Rohit Yadav
Oral Comprehension Check
1. Where in the classroom does Wanda sit and why?
– Wanda used to sit in the seat next to the last seat, in the last row, in Room Thirteen. She sat there because her feet were normally caked with dry mud and very dirty. So in order to avoid being laughed at by her classmates, she sat there to hide her dirty feet.
2. Where does Wanda live? What kind of a place do you think it is?
Answer
Wanda lived at Boggins Heights. It seems that it was a place far away from the school and also, where there was a lot of dry mud, thereby indicating that it was not a very rich locality.
3. When and why do Peggy and Maddie notice Wanda’s absence?
Answer
Peggie and Maddie noticed Wanda’s absence after three days, i.e., on Wednesday because they wanted to be with her for a lot of fun. They waited for her for a long time but she didn’t turn up.
4. What do you think “to have fun with her” means?
Answer
Wanda was a quiet and shy girl who was ashamed of dust-laden feet. The girls used to make fun of her. This gave them a lot of pleasure therefore, they wanted to have fun with her.
5. In what way was Wanda different from the other children?
Answer
Wanda was different from the other children. She did not have any friends. She came to school alone and went home alone. She always wore a faded blue dress that did not fit her properly. Unlike other children, she did not talk to anybody.
6. Did Wanda have a hundred dresses? Why do you think she said she did?
Answer
No, she did not have a hundred dresses because she was poor and wore the same faded dress to school every day. She had an inferiority complex. In order to hide the complex and impress the other girls, she always said that she had a hundred dresses.
7. Why is Maddie embarrassed by the questions Peggy asks Wanda? Is she also like Wanda, or is she different?
Answer
Maddie was embarrassed by the questions Peggy asked Wanda because she was poor herself. She usually wore old clothes, which were handed down by someone else. She did not feel sorry for Wanda. She was worried that perhaps later, everyone would start teasing her too. She thought she was different from Wanda in the sense that she would never claim that she had a hundred dresses. She was not as poor as Wanda. Yet she was afraid that the others might mock her too.
8. Why didn’t Maddie ask Peggie to stop teasing Wanda? What was she afraid of?
Answer
Maddie couldn’t ask Peggie to stop teasing Wanda because Peggie was her best friend and she had faith in Peggie that she would never do anything wrong. She was afraid of being laughed at for her poor dresses.
9. Who did Maddie think would win the drawing contest? Why?
Answer
Maddie thought that Peggy would win the drawing contest because Peggy drew better than anyone else. She could copy a picture in a magazine, or some film star’s face so well that one could tell who it was.
10. Who won the drawing contest? What had the winner drawn?
Answer
Wanda won the drawing contest. The winner of drawing contest was appreciated by the judges and applauded by her fellow classmates.
Thinking about the Text
11. How is Wanda seen as different by the other girls? How do they treat her?
Answer
Wanda is seen as different by the other girls. She is a poor and lonely girl. The girls made fun of her poverty and teased her by commenting on her dress.
12. How does Wanda feel about the dress game? Why does she say that she has a hundred dresses?
Answer
Wanda did not show any feelings regarding the dress game. It is most likely that she was deeply hurt. It could have been one of the reasons why her family left the place and moved to the city.
She was a girl who was very poor and came from a long distance which made her feet dirty. She wanted to draw the attention of her friends. So, she felt very happy whenever she told her friend that she had a hundred dresses without realizing that they were making fun of her.
13. Why does Maddie stand by and not do anything? How is she different from Peggy? (Was Peggy’s friendship important to Maddie? Why? Which lines in the text tell you this?)
Answer
Maddie always stood by and never did anything as she was afraid that if she did, she would be the next target of the children. She herself was poor and therefore, felt that if she spoke against the others, they would target her next. Unlike her, Peggy was a rich girl. This was also the reason why Maddie could think from Wanda’s point of view, but Peggy could not. Maddie was Peggy’s best friend. It seemed as if she was in awe of Peggy. She admired her quite a lot as she said that Peggy was the most liked girl in the room and that she drew better than anyone else. She did not have the courage to go against her. Some of the lines from the text which show that Peggy’s friendship was important to Maddie are as follows.
(i) Peggy, who had thought up this game, and Maddie, her inseparable friend, were always the last to leave.
(ii) She was Peggy’s best friend, and Peggy was the best-liked girl in the whole room.
(iii) Peggy could not possibly do anything that was really wrong, she thought.
(iv) Oh, Maddie was sure Peggy would win.
14. What does Miss Mason think of Wanda’s drawings? What do the children think of them? How do you know?
Answer
Miss Mason appreciated the paintings of Wanda. She was impressed at the creativity of the girl because she had painted a hundred paintings which were in a wide range of varieties.
The children also admired the drawings. Everybody stopped and whistled or murmured admiringly. After Miss Mason had announced that Wanda was the winner, they burst into applause, and even the boys were glad to have a chance to stamp on the floor and whistle. Also, just as Peggy and Maddie entered the room, they stopped short and gasped. Later they recognized the designs as those which Wanda had described to them. And in the end, Peggy exclaimed, “…and I thought I could draw.” This shows that she also realized how good Wanda’s drawings were.
Thinking about the Language
Question 1. Combine the following to make sentences like those above.
1. This is the bus (what kind of bus?) It goes to Agra. (use which or that)
2. I would like to buy (a) a shirt (which shirt?). (The) the shirt is in the shop window. (use which or that)
3. You must break your fast at a particular time (when?). You see the moon in the sky. (use when)
4. Find a word (what kind of word?). It begins with the letter Z. (use which or that).
5. Now find a person (what kind of person). His or her name begins with the letter Z. (use whose)
6. Then go to a place (what place?). There are no people whose name begins with Z in that place. (use where)
Answer
1. This is the bus which goes to Agra.
2.I would like to buy the shirt that is in the shop window.
