This story talks about the feelings of an athlete as he pursues his dream. Read about a nerve wracking day in Michael Stone's life as he prepares to take the ultimate test of his sports career. It is an awe-inspiring achievement that will leave you breathless.
Michael Stone was a blind man who had a dream of flying. He wanted to become a pole vaulter to fulfil his dream. Pole vaulting is truly the glamorous event of any track and field competition. The sportsman has to combine the grace of a gymnast with the strength of bodybuilder Pole vaulting has the element of flying. The thought of flying as high as a two-storeyed building is a mere fantasy to anyone watching such an event.
Michael had drawn inspiration from his mother. She used to tell him numerous stories about flying as he was growing up. She used to describe the landscapes from a bird's eye view. They were very fascinating for the young Michael. Her excitement and passion for details made Michael's dreams full of colour and beauty. He had this recurring dream of flying over the beautiful landscapes. He could feel the rocks and chunks of dirt at his feet while he was running down a country road. As he raced down the golden-lined wheat fields, he would always outrun the locomotives passing by. He would begin soaring like an eagle. She also advised him to be a relaxed and 'free dreaming boy'. She used to tell him to take deep breaths when he felt tense or scared.
Bert Stone, his father was not a dreamer. He was a hard-core realist. He believed in hard work and sweat. His motto was, 'If you want something, work for it'. Michael did a very systematic practice in weightlifting and running. The programme was carefully monitored by his father who was also his coach. Michael showed a lot of dedication, determination and discipline.
Besides being an honest student he used to help his parents in farm tasks. He always strove hard with obsession and passion for perfection.
Michael cleared the bar at 17 feet 2 inches and 17 feet and 4 inches in his first two trial jumps. He wanted to win the first place. So in the final jump he cleared 17 feet 62 inches. He not only won the National Junior Olympics but also set the new National and International Olympic record. He was delighted at a smile on his mother's face. His father, Bert Stone could not control his emotions and hugged his wife and cried. He shed the tears of pride. The people hugged him and congratulated him heartily on the greatest accomplishment of his life. It was not because he had just increased his personal best by 912 inches. It was because he was blind.
Answer the following questions.
1} What was Michael Stone's dream?
ANS} Michael's dream was to fly high.
2} What impact did the mother's stories have on Michael?
ANS} Michael's mother's stories had a great impact on Michael since his childhood. She told him a number of stories about flying as he was growing up. She described the land from a bird's eye view. Her excitement and passion for details made Michael's dreams full of colour and beauty. He developed passion and love for flying.
3} How did Michael prepare himself to become an Olympic champion?
ANS} Michael worked hard from the age of fourteen. He began a very careful and regimented weightlifting programme. He worked out every other day with weights, and did running on alternate days. The programme was carefully monitored by Michael's father who was also his coach and trainer. Constant preparation and determination were his vision.
4} Michael's mother and father had different ideas about training. How did these two approaches help Michael fulfil his dream?
ANS} Michael's mother was a good motivator. She was very suggestive and encouraging. She used to advise him to be more relaxed like a free dreaming little boy. On the other hand Michael's father was not a dreamer but he was a hard core realist. He believes in hard work and sweat. Michael drew inspiration from his mother to dream about his future and set a goal. And his father made him work hard to realize that dream. So both these approaches had helped himn fulfil his dream.
5} What was so special about Michael's achievement?
ANS} Michael Stone was a blind man. Though he was blind he had won the National Junior Olympics. And he had also set a National and International Olympics record by clearing a distance of 17 feet 6½ inches.
I.} Synonyms
Use a thesaurus/dictionary to find out synonyms of these words from the story you have read and use them in your own sentences.
Own Sentences :1.} quench : When it's hot, it's best to quench your thirst with water.
satisfy : We were satisfied with the arrangements.
cool : A glass of water cooled his intensity.
slake : After our long game of tennis, we slaked our thirst with cool drinks.
appease : She claimed that the government had only changed the law in order to appease their critics.
2.} glamour : Sunitha looks very appealing with her glamour.
attraction : Life in London has so many attractions.
charm : Kalyani is a woman of great charm.
magic : Although the film was made fifty years ago, it has lost none of its magic.
smart : Vijay looks very smart in his new suit, doesn't he?
3. passion : Politics and philosophy were his lifelong passions.
desire : There is a strong desire for peace among the people.
eagerness : In their eagerness to find a solution, they have overlooked certain
difficulties.
hunger : Savitri has a hunger for knowledge.
obsession : He's always wanted to find his natural mother but recently it's become an obsession.
4.} persistence : Her persistence and enthusiasm have helped the group to achieve its international success.
continuity : There has been no continuity in that class - they've had a succession of
different teachers.
relentlessness : They found relentlessness in his criticism.
steadfasteness : I like his steadfastness in supporting women's rights.
