Chapter 19 of 24
Chapter 19: Our Friends — Animals
Empathy, Care, First-Aid for Wounded Animals, and Domestic Mutual Relationships | CBSE Session 2026–27
Core Pedagogical Competencies & Concepts
- The bird that flew into the classroom ceiling fan: First-aid with water and gentle handling.
- Malini and her kitten: Caring for domestic pets when they are in distress or hungry.
- The story of the thirsty donkey: Helping beasts of burden carrying heavy laundry.
- Interdependence: Cow (milk), honeybee (honey), dog (guarding), horse (travel), sheep (wool).
All Textbook Exercises & In-Text Tasks (17 Questions)
100% Complete Ingestion
Q1
Animal First-Aid
What did Navjot and Ali do when a bird was hit by the rotating classroom ceiling fan?
[3 Marks]
✅ Step-by-Step Solution & Working
They immediately switched off the electric ceiling fan to prevent further injury, gently picked up the trembling bird, stroked its feathers with love, offered it cool water in a bowl to drink, and watched with joy when it recovered strength and fluttered safely out through the window.
CBSE Step-by-Step Marking Scheme
Immediate safety action (switching off fan)
1 Mark
Gentle physical care and offering water
2 Marks
Q2
Care for Working Animals
Why should owners never overload or beat beasts of burden (bullocks, horses, donkeys)?
[3 Marks]
✅ Step-by-Step Solution & Working
Working animals feel severe muscle exhaustion, thirst, pain, and spine damage when overloaded or whipped. They are living sentient creatures that faithfully assist human livelihoods and deserve nutritious fodder, fresh water, adequate rest, and humane treatment.
CBSE Step-by-Step Marking Scheme
Physiological harm of overloading and beating
1.5 Marks
Ethical duty to provide rest, fodder, and medical care
1.5 Marks
Q3
Mutual Benefits
Give two examples of how animals provide food and services to humans without being harmed.
[2 Marks]
✅ Step-by-Step Solution & Working
1. Honeybees: Produce sweet nutritious honey and wax while pollinating our orchard flowers.
2. Sheep: Provide warm fleece wool that is painlessly sheared in summer to make winter clothes.
2. Sheep: Provide warm fleece wool that is painlessly sheared in summer to make winter clothes.
CBSE Step-by-Step Marking Scheme
Two accurate examples of cruelty-free human-animal partnerships
2 Marks
Q4
Animal Welfare • Care for Strays and Birds
In 'Our Friends — Animals':
(a) In Navodaya school, a bird hit the ceiling fan. What did Navjyot and Ali immediately do to save the bird?
(b) Why should we hang an earthen bowl of water in our balcony during summers?
[3 Marks]
(a) In Navodaya school, a bird hit the ceiling fan. What did Navjyot and Ali immediately do to save the bird?
(b) Why should we hang an earthen bowl of water in our balcony during summers?
✅ Step-by-Step Solution & Working
Kindness to Animals:
(a) Bird Rescue:
• Navjyot and Ali immediately switched off the ceiling fan, picked up the shivering bird gently, brought water in a bowl, and dropped water on its beak until it flapped its wings and flew safely out the window.
(b) Water Bowl in Summer:
• Ponds and puddles dry up in summer. Small sparrows and pigeons suffer from dehydration; providing fresh water saves hundreds of urban birds from dying of thirst.
(a) Bird Rescue:
• Navjyot and Ali immediately switched off the ceiling fan, picked up the shivering bird gently, brought water in a bowl, and dropped water on its beak until it flapped its wings and flew safely out the window.
(b) Water Bowl in Summer:
• Ponds and puddles dry up in summer. Small sparrows and pigeons suffer from dehydration; providing fresh water saves hundreds of urban birds from dying of thirst.
CBSE Step-by-Step Marking Scheme
Switching off fan and watering bird described
1.5 M
Saving birds from summer dehydration explained
1.5 M
Q5
Domestic Animals • Care and Products
Match each domestic animal with what it gives humans and how we should care for it:
• Cow: [Milk and dung manure -> Clean shed, fresh fodder, and clean water]
• Sheep: [Warm wool -> Safe pen, grazing grass, and regular shearing]
• Honeybee: [Sweet honey and wax -> Clean hives and blossoming flower gardens]
[3 Marks]
• Cow: [Milk and dung manure -> Clean shed, fresh fodder, and clean water]
• Sheep: [Warm wool -> Safe pen, grazing grass, and regular shearing]
• Honeybee: [Sweet honey and wax -> Clean hives and blossoming flower gardens]
✅ Step-by-Step Solution & Working
Domestic Animals:
• Cow: Provides nutritious milk and dung manure. We must give it clean shelter, dry bedding, green fodder, and regular veterinary vaccinations.
