I am the Earth
And the Earth is me.
Each blade of grass,
Each honey tree,
Each bit of mud,
And stick and stone
Is blood and muscle,
Skin and bone.
And just as I
Need every bit
Of me to make
My body fit,
So Earth needs
Grass and stone and tree
And things that grow here
Naturally.
That’s why we
Celebrate this day.
That’s why across
The world we say:
As long as life,
As dear, as free,
I am the Earth
And the Earth is me.
— Jane Yolen

A) Use the Internet to find the answers to some of these questions.
1. Why do we celebrate Earth Day?
2. Gandhi Jayanti is celebrated annually on 2 October.
On which day of the year is Earth Day celebrated?
3. Do you celebrate Earth Day in school?
4. If so, how do you celebrate it?
5. If not, how do you think you would like to celebrate Earth Day?
6. In your notebook, write down the first two lines of this poem.
7. Now rewrite the next four lines with your own ideas. Use your imagination!
8. What do these lines mean: “I am the Earth and the Earth is me”?

B) ‘Annually’ means ‘once a year’. What do the following words mean?
Use the words below in sentences of your own. Your sentences must show that
you understand the meaning of the word.
Daily
Weekly
Monthly
Quarterly
Yearly

C) Biweekly has two meanings. It means every two weeks and also means twice
a week. The prefix bi- means ‘two’ or ‘twice’.
1. What does bimonthly mean?
2. Make sentences with the words biweekly and bimonthly.
3. Why is a bicycle called a bicycle?
4. Do you know anyone who wears bifocal glasses?
5. How would you describe someone who speaks two languages?

D) Here are some more words with the prefix ‘bi’.

Bicameral: A bicameral system of government is one where there are two
legislative or parliamentary chambers. The word comes from the Latin ‘bi’
(meaning two) and ‘camera’ (meaning chamber). India has a bicameral system.
The two houses of the Indian parliament are the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha.

Biceps: The large muscle at the front of the upper arm. It is any muscle with two
heads, or points of origin. The word comes from Latin bi (meaning ‘two’) and
caput (meaning ‘head’).

Bifurcate: to divide into two branches or parts.

Binary: A number system with a base of 2. The two binary digits are 0 and 1. It is
different from the decimal system, which is a number system with a base of 10.

Binoculars: Like the telescope, binoculars magnify faraway objects to make them easier
to see. To magnify is to make something look bigger. People use only one eye to look
through a telescope, but they use both eyes to look through binoculars.
Using both eyes makes faraway objects look more real.

Revised July 2020

Audio courtesy Tara Kriplani: