# Ice-Cream Man & Wonderful Waste!

## Overview

This unit presents two delightful texts: a poem titled **"Ice-cream Man"** by Rachel Field, which captures the joy of summer treats, and a prose story called **"Wonderful Waste!"**, which teaches us about resourcefulness and the value of reusing food scraps. Together, they foster appreciation for nature, sensory experiences, and environmental responsibility.

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## Key Topics Covered

### 1. Poem: *Ice-cream Man* by Rachel Field

- **Theme**: Celebration of summer and joy of children.
- **Imagery**: Describes vivid sights (ice cream cart as a flower bed), tastes (vanilla, chocolate), and sounds (trundling cart).
- **Popular Flavours**: Vanilla, chocolate, strawberry; also cold fizzy drinks in colors like green, orange, and pink.
- **Children’s Excitement**: Children surround the cart like honeybees around flowers.
- **Comparison**: The ice-cream cart is compared to a flower bed due to its attractive appearance.

#### Activities & Learning Tasks:
- Rhyming word identification (e.g. heat–street, fizz–bliss).
- Descriptive writing: describe a dream ice cream.
- Categorizing summer activities into indoor/outdoor.

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### 2. Story: *Wonderful Waste!*

- **Setting**: Royal palace of Travancore, Kerala.
- **Plot**: The Maharaja stops food waste by instructing the cook to use vegetable scraps.
- **Cook's Creativity**:
- Uses leftover vegetables to invent a new dish.
- Adds coconut, green chillies, garlic, curd, coconut oil, and curry leaves.
- Creates *Avial*, a traditional Kerala dish.
- **Message**: Highlights the importance of reducing waste and being innovative.

#### Activities & Learning Tasks:
- Identify ingredients used in *Avial*.
- Order steps in a recipe.
- Dictionary activity: explore words with multiple meanings (e.g., "point", "scrap", "sternly").
- Creative reuse activity: Think of ways to reuse items usually thrown away.

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### 3. Extension Tale: *Bamboo Curry* (Santhal Folk Tale)

- **Plot**: A groom misunderstands his mother-in-law's dish made of bamboo shoot and takes a bamboo door to recreate it at home!
- **Lesson**: Understanding local food customs and ingredients is important.

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## New Words and Phrases – Simple Definitions

| Word/Phrase | Meaning |
|---------------------|-------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| blaze | Bright flame or intense heat |
| trundling | Rolling slowly on wheels |
| mounds | Heaps or large rounded piles |
| frosty-fizz | Cold, bubbly drink |
| cluster | A group of people or things close together |
| in a fix | A difficult or tricky situation |
| flash across the mind | A sudden idea or thought |
| lo and behold | An expression used to show surprise |
| traditional feast | A large meal served during special occasions |
| tempting | Appealing and attractive, especially in taste |
| bamboo shoot | The tender edible part of the bamboo plant |

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## Practice Questions

### Easy (3)

1. **What are the flavours of ice cream mentioned in the poem?**
**Answer**: Vanilla, chocolate, strawberry.

2. **What did the Ice-cream Man’s cart look like in the poem?**
**Answer**: It looked like a flower bed with roses and sweet peas.

3. **Why did the cook make a new dish in the story?**
**Answer**: Because the Maharaja asked him not to waste the vegetable scraps.

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### Medium (2)

4. **How did the cook prepare the dish using vegetable scraps?**
**Answer**: He cleaned and cut the scraps, cooked them, added ground coconut, chillies, garlic, curd, coconut oil, and curry leaves.

5. **What is the significance of the name 'Avial'?**
**Answer**: It is the name given to the new dish invented from leftovers; it became a traditional dish in Kerala.

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### Difficult (3)

6. **Compare the themes of the poem and the story.**
**Answer**: The poem celebrates joy and sensory delight; the story emphasizes resourcefulness and sustainability.

7. **Why did the Maharaja oppose throwing away the scraps?**
**Answer**: He believed that food should not be wasted and could be used creatively.

8. **What role do traditional stories like 'Bamboo Curry' play in learning?**
**Answer**: They teach cultural values, food habits, and lessons through humor and everyday scenarios.

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### Very Difficult (2)

9. **Explain how the cook’s approach in ‘Wonderful Waste!’ reflects environmental values.**
**Answer**: He prevents food waste by creatively reusing scraps, promoting sustainability and reducing wastage.

10. **Analyze the poetic devices used in ‘Ice-cream Man’. How do they enhance the poem’s effect?**
**Answer**: The poem uses imagery, rhyme, and simile (e.g. “as thick as honeybees”) to make the scene vivid and joyful.

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