• Sheep: Provides warm wool for sweaters. We must protect it from wolves, provide grazing pastures, and shelter in winter.
• Honeybee: Pollinates crops and yields honey and wax. We must protect flower gardens from harmful chemical pesticides.
• Cow: Provides nutritious milk and dung manure. We must give it clean shelter, dry bedding, green fodder, and regular veterinary vaccinations.
• Sheep: Provides warm wool for sweaters. We must protect it from wolves, provide grazing pastures, and shelter in winter.
• Honeybee: Pollinates crops and yields honey and wax. We must protect flower gardens from harmful chemical pesticides.
CBSE Step-by-Step Marking Scheme
All 3 domestic animals matched with products and responsible care
3.0 M
Q6
Stray Animal First Aid • Animal Helpline
What should you do if you see a puppy or kitten injured by a passing vehicle on the road?
[2 Marks]
✅ Step-by-Step Solution & Working
First-Aid Action:
1. Carefully move the injured animal to the side of the road away from traffic.
2. With an adult's help, call a local animal rescue helpline (like SPCA or Blue Cross) or take it to a nearby veterinary clinic for antiseptic dressing.
1. Carefully move the injured animal to the side of the road away from traffic.
2. With an adult's help, call a local animal rescue helpline (like SPCA or Blue Cross) or take it to a nearby veterinary clinic for antiseptic dressing.
CBSE Step-by-Step Marking Scheme
Safe moving and calling animal rescue/vet described
2.0 M
Q7
Food Chain • Bees in Queen's Garden
In the story 'The Queen's Garden', why did the fruit harvest drop drastically when the gardener killed all the birds?
[2 Marks]
✅ Step-by-Step Solution & Working
Biological Balance:
• The gardener thought birds only ate fruit. But birds also eat caterpillars and harmful insects. When all birds were driven away, millions of insects destroyed all the fruit blossoms, leaving almost no fruit harvest.
• The gardener thought birds only ate fruit. But birds also eat caterpillars and harmful insects. When all birds were driven away, millions of insects destroyed all the fruit blossoms, leaving almost no fruit harvest.
CBSE Step-by-Step Marking Scheme
Birds controlling crop-eating insects explained
2.0 M
Q8
Observation Time • Animals and Habits
In Chapter 19 ('Our Friends — Animals'), what animals did the characters observe, and how do they move from place to place?
[3 Marks]
✅ Step-by-Step Solution & Working
Observations:
Animals move in diverse ways adapted to their bodies:
• Birds (Crow, Pigeon): Fly using wings and hop on two feet.
• Mammals (Cow, Dog): Walk and run on four legs.
• Reptiles (Lizard, Snake): Crawl on walls or slither on the ground.
• Insects (Ant, Grasshopper): Walk on six legs and hop/fly.
Animals move in diverse ways adapted to their bodies:
• Birds (Crow, Pigeon): Fly using wings and hop on two feet.
• Mammals (Cow, Dog): Walk and run on four legs.
• Reptiles (Lizard, Snake): Crawl on walls or slither on the ground.
• Insects (Ant, Grasshopper): Walk on six legs and hop/fly.
CBSE Step-by-Step Marking Scheme
Birds, mammals, reptiles, insects movement
3 M
Q9
Find Out & Write • Animal Habitats
Name two animals that live:
(a) On trees
(b) In water
(c) On land
(d) Underground in burrows.
[2 Marks]
(a) On trees
(b) In water
(c) On land
(d) Underground in burrows.
✅ Step-by-Step Solution & Working
Habitats:
• (a) On trees: Monkey, Squirrel, Owl.
• (b) In water: Fish, Frog, Crocodile.
• (c) On land: Horse, Elephant, Goat.
• (d) In burrows: Rabbit, Earthworm, Snake.
• (a) On trees: Monkey, Squirrel, Owl.
• (b) In water: Fish, Frog, Crocodile.
