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ENGLISH

SELF LEARNING KIT on writing


WITH

MODEL ANSWERS
for g.c.e (O/L) students

ZONAL EDUCATION OFFICE


DEHIOVITA
Thanking

Our heartfelt gratitude should record in front of the names of all the Zonal Directors for
their continuous motivation and immense support rendered throughout the process of
compiling this booklet.

Our sincere gratitude should go to Madam Amali Wickramasinghe- The Provincial


Coordinator of English for her enormous support in compiling this book. Without her
support this huge task would be an utter failure.

It is with great pleasure we extend our sincere thanks to all the ISAs, RESC Staff
Members and the beloved English Teachers of Ratnapura ,Balangoda, Embilipitiya and
Dehiovita Education Zones for their tremendous effort in designing and moderating the
activities. Without your diligence, hard work and several late nights and early mornings
we would not be able to compile this book for the betterment of our students.

1
To the Teacher

This book has been designed as a Self-Learning Kit for grade 11 students focusing more on improving their
writing skills.

It is quite obvious that most of our students do not obtain expected results in English language especially at
the G.C.E. (O/L) examination due to their reluctance in attempting questions related to writing skills.

This book will indeed assist these students to overcome their fears for such questions and facilitate them to
improve their writing. Moreover, other necessary skills like reading, grammar and vocabulary have not been
ignored and quite enough practice has been provided throughout the book. Thus, the students will be
motivated to attempt more and more questions with a lot of practice on their own.

Furthermore, for the students who are confined to their residences not being able to attend their schools or
extra classes during COVID pandemic at present, this book will be an apt comforter to enhance much
needed competencies in English language and blow away their worries regarding upcoming G.C.E.(O/L)
examination.

In addition, this will be a guide as well as an exemplary book for the teachers of English to direct their
students along the correct path towards the success; producing students who are really competent in English
language skills with better results at the national level examinations. Therefore, hope that this will be a
resource for the teachers, too and they will do at least papers of past 10 years to empower their students
along with this.

2
Picture Description

3
Look at the picture and underline the correct word.

kite, umbrella, stick dust, sand, cobweb gate, fence, corridor

spring, river, waterfall bird, butterfly, eagle motorbike, bicycle, tricycle

broom, brush, rake bag, umbrella, kite cat, horse, elephant

book, newspaper, magazine coconut tree, mango tree, jak tree chair, sofa, table

4
Match the pictures with the words given.

Children’s park

Library

Dining room

Bed room

Living room

5
Underline the correct verb that goes with the picture.

 Dasun is ................. (walking, helping, talking) his grandfather to walk.

 The monkey is .......... (drinking/ celebrating, eating ) a banana.

.These children are ......... (talking. dancing, laughing).

. The little girl is ......... (sleeping, sweeping, singing) with her toys.

6
 The boy is ............. (walking, writing, working ) a letter.

 The farmer is ............. (jumping, dancing, working) in the paddy field.

 The girl is ……………(sleeping, sweeping, decorating) the classroom.

 Niluni is ....................... (drinking, dancing, dusting ) water.

7
Look at the picture and fill in the blanks using the words given in the box.

happy, garden, house, sitting, two, flowers, mat, watering, playing, dog, fence, boys

This is a picture of a home garden . There are three boys and two girls in this picture. One boy is

inside the house .One girl is watering the plants while the other girl is playing with something.

There is a fence behind the house. Another boy is sitting on a mat and there is a dog next to

him. The boy who walking is carrying some flowers in a basket. All look happy.

8
Look at the picture and fill in the blanks using the words given in the box.

ice cream, castle, flying, three, stall, girls, crab, basking, birds, beach

This is a picture of a beach . There are three boys and three girls in this pictue. There are also six

birds and three of them are flying in the sky. One girl is making a sand castle and there is a crab

next to her. Another girl is licking an ice cream greedily and there is an ice cream stall in a corner.

One girl and one boy are basking in the sun.

9
Look at the picture and fill in the blanks. Use the words given

ladder, spectacles, orchard, basket, wearing, wheelbarrow, stool, girl, collecting

This picture could be an orchard .There is a grandfather, a boy and a girl in this picture. They are

collecting fruits . The boy is using a wheelbarrow to collect fruits. The grandfather is on a stool

and he is wearing a pair of spectacles The girl puts the fruits into a basket She is wearing a

frock. There is a ladder to climb on trees.

10
Look at the picture and fill in the blanks. Use the words given

sick, ball, happy, sad, boats, puddle, looking, inside, children, three

The children are enjoying the rain. The girl is playing in the puddle .She looks happy . There are

three boys. Two of them are floating paper boats happily, but one boy looks sad. He might be sick . A

cat is looking at a boat while the other cat is staying inside . One toy rabbit, an umbrella and a ball are

floating on the rain water.

11
Look at the picture and fill in the blanks using the words given.

happy, fourth, cake, mother, frock, candles, puppy, girl, four, birthday

This is a picture of a birthday party of a liitle girl . There are four children in the picture. There

is also a big cake with four candles on the table. It looks like the fourth birthday of the girl and she

is wearing a frock . The mother is bringing them drinks. A little puppy is also looking at them. All

of them look happy

12
Writing invitations, notes and notices

Assessing Writing – Question Number 06

Please Note :

 Pay attention to the length of the answer


 If your writing is not relevant to the question (Content = 0) you will not get any
marks for language.
 If all your sentences are incorrect (Language = 0) you will not get full marks for
the content.
Content = 2 marks
Language = 3 marks
Total 5 marks

Marks Criteria for the content


2 All points are included
1 Only some points are included
0 Question copied/Totally irrelevant

Marks Criteria for language


3 Almost no errors, well connected sentences, correct spelling and punctuation
2 Some errors, well connected sentences, some errors in spelling and punctuation
1 Only a few correct sentences
0 All sentences are incorrect

13
i) The Art Society of your school has organized an ''Annual Art Day''. You are the secretary of the
Art Society. Write an invitation to your principal and teachers for the event. Use about 50 words.
Include the following.

- Name of the function


- The chief guest
- Date , Time and Venue

INVITATION

The Art Society of


Kabulmulla Child Friendly Model School
Cordially invites
The Principal and the |Staff
to
The Annual Art Day
to be held
on 8th November 2020 from 1.00 p.m. onwards, in the school main hall.
Hon. Minister of Education will grace the occasion

- The Organizing Committee -

ii) The English Unit of your school has organized an English camp. Write an invitation to invite the
parents and the students.

INVITATION
The Principal and the English Unit
of
Peradeniya Maha Vidyalaya
highly appreciate your participation
in the English Camp
to be held
on 28th October 2020 from 8.00 a.m. to 2.00 p.m.in the school premises.
The chief guest will be the Provincial Director of English

- The Organizing Committee -

14
iii) Your school has organized the school Inter-House Sports meet. Write an Invitation to the guests.
Mention the Date, Time, Venue and the chief guest.

INVITATION
The Principal and the Staff
of
Galahitiyava Vidyalaya, Ganemulla
will be pleased to see
...................................................................................
at their annual Inter House Sports meet
on 20th of January 2021 from 1.00 p.m. Onwards
in the school playground.

Hon. Minister of Sports will be the Guest of Honour


- The Organizing Committee -

iv) The grade 11 students of your school have organized a farewell party for the principal and the
staff. Write an Invitation. Mention the Date and the Time.

INVITATION

The Grade 11 students

of

Laggala Central College

request the pleasure of the company of

The Principal and the Staff

for the farewell party

on Friday the 27th of November

at 1.00 p.m. in the grade 11 Classroom.

Your Participation will be highly appreciated

- Grade 11 Students -

15
v) Your school has organized the annual Prize Giving of the school. As the secretary of the organizing
committee, design an invitation to be sent to the invitees. Mention the Date, Time and the Venue.

INVITATION

The Principal, staff and the students of

Mahanaga College - Rangalla

cordially invite

Rev/Dr/Mr/Ms. ........................................................

to

The Annual Prize Giving

to be held

on 10th of November, 2020 at 1.00 p.m in school main hall

under the patronage of

The Provincial Director of Education

Your gracious presence will be highly appreciated.

The Secretary,
-The Organizing Committee-

1. Write a note to one of your friends inviting him or her to your birthday party at your home.
Request your friend to bring the guitar and ask him or her to come early to get ready for some
fun activities.

12/10/2020

Manoj,
I’m inviting you to my birthday party on 15th Thursday at my place. Please come early. Bring your guitar
too. We can have some fun activities.
Sarath

12/10/2020

Manoj,
My birthday is on 15th Thursday. I’m going to have a party. Please come early with your brother to arrange
some fun activities. Please bring your guitar too . so we can have a nice time.
Sarath
16
12/10/2020

Manoj,
I’m pleased to invite you to my birthday party to be held at my residence on 15th Thursday. I am planning to
have some fun activities. So come early on that day with your brother to make the arrangements. Make sure
that you bring your guitar when you come.

