Professional Documents
Culture Documents
sob
tuck-shop
coax
Essay 2
to cry noisily
A shop where candy and other sweets are sold
to persuade someone gently to do something
Road safety
Everyday many people are involved in road accidents. Some are killed. Many more are injured
or maimed. So it is important for us to learn to use the roads properly and safely. No sane person
would like to be involved in an accident.
As the roads are very busy nowadays, we should be very careful when crossing one. It is safer to
use a pedestrian crossing or an overhead bridge whenever one is available. Never cross a road
by dashing across it. That is inviting trouble. If there are no crossings, then we must look
carefully right and left and cross only when it is safe to do so.
Some of us take the bus to school. It is important that we do not try to get on or off a bus while it
is still moving. I tried to get on a moving bus once. It dragged me a short distance and nearly ran
over me. I was lucky to escape with only some scratches on my legs. Also we must not fool
around while in the bus. A suddenly lurch can send us knocking our heads against something
hard.
Using a bicycle can be dangerous too. We must pay attention on the road and never cycle too far
out to the middle of the road. We must obey all traffic rules. Also we must make sure our
bicycles are in good condition with working brakes, lights etc.
These are some things we can do to avoid accidents. However there is no guarantee that we will
never be involved in one. The important thing is to stay alert at all times while using the roads.
We must know what is happening around us. In that way we can take necessary action to avoid
danger whenever we see one. Road safety is very much up to how we use the roads. Use them
carefully and we may be able to use them for a long time. Use them carelessly and we may never
be able to use them again.
maim
dash
move quickly
lurch
Essay 3
My tooth hurt through the night. I had to take a painkiller to lessen the pain. Worst of all I
did not get a wink of sleep the whole night through.
The next morning. I told my mother about my toothache. It was obvious I could not go to school.
So instead she took me to the dentist. I was horrified, but I had no choice.
At nine o'clock we waited outside the dentist's office. The nurse came and opened the door. I was
the first patient. She wrote down my particulars and told me to wait a moment. The dentist had
not arrived yet. Meanwhile the tooth still ached like mad.
The burly dentist arrived and I was ushered to the dentist's chair. Normally I would run away
from the frightening surgery with all its horrible drills and pliers, but I did not. I had to get the
offending tooth out.
So I sat down on the reclining chair while the dentist kept saying some reassuring words. I
relaxed somewhat. He asked me to open my mouth. I did so. He said that the tooth had to come
out. I nodded dumbly in reply.
I felt a slight prick of pain when he gave me an injection, but that was nothing compared to the
toothache. Soon, miraculously, all pain disappeared. The anaesthetic definitely worked very
quickly. Then before I knew it, the dentist told me that I could go. I looked at him quizzedly and
he told me he had already pull the tooth out. What wonder, I did not even feel it.
The dentist put a wad of cotton over the wound and he told me to keep my mouth shut for a
while. I nodded, smiled and went out into the waiting room where my mother was waiting for
me. The visit to the dentist was not too bad after all.
Essay 4
Caught in a storm
Black clouds gathered above us, but we were too intent on playing football. We hoped that the
clouds would go away so that we could continue playing.
Our hopes were dashed when suddenly heavy rain began to pour. In a few seconds we were all
soaked to the skin. To make matters worst, lightning flashed dangerously close to us. The
deafening thunder and howling wind did not help either.
We ran towards a large tree under which we had parked our bicycles. The tree provided some
shelter from the rain and we were tempted to remain under it. However we knew that it was
dangerous to stay under a tree during a thunderstorm. So we got on our bicycles and pedalled off.
There was no other shelter available nearby. So I, for one, decided to go home. Since I was
already completely wet, I might was well to go home instead to seeking shelter.
It was just about the fiercest storm I had ever been in. The driving rain made cycling difficult as I
could not see more that a couple of metres in front of me. A car flashed past me. It was too close
for comfort. Perhaps the driver did not even see me. So I thought it was better to stop somewhere
before I got hit by another car.
Luckily I found a bus-stop with a roof. I hurried gladly under the roof even though I had to share
it with a dozen other people who were also soaked to the skin. It was a bit of a squeeze but no
one complained.
For an hour the storm lashed everything around us. We were silent spectators to an awesome
display of power by nature. I felt very small and vulnerable, even afraid; but I could do nothing
but watch.
Finally the rain slowed down to a drizzle and the wind died down. I could still hear distant
thunder but the worst of the storm was over. So happily I got on my bicycle and pedalled home.
Essay 5
An unforgettable experience
Carrying a passenger on a bicycle is an offence punishable by law. Everyone knows that but still
some of us do it.
I had done it many times before until something happened to teach me never to do it again. It
was not the police. Rather it was an unforgettable, and unpleasant, experience.
It happened one evening when my friend Segaran and I wanted to go and visit another friend
who lived some distance away. I had a bicycle. Segaran did not. So, as usual, he sat side-saddle
on the horizontal bar of the bicycle while I pedalled. We had done it many times before, so it
should not be any problem.
Near my friend's house, we got onto a gravel path made slippery by the recent rain. Still we
managed to wobble along, thoroughly enjoying the rough ride.
As we passed by a stream, I made the mistake of going too near the bank. The rain had softened
the soil and it could not hold our combined weight. One moment we were going along merrily,
the next we were tumbling head over heels into the stream as the bank gave way beneath us.
Splash! Splash! Splash! We plunged into the river bicycle first, followed by Segaran, then me.
Normally the stream is only a few centimetres deep with clear water. When we fell in, it was a
metre deep with foul black water. The water prevented us from getting badly injured but we also
had to pay the price of gulping some of it. It tasted horrible. Segaran got the worst of it for being
sandwiched between the bicycle and me, but it was not too bad. We had only a few cuts and
bruises. Our pride was far more hurt.
We retrieved ourselves and the bicycle from the stream. We were both dirty and soaking wet.
gravel
wobble
tumble
Essay 6
My Classmates
We are a noisy lot, that is what our teachers say about us. This is largely due to Ah Keong. He is
the noisiest of us all. His voice is like that of a bull frog but volumes louder. It seems that he
cannot talk softly. Actually he does not talk, he shouts. Perhaps his living with his family of ten
children has something to do with it.
In this noisy bunch lives a boy who hardly ever opens his mouth. This is Padma, the boy who sits
next to me. He is such a gentle and soft creature that one would think that he is a sissy. This is
not so. No one dares call him one for he is a member of the school's Karate Club.
Then there is Doris, our class monitor. She sits right in front of the teacher's table. She is such a
model student that all the teachers love her. We all love her for she does not boss us around. She
has given up doing that long ago. All she does is to make sure that the teachers have sufficient
chalk and that the classroom is clean.
Right at the back of the class sits our class sleepy-head. Mat seems to need more sleep than
others. He catches cat-naps in between lessons. The astounding thing is that he can fall asleep
almost instantly. The moment the teacher leaves after a lesson, Mat's snores start up and we
know he is at it again. Remarkably he wakes up when the next teacher arrives.
Every class has a clown. Our class has Jack, otherwise known as "Jacko The Clown". He is
always up to some prank or other, putting tails on the boys' pants, frogs in the girls' desks and
powdered chalk on the teacher's chair. So when we hear a girl scream or see men-teachers
strolling around with chalk on the seat of their pants, we know that Jacko has struck again.
The other classmates too have their own unique personalities. Each contributes his or her part to
our class. All in all we are a group of young children who perhaps are a bit noisy at times, but on
the whole are well-behaved and pleasant to be with.
sissy
boss around
astounding
a boy who other boys dislike and laugh at because they think he
is weak or interested in activities girls usually like, or a person
who is weak and cowardly
Tell someone what to do, give orders
very surprising
Essay 7
My neighbours
Many of us live in housing estates. I live in one myself. The one thing about living in a housing
estate is that we have many neighbours.
Next to my house on the right lives a family whose parents seem to be always scolding the
children. I do not know them very well because they always appear angry. Never a day passes
without hearing the children crying and the parents shouting at the top of their voices.
On the other side of my house, however, lives a very quiet and polite family. Mr. Verghese is a
quiet man who seems to manage his family very well. Though he has four children, which is one
more than the other family, I never hear him scold his children. So his children never cry. What a
wonderful family they are.
Further down the road is a family whose radio is switched on most of the time, except late at
night. His immediate neighbours must have a tough time putting up with the noise of the radio.
Then there is a family whose members seem to live in a world of their own. Many times we have
met along the road and not once has any of them even nod his or her head in acknowledgement.
They are not blind or deaf. Yet they can walk straight past as if I am not there at all. I would not
say that they are unfriendly. I guess they are simply not interested in knowing their neighbours.
On the opposite side of the road live Mr. Lim and his family. Mr. Lim is a bird-collector. So
everyday a dozen or more birds sing melodious tunes right beneath his front porch. It is
preferable to the blare of the other neighbour's radio. However the bird droppings can give off an
awful stench.
These are some of the neighbours living near me. There are others that I have yet to meet.
However I am careful not to intrude on their privacy. The friendly ones smile or raise their
hands. The not-so-friendly ones look away. I have to live among them, friendly or not.
put up with
stench
intrude
Essay8
My favourite time of the day is between 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. This is the time when the sun is
setting and the air is cooling down. At this time I either go for a stroll, play some games or sit
quietly watching the activities around me.
mow
potter
stroll
to cut plants
to move about without hurrying and in a relaxed and pleasant
way
to walk in a slow relaxed manner
Essay 9
A Journey by Car
My father bought a new car one day. We were all very excited. He promised to take us to Melaka
to visit my grandparents the coming Sunday.
Sunday morning was bright and breezy. We hopped into the brand new car and soon we were
heading out of Petaling Jaya towards the expressway. My mother sat in the front passenger seat
while my father drove. I sat behind with my younger sister.
As it was Sunday the roads were not very busy. Soon we were on the expressway travelling at a
leisurely pace. My father is a careful driver and he does not drive too fast or dangerously. This
proved to be good for there was a speed-trap manned by the police along the expressway. I saw
some cars stopped by the police. They had obviously been speeding.
Driving along the expressway tend to be monotonous. I actually fell asleep once we passed
Seremban.
When I awoke, we were already at the Ayer Keroh toll gate. My father paid the toll and steered
the car towards Melaka Town. On the way we passed many interesting sights. My father
promised to stop by on our way home. We had to visit our grandparents first.
We left Ayer Keroh and all its factories behind as we journeyed into the town itself. Like all
towns, there were many cars and other vehicles. Also there were many tourists. Melaka has many
places of historical interest and thus this was not surprising.
Finally we arrived at my grandparents' house in Klebang Besar. The journey had taken about two
hours. We stepped out of the car. My grandparents greeted us happily.
expressway
monotonous
stop by
a wide road built for fast moving traffic travelling long distances,
with a limited number of points at which drivers can enter and
leave it
staying the same and not changing and therefore boring
to visit someone brief, usually on the way to another place
Teluk Kemang is about 12 kilometres from Port Dickson town in Negeri Sembilan. It is a
popular beach where many people go to and relax on.
It was on one of the days of the Chinese New Year holidays that we had a picnic at Teluk
Kemang. I went there with my uncle and his family. There were five of us, my uncle, his wife,
their two young children and me. My uncle drove us there in his car.
We arrived there at about ten in the morning. The beach was already crowded with other holidaymakers. Anyhow we managed to get a place in the shade of a large tree and we put our things
there. My aunt laid out a mat for us to sit on.
In double-quick time we were enjoying ourselves in the sea, except my aunt. She just sat on the
mat watching us.
The water was cool and refreshing and I loved splashing it on my cousins. However the hot sun
above can be quite uncomfortable. So after about an hour or so, my uncle told us to sit in the
shade for a while. The sun was getting increasingly hot. So we reluctantly came out of the sea.
In the shade of some trees we built some sandcastles.
Time passed so quickly. Soon we heard my aunt calling us to have lunch. We ran to her and
helped ourselves to the delicious curry she had brought. Then we had several glasses of ice-cold
drink from the Thermos flask.
After lunch we played a while more in the sea. The sun was just too hot. So we walked over to
one of the hotels nearby and washed ourselves with clean freshwater.
When we returned, my aunt had already packed everything in the car. So all of us got into the car
and my uncle drove us back home to Seremban.
lay out
mat
In double quick time
A Nightmare
"Don't eat just before going to bed !" my mother used to tell me. "You might get a nightmare."
How right she was. I never believed her until it happened to me.
It was on a night when I felt hungry just as I was about to go to bed. So I made myself a peanutbutter sandwich and a large cold glass of milk. After consuming them I went to bed.
Soon I drifted off into a troubled sleep. I dreamt that I was with a group of people looking for an
old woman. I was not sure why we were looking for her but we all seemed afraid of her.
Somehow we had to find her. So there I was, searching high and low for her in frightful places I
had never been before. Sometimes I seemed to be flying while at other times I seemed unable to
move. The whole atmosphere was one of fear, like a dreadful horror-movie in which I was a
victim.
After some searching I entered a darkened room and saw a figure sleeping on a bed. As I got
nearer the figure suddenly threw away the blanket, got up and stared at me. It was an ugly old
woman with shiny golden teeth. She raised her claw-like fingers and walked towards me.
I wanted to run but was unable to. I tried to scream but found that I could not. In horror I
struggled and struggled to get away from the frightful woman.
The next moment I gave a muffled yell and found myself panting on my bed. My goodness,
what a horrible nightmare it was! For a minute or so I lay on my bed not daring to close my eyes
for fear of falling asleep again and continuing the nightmare. Then I sat up on my bed until the
horrible feeling passed. From then on I never eat just before going to sleep.
drift off
search high and low
muffled
I walk a kilometre or so to school every morning. Sometimes I come across a mad woman
dressed in a dark dirty sari. She probably has not had a bath for years. Her hair is matted, teeth
stained red with betel-nut and eyes blood-shot with the look of madness. I always keep my
distance from her for my own safety for I cannot be sure what she will do next. Also she smells
terrible up close.
It is never pleasant when I see her standing by the roadside. She is by no means violent but she
has the nasty habit of following people who pass by. Normally when I see her I cross over to the
other side of the road just to avoid her. Usually that works. Sometimes she crosses the road too.
So I run. Fortunately she cannot run very fast and gives up after a while.
One morning, as I crossed the road to avoid her, she tried to cross too. I started to run. She
started to run too but tripped on her sari. She fell down hard on the road and lay there in a heap. I
wanted to keep running but I saw that she was in great danger of being run over by a car. So I
ran over to her to pull her to the roadside.
As much as I disliked it, I had to help her. The other passers-by did not seem to bother. So I held
my breath and pull her by her arms towards the roadside. By now people and cars had stopped to
watch. No one helped but at last I managed to drag her to safety.
She opened her eyes and gave me a smile. I could only stare at her dumbly. Then I turned and
hurried to school to wash my hands.
I am going to get a bicycle to cycle to school. It is much faster this way. Also I will not have
to contend with the mad woman again.
sari, saree
matted
contend with
My Hobby
My hobby is reading. I read story books, magazines, newspapers and any kind of material that I
find interesting.
This hobby got started when I was a little boy. I had always wanted my parents to read fairy tales
and other stories to me. Soon they got fed up and tired of having to read to me continually. So as
soon as I could, I learned to read. I started with simple ABC books. Soon I could read simple
fairy tales and other stories. Now I read just about anything that is available.
Reading enables me to learn about so many things that I would otherwise not know. I learned
about how people lived in bygone days of magic and mystery. I learned about the wonders of the
world, space travel, human achievements, gigantic whales, tiny viruses and other fascinating
things of our world.
The wonderful thing about reading is that I do not have to learn things the hard way. For
example, I do not have to catch a disease to know that it can kill me. I know the danger so I can
avoid it. Also I do not have to go deep into the jungle to learn about the tiger. I can read all about
it in a book.
Books provide the reader with so much information and facts. They have certainly helped me in
my daily life. I am better equipped to cope with living. Otherwise I would go about ignorantly
bygone
cope with
informed
A birthday party
Fiona is my neighbor. She turned twelve recently and her parents held a birthday party for her. I
was one of those invited.
The party began at about three in the afternoon. There were about twenty of us children gathered
in Fiona's house. We were all dressed in our best clothes. Everyone, especially Fiona, wore a
happy smile.
We gave our presents to Fiona and she happily opened them. It must really be exciting to receive
all those presents.
After that Fiona's mother served us soft drinks and delicious tidbits. We then played some games
like "Musical Chairs" and "Treasure Hunt". The winners were given prizes.
At about four-thirty Fiona's mother brought out the birthday cake. It was beautifully decorated
with pink and white icing. Twelve colorful candles sat in the middle of the cake. We all sang
"Happy Birthday" to Fiona after which she blew out the candles and cut the cake. We clapped out
hands eagerly.
We helped ourselves to slices of the delicious cake. Then we continued our games.
Finally at about six in the evening the party came to an end. We were all tired but happy. The
parents of the other children came to collect them. I helped Fiona and her mother clean up the
mess we made. After that I walked home which was only two doors away.
dressed
titbit / tidbit
clean up
My favorite cartoon character is Dishonest John, or DJ, for short. Dressed in black and uttering
his famous "Nyak, ah, ah" laugh he makes life difficult for all those around him. However, as
always, he will be outwitted and all his deviousplans will fail. So every week I watch him go
about his antics only to lose in the end. He is such a character that many of my friends have even
adopted his laugh.
Another favorite character of mine is Big Baby Huey in the show "Casper The Friendly Ghost".
Huey is such a overgrown lumbering but innocent baby duck who goes around happily
defeating the bad guys without really trying to. He is quite a sight to watch as he sucks on his
milk bottle and then knocks the lights out of the sly fox who tries to take advantage of him. It is
bad luck for anyone with bad intention, for soon Huey will show him that it does not pay to do
bad things.
There is one more character who is my favorite. He is Yogi Bear who lives in Jellystone National
Park. This lovable rascal and his little buddy Boo Boo Bear always seem to be getting into
trouble with the park ranger. Yogi's favorite pastime is pinching food from the park's visitors.
The ranger's unending task is to stop Yogi from doing it.
All in all, cartoon characters are great fun. They show us what people can get up to. I am sure all
of us who watch these shows are entertained by them.
devious
not straightforward
lumber
rascal
Things I like to do
I like playing the guitar. Though I am not very good at it and am still learning, I can play some
tunes. I spend quite a lot of time playing the guitar so much so I get scolded sometimes by my
mother. I suppose I do tend to spend a bit too much time with it. Anyhow, playing the guitar is
very enjoyable.
I also like taking evening walks around my neighborhood. In the evening the air is cool and
refreshing. The children are busy playing and the neighbors are friendlier. So I take
leisurely strolls, sometimes stopping to play with other children and sometimes stopping to chat
with the neighbors.
Another thing that I like doing is getting up late in the morning. During weekdays I have to get
up early or I will not get to school on time. On Saturdays, Sundays and holidays, it is so
pleasurable to just lie in bed in the morning without having to get up and hurry to school. Again I
tend to lie too long in bed and my mother has to come and tell me to get up.
Listening to the radio and watching television are also things I like to do. Of course I do not
listen and watch everything. I only tune in to my favorite programmes and enjoy myself while
seated on my favorite chair.
There are other things that I enjoy doing too but there seems to be not enough time to do them
all. So I generally just stick to doing those I mentioned plus any others that I have time for.
stroll
stick to
Fruits of Malaysia
Malaysia lies in the tropics and is blessed with plenty of rain and sunshine. Many types of trees
and plants grow here. Among them are those that bear delicious fruits.
The "King of Fruits" is without doubt the durian. It is an oval-shaped fruit about the size of a
rugby ball. Its skin is green or yellow and covered with many sharp thorns. Inside, however, the
yellow flesh is soft and sweet. Its smell is very strong. The locals love the durian, but foreigners
find the smell hard to bear.
The durian is a seasonal fruit. It normally is in season twice a year. So are other fruits like the
mangosteen, langsat, duku, rambutan and mango. We consume these fruits in great quantities.
Other fruits like the papaya, pineapple, banana and star fruit are not seasonal. They are
obtainable at all times. Again we consume these fruits in large quantities. In a hot country like
Malaysia, fruits provide us with much needed water and other nutrients that are vital for health.
Often the fruit-stalls are crowded with people waiting to buy a slice of papaya, pineapple or
watermelon to quench their thirst.
We are lucky to have such a huge variety of fruits. In addition to that we get imported fruits like
apples and grapes, but they are usually more expensive. So we spend our money mainly on local
fruits. I would say that it is money well-spent.
the tropics
langsat
quench
An Accident
The road in front of my school is a narrow one. It is also very busy. Every afternoon when school
is dismissed the road becomes almost impassable as children, bicycles, cars and buses jostle and
struggle to use it. Sometimes a policeman is there to help things out, but generally chaos reigns
and we have to be careful not to get involved in an accident.
A few accidents had already occurred. I was a witness to one.
If happened just after school. As usual the road was an utter mad house. Children were running
across the road to get to their cars and buses. Cars and buses honked angrily at them.
Just then I saw a young boy make a dash across the road. There was a loud blare of horn, a
squeal of brakes and I saw a car knock into the boy. He fell as though his feet were swept from
under him.
Fortunately the car was not moving very fast and the driver managed to stop the car before a
wheel could run over the fallen boy.
All traffic stopped. I ran over to the boy and saw blood on the road. He was bleeding from a cut
on his head. A man came and examined the boy. Then he lifted the boy and carried him to a car.
They sped off, presumably to the hospital.
Many people surrounded the driver who looked dazed and bewildered. A policeman came to
calm things down.
As there was nothing I could do, I turned and walked down the road carefully. It was terrible to
witness an accident. I certainly would not like to be involved in one.
jostle
dazed
bewildered
confused
A Fire
It was twilight time. I was watching television in my house when I heard an explosion. More
followed. So I went outside to see what the matter was.
A column of dark billowing smoke told me the story. There was a fire raging a short distance
away.
I got onto my bicycle and pedalled in the direction of the smoke. A couple of kilometres later I
came upon the fire. It was a row of motor-workshops and they were burning furiously.
The police and fire department had already cordoned off the area. I watched from a distance. A
crowd had already gathered and we gaped with amazement at the spectacle presented by the
burning shops.
The fire rose to about twenty metres and it lit up the whole area even though the sky was already
dark. The firemen desperately sprayed streams of water into the fire to control it. Now and then
explosions can be heard as gas cylinders blew up in the intense heat.
For more than an hour the fire raged. I could see anxious people trying to get near the workshops
only to be held back by the police. They were obviously the shop-owners trying to save their
shops. Actually they could do nothing but wait for the fire to be extinguished.
Finally the blaze died down and darkness enveloped us. The workshops were totally razed. Only
red-hot embers remained where they once stood. The crowd thinned and I too got onto my
bicycle and cycled home.
cordone off
gape
ember
a piece of wood or coal, etc. which continues to burn after a fire has no
more flames
A Robbery
Sam helps his uncle look after the latter's sundry shop. Business is brisk and Sam is kept busy
most of the time.
One evening at about 8 p.m., just as Sam's uncle was about to close for the day, two men on a
motorcycle stopped outside. They got off and walked into the shop. Sam thought that it was odd
that they should be wearing dark glasses at night. Anyway who was he to question what another
should wear?
Sam was about to ask the men what they wanted when both of them drew pistols from their
pockets. One pointed a pistol at Sam and the other at Sam's uncle. Sam froze and stared at the
pistol pointed at him. He could not believe his eyes. These two were robbers wearing dark
glasses to conceal their identities!
The next moment Sam and his uncle were made to lie face-down on the floor. Sam heard the
cash register ring and the drawer open. Then he heard a shuffling of feet, the roar of a
motorcycle starting up and suddenly all was quiet.
Sam looked up. The robbers were gone. Sam shook his uncle who was stillprostrate on the
floor. They got up. Sam's uncle ran to the cash register. The robbers had taken every cent from it.
The robbery had happened so quickly. It took less than a minute for the robbers to come and
vanish with the day's takings.
Sam's uncle shook his head. At least the robbers did not harm them. The only thing left to do was
to inform the police and let them handle the case. As for Sam, he learned to be wary of strangers
who wore dark glasses at night.
brisk
conceal
prostrate
active
to hide something
lying with the face down and arms stretched out
A Busy Street
Petaling Street in Kuala Lumpur has got to be one of the busiest street, if not the busiest, in
Malaysia. To be in it just once is to know the meaning of the word "busy".
I happened to be in it a few days before the Chinese New Year. On both sides of the street were
hawkers with all sorts of goods for sale. Fruits, cakes, fireworks, food and other things were
displayed openly for people to come and buy. The five-foot ways were not big enough, so the
hawkers and their customers actually spilled into the narrow street itself making it
a hazardous place for drivers and motorcyclists. Every few seconds a horn sounded as the
vehicles crawled cautiously among the throng.
There were so many people there that if I had not been with my father I would probably have got
lost. My father knew his way around. So I held on tightly to his hand as he led me through the
crowd. A number of times I nearly knocked into someone, or rather, someone nearly knocked
into me. Everyone seemed to be in a rush and nobody seemed to care whether they trampled on
another.
