Cypress Street by Todd Michael St. Pierre (Class 4 English Literature)

Cypress Street by Todd Michael St. Pierre (Class 4 English Literature): Study notes, questions and answers.

Questions and Answers

1. Fill in the word web with words from the poem.

Concrete => Street words => Lamp post => Street

2. Tick the right answer.

a. In the poem, the poet walked down the street because:

• i. he had something important to do.
• ii. he wanted to check how hot the concrete was.
• iii. he wanted to enjoy a walk.

Answer: iii

b. A treeless street is palm no good. This means:

• i. plum trees are not good to plant on streets.
• ii. streets must have trees.
• iii. treeless streets are good to walk on.

Answer: ii

Reference to Context

“According to my Great Aunt Gem, There used to be a lot of them.”

i) What does the word ‘them’ refer to?
Answer: The word ‘them’ here refers to the Cypress trees.

ii) In these lines, find the antonym of ‘not many or just a few’.
Answer: The antonym of ‘not many or just a few’ is ‘a lot of.’

iii) What changes has Great Aunt Gem noticed?
Answer: Great Aunt Gem says that at one time there used to be a lot of Cypress trees on the Cypress Street, but she now notices that there are no trees left on the street.

“They cut them down. They took their wood. A treeless street is plum no good!”

i) The poet tells us that they cut down the trees. Who do you think cut down the trees?
Answer: I think the people of the town or the municipality cut down the trees.

ii) Why were the trees cut down?
Answer: The trees were cut down for their wood.

iii) According to the poet, what else is no good without trees?

Answer: According to the poet, a neighbourhood is no good without trees.

4. Would it make the poet happy to have the name of the street changed to ‘Lamppost Street’? Give a reason for your answer.

Answer: Yes, it would make the poet happy to have the name of the Street changed to ‘Lamppost Street’. As there are no Cypress trees on the street, the poet considers that there is no significance to have the name as ‘Cypress Street’. Instead, he suggests to rename the Street as ‘Lamppost Street’ as there are only lampposts, instead of Cypress trees, on the street.

5. Why do you think the poet has written this poet?

Answer: I think the poet has written this poem to make us aware about the importance of trees, especially in our locality. More trees are being cut down in order to develop cities and towns. However, without trees, humans cannot live and no good will happen by cutting them down.

6. What do you think the Mayor should discuss at the next meeting?

Answer: The Mayor should discuss planting trees on both sides of the Cypress Street in the next meeting. Most probably he should take steps to plant Cypress trees on both sides of the street.

7. The poet says a neighbourhood without trees is no good. Why is it important to have trees in a neighbourhood? Write your reasons in the speech bubbles.

Answer: There are several good reasons to have more trees in a neighbourhood:

• i) Trees give us oxygen.
• ii) Trees prevent pollution.
• iii) Trees provide shelter as well as food
• iv) Trees make the surroundings look beautiful.