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Tuesday, October 15, 2024

Panchathanthra Stories For Children| Fables

Panchathanthra is a collection of Sanskrit fables written by the Indian scholar , teacher and writer Vishnu Sharma

The stories published below have been selected and adapted to suit the young reader. 

You can watch the Videos on SK Videos channel .

SK Videos Channel


                                    Vishnu Sharma

Story 1


        The Educated Fools

👴 Moral: [Pride goes before a fall: If you are too confident about your abilities something bad could happen. It shows that you are not as good as you think. ]

Once upon a time there lived four Brahmin friends. Three among them were well educated in Vedic scriptures  and other fields. However, they lacked intelligence.  The fourth friend was uneducated but he excelled in intelligence. 

One day, the four friends were engaged in a serious conversation with regard to their future.  They said they couldn't make proper use of their educatedness by staying in their home country.  So, they decided to serve some other king in the East and make their future better. 

Thus, as discussed, the four friends left home early in the morning the very next day. They walked in the direction of the east. 

On the way, the first Brahmin friend stopped and expressed his concern over the  fourth Brahmin friend who was uneducated. 

The second Brahmin friend added, " Yes,  we cannot share our hard earned wealth  with someone who is uneducated." 

The third Brahmin who felt sympathetic for their good old friend said, "We've been friends since our childhood. We've always been together.  Therefore, it's my opinion that  a part of our wealth should go to him as well." 

The four friends resumed the journey. On the way, they had to walk through a dense jungle infested with most ferocious wild animals. The four friends being tired after walking a long distance, decided to rest a  while under a huge shady tree. 

The friends who observed the surrounding noted some skeletal remains. Upon closer examination, they realized that they were those of a lion died a few years ago. 

The educated friends thought that it was an opportunity to show how educated they were by putting together the bones and bringing the dead beast back to life. 

Thus they set about working.  The first Brahmin friend fixed the bones. The second Brahmin friend fed the skeleton with flesh and blood. Finally, when the third Brahmin friend got ready to blow life into the lion the fourth friend, the uneducated one , who was watching all this drama with horror and surprise , intervened  and said , " Stop! Stop! What do you think you are going to do? You are going to bring a ferocious  beast back to life.  The moment it is alive, it'll definitely kill the four of us. If you  love your life, don't do this." 

The third friend who was furious to hear this said , "Go away uneducated fool and let me show everyone the power of my knowledge." 

.................................................................................

👉Read in English while listening to the story in Sinhala. Watch the Video below . Please Subscribe the Channel for more.

The fourth friend said, "Well, then ,  wait just one minute until I climb up this tree. " 

 The fourth friend climbed up the tree in a flash.  The third friend blew life into the dead lion.  The lion sprang up with a loud roar, killed the three friends and disappeared into the jungle." 

The fourth friend watched all this in agony. He was shocked to see the three good friends lying dead under the tree  torn into pieces.  He walked back home mourning the death of his  three friends. 

Tuesday, September 17, 2024

DESCRIBING GRAPHS

 GRAPH DESCRIPTIONS FOR GRADE 10 AND 11
 Recommended for General English
 
The test on graphs carries 10 marks at the OL exam ( Sri Lanka). Describing graphs has also been included in the General English paper. 
My objective here is not to teach you how to write descriptions of graphs ; yet to help you form an idea as to how a description is written. By going through the following descriptions, you will probably be able to form an idea as to how a description on a graph is written.  However, you need constant practice as a student, so find some more activities and keep on writing. It will enable you to produce a sound description. 
 
Sajendra Kumara
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NOTICES , PERSONAL NOTES AND ANNOUNCEMENTS



NOTICES , NOTES AND  ANNOUNCEMENTS
Dear all,💓
It may take several hours or sometimes even a few days for granting access to the papers you request to download. I kindly request you to bear with the delay. Don't give up hopes. Check your e-mails for permission. 
             මෙම blog page එකේ ඔබට ලබාදෙන papers , download කරන්න access ලබාගැනීමට ඇතැම් විට පැය  කීපයක් හෝ දින කීපයක් උවද ප්‍රමාද වියහැකි බව සලකන්න . ❤        Sajendra Kumara                          whatsApp/call:0777597875 
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This page has been created for the benefit of all the students in Sri Lanka.
All the activities and worksheets are free
Sajendra Kumara
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Dear students and friends ,
If you have an urgent need to download the materials published here simply leave me a message on whatsApp . 👉0777597875
ඔබට ඉතා ඉක්මනින්ම මෙහි ඇති materials භාගත කිරීමට පහත අන්කයට whatsApp message එකක් යොමු කරන්න .
0777597875
Sajendra Kumara 

BEST ENGLISH MODEL PARAGRAPHS FOR OL

     Model Paragraphs for OL and Grade 10

Paragraph writing is usually an integral part of a language paper. It is a testing tool a teacher uses to assess a learner's ability to express an idea briefly using correct language. Paragraph writing is the 8th Question on the OL first paper. Given below is the marks distribution for paragraph writing. Read the paragraphs and think how you could make them your own. 

