CBSE Class VII English (Poorvi) Unit 3: Dreams and Discoveries — My Brother’s Great Invention Questions and Answers

Unit 3: Dreams and Discoveries — My Brother's Great Invention

Let us do these activities before we read

I. Work in pairs and guess the invention:
1. I am a concept invented by ancient Indian mathematicians. I add value to numbers. Without me, calculations in the modern digital world would be impossible. Who am I?
2. I am an ancient Indian practice, now popular globally. I focus on physical and mental well-being. What am I?

1. Zero (0)
2. Yoga

II. Discuss in groups of four what you think the world today would have been like without inventions and discoveries.

Without inventions and discoveries, human life would remain extremely primitive. We would not have electricity, modern medicine, transportation, or communication devices like computers and phones. Tasks would take much more physical effort, and overall human progress, health, and comfort would be severely limited.

III. Fill the grid given below with missing letters to complete the words. These words display qualities of an inventor.

• C _ R _ A _ T _ _ V _ _ T _ _
• C _ U _ _ _ _ I _ T _ Y _
• R _ I _ _ _ T _ _ K _ _ N _ G
• D _ E T _ E _ _ _ I _ N _ A _ T _ I _
• I _ _ G _ I _ _ A _ _ I _ O _ N

• CREATIVITY
• CURIOSITY
• RISK TAKING
• DETERMINATION
• IMAGINATION

Anand experimenting with lights, wires, and electrical gadgets at his study desk.

Let us discuss (Page 94–95)

I. Complete the cause-and-effect table given below:

Causes	Effects
1. Anand set up his burglar alarm and rigged it to work when the door was opened softly.	[Fill in]
2. [Fill in]	Anita was able to avoid any responsibility as Anand faced the consequences alone.
3. We watched the movie 'Back to the Future'.	Anand: [Fill in]
4. Papa firmly said 'NO' to trying out the time machine.	[Fill in]

Causes	Effects
1. Anand set up his burglar alarm and rigged it to work when the door was opened softly.	Papa opened the door softly, got thoroughly soaked by the water bag, and became extremely angry.
2. Anita warned Anand beforehand that she was not involved and made sure her doubts were clear.	Anita was able to avoid any responsibility as Anand faced the consequences alone.
3. We watched the movie 'Back to the Future'.	Anand: Decided that he had to make a time machine too.
4. Papa firmly said 'NO' to trying out the time machine.	Anand looked crestfallen, but Ma convinced Papa to at least take a look at it.

II. Do you think Anand was able to keep his promise regarding the time machine? If yes, why? If no, why not?

Anand did not break his promise intentionally. While he promised his mother that he would not do anything with the time machine until his parents returned, it was the intruder, Boppa, who entered his room and accidentally activated the machine. Therefore, Anand kept his promise, but the machine got operated by the thief.

Boppa, the thief wearing a green scarf, threatening Anita and Anand with a cudgel.

Let us discuss (Page 98)

Arrange the following events in the correct order of occurrence:

1. The door swings open, and they see Boppa, standing there with an evil grin.
2. Boppa is nowhere to be found, but his green scarf is lying near the time machine.
3. Mrs. Sharma, her husband, and Dr. Mohan unlock the door and enter the house to help the children.
4. Anita wakes Anand up, informing him that someone is trying to get into the house.
5. Anand misleads Boppa into entering his room instead of his father's room.

1. Anita wakes Anand up, informing him that someone is trying to get into the house.
2. The door swings open, and they see Boppa, standing there with an evil grin.
3. Anand misleads Boppa into entering his room instead of his father's room.
4. Mrs. Sharma, her husband, and Dr. Mohan unlock the door and enter the house to help the children.
5. Boppa is nowhere to be found, but his green scarf is lying near the time machine.

Let us think and reflect

I. Read the extracts given below and answer the questions that follow.

1. "Before beginning this story, let me put you in the picture. I am Anita, fourteen years old. My brother Anand, one year younger than me, caused all that hoo-ha with his burglar alarm. The trouble with him is that he thinks he is a scientist. He loves tinkering with all sorts of electrical gadgets, tools, dynamos, planks of wood, and things like that. And he keeps creating 'inventions' that never work out as they are supposed to."

