Flying Man: NCERT Class 1 English Poem (Marigold Unit 10)

etmantra11 Jul 20206 min read

What child has not dreamed of flying? This short, sing-song poem lets children imagine soaring over mountains and the sea, and it is easy to learn by heart.

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From the NCERT English book Marigold for Class 1, unit 10. NCERT’s newer Class 1 book is Mridang, but many schools still teach Marigold.

Watch: Flying Man

Play the video three or four times. The first time, just listen. Then point at the pictures, and from the third time, say the lines along with the video. Short, repeated listening is how CALP builds a child’s English.

What your child learns

Nature words: sky, mountains, sea
Asking a question with 'Where'
The little word 'over' for going above something
Saying a poem with a calling, asking voice

What the poem is about

A child sees a flying man high up in the sky and calls out to him, asking where he is going.

The flying man is going over the mountains and over the sea. The child asks him to take the child along. The poem is full of wonder and the wish to travel and see the world.

New words, with Hindi meanings

flying: moving through the air (हिंदी: उड़ता हुआ)
sky: the space above the earth (हिंदी: आसमान)
high: far up (हिंदी: ऊँचा)
mountains: very tall, big hills (हिंदी: पहाड़)
sea: a very large area of salty water (हिंदी: समुद्र)
over: above something, from one side to the other (हिंदी: के ऊपर से)
take: carry someone or something with you (हिंदी: ले जाना)

Talk about it

Ask these aloud after reading or watching. Let your child answer in English if they can, or mix in their home language. Both help.

Where is the flying man?
What does the flying man fly over?
What does the child ask the flying man?
If you could fly, where would you go?

Answers for parents

He is high up in the sky.
He flies over the mountains and over the sea.
The child asks where he is going, and asks him to take the child along.
For example: I would fly to my nani's house and over the big river.

Grammar corner: Asking questions with 'Where'

We use 'Where' when we want to know about a place. The child in the poem uses it to ask the flying man about the place he is going to. A 'where' question ends with a question mark.

Where is the bird flying today?
Where are the tall mountains?
Where will the flying man land?

Practice at home

Fill in the blank: The flying man is up in the ___.
Match the word to its picture idea: mountains, sea (a. lots of salty water, b. very tall hills).
Make a 'Where' question about something in your house.

Answers: 1. sky · 2. mountains – b, sea – a · 3. Sample: Where is my red ball?

Try this

Fly around the room with arms out while you say the poem. When you say "mountains", fly up high on tiptoe, and when you say "sea", swoop down low. Then ask your child to draw the places they would fly over.

Tip for parents

Ask in Hindi first: "अगर तुम उड़ सकते, तो कहाँ जाते?" Let your child answer in any mix of Hindi and English, then help them say one English line, like "I will fly over the sea." Praise every try, even a single English word.

Questions parents ask

What is the poem Flying Man about?

A child sees a man flying high in the sky and asks where he is going. He is flying over the mountains and the sea, and the child asks to be taken along.

What does the child want in Flying Man?

The child wants the flying man to take the child with him.

Which NCERT book has the poem Flying Man?

It is Unit 10 of NCERT's older Marigold book for Class 1. The newer NCERT English books are Mridang for Class 1–2 and Santoor for Class 3–5.

Learn every Class 1 lesson with CALP

Every lesson of Mridang, NCERT’s new book, with read-along videos, new words with Hindi meanings, and listen-and-say practice with a score, made for young children with a parent nearby. ₹999 for the whole year.

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