I Am the Music Man: NCERT Class 2 English Poem (Marigold Unit 8)

etmantra13 Oct 20216 min read

A happy action song that children love to sing. Each verse adds an instrument and its sound, so your child gets to play pretend music along the way.

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From the NCERT English book Marigold for Class 2, unit 8. NCERT’s newer Class 2 book is Mridang, but many schools still teach Marigold.

Watch: I Am The Music 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

Names of musical instruments: piano, drum
Asking and answering with 'can': 'What can you play?'
Sound words for music
Singing a repeating song with actions

What the poem is about

The Music Man says he comes from far away and can play music. Someone asks him, “What can you play?” First he plays the piano, and we hear its sound again and again: “pia, pia, piano”.

In the next verse he plays the big drum, which goes “boom, dee, boom”. Then the piano comes back, so the song builds up, one instrument on top of another. Children enjoy the sounds and the pattern of question and answer.

New words, with Hindi meanings

music: pleasing sounds made by singing or playing instruments (हिंदी: संगीत)
far away: a long way from here (हिंदी: बहुत दूर)
play: here, make music with an instrument (हिंदी: बजाना)
piano: a big instrument with black and white keys that you press (हिंदी: पियानो)
drum: an instrument you hit with your hands or sticks to make a beat (हिंदी: ढोल / नगाड़ा)
big: large; not small (हिंदी: बड़ा)

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 does the Music Man come from?
Which two instruments does he play?
What sound does the big drum make?
Which instrument would you like to play? What sound does it make?

Answers for parents

He comes from far away.
The piano and the big drum.
It goes “boom, dee, boom”.
For example: I would like to play the flute. It goes “too-too-too”.

Grammar corner: Asking and answering with 'can'

We use 'can' to talk about what someone is able to do. To ask, we say 'What can you play?' To answer, we say 'I can play the drum.'

What can you play? I can play the flute.
Can you sing a song? Yes, I can.
My sister can play the harmonium.

Practice at home

Fill in the blank: What ___ you play? (can / is)
Match the instrument to the action: piano, drum → hit it, press the keys
Say aloud: 'I can play the ___', with an instrument of your choice.

Answers: 1. can · 2. piano – press the keys, drum – hit it · 3. For example: I can play the bell.

Try this

Make a band at home. Your child pretends to press piano keys on the table for “pia, pia, piano” and beats a steel plate or box as the big drum for “boom, dee, boom”. Sing the poem together, and add a new instrument of your own, like a whistle or a bell, with its own sound.

Tip for parents

Ask in Hindi, 'तुम क्या बजा सकते हो?', then ask the same in English: 'What can you play?' Let your child answer with a Hindi instrument name inside an English sentence, like 'I can play the dholak'. Praise the sentence and sing it back.

Questions parents ask

What is the poem I Am the Music Man about?

A Music Man who comes from far away tells us what he can play. He plays the piano and then the big drum, and the song repeats as the instruments add up.

Which instruments are in I Am the Music Man?

The piano and the big drum.

Which book is I Am the Music Man from?

It is from NCERT's older Marigold book for Class 2 (Unit 8). The newer NCERT books are Mridang for Class 1–2 and Santoor for Class 3–5.

Learn every Class 2 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.

See the free lessons and enrol →