(i) Complete the following sentence suitably by choosing the correct option from those given in the brackets:
When Anita says, "...let me put you in the picture", she wants to ____________ (introduce/summarise) the situation for the benefit of the readers.

(ii) Anand loves 'tinkering' with all sorts of electrical gadgets. This means that he enjoys ____________ gadgets.
A. dismantling and creating
B. labelling or naming
C. repairing or improving
D. collecting and displaying

(iii) Which of the following options most suitably describes Anand's personality?
A. methodical and cautious
B. creative and experimental
C. energetic and hasty
D. shy and reserved

(iv) Based on the extract, compare what Anita thinks of her brother Anand with what he thinks of himself.

(i) introduce

(ii) A. dismantling and creating

(iii) B. creative and experimental

(iv) Anand thinks of himself as a real scientist and genius whose inventions are professional. On the other hand, Anita thinks he just loves tinkering and creating trouble with 'inventions' that never work out properly.

2. "I was about to direct him upstairs, when Anand said quickly, 'The one next to this one.'
'You silly goose!' I said angrily as soon as the man had gone. 'That's your room. He'll come back as mad as mad can be.'
'At least it will give us some time to think of something,' Anand said. 'He'll take a while to locate the light switch. Let's shout.'
All of a sudden there was a crash followed by a loud scream. More strange noises emerged from the next room a few muffled thumps, an eerie whine, and a low, humming sound."

(i) Complete the sentence given below with a suitable reason:
Anita was angry with Anand because ____________.

(ii) Which action of Anand shows his presence of mind?

(iii) What might be the cause of the strange noises emerging from the next room?
A. The intruder moving furniture around
B. Anand's time machine getting activated
C. The intruder locating the light switch
D. Anand's invention malfunctioning

(iv) Which of the following best describes the atmosphere in this extract?
A. relaxing    B. peaceful    C. tense    D. sad    E. suspenseful    F. joyful
(a) A, D and E    (b) B and F    (c) C and E    (d) Only D

(i) Anita was angry with Anand because he directed the intruder to his own room next door instead of upstairs, which she feared would make the intruder extremely angry when he realized it wasn't their father's room.

(ii) Anand's quick thinking in misleading the thief to his room to buy them extra time while the thief searched for the light switch showed his presence of mind.

(iii) B. Anand's time machine getting activated

(iv) (c) C and E (tense and suspenseful)

II. Complete the table with the suitable traits of the characters based on evidence from the text. Choose the traits given in the box below:
[creative, curious, careful, responsible, bothersome, confident]

Character	Traits	Evidence from the Text
Anand	1. bothersome	And this is not the first time he's got on Papa's nerves or frightened someone half to death in the house.
	2. [Fill in]	He loves tinkering with all sorts of electrical gadgets, tools, dynamos, planks of wood, and things like that. And he keeps creating 'inventions' that never work out as they are supposed to.
	3. [Fill in]	"Nothing will go wrong this time. I've planned it out carefully. See the blueprint."
Anita	1. [Fill in]	"We're old enough to look after ourselves, Ma..."
	2. [Fill in]	"But how does the alarm know that a burglar is opening the door?"
	3. [Fill in]	"Now clean up this mess before anyone gets home."

Character	Traits	Evidence from the Text
Anand	1. bothersome	And this is not the first time he's got on Papa's nerves or frightened someone half to death in the house.
	2. creative	He loves tinkering with all sorts of electrical gadgets, tools, dynamos, planks of wood, and things like that. And he keeps creating 'inventions' that never work out as they are supposed to.
	3. confident	"Nothing will go wrong this time. I've planned it out carefully. See the blueprint."
Anita	1. responsible	"We're old enough to look after ourselves, Ma..."
	2. curious	"But how does the alarm know that a burglar is opening the door?"
	3. careful	"Now clean up this mess before anyone gets home."

III. Answer the following questions:

1. What prompted Anand to create the burglar alarm?
2. How did Anand's father become the target of the burglar alarm?
3. How did Anand's parents and sister react to his ideas?
4. How did Anand behave when he was on his 'inventing binges'?
5. Why did Mr. Sharma not believe Anand when he spoke about his time machine?
6. Give an ending to this story, explaining what might have happened to Boppa.

