The River by Valerie Bloom

The River by Valerie Bloom is a poem in ICSE class 4. Find study notes, and questions and answers for this poem.

The Poem

The River’s a wanderer,
A nomad, a tramp,
He doesn’t choose one place
To set up his camp.

The River’s a winder,
Through valley and hill
He twists and he turns,
He just cannot be still.

The River’s a hoarder,
And he buries down deep
Those little treasures
That he wants to keep.

The River’s a baby,
He gurgles and hums,
And sounds like he’s happily
Sucking his thumbs.

The River’s a singer,
As he dances along,
The countryside echoes
The notes of his song.

Questions and Answers

1. Read the table headings and write at least five words in the table.

Rhyming word pairs from the poem, Metaphors used to describe the river

• 1) tramp-camp, 1) wanderer
• 2) hill-still, 2) winder
• 3) deep-keep, 3) hoarder
• 4) hums-thumbs, 4) baby
• 5) along-song 5) singer

2. Read these lines and answer the questions that follow:

a) “The river’s a wanderer, A nomad, a tramp. She doesn’t choose one place, To set up her camp. The River’s a winder; Through valley and hill. She twists and she turns, She just cannot be still.”

i) Wanderer, nomad, tramp: What do these three words tell us about the river?
Answer: The words – wanderer, nomad, tramp tell us that the river does not stay still, but moves place to place. It has no home and and does not choose a fixed place to stay.

ii) What are the different places that the river flows past in the poem?
Answer: The different places that the river flows past in the poem are – valley and hill.

iii) In your own words give the meaning of ‘to set up camp’.
Answer: The meaning of ‘to set up camp’ is to choose one fixed place to settle down.

b) “The River’s a hoarder, And she buries down deep. All those little treasures, She wants to keep.”

i) Why is the river called a ‘hoarder’?
Answer: The river is called a ‘hoarder’ because it has little treasures like rocks, pebbles which are buried deep underneath.

ii) Which word means ‘puts deep inside’?
Answer: The word ‘buries’ means ‘puts deep inside’.

iii) What do you think the treasures that the river wants to keep?
I think the treasures that the river wants to keep are – the rocks and pebbles which she collects from the hills and valleys.

3. Circle/Tick the group of words that describe what the river does not do?

• i) Stay still.
• ii) Flow in the countryside.
• iii) Stay in one place.
• iv) Flow silently.
• v) Give away her treasures.

Answer: i, iii, iv, v

4. Why does the poet call the river a singer? Answer: The poet calls the river a singer because the sound of the flowing water echoes in the countryside. The poet compares these sounds to the notes of the song of the river.

5. In this poem many comparisons have been used to described the river. Think of a river you have seen. Is there anything else you can compare a river to?
Answer: I think the river can be compared to a mother, because of its caring nature. In the past, civilizations were built near rivers. Even today, cities and communities are situated beside rivers. River helps in crop cultivation as it provides water. So we can compare the river to a mother as it takes care of people in many ways.

6. Who were compared with the river in the poem ‘The River’?
Answer: The river was compared with – wanderer, winder, hoarder, baby and singer.