Sajendra Kumara  

  Paragraph Titles:👉

1. A visit to the village fair    

 2. If I were a bird       

3.The College English Day     

4. The Value of Friendship    

5. Books are our friends   

   Paragraph writing: Watch Video👇👇

6. The internet        

7. Newspapers     

8. My Ambition       

9. The person I like most   

10. How I spend my leisure         

11. My favourite pastime     

12. My favourite animal  

13. The joy of travelling        

14. How I spent my last weekend        

15. My favourite sport     

16. An unforgettable trip     

 17. A Shramadana campaign   

18. A visit to a botanical garden 

19. Water is an important resource.     

20. A place of historical importance in Sri Lanka. (1)  

21. A place of historical importance in Sri Lanka 

(2)  22. A visit to a place of historical importance 

23. My last school vacation.  

24. A famous city in Sri Lanka  

25. The Value of Time 

26. Early bird catches the worm.   

27. The television as a source of information 

28. If I were the head prefect o f my school  

29. A beautiful place in Sri Lanka 

30. My hometown  

31. My favourite book   (1) (2)

32.  My plans after the OL exam

33. My favourite subject 

34.  The place where I live

35. The most unforgettable incident in my life. 


 
 

Sajendra Kumara YouTube Channel   

SK VIDEO        

Watch Video👇

Challenges In Life (OL Essay)                                

                          
The two books contain more paragraphs and activities.


                                                                                                                      

                                                                                                                                                

Sunday, May 19, 2024

ENGLISH TERM TEST PAPERS AND MODEL PAPERS FOR OL AND OTHER


English Term Test Paper Bank

For all Users of This Blog Page


It may take several hours or sometimes even a few days for granting access to the papers you request to download. I kindly request you to bear with the delay. Don't give up hopes. Check your e-mails for permission. 
             මෙම blog page එකේ ඔබට ලබාදෙන papers , download කරන්න access ලබාගැනීමට ඇතැම් විට පැය  කීපයක් හෝ දින කීපයක් උවද ප්‍රමාද වියහැකි බව සලකන්න . ❤        Sajendra Kumara                          WhatsApp/call:0777597875 
💕
Dear students and friends ,
If you have an urgent need to download the materials published here simply leave me a message on WhatsApp . 👉0777597875
ඔබට ඉතා ඉක්මනින්ම මෙහි ඇති materials භාගත කිරීමට පහත අන්කයට WhatsApp message එකක් යොමු කරන්න .
0777597875
Sajendra Kumara 

Wednesday, May 15, 2024

The Red Rose: A Short Story ( Based on a True College Incident)

 The Red Rose: A (True) Short Story


  (Based on a true incident
  Daily News: August 3, 2011

     "Sir, I found this rose on my desk", the little girl chirped as I took my eyes off the Grade 9 attendance register. 

     Susima was the prettiest in my class. Her gleaming eyes could easily steal the young heart. Her jet black hair which she wore in one plait was often decorated with a red ribbon put into a butterfly knot. 

    It was about 7.20 a.m. As it was Monday, I had to take the children to the playground for the morning assembly. 

   "Put it in the vase, dear. Go, hurry up, help them arrange the class before the bell goes.", I said. The girl deposited the little red rose among the bunches of marigolds and joined the girls busy arranging the desks and chairs. 

  The little red rose did not catch anyone's attention. It remained in the vase even when I returned in the last period.

    The following morning a sudden rain delayed me to school than usual. As I was walking towards the class I saw Susima  standing at the entrance with her hands behind. It appeared that she was waiting for my arrival. 

Good morning Susima," I greeted the girl as I walked straight to my table since my bag was too heavy with books and files. I felt Susima following me. No sooner than I sat down at the table, I found Susima standing in front of me with a red rose in her hand. 

  "You've found another red rose on your desk Susie. This is interesting", I said. 

  "Yes, sir. I came a little early, and I found this on my desk", replied Susima placing it in my hand and walked away. 

 I turned the red rose round holding it with the stem and gently ran my fingertips on its soft petals which were still afresh. 