Sarath

2.Write a note inviting a friend from a neighbouring school to see your school sports meet. Include the
date, time and venue. Mention that you are also participating in an event.

Tharushi,
Please come to see the annual sports meet of our school on 17.03.2021 at 12.30 p.m. Come with your
brother and sister. I am also participating in the drill display. Bring your camera to take some photographs.
Yasoda

3.Imagine you forgot your science book on a visit to your friend's home. Write a note requesting your
friend to send it to school with your friend's brother. Mention where you kept it.

Janaka,

I left my science book yesterday at your home. I kept it on the stool in the corner of the verandah. Please
bring it to the public library if you are coming in the evening or send it to school with your brother. I have to
study for the monthly test.

Mahesh

Dayan,
I left my science book yesterday at your home. I kept it on the stool in the veranda. Please send it to school
with your brother. I have to get ready for the term test.
Wasantha

4. Imagine a friend of yours has invited you to their housewarming ceremony, but you are unable to
attend it. Write a note refusing the invitation. Include a reason.

Mihindu

Thank you very much for inviting me to your housewarming ceremony on Thursday. It’s great that you have
invited all of us to the ceremony but I’ll miss the chance because I have to take my grandmother to hospital
for her eye surgery.

Rajith

17
Jayani

Thank you very much for inviting me to your housewarming ceremony on Thursday. I’m sorry I’m unable
to come because my uncle’s wedding is also on the same day.

Geethi

5. A friend of yours has invited you to see a movie at his or her place. Write a note refusing the
invitation. Include a reason.

Bandula,

Thank you very much for inviting me to see the movie “Enter the Dragon”at your place. I love to watch
movies of Bruce Lee but I’m unable to come to your place because I have an online class with our English
teacher at 6.00 p.m

Asanka

6. Rohan forgot his past question paper book at Sandun's home yesterday. Write a note to Sandun
requesting him to bring it to the public library in the evening. Mention the reason why he needs it
immediately.

Sandun,

I think I have left my past question paper book at your place yesterday. Please bring it to the public library
in the evening when you come to return the story books. I need it because our English teacher asked all the
students of our class to do the first paper of G.C.E. (O/L) 2019.
Rohan

7.Imagine your friend Roshan has invited you to join the trip that his parents have organized. Write a
note accepting the invitation

Roshan,

Thank you very much for inviting me to join the trip that your parents have organized. I have never been to
World’s End. Inform me the date and the time. I’ll bring my camera to capture some nice sceneries.

Aruna

18
8. Imagine your friend Roshan has invited you to join the trip that his parents have organized. Write
a note refusing the invitation.

Roshan,
Thank you very much for inviting me to join the trip that your parents have organized. But I’m unable to
join your trip to Kandy as I am going on a three day family trip to Nuwara Eliya. Please take some photos
and I will also take some. Then, we can see them as soon as we return.
Aruna

9. You visited your friend Shanika at her home to borrow her English essay book but your friend was
not at home. Write a note to be left with her mother. Mention that you are coming back next Sunday
morning.

Shanika,

I came to your place around 5.00 p.m. to borrow your English essay book but you were not at home. Your
mother told you had gone to your grandmother’s place to see her as she was not well. I’ll come back to
collect it next Sunday morning on my way to Dhamma school.

Dhanushka

10. You have drama practice after school today. Write a note to your mother to be sent with the
school van driver. Request your mother to come to pick you. Mention the time.

Mother,

I’m sending this note with the school van driver because I’m unable to come home after 1.30 p.m. as I
have drama practice after school today. Please come to the school gate at 4.30 p.m. to pick me.

Pamudi

11. A friend of yours has sent you a set of model question papers for G.C.E.[O/L] examination. Write
a note thanking him/her. You may use the following.

* Mention how useful they will be

* When you will be returning them

Use around 50 words.

Sanath,

Thank you very much for sending me a set of model question papers for G.C.E.(O/L) examination. They are
really valuable and I’ll be able to answer all the past question papers to get a good practice before the
examination. I’ll return them within two weeks’ time after getting them photocopied.
Sujith
19
1. You are the secretary of the Old Boys‘ Association of your school. You have organized a blood
donation campaign .Write a notice inviting all the past pupils and the parents to donate blood.
Mention the reason, date, time and the place. Use about 40-50 words.

NOTICE
BLOOD DONATION CAMPAIGN
The Old Boys’ Association of AsokaVidyalaya,
Colombo has organized a blood donation campaign as
there is a dire shortage of blood in blood banks in the
country nowadays.
It will be held on March 19 from 9am to 3 pm in the
school main hall.
The organizing committee requests all past pupils and
parents to donate blood.

Date: 10-03-2021 Secretary


Old Boys’Association
Asoka Vidyalaya.

2. You are the secretary of the Youth Club of Meerigama. You have organized a book fair .Write a
notice informing all the people in Meerigama about it. Mention the kinds of books which will be sold
at the book fair and a discount for educational books.
Include the date, time and the place. Use about 40-50 words.

Notice
A Grand Book Fair.
A grand book fair organized by the Youth
Club of Meerigama will be held
 On 2nd March 2021
 From 9 am to 4 pm
 At the Meerigama Urban Council.

Novels, short stories, magazines, educational books and fables


will be sold at reasonable prices.
30% discounts for educational books.
All are welcome.

Date; 28-02-2021 Secretary


Youth Club.

3.You are the secretary of the School English Literary Association. You are going to organize a
Quiz Competition for grade 11 students. Write a notice for the school notice board informing
the students about it. Include the date, time and the place.
Use about 40-50 words.

20
Notice
A Quiz Competition
This to inform all the grade 11 students that the English Literary Association of Royal
College is organizing a quiz Competition to be held
on 30th November 2020
from 8 am to 11am
in the school main hall.
Interested students can give their names to the undersigned on or before 20th November.
For more details contact the undersigned by calling 0718144795
Secretary
English Literary Association.

4. You are the secretary of the Drama Club of your school. You are going to hold an audition for
those who are interested in taking part in the Annual Drama Competition of the school.
Write a notice for the school notice board informing about it.
Use about 40-50 words.

Notice
Audition for the Drama Competition
An audition will be held for those who are interested in taking part in the Annual
Drama Competition
on 13th November 2020
from 8 am onwards
in the school auditorium.
Those who like to join this competition are requested to come for the audition with a
hand written application.
The date of the drama competition will be notified in due course.
Secretary
Drama Club

5. You are the secretary of the Drama Club of your school. You have organized a stage play to be
staged in your school. Write a notice inviting all the students, parents and teachers.
Include the date, time and the place.
Use about 40-50 words.

. Notice
―Elders.‖
The stage play “Elders” organized by the Drama Club of
Rajarata Vidyalaya will be held
on 22nd May 2020
at 5pm in the school auditorium.
The head prefect will be cast as the oldest mother of the play.
The tickets are priced at Rs. 200,300 and 500.
The tickets will be available at the school gate on that day.
All the students, parents and teachers are invited to watch the
play.

Secretary
Drama Club

21
6. The grade 11 students of Ruwanpura M.V. are planning to hold a poster competition. As a member
of the organizing committee, write a notice to be published on the school notice board inviting the
students from grade 9 to 11.
Use about 40-50 words.

Notice
Poster Competition
The grade 11 students of Ruwanpura M.V. are planning to hold a
Poster Competition.
th
It will be held on 4 June 2020.at 9 am onwards at the indoor
stadium of the school.
The theme of the posters is “Love Nature”
The students from grade 9 to 11 are requested to take part in the
Competition.
For more details please contact the undersigned.

Ruwan
A member of the organizing committee.

22
Free Writing
Assessing Writing – Question Number 08

Please Note:

 Pay attention to the length of the answer


 If your writing is not relevant to the question (Content = 0) you will not get any
marks for language.
 If all your sentences are incorrect (Language = 0) you will not get full marks for
content.
Content = 2 marks
Language = 3 marks
Total 5 marks

Marks Criteria for content


2 All points are included
1 Only some points are included
0 Question copied/Totally irrelevant

Marks Criteria for language


3 Almost no errors, well connected sentences, correct spelling and punctuation
2 Some errors, well connected sentences, some errors in spelling and punctuation
1 Only a few correct sentences
0 All sentences are incorrect

23
Write a paragraph about your favourite teacher/sportsman. Use about 50 -60 words

My favourite teacher

My favourite teacher is Mrs.Prabha. She teaches English. She teaches very well. She is kind and helpful. She
helps everyone to understand the lesson. She is very punctual and never misses a period. I like her teaching
method. She explains the lesson in a simple and clear manner. We enjoy a lot in her class. She encourages us
to speak in English. She never gets angry when a student fails to learn. But she is very strict in discipline. I
like my English teacher very much.

My favourite sportsman

My favourite sportsman is Kumar Sangakkara. Kumar Sangakkara is a Sri Lankan cricketer and a former
captain of the Sri Lanka national cricket team. He was born on 27th October 1977 in Matale. He received his
education at Trinity College, Kandy. He is a multi-talented and well educated person. . He has good style in
batting but he is widely regarded as one of the brilliant wicket-keeper. He is an outstanding player and an all-
rounder too. He is good at batting, fielding and keeping the wickets.

