Shapes: NCERT Class 1 English Story (Raindrops Chapter 11)

etmantra6 Feb 20206 min read

This little story shows children that shapes are all around us, on our plates, in our sweets and in a park gate. It is a gentle way to learn shape names in English through a normal family day.

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From the NCERT English book Raindrops for Class 1, chapter 11. NCERT’s newer Class 1 book is Mridang, but many schools still teach Raindrops.

Watch: Shapes

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

Shape names: round, oval, square, circle, triangle
Asking questions with “What”: What shape is it?
Finding shapes in everyday things at home and outside
Answering in a full sentence: The plate is round.

What the story is about

Binny and Ginny come home from school and have lunch. Binny's plate is round and Ginny's plate is oval. Their mother gives each of them a barfi, and the barfi is square.

In the evening they go to the park with their mother. Ginny asks what shape the park gate is, and Mama says it is a square. Binny asks about the shape in the middle of the gate, and Mama says it is a circle. When Ginny asks if they can see another shape, Binny spots a triangle.

New words, with Hindi meanings

round: shaped like a ball or a circle (हिंदी: गोल)
oval: shaped like an egg; a long round shape (हिंदी: अंडाकार)
square: a shape with four equal sides (हिंदी: चौकोर)
circle: a perfectly round flat shape (हिंदी: गोला)
triangle: a shape with three sides (हिंदी: तिकोना)
gate: a door in a wall or fence, like at a park (हिंदी: फाटक)
plate: a flat dish we eat food from (हिंदी: थाली)

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.

What shape was Binny's plate? What shape was Ginny's plate?
What shape was the barfi?
Which shapes did the children find on the park gate?
Can you find something round in this room?

Answers for parents

Binny's plate was round. Ginny's plate was oval.
The barfi was square.
The gate was a square, there was a circle in the middle, and Binny also spotted a triangle.
For example: Yes, the clock on the wall is round.

Grammar corner: Asking questions with “What”

We use “What” at the start of a question when we want to know about a thing. The question ends with a question mark. We answer with a full sentence.

What shape is the roti? The roti is round.
What shape is the window? The window is a square.
What is on Ginny's plate? A square barfi is on her plate.

Practice at home

Fill in the blank: A triangle has ___ sides.
Match the thing to its shape: a coin, an egg, a barfi (round / oval / square).
Ask a question with “What” about something at home, then answer it.

Answers: 1. three · 2. coin → round; egg → oval; barfi → square · 3. For example: What shape is the plate? The plate is round.

Try this

Go on a shape hunt at home. Look for something round, something square and something with three sides, like a folded roti or a sandwich cut corner to corner. Your child can also draw a gate like the one in the story with a square, a circle and a triangle.

Tip for parents

At mealtime, ask in Hindi: “तुम्हारी थाली कैसी है? गोल या चौकोर?” Then say the English word together: round or square. Let your child answer in Hindi first and then in English, and praise every try.

Questions parents ask

Who are the characters in Shapes?

The story is about Binny and Ginny and their mother, whom they call Mama.

Which shapes are in the chapter Shapes?

The chapter shows round and oval plates, a square barfi, and a park gate with a square, a circle and a triangle.

Which book is Shapes from?

It is Chapter 11 of NCERT's older Raindrops 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.

See the free lessons and enrol →