1. A recent rush of thefts in their housing colony prompted Anand to design and create a burglar alarm.
2. Anand designed the alarm to trigger specifically when the door was opened softly, assuming thieves enter quietly. Since Papa always opened the door softly, he accidentally triggered the alarm when returning home.
3. Anand's sister, Anita, was skeptical and cautious, making sure she wasn't blamed. His father was annoyed and strict, locking up his toolbox and prohibiting experiments. His mother was protective and kept an eye on household gadgets, though she sympathized with Anand.
4. During his 'inventing binges', Anand took apart household appliances for parts, worked noisily, turned his room into a mess of wires and levers, and neglected his personal appearance, even forgetting to comb his hair.
5. Mr. Sharma believed time machines were purely a product of a young boy's wild imagination and smiled indulgently, assuming the thief simply escaped outdoors.
6. Suggested Ending: Boppa was so frightened by the flashing lights, high-pitched whines, and sudden sparks of the time machine that he dropped his green scarf and fled out the back window into the dark night, promising never to enter that house again!

Let us learn

I. Onomatopoeia: Match sound words from Column 1 with their meanings in Column 2.

Column 1	Column 2
(i) Crash	sudden loud sound of breaking
(ii) Humming	[Fill in]
(iii) Hissed	[Fill in]
(iv) Hammering, sawing, clattering	[Fill in]

Column 1	Column 2
(i) Crash	sudden loud sound of breaking
(ii) Humming	a continuous low and soothing sound
(iii) Hissed	whispered angrily
(iv) Hammering, sawing, clattering	constant and loud construction noises

II. Binomials:

1. Match the words in Column 1 with Column 2 to make binomials:

Column 1	Conjunction	Column 2
(i) safe	and / or	A. break
(ii) odds		B. cons
(iii) make		C. never
(iv) pros		D. take
(v) now		E. sound
(vi) give		F. ends

2. Complete the sentences with suitable binomials from above:

1. This project will be a ____________ moment for our team's success.
2. After a long journey, we were relieved to arrive home ____________.
3. Every friendship works well when there is a balance of ____________.
4. She organised all the ____________ in the cupboard, to make space for new clothes.
5. Before making a decision, it is important to weigh the ____________ carefully.
6. This is our final chance to perform on stage, it is ____________.

3. Complete the paragraph using the phrasal verbs from the box:
[tripped off, let up, turned out, ran out of, rigged up]

It had been raining and we (i) ____________ time to set up for the function, so we quickly (ii) ____________ some decorations using whatever materials we had. We accidentally (iii) ____________ the fire alarm because of the smoke from the bonfire. Thankfully, the rain (iv) ____________ just as the guests were arriving, and despite all the chaos, the function (v) ____________ to be a huge success.

1. Matching Binomials:

• (i) safe and sound (E)
• (ii) odds and ends (F)
• (iii) make or break (A)
• (iv) pros and cons (B)
• (v) now or never (C)
• (vi) give and take (D)

2. Sentence Completion:

1. make or break
2. safe and sound
3. give and take
4. odds and ends
5. pros and cons
6. now or never

3. Paragraph Completion:

(i) ran out of, (ii) rigged up, (iii) tripped off, (iv) let up, (v) turned out.

III. Idioms: Fill in the blanks with suitable idioms from the box:
[leaving the coast clear, frighten me half to death, get on our nerves, get a shelling, fell over ourselves]

1. Shekhar knew he would ____________ for breaking his mother's favourite flower vase.
2. We ____________ trying to help the injured dog and get it to the vet as quickly as possible.
3. Faizy distracted Kanchan, ____________ for us to get inside the room to prepare the birthday surprise.
4. The constant power fluctuations during meetings can ____________.
5. When I am alone at home, any unexpected loud noise in the night can ____________.

1. get a shelling
2. fell over ourselves
3. leaving the coast clear
4. get on our nerves
5. frighten me half to death

IV. Tenses (Simple Past & Past Perfect):

1. Underline the verbs in simple past and past perfect tense in the sentences below:

(i) Ma had rushed in to see what the racket was all about and found Papa standing there, sopping wet and scowling.

(ii) Anand had vanished by this time and reappeared only after dinner when Papa had cooled down.

