NCERT Textbook: Magnifying Glass | English Poorvi Class 8 - New NCERT PDF Download

 Page 1


1. What is common in all these pictures? 
2. Select the pictures you are familiar with. 
3.Why do you think the people in the pictures need to use a 
magnifying glass? 
4. What other instruments magnify objects?
II If you have a magnifying glass, what would you like to use it for and 
why? Share your answers with your classmates and teacher.
Let us read
With this round glass
I can make Magic talk—
A myriad shells show
In a scrap of chalk;
Of but an inch of moss
A forest—flowers and trees;
A drop of water
Like hive of bees.
1. What is common in all these pictures? 
Why do you think the people in the pictures need to use a 
If you have a magnifying glass, what would you like to use it for and If you have a magnifying glass, what would you like to use it for and 
why? Share your answers with your classmates and teacher.
t us read
With this round glass
I can make Magic talk—
A myriad shells show
In a scrap of chalk;
Of but an inch of moss
A forest—flowers and trees;
A drop of water
Like hive of bees.
If you have a magnifying glass, what would you like to use it for and 
why? Share your answers with your classmates and teacher.
MAGNIFYING GLASS
Let us do these activities before we read.
I Work in pairs. Answer the questions that follow the pictures given below. 
Share your answers with your classmates and teacher.
Unit 5.indd   222 13-05-2025   15:41:59
Page 2


1. What is common in all these pictures? 
2. Select the pictures you are familiar with. 
3.Why do you think the people in the pictures need to use a 
magnifying glass? 
4. What other instruments magnify objects?
II If you have a magnifying glass, what would you like to use it for and 
why? Share your answers with your classmates and teacher.
Let us read
With this round glass
I can make Magic talk—
A myriad shells show
In a scrap of chalk;
Of but an inch of moss
A forest—flowers and trees;
A drop of water
Like hive of bees.
1. What is common in all these pictures? 
Why do you think the people in the pictures need to use a 
If you have a magnifying glass, what would you like to use it for and If you have a magnifying glass, what would you like to use it for and 
why? Share your answers with your classmates and teacher.
t us read
With this round glass
I can make Magic talk—
A myriad shells show
In a scrap of chalk;
Of but an inch of moss
A forest—flowers and trees;
A drop of water
Like hive of bees.
If you have a magnifying glass, what would you like to use it for and 
why? Share your answers with your classmates and teacher.
MAGNIFYING GLASS
Let us do these activities before we read.
I Work in pairs. Answer the questions that follow the pictures given below. 
Share your answers with your classmates and teacher.
Unit 5.indd   222 13-05-2025   15:41:59
223
Science and Curiosity
I lie in wait and watch
How the deft spider jets
The woven web-silk
From his spinnerets;
The tigerish claws he has!
And oh! the silly flies
The stumble into his net—
With all those eyes!
Not even the tiniest thing
But this my glass
Will make more marvellous
And itself surpass.
Yes, and with lenses like it,
Eyeing the moon,
‘Twould seem you’d walk there
In an afternoon!
Walter de la Mare
Let us discuss
I Complete the summary of the poem given below with suitable words 
from the poem.
  The poem describes the magic of seeing the world through a 
1. __________. It reveals how tiny things like 2. __________ and 3. __________ 
can appear vast and complex. Even a 4. __________ of water can seem 
like a hive of 5. __________. The poet is impressed at how the spider spins 
its 6. __________ from its 7. __________. The poem ends with the idea that, 
through lenses, the 8. __________ could seem within reach.
II Fill in the blanks by choosing the correct answer from the brackets. 
1. The main idea of the poem is the transformative power of __________ 
(wonders in nature/close observation) through the magnifying glass. 
2. The tone of the poem is __________ . (wonder and curiosity/peaceful 
and emotional)
3. The poem has __________ stanzas with __________ lines in each stanza. 
Hence, it is a quatrain. (four; six/six; four) 
4. The rhyme scheme of the poem is __________. (ABCD; ABCB)
Unit 5.indd   223 13-05-2025   15:42:01
Page 3


1. What is common in all these pictures? 
2. Select the pictures you are familiar with. 
3.Why do you think the people in the pictures need to use a 
magnifying glass? 