We were there to buy some cakes for the New Year. At the shop we had to wait a long time
before we could pay for what we wanted. The shop was crowded with other shoppers.
After our purchase, we made our way carefully out of the street. Once outside, the air felt so
much fresher. Though we had to walk some distance to our car, it was so much more pleasant
than walking among the crowd of frenzied shoppers along the busy street.
hazardous
throng
trample
dangerous
a crowd or large group of people
to step heavily on something or someone, causing damage
or injury
manipulate
reasoning
breeze
Everyone says that the old house at the end of the road is haunted. It used to be the residence of a
rich family but now none of them would stay there. So the house is vacant and uncared for. The
compound is filled with over-grown weed and grass.
My friend Jack and I decided to find out once and for all if what people said was true. So one
evening, we bravely entered the house and prepared to spend the night there. We brought along a
powerful torchlight, two sleeping-bags, some food and drinks, and a portable stereo set.
The early part of the night was no trouble at all. We sat on our sleeping-bags and listened to our
favourite music.
Twelve midnight came. We felt a bit sleepy. So we switched off the stereo set and crawled into
our sleeping-bags. However sleep was impossible. There seemed to be a heavy atmosphere
hanging around us. The darkness was oppressive and there was a strange soft whining noise
coming from upstairs.
We dared not go up to investigate the noise. So we lay quietly in our sleeping-bags and hoped
that the noise would go away. But it would not go away.
Actually it got louder and louder. Then it sounded like someone moaning. Jack hurried out of his
sleeping-bags and switched on the torchlight. We could see nothing except the walls of the empty
living room we were in.
Suddenly there was a loud crash from upstairs and the moans turned to screams. We screamed
too and ran out of the house as fast as we could, leaving behind everything that we had brought.
The hair on the back of my head stood on endfor hours afterwards.
We never dared to go back into the house, not even in the daytime. My uncle had to go
and retrieve the things we had left behind there.
So, is the house haunted ? All I can say is that if you want to know, go and find out for yourself.
whining
retrieve
The first time I ever rode on a ferry was when I took one to cross from Butterworth to Penang
Island. My family and I had gone to Penang for a holiday.
We arrived at the Ferry Terminal just as the sun was setting. My father paid the fare at one of the
toll-booths and we were ushered into a lane. We had to stop behind a row of cars to await the
arrival of the next ferry.
Presently a light yellow ferry arrived. Cars and motorcycles sped out of it. Then the green light
came for us to board. My father carefully drove the car onto the lower deck of the ferry. It was an
exciting new experience for me. I noticed the words "Pulau Undan" on a wall of the ferry.
As soon as the ferry was filled with cars and motorcycles on the lower deck, it left the terminal
and proceeded towards the island. I stood at the front end of the ferry and watched the
water churn and twirl as the ferry cut through it.
I could see the island a short distance ahead of us. To our left spanned the Penang Bridge. The
setting sun cast a red glow on the whole scene and I must say that it was beautiful.
My sister and I climbed up the stairs to the upper deck. It was filled with passengers who either
sat on the seats there or loitered around the area.
Soon the short ride ended. We hurried back down to the lower deck and got into our car when we
saw Penang Island loom closer and closer.
Finally the ferry docked and my father followed the row of cars out of the ferry. The car bumped
a bit on the uneven ramp but soon we were on Penang itself. My first ferry ride was over.
usher
loiter
ramp
an artificial slope
reckon
gazelle
When I was seven years old, I was given a small wallet to keep my pocket-money in. It made me
feel grown up and I carried it proudly in my hip pocket.
One day, during recess in school, I discovered that my wallet was missing. I searched all my
pockets but could not find it. There were a couple of ringgit or so in the wallet and without it I
could not buy anything to eat.
I was close to tears. It was not so much because of losing my precious wallet but because I might
get a scolding from my parents. Anyhow I went hungry that day.
After recess I was in no mood to study at all. I kept thinking about how I lost my wallet and what
my parents would do to me. How was I going to explain the loss? I did not know whether
someone had pinched it from my pocket or it had merely fallen out. I prayed that someone would
find it and return it to me.
My prayers came to nought. Fortunately I did not have to pay to get on my school bus. My fare
was paid for monthly.
When I told my mother about my loss, she was clearly angry. I received a long lecture about my
carelessness. When my father came home, I received another lecture. Also I was told that there
would not be any more wallets for me until I got older.
So for the rest of the year and two years following, I carried my pocket-money (which became
only a ringgit) in my pocket, without any wallet. I am glad to say I never lost any money again. I
had learned to be more careful. It is not pleasant to lose something and then get scolded for
losing it.
ringgit
mood
nought
nothing
An autobiography of a motocycle
I was made in a factory in Penang. I was one of a number of 100 c.c. motorcycles that was sent
down to Kuala Lumpur to be sold. So I found myself waiting patiently in a shop for someone to
buy me.
A few weeks later, a man came and bought me for his son. The boy was barely seventeen but his
father was rich and could afford to buy me. I was chosen mainly because of my beautiful red
colour and that I could go quite fast.
My young owner was a reckless rider. He rode me carelessly all over town, putting me in grew
danger. Many times I thought for sure that it was the end but somehow he managed to escape.
However, he tried one stunt too many. On that fateful day my owner took me out on a reckless
ride. His object was to overtake every vehicle in front of him. After a few near misses he finally
made a mistake and he slammed head-first into the back of a lorry. I slid uncontrollably under the
lorry.
That was the end of him.
I was salvaged from under the lorry, repaired and sold again to a middle-aged man who delivered
newspapers for a living. So for the next five years I was made to run thousands of kilometres
carrying loads of newspapers.
The hard work took its toll on me, and despite several repairs, my owner decided that it was
time to retire me. I was too worn-out to be of any use anymore. So I was sold to a motorcycle
shop where the owner stripped me of my parts.
Today I am nothing but a bare frame without any wheels. I await the day when I will be sold
for scrap. That would be the end of me.
reckless
take its toll
scrap
doing something dangerous and not caring about the risks and
the possible results
If something takes its toll, it causes suffering, deaths or
damage
old cars and machines or pieces of metal
The Newspaperman
The newspaperman delivers newspapers to us and many other houses in the neighborhood. I hear
his motorcycle every morning when he comes to deliver the daily paper. He comes promptly at
6.30 a.m. every morning, rain or shine, unless something extraordinary prevents him from doing
so.
He is so regular and prompt that I do not need any alarm clock to wake up. At six-thirty, the
neighbors' dogs start barking as he arrives and I know it is almost time to get up for school.
Though he comes every day, I do not get to see him. I only pick up and read the newspaper he
had left at the door. I only see him once a month when he comes to collect the bill.
Promptly on the first of each month, at six-thirty in the evening, he shows up with his bills. This
time he rings the door bell and I usually have to go and pay him. My mother will have got the
rain or shine
regimental
The alarm rings. It is six o'clock. Maniam gets up wearily. It is the start of another day ferrying
school kids to and from school.
At six-thirty, after a hurried bath, Maniam starts his old 22-seater bus and moves off. He goes
along a regular route picking up children to send to various schools. By seven, all the regular
children, except one who is ill, is on the bus. Maniam drives carefully through the busy roads.
He stops at four different schools, dropping off some children at each. He plans his drive
carefully so as to reach the last school by seven-thirty. Otherwise some children will be late for
school and he gets the blame.
At seven-thirty two, his bus is empty and the roads are magically less congested. Most of the
children are in the classrooms. Maniam stops by at a stall to have his breakfast.
Come eleven-thirty, he picks up other school children for the afternoon session. By twelve-thirty
he has sent all the children to the schools safely.
At one o'clock he collects his first batch of children from a school. Then he proceeds to three
other schools to collect the others. After collecting the children he sends them home.
Maniam has lunch at home and takes a nap. At three o'clock he cleans up the bus.
At six in the evening, Maniam goes on his last round of collecting the children from the schools.
He safely sends them home by seven thirty. Then Maniam goes home, takes a bath, has dinner
and watches television for a while before retiring to bed. Thus end yet another day in the life of a
bus driver.
wearily
very tired
drop off
nap
a short sleep
Danger at home
Our home is usually our favorite place to spend time in. However many accidents occur at home.
There are dangerous things in the house and we should be aware of them. Thus we can avoid
unnecessary pain or injury.
Electricity runs many of our home appliances. It is a very useful thing. It is also a very dangerous
thing if used carelessly, for it can kill. Electrical sockets and power points are to be handled with
utmost care. Young children should never be allowed to go near them. Unless we are very sure of
what we are doing, repairs should only be done by a competent electrician. It is only too easy to
get electrocuted. Old or faulty appliances should be discarded. If used, they are likely to start a
fire somewhere or kill someone who touches it.
The kitchen has many dangerous things. Sharp knives can draw blood, mishandled gas-cylinders
can explode, hot water can scald and stoves can cause nasty burns. Flies and rats can
contaminate food. Thus the kitchen is not a place to be careless in. If we are careful and know
how to handle things there, then the chance of an accident occurring is lessened.
The biggest danger in a bathroom is when the floor is slippery with water or soap. I have heard
of many incidents of people, especially old folks, falling in the bathroom. Sometimes the fall is
fatal. Often it leaves the victim bedridden. Utmost care is needed here.
Finally the medicine cabinet should be inaccessible to young children. Dangerous drugs and pills
can look like sweets to these young ones. If taken, the consequences can be disastrous.
Other dangers do exist. It is up to us to watch out for them.
electrocute
scald
bedridden
Each of us has a physical body made of muscles, blood, bones and various other living tissue.
When any of these are injured or not working properly then we get ill. Nobody likes to be ill. So
it is important that we keep our body healthy.
Exercising the body is one way of keeping it healthy. If we do not exercise then our muscles
become weaker and we are less able to do things properly. Also the bones can become weaker
and thus break easily.
There are many types of exercises that we may participate in. We may play badminton, football,
netball or whatever games that we prefer. We may also jog, walk, swim or climb a mountain.
Older folks prefer less strenuous exercises like Tai Chi, Yoga or a leisurely stroll in the park.
For the really fit young people, there are rock-climbing, gymnastics and other physically
demanding activities.
We exercise to keep the body healthy. However there are some who overdo things and end up
injuring themselves. It is fine to jog for a few kilometres. It is madness to jog until we are
exhausted. Also they are people who become addicted to their exercises. They become unhappy
when they are unable to exercise or when they lose to someone in a competition.
Exercise is important. No exercise may result in a weak body. Too much exercise may result in
injury. Neither extremes are good. It is up to us to be sensible in exercising.
strenuous
stroll
sensible
I accompanied my mother to the central market to buy some groceries that she needed for the
coming New Year.
When we arrived at the market we could not find a place to park the car. So we waited patiently
for about ten minutes before someone vacated a parking space and we moved in.
Coming to the market just before a festive season was not a pleasant experience. The whole town
seemed to be there. Everyone had things to buy. So the prices of things shot up. Worst of all, we
had to struggle to get these things.
So we made our way carefully through the various sections buying vegetables, meat, fish,
noodles, spices and other food stuffs. We had wanted to buy some prawns too but they were all
sold out, despite their sky-high price.
The bags got heavier and heavier. The crowd got thicker and thicker. The noise and heat
was overwhelming. As we had nearly done all the shopping, I told my mother that I would wait
for her at the car. I could not stand being among hundreds of aggressive shoppers anymore.
I lugged the bags wearily to the car and breathed a sigh of relief when I reached it. The air
smelled sweet and cool. I was glad to be outside.
Fifteen minutes later my mother emerged from the market. She looked exhausted. We put the
groceries in the boot, got into the car and drove off with the air-conditioner at full blast.
sky-high
overwhelming
at full blast
Power failure
One evening just as I was getting ready to watch a cartoon show on television, there was a power
failure. The television set just went blank, the lights went offand the fan slowed down and
stopped. As it was getting dark, I hoped that the power would be restored soon but it was not to
be so.
Soon darkness enveloped the neighborhood. We hastily lit candles so that we could find our way
around the house. As we had only three candles, my mother sent me to the sundry shop nearby to
buy more.
"Sorry, no more candles", was what the shopkeeper told me. The neighbors had bought up all the
candles. At home my father managed to dig out two kerosene lamps. We lit these too and kept the
darkness out.
Without the fan running, it was oppressively warm. Furthermore there was nothing to do but
wait for the power to come on again. All of us sat quietly in the living- room. We had grown so
dependent on electricity. Without it we felt so uncomfortable. I used a book to fan myself.
Finally it was time for bed and still there was no power. Nevertheless I groped my way to my
room, changed and lay quietly in the darkness. It felt so strange without the familiar lights
around me. Anyhow I fell asleep after a while.
The power came back on only at dawn. By then we did not need it anymore.
go off
restore
oppressively
stop running
to return something to earlier good condition
causing anxiety
We take so many things for granted at home that we do not appreciate them until they become
unavailable. One of these is the water supply to our house.
Disruptions to the water supply do occur now and then. However there was one that was the
worst.
It began one morning when we got up to prepare for the day ahead. All the taps, except one in the
bathroom connected to the water tank above the bathroom, were dry. So we had to patiently wait
our turn to use the only tap with water.
We did not feel the pinch until evening when the water tank above the bathroom ran dry. My
mother had a small tank of water stored in the kitchen, but that was only for cooking purposes.
So none of us could have a bath or even wash our hands. Whatever little water we had in various
little containers was used sparingly. We began to be careful not to waste water.
That evening a water-tanker from the waterworks arrived to supply us with water. We ran out
gratefully with our buckets to collect as much water as we could. Soon all our buckets were full.
At least we could wash ourselves that night.
We were very careful when we used the water we collected. We could not afford to waste any.
The next morning, there was still no water from the taps. So again we used the limited water
frugally.
Finally the water supply was restored at about four in the evening. It was wonderful to see rustcoloured water gushing out of the taps. It took a while for the water to become clear. Anyhow we
My cousin has a durian orchard about five kilometers from town. I visited him once during a
fruit season.
I reached the orchard at about 9 o'clock in the morning after having cycled all the way from my
house. My cousin was waiting for me in his modest little wooden house in the middle of the
orchard.
Around the house, about 5 acres of it, was the orchard.
There were hundreds of durian trees all over the orchard. Clusters of durians hung on the
branches. There must be thousands of these spiny fruits.
Suddenly a loud crash sounded from a distance. I was startled. However my cousin said that it
was only a ripe durian dropping from a tree. I breathed a sigh of relief. Then I followed him to
where the sound came from. To my delight I found the fruit among the undergrowth. I picked it
up and carried it back to the house.
There were dozens of other durians piled up at the back of the house. My cousin had collected
them earlier. They were for a buyer who was coming later. Anyway my cousin opened a couple
cluster
spiny
pile up
Grandma
Grandma is 88 years old. Her hair is snowy-white, skin wrinkled and teeth all but gone. She is
also quite deaf. Otherwise she is strong and active, often arguing with my mother over who
should mop the floor.
The doctor said she has Alzheimer's disease. In other words, she is senile. It is a sad fact but true.
The one glaring symptom of her disease is that her memory is very bad. She cannot remember
things or gets them all mixed up. So she forgets where she has kept things and often will
frantically search for them. Then she forgets what she is searching for, which adds to her
frustration. When she misplaces her spectacles, she will don someone else's pair and happily go
about the house. How she manages to see with the wrong spectacles baffles me.
As much as she cannot remember recent things, she can recall her younger days vividly.
She rattles off the names of people she knew then and get my name and other family members'
wrong. She cannot remember whether she just had dinner but can remember an event that
happened fifty years ago. Sometimes she can be very difficult. Her being almost deaf does not
help matters either. We have to speak loudly for her to hear.
Sometimes she says we are scolding her. We shout to say we are not scolding her, which makes
things worse. We got her a hearing-aid. She would not wear it.
In between bouts of crankiness, she sometimes seems normal. But this seems to get lesser as her
disease progresses. So we do our best to keep her out of harm's way. We lock the medicine
cabinet and doors and hide dangerous things from her. It would be disastrous if she swallowed a
bottle of pills or got lost while wandering in the streets. The latter has happened before. A kind
neighbour brought her home.
It is unfortunate the last years of her life has to be like this, but it is so. We can do nothing but to
help her along as much as we can.
senile
don
rattle off
An unpleasant experience
The evening was very pleasant as we strolled to the "Glutton's Square" where we intended to
have our dinner. The sun was setting and the air was cool.
John, Aileen and I sat down at a table. The stall-owner came and we ordered some fried mee.
Soon the large plate of piping-hot mee arrived and we happily put some into our bowls and
began eating.
It was delicious.
John, the talkative one, still managed to say an unintelligible word or two between gulps of food.
Suddenly John winced as his teeth came against something unchewable. Cursing, he spat out the
contents of his mouth onto the table. "What the heck!" he cursed again.
Much to my disgust, John ran a finger through the half-chewed food. Then, uttering a cry of
triumph, he picked up a staple from the food.
Aileen and I immediately stopped chewing and expelled the food from our mouths. The thought
of eating staples was revulsive. I wondered if I had already swallowed some staples.
With a fork, Aileen searched through the rest of the mee on the plate. She found two more staples
and a short length of raffia string!
Goodness, I thought, what other rubbish was there in the food?
We summoned the stall-owner to our table. His smile vanished when we showed him the staples
and string. Then he apologized for the matter, said that we did not have to pay and furthermore
would make a fresh plate of mee for us, free of charge.
We got up, showed him our sour faces and walked off. I, for one, seemed to have lost my
appetite.
piping hot
wince
revulsive
very hot
to show pain briefly and suddenly in the face, often moving the
head back at the same time
A sudden strong change or reaction in feeling, especially a
feeling of violent disgust or loathing
It all began with a blister on my lower eyelid. I happened to rub it accidentally and it was
painful.
Soon after blisters appeared on my hands and neck. I suspected that I must be coming down with
something. My mother examined me and immediately pronounced "chicken-pox". I had come
down with chicken-pox.
She took me to the doctor's to make sure. The doctor said that what I needed was rest. He gave
me a two- week medical certificate and some pills to keep down the fever.
Two weeks! I had to stay in the house for two weeks.
Very quickly more blisters appeared all over my body. I even had some in the throat, which made
swallowing difficult. To make matters worse, I began to getbouts of fever. At times when the
fever was raging, I seemed to drift into a kind of limbo. Things became hazy and I was not sure
whether I was dreaming or awake.
I had a look in the mirror and saw that my face was grotesque. Red blisters covered the whole
face. I wondered if I would be scarred permanently.
So I stayed in the house and did nothing. It was not too unpleasant except for the fever and the
extra care I had to take not to break the blisters accidentally. Nobody came to visit me. I was
forbidden to visit others. It was customary to remain out of sight when one had chicken- pox. I
had no choice but to comply.
The days passed. Slowly the blisters dried into dark scabs which flaked off after a while, leaving
behind little red scars. The flakes fell on the floor, on the bed and among my clothes.
For two weeks I remained confined to the house. At the end of the period, my appearance had
improved enough for me to go back to school. The little scars remained there for a few more
months but I was glad my enforced stay in the house was over.
blister
bout
limbo
Something unexpected
The routine of following lesson after lesson can be very tiring. Recess time always seems so far
away. The bell rings. One teacher leaves, another appears. What we need is a break from
the monotony.
One morning, we were a lesson into the routine when I felt that it was going to be just another
day of endless studying. After what seemed a long time the bell rang for the second period. The
Mathematics teacher left. Next would be Geography with Mrs. Singham.
The short break between the going of one teacher and the coming of the next was when we had
the opportunity to talk and have some fun. It usually lasted a minute or two, sometimes more.
This time no teacher appeared even after five minutes. We were having a great time. Ten minutes
-- Mrs. Singham still did not appear. Our monitor went out in search of her. A few minutes later,
he returned to announce that Mrs. Singham was absent. We cheered. This was unexpected, but it
was welcome.
So for forty minutes we literally fooled around. The monitor could do nothing. What a good time
we had. The bell rang again. Forty minutes of fun seemed so short, but it was great while it
lasted.
Again no teacher appeared. It was another case of an absent teacher. We cheered even louder
because it was ,a double-period which meant we were free until recess.
Altogether we had one hundred and twenty minutes -- two hours, of no lesson. It was unexpected
of course and I have to say I enjoyed it very much. I would not mind having more of this
unexpected thing.
routine
recess
monotony
Today, English is used widely. It has become the most popular language of communication
between countries and in many fields of human endeavor. So it is important that we learn to use
English. Otherwise we will be at a disadvantage.
The only effective way of improving my English is to use it, as often as possible.
In school, the only time when English is used is during English lessons. That certainly is not
enough. So wherever possible I speak English with some friends and teachers who will or can
speak English with me.
Reading book, magazines and newspapers are good ways of improving my English. On the
whole they are grammatically correct. We may speak incorrect English and get away with it. Not
so with printed words, they have to be correct. Through reading, I learned how to use correct
English in writing and speaking, though at times I still speak the broken English that many of us
speak here.
Watching television and listening to the radio are two more ways of improving my English.
English as it is spoken by the English, Americans, Malaysians and others are distinctly different.
So I continue to use English, that is, hear, read, speak and write it. Some of my friends only hear
and read it. They can hardly speak or write it, but I will not be like them. I will try my best to
master it.
endeavor
get away with
distinctly
an attempt to do something
escape the consequences
clearly noticeable
Freak weather
Early one morning when it was still dark, I woke up suddenly. I felt very cold. The funny thing
was that I had the blanket on but I still felt cold. I could not get back to sleep because of it. So I
got up and put on extra clothes. Only then did I managed to get to sleep again.
When dawn came, I woke up to find that my nose was freezing. The rest of the body was
comfortably warm under the blanket, but the head, especially the nose, felt like ice.
Anyhow I got up and immediately felt the cold air around me. I shivered. It was extraordinary
that it should be this cold in the tropics. I checked the thermometer. It read 19 degrees Celsius.
Goodness, I thought, this was really unusual.
Outside the sky was obscured by thick mist. Again this was unusual. On my way to school, my
clothes actually got damp as moisture settled on me. It was cold and damp. The sun was well
hidden. I could not even see where it was.
Most of my schoolmates and the teachers had extra clothes on. The others shivered.
As the day progressed it became more pleasant. Mist still hung all around us. It was strange
having lessons in the unusual conditions.
Only at about 12 noon did the mist clear and the sun shone through. Even then the atmosphere
was pleasantly cool.
It was a freak weather but it was enjoyable while it lasted. It gave me an idea of how it was like
in a cold country. How nice it would be if we had this type of weather more often.
freak
shiver
damp
slightly wet
First of all, I would like to visit the moon. By the time ordinary people can visit the moon, I will
probably be very old or dead. Anyhow it would be quite an experience to walk on the moon. It is
said that there is no air or water there and our weight is many times less. I certainly would like to
see how high I can jump and how fast I can run on the moon. These are all wishful thinking, of
course.
To be realistic I can only visit places on earth. There are the Seven, and other, Wonders of the
Earth and I like to visit them all, if possible. After hearing about the marvels of The Pyramids Of
Egypt, The Great Wall Of China, The Taj Mahal, The Leaning Tower Of Pisa, The Colosseum Of
Rome, Stonehenge in England and others, it would be great to actually be there and experience
these things first-hand.
However, before all these places, I would like to visit Disneyland first. Which kid would not like
to? There are so many things to see and do. It would be great fun.
Right now I cannot visit any of these places. The first reason is the lack of money. The second is
I am too young to go on my own and I do not know anyone rich enough to take me there.
So they remain places I like to visit. Who knows, I might get to visit some or all of them in
future, or not at all. Only time will tell.
wishful thinking
The first funny person that comes to mind is a man who sits on the branch of a tree by a road and
shouts at the cars that pass by. He is mad of course but it still is strange that a madman should
shout at passing cars. He never seems to notice me somehow when I pass by on my bicycle. For
him it is only cars. He shouts with such gusto and pleasure. I always laugh when I see him at it.
Then there is this man in baggy snorts and Japanese slippers who rides his motorcycle with only
the right side of his buttocks on the seat. The left side hangs out. This makes his motorcycle lean
at an awkward angle as though he is about to fall, but he does not. Perhaps he has a large boil on
the left side of his buttocks. Whatever the reason, I have seen him ride the way he does many
times. He looks so funny, but dangerous.
Running a sundry shop near my house is a short and stout man whose body shape and
movements resemble that of a penguin. I do not mean to be derogatory but he always reminds
me of that bird. However he runs his shop well and I get a lot of things from him.
Finally there is a dandy who dresses in the most outrageous outfits I have ever seen. The colour
combination he chooses for his clothes are, to say the least, horrible. Only he dares to wear a
purple shirt with green trousers and a pink tie. Often I see running around on his motorcycle
wearing those loud clothes. He works as a salesman for some company. Perhaps those clothes
help him to get, or maybe shock, customers.
gusto
derogatory
dandy
The biggest pest in the home is the mosquito. I notice that there are at least 3 different kinds of
mosquitoes. Some bite in the daytime and some at night. Some are large while some are tiny, but
they have one thing in common -- they bite. So we use mosquito repellents, coils, nets and sprays
to keep them at bay, but somehow they still manage to get past our defenses.
