History and Social Science Class Six Textbook PDF

Developed by the National Curriculum and Textbook Board as a textbook according to the National Curriculum 2022 for Class Six from the academic year 2023 History and Social Science Class Six Experimental version...

Developed by the National Curriculum and Textbook Board as a textbook according to the National Curriculum 2022 for Class Six from the academic year 2023 History and Social Science Class Six Experimental version Writers Abul Momen Professor M. Shahidul Islam Professor Sharmind Neelormi Professor Dr. Aksadul Alam Dr. Debasish Kumar Kundu Dr. Sumera Ahsan Muhammad Rakibul Hasan Khan Rayhan Ara Zaman Jarin Akther Dr. Mir Abu Saleh Shamsuddin Siddique Belal Uma Bhattacharjee Muhommod Nijam Sanjida Ara Editors Abul Momen Professor Dr. Aksadul Alam Translated by Nira Rahman Md. Ali RezwanTalukdar Md. Habibur Rahman Abu Ula Muhd. Hasinul Islam National Curriculum and Textbook Board, Bangladesh  Published by: National Curriculum and Textbook Board 69-70, Motijheel Commercial Area, Dhaka 1000 [All rights reserved by National Curriculum and Textbook Board, Bangladesh] Published: December, 2022 Reprint: , 2023 Art direction Monjur Ahmed Illustration Yusuf Ali Noton Pramathesh Das Pulak Bivol Saha Tamanna Tasnim Supti Cover Yusuf Ali Noton Graphics Md. Ruhul Amin Md. Rasel Hossain For Free Distribution by the Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh Printed by:  Preface In this ever-changing world, the concept of livelihood is altering every moment. The advancement of technology, in accordance with knowledge and skill, has accelerated the pace of change. There is no alternative to adapting to this fast changing world. The reason is, the development of technology is at its zenith compared to any time in the human history. In the fourth industrial revolution era, the advancement of artificial intelligence has brought a drastic change in our employment and lifestyles and this will make the relationship among people more and more intimate. Varied employment opportunities will be created in near future which we cannot even predict at this moment. We need to take preparation right now so that we can adapt ourselves to that upcoming future. Although a huge economic development has taken place throughout the world, the problems of climate change, air pollution, migrations and ethnic violence have become much more intense than before. The epidemic like COVID 19 has appeared and obstructed the normal lifestyle and economic growth of the world. Different challenges and opportunities have been added to our daily life. Standing on the verge of these challenges and possibilities, implementation of sustainable and effective solutions is required for the transformation of our large population into a resource. It entails global citizens with knowledge, skill, values, vision, positive attitude, sensitivity, capability to adapt, humanity and patriotism. Amidst all these, Bangladesh has graduated into a developing nation from the underdeveloped periphery and is continuously trying to achieve the desired goals in order to become a developed country by 2041. Education is one of the pivotal instruments to attain the goals and there is no alternative to the modernization of our education system. Developing an effective and updated curriculum has become crucial for this modernization. Developing and revising the curriculum is a regular and vital activity of National Curriculum and Textbook Board. The last revision of the curriculum was done in 2012. Since then, a lot of time has passed. The necessity of curriculum revision and development has emerged. For this purpose, various research and technical exercises were conducted under the supervision of NCTB during the year 2017 to 2019 to analyze the prevalent situation of education and assess the learning needs. Based on the researches and technical exercises, a competency-based incessant curriculum from K-12 has been developed to create a competent generation to survive in the new world situation. In the light of the competency based curriculum, the textbooks have been prepared for all streams (General, Madrasah and Vocational) of learners for Class Six. The authentic experience driven contents of this textbook were developed in such a way that teaching learning becomes comprehensible and full of merriment. This will connect textbooks with various life related phenomenon and events that are constantly taking place around us. This is to be mentioned here that this textbook has already been refined through a logical evaluation by the writers and the subject specialists after collecting opinion from the teachers and students via an interim tryout. We hope that learning will be profound and life-long now. Issues like gender, ethnicity, religion, caste, the disadvantaged and students with special needs have been taken into special consideration while developing the textbook. I would like to thank all who have put their best efforts in writing, editing, illustrating and publishing the textbook. If any one finds any errors or inconsistencies in this experimental version and has any suggestions for improving its quality, we kindly ask them to let us know. Professor Md. Farhadul Islam Chairman National Curriculum and Textbook Board, Bangladesh  Introduction Welcome to the new class in the new year. Congratulations to you! Enrollment in Class Six means you are entering secondary level after completing the primary education. We are waiting for you with a new learning approach. In this new approach, you do not have to run after examinations and good marks any longer. You do not have to just know the probable questions for examinations and spend time looking for the answers. From now on, it is not your principal duty to memorise answers. Your parents also do not have to worry about effective tutors, coaching centers, guidebooks, your exams and question papers. There will be no need to spend a lot of money for nothing. We know that every one of you has a fresh mind and a very active brain. You have not only the power of imagination but also sharp intellect with which you discover different ways of thinking. All of you are born with some other faculties like the mind and brain. We want to talk about these in particular. We are talking about human senses. You have already known that we all have five special organs – eyes, ears, nose, tongue and skin. These organs function as the senses. We see with the eyes and this power is called eyesight while the organ is called visual sensory organ. Similarly, we hear with the ears and these are auditory organs. We smell with the nose which is the olfactory organ. We taste with the tongue and it is the gustatory organ. We feel touches with the skin and it is the tactile organ. They help us to recognize, understand and know something. This is why these senses are very important. Together with all these assets each of you have – Perpetual vitality Limitless curiosity Immense ability to enjoy, and A natural tendency to wonder. Modern educational specialists believe that the stress of examinations and memorization of answers hinders the development of these natural abilities. Rather, students need to use these abilities for learning new things, and this only can give good results. You are surely getting the notion about your own work after hearing these views. Of course, you are going to enjoy a lot of freedom in this system. However, do not forget that you have to take responsibility to enjoy your freedom. After all, study is your own job; it is for yourself. You will do your own work;that is a very good thing. The reality is, when you succeed in something, you can understand how much joy it brings. Therefore, learning in the new way will be a joyful journey, an expedition. In Rabindranath’s songs, we find a joyous melody of a journey. Education is the joyous song of an expedition that continues while you walk along humming a melody. You have just enrolled in Class Six. You have gained experience from lessons in Class Five. Many of the lessons in the new class will be new, with many things unknown. This journey will be like an expedition for the unknown and new things. You will know, learn and do a lot while overcoming the challenges on the way. You will get endless joy as well. This does not require any additional cost. It is because you have your own mighty tools in your arsenal to meet challenges – curiosity, wonder, vitality, and the ability to be joyful. The senses play a supportive role in this process. The fun is that these are not like money – instead of being spent, these always grow. These are the resources of your mind and so the more you practice, the more they will shine, the more efficient they will be. Moreover, these will inspire you to uncover new abilities. Intellect is the first to call. You have to use your own intellect; you have to think. You need logic to think right. This is an area for practice – if you cultivate intellect, it will increase. You may have seen that if you prune the branches and leaves of some trees, the trees grow better and give more fruits. You need to sharpen your mind, sharpen your logic. Also, the senses have to be kept alert to increase their abilities. In this way, you will conquer the unknown. You will keep on spreading light in the darkness, and you will not even notice when many things have been grasped. Let this journey towards victory begin!  