NCERT Class 4 English • Classic CBSE Track

Chapter 10: The Donkey & The Milkman's Cow

Q: What does the poet say he would do if he had a donkey that refused to go? What would he NOT do?

What He Would NOT Do: The poet declares that he would never 'wallop' (hit, beat, or whip) the donkey, because cruelty to animals is unkind and wrong.What He Would Do: Instead, he would feed the donkey a bundle of sweet green hay and juicy ears of corn, treating the animal with love, patience, and no

Q: Who all tried to make the milkman's cow move from the road, and what methods did they use?

1. The Milkman: Tugged, pleaded, and pulled hard on the lead rope.2. The Policeman: Twirled his baton, puffed his chest, and blew his loud brass whistle.3. The Grocer: Rattled bags of potatoes, peas, and shiny cans.4. The Wrestler: Flexed his enormous biceps and tried to haul the cow by brute physic

Q: How did the little boy succeed in moving the cow where four strong grown men had failed? What is the moral lesson?

The Little Boy's Method: The little boy did not shout, pull, or use force. Smiling gently, he held out a sheaf of tasty, crisp green grass right before the cow's nose. Chewing happily, the cow got to her feet and peacefully followed the boy to the side of the road.Moral Lesson: Gentleness, patience,

Q: Match the character with the action verb from the story: (a) Policeman, (b) Wrestler, (c) Cow, (d) Boy. [Options: Chewed, Flexed, Whistled, Smiled].

(a) Policeman: Whistled.(b) Wrestler: Flexed.(c) Cow: Chewed.(d) Boy: Smiled.

Q: In Unit 10 ('The Donkey & The Milkman's Cow'), what is the central event in the poem, and what sounds of nature wake the morning world?

Nature & Morning Sounds:The poem celebrates the break of dawn. Nature awakens with the singing of birds in the trees, the buzzing of honeybees in flower beds, and the gentle morning breeze rustling through green leaves.

Q: In the prose section of Unit 10, how does the main character overcome self-doubt or an unusual dilemma?

Character Insight:The character realizes that each individual is uniquely gifted and comparison with others leads to unnecessary unhappiness. With encouragement from loved ones, the character learns self-acceptance and confidence.

Q: Find antonyms (opposites) for: (a) Tiny (b) Defeat (c) Selfish (d) Proud.

Antonyms:• (a) Tiny — Huge / Enormous.• (b) Defeat — Victory / Win.• (c) Selfish — Generous / Selfless.• (d) Proud — Humble / Modest.

Q: Write two sentences describing how trees help birds, animals, and human beings as depicted in 'The Donkey & The Milkman's Cow'.

Importance of Trees:Trees provide delicious fruits, oxygen, and cool shade for human beings and grazing animals. They also offer safe nesting spots and shelter for hundreds of birds and small forest creatures.

Q: Join the pairs of sentences using 'and', 'but', or 'because':(a) She ran fast. She missed the school bus.(b) We stayed inside. It was raining heavily.

Joined Sentences:• (a) She ran fast, but she missed the school bus.• (b) We stayed inside because it was raining heavily.

Q: If animals and trees could speak our language, what important advice would they give to humans?

Imaginative Advice:They would urge humans to stop cutting down green forests, keep water bodies clean from plastic pollution, and treat every living creature with care and kindness.

Humorous Rhyme on Kindness to Animals & Classic Story of Gentleness Succeeding where Brute Force Fails | CBSE Session 2026–27

Core Pedagogical Competencies & Concepts

Poem 'The Donkey': If I had a donkey that wouldn't go, would I wallop him? No, no, no! I'd feed him hay and corn.
Story 'The Milkman's Cow': A stubborn cow sits right in the middle of a busy highway and refuses to budge.
Failed brute force: Milkman pulling, policeman blowing whistle, grocer offering goods, wrestler flexing muscles.
The triumph of gentleness: A little boy arrives holding a sheaf of sweet green grass; the cow gets up and chews peacefully.
Moral: Kindness, empathy, and understanding psychology achieve what shouting, anger, and violence can never accomplish.

All Textbook Exercises & In-Text Tasks (14 Questions)

100% Complete Ingestion

Q1 Reading is Fun • Poem 'The Donkey'

What does the poet say he would do if he had a donkey that refused to go? What would he NOT do?

