Winner:

Root causes of landslides

It is well known that one third of the world is covered with land while the balance is covered with water. There are different kinds of minerals, rocks and soil in the earth. Sometimes a great amount of rocks and soil will come loose and roll down a hill or mountain. This is called a landslide.

Landslides are one of the natural disasters in the world. Landslides are more likely to happen if there are no trees or plants to hold and cover the soil in place. According to the saying "Plant a tree and save the nation", it becomes a must for everyone to plant at least one tree in the future to preserve the environment.

Sometimes blasting rocks and coal mines are also a cause for landslides. Water is also known as a root cause in causing landslides. Water may wash out the dirt around rocks and push them down a hill or mountain. Sometimes cutting roads in mountain areas lead to landslides.

Let's safeguard our land for future generation.

T.Mayurica,
Grade 7D,
Good Shepherd Convent,
Nuwara Eliya.

Winner:

My favourite TV program

My favourite TV program is Atapattama. It is telecast every Wednesday at 7.30 p.m. On ITN. The program is presented by a popular presenter Hasantha. He presents the program in an interesting manner.

By watching this program, I learn many things and I also enjoy it. Many things in the program is interesting. Some of them are unbelievable and we have never seen or heard them. I never miss this program as it is useful.

Atapattama is the favourite program of many viewers. I think any person who watches this program gains not only knowledge but also gets some fun out of it.

S.W.M.Ishini Punethrika Gunarathna,
Grade 9A,
Gunapala Malalasekara School,
Walaswewa.

 

Winner:

If I were to work in 'NASA'

First and foremost, I know that, I must work hard and methodically, to achieve my goal.

After my ambition is fulfilled, I could be a great and talented scientist on space.

Then, I could easily reach 'NASA'. I will devote my precious time for new research work. I will find many new things, about space.

I will make my dream a success. I will build a special spacecraft which can carry people to other planets. I wish, I could find a new planet as Earth, which has every facility to live, fulfilling people's needs.

If there is no pure air for breathing, I will build a big pure air generator in that world.

I will build a new machine, which gives us enormous food, after many scientific experiments. Then, there will never be a food crisis. That machine will only need, sand to make food and stones to generate pure and fresh water. I will name the planet 'Babooo'. I could invent a method to communicate with aliens and make them, serve people and do everything for them.

I will make people comfortable and easy with their work on that planet, with many outputs of my experiments. I will create wonderful sceneries such as waterfalls, rivers and green grassland and houses to stay.

I will do a remarkable service and something valuable for the betterment of the world.

I will ensure that my name is etched in letters of gold, in the history of science and space.

My only ambition is to do something useful for the world.

K. Maheshi K. Thabrew,
Grade 9,
Sussex College,
Ambalangoda.

Winner:

An educational tour

Last month we went on an educational tour to Colombo. We went by private coach. There were 70 students and five teachers for this tour. We left Gelioya at about 5.30 a.m.

We stopped at Nittambuwa to have breakfast. After having breakfast we proceeded to Colombo. We reached Colombo at about 10 a.m.

First we went to the museum. There we saw many ancient things of historical importance. Our teachers explained about the items put on show.

After that we went to the Viharamahadevi Park. We had lunch there. After having lunch we rested for some time. At about 2 p.m. we went to the planetorium. There we gained knowledge about the solar system.

At about 6 p.m. we started our return journey. We reached Gelioya at about 10 p.m. We will never forget this enjoyable tour.

W.A. Nethmini Sahassrika Abeysinghe,
Grade 9,
K/Denu Sri Pragnarthana Central College,
Gelioya.

Winner:

The woodpecker

The woodpecker is a small or medium-sized bird. It has strong special feet with two toes pointing forwards and two pointing backwards. This helps it to climb on tree-trunks without falling backwards.

It has sharp claws. It has a long chisel-like bill which it uses to dig holes in tree trunks and branches. It does this to find insects under the bark or to make a nest hole.

It feels for insects with its very long tongue which has spiky tips. It lives in almost all parts of the world. There are about 200 species of woodpeckers.