• (c) On land: Horse, Elephant, Goat.
• (d) In burrows: Rabbit, Earthworm, Snake.
CBSE Step-by-Step Marking Scheme
Correct examples for all 4 habitats
2 M
Q10
Discuss & Share • Our Senses
How do our five sense organs help us understand and navigate our daily environment?
[3 Marks]
✅ Step-by-Step Solution & Working
Five Senses:
1. Eyes: Help us see shapes, colours, and identify hazards.
2. Ears: Help us hear traffic horns, spoken words, and alarm sounds.
3. Nose: Helps us smell food, flowers, and detect smoke or gas leaks.
4. Tongue: Helps us taste sweet, sour, salty, and bitter food.
5. Skin: Helps us feel touch, heat, cold, roughness, and pain.
1. Eyes: Help us see shapes, colours, and identify hazards.
2. Ears: Help us hear traffic horns, spoken words, and alarm sounds.
3. Nose: Helps us smell food, flowers, and detect smoke or gas leaks.
4. Tongue: Helps us taste sweet, sour, salty, and bitter food.
5. Skin: Helps us feel touch, heat, cold, roughness, and pain.
CBSE Step-by-Step Marking Scheme
All 5 sense organs explained with functions
3 M
Q11
Water Cycle & Weather • Rain and Clouds
Where does rainwater come from, and why do plants and trees look fresher and greener after a rain shower?
[3 Marks]
✅ Step-by-Step Solution & Working
Rain and Plant Health:
• Rain comes from water evaporating from rivers, ponds, and seas, forming clouds in the sky that cool and condense into rain droplets.
• Rain washes off thick dust accumulated on leaves, unblocks stomata for breathing, and deeply soaks the roots with fresh mineral-rich moisture.
• Rain comes from water evaporating from rivers, ponds, and seas, forming clouds in the sky that cool and condense into rain droplets.
• Rain washes off thick dust accumulated on leaves, unblocks stomata for breathing, and deeply soaks the roots with fresh mineral-rich moisture.
CBSE Step-by-Step Marking Scheme
Water cycle / cloud formation
1.5 M
Why plants look greener after rain
1.5 M
Q12
Food Diversity • Regional Diets
Why do people living in Kerala eat more rice, fish, and coconut, while people in Punjab eat more wheat chapatis, mustard greens, and lassi?
[3 Marks]
✅ Step-by-Step Solution & Working
Regional Food Factors:
• What people eat depends directly on what grows easily and abundantly in their climate and geography.
• Kerala has coastal climate, abundant rainfall, and coconut groves, making fish and rice staples.
• Punjab has fertile plains ideal for wheat and mustard cultivation, and a strong dairy culture.
• What people eat depends directly on what grows easily and abundantly in their climate and geography.
• Kerala has coastal climate, abundant rainfall, and coconut groves, making fish and rice staples.
• Punjab has fertile plains ideal for wheat and mustard cultivation, and a strong dairy culture.
CBSE Step-by-Step Marking Scheme
Climate and agriculture connection
1.5 M
Kerala and Punjab examples explained
1.5 M
Q13
Cooking Methods • Kitchen Science
Match each food item to its primary method of cooking:
(a) Idli — (1) Frying
(b) Puri — (2) Steaming
(c) Roti — (3) Roasting on Tawa.
[3 Marks]
(a) Idli — (1) Frying
(b) Puri — (2) Steaming
(c) Roti — (3) Roasting on Tawa.
✅ Step-by-Step Solution & Working
Matching:
• (a) Idli — (2) Steaming
• (b) Puri — (1) Frying in oil
• (c) Roti — (3) Roasting on Tawa.
• (a) Idli — (2) Steaming
• (b) Puri — (1) Frying in oil
• (c) Roti — (3) Roasting on Tawa.
CBSE Step-by-Step Marking Scheme
Idli-Steaming, Puri-Frying, Roti-Roasting
3 M
Q14
Shelter & Houses • Diversity in Homes
Why are houses in heavy-rainfall regions like Assam built on bamboo stilts with sloping roofs?
[3 Marks]
✅ Step-by-Step Solution & Working
Stilt Houses:
• Bamboo Stilts: Keep the house 10 to 12 feet above ground level to prevent floodwaters and wild animals from entering.
