Grade 9 - CBSE - English - Revision Document
Descriptive Paragraph: Diary Writing
• Story Writing based on given context/cues/outline
• Parts of Speech
• Tenses
• Subject-Verb Agreement
• Reported Speech
• Modal – Possibility, necessity, Obligation, - Politeness
• Determiners - Article Determiners – A/An/The
Moments
1. Weathering the Storm in Ersama
2. The Last Leaf
3. A House is Not a Home
4. The Beggar Beehive (Prose)
1. Packing
2. Reach for The Top
3. The Bond of Love
4. If I Were You Poems
1. No Men Are Foreign
2. 2. On Killing a Tree
3. The Snake Trying
1. IX CBSE - Term II – English – Revision Notes - Parveen Kumar - Page 1 of 16
Term II Final Examination
English – Revision Summaries/Main Points
Educator: Parveen Kumar
Link to the AudioBooks:
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/16xKtHPZOE0O0m9Ee89T0P?si=3f899aef85814bc6
Section A – Reading
Q. 1 Reading Comprehension – 10 Marks
Section B – Writing and Grammar
Q. 2 Writing – Story and Diary Writing – 6 Marks
Q. 3 Editing – 3 Marks
Q. 4 Omission – 3 Marks
Section C – Literature
Q. 5 Extract-based Questions Poetry – 4 Marks
Q. 6 Extract-based Questions Prose – 4 Marks
Q. 7 Short-Answer Questions – 10 Marks (2 Marks each)
Syllabus – Term 2
• Descriptive Paragraph: Diary Writing
• Story Writing based on given context/cues/outline
• Parts of Speech
• Tenses
• Subject-Verb Agreement
• Reported Speech
• Modal – Possibility, necessity, Obligation, - Politeness
• Determiners - Article Determiners – A/An/The
Question
Paper
Format
2. IX CBSE - Term II – English – Revision Notes - Parveen Kumar - Page 2 of 16
Moments
1. Weathering the Storm in Ersama
2. The Last Leaf
3. A House is Not a Home
4. The Beggar
Beehive (Prose)
1. Packing
2. Reach for The Top
3. The Bond of Love
4. If I Were You
Poems
1. No Men Are Foreign
2. 2. On Killing a Tree
3. The Snake Trying
Diary
DAY
DATE
TIME (Prefer the Evening/Night)
Salutation to Dairy (Dear Diary)
Text - Past Tense as it is from your experience during the day – in a logical but
in an informal/FRIENDLY (not casual/careless) manner. Avoid the use of slang
words/WhatsApp style of writing you/u.
Good Night!
NAME
3. IX CBSE - Term II – English – Revision Notes - Parveen Kumar - Page 3 of 16
Weathering the Storm in Ersama
Harsh Mander's narrative "Weathering the Storm in Ersama" is based on a true
incident that happened in Odisha on October 27, 1999. The
story's protagonist is Prashant. On October 27, 1999, Prashant paid a visit
to Ersama's block headquarters to see his friend.
Unfortunately, he was trapped in a super cyclone on that day, which was followed
by a flood over the next two days. After two days, when the rain stopped, he
decided to return to his village, fearing for his family's safety during the super
cyclone.
Despite the advice of his friend's family not to return, he started his journey
through the floodwaters and returned to his village. However, his entire village
was submerged in waist-deep water, and he observed that their family belongings
were strewn about in the floodwater. Prashant was taken aback, and his concern
for his family's safety increased. He then went to the Red Cross shelter to look for
members of his family.
There were 2500 people at the Red Cross shelter, and he was relieved to find that
all his family members were still alive. Though relieved, he felt compelled to aid
the cyclone survivors at the Red Cross shelter because of people's cries and
the horrific scenes he had witnessed while crossing the floodwaters.
Prashant and his volunteer group were successful in gathering enough food and
resources for the entire crowd. The women at the shelter were in charge of the
children, while the men took care of the meals. Children's cricket matches were
organised. Also, his volunteer group planned to place orphaned children and
widows in foster families in their own community, where they would be loved and
protected. People, on the other side, see him as a rescuer due to his selfless love,
which helped him forget about his worries.
