MP Board Class 9 English Beehive The Fun They Had by Isaac Asimov

MP Board Class 9 English Beehive The Fun They Had by Isaac Asimov

Chapter 1  “The Fun They Had”: Author (लेखक): Isaac Asimov (आइज़ैक असिमोव)

English Word/Phrase	Hindi Meaning
crinkly	सिकुड़ा हुआ
scornful	तिरस्कारपूर्ण
mechanical teacher	यंत्रवत शिक्षक
telebook	टेलीबुक (इलेक्ट्रॉनिक पुस्तक)
attic	अटारी
slot	खांचा
punch code	पंच कोड
calculated	गणना की
geography sector	भूगोल क्षेत्र
geared	समायोजित
progress	प्रगति
disappointed	निराश
blanked out	बंद हो गया
superior	श्रेष्ठ / अभिमानपूर्ण
centuries	शताब्दियाँ
loftily	अभिमान से
nonchalantly	उदासीनता से
tucked	समेट लिया
dusty	धूलदार
fractions	भिन्न
proper fractions	सही भिन्न
sigh	सिसकी
neighborhood	पड़ोस
schoolyard	स्कूल का मैदान
regular hours	नियमित समय
arithmetic	अंकगणित
addition	जोड़
inspector	निरीक्षक

1. About the Story (कहानी के बारे में)

• यह कहानी भविष्य के समय वर्ष 2157 में स्थापित है ।
• यह एक ऐसे समय को दर्शाती है जब बच्चे एक स्क्रीन पर mechanical teachers और telebooks से सीखते हैं।
• यह हमें यह सोचने पर मजबूर करती है कि भविष्य में स्कूल कैसे बदल सकते हैं।

2. Main Characters (मुख्य पात्र)

• Margie (मार्गी):
  • She is 11 years old.
  • She writes a diary and records old events.
  • She hates her school and her mechanical teacher.
  • She finds the idea of old schools with human teachers very strange and interesting.
  • He is 13 years old (13 साल का)।
  • He knows more about old schools than Margie because he has read more telebooks.
  • वह मार्गी से पुराने स्कूलों के बारे में अधिक जानता है क्योंकि उसने अधिक टेलीबुक पढ़ी हैं।
  • He is the one who finds a real old book (एक असली पुरानी किताब मिलती है)।
• Tommy (टॉमी):
• County Inspector (काउंटी इंस्पेक्टर):
  • He is a round little man with a red face.
  • He fixes mechanical teachers.
  • He is kind and understands children’s problems.
• Margie’s Mother (मार्गी की माँ):
  • She is strict about Margie’s studies.
  • She believes in regular school hours.

3. Key Events / Story Plot (मुख्य घटनाएँ / कहानी का कथानक)

• Discovery of a Real Book (एक असली किताब की खोज):
  • On May 17, 2157, Tommy finds a very old, real book in his attic (अटारी).
  • Margie is very surprised because she has only seen telebooks.
• Discussion about Old Schools (पुराने स्कूलों के बारे में चर्चा):
  • यह किताब सैकड़ों साल पहले के पुराने स्कूलों के बारे में है।
  • मार्गी को अपने यांत्रिक शिक्षक और स्कूल से नफरत है।
  • उसका यांत्रिक शिक्षक का भूगोल सेक्टर बहुत तेज़ है, इसलिए वह भूगोल में खराब प्रदर्शन कर रही है।
• The Mechanical Teacher (यांत्रिक शिक्षक):
  • Margie’s school is in her own house (अपने ही घर में), right next to her bedroom.
  • There are no classmates (कोई सहपाठी नहीं).
  • She learns from a mechanical teacher on a big screen (एक बड़ी स्क्रीन पर यांत्रिक शिक्षक से सीखती है).
  • She puts homework in a slot (एक स्लॉट में होमवर्क डालती है), and the machine checks it instantly.
  • मशीन उसे तुरंत जांचती है।
• The County Inspector’s Visit (काउंटी इंस्पेक्टर का दौरा):
  • मार्गी की माँ मार्गी के शिक्षक को ठीक करने के लिए काउंटी इंस्पेक्टर को बुलाती है।
  • वह मार्गी के स्तर के अनुसार भूगोल सेक्टर को धीमा कर देता है।
  • Margie compares her lonely school with the old schools.
  • मार्गी अपने अकेले स्कूल की तुलना पुराने स्कूलों से करती है।
  • She imagines children of the same age going to a special school building (एक विशेष स्कूल भवन) together.
  • They had human teachers (मानव शिक्षक) and learned the same things.
  • She thinks it must have been “fun” (मजेदार).
• Margie’s Thoughts on Old Schools (पुराने स्कूलों के बारे में मार्गी के विचार):