Write a paragraph on one of the following topics. Use about 50 - 60 words.


a) Uses of Trees
b) Food we eat
c) My ambition
d) Effective use of time
e) Duties of a student
Uses of trees
Trees are useful to all living beings. Trees provide us oxygen to breathe. They give food, shelter and water
to everyone. We use timber to make buildings and furniture. Their branches are used as firewood. They
beautify the environment and stop the soil erosion. Without trees we can’t imagine a world with living
beings.

Food we eat

What we eat decides how we grow. If you eat good, wholesome, nutritious food, you will grow up
healthy and strong. We need to have healthy food that has all the main nutrients. We need carbohydrates,
proteins, fat and vitamins. Fresh fruits, vegetables, grains, yams, meat, fish, eggs and milk contain all
these nutrients. Eating fatty food and sweets too much will make us sick.

24
My ambition

My ambition is to be a doctor. It is a noble profession. Doctors are respected by the society. I like to work
in a rural hospital. Then I can treat poor patients in rural areas. I will be able to learn more and do a better
service to my country. I hope to conduct many health programmes for school children. Then we can make
a healthy nation.

Effective use of time

Everyone should use the time effectively to be successful their lives. We call it time management. As
students, we can use a time table to manage our time. Then we can plan our work and we need not to
postpone our daily work for the next day. Time management helps us to finish our daily work without
wasting time. So, we can save time for entertainment and have fun with our family members and relations.

Duties of a Student

A school is the second home of a student. So he has a lot of duties. The first thing is that the student must
attend the school regularly and on time. He needs to take good care of the school property. He must
participate in the activities organized in the school. He must be helpful to others and respectful to
everyone. Completing all homework assignments and obeying school rules and regulations are also duties
of a student.

Write a paragraph on one of the following topics. Use about 50 - 60 words.


a) Value of Sports

b) Reading makes a full man

c) Let’s practise good health habits

d) The place I visited recently

e) A trip to Nuwara-Eliya

Value of Sports

“All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy”.

Sports are an essential part of everyone's life. It teaches us to stay strong and healthy by preventing obesity
and chronic diseases. It reduces stress and helps to have a relaxed mind.

The most valuable thing that sports teaches us how to accept victory and defeat with the same spirit.
The person who engages in sports has a good personality and qualities such as courage patience and
responsibilities. It also improves one's ability to work as a team. I think involving in sports is worth for both
the young and the old.

25
Reading makes a full man

“Reading maketh a full man”. This famous saying shows us the value of reading. The more you read the
more knowledgeable you will be. Reading is a good hobby. A person who reads a lot will be very
knowledgeable on any topic. So we must use our leisure time to read more. It will help us not only to face
exams with confidence but also to win the challenges of life with wisdom. The man who does not read is
just like a frog in a well.

Let‘s practice good health habits

We all should practie good health habits to have healthy life. Good health habits include not only consuming
healthy meals but also to have exercises, rest and to keep the environment clean as well. We can grow some
vegetables such as green leaves, chilies in our backyards. We can consume at least some organic vegetables
which are safe. As a child one can engage in games and sports rather than watching television. Keeping the
environment clean too helps to maintain not only one’s good health but also that of the others around.
Maintaining self-cleanliness such as brushing teeth after every meal, taking body wash or a bath after school
and wearing clean clothes are also parts of good health habits.

The place I visited recently.

I recently visited the Temple of the Tooth Relic, which is located in the Royal Palace complex of the former
Kingdom of Kandy. It is the most iconic and holiest place of Buddhists. Not only the palace but there is an
archeological museum too with different types of ancient jewellery worn by the then Royals, royal
costumes, coins, ancient ornaments, gifts received from foreign countries etc. After the visit I felt so proud
of the history of Sri Lanka.

A trip to Nuwara Eliya.

Last Sunday I visited Nuwara Eliya with my family members. First we visited the Edison Bungalow; a
country house near Haputhale. We had our breakfast there and went to Haggala Botanical Gardens because I
haven’t visited that place before. We spent three hours there and then went to Nuwara Eliya Park. We had
our lunch there and moved to the next place, the Gregory Lake. We rode boats and enjoyed a lot. Then we
came back home.

26
Interpretation of Bar graph/Pie chart/ Table
Assessing Writing – Question Number 14

Please Note:

 Pay attention to the length of the answer


 If your writing is not relevant to the question (Content = 0) you will not get any
marks for language, format, organization and mechanics of writing.
 If all your sentences are incorrect (Language = 0) you will not get full marks for
content.
Content = 3 marks
Language = 3 marks
Format & Organization = 2 marks
Mechanics of writing = 2 marks
Total 10 marks

Marks Criteria for content


3 Correct interpretation, all information included
2 Has written on most of the information, correct interpretation
1 Interpretation not sufficient
0 Question copied/Totally irrelevant

Marks Criteria for language


3 Almost no errors, well connected sentences, good range of vocabulary
2 Some errors, well connected sentences, good range of vocabulary
1 Only a few correct sentences
0 All sentences incorrect

Marks Format & Organization


2 Well organized ideas, connected meaningful paragraphs
1 Ideas nor well connected, errors in format
0 No organization at all

Marks Mechanics of writing


2 No spelling errors, correct punctuation, clear hand writing
1 Hand writing clear but errors in spelling and punctuation
0 Unintelligible writing

27
The following picture table depicts the result of a survey, done on modes of transport used by the
grade 11 students of Rahula Vidyalaya. Study it and write a description about it. Use about 100
words. The following words may help you.

more, many, most, least, equal

Mode of Transport Number of children

by bus

by van

by trishaw

by motor bike

on foot

by bicycle

= 5 children

The above picture table describes the modes of transport used by grade 11 students of Rahula Vidyalaya.
According to the given table the most number of children come to school by bus and as a number it is 35.
Many children come on foot and more children come to school by van than on foot. Anyway, an equal
number of students use trishaws and bicycles as their transport modes. Only 10 students come to school by
motor-bike and it is the least number.

According to the above information the most popular mode of transport of these children is the bus and the
least popular mode is the motor – bike.

28
The following table shows what 100 girls in your village did during the COVID−19 school vacation.
Study the information given in the following table and write a description about it. Use about 100
words. Include the following words.
[ most, least, many, equal, less than, more than ]

Activities No. of girls


Reading novels. 40
Watching movies. 20
Listening to music. 15
Playing indoor games. 10
Learning to cook. 05
Gardening. 10
Total 100

The above table shows what 100 girls in our village did during the COVID- 19 school vacation. There are 6
activities and 100 girls mentioned in the chart.

According to the table, most of the girls in our village have read novels and the least number of girls have
learnt to cook. Many girls have watched movies and it is 20 in number. An equal number of girls have done
gardening and playing indoor games. That is 10 each. 15 girls have listened to music and it is less than
watching movies. More girls have engaged in gardening and playing indoor games than learning to cook.
According to the table, the most popular activity of the girls is reading novels.

The following table shows you the results of a survey done on 120 students of your school about their
favourite subjects. Study the given information and write a paragraph about it. Use 100 words.
Include the following words in your description.

( highest , lowest , most popular , least popular , equal , many , less , more )

Subjects Number of students Percentage


History 12 10%
Mathematics 15 12.5%
Music 24 20%
Dancing 34 28.3%
Science 15 12.5%
English 20 16.6%

29
The above table shows the results of a survey done on 120 students of our school about their favourite
subjects. They are given in percentages and numbers. The subjects are English, Mathematics, Music,
Dancing, Science and History
According to the given information, the highest percentage of the students like Dancing and the lowest
percentage of them like History. That is 28.3% and 10% respectively. Many students like Music and it is 24
in number. An equal percentage of students like Mathematics and Science. That is 12.5% each. More
students like to learn English than Mathematics and Science. The number of students who like to learn
English is less than the number of students who like to learn Music. According to the information, the most
popular subject is Dancing and the least popular subject is History.

The following Venn diagram shows the different games played by 55 boys of grade 11. Study
the diagram and write a description about it using 100 words. Use the following words.

most, only, least, more, less

cricket
6
volleyball 18
8
5

6 9

chess
3

The Venn diagram given here shows three games played by 55 boys of grade 11. The games are
cricket, volleyball and chess.

According to the details given in the Venn diagram, 18 students like to play only volleyball. 8 students like
to play only cricket while 3 students like to play only chess. An equal number of students like to play
cricket and volleyball and volleyball and chess. That is 6 students each. Five students like to play all the
three games. More children love to play volleyball than cricket. But less number of children are interested in
playing chess than cricket and volleyball.

As the diagram depicts, the majority of the students of grade 11 like to play volleyball. Chess is the least
favorite game among them.

