Bihar Board Class 10 · English · Matric exam 2027
Chapter 8: Little Girls Wiser Than Men — notes
The chapter’s 7 parts in the book’s order — the first idea of each and the points Medha Ma’am writes on the board — and the summary at the end. The full lesson and a check question for each part are in the app.
1. The Easter morning and the two little girls
Okay, so this story is by Leo Tolstoy.
- • Setting: early Easter morning
- • Snow still in yards, water ran in streets
- • Malásha - smaller girl, blue frock
- • Akoúlya - bigger girl, yellow print frock
- • Both had red handkerchiefs on their heads
- • They met near a puddle after church
2. Crossing the puddle carefully
Okay, so look at the board.
- • Akoúlya checks Malásha before she steps in
- • Both take off shoes and stockings
- • They walk towards each other through puddle
- • Malásha: 'It is deep, I'm afraid!'
- • Akoúlya: 'Don't be frightened'
- • Warning: 'Mind, don't splash. Walk carefully!'
3. The splash and the children's quarrel
Okay, so look at what happens next between the two girls.
- • Malásha splashes water on Akoúlya's frock
- • Akoúlya gets angry, runs to strike Malásha
- • Malásha scrambles out, runs home
- • Akoúlya's mother sees the dirty frock
- • Akoúlya says: 'Malásha did it on purpose'
4. The quarrel grows among the grown-ups
Okay, so look at what happens next.
- • Akoúlya's mother strikes Malásha
- • Malásha howls loudly, heard down the street
- • Malásha's mother comes out, scolds neighbour
- • Men come out, crowd collects
- • Everyone shouting, no one listening
- • One pushes another - nearly comes to blows
5. The old grandmother's effort to calm the crowd
Okay, so the fight was about to start.
- • Old grandmother steps in to calm the men
- • Her words: 'Is it right to behave so?'
- • 'It is a time for rejoicing, not folly'
- • Crowd would not listen to her
- • Nearly knocked her off her feet
6. The girls make peace while the elders fight
While the women were still abusing each other, Akoúlya had wiped the mud off her frock and gone back to the puddle.
- • Akoúlya wipes mud, returns to puddle
- • Digs channel with a stone
- • Malásha joins with a chip of wood
- • Water streams towards the fighting men
- • Girls run alongside, laughing happily
- • 'Catch it, Malásha! Catch it!'
7. The men are shamed and the moral of the story
Okay, so, let's see what happens next.
- • Old woman: 'Are you not ashamed of yourselves?'
- • 'Dear little souls! They are wiser than you!'
- • Men feel ashamed, laugh at themselves
- • Men go back to their own homes
- • Closing line: 'become as little children...'
- • ...'kingdom of heaven'
Summary
Okay, so let's go back over this story together. It opens on an early Easter morning. Two little girls, Malásha and Akoúlya, meet near a puddle in their new festival frocks. Akoúlya carefully guides Malásha across it — but Malásha splashes her. That starts a quarrel. See, the quarrel doesn't stay small. It pulls in their mothers, then the men of the village, and it nearly ends in a fight. Akoúlya's old grandmother tries to calm everyone down with her words, but she fails. Meanwhile, what are the girls doing? They've already forgotten their quarrel. They dig a little channel and play happily with the flowing water — and they run right into the group of fighting men. The old woman sees the girls laughing together, and she shames the men, calling the girls wiser than them. The men feel ashamed, and they go home. The story ends with a thought — one must become like little children to enter the kingdom of heaven. Now tell me, why do you think the girls forgot their quarrel so quickly, but the grown-ups couldn't?
Ask Medha · Medha Ma’am — Bihar Board Class 10 English, Chapter 8. Written from the textbook, checked twice.
Questions parents and students ask
- How do I get the "Little Girls Wiser Than Men" notes as a PDF?
- Press "Save as PDF" — the phone’s print sheet opens; choose "Save as PDF" there. The PDF holds the notes only.
- Where are these notes written from?
- From the chapter’s own textbook text, part by part, in the book’s own terms; a second, independent model then checked every part against the book. The full lesson, a check question for each part and the practice are in the Ask Medha app.
The same preparation, with Medha Ma’am — on your phone
Every question of every chapter with its model answer, practice questions in the board’s own shapes, 45 minutes of class a day, written answers marked, a test every Sunday and a WhatsApp report to parents.
Medha Ma’am is an AI teacher, not a live tutor. Every answer is checked twice; a person takes responsibility.