4. What other instruments magnify objects?
II If you have a magnifying glass, what would you like to use it for and 
why? Share your answers with your classmates and teacher.
Let us read
With this round glass
I can make Magic talk—
A myriad shells show
In a scrap of chalk;
Of but an inch of moss
A forest—flowers and trees;
A drop of water
Like hive of bees.
1. What is common in all these pictures? 
Why do you think the people in the pictures need to use a 
If you have a magnifying glass, what would you like to use it for and If you have a magnifying glass, what would you like to use it for and 
why? Share your answers with your classmates and teacher.
t us read
With this round glass
I can make Magic talk—
A myriad shells show
In a scrap of chalk;
Of but an inch of moss
A forest—flowers and trees;
A drop of water
Like hive of bees.
If you have a magnifying glass, what would you like to use it for and 
why? Share your answers with your classmates and teacher.
MAGNIFYING GLASS
Let us do these activities before we read.
I Work in pairs. Answer the questions that follow the pictures given below. 
Share your answers with your classmates and teacher.
Unit 5.indd   222 13-05-2025   15:41:59
223
Science and Curiosity
I lie in wait and watch
How the deft spider jets
The woven web-silk
From his spinnerets;
The tigerish claws he has!
And oh! the silly flies
The stumble into his net—
With all those eyes!
Not even the tiniest thing
But this my glass
Will make more marvellous
And itself surpass.
Yes, and with lenses like it,
Eyeing the moon,
‘Twould seem you’d walk there
In an afternoon!
Walter de la Mare
Let us discuss
I Complete the summary of the poem given below with suitable words 
from the poem.
  The poem describes the magic of seeing the world through a 
1. __________. It reveals how tiny things like 2. __________ and 3. __________ 
can appear vast and complex. Even a 4. __________ of water can seem 
like a hive of 5. __________. The poet is impressed at how the spider spins 
its 6. __________ from its 7. __________. The poem ends with the idea that, 
through lenses, the 8. __________ could seem within reach.
II Fill in the blanks by choosing the correct answer from the brackets. 
1. The main idea of the poem is the transformative power of __________ 
(wonders in nature/close observation) through the magnifying glass. 
2. The tone of the poem is __________ . (wonder and curiosity/peaceful 
and emotional)
3. The poem has __________ stanzas with __________ lines in each stanza. 
Hence, it is a quatrain. (four; six/six; four) 
4. The rhyme scheme of the poem is __________. (ABCD; ABCB)
Unit 5.indd   223 13-05-2025   15:42:01
Poorvi
224
III Pick examples from the poem for the following poetic devices.
1. Simile
2. Alliteration
3. Metaphor
IV The poem is rich in visual imagery, painting vivid pictures of small, 
everyday things magnified into something grand. 
1. In the line, ‘A myriad shells show in a scrap of chalk’, the magnifying 
glass reveals ______________________.
2. In the line, ‘A forest—flowers and trees’ the poet uses the imagery of 
nature to emphasise ______________________.
V Complete the following sentences with a reason.
1.The poet uses exclamation marks in lines, ‘The tigerish claws 
he has!’, ‘With all those eyes!’ and ‘In an afternoon!’ because it 
______________________.
2. In the phrase, ‘Magic talk’ the poet uses personification to describe the 
magnifying glass because it ______________________.
3. Each stanza follows a repetitive pattern of introducing a small or 
ordinary object and then describing the extraordinary details revealed 
through magnification. 
  This is because it supports the theme of __________ as the speaker 
reveals ____________. 
4. In the final stanza the poet shifts from small, everyday objects being 
magnified to a celestial body like moon because __________.
Let us think and reflect 
I Read the given extracts and answer the questions that follow.
1.  With this round glass
  I can make Magic talk—
  A myriad shells show
  In a scrap of chalk;
  Of but an inch of moss
  A forest—flowers and trees;
  (i) Identify whether the following statement is true or false.
    The poet uses his magical powers to make the round glass 
powerful.   
Unit 5.indd   224 13-05-2025   15:42:03
Page 4


1. What is common in all these pictures? 
2. Select the pictures you are familiar with. 
3.Why do you think the people in the pictures need to use a 
magnifying glass? 