I am very sensitive to mosquito-bites, so I sleep under a mosquito-net. Some people seem quite
unaware of their presence and do not seem to know that they have been bitten. Well, these are
lucky people until they come down with malaria or dengue-fever.
Another persistent pest is the common rat. These animals are very active during the night,
looking for food everywhere. They eat anything, even soap. So any food left uncovered
overnight is likely to be contaminated by these pests. Furthermore rats make nests in nooks and
corners of the house. They nibble into floorboards, ceilings and even electrical wiring. They are
really a big nuisance.
Cockroaches too are pests. They have the habit of crawling all over the place. Sometimes they
even crawl onto one's body. These dirty little creatures contaminate food too. They also emit a
strong stench. It is never pleasant to encounter them.
There are other pests like flies, ants, moths and assorted bugs. It would be nice it we can get rid
of them but it is obvious we cannot. They are here to stay. The only effective way to minimize
them is to keep the house clean. In this way they have less places to breed and less food to eat.
The less pests we have in the home, the more pleasant the home is.
keep at bay
every nook and corner
stench
Teachers' Day
One day every year, we celebrate Teachers' Day in honour of the teachers who spend so much
time teaching us so many things.
This year, Teachers' Day began with a school assembly in the hall where the headmaster
delivered a speech. After that we adjourned to our classes, not to have lessons, but to enjoy
ourselves.
My classmates gave a small party for the teachers who taught us. Each of us contributed a small
sum of money to buy cakes, drinks and other titbits. On that day we arranged the chairs and
desks so that they surrounded an empty space in the middle of the classroom.
So began a round of eating, drinking and playing games with the teachers. Most of the teachers
were very sporting and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. It was so different from having lessons.
The other classes gave parties too. So the teachers had to move from class to class and participate
in the fun. I would think that this was quite tiring on the part of the teachers but they managed it.
After all it was their day to enjoy and have fun.
One class even gave a short play for their teachers. I did not get to watch it as I was busy tidying
up the classroom after the party.
All in all it was a great day. The whole school was immersed in an atmosphere of gaiety. So
when the school bell rang for dismissal I felt a little sad that it should end, but end it must. The
day was over and we went home tired but happy.
adjourn to somewhere
titbit/tidbit
immerse
Birds in my garden
I live in a bungalow surrounded by a fairly large garden. There are a number of fruit trees
growing here along with many plants and a lot of grass. At first glance the garden appears very
quiet but actually many birds and animals live in it or visit it frequently.
Every morning I am awakened by the shrill songs of a magpie-robin. The sound is so sweet and I
just lie in bed listening to the songs until the bird flies away.
All through the day I see various birds come and perch on the trees and plants. Some come to
sing or rest a bit. Others come to look for food. So it is always a pleasure to see them. I just sit
quietly and they go about their business undisturbed. I have seen the oriole, spotted-dove,
pigeon, yellow-vented bulbul, mynah, fan-tailed flycatcher and various other little birds which I
cannot name. They sing, dance and display their beautiful colors. It is quite a treat. On the other
hand there are those pesky little sparrows that come into the house to steal food.
One morning I saw a white-breasted water hen sunning itself just next to a mango tree. This
normally shy bird must really be feeling the pinch of progress to take refuge in my garden. Sad
to say, the surrounding area is being developed and the wildlife are being chased away or
destroyed.
Some people keep birds in cages to listen to their songs. I say it is far better for the birds to live
freely. Then they sing, or not sing, their songs naturally. It is wonderful to see them fly freely
among the trees. It is not so wonderful to see caged birds unable to move more than a foot in any
direction.
shrill
pesky
annoying
be affected by hardship
A frightful experience
I had to walk through an area filled with undergrowth to get to the shop. It was not too
unpleasant except that I had to keep to the narrow footpath and not blunder into the bushes.
Buying some flour from the shop seemed harmless enough. The shop was the nearest one and my
mother reckoned I was old enough to run a simple errandfor her.
Suddenly I heard a growl from within some bushes. A ferocious dog appeared in front of me
with its fangs bared. I froze. If it were to attack me I knew I could not fight it. I had heard that if
you keep still, a dog would not attack.
It worked. The dog came up to me and sniffed me all over, but it did not bite me. I trembled with
fear but dared not move.
After a while it lay down beside me. I thought it was safe to go, but the moment I moved a leg it
stood up and growled fiercely again. I was trapped! The dog would not let me move. What could
I do?
I waited in fear. As long as I remained still, I was all right, but how long could I stand there like
that? My feet were already feeling numb.
Then I had an idea. The shop was just a short distance away. I shouted "Help! Help!" with all my
might. The dog looked confused but did not attack me.
The shopkeeper heard my shouts and came to investigate. The dog, which was obviously his,
wagged its tail and folded back its ears. He quickly brought a chain and tied it to a post. I was so
relieved. The shopkeeper apologized and gave me a free packet of flour.
What a frightful experience it was. Anyway I never had anymore trouble with the dog. The
shopkeeper kept it tied up at all times.
undergrowth
run errand
ferocious
The way we eat our food is habitual. This means that we are usually not aware of it. I have
noticed some of the ways people eat and they range from elegance togluttony.
My father slurps his soup. It is disgusting but we dare not say anything. He will be sorely
offended if we did. On the other hand my mother is so gracefully in her ways. It is a pleasure to
watch her daintily scoop the food up into her mouth and then chew it slowly and gently.
A fat friend of mine literally gobbles up his food. He eats at least three times as much as I do in
about half the time that I take. While he is eating, he is totally oblivious to his surroundings. He
puts the food into his mouth as fast as he can, chews a couple of times and then swallows. It does
not matter whether he is using a spoon, chopsticks or his hands. He is skilled with all. After
finishing, he sits up, gives a couple of burps and rubs his belly. It is all very disgusting, but at the
same time it is very amusing.
Another friend of mine, a thin one this time, hardly, eats at all. He sits at the table and, halfheartedly picks up the food with a fork. He says he has no appetite. No wonder he is so thin.
Then there are many who talk while they eat. So little pieces of food and drops of saliva start
flying. Only a sharp "Shut up and eat!" can silence these talkers. They usually shut up but only
for a while.
How do you eat your food? Do you eat quickly, slowly, like a glutton, sparingly, daintily or
noisily? Do you lick your fingers, spoon or plate? Are you aware of how you eat?
gluttony
slurp
oblivious
It is incredible how much rubbish we throw into the garbage bin. It always seems to be full. A
garbage bin is never nice to look at and get near to. The smell can be quite strong. So we are very
thankful to the garbage collectors who come and remove the garbage.
They normally come thrice a week. If they miss a day or two, then the garbage bins in my
neighborhood overflow onto the road. This invites stray dogs and other scavengers. Only when
the garbage truck comes again is the problem taken care of. So we can see how important these
garbage collectors are.
When they come, they usually make a lot of noise. Often they are moody. We bear with them
because theirs is not a very pleasant job. It is dirty and smelly. Besides, God knows what sort of
rubbish they have to handle every day. How they can stand the filth and stench I do not know.
Perhaps they are used to it. I know for sure that they do not love their jobs. Who would?
Nevertheless, they do come regularly to perform an important job. On festive occasions we give
them gifts, usually small amounts of money, as a token of appreciation for a job well done.
Granted they are noisy, dirty and sometimes cranky, but how else can they behave when they
have to do work that most people would not touch? Nobody would like to work as a garbage
collector.
Anyhow someone has to do the dirty job. The least we can do is make their job easier by keeping
our garbage in proper bins and showing them a little appreciation now and then.
scavenger
stench
cranky
It was raining cats and dogs. Fortunately we were in a car and my uncle, who was driving, had
the situation under control.
We passed slowly by an oil-palm estate. The driving rain made visibility poor. So my uncle
drove very carefully. He had all the lights on. So did the other drivers. I could make out little
blobs of light on the other cars through the white sheet of rain.
Overhead, black clouds hovered ominously. It felt as though they were about to fall on us at any
moment. Lightning streaked across the sky and onto the distant hills. The ensuing thunder
rumbled unceasingly. Some flashes of lightning came uncomfortably close and the resulting
thunderclap was deafening, even with all our windows up.
All of a sudden a bright flash of light blinded us and a very loud crack made me lose my
bearings. The next thing I knew was that my uncle had stopped the car and his face was pale
with shock. I too was in shock. What had happened?
For a long agonising moment I struggled to collect my scattered wits. Then my uncle pointed a
trembling finger at something outside the car. I looked in the direction and saw an oil-palm some
ten metres away literally split in half through the middle. It was scorched black and smoking. I
then realised that it had just been struck by lightning.
If the lightning had struck us instead, we would be scorched black and smoking too. Still
trembling, my uncle quickly drove away from the danger zone. We had just had a close brush
with death. It was close, too close for comfort.
The Final Examination are just a couple of months away. It is important that I do well. So I shall
have to prepare for it. In other words I need to revise and study what I have learned through the
year.
First of all I have to prepare a time-table of study so that I can divide my time properly to the
various subjects. I shall have to devote more time to the subjects I am not so good at.
I shall have two study periods a day, one from three to four in the afternoon and the other from
seven to nine in the evening. I cannot study all the time for my mind will not be able to cope with
it. So I must have some time to indulge ingames and other forms of recreation. Then I can return
to my studies with renewed vigor.
I am not very good in Geography and History. So I have to spend more time with them. These
two subjects require memorizing of many facts. In order that I remember the facts I need to do a
lot of reading. Only then the facts will remain in my head. Also I need to read attentively or the
facts will tend to be forgotten quickly.
Other subjects require less memorizing. So I am all right with them. I only have to keep in touch
with them and I should pass without any problem.
One last thing is necessary. I shall have to cut out time-consuming activities like socialising with
friends, window shopping, watching videos and listening to pop-songs. I can do these things
again once the examinations are over. Meanwhile it is 'action stations'! There is a battle to be
won.
devote
indulge
vigor
Punished in School
I was totally shocked when the teacher threw my exercise book at my face. She stood there
glowering at me with her huge eyes. What had I done?
Next, the boy beside me got the same treatment. One by one the teacher repeated her nasty
actions on a total of five boys. The whole class was dumbfounded by her sudden outburst of
anger. We were merely kids and were terrified of her. The fact that she was the headmaster's wife
did not help matters.
Then we were sent to the headmaster's office. The five of us did not know what we had done
wrong, but it must be something terrible. Still, we walked bravely into the office.
"You are all trouble-makers, aren't you?" the headmaster began. We looked at each other. What
trouble did we make?
"I hear you never do what the teacher tells you. You are disobedient," continued the headmaster.
We protested but were told to shut up. Chong, my classmate, had his hands in his pockets and the
headmaster said, "Manners maketh a man. You've got no manners boy." Chong hastily took his
hands out and stood at attention.
Then the headmaster went on to accuse us of not doing our work properly, being ill-mannered
and noisy, among other things. He was wrong most of the time. I admit that our work were not
top-class material but the accusations were grossly exaggerated or totally unfounded.
Anyhow each of us received a cut of the headmaster's cane. It did not hurt that much. What hurt
was the injustice done onto us. We were punished for flimsyreasons but what could we do? We
could do nothing but walk slowly back to class and try to get along with the tyrannous teacher.
dumbfounded
flimsy
tyrannous
Having been in school for a number of years now, I have come across many types of teachers.
Some are good while some are not so good.
The good ones are those who put effort into their work. They care for the welfare of their
students. They genuinely want to teach us what they know. So despite their weaknesses we love
and respect them.
Our present class teacher, Mr. Loga, is a model teacher. He not only teaches us English, but more
importantly, what it means to be a human being. He is invariably patient, very approachable and
always has a practical solution to any problem anyone may present to him. We are grateful for
his guidance and advice.
On the other hand, our Mathematics teacher, is the worst of the lot. He comes in half-drunk and
with a cigarette in his hand. Normally he just sits at the table and tells us to do exercise this or
that. Sometimes he does not come at all. Rarely does he teach. When he does, it is almost
impossible to follow him. His hands tremble and his speech is incoherent. So we are left to our
own devices. Fortunately for me Mathematics is not too difficult. So I can cope, even without a
teacher. Unfortunately for some, it means the difference between passing or failing. So some of
them have resorted to taking private tuition.
In between these two are the other teachers. Some are good in some ways and bad in others.
However all of them are predictable. So we know what to do when in their presence. The good
ones we appreciate and respect. The bad ones we tolerate.
It is not for me to judge the teachers. They run their lives as they see fit. I wonder what they will
write about us if they were to write an essay entitled "Students, Good And Bad".
approachable
tremble
incoherent
A visit to a jungle
A tropical jungle is an awesome place. I had the opportunity of visiting one recently.
My friend Rahim, who works as a forest ranger, took me along on one of his trips into the jungle.
I had wanted to experience for myself first-hand what he had always spoken about.
The moment we entered the jungle, a sort of semi-darkness enveloped us. The sky was almost
completely shut out by the canopy of leaves high above us. At ground level, thick vegetation
grew in every direction. The air was damp and had a peculiar smell to it.
All around us were the sounds of insects, birds and animals. Though we could not see them,
except for some birds, we knew they were there. The sounds echoed all over, making the jungle
feel eerie and strange.
I had no idea how Rahim could find a way through the bushes and trees. He said he was just
following a path used by the aborigines. As far as I was concerned, I could not see any path. I
realised then how easily an inexperienced person could get lost and perish in the jungle.
Nevertheless I followed Rahim as we trudged along slowly. The most uncomfortable thing
about being in the jungle were the leeches. These little bloodsuckers never gave up. Despite thick
boots and clothes, they still managed to bite me.
For the first time in my life I saw strange birds, insects, huge spiders, snakes, trees, flowers,
vines as thick as a man's hand and various animals. The experience was unforgettable. I was
awestruck by the might of nature.
When we emerged from the jungle I felt as though a great weight had been lifted from me. The
clear blue sky was a welcome sight. Outside, the world was definitely easier to cope with. The
jungle made me feel hemmed in and helpless. It was a good experience but I would prefer to
remain outside it.
damp
slightly wet
trudge
hem in
The first time I acted in a play was when I was in Standard Three. Come to think of it, it was the
only time I acted in a play.
I was chosen to play the role of a farmer. Rathi, the prettiest girl in class, played the role of the
farmer's wife. So I felt a little elated about my role.
We spent a whole week rehearsing the play. Learning the lines by heart was tedious. The first
rehearsal was a disaster as we fumbled our lines again and again. After half a dozen rehearsals
we managed to get things right. It was all very tiring.
The script required me to climb up a mango tree to pluck some mangoes. Obviously we could
not put a mango tree in the classroom. So we improvisedby hanging a mango by a string from
the ceiling with a ladder below it. Those were the props, placed right in front of the blackboard.
Finally the day of the play came. I went on stage, rather, in front of the classroom, with my
fellow actors and actresses and performed our parts. Everything went smoothly. We never got
stage-fright, thanks to our rehearsals and familiar audience of fifteen children. About half the
class were the performers, the rest audience.
Now, a few years later, I cannot remember a single line of the play. The only thing I remember
clearly is that I enjoyed eating the mango during the play.
elated
fumble
to do something awkwardly
improvise
Crew Cut
The day I went to school with a crew cut, I was greeted by roars of laughter and plenty of
comments. I really looked funny with a crew cut but I was forced to have my hair cut that way. It
was my foolishness and my cousin's fault that it happened. Here is how it happened. The
monthly ritual of visiting the barber to get my hair cut was tedious. Long hair was like a sin and
mine was beginning to cover my ears. My cousin reckoned that he could save me some money if
I let him cut my hair. He assured me that he knew how to do it properly. So foolishly I allowed
him to use a pair of scissors on my hair. After five minutes of his handiwork, one look in the
mirror told me that it was a disaster. His scissors had created havoc on my beautiful hair! I
protested but he assured me that he had not finished and the finished product would be great. It
became even worse. The cut was so uneven and haphazard that I had no choice but to visit a
real barber to correct the damage. The barber laughed and said that the only remedy was a crew
cut. So I reluctantly agreed to it. The final result was that my hair looked and felt like bristles,
being only two or three millimetres long. At least it looked better than the mess my cousin made.
I found that a crew cut was not too bad after all. I did not have to comb my hair and my head felt
much cooler. As for the laughter and comments, they stopped after a while.
crew cut
haphazard
bristle
At a shopping complex
My mother and I took the lift from the second level of the underground car-park to get to the
ground floor of the shopping complex. The moment we stepped out of the lift we were greeted
by a blast of cool air and the blare of music from a music shop nearby. The car-park was dark
and gloomy. The ground floor was bright and lively.
We were at the foyer of the huge shopping complex. There were many people there. I could see a
goldsmith's shop, two music shops, a pharmacy, two book stalls, a video shop, an optician's shop
and a large super- market.
Two very old guards sat in front of the goldsmith's shop. They were nodding off.I wondered if
they could cope if robbers were to come to the shop. It did not look like they could.
A "cheap sale" of clothes was going on in the middle of the foyer. The crowd there was so thick
that it was impossible to get near the clothes. We walked past the mad crowd and into the
supermarket.
There were rows and rows of goods in the supermarket. We picked out the things we wanted and
put them in a trolley. When we had finished I pushed the trolley to the check-out counter where
my mother paid for the things we took. Fortunately there were few people in the supermarket.
The cheap sale had attracted the crowd. So it did not take us long to buy what we came for.
We came out of the supermarket and passed the mad crowd. I noticed that one of the old guards
at the goldsmith's was actually snoring! Anyhow we proceeded to the lift and left the shopping
complex.
gloomy
foyer
nod off
dimly lighted
a lobby or entrance hall
Fall asleep momentarily, doze
A painful lesson
Our bodies are made of flesh and bones. Anytime any part is injured we feel pain. So we try to
avoid injury as much as we can. Usually it takes a painful lesson to teach us to avoid injury. The
following was a particularly painful one.
I, like any young child, love to run around as quickly as I can. It is fun. However, there is danger
of falling down which can result in painful injuries.
One day while playing "catching" with some friends I happened to run down a hill. I found that
running down a hill was easy and I could go very fast. At the spur of the moment I decided to
see how fast I could go. So I ran with all my might.
Alas, I ran too fast for my legs to keep up. One moment I was running, the next I fell sprawling
onto the tarmac road. The shock was horrible as I scraped along the hard surface of the road.
The pain was intense as I lay on the road writhing. My hands, legs and face were bleeding from
the many parts where my skin had been scraped off. When my friends came to help me they were
horrified to see me in such a bloody mess.
Anyhow they summoned help and I was taken to the hospital. There they cleaned and dressed my
wounds. All the time I felt as though I was on fire.
I suffered for two weeks thereafter every time they changed the bandages. It was terrible.
I learned my lesson. It is foolish to run down a hill.
scrape
writhe
Nothing extraordinary happened last weekend. It was just like any other ordinary weekend.
I got up later than usual on Saturday morning. After breakfast I went over to my friend Arul's
house and spent some time reading comics there. Arul has tons of comics. His father buys the
latest for him. Being his friend, I get to read them too.
We read comics till lunch-time. Then I went home, had lunch and took an afternoon nap. Taking
an afternoon nap is a pleasure that I can indulge in only on weekends. On weekdays I do not
have time for it.
The rest of the afternoon I helped my father in the garden uprooting weeds and trimming
the hedge. We continued until darkness fell. After that I had my bath and dinner. After dinner I
watched television until it was time for bed.
I got up late too on Sunday morning. For breakfast I had cornflakes with milk while listening to
the radio. Then I spent the rest of the morning doing homework.
Again I took a nap after lunch. Then I finished up my homework.
By the time I was done with the homework it was already evening. So I took a stroll around the
neighborhood. It was a great feeling to be able to relax after all the homework had been done.
After dinner, I packed my books in my bag and went to bed early. I had to get enough sleep
otherwise I would fall asleep in school the next day. Thus ended yet another weekend.
indulge
hedge
stroll
a leisurely walk
Ah Keong was the naughtiest boy in class. In fact I would say that he was the naughtiest in the
whole school. He always seemed to get in trouble with the prefects and teachers. The prefects
avoided him and the teachers had a hard time controlling him.
He was destructive to say the least. Our classroom did not have a single window pane. He had
broken them all. Over in a corner lay a heap of broken desks and chairs, the result of his
handiwork. He had been caned twice in front of the whole school for his misdeeds but he
remained unrepentant. I was sure that he would be sacked from school if he carried on like that.
One day Ah Keong's mother died. For a whole week he was absent from school. When he
returned he was totally changed. I nearly did not recognize him. For a moment I thought we had
a new classmate, but it was Ah Keong all right, well-groomed and neatly-dressed.
Not only had his appearance change. His behavior also changed dramatically. He became the
most well-behaved boy in class. No longer did he break chairs or anything else. The teachers and
prefects were visibly shocked, but they were glad for it.
It was a miracle that Ah Keong turned over a new leaf. One day he confided to me that it was his
mother's death that changed him. He realized how horrible he had been just before his mother
died. So he made a promise to his mother at her deathbed to behave himself. This promise he had
kept.
I am glad for him. He is now a pleasure to be with and one of my best friends.
unrepentant
well-groomed
A Book Fair was being held in the Town Hall. So one morning our teacher said that we were
going to visit it. We cheered loudly for it meant that there would be no lessons for the day.
We lined up outside the classroom. Then we marched in pairs out of the school, up the pedestrian
bridge, down the other side of the road and into the Town Hall just a few hundred meters from
our school.
At the Town Hall we were told to behave ourselves. If we wanted to buy any book, we were to
take it to our teacher. Then we gleefully buried ourselves among the vast number of books on
display there.
There were so many books there. It was impossible to look at all of them. So I spent my time
browsing mainly among the books on wildlife and nature, my favorite.
As much as the books were wonderful, the price was discouraging. I could not afford to buy any
of them. I would have to ask my mother to buy one for me later on.
Time flew. Two hours seemed like two minutes. Soon our teacher told us to assemble at the
front door. There she helped those buying books pay at the counter at a special discount. Not
many of us bought books. They were too expensive. I did not buy any.
After paying for the books we lined up and marched back in pairs to school.
gleefully
happily
time flies
assemble
We are lucky to live in a rich country where we have many things at our convenience. However
we tend to be wasteful.
Electricity is one thing we waste most. Lights, fans, radios and other appliances are kept on even
when no one is using them. I make it a point to switch them off when I do not need them. It takes
less than a second to throw a switch but to some people even this seems a difficult task. Anyhow,
not wasting electricity reduces the bill appreciably. Thus we do not have to pay for the electricity
we do not use.
The other wasted commodity is water. Leaky pipes and faucets plus the negligence of leaving
taps running all contribute to this wastage. Fresh water is precious, so it is not to be wasted. It is
only a simple matter of shutting off a tap after use. I make sure I do this.
Another big wastage is food. My mother used to cook so much food that much of it was simply
thrown away. She knows better now. I pointed out to her about how we wasted food. She realised
it and now cooks only what we can eat. The garbage bin used to be filled with half-eaten cakes,
fried chicken and things we thought we could eat but could not. It is not so anymore. Besides, we
do not waste money on food we throw away.
We waste other things like tissue paper, clothes, soap, talcum powder andaerosol sprays. All
these cost money. In short, we waste the money we work so hard to earn.
It is definitely better not to be wasteful. I discover there is a simple method of not wasting things,
which is -- use only what we need. Do not touch what we do not need. In this way we can stop
being wasteful.
faucet
talcum
aerosol
The games I like most is badminton. All it takes is a willing partner, two rackets and
a shuttlecock. We do not even need a net. After all we simply enjoy hitting the shuttlecock to
each other. My sister and I spend hours doing this just about everyday. We are not going to be
world champions. It is simply great fun.
We used to do this with two old toy rackets. Since then our father had bought us two real,
although cheap, rackets. I must say we enjoy the game even more. Sometimes even my mother
comes to join in the fun when she has the time for it.
The other game I like to play is table tennis. We have an old table, two bats and some balls. So
on some days we play table tennis instead. This is a game that requires more skill. We cannot
even hit the ball onto the table half of the time. This can be frustrating. So we go back to
badminton which is far easier and more fun.
Since we play outdoors we are at the mercy of the weather. We often have to pause when the
wind is too strong. It is difficult to hit the shuttlecock properly when the wind blows it away.
Sometimes it rains, making it impossible to play.
I do play other games in school like basketball and football. Somehow they do not seem to be
much fun. So I stick to badminton and table tennis.
shuttlecock
frustrating
As I descended the steps of the bus, I saw dark clouds in the sky. It looked as though it would
rain.
I walked briskly toward home which was a good kilometre away. My mother had warned me
about getting caught in the rain. I might catch a cold or something. I wondered if I could get
home before it rained.
As if in reply to my thought the rain came down. I wanted to run for it but my heavy schoolbag
discouraged me from doing so. So I walked on. Soon it was raining cats and dogs.
