A Robot Called Makito
Prose Lesson:
Robin’s aunt arrived from London. She loved Robin and she knew his love for books. She opened her bag. It was full of lovely books with colourful pictures. She said, “Robin, I know how sad you are.
These books will perhaps help you to be less sad.”
Robin kissed his aunt and picked up one of the books. It was on robots. Robin began to read the book. Soon he was completely lost in it. When he had finished, he said to his father, “Papa, I want to start going to school. There I shall get some more books on robots.”
One day, Robin found in the school library a new book on robots. He asked the librarian, “Ma’am, could I take this book
home?” The librarian said, “Robin, you can keep it for a week only.
It is a new book and the other children might also want to read it.”
Robin took the book home and began to read it. He learnt that
robots are machines designed to work like human beings. The word ‘robot’ has been taken from a Czech word which means ‘work’. The first robots were called ‘mobots’. They could lift and move things.
Later robots were used to do repetitive jobs, like painting cars. They were also used to work in places too dangerous for human beings.
Most of the robots were used to work in factories. Their arms could make many kinds of movements. Some robots could shovel things backward and forward.
Robin began to dream of making a robot that could talk to him,
and also do some small jobs for him in his room. After clearing his twelfth grade exam, he said to his father, “Papa, I want to learn how to make robots.”
Robin’s father was a businessman. He owned a car factory. He often took Robin with him to the factory. His partner, Mr Yamawaki, was from Japan. And it was from Japan that they got all the different parts of their cars. When Robin said he wanted to learn how to make robots, his father introduced him to Mr Yamawaki.
Mr Yamawaki said to Robin, “I think before you go to Japan, you should learn the Japanese language. You can do that at the local
Japanese Cultural Centre.”
Robin spent a year at the Japanese Cultural Centre and gained some knowledge of the Japanese language. He also learnt a lot about the country of Japan. He learnt that Japan is made up of four main islands and a number of smaller ones. The main islands are Honshu,
Hokkaido, Kyushu and Shikoku.
Millions of years ago, these islands were pushed up by the sea, perhaps through some great earthquake. They are now together known as
Japan. Many of these islands are covered with thick forests. They have also a large number of lakes and rivers. There are frequent earthquakes in Japan. About 200 of Japan’s mountains are volcanoes. The most famous of these is Mount Fiji.
At last Robin was ready to leave for Japan. He was to spend a year there, trying to make a simple robot for himself. He was also to learn making robots for their own car factory in India. In Japan, he was to stay with the family of Mr Yamawaki.
Robin left for Japan on the first of July. He was received at the airport by Mrs Yamawaki. She was a pretty lady with bright black eyes and curly hair. She took Robin home where he met Kitaro,
Mrs Yamawaki’s son. Kitaro was twelve years old. He could not speak
English. Robin promised to teach him English while Kitaro said he would teach Robin Japanese.
The next morning, Mrs Yamawaki took Robin to their robot factory. Robin was fascinated with what he saw there. He was introduced to the workers. Robin wished them in Japanese and the workers seemed delighted. Quite a few of them spoke English, and they wished Robin ‘good morning’.
For the next few months, Robin worked hard at the factory. Soon he was able to make a small robot for himself. He called it ‘Makito’ which is a Japanese name. Workers in the factory helped Robin in the programming of his robot.
Robin’s Makito could walk and move its hands. It could do some little tasks. It could make a little sound to say ‘Yes’. It could say ‘No’ in a different sound. Robin was thrilled to see Makito do all the different things it had been programmed to do.
In the morning, Makito helped Robin tidy his room. In the evenings, it helped Mrs Yamawaki lay the table. Some days, it did not want to do anything, and would say ‘No’. Then it was left to rest in the box that had been specially made for it.
Robin had now completed a year at the factory. He prepared to leave for India. Soon he was on his way back home, with Makito in its special box. It lay safely in the luggage hold of the plane.
New Words / Phrases and their Use
1. glow (shine) – His eyes glowed with happiness when he got the prize.
2. curiosity (eagerness to know) – He had a natural curiosity to learn new things.
3. depression (state of feeling very sad) – She was in severe depression after her
husband’s death.
4. repetitive (repeated many times) – The repetitive nature of this job bores me
terribly.
5. programme (to give a machine to do a particular task instructions) – She
programmed the DVD-player to come on at eight.
6. shovel (lift and move things with a shovel) – The labourers were shovelling
snow from the road.
7. fascinated (attracted greatly); thrilled (very happy or excited) – The beauty of
the mountains fascinated / thrilled the tourists.
8. earthquake (a sudden movement of the earth) – There are frequent earthquakes
in Japan.