4. What other instruments magnify objects?
II If you have a magnifying glass, what would you like to use it for and 
why? Share your answers with your classmates and teacher.
Let us read
With this round glass
I can make Magic talk—
A myriad shells show
In a scrap of chalk;
Of but an inch of moss
A forest—flowers and trees;
A drop of water
Like hive of bees.
1. What is common in all these pictures? 
Why do you think the people in the pictures need to use a 
If you have a magnifying glass, what would you like to use it for and If you have a magnifying glass, what would you like to use it for and 
why? Share your answers with your classmates and teacher.
t us read
With this round glass
I can make Magic talk—
A myriad shells show
In a scrap of chalk;
Of but an inch of moss
A forest—flowers and trees;
A drop of water
Like hive of bees.
If you have a magnifying glass, what would you like to use it for and 
why? Share your answers with your classmates and teacher.
MAGNIFYING GLASS
Let us do these activities before we read.
I Work in pairs. Answer the questions that follow the pictures given below. 
Share your answers with your classmates and teacher.
Unit 5.indd   222 13-05-2025   15:41:59
223
Science and Curiosity
I lie in wait and watch
How the deft spider jets
The woven web-silk
From his spinnerets;
The tigerish claws he has!
And oh! the silly flies
The stumble into his net—
With all those eyes!
Not even the tiniest thing
But this my glass
Will make more marvellous
And itself surpass.
Yes, and with lenses like it,
Eyeing the moon,
‘Twould seem you’d walk there
In an afternoon!
Walter de la Mare
Let us discuss
I Complete the summary of the poem given below with suitable words 
from the poem.
  The poem describes the magic of seeing the world through a 
1. __________. It reveals how tiny things like 2. __________ and 3. __________ 
can appear vast and complex. Even a 4. __________ of water can seem 
like a hive of 5. __________. The poet is impressed at how the spider spins 
its 6. __________ from its 7. __________. The poem ends with the idea that, 
through lenses, the 8. __________ could seem within reach.
II Fill in the blanks by choosing the correct answer from the brackets. 
1. The main idea of the poem is the transformative power of __________ 
(wonders in nature/close observation) through the magnifying glass. 
2. The tone of the poem is __________ . (wonder and curiosity/peaceful 
and emotional)
3. The poem has __________ stanzas with __________ lines in each stanza. 
Hence, it is a quatrain. (four; six/six; four) 
4. The rhyme scheme of the poem is __________. (ABCD; ABCB)
Unit 5.indd   223 13-05-2025   15:42:01
Poorvi
224
III Pick examples from the poem for the following poetic devices.
1. Simile
2. Alliteration
3. Metaphor
IV The poem is rich in visual imagery, painting vivid pictures of small, 
everyday things magnified into something grand. 
1. In the line, ‘A myriad shells show in a scrap of chalk’, the magnifying 
glass reveals ______________________.
2. In the line, ‘A forest—flowers and trees’ the poet uses the imagery of 
nature to emphasise ______________________.
V Complete the following sentences with a reason.
1.The poet uses exclamation marks in lines, ‘The tigerish claws 
he has!’, ‘With all those eyes!’ and ‘In an afternoon!’ because it 
______________________.
2. In the phrase, ‘Magic talk’ the poet uses personification to describe the 
magnifying glass because it ______________________.
3. Each stanza follows a repetitive pattern of introducing a small or 
ordinary object and then describing the extraordinary details revealed 
through magnification. 
  This is because it supports the theme of __________ as the speaker 
reveals ____________. 
4. In the final stanza the poet shifts from small, everyday objects being 
magnified to a celestial body like moon because __________.
Let us think and reflect 
I Read the given extracts and answer the questions that follow.
1.  With this round glass
  I can make Magic talk—
  A myriad shells show
  In a scrap of chalk;
  Of but an inch of moss
  A forest—flowers and trees;
  (i) Identify whether the following statement is true or false.
    The poet uses his magical powers to make the round glass 
powerful.   
Unit 5.indd   224 13-05-2025   15:42:03
Science and Curiosity
225
(ii) Select the line from the extract that expresses the presence of intricate 
patterns in ordinary objects.