4. Key Themes / Ideas (मुख्य विषय / विचार)

• Technology in Education (शिक्षा में तकनीक):
  • यह कहानी एक ऐसे भविष्य को दर्शाती है जहाँ तकनीक पूरी तरह से शिक्षा पर हावी है।
  • यह इसके अच्छे (व्यक्तिगत शिक्षा) और बुरे (मानव संपर्क की कमी) दोनों पहलुओं को उजागर करती है।
• Importance of Human Interaction (मानव संपर्क का महत्व):
  • मार्गी को सहपाठियों और मानव शिक्षकों की कमी महसूस होती है।
  • कहानी बताती है कि सीखना केवल तथ्यों के बारे में नहीं है, बल्कि साझा करने और एक साथ बढ़ने के बारे में भी है।
• Nostalgia for the Past (अतीत के लिए पुरानी यादें):
  • मार्गी पुराने स्कूलों के “मज़े” के सपने देखती है, भले ही उसने कभी उनका अनुभव नहीं किया हो।
  • यह दर्शाता है कि नई चीजें हमें पुराने तरीकों की याद कैसे दिला सकती हैं।

5. Important Points to Remember (याद रखने योग्य महत्वपूर्ण बिंदु)

• The story is a science fiction (विज्ञान कथा).
• यह हमें सोचने पर मजबूर करती है कि क्या तकनीक शिक्षा को बेहतर बनाएगी या बदतर better or worse।
• The contrast between mechanical teachers and human teachers is central.
• मार्गी के स्कूल में अकेलेपन loneliness की भावना एक महत्वपूर्ण तत्व है।

Thinking about the Text : Activity

To calculate how many years and months ahead Margie’s diary entry is, we need to compare the current date with the date mentioned in the story.

1. Current Date: June 24, 2025
2. Margie’s Diary Entry Date: May 17, 2157 (as mentioned in the story where Tommy finds the book)

Now, let’s calculate the difference:

• Years ahead: 2157−2025=132 years
• Months ahead: We are in June (6th month) and the diary entry is in May (5th month). Since May is before June in the same year, we need to adjust.

Let’s do a precise calculation:

• From June 24, 2025, to June 24, 2156, is exactly 131 years.
• Now, we need to calculate the time from June 24, 2156, to May 17, 2157.
  • From June 24, 2156, to April 24, 2157, is 10 full months.
  • From April 24, 2157, to May 17, 2157, is 23 days.

Therefore, Margie’s diary entry is 131 years, 10 months, and 23 days ahead from now.

Exercises given in Text Book

1. 1. How old are Margie and Tommy?

Answer : Margie is eleven years old, and Tommy is thirteen years old.

• 2. What did Margie write in her diary?

Answer : Margie wrote in her diary that Tommy found a real book.

• 3. Had Margie ever seen a book before?

Answer : No, Margie had never seen a real book before.

• 4. What things about the book did she find strange?

Answer : She found it strange that the words stood still on the pages instead of moving, and when they turned back to a page, it had the same words on it as when they read it the first time. She also found the yellow, crinkly pages strange.

• 5. What do you think a telebook is?

Answer: A telebook is an electronic book displayed on a screen (like a television or computer), where the text moves, and it can contain millions of books.

• 6. Where was Margie’s school? Did she have any classmates?

Answer: Margie’s school was in her own house, right next to her bedroom. No, she did not have any classmates; she was taught individually by a mechanical teacher.

