A Day With Nandu

Nandu Wakes Up

Nandu woke up and opened his eyes. For a few seconds he was not sure where he was. It seemed to him that he was surrounded by a forest of big grey tree trunks. He blinked his eyes and looked around. Oh! There was Amma.The grey forest that he had imagined he was in, was actually the legs and trunks of his family members.The sun was overhead and it was getting hot. Nani ma trumpetted – made a loud sound. Nani ma is the oldest in this herd of elephants. She started moving towards the jungle. The other female elephants saw her and started to follow her.Nandu also went with them.When they reached the jungle, the members of the herd started spreading out. Each member went to eat her favourite leaves and twigs. After they had eaten, the herd moved towards the river. The baby elephants enjoyed playing in the water. The mothers lay down in the water and mud on the river bank.

Find out

Ö Nandu is only three months old, but he weighs 200 kilograms.

Ö What is your weight?Ö Can you find out – the weight of how many children like you will add up to Nandu’s weight?

Fun and Game:Nandu saw his brothers and sisters pulling each other’s tails. He thought, “I better not go near them. What if they fall on me? I am still small.” He quietly went and stood near his mother Amma gently pushed Nandu towards the water, as if she was telling him to go and play. Nandu loved to play in the water. His cousins were already there. Just as he reached near, a strong fountain of water fell on his head. He got wet. Oh, this was the work of his naughty cousins. Nandu joined them in the game.Before sunset, the herd started back towards the jungle. By then, Nandu was very tired. He settled himself between his mother’s front legs and fell asleep as he drank her milk.Like elephants, some other animals also live together in groups. These animal groups are called herds. Animals in herds usually move around together, searching for food.

Make Your Own Elephant:  Ö Copy the drawing of the elephant given on the next page in a bigger size on a thick sheet of paper.

Ö Make small cuts where it says “cut” ($)in the picture. Be careful not to cut off the part.

Ö  Fold along the dotted lines [..............] Ö Fold the part with [ ////////] pattern and push them underneath.

Ö  Cut out the tail and stick it on.

Your elephant is ready.

Ö  Colour and decorate it.

Ö Put up an exhibition in class of all the paper-elephants that you have made.

What do They Say?

Ö Look at these pictures and read what these animals are sharing with their friends. Discuss these narratives sensitively in the class.

Discuss

Ö    You have read what these animals say. Why do you think that some of them are sad?

Ö    How do you think they are different – the monkeys that dance to entertain people and the monkeys that are free?

How many legs does this elephant have?

Elephants help each other when in trouble. They join together to care for and rescue their young ones.