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The Last Leaf
*Art is medicine – it does have a therapeutic effect; it heals!
The story "The Last Leaf" is written by O. Henry, and it was published in 1907. The
story is set in New York City during the pneumonia pandemic.
The story "The Last Leaf" narrates the true friendship of Sue and Johnsy and
the sacrifice of an old painter Mr. Behrman. The central themes of the story
are friendship, love, care, and sacrifice.
The characters of the story are,
• Sue
• Johnsy
• Doctor
• Janitor
• Behrman
The lesson "The Last Leaf" is written by O Henry. The story is about
young artists: Sue and Johnsy. They lived in the same flat. One day, in November,
Johnsy was affected with pneumonia. She used to lie on the bed and gaze out the
window. She would count the leaves of the ivy creeper. She thought that she would
die when the last leaf fell. Johnsy's friend Sue tried to convince her that it was
autumn and so it is pretty normal that the leaves should be shed. But Johnsy didn't
listen to her words. She kept on counting backwards. To make her active Johnsy
thought of talking to her about interesting things like clothing and fashion. But
Johnsy lay still in her bed. Then Sue said that she was going to draw the painting of
an old miner. So, she went to call her neighbour Mr Behram to act as their model.
Meanwhile, Sue shared her worries about Johnsy to Behrman. He came to see
5. IX CBSE - Term II – English – Revision Notes - Parveen Kumar - Page 5 of 16
Johnsy and found that Johnsy had fallen asleep. Then Sue opened the windows and
shown him the last leaf from the ivy. After seeing that Mr. Behram left the place.
In the night, there was a heavy storm and wind. On the following day, Johnsy asked
Sue to open the curtains. When Sue opened the curtains, they found that the last
leaf didn't fall, and it looked green and healthy. After seeing that, Johnsy realised
her foolishness and started recovering from her health. Then the doctor came and
examined Johnsy and said that her health was improving. Meanwhile, he informed
that Mr. Behrman was affected with pneumonia. The next day, Sue told Johnsy that
Mr Behrman had passed away. He had been in the out when the heavy storm blew.
Sue asked Johnsy whether she knew why the last leaf was not falling. She informed
her that it was Mr Behrman's masterpiece.
A House is Not a Home
The narrative "A House Is Not a Home" describes a teenager's difficulty adjusting
to new surroundings. The narrator is the story's protagonist, and the plot revolves
around him. He tells the readers about his first few days at a new high school. The
narrative suggests that people must accept change and be open to the people
around them. Even if we have had positive former experiences, we must not
compare them to the present and find flaws in the current problems or difficulties.
Keeping a positive mindset and broadening your understanding will always lead to
an excellent, perfect solution.
Characters in the story:
The narrator: A teenager
The narrator's mother: A single mother who is the sole support for the narrator
Firefighters: Helpers of the narrator's family
The narrator's new high school friends: Helped the narrator during a crisis
The cat: The narrator's beloved friend
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Zan Gaudioso's narrative "A House Is Not a Home" is based on the narrator's
teenage experiences in the initial days of his new high school. The narrator is the
story's protagonist. After graduating from a junior high school, the narrator joined
a new high school that was bigger than the previous one.
The author disliked the new high school because he didn't have any of his old
friends or teachers there, and he didn't make any new friends. Despite his hatred,
he continued his studies at the new school. Days passed. On a Sunday afternoon,
the narrator's mother lit a fire in the fireplace as he was doing his schoolwork. After
a while, the narrator sensed a weird smell. Then he spotted smoke coming in
through the ceiling seams. Smoke from the fire soon filled the area, and the entire
room was engulfed in flames.
The narrator and his mother were able to escape the house and
seek assistance from neighbours in calling the fire department. Suddenly, the
narrator's mother rushed into the blazing house to save
some documents, photographs, and letters from her husband.
She was later rescued by the firefighters, who subsequently provided first aid to
her. The narrator couldn't help but watch his house burn as a small kid, and the fire
took almost five hours to put out.