• 7. What subjects did Margie and Tommy learn?

Answer : Margie and Tommy learned geography, history, and arithmetic.

Part 1: Answer with reference to the story.

1. “I wouldn’t throw it away.”
   1. Who says these words?

Tommy says these words.

• What does ‘it’ refer to?

‘It’ refers to Tommy’s telebook, which contains millions of books on its screen.

• What is it being compared with by the speaker?

It is being compared with the old paper book that Margie found, which would presumably be thrown away after reading.

• “Sure they had a teacher, but it wasn’t a regular teacher. It was a man.”
  • Who does ‘they’ refer to?

‘They’ refers to the students who went to the old, traditional schools centuries ago.

• What does ‘regular’ mean here?

Here, ‘regular’ means the usual or common type of teacher in Margie and Tommy’s time, which is a mechanical teacher.

• What is it contrasted with?

It is contrasted with the mechanical teachers that Margie and Tommy (and their generation) have.

Part 2: Answer each of these questions in a short paragraph (about 30 words).

1. What kind of teachers did Margie and Tommy have?

Margie and Tommy had mechanical teachers. These were large, black screens with slots where they submitted homework and test papers. They flashed lessons and asked questions automatically, adjusting to each child’s pace.

• Why did Margie’s mother send for the County Inspector?

Margie’s mother sent for the County Inspector because Margie had been doing very badly in geography tests. She was worried the mechanical teacher was malfunctioning and hoped he could fix its settings.

• What did he do?

The County Inspector was a round little man. He gently took apart Margie’s mechanical teacher, adjusted the geography sector which was too fast, and then reassembled it for her.

• Why was Margie doing badly in geography? What did the County Inspector do to help her?

Margie was doing badly in geography because the mechanical teacher’s geography sector was geared a little too quick for her. The County Inspector helped her by slowing it down to an average ten-year level.

• What had once happened to Tommy’s teacher?

Tommy’s mechanical teacher once had its history sector blanked out completely. It was taken away for almost a month for repairs, making Tommy miss his history lessons during that time.

• Did Margie have regular days and hours for school? If so, why?

Yes, Margie did have regular days and hours for school, every day except Saturday and Sunday. Her mother believed that little girls learned better if they learned at regular hours.

• How does Tommy describe the old kind of school?

Tommy describes the old kind of school as a special building separate from homes. All the children from the entire neighbourhood went there together, shouting and laughing in the schoolyard.

• How does he describe the old kind of teachers?

Tommy describes the old kind of teachers as human beings, men or women, not machines. He found it strange that a human could know as much as a mechanical teacher and teach all the different students.

·  What are the main features of the mechanical teachers and the schoolrooms that Margie and Tommy have in the story?

In the futuristic world of Margie and Tommy, their education system is entirely dominated by technology. Their teachers are not humans but large, black, and somewhat imposing mechanical devices. These mechanical teachers have a huge screen displaying lessons and asking questions. They feature a slot where students must insert their homework and test papers, which the machine corrects instantly. A key characteristic is their ability to be “geared” to suit the level of an average ten-year-old or even faster, indicating a highly personalized, albeit rigid, learning system.

As for their schoolrooms, they are not separate buildings, but rather designated spaces within their own homes, usually right next to their bedrooms. Margie’s schoolroom was a brightly lit space where her mechanical teacher awaited her every weekday. There were no classmates, no group activities, and no shared laughter in a schoolyard. Learning was a solitary affair, with each student interacting only with their mechanical instructor, following fixed schedules prescribed by their parents. This setup, while efficient, lacked the social vibrancy of traditional schools.

·  Why did Margie hate school? Why did she think the old kind of school must have been fun?

Margie intensely disliked her school, primarily because of its impersonal and monotonous nature. Her mechanical teacher, with its large, black screen and relentless flashing lessons, offered no joy or human connection. She particularly loathed the part where she had to insert homework into a slot, finding the entire process dull and tedious. Her hatred intensified when her geography sector kept malfunctioning, giving her worse and worse marks, which felt frustrating and unfair. The constant, solitary routine, coupled with the absence of human interaction, made her school life uninspiring and lonely.