In a short while I was drenched from head to toes. Instead of feeling miserable I was actually
enjoying it. The feeling of cool water running down my wet body was quite pleasant.
Finally I reached home. My mother was shocked to see me soaking wet. She hurried me to the
hot shower after which I put on clean dry clothes. She was worried that I might get sick.
Well, I did not. In fact I felt great, having had such a wonderful experience walking in the rain.
briskly
drenched
soaking wet
quickly
wet with water
thoroughly wet, totally wet
A visit to a doctor
One morning I woke up with a very sore throat. I could not swallow without feeling great pain. I
told my mother about it.
She decided that I should skip school that day. She was going to take me to see a doctor.
At 9 a.m., my mother and I took the bus to town-to see our family doctor.
We waited for a while at the clinic before I got to see the doctor. Dr. Lee examined me carefully.
I had a slight fever and other symptoms that indicated that I might be coming down with
influenza. So he gave me an injection and prescribed some oral medicine for me. He also wrote
me a medical certificate so that I could be absent from school for a couple of days.
By the time we reached home, my throat was definitely not as sore as it was before. The
injection must be doing its work.
I took the oral medicine diligently and after two days of rest I was well on my way back to
health again.
skip
symptoms
diligently
not attend
signs of disease
without fail, perseverance in carrying out a task
The air we breathe is a mixture of many gases, of which oxygen is the most important. If we
were not able to breathe this precious air for even a few minutes, we would die. Thus air is vital
to us.
Air is vital too to the plants and animals that live on earth. We are all surrounded by air. Our
bodies live and move in it. Thus it is important that the air remains clean and pure.
Alas, modern man has polluted the air. By constantly emitting poisonous gas and fumes into the
air from his factories and other devices, man is threatening his very own survival. The air we
breathe now is filled with unnecessary and harmful pollutants. If this is allowed to increase then
one day we may not have any more clean air to breathe.
The choice is ours. Stop polluting the air and we live. Keep polluting the air and we all perish.
emit
fumes
gas, smoke
perish
to die
Teenagers today must be ever vigilant to the many distractions and dangers that surround them.
Knowing what these pitfalls are will help teenagers avoid trouble and have a happier
teenagehood.
First on the list are those distractions that take them away from their studies. Students owe it to
themselves and their parents to put in their best efforts in their studies. At all times therefore,
teenagers must make it a point to be conscious of the fact that their studies ought to come first.
This strategy will help them get their priorities right. Complete that piece of homework or revise
those chapters for the examination before you decide to hang out with your friends. Studies must
come first.
Next, let's talk about parents. Parents are wonderful people. They always have the best interests
of their children at heart and they will do anything to prevent their children from getting hurt.
However, teenagers often think that parents do not understand them and they are unable to
communicate with their parents. So these teenagers are rude to their parents and become utterly
selfish at times. If teenagers are a bit more appreciative of their parents and try and put
themselves in the shoes of their parents, they will then be able to know how their parents think
and feel - of their fears and dreams for their children.
Now let's turn to the topic of friends. Friends are wonderful to have. Good friends are always
there for you, just like parents. But there are friends you who may turn out to be bad influences
and can lead you astray. Then there are friends who can inspire you and propel you to achieve
great heights. So how do you distinguish the good from the bad ? In this respect, young people
must learn to think for themselves. Reflect constantly on events, people and ideas. Learn to see
through people. Hold on to sound moral values and principles. These will definitely help you
discriminate the good from the 'bad'.
Being a teenager is not an easy thing. This is the time when there are many temptations and when
you grow as a person. Therefore, sticking to the three points mentioned above would make life
easier for you. First of all, concentrate on your studies because this will determine your future.
Secondly, understand that your parents want the best for you. Lastly, choose your friends wisely.
vigilant
hang out
distinguish
Write a short story based on the pictures below in not less than 100 words.
It was a happy day for Shireen because it was her birthday. Her father had promised to get her a
puppy as a pet.
Shireen was delighted to see so many puppies at the pet shop. One puppy, however, was
different. It was trying to get up but could not. It just looked pitifully at Shireen. The pet shop
Write a short story based on the pictures below in not less than 100 words.
Mei Ling came from a poor family of five children. Her parents were hawkers. They lived in
a run-down low-cost house. Often they had only potatoes to eat.
Each afternoon after school, Mei Ling and Boon Keong would sell cakes at the bus station. The
area was noisy and hot but they did not mind. They only hoped that they could finish selling their
cakes as quickly as possible.
At about 7 o'clock, Mei Ling and Boon Keong would go home, bathe and have dinner. After
resting for a while, they would do their homework. Mei Ling would often study until 2 o'clock as
she wanted to get good results for her A level examination.
Finally, the results were released. Mei Ling could only hope for the best. When she arrived at
school, she was surprised to see all her friends rushing out to greet her and embrace her. she had
scored 5A's! Mei Ling could not believe her ears until she saw her result slip with her own eyes.
As she walked home that day, she was extremely happy but also sad. She knew that it would cost
a lot to study in the university. Her family encouraged her to continue her studies and promised
to help her in any way they could. Wishing to lighten her family's financial burden, Mei Ling
gave tuition when she was an undergraduate.
After four years in the university, Mei Ling finally graduated. All her family members were
present at her convocation and they were very proud of her. Mei Ling found a good job in a big
law firm and it was her turn and duty to give encouragement and financial support to her younger
siblings.
run-down
convocation
Write a short story based on the pictures below in not less than 100 words.
The house was full of merry-making as the eldest son was getting married. Older relatives were
catching up with the latest among themselves while children were playing. Unknown to them,
two men were watching them from a clump of bushes just beside their house.
Night approached and the house was soon empty. The two mysterious men quickly drove up to
the house. They were dressed immaculately in suits. They got out and one of them started to pick
the lock. A neighbor came out to investigate but then assumed that they were just relatives of the
groom who had forgotten to take some things. After picking the lock, they reversed the car into
the compound.
The door was promptly opened and the whole house ransacked. The bride's tea ceremony
money and jewelry were all taken away. Not satisfied, the thieves started carting the television,
hi-fi and video player into the car. Then they drove off.
When the house owners returned, they were shocked to see the gate wide open. The door of the
house was also slightly ajar. They rushed in only to realize their house had been ransacked. The
police were informed and a report was made. About $10,000 worth of money, jewelry and goods
had been stolen. Nothing could be done as there was no point in crying over spilt milk. they just
had to be more careful in future.
clump
ransack
ajar
rite a short story based on the pictures below in not less than 100 words.
Abila waved goodbye to her parents as they drove off. They were going for a dinner with some
friends. Abila decided to stay at home as she had a lot of homework to do.
As she settled down to do her homework, the lights suddenly went out. The house was in pitch
darkness. Abila hoped that the electricity supply would be restored promptly but it was not.
She groped her way to the kitchen, and switched on the gas stove. With the light, she went in
search of candles.
A strong wind was blowing. Unknown to her, the window curtain in the kitchen caught fire. The
fire had spread quickly to the adjoining curtains when Abila came back with the candles. She
rushed to the bathroom to get water to put out the flames but her efforts were in vain.
Not knowing what else to do, Abila shouted of help. Her neighbors were already at her doorstep
as they had seen smoke coming out of her house. Meanwhile, somebody had informed the firebrigade. They quickly switched off the gas stove and then tried to put out the fire. The fire
however, was out of control so they all rushed out of the house.
The fire-brigade came at that moment and the firemen took another hour to put out the fire. Only
the left wing of the house could be saved. Abila cried because she knew that she was the cause of
the fire.
When her parents returned, she explained what had happened. They forgave her but made her
promise to be more careful in future.
in vain
unsuccessful
put out
Write a short story based on the pictures below in not less than 100 words.
The heavy rain for the past few days had wreaked havoc in Selama village. Many villagers were
waiting for evacuation. As they waited for their turn, they could see some of their belongings
which were not secured properly being washed away.
The rescue boat came with two rescue workers. A woman and her two small sons stepped in.
They carried their barest necessities with them. The younger son was barely 5 years old and he
was playing with his teddy bear. Suddenly, the teddy bear fell into the water. It was quickly
swept away by the current. The little boy tried to reach out for it and fell into the water too. The
mother screamed in horror when she realized what had happened.
One of the rescue workers dived into the water. The little boy was struggling and crying. He was
also getting weaker and was drowning. The other people in nearly boats were too petrified to do
anything. The rescue worker swam as fast as he could tot he little boy. At last, he reached him.
He coaxed the little boy not to struggle but to relax. Everyone clapped when the little boy was
reunite with his mother. The mother thanked the rescue worker profusely for saving her baby.
A week later, the rescue worker was presented with a medal for his bravery in rescuing the little
boy. When interviewed, he said humbly that he only did what he had to do.
wreak havoc
petrified
coax
Write a short story based on the pictures below in not less than 100 words.
After a tiring day, the hostelites were hoping to have a sound sleep. However, in the middle of
the night, many woke up groaning in pain. They were clutching their stomachs and vomiting.
The hostel warden was immediately notified and he came promptly.
Sizing up the situation, he knew that it was food poisoning. The affected students were sent to
the hospital for out-patient treatment. the more serious cases had to be admitted. The unaffected
students were sad to see their friends suffering. After much reassurance by the warden that their
friends would be all right, they went back to sleep.
A report was made to the health authorities. The health inspector came and took samples of food
from the canteen. He put the different types of food into separate plastic bags. The health
inspector was not very happy with the condition of the canteen. the bins were full of rubbish.
Flies were flying everywhere and the drains were clogged. He ordered that the canteen be closed
for a week until the results of the tests were made known.
The canteen operator was found guilty of operating unhygienic stalls and was fined $300. A new
canteen operator took over. He was very hygienic. He wore a cap when cooking and used
disposable gloves when preparing food. there were no more flies as empty plates were quickly
cleared away and rubbish thrown. The hostelites were very happy. They could now have peace of
mind when eating.
size up
to examine something
clogged
become blocked
hygienic
clean
Write a short story based on the pictures below in not less than 100 words.
During the school holidays Aminah, Kirin and Helma decided to go on a trip round the
countryside. After making sure that they had brought everything they needed, they set off on
their bicycles.
They were in high spirits. Flowers were starting to bloom again and the fresh smell of grass was
very refreshing. Kirin suggested exploring the fort that was situated on top of the hill. They had
never been there before although they had heard many stories about the fort. The fort had a rich
history It was formerly used for defending the whole town from invaders.
When they reached the foot of the hill, they decided to get off their bicycles. They were singing
and pushing their bicycles uphill at the same time. Soon they reached the fort. They could not go
in, however, as the door was locked.
Therefore, the three friends found a shady spot to have their picnic. They gobbled down the food
as they were very hungry. The sky was turning dark so they decided to make a quick dash home.
After clearing up, they set off.
As they were cycling downhill, suddenly Helma lost control of her bicycle. She crashed into
Aminah who was also traveling at high speed. Both of them were flung off their bicycles.
Fortunately, they only suffered superficial wounds. They hobbled along the road until a motorist
offered them a lift to a clinic. They were disappointed that their adventure had to end like that.
in high spirit
hobble
Write a short story based on the pictures below in not less than 100 words.
Krishnan was very happy as he had scored 4A's and 4 B's in his PMR trial examination. He knew
his father would be very proud of him. Suddenly, a car drive up alongside him. A man rushed out
and placed a handkerchief to his nose. Krishnan felt very dizzy and fainted. The man then
dragged him into the car and his partner quickly drove off.
When Krishnan woke up, he was in a small dark room. Something ran across his legs. To his
horror, there were rats in the room! Krishnan could not move much as his legs and hands were
tied. even his mouth was gagged. Then he heard two voices outside. They were bargaining with
his father over the ransom. Krishnan wriggled nearer to the door. the exchange was to be made at
the abandoned shack near the mining pool - without any police interference.
Krishnan realized he had to escape somehow. He pretended that eh had stomach-ache
and hollered in pain. The kidnappers rushed in to see what had happened. Krishnan begged them
to send him to the hospital. Fearing that Krishnan might die before they got their ransom money,
they agreed.
As they approached the clinic, the kidnapper cut the ropes on Krishnan's hands and legs. At the
traffic-light junction, Krishnan made a dash for it. He opened the car door and ran quickly
towards a policeman nearby. the kidnappers could not do anything except to make a quick
getaway.
Krishnan's family were relieved to have Krishnan back. The kidnappers were later caught and
sentenced to jail.
holler
ransom
To shout loudly
a large sum of money which is demanded in exchange for someone
who has been taken prisoner
Write a short story based on the pictures below in not less than 100 words.
Seng Hui looked at his examination results slip with a heavy heart. He had failed his first
semester examination. He knew that he had disappointed his mother who had worked hard to
support him.
The new semester started and classes went on as usual. One day, Seng Hui was asked to bring a
pile of history books to the staffroom. To his surprise, there was nobody there. As he put the
books on the teacher's table, he suddenly noticed something jutting out of the record book. The
words "Final semester Test" were written on the paper.
Seng Hui was too stunned to do anything. Here was his chance to at least score an A in History.
As Seng Hui's hand reached out for the paper, he knew that he could not do it. It would be
cheating himself. His mother had been teaching him the value of honesty and hard work since he
was young. tough they were poor, his mother had always emphasized that the labors of hard wok
were rewarding while dishonesty would only bring misfortune.
Seng Hui quickly turned away to leave the staffroom. He was shocked to see his History teacher
standing here at the doorway. She had been observing him for about five minutes. She was
pleased that Seng Hui had decided not to cheat. As a result, she offered to tutor him after school.
He accepted her offer. He also did not hesitate to approach her for help in the other subjects.
The final semester results were out at last. Seng Hui was delighted as he had scored 2 As and 3
B's. He thanked his History teacher and then rushed home to tell his mother the good news. His
mother was very proud of him. Seng Hui was glad that he had listened to his mother's advice.
a heavy heart
jut
a feeling of unhappiness
to (cause to) stick out, especially above or past the edge or surface
of something
Write a short story based on the pictures below in not less than 100 words.
Mak Som was an old lady in her seventies. She was often seen collecting unwanted boxes from
the rubbish bins by the roadsides. She would then cart them away to be sold on her old bicycle.
Many villagers had offered to take her in but she refused. She wanted to be independent. At
night, she would be sleeping with a torn and tattered cloth as her blanket on a bench in the park.
One day, the village headman called a meeting. They discussed Mak Som's condition and
decided to build her a wooden house as a surprise gift. After buying the necessary materials, the
men started work. even the children were eager to help. They liked carrying tools or just fetching
things for the workers.
Mak Som was curious and asked the women what was happening. The women
said sheepishly that a villager's relative was moving in and the men were merely helping to build
a house for him.
When the house was completed, the village headman decided to call a meeting at the new house.
they informed Mak Som that the village headman had something important to announce and that
she had to be present.
When Mak Som came, she was given the seat of honor. The village headman then announced
that the new house was a gift of the villages to Mak Som. she did not want the house at first
saying that she did not have the money to repay them. After convincing her that it was a sincere
gift of love from the villagers, she finally accepted. With tears of joy, Mak Som thanked
everyone of the villagers. The villagers were glad that they had done their part for this elderly
member of their community.
sheepishly
in a shy way
Write a short story based on the pictures below in not less than 100 words.
One weekend, my parents decided to bring my brother and I to the recreational jungle. We were
very excited as we had not been there before. My brother and I talked about all the bears, tigers
and reindeer we were going to see. We really thought that a recreational jungle was like any other
jungle.
When we arrived, we dashed into the jungle, wanting to explore its length and breadth. We
obediently followed our parents at first but found it boring. Just then, a rabbit rushed out. I
screamed in delight and ran after it. My brother followed quickly behind. We kept running,
always keeping our eyes on the rabbit. The rabbit got tired of running and decided to hide in
its burrow.
It was only then that we realized that we did not know where we were. The trees looked
unfamiliar and there were no more jungle paths for us to follow. We were scared as we realized
that we were lost. Night was approaching and the hooting of the owl sent shivers down our
spines. I began to cry as I was feeling tired, hungry and sleepy. My brother comforted me by
letting me sleep on his lap. I soon fell asleep dreaming of bears waiting to eat me up.
Suddenly, I woke up. My brother was shaking me and telling them to get up. We could hear
voices coming our way ! We shouted with all our might that we were lost. We soon saw beams of
light from countless torches. Then we heard our parents' voices. We were safe! My brother and I
ran to our parents and embraced them emotionally. We were so happy to see them again that
we vowed we never wanted to be separated from them ever again.
burrow
send shivers down sb's
spines
vow
Write a short story based on the pictures below in not less than 100 words.
A blind man was playing his harmonica under the overhead bridge. That day his music was sad
because three boys were annoying him. Suddenly, the threerowdy boys became quiet and ran off.
The blind man heard footsteps chasing them. He wondered why.
"Hand over your money now. You still owe me $50," a gruff voice said.
"I do not have any money. I've spent it all already. The blind man over there has a lot of money,"
the younger boy said.
"Don't play with me. Give me the money now or you will regret it."
Sounds of fighting followed. The blind man was shocked after listening to their conversation. He
told himself he had to report that to the police. By coincidence, his policeman friend, Rahman
passed by. The blind man quickly told him the situation. Rahman asked for reinforcement
through his walkie-talkie. He blew his whistle repeatedly. When the younger boys saw him, they
tried to run away. Another two policemen who came to help Rahman managed to catch the boys.
The extortionist was charged in court. The younger boys however were let off with a stern
warning not to associate with bad company again. They apologized to the blind old man and
promised to turn over a new leaf. Nowadays, you would often find them bringing snacks for the
blind man to eat. All would be chatting away like long lost friends.
rowdy
walkie-talkie
extortionist
Write a short story based on the pictures below in not less than 100 words.
August 24 was the birthday of Cathy's mother. Cathy wanted to give her something very special.
She had been searching for the appropriate gift but none was to her liking. At last, she saw one. It
was a beautiful pearl necklace. Her mother would look lovely wearing it. Then her eyes noticed
the price tag -- $800! Her shoulders drooped and she walked home feeling very disappointed.
That Sunday, Cathy and her family went to the beach. As she was walking on the beach, she
noticed a very beautiful shell, smooth and of a soft red hue. She had an idea. She was going to
make her mother a necklace using sea shells. Cathy then began hunting for similar looking
shells. She would need to collect as many shells as possible before she went home.
When she reached home, Cathy washed the shells carefully. Then she laid them out to dry. At
night, when everyone had gone to sleep, Cathy started stringing the shells. She wanted the shell
necklace to be as beautiful as the pearl one she had seen at the shop.
At last, the necklace was ready. She placed it in a box and wrapped it up. The next day was her
mother's birthday. Early in the morning, she presented the box to her mother. Her mother was
delighted to receive such a beautiful and delicate gift. she promised that she would wear the
necklace at her birthday party. everyone admired the beauty and uniqueness of the necklace.
Cathy was very pleased with herself especially when they praised her for being creative.
droop
Write a short story based on the pictures below in not less than 100 words.
It was a beautiful day to go fishing so Veera decided to do just that. He packed up a few things,
got ready his fishing rod and bait and set off. When he reached the beach, he hired a sampan
from his fisherman friend and rowed out to sea. The water was clear and calm.
It was his lucky day indeed for he caught a lot of fish. Veera felt very happy and satisfied. Then
he decided to call it a day. The clouds had begun o turn dark and there were flashes of lightning
in the sky. Veera tried to row back to shore but the current was very strong. He threw out his
catch to lighten his load but it did not help.
Just then, a big wave overturned his sampan. The next minute, he was in the sea, gulping in a lot
of water. Each time a wave came down hard on him, Veera feared for his life. He could only pray
that help would come soon. Then the sea became less stormy and Veera fell into a fitful sleep
clinging onto the sampan for dear life.
The next morning, the sea was calm again. Veera was still hanging onto the sampan. He was
feeling very weak and his throat was parched. Suddenly, he saw a boat coming his way. Veera
gathered all his strength to shout and wave to the crew. At last, he was spotted. They sent down a
lifeboat for him.
They wrapped him up in a blanket and gave him a hot drink. The captain told him that his
fisherman friend had alerted them about him after he failed to return last night. Veera could only
thank the captain, his crew and his fisherman friend for saving his life. When they reached the
shore, his wife and children were there waiting for him. He embraced them emotionally and was
grateful to be alive.
call it a day
Write a short story based on the pictures below in not less than 100 words.
One weekend, Ali and his family went to the zoo. They bought him an ice-cream and he ran
ahead of his parents to greet his animal friends. Suddenly, he stopped in his tracks. There was a
new addition to the zoo. The sign said that it was an orangutan.
Ali laughed in delight and started jumping up and down. To his surprise, the orangutan imitated
his actions. When Ali scratched his head, the orangutan did just that too. Ali was so happy that he
decided to share the ice-cream with the orangutan.
Ali stretched out his hand, offering the ice-cream to the orangutan. It immediately grabbed his
hand and would not let go. Ali would not let o either for he wanted his ice-cream back. Ali's
parents who were coming his ay, shouted to Ali to let go of his ice-cream. The zoo warden who
heard the commotioncame to see what was happening. He quickly took a stick and rattled it
against the orangutan's cage to distract it. Another warden threw some food into its cage.
Fortunately, the orangutan decided to let Ali go. Ali was crying for his hand was bleeding. His
parents comforted him as well as they could. The zoo wardens applied some medicine on Ali's
hand and bandaged it. They told Ali not to feed the animals in the zoo ever again.
commotion
rattle
Write a short story based on the pictures below in not less than 100 words.
Serina had just finished her tuition. It was 9 o'clock. She hurried home as she felt it was going to
rain.
Halfway, it started pouring. Serina was both wet and cold. Just then, lightning flashed across the
sky followed by a deafening clap of thunder. Serina placed her hands to her ears as she was very
scared. She decided to make a run for it. The strong wind however, slowed her down.
Suddenly, lightning struck a tree just ahead of her. A branch snapped and fell across her path.
Serina could not stand it anymore and started to cry. She wished her parents would come to
fetch her as usual but they were at a dinner in another town.
The rain blew stronger and Serina began to sneeze. Then she herd a car coming her way. It was a
police car. The policemen asked Serina what had happened. Serina explained the situation to
them and they decided to send her home.
When Serina got home, her parents were at the gate. They were surprised to see Serina coming
back in a police car. After listening to Serina's explanation, her parents thanked the policemen for
going out of their way to help. Their dinner had finished early and they were just going to fetch
Serina when they saw the police car.
Serina was sent to bed. She knew that she would never forget that eventfulnight.
stand it
tolerate it
eventful
full of incidents
When you hear the school bell ring continuously for one minute you will know that this is a fire
drill and you must take the appropriate steps.
Quickly line up outside your classroom. Do not make too much noise. Wait for your class
monitor to check on attendance.
The class monitor should call out all the names in the class register. He should take note of all
The most important parts of a fire extinguisher are the handle, the cylinder and the nozzle.
In order to release the chemicals, you must press the handle. So, first, remove the locking pin.
Next, hold the cylinder upright. Now, stand about three meters from the source of the fire. Pick
up the nozzle and aim it at the base of the fire. Squeeze the handle for the chemicals to be
released. You have to move the nozzle from side to side. Keep on pressing the handle until the
fire is completely out. Make sure of this. It is possible for a fire to start again if it is not
completely out.
If you cannot control the fire or if it spreads, you have to ask someone for help to call the Fire
Department. While waiting for the Fire Brigade to respond get yourself out of the house. Inform
the neighbors to take precautionary measures.
Smart Studying
"Studying smart" is a phrase often used by students, parents and teachers to mean "studying in an
intelligent and effective way"
Not all methods of studying are intelligent or effective. For example, a person who does not pay
attention in class or who does not do his homework on time is certainly not intelligent. He will
not learn effectively and his grades will suffer. The result of this is that he will not be able to
keep up with his peers. Even if he goes for private tuition he will be always trying to catch up, if
he ever does at all.
So the first thing about studying smart is to pay fullest attention when a lesson is first being
taught in class. Your learning will be quick and effective. Ask questions if there is anything that
you do not understand. The teacher will be pleased to help. Do your homework and assignment
on time and you will never have a backlog of work. You are ever ready for the next lesson.
Furthermore, being up to date with your school work means you do not have to take private
tuition on any subject. this saves money and you will have time for leisure or recreation.
Revision books and guides are aplenty these days. Use them with care. Having more than one
revision book per subject is waste of money. Also learning from too many books only serves to
confuse you and take up precious time.
Finally, know the format of the examinations and practice the previous years' questions to
familiarize yourself with them. When the actual examinations come, you will know how to
handle the questions.
peers
a person who is the same age or has the same social position or
the same abilities as other people in a group:
backlog
a large number of things that you should have done before and
must do now
A madman
Every town seems to have at least one madman running around loose. It is no different in my
filthy
grime
afflictions
The book exhibition was held from Friday to Sunday in the town hall. It was jointly organized by
the Education Department and a local book shop. On the very first day, I walked over to visit the
exhibition immediately after school was over.