2. Fill in the blanks with the simple past or past perfect form of the verbs given in brackets:

(i) After Rohan A. ____ (finish) his homework, he B. ____ (decide) to go for a walk. He C. ____ (leave) the house and D. ____ (realise) he E. ____ (forget) his keys inside.

(ii) By the time we A. ____ (reach) the station, the train B. ____ (already/leave). We C. ____ (wait) for the next one to arrive.

3. Combine the pairs of sentences using time expressions (before, after, by the time, when) and rewrite them using past perfect tenses:

• (i) Old Action: We started work. | New Action: He arrived in the morning.
• (ii) Old Action: They set up the tents. | New Action: The others brought food and medicine.
• (iii) Old Action: The students became quiet. | New Action: They heard the teacher coming.
• (iv) Old Action: The villagers left the village. | New Action: The flood submerged the entire area.

1. Underlined Verbs:

(i) Ma had rushed (Past Perfect) in to see what the racket was (Simple Past) all about and found (Simple Past) Papa standing there...

(ii) Anand had vanished (Past Perfect) by this time and reappeared (Simple Past) only after dinner when Papa had cooled (Past Perfect) down.

2. Fill in the blanks:

(i) A. had finished, B. decided, C. left, D. realised, E. had forgotten.
(ii) A. reached, B. had already left, C. waited.

3. Sentence Combinations:

• (i) We had started work by the time he arrived in the morning.
• (ii) They had set up the tents before the others brought food and medicine.
• (iii) The students had become quiet when they heard the teacher coming.
• (iv) The villagers had left the village before the flood submerged the entire area.

Let us listen

I. Listening Activity: Select the true statements from 1–5 based on the conversation between Anita and Toby:

1. Toby misses his school.
2. Anita accepts Toby as her friend.
3. Anita asks Toby about one of his facial features.
4. Toby tells Anita that she had a banana for breakfast.
5. Toby shares that he can see much clearer with a closed eye.

• Statement 2 is TRUE: Anita says, "I am happy to have you as my friend."
• Statement 3 is TRUE: Anita asks about his single big eye in the centre of his face.
• Statement 5 is TRUE: Toby shares that he can see even with his eye closed.

(Statements 1 and 4 are False: Toby misses his people and home, and he mentions Anita had an apple for breakfast).

II. Fill in the blanks with the exact words heard in the transcript:

1. Toby: I miss my ____________ and home.
2. Toby: Well, we ____________ don't need to eat anything. We get our ____________ from the Sun.
3. Anita: Oh! Don't you ever feel like having ice creams and ____________?
4. Anita: Okay, tell me one thing. How are you able to see with only ____________ eye?
5. Toby: I can see beyond mountains and ____________, ____________ woods and even ____________.

1. people
2. Martians, energy
3. chocolates
4. one
5. clouds, wood, metals

Let us speak

Work in pairs. Pronounce the '-ough' words out loud and put them in the correct boxes based on their sound:
Words: bough, dough, through, cough, thought, plough, rough, trough, tough, enough

Sounds like 'oo'	Sounds like 'off' / 'uff'	Sounds like 'o'	Sounds like 'ow'	Sounds like 'aw'
through	cough, trough, rough, tough, enough	dough, though	bough, plough	thought

Let us write

Choose a vocation (e.g., electrician, mechanic, chef, nurse, graphic designer) and write a paragraph using the provided hints:

• why you like this vocation
• what training is needed
• what tools and equipment are required
• who would your co-workers be
• highlight the importance of teamwork
• how you would deal with the customers
• how you plan to pursue it with a sense of pride

Vocation: Electrician

I would like to become an electrician because I am fascinated by how electricity powers our daily lives and modern technology. To pursue this vocation, practical technical training and safety certification are essential. Electricians use tools like wire strippers, voltage meters, pliers, and insulated screwdrivers. On job sites, my co-workers would include engineers, construction workers, and fellow technicians. Teamwork is very important in this field to ensure complete safety and correct wiring installations. I will always deal with customers politely by listening to their needs and solving electrical problems efficiently. I plan to pursue this vocation with pride because helping people live safely and comfortably brings immense satisfaction.

Famous Indian inventors and scientists featured in the chapter.