Chapter 22 of 30

73%

CBSE Class 5 English★ 3-5 marks in Class 5 English assessments; story comprehension and moral

Flying Together

Flying Together is a current Class 5 CBSE English story from NCERT Marigold. This Panchatantra tale about geese and a hunter teaches unity, wisdom, and teamwork with vocabulary and practice questions.

⏱ 10 min readEasy difficulty✓ Free · NCERT-aligned

Ask AI about this

🔤Build your vocabulary from this chapterLexiGenome mines the key words, explains them in your language, and schedules them with spaced repetition.Mine words →

By the end of this chapter you'll be able to…

1Summarise the story of the geese and the hunter
2Describe the wise old goose's escape plan
3Identify the theme of unity and teamwork
4State the moral of the story
5Relate the lesson to teamwork in daily life

💡

Why this chapter matters

'Flying Together' is a Panchatantra fable in which a flock of geese escape a hunter by working together. It builds comprehension and teaches the powerful lesson that unity and teamwork can overcome any obstacle.

Before you start — revise these

A 5-minute refresher here will save you 30 minutes of confusion below.

🔗

Class 4 English: Animal fables

Stories with a moral

Flying Together — Class 5 English (CBSE)

From the current Class 5 English Marigold textbook. Read this Panchatantra story about the power of unity, then attempt the practice questions.

1. About the story

'Flying Together' is a story from the Panchatantra — a collection of ancient Indian fables. Panchatantra stories always have a moral at the end. In this story, a flock of geese and a wise old goose teach an important lesson about unity and teamwork. A hunter tries to trap the geese using a vine. The geese must work together to escape.

2. Summary

A flock of geese lived in a huge tree. A hunter noticed the geese and wanted to catch them. He climbed the tree and tied a vine to the branches. The geese were trapped. But a wise old goose had a plan. He told all the geese to hold the vine with their beaks and fly away together at the same moment. The geese followed his plan. They lifted the vine and flew away together, escaping the hunter.

The hunter was amazed. He realised that the geese escaped because they worked together. The story shows that unity and cooperation can overcome even the cleverest enemy.

3. Characters

Character	Role
The wise old goose	The leader who thinks of an escape plan
The flock of geese	The group that follows the plan
The hunter	The one who tries to trap the geese

4. Theme and values

Theme	Explanation
Unity	The geese escape because they work together.
Wisdom	The wise old goose finds a solution.
Teamwork	Everyone must cooperate for the plan to work.
Leadership	A good leader guides others to safety.
Following instructions	The geese follow the plan, which is why it works.

Values to learn

Working together helps us overcome challenges.
Listen to wise advice from elders and leaders.
Follow instructions carefully when working in a team.
Unity is strength — alone we are weak, together we are strong.

5. Key vocabulary

Word	Meaning
Flock	A group of birds
Geese	Plural of goose (a water bird)
Hunter	A person who catches wild animals
Vine	A climbing plant with long stems
Trap	A device or situation used to catch something
Escape	To get away from danger
Wisdom	Knowledge and good judgement
Unity	The state of being joined together as one
Cooperate	To work together for a common goal
Panchatantra	An ancient Indian collection of animal fables

6. Reading comprehension

Questions to think about while reading

Where did the geese live?
How did the hunter try to catch the geese?
What was the wise old goose's plan?
Why did the plan work?
What lesson did the hunter learn?

Understanding the moral

The story's message is clear: united we stand, divided we fall. If even one goose had not followed the plan, all would have been trapped. Teamwork requires everyone's full participation.

7. Writing practice

Prompt 1: Describe a situation where you and your friends or family worked together to achieve something.

Prompt 2: Write a short paragraph explaining the saying 'Unity is strength'.

Prompt 3: Imagine you are the wise old goose. Write a speech to encourage the other geese before flying away.

8. Common mistakes

Mistake: Calling the story a 'poem' instead of a 'Panchatantra fable' Fix: This is a prose story from the Panchatantra, not a poem.
Mistake: Thinking any one goose could have escaped alone Fix: The whole point is that they needed to work together. One goose alone could not lift the vine.
Mistake: Forgetting to mention the moral at the end of your answer Fix: Always connect your answer to the lesson: unity and teamwork are powerful.

9. Self-test

Which collection does this story belong to?
Who tried to catch the geese?
What was the wise old goose's plan to escape?
Why did the hunter fail?
What is the moral of the story?

10. Answer key

Which collection does this story belong to? Answer: The Panchatantra, a collection of ancient Indian fables.
Who tried to catch the geese? Answer: A hunter.
What was the wise old goose's plan to escape? Answer: All the geese would hold the vine with their beaks and fly away at the same moment, lifting the vine together.
Why did the hunter fail? Answer: The hunter failed because the geese worked together. Their unity and cooperation helped them escape.
What is the moral of the story? Answer: Unity is strength. When we work together, we can overcome any obstacle.

11. Quick revision

Source: Panchatantra (ancient Indian fables).
Characters: A flock of geese, a wise old goose, a hunter.
Problem: The hunter traps the geese with a vine.
Solution: The geese work together to fly away with the vine.
Moral: Unity is strength. Teamwork saves the day.
Panchatantra stories always teach a valuable lesson.
Connect the moral to teamwork in your own life.

Key formulas & results

Everything you need to memorise, in one card. Screenshot this for revision.