People from the narrator's school seemed to be aware of the narrator's house
disaster a few days after the fire mishap. Shortly after then, the narrator's
classmates had surprised him by giving him everything he needed, including school
materials, notebooks, all kinds of different clothes — jeans, tops, sweatsuits. More
students came forward to introduce themselves, and some even invited the
narrator to their homes. On that day, the narrator made friends for the first time
7. IX CBSE - Term II – English – Revision Notes - Parveen Kumar - Page 7 of 16
in his new school. Despite this, the narrator felt there was something missing in his
life.
The narrator's house was reconstructed after a month. A kind-hearted
woman returned the narrator's cat to him one day. She really does seem to have
tracked down the narrator's address using the phone number written on the cat's
collar. The narrator's pleasant old life is restored thanks to the kind-hearted
woman's assistance. The narrator sobbed joyfully while cuddling his wonderful cat,
and the narrator's friends joined in and jumped around with him.
The Beggar
The lesson "The Beggar" was written by Anton Chekhov. The story opens with a
beggar named Lushkoff was begging alms to an advocate named Sergei. The
beggar said that he was a school teacher who had lost his job by a conspiracy of his
colleagues. While seeing the beggar's appearance, Sergei remembered that he had
seen him previously at Savodiya street, claiming that he was a student who was
expelled from school. Sergei became angry after hearing his lies and told him that
he would call the cop. Then Lushkoff admitted that he had told the lies, and he was
a member of a Russian choir and was expelled out due to his drunkenness. After
hearing the truth, Sergei asked him whether he would like to chop wood for him.
Then Lushkoff accepted the offer and went along with Sergei. Sergei asked his cook
Olga to make the beggar chop wood. The beggar was unable to chop the wood
because of the overconsumption of vodka. After some time, Olga informed Sergei
that he had chopped all the wood. Lushkoff was paid after his job. Later, Sergei
decided to shift his house. He asked Lushkoff to help him in packing the furniture.
After that, he offered him some work in his friend's company. Two years later,
Sergei met Lushkoff outside the theatre. Sergei felt happy on seeing his changes.
8. IX CBSE - Term II – English – Revision Notes - Parveen Kumar - Page 8 of 16
Lushkoff said that he was changed because of the kind words and good deeds of
the cook Olga.
Packing
Jerome, Harris, and George are three friends who are about to set out on a journey.
The story begins with the important task of packing stuff for this journey. Jerome,
the narrator, overestimates his packing skills and tells his friends to let him handle
it all by himself. However, his real intention is to make George and Harris do the
packing under his supervision and guidance. But his friends take his advice seriously
and to his great shock, stretch themselves comfortably, leaving him with all the
running around. Though irritated with their attitude, Jerome straight away gets
busy with packing. After a long-drawn packing session, he finally straps up the bag.
Both his friends watch him quietly and when he is done with packing, Harris
declares that the shoes have been left unpacked. The bag has to be reopened again
to accommodate the shoes. An irritated Jerome is just done with packing the shoes
when he is reminded of his toothbrush.
Unsure about having packed his toothbrush, Jerome must empty the bag and hunt
through all its contents to locate the brush. After a lot of effort, he finds the brush
in one of the boots! Anyhow the bag is packed again.
The next query comes from George regarding the soap. Jerome is so irritated by
this time that he does not even bother about this query and straps up the bag. But
the very next moment he has to unpack it again as he had packed in his spectacles
by mistake. Eventually, it is past ten when the packing is finally done.
Keeping in mind the amount of time taken by Jerome to pack the bag, George and
Harris decide to pack the hampers themselves and show Jerome the real art of
packing. However, they are equally clumsy and break a cup at the very outset. This
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is followed by squashing a tomato, treading on the butter, and smashing the pies
by putting heavy things on them. Salt flies all over while they are packing.
After peeling the butter off George’s slipper, they try unsuccessfully to squeeze it
into the kettle. They finally scrape it and put it down on the chair. Harris sits on it
and the butter gets stuck to his back. Then both these men go about searching for
the butter all over the room. Later, George locates it behind Harris’s back, and it is
packed in the teapot. Montmorency, their pet dog, contributes his bit to this
exercise of packing by sitting on things, climbing into the jam, and crushing lemons
as though they were rats.