In stark contrast, Margie believed the old kind of school must have been fun. The idea of children from “the whole neighbourhood” going to a special building, shouting and laughing together in the schoolyard, fascinated her. She imagined them sitting together in the classroom, learning the “same thing” from a human teacher. This shared learning experience, the possibility of helping each other with homework, and the camaraderie of being with other children seemed incredibly appealing and vibrant compared to her isolated, machine-led education. The social aspect was what she truly envied.

·  Do you agree with Margie that schools today are more fun than the school in the story? Give reasons for your answer.

Yes, I wholeheartedly agree with Margie that schools today are undoubtedly more fun and enriching than the futuristic school depicted in the story. The primary reason lies in the invaluable human and social interaction that is central to modern education, an aspect entirely missing from Margie’s solitary learning environment.

In today’s schools, students engage face-to-face with peers and human teachers, fostering friendships, teamwork, and crucial social skills. Human teachers bring empathy, adaptability, and creativity to the classroom, motivating students and addressing their individual needs in a way no mechanical teacher can. Moreover, contemporary schools offer a diverse range of extracurricular activities, sports, and cultural events, making learning dynamic and enjoyable beyond just academics. The shared experience of collective learning, collaborative projects, and the vibrant atmosphere of a school community creates lasting memories and a sense of belonging, making school a truly fun and holistic experience that Margie’s isolated, machine-driven education could never provide.

1. Find the sentences in the lesson which have the adverbs given in the box below.

• awfully: “The mechanical teacher had been giving her test after test in geography and she had been doing awfully worse and worse.”
• sorrowfully: “So she said to Tommy sorrowfully, ‘Why would anyone write about school?'”
• completely: “They had once taken Tommy’s teacher away for nearly a month because the history sector had blanked out completely.”
• loftily: “‘Century’s ago,’ Tommy said loftily, pronouncing the word carefully.”
• carefully: “‘Century’s ago,’ Tommy said loftily, pronouncing the word carefully.”
• differently: “But my mother says a teacher has to be adjusted to fit the mind of each boy and girl it teaches and that each kid has to be taught differently.”
• quickly: “‘So did mine,’ said Margie quickly. She was eleven and hadn’t seen as many telebooks as Tommy had. He was thirteen.”
• nonchalantly: “‘Maybe,’ he said nonchalantly. He walked away whistling, the dusty old book tucked beneath his arm.”

2. Now use these adverbs to fill in the blanks in the sentences below.

• The report must be read carefully so that performance can be improved.
• At the interview, Sameer answered our questions nonchalantly shrugging his shoulders.
• We all behave differently when we are tired or hungry.
• The teacher shook her head sorrowfully when Ravi lied to her.
• I completely forgot about it.
• When I complimented Reena on her success, she just smiled loftily and turned away. (vii) The President of the Company is awfully busy and will not be able to meet you.

3. Make adverbs from these adjectives.

Here are the adverbs made from the given adjectives:

• angry → angrily
• happy → happily
• merry → merrily
• sleepy → sleepily
• easy → easily
• noisy → noisily
• tidy → tidily
• gloomy → gloomily

I. If Not and Unless

The passage explains the use of ‘if not’ and ‘unless’ in negative conditional sentences. These sentences consist of two parts:

• The Condition Part: This part begins with ‘if not’ or ‘unless’ and contains a verb in the present tense. It states the condition that must be met (or not met) for a certain result to occur.
• The Result Part: This part describes the possible outcome or what will happen if the condition is (or is not) fulfilled. The verb in this part is in the future tense.

The meaning of ‘unless’ is equivalent to ‘if not’.

Examples from the text:

• There won’t be any books left ~ unless we preserve them.
• You won’t learn your lessons ~ if you don’t study regularly.
• Tommy will have an accident ~ unless he drives more slowly.

Complete the following conditional sentences. Use the correct form of the verb.

1. If I don’t go to Anu’s party tonight, I will miss all the fun.
2. If you don’t telephone the hotel to order food, you will not get dinner.
3. Unless you promise to write back, I will not send you this letter.
4. If she doesn’t play any games, she will not stay healthy.
5. Unless that little bird flies away quickly, the cat will catch it.

Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs)

Qn No. 1 : In what year is Margie’s diary entry dated?
a) 2057
b) 2157
c) 2257
d) 1957
Answer: b) 2157

Qn No. 2 : What did Tommy find that Margie had never seen before?
a) A real, printed book
b) A new telebook
c) A mechanical teacher
d) A microchip
Answer: a) A real, printed book

Qn No. 3 : How old is Margie?
a) 10 years old
b) 11 years old
c) 13 years old
d) 15 years old
Answer: b) 11 years old

Qn No. 4: How old is Tommy?
a) 10 years old
b) 11 years old
c) 13 years old
d) 15 years old
Answer: c) 13 years old

Qn No. 5: What was the old book about?
a) Future technology
b) Space travel
c) School
d) Robots
Answer: c) School

Qn No. 6 : What does Margie hate the most about her school?
a) The long hours
b) The mechanical teacher
c) The telebooks
d) Her classmates
Answer: b) The mechanical teacher

Qn No. 7: Where was Margie’s school located?
a) In a large building downtown
b) Next to her bedroom
c) In a virtual reality classroom
d) On a spaceship
Answer: b) Next to her bedroom

Qn No. 8: What subject was Margie doing badly in before the County Inspector arrived?
a) History
b) Arithmetic
c) Geography
d) Science
Answer: c) Geography

Qn No. 9: Who came to fix Margie’s mechanical teacher?
a) Tommy
b) Margie’s father
c) The County Inspector
d) A robot technician
Answer: c) The County Inspector

Qn No. 10: What did the County Inspector do to Margie’s mechanical teacher?
a) Replaced its screen
b) Gave it a new battery
c) Adjusted its geography sector to a slower level
d) Upgraded its memory
Answer: c) Adjusted its geography sector to a slower level

Qn No. 11: How long did it take the County Inspector to fix Margie’s teacher?
a) About an hour
b) A whole day
c) A few minutes
d) He couldn’t fix it
Answer: a) About an hour

Qn No. 12: What did Tommy say was wasted in old schools?
a) Space for telebooks
b) The paper for printed books
c) The time spent on human interaction
d) The electricity for computers
Answer: b) The paper for printed books

Qn No. 13: In the old schools, where did all the kids from the neighborhood go?
a) To their own homes
b) To a special school building
c) To an online virtual classroom
d) To different mechanical teachers
Answer: b) To a special school building

Qn No. 14: What kind of teachers did the old schools have?
a) Mechanical teachers
b) Computer programs
c) Human teachers
d) Robot instructors
Answer: c) Human teachers

Qn No. 15: What was Margie thinking about while doing her arithmetic lesson?
a) How much fun she was having.
b) The old schools and the fun children must have had.
c) What she would do after school.
d) How to fix her mechanical teacher.
Answer: b) The old schools and the fun children must have had.

Qn No. 16: What was Margie required to do with her homework in her school setup?
a) Write it on paper and hand it to her mother.
b) Type it out on a computer.
c) Put it in a slot on the mechanical teacher.
d) Speak the answers to the teacher.
Answer: c) Put it in a slot on the mechanical teacher.

Qn No. 17: What did Tommy call the old printed book?
a) A waste
b) A relic
c) A curiosity
d) A treasure
Answer: a) A waste

Qn No. 18: What was the size of the screen on Margie’s mechanical teacher?
a) Small and handheld
b) Large and black
c) Transparent and interactive
d) Projecting a hologram
Answer: b) Large and black

Qn No. 19: Why did Margie hate homework?
a) Because it was too hard.
b) Because she had to write it out in punch code.
c) Because the mechanical teacher gave too much.
d) Because she didn’t understand the subjects.
Answer: b) Because she had to write it out in punch code.

Qn No. 20: What feeling did Margie primarily have about the children in the old schools?
a) Envy
b) Pity
c) Disdain
d) Confusion
Answer: a) Envy