There were already many people at the exhibition. Most were school children like me.
The good thing about exhibitions is that usually there are free gifts and items on offer. This
exhibition was no different. At a counter near the entrance, I registered to be a member of the
book shop and I received a small calculator as a gift.
Inside the hall proper, I was amazed by the number of books on display. There were books on
computers, science, technology, music, cookery, travel, business, self-help and general interests.
Other types of publications include encyclopaedias, maps, novels, greeting cards, magazines and
children's books. Also available were computer software, compact discs and other items
published in electronic media. The town hall was fairly large yet every bit of space was made use
of to display the items. Most of the items were arranged in shelves or on tables.
I noticed that there was a crowd over at a corner. So I ventured closer to have a look. As
expected, items were on offer there. No wonder there were so many people. Slowly I inched my
way into the crowd to look at the items.
After looking though the items, I purchased a CD entitled "Our Solar System and Beyond". It
was a good buy.
Next I moved on to less crowded areas and look at the books. There were many that I would love
to get my hands on but alas my financial status did not allow it. So I browsed through as many as
I could. In that way I happily whiled away a whole afternoon.
Time passed quickly. My watch showed 5.00 p.m. and I had not even seen half of the exhibition.
Anyhow I had to get home before my mother started wondering about me. I would have to come
and visit the exhibition another day. So reluctantly I stepped out of the town hall and walked
towards the bus stop.
while away
The Internet
The Internet began in the Eighties. Today it has grown to become a major means of
communication. Websites and emails, things that were unheard of just two decades ago, are
quickly gaining in popularity and usage.
Via a computer, a person can access the Internet and the numerous websites in it. There are
websites on just about anything anyone can think of. Information, files, photographs, video clips,
computer software, games etc can often be obtained free or for a fee from some websites. Online
shopping, banking and other services make it a cinch for an ordinary person to perform regular
chores from the comfort of home or office.
A very popular feature of the Internet is the use of email. Using email, persons at any part of the
world can communicate with one other in an instant. The cost of sending an email is almost
nothing. On top of that, files and pictures can be attached and sent together with the email.
Despite its obvious usefulness, negative things are also present on the Internet. Viruses, worms,
Trojan horses and other harmful programs wait to strike at the unwary user. Accessing the
Internet without the protection of an anti-virus program or firewall is a sure way of getting
infected. The result of infection varies from a simple obscene message on the screen to the
complete erasure of the files and records in the computer.
Then there are sites that promote pornography, anarchy, terrorism, Satanism, black magic and
other threats to the well-being of our world.
Using the Internet is no different from dealing with our daily living in the physical world. We
sue it but we take precautions to avoid the obvious dangers and negative elements in it.
cinch
Cheating
Cheating has become a very common activity in our modern society. Many people indulge in this
practice to make a quick buck without too much effort.
There are many instances where innocent people have been made to part with their money by
confidence tricksters selling "magic stones" and charms that will bring prosperity to the users.
After paying exorbitant sums for these fake articles, the gullible buyers ultimately realize that
they have paid hard-earned money for worthless pieces of junk.
Then, there are the big-time crooks. These people set up huge counterfeiting operations to
produce imitation goods. Branded clothes, handbags, belts and other accessories are copied
closely and produced at a fraction of the genuine articles' cost and sold as originals. Even
toiletries and over-the-counter medicine and are being unscrupulously imitated.
Lately, there has been a rise in the manufacturing and selling of pirated compact discs. All forms
of CD's are being pirated: audio CD's, video CD's and computer software. CD piracy has become
such a big business that both the entertainment and information technology industries are
alarmed at this trend that cuts deeply into the profits of the legitimate copyright holders.
It seems impossible to stop all these cheating activity. The authorities are doing their best to curb
such practices but we must also do our part. We should not let greed or superstition make us
victims of confidence tricksters, never patronize dealers of ill repute that sell imitation goods as
originals and keep away from touts and pedlars that hawk pirated compact discs.
exorbitant
gullible
unscrupulously
unreasonably high
easily deceived or tricked, and too willing to believe everything
that other people say
behaving in a way that is dishonest or unfair in order to get
Every Thursday from 6.00 p.m to about 10.00 p.m, a night market is set up on the road in front
of a row of shop houses near where I live. There are many vendors plying their wares at the night
market, and it has become a regular thing for me to visit the night market.
One Thursday evening at about 7.00 p.m, my sister and I paid a visit to the night market. It was
not completely dark yet but the vendors had already lit their portable fluorescent lamps. From a
distance the lamps seemed to add brilliance to the living sea of human bodies that
had congregated at the market.
We stepped into the market carefully as there were many people there. In fact, we had to be
careful not to knock into the other shoppers. Our first stop was the food stalls. There were
vendors selling cakes, biscuits, buns, dumplings, dim sum, noodles and many other local tidbits
and delicacies. we bought some buns and dumplings for my parents and other siblings at home.
We then walked over to the fruit stall to buy some fruits. Next to the fruit stall, a medicine seller
had set up shop and was talking himself hoarse extolling the efficacy of his medicine to halfinterested shoppers. Poor man, if he went on like that, he might need the medicine himself,
whatever it was good for.
Next, we stopped and bought some vegetables at our regular vegetable stall. That was the last
thing we needed to buy. As it was still only 7.30 p.m. we decided to walk around a bit and look at
the things on sale.
There were people selling toys, pirated video CDs, clothes, belts, books, posters, mobile phone
casings, balloons, crockery and all sorts of goods. Business seemed to be good for most of the
vendors. There was no shortage of buyers. Everyone seemed to have something to sell or to buy.
The sight, sound and smell of the market were really quite intense. So after spending another ten
minutes or so in the market, I yearned for the peace and quiet of home. So I motioned to my
sister to go home.
Together we walked carefully out of the night market and headed home.
congregated
extolling
motioned
kerb/cure
geriatric
headed off
a minute. The men hop on the truck and off they go to another part of the housing estate to
continue their garbage collection.
It is a small but important event in our lives every time the garbage truck comes because it takes
away the garbage that would otherwise clutter up our living space. There were occasions when
the truck did not show up as usual and we know how bad things can get. Bins overflow and the
foul stench of rotting garbage is quite unbearable. Dogs, crows and rats rummage through the
rubbish and distributing it all over the neighborhood. The return of the garbage truck s like
heaven sent. We breathe a sigh of relief when it comes.
Stinking and dirty it might be, but the garbage struck is a very necessary part of our lives.
clutter up
stench
rummage
went over to the food stalls and bought some popcorn and drinks.
The crowd on the top floor swelled and the queue grew longer. we were glad that we were early.
Judging by the length of the queue, there was a possibility that some of them were not going to
get tickets.
Cathy still had some people in front of her, so we decided to visit the shops nearby. We wandered
into a bookshop. The shop was having a sale and many items were offered at 20 to 70%
discount. I looked at some novels but decided I could not afford any of them despite the
discount. Shelly picked up some stationery but decided to put them back when she saw the long
queue at the checkout. The movie was going to start soon and there would not be enough time to
pay for the stationery.
We left the bookshop. It was already 12.25. So we walked to the entrance of the Cineplex. Cathy
was already there with the tickets.
We gave the tickets to the usher at the entrance. With popcorn and drinks in our hands, we
walked into the Cineplex to watch the movie.
teeming with
props
Describe what you think it would be like to spend some time on the moon
To date, only some astronauts have been to the moon. Certainly I would like to spend some time
on the moon, but that seems to be impossible for the moment. Anyhow, based on what I have
read about the moon, I can imagine what it is like to be on it.
There is no air on the moon. The implications are obvious. I will always nee to wear a spacesuit
that has its own air supply. Never will I be able to walk around in T-shirt, shorts and sandals.
Without a spacesuit, my eyeballs and other organs will possibly explode because there is no
atmospheric pressure to help maintain their size and shape.
Secondly, there is no water on the moon. So there are no rivers, seas, ponds, rain, snow, clouds,
thunder or lightning. The moon is a pretty desolate and silent place. In fact, it is lifeless as no
living organism as we know it can survive there. So there will not be any other animal or
vegetation on the moon, just rocks an sand.
Another consequence of the absence of air and water on the surface of the moon is that the sky
will always appear black. There are no clouds and air to produce the effect of a blue sky that we
so familiar with on earth.
The force of gravity on the surface of the moon is about one-sixth of that on the surface of the
earth. This means that I will only weigh one-sixth of what I weigh on earth. Thus I should be
able to jump much higher and further than on earth. I can imagine breaking the world's highjump and long-jump records with every step I take. As gravity is low, movement will occur in
actual slow-motion.
It would certainly be quite an experience to be on the moon. Things are quite different compared
to those on earth. still I think I prefer things here on earth where my body is made for. I don't
want to be wearing an oversized spacesuit and living in contained quarters indefinitely. It is far
better back on earth where I am bale to run free on the beach, take a dip in the sea or simply lie
back on the cool grass and look at the moon.
desolate
as well.
It took about fifteen minutes before we could get a vacant table. it was a small table placed
against a wall but it was better than nothing. Gratefully we sat down but had to wait again for a
waitress to take our order.
The shop was clearly short-staffed. They had only three waitresses. But I could understand that it
was their opening day and they had not expected such a crowd. The waitresses could hardly
cope. So we sat down for another five minutes before a waitress came to take our order. Then we
waited for the food to be brought.
Anyhow there we were, sitting in a noisy, not-so-cool, air-conditioned chicken-rice shop. It was
not exactly an ideal place to have lunch but we just wanted to try the food.
Eventually our order arrived and we set about having our meal. The chicken rice was only
average. We had expected it to be something special after reading about the 'special chicken rice'
in the newspaper. It was not excellent, but it was not bad either. Certainly it was nothing special.
So we quickly finished our meal, paid for it and left the shop.
At the entrance there were still people waiting to have a taste of the 'special' chicken rice. Well,
we have had our taste and they would have theirs in due course.
reminiscent of sth/sb
in due course
vital for a healthy lifestyle. Regular exercise will not only keep your body trim and fit but it will
also reduce your risk of developing heart disease and diabetes. Exercising on a daily basis for at
least 30 minutes per day will do wonders for your health.
You should sleep for about 7 to 8 hours a day. Doing so will help your body to replenish itself.
Lack of sleep will make you feel tired. It will also affect your concentration. Take part in
recreational activities. There should be a balance between work or study and leisure. Remember,
"All work and no play makes lack a dull boy".
A the same time, keep away from unhealthy habits and activities. Stop smoking as it is harmful
to health. Not only doe smoking cause life-threatening diseases like heart disease and lung
cancer, it will also cause wrinkles and lead to premature aging.
People who live a healthy lifestyle tend to be healthier, live longer and are happier. On the other
hand, people who do not live a healthy lifestyle are prone to illness and stress.
hectic
replenish
prone to
A hit-and-run accident
It was the school holidays ! For many youngsters it was a time for fun and games.
In one particular housing estate, the children enjoyed riding their bicycles around the area. The
housing estate in which they lived in was relatively quiet and it was quite safe to ride their
bicycles on the road, but as young boys go, they can tend to get a bit reckless sometimes, too
reckless for their own good.
The residents of the area were usually careful when they drove their cars. Even so there were
several near misses as the drivers had to avoid the reckless young children on their bicycles. The
children had no knowledge of traffic rules and they did pretty much as they pleased. Their
parents never educated them about road safety. In effect, the young cyclists were just accidents
waiting to happen. It was just a mater of time before something tragic happened.
One evening as a group of five children was tearing down a road on their bicycles, a van
suddenly shot out of a side road right in their path. The driver was obviously a stranger to the
area and did not see the danger until it was too late. He braked hard and swerved his van in an
attempt to avoid hitting the young cyclists. Tried as he did, he could not avoid hitting the leading
cyclist. The front end of the van collided with the young cyclist with a sickening crunch. The boy
was flung onto the road.
The van stopped and the driver opened the door, but he did not get out. Instead he closed the
door, reversed his van from the fallen boy and the wrecked bicycle, engaged a forward gear and
sped off. He did not want to hang around to deal with the angry residents knowing full well that
he might be bashed up or perhaps even killed.
It was just as well that he fled for soon the residents ran out of their houses and onto the scene of
the accident. the boy was still alive. One of the men lifted him up, put him into a neighbor's car
and took him to the hospital.
For more than an hour after the accident the angry residents milled around the area uttering
curses. However nobody had noted down the number of the van. All they knew was that it was
driven by a young man, nothing more. To this day the identity of the hit-and-run van is
unknown. The accident victim is alive but walks with a limp. Although the incident was not a
pleasant one, it at least has a positive effect. The young cyclists do not ride recklessly around
anymore. Their parents do not want a repeat of the accident.
bashed up
hit-and-run
HIV, short for "human immunodefiency virus" is a virus that progressively destroys the body's
immune system. It does so by killing or damaging cells of the body's immune system.
In the early stages, HIV infection may have no symptoms or just symptoms of a flu-like illness.
However as the disease progresses, the symptoms become progressively more severe. This may
take several years to manifest.
AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) is the advanced stage of HIV infection. The
body's immune system has been largely destroyed and it is susceptible to many life-threatening
diseases and certain cancers.
HIV infection reached world wide epidemic proportions since emerging in the 1980s.
Transmission is mostly done through unprotected sex, the sharing of syringes or needles, and
from infected mother to baby during pregnancy or birth. However there is no evidence that the
infection can be spread through saliva or casual contact.
In the final stages of disease where the body has practically no immune system, all sorts of
opportunistic infection can affect the body. The inevitable result of this is death.
Precautions that can be taken to prevent HIV infection include having no unprotected sex
especially with someone you do not know well even if he or she shows no symptoms of
infection. Also do not share or repeat the use of needles and syringes. The best thing to do is to
not to have multiple sex partners and not to take drugs. AIDS is a killer. Your life is too precious
to take chances with it.
choke
indulgent
oblivious
pulsating
frantic
feat
Describe a time when the health authorities carried out fogging in your area
Dengue fever is an ever-present threat in our country and often the health authorities carry out
fogging to destroy the adult Aedes Egypti mosquitoes that carry the disease-causing virus.
We heard that one of our neighbors was hospitalized with dengue fever. Two days later, just as
the sun was setting, a van carrying officials from the Health Department arrived in our
neighborhood. Two uniformed men went round the houses informing the occupants that they
were carrying out fogging in the area, including inside each house. everyone was to come out of
their houses.
Two other men, each armed with a fogging machine and wearing a gas mask, then proceeded to
fog the area.
The machines made a very loud wailing noise and produced huge amounts of smoke. This smoke
was the very substance that killed mosquitoes, or for that matter, many small insects that come in
contact with it. It had a slightly pungent smell to it and we were advised not to breathe it in. After
all it killed mosquitoes and insects. It was definitely not good for us to breathe it in.
The men went from house to house fogging the compound and the inside of each house. As all
the occupants had to come out, some elderly residents were helped out by younger ones. So for
about half an hour, all the residents in our neighborhood stood or sat outside while they watch
the men fog their houses. During that time, neighbors exchanged stories and news about the
dengue situation and the victim who was still in hospital. It was actually a bit of a social event
for the residents.
The smoke dissipated after the men left. Then house by house, the occupants returned to their
homes that would be free of mosquitoes for a day or so. The residual smell was tolerable. It was
a change from having to put up with irritating mosquitoes on most days.
Fogging was an effective way of destroying mosquitoes but it did not eradicate them, for soon
the larvae that were living in water would soon emerge as adult mosquitoes to bite and possibly
endanger us once again.
dengue fever
tolerable
dissipated
In a dilemma
Write a story telling what you did when you found yourself in a dilemma.
We were having a history lesson with Mrs. Lee. She was droning on and many of us must be
feeling utterly bored. I, for one, was wishing that time would pass faster. Anyhow as she turned
her back to write on the blackboard, I saw Becky throw a piece of chalk at her. The chalk hit her
on the head.
She turned round, picked up the chalk and looked at the class. "Who threw the chalk ?" she
demanded.
Her eyes glared at us. "Now who did this ?" she demanded again. There was no answer.
She looked around the class and finally her eyes stopped on me. She pointed her finger at me and
said, "You, stand up and tell me who did it !"
I was in a dilemma. I did not know what to do but I remained quiet.
"All right, you, you, you and you," she pointed out some of my classmates, all boys, "Stand up !
Who did it ?"
They stood up but incredibly nobody said anything. We were all in a dilemma. To tell the teacher
was to betray our classmate, and to not tell her was to disobey her. Both choices were unpleasant.
Tension rose. A minute later, she said to those standing, "You follow me to the headmaster's
office." So we trudged behind her to the headmaster's office. Becky was one of us.
We did not wait long at the office. The headmaster gave each of us a cut on the palm. I did not
know whether I had done right or wrong I only knew that I did not know what to do when faced
with the dilemma. Fortunately I never had to face that again, because Becky stopped his
mischief. He had to, for we would have bashed him up if he repeated it.
in a dilemma
trudged
bashed
A silly mistake
Write a story in which the character made a silly mistake and then had to cope with the
consequences of the mistake.
Juliana had a million things to do every day. Looking after the daily needs of a husband, a
toddler and two school-going children was a full-time job. She had to cook the meals, clean the
house, wash the clothes, fetch the children to and from school, do the shopping and do many
other things that a wife and mother had to do.
The sheer workload that she had to deal with sometimes caused her to make silly mistakes. She
made one such silly mistake when she was preparing dinner one evening. In her rush to get
dinner ready she forgot she had already put salt into the curry chicken she was making. So twice
she put salt into the curry. It was way too much salt. the curry was inedible.
She did not know that she had made the mistake until dinner began. The surprise look on the
faces of her husband and her children when they tasted the curry told her of her mistake. Tears
welled in her eyes. What a silly thing to do, but it was done.
Her husband Raymond was very understanding. He knew how much Juliana had to do every day
and her mistake was unintentional . He got up, hugged his wife, and said, "No need to get upset.
I tis just a mistake. Let us go for dinenr tonight." The children sounded their approval.
So together they cleared the dining table, changed their clothes and drove out to town to have a
nice dinner at the dried chicken restaurant.
inedible
Facing up to a bully
Write a story in which the person who was bullied finally faced up to the bully
Derek was in Standard One and he was a well-mannered boy. His parents taught him to behave
himself in school and not to fight with other boys. However his mild manner was wrongly
perceived as weakness by some of the rougher boys. So one of them, an overweight boy that
stood at least two inches taller than Derek, took to bullying him.
It began with shoving. Then the bully started hitting Derek as and when he felt like it. Recess
time became an unpleasant time for Derek for the bully and his cronies would come looking for
him. He did not fight back nor did he tell his parents or teachers because he did to want to cause
any trouble. So he enduredthe bullying, for a few weeks.
Gradually the bullying got worse and Derek knew he had to face up to the bully, for better or for
worse. So during recess one day, he stood in the shade of a tree and waited for the bully to show
up. True to form, the bully came. This time Derek was ready. He held a short stick hidden behind
his back.
The bully came with clenched fists but before he could land a punch, Derek lashed out with his
stick on the bully's legs. The bully cried out in pain and collapsed on the ground. Derek raised
the stick to strike again but stopped when he saw that the bully was crying and begging him for
mercy.
Teachers and prefects arrived to see what the commotion was all about. He and the bully were
taken to the headmaster's office and each given two cuts for fighting. It was worth it. The bully
never troubled him again.
shoving
endured
commotion
living again.
forte
laggard
hrrendous
grind to a halt
combustible
depleted
to stop slowly
able to burn easily
to reduce something
in size or amount especially supplies of energy
Nuclear energy
Write about the pros and cons of using nuclear energy as a energy source.
Nuclear fission or the splitting of the nucleus of an atom releases great amounts of energy, much
more than any other conventional energy source. Nuclear energy has enormous potential as an
energy source. There is almost limitless supply of energy. However, radioactive by-products and
waste post serious health and environmental risks.
The atomic or nuclear bomb is the uncontrolled release of nuclear energy.
The tremendous power and deadliness of this is evident when Hiroshima and Nagasaki was
destroyed by atomic bombs at the end of World War II in 1945. The devastation was enormous,
nothing like what human beings had seen before. it is not something to be repeated. Even so, the
major powers of the world now possess enough atomic bombs to wipe out the entire population
of the world. It is a chilling thought that human beings are now able to wipe themselves out. We
can only hope that they have the sense not to.
In a nuclear reactor, the release of nuclear energy is controlled. This energy is used for various
purposes such as for generating electricity and driving submarines. However, the reactor has to
be maintained carefully. An accident is potentially disastrous. The leakage of radioactive
substances can cause death to living things and pollution of the environment, such as that which
occurred at Chernobyl.
As it is now, nuclear energy bolds enormous potential as an energy source but it is not totally
safe to use. Perhaps one day, with more research and knowledge, human beings will learn how to
harness nuclear energy safely.
by-products
tremendous
wipe out
to destroy completely
One by one, the children were ushered onto the stage where they received a gift each from Santa.
Two of the children were on wheelchairs but that did not deter them from joining in the fun and
joy. As there were many gifts, Santa also invited young members of the public to go on stage to
receive the gifts. Soon all the gifts were distributed.
Finally all the performers cam eon stage to sing "Silent Night". Many members of the public
sang along as well. It was a short but meaningful show. For the disabled and underprivileged
children, it was indeed a happy occasion.
foyer
rousing
rotund
Bad company
Write a composition on how to spot and avoid bad company.
Mixing with bad company is what every youngster should avoid. The reason is simple. In such a
company, sooner or later the youngster will be exposed to activities that are possibly unhealthy,
unwholesome, antisocial, dishonest, illegal or even criminal. Once exposed, the negative effects
can last a long time, perhaps for a lifetime.
The company you keep will determine largely what you do, how you think and where your life
will proceed. In other words, keeping bad company will eventually ruin your life.
Bad company is not hard to spot. For example if your friends smoke, then chances are you will
catch on. If they take alcohol or drugs, chances are you will be tempted to give them a try. One
try leads to another and it will not be long before you are hooked. Alcoholism, lung diseases,
AIDS or a miserable life may in store for you. So for your own wellbeing, it is better to avoid
such friends. There is no need to make enemies of them. Just avoid them.
If you mix around with friends who vandalize public property, shop-life, scratch cars
or extort money, then it is time to call it quits with them. Such behavior will lead to more
serious offences and it is a matter of time when you are on the wrong side of the law. Get out
quick before it it too late.
Make friends with good and decent people. keep away from bad company.
vandalize
extort
call it quits
sharks came looking for him and threatened his life. We again had to dig up whatever we can to
pay these people off so as to prevent any serious thing from happening to him. We hope that he
has learned his lesson. If this sort of thing should happen again, I doubt that anyone can help him
out. He has practically exhausted what we have saved.
Despite the problems of being in debt, borrowing and lending is still necessary in this world.
Banks give loans to borrowers to set up their businesses or to buy houses and cars. The
government and other bodies give loans to student to further their studies. Family members help
one another out in times of financial need. So borrowing and lending is part and parcel of
living. The important thing is to repay whatever that is borrowed. Only when repayment is done
are the problems over. Certainly it is best not to be a borrower or a lender, but then who can be
sure that they will not become one ?
perpetually
always
exhausted
to be a feature of something
own.
Samuel got out of his car and crossed over to the other side of the road at the next change of
lights. He asked the blind man whether he wanted to cross the road. The blind man nodded. So
when the lights changed again, Samuel quickly helped the man cross the road. It took more than
ten seconds but the waiting vehicles did not move until the duo had crossed safely.
Once across, Samuel asked the blind man where he wanted to go. The man said he wanted to go
to the canteen. Canteen ? He must mean the canteen in the railway station. So Samuel took the
man by the hand and led him to the canteen. On the way he met his nephew Tony. On seeing his
uncle with the blind man, Tony offered to take over the task of leading the blind man.
At the canteen, the proprietor came out and took over. The blind man was one of his relatives. He
thanked the helpful duo and led the blind man inside.
Having done what they could, Samuel and Tony headed towards their car. They were glad they
could see. Being blind was certainly a big handicap.
in a row
thousand times but it took only one accident to end his life.
Most accidents are caused by the errors of the road-users. Very infrequently does vehicle defect
or mechanical failure cause an accident. Usually it is the person using the vehicle who is at fault.
A person who is under the influence of alcohol or drugs is not fit to be using a vehicle because
his or her judgment is compromised. The person may behave erratically or dangerously on the
road and hence the increasing the chances of causing accidents. Many drivers involved in
accidents tested positive for dugs or alcohol. So do not drive if you are under the influence of
drugs or alcohol, and do not sit in a vehicle driven by such a person. Better still, keep away from
drugs or alcohol. They are not of no benefit to you at all.
Know all traffic rules and obey them. If you see people speeding recklessly, jumping queues,
jumping red lights, parking illegally etc., please do not follow their example, or try to teach them
anything. Leave them alone or make a report to the police. Don't try to deal with them on your
own because that would likely create conflict. There have been cases of driver bashing up others
because of a misunderstanding. Don't become a victim of such conflict. If you are involved in an
accident, remain calm and don't argue with the other party. Just call the police and let them
handle the situation.