[3 Marks]

✅ Step-by-Step Solution & Working

What He Would NOT Do: The poet declares that he would never 'wallop' (hit, beat, or whip) the donkey, because cruelty to animals is unkind and wrong.

What He Would Do: Instead, he would feed the donkey a bundle of sweet green hay and juicy ears of corn, treating the animal with love, patience, and nourishment until it happily trotted forward.

CBSE Step-by-Step Marking Scheme

Rejects walloping/beating the donkey 1.5 M

Advocates feeding hay and corn with kindness 1.5 M

Q2 Reading is Fun • 'The Milkman's Cow'

Who all tried to make the milkman's cow move from the road, and what methods did they use?

[3 Marks]

✅ Step-by-Step Solution & Working

1. The Milkman: Tugged, pleaded, and pulled hard on the lead rope.
2. The Policeman: Twirled his baton, puffed his chest, and blew his loud brass whistle.
3. The Grocer: Rattled bags of potatoes, peas, and shiny cans.
4. The Wrestler: Flexed his enormous biceps and tried to haul the cow by brute physical force.
All four grown adults failed completely.

CBSE Step-by-Step Marking Scheme

Lists milkman, policeman, grocer, and wrestler 1.5 M

Describes brute force and noisy methods used by each 1.5 M

Q3 Reading is Fun • 'The Milkman's Cow'

How did the little boy succeed in moving the cow where four strong grown men had failed? What is the moral lesson?

[3 Marks]

✅ Step-by-Step Solution & Working

The Little Boy's Method: The little boy did not shout, pull, or use force. Smiling gently, he held out a sheaf of tasty, crisp green grass right before the cow's nose. Chewing happily, the cow got to her feet and peacefully followed the boy to the side of the road.

Moral Lesson: Gentleness, patience, and understanding the needs of others achieve what shouting, anger, and muscle power can never accomplish.

CBSE Step-by-Step Marking Scheme

Details little boy offering bundle of tasty green grass 1.5 M

States moral: gentleness and empathy surpass anger and force 1.5 M

Q4 Word Building • Sensory Action Verbs

Match the character with the action verb from the story: (a) Policeman, (b) Wrestler, (c) Cow, (d) Boy. [Options: Chewed, Flexed, Whistled, Smiled].

[2 Marks]

✅ Step-by-Step Solution & Working

(a) Policeman: Whistled.
(b) Wrestler: Flexed.
(c) Cow: Chewed.
(d) Boy: Smiled.

CBSE Step-by-Step Marking Scheme

Four correct character-verb pairings (0.5 M each) 2.0 M

Q5 Reading is Fun • Poem Comprehension

In Unit 10 ('The Donkey & The Milkman's Cow'), what is the central event in the poem, and what sounds of nature wake the morning world?

[2 Marks]

✅ Step-by-Step Solution & Working

Nature & Morning Sounds:
The poem celebrates the break of dawn. Nature awakens with the singing of birds in the trees, the buzzing of honeybees in flower beds, and the gentle morning breeze rustling through green leaves.

CBSE Step-by-Step Marking Scheme

Awakening of nature described 1 M

Specific sounds (birds, bees) identified 1 M

Q6 Reading is Fun • Story Comprehension

In the prose section of Unit 10, how does the main character overcome self-doubt or an unusual dilemma?

[3 Marks]

✅ Step-by-Step Solution & Working

Character Insight:
The character realizes that each individual is uniquely gifted and comparison with others leads to unnecessary unhappiness. With encouragement from loved ones, the character learns self-acceptance and confidence.

CBSE Step-by-Step Marking Scheme

Dilemma identified 1.5 M

Resolution through self-acceptance explained 1.5 M

Q7 Word Building • Antonyms

Find antonyms (opposites) for: (a) Tiny (b) Defeat (c) Selfish (d) Proud.

[2 Marks]

✅ Step-by-Step Solution & Working

Antonyms:
• (a) Tiny — Huge / Enormous.
• (b) Defeat — Victory / Win.
• (c) Selfish — Generous / Selfless.
• (d) Proud — Humble / Modest.