 Apparently some hand had picked it early that morning. It was not difficult for my fingertips to catch its raw wetness. 

 Roses! I do love them, too, as much as the hand that picked it for Susie or perhaps even more. Several varieties of them decorate my home garden under the good care and attention of my wife. They need proper attention for healthy growth. The velvet bunch of petals huddled together has a mesmerizing effect on anyone. It is as soft as the budding love deep in the heart of a lover. The scarlet hue at the bosom of the rose rightly mingles with the innocent romantic feelings of a lover. 

 The morning bell woke me up from the reverie. There was the usual din in the class until the second bell went for the religious observances. I kept the rose next to the vase as it was already stuffed with an assortment of flowers, and rose from the chair.

 A brief pin drop silence reigned the college followed by the recital of the five precepts. Quite unknowingly my eyes were cast on little Susima who was engrossed in reciting the gathas devdevotedly with her palms nicely pressed together akin to a rose bud hanging from a twig.

 Susima's mysterious rose started haunting my mind. However much I tried to supress it and get about my work it surfaced like a rubber ball pressed into the water. 

 I am a teacher with twenty years of teaching experience. I have spent nearly half of my life with children. I have faced a multitude of experiences involving children throughout my career. Susima was just one among the hundreds of pretty little damsels in the long list of pupils I have taught so far.

 Yet for the first time this apparently petty incident was encroaching my heart and mind. If it was really Susima or the mysterious red roses which found their  way on to her desk that attracted me so much, I couldn't understand. 

 The following morning , I left home to school a little early. There was Susima again at the entrance to the class. My eyes first fell on her hands and then on her face. I was correct ; the stranger had kept the third too on her desk. She silently kept the rose in my hand. 

 Yet this time it was not the Susima who brought me the first and the second rose. She was on the verge of tears. Her lips were quivering as if to supress a loud cry. 

  I walked to my table and kept the flower on my books. Susima followed and stood in front of me. By then, tears were trickling down her cheeks.

 "Sir, the girls are laughing at me. They are calling me 'Rosy Susie'. Please! Stop it sir!". She emptied her heart sobbing. I almost heard her palpitations as she was breathing so fast. Her hanky was wet with tears. 

  There were some girls in the class on this occasion. They were giggling , pushing each other , looking slyly at Susima while sweeping the class. The boys were out in the playground. Girls envied Susima because of her attractive appearence. Hene this incident was more than what they needed to tease the girl. They were all out to derive some wild pleasure out of this small incident. 

  With just a frown I showed them my disapproval and the giggling came to an abrupt end. The girls were seen engaged in their classroom duties as if nothing happened. I nodded to Susima to go back to her desk. Susima ran to her desk and burried her head in her arms. However , later she was seen chatting with some girls in front of the class. Yet there was a shroud of gloom hanging over her face. 

 The term tests being over , I spent most part of the day marking papers in my class. My presence in the class would probably have served in guarding her from any unwanted remarks from girls. 

   That day I thoroughly determined to find the architect of this whole drama. I also was twitching with curiosity till I found the culprit. 

 After much thoughts, I determined not to reveal this incident to any of my collegues. I did not want to make this matter a cause for amusement and embarrass little Susima and her secret , yet unkown , admirer. 

 I hate to see elders deriving pleasure by getting hold of innocent teenage romantic expressions. 

When such incidents fall into their ears, especially the ladies , they cling to them , perhaps , for couple of weeks or even more. They have a knack for making mountains out of molehills and modify small incidents to suit their desired tastes. 

  I did not talk with my family on that day. I avoided company as much as possible. Though I sat in front of the TV as uusual to watch news, I did not really remember what she read so loud and clear. 

 That night I saw Susima in my dream. She was standing at her desk with a red rose pressed to her bosom. On seeing me entering the class she flicked it under the desk. When I demanded her what  she hid under the desk she broke down and cried aloud. Just then I woke up to hear the alarm hammering into my ears. 

 I left home earlier than usual on that day. I wanted to be in the class before anyone of my students turned up. First, I made sure that there was no one in the class. Then I walked up to Susima's desk and observed every inch of it. 

 Thus after completing the initial step of my operation I left for the staff room, as planned , which was located well within the sight of my classroom. I moved a chair and sat down focusing my eyes on the entrance to the classroom. 

 A few nail biting moments ticked away. I heard some footsteps falling on the gravel. That was my class monitor Bevan. 

 Bevan was an obedient boy from a well-to-do family. He was tall for age and usually came to class smartly dressed. He performed his duties to the letter. He had never been in the bad books of teachers.