In a more serious accident, injuries or death may have occurred. Again remain calm and call for
assistance if you are able to. Otherwise wait for assistance to arrive.
The best policy however, is to avoid accidents, for in an accident, it does not really matter who is
right or wrong. What matters is who is left.
Read safety is your responsibility
daredevil
cheat death
setback
drill
A long night
Write a story in which the character had to go through a whole night without sleep.
Little Susie had been complaining about a stomachache for the whole day. The family doctor did
not think that it was serious and sent her home. However in the evening her condition got worse
and Carrie, her mother, was very worried.
At nine in the night, Carrie decided that they should go to the hospital and see a doctor there. So
here husband took her and Susie to the hospital. At the hospital, the doctor examined Susie and
diagnosed her as having acute appendicitis. He arranged for immediate surgery. Things moved
quickly and the hospital staff got Susie ready for the operation.
They wheeled Susie into the operation theater while Carrie waited outside. Her husband returned
home to be with their other two children who were waiting for news of their little kid sister.
An hour later, Susie was wheeled out of the operation room. The doctor assured Carrie that the
operation was successful. There was no complication. Carrie was so relieved. Thank goodness
she decided to come to the hospital.
Carrie's husband came back to the hospital to see if things were okay. He was also very relieved.
As there was nothing else that he could do, he returned home to look after the children. Carrie
remained in the hospital with Susie. The hospital provided a reclining chair for Carrie to sleep on
but sleep was impossible. She was just too concerned for Susie.
The next morning dawned bright and cheery. It had been a long stressful night, but everything
turned out well.
appendicitis
complication
Mistaken identity
Write a story based on how someone was mistaken for another person
Thomas was driving his car along a quiet country road with his friend Paul on the passenger seat.
Paul's arm was in a sling as he had broken it a few weeks ago.
The quiet drive suddenly turned into a nightmare when a car with three men in it overtook them.
The man at the back seat pointed a gun at Thomas and motioned him to stop. Horrified, Thomas
had no choice but to comply. He stopped by the roadside. The two friends sat petrified,
wondering what that was all about.
Quickly, the three men in the car got out. All of them had guns which they pointed at the two
friends. One of them cried out in a loud voice for the two friends to get out of the car with their
hands up. Again they had no choice but to comply. Paul, of course, could only raise one hand, the
other being in a sling.
One of the men took out a badge and identified himself as a police officer. His men frisked Paul
and Thomas. Satisfied that they were unarmed, he demanded to see the friends' identity card.
Paul and Thomas handed their ICs over to the police officer. the officer scrutinized the cards.
"Sorry, we apologize for the inconvenience. we thought that you were someone else. We are
looking for a desperate fugitive with a broken arm and we had to check you out," the officer
explained. With that they left the two friends.
It took a few minutes before Paul and Thomas regained their composure. It was just a case of
mistaken identity, and it was a really frightening one.
frisked
composure
to use your hands to search someone's body when they are wearing
clothes to see if they are hiding illegal objects or weapons
the feeling of being calm, confident, and in control
Snatch thieves
Write a story that involves a snatch thief.
It was lunch time in the city. Sally and two of her colleagues left their office and walked towards
their favorite restaurant a short distance away. Sally had a handbag slung over her shoulder.
At a crossing, they waited for the light to turn green. When it did, Sally, her colleagues and many
other people crossed over to the other side of the road. Suddenly from the traffic that had stopped
at the crossing, a motorcycle leapt forward. Two men were on it. In a flash, they were beside
Sally and the pillionrider grabbed her handbag. The force of the grab sent Sally tumbling to the
ground. The strap broke and the pillion rider held the handbag in his hand. The rider turned the
throttle and the motorcycle sped off down the road, weaving between other vehicles in their rush
to get away.
Fortune did not favor the thieves. A few seconds later, they crashed into a tanker in the middle of
the road. The two men were sent flying, hitting other vehicles before falling on the road. They
lay motionless.
The whole sequence of events occurred in less than fifteen seconds. In that time, two distracted
drivers crashed into the vehicles in front of them. Finally all traffic stopped. Some men rushed to
the thieves and pulled them to the roadside.
Sally sat on the kerb with her colleagues by her side. She was badly shaken by the whole
incident. She had some cuts and bruises on her body. Otherwise she was all right.
pillion
kerb
Getting lost
Write a story in which the character lost his or her way while going to an unfamiliar destination.
Ten years had passed since Fannie and her friend Laura left school. Fannie used to wonder how
Laura was until they chanced upon each other in the market one day.
Fannie promised to visit Laura the coming Sunday morning. So on the appointed day, Fannie
drove her car into the housing estate where Laura lived. Ten years was a long time and the oncefamiliar surroundings had changed drastically. Everything seemed strange. Fannie tried to look
for familiar landmarks but she could not see any.
She drove in the direction that she thought was the way to Laura's house, but the more she drove
the more she realized that she did not know where she was. She was lost. It was incredible how
she could lose her way in a place that once she knew like the back of her hand, but the fact
remained that she was lost.
There was only one thing to do, and that was to call Laura and ask for help. Thank God for the
mobile phone. She parked her car by a mini market and made the call to Laura. Laura said she
would come to the mini market.
A few minutes later, Laura appeared in her car. Fannie was very relieved. She followed Laura to
her house where the two friends renewed their friendship over a cup of tea.
chanced upon
potter
germinate
rummaging
trudge
grouchy
profanity
chastise
Describe a time when you did not heed a good advice and what the consequences
were.
I was at my friend Rick's house to do some mathematics homework together. Rick's is a whiz
with mathematics and he helped me complete the homework in record time.
As it was getting towards dinner time, I decided to head on home about two kilometers away.
Outside the house I could see thick black clouds and flashes of lightning in the eastern sky. There
was huge storm going on there. So I got on my bicycle to get home before the storm struck us.
Rick's mother came out, saw the distant storm and told me not to cycle home. She said that she
would send me home in her car. It was better not take the risk of riding the bicycle on the busy
main road in the middle of a storm. It was dangerous. I declined her offer, thanked her and
pedalled off before she could say any more.
Just as I got on the main road, the storm struck. Raindrops came thick and fast. In seconds I was
soaked to the skin. I looked for shelter but could see none. Fortunately my books were in a
plastic bag and they should be fine. So I decided that since I was already soaking wet, I might as
well go all the way home on my bicycle.
The road was fairly quiet as it was out of town. Some cars and lorries passed me kicking up
spray. I could not get any wetter so I did not mind. I had only one thing on my mind and that was
to get home.
It was foolish of me to do cycle under such dangerous conditions as visibility was very low. One
moment I was going along quiet nicely, the next I found myself lying in a puddle of water beside
the road. The road was covered with water and I did not even realized that I have left it and had
fallen into a hole. Fortunately the hole was not very big but it was very wet. I picked myself and
the bicycle up and groped in the pool for my books. No plastic bag would have saved the books.
They were wet through and through. I should have listened to Rick's mother's advice. now I
still have more than a kilometer to go in the rain. As it was dangerous to cycle, I pushed my
bicycle all the way home.
groped
through and through
Write a story about how a robbery ended tragically for the robber
I sat down on a row of chairs. There were not many people in the bank on the Tuesday afternoon.
So I figured that I would not have to wait long for my turn.
Suddenly I heard someone shout behind me. instinctively I looked around and was shocked to
see two gunmen brandishing handguns and telling everyone in the bank to get down on the
floor. I obeyed quickly. I was too stunned to feel any fear. I just lay down on the floor like the
other customers.
I could not see anything except the floor tiles next to my face but I heard harsh voices shouting,
the sound of someone being hit and some death threats being uttered. It sounded like the robbers
would not hesitate to shoot anyone who did not comply.
From the corner of my eye I caught the sight of a pair of moving boots. For the first time I felt
fear. The boots must be that of one of the robbers ! Anyhow the boots disappeared from view for
a moment, reappeared and then disappeared again. I heard the trampling of feet and I knew that
the robbers were making their escape. It did not take them long to do their dirty business.
I raised my head and had a momentary glimpse of two figures running out of the bank door.
Another figure flashed past my view and I realized that it was a security guard. He was holding a
pump gun in his hands ! I got up to have a better view.
The security guard ran out of the bank just as the robbers were making their getaway on a
motorcycle. The motorcycle sped off just as the guard leveled his gun and fired at the fleeing
duo.
Even in the bank, the sound of the shot was deafening. From my position I saw the shot hit the
pillion rider smack on his back. There was a spray of blood and the body went limp. As the
motorcycle accelerated, the pillion rider was flung backwards onto the road in a lifeless heap.
The guard fired another shot at the remaining motorcyclist. The shot missed the target but
shattered the back screen of a car nearby.
By then I was out of the bank watching the real-life action. So were other customers. It was just
like in the movies except that it was for real. The guard ran up to the robber that he had shot and
examined the slumped figure. There was no sign of life. The guard then picked up a bag that the
robber had dropped. No doubt it contained the loot.
I watched the scene until the police arrive about ten minutes later. After I went home as there was
no point hanging around I could do my banking at another time.
brandishing
trampling
make a bundle
dreadful
fall back on
ubiquitous
encroach
annihilation
incapacitate
unprecedented
indispensable
Today, many men, women and children are overweight. This is the direct
consequence of our modern lifestyle where many physical chores and activities are
taken over by machines and energy-saving devices. No longer do we have to chop
firewood, fetch water from the well, wash clothes with our hands, or get on our
hands and knees to scrub the floor. These are all taken care of by gas stoves, piped
water, washing machines, vacuum cleaners etc.
Also we do not have to hunt for our dinner, toil in the field, or herd the sheep. Modern machines
and farming methods have mostly replaced physical labor. So many of us, without the physical
exertions that burn up energy and keep us lean, become overweight.
At first glance, overweight people may not appear to have any problem, but behind their chubby
faces and pot-bellies, they are just medical time-bombs waiting to go off. An overweight person
has increased risks of falling prey to hypertension, diabetes, cardiovascular problems, cancer and
many otherdebilitating diseases. These potentially deadly conditions are in addition to the sheer
weight that the person have to lug around every day, making it hard to walk for a distance, climb
stairs, or even just to get up from a chair.
I know some overweight people and very one of them already has some kind of physical or
health problem. One of my classmates is grossly overweight. While we run and play in the field,
he just sits under the tree because he cannot keep up with us. He gets breathless easily and has to
rest. My overweight uncle spends most of his time in front of the idiot box munching yet another
box of snacks. He is a real 'couch potato'. Already he ahs had a couple of toes amputated because
of his diabetic condition. Yet he does not exercise or do something to reduce his weight.
Buying clothes off the rack is also another problem for the overweight person. They usually have
to have their clothes specially tailored. This incurs greater expenses. Furthermore the range of
clothes they can choose from is limited to the skill of their tailor.
Being overweight is certainly no fun, and is definitely hazardous to health. Unless the person has
some kind of illness that causes him or her to be overweight, it is possible to reduce one's weight
with proper diet and exercises. It is better to keep within the normal range and stay healthy as
much as possible. We do not need weight problems. Living is much more pleasant and enjoyable
without them.
toil
debilitating
wipe out
recklessly
jaywalking
better off
to be in a better situation
set about
to start to do something
You have been asked by your teacher to give a talk on a book you have read. You have
decided to talk on a fiction book.
Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. I am here today to give a book review. The title of the
fiction book I have read is Heidi. The author of the book is Johanna Spyri. I would highly
recommend that all of you read this book.
First, the plot is very touching. A young girl of five was left with her gruff and friendless
grandfather up in the Alps. However, there grew a bond between the two of them. Heidi loved
running around in the mountains with her friend, Peter, the goatherd and the goats. Then one day,
her aunt came back and forcibly took her back to the city to stay with the invalid daughter of a
rich man. Heidi pinedfor her grandfather and home in the Alps.
I also like the way the characters are drawn. I can feel Heidi's joy in running around the
mountains and her sadness being confined in a huge house. The other major characters are
Grandfather, Peter, Clara and Grandmother and Dete. The author describes each character so that
you can picture them in your mind.
Despite being intimidated by the strict and rigid housekeeper, Heidi manages to retain her own
identity and beliefs. This is a major theme of the book.
Another theme is the generosity of Heidi as seen against the selfishness of her Aunt Dete as well
as the housekeeper. The author's message is not to impose our ideas of what is proper or right on
others.
Though there seems to be a lot of emphasis on the importance of prayer, the story is fast-moving
and you will get immersed in Heidi's activities and problems. The story is well written.
Dialogue used is very effective. Johanna Spyri understands the world of the young and the
elderly.
Finally, this is one of the best novels I have read. I would recommend it to anyone of any age.
Find out for yourself what happens to Heidi.
Thank you.
gruff
pined
immersed in
My friends
I am a gregarious kind of person. I enjoy the company of friends. I can divide my friends
into fair-weather friends, buddies and true friends.
'Fair-weather friends' are those who come to you when they are in trouble. For example, Shah is
always saying, 'Oh Jay, could I borrow ten dollars, please. I'll return it tomorrow.' `That shirt is
really cool. I have a date tonight. Could I..: Another such friend is Ah Tan. `If you are a true
friend, you would let me copy your assignment. I had no time to do it. Just the first page. What
about the outline?' Of course if you are in trouble, they are the first to disappear.
Some of my friends share the same likes and dislikes as I do. For this reason, I like being with
my buddies, Az and Boon. We go for shows together. We watch almost everything related to Star
Wars and inter-space travel. We like watching football and are fans of Liverpool. During the
English Premier League season, we would discuss and dissect the players and the games for
hours each day. Boon, Az and I are bookworms and enjoy reading adventure stories, especially
those by Clive Cussler. We also love to hang out at Seng's Kopitiam. Their fried chicken is truly
crispy and fragrant. Once, we ate twenty pieces each. That was a record.
I am very lucky to have a special friend who is loyal to me, and always stands by me. My special
friend lets me simply be myself. I can be grouchy and grumpy and he understands. I can ignore
him and he does not sulk or retaliate. My true friend is Duke. Duke is a five-year-old mongrel,
who is intelligent, warm and loving. He waits for me at the gate to welcome me home. When I
feel depressed, he will play with me to cheer me up. If I am not in the mood, he will
gregarious
fair-weather friends
nuzzle
School should start at 9:30 am not 7:30 am. To what extent do you agree ?
Support your opinion
If school were to start later, at 9.30 a.m., not the unearthly hour of 7.30 a.m., everyone would
look forward to school.
Firstly, to be at school by 7.30 a.m. would mean that we have to drag ourselves up by 6.00 a.m.,
if not 5.30 a.m. The thought of trudging to school in the dark is enough to drive all joy away.
Moreover, before the morning is over, students are tired and drooping. How can any learning
take place when we cannot even keep our eyes open?
Secondly, teenagers who have insufficient sleep cannot do well at school. We all know that sleep
is food for the brain. Teenagers need at least nine hours of sleep each night to function best.
Being sleep-deprived, their brains cannot absorb information. They cannot solve problems. They
are grouchy and grumpy. Traditionalists may say this is just an excuse. School has started at 7.30
a.m. since ages ago. Just go to bed earlier. However, sleep specialists have researched that
hormonal changes in teenagers keep them awake until quite late. Biological sleep patterns shift
later and later for adolescents. It is natural for them not to be able to sleep before 11.00 p.m.
Thirdly, many teenagers miss breakfast to get to school on time. We all know that breakfast is the
most important meal of the day and should not be missed. In addition, teenagers can have
bonding time with parents if school starts later. They can take their time over breakfast with their
parents. Many working parents come home late. By which time they are too tired to want to do
more than have a meal and rest.
In conclusion, authorities should not be afraid to make changes. If school were to start later,
students will definitely do better at school.
trudging
drooping
grouchy
The Curse
In the novel The Curse by Lee Su Ann, an important lesson that I learned is that we must always
be calm and in control of our actions, even in times of distress.
The Old Lady, who lives in the jungle, has prepared some herbal medicine for Mohd Asraf's
grandmother who is ill. Asraf is Azreen's friend and the Old Lady agrees to help him, although
she is greatly misunderstood and mistreated. However, after a few days, Asraf's grandmother
passed away. Asraf is overcome with grief and he is swayed by the angry words of the villagers
who believe that the Old Lady is a witch. He cannot think clearly and gives in to his uncontrolled
feelings of sadness and rage. Asraf and the villagers go to the Old Lady's house to confront her.
Azreen runs to the Old Lady's house to stop them. During her scuffle with Asraf, he accidentally
drops the torch he is holding and sets the house on fire. The Old Lady is trapped inside. Before
she dies, she tells Azreen to remember all that she has taught her and learn to forgive. The Old
Lady remains calm even though she is trapped under a beam and manages to still give Azreen
some words of advice.
Asraf later regrets his actions, which he knows are caused by grief, but it is too late. If Asraf had
remained calm, then he would not have listened to the villagers who were frightened by old
rumours. The villagers are quick to look on the negative side of things and accuse the Old Lady
of wrongdoing. Asraf should have taken some time to think and remember the Old Lady's
kindness instead of acting irrationally.
This event has shown me the importance of staying calm and being in control of our thoughts
and actions so that we will not regret later.
distress
scuffle
irrationally
Ralph, on the other hand, enjoys the love of his many stepmothers and siblings. There is
much disorder in his family but the fact that there is care and love among the members keeps
him and the family going. Pixie has to struggle through some emotions and make adjustments to
understand that she is loved by her father and stepmother. Robbo accepts his stepfather more
readily than his sister does. His sister does not care for their stepfather and she returns to her
father. All these examples show that children instinctively look for love and care and need lots of
reassurance. When that is missing, they feel devastated and are likely to suffer and face great
difficulty in adapting to a changed family situation.
let down
a feeling of disappointment
disorder
lack of organization
devastated
Write about a person who was very poor and later became successful.
Minah looked at her father with concern. He appeared tired. It was hard work indeed, getting up
so early to work in the farm and the returns were often very bad. The rains last night had wiped
out much of the harvest. Minah's family was very upset to see the fallen fruits and destroyed
vegetables. There was much gloom in the little wooden house they called home.
The whole family had to work on the farm to get enough vegetables and fruits to sell at the
market. Minah went to the nearby school in the morning and when she returned she would rush
through her homework before she helped her parents. They had no luxuries and there was very
little time to rest or do anything else. At times, Minah and her brothers had barely enough food to
eat.
Perhaps it was seeing her parents working so hard without any complaints or the sight of her
brothers sitting with their books late at night, but whatever it was Minah was determined to do
well in life. Minah's parents loved their children and encouraged them to work hard at school.
Her older brothers managed to complete their secondary education but Minah had a dream.
Every time she walked past the university in her town, she told herself that she would get a
degree. It was a burning desire that she nursed in her heart.
Minah did well in school and passed the exams with good results. Her teachers encouraged and
advised her to apply for a scholarship. Minah did exactly that. To her joy, she managed to get a
scholarship to study agriculture. It was a field that was close to her heart and it was no surprise
that she did brilliantly in the university. Minah took a job that paid well and was able to help her
family considerably.
Some years later, Minah started a research centre in a rural area and was able to employ other
people to work for her. Her centre did well and she was often invited to give talks to people
interested in this field. She presented papers on various aspects of agriculture and was soon
recognised as an authority on the subject. Minah had made it. She was a success.
wiped out
gloom
Cats
The domestic cat or house cat is a small domesticated animal that is beautiful and confident. It
is often kept as an indoor pet. Cats are often valued by humans for companionship and their
ability to hunt rats, lizards and all sorts of household pests. A genetic study in 2007 revealed that
domestic cats are descended from African Wildcats circa 8000 BCE, in the Middle East.
Since cats were cult animals in ancient Egypt, they were commonly believed to have been
domesticated there, but there may have been instances of domestication as early as the Neolithic.
According to research, cats are the most popular household pet in the world, and are now found
in almost every place where people live.
Cats have strong, flexible bodies, quick reflexes, sharp retractable claws and teeth that are
adapted to killing small prey. They are predatory in nature. Cats can hear sounds too faint or too
high in frequency for human ears, such as those made by mice. They can see in near darkness
and have an acute sense of smell. Like most other mammals, cats can't see colours the way
humans can.
Despite being solitary hunters, cats are a social species, and cat communication includes
mewing, purring, trilling, hissing, growling and grunting as well as other types of cat-specific
body language.
Just like dog shows, there are cat shows for pedigree cats. Breeding here is done in a controlled
manner, where only the best males and females are bred for a limited number of times. However,
failure
to control the breeding of pet cats by spaying and neutering can cause serious problems as cats
breed very rapidly. Furthermore, the abandonment of former household pets, has resulted in
large numbers of feral cats worldwide, requiring population control.
domesticated
retractable
spaying
Write a story that ends with: '... I am amazed at what people can achieve when they are
forced to.'
Sarimah was a normal kampung girl who had a normal upbringing. She worked hard at school
and also in her father's paddy fields. She was the top student in her class.
Unfortunately, her father suffered a heart attack and was confined to their home, unable to tend
the fields. Her six siblings, three boys and three girls were too young to understand. Sarimah
knew by the look on her mother's face that she would have to take over. At the young age of
sixteen she decided that she would not let her family suffer poverty. She forged ahead with the
upbringing
International, a well-known establishment that has carried out various social programs to
promote better understanding among people. Rotary's programs for students and youth can
change the lives of those who participate. Through these programs, young people can earn
scholarships, travel on cultural exchange, or help a community through a service project.
Firstly, you should join the Interact Club because it promotes understanding among people
of diverse backgrounds, cultures and religions. This is vital in a plural society like Malaysia.
Then, there is social responsibility. Our club visits orphanages, homes for the aged, and conducts
other activities such as clean-ups in public areas. This is to inculcate a love for our environment
which is being threatened by the ignorance and selfishness of the majority.
As I mentioned in my introduction, the Interact Club promotes sharing and caring through
networking. The captains of industry, businessmen and women, professionals and other working
adults from the Rotary community provide a strong network that spans the globe in supporting
young people with activities that promote sharing knowledge, culture and opportunities.
In conclusion, I feel that the Interact Club is a beneficial club to join with many advantages. So
on a parting note, I bid you welcome. Thank you.
diverse
parting
The school building will be clean and inviting. Students will enjoy many facilities that
technology has brought them. Shuttles will take the children from one building to another. There
will be sky bridges connecting buildings and, therefore, students and teachers can access all the
different facilities easily.
All the classrooms will be equipped with facilities of technology so that learning will be an
exciting experience. There will be a chance to gain hands-onexperience as students will get to
go on field trips regularly. Children will learn at their own pace and thus there will be less
pressure to keep up with others. A vibrant learning environment will make school an attractive
place of children.
Teachers will be facilitators and will assist children to acquire knowledge as robots or machines
cannot replace the human factor. Naturally, teachers will still be needed to teach human values
and emotional growth as machines cannot be a substitute in that aspect. Only human beings can
impart feelings and ensure that students understand their role in the world as caring and
responsible inhabitants of this planet.
The school of the future will make sure that the students leave school with the necessary skills to
fit the employment market and be good citizens of the country. Students must understand that
they have a role to play in this world. When they leave school, they must be good human beings
of whom the country can be proud.
hands-on
field trips
My Neighbour
Mak Cik Salmah is sixty-two but she does not look a day over fifty. She is forever complaining
that she is overweight but we tell her that she is pleasantly plump. Her hair is always swept
mesmerized
me aside after a church choir practice last Thursday and slapped me with an appointment with
her. I shouldn't have opened my mouth so wide while singing.
Suddenly, a nurse called my name. I felt like a sheep to be slaughtered as she ushered me into
the room. Dr Tan was smiling sweetly but she looked intimidating in her white overcoat. "Just
tell me when you are going to take it out," I pleaded nervously. She donned her mask and looked
downright serious. I opened my mouth to show her where the affected tooth was. She made some
small talk but I could only nod in response. Then, she injected some anaesthetic. "Does it hurt?"
she asked. I was stunned momentarily by the ant-bite sensation. Then, she ushered me to a chair.
"Wait here till the medicine takes effect," she said.
While waiting, I felt my lips growing bigger. Dr Tan continued her chit-chatting with her patient
while drilling his tooth. Dentists are weird. They ask you questions that need more than a one
word answer and at the same time they are working inside your mouth. This was the first time I
saw the other side of her. However, I did not have time to dwell on that as another more pressing
matter was before me. By the end of the ten minutes I was pretty sure everyone was looking at
my lips.
I was back on the chair again. She knocked on the affected tooth. "Does it hurt?" she asked
again. By now, I couldn't feel anything. "I'm just going to loosen the tooth a bit first," she
continued. I felt her moving here and there. "Now, rinse your mouth," she said. After that, I sank
back into the chair reluctantly. "It's done," she announced. "Here is your tooth," she said as she
shoved a little dish into my hands.