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Textual Comprehension
I. Answer each question briefly:
1. How did Robin look ? How old was he:
2. What was it that interested Robin most?
3. What happened to Robin’s mother?
4. What did the doctor say to Robin’s father and why?
5. What did Robin’s aunt do for Robin?
6. What was the first book on robots that Robin read?
7. What did the librarian at school say to Robin?
8. Why did Robin say to his father that he wanted to go to school?
9. What kind of robot did Robin want to make for himself?
10. What did Robin say to his father he wanted to learn?
11. Who was Mr Yamawaki ? What was his advice to Robin?
12. What are the four main islands of Japan?
13. What did Robin do while he was living in Japan?
14. What did Robin bring with him when he came back from Japan?
II. Put a tick (✓) or a cross (✗) for each statement:
1. Robin was very fond of playing games at school.
2. Robin had a very tall and slim body.
3. Robin never went to school after his mother’s death.
4. The librarian allowed Robin to keep the book for a week.
5. Robin’s father taught Robin how to make robots.
6. Robin learnt Japanese at the Cultural Centre in Japan.
7. Robin gave his robot a Japanese name, Makito.
8. Mount Fiji is the name of a volcanic mountain in Japan.
9. Mr Yamawaki took Robin to his factory in Japan daily.
10. Robin came back to India by air with his father.
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Vocabulary Enrichment
I. Fill in the names of people in each country:
COUNTRY PEOPLE
Japan
Australia
France
Greece
Poland
Burma
Italy
England
II. Look at these compound words:
white-skinned people dark-eyed lady
1 2 3 1 2 3
The word 1 above describes word 2; words 1 and 2 together describe word 3.
Now find the right word to complete the following compound words:
1. -toothed cat long
2. -witted student narrow
3. -fisted miser sharp
4. -handed batsman quick
5. -necked dress high
6. -minded lady left
7. -legged runner tight
III. Find from the lesson the opposites of the following words:
1. dull 5. irritated
2. ugly 6. partially
3. drop 7. ordinary
4. similar 8. dangerously
Japanese
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Grammar in Use
I. The following passage is on robots. There is one mistske in each line
of the passage. Underline the mistake and write the correct word on
the space given against each line:
In films, robots often looks like metal
peoples. They can walk, talk and even
think. Real robots are very difference.
They are machine with arms that can
move. We can program robots. This
mean they can be instructed to carry
out different task. These instructions
are store in the robot’s computer brain.
Most robots are use in industry. Some
work in places danger for humans.
II. Rewrite each sentence using not only ....... but also :
1. He was sad as well as depressed.
2. Robin was intelligent as well as curious.
3. Makito could walk as well as move his hands.
4. Robots work at machines as well as human beings.
5. The robot helped them in cleaning as well as in washing.
III. Rewrite each sentence in the Passive Form:
1. He spends all his time reading books.
2. He spent all his time reading books.
3. He will spend all his time reading books.
4. He is spending all his time reading books.
5. He was spending all his time reading books.
6. He has spent all his time reading books.
7. He had spent all his time reading books.
8. He will have spent all his time reading books.
All his time is spent reading books.
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Pronunciation Practice
A vowel (a / e / i / o / u) can have a short sound or a long sound, as ––
Short : had bed dish top mug
Long : tape seal kite cone tube
Rule : If a word (or syllable) has only one vowel and the vowel comes at
the beginning, or between two consonants, that vowel usually has a short
sound.
I. Put these words in two groups, according to their long or short sound:
at hit flat fish dish died
if sip ask wax cake back
an cap gift will bike milk
can ran late tick map lamp
zip pin tin rain has dime
II. Join the three parts (called syllables) of each word in the three different
boxes, and build a word. Say each part aloud while you write it.
lib tro ry
in gu ful
beau ti duce
lan ra age
Composition Writing
I. Write a paragraph on The Use of Robots in our Life.
II. You must be using a computer. Make chart for your class, showing the different parts of the computer.
III. Imagine that you have been to Japan. Write a few lines telling what you have learnt about that country.
IV. Suppose you are Robin. Send an e-mail to a friend of yours giving an account of Makito, the robot you have made.
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“Balle, Balle! O, Balle Balle! Children, you must have recognized this famous folk dance of Punjab,” said Mr Matthew, pointing at the
Bhangra dancers in front of the Punjab Pavilion.
“Yes, sir, we saw this folk dance during the Republic Day celebrations this year,” replied the children.
“This dance is full of energy. It shows the great zest for life of the
Punjabis,” said Mr Matthew. “Punjabis are very self-respecting and hard-working people. They never stretch their hands before anybody for alms. They never show their back in the battlefield. The people of Punjab faced all the foreign invasions boldly. During the struggle for India’s freedom, Punjab gave the country great heroes. They included
such patriots as Lala Lajpat Rai, Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev,
