English & Foreign Languages Branch

Department of Education Central Province

Targeted Topics
Question 08 – Paper i

The place I like to visit (Present Tense)

The place I like to visit is Kandy. It is in the Central Province. The area is full of flowers and
paddy fields. Kandy is famous for its historical value. It is the last kingdom of Sri Lanka. The
sacred Temple of the Tooth is situated in Kandy. There are a lot of interesting places to see
and enjoy. Thousands of people, both local and foreign visit Kandy throughout the year to see
its beauty.

The place I visited during the holidays (Past Tense)

The place I visited during the last holidays is Kandy. It is situated in the Central Province. We
took the train to go to Kandy. We reached there by 8 a.m. in the morning. First, we visited the
historical temples such as Gadaladeniya and Lankathilake temples, Ambekka devalaya and
Degaldoruwa temple. Then we enjoyed the time at the Peradeniya Botanical Gardens. Next,
we went to see the sacred Temple of the Tooth. We were fascinated to see such a religious and
respectful place of worship. I wish to visit Kandy again.

How I spend my free time

I spend my free time by doing different activities. I help my mother with cooking and washing.
I enjoy preparing omelette and coconut sambol. I usually read novels when I am free.
Sometimes, I watch movies on the You Tube and listen to pop music. I help my father to clean
the garden during my free time, specially during the weekend. I never forget to play with my
little puppy, whenever I am free.
 Can use the same paragraph for all three topics given below.

The person I admire most

The person I admire most is my class teacher. He is Mr. Rajasinghe. He teaches us English. He is
40 years old and is of medium built. He helps me in my difficulty. He always guides me to do my
studies well. He is a very friendly and a helpful person. He never treats us badly. My class teacher
is very punctual. He explains the lessons well. I love him because of his good qualities.

My favourite personality

There are many people in the world who are very famous. But my favourite personality is my
mother. My mother is my heroine. She helps me a lot in my difficulty. She guides me to do my
studies well. She gets up early in the morning and does all the house work. She never treats me
badly. She is a friendly and helpful person. I love my mother a lot.

An interesting person I know

An interesting person I know is my uncle, Walter. He is a man who enjoys his life a lot. He is a
very jovial character. He travels a lot and shares the experience with us. He describes the places
he visited to us. We feel that we too have visited those places in person. He likes to make friends
while travelling. So, he has many friends both local and foreign. We like to talk to him when we
have a problem. As he is an understanding person, he knows how to solve our problems. I love my
uncle a lot.
 A national/religious festival celebrated in Sri Lanka
Sinhala and Tamil New Year

The Sinhala and Hindu New Year falls in the month of April every year. It is celebrated by
Sinhalese and Hindus in Sri Lanka. They prepare sweetmeats and decorate our houses before the
New Year dawns. People clean up their gardens and houses before the New Year.
We go to the temple during the “Nonagathe” time. We blow the firecrackers. Our mothers light
the hearth and prepares milk rice at the auspicious time. Then we arrange the table with special
food items made for the New Year. All family members and relatives get-together and take part in
the rituals. Children worship the elders by offering Beetle leaves. Many festivals are held in
villages. Children take part in the many games. New Year is an important and traditional festival.

Thai Pongal
Thai Pongal is a harvest festival. It is celebrated by Hindus. It usually falls in the mid of January.
People make preparations and decorate their houses before the festival. People clean up their
gardens and houses. Pongal is the main dish prepared and served to God. People wear new clothes.
They decorate the vessel which is used to prepare the Pongal. Sugar cane is the real treat during
Pongal. People enjoy eating it after praying to God.

Vesak
Vesak is a religious festival. It is celebrated by the Buddhists all over the world. It is celebrated in
the month of May. We commemorate the three important incidents of Lord Buddha on that day.
They are the birth of the prince Siddhartha, the enlightment and the passing away. Buddhists
observe Sil and engage in various religious activities. People make Vesak lanterns and decorate
their houses. Food is given free at Dansal. It is a peaceful festival.