I could not believe my eyes. The tooth was huge although one of its roots was gone. I slipped out
of the chair, still dazed by it all. I waved goodbye and she patted me on my back. Before I could
say anything, she had already nodded at her next patient. On my way out of the room, the nurse
gave me some painkillers and some cotton. "Remember your appointment next week," she
reminded. How could I forget? The drill would be waiting for me next week but the thought that
Dr Tan would be attending to me somehow made it seem less frightening. I would certainly be in
good hands.
ushered
dwell on
Lumpur to a small town like Slim River, where I live. In my town, the night market is held once
a month along the street in the middle of the town. The whole street is closed to traffic on the
first Saturday of every month. This is the only night when the town comes alive.
The first to arrive at the site are the hawkers, stall owners and wholesalers who come in lorries
and vans to unload their goods. The next hour is spent arranging their wares on their makeshift
stalls. Soon, the whole place is transformed into a big shopping centre, brightly illuminated by
flourescent lamps and colorful bulbs.
Many shoppers flock to the night market to get their vegetables. There are a few vegetable stalls
offering fresh vegetables at affordable prices. Housewives would quickly snap up the fresh
vegetables after some bargaining. Later in the night, one can buy these vegetables at discounted
prices as vendors try to finish their stock for the night. It is funny to see them trying to outdo one
another, shouting on top of their voices, "Satu ringgit, tiga ikat..."
Apart from vegetables and fruit, there are also food stalls. The aroma of freshly fried
chicken, ayam panggang, yong tow foo, fish balls, and laksa is enough to tempt any fussy eater.
As for children, there are ice cream stalls, burgers, and sweets of all shapes and sizes.
At the other end of the street, there will be a few textile stalls. There is also a famous secondhand stall which sells cheap jeans and jackets. For those who cannot afford to get a new pair of
jeans, this is the place to shop. There is also a famous makcik who sells trendy clothes, colorful
scarves and tudung of various patterns and colors.
Shoppers who flock to the night market come from as far as the nearby towns. Some are here to
shop and hunt for bargains while some are here to take a leisurely stroll on a Saturday night. The
youngsters would take this time to hang out with their friends, enjoying the fiesta-like
atmosphere.
Some nights, one can come across interesting personalities who try to sell their wares with a
microphone, encouraging and urging buyers to choose any three items for RM10. One can also
come across the medicine man, crouching mysteriously in one corner, selling medicine to cure
some illnesses or to increase one's strength.
By 10.30 p.m. the crowd slowly dwindles. Usually, there is litter everywhere. Our night markets
are quite different from the flea markets of Europe. They offer not only cheap items for sale but
also a variety of goods. One can call it a 'one-stop shopping centre' of Malaysia.
tempt
flock
dwindles
trickling down
jostling
parched
flows slowly
to knock or push roughly against someone in order to move
past them or get more space when you are in a crowd of people
extremely thirsty
Write a short story ending with the following sentence, "I shall never forget this day for the
rest of my life."
I just could not tear my eyes away from the empty chair in front of me. It was just too difficult to
concentrate on the task in front of me - my Chemistry examination. So much has happened in
just twenty-four hours.
Twenty-four hours ago, Charles was sitting in front of me, struggling with the History
examination. He was so relieved when the examination was over. We went to our usual hangout
with the gang. He ordered his usual teh tarik and I noticed that he looked a little under the
weather. He brushed it aside as 'exam fever'. Little did I know that it would be the last time I
would see him alive.
Later that night, I received a call from Aunty Grace. She told me that Charles had been admitted
to the hospital for suspected dengue fever. Then, she paused for what seemed like ages and said
in a tearful voice, "Charles has left us. He slipped into a coma and never regained
consciousness." I do not recall how I spent the rest of the night. I only remembered calling our
friends and we went to Charles's house.
I looked at my friends who were writing furiously and I wondered whether they were struggling
like me. I glanced at my watch and realized that it was already 10.30 in the morning. We would
be going for the funeral service in about an hour. How was I going to say goodbye to my dear
friend, my mentor and my counselor? He was there for me when my father passed away three
years ago and he had always been like a big brother to me. I could still hear his jokes,
his clowning around with us after the exam. How could I not know that he was sick?
The examination hall was unusually quiet. Miss Jeya signaled us to get into her car. Tears blurred
my vision. I suddenly remembered the last time we were together in her car. We were going for a
debate and Charles was our first speaker. He made us laugh at his antics till our sides ached.
At the service, Aunty Grace looked calm as we took our places. Then, it was time for my
presentation. I took a deep breath. I wanted to say a few words before my song but I choked.
Aunty Grace looked at me and smiled encouragingly. Then, I sang 'Amazing Grace', Charles's
favorite song. "I once was lost, but now am found, was blind but now I see." As my voice soared,
I knew Charles was listening and I felt at peace, Goodbye, my friend, till we meet again. I shall
never forget this day for the rest of my life.
clowning around
act stupidly
impart
keep abreast with
dreading
frantically
Stress
Stress is defined as a person's response to his environment. Symptoms of stress include
exhaustion, loss of/increased appetite, headaches, crying, sleeplessness, and oversleeping.
Feelings of alarm, frustration, or apathy may accompany stress. Working adults often face workrelated stress. What is even more alarming is that more and more children are also suffering from
stress.
There are many ways in which we can reduce stress in our lives. Firstly, get up fifteen minutes
earlier each morning. That gives you a little more time to eat something, run back to get
something you may have forgotten, or enjoy a cup of coffee before heading out the door. If you
drive to work, a 15- or 20-minute head start may mean facing less traffic, thus making the
journey less stressful.
The next thing that we can do to reduce stress is to confide in someone we trust. Don't keep
things bottled up. Talking with someone helps you to put things in better perspective. Who
knows, they may even have solutions to your problems. Do not be afraid to seek professional
help if you feel you have reached breaking point.
Besides that, learn how to relax. Meditation and breathing exercises have proved to be very
effective in controlling stress. Practice clearing your mind of disturbing thoughts. The quickest
and most effective way of eliminating feelings of stress and panic is to close your eyes and take
several long, slow, deep breaths. Breathing in this way calms your whole nervous system.
Simultaneously, you could give yourself some mental pep-talk by mentally repeating "I am calm
and relaxed" or "I know I will be fine".
Finally, learn to set your priorities right and do not over-commit yourself. People who are overcommitted tend to feel overwhelmed and suffer. Reduce the number of events going on in your
life and you may reduce the circuit overload. Set realistic goals for yourself and put it in writing.
Do not worry over the small stuff but reward yourself when you have been successful in
achieving even some small goals.
Some say that a little stress is good for you as it pushes you to react and achieve your goals. On
the other hand, when stress is prolonged, it causes physical and emotional problems that may
damage both your health and your performance. Thus, it is important for us to learn how to
handle our stress.
bottled up
enthrall
prowess
great ability
etched
trickled in
cajole
obsession
jostling
clobbered
brewing
rummaging
indebted
about to happen
moving things around carelessly
grateful because of help given
stifled
unable to breathe
foibles
console
outweighs
What qualities do you look for in a friend ? Explain why you think these qualities are
important
The day we learn to talk and socialize is the day we start making friends. As we grow up, we
discover that there are many types of friends. Some are more of anacquaintance and a select few
are confidantes. To me, the word `friend' is sacred. It means more than just a companion who
goes for movies and have laughs over nothing with. A friend is someone I can turn to when I am
down and will always stand by my side through thick and thin. What qualities do I look for in a
friend?
Firstly, my friend should always be caring. This means taking an interest in my problems no
matter how big or petty they are. A friend gives me encouragement even when everyone else is
against me. Many people say they are friends, but most of them run away the minute I am not
cheerful or funny. A real friend sticks by me no matter what mood or predicament I am in. After
all, isn't friendship about accepting and liking people for who and what they are?
Apart from that, a friend should be honest. This quality is crucial to me, because honesty builds
trust. An honest friend will not lie and I must be able to trust the person with my secrets. Apart
from that, sometimes I need an honest opinion about myself or an issue. If a friend is honest, I
can trust that his or her opinion is not biased. This is very important to me, because although the
truth may hurt it will help me to improve. Only an honest friend will be able to do that.
Besides that, a friend must also be able to share the same humor with me. Humor plays an
important role in making your day more lively and enjoyable. Friends who can joke and laugh
over similar things make life so much more fun. As they say, laughter is the best medicine and
brings much joy on dull days.
I welcome everyone as my friend. However, I look for certain qualities which would make him
or her a meaningful friend and someone I can count on. Among them would be honesty, a warm
heart and the
ability to share and participate in the same humor.
acquaintance
predicament
an unpleasant situation
Do you think that the discipline master/mistress in your school is too strict ?
Every school has a discipline teacher to maintain order in school. Some discipline teachers tower
over students while others have rough voices which leave students cringing. Some don a long
cane while others opt for the typical ruler. In general, the discipline teacher is said to be too
strict. However, I find that the discipline teacher in my school is not.
Mr Tiva is a far cry from the typical discipline master. He is a tall and lean man who has held the
discipline teacher position for the last two years. His concept of instilling good moral values into
the delinquents of my school is not by force, but by communicating on the same level as them.
His uncanny ability to understand why a pupil reacted a certain way has more than once
surprised me.
Moreover, he is a very friendly and compassionate teacher. Students never cease to enjoy his
Mathematics classes as he never forgets to incorporate jokes into his lessons. However, he
always knows when to divert his student's attention back to the subject. He
uses unorthodox teaching methods to persuade us to study such as playing Mathematic games
and organizing Maths carnivals. By doing so, he gained the respect of most of the students from
my school.
Besides that, Mr Tiva takes the liberty of visiting the homes of students who have disciplinary
problems. He tries his best to analyze their surroundings and determine the root of the student's
behavior. This technique often brings him success and he has helped many students overcome
their problems. Parents have on many occasions, ridiculed him for blaming them for their
children's bad behavior but those accusations are not true and can be substantiated with evidence.
All in all, Mr Tiva has contributed a lot to my school. After his takeover of the discipline
teacher's position, there has been a sharp decline in truancy and vandalism. Many students here
listen to Mr Tiva out of respect and not fear. They know that what he does is for their own
benefit. Thus, I do not think that my discipline teacher is too strict.
cringing
to feel embarrassed
uncanny
unorthodox
If you were the principal of your school, what changes would you make ?
Being in a position of power means having the ability to make some major changes. If I were to
become the next principal of my school, I would make some changes to the school infrastructure
and facilities. First and foremost, I would build a functional and interactive computer lab. In this
IT era, being well-versed in computers is a must to be one step closer to success in career
advancement. This lab would be of great use to students who do not have a computer or whose
family cannot afford to have one. Since this is the age where they learn new things quicker, it is
the best time for them to learn about computers.
Next, I would have extra classes over weekends and school holidays prior to major examinations.
Extra classes will be conducted by teachers who are dedicated to helping weaker students. This
would be of great help to poorer students who cannot afford to go for tuition.
The learning environment for students is also very important. The chairs and tables of some
classrooms are in very bad condition. Some are old and some have been broken by irresponsible
students. Thus, I would provide new and more comfortable tables and chairs. Nobody can study
peacefully with a creakychair and shabby desk. This would help them to be more comfortable
and increase their attention span in class thus, indirectly improving his or her performance in
school.
The next thing I would do is improve the quality of food served at the canteen. Currently, the
type of food served is not very nutritional, very limited in choice, unhygienic and not tasty.
Insects and fine pieces of dust can sometimes be seen floating on the beverages served. As the
principal, I would impose more stringent rules on the cleanliness and suggest more variety in the
choices of food. I would have a survey to determine the types of healthy food that should be
served and make sure the canteen operators follow this guideline.
Sports play an important part in our lives. Hence, I would improve the quality of sports
equipment and facilities in the school. This would give students, who are not very good
academically, to explore and develop their sports talents. If they perform exceptionally well in
sports, I might discover yet another Nicol David !
These are a few things I would do as a principal. Making the changes stated above will change
how students perceive school and become more motivated to excel in their studies and in life.
creaky
shabby
in bad condition
Loitering
rampant
instill
Water
Water is one of the most vital natural resources for life on Earth. The availability and quality of
water determines not only where people can live, but also their quality of life. Even though there
is plenty of fresh water, it is not available when and where it is needed. Only five per cent of the
world's water is deemed fit for consumption and this figure is shrinking by the day. Thus, it must
be treated as a limited and precious resource.
Without water, all human activity would be affected and come to a standstill. Water is essential
for commercial use which includes fresh water for motels, hotels, restaurants, office buildings,
other commercial facilities, and civilian and military institutions. Domestic water use would be
for drinking, food preparation, bathing, washing, flushing toilets, and watering lawns and
gardens. The other uses would be for industries such as power generators and for agriculture.
The availability of water dictates where and to what extent development can occur. Water must
be in sufficient supply for an area to develop, and an area cannot continue to develop if demand
for water outstrips supply. In the twenty-first century, the demand for water has to be managed
more effectively within the available supply instead of simply building more dams.
The demand for water increases year by year as the human population grows bigger. However,
the supply of clean, useable water does not. Instead, it shrinks due to pollution, deforestation and
global warming. If a balance is not obtained, our source of water will diminish very fast.
There are several ways in which an individual can save this precious commodity. When washing
dishes or hands, don't let the water run while rinsing. Run your washing machine and dishwasher
only when they are full and you could save 1000 gallons of water. Minimize evaporation by
watering plants early in the morning when the temperature is cooler. Replacing the traditional
shower head with a water-saving one could save about a gallon of water each time.
It is said that one can survive a week without food, but only a few days without water. Since
water is the source of all life, it is time great importance is placed to conserve.
come to a standstill
outstrips
Drug abuse
Drug abuse used to be a phrase commonly used for adults, but now it is becoming common
among teenagers. Why does it occur among teenagers and what can be done about it?
There are psychological and social reasons. Some individuals have a genetic predisposition to
becoming depressed due to stress and it is undeniable that teenagehood can be one of the most
stressful stages of life. Such a psychiatric disposition could lead to drug addiction because drugs
give the abusers relief from stress. Having tried it once, the sense of feeling high spurs the user to
get a second fix and so on. Poor stress management and a low self-esteem could also trigger the
use of drugs as the person simply wants to escape reality. The social reason comes in the form of
peer pressure. In order to be accepted by a group, some teenagers succumb to peer pressure
and get hooked on drugs.
Following that, how can one help reduce the risk of teenage involvement in drug abuse? Getting
to know a teenager's friends and their parents on a first name basis will also help a parent know
what their teen is up to. Networking between parents of teenagers is essential. Keeping
connected to their teens is also important. If a parent cannot be home with their teen, call and
leave notes. Have another adult supervise him or sign him up for an after school program. If
these things are not possible, establish a routine for the teenager to keep him busy.
Parents often avoid talking of drugs. They should. However, it must be reminded that these are
conversations, not lectures that would bore teenagers. Instead, unite the family against drugs
using strong family beliefs such as religious teachings. Establish that the family does not use
drugs and there are other healthier ways to enjoy life and fix problems than escaping into a drug
haze.
In doing so, the risks teenagers face against drugs, peer pressure to take drugs and the curiosity
of taking drugs can be minimized, thereby creating a harmonious and healthy living environment
for teenagers to
thrive and excel in.
predisposition
self-esteem
get hooked
School life
In Malaysia, students receive at least 11 years of formal education before entering the job
market. It is in school that students spend a major part of their growing years. School life can be
an enjoyable experience for some while a torture for others. However, everyone needs to
experience school life as education is compulsory in Malaysia and it is an offence if we do not
attend school.
Most children enjoy going to school in the early years of schooling. It is the time when they are
exposed to people of all walks of life and diverse cultures which they will not be able to
experience at home. During their early primary years, children will learn the basics in reading,
writing and arithmetic while getting to know new friends. As they progress to later years in
primary school, the students will be exposed to more complex subjects like History and
Geography. This is to help them to understand the world better.
In secondary school, they are expected to be independent in their learning. However, it is during
this time that they will experience changes physically and emotionally. The teenagers will need
to adapt to these changes well as they have school projects and major examinations
like Penilaian Menengah Rendah and Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia. It is during this time that they
will make major decisions like choosing which stream to study as their decisions will influence
You have achieved excellent results in your examination recently. Write a letter to your
teacher who has helped you, expressing your gratitude and appreciation.
My dear teacher,
How is everything? I hope you are keeping well. Do you still remember me? I am June. You
taught me for two years. Last year, I sat for my SPM examination. Early this year I got my
results. I obtained 11As and a B in History. I am very elated but I guess I am not that good at
remembering dates and names.
I am sure you will be happy for me too. You are the first person I thought of after receiving my
SPM results. You have encouraged me to read a lot and to improve my command of English. I
was not that fluent before, but you have confidence in me. I read a lot and learnt a lot of new
vocabulary. With that, I could write better and managed to achieve 1A in English Language and
English in Science and Technology.
I would also like to thank you for motivating me throughout my two years with you. You are my
role model. You have given me endless inspiration. You also took me to motivational camps.
There were two camps which I could not forget. Those were incredible camps. They were the
Summer Camp and the other one is the Science Camp. I benefited tremendously from those
camps and I am extremely grateful that you had taken me there. I have developed my selfconfidence, discovered my abilities, and am not afraid to go beyond it. Thank you, teacher.
Teacher, you are always there for me. You gave me sound advice when I was having problems.
You always listened to my problems, my doubts and my uncertainties. I appreciate it so much. I
remembered the time when I did not see eye to eye with Anis, you were there to help us patch
up. Thanks to you, we are now the best of friends!
My mother once told me that a good teacher would not have second thoughts about making
sacrifices for their students. I always doubt that. However, you have proven how wrong I was.
You sacrificed your money and time for me. You paid my SPM fees when my father couldn't
deliver the money on time. I was deeply touched at that time. You were willing to sacrifice your
time to cheer me up when I failed my Biology and Chemistry papers in the trial examination. I
was stubborn then, and refused to listen to anybody. Nonetheless, you made me listen to you.
How could I ever repay you? Only God can.
I plan to go to university and do Pharmacy. It has been my dream since I was small. I love being
in the midst of wonder-working drugs, dispensing medicine and helping patients recover. I am
sure the course will be challenging but I promise you, I will give my very best and will study
extra hard to achieve my ambition.
Once again, my dear teacher, thank you very much for giving me the opportunity to be the best
and to be somebody.
Yours sincerely,
Your school celebrated Teacher's Day recently. You are writing a letter to a friend to describe this
special occasion.
Dear Pam,
How are you and your family ? Please convey my warmest regards to them. As for my family
and me, we are doing very well.
My school celebrated Teacher's day last week. All of us had a fabulous time. The activities on
that day started at 8.00 a.m.
First, we had an assembly in the school hall. The Head Prefect went up and gave a speech. He
informed us about the activities for that day. This was followed by another speech by the
principal who reminded students to study hard and develop good qualities. He
also commended our teachers for their diligence and commitment. At the end of the speech, we
clapped loudly to show our appreciation to our teachers.
For the next item, the class monitors read out the Teacher's Day message. This was then followed
by our class parties. While eating, we sang, danced and played games. Some of us presented our
class teachers with presents and roses. I gave my favorite teacher, Cik Aminah, a stalk of rose.
After 11 a.m., the telematches started. Of course, this was the highlight of the day. The teachers
and students played various interesting games. The games went on till 1 p.m. Not surprisingly,
the students won most of the games.
We all enjoyed ourselves so much that day. How about your school ? Do tell me how your
school celebrated Teacher's Day in your next letter. I have to stop here. You take care.
Your friend,
convey
commended
diligence
You had a visitor from overseas last weekend. You and your family brought her to some
places of tourist interest. After her return, you write a letter to your brother who is in
another town to describe to him what a wonderful time you all had.
Dear John,
How are you, John ? Dad, Mum and I are fine. I hope you are well too. Are you busy studying
for your final exam ?
We had the most fantastic time last weekend. Do you remember my Korean friend, Eun-mi ? She
came to visit us last weekend. Before her visit, w carefully planned a list of places to bring her
for the two days. Our itinerary included Prince Shopping Complex, the National Zoo and the
Butterfly Farm.
On Saturday morning, we woke up early. After breakfast, Dad drove us to the National Zoo.
Well, that was a good choice for Eun-mi loves animals. She had a wonderful time looking at
them. I lost count of the number of pictures she took of the animals. she told me that she has
itinerary
species
souvenirs
You and your sister have just saved a baby's life. Now, you want to write a letter to a friend
to tell him or her what happened.
Dear Charlene,
How are you ? As for my family and me, we are fine. Last Monday, my sister and I did
something wonderful. I want to share it with you.
That day, Betty and I were walking home from school. We were passing through a village and
taking a short cut. While walking, we heard the crying of a baby. It seemed to come from the
bushes. At first, we could not believe our ears. What would a baby be doing in the bushes ?
When we got to the bushes, we saw a newborn baby, wrapped in a towel, lying on the grass. It
looked so pathetic. My heart felt like breaking into pieces seeing it lying there. Very quickly, I
took the baby boy up and carried him. He did not look dirty. His mother or whoever must have
just left him there.
After some discussion, we decided to bring him to the nearest police station. There, we told the
police inspector where we had found the baby. Then, we handed him over to the policeman.
When we got home, we related to our parents what we had done. They were proud of us. Mother
told us that we had done the right thing instead of leaving the baby there. In fact, we had saved a
life. These words made my sister and I feel so happy. Betty told me that that was the happiest day
in her life.
What about you ? Have you ever saved a life ? If you have, you must tell me what happened. I
have to stop here. Goodbye
Your friend,
Your penfriend in Australia wants to know about the religious practices in your country.
Write a letter to him or her to describe the different religious groups and their practices in
Malaysia
Dear Dennis,
I was very happy to receive your letter last week. In your letter, you asked me about the people
and religions in my country.
I am happy to say that my country is a multi-racial country where there is religious freedom. It is
home to people of different religions. The different religious groups have very different practices
devotees
ritual
worship
religious people
ceremony, rites
reverence
Your friend is thinking of signing up for a course in veterinary science. As he knows very
little about the job of a veterinary doctor, he has written to you to ask you to tell him more
about it. Write a reply to his letter.
Dear Keith,
I received your letter last week. In your letter, you expressed interest in veterinary science. You
tremendously
greatly
transmission
passing on
self-reliance
You received a letter from your cousin who tells you that he is gaining a lot of weight. Out
of concern, you decide to write to him to advise him on how to lose weight.
Dear Meng,
I received your letter yesterday. In your letter, you told me that you have put on a lot of weight.
You now weigh 75 kg. All your shirts and trousers are too tight now. Your weight gain has made
you sluggish and lazy. I'm not surprised that you feel this way.
Well, I have to tell you that you must stop putting on more weight. At your weight now, you are
25 kg overweight. This is going to cause you many health problems.
It is not difficult to get rid of some weight. All you need is to exercise some discipline. You will
also need tons of willpower. Follow a strict program of healthy eating and exercise. Eat lots of
fresh fruits and vegetables for they are a rich supply of vitamins, minerals and fiber. At the same
time, you have to go easy on foods that are rich in fat and oil. Avoid sweet food like chocolate
and cakes. Such food contains a lot of sugar and this will make you gain a lot of weight.
Eating healthy food must be accompanied by good eating habits as well. Take three meals a day
at regular times. Eat a low-calorie breakfast. It can be toast and a glass of milk. For lunch, you
can have a sandwich and an apple. Cut down ondinner for this is the last meal of the day. You
don't need energy to sleep now, do you?
And of course, you need to exercise. Take up walking, cycling or swimming. Exercise burns
calories and builds up muscle.
I hope you will follow my advice. It is guaranteed to help you lose weight. Do tell me if you
have lost some weight. I am waiting to hear the good news. Take care and God bless.
Your good friend,
sluggish
willpower
Cut down
You and your family just went to watch a circus performance. Write a letter to a friend to
describe your experience at the performance
Dear Fiona,
How are you ? I have not heard from you for quite some time ? I hope you are well.
By the way, have you ever been to watch the Grand Circus ? I went to it last week. It was an
exciting experience. I just have to tell you about what I saw.
The circus came to my town recently. It will be here for a whole month. There was a large crowd
when we got there. My father was lucky to get four front row thickets for the Sunday evening
show. I invited my friend, Marcus, to come along. Marcus, my brother and I were so excited that
night. From where we sat, we had a good view of the entire show.
The first performance of the night showcased a group of seals. We couldn't believe our eyes
when we saw the way the seals balanced balls on their noses. They looked so cute. Of course, we
were thrilled and at the same time, very amused.
The next performance was by the monkeys. Guess what they did ? They rode bicycles around a
ring of fire. Wow ! They looked so smart in their black and white uniforms. We really enjoyed
looking at them. Now I know why many claim monkeys as intelligent beings.
The most enjoyable performance of the night was the clown act. They sang and danced,
performing funny skits. They were so hilarious that we could not stop laughing. we later had
picture taken with them.
I have an idea. Come and visit me this weekend and we will go to the circus together. I would
love to go again. I can ask father to book the tickets in advance. Let me know your reply soon.