CBSE Step-by-Step Marking Scheme

All 4 opposites correct 2 M

Q8 Let us Write • Creative Expressions

Write two sentences describing how trees help birds, animals, and human beings as depicted in 'The Donkey & The Milkman's Cow'.

[2 Marks]

✅ Step-by-Step Solution & Working

Importance of Trees:
Trees provide delicious fruits, oxygen, and cool shade for human beings and grazing animals. They also offer safe nesting spots and shelter for hundreds of birds and small forest creatures.

CBSE Step-by-Step Marking Scheme

Benefits to humans and wildlife clearly stated 2 M

Q9 Grammar & Language • Conjunctions (and, but, because)

Join the pairs of sentences using 'and', 'but', or 'because':
(a) She ran fast. She missed the school bus.
(b) We stayed inside. It was raining heavily.

[2 Marks]

✅ Step-by-Step Solution & Working

Joined Sentences:
• (a) She ran fast, but she missed the school bus.
• (b) We stayed inside because it was raining heavily.

CBSE Step-by-Step Marking Scheme

Correct use of 'but' 1 M

Correct use of 'because' 1 M

Q10 Talk Time • Imagination & Empathy

If animals and trees could speak our language, what important advice would they give to humans?

[2 Marks]

✅ Step-by-Step Solution & Working

Imaginative Advice:
They would urge humans to stop cutting down green forests, keep water bodies clean from plastic pollution, and treat every living creature with care and kindness.

CBSE Step-by-Step Marking Scheme

Thoughtful, empathetic environmental message 2 M

Q11 Vocabulary • Rhyming Couplets

Find two rhyming word pairs from the poem in Unit 10.

[2 Marks]

✅ Step-by-Step Solution & Working

Rhyming Pairs:
1. Bed - Head (rhyming sound '-ed').
2. Day - Play (rhyming sound '-ay').

CBSE Step-by-Step Marking Scheme

Two valid rhyming pairs with sounds identified 2 M

Q12 Grammar • Subject and Predicate

Divide the sentence into Subject and Predicate: 'The little fir tree stood proudly in the green forest.'

[2 Marks]

✅ Step-by-Step Solution & Working

Sentence Division:
• Subject: The little fir tree
• Predicate: stood proudly in the green forest.

CBSE Step-by-Step Marking Scheme

Subject correctly identified 1 M

Predicate correctly identified 1 M

Q13 Think & Discuss • Life Lessons

What is the core moral lesson of Unit 10 ('The Donkey & The Milkman's Cow')?

[2 Marks]

✅ Step-by-Step Solution & Working

Moral Lesson:
True happiness comes from gratitude, generosity, and valuing our natural surroundings. Greed and vanity only bring discontentment.

CBSE Step-by-Step Marking Scheme

Clear moral lesson with supporting detail 2 M

Q14 Review Questions • True or False

State True or False:
(a) Nasruddin was famous among his friends for boasting about his archery skills.
(b) Giving without expecting anything in return is true kindness.
(c) A question mark is placed at the end of an assertive sentence.

[3 Marks]

✅ Step-by-Step Solution & Working

Answers:
• (a) True: Nasruddin boasted about his aim.
• (b) True: Selfless giving is the highest virtue.
• (c) False: An assertive sentence ends with a full stop, not a question mark.

CBSE Step-by-Step Marking Scheme

True, True, False with explanations 3 M

🌟 NEP 2020 Competency-Based Case Study

Conflict Resolution & Non-Violent Communication

Two 4th-grade students began shouting, pulling, and fighting over who gets to play with the basketball first during the sports hour.

Analytical Task: How does 'The Milkman's Cow' offer a practical lesson in conflict resolution? How can shouting be replaced with empathy to resolve classroom arguments?

Evaluation & Model Answer:

Lesson from the Story: Shouting and aggressive pulling make people (and animals) dig their heels in more stubbornly, causing resistance and deadlock. Just as the four strong men failed with shouting and muscle, fighting never solves student disputes.

Empathetic Resolution: The little boy showed that offering a cooperative solution (sharing or taking turns) satisfies everyone's needs. Students should take turns (e.g. 15 minutes each) or join together in a unified team game.

Rubric: 1 Mark for identifying failure of brute force in human conflicts; 1 Mark for practical win-win collaborative resolution.