My pet rabbit is Ginger. It eats carrots.
It can run. It can hop.
It can beg. I love it.

My favourite food

By Tharin Dabarera (7 years), St. Peter's College, Colombo 4

My favourite food is fried rice. It is a Chinese food. I like fried rice because there are many vegetables in it. We can buy fried rice from hotels or restaurants. The ingredients we put into fried rice are vegetables, meat and rice.

Some people don't like fried rice. Some people know how to make fried rice. My mother also knows how to make it. My whole family likes to eat it, but my sister and my brother and I, like it the most. I like fried rice more than any other food.

My school trip

By Bushra Shums (Grade 2), Ilma International School

At last the day dawned. It was a Tuesday and the children from Grade Two were going on a trip to Guruge Nature Park.

My father dropped me at school at 7.30 a.m., and we were off to Guruge Nature Park at 8 a.m. On our way we sang songs, danced and enjoyed ourselves. We reached the park at 10 a.m. We got down from the bus and ran to the park. Our teacher bought tickets for all of us.

First we went to the mini-zoo. Next we went to the Jurassic park and saw dinosaur statues. We went in a train and a man with a gun came to scare us. We had our lunch and our teacher gave us ice-cream and drinks. Then we saw the Guruge royal hall, the mermaid, the mermaid's chair, the king's throne and the cart. We went to the park and played on the swings, slides, monkey bars and merry-go-round.

Then our teacher said that it was time to go. So, we all got into the bus and we reached school at 4.30p.m. My mum was waiting for my arrival. I enjoyed my trip to the utmost. It was an enjoyable and
unforgettable trip in my life.

Why animals should not be caged

By Minnath Shakir (Grade 7), Muslim Ladies College

We children have pets and they are caged so they cannot escape. Animals like squirrels, birds etc, are caged in our homes and we enjoy watching them. But they must always be feeling sad. Although we clean their cages, give them enough food and care for them, they still are not happy. They need their
freedom and they must be missing their mothers' love.

Imagine if you were trapped in a cage without your parents, brothers or sisters. You would never feel happy. The same goes for animals too. There are wild animals like lions, tigers and even baby elephants who are caged in the zoos. People take pleasure in visiting zoos and seeing the animals behind bars.

Wild animals are meant to be free in the jungle where they can learn their own way of living. Why don't people realize this situation? I think that we all should think twice before we cage an animal behind bars!

My favourite supplement

By Vinotheeba Reginald (14 years), Good Shepherd Convent, Kotahena

My favourite supplement is the Funday Times. There are useful sections in this paper for children like us. We as children gain a lot from the Funday Times.

The Maths and Science sections are my favourite sections. I gain a lot of knowledge from these sections. They help me to improve my studies. The Kids' World section encourages us by publishing our articles. There are a lot of competitions like the fun quiz, history quiz, handwriting competition, sudoku, Tomahawk and read-a-book competition. These competitions help us to improve our knowledge and to bring out our hidden talents.

So, I recommend the Funday Times to all school children, so that they may develop their talents and make their lives interesting.

A dream I had

By Mithila Ranaweera (Grade 7), Nalanda College

One day I was on my way to school. I was walking on the right side of the street. A weird idea came to my mind that something strange was going to happen. I was waiting for the school van to come. It was about 6.10 a.m.

Then I heard some people talking about a bank robbery. I saw a blind, old man trying to cross the road. I went near him. Then I saw a car, driven by two men wearing black masks, speeding towards the old man. I thought that they both were the bank robbers. The car was followed by a police car. I thought that if the cars hit the old man he would get flattened like a pancake. So, I ran towards him and pushed him away.

The car missed him by inches. In the meantime the car tried to turn and lost its grip and hit a petrol shed and exploded.

The old man hit me on the head with his walking-stick and I tried to explain to him what had happened. He apologized and thanked me for helping him. Then I heard someone calling me to 'Wake Up!' It was my mother. Then I realized that it was only a dream!

My brother

By Amathulla Aliasger (7 years), Burhani Serendib School

I have a brother. His name is Abizer. He goes to Marian Montessori. He is four years old. He sucks his thumb and my mum and dad always scold him. In the morning he gets up with me at 6.15 a.m. He likes to brush his teeth with me. He goes to Nursery at 8 a.m.

When I do my homework he sits with me, with his crayons and colours. Sometimes he is very naughty. Every Sunday he fights with me. He pulls the Funday Times paper and never gives me to read it.

My brother likes to eat chocolates and ice-cream. He shares with me. I love my brother and he loves me too.

Myself

By Rusandi Silva (8 years), Musaeus College

My name is Rusandi. I am eight years old. I study at Musaeus College. I like to eat ice-cream. I like to drink water. I have one brother and one sister. My brother's name is Puladitha Silva. My sister's name is Lumini Silva. My favourite subject is English. I hope to be a doctor or teacher.

