Class 6 English · Original EZT practice
Rama to the Rescue (Class 6 English Chapter 3): a folk tale about presence of mind
A thief breaks into a house at night - and a clever husband and wife foil him without any weapons, simply by calling out a name. Rama to the Rescue is an Amar Chitra Katha folk tale in Poorvi Unit 1, Fables and Folk Tales, about presence of mind and the village kotwal who comes running when he hears his name. Below: a summary, word meanings, comprehension practice and grammar work on contractions. (Note: this is original practice, not a textbook exercise key.)
6 original worked examples, 6 fresh self-check questions and 4 mixed questions, with explained answers. These are not copied textbook exercises, an official chapter index or a full answer key. No affiliation with NCERT is claimed.
Official sources for topic and edition context, checked 22 October 2026:
1. Story summary and characters
A man and his wife, awake at night, hear a thief enter their house. They loudly call out 'Rama' as if talking to each other - and Rama, the village kotwal (policeman), hears his name, rushes in, and the villagers catch the thief.
2. Reading comprehension
The couple cannot sleep and hear sounds of someone getting in. The wife listens carefully and whispers, and the two pretend to talk loudly so that the kotwal outside will hear his name.
3. Word meanings
The chapter builds everyday words around the story - wonder (a feeling of surprise), yard (an area outside a building), chatter (to talk on about unimportant things), instead (in place of) - and the key word rescue, meaning to save someone.
4. Grammar - contractions with the apostrophe
In speech we join words and drop a letter, marking the missing letter with an apostrophe - I'm (I am), it's (it is), they're (they are), as in the story's lines 'I'm feeling so sleepy', 'It's a thief', 'They're awake'.
5. Safety message from the chapter
The chapter's listening passage is a public safety announcement: lock doors and windows, do not talk to strangers or take anything from them, inform adults about suspicious activity, and dial 100 in an emergency.
Choose, solve, check, then try a fresh question.
Before calculating, read the method prompt and name the condition that makes it useful. Write your own attempt. Open the steps only when you need them, and use the check to catch a wrong sign, unit or interpretation. Finish with the fresh question before reading its answer.
Retell the clever trick
Choose the method: Call the name, get the man.
EZT practice question
How did the man and his wife get help from the kotwal?
Show the worked solution
- They could not confront the thief directly.
- So they called out the name 'Rama' loudly, as if talking to each other.
- Rama, the village kotwal, heard his name, ran to their house, and the villagers caught the thief.
Answer: They called out the name 'Rama' loudly. Rama, the village kotwal, heard his name being called and ran to their house, and the villagers caught the thief.
Check: No weapon, no fight - the trick worked because the kotwal was alert and did his duty.
Watch for this: Do not say the couple fought the thief - they outsmarted him with words alone.
Now try it yourself
What is a kotwal?
Check your answer
A policeman; some people also call him a thaanedar.
The story's Rama holds exactly this post in the village.
Read a line closely
Choose the method: Ask what the word does, then find proof.
EZT practice question
The wife says, 'Ssssh! Listen!' What does 'Ssssh' mean here, and how can you tell she was listening carefully?
Show the worked solution
- 'Ssssh' is a sound people make to ask for silence.
- She uses it because she wants to hear the intruder.
- Proof of careful listening: she notices the exact moment the noise stops and says, 'I think he has got in - the noise has stopped.'
Answer: 'Ssssh' means 'be silent'. We can tell she was listening carefully because she notices the exact moment the noise stops and says, 'I think he has got in - the noise has stopped.'
Check: A good comprehension answer pairs the meaning with a quoted detail from the story - this one does both.
Watch for this: Do not only translate the word - the question also asks for evidence from the text.
Now try it yourself
Why were the man and his wife not able to fall asleep?
Check your answer
They heard somebody trying to get into the house - the sounds of the thief kept them awake.
Being awake is what lets their plan work.
Match story words to meanings
Choose the method: Fix each word to one plain meaning.
EZT practice question
Match: wonder, yard, chatter, instead - with their meanings.
Show the worked solution
- wonder - a feeling of surprise and amazement.
- yard - an area outside a building.
- chatter - to talk for a long time about unimportant things; instead - in place of someone or something.