Index MY different Identity 1-25 Active Citizens Club 26-31 Ways of Knowing History 32-35 Looking Around through the Lens of Science 36-49 Influence of Landform on the History of the Bengal Region 50-62 Influence of Landform on South Asian and World History 63-73 Nature Conservation Activity 74-81 Muktijuddha in Our Locality 82-104 The Emergence of Independent Bangladesh in the Bengal Region after a Journey of Millennia 105-113 Book Reading Programme 114-116 Natural and Social Structures 117-133 The interrelation between natural and social structures, and our responsibilities 134-154 Society and Resources 155-165 Appendix 166-175  MY different Identity First Class of the New Year: A Game of Introduction with Friends There are many new faces in Class Six. Most of them are not familiar with one another. Everyone is thrilled and anxious to be in such an unfamiliar environment. Everyone is trying to guess which person to be befriended. They are keenly observing each other’s faces, clothing styles, and manners of speaking. Ayesha is sitting quietly alone on a bench in the front row. At this time, the teacher enters the classroom and addresses the class, ‘My name is Khurshida Haque and everybody calls me Khushi Apa. I am your subject teacher of History and Social Science.’ Now Khushi Apa says to everyone in Class Six, ‘I wholeheartedly welcome you to the first lesson in Class Six.’ She keeps going, ‘I have somewhat given you my introduction already. Now, it’s my turn to get to know you. I am thinking of getting to know you in a new way. Let us divide ourselves into small groups and do the following task – Let each of us take a paper card at first. Academic Year 2024 Now, to introduce ourselves, let us write on the card such information that no one can guess just by looking at us. Remember, we will not write our names on the card.’ When all finish writing, Khushi Apa collects all the cards. Then she randomly picks one card and reads aloud the information written on the card to the class. At the same time, she asks who, according to the description, the learner might be. 1  MY different Identity Identity Card I love to read books. I like to explore new things a lot. I am very inquisitive about human beings and nature around us. I have won an award in a debate competition. I like to swim. I want to be a scientist when I grow up. After listening to this description, everyone starts to look at each other. They start to reflect on and contemplate the attributes their classmates possess instead of observing and judging their facial expressions, outfits or conversational styles. Based on their initial understanding, they select Nasir, Ayesha, Joy and Mili. Khushi Apa exclaims with surprise, ‘Wow! There is just one Identity Card but you have selected four persons.’ Khushi Apa then wants to know, ‘Whose card was this?’ Mili says that it is hers. The other three are delighted to know that they are not alone but there are others who have similar interests like them. As a result, they soon become friends with each other. After this, Khushi Apa keeps reading from some other identity cards. Identity Card I like to travel around a lot. I like to go to the sea as it is much favourite to me. Blue is my favourite colour. I enjoy playing cricket a lot. When I grow up, I want to be a cricketer. Our similarities and differences Every time, one identity card can help find people with similar interests. That is when Khushi Apa wants to know, ‘Why does one identity card help you to find more than one of your classmates with similar personalities and interests?’ Then everybody in the class replies ‘Because we all have some similarities with others.’ Khushi Apa keeps asking, ‘Now, tell me about how you feel the way we get to know each other?’ Nasir replies, ‘I liked it a lot. It’s because we now understand even if we have many apparent differences, we have a lot of similarities as well.’ He also keeps saying, ‘At the same time, we get to know such important attributes about each other within a very short period of time, which otherwise, would have taken a long time to explore.’ In reply, Khushi Apa adds, ‘We will keep reading from the rest of the identity cards at beginning of our lesson every day.’ Who am I? Academic Year 2024 At this moment of the lesson, Khushi Apa reiterates what she has discussed so far and says ‘The objective of our activity has been to get introduced to each other. I am sure you have noticed that we have used a different approach for self-introduction to others. People can highlight different sides of themselves for self-introduction based on the 2  History and Social Science situations. All of which are integral parts of our Identity. Many other factors like this help us to construct the identity of a society and a nation. Do you want to know the process of how we construct our identity? Throughout the year, we will keep doing many interesting and fascinating activities like what we have done today. It will be an exciting learning journey for us. In this journey, we will explore how people survived the challenges against nature in the past; how people contributed to the development and advancement of the civilisations over time while creating the concepts of families, societies, legal systems, and states. Through all these activities, the identity of the people of this land has been constructed and realised over the period of time.’ Khushi Apa delightfully adds here, ‘To explore and to understand the concept of self-identity thoroughly, we will keep doing many interesting activities and learn gradually. Let us start our exploration.’ Khushi Apa now writes the word Self-Identity on the board and asks for everyone’s attention, saying, ‘What do you understand by this word?’ Shuvo replies, ‘Self-Identity is such a subject through which we get to explore the answer to the question ‘Who am I?’’ Mili adds, ‘What we have written on our self-introduction card so far is a part of our Self-Identity.’ Following Khushi Apa’s idea and instruction, let us play the ‘self-introduction’ game with our friends in the neighbourhood My Identity On the following day, Khushi Apa says, Do we want to know the personal identity of others? Mili adds, ‘At the same time we want to prepare the identity cards for some noteworthy personalities like Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, Begum Rokeya. Let us prepare identity charts of the prominent and notable individuals It is time to discover the different aspects of identities of some prominent and notable individuals. First, let us read the brief biography of the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. Then, let us develop his identity chart as a practice task. Now, let us divide into groups and read the biography of Bangabandhu. And we will underline the words related to his attributes and personal characteristics. Academic Year 2024 These words/phrases will help us prepare his identity chart. After preparing the table students presentation in a group and then they hang it on the wall so that it can be seen from anywhere in the classroom. Finally, various aspects of the prominents were discussed. 3  MY different Identity Mujib in His Childhood 1. Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. You are familiar with this name. You must have heard the name numerous times before. You must have seen his numerous photographs too. You can select one of his photographs and get it framed with the help of the elders. You can place it on your reading table; or you can hang it on the wall. Else, you can hang it in a beautiful place at your house. People fondly call him Bangabandhu. So, we call him Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. Write his name correctly at the bottom of the photograph you selected, and then write two dates - 17 March 1920 and 15 August 1975. Can you tell why you write these two dates? Many of you may guess that the first one is the day he was born and the second one is the day he got killed. He is our Father of the Nation. Do you know why we call him the Father of the Nation? He led our liberation war against Pakistan. He never backed out or stepped back in fear. He was ready to sacrifice his life for the nation. He never wanted anything for himself, nor did he care for his own life ever. He was not shaken a bit by their conspiracies, tortures and lawsuits. Citizens have never seen such a leader before. Therefore, everyone responded to his call. Do you know that Bengalis had never fought any significant battle earlier? It was Bangabandhu who unified the whole nation and transformed it into a nation of heroes. It would have never been possible without him. So, who else can be the Father of the Nation? Let us read about how he was in his childhood. 