5.} arrogant : He always behaves in an arrogant way.
haughty impudent : She has a rather haughty manner.
impudent : What you said is an impudent remark.
proud : She knows she's lost, but she's too proud to admit it.
egoistical : Some politicians have egoistical nature.
6. pounding : I would feel my heart pounding as I went on stage to collect the
prize.
battering : Once again, their team had taken a battering.
grind : The car engine was making a strange grinding noise.
II. Collocations :
A collocation is an arrangement of words or other elements, especially those that commonly co-occur.
e.g. : heart-felt congratulation.
There are certain word combinations.
Use a dictionary and write which word in column 1 can collocate with those in the next five columns. Put a tick (mark in the relevant column. Use the apt collocations in your own sentences.
Sentences using collocations : 1. The mother has heartfelt sympathy on her children.
2. I received heartfelt congratulations from my friends when I obtained good marks.
3. You have our deep sympathy on the loss of your father.
4. Becoming a police officer was my childhood dream..
5. He expresses his opinion on his marriage with Latha.
6. Expressing strong opinion on you is very difficult to me.
7. She received a warm welcome from her friends in America.
I. Look at the following sentences taken from the reading passage :
1.
As he raced down the golden-lined wheat fields, he would always outrun the locomotives passing by.
2. When he heard the singing of some distant robins in flight, he knew it was his
time to fly.
3. Since the other vaulter had fewer misses, Michael needed to clear this vault to win.
The above three sentences have two parts. In one part of the sentence is separated by Comma' which lacks complete sense. It has to depend on the other part of the sentence for complete sense.
The sentence part that is incomplete is dependent clause and the sentence part that has complete sense is independent clause.
In the above sentences the clauses with as and when denote time whereas since denotes. reason. As and when refer to time and the other parts state what happened at that time. In the third sentence, the clause beginning with since states the reason and the other states the consequence.
The words as, when, since are conjunctions, which connect two sentences (clauses). The clauses containing these words are called Adverbial clauses. These adverbial clauses cannot stand independently, so they are called Dependent clauses or Subordinate clauses. The clause that stands on its own is an Independent clause or Main clause.
The linkers as, when and since (Adverbs) are placed before the clauses to make them Subordinate clauses.
Now, read the biographical account once again and pick out the Adverbial clauses and Main clauses and write them in the table or in your notebook.
II.} Complete the following sentences with appropriate Adverbial clauses. Use the adverbs wherever they are given in brackets.
1. The teacher entered the class,________
2. The dog ran into a speeding car,________
3. I was in deep sleep..________
4. Someone knocked at the door,________
5. The crowd cheered Michael Stone,________(as soon as)
6.It is high time the cricket board thought of different alternatives,________(as)
ANS.}
1. The teacher entered the class, when the students were playing games.
2. The dog ran into a speeding car, as they were crossing the road.
3. I was in deep sleep, when the telephone rang.
4. Someone knocked at the door, as Rani was preparing food for her husband.
5. The crowd cheered Michael Stone, as soon as he won the event.(as soon as)
6. It is high time the cricket board thought of different alternatives, as the senior cricketers have announced their retirement. (as)
Editing
Read the following passage. Every numbered sentence has an error. Identify and edit it.
(1)The fisherman has a daughter. She was seventeen years old. That was the age of marriage for girls in those days. (2) So the fisherman was looking for a good bride for his daughter. (3) He found several young men, but he does not have enough money to get his daughter married to one of them. (4) Some of his friend advised him to see the Raja who ruled the town and ask him for help. (5) He was ready to took their advice, but he did not wish to go to the Raja without any gifts.
ANS.} (1) The fisherman had a daughter. She was seventeen years old. That was the age of marriage for girls in those days. (2) So the fisherman was looking for a good bridegroom for his daughter. (3) He found several young men but he did not have enough money to get his daughter married to one of them. (4) Some of his friends advised him to see the Raja who ruled the town and ask him for help. (5) He was ready to take their advice, but he did not wish to go to the Raja without any gifts.
I.} You have read the story of Michael Stone. Think of some world-famous sporting personalities from India. Collect information about any one of them and write a biographical sketch.
You may include the following:
1.} Date and place of birth
2.} Information about the family
3.} Hardships/difficulties faced
4.} Achievements of the person: awards, prizes, honours, etc.
5.} Important events in the life of the person - education, marriage, profession, etc.
6.} Inspiration to others / message to the society
7.} Contribution to his/her field and society
ANS.}
Sachin Tendulkar
Tendulkar who is considered to be one of the greatest cricketers of the world was born on 24 April 1973 in Bombay. His father Ramesh Tendulkar was a reputed Marathi novelist and a professor while his mother Rajani worked for a life insurance company. Tendulkar has two elder brothers Nitin and Ajith and a sister Savita. On 24 May 1995. at the age of 22. Tendulkar married Anjali, paediatrician. They have two children, Sara and Arjun.