• Sloping Roofs: Allow torrential rainwater to slide off quickly without accumulating or causing leaks.
• Bamboo Stilts: Keep the house 10 to 12 feet above ground level to prevent floodwaters and wild animals from entering.
• Sloping Roofs: Allow torrential rainwater to slide off quickly without accumulating or causing leaks.
CBSE Step-by-Step Marking Scheme
Reason for bamboo stilts (floods)
1.5 M
Reason for sloping roof (rain runoff)
1.5 M
Q15
Community Helpers • Occupations
Identify the worker who:
(a) Mends our shoes
(b) Delivers letters and parcels
(c) Shapes clay into earthen pots on a wheel
(d) Treats sick people and prescribes medicines.
[2 Marks]
(a) Mends our shoes
(b) Delivers letters and parcels
(c) Shapes clay into earthen pots on a wheel
(d) Treats sick people and prescribes medicines.
✅ Step-by-Step Solution & Working
Community Helpers:
• (a) Mends shoes: Cobbler
• (b) Delivers letters: Postman / Mail carrier
• (c) Shapes clay pots: Potter
• (d) Treats sick people: Doctor.
• (a) Mends shoes: Cobbler
• (b) Delivers letters: Postman / Mail carrier
• (c) Shapes clay pots: Potter
• (d) Treats sick people: Doctor.
CBSE Step-by-Step Marking Scheme
Cobbler, Postman, Potter, Doctor
2 M
Q16
Web of Life • Food Chain
What is the 'Web of Life'? Draw a simple food chain showing how grass, deer, and lion are connected.
[3 Marks]
✅ Step-by-Step Solution & Working
Web of Life & Food Chain:
• The Web of Life shows that every living organism is interconnected and depends on others for survival.
• Food Chain: Sunlight → Grass (Producer) → Deer (Herbivore) → Lion (Carnivore).
If grass disappears, deer starve; if deer disappear, lions cannot survive.
• The Web of Life shows that every living organism is interconnected and depends on others for survival.
• Food Chain: Sunlight → Grass (Producer) → Deer (Herbivore) → Lion (Carnivore).
If grass disappears, deer starve; if deer disappear, lions cannot survive.
CBSE Step-by-Step Marking Scheme
Definition of Web of Life
1.5 M
Grass → Deer → Lion chain explained
1.5 M
Q17
Review Questions • True or False
Write True or False:
(a) Blind people can read books written in Braille script using their fingertips.
(b) Rainwater is the main natural source of fresh water on Earth.
(c) Animals do not have feelings and cannot communicate danger to each other.
[3 Marks]
(a) Blind people can read books written in Braille script using their fingertips.
(b) Rainwater is the main natural source of fresh water on Earth.
(c) Animals do not have feelings and cannot communicate danger to each other.
✅ Step-by-Step Solution & Working
Answers:
• (a) True: Braille uses raised dots felt with fingertips.
• (b) True: Rain replenishes rivers, lakes, and groundwater.
• (c) False: Animals communicate through warning calls, scents, and body language to alert their group of predators.
• (a) True: Braille uses raised dots felt with fingertips.
• (b) True: Rain replenishes rivers, lakes, and groundwater.
• (c) False: Animals communicate through warning calls, scents, and body language to alert their group of predators.
CBSE Step-by-Step Marking Scheme
True, True, False with reasoning
3 M
🌟 NEP 2020 Competency-Based Case Study
Ethical Treatment of Animals: The Kite String (Manja) Hazard
During kite-flying festivals, thousands of birds suffer severed wings, deep throat lacerations, and death due to sharp glass-coated synthetic nylon thread (Chinese manja) hanging from trees and telephone wires.
Analytical Task: As an animal friend, how can you celebrate kite festivals without causing harm to birds?
Evaluation & Model Answer:
We can celebrate safely and compassionately: (1) Boycott Glass-Coated Manja: Use only traditional plain cotton thread (saddi) that breaks under mild tension and does not slice bird wings. (2) Avoid Flying at Dawn and Dusk: Refrain from flying kites during early morning and evening hours when flocks of birds fly between their nesting trees and feeding grounds. (3) Clean Hanging Threads: Safely take down dangling leftover kite strings from neighborhood trees so birds do not get entangled.
Rubric: Rejection of glass manja, timing kite flying to avoid bird transit, cleaning entangled strings (4 Marks).