2. Tungipara is a village in Bangladesh. There is a river in this village known as Madhumati. It was a remote and quiet village surrounded by paddy fields, ponds, lakes, marshes, bushes and woodlands. It was a calm and secluded village in Bengal. Like any other villages, plenty of fish was also found there while the chirping of birds filled its ambiance. The cattle used to graze in the fields. There were brick-built houses, mud-built shanties with tin rooftops, bamboo-fenced shacks, and small huts made of vannya (a locally grown castor bean plant) leaves. Neither there was electricity nor properly paved roads for transport facilities. People used to travel on foot. But there were boats of different sizes and shapes. Academic Year 2024 On 17 March 1920, Mujib was born to Sheikh Lutfar Rahman and Sayera Khatun. Everyone in the family was very excited when he was born. He was named Mujibur Rahman; ‘Sheikh’ was added before as a family name. His parents used to call him Khoka and thus it became his nickname. Khoka was gradually growing up in Tungipara with her mother. Since childhood, he was interested in sports. He had a children’s team, and he was the leader. Sometimes, they used to pick mangoes from different orchards, or pluck flowers from gardens, or sometimes 4  History and Social Science they used to play together in groups. Once he started playing football. Khoka was a quite good player. The child Mujib was admitted to a school in his village. After completing Grade Three, his father brought Mujib to Gopalganj town with him for further education. Sheikh Lutfar Rahman was working there for the government. So, from the calm and serene village, Mujib moved to Gopalganj to study in a high school there. To move to the town, he had to leave his friends, and the familiar atmosphere of the village that was surrounded by lakes, ponds, greenery and marshes, and filled with the warmth of love and tenderness of his mother. He got admitted to the Fourth Grade of Gopalganj High School and used to stay with his father. He used to travel back to the village only at the weekends or during the long vacation. At first, it was challenging for him to stay away from his mother and from the familiar village atmosphere, however, he settled gradually with the time. He also made new friends there in Gopalganj town. Even as a child, Mujib was never just occupied with his studies and exams. He always had multiple interests and got engaged in different activities. Sports were one of his biggest interests. Football topped that list. He wrote about this when he grew up ‘I was quite mischievous and playful when I was a child. I used to sing, I used to play. I was good at observing Bratachari.’ Can you imagine our Bangabandhu was able to sing! We got to know from his biography that he was very fond of music all along his life. If you read his autobiography Osomapto Attyajiboni (ʻAmgvß AvZ¥Rxebxʼ - in English The Unfinished Memoirs), you will get to know many things about his life. You should definitely read it when you grow up. 3. Everything changed suddenly. Such a high-spirited, lively kid Mujib got infected with a serious disease known as Beriberi. The name of the disease may sound funny, but it is a severe illness. Everyone became anxious about his health. At that time, he had to take a two-year break from his studies for the treatment. He used to go to Kolkata to visit doctors and the rest of the time he stayed in his village. Gradually he recovered from the illness through the care of his mother and aunts. After two years he might have had recovered from beriberi, but he developed glaucoma - an eye disease. Beriberi weakened his heart condition. Now his eye sights were affected by glaucoma. He continued his treatment in Kolkata, which was the then capital of undivided Bengal. It was the centre of all amenities like good doctors and hospitals, markets and shops, schools and colleges. He fell behind in his studies due to illness. In 1936, he returned to school to resume his studies. Then he was admitted to the Madaripur High School as in the meantime, his father was transferred to Madaripur. Here also he worked as a goverment official.At that time, Mujib again developed his eye disease. The doctors at Kolkata advised an immediate surgery. Any kind of Academic Year 2024 delay could cause blindness, they feared. Therefore, surgery had to be done instantaneously. He had to take eyeglasses right after the surgery. Since then, that is from the age of 15/16 years, he had to always wear glasses. It was 1937 when he could resume his education in full swing after the successive illness. Mujib did not want to go back to his old school as all his friends academically went much 5  MY different Identity ahead of him by then. At that time, he continued his study at home under a tutor. As his home tutor, Mujib’s father appointed Kazi Abdul Hamid who was a MSc. In those days, it was quite a common practice in many families who were interested in education and aspire to educating their children. Besides teaching Mujib, Mr. Hamid formed ‘Muslim Seba Samiti’. On behalf of ‘Muslim Seba Samiti’, young Mujib along with his friends used to collect rice from different households. Then they used to sell it in the market to raise funds to buy books or to pay for exam fees and other related things for the poor students. It was very unfortunate that Mr. Hamid fell sick and died suddenly. However, he trained a capable disciple, Mujib. He had already developed the deep interest to help and support others. Did you notice the qualities of young Mujib? He was courageous. He had empathy for the poor. Besides, he had the leadership qualities while he was very responsible and devoted to his duties. 4. The events in 1938 cannot be overlooked here. A. K. Fazlul Huq (1873-1962), who hailed from Barishal. was the first Bengali Muslim politician who had conquered the minds of the general mass. People respectfully named him Sher-e-Bangla (Tiger of Bengal). He was tall and strong. He was the Prime Minister of Bengal. Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy (1892-1963) was another notable politician at that time. He was a very prominent leader and the then Labour Minister. A conference was decided to be arranged with the eminent political leaders. Along with it, there would be an exhibition to display local agricultural products and other handicrafts. Mujib was the leader of the volunteers who would organise the conference. Everything ends well. After the conference, when the leaders were about to leave, Mujib approached them and placed a demand to repair the school hostel rooftop as students used to suffer a lot during the rainy season because of the leaking rooftop. His teachers were not only overwhelmed by his courage but also became a bit petrified thinking the leaders might get upset. However, the true leaders might have had seen the qualities of a future leader in him. He was actively engaged in social works and sports while he was progressing towards the end of his school education. Eventually, the time for his Entrance Exam or Matriculation Exam, which nowadays we call Secondary School Certificate (SSC) Examination arrived. In 1941, Mujib passed the matriculation. Then he started college education in Kolkata. While studying in Calcutta (now Kolkata), his scope of work had expanded a lot. You will know those things of his life in the chapter “Muktijuddha in Our Locality” and in the next Grade as well. Let me prepare my identity chart Academic Year 2024 Bangabandhu 6  History and Social Science Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain: A Pioneer of Women’s Awakening Can we even imagine the scenarios where women are confined to their households, or they do not have the opportunity to study, or they have no connection with the wider world, or as if just the small room within the four walls were their whole world? However, once this was the usual reality for women. Their life was confined between the walls. In such insufferable social environment, Begum Rokeya was born on 9 December in 1880. Rokeya was born in a respectable family. They had a zamindar (a landlord) House in Pairaband in Rangpur. That house possessed approximately 300 bighas (unit of measurement of the area of land) of land. Her father Jahiruddin Muhammad Abu Ali Saber was the last zamindar of their ancestry. Her mother’s name was Rahatunnesa Chowdhury. Rokeya was their fourth child among the five children. Everyone in their family called her Ruku. Rokeya was growing up lavishly in the zamindar family where they had several maids to look after them. However, her childhood was not pleasant at all. Who would like the life of a caged bird? As young girls, they are not allowed to go in front of males. They were not even allowed to go in front of the female visitors. Her eldest brother Ibrahim Saber was excellent in reciting poetries. Rokeya’s elder sister Karimunnesa had a great interest in education. Ibrahim used to teach her in secret. Once his father and other people came to know about it. Though their father did not object, society opposed this strongly and totally disapproved it. As a result, it became very difficult to arrange marriage for Karimunnesa and she had to stop her studies. Even after this incident, Karimunnesa introduced Bangla alphabet to Rokeya. Her eldest brother taught her English ignoring all the imposed restrictions. When all the members of the family fell asleep, Ibrahim and Ruku used to study by lighting up a candle. In