(iii) What does the comparison of ‘an inch of moss’ to a ‘forest’ suggest 
about the speaker’s view of the world through the magnifying glass?
(iv) How does the poet feel about the ability of the magnifying glass to 
reveal hidden wonders?
A. Satisfied
B. Fascinated
C. Grateful
D. Determined
II Answer the following questions.
1. What is the significance of the spider in the poem?
2. How might the speaker’s view of the natural world change if there 
was no use of a magnifying glass?
3. Why does the poem end with the idea of the moon being within reach?
4.What is the speaker’s attitude towards nature and the act 
of observation?
5. Which is your favourite part of the poem? Why?
Let us learn
I Fill in the blanks in the sentences with the words given in the box below.
woven myriad deft
stumble surpass marvellous
  With his 1. ____________ description, the author has written the story 
beautifully 2. ____________with fascinating details. When you read the 
story, you will surely enjoy the 3. ____________storytelling technique 
that attracts all kinds of readers. What makes the story interesting is 
the superb way of describing the 4. ____________emotions and feelings of 
the characters. The reader will 5. ____________upon the unexpected twists 
and turns that 6. ____________ all our understanding and make us wonder 
at the narrative power of the author.
Unit 5.indd   225 13-05-2025   15:42:04
Page 5


1. What is common in all these pictures? 
2. Select the pictures you are familiar with. 
3.Why do you think the people in the pictures need to use a 
magnifying glass? 
4. What other instruments magnify objects?
II If you have a magnifying glass, what would you like to use it for and 
why? Share your answers with your classmates and teacher.
Let us read
With this round glass
I can make Magic talk—
A myriad shells show
In a scrap of chalk;
Of but an inch of moss
A forest—flowers and trees;
A drop of water
Like hive of bees.
1. What is common in all these pictures? 
Why do you think the people in the pictures need to use a 
If you have a magnifying glass, what would you like to use it for and If you have a magnifying glass, what would you like to use it for and 
why? Share your answers with your classmates and teacher.
t us read
With this round glass
I can make Magic talk—
A myriad shells show
In a scrap of chalk;
Of but an inch of moss
A forest—flowers and trees;
A drop of water
Like hive of bees.
If you have a magnifying glass, what would you like to use it for and 
why? Share your answers with your classmates and teacher.
MAGNIFYING GLASS
Let us do these activities before we read.
I Work in pairs. Answer the questions that follow the pictures given below. 
Share your answers with your classmates and teacher.
Unit 5.indd   222 13-05-2025   15:41:59
223
Science and Curiosity
I lie in wait and watch
How the deft spider jets
The woven web-silk
From his spinnerets;
The tigerish claws he has!
And oh! the silly flies
The stumble into his net—
With all those eyes!
Not even the tiniest thing
But this my glass
Will make more marvellous
And itself surpass.
Yes, and with lenses like it,
Eyeing the moon,
‘Twould seem you’d walk there
In an afternoon!
Walter de la Mare
Let us discuss
I Complete the summary of the poem given below with suitable words 
from the poem.
  The poem describes the magic of seeing the world through a 
1. __________. It reveals how tiny things like 2. __________ and 3. __________ 
can appear vast and complex. Even a 4. __________ of water can seem 
like a hive of 5. __________. The poet is impressed at how the spider spins 
its 6. __________ from its 7. __________. The poem ends with the idea that, 
through lenses, the 8. __________ could seem within reach.
II Fill in the blanks by choosing the correct answer from the brackets. 
1. The main idea of the poem is the transformative power of __________ 
(wonders in nature/close observation) through the magnifying glass. 
2. The tone of the poem is __________ . (wonder and curiosity/peaceful 
and emotional)
3. The poem has __________ stanzas with __________ lines in each stanza. 
Hence, it is a quatrain. (four; six/six; four) 
4. The rhyme scheme of the poem is __________. (ABCD; ABCB)
Unit 5.indd   223 13-05-2025   15:42:01
Poorvi
224
III Pick examples from the poem for the following poetic devices.
