Chapter 2 — Exploring Our Neighbourhood

Chapter 2 of the Class 4 The World Around Us NCERT textbook (Our Wondrous World), "Exploring Our Neighbourhood", follows Navya and her grandfather on a bus ride home through their neighbourhood, introducing children to community places like the post office, hospital, bank, and ATM, while also covering how communication and transport have changed over time, cardinal directions for map-reading, and the basics of saving money. Download the PDF and read our summary and Q&A below.

• Communication Then and Now — The chapter traces how people communicated from ancient drumbeats, rock carvings, and pigeon-carried messages to the postal service, and then to telephones, television, mobile phones, and the internet. Dada ji recalls that letters once took weeks to arrive, while today a message reaches anyone in seconds. Students are asked to interview elders and compare past and present communication in a table.
• Modern Transport and the Environment — On the bus ride, Navya sees a metro train and learns about flyovers — elevated roads that help vehicles move above busy crossings and save travellers' time. Dada ji explains that while these modern facilities have made life easier, they have also displaced many animals, birds, and trees. He suggests that planting trees can help balance development with environmental care.
• Community Places and Their Services — The chapter introduces public places — hospitals, banks, post offices, police stations, public libraries, and bus stations — as places that provide services related to health, safety, cleanliness, and the environment. Navya sees an eye check-up camp at a hospital and learns about the bank and ATM near her home. The barter system is briefly explained as the origin of money.
• Reading Maps and Directions — After returning home, Navya draws a map of her neighbourhood using the rising sun to find east, then placing north at the top, south at the bottom, west on the left, and east on the right. Students practise identifying places in each cardinal direction around their own home and school, and draw a route map using landmarks like parks, shops, and bus stops.

1. 01Navya takes the market route home by bus with her grandfather (Dada ji) and observes post offices, hospitals, banks, metros, and flyovers
2. 02Post offices sort letters by region and deliver them; Dada ji used them to write to his brother in another city when he was young
3. 03Long ago people communicated via drumbeats, rock carvings, and pigeons; later the postal service, telephone, radio, TV, and now the internet
4. 04Metro trains travel very fast and flyovers let vehicles pass above busy roads and crossings, saving travel time
5. 05Banks keep money safe and help people save for the future; ATMs (Automated Teller Machines) let people withdraw money anytime without waiting in queues
6. 06Before money was invented, people used the barter system — exchanging goods like wheat for milk — but finding the right trade partner was difficult
7. 07On a map, North is up, South is down, East is right, and West is left; Navya uses the rising sun to identify east
8. 08Public places such as hospitals, post offices, police stations, and libraries provide services related to health, safety, cleanliness, and the environment