Ammaar Mumtaz,
Grade 3A,
Darul Ulaam Academy.


 

Discovery of penicillin

Penicillin is a commonly used antibiotic to treat bacterial infections. It was the first antibiotic successfully used in treating serious ailments. It was discovered by Sir Alexander Fleming in 1928.

Fleming noticed mould growing on a laboratory dish that contained common bacteria. He found that bacteria around the mould had been killed. Fleming then grew mould in a liquid. He observed that the liquid kept the bacteria from growing in test tubes but he could not extract the bacteria killing substance from the liquid.

A group of British researchers developed a method of extracting and purifying small amounts of the bacteria-killing substance. It was named penicillin and came to be first used in 1941. Later on several forms of penicillin were discovered. It was found to be the most effective drug for curing pneumonia and rheumatic fever.

F. Amaani Mumtaz,
Grade 5B,
Darul Uloom Academy.

 

I love fashion

Fashion is a popular style of clothes,hair and habits. Clothes mark out a man's status. Fashion has spread in all spheres of life. Dresses are designed to fit every occasion. Children usually try to imitate fashions from movies and television programs.

People spend a lot of money and time on fashion. They always try to present themselves in the most attractive dress appropriate for an occasion. The dress code creates an impression on the person. Everyone likes to look beautiful and stylish. It makes us happy.

When a person is well-dressed, he looks smart, attractive, stylish and presentable. People never like to be out of fashion. It is good to be fashionable but it is better to be simple and dignified. I love fashion and I like to be a fashionable girl.

Melissa Perara,
Grade 9K,
Negombo South International School.















 

Trees are our friends

Trees are useful to us. They are our real friends because they provide us many things like shade,wood, medicine, nuts and fruits. They give us fresh air as they absorb carbondioxide and produce oxygen.

It is also said that trees purify the air, environment and reduce natural disasters. They make our environment beautiful and pleasant. Trees are a major part of our environment. So, we cannot live without trees.

Rashal Himashi Senadeera,
Grade 10,
I.M.S International School,
Gampola.











 

What are bridges made of?

The earliest bridges were made of wooden logs, planks and stones. Bridges over streams and rivers were made out of Bamboo and wood in Sri Lanka.

Gradually bamboo and wood gave away to iron, steel and other studier material. Masonry bridges made of cement, brick and stone became common.

Modern bridges are built mainly from steel, reinforced concrete. Steel is the strongest bridge building material but it usually needs to be painted and requires constant maintenance to prevent corrosion.

Salik Azmi,
Grade 9A,
Brighten International School.













 

Advantages of reading

Reading is advantageous. Most people take to reading as a hobby. It has countless advantages. We can learn many things through reading. It's incredible and appealing when we read.

According to an age-old saying "Reading maketh a full man." This is true. A well-read person always outshines others in society. It's a good habit to read and enrich our knowledge through books, newspapers, magazines and various other technologies which are suitable for children. Examples of some reading materials are; novels, short stories, newspapers, magazines, good books and periodicals. It improves the knowledge and broadens the mind of a person who reads.

The best way to improve the reading skill is to join a library as a member. Libraries are full books of different subjects such as geography, literature, science, mathematics and history. Newspapers are published daily and by reading them we get to know about our own country and abroad.

There are some important people who read books. One good example is a famous saying of Russian author, Maxim Gorky said,"When my mind is depressed and I hesitate on account of sad experiences, on all such occasions books provided solace and consoled me."

It is a good practice to read than to watch television during our spare time. Books are the best friends of a man. I consider that, this is one way of improving our knowledge.

Rushadha Nazar,
Grade 8,
IMS International School,
Gampola.

Mother and father

When I grow up and achieve my goals, my dreams would be fulfilled. I always remember that I owe this to my beloved parents.

Mother, how can I forget your kisses and warm glasses of milk. You held me in your soft hands at bed time. Father, how can I ever forget the proud look in your eyes, whenever I come home with my report.

Both of you have touched my heart and soul.

F. Hikma Hatheem,
Grade 6B,
Loyal Ladies' College,
Polgolla.