My hobby is reading books. I read novels, short stories, educational and mystery books. I have many storybooks. This Ramadhan festival, I got a lovely book from my aunt. It is called 'Favourite Tales from the Quran.' I really enjoyed reading it. I also read it to my sister and brother.

I read books whenever I have some free time. Reading is a good habit. It improves our knowledge. I like to read Islamic books as I can learn more about Islam. I love my hobby very much.

Myself

By Mufeez Mulafer (Grade 4), Zahira College

My name is Mohamed Mufeez Mulafer. I am eight years old. I am studying at Zahira College. I hope to be a scientist. My favourite subject is Mathematics.

I have one brother and one sister. My brother's name is Mushfiq. My sister's name is Miska. I like to eat ice-cream. I like to drink cream soda. My birthday is on July 22. I am staying at Gangarama Mawatha in Kelaniya. I like to play cricket.

What Biodiversity means to me

By Bhagya Pandithakoralege (11 years), St. Bridget's Convent

Biodiversity means the variety of species living on earth. Sri Lanka is a tropical island and is rich with thousands of species of fauna and flora. Fauna means all the creatures such as mammals, birds, fish,
reptiles, amphibians, worms and micro- organisms. Trees, plants like grass, ferns, mosses and lichens are called flora. There are a lot of endemic species found in Sri Lanka.

What does endemic mean? Endemic means the species found only in Sri Lanka. For example we can take the Ceylon Junglefowl, the Ceylon White-eye, the Ironwood tree etc. What is our responsibility to protect biodiversity in Sri Lanka?

We can start from our own gardens, by planting trees and plants. When our gardens are full of trees, lots of insects will be attracted to them. Then bigger creatures like birds, reptiles and small animals like cats will come to our gardens to eat the insects. Then we can observe the life-cycles of butterflies and other insects.

This year has been dedicated as the International Year of Biodiversity. It is our duty to protect the environment and minimise pollution.

My cousin

By Afrah Amsudeen (12 years), Aba beel International College

My cousin is Adeeba. She was born in Sri Lanka. She is two years old. Her mum is Shabna and dad is Imam. She lives in Kuwait. She is very pretty and chubby. We all love her so much. She is very clever. We all call her 'Pretty Zintha.'

Her favourite cartoon shows are Dora and Barney. For her 2nd birthday celebration she wore a Dora dress. Her birthday is on December 10.

She is fair and cute. Her hair is curly. She is fond of chocolates. She likes to play in the water. She has three sisters. They are Halah, Nuha and Suha. They are also cute. She does not let anyone take her things. I miss her a lot.

My mother

By Dhanaja Weerasekera (Grade 3), Musaeus College

My mother's name is Dilum. She is 37 years old. She was educated at Holy Family Convent. She has done sports and got lots of cups, medals and certificates.

My mother likes animals. She makes me tasty food. She is thin and tall and has short hair.
I like my mother very much.

My school

By Dayan Samarasinghe (Form 2), S. Thomas' College, Mt. Lavinia

My school is S. Thomas' College. It is in Mount Lavinia. My school flag is blue, black and blue.
My school is by the sea. There is a swimming pool in my school. There is a playground in my school too.

There is a hotel, temple and a post office near my school. There is a church in my school. My school is very big. I love my school a lot.

My brother and sister

By Iyadh Khan (Grade 3), Royal College

My brother is Mishaal and my sister is Uzma. I call my sister 'Datha.' She is in Grade Five. I call my brother 'Mishi.' He likes to watch Batman, Ben10 and Sonic. He fights with me but he loves me too. We share whatever we get. I love my Datha and Mishi.

I am a pencil

By Hasith Samayawardhena (11 years), Royal College

Born in Malaysia, I was brought to Sri Lanka by sea to a busy place, before I was taken away by a tiny tot who became my first master ever since.

I was delighted at first. Unfortunately my happiness was short lived. My master kept on shaving my head ruthlessly at regular intervals, little realising that it hurt me. How many times did I attempt to escape by jumping off the table, only to have serious injuries on my head. To make matters worse, my master then started shaving me again. Not only that, he also bit me while writing, in particular when he was sitting for exams.

Though I was taller earlier, now I look like a dwarf. My ungrateful master threw me into a garbage chute the moment he realised that he could not hold me to write with. But, this dirty garbage chute is better than the luxurious mansion of my master.

My country

By Sandamal Ferdinandez (7 years) , Royal College

My country is Sri Lanka. My country is very beautiful. There are Buddhists, Tamils, and Muslim people in my country. My country is a small island. Our national flag is the lion flag.

In my country there is a large rock called Sigiriya. Our national tree is the Ironwood tree.