  After a few minutes, I dashed into the classroom. The little thief was caught red handed. 

 Bevan my class monitor was sitting at Susima's desk. A red rose with a leaf on its stem was already lying on the Susima's desk. He was taken aback by my surprise appearance. He stood transfixed gazing at me for a while. Then, slowly, he picked up the rose with shivering fingers. 

 "Bevan! Then you are the one, Susie's secret lover", I said. The boy proceeded a few steps towards me with the red rose in his hand. He reminded me of little Oliver Twist who walked up to the official with his empty bowl to ask for more. 

 Bevan's eyes pleaded guilty. He was standing in front me with his eyes glued to the ground. 

 "What's the meaning of this, my boy?", I asked.

"Sorry sir!, That's all because I LOVE Susima. Please, don't let her know it. It'll not happen again," muttered the little boy in one breath and dropped the flower at my feet. Then, he looked guiltily at me with tears in eyes and bolted out of the class. 

  I picked up the rose, kept it in my vase and waited for Susima to come to class. But Susima did not come to school on that day. 

 I took that 'precious red rose' home and placed it on my reading table. 

Sajendra Kumara

(Published in The Daily News (Sri Lanka ) ARTSCOPE magazine on Wednesday, the 3rd August, 2011)



The names of the two children in the subject incident are imaginary. 

👦👧Note

There are many young boys and girls like Bevan and Susima in our colleges. You need to handle their feelings quite gently and with much maturity. 

I faced this experience when I was serving at a school in Gampaha Education Zone. The incident left an indelible impression on me. The girl is a teacher today. I do not know anything about the boy. Later, I decided to turn this beautiful incident into a story and a poem. The poem was also carried in the Daily News. 





The above 👆 module contains all types of test activities for Question - 6 of the OL English paper. It can easily be used as a handbook for classroom teaching or as a self-study guide.


Wednesday, May 8, 2024

ENGLISH GRAMMAR LESSONS FOR O L

English Grammar Activities.

Dear students,
I am publishing here grammar exercises to help you with in your classroom activities. The simple activities will help you in your exams. 
Sajendra Kumara



Use 'can' appropriately and complete the sentences.

Answers: 1. can speak 2. can speak 3. Nuwan can speak 4. Gagani can speak /can't speak  5. Both / Gagani can speak 

PREPOSITIONS: 01
Fill in the blanks with the prepositions given within brackets. 

                                        [ with  -  of  - in  -  on - for ]

The wheel has been an essential part of human life 1) ........................ the very early years of human civilization. The wheel can be best described as a circular object that rotates 2) ......................an axle bearing. The earliest wheels were known to be wooden disks 3) .....................a hole in the middle 4) ........................the axle. The word wheel first came from an English word. 5) .......................Sanskrit, the wheel is called 'Chakra' to mean 'round' or 'circle'. 
1. since 2.on 3. with 4. of    5. in 

Sajendra Kumara 

ACTIVITY 02: Verb forms


Write the correct form of the verbs given within brackets.
Once , Honour, Fire and Water started on a journey to find new things and new places. After sometime, they 1)________ [realize] that they liked to 2)________[see] different things. "We 3)___________[travel] together for a long time, but we might go in different ways. We  must 4)________[make] plans about how to find each other," Fire said. The others agreed and 5)________[begin] to make plans. Fire said that they could always 6)_______[find] him by his smoke. Water 7)_______[tell] them to look for signs like green vegetation and evening mist. But Honour apologetically 8)________[say], "You have to 9)_______[keep] me with you all the time. If you 10)_______[lose] me once, you will never be able to find me again." 
1. realized 2. see 3. have traveled / have been travelling 4. make 5.began 6. find 7. told 8. said 9. keep 10. lose 
👧👨Sajendra Kumara 

MODEL ENGLISH ACTIVITIES FOR O L

Model Questions For O L
The activities published here are based on the O/L new syllabus.



A word from the blogger
💔💔
Dear students and teachers,
The activities you find on this blog page are free and they have been created for Grade 11 and 10 students. You can use the blog page as a self-study guide. The answers for the activities are published separate ( jjsaje.blogspot.com: THE KEY TO MODEL QUESTIONS). You also can share the page as a gift pack with your kith and kins of school going age.  
For further activities you can purchase the two model activity books I have advertised below. The two books contain 200 activities ( 100 in each) with answers. The activities have been tested with students for avoiding any ambiguity. You can get down the books to your home or school by simply leaving me a note on whatsApp or ringing me to the mobile number I have mentioned below. 
jjsaje.blogspot.com contains activities for Grade 6 , 7 , 8 and 9. It  is also a source for you for Model Essays, Graph description and Grammar lessons. Search the site and you will find activities in abundance. 
I welcome your comments as they always encourage me to dedicate more time for you.