Finally, the packing is done by 12.50 at night. This is followed by a discussion on the
‘wake up’ time and George is so tired that he sleeps off even before the time is
decided upon. Jerome and Harris decide that 6.30 in the morning would be the
right time to get up and then they too go off to sleep.
Reach for The Top
The lesson "Reach for the Top", Talks in detail about the success stories of two
women from different walks of life. Part one talks about Santosh Yadav,
a mountaineer, who is the first Indian woman to scale Mount Everest twice. Her
story inspires all young girls to chase their dreams. Hailing from a village with
conservative ideas, which did not believe in education for girls, Santosh
was rebellious enough to get herself educated. She went to college and stayed
away from her house, which was a brave thing to do on those days. She found
her passion later in life but developed her skills and went on to become the best.
This shows that one can discover their passion at any point in life, but they just
need enough determination to pursue it. If one has the right kind of skills, then no
one can stop them from becoming a pro.
10. IX CBSE - Term II – English – Revision Notes - Parveen Kumar - Page 10 of 16
This is very similar to the case of Maria Sharapova, a Russian tennis player. Her life
teaches that no matter what other people say or treat you like, the answer should
be one's own success. She struggled from a very young age with no attention from
her parents and harsh treatment from other pupils. But she clearly focussed on the
vision and proved herself.
********
The lesson "Reach for the Top" discusses the two most daring and
talented women who have broken all stereotypes of sports. The first part talks
about Santosh Yadav, a mountaineer who hailed from a humble village. Although
her parents wanted her to get married, she stood firmly for her dreams and
followed her. She took up a course in mountaineering from Uttarkashi and scaled
the Aravalli ranges in Rajasthan. After years of training and developing her skill, she
scaled Mount Everest, the highest peak in the world, in 1992. She became the first
Indian woman to do so. But she did not stop with that, as she scaled it for the
second time in 1993. She was awarded the Padmashri for her achievements and
countless contributions to the country. The second part
discusses Maria Sharapova, the Worlds number 1 tennis player. She, too, came
from a humble background as she immigrated to the US from Russia. Her parents
had to work, and she did not have them around. She experienced bullying in her
academy. But she was strong and put up with all hurdles that were thrown at her.
She has won various Grand slams, Olympics silver in tennis. She identifies herself
as a Russian and represents her country. She became a successful tennis player
only because she had the courage to follow her passion.
11. IX CBSE - Term II – English – Revision Notes - Parveen Kumar - Page 11 of 16
The Bond of Love
"A Bond of Love", by Kenneth Anderson deals with the author's own
experience with a pet bear. He talks about the fact that even wild animals tend to
have feelings and emotions. He gives a real-life example of this in the text. He also
states that even the wildest of bears can be tamed if they are conditioned in a
proper way from a young age. The lesson talks about the
close bond shared between the author's wife and the pet bear.
Kenneth Anderson, portrays the bear in the story as a tamed animal, breaking the
common belief that bears are ferocious animals. Generally, animals are grouped
into Wild and domestic. Wild animals are certain species of animals
that adjust themselves to living in the forest and fend for themselves. On the
contrary, pet animals adapt themselves to the human environment and act as
companions to them. Although most wild animals are considered to be ferocious,
there are many animals that do not altogether fall under this classification. Animals
like deer, monkeys, giraffes can be classified as wild animals, because they roam
freely in the forests, and find their own food. They cannot be kept at
home or controlled with a leash. Animals that can be controlled like that and kept
at home are called pet animals. Some common pet animals are dogs, cats, love
birds. In this story, a bear which is a wild animal is tamed and kept as a pet by a
woman. Usually, all wild animals are believed to behave in the same way. But the
bear in this lesson has individual characteristics for himself.
If I Were You
Douglas James' play "If I Were You" deals with suspense, surprise, humour,
criminality, and wit. Gerrard, the play's protagonist, lived alone in his cottage. An
intruder with a pistol broke into his residence one day, putting Gerrard's life at risk.