30
This pie chart shows the results of a survey in which people aged 16 and above were asked about their
preferred devices for accessing the internet. Study the details and write a description about it. Use
about 100 words.

Preferred devices to access the


internet

Desktop Computer
4% 14%
Tablet
33%
19% Laptop
Smartphone
30%
Other

This pie chart shows the results of a survey in which people aged 16 and above were asked about their
preferred devices for accessing the internet. The question referred to going online at home and in other
places. Participants mentioned four main devices in their answers: a smartphone, a laptop, a tablet and a
desktop computer.
From the pie chart it is clear that the majority of the participants prefer to use smartphones and laptops, with
just three percent difference between the two. Nearly a third of participants prefer to go online with a
smartphone. Thirty percent like to use a laptop. A desktop computer accounts for fourteen percent of users’
preferred devices. Only a small minority prefer a device other than these main four.

In conclusion, since mobile and portable devices are the most popular devices, it is clear that many
participants are accessing the internet outside their homes. The desktop computer is the least favourite of the
four devices.

This graph shows the result of a survey conducted in grade 11 of Mahamaya College when they were
asked about their favourite drink. Read it write a report in about 100 words.

Favourite Drinks
Fruit Juice

17% 9% Coke

26% Fanta
20% Sprite
17% 11% Water
Coke light

This graph shows the result of a survey conducted in grade 11 of Mahamaya College when they were asked
about their favourite drink. According to the information given in the pie chart, twenty-six percent of the
students like to drink coke. This is the highest percentage. The second highest in the graph is water with
20%. An equal number of students like to drink coke light and sprite which is seventeen percent each. Fanta
is preferred by eleven percent of students while 9% of students prefer fruit juice. This is the least popular
drink among the grade 11 students of this school.

31
This pie chart shows teenagers‘ answers to a survey for Sabaragamuwa Teen Magazine, which asked
them if they do anything else while they watch TV.

Things teenagers do while watching


1%
TV
2% 3%
Read
8%
Listen to music
28%
8%
Exercise

23% Talk to family


27%
Do homework

This pie chart shows teenagers’ answers to a survey for Sabaragamuwa Teen Magazine, which asked them if
they do anything else while they watch TV. It can be seen that over three-quarters of those surveyed do other
things simultaneously while watching T.V. Over half said they either ate or checked their mobile phones or
tablets while they were watching TV. While perhaps unsurprisingly, only a few teenagers said they read, did
exercise or listened to music while watching TV. Eight percent talked to their families and another 8% said
they often did homework and watched TV at the same time. However, surprisingly twenty-three percent of
teenagers did nothing while watching TV.

32
Writing letters (Formal/Informal)
Assessing Writing – Question Number 14

Please Note :

 Pay attention to the length of the answer


 If your writing is not relevant to the question (Content = 0) you will not get any
marks for language, format, organization and mechanics of writing.
 If all your sentences are incorrect (Language = 0) you will not get full marks for
content.
Content = 3 marks
Language = 3 marks
Format & Organization = 2 marks
Mechanics of writing = 2 marks
Total 10 marks

Marks Criteria for content


3 All points included
2 Most of the points included
1 Only a few points included
0 Question copied/Totally irrelevant

Marks Criteria for language


3 Almost no errors, well connected sentences, good range of vocabulary
2 Some errors, well connected sentences, good range of vocabulary
1 Only a few correct sentences
0 All sentences incorrect

Marks Format & Organization


2 Well organized ideas, connected meaningful paragraphs
1 Ideas nor well connected, errors in format
0 No organization at all

Marks Mechanics of writing


2 No spelling errors, correct punctuation, clear hand writing
1 Hand writing clear but errors in spelling and punctuation
0 Unintelligible writing

33
Write a letter to the Public Health Inspector requesting him to take actions to destroy
Dengue breeding places in the area.

Mr. R. H. Aponsu,
No. 23/ C , Market Lane,
Godakawela.
2nd July 2020
Public Health Inspector,
Medical Health Office,
Godakawela.

Dear Sir.
A request to destroy Dengue Breeding Grounds.
I am writing this letter to draw your earnest attention to the Dengue breeding grounds in
our area.
I have noticed quite a lot of Dengue breeding grounds in and around the vicinity of Godakawela.
The public pay little or no attention in this regard. Most of the drains on either side of the roads are
heavily blocked with waste and as a result, water is stagnant everywhere. Also people have dumped
heaps of garbage all over the area. We can notice a huge number of empty yoghurt cups , plastic
bottles and cans , coconut shells and various sorts of other things that can accumulate water have
been carelessly thrown here and there.
When heavy rains fall , this region will undoubtedly be a paradise of Dengue mosquitoes. Therefore
I would be very much grateful if you could take prompt actions to overcome this deadly menace
as early as possible.
Thank you
Yours faithfully,
………………………………….
R.H. Aponsu
A Resident

34
Write a letter to the Superintendent of the Depot requesting a school bus service to your
village. Include the following. (100 words)
 Why a school bus is needed
 Problems faced by the students
 Request on providing a bus service

No 32 / 2 , Park Lane,
Yatihalagala,
Kandy.
10th July 2020

Superintendent of Depot,
Sri Lanka Transport Board,
Yatinuwara,
Kandy.

Dear Sir,
Requesting a School Bus Service.
I am writing to you with a view to receiving a school bus service for our village.
At present , over hundred students travel to town schools almost every day. They do not have a
proper transport service to travel up and down. Most of the students have to walk more than five
kilometers daily. These poor children often complain that they lose the first lesson because of their
delay. On rainy days these innocent children have to undergo numerous difficulties. They are
compelled to stay behind at home on such days.
I , therefore , would like to draw your kind attention to take quick measures to provide our village
with a school bus service which will, in deed , benefit our students.

Thank You
Yours Faithfully,
…………………………..
G.K. Prasanna
A resident

35
Write a letter as the Librarian of your school to the Manager of Gunesena PVT (Ltd) ordering some
books for the school library. Use about 100 words. You may include: the necessity of the of the books,
the attachment of the book list, a request for discount and prompt delivery.

Librarian,
R/Emb/Buluthota M. V,
Buluthota,
12.07.2020.

The Manager,
Gunesena PVT (Ltd),
Colombo 5.

Dear Sir,
Placing an order for some books to the school library
Buluthota Maha Vidyalaya being in a remote area has a newly built school library and it just contains only a
limited number of books. So, we wish to order the list of books attached here with from your company after
considering the good standard of your publishing.
Further, we would kindly request a favorable discount for the books and we are also pleased to get a prompt
delivery as the A/L and O/L examinations are round the corner.

Thank You.

Yours faithfully
Ms Perera

Librarian
R/Emb/Buluthota M.V

36
Write a letter to a pen friend describing an event of your school. You may include followings.

 How you organized the event?.


 Who supported you.
 How it became successful.
 Etc…

No -18
Hospital Rd,
Embilipitiya,
Sri Lanka.
17th June 2020.

Dear Anne!

How are you getting on these days? Hope you are keeping well. Thanks for your picture postcards. I’m glad
to see them. I read your letter and I was overjoyed to hear that you wish to visit our country.

After reading your letter I had a clear idea about your summer vacation that you spent with your family. I
am also busy with my work. This time our school English unit organized an English day programme. I’m
glad to say that I was the chief organizer of that event. It was a responsible task.

First, I discussed with my teachers. They gave me the plan. With the help of my colleagues I organized it
well. I had a separate committee for each task. For example invitation committee, items preparing committee
“etc….. I gave each of them to take care of their own responsibilities. So it was a great relief for me.
Everyone lent his helping hand to make it successful. One of my friends practiced announcement on behalf
of me. All said that the decorations were marvellous. Not only that the items were enchanting. I was
delighted as everyone praised me. It was a successful event.

As this was my first experience in my life I gathered many responsibilities. I’ll send some of the photos
when I write you next time. Hope you and your family are keeping well. Give my regards to your loving
parents. I’ll write to you soon. Eagerly waiting to see you soon. Take care! Bye….

With Love,
Hashini.

37
Write a letter to one of your friends congratulating him/her for the performance of O/L examination.

 Congratulate your friend


 Ask him/her future targets
 Wish your friend

“Nisansala”,
Lotus lane,
Rathmalana.
12th June 2020.

Dear Pasindu,

I’m happy to hear that you have passed your O/L examinations with flying colours. Congratulations my dear
friend! I wish you from the bottom of my heart. My parents also wished for your betterment.

I like to know about your future plans too. As you have obtained nine A’s what will you select for A/L’s?
Will you select a new school in the town? It will be useful if you go there. You can have many facilities.
Then you can attend private classes easily, too. Anyway do your studies well. Concentrate your mind on
studies and never give up. Again I wish you to have a successful future.

Give my regards to your family. I’ll definitely come to your party. Good luck. Hope to meet you soon. Take
care!

With love,
Kavinda.

38
Write a letter to the principal of your school asking permission to hold a science exhibition.

Science club,
Wijaya Maha Vidyalaya,
Balangoda.
16th August 2020.

