The Hundred Dresses - I Class 10 Worksheet English Chapter 1

Q.1. Why did Wanda Petronski sit in the last row?

Wanda had no friends. She came alone to school and went back alone. She sat in the corner of the last row in Room Thirteen. She wore a faded blue dress and her shoes were covered with dry mud.

Q.2. Where in the classroom does Wanda sit and why?

Wanda used to sit in that corner of the classroom where the rough boys sat, the boys who got the lowest marks and had the loudest laughter. No one ever knew why she really sat there but there were guesses that it was because of the dirt her shoes carried from all the mud.

Q.3. What kind of girl was Peggy?

Peggy was a pretty and popular girl in the class. She was a sensitive girl who protected small children from bullies. She cried for hours if she saw an animal mistreated. She would join Maddie while enquiring about her dresses and shoes. Though her intentions were not to be rude or cruel, she did so to have fun.

Q.4. Where does Wanda live? What kind of a place do you think it is?

Wanda lived in Boggins Heights. According to the description given in the chapter, it was that part of the city or town where poor people lived. The place was filled with mud which is where Wanda got the dirt on her shoes from.

Q.5. What do you think “to have fun with her” means?

“To have fun with her” means to tease her about the hundred dresses she claimed to have which is contradictory to the fact that she always wore the same faded blue dress.

Q.6. What did Peggy and other girls think about Wanda Petronski? How was she different from other girls?

Peggy and other girls hardly noticed Wanda Petronski’s presence or absence in the class. Wanda sat in the last row in the class. Only ‘rough boys’ who never got good marks and made a lot of noise sat in that corner. A lot of dirt and mud could be found on the floor there. Nobody knew why she sat there. Wanda lived at Boggins Heights and her footwear carried a lot of dry mud with her from there. Girls found her coming to school and going home alone. She had no friends. Peggy, Maddie and others talked to Wanda only when she was outside the class. Peggy particularly enjoyed making fun of Wanda. Maddie would mockingly ask Wanda uncomfortable questions about her hundred dresses and sixty pairs of shoes. None believed that a poor girl like Wanda who usually wore a faded blue dress could have a hundred dresses. Peggy thought that Wanda was telling a lie. Maddie was different. She didn’t like Peggy making fun of Wanda. She wished Peggy would stop teasing Wanda in that manner.

Q.7. What does Miss Mason think of Wanda’s drawings? What do the children think of them? How do you know?

Miss Mason thought of Wanda’s drawings to be wonderful. She even said that judges liked it so much and thought any one of them to be worthy of winning. The children too, were awestruck at the sight of such beautiful paintings. It is evident from the fact that the boys, who had no interest in dresses, were whistling and Peggy who thought of herself to be the best artist, accepted that Wanda’s drawings were amazing.

Q.8. Compare and contrast Peggy and Maddie. Why couldn’t Maddie stop Peggy from teasing Wanda Petronski?

Peggy and Maddie were two close friends. They belonged to different financial and cultural backgrounds. Peggy was pretty and had many beautiful dresses. Maddie, on the other hand, was from a poor family. Peggy used to hand over her old clothes to Maddie. Maddie’s mother would cover up the old clothes with new trimmings which would make it difficult for the other classmates to recognize them.
The girls would sit on the first row .Peggy was very good at drawing. Everyone felt that Peggy would win the girl’s medal in the drawing and colouring competition.Maddie felt uncomfortable when Peggy teased Wanda and wished she would stop doing so.

Q.9. Why does Maddie stand by and not do anything? How is she different from Peggy? (Was Peggy’s friendship important to Maddie? Why? Which lines in the text tell you this?)

Maddie stands quietly and watches as Peggy humiliates Wanda because she felt that Peggy was high and mighty. Thus, Peggy could never be wrong. As Maddie was poor herself, she feared that she could be the next target for the girls to mock at. Also, Maddie did not tease Wanda while Peggy did. Yes, Peggy’s friendship was important to Maddie. The lines which indicate this are:

“Peggy was the most popular girl in school. She was pretty, she had many pretty clothes and her hair was curly. Maddie was her closest friend.”

Q.10. How is Wanda seen as different by the other girls? How do they treat her?

Other girls saw Wanda as poor and vulnerable. She had a strange name, did not make friends and remained quiet. She sat in the corner with the rough and noisy boys. Wanda always wore the same dress and came from a place full of mud on the roads. The other girls treated her badly and belittled her. They made fun of Wanda.