Answer: wonder - a feeling of surprise and amazement; yard - an area outside a building; chatter - to talk for a long time about unimportant things; instead - in place of someone or something.
Check: Try each word back in a story sentence - the couple's chatter was their trick, said instead of screams.
Watch for this: Do not mix up chatter and wonder - chatter is talking, wonder is a feeling.
Now try it yourself
The word 'rescue' means to _____.
Check your answer
Save someone.
That is exactly what Rama does in the title.
Track the thief's plan
Choose the method: Wish versus what happened.
EZT practice question
What did the thief wish would happen? Did it happen?
Show the worked solution
- The thief wished the couple would stay asleep and not wake up.
- Then he could steal in peace.
- It did not happen - they were awake and alert.
Answer: He wished the couple would stay asleep so he could steal; it did not happen - they were awake and alert.
Check: The whole story turns on this failed wish - awake couple, clever plan, caught thief.
Watch for this: Do not stop after stating the wish - the question also asks whether it came true.
Now try it yourself
What does the story teach about cleverness?
Check your answer
Presence of mind can solve problems - the couple outsmarted the thief without any weapon.
The moral is the trick itself.
Expand contractions
Choose the method: Put the dropped letter back.
EZT practice question
Write the full forms: I'm, it's, they're.
Show the worked solution
- A contraction joins two words and drops a letter.
- The apostrophe marks where the letter was dropped.
- I'm = I am; it's = it is; they're = they are.
Answer: I'm = I am; it's = it is; they're = they are.
Check: Say each full form in the story's lines - 'I am feeling so sleepy', 'It is a thief', 'They are awake' - and they read naturally.
Watch for this: Do not drop the apostrophe when contracting - it is the mark of the missing letter.
Now try it yourself
Write the contraction: 'They are awake.'
Check your answer
'They're awake.'
The dropped 'a' of 'are' is marked by the apostrophe.
Recall the safety message
Choose the method: Lock, avoid strangers, tell adults, dial 100.
EZT practice question
Which number should you dial in India in an emergency, according to the announcement?
Show the worked solution
- The chapter's listening passage is a public safety announcement.
- It asks families to lock doors and windows and to avoid strangers.
- In an emergency, it says to dial 100.
Answer: Dial 100.
Check: 100 is the police emergency number - fitting, since the story's hero is a policeman.
Watch for this: Do not confuse the announcement with the story - it is a separate safety message in the same chapter.
Now try it yourself
Name two safety habits the announcement asks families to follow.
Check your answer
Lock all doors and windows at night and when leaving the house; do not talk to strangers, and report anything unusual to adults.
Prevention first, then quick reporting.
Try a mixed set
Choose a method or explanation before opening each answer.
1. Who is Rama in the story?
Show answer and reason
The village kotwal (policeman).
He rushes in when he hears his name called.
2. How is the thief caught?
Show answer and reason
The couple call out 'Rama' loudly; the kotwal hears his name and runs in.
A trick with no weapon - presence of mind.
3. 'rescue' means?
Show answer and reason
To save someone.
The title tells you what Rama does.
4. What does the apostrophe in a contraction show?
Show answer and reason
A missing letter.
I'm = I am, with 'a' dropped.
Try it yourself
Work these on paper before checking any notes. Answers are deliberately not shown here.
- Who are the main characters in the story?
- Use 'instead' in a sentence of your own about the story.
- Whom should children inform about suspicious activity?
Know the rule but lose track of the steps?
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Questions about this practice page
- Who is Rama in 'Rama to the Rescue'?
- Rama is the village kotwal (policeman), who rushes to help when he hears his name called out by the couple.
- How do the husband and wife catch the thief?
- They pretend to talk and loudly call out 'Rama'; the kotwal hears his name, runs to the house, and the villagers catch the thief.
- What is the moral of 'Rama to the Rescue'?
- Presence of mind and cleverness can get us out of danger - the couple used no weapon, only a smart trick.
- What is a kotwal called in other words?
- A policeman; some people call him a thaanedar.
- Are these the NCERT exercise questions for Class 6 English Chapter 3?
- No. EZT pages are original practice following the chapter's section order - use them to prepare for the textbook exercises, not as a substitute for your book.