He was a murderer and had a motive to kill Gerrard. Will Gerrard find the motive of
12. IX CBSE - Term II – English – Revision Notes - Parveen Kumar - Page 12 of 16
the intruder behind entering Gerrard's house? How will he escape from
the murderer? Did he escape at last? If so, how? The answers to these questions
fill the remaining part of the story.
Characters in the story, "If I Were You":
Gerrard: The play's protagonist.
The intruder: A thief and murderer who broke into Gerrard's residence.
The play "If I Were You," written by Douglas James, has 'Gerrard' as
the protagonist. The play would start with Gerrard's talk with someone over the
phone. He packed his bag as soon as he got off the phone since he had plans to
travel somewhere. However, a man had entered Gerrard's cottage without his
knowledge, and he remarkably resembled Gerrard. He was holding a handgun.
When Gerrard noticed him, the intruder insisted that Gerrard answer all of his
questions, threatening to shoot him if he didn't.
Despite the fact that Gerrard had no clue why the intruder had broken into his
residence, he was able to obtain information from the intruder after some time.
The intruder inquired about Gerrard's car, Christian name, and other personal
details, telling Gerrard that he already knew Gerrard's personal information and
was verifying it with him.
As far as the intruder knew, Gerrard lived alone in his cottage, possessed a car,
avoided meeting any tradespeople, and lived a life of mystery. During their
conversation, each of them had shared a lot about themselves. Gerrard was
informed that the intruder was planning to murder him since he had chosen to
steal and use Gerrard's identity after he was dead. As the intruder was a thief and
a killer, he wanted to take advantage of his resemblance to Gerrard.
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Gerrard had skillfully presented a tale about himself as a crook and a killer when he
learned the intruder's purpose for killing him. He persuaded the intruder that
murdering him would be pointless because he would still be hung as Gerrard. The
intruder would then be persuaded to assist him in eluding the cops in Gerrard's car.
When the intruder trusted Gerrard's statements, he would lead him to a door that
looked like a garage door but was actually a cupboard door. When the intruder
went to inspect the way, Gerrard trapped him within the cupboard. Gerrard's
intelligence and presence of mind rescued his life in the end.
No Men Are Foreign
“No Men are Foreign” is a thought-provoking poem by James Kirkup. It tells us that
there is no difference between different people and the countries they live in.
Therefore wars and the bloodshed that takes place in the name of caste, class,
creed and country are futile and must be condemned. The uniforms worn by people
in different parts of the world may be different, but the bodies beneath them are
the same. The earth that one walks upon is the same for all people from different
countries. All will one day or the other die and return to earth only. People in every
part of the world get the sunshine, air and water in equal measures. They too
prosper during peace but have to suffer poverty and hunger during the war like us.
They do the same jobs to earn their livelihood as we do. They are built just like us
and sleep or wake up like ours. They too can be won over by love- Thus, human life
is the same in every part of the world. We must remember that when we hate,
betray and condemn others or forcibly take away land and property from them, we
harm ourselves. Our weapons of war make the earth dirty and spoil its atmosphere.
Wars thus cause misery and destruction. In this way, the poem gives us the
message of mutual and peaceful co-existence and warns us not to fight or hate
others.
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On Killing a Tree
The poet makes the reader aware of the fact that trees are being ignored and have
been pushed out of priority. The poem highlights the fact that trees are living
things. He equates trees with humans to convey that trees should not be cut
because destroying trees is just like killing a human being. A tree does not die by
merely cutting because it regrows from where it is cut. If it has to be destroyed,
then it has to be uprooted.
“On Killing a Tree” is a sensitive poem. The poet persuades the reader not to
destroy trees and equates it with “killing” a human being. He says that a plant takes
sunlight, water, air, and nutrients from the soil to gradually become a huge tree. It
develops a strong trunk and gets numerous leaves.
Merely cutting the trunk of the tree does not kill it. When a tree is cut, the sap flows
out just like a wounded man bleeds. Once the wound heals, new branches and tiny
leaves grow from there which grow into trees.
To destroy a tree, it must be uprooted. The roots which are white and are damp
due to the moisture that they get from the soil are hidden in a pit in the Earth.
