Chapter 15 of the NCERT Class 6 English textbook, titled "Ila Sachani: Weaving Dreams with All of Her Toes", contains an inspirational story about a woman who develops her skills as an embroiderer using her toes while not having hands. The perseverance, innovation, and bravery of Ila Sachani teach students to view obstacles in their journey as opportunities to work even harder towards success.
The NCERT Solutions of chapter 15 provide users with a clearer understanding of the story through the inclusion of glossaries, definitions of key terms, activities and practice questions for preparing for their examinations.
This chapter shares the inspiring journey of Ila Sachani, who in spite of physically challenged hands, created beautiful embroidery using her feet. These NCERT Solutions for Class 6 English Chapter 15 make the lesson easy to understand and help students prepare for exams. Download the free PDF to revise quickly and practise all the solutions from below:
This chapter teaches students about strength, courage, and how determination can help overcome even the biggest challenges in life.
Key Lessons from the Chapter:
I. Look at the given picture and information. Discuss the questions with your teacher and classmates.
Pranav M. Balasubramaniam is from Palakkad in Kerala. Though he was born without both hands, he has excelled as an artist, a singer, and a para-sportsperson.
1. Do you think Pranav's task is simple? Why or why not?
Ans. Pranava's feat of becoming a successful singer, artist, and athlete without using both hands is incredibly challenging and unmatched.
2. How does Pranav's special ability make you feel?
Ans. Pranav's unique ability to succeed in his chosen fields despite not having hands makes me both incredibly proud of him and in awe of his incredibly challenging accomplishment.
3. What qualities do you think were important for Pranav to become successful?
Ans. The key qualities crucial for Pranav's success include:
4. What message does Pranav's story give us?
Ans. The powerful message of Pranav's story is that one's potential and abilities are not limited by their physical limitations. It emphasises how important resilience, inventiveness, and an optimistic outlook are when overcoming challenges. His story encourages others to pursue their goals and not let obstacles stop them.
II. Look at the picture of Kathiawar embroidery. Discuss in pairs.
1. List the steps you think are needed to create this embroidery.
Ans. Drawing the design on the fabric.
Selecting suitable threads and colors.
Tautly stretching and securing the fabric in a frame or hoop.
Applying different embroidery methods to craft the design.
Securing loose threads and making final adjustments.
Washing and ironing the completed work.
2. Discuss if these steps can be done with feet, instead of hands.
Ans: Although extremely difficult, these steps can be done with feet instead of hands. It would however, require extreme levels of patience, practice and hardwork.
3. What efforts would be needed if someone has to embroider with their feet? Do you think it is possible?
Ans: It would take a lot of work and adjustment to embroider feet. The main difficulties and endeavours involved are as follows:
1. Specialised Equipment: To hold and stabilise the fabric, a specially designed setup or frame would be required. This may entail foot-controlled mechanisms and movable supports.
2. Foot Training: It would be crucial to develop exact control and foot dexterity. Effective use of the needle and threads would necessitate a great deal of coordination and practice.
3. Adapted Techniques: Conventional embroidery methods would have to be changed. For foot use, techniques that normally call for fine motor skills with the hands would need to be modified.
4. Strength and Endurance: Embroidering with feet requires both the ability to work for extended periods of time and strong, nimble foot muscles.
5.Assistive Tools: Custom tools or adaptations might be necessary, such as foot pedals for guiding the needle or stabilizing the fabric.
Read the paragraphs and write the main idea for each. Then, match the main idea with two supporting details.
Ans:
I. Read the following lines and answer the questions that follow.
Unlike other children, she could not use her hands in the usual way. While other small hands drew figures in the sand or plucked wild flowers, she wondered why she could not join them. She too wanted to hold a chalk in her hands and draw figures on a slate.
1. Choose the correct option to fill in the blank.
'Unlike other children' means that Ila was ___________. (unaware/ different/simple)
2. What could Ila have felt when she could not join others in things they did?
3. Complete the following with a suitable reason.
Ila could not draw figures on the slate because ___________.
Ans. 1. different
2. Ila likely felt frustration and sadness at not being able to join others in activities they enjoyed. She may have experienced a strong desire to participate and a sense of isolation or inadequacy due to her physical limitations.