The Principal,
Wijaya Maha Vidyalaya,
Balangoda.

Dear Sir,

Request for permission.

The Science Club of our school has decided to hold a science exhibition from 30 th August to 5th September
in the school premises. We hope to keep it open for the public from 8.30 am to 4.30 pm. Our purpose is to
promote the new inventions of the members of our club.

Here by we kindly request your permission to hold the science exhibition in the school auditorium.

We must be most grateful to you, if you grant your permission at your earliest.

Thanking you,

Yours sincerely,

………………………………….

The secretary,
Science Club.

39
Write a letter of complaint to the local authority in your area regarding garbage disposal problem

J.A.C.Jayakodi,
134/A,
Temple Road,
Balangoda.
13th August 2020

The Mayor,
Balangoda Municipal Council,
Balangoda.

Dear Sir,
GARBAGE DISPOSAL PROBLEM

I am writing to you regarding the irregular garbage collection in our neighbourhood.


Usually, garbage collection is scheduled for three days per a week. But it has not done for the past two
days.
As a result there is a heap of garbage in front of our houses. It is swarming with flies and has become a
breeding place for mosquitoes too. In addition stray dogs have torn the garbage bags and spread the
garbage all over the place making a foul smell.
I would be glad if you give priority to this of matter your consideration and solve this garbage disposal
problem immediately.

Thank You.

Yours Faithfully,
………………………
J.A.C.Jayakodi

40
Imagine you are the Medical Officer of Health (MOH) of your area and write the letter to be sent to the
principal of the school to make aware of the instructions to be followed by students and teachers for the
prevention of Covid -19 outbreak in the reopening of the school.

Include the following.

- What is Covid 19 and the symptoms of Covid 19.

- To adhere safety protocols like wearing masks, frequent washing hands, maintaining social distancing etc.
in the school to prevent from that.

MOH office,
Rathmalawinna,
Balangoda.
23.07.2020

Mr.P.G.M.Pitadeniya,
The Principal,
R/ Udagama M.V.
Pinnawala,
Balangoda.

Dear sir,

REGARDING THE INSTRUCTIONS TO BE FOLLOWED IN THE REOPENING OF THE SCHOOL DUE TO COVID 19
PANDEMIC.

Covid 19 has become a global threatening disease all over the world today and it is our duty to safeguard
our children from that fatal disease.

As you are aware the symptoms of this disease are fever, cough, sore-throat and most probably breathing
difficulties.

It is compulsory to take necessary actions to prevent our children and the teachers from this deadly crisis
as the government has decided to reopen the school next week.

So please be kind enough to make all the students, teachers adhere to the safety protocols like wearing
masks, frequent washing hands, keeping one meter distance etc.

If you supervise these actions in the school, I would be very grateful because, our only wish is to offer an
environment without risk for our next generation to learn.

Thank you. …………………..


Dr.S.T.Perera,
MOH Office
Balangoda.

41
Writing Essays
Assessing Writing – Question Number 16

Please Note:

 Pay attention to the length of the answer.


 If your writing is not relevant to the question (Content = 0) you will not get any
marks for language, format, organization and mechanics of writing.
 If all your sentences are incorrect (Language = 0) you will not get full marks for
content.
Content = 5 marks
Language = 5 marks
Format & Organization = 2 marks
Mechanics of writing = 3 marks
Total 15 marks

Marks Criteria for content


4-5 All points included
Essay is of required length
Sufficient and clear description given on each point
2-3 Most of the points included
Factual description not sufficient
1 Only a few points included
0 Question copied/Totally irrelevant

Marks Criteria for language


4-5 Almost no errors, well connected sentences, good range of vocabulary
Style of language is suitable for an essay
2-3 Some errors, meaning is not clear due to language problems, good range of vocabulary
1 Only a few correct sentences
0 All sentences incorrect

Marks Format & Organization


2 Well organized ideas, connected meaningful paragraphs
1 Ideas nor well connected, errors in format
0 No organization at all

Marks Mechanics of writing


3 No spelling errors, correct punctuation, clear hand writing
2 A few errors in spelling and punctuation. Clear handwriting
1 Hand writing clear but errors in spelling and punctuation
0 Unintelligible writing

42
Write an essay on ‗Environmental Pollution‘.

 What is environment?
 How people pollute the environment.
 Its negative impacts.
 Why we should protect the environment?

Environmental Pollution

Environment is a part of our life. All of us are surrounded by the environment. The ocean, the
ranges of mountains, valleys of flowers, meadows, varieties of animals are our surroundings. All these
surroundings belong to the environment. But today, our environment has been damaged in many ways. As a
result of that, environmental pollution has become one of the crucial problems in the world.

Humans damage the environment in many ways. The ozone layer located above the earth is
damaged due to endless activities of humans. The ozone layer acts as a protective layer. It helps to remove
harmful rays of the sun. But due to the environmental pollution, the layer has become thinner in certain
places. People cut down trees endlessly and clear the forests. It has changed the water cycle and climate. As
a result of that, the global temperature has increased. Adding unnecessary things like chemicals, plastics,
garbage…etc. has destroyed the sources of water and the beauty of the environment. Not only humans but
also the animals are affected due to this pollution. Dumping garbage causes land, water and air pollution and
spreads diseases.

As humans, we must understand the importance of keeping our environment clean. This helps
people to be healthy. We should stand against environmental pollution. We must make the people aware of
the bad effects of pollution. We all should encourage others to plant many trees around us. We all should get
together to keep our environment clean.

43
Write an essay on ‗Advantages and Disadvantages of Mass Media‘. Use about 200 words.

You may include the following.

 What is Mass Media?


 How it plays an important role in today‘s society.
 Its positive impacts.
 Its negative impacts.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Mass Media
Mass media is an important and overpowering part of civilization. It helps people to rest their mind and get a
chance to have a useful way to spend their leisure time. Mass media contains television, radio, newspaper,
internet, all types of books and magazines etc. Time to time, they come to the world to comfort people. With
a variety of mass media, news travel fast, so that everyone’s informed. Nowadays there is a huge amount of
offline and online media. Of course we rely on mass media. It plays an extremely important role in our lives.

Well, the advantages of mass media are the offering of entertainment to the masses via media, children
gaining access to significant educational, creative and artistic communication and recreational opportunities
that they would not otherwise have. For example, access to online books, pictures, blogs, documentary
films and music enables kids to learn about cultures around the world.

A big positive impact associated with social media is that it is easier to make a large number of friends
within a short time. Just a few years ago, it wasn’t really easy to connect with many people, unless you were
extremely outgoing and could make conversations with almost everyone you would just meet.

Mass media encompasses much more than just news. It can be used for various purposes: Advocacy, both
for business and social concerns. This also includes advertising, marketing, propaganda, public relations and
political communication.

The technological innovation in mass media of educational communication means that education can now be
transmitted to far off places with no geographical hindrance. A person sitting in Sri Lanka, for instance can
be benefited from a lecture being delivered in the United States.

The disadvantages of the media include a risk of inaccurate reporting and a loss of privacy. Sometimes, in a
rush to be the first to break a story, the media puts out incorrect or inaccurate information.

Mass media may lead to individualism, personal interaction with humans become less and less. This is
because the people tend to spend too much of their time engrossed in what they are doing on the internet or
watching interesting programs on TV and as a result of that, the time people devote for interacting with
each other is minimized to a certain extent.

However there are many advantages as well as disadvantages of mass media. What people have to do is to
be alert on them. People can avoid the disadvantages and take the maximum benefit of the advantages.

44
Write an essay on ‗Environmental Pollution.‘

You may include the following.


 What is environment?
 What is pollution?
 Types of pollution.
 Effects of environmental pollution.
 Why should we protect environment?

Environmental Pollution
Environment is our surrounding. It includes air, water, plants, animals and human beings etc. The greatest
problem of the current world is the pollution of the environment. Basically environmental pollution can be
divided into several parts. They are air, water, land, sound, soil pollution etc.
Pollution means destroying nature. It becomes unhealthy for human beings, animals and plants.

Pollution causes an imbalance in the environment. It’s a threat to the whole world. With the development of
the industrial revolution, it has affected the nature directly or indirectly. Because of this reason, growth of
air, soil, water and sound pollution is highly increased.

The fresh air is polluted with the poisonous gases. The smoke that is released from the vehicles and factories
is the mixture of poisonous gases. Due to environmental pollution. the worst victims are the plants and the
animals. They have become extinct day by day. No flora and fauna are safe. Some animals are already in the
list of endangered species.

Due to water pollution, fish species are also dying. Water pollution changes the quality of the water. Water
is polluted by the poisonous chemicals released by the factories and other industrial sections. At the same
time, lazy and selfish people dump garbage into rivers, lakes, sea or drains. Because of that, people and
animals have to face a lot of problems.