These roots are the most sensitive part of the tree as they bind it to the earth. To
kill the tree, these roots must be detached from the soil. Once the roots are
detached, the tree starts dying, it withers, dries up with the action of heat and wind,
twists, hardens, and finally, dies.
The Snake Trying
• The poem The Snake Trying written by W.W.E. Ross, written in unrhymed,
free-verse with unequal lines, is the poet’s plea to human beings to treat
snakes in a kind manner.
• Human beings generally tend to kill snakes to avoid being bitten, but the
poet reveals that all snakes are not poisonous and all of them do not
harm human beings.
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• In the poem, the poet says that the snake tries to escape from being hit by
the stick held by a person who is trying to kill it. The poet wants to say that
all snakes are not harmful.
Humans have a notion that snakes are dangerous and try to kill them as
soon as they spot one, but this is not true. He tells us how a harmless
green–coloured snake tries to hide behind the green bushes to save itself.
"The Snake Trying" by W.W.E Ross is a poem that focuses on the plight of
a snake who is chased by humans. It also portrays the author's concern towards
the snake and his feelings towards animal cruelty in general. He talks about
the other side of snakes and breaks the common belief that all snakes
are poisonous. Snakes can be classified into venomous and non-venomous.
Among the venomous snakes, only a selected few can kill or
significantly wound a human. Although venomous is equated to being poisonous,
they can mean two different things in the case of snakes. When poison must
be inhaled or absorbed, venom is injected through the snake's fangs.
There are around 3000 species of snakes all over the world. Although 600 species
fall under the venomous category, only 200 of them are deadly poisonous. Some
of the most venomous snakes in the world are Inland Taipan, brown snake, Dubois
sea snake. Snakes are cold-blooded reptiles. They are covered with scales all over
the body to produce friction when they move on the ground. Most
snakes swallow their food in a whole proportion. They have forked tongues which
they flick around, helping them a sense if there is danger or food nearby. They also
have small pores in front of their eyes called pit holes, which help them detect if
there are any warm-blooded animals nearby.
Non-venomous snakes are those that do not possess a threat to humans, as they
do not contain the necessary toxins to do so. However, many of these snakes may
16. IX CBSE - Term II – English – Revision Notes - Parveen Kumar - Page 16 of 16
prove deadly to other animals and rodents like rats, mongooses, and rabbits.
Some non-venomous snakes include wolf snakes, tree snakes, red sand boa, etc.
People, in general, have a fear of snakes due to certain misconceptions. They have
the instinct to kill and ward off any danger that might arise. But certain snakes that
may not be a threat are also killed in the process. The poem revolves around this
concept in detail.
• Ensure that You have READ – NOTED the Poetic Devices from Each Poem.
• The Mind-map shall help you recall anything from the chapters – so, do read the texts!
YOU ARE THE BEST, IX KAVERI!
Go Ahead and SHINE!
Preparation is the BEST Way to Do Well!
Ensure that You have a MIND-MAP of the Chapter so that there are no loose ends!
Exams are Subjective so: Spelling and Format of Writing shall make a good impact!
If you have done an error- do not cut it multiple times. A Single strikethrough is good to keep the paper clean.
All the Poems should be read for 1. Theme and Message 2. Poetic Devices 3. Reference to the Context/Extract
All the Prose chapters should be read for 1. Story Outline/Plot 2. Characters 3. Theme/Message and Relevance
in the current era.
While you attempt the Grammar, prefer to have an ALERT MIND because the errors occur in Tenses and Subject-
Verb Agreement; the Question Paper itself carries a good amount of sentences to suggest hints and guidance,
unintentionally. So READ the Question Paper.
Finishing Lines make it look smart as we can see you completed an answer.
The LEFT-RIGHT side page alignment should be appropriate. Do not write OPEN. Make a Good-Looking Answer!
As we learned – Observation from the Current Time – Present Tense; what comes from the MEMORIES is in
PAST and what you write from IMAGINATION is Future. It means – Diary is written in the Past if you have
memories only.
Reading is always the key! Read Notes and give an honest attempt to read texts, especially Poems, that too at
least 3 times.
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