Source and moral

A Panchatantra fable; moral: unity is strength

Panchatantra stories always teach a lesson.

Escape plan

All geese lift the vine together and fly off at once

Works only if everyone cooperates.

⚠️

Common mistakes & fixes

These are the exact errors that cost students marks in board exams. Read them once, save yourself the trouble.

WATCH OUT

✗ Calling the story a poem

✓ It is a prose fable from the Panchatantra, not a poem.

WATCH OUT

✗ Thinking one goose could escape alone

✓ A single goose could not lift the vine; they needed to work together.

WATCH OUT

✗ Forgetting to state the moral

✓ Always connect the answer to the lesson that unity and teamwork are powerful.

NCERT exercises (with solutions)

Every NCERT exercise from this chapter — what it covers and how many questions to expect.

Reading is Fun

Comprehension questions on the fable

Questions

Let Us Talk

Discussion on unity and teamwork

Questions

Practice problems

Try each one yourself before tapping "Show solution". Active recall > rereading.

Q1EASY· Recall

Which collection does this story belong to?

▶ Show solution

The Panchatantra, a collection of ancient Indian fables.

Q2EASY· Recall

Who tried to catch the geese?

▶ Show solution

A hunter.

Q3EASY· Comprehension

What was the wise old goose's plan to escape?

▶ Show solution

All the geese would hold the vine in their beaks and fly off together at the same moment, lifting it and escaping the hunter.

Q4MEDIUM· Moral

What is the moral of the story?

▶ Show solution

Unity is strength: when we work together, we can overcome any obstacle.

5-minute revision

The whole chapter, distilled. Read this the night before the exam.

•The story is from the Panchatantra, a collection of fables.
•A flock of geese live in a tree; a hunter traps them with a vine.
•A wise old goose plans the escape.
•All the geese lift the vine together and fly away.
•The plan works because every goose cooperates.
•Moral: unity is strength.
•Panchatantra stories always end with a lesson.

CBSE marks blueprint

Where the marks come from in this chapter — so you can plan your prep.

Typical chapter weightage: 3-5 marks, depending on the school paper

Question type	Marks each	Typical count	What it tests
Comprehension / MCQ	1-2	1-2	Characters and plot
Moral / values	2-3	1	Theme of unity and teamwork

Prep strategy

Recall the source as the Panchatantra
Describe the escape plan clearly
State the unity-is-strength moral
Link the moral to your own teamwork

Where this shows up in the real world

This chapter isn't just an exam topic — it lives in the world around you.

Teamwork

The fable shows how cooperation helps groups succeed.

Leadership

It highlights the value of listening to wise advice.

Moral learning

Panchatantra tales teach values through simple stories.

Exam strategy

Battle-tested tips from teachers and toppers for this chapter.

Name the Panchatantra as the source
Explain the escape plan step by step
End answers with the unity moral
Give a real-life teamwork example

Going beyond the textbook

For olympiad aspirants and curious learners — topics that build on this chapter.

Write about a time your team achieved something together.
Read another Panchatantra fable and find its moral.

Where else this chapter is tested

CBSE board isn't the only one — other exams test this chapter too.

CBSE Class 5 School ExamHigh

Olympiad / value educationMedium

AI helpers for this chapter

Generate more practice on the fly, or have the chapter explained at a different level.

⚡

Generate 5 more questions

Fresh MCQs + short-answer items based on this chapter, plus answer keys.

🧠

Explain at a different level

Re-explain the chapter at the level you actually want.

📝 My notes

Saved on this device — sign in to sync · how this works

0/600

Questions students ask

The real ones — pulled from the Q&A community and tutor sessions.

The hunter had tied a vine around the geese, trapping them, and no single goose was strong enough to lift it and escape. The wise old goose realised that if every goose grabbed the vine with its beak and flew upward at exactly the same moment, their combined strength would lift the whole vine into the air. Because all the geese followed the plan together, they were able to fly off carrying the vine, leaving the astonished hunter behind. Their success came entirely from acting as one.

The story shows that unity is strength: tasks that are impossible alone become possible when everyone works together. If even one goose had refused or failed to lift the vine at the right moment, the whole flock would have stayed trapped. This teaches us that good teamwork needs everyone's full cooperation and that listening to wise guidance, like that of the old goose, helps a group overcome problems that no individual could solve alone.

Practice more, ask doubts, find a tutor

CBSE Class 5 mock tests

CBSE Class 5 PYQs

Ask in Q&A

English flashcards

Related chapters

Students who read Flying Together usually read these next.

Papa's Spectacles

Papa's Spectacles is a current Class 5 CBSE English Santoor poem. These notes give summary, theme, vocabulary, reading comprehension, grammar practice, writing tasks, common mistakes, and answers.

Gone with the Scooter

Gone with the Scooter is a current Class 5 CBSE English Santoor story. These notes give summary, theme, vocabulary, reading comprehension, grammar practice, writing tasks, common mistakes, and answers.

The Rainbow

The Rainbow is a current Class 5 CBSE English Santoor poem. These notes give summary, theme, vocabulary, reading comprehension, grammar practice, writing tasks, common mistakes, and answers.

The Wise Parrot

The Wise Parrot is a current Class 5 CBSE English Santoor story. These notes give summary, theme, vocabulary, reading comprehension, grammar practice, writing tasks, common mistakes, and answers.