Wolfhound and Chihuahua

By Samith Ailapperuma (Grade 6), Trinity College, Kandy

The largest dog breed is the wolfhound, standing up to three feet. It has a great speed and strong muscles. It is also a good hunter. There are wolfhounds of many colours such as grey, reddish brown, black, fawn and pure white.

The wolfhound gets on well with children. It is not an aggressive dog. The wolfhound is easy to train. It can be a wonderful pet. It is not a good watchdog because it's friendly with strangers. Wolfhounds are famous for their loyalty, affection, patience and devotion.

The smallest dog breed is the Chihuahua standing up to only seven inches. A Chihuahua puppy is the size of a kitten. It is a very popular dog breed. Although small, it is intelligent.

There are many colours of Chihuahua such as fawn, reddish brown, dark brown, black and off-white. Chihuahuas can easily be tempted to attack and therefore are unsuitable for homes with little children. However, the Chihuahua is a graceful, alert and swift moving little dog.

A Paediatrician

By Subodhi Indrachapa (Grade 3), Mahasen Central College, Bakamoona

Paediatrician is a doctor who only treats children. Last week I went to see the paediatrician. That day I had a severe fever.

When I met her she asked me, "What's your name?" I said my name. She questioned me how I am. I said that I have a fever. After that she asked me a line of questions about my symptoms.

I didn't answer those questions because I was too sleepy at that time. But I had to answer one question. It was "Do you like syrups or tablets?"

I said I like syrups. Her name was Mrs. Wasantha Withana. I liked her very much. She was very kind. When I went home I saw the syrup bottle in the bag. I asked my father why she was so kind. Father replied "She should be kind because she is supposed to be kind." I felt that she is a love tap.

My country

By Githmi Withanawasam (12 years), Southlands College, Galle

My country is Sri Lanka. It is an island in the Indian Ocean. It is also called the ‘Pearl of the Indian Ocean.’
There are several communities living in my country. They are the Sinhalese, Tamils, Muslims and Burghers. The population of Sri Lanka is over 20 million.

Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte is the capital city of Sri Lanka. Our commercial capital is Colombo. Sri Lanka is famous as a tourist paradise. There are many tourist attractions here. Some of them are waterfalls, ancient ruins, sanctuaries, sandy beaches and botanical gardens.

My country is very beautiful. I like my country very much.

My mother

By Salma Hilmy (9 years), Kalutara Muslim B.M.V.

The word 'mother' is the most beautiful word in the world. My mother gets up early in the
morning and makes tea for us. Then she prepares our breakfast. She works throughout the day but she works happily.

She gives us everything we want. My mother protects us. She helps our education. She is pretty, kind and generous. I like my mother. She likes me too.

My family

By Dilini Pandithagedara (5 years), Colombo International School, Kandy

In my family there are four members. My father, mother, sister and me. My mother cooks well. My father works in Italy. We live in Kandy. My family is the best. I love my family.

The value of reading

By Dileepa Tissera (Grade 7), Ecole Internationale, Kandy

Reading gives a person a deep knowledge in various subjects. Normally people read for pleasure at their leisure times. Some make it a hobby.

An avid reader is a well versed person. Any article on any subject is a game for him. There are so many things to read such as articles, novels, short stories, magazines, periodicals, biographies and the like. However, one must know what to read and what not to read.

Reading is a good mental exercise which develops our brain and mental power. We need to know the
particular language to read the book written in that language. Reading also improves our language skills like vocabulary, pronunciation and understanding idiomatic expressions.

Some of our ancient people couldn't read by themselves; so they used to go to places like temples where Jathaka stories were read by the Buddhist priests in the presence of the audience. By reading literature on different countries we get to know their pattern of living, important places etc. It is said that ‘reading maketh a full man’ because people can acquire a lot of knowledge by reading.

My mother

By Wishmi De Soysa (9 years), Leeds International School, Galle

My mother's name is Champa Shiromani Pethangoda. She is forty years old. She works at Sri Lankan Airlines. She makes tasty food for me and my little sister. She is always fine with her adventures.
She has many friends. She is always kind to everybody.

She has a sister and a brother. Her favourite food is rice and fruits and her favourite drink is orange juice. She helps us in our work. Some days she brings us gifts. She loves us very much and we too love her.

My favourite shopping centre

By Amanda Wickramarachchi (Grade 6), Ferguson High School, Ratnapura

My favourite shopping centre is Majestic City shopping centre. It is in Colombo. There are so many shops in this shopping centre. There are clothes, CDs and toys also. I love Majestic City shopping centre.