This post provides detailed solutions and activities for the poem "A Friend’s Prayer" by Jill Wolf, as featured in the NCERT Class 6 English Poorvi textbook. It is designed especially for sixth-grade students to help them understand the poem’s meaning, reflect on friendship, and practice related language skills. Whether you are a student, teacher, or parent, this guide will support learning through discussion, reflection, listening, speaking, and writing exercises.
Let us discuss
1. Read the poem silently. As you read, underline the parts of the poem that you agree with.
Students underline the following lines:
- “May my friendships always be, The most important thing to me.”
- “So let me give my very best.”
- “But love my friends the way they are.”
2. Now, share the details of your underlined parts of the poem in groups and explain why you liked those lines.
Students’ responses:
- “I liked the line ‘May my friendships always be, The most important thing to me’ because it tells us how valuable friendship is.”
- “I feel ‘So let me give my very best’ is good as it reminds us to always try to help our friends.”
- “I liked ‘But love my friends the way they are’ because it shows that we should accept our friends without judging them.”
3. Which line was underlined by most people in your group? Share it with your teacher.
Most students underlined the line: “But love my friends the way they are.”
Let us think and reflect
I Complete the summary of the poem by circling the correct highlighted words.
The poet says a prayer for friendship and friends. She wants that friendship should always be an important part of her complete life. She says that her friendship makes her feel special. She wishes to do the best she can, for her friends. She wants to listen to the wishes of her friends. As a good friend, she prays that she is able to make her friends’ wishes come true. She wants her heart to understand what a true friend is. She prays that she loves her friends as they are. She tells us that true friends accept their friends for all their qualities.
II Answer in one word only.
- How does the poet feel about special friends?
Blessed - What does the poet use to realise what friends can be?
Heart
III Read the following lines from the poem and answer the questions given below.
1. I want to do much more than share
The hopes and plans of friends who care;
I’ll try all that a friend can do
To make their wishes come true.
(i) Complete the sentence with the most suitable option.
These lines tell us that the speaker is _______________.
B. caring
(ii) How will the speaker make her friends’ wishes come true?
By trying hard
(iii) Fill in the blank with a suitable word.
My friends will feel happy if their wishes come true.
2. Let me use my heart to see,
To realise what friends can be,
And make no judgements from afar,
But love my friends the way they are.
(i) The speaker says that feelings are important to understand friendship. Which line tells us this?
“Let me use my heart to see, To realise what friends can be.”
(ii) Complete the sentence with the most suitable option.
These lines tell us that the speaker is _______________.
B. thoughtful
(iii) Fill in the blank with one word.
The speaker does not wish to make any judgements. She cares for them just as they are.
IV Give one reason why we can say that this poem is a prayer.
We can say this poem is a prayer because the poet is asking with love and hope for the good of her friends.
V Why does the speaker ‘want to do more’ for her friend?
The speaker wants to do more for her friends because she truly cares for them and wishes to make them happy.
VI Do you think that the speaker knows about the wishes of her friend? How can we say so?
Yes, the speaker knows about the wishes of her friends because she says she will try to make their wishes come true.
VII Do you also pray for your friend? What do you wish for? Discuss.
Students’ responses may vary. Example: “Yes, I also pray for my friends. I wish for their happiness, good health and success in life.”
Let us learn
I The poet says, ‘With special friends I feel I’m blessed’.
Select the words that are similar to the meaning of being blessed, from those given below.
- grateful
- understood
- thankful
II Good friends have a lot of qualities. Let us list some.
- loyal
- helpful
- kind
- caring
- honest
Now, fill in the blanks with the words you just listed above.
- My friend is always helpful to me even when I make a mistake.
- My friend shares things with me. She is very caring.
- My friend is kind because he always supports me.
- My friend never lies. She is an honest person.
- My friend and I believe in loyalty for each other.
Let us listen
I. You will listen to a talk about some outdoor activities that two friends spend their time doing. As you listen, answer the given question in one or two word(s) only.
- What do the two friends purchase and use on the park bench?
Comic book
II. You will once again listen to the talk about some outdoor activities of the two friends. As you listen, circle the pictures that show these activities.
The correct pictures are:
- Picture 1: Two friends reading a book on a park bench
- Picture 2: Cycling
- Picture 3: Eating ice-cream
- Picture 4: Walking together in the park
- Picture 5: Sitting on a mat and reading together
- Picture 6: Cycling together
Activities done by Ajay and Dhiraj: Playing on swings, taking walks, looking at birds and trees, cycling, eating ice-cream, and reading a comic book together.
Let us speak
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In pairs, act the role of friends speaking to each other. Speak about the following situations:
1. A walk in the park
Amit: Hi Rahul! How are you?
Rahul: Hi Amit! I am good. How are you?
Amit: I am fine. Do you want to go to the park with me today?
Rahul: Yes, I would love to!
Amit: Great! What activities should we do in the park?
Rahul: We can play on the swings and look at the trees.
Amit: That sounds fun. I like spending time with you.
Rahul: Me too. I enjoy our walks in the park.
2. Sharing tiffins at school
Priya: Hello Anu! How are you today?
Anu: Hi Priya! I am good. What did you bring for tiffin?
Priya: I brought sandwiches. What did you bring?
Anu: I have some fruit and biscuits.
Priya: Let’s share our tiffins!
Anu: Yes, please. Here, take some fruit.
Priya: Thank you. Your biscuits are tasty! What other foods do you like?
Anu: I like noodles too.
Priya: Sharing tiffin makes me happy.
Anu: Me too. Thank you for sharing, Priya.
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Create a new situation and have another conversation.
Situation: Making a project together
Sameer: Hi Rohan! Do you want to make the Science project together?
Rohan: Yes, Sameer. That will be fun.
Sameer: What should we make?
Rohan: Let’s make a volcano model.
Sameer: Great idea! I will bring the clay and you can bring colours.
Rohan: Sure. Working together is always helpful.
Sameer: Yes, I enjoy doing projects with you!
Let us write
When? Last year
Where? At school
How? We met each other in the same class and became friends when we helped each other in studies.
A New Friendship
My friendship with my best friend started last year at school. We were both new students in the sixth class and did not know many people. One day, I forgot my notebook at home and my friend shared his notebook with me without hesitation. We started talking and soon found that we have many common interests, like reading stories and playing cricket. We began helping each other in studies and played together during breaks. Gradually, we became very good friends. I am very happy to have a caring and loyal friend.
