9 years and below
A storybook character I like the most
The name of my favourite storybook character is Elizabeth Allen. Her name appears in a book series called ‘The Naughtiest Girl’. She is the naughtiest girl! I liked her in the first book as she tried to be naughty but ended up being funny. So I went on reading the series. She has a very hot temper but a big heart as she sticks up for her friends. Her best friend is Joan. She also owns up to her faults. She has short blond hair and laughing blue eyes. She goes to a school called Whyteleafe. I like the way her temper flares on and off. In book number seven she was very brave to rescue Daniel from the smoke. In one book she tried to solve a problem by herself but she ends up getting into trouble! Sometimes I feel I am just like her!
Hana Yusuf (10 years)
Ladies’ College
10 – 12 years
Finally back at school
Days and days past I was waiting until school starts. Suddenly a message came from my mother’s phone. When I went near the phone, the message was from school. I read it. It said that school was to start soon. I was so excited. I danced and jumped and did all of that stuff. And I ran to tell the good news to my mother.
I got up early with excitement to see my friends. As I went in to school, I met my friends. They were also excited to see me but we were not allowed to stay close to each other because of the safety reasons. The teachers were also happy to see us after a long time. We couldn’t sit together with our friends. So I felt sad. But because of social distancing there is no other option. We have to wear the mask every time and only remove it during the interval. I don’t like it but still all of us learn together and I’m happy because I can go back to school.
Tharusha Muhandiram (10 years)
St. Nicholas Int. College, Negombo
13 – 15 years
The day the power went off
Of all the inventions in the past decades, the invention of electricity has been the most wonderful and useful. Everywhere we find ourselves amid the various kinds of appliances based on electricity. But do we realize how much we depend on it for the comfort of our daily life? This is because electricity is easily available to us.
One evening, just as I was getting ready to watch a movie, there was a power failure. First the lights went off, then the laptop ran out of battery and the fans slowed down and stopped.
We reported about the power failure but the response was more irritating than satisfying. I hoped that the power would be restored soon but it was not to be so. Soon the darkness enveloped the neighbourhood. We hastily lit the candles so that we could find our way around the house and it kept the darkness out. Without the fan running, it was oppressively warm. We had grown so dependent on electricity. Though I tried to study by candle-light I found it difficult to concentrate. There was hardly a speck of light visible in the whole city. It looked like the city of the dead. The time seemed to drag on forever.
After cursing reality for a long time, finally I decided it was better to see the brighter side of darkness. Everyone gathered around the lit candles as it was the only place where it was bright. While everyone was sitting together, we thought of having some fun in the dark. We first played ‘catch the moving shadows’, then we played charades and the candle-light dinner that we had was something new to us. We enjoyed it thoroughly. After dinner we sat down to chat and everyone shared stories and cracked jokes. I enjoyed and got a chance to spend some quality family time.
On the next morning, the power was back and through the media we got to know that a breakdown of a main power supplying cable had been the cause for the sudden power failure. Now we look forward to power-cuts and having experienced a black-out I realized that while electricity is essential, life is still possible without it as well.
Oliesha Herath (15 years)
Good Shepherd Convent, Kandy