The environment is partly affected by the population growth. Trees are cut down. Birds and insects lose
their inhabitants. As a result of population growth, the environment has to provide the people with their
needs. Cutting down trees is one of the reasons for environmental pollution and it increases the global
warming and the temperature. The only way to reduce this situation is that we should plant many more trees.
By planting trees, we can get rid of many harmful poisonous gases. If the earth becomes more and more
green, pollution can be reduced and we will breathe fresh air without any harm. We should protect the
environment because it gives us basic requirements to live.

45
Write an essay on ‗How Emigration affects the Development of a Country.‘

You may include the following.

 What is emigration?
 Causes for emigration.
 Brain drain; a major type of emigration.
 How it affects the development of a country.
 Measures that can be taken to reduce its bad effects.
.

How Emigration affects the Development of a Country


Emigration means opposite of migration or going to settle in other countries. This can take place due to
several factors. The most obvious reason is the availability of better job opportunities in other countries. The
other factors are war or conflict, health risks and political instability. Especially brain drain which means
migration of knowledgeable, well-educated and skilled professionals from their home country to another
country is also a great problem that affects the development of a country.

Brain drain occurs most commonly in less developed countries with fewer opportunities for career
advancement, research, academic employment and the people migrate to more developed countries seeking
more opportunities. However it also occurs in the movement of individuals from one developed country to
another developed country.

The country that experiences brain drain faces many problems. In less developed countries, this is much
more common and the loss is much more substantial. There can be an economic loss for the country as
educated professionals leave for better salaries elsewhere. In addition, the development of the country is
affected when most of the educated individuals do not use their knowledge for the benefit of their own
country.

So there are many things that a government can do to reduce brain drain. If there is an increase in job
advancement opportunities and research opportunities in one’s own country, we can reduce the brain drain.
The process is difficult and it takes time to establish these sort of facilities and opportunities, but it is
possible and necessary. If we encourage highly skilled workers to serve their own country, they will not seek
better opportunities elsewhere. At the same time, the country can be developed by highly skilled and
educated workers.

46
Write an essay on ‗Responsibilities of a Good Citizen in a Pandemic Situation.‘

You may include the following.

 What is a pandemic situation?


 How it threatens the world.
 Responsibilities of a good citizen to face such a pandemic.

Responsibilities of a Good Citizen in a Pandemic Situation

Today the world is developing day by day and the whole world has become a global village. However with
the dawn of new technology, the world has to face various threats from the nature as flood, drought and
threats created by human beings and so on. Among these threats, pandemic situations are more vulnerable as
they spread for a large area irrespective of caste, creed and race and cause thousands of deaths.

A pandemic is an epidemic occurring worldwide that affects a large number of people. Covid – 19, SARS,
and Ibola are some of the examples for pandemic situations. So, we as citizens, have a great responsibility to
prevent such pandemic situations and avoid deaths.

Citizens should obey the medical rules and regulations imposed by the medical authority of the country.
This may help to reduce bad effects of the pandemic. So, there are precautions that should be followed. They
may differ according to the disease, but some general facts can be mentioned as follows: The citizens have
to maintain social distance and especially they should avoid close contact with other people. The citizens
should be aware of cleanliness and should take well- prepared food items to avoid the spreading of the
diseases. Further those affected should take immediate medical treatments and vaccines properly if they are
available. Following these steps may help to reduce the spread of such pandemics.

In addition to that, citizens should follow the rules and regulations implemented by the government.
Especially the government has to restrict travelling and those who do not obey the medical rules should be
fined. Therefore, a good citizen should follow the rules and regulations of the government to avoid particular
pandemic outbreak.

Also a good citizen should be aware of the true information about the pandemic. A responsible citizen
should rely on true information given by trustworthy communication methods and should not spread
rumours. This may help the country to overcome the pandemic soon.

Therefore, there is a great responsibility on a citizen to prevent, properly manage a pandemic and make a
better world to the future generations.

47
Write an essay on ‗How emigration affects the development of a country‘.

You may include the following.

 What is emigration?
 Reasons for people‘s leaving the country.
 Bad impacts of emigration.
 How it affects the development of a country.
 Why should we try to stop emigration?

How emigration affects the development of a country


There are many factors that affect the development of a country. One of them is the emigration, in short,
emigration means, leaving one’s own country to live permanently in a foreign country. This process of
emigration directly affects the development of a country. This trend severely affects the development of
developing countries like Sri Lanka, Bangladesh etc.
There are many reasons that force a person to leave his own country permanently. Some of them are,
expecting high living conditions, desire to earn money quickly, giving better education to family members
etc. In addition to the above reasons, there are some other reasons also. They are, political reasons, ethnic,
colour, religion or caste problems etc. Emigration affects the development of a country gradually. It gives
long lasting results, for example the brain drain of a country is a considerable part of emigration. In short,
the meaning of brain drain is the emigration of highly trained or qualified people from a particular country.
As a result of emigration, a country faces a lot of problems. Some of them are, lack of qualified people for
work, lack of labour etc. So the country has to import labour and intelligence from other countries. This is an
expensive and money wasting process. If the qualified and well trained people like to stay in their own
country and work for the country, the government will be able to develop the country easily. If emigration
prevails, it is difficult to develop a country. According to these factors, it is clear that emigration affects the
development of a country. So, it is the responsibility of the government to keep its citizens in the country. If
the country is a place where its people can live happily and peacefully, they will not definitely leave their
motherland.

48
Write an essay on —The World in 2075‘‘ under education, technology, population transport and food.

The World in 2075


There will be many changes in most of the fields in the year 2075.Technology will be very advanced and it
will play the greatest role almost in all the fields. Man will find life easier and more comfortable than today.
But he will be busier as he will have more work. There will be a great improvement in the fields of
education, medicine, transport, engineering, and agriculture and food production industry due to the
advancement of technology.

Education system in countries will rapidly change. Almost everyone will have facilities to access internet.
Anyone will be able to get information and facts to learn anything within a short period. Children will not
depend very much on teachers. They will find their own ways to learn and upgrade their knowledge.

The world population will increase rapidly. As a result, there will be underground and space houses and
shops. People may reside in space houses. People may live in ships and boats in the sea and they may have
houses in space – crafts in the sky, too. They may even travel to other planets and live there.

There will be an advanced transport system in 2075. Everyone will have his or her own advanced vehicles.
Many people will have space – cars. We may see hundreds of space – cars moving above your head –
without any accidents.

People may not have time to spend on eating. They may just have a tablet or a pill to appease their hunger.
Instant food will play an important role in man’s main meals.

There will be different kinds of robots who assist human beings in many ways in their day today activities.
Robots will become family members in each and every family.

There will be a great number of wonders to amuse us and make us happy. However, humans’ relationship
with the nature will be more and more distant by 2017.

49
Write an essay on ―Sources of Information‖
You may include the following;
 What are sources of information?
 Their uses.
 Their disadvantages.

Sources of Information

What are sources of information? We can name newspapers, books, magazines, internet, television and radio
as main sources of information. Access to all these in order to gather knowledge is very important to move
with the developing world.

In the past, newspapers, books, magazines and radio were used as common sources of information. With the
development of the world, television and internet come into use surpassing all the others. Now internet has
become the fastest and most effective source of information.

When using books, newspapers or magazines, either we have to buy them or go to the library to use them. In
a way using a library is less expensive than others. You can have access to many fields and sections as time
permits you. Radio and television provide us information while giving entertainment. All those things can be
done through internet. Using internet, we can get news, read newspapers, books and magazines. We also can
send and receive messages etc. So it has become the most effective source of information in the present
world. Therefore it helps the world to move forward very fast in the process of development.

However, wasting time, addiction, loss of healthy human relationships can be mentioned as some of the
disadvantages especially in these modern mass media.

It’s true, there are advantages and disadvantages in all those sources. As intelligent users, it’s our duty to use
them in such a way to maximize the advantages and minimize the disadvantages.

50
Write an essay on The Outbreak of Dengue. You may include the following

 What is dengue?
 How it spreads?
 How can we eradicate dengue from Sri Lanka?
 Actions to be taken.

The Outbreak of Dengue


During the past few years, Dengue has become a pandemic in Sri Lanka. It is a viral infection and can
become deadly. As symptoms of dengue, high fever, muscle and joint pains, vomiting and rashes on skin
can be mentioned.

It is found that this virus spreads through a special mosquito breed called Aids. Aids mosquitoes bite four or
five people at a time during the day time. The infected person may or may not show the symptoms but acts
as a source of dengue. Aids mosquito lays eggs in clear water. Water storage tanks, flower pots, vases,
garden fountains, bird baths, fridge trays, discarded bottles, tins, tires, coconut shells are identified as
possible mosquito breeding grounds in Sri Lanka.

In order to eradicate dengue, we can take necessary actions in many ways. First one is controlling the
mosquito breeding places. People can clean the surrounding at least once a week. Destroying all the
mosquito breeding places by disposing garbage wisely will be a great help for this. To check whether this
process is going well, the government can appoint officers. If the people do not obey these accepted rules,
they should be punished legally.