Your friend,
showcased
skits
hilarious
featured
short humorous performances
funny
clamoring
perennial
continuing
erratic
lacking regularity
A recycling campaign in your area is receiving favorable public support. You feel strongly
about the importance of recycling. You decide to write a letter to the Editor of a local
newspaper to share your approval and happiness at the success of the recent campaign
especially the great support shown by the public.
Dear Editor,
I strongly support the recycling campaign that is going on. Such a campaign is long overdue. We
as members of the public should give our whole-hearted support to such an important campaign.
The main objective of our recycling project is to reduce the amount of garbage in our
community. A secondary objective is to encourage the residents in our community to recycle.
One such recycling program is the Kitar Semula program. Through this program, the Ministry of
Housing and Local Government has placed more than 1000 recycling bins and established 65
recycling centers all over the country. The rubbish bins are found in public places like schools,
petrol stations and shopping malls.
Sadly, there are still many people in our country who are not willing to go through this little
inconvenience. To them, it is so much easier to chuck the recyclable materials into the garbage
bin. And what is happening? Out of 30% of the solid waste generated by households that can be
recycled, only 5% is being recycled. This is discouraging.
Perhaps we should do what is being done in some parts of the United States. If the people do not
recycle their recyclable waste, their garbage will not be collected. Moreover, they have to pay per
bag of waste generated.
I'm proud to say that the people in my area, Taman Cemerlang, have demonstrate their great
support for recycling. We not only recycle but we have also managed to cut down on the amount
of waste our community generates.
So, let us all do our part in this recycling drive. That is by cutting down usage and waste on one
hand and recycling on the other. Together we can make our world a better place!
Recycling supporter,
overdue
chuck
generated
late
throw, dispose
produced
The area you live in has a serious problem with traffic congestion. On behalf of the
residents in your housing estate, you decided to write a letter to the Town Council to
complain about this problem
Dear Sir,
Traffic Congestion
There is a serious problem of traffic congestion in my housing estate, Taman Mandu. On behalf
of the residents, I am bringing your attention to this problem of traffic congestion with the hope
for immediate attention.
We as residents have been putting up with this unbearable situation for the last ten months. This
is especially during the peak hours in the morning and evening. The number of cars using the
roads have increased ten-fold but the roads remain narrow with only two lanes.
The traffic situation is aggravated by a new housing project near by. The vehicles used to
transport building materials to the construction site have been going in and out the area for the
past six months.
Due to the traffic congestion, fifteen accidents have occurred at the dangerous bottleneck on one
of the roads during the last six months. This is an alarming figure.
The residents have requested the developers build their own access roads for their heavy
vehicles. We have written numerous times to the developers. However, our petitions have fallen
on deaf ears. Their heavy vehicles are still using the public roads.
We hope the Town Council will look into our complaints and take prompt action to solve our
problem.
Thank you.
Yours faithfully,
congestion
overcrowding
aggravated
made worse
You came across a job advertisement in the newspaper and decide to apply for the job. Now
write an application letter to the advertiser.
Dear Sir,
Application for the post of Graphic designer
With reference to your advertisement in The Star News dated July 1 2014, I wish to apply for the
post of a graphic designer in your company.
I am twenty-two years old. I passed my SPM examination four years ago with distinctions in
English, Bahasa Malaysia and Science. After obtaining my SPM results, I studied a diploma
course in Graphic Art. So I am able to do designing and animation.
I have been working as a programmer for two years. Presently, I am attached to a bank as an IT
administrator. My duties are doing support for IT programming and software.
In school, I was active in games and debates. I was also the President of the Computer Club.
While holding this position, I organized the club's activities such as trips and contests throughout
the year.
I hereby enclose certified copies of my SPM results and diploma. I look forward to receiving a
favorable reply from you. I am available to attend an interview at your convenience. I can be
contacted at 05-12345678 ( Residence or 012-87654321 )
Thank you for your time and consideration.
Yours faithfully,
congestion
aggravated
fallen on deaf ears
Your neighbors are noisy and inconsiderate. You are writing to the town council in your
area to make a complaint.
Dear Sir,
Noisy Neighbors
I am writing in to complain about my noisy neighbors. They stay at 9 Jalan XX/XXX Subang
Jaya. They have been making noise from late night till the wee hours of the morning. This
disturbs the peace and quiet of the night as well a the sleep of the neighbors along that road.
The noisy people are a family of four. The father of the family, Dennis Lee, usually comes home
at about 11 p.m., drunk and abusive. As he is not in a sober state, he often hits his car against his
house gate. This makes a lot of noise. It is also dangerous for the safety of his next door
neighbors. My family lives on his left. The Tan family lives on his right. We worry about our
house gates being smashed by him one of these nights.
Dennis Lee is constantly having fights with his wife. There had been shouting incidents in the
past during which pans and sharp weapons were thrown at each other. This has happened from
past midnight till morning. It is driving us neighbors crazy.
His son and daughter frequently hold parties with their friends. Last month, the parties were held
every weekend. The din was unbearable as they played music very loudly. They have no regards
at all for their neighbors and little children who need to sleep early.
We have come to a breaking point of our endurance. So we are making a formal complaint in
order for you to take action against these noisy neighbors.
We appreciate immediate action taken against them.
Thank you
Yours faithfully,
early
crashed
noise
You know this singer who is your neighbour. You have visited him regularly over the years.
You admire him because he is dedicated and practices regularly. You wish to tell your
friend about him. Your friend too wants to become a singer. Write a letter to your friend.
Sir,
Re: Commendation of professionalism of the members of the fire brigade
It gives me great pleasure to write this letter commending the positive attitude and
professionalism of the firemen who attended to a fire that occurred in my neighbourhood.
The moment the two fire trucks arrived, a group of the men immediately set about pushing the
curious onlookers to a safe distance while the others went about laying out the hoses, connecting
to the fire hydrants and assessing the fire.
To me, all this initially looked to be a waste of time as they were not attacking the fire for almost
three whole minutes. All of us gathered there were terribly shocked as there was a loud explosion
soon after three firemen had entered the building. I was surprised when I heard one of the
firemen talk to those who had entered. He was telling them in clear and unhurried tones to go on
ahead as the explosion they expected was over. Only then did it strike me that the fire brigade
knew more about the fire in one look than anybody gathered there.
Although the flames were more than thirty feet high, to my utter surprise, it was brought down
within just ten minutes. I noticed that they had a systematic way of attacking the fire and
breaking windows to open up safe channels for the fire to be directed before being attacked with
the hoses.
The professional finesse and well-trained casual manner of the firemen really opened my eyes
and mind to how much of preparation and guidance they have.
Congratulations on a job done exceedingly well. Please convey my hearty appreciation to the
driver.
Thank you.
Sincerely,
In choosing a topic for your class essay, you choose to describe your favorite relative. Now
write your description
My favorite relative whom I also admire very much is my Uncle Bob. Since I was twelve years
old, his advice and words have influenced me a lot in the way I look at life and people.
Uncle Bob is a good-looking man with a charming smile and friendly brown eyes. Besides his
good looks, he is also very kind and a caring person.
Three years ago, when both my parents were involved in a serious car accident, uncle Bob took
on the role as a parent to me. I lived with him during that tryingperiod. He allowed me to stay
with him even though his home was not really big. He showed his care and love for me by
continuously caring about my health, education and the things that I needed at that time.
I really appreciated the time he spent with me. We used to go on trips together for we have the
same love for the sea and sailing. So we would just spend days lazing on the beach playing our
guitars or reading our favourite car magazines. Since then, I have always felt grateful towards
him. He was like a father figure who would always give me encouragement and advice in order
to face any challenges in life.
My uncle is a special man. He and my father come from a big family of eight children. Knowing
that his parents would not be able to afford to send him overseas, he studied hard to obtain a
scholarship to get a law degree. While in university, he paid for his books and fees by giving
private tuition to primary pupils.
After graduating with his law degree, he joined a big legal firm. Through hard work
and perseverance, he went on to open his own small firm. Today, he is a successful lawyer who
owns a large legal firm with three partners. He is also well respected and known as a kind and
compassionate lawyer who fights for justice for the unfortunate.
charming
trying
perseverance
likeable, attractive
difficult
persistence, diligence, hard work
As a class assignment, your class has been told to write a description of a local art in terms
of a play or dance. You choose to write about the wayang kulit or shadow play.
The wayang kulit or shadow puppet play is performed primarily as a form of entertainment in
small towns and villages. In the past, it was usual for an individual or a group of villagers to
erect a hut-like stage on which the dalang(puppeteer) performed the shadow play.
The dalang had to obtain a performing license from the local police authorities for the
performances on specific dates and in the given location.
The wayang kulit is an open air performance under the stars. A temporary bamboo platform is
constructed in the village square. It has a raised stage on which the puppeteer and musicians sit
cross-legged. This `traveling cinema' was popular in villages during the 1970s. A high cloth
fence was temporarily erectedin a given locality of the countryside, a large screen put up and
some admission was charged. The cinema would play in one place over a period of one or two
nights and then move on to another location until its planned circuit was completed.
The dalang is a highly venerated artist who displays enormous physical and mental endurance.
He is an orator who must be able to repeat many lengthy texts word for word. In addition, he has
to compose and sing songs as well as direct the orchestra that accompanies him. Besides all this,
he is a poet-playwright who shares new wisdom in a way that satisfies public taste.
A feature of the performance structure was the ritual opening of prayers and food offerings
presented to the spirit world. Following customary practice, the play usually began
with incantations and prayers asking for safety and help in avoiding danger. However, this
practice had been banned because it is not in accordance to Islamic teachings. Wayang
kulit performances are now held solely for entertainment purposes.
erected
venerated
incantations
built
to regard with respect
verbal charms or spells to produce a magic effect
You have been asked by your teacher to give a talk on a reference book that is useful for
secondary students. You have decided to give a talk about a science book.
Good morning, teachers and my fellow students. I have been asked to speak about a new
reference book that has been very useful to me in my studies. I trust it would be to you too,
which is why I am here today. The book is titled Science Made Simple written by Sharifah
Shazana. It is published by Bunga Publications. The author is a famous scientist-turned-teacher
who has been a scientist for 10 years before she started teaching in schools. Ever since then, she
has taught in secondary schools for 15 years. Her experience as a scientist has enabled her to
know the intricate details of science and how to make it simple for learners, coupled with her
years of teaching experience.
Let's move on to talk about why I find the book useful for myself and for secondary students.
First of all, the book caught me right from the start through its beautiful cover design. While we
are often told not to judge a book by its cover, one could not help but be drawn to this book as
the cover design was very well done.
That aside, I must say I was very delighted to find that the contents of the book is even better
than what the cover design portrayed. The author provides very clear explanations for all the
concepts and theories given. Theories which are usually viewed as boring and difficult to
understand never seemed simpler. The author has the gift of making complex truths simple to
understand for the learner. The clear explanations complemented well with the attractive
presentation of diagrams and illustrations which made science not only simple but loads of fun!
At the end of every chapter, there is a variety of exercises to test the concepts and theories the
students have learned. These exercises are handy and great for reinforcement of the knowledge
the students have acquired. The exercises are also followed by practice question papers which are
written in SPM-format to familiarise students with SPM questions. Sample answers are also
given as a guide for the students to write their answers in the best format and style.
Not only that, the book also comes with useful tips that are spread out sporadically throughout
the whole book. These tips will help students to identify common errors made in examination
and how they can better tackle a question.
The book was also top on the list of bestsellers in our local bookstores. I believe that this is good
enough to consider buying the book!
All in all, the book really speaks for itself. It is an excellent book you would not want to miss out
on. I would highly recommend the book to all of you. You can get the book at our school
bookstore at just RM9.80 per copy. I am sure you would enjoy the book as I did.
Thank you.
You have been asked to describe your favorite holiday destination. You choose to describe a
beach resort
My favorite holiday destination is the beach. A holiday on the beach gives me the chance to get
away from the hustle and bustle of the city. Like many others, I long to hear the sounds of the
waves crashing on the beach and feel the soft golden yellow sand under my feet. I simply love
the beach!
My favorite beach resort is Batu Ferringhi. The scene on Batu Ferringhi beach is something I
would love to capture on paper one day. I can see many activities going on in the sea and on the
white sandy beach. There are people taking walks, or having picnics under shady trees, children
are collecting seashells on the beach and some are building sandcastles. Regardless of what they
are doing, everyone looks relaxed and in high spirits.
For some of them, there is nothing more relaxing than to close their eyes and sunbathe. They just
lie in a deckchair, read a book or listen to the radio. Some just want to do nothing. In the clear
blue sea, many exciting activities take place. There are people rowing canoes, swimming and
fishing. The more adventurous would sea-dive or surf. Along the shoreline, mothers play in the
water with their little children.
The beach is the most crowded in the evening when the sun is setting. As one stands on the
shoreline, one can see the horizon and sunset. It is really such a beautiful sight. At night, it is
common to see beach parties or barbecues full of happy people. They are dancing, singing and
eating, all at the same time.
The beach is one place I can't seem to get enough of. To me, it is the best place to retreat to after
the hectic life in the city. It is there I get my piece of mind and rejuvenation.
You just witnessed a flood scene in a nearby housing estate. For your class assignment, you
want to write a description of the flood scene
After raining heavily and continuously for two days and nights, Taman Guru became flooded
yesterday. The water level rose so high that it reached the windows of the houses. It was believed
to be the worst flood ever to hit this town area.
The roads leading to and out of the housing estate were flooded too. In fact, the whole place
looked like a lake. In the morning, when the water level was just starting to rise, children came
out from their homes to play in the water. Some daring boys were swimming in the `lake'. Many
residents could not leave their homes to go to work. Their children too had to skip school too.
When the water was too high for safety, the residents had to evacuate to higher ground. This was
in the late afternoon. Rescue boats were sent to transport them. As the boats were insufficient to
transport all the victims, some men waded in the shallower parts and walked away from the
flooded parts.
Along the main roads, many cars were stalled in the water. Apparently, water had seeped into the
engines. In front of house gates and within the house compounds, cars were stuck there too. The
owners had to leave their homes without the vehicles.
The flood victims were put up at a hear by school which is on higher ground. At times of crisis,
the charitable spirit of the community becomes ever more evident. People from other areas came
to offer the flood victims help. They donated food and other essentials.
Fortunately, the floodwater subsided the next morning. The affected people were seen returning
to their homes.
daring
evacuate
seeped
brave
clear or leave an area
to pass slowly through small openings
Your maid is learning how to bake. She has asked you to teach her how to bake oatmeal
swirl rolls. You are too happy to describe to her the instructions on how to do it.
Making oatmeal swirl rolls is actually very easy. First, add two cups of flour, instant oats, yeast,
salt, milk, margarine and egg to the bread machine. Now switch on the machine. The machine
mixes and kneads the dough. Next, turn the dough out of the machine.
After that is done, you have to prepare the walnut filling. For the filling, combine walnuts, brown
sugar, margarine, oats and apple pie spice in a small bowl. Mix them well. Then, grease the
square baking pan. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough into a 16 x 8-inch rectangle. Next,
sprinkle the walnut mixture evenly over the dough.
Now, starting at the long end, roll the dough up tightly. Then, cut the dough crosswise into
twelve slices. Place the slices in the prepared baking pan. Before baking, let the rolls rise in a
warm place until almost double in size, for about 30 minutes. Heat the oven to 350F.
Finally, use the reserved 1/3 cup oat mixture and mix it with the flour. Then, sprinkle the mixture
evenly over the rolls. Now you are ready to bake the rolls for thirty minutes until they are golden
brown. After taking them out of the oven, cool them for five minutes on a wire rack. Serve them
warm. As for the other rolls, store them tightly wrapped.
By following my instructions, you will bake fantastic oatmeal swirl rolls. And now, happy
baking!
kneads
rubs, moulds
evenly
equally
Your friend has a sister who is susceptible to asthma attacks. You have decided to describe
to her the precautions her family should take to prevent her asthma attacks.
Asthma is a chronic respiratory disease often linked to allergies, heredity and environment. It
causes airway inflammation resulting in recurring attacks of wheezing, coughing, chest
constriction and shortness of breath.
To prevent your sister's asthma attacks, you and your family must do your best to ensure that
your sister's living environment is clean and well-ventilated. It is good to use exhaust fans or
open the windows when showering and cooking. Remind your mother and maid about this when
they are cooking. This is to let in fresh air.
Dust mites live in sheets, blankets, pillows, mattresses, soft furniture and carpets. So wash your
bed sheets and blankets once a week. The same goes for stuffed toys. Wash them every week.
After washing, dry them completely.
As for the carpets, rugs and furniture, tell your maid or whoever does the cleaning, to vacuum the
house often. This is to prevent mites around. Mites can cause the children an asthma problem or
it can aggravate your sister's asthma.
Do you have pets? If you do, you have to keep them outside. Having a cat or puppy indoors can
cause your sister to have an asthma attack easily. Using cleaners, paints, adhesives and air
fresheners is not advisable. This is because the chemical irritants found in these products can
aggravate asthma. The best thing is to use these products less often and also use them when your
sister is not around. If you use these products, try to make sure that the windows or doors are
open and that you use an exhaust fan.
By following these instructions, you can prevent your sister's asthma attacks. In this way, you
help her to recover from the illness.
heredity
aggravate
irritants
You were walking along the corridor to the library when you heard a commotion. A fight
had occurred in the library. As a Prefect, you have been asked by the Principal to write a
report on what happened
This morning at 9 a.m, the library was quiet as usual. The librarians were arranging books on the
shelves. A group of students sitting at the front tables were reading.
There was a queue of five students at the counter. They were waiting to borrow books. A
librarian was attending to them.
Suddenly, two boys from Form Four Alpha started shouting at each other. Their names are
Kenny Loo and Fred Tham. They were in the queue too. From their expressions, it
was obvious they were feeling angry with each other.
One of them shouted out some insulting words at the other boy. Soon the two boys started
punching each other's faces. The girls who were seated nearby got scared and started screaming.
I was walking along the corridor when I heard the commotion. So I ran to the library. Seeing the
boys fighting, I tried to stop them fighting. Meanwhile, the class monitor of Form Four Alpha,
Lee Meng Meng, ran to call the Disciplinary Teacher. The teacher, Encik Ahmad, came in and
warned the boys never to fight in school again.
One of the boys, Fred, was hurt in his head. It was bleeding profusely. Encik Ahmad helped him
to his car to take him to the clinic. Kenny borrowed a book and got out of the library. The Chief
Librarian, Lily Soo, requested the students to be quiet and continue their reading.
Reported by,
obvious
commotion
profusely
clear
suddenly noisy activity
flowing freely
First, each group was given a topic and guidelines to prepare an activity in twenty minutes. Then,
the groups had to present their activity in ten minutes to the rest of the students. Their
performances were informative and interesting. After each performance, a short explanation was
given by Mr Choo. This was to increase our knowledge and understanding.
On the whole, the time that we spent at the workshop was educational and entertaining.
The attendees were kept actively involved. Everyone agreed that it was a great workshop
indeed.
facilitator
puberty
attendees
ice-breaking
adorable
You are the Secretary of the Science Society in your school. The club organized a
"Discovery Week" activity last week. As Secretary, write a report of this activity.
Discovery Week - Pulau Redang by Science Society
For Discovery Week by Science Society this year, 125 students and 6 teachers went to Pulau
Redang. The activities included fishing, snorkelling, diving, playing rugby and volleyball,
badminton on the beach and just sitting back and relaxing to the sound of the waves.
We arrived at the resort at noon. After lunch, we were sent to our designatedchalets. We had a
quick bath and gathered outside for a lesson on how to make the rods for line fishing. A good
many of us learnt that the secret to catching something is the quality of bait. The squids we were
given proved particularly effective.
Fishing is a tough job. There were a ridiculous number of knots to be tied and it was all so
complicated. We could smell the salty odor of the waves as the restless tide continuously
pounded on our ankles. Slowly but surely, we made our way to the water front and swung our
rods out to the sea. The calm weather was very welcoming as we patiently stood, waiting! The
first one came after a long wait. We all dropped our rods into the water. While waiting, we also
learnt that patience really is a virtue, especially when it comes to fishing.
The fishing activity and relaxation time among teachers and friends were much appreciated by
all, especially after finishing our final exams. The variety of activities provided ensured that we
were never bored. Each one of us tried different activities and we made many new friends from
different year groups. We were lucky to see some beautiful coral and some amazing marine life.
As we say goodbye to the island resort, we would also like to say goodbye to some friends at the
end of another academic year. Thanks also to the teachers for helping us have such a fun
Discovery Week. Without a doubt, going to Pulau Redang was a worthwhile trip. It was full of
fun, adventure and self-discovery.
designated
chosen, allocated
ridiculous
absurd, crazy
virtue
good quality
Careers in Sports
Many young people seem to think that sports-related careers are moreglamorous than other
careers. They might be wrong in thinking so.
Some examples of a career in sports are sports coach, sports teacher, sports writer and athletic
director. These jobs involve plenty of hard work, irregular hours and a high energy level.
Just like other careers, sports careers have their pros and cons. The most obvious drawback is
the salary. It is usually lower than desired. Another drawback is that the job requires putting in
long and irregular hours. Working till late at night, sixty to seventy hours a week is to be
expected.
On the other hand, there are some benefits. Besides enjoying their work, many people in a sports
career can get extended time off. For example, those who work as sports masters or teachers in
schools have vacation breaks between semesters or during the long holidays.
If you are interested in checking out a sports career, you have to undergo some type of training
first. This is important. This is true in specialized areas such as sports journalism, coaching and
sports administration.
To obtain basic preparation, we have to sign up for an appropriate college program. Many
colleges offer courses in sports management, sports medicine, physical education or other related
areas. while pursuing the course, it is a good idea to take on a volunteer or part-time role in a
sports organization. By getting some firsthand experience, we can be surer if a sports-related
career is something we genuinely want to pursue.
glamorous
drawback
a disadvantage
E-mail Etiquette
Electronic mail is a means of communication with people. It is also the cheapest and one of the
fastest ways of communication. However, just as in other forms of communication, some
basic etiquette must be followed.
For instance, if you ask for something in your e-mail, you should say `please'. Similarly, if
someone does something for you, do reply and say `thank you'. Moreover, include enough
information in your mail if you send in a question to which you expect an answer.
After sending an e-mail, do not expect an immediate answer. Very often, we have to wait for a
while before receiving a reply. Just because you do not get an answer from someone in ten
minutes, it does not mean that the person is ignoring you. So there is no cause for offence Never
send another e-mail to tell the person off.
When composing an e-mail message, make sure you read it over before sending it. Spending
time on making your e-mail clearer is time well spent and worth your effort. If the sentences are
unclear or ambiguous, you have to take some time to rephrase to make them clearer.
Lastly, always use a signature for your mail. The signature identifies who you are. You do not
want the receiver to wonder who has sent the mail.
By observing these rules, your e-mail is likely to be well received. The outcome is that you will
receive courteous and satisfactory pleasant e-mail too.
etiquette
tell the person off
ambiguous
reap
freelance
invest
meeting.
As it is so prevalent among youths, there are bound to be many repercussionson them. This is
particularly so in the use of language. It is the norm to use short forms in typing an SMS text.
Spelling out the entire word or sentence would take up more space. More words increase the cost
of sending. Hence short-forms and abbreviations are often used.
Sending messages like "See you tonight at 8.30 p.m." could be replaced by "c u tonite, 830". In
this respect, SMS can have a negative effect on language. Students make use of too many shortforms. Some even carry on with the usage of short-forms in their daily school work and essay
answers.
Many youths are addicted to sending or receiving SMS texts. A survey disclosed that some send
about fifty or even more every day. This incurs high expenses on the phone bill. Despite these
disadvantages, SMS is here to stay. This is due to its benefits of cost, convenience and saving
time. It has definitely become a culture among the old and young alike.
instantaneous
prevalent
repercussions
immediate
widespread
influence, an often indirect effect
Career in Journalism
To many young people, journalism is not their choice of a career. Many prefer to go for jobs
related to computers or marketing. And others prefer to go for a job that promises elements of
glamour and excitement.
Journalism is actually an interesting and challenging career. It suits those with strong language
skills and a passion for writing. Many journalists find great satisfaction in their work.
Here are some guidelines to help those who are thinking of becoming a successful journalist.
Firstly, there must be a strong commitment to the job. When joining the company, be it a
newspaper or a magazine, trainees duringinternship must be willing to take time to observe and
learn from experienced journalists.
The period of internship can be a trying one. It is during such time, interns are given the
opportunity to demonstrate their talents and skills. To their frustration, they can be required to
do trivial tasks such as photocopying, faxing and answering phones. When given writing jobs,
they might require researching at home after office hours and writing stories on weekends.
Big or proper writing jobs usually do not become available at the moment they want them. Many
successful journalists do freelancing until the right opportunity comes along.
As journalists, do not just limit yourself to newspaper journalism. You can try out for a job in
broadcasting. Most journalists hop between print, magazine and broadcasting many times in their
career. Journalists have been known to host their own shows on television while continuously
publishing features in the press.
passion
internship
trivial
strong interest
training
unimportant
context
absorb
retain
multiple