this way, Rokeya learnt Bangla and English along with Arabic, Farsi (Persian), and Urdu. This was the beginning of her journey to go further breaking all sorts of obstacles. At the age of 18, Rokeya was married to Khan Bahadur Syed Sakhawat Hossain. Deputy magistrate Sakhawat was 40 years old then. Though he was born into a poverty-stricken Academic Year 2024 family in Bihar, he overcame poverty of his own accord. He was a very humble person. He was a non-Bengali and learnt Bangla from his classmates of Hooghly College. Everyone in the family liked him as Rokeya’s husband, as he was a man with strong ethics and morals. After the wedding, Rokeya came to Bhagalpur with her husband. The predicament of the Muslim women even there saddened her. She strongly felt that if women were not 7  MY different Identity enlightened through education, they would never be able to break the barriers. She used to often consult with her husband about it. With the help of her husband, Rokeya improved her skills in the English language significantly. He used to give Rokeya English books and periodicals to read. Therefore, Rokeya could help her husband in his government job. Right after their marriage, she became the mother of two daughters. Unfortunately, they died at an early age. In the meantime, during her free time, she wrote a story titled ‘Sultana’s Dream’, Sakhawat Hossain sent it to a periodical and without any revision, it got published. At that time Sakhawat Hossain fell sick. He thought that if he died suddenly, Rokeya would become very lonely. That is why he thought of establishing a girls’ school. From his savings, he kept ten thousand taka aside for establishing the school. Soon after, he died on 3 May in 1909. After five months of her husband’s death, Rokeya established ‘Sakhawat Memorial School’ in Bhagalpur. At the beginning, there were only five students. Due to some family issues, she had to leave Bhagalpur and move to kolkata. And there at number 13 Waliullah Lane on 16 March 1911, the Sakhawat Memorial Girls’ School got permanently established by Begum Rokeya. Though it started with just eight female students, gradually the number got increased. Rokeya did not have any institutional degree. Despite this, she did all the administrative and academic work flawlessly. She said, ‘Not just the education based on books, our main objective is to motivate the girls to serve others, serve the nation and dedicate their lives in the service of the society.’ Rokeya continued with her literary work besides running the school. She wrote poems, short stories, novels and essays. Truth and justice were the predominant themes her writing. In her essays, she blatantly and fearlessly criticised the injustice and cruelty imposed on women in the society. In 1916, Rokeya established Anjuman-e-Khawateen-e-Islam or Muslim Mahila Samiti (Muslim Women’s Society). The purpose of this society was to establish women’s role in the society and the state. In her life, Rokeya took women’s education as a vow. In her literary works also, she wanted to reiterate this philosophy and values. She wanted to say over and over again in her writing that women need to wake up, otherwise no emancipation is possible. Her other ideal was integrity. She said, ‘Truth, whether you like it or not, we should understand it, search for it and accept it.’ It was December 9 in 1932. It was her 52nd birthday. She woke up very early in the Academic Year 2024 morning and performed her ablution. Suddenly, she felt chest pain. Within a very short time it got worse and she passed away. Rokeya is no longer with us, but she left values, beliefs and her glorious legacies around the development of women in society. Self-dignity, firm determination, knowledge and 8  History and Social Science perseverance are needed for the development of women. Only education can bring such achievement. Let us make separate identity charts of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and Begum Rokeya based on their brief biography. Now, arrange a debate or a discussion session with your friends at your home or at your locality on this. Personal Identity Chart This time Khushi Apa shows an interesting picture to the class. It is a circular chart. In this chart, there are spaces where we can write about ourselves. Everybody in the class writes about themselves in those given spaces. At the end, it becomes a personal identity chart for each of us. gs m bers of siblin Make a list o Nu f sib e s li n g c ipl s ac in c l pr ord ona ing Pers to the d Write three adjectives that describe ate of lor you Favourite co bir th Favourite food 1. 2. y rite hob 3. u F avo Name: The skill k boo st at y h e urit o are ou Fav o ud o pr e film f Fav Favourit ourite song Now, looking at the answers written on the charts by everyone, Khushi Apa conducts an open discussion. She says, ‘Have you noticed that the identity of a person doesn’t depend only on one or two aspects; rather it is multidimensional. It’s quite natural that Academic Year 2024 everyone’s personal identity chart will be a unique one. While we have many similarities with our close friends, we have many differences as well. Therefore, despite personal differences, people can become good friends.’ Let us fill up the circular identity chart above and find answers to the questions there. Then, share it to our classmates. 9  MY different Identity Social Identity In the meantime, we have learned about our identity. Now, we are going to learn about social identity. Women’s Football The next day Khushi Apa asks the class, ‘Do you like football?’ Fatema, Deepa, Nasir, Harun, Bushra, everyone shout in a body, ‘Yes! We do!’ Khushi Apa says, ‘Today we are going to talk about football.’ Everybody claps in joy. Khushi Apa asks them to read a newspaper report on the football match between Bangladesh and India under 19 women’s football teams. The students in the class form groups of 5/6 members. They start reading the match report in groups and become excited to know how Bangladeshi girls performed very well to be the winning side. Bangladeshi girls beat India & clinch the championship trophy Wednesday (22 December): Bangladesh Alongside the Indians, the crossbar became defends the championship title in the another opponent to the Bangladesh team. SAFF U-19 Women’s Championship An attack from a throw in the 25th minute final match by defeating India at was blocked by the side post. In the first Kamalapur Birshrestha Shahid Shipahi minute of the second half, Shamsunnahar Mohammad Mostafa Kamal Stadium. Jr’s shot also failed as the bar post stood as From the beginning, the Bangladesh an obstacle. team played attacking football and dominated the match. Bangladesh could But Bangladesh didn’t have to return empty- have taken lead in the 16th minute of handed in the final of the first under-19 the match. Indian goalkeeper missed women’s football championship. gripping the ball. The goalkeeper Though Bangladesh team was doing better in saved Tahura’s shot on the goal line. ball possession and intercepting, the desired Bangladesh team demanded that the score was not yet within their reach. In the ball crossed the line. But the referee 79th minute, Anai Mogini earned the lead didn’t respond to their call. Later on, the for Bangladesh. Ripa made a back-hill pass. replay showed the ball was on the line. Anai Mogini made a long shot from outside In the 76th minute of the match, the ball the box. The Indian goalkeeper couldn’t crossed the goal line and reached the understand the flight. She was able to touch net. However, it was signaled offside by the ball but couldn’t stop it from crossing Academic Year 2024 the assistant referee and wasn’t counted. the goal line. Right then, the crowd in Kamalapur stadiu m started the celebration. The match ended with this solitary goal victory by the Bangladeshi side. 10  History and Social Science Reading the report, all of them feel quite excited and they request Khushi Apa to arrange the video of the match for them to watch. Khushi Apa smiles and says, ‘That’s a good idea! But we don’t have enough time to see the full match. All of us together can watch the match highlights in the class.’ Then they eagerly start enjoying the final match of SAFF U-19 Women’s Championship 2021 between Bangladesh and India. Similarity-dissimilarity game and football ‘Now, we are going to find answers to some questions,’ says Khushi Apa. ‘We will discuss in groups why we supported the Bangladeshi girls.’ Everybody in the class talks about their similarities with Bangladeshi women footballers, However, they also find some dissimilarities with the women footballers. Though we are different, we are one Khushi Apa then shows the photos of Bangladeshi under-19 women footballers from the textbook. All the students get to know Maria, Anai, Rituparna, Tahura, Ankhi, and others. Academic Year 2024 Bangladesh under-19 women’s football team 11  MY different Identity চ্্যযাম্পিয়নশিপ Academic Year 2024 12  History and Social Science Khushi Apa encourages all to find the similarities and dissimilarities among the women footballers. With much enthusiasm, everybody in groups starts reading the introductions to the players, and also looks at their photos. Nazifa: Hey friends, we can list the similarities and dissimilarities between us and the players. Nasir: Let’s do it together. Our list will help us record the similarity- dissimilarity chart. All of them agree happily and make the following chart to understand the similarities and dissimilarities. Chart: The similarity-dissimilarity chart Topic Similarity Dissimilarity Nationality Culture Language Geographical identity Gender Ethnicity National anthem National flag Academic Year 2024 National symbol 13  MY different Identity Our ethnic identity Khushi Apa: Today we will do an interesting thing. Before that, have a look at the photos given below. Chakma Garo Marma Saontal Hajang Manipuri Tanchangya Bangali Khuship Apa asks: What do you individually think of the photographs? Sumon: We can see people of various ethnic groups in the phorographs. Deepa: Yes, our female footballers also belong to such ethnic groups. Khushi Apa: You are right. Today we are planning to do something on the cultures of various ethnic groups in our country. Omera, Sirat, Taspia, Mahbub, Taifan– all of them form groups. They collect some pictures of people of different ethnic groups and their cultures and try to understand their characteristics. They decide to make a table of various ethnic groups with their specific names and their special cultural elements. Their aim is to analyse the pictures and find out special cultural features. They start discussing in groups. Then they start making tables focusing on the main cultural features of different ethnic groups. They also discuss Academic Year 2024 the topic in groups and fill in the above table. Love for Language Khushi Apa says, everyone of you loves your mother tongue. The National language of Bangladesh is Bangla. On in this book ‘Muktijuddha in Our Locality’ chapter, you 14  History and Social Science will learn about language movement. We have also many small ethnic groups in our country. They speak in different Languages. So all of us should show respect to their mother tongue as well as the mother tongue of the ethnic people. Robin said, But we donot know their language. Then khusi apa said, that would be your activity today. Khushi Apa: Today we will play a game with language. Let’s see who can answer the most correct answers. Everyone in the class shouts in joy. Everybody eagerly waits for the quiz questions. Khushi Apa continues the instructions: There are rules for the quiz, we need to understand them first. To answer, you have to raise your hand. The quickest to raise a hand will get the chance to answer. If the first one is not correct, the second person will get the chance. In this way, it will continue till we get the correct answer. If anybody answers without raising a hand or before being given the chance to answer, he or she will have a minus mark. The winner will be those who can answer the most correct answers. understand all? All the students say that they have understood. Khushi Apa first speaks about herself in Bangla. Then one by one, she speaks out the same thing in the languages of some small ethnic groups of Bangladesh. Listen to these and read all these languages. Tell Bangla language আমাদের প্রিয় দেশ বাংলাদেশ। আমরা সবাই আমাদের সংস্কৃতিকে রক্ষা করবো ো। Our beloved country is Bangladesh. We all will protect our culture. Chakma language আমার হো োচপানার দেশ বাংলাদেশ। ইদু জনম লনেয় আমি গর্্ব বিত। মা ভাচ্ আমা রীদিসুদো োমর অংশ। আমি বেগে আমার রীদিসুদো োম বাজেই রাগেবং। Kakbarok (Tripura) language বাংলাদেশ চিনি হামজাকমানি হা। চৌ ৌংং যত্ত চিনি মুকুমু ন্ মা হিল ন্। Academic Year 2024 Garo language আঞ্চিঙংনি নাম্নিগবিগুবা আ’সং য়া বাংলাদেশ। আঞ্্চিিং প্লাক মান্দেরাং য়া আঞ্্চিিংনি দাকবেওয়ালকো ো রিপিং’না নাংনো ো। In this quiz, Khushi Apa will say the words ‘beloved country’, ‘proud’, ‘language’, ‘our culture’, ‘protect’ etc. in different languages. You have to say in which language the word Khushi apar is saying. The quiz will start with one word at a time. 15  MY different Identity The map helps us to find a route So far, we have come to know about our personal and social identity. Now we are going to learn about geographical identity. One of the class friends, Robi, lost his direction in an unknown place a few days ago. When he asked for the direction to the main road, someone told him to go straight to the north. The sky was cloudy. It was about to rain. Robi couldn’t find the direction. He was following the wrong direction. He thought he was going north and finally he mistakenly reached the riverside. Then he was in great trouble. After asking for the direction to several people, he at last found the way. When Robi shares his experience in the class, Khushi Apa asks, ‘Can you tell me which thing could have helped Robi to get the easy direction for returning home?’ Sakib: If Robi had a map of that locality, he could have understood the road directions. Mili: When my father goes to a new place, he finds the road directly through Google Maps on his mobile. Khushi Apa: Wow! You know a lot of things! Well, if Robi had a picture of that area instead of a map, could he have understood the directions? Shihab: No, Apa. The picture can’t provide the proper direction. Khushi Apa: Well, a map has got many details, you see. Okay, let’s have a look at some pictures. Academic Year 2024 First picture Second picture 16  History and Social Science Questions: What can you see in the first and the second pictures? What are the differences between the two pictures? class gets into groups and they try to find answers to these questions- Elements in the first picture Elements in the second picture Sketch of natural scenery of Bangladesh Map of Bangladesh Trees, river Scale, directions We can follow them and trace the elements from the two pictures. Map scale Sunny: Apa, when I tried to find the differences between a picture and a map, I found that we need a scale to draw a map. But I don’t understand why we need this. Why can’t we draw a map without a scale? Khushi Apa: We can read a story then. Let’s check the problem that the king faced. The King’s Stable Once upon a time, there was a princess who was fond of horses. The king made a plan to buy a fantastic horse as a surprise gift for the princess. The king sent his man to buy a horse. When the man returned with a horse, the king asked to keep the horse hidden till birthday. However, to keep a horse the king needed a stable. So, the king decided to make a stable. The king estimated the space, took help from a carpenter, and started the task himself so that the matter remained a secret. The king walked horizontally and vertically and estimated that he required a stable of 20 steps long and 10 steps wide. Then he asked the carpenter to make a stable accordingly. On her birthday the princess became so Academic Year 2024 happy to get the gift. But, when she went to keep the horse in the stable she found it was quite small in size for the horse. The king being annoyed asked the carpenter to explain why that happened. 17  MY different Identity The carpenter got fully puzzled and he couldn’t explain it. He said to the king, ‘I’ve exactly followed the measurement of 20 steps length and 10 steps width.’ The king then looked at the size of the carpenter’s feet and realised the fact. The carpenter was smaller in size in comparison with the king and so were his feet. As a result, the stable built on the measurement of the carpenter’s feet became smaller than required. Sunny says, ‘Now I’ve got it, Apa. If the measurement is not specific, it can’t be exact also.’ Fatema says, ‘Yes! if Sunny says his home is at a distance of 50 steps from the school, none of us will understand whether it is to the north or south or any other direction.’ Sakib comments, ‘And his feet are smaller than mine.’ All of them laugh at this. Khushi Apa says, ‘You are quite right. That’s why there remain some important features in a map you have already noticed.’ Nijhum asks, ‘What is the importance of the scale given underneath the map?’ Khushi Apa replies, ‘To get the answer to this question, we can measure our classroom.’ Then they form two groups. One measures the length and another the width of the class. Khushi Apa: Now we will work in groups to draw the classroom. Robi: But the classroom is too big. How can we draw this on a piece of paper? Nijhum: Well, what can we do then? Nazifa: Can we imagine it as a small one? Shafiq: In that case, everybody might imagine in his/her way like the king’s stable. Sakib: Instead of imagining, we can assume one centimetre of our exercise book is equal to a hundred metres of the classroom. How does it sound? Khushi Apa: That’s right. When we are drawing a map we can follow exact measurement and draw it in a smaller layout. The original measurement needs to be recorded as a scale on the map. We can now work in groups to draw the classroom on the exercise books. Then they draw a map of the classroom. For this, they all work in groups. Homework All of them decide to bring a map of their everyday route from home to school. Shimul says, ‘That means, if our school is at a distance of 7 kilometres from my home, I can measure 1 centimetre = 1 kilometre.’ Khushi Apa comments, ‘Well, in this way we can draw and bring the map of the route from home to school. Your work Academic Year 2024 will be appreciated.’ 18  History and Social Science Let us draw the map of our route from home to school in a similar way. Home to school map drawn by Deepa Maps of large and small scale Lets make a map Direction: 1. Indicate the direction of the compass 2. Use minimum five sign Map of the road from symbols in your map home to school 3. Write the title 4. Set the scale Symbol of sign School Tea shop Pond Symbol/Sign Home Hovel Paddy field Market Bottala Shahid minar Scale 3 inch = 1 k.m. Tubewell Home to school map drawn by Deepa Kushi Apa says, ‘All of you have prepared your maps nicely. Now we will do an interesting task. You can see two maps in your book.’ Robi says, ‘Yes, Apa. One is the Bangladesh map; another is the map of Chattogram division.’ Khushi Apa says, ‘That’s right. Now we will work in groups to locate the main landforms of Chattogram and then note them down on our exercise book.’ Academic Year 2024 They start doing the activity in groups. 19  MY different Identity Landforms of Bangladesh Academic Year 2024 মানচিত্র সংগ্রহ- https://bn.banglapedia.org/index.php/ 20  History and Social Science Map of Chattogram Division (Landform) ধরন Khagrachhari Rangamati হ্রদ Chattogram Bandarban Cox›s Bazar Academic Year 2024 21  MY different Identity After completing the task, all the groups present their findings in front of the class one by one. Khusi Apa asks, ‘With which map did you find it easy to complete the search for the landforms of the Chattogram division?’ Mili says, ‘When I was trying to find landforms of Chattogram division using the map of Bangladesh, I wasn’t able to understand well where the landforms were located. It seemed everything was merged into one.’ Sakib adds, ‘Yes, when we worked with the map of Chattogram division, we found the landforms very easily.’ ‘That’s right,’ adds Khushi Apa. ‘When we have to work with a specific area, it is better to look at an enlarged map of that area, isn’t it?’ Taspia adds, ‘For example, if a picture or text in a mobile is in small font, we zoom it for a better view, don’t we?’ Khusi Apa replies, ‘You are absolutely right, Taspia. This is how we can make a map small or big according to our needs.’ Mili adds, ‘What a pleasure! We can even zoom out and in the maps.’ Everyone smiles after hearing this. Ganesh asks, ‘But how do we use maps, Apa?’ Khushi Apa says, ‘We are going to play a treasure hunt game tomorrow.’ Hearing this everyone claps their hands with enthusiasm. Treasure map The next day there is much excitement in the class. Sakib has come in the guise of a detective. When Khushi Apa comes to the class, Mili says, ‘Today all of us are detectives.’ Khushi Apa says, ‘Yes, we are! What things do we need to play the treasure-hunt game today?’ Roni says, ‘At first we need the treasures.’ Mili adds, ‘And also a map for the treasure hunt.’ Sakib also adds, ‘And a team of smart detectives.’ Everybody laughs at Sakib’s comment. Khushi Apa now says, ‘Okay, now we are going to know the rules for the game first. In the first stage, we will form four groups. We will draw the maps of four sections of the school. For example, the first group will cover the portion from the classroom to the playground. The next group will cover from the playground to the library. Four different maps will be drawn in this way by the four groups. In the second stage, I will put an ‘X’ sign on each map to indicate where the treasure has been stored. In the third stage, each team will swipe their map with another team. Academic Year 2024 In the fourth stage, each team will hunt the treasure according to the directions of the map they have in hand. The team who can find out the treasure first will be the winner. 22  History and Social Science All of them say that the instruction is clear to them. Then they start the treasure- hunt. Family Travel Map Aysha enters the class with a happy face. Seeing her Robin says, ‘Why are you looking so happy?’ Aysha says, ‘Because we went on a trip.’ Robin asks, ‘Where did you travel?’ Aysha replies, ‘Cox’s Bazar. I like the sea a lot.’ ‘Really? But I like hilly areas a lot.’ At the time of entering the class, Khusi Apa listens to them and says, ‘I like forests along with the hills and sea.’ Amit replies immediately, ‘Apa, I have travelled to the Sundarbans and it is located in Khulna division.’ Anuching adds, ‘Apa, once my grandfather lived in Bandarban and I like a lot the hills, forests, and fountains there.’ Khushi Apa then says, ‘We have already learnt where the ancient people lived and where they went. Now, let us do the same task for us.’ Salma says, ‘But we don’t know where we lived in the past.’ Apa replies, ‘You are right. Now, answer me from where you can collect the information.’ ‘From the elders of our family,’ everyone replies together. Rafiq says, ‘Apa, can we add where we want to travel?’ Apa replies, ‘Yes, of course. You will do the task taking help from the page where you find the map. What do we name this task? Ganesh says, ‘As we do the task on our family, therefore, we may call it ‘Family Travel Map’. Everyone supports Ganesh’s opinion. Then everyone prepares their own ‘Family Travel Map’ Academic Year 2024 Family Travel Map 23  MY different Identity Following them let us prepare a ‘Family Travel Map’. In today’s class, Khushi Apa sees Family Travel Map in everyone’s hand and becomes happy. She congratulates everyone for their work and says, ‘You know that a person has multiple identities. Many identities are created. Even you are well aware of your multiple identities. In the meantime, you have read the biography of Bangabandhu and Begum Rokeya; and you have come to know that thinkers like them have multiple identities. Through your tasks what you have come to know, is called ‘geographical identity.’ Khushi Apa wrote the word on the board. Moli adds, ‘Apa, we have worked with the map of Bangladesh, however, we also live in Asia.’ Khushi Apa replies, ‘You are right, let us do another task where your continental identities will also be there.’ Then, they take six circular-shaped chart paper. Inside the largest circle put an identification sign in your continent, country, division, district, locality and in the smallest circle your home. Locate me on the map here Home Locality Distuict Division Country Continent Academic Year 2024 Following Khushi Apa’s class, let us do the task Khusi Apa says, ‘So far, we have learned about nationality, language, culture and geographical location. Let us now organize an identity fair. First, make a group of five to six members. Every group will work on a theme and present their identity in a stall.’ 24  History and Social Science The themes are: 1. Food 2. Clothes 3. Shelter 4. Occupation 5. Entertainment 6. Rituals 7. Culture 8. Other ones After the identity fair, Khushi Apa says, ‘We perhsps understand that we have diverse identities. We do not have the same rituals, cultures, food habits and entertainment etc. Despite these differences, we all live together in harmony. This harmony will be stronger if we can respect our own identity and the identity of others. This will be stronger if we can be tolerant towards others.’ Rita asks, ‘Apa, can we sit in groups and figure out how we should behave when it comes to our own identity and the identity of others?’ Khushi Apa replies, ‘Off course, let us devide ourselves into groups like we did before. Every group will decide how to show respect to others’ identity and how to behave with the people bearing different identities.’ Let us divide ourselves into groups and decide what actions to take, taking into account both our own identity and the identity of others. Expected behaviour toward others What to do about our own identity identity Academic Year 2024 25  Active Citizens Club Today’s class ambience seems quite joyous. Everyone is enjoying their time. Earlier Khushi Apa has informed the class that everyone is going to play football on the school ground or at any vacant place during today’s History and Social Science lesson time. Therefore, everyone is eagerly waiting for Khushi Apa. Some of the students have brought photos of their favourite players in their bags. They are taking these out every now and then to show these to everyone. In the meantime, Khushi Apa with a wide smile on her face enters the class and she carries a football in her hand. There is excitement among everyone. Using hand gestures, Khushi Apa asks everyone to be quiet and says, ‘Are you all ready?’ All enthusiastically reply together, ‘Yes, we’re ready.’ Khushi Apa says, ‘Let us form two teams. First, we need to select two captains. Then, the captain will select other players. You should bear in mind that the team should be all-inclusive and must have a good balance of boys and girls, and students with special needs.’ She also adds, ‘Everyone should have equal opportunities to perform according to their ability.’ Then Shamima proposes, ‘Neela and Ganesh can be our two captains.’ On the other hand, Mozammel proposes Francis and Rupa’s names as the captains. Everyone becomes a bit anxious for a moment thinking about how to select two from these four names. Aeysha proposes, ‘We can elect two captains by voting.’ Neela and Ganesh are elected captains by vote. After that, Neela and Ganesh form their own teams. Going to the school ground, Khushi Apa says, ‘Today you will play in a different way as there will be no rules. Players can play with liberty.’ Hearing this, everyone becomes very happy and excited thinking that there will be so many goals today that it will be hard to keep a count. Khadija, one of their classmates, is acting as a referee for today’s game. As soon as Khadija blows the whistle, the game starts. With lots of happiness and enthusiasm, everybody keeps trying to play football without following any rules for 15 minutes. Then, Khushi Apa declares the end of the first half played without any rules. She then says, ‘Let us now play the game following the rules.’ Then everyone starts playing football following the rules Academic Year 2024 Like teams, let us play football with our classmates dividing ourselves into two teams. 26  History and Social Science Nothing works well without rules! In the next class, everybody keeps discussing the game. Coming to class Khushi Apa says, ‘We had a football game yesterday. How did you feel?’ In reply to her, everyone says, ‘Very good.’ Then reminding all, Khushi Apa asks, ‘We played football in two ways yesterday. Was there any difference because of this?’ Chinmoy says, ‘I was thinking we would be able to score so many goals that no one would be able to keep a count. Because I was anticipating everyone would surely use hands to make scores.’ Khadija exclaims, ‘However, none of the team was able to score a single goal! Yesterday, in the first half, we were playing without rules and when anyone took the ball by hands, others jumped onto it. Therefore, everyone got tangled in one place and could not move freely. The same thing occurred repeatedly and thus none could score a goal. Actually, we weren’t able to play the game without rules.’ Now let us sit together in groups of 5-6 and find answers to the following questions. Do rules exist only in sports? Where else can we find rules? Let us make a list of it. Where and what kinds of rules are there? What sort of problems can arise in the absence of rules? After the discussion, each group writes the answers on the board or on a poster paper and presents a list of them. After an open discussion, everyone realises the necessity and significance of rules. It is needed in their classroom, school, family, society, and in the state. Let us now find the answers to the following questions with the help of our peers. Do the rules exist only in sports? Answer: Where else can we find rules? Let us make a list of it. Answer: Where and what kinds of rules are there? Where do we find them? Answer: What sort of problems can arise in the absence of rules? Answer: Academic Year 2024 At this stage, Shamima says, ‘Now, I understand why we have indiscipline in the classroom, at the school entrance in the morning and afternoon, during the recess, and some other times. Nasir says, ‘In this case, we need to prepare the rules or the code and conduct for the classroom, school, family and society.’ 27  Active Citizens Club Now, everyone gets divided into different groups and starts to prepare some rules to follow in the classroom and in the school premises. Then they hang it on the wall so that it can be seen from anywhere in the classroom. Let us divide ourselves into groups and starts to prepare some rules to follow in the classroom and in the school premises. Then they hang it on the wall so that it can be seen from anywhere in the classroom. Rules to follow in the classroom 1. 2. 3................................ Rules to follow in the school premises 1. 2. 3................................ Rules to follow in a family and a society 1. 2. 3................................ Academic Year 2024 They have decided to follow these rules throughout the year. If they need to add any rules, they may add them by having an open discussion. Similarly, they may remove any if it seems unnecessary. They decide to follow these rules throughout their course of study at school; if necessary, they will amend some rules and will follow them. Khushi Apa happily comments that she will also follow these rules. 28  History and Social Science Adnan then says, ‘We do not live alone in this society and this school is also not just ours. There are diverse people. Some of them do not get any chance to go to school. If they do not follow and maintain the rules, there will be chaos everywhere. However, it is a difficult task to motivate everyone to follow the rules. It will be challenging for us if we want to promote this alone. Anuching proposes, ‘Let us form a club. A club for making active citizens’ Everybody supports her proposal. Then Robin adds, ‘We may name it Active Citizens Club.’ Anuching says, ‘We can do many development projects through this Active Citizens Club, can’t we, Apa?’ Khushi Apa replies, ‘You are absolutely right, Anuching. We can do many develop- ment initiatives throughout the year though Active Citizens Club. For example, we will organize book reading programme and engage in nature conservation activities in the upcoming classes.’ This time Khushi Apa shows the following pictures to everyone. Then students are asked to discuss which pictures show that people are following rules and which ones show that people are breaking rules. Now Khushi Apa shows these pictures during the lesson. Academic Year 2024 29  Active Citizens Club After finishing the discussion on the pictures, she explains that these are only some pictures of people following or not following traffic rules. Besides, there are many other areas of work where such events happen. Then the learners divide themselves into groups of 5/6 to make a list of activities for the Active Citizens Club. After the groups have presented their list to the whole class, the proposed club activities are then finalised. They do it over a collective consensus constructed through group discussions. Khushi Apa further says, ‘As we have now decided our activities, let’s make a club committee to carry out these tasks properly.’ The learners discuss the following aspects sitting in groups – Total number of members Academic Year 2024 Names of the posts and designation Respective duties Eligibility for becoming a general member Rights and duties of general members 30  History and Social Science Based on the discussion, the learners prepare proposals and present those in groups. They develop a common guideline and a list of roles and duties by consulting among themselves. They nominate their History and Social Science teacher as the Adviser of the club. Then the learners form the club committee through an election. The new committee promptly fixes the date for the first meeting. In the very first meeting, they plan the next steps and start their activity straight away. Forming the Active Citizens Club Let us form an Active Citizens Club and plan what activities we are going to do throughout the year. As the first activity of the Active Citizens Club, Khushi Apa proposes having a critical thinking session on traffic rules. Once the learners agree, she asks them to form three groups. According to the decision: The first group collects information about traffic rules from eligible people, related books, and other sources. The second group collects traffic signs and writes descriptions of them. The third group presents a report on the real situation using photos, drawings, and descriptions after monitoring the local roads with the help of Khushi Apa. On a particular day, all three groups present their findings to the class. Others provide feedback for possible corrections and modifications. In this way, they develop a feature report on traffic rules. They also arrange a display of traffic signs and photographs with descriptions. Group Work: Ensuring a Safe Journey to School For those of us who do not live in cities, our roads may not have traffic signals. So, we do not need to obey the rules of traffic signals. Whether we live in a city or a village, let’s work together within the Active Citizens Club to establish guidelines that guarantee a secure and pleasant journey from home to school. For this, let us Academic Year 2024 also discuss how we can get help from school authorities and local people. Through discussion, let us define what we can do and write action plans accordingly. 31  Ways of Knowing History What, indeed, is History? Welcome to the inquiry into history. The study of history is very delighting. By studying history, we come to know about people’s past activities. Without knowing the past, people have no present. People’s future depends on their present. Moreover, the present is built on the numerous experiences of people from the past. History is therefore very important. In addition to your grandparents and great-grandparents, there were also their predecessors many years ago in the past. Our ancestors lived in this world for thousands of years. When we try to know and understand the successive narration of their various activities or lifestyles in a logical and scientific manner in the light of reliable sources and evidence, it becomes history. How humans have sustained their existence on Earth for millions of years, how they brought about agricultural and urban revolutions, how they invented language, society, culture, religion, and how they have reached the present by building kingdoms and states are known only by reading history. The Study of History A number of enjoyable history lessons await you in Grade 6. These lessons of history will help you to know yourself and to know and understand your family, society, country and people. How Do We Know History? Khushi Apa has entered the classroom. She tells the students, ‘Listen to me. Let me tell you a story.’ A group of boys and girls were playing cricket in the village field. A jungle was next to the field. Shakib struck a six by hitting Michael’s ball so hard that the ball got lost in the jungle. Salma went to the jungle to look for the ball. Seeing her delay, others also entered the jungle. They kept looking for the ball. The ball was nowhere. The jungle was quite dense. Meanwhile afternoon approached. Daylight became dim. Suddenly Renu’s shout came from far away– ‘Everyone come here quickly! Here is a big mound and an old building! The ball seems to be lost here!’ Michael and Shakib said, ‘Let all of us go there to find the ball.’ Academic Year 2024 Then Shatil and Rabbi said, ‘We don’t know who lives there or if anyone at all lives there. What if someone hits us? They may hold us captive.’ However, noticing Renu’s courage, Manisha went ahead. The rest of the team also reached near the mound. By that time, Salma had entered the broken building. One by one, the others entered the building. 32  History and Social Science In a room in that broken-down building, they found a few broken chairs and a broken table. Some old papers were lying here and there. A few unfamiliar coins were lying on one corner of the broken table. Entering the next room, they saw an earthen pitcher, several pieces of broken earthenware and a few terracotta or burnt earthen plaques. In one corner of the room, some palm leaves with some writing on them were lying unattended. They tried to read the texts written on the palm leaves. They try to read the texts. Although the script looked almost like Bangla letters, it had some differences. The script looked quite cursive. The text was beautifully written in red ink. They could see some wall paintings. Also, some carved crafts were there in the room. They entered two other rooms. The roof was so damaged that some bits of it had fallen down on the floor. The mound was clearly visible to their sight lying next to a room. It seemed that something had been slowly covered under ground for a long time. Many creepers and bushes had entangled a few big trees there. The twilight cast a special color on the old decrepit building and mound. Evening was approaching. They now started to get a little scared. It looked like there might be snakes and poisonous animals inside and outside the decaying building! Almost everyone in the cricket team was upset. They searched a lot but did not find the ball in that decaying building. However, the old building, the mound and scattered objects made Renu very thoughtful. Others also had some curiosity. They went towards their respective families. Academic Year 2024 While walking towards home, many questions emerged in Renu’s mind – ‘How old is this building?’ ‘Who used to live there?’ ‘Why did the people living there leave the place?’ ‘How did the palm-leaf manuscripts come here?’ ‘What is written on the palm leaves?’ ‘How old are the pottery and terracotta plaques?’ ‘Could there be any hidden treasure under that earthen mound?’ 33  Ways of Knowing History A thousand such questions kept spinning in Renu’s head. After consulting with her friends, Salma told everything to the head teacher of the school. Their Head Teacher was very surprised at finding their courage and intelligence. He told all of them, ‘You have made a great discovery. Even we the adults are unaware that such history is lying hidden in the jungle.’ He invited a professional historian to their school. Following the Head Teacher’s suggestion, students raised many curious questions one by one. The historian said, ‘You have many questions in your mind. It is the first step in knowing history.’ He continued saying, ‘The broken-down building is quite old. We can know how old it is by conducting some scientific experiments. However, after hearing from you about the presence of the mound, I guess that it may be several hundreds of years old. All the materials you have seen are sources or materials of history. It may happen that the person or people who lived in that building were studying ancient history. They knew how to write history by scrutinizing and interpreting various sources. S/He or they may have tried to know and write down various events of the past from the writing on old palm leaves, broken pieces of pottery and terracotta. The house may have been abandoned after it had fallen to some natural/geographic calamity.’ If you want to talk about the liberation war of 1971 in terms of a century and a decade, you have to say that it is an event of the seventies of the twentieth century. Similarly, the language movement of 1952 is another event of the fifties of the nineteenth century. Bangabandhu’s birth year 1920 is the event of the twenties of the twentieth century. Again, the Battle of Plassey of 1757 is an event of the fifties of the eighteenth century. There is one more thing to consider when discussing time. The English Gregorian calendar begins counting around the birth of Jesus Christ. Jesus is the central figure of Christianity. Even thousands of years before the birth of Jesus Christ, there were people in the world and the people had various activities. You must have seen in various books, that time is marked with the word Before the birth of Christ (BC). Thus, you understand why the words AD (Anno Domini, in Latin, means when the Christ believed to have been born) and BC (Before Christ) are used in history. Before it was known as Bangla or Bangladesh, this land had many other names. At different times, it was also known as Banga, Pundra, Rarh, Gauro, Samatat, Horikela. Although known by different names at different times, the territory called Bengal has some common geographical features and specific natural boundaries. Living within a geographically defined boundary has created a common cultural and historical bond among the people here. Therefore, this place has been recognized as a ‘region’. Why do you need to know history? Academic Year 2024 Many may tell you to forget the past. They may tell you that there is no use in knowing history. They may also say that you cannot earn money by knowing history. It is very essential for any human being to know history. Let us try to understand this issue through some relatively different examples. 34  History and Social Science Let’s Explore the History of our Neighbourhood, Locality or Village All of us live in a neighborhood , locality or village. Each of these has its own unique history. Let us try to know the history of our respective neighborhood, locality or village. To uncover this history, we’ll gather information by asking questions to the older residents of our respective neighborhood, locality, or village. Let us form groups of 5-6. Ensure that everyone in the group belongs to the same neighborhood/locailty/village. Each group will prepare some questions to know the history of the neighborhood/ locality/village. They will select 4-5 elderly individuals who can answer their questions. Before collecting information from the respondents, we must take care of some things. Obtaining permission from respondents: 1. Inform the respondent about the anticipated duration of the questioning. 2. Clearly specify the subject for which the questions will be asked. 3. Assure the respondent that there will be no pressure to answer the questions. 4. Clearly state that the respondent is free to refrain from answering any question. 5. Tell them that any personal information (name, age etc.) of the respondent shall be kept confidential. 6. Clearly mention that the information gathered will be used solely for the intended purpose. If a man does not know himself and other humans like him and the history of nature, that person or such people would not have any identity of their own at present time. We need to know about the past of our country and nation. If a person has no memory, the existence that person becomes incomplete. History is the scientific description of the collective experience of all people living in a specific territory. Keep it in mind that history uncovers the collective memory of all of us. When we know from history that we have done something wrong in the past, we can avoid doing that mistake or bad thing in the future. If we do a good deed that makes us proud on behalf of human Academic Year 2024 beings and humanity, that deed will keep us remembered in history. So, we can get an idea from history about how the course of change was – from the past to the present – and how this course of change can affect the future. Knowing history is essential to understand how different civilizations and cultures interact with each other. 35  Looking Around through the Lens