3. Ila could not draw figures on the slate because she was born with her hands hanging loosely by her sides, making it difficult for her to use them in the usual way.
II. What creative ways did Ila and her family use to overcome the challenges she faced?
Ans. They instructed her on how to create many beautiful patterns using her feet, overcoming her physical challenges.
III. How did 'new independence' help Ila?
Ans. Ila benefited from her "new independence" since it allowed her to use her feet to complete tasks and express her creativity. She was able to overcome her physical limitations, build her confidence, and become proficient in embroidery, all of which gave her a sense of independence and success.
IV. Why was the first state exhibition an important event in Ila's life?
Ans. Ila's life was significantly impacted by the first state exhibition since it gave her a chance to display her distinctive needlework abilities and receive praise for her gift. It was an important turning point that confirmed her hard work and dedication and showed her accomplishments in spite of her physical limitations.
V. What does the sentence, 'art has the power to rise above physical boundaries and touch the soul', tell us about the power of art?
Ans.The statement, "art has the power to rise above physical boundaries and touch the soul," suggests that art has a profound emotional and spiritual impact in addition to transcending physical boundaries. It implies that art has the power to profoundly and personally connect with people, providing motivation, solace, and a sense of community that transcends geographical boundaries.
VI. How can we be helpful and encouraging like Ila's family and friends when someone faces challenges
Ans. Like Ila's family and friends, we can support them by providing helpful advice, listening with empathy, promoting tenacity, sharing resources, and acknowledging their particular difficulties.
VII. How can Ila's story help others to overcome challenges in their lives?
Ans. Ila's story can serve as an inspiration to others by demonstrating how perseverance, ingenuity, and teamwork can overcome major obstacles. Her accomplishments in spite of her physical limitations inspire others to persevere and come up with creative solutions in their own lives.
I. Read the words from the text given in Column A. Then, try to understand what they mean by reading the sentences in Column B. Now, match the word to its correct synonym in Column C. There are two extra synonyms given. You may refer to the dictionary.
Ans.
Tiny - small
Wonderful - fantastic
Quiet - silent
Task - work
Tough - difficult
II. Unscramble the antonyms of the words in Column A. An example has been given for you.
Example: display - EDIH (HIDE )
1. tiny-EGH U (H _ _ _ )
2. wonderful-REEBLITR(T_R_ _B _E)
3. quiet-IYNSO (N _ _ _ _ )
4. task-S I A E M T P (P_S T_ _ E)
5. tough - SEYA (E_ _ _)
Use these antonyms in sentences of your own.
Ans:
1. HUGE
2. TERRIBLE
3. NOISY
4. PASTTIME
5. EASY
III. Read the sentences from the text and focus on the highlighted words.
1. The highlighted words tell us about the quantity. Choose what the words show.
(i) Unmentioned quantity
(ii) Large quantity
Ans. Large Quantity
2. Let us now understand what words of quantity tell us.
Fill in the blanks to complete an example for each word of quantity. Hints are given in the brackets.
Ans.
You will listen to a talk about Kathiawar embroidery. As you listen, circle the correct option.
1. Form
(i) old
(ii) new
Ans. old
2. Colours
(i) soft
(ii) bright
Ans. bright
3. Stitches
(i) running stitch
(ii) chain stitch
Ans. Chain stitch
4. Seen on
(i) children’s caps
(ii) pants
Ans. children’s caps
5. Things used
(i) small mirrors
(ii) shapes of buttons
Ans. small mirrors
6. Designs
(i) Elephants and horses
(ii) squares and triangles
Ans. squares and triangles
Let us speak
In pairs, write down two questions you would like to ask Ila Sachani.
1. Look at two examples.
Where were you born? Did you go to school? The Yes/No questions use a rising tone at the end.
Ans.
The questions I would love to ask Ila Sachani are:
1.How did you start learning to use your feet for your embroidery?
2.What did you do when you felt like giving up?
2. Speak the example questions aloud as a peer activity at least five times.
Ans. Do it yourself
3. Now, take turns to ask your questions to another classmate. Speak clearly and with the correct rising tone as shown in (a).
Ans. Do it yourself
(Session 2026 - 27)