Apart from controlling mosquito breeding, we can prevent mosquito bites. For that, we can use mosquito
repellents during the day time and install net screens on doors and windows. During night, we can use a
mosquito net. The most important step is giving notices to the people about the disease and how it can be
controlled. If we follow these steps, dengue can be eradicated from Sri Lanka without much effort.

51
Write an essay on ―Let‘s Respect Elders‖. You may include the following.

 Who are elders?


 How they have been useful to us.
 Why we should respect them.
 What can we do for them?

Let‘s Respect Elders

Elders are the senior citizens of a country. They are our former generation. Their experiences and knowledge
on life and the world are great. Their advice and explanations on various topics are very valuable.

The young generation is a product of our elder generation. The elder generation have guided and helped us
to lead a good life. They can still guide and help us if needed. Their advice, decisions and ideas are usually
better than ours as they have more experience. We are owners of a proud history of hundreds of years. Our
senior citizens have taken part in making our history a proud one. They have done a great service to our
country in many ways. They have played an important role to make our lives interesting and useful.

We should respect them and be kind to them because they have played their part to help us and guide us.
There are many ways to make them happy. Loneliness is the biggest problem they face. We can talk to them
and spend our time with them. We should show them that they are never alone.

We should take care of their health. They should be given healthy food and drinks in time. When they are ill,
we should take them for medical treatment and look after them carefully and patiently. We should tolerate
their inabilities and shortcomings. They should be given their due place in home and society. Respecting
elders as well as looking after them is a responsibility of everyone.

52
Write an essay on issues related to use of Polythene

Issues Related to Use of Polythene

Polythene pollution is one of the biggest environmental problems in the world. It takes place due to the
disposable quality of polythene waste such as polythene bags and food wrappers. Polythene waste affects the
natural environment and harms plants animals and people. Polythene has toxic pollutants. These toxic
pollutants damage the environment and cause land, water and air pollution. It takes hundreds of years for
polythene to break down. So, the damage it causes to the environment is long lasting.

Polythene is cheap and widely available. So, people overuse polythene. They add polythene waste mostly to
water ways. Polythene waste can block water ways and it causes flood. It also causes terrible impact on
aquatic species. So, it can affect the economy and food supply of the country.

Air pollution is another issue of polythene. When polythene is burnt in the open air, it releases large amount
of toxic substances. It pollutes the air. When people inhale toxic air for a long time, it can also lead to
respiratory problems.

It is the time that we must realize the harmful effects of polythene on our environment and contribute our
effort towards decreasing the harmful effects of polythene. First, we must avoid the usage of polythene
products. Paper bags, cloth bags and gunny bags can be used instead of polythene. These are very
environmental friendly and bio degradable. Government also should take some steps to stop usage of
polythene. Both the people and the government can get together and reduce the usage of polythene and make
a beautiful world.

53
Speech
Assessing Writing – Question Number 16

Please Note:

 Pay attention to the length of the answer


 If your writing is not relevant to the question (Content = 0) you will not get any
marks for language, format, organization and mechanics of writing.
 If all your sentences are incorrect (Language = 0) you will not get full marks for
content.
Content = 5 marks
Language = 5 marks
Format & Organization = 2 marks
Mechanics of writing = 3 marks
Total 15 marks

Marks Criteria for content


4-5 Has written all points including sufficient facts.
Speech is of required length
2-3 Most of the points included
Factual description not sufficient
Speech is of required length.
1 Has attempted to write a speech
Content and descriptions not sufficient
0 Question copied/Totally irrelevant

Marks Criteria for language


4-5 Almost no errors, well connected sentences, good range of vocabulary
Style of language is suitable for a speech.
2-3 Some errors-meaning is not clear due to language problems, good range of vocabulary
1 Only a few correct sentences
0 All sentences incorrect

Marks Format & Organization


2 Appropriate beginning and ending of a speech
1 Well organized ideas, connected meaningful paragraphs
0 No organization at all

Marks Mechanics of writing


3 No spelling errors, correct punctuation, clear hand writing
2 A few errors in spelling and punctuation. Clear handwriting
1 Hand writing clear but errors in spelling and punctuation
0 Unintelligible writing

54
Write a speech on problems related to tourism in Sri Lanka.

Problems Related to Tourism

Sri Lanka is a beautiful island and tourism has grown as a blooming industry in the country over the years. It
has become a major source of economy of the country. Tourism provides regular employments for many
local people and improve their standards of living. Roads and hotels have been built for the tourists in
remote areas and local people also can use these facilities. Both local people and tourists can learn about
different cultures and it can bring changes in the lives of them.

Though it is economically worth to invite foreigners to our country, it brings disadvantages, too. Sri Lankan
society promotes an eastern culture. It is full of cultural values and much different from western culture.
Local people mix and mingle with foreigners and try to imitate some behavior patterns. Especially the
younger generation ignore their own cultural values.

International drug dealers use tourists as cat’s paw to bring narcotics and other dangerous drugs illegally.
Most places of tourist attraction have provided a good market for narcotics. Our younger generation become
addictive and it badly affects the local society and the economy of the country.

Some local people see tourists as an easy prey as they are in unfamiliar territory. There are instances that
some tourists have been harassed and even killed by local people to rob their properties. So sometimes
tourists cannot ensure their security and safety in the country. It also affects the image of the country badly.

Although there are many problems related to tourism, we cannot get rid of it as it is a main source of
national income. So tourism should be well organized and should not allow it to influence the cultural
values, exploit and smuggle the resources of our country.

55
Writing Dialogues
Assessing Writing – Question Number 16

Please Note:

 Pay attention to the length of the answer


 If your writing is not relevant to the question (Content = 0) you will not get any
marks for language, format, organization and mechanics of writing.
 If all your sentences are incorrect (Language = 0) you will not get full marks for
content.
Content = 5 marks
Language = 5 marks
Format & Organization = 2 marks
Mechanics of writing = 3 marks
Total 15 marks

Marks Criteria for content


4-5 Dialogue is complete and meaningful.
There is a beginning and an end
The dialogue is of the required length
2-3 Not developed properly and therefore not meaningful
The dialogue is of required length.
1 Has attempted to write a folk tale/story but not complete
0 Question copied/Totally irrelevant

Marks Criteria for language


4-5 Almost no errors, well connected sentences, good range of vocabulary
Style of language is suitable for a dialogue.
2-3 Some errors-meaning is not clear at times due to language problems, good range of
vocabulary
1 Only a few correct sentences
0 All sentences incorrect

Marks Format & Organization


2 Well-connected ideas, connected meaningful utterances
1 Some ideas not well connected properly and not meaningful
0 No organization at all

Marks Mechanics of writing


3 No spelling errors, correct punctuation, clear hand writing
2 A few errors in spelling and punctuation. Clear handwriting
1 Hand writing clear but errors in spelling and punctuation
0 Unintelligible writing

56
Complete the dialogue between Himashi and Dinashi. They discuss their ideas on unemployment in
Sri Lanka.

Himashi : Hello! Dinashi, after a long time. What’s up?


Dinashi : Nothing much After A/L I am following an ICT computer course at British Way.
Himashi : Why did you think of following such a course?
Dinashi : We have to improve some technological skills to do our future careers.
Himashi : I agree with you. We should have to improve other professional and technical skills.
Dinashi : Yes certainly, if you are skilled you can employ yourself in any profession.
Himashi : Unemployment is a major issue now. But our political leaders and educational
authorities do not bother about it.
Dinashi : Yes, you are right. High number of graduates are unemployed. This is a serious waste
of man power.
Himashi : But what is the reason for that?
Dinashi : You know that most of the unemployed are unskilled.
Himashi : By providing technical and vocational education, we can use human resources well.
Dinashi : In that case, if someone doesn’t get a job, she/he will be able to be self- employed.
Himashi : Yes you are right. It’s time to change our attitudes about technical education.
Dinashi : You must have to learn some skills on certain profession.
Himashi : I hope to join the Technical College to follow a professional course.
Dinashi : We should encourage technical education and technical skills rather than general
education.
Himashi : The government has not created sufficient scope for the unemployed to provide them
with any service.
Dinashi : What should the government do?
Himashi : The government can provide them different kinds of training and export man power to
the other countries to solve this problem.
Dinashi : Yes, you are right exporting man power is another solution for unemployment
problem.

57
Complete the dialogue between a police officer and a person who was caught walking on the main
road during curfew.
Police Officer : Hello, Mr. Don’t you know that curfew has been imposed all over the country?

Person : Yes, I know sir.

Police Officer : Then, why did you come to the town? You are not allowed to go anywhere. You must
stay at home.
Person : Sorry sir, I`m in a very crucial situation.

Police Officer : There are no excuses. We can take legal actions against you. Don`t you know the
current situation in the country? We can arrest you under quarantine law.

Person : My father was admitted to the hospital yesterday. I had to stay with my father.
I came to the town to buy some necessary things.

Police Officer : No, you are not allowed to go without a curfew pass.