Sajendra Kumara
A trained teacher of English
Voice/WhatsApp: 0777597875
👉👨👨👨👨👨
It may take several hours or sometimes even a few days for granting access to the papers you request to download. I kindly request you to bear with the delay. Don't give up hopes. Check your e-mails for permission. 
             මෙම blog page එකේ ඔබට ලබාදෙන papers , download කරන්න access ලබාගැනීමට ඇතැම් විට පැය  කීපයක් හෝ දින කීපයක් උවද ප්‍රමාද වියහැකි බව සලකන්න . ❤        Sajendra Kumara                          WhatsApp/call:0777597875 
💖💖💖💖

Dear students and friends ,
If you have an urgent need to download the materials published here simply leave me a message on whatsApp . 👉0777597875
ඔබට ඉතා ඉක්මනින්ම මෙහි ඇති materials භාගත කිරීමට පහත අන්කයට whatsApp message එකක් යොමු කරන්න .
0777597875
Sajendra Kumara 

🐶🐶
This page has been created for the benefit of all the Sri Lankan students. 
Sajendra Kumara
👲👲👲
Watch Sajendra Kumara Video Channel

Best Cloze Passages for OL

 About Cloze Passages: 
  The cloze passage is the 11th question on the OL English language paper. The question carries 7 marks (14 blanks; 1/2 mark for each). 
Well, most students always grumble that the question consumes time and it is challenging. This means you lack practice in answering cloze passages. I also find that most English language teachers also are reluctant to expose children to cloze passages. 
Attempting a cloze passage involves intense brain work. It requires a knowledge of vocabulary, grammar and related techniques. More than anything else , 'patience'. Really, a cloze passage put your 'patience' on test. 
My students, you can practice cloze passages at home. You can do it for yourself. First, take it as a game. 
Well, you can do it the way I mention below. Try it and comment if it works.

Step 01: Select a suitable passage depending on your language proficiency. Make sure that the passage is an appealing one to you. I recommend a short story at first. Write it on a paper or just photocopy it.

Step 02: Read the passage several times until you get some idea of the theme. You may use a dictionary if you find any new words. 

Step 03: Leave the first one or two sentences and mark words after every four , five or six words. Then remove the words and write them down on a separate paper. 

Step 04: Now jumble the words you have removed as you please. 

Step 05: Now you have a cloze passage with you. Try to insert the words. Check your answers yourself with the list of words you took down in order at first. 

Note: while attempting to insert the words try to associate the words with the words immediately around the blank. 
 e.g.  If there is a blank with the article 'an' , your answer MUST be a word beginning with a VOWEL. 

As you practice you will catch up your own techniques. 
Well, you can inform me later.
Bye.
Sajendra Kumara
0777597875


Find scores of cloze passages among the pages of the two Steps to Brilliance Books with answers. The writer is a government teacher at a school in Nittambuwa. 

Monday, May 6, 2024

Best Poems for Comprehension


             "A thing of beauty is joy forever"
The poems published here could be used for your language teaching and learning process. They have been carefully selected to suit the young reader. The teacher can turn these short poems on to a platform where the young learner is motivated towards poetry. 
      Sajendra Kumara
      A trained teacher of English
      Voice: 07775978775

Dear teachers, 
Do not merely get your students to answer these simple poems and switch on to another. First build up a fine bridge between your students and the poem.  Your students will walk over slowly into the poetic world. Let them have that fun with you. 
Then let your students attempt the questions and finally make sure that you lead a healthy discussion. The poems I publish here create a background for you to guide them deeper into the poems. 
Today, most of our teachers have become quite mechanical and do not let the students to peep into the literary world. 
I was made to leave this remark here because I chanced to listen to some young lady teacher explaining a poem in her language class. She did not treat the poem the way she should have done it and roughly touched upon the surface of the poem for the sake of doing it. 
Do justice to the poems and the poets by discussing them with your students. Listen to what your students speak of them. Let your students truly enjoy a poem. Do not steal that right from them. Be well prepared before discussing a poem with your students. 
 I humbly regret if I have hurt you my readers. 
Blogger Sajendra Kumara.

Panchathanthra Stories For Children| Fables

Panchathanthra is a collection of Sanskrit fables written by the Indian scholar , teacher and writer  Vishnu Sharma .  The stories published...