1. Chapter at a Glance

Friends Saba and Aparna meet after a year and notice how much has changed: they have grown, learned new things, and new trees have been planted at school. Changes happen all the time. Some take years, some happen every year, and some take only minutes.

Day and night happen because the Earth rotates. The Sun only seems to rise in the east and set in the west. A torch and globe show that the side facing the Sun has day and the other side has night. The globe also shows that oceans and seas cover about three-fourths of the Earth.

Throughout the year, children record changes in plants, animals, weather, water and people’s activities in a Seasons’ Journal. These changes repeat every year in a pattern called seasons. India has six seasons. Seasons shape the crops we grow, the food we eat, the clothes we wear and the festivals we celebrate. Nature also gives signs, like the koel’s song and ants moving their eggs, that tell us rain is coming.

2. Word Meanings

3. Important Topics

A. Changes Around Us

• Some changes take years, like growing taller or a tree growing big.
• Some happen every year, like leaves falling and growing again, or flowers blooming.
• Some happen in minutes or seconds, like the colour of the sky at sunset or ice melting.

B. Day and Night

• The Sun seems to rise in the east and set in the west, but it is the Earth that rotates.
• In the torch and globe demonstration, the torch is the Sun and the globe is the Earth.
• The side facing the Sun has day, and the other side has night.
• When it is day in India, it is night in countries on the other side of the globe, like the USA.
• Dong in Arunachal Pradesh is India’s “First Village of the Sunrise”.

C. The Globe

• A globe is a round model of the Earth.
• The blue parts are seas and oceans, covering about three-fourths of the Earth.
• Oceans are vast and open, while seas are smaller and partly surrounded by land.
• The land parts hold all the countries.

D. Seasons’ Journal and Chart

• Observations are recorded four times a year: April to June, July to September, October to December and January to March.
• The themes are plant life, birds and animals, air, heat and light, water and water bodies, and human activities.
• These changes repeat every year in a pattern, a natural rhythm called seasons.

E. Six Seasons of India

• Seasons differ across India. Winter in Kerala is mild, while winter in Kashmir is very cold. Monsoon in Assam brings heavy rain, while Rajasthan gets little.
• India has both the wettest place (Mawsynram) and one of the driest (the Thar Desert).

F. Seasons, Crops and Festivals

• Farmers grow different crops in different seasons: some in winter, some in summer and some in the rainy season.

G. Signs from Nature

• In Odisha, when the koel sings, farmers know the rains are coming and start planting.
• Ants carrying eggs to higher ground means rain is coming.
• During the monsoon, snakes come out of flooded burrows. Nag Panchami shows respect for them.

4. Question-Answers

Very Short Answer Questions

1. What causes day and night?
The rotation of the Earth.

2. In which direction does the Sun appear to rise?
In the east.

3. What is a globe?
A round model of the Earth.

4. How much of the Earth is covered by water?
About three-fourths.

5. How many seasons are there in India?
Six.

6. What is Varsha?
The monsoon, or rainy season.

7. What is Shishir?
Winter.

8. In which season is Holi celebrated?
Spring.

9. Which place is India’s “First Village of the Sunrise”?
Dong, Arunachal Pradesh.

10. Which natural sign tells us rain is coming?
Ants carrying their eggs to higher ground (or the koel singing).

Short Answer Questions

1. Does the Sun really move across the sky? Explain.
No. The Sun stays in one place. The Earth rotates, so the Sun only seems to rise in the east and set in the west.

2. How is a sea different from an ocean?
An ocean is a vast, open body of water. A sea is smaller and partly surrounded by land.

3. What are seasons?
Seasons are the changes in weather and nature that repeat in the same pattern every year, like summer, monsoon and winter.

4. Why is winter in Kerala different from winter in Kashmir?
Kerala is near the sea and close to the equator, so its winter is mild. Kashmir is far north and high in the mountains, so its winter is very cold with snow.

5. How do seasons affect our lives?
Seasons decide what crops we grow, what food we eat, what clothes we wear and which festivals we celebrate.

6. Why do farmers grow different crops in different seasons?
Different crops need different weather and amounts of water. Some grow best in winter, some in summer heat and some in the rainy season.

Long Answer Questions

1. Explain day and night using the torch and globe activity.
Place a globe on a table and shine a torch on one side of it. The torch represents the Sun. The side of the globe facing the light has day, and the other side is dark and has night. When we slowly rotate the globe while keeping the torch still, different parts come into the light and go out of it. In the same way, the Sun stays in one place and the Earth rotates, causing day and night.

2. “Seasons give rhythm to our lives.” Explain.
Every year, nature changes in a pattern: it becomes hot, then rainy, then cool, and warms up again. Plants flower and fruit at certain times, and birds and animals behave differently in each season. Farmers plant and harvest crops according to the seasons. We eat seasonal foods, wear clothes that suit the weather and celebrate festivals like Holi in spring and Diwali in autumn. Since these changes repeat every year, seasons give a rhythm to our lives.

Textbook Exercise Answers

Name something that changes over many years, something that changes every year, and something that changes in minutes.

• Over years: a child growing up, or a sapling becoming a tree.
• Every year: seasons, and trees shedding leaves.
• In minutes: the colour of the sky at sunset, or ice melting.

When it is day in India, which countries have night?
Countries on the other side of the Earth, like the USA, Canada, Mexico and Brazil.

Match the festivals with their seasons.

Name some winter and summer crops.

• Winter crops: wheat, mustard, gram and peas.
• Summer crops: watermelon, cucumber and muskmelon.
• Rainy season crops: rice, maize and cotton.

Would you like one season to continue all year? Why?
Sample: No. Each season brings its own fruits, festivals and fun. We need rain for water, winter for some crops, and summer for others. Nature and people need all the seasons.