NCERT Solutions for Class 10 English First Flight Chapter 5 The Hundred Dresses Part 1

NCERT Solutions for CBSE Class 10 English First Flight Chapter 5 The Hundred Dresses Part 1 are provided here. This story is written by El Bsor Ester and includes many questions that are important for exams. We have solved all the NCERT questions of the lesson with a detailed explanation that help students to complete their assignments & homework. We have provided NCERT Solutions for Class 10 English First Flight Chapter 5 The Hundred Dresses Part 1 in PDF format so that you can download them for offline use.

Class 10 English First Flight Chapter 5 NCERT Questions and Answers

Oral Comprehension Check (Page 65)

Question 1. Where in the classroom does Wanda sit and why?

Answer: Wanda Petronski used to sit on the corner most benches, lost in her world, where rough boys usually sat. She was a very poor, shy and quiet girl and did not want to mess with others so she preferred to sit in isolation.

Question 2. Where does Wanda live? What kind of a place do you think it is?

Answer: Wanda lived at Boggins Heights. It seems that it was a place far away from the school and also, where there was a lot of dry mud, thereby, indicating that it was not a very rich locality.

Question 3. When and Why do Peggy and Maddie notice Wanda’s absence?

Answer: Wanda didn’t come to school on Monday and Tuesday but nobody noticed her absence as she did not have friends in the class. When Peggy and Maddie waited for Wanda to make fun of her after the school was off, they noticed that she was absent, otherwise nobody bothered about her there.

Question 4. What do you think “to have fun with her” means?

Answer: Peggy and Maddie notice Wanda’s absence after three days, i.e., on Wednesday because they wanted to be with her for a lot of fun. They waited for her for a long time, but she didn’t turn up.Wanda was a quiet and shy girl who was ashamed of dust laden feet. The girls used to make fun of her. This gave them a lot of pleasure, therefore, they wanted to have fun with her.

Oral Comprehension Check (Page 67)

Question 1. In what way was Wanda different from the other children?

Answer: Wanda Petronski was a polish girl whose parents had settled down in America. She was a source of fun because of her last name which made her different from others, because Americans did not have such names and it was difficult to pronounce.

She came to school alone and her feet were covered with mud. She preferred to sit alone in the last in the class. She had only one blue dress which was faded but claimed of having a hundred dresses. These qualities make her different from other children.

Question 2. Did Wanda have a hundred dresses? Why do you think she said she did?

Answer:  No, Wanda did not have a hundred dresses because she was poor and wore the same faded dress to school every day. She had an inferiority complex. In order to hide the complex and impress the other girls, she always said that she had a hundred dresses.

Question 3. Why is Maddie embarrassed by the questions Peggy asks Wanda? Is she also like Wanda, or is she different?

Answer: Maddie is embarrassed by the questions Peggy asks Wanda because she is also poor and understands the mental condition of Wanda. She also wears dresses handed down by rich family. Though, she is an American but she has the same mind-set as Wanda and doesn’t want anyone to tease Wanda because of her dress or her name.

Oral Comprehension Check (Page 70)

Question 1. Why didn’t Maddie ask Peggy to stop teasing Wanda? What was she afraid of?

Answer: Maddie tried to tell Peggy to stop teasing Wanda by writing a note to her. She knew she would never have the courage to speak to Peggy about this matter. As she was writing the note, she pictured herself in the school yard as a new target for Peggy and the girls. She thought Peggy might ask her where she got the dress she had on and she would have to say that it was one of Peggy’s old ones. This was what she was afraid of. Consequently, she ended up tearing the note.

Question 2. Who did Maddie think would win the drawing contest? Why?

Answer: Maddie always believed that Peggy would win the drawing contest as she was good in drawing and everybody in the school loved her. She had a good image and impression on her teachers and classmates. No other girl in the class could draw as well as her. So, Peggy definitely had very good chances of winning the drawing contest according to Maddie.

Question 3. Who won the drawing contest? What had the winner drawn?

Answer: Wanda won the drawing contest. She had drawn a hundred dresses, which were dazzling with colours, and had brilliant and lavish designs. They were all drawn on great sheets of wrapping paper. They were all different from each other and all beautiful. The judges said that any one of the drawings was worthy of winning the prize.

Thinking about the Text

Question 1. How is Wanda seen as different by the other girls? How do they treat her?

Answer: Wanda is a polish girl who has setded in America with her parents. She lived in Boggin’s Height. She came to school in same faded blue dress everyday with her feet always covered with mud. Her last name is quite funny and difficult to pronounce for her classmates. Her appearance was not perfect to be in a higher class so all the students made fun of her and teased her after the school hours. After being teased over her tolerance she ) claimed to have had a hundred dresses in her closet.

Question 2. How does Wanda feel about the dresses game? Why does she say that she has a hundred dresses?

Answer: Wanda feels very embarrassed but remains silent in the class. She doesn’t talk to anyone and sits on the back bench with rough boys so that nobody can give attention to her. She is deeply hurt but never complains about it. To avoid their taunts and humiliation, Wanda says that she has a hundred dresses and sixty pairs of matching shoes in her closet. Later on, she draws all of them on paper for the drawing competition.

Question 3. Why does Maddie stand by and does not do anything? How is she different from Peggy? or (was Peggy’s friendship important to Maddie? Why? Which lines in the text tell you this?

Answer: Wanda did not show any feelings regarding the dresses game. It is most likely that she was deeply hurt. It could have been one of the reasons why her family left the place and moved to the city.

She was a poor girl who travelled a long distance which made her feet dirty. Wanting to draw the attention of her friends, she felt very happy whenever she told her friends that she had a hundred dresses without realizing that they were making fun of her.

Question 4. What does Miss Mason think of Wanda’s drawings? What do the children think of them? How do you know?

Answer: Miss Mason was very impressed with Wanda’s drawings. She felt that each dress was drawn beautifully and was worthy to win the contest individually. The children were also impressed by Wanda’s drawing skills as they all applauded her and the boys who didn’t understand much about dresses also whistled in appreciation when she won the drawing contest among the girls.