CBSE Class 9 English Chapter 1 - "How I taught my Grandmother to Read" Notes
These CBSE Class 9 English Notes, based on the Revised CBSE syllabus and "Kaveri" textbook, are concise and exam-focused, covering key points likely to appear in exams and saving revision time.
For Chapter 9, "How I Taught My Grandmother to Read" by Sudha Murty, they highlight values like the joy of learning, the grandparent-grandchild bond, and the idea that learning has no age limit. Given its emotional depth, the notes capture the message that determination and curiosity enable learning at any age, including a summary, character sketches, theme, and important Q&As.
1.0Download CBSE Notes in Class 9 How I taught my Grandmother to Read PDF
CBSE Notes for Class 9 English Chapter 1 "How I Taught My Grandmother to Read" are available for download to help students revise quickly and score well in exams.
2.0Class 9 English Chapter 1 How I taught my Grandmother to Read - Summary
About the Author – Sudha Murty
Sudha Murty (born 19 August 1950) is a writer in English and Kannada, and a social worker known for her benevolent work through the Infosys Foundation. This chapter is taken from her book How I Taught My Grandmother to Read and Other Stories, translated into fifteen languages. She also works towards rural development and computer education in government schools, and is a member of the Gates Foundation's healthcare initiatives.
Theme of the Chapter
Learning has no age, gender, or race. The chapter shows that passion, hard work, determination, and humility are needed to acquire knowledge at any stage of life — even old age is no barrier to picking up a new skill.
Character Sketch of Krishtakka (Grandmother)
Krishtakka was an affectionate and devoted grandmother who took loving care of her family. Though illiterate, she had a deep love for stories and looked forward to hearing them read aloud from her favourite weekly magazine. Her inability to read on her own left her dependent on others, but her later willingness to learn — despite her age — shows humility, determination, and a genuine thirst for knowledge. Her gesture of touching her granddaughter's feet as a mark of respect for teaching her also reveals her humbleness and gratitude.
Character Sketch of the Narrator (Author/Granddaughter)
The narrator was a young girl deeply attached to her grandmother. On realising her grandmother's distress at being unable to read, she took the responsibility of teaching her within a fixed deadline, showing patience and commitment. She also gracefully accepted her grandmother's gesture of respect, understanding that learning does not depend on age or role.
The Story Within the Story — Kashi Yatre
An old woman wished to go on a pilgrimage to Kashi but instead used her savings to fund an orphan girl's marriage, realising that serving a helpless child was a greater pilgrimage than the trip itself.
The Turning Point in the Story
Krishtakka broke down after failing to read the magazine on her own during her granddaughter's week-long absence. This moment led the narrator to promise teaching her to read, with a deadline fixed for Dussehra.
The Dussehra Gesture
After learning to read within the deadline, Krishtakka touched her granddaughter's feet in the temple and gifted her a frock, honouring her as a teacher despite their reversed roles — grandmother as student, granddaughter as teacher.
Moral of the Story
One must set aside pride and arrogance to gain knowledge. Krishtakka, despite being older, humbly accepted her granddaughter as her teacher — proving that the desire to learn matters more than age, status, or ego.
Power Vocabulary
3.0Other Study Materials for Class 9 English
Students can use additional study materials along with these notes, such as:
4.0Why CBSE Notes for Class 9 English Chapter 1: How I taught my Grandmother to Read
- Simplifies a value-based chapter – The chapter carries emotional and moral depth (learning has no age), and notes break this down into clear points instead of re-reading the full narrative.
- Quick access to author background – Notes provide a ready summary of Sudha Murty's life and works, often asked in "About the Author" questions, without needing to search separately.
- Clarifies the story-within-a-story structure – The chapter includes the Kashi Yatre tale inside the main narrative; notes help students distinguish between the two plots and understand how they connect thematically.
- Strengthens character understanding – Ready character sketches of Krishtakka and the narrator help students grasp specific traits like Krishtakka's humility and devotion, or the narrator's patience and commitment.
- Highlights the central theme and moral clearly – Since the message ("learning has no age, gender, or race") and the Dussehra gesture are central to exam answers, notes ensure students don't miss these while focusing only on the storyline.
- Builds chapter-specific vocabulary – Word meanings and synonyms drawn directly from the chapter (ardent, savouring, immensely, taken aback) help students understand the exact context in which these words appear in the story.