3. You must break your fast when you see the moon in the sky.
4. Find a word that begins with the letter Z.
5. Now find a person whose name begins with the letter Z.
6. Then go to a place where there are no people whose name begins with Z.
Question 2. The Narrative Voice Here are two other sentences from the story. Can you say whose point of view the italicized words express?
(i) But on Wednesday, Peggy and Maddie, who sat down front with other children who got good marks and who didn’t track in a whole lot of mud, did notice that Wanda wasn’t there.
(ii) Wands Petronski. Most of the children in Room Thirteen didn’t have names like that. They had names easy to say, like Thomas, Smith or Allen.
Answer
(i) In the given sentence, the italicized words express the point of view of Peggy and Maddie.
(ii) In the given sentence, the italicized words express the point of view of the narrator.
Question 3. Other such adverbs are apparently, evidently, surprisingly, possibly, hopefully, incredibly, luckily. Use these words appropriately in the blanks in the sentences below. (You may use a word more than once and more than one word may be appropriate for a given blank.)
1. ____________, he finished his work on time.
2. ____________, it will not rain on the day of the match.
3. _____________, he had been stealing money from his employer.
4. Television is ___________ to blame for the increase in violence in society.
5. The children will _____________ learn from their mistakes.
6. I can’t ________________ lend you that much money.
7. The thief had _____________ been watching the house for many days.
8. The thief ______________ escaped by bribing the jailor.
9. _________________, no one had suggested this before.
10. The water was ________________ hot.
Answer
1. Surprisingly, he finished his work on time.
2. Hopefully, it will not rain on the day of the match.
3. Evidently, he had been stealing money from his employer.
4. Television is evidently to blame for the increase in violence in society.
5. The children will hopefully learn from their mistakes.
6. I can’t possibly lend you that much money.
7. The thief had apparently been watching the house for many days.
8. The thief possibly escaped by bribing the jailer.
9. Surprisingly, no one had suggested this before.
10. The water was incredibly hot.
MCQs
Question 1.
Why does Wanda say that she has a hundred dresses?
(a) Because she has.
(b) To counter other girls.
(c) She loves to rant.
(d) None of the Above
Answer
(b) To counter other girls.
Question 2.
How do other girls treat Wanda?
(a) She doesn’t make fun of Wanda.
(b) She likes Wanda a lot.
(c) She hated Wanda a lot.
(d) None of the Above
Answer
(a) She doesn’t make fun of Wanda.
Question 3.
Why does Maddie stand by and not do anything?
(a) Because she was herself victim
(b) Because she doesn’t have courage
(c) Because she doesn’t want to
(d) None of the Above
Answer
(b) Because she doesn’t have courage
Question 4.
Who secretly disliked how Wanda was being treated?
(a) Peggy
(b) Cecile
(c) Maddie
(d) Jake
Answer
(c) Maddie
Question 5.
Who lived in Boggins Heights?
(a) Maddie
(b) Peggy
(c) Wanda
(d) Cecile
Answer
(c) Wanda
Question 6.
What was Wanda’s full name?
(a) Wanda Polenski
(b) Wanda Petronski
(c) Wanda Patrick
(d) Wanda Polish
Answer
(b) Wanda Petronski
Question 7.
How many drawings did Wanda draw?
(a) 100
(b) 10
(c) 50
(d) 150
Answer
(a) 100
Question 8.
What was Maddie’s full name?
(a) Madgeline
(b) Madeline
(c) Maddeline
(d) Madger
Answer
(b) Madeline
Question 9.
Why did Peggy say “and I thought I could draw”?
(a) she’d won the medal always
(b) Wanda’s drawings were amazing
(c) she thought Wanda could draw better
(d) All of the above
Answer
(d) All of the above
Question 10.
Who did Maddie think would win the contest?
(a) Wanda
(b) Maddie
(c) Peggy
(d) None of the above
Answer
(c) Peggy
Question 11.
What did the drawing and colouring contest mean for the girls and boys?
(a) designing dresses and motorboats
(b) designing interiors and bikes
(c) designing dresses and bikes
(d) designing interiors and motorboats
Answer
(a) designing dresses and motorboats
Question 12.
What reason did Maddie give herself to justify teasing Wanda?
(a) Wanda used to lie about her dresses
(b) Wanda deserved it
(c) Peggy was the best liked girl and couldn’t do anything wrong
(d) both 1 and 2
Answer
(c) Peggy was the best liked girl and couldn’t do anything wrong
Question 13.
How many shoes did Wanda say she had?
(a) 50
(b) 100
(c) 10
(d) 60
Answer
(d) 60
Question 14.
What tells you that Peggy wasn’t cruel?
(a) protected small children from bullies
(b) couldn’t stand animals getting mistreated
(c) did not make Wanda cry
(d) all of the above
Answer
(d) all of the above
Question 15.
Why did “they” wait for Wanda?
(a) they were friends
(b) to make fun of her
(c) they cared about her
(d) they missed her
Answer
(b) to make fun of her
Question 16.
Which classroom did they all sit in?
(a) Room fifteen
(b) Room thirteen
(c) Room twelve
(d) Room eleven
Answer
(b) Room thirteen
Question 17.
Where in the classroom does Wanda sit?
(a) end corner
(b) middle
(c) front
(d) rotational
Answer
(a) end corner
Question 18.
Who is the author of “The Hundred Dresses”?
(a) Liam O’ Flaherty
(b) Frederick Forsyth
(c) Roal Dahl
(d) El Bsor Ester
Answer
(d) El Bsor Ester
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