1. Simile
2. Alliteration
3. Metaphor
IV The poem is rich in visual imagery, painting vivid pictures of small, 
everyday things magnified into something grand. 
1. In the line, ‘A myriad shells show in a scrap of chalk’, the magnifying 
glass reveals ______________________.
2. In the line, ‘A forest—flowers and trees’ the poet uses the imagery of 
nature to emphasise ______________________.
V Complete the following sentences with a reason.
1.The poet uses exclamation marks in lines, ‘The tigerish claws 
he has!’, ‘With all those eyes!’ and ‘In an afternoon!’ because it 
______________________.
2. In the phrase, ‘Magic talk’ the poet uses personification to describe the 
magnifying glass because it ______________________.
3. Each stanza follows a repetitive pattern of introducing a small or 
ordinary object and then describing the extraordinary details revealed 
through magnification. 
  This is because it supports the theme of __________ as the speaker 
reveals ____________. 
4. In the final stanza the poet shifts from small, everyday objects being 
magnified to a celestial body like moon because __________.
Let us think and reflect 
I Read the given extracts and answer the questions that follow.
1.  With this round glass
  I can make Magic talk—
  A myriad shells show
  In a scrap of chalk;
  Of but an inch of moss
  A forest—flowers and trees;
  (i) Identify whether the following statement is true or false.
    The poet uses his magical powers to make the round glass 
powerful.   
Unit 5.indd   224 13-05-2025   15:42:03
Science and Curiosity
225
(ii) Select the line from the extract that expresses the presence of intricate 
patterns in ordinary objects.
(iii) What does the comparison of ‘an inch of moss’ to a ‘forest’ suggest 
about the speaker’s view of the world through the magnifying glass?
(iv) How does the poet feel about the ability of the magnifying glass to 
reveal hidden wonders?
A. Satisfied
B. Fascinated
C. Grateful
D. Determined
II Answer the following questions.
1. What is the significance of the spider in the poem?
2. How might the speaker’s view of the natural world change if there 
was no use of a magnifying glass?
3. Why does the poem end with the idea of the moon being within reach?
4.What is the speaker’s attitude towards nature and the act 
of observation?
5. Which is your favourite part of the poem? Why?
Let us learn
I Fill in the blanks in the sentences with the words given in the box below.
woven myriad deft
stumble surpass marvellous
  With his 1. ____________ description, the author has written the story 
beautifully 2. ____________with fascinating details. When you read the 
story, you will surely enjoy the 3. ____________storytelling technique 
that attracts all kinds of readers. What makes the story interesting is 
the superb way of describing the 4. ____________emotions and feelings of 
the characters. The reader will 5. ____________upon the unexpected twists 
and turns that 6. ____________ all our understanding and make us wonder 
at the narrative power of the author.
Unit 5.indd   225 13-05-2025   15:42:04
226
Poorvi
II The collective noun ‘a hive of bees’, is used in the poem. Match 
the phrases in Column 1 with suitable words in Column 2 to make 
collective nouns.
Column 1 Column 2
1. a swarm of (i) ships
2. a constellation of (ii) soldiers
3. a grove of (iii) dancers
4. a troupe of (iv) locusts 
5. a battalion of (v) trees
6. a fleet of  (vi) stars
III The poet uses the expression ‘eyeing the moon’ in the poem. Match the 
idiomatic expressions with ‘eye’ given in Column 1 with their meanings 
in Column 2. You may refer to a dictionary.
Column 1 Column 2
1. apple of one’s eye (i) watch something or someone 
closely
2. in the blink of an eye (ii) act as if you do not see or 
notice 
3. keep an eye on something or 
somebody
(iii) something that happens very 
quickly
4. turn a blind eye (iv) an overall look at something
5. see eye to eye (v) a person who is very precious 
or important
6. bird’s-eye view (vi) agree with each other
IV The poet uses the adjective form ‘tigerish’ in the poem by adding the 
suffix -‘ish’ to the noun ‘tiger’. In the same way, we can make adjectives 
by adding the suffix -‘ish’ to some nouns. 
  Choose the nouns to which you can add the suffix -‘ish’ to make adjectives.  
girl glass book silk
boy water moon scrap
Unit 5.indd   226 13-05-2025   15:42:05