There are beautiful waterfalls, rivers and lakes in my country. The world famous Dalada Maligawa and the Madhu church are situated in Sri Lanka. I love my country very much.

My pets

By Janodya Damsarani (Grade 3), Royal Institute Girls' School

My pets are two rabbits. Their names are Blinky and Browny. They eat carrots. They can hop. They are yellow in colour. They have long ears. They have bushy tails.

I play with them. I love them very much.

The coconut tree

By Rizma Raamathulah (Grade 3), Gateway International School, Kandy

The coconut tree is a very useful tree. Every part of it is used by man. The nuts from the trees are used to make various kinds of food. The coconut water is used to make vinegar. Spoons and ornaments are made with the shells for local and foreign markets.

Poor people use coconut leaves to make roofs for their houses. Mats too are made out of those leaves. The coconut husks are used to make brooms, brushes and ropes, and the ekels are used to make brooms. The trunk of the coconut tree is used for roofs and pestles.

This tree grows best in a warm climate and salty soil, in a coastal area. This tree is very valuable.

My favourite book

By Bhanuka Kumara (Grade 8) Republican International School, Nuwara Eliya

A book which I have read with many exciting adventures is 'The Invisible Man.' The author of this book is H. G. Wells. It has been written in the year 1897.

The most interesting person in this adventure story is the invisible man. It is because he is invisible. He wears a cloak around his body which keeps him invisible and it is invisible itself too. But the clothes might fail to become invisible and invisibility was not a blessing at all.

Sometimes he is funny, sometimes scary and sometimes mysterious. Most of his time he spends in a room at the inn, talking to nobody. Many dangerous events follow, as the invisible man becomes more and more determined to use his invisibility as a powerful weapon against everyone.

My Dad

By Sathmi Ranasinghe (6 years), Matthew Pearce Public School, Australia

My Dad,
Clever and smart,
Likes to play cricket,
Likes to swim,
Works hard,
Vegetarian,
Loves me more than
anyone,
Very happy,
Best person

Fairytale creatures in cartoons

By Dinali Wijayasooriya (13 years), Kekirawa Central College

How wonderful they are, dressed in colourful clothes. They are flying with their wings. Animals can talk. Demons with fearful faces; how fantastic if I also can be a fairytale creature. But that's in my dreams.

Magic fairies have wands in their hands. When it waves, their hopes come true. I like the way they talk and the way they move. There are rhythms in them.

Angels come at night and adorn everywhere with their hues. But in real life there are no fairytale creatures, only the stories that bring miracles to our hearts.

Small kids are fond of them. Fairies come to them only in their dreams. Fairytale creatures are in our hearts forever and ever.

Making new friends

By Afnaan Suha (Grade 3), Muslim M.M.V., Sammanthurai

I am Afnaan Suha. I am in Grade 3. I would like to relate an experience I had recently. One day, I was walking on the road when one girl came that way. She had fallen on the road. I ran and helped her. She said, "Thank you." I said, "It's ok." I asked her name. She said, "My name is Sara." We were friends from that day.

Her father's name is Ansar. She has two sisters and one brother. Her mother's name is Anfa. Her mother has a baby. The baby's name is Fasneem. She likes to eat apple ice-cream.

The 62nd Independence Day

By Kalendra Abeysinghe (Grade 3), St. Benedict's College, Kandy

On February 4, 2010, we celebrated the 62nd Independence Day. We got independence during the time when D.S. Senanayake was the prime minister. Before February 4, 1948, we were under Britain's control.
On Independence Day there are many celebrations held all around Sri Lanka.

The President will keep celebrations. The Army, Navy, Air Force and Police also join in the celebrations. This year too the celebrations will be held all around Sri Lanka under the control of the President, Mr. Mahinda Rajapaksa.

Was it a dream?

By Janani Ranasinghe (9 years), Sussex College, Kurunegala

I was walking through a playground on a hot, hot day,
When I stopped to rest under a tree.
I saw some strange things, but I never knew,
Was it all a dream or was it all true?

A cat was wearing a dress,
Some dogs were playing volleyball.
Some pigs were drinking cola,
And a sheep was going shopping.

Some donkeys were having a music lesson,
Two goats were playing chess.
A cat and a dog were doing karate,
Some cows were dancing.

My favourite sport

By Muhammed Nabeel (Grade 7), Kingswood College, Kandy

Basketball is my favourite sport. It is the most popular sport in America. I like to play basketball everyday.
It is very good for our health. We get a lot of exercise when playing basketball.

We have a basketball team in our school. Vidura is the captain of our team. He is very clever. Basketball is a team game and it teaches us to accept both victory and defeat alike. I love basketball very much.