Class 4 :: English Literature :: Squirrel by Mary Ann Hoberman (Roots)
Squirrel
by Mary Ann Hoberman
(Roots)
The Poem :
"Grey squirrel
Small beast
Storing up a winter's feast,
Hides a hundred nuts at least.
Nook and cranny stocked with seed
Tucked away for winter's need.
Acorns stuck in hole and crack.
Will he ever get them back?
When the snow is piled up high
And the year is at December,
Can he really still remember
Where he hid them in September?
I have watched him from my window
And he always seems to know
Where the food he hid is waiting
Buried deep beneath the snow.
And I wonder
(Do you wonder?)
How he knows where he must go.
Summary of the Poem :
Grey squirrel is a small animal. He is busy in storing food for upcoming winter. He has hoarded at least a hundred nuts for him to eat in that hostile season being in his cosy shelter.
All his hiding places and every small holes are stocked with seeds for his need in winter. Hole and crack at his dwelling place are stuck with acorns. The poet is in doubt that if the squirrel would find them back or not.
Snow is piled up in the month of December. The squirrel had hid the food in September. The poet asks that the squirrel can still remember it or not.
The poet has watched the squirrel from her window. He always seems to know the place where he hid the food in September. He had buried his food deep beneath the snow. The poet becomes surprised about how the squirrel knows where to go and find the hidden food, though after so many days.
Comprehension
1. What is the squirrel doing? Tick the correct option.
a. hiding nuts in the snow. [✓]
b. playing in the snow. [ ]
c. looking for hiding places. [ ]
2. How does the poet know that the squirrel will find the nuts in winters?
a. She has read about squirrel habits at school. [ ]
b. She has seen the squirrel do this before. [✓]
c. She has seen the squirrel marking his hidden places. [ ]
3. We usually call big animals beasts. Why is the poet calling the squirrel a beast?
= We usually call big animals beasts. The poet is calling the squirrel a beast because of affection. She used to see the squirrel through her window. She noticed all his activities. She is fascinated by his process of storing food for forthcoming winter. She adores the squirrel. This makes her call the small creature a beast.
4. Why is the squirrel collecting so many nuts in September?
= The squirrel is collecting so many nuts in September for the coming winter. Winter is a harsh season. Snow is piled up high. Animals like squirrel can hardly come out of their hidden home. They can not even come out for collecting food. So, they hoard food for the whole winter season. This help them to be safe in their warm home and no scarcity of food.
5. How do you think the squirrel knows where he must go when there is snow everywhere?
= I think the squirrel has the biological sense in them so that they can easily remember and find out the places where they had kept their food. Like the dogs have the power to sense the presence of any evil thing, squirrels have the biologically evolutionary sense to find out their food when there is snow everywhere.