Money Plant

 Emperor Akbar once went hunting in the forests of Bihar. Chasing a deer, they parted from their companions. They were wandering, hungry and thirsty.

God's gift

 A Brahmin lived in the city of Patiala. One day he went to the king to beg. The king gave a hundred rupees to a Brahmin in begging. But the Brahmin refused to take it. He said to the king, "I don't want a hundred rupees. If you want, give me one penny, but give me something you have earned with your hard work."

God's gift

     An old woman lived in a village in Bihar. He had no one in the world but his son Ramu. She used to grind people's flour and do other small things to raise her son. With that, they were able to make ends meet.

The desert

 THOSE of us who live in regions covered with forests and surrounded by hills may find it difficult to imagine what a desert is really like. The popular belief is that it is an endless stretch of sand where no rain falls and, therefore, no vegetation grows. It is dry, hot, waterless and without shelter. But this is not entirely correct. For those who have studied it, the desert can be a beautiful place. It is the home of a variety of people, animals and plants that have learnt to live under very hot and dry conditions. 

Bringing up kari

 KARI, the elephant, was five months old when he was given to me to take care of. I was nine years old and I could reach his back if I stood on tiptoe. He seemed to remain that high for nearly two years. We grew together; that is probably why I never found out just how tall he was. He lived in a pavilion, under a thatched roof which rested on thick tree stumps so that it could not fall in when Kari bumped against the poles as he moved about. 

The tiny teacher

 NAME the smallest insect you have seen, and the wisest. Is it the fly? No, it isn’t. Is it the mosquito? No, not the mosquito. Then it must be the worm. No, none of these. It is the ant—the commonest, the smallest but the wisest insect. The story of an ant’s life sounds almost untrue. But people have kept ants as pets, and have watched their daily behaviour closely. So we know a number of facts about this tiny, hard-working and intelligent creature. 

Desert Animals

 1.     DESERTS are the driest places on earth and sometimes go for months, or even years, without rain. But even the desert animals cannot survive without water, or for long periods in the scorching sun, so they have had to find different ways of coping with the harsh conditions

Fair Play

 1. JUMMAN Shaikh and Algu Chowdhry were good friends. So strong was their bond of friendship that when either of them went away from the village, the other looked after his family. Both were greatly respected in the village.

A Different Kind of School

 1.     I HAD heard a great deal about Miss Beam’s school, but not till last week did the chance come to visit it. 

An Indian – American Woman in Space: Kalpana Chawla

 1. KALPANA Chawla said that she never dreamed, as a child in Karnal, that she would cross the frontiers of space. It was enough that her parents allowed her to attend engineering college after she graduated from Tagore School.

 

Taro’s Reward

 1.     A YOUNG woodcutter named Taro lived with his mother and father on a lonely hillside. All day long he chopped wood in the forest. Though he worked very hard, he earned very little money. This made him sad, for he was a thoughtful son and wanted to give his old parents everything they needed. 

How the Dog Found Himself a New Master!

 1.     DOGS were once their own masters and lived the way wolves do, in freedom, until a dog was born who was ill pleased with this way of life. He was sick and tired of wandering about by himself looking for food and being frightened of those who were stronger than he. 

Who Did Patrick’s Homework?

 1.     PATRICK never did homework. “Too boring,” he said. He played hockey and basketball and Nintendo instead. His teachers told him, “Patrick! Do your homework or you won’t learn a thing.” And it’s true, sometimes he did feel like an ignoramus. But what could he do? He hated homework.

A Strange Wrestling Match

 THERE was once a wrestler called Vijay Singh. A tall man with massive shoulders and muscular arms, he towered over others like a giant. Vijay Singh, people said, was a born wrestler and could beat all other wrestlers in the world. 

What Happened to reptiles

 YOU may not believe this story. But I can tell you it is true, because I have been to Pambupatti, a village on the edge of the jungle.

A Pact with the Sun

 SAEEDA’S mother had been ailing for a long time — fever, cough, body-ache, painful joints and what not. Treated by a variety of physicians for weeks, she often showed signs of improvement but soon relapsed into her old, sick self, one complaint substituted by another.

The wonder Called Sleep

 WE know enough about what sleep is, though we don’t know what exactly causes sleep. Sleep is a state of rest — an unconscious rest.

The Monkey and the Crocodile

 ONCE, on the bank of a river, a monkey made a home for himself in a tree laden with fruit. He lived in it happily eating to his heart’s content the fruit of his choice.

Tansen

 YOU may have heard the name of Tansen — the greatest musician our country has produced.

    A singer called Mukandan Misra and his wife lived in Behat near Gwalior. Tansen was their only child. It is said that he was a naughty child. Often, he ran away to play in the forest, and soon learnt to imitate perfectly the calls of birds and animals.

The Shepherd’s Treasure

 IN a village in Iran there once lived a shepherd. He was very poor. He did not have even a small cottage of his own. He had never been to school or learnt to read and write, for there were very few schools in those days.