He started playing cricket when he was 11 years old. His brother Ajith introduced him to Ramakanth Achrekar a famous cricket coach of Bombay. Achrekar was impressed with Tendulkar's talent and advised him to shift his schooling to Sharadashram Vidyamandir High School at Dadar which had produced many notable cricketers. Tendulkar would practise for hours in the nets.
At the age of 14 he scored 329 out of a world record in a school match. Tendulkar made his debut in international cricket at the age of 16 with a match against Pakistan in Karachi. Sachin Tendulkar is the most prolific run scorer in one-day internationals with 18,426 runs. With a current aggregate of 15,470 Test runs.
Sachin received Padma Vibhushan award in 2000 and Padma Shri in 1999. The Indian Government honoured him with Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award, India's highest honour in sports. He was also awarded the Arjuna award in recognition of his outstanding achievement in sports in 1994. Recently he has been nominated as a member of Rajya Sabha. In 2015, the Indian Government honoured him with Bharat Ratna award.
You have finished reading the text "True Height". Write a few lines about your self. Use the following ideas to complete your summary effectively.
• What is your goal at present?
• How could you go about achieving it?
•Which famous personality would be your inspiration?
•How will achieving this goal benefit you/others?
Note: Use appropriate linkers.
Focus on the words/ phrases that express the essence of the text.
Present the ideas briefly in your own words.
Listen to the commentary on a cricket match read by your teacher and answer the questions.
Hello, good morning, viewers. This is Sunil Gavaskar with Ravi Sastry. Welcome to Uppal Cricket Stadium, Hyderabad. It is a sunny moming. Electrifying atmosphere in this jam packed stadium. The crowd is expecting an exciting match-a war of nerves between the arch rivals, India and Pakistan. The local boy VV.S. Laxman is the centre of attraction as it is his home ground.
Having won the toss, India elected to bat first. The in-form openers Gambhir and Sehwag are at the crease.
The first ball of the day, an in-swinging yorker into the pads of Sehwag from Umar Gul. He is all hands up. There is a loud appeal for lbw. Luckily, for Sehwag and for India it is a no-ball. There is absolute silence in the stadium.
Here comes Gul again! Sehwag is ready. Gul pitches the ball at the good length area. Sehwag goes back foot, plays it gently to the square leg area. The batsmen cross for a quick single. Sehwag opens his account with that single. India is 2 for no loss of a wicket.
This brings Gambhir on to strike. The third ball of the over. This time a slightly misdirected ball on the leg stump and Gambhir comes forward and hits straight over the head of the bowler for a four.
Gul changes the guard. This time a very well-directed short-pitch delivery. Oh! What a delivery. But Gambhir connects the ball. What a sweet timing! In a flash the ball disappears into the stands. The umpire Steve Buckner declared it a six. The crowd jump on to their feet. With that Gambhir quickly moves on to 10 and India 12 without loss. There is a conversation between Gul and Shahid Afridi. It seems the captain has a piece of advice. And there is some field adjustment for Gambhir. Now let's see how it works.
Umar Gul comes in and bowls to Gambhir. What a cracking delivery! It breaks the defence of Gambhir. Oh! The middle stump goes cart-wheeling. He's out. Pakistan celebrates. The jubilant Gul runs to hug his captain. The crowd is dumbstruck. But the umpire Buckner signalled it a no ball. Gambhir survives. A great sigh of relief on his face. How lucky this man is! The crowd. comes alive again and cheers up. What an excitement in the very first over itself!
The fourth ball of the over. This time it is a slow ball from Gul. Gambhir elegantly pushes the ball to the onside and completes the run but there is a fumble by the fielder. The batsmen try for the second. Will they complete it? Yes. Now the score moves on to 15. Gambhir is on12.
I.} Tick (✔) only the correct ones from the statements given below.
1.} Sachin and Gambhir opened the Indian innings. (X)
2.} Umar Gul opened the Pakistan's attack.
( ✔)
3.} Laxman is one among the Indian squad.
( ✔)
4.} Gul bowled out Gambhir. (X)
5.} India is 15 without loss after the fourth ball of the first over. ( ✔)
II.} Answer the following questions.
1.} Which two world teams of cricket do you like? Why?
ANS.} I like India and Pakistan cricket teams because they are neighbouring countries. They are treated as arch rivals in cricket. It is always prestigious for India and Pakistan to win the match played between the two teams. People watch it with a lot of enthusiasm and excitement.
2.} Who are the openers?
ANS.} Gambhir and Sehwag are the openers of the match.
3.} Who are the commentators?
ANS.} Sunil Gavaskar and Ravi Sastry are the commentators.
III.} Complete the Score Board given below.
India Vs Pakistan
Imagine, you were listening to the commentary, your father came there and reminded you of the ensuing examinations. He said, "Listening to cricket commentary is a waste of time."
Now develop a conversation between you and your father and role play it.
Conversation between father and son :
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