The Rainbow: NCERT Class 5 English Poem (Santoor Chapter 3)

etmantra3 Nov 20264 min read

Have you ever stopped to look at a rainbow? In this short poem by Christina Rossetti, children compare things people build, like boats and bridges, with clouds and the rainbow in the sky. It is a gentle way to talk about the beauty of nature.

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From NCERT’s new English book Santoor for Class 5, unit “My Colourful World”. Chapter 3.

What your child learns

Comparing two things with -er and 'than': pretty, prettier than
Rhyming words: seas, these, trees
Names for water journeys: boat, ship, sail, river, sea
The seven colours of the rainbow (VIBGYOR)

What the poem is about

In the first part, the poet says boats sail on rivers and ships sail on the seas. But the clouds that move across the sky are far prettier than both. In the second part, she says there are pretty bridges on rivers too.

But the rainbow is like a bridge across the sky. It rises higher than the trees and makes a road from the earth up to the sky. The poet feels it is prettier than any bridge people make. The message is simple: the beauty of nature is greater than anything we build.

New words, with Hindi meanings

sail: to move across water or air (हिंदी: तैरते हुए चलना)
seas: very large areas of salty water (हिंदी: समुद्र)
clouds: white or grey shapes floating in the sky (हिंदी: बादल)
prettier: more beautiful (हिंदी: ज़्यादा सुंदर)
bridges: paths built over rivers so people can cross (हिंदी: पुल)
bow: a curved shape; here it means the rainbow (हिंदी: धनुष)
heaven: the sky above us (हिंदी: आसमान)
overtops: rises higher than (हिंदी: ऊपर निकल 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 do boats and ships sail in the poem?
What does the poet say is prettier than boats and ships?
How is the rainbow like a bridge?
Have you ever seen a rainbow? Where were you?

Answers for parents

Boats sail on rivers and ships sail on the seas.
The clouds sailing across the sky.
It stretches across the sky like a bridge and makes a road from the earth to the sky.
For example: Yes, I saw a rainbow from our roof after the rain stopped.

Grammar corner: Comparing with -er and 'than'

When we compare two things, we often add -er to a describing word and use 'than'. Tall becomes taller, and pretty becomes prettier (the y changes to i). The poet uses this to say the rainbow is more beautiful than a bridge.

A ship is bigger than a boat.
The rainbow is higher than the tallest tree.
The sky looks brighter after the rain.

Practice at home

Fill in the blank: A river is ___ (wide) than a stream.
Spot the rhyme: which word rhymes with 'seas' — trees, sky, road?
Say the seven colours of the rainbow in order.

Answers: 1. wider · 2. trees · 3. Violet, indigo, blue, green, yellow, orange, red

Try this

Make a 'rainbow walk' at home. Ask your child to find one thing in the house for each rainbow colour, from violet to red, and line them up in order on the floor. Then say together: 'A rainbow is prettier than ___', and let your child finish it in their own way.

Tip for parents

Point to the sky and ask in Hindi first: 'इंद्रधनुष में कितने रंग होते हैं?' Then name the colours in English together. If your child says 'नीला' first and then 'blue', that is a good bridge; praise them and say both words again.

Questions parents ask

What is the poem The Rainbow about?

It compares boats, ships and bridges with clouds and the rainbow. The poet feels the clouds and the rainbow in the sky are prettier than anything people build.

Who wrote the poem The Rainbow?

The poem in the book is by Christina Rossetti.

Which words rhyme in The Rainbow?

'Seas' rhymes with 'these', and 'please' rhymes with 'trees' and 'these'.

Learn every Class 5 chapter with CALP

Every chapter of Santoor, NCERT’s new book, with notes in English and Hindi, say-it-aloud practice with a score, grammar, speaking and writing practice. ₹1,299 for the whole year.

See the free lessons and enrol →