the book, a speaker explains that Kathiawar embroidery is a very old form, with many bright colours and many stitches such as the chain stitch. It decorates clothes, like children's caps, ghagra skirts and men's traditional shirts, and home items. Small mirrors are fixed along with the stitches, and the designs are mostly geometric shapes (squares, triangles) and flowers.

Speaking: questions with the right tone. Write two questions you would ask Ila. Yes/No questions (Did you go to school? Is it difficult?) use a rising tone at the end. Wh- questions (Where were you born? Who taught you?) usually fall at the end. Practise them with a partner, speaking clearly.

Writing: collect four or five items (flowers, leaves, waste paper, old cards, straws, twigs) and make an artwork from them. Then write a paragraph describing it, with a title: what you used, how you made it (use sequence words!) and how it looks. Explore: ask whether anyone in your family does embroidery and how they learnt it; try a simple running stitch with an adult's help; look up embroidery styles of India on the Indian Culture portal (indianculture.gov.in).

Explore: rising or falling tone?

1. Sort each question.

Remember

• Kathiawar embroidery: very old, bright colours, chain stitch, mirror work, geometric designs.
• Yes/No questions rise at the end; Wh- questions usually fall.

Quick check

What is fitted in along with the stitches in Kathiawar embroidery?

1. Small mirrors
2. Buttons
3. Coins
4. Feathers

Think about it

Write two questions you would ask Ila, one Yes/No and one Wh-.

Practice

Practise with fresh questions at three levels (easy, medium, hard), some answered hands-on, with hints and worked answers. Get 4 of your last 5 right to finish the topic.