Person : Sorry sir. I had to stay with my father last night. I couldn`t go to the police station
early in the morning. I`m going to the police station to get a curfew pass now.

Police Officer : We can`t believe in what you say. Most people don`t tell the truth. They go here and
there as they wish. Now the situation is very dangerous. You must think about
that.
Police Officer : No sir. I`m telling the truth.

Person : We can`t help you. Give me your driving license.

Police Officer : Oh! this is an expired driving license. You have made two mistakes.

Person : Please understand this crucial situation. I` m the only child in my family.
I have to do everything. My father is waiting for me.

Police Officer : Ok, we don`t arrest you. We allow you to go. But we have to get your driving license
and issue a fine note. Come to the police station and solve the problem after visiting
your father.
Person : Thank you very much sir.

Complete the dialogue between Anupa and Wasana on promoting e – learning in Sri Lanka

58
Anupa : Hello! Good morning!

Wasana : Hi! Good morning!

Anupa : How is the life?

Wasana : Not bad. No school. No tuition. Enjoying my free life because of corona holidays.

Anupa : Enjoying….! I’m afraid. Our exam is getting nearer. How can we face the exam without
covering the syllabus?
Wasana : Take it easy. Now we are living in 21st century. Don’t forget it. The internet brings
you everything to your door-step.
Anupa : I can’t understand what you are telling.

Wasana : Haven’t you ever heard of Online Education?

Anupa But I haven’t used it for my education.

Wasana : What….? Haven’t used….? Still you are living in the stone-age.

Anupa : No, don’t laugh at me. Though you use online, many students don’t have internet facilities
and the knowledge as well. Then how can they learn?
Wasana : That’s true. But, I think there are many internet cafes in the city where the students access
online education. And also, you are guided to use it. Then the knowledge is not a big
problem.
Anupa : Is it a successful way of getting education as what we receive from the school?

Wasana : Yes, sure Online Education is also same as classroom teaching because you can see the
teacher on the screen.
Anupa : If we come across any problem how can we find solutions?

Wasana : Don’t ask silly questions. When we are in online, we can interact with the teacher.

Anupa : Do you think that we are benefited through this process of teaching?

Wasana : Why not? We can save our time, it is not tiresome and we feel proud of us when using
modern technology. We can keep abreast with the fast moving world as well.
Anupa : Really! I was not aware of these things earlier. Let’s give this message to our friends too

Wasana : Definitely. Let’s give them the message.

59
Folk Tales/Story line
Assessing Writing – Question Number 16

Please Note:

 Pay attention to the length of the answer


 If your writing is not relevant to the question (Content = 0) you will not get any
marks for language, format, organization and mechanics of writing.
 If all your sentences are incorrect (Language = 0) you will not get full marks for
content.
Content = 5 marks
Language = 5 marks
Format & Organization = 2 marks
Mechanics of writing = 3 marks
Total 15 marks

Marks Criteria for content


4-5 Folk tale/story is complete.
There is a beginning and an end
The folk tale/story is of the required length
2-3 Not developed properly and therefore not meaningful
The folk tale/story is of required length.
1 Has attempted to write a folk tale/story but not complete
0 Question copied/Totally irrelevant

Marks Criteria for language


4-5 Almost no errors, well connected sentences, good range of vocabulary
Style of language is suitable for a folk tale/story.
2-3 Some errors-meaning is not clear at times due to language problems, good range of
vocabulary
1 Only a few correct sentences
0 All sentences incorrect

Marks Format & Organization


2 Appropriate beginning and ending of a folk tale/story
1 Well organized ideas, connected meaningful paragraphs
0 No organization at all

Marks Mechanics of writing


3 No spelling errors, correct punctuation, clear hand writing
2 A few errors in spelling and punctuation. Clear handwriting
1 Hand writing clear but errors in spelling and punctuation
0 Unintelligible writing

60
Write a folk story you have read or heard.

The Lion and the Mouse

Once, a little mouse began running up and down. The “King of the Beasts”, the Lion that was sleeping at the
time woke up disturbed by the mouse. The lion saw the little mouse and placed his huge paw upon the
mouse and opened his big jaws to swallow him.

“Pardon, Oh! king” cried the little mouse. “If you forgive me I shall never forget it. Someday I may be able
to do a good return”. The lion was amused at the idea of the mouse. “How on earth this little fellow can ever
be able to help me?” the lion thought. However, he lifted up his paw and let the mouse go.

Sometime later the lion was caught in a trap by hunters who desired to carry him alive to the king. They tied
the lion to a tree while they went in search of a wagon large enough to carry him. Just then, the little mouse
happened to pass by or maybe he recognized the lion’s roar. Seeing the sad plight of the lion, the mouse
went up to him and gnawed away the ropes that bound him and saved him.

“You laughed at the idea that I could someday help you. Now you must see that I was right?” said the little
mouse.

“Yes, I agree, my little friend. We cannot judge one’s ability by outer appearance”. The lion thanked the
little mouse.

Since then they became best friends.

Andare, the Court Jester


In ancient times, there was a court jester in the palace. His name is Andare and his duty was telling funny
stories to make the King laugh. In that period, there was an event to select the best farmer. One day, a farmer
came to the castle to meet the King. He was facing a big problem. There was a big stone in the middle of his
paddy field, so he couldn’t grow paddy for the event. The king commanded the men to remove it. Nobody
could move it. But Andare agreed to move it to another location. He asked the king to provide him facilities
to live as wealthy and healthy as a King for a month to make his body strong. So the King granted his
request and provided the luxury life he requested for one month.
After one month, many people eagerly gathered to see his superhuman work. While everyone was watching,
he asked four strong men from the King to lift the stone and put it on his back so that he could move it to
another location. Then the King asked, “You have promised to remove the stone! Why are you not doing it
by yourself?” Andare replied, “Yes, your highness what I promised is to move the stone to another location
and I will do it gladly if someone lifts the stone and put it on my back.” Everyone laughed, however the king
himself was a bit angry about Andare’s notorious action but forgave him since he did not contradict what he
said early.

61
The Farmer went to Heaven

There was a Gamarala (farmer) in a village. One day he noted that a wild animal had eaten his crop and
found some big rounded marks like “Wangedi” (Rice Motor at the kitchen). He thought it was Wangedi
witch’s works. He told the villagers to tie up their Wangedi and they did exactly what he said. The next day
when he went to the paddy field, he saw the same outcome. He decided to keep watch at night, in the middle
of the night, suddenly a wonderful tusker came to the paddy field and began to eat the crop. So he
understood that it was not a Wangedi witch that had destroyed his crop, but this tusker. When the elephant
tried to leave, he ran and caught it by his tail. To the farmer’s surprise, the elephant started floating and took
off to the sky.

After a long journey, elephant landed on a beautiful garden above the clouds. The next day he returned with
the tusker to the earth and told his unbelievable story to his family members that he went to heaven by
hanging from the tail of flying elephant. On the following day, his family was ready to go to heaven with
him. He wanted to show the grandeur of heaven to the villages and he invited them for the journey as well.
The Farmer held the elephant’s tail then his wife caught farmer’s legs and his child and friends also held the
other’s legs as a chain. When they were flying, the farmer told about the watermelon in heaven and showed
its size to others using his hands forgetting his grip. At once, all of them fell off to a haystack and the
elephant never returned.

62
Complete the story.

I rode my new motor bike all day long. There was a huge traffic on the main road. So I turned off the
main road on to a narrow path. Suddenly.......

I felt like someone was following me. I increased the speed of my bike, as I was getting uneasy. It was
getting darker and the path looked really gothic. I was blaming myself for getting into this narrow path,
when I heard a dangerous howling of a wolf.

I was so afraid that I almost lost the control of the bike. While the things were getting worse, the engine of
the bike stopped at once. No matter how hard I tried, it did not come to life. And I was very much
frightened.

I looked everywhere for help, but I could not see any house or a human being. And then I knew that I was all
alone in a miserable, untrodden place.

At once I heard a voice. I turned towards it and saw a tall shadow like figure gazing at me. I could not see
his face but I was relieved that at last someone came for my help. I asked whether he could help me to fix
the bike. But he did not respond, instead he kept walk towards me. I felt something that was not right, but
yet I tried to keep calm.

Suddenly I got the feeling that I should sit on my bike and try to get it back to life for one last time. I stared
at the tall figure which was coming towards me and to my horror, I saw his dreadful face. His red eyes were
bleeding with horror and his sharp teeth were smirking at me. I felt like I had stopped breathing.

To my surprise and luck, my bike started at once and I rushed to where I came from. I did not check my
speed but I felt like I was flying. I got a small lump of relief when I saw the main road. Then I flew back
home. My mother was waiting for me as I was late. But I could not talk to her as I was pale with horror.

Next morning mother told my grandfather what had happened to me the previous day. From him I got to
know that there was a rumour in the past that one man was brutally killed by a gang of robbers and his soul
was seeking for revenge. On that day onwards I never use that route to come home.

63

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