Winner:

The television is a piece of electrical equipment which is very useful to us today. It has a screen on which we can watch various programmes with moving pictures and sounds. The television was invented in 1924 by a Scotish scientist named John Logie Baird. Since that time it has developed greatly in quality and technology to the present advanced form. Even though the television was invented a long time ago it was introduced to our country rather recently;about two decades ago.

The original televisions were produced only in black and white with manually controlled on-off switch buttons. The present television sets come in colour with a variety of new features such as high quality screens which are easy on the eyes and a host of other operations which are all controlled by a remote.

Formally the television was used only by a handful of well to of people ,but now its usage has increased greatly. In fact, it is difficult to trace numbers. There is hardly a house even among shanty dwellers without a television set today. Television is a fountain of information.Interesting facts and visuals about different subjects,various happenings and people from the four corners of the world flow through it. Some of the programmes telecast are recorded first and aired later while others are telecast while the event is taking place ; 'live' as it is called in television language.

There are many channels that telecast these programmes in all three languages. Out of all these programmes the news telecasts and entertainment programmes such as musicals and tele-dramas are watched by people from all walks of life.

Unlike books, the use of television is not confined to literate people. Even a person who is totally illiterate can watch television and enjoy what the TV offers.In this context there is no other medium of communication which is accessible to the ordinary public.

R.A.T Kaushalya Rajapaksha,
Grade 8 D,
Sri Rahula Central College, Alawwa.

Hunger, millions suffer from it

Winner:

Every night millions of children and adults around the world go to bed hungry. They face the next day too with empty stomachs and even spend the rest of the day in hunger because they have no food to eat. But on the other hand millions of people, especially in developed countries have too much food to eat and they throw away some of it.

Even though the world has advanced in technology there are more poorly fed children in the world than before. Today the number of malnourished children and adults has increased in many parts of the world.

People who do not get proper food are said to be malnourished .Such people do not get a balanced diet to keep their bodies fit and strong.

Malnourished children grow more slowly than well-fed children. They also fall ill very frequently as they are weak. .

When adults do not have enough food to eat and are malnourished, especially in poor countries, they cannot do their work properly.They have no strength even to cultivate their fields to earn a living. They do not have money to eat if they do not cultivate. So, they end up hungry.

It becomes a vicious cycle. If there are droughts or famines adults find it difficult to recover even if the younger generation does so. If people become too weak even to cultivate their lands and carry out farming activities there will be a food shortage.

Without food children will be physically affected .They will become weak and die. During a famine it is generally the children and the aged who suffer the most.

Many children around the world live in hunger due to poverty and lack of food supplies.

With the growing population there is a food shortage in the world. However, there are many who waste food . Supermarkets and food outlets, especially abroad throw away a lot of food that are not sold and have passed the expiry dates.

Even in homes in our country people throwaway food. Do not waste food. There are many children who are dying of hunger. Help poor hungry children .

Shafiya Faizar,
Grade 7A,
Gateway College, Kandy

My favourite character

Winner:

My favourite cartoon/movie character is Spiderman. I like him because he is powerful and does many good things.

I watched a movie and saw how a man changed into Spiderman. He is bitten by a poisonous spider at his school.

Then he comes home with a blister on his hand. Later he feels that he is becoming powerful. Then he gets the ability to produce cobwebs and climb up walls.

His costume is bright red and blue. Once I watched him rescuing a poor men from a thief. Spiderman comes from nowhere and catches the thief with the cobweb.

He helps people when they are in trouble. Therefore I admire Spiderman very much.

Pooja Rakki,
Grade 2,
Vidura College.

Queen of children's books

Winner:

Enid Blyton was very popular among children because she wrote hundreds of children's books. She was called the Queen of Children's books in the 20th century. She was born in England on August 11, 1897. She was the eldest child of Thomas Carey Blyton, a salesman of cutlery, and his wife, Theresa Mary Harrison Blytony .

She had two brothers named Hanly and Carey. She liked to write poems and stories as a small child even though she did not have a very pleasant childhood. The family had to face many economic problems .She was a clever and diligent child . Despite the financial problems faced by her family she continued her education. At the age of 14 she won a poetry competition.

Discovering her talents at writing she began to improve on her writing skills. She selected teaching as her first job. She was a talented pianist, but gave up her musical studies when she trained as a teacher.She taught for five years . She wrote many children's stories and poems to newspapers and magazines during her teaching career.

In 1922 she published her first book titled Child whispers, a collection of poems. In 1924 she married an editor of the book department in a publishing firm named Major Hugh Alexander Pollock.She had two daughters.

In 1926 Blyton edited a new magazine for children called Sunny Stories for Little People.Her first full-length children's book, The Secret Island, was published in 1938.

Enid Blyton books such as the Noddy series and Famous Five series were, and still are very popular among children from all parts of the world.Her books have been translated into many languages. She died in 1968 but her books will be loved by children for ever.

I.A.D. Hiruni Hansika Illeperuma,
Sri Dharmaloka Central College, Kelaniya.

My life partner

Winner:

I definitely know that many of you will be surprised at the heading of this article. But do not get confused over it because my life partner is 'English' I decided to write this article about English from my own life experience.

All over the world a number of languages is spoken in different countries. According to my perspectives among these many languages English is the foremost and most prestigious language.

English is not my mother tongue, but by some merit, it has become a key development issue in my educational career as well as my day- to- day life.English plays a very active role in my life and helps me face many challenges in life.Having a knowledge of English gives me a great amount of confidence and enables me to handle many problems in life. To me English is a pillar of strength, especially in my education. Due to that I love the language and took great interest to learn it I was able to do my O/Levels in the English medium. As a result I decided to do my A/Levels too in English.

English is a key factor when it comes to facing and working with the global community. As Sri Lankans it is important to know English if we are to keep up with the advancing world. It is the international link language.

To me English is a life processor and a source of entertainment too. I have gained a lot in life because of my knowledge of English. I am not competent in the language so I am exploring and learning more about the language at every moment. English is my life partner . So, my friends make it your life partner too.

A.A.D. R. Nishadi Dulsara,
Central College, Kuliyapitiya.