- General knowledge
- Classes 3-5
- 5 min read
Our community helpers
Meet the people who keep a neighbourhood running, from farmers and doctors to postal workers and sanitation workers, and the tools they use.
Let us begin
The big idea
Think of your day: the milk at breakfast, the road to school, the teacher in class, the clean street outside. Many people worked to make each of these happen. In this lesson you will meet the community helpers and learn how to respect their work.
A community is all the people who live and work in one area. Community helpers are the people whose work helps everyone. Some grow or make things, some keep us safe, some keep us healthy, and some teach or deliver.
Food helpers: the farmer grows grains and vegetables, the milkman or dairy worker brings milk, the grocer sells food in a shop, and the cook prepares it. Making helpers: the carpenter makes things from wood, the potter shapes clay, the weaver makes cloth, the tailor stitches clothes and the cobbler mends shoes.
Safety and health helpers: the police officer keeps order, the firefighter puts out fires, the doctor treats illness, the nurse cares for patients, and the pharmacist gives medicines. The sanitation worker collects waste and sweeps the streets, which stops disease from spreading.
Other helpers: the teacher helps us learn, the postal worker delivers letters, the bus driver and the auto driver take us places, the electrician fixes wires, and the plumber fixes pipes and taps. The soldier guards the borders of the country.
In India, 112 is the single emergency number that connects to police, fire and ambulance services. Say thank you to helpers, keep your street clean to make the sanitation worker's job easier, and never waste a doctor's or a teacher's time.
Worked examples
See how it works
The journey of a roti
A farmer grows wheat. A truck driver takes it to the mill. A mill worker grinds it into flour. A shopkeeper sells the flour. At home someone cooks the roti. At least five helpers worked before the roti reached your plate.
Who do you call?
A tap is leaking: call a plumber. The light switch does not work: call an electrician. A chair leg is broken: call a carpenter. A shirt button is missing: a tailor can fix it. Each helper has a special skill and special tools.
Helpers who keep us safe
If you see a fire, do not go near it. Tell an adult and call 112. The firefighters arrive with a fire engine, hoses and water. If someone is hurt, 112 can also send an ambulance with trained helpers.
Try it at home
Helper and tool matching game
You will need
- About 20 small pieces of paper
- A pencil
- A table or floor to spread the cards on
What to do
- On ten papers write helper names: farmer, doctor, teacher, tailor, carpenter, postal worker, firefighter, cobbler, potter, police officer.
- On ten more papers write a tool or thing for each: plough, stethoscope, chalk, needle, saw, letter, hose, shoe, clay, whistle.
- Turn all the cards face down and mix them.
- Take turns turning over two cards. If the helper and tool match, keep the pair. If not, turn them back.
- The player with the most pairs wins. Then tell each other what each helper does.
Practice sheet
Check what you learned
Practice sheet: Our community helpers (Classes 3-5, General knowledge)
- What is a community?
- Who grows the grains and vegetables we eat?
- Who makes things from wood?
- Who shapes pots from clay?
- Who mends shoes?
- Which helper collects waste and sweeps the streets?
- Who would you call to fix a leaking tap?
- What is the single emergency number in India?
- Name three helpers who worked before a roti reached your plate.
- Give one way you can help a sanitation worker.
Answer key
Answers: Our community helpers
- All the people who live and work in one area.
- The farmer.
- The carpenter.
- The potter.
- The cobbler.
- The sanitation worker.
- A plumber.
- 112.
- Any three: farmer, truck driver, mill worker, shopkeeper, cook.
- Keep your street clean and put waste only in the dustbin.