Relative Pronouns

Relative pronoun is a word which has a relationship with another pronoun and it can represent another noun or pronoun.

Uses of the relative pronoun

• Combine two sentences together
• Represent the noun before  ( Antecedent )
• Act as another noun or pronoun

Who

The relative pronoun " Who" is used to represent a human being.

Example :

1. This is the man
2. The man helped me.

• This is the man who helped me.

        the man - Antecedent               

        who  - Relative pronoun

1. The man is my uncle
2. The man is under the tree.

• The man who is under the tree is my uncle.

Which / That

" Which" or "That " is used to represent things or animals.

1. This is the book.
2. I gave you this book yesterday

• This is the book which  / that I gave you yesterday

Whose

"Whose" is used to say the possession.

1. This is the man
2. His car met an accident

• This is the man whose car met with an accident

1. The lady went to the police station
2. Her necklace was stolen.

• The lady whose necklace was stolen went to the police station.

Where

"Where" is used to represent a place.

1. This is the place.
2. I slept here last night

• This is the place where I slept last night

1. This place is full of mosquitoes.
2. I slept here last night.

• The place wherer I slept last night is full of mosquitoes.

Exercise

• Complete the blanks with a suitable relative pronoun.

1. The manager ........................... is giving necessary instructions is Mr. Dissanayake.
2. This is the classroom................ I learned English.
3. This is the pencil .................... I bought last week.
4. The child .................... money was lost, went to the principles office.
5. The man ........................... I told you is Mr. Abeywardana.

For further references: 

• Relative Pronouns & Clauses - English Grammar Lesson

• Relative pronouns in English Grammar in Sinhala | Patashalawa

Comparisons

Comparisons are made of Adjectives. They are called positives. They are used to say Quality or quantity of animate or inanimate things.

Example: Kind, Hot, Beautifull, Good 

Comparisons are two types. They are Comparatives and Superlatives.

Comparatives

Comparatives are used to compare the Quality or Quantity of two animate or inanimate things. 

Example: Kinder, Hotter, Fatter

 

                Nimal is kinder than amal.

                Saman is taller than sajith.

Supperlative

Superlatives are used to say the highest degree of quality or quantity of more than two living or non-living things.

Example: Fattest, Kindest, Tallest

                Nathon is the fattest boy in our class.

                The elephant is the largest animal in the forest.

Comparatives and superlatives are made in three ways. They are adding,

• "Er", "Est" 

• More and Most

• New words

Positive                         Comparatives                Superlatives

Tall                                    Taller                                      Tallest

Fat                                     Fatter                                     Fattest

Kind                                  Kinder                                    Kindest

Beautiful                          More beautiful                      Most Beautiful

Expensive                        More expensive                    Most expensive

Good                                 Better                                      Best

Bad                                    Worse                                     Worst

How to write a Notice

Students need to learn to write Notices. It is also an important skill to learn as much as letter writing and report writing for their professional life. 

A notice is a formal announcement given to a large group of people with key points relevant to one topic. The important part is noticing avoiding unnecessary detailing and also sharing information with a large number of people in a short time.

Format of an Invitation Notice

1. NOTICE
2. ( Who ) has/have organized ( what )
3. It will be held on ( Date ) at/from ( Time ) at the ( Venue ). The chief guest / Guest speaker will be ( Name / Designation ). The purpose of this ( function name ) is to ( purpose ).
4. ( Whom to invite ) are kindly requested to participate in this occasion.
5. Signature 
6. Designation
7. Date

Format of a Postponement of a  Notice

1. NOTICE
2. I regret very much to inform you that the proposed ( Function name ) has to be postponed due to an unavoidable reason.
3. It will be held again ( Date ) at/from ( Time ) at the ( Venue ). The chief guest / Guest speaker will be ( Name / Designation ). The purpose of this ( Function name ) is to ( Purpose ).
4. ( Whom to invite ) are kindly requested to participate in this occasion.
5. Signature 
6. Designation
7. Date

Format of a Lost Notice

1. LOST
2. My ( What ) was lost on the ( Date ) at ( Venue ) in the ( Time / Duration ).
3. Size
4. Color
5. Brand
6. Content 
7. Other features
8. If found please be kind enough to hand over it to ( Owners name ) or contact this number ( Number ).

Format of a Found Notice

1. FOUND
2. A ( What ) was found on ( Date ) at ( Venue ) in the ( Time duration ) 
3. Give so few details about lost
4. The owner can prove the identity and collect it from ( Place or Person ) or contact this number ( Number ).

Reported Speech

Reported speech is used to report a statement of somebody to someone else. And there are two ways to report the words of a speaker. They are direct speech and indirect speech. 

Direct Speech

The reporter uses the exact words of the speaker to report the message.

• Original words of the speaker are used,
• They are written in between inverted commas or quotation marks.
• The comma is used after the reporting verb.

Example - My class teacher says, "I will help you". 

                    (says - will be the reported verb)

                    (I will help you  - Original words of the speaker)

Indirect Speech

Indirect speech the reporter uses his or her own words to convey the message.

• Quotation marks are omitted
• Pronoun is changed
• Time words and place words are changed
• That is used just after reporting the verb

Example - 

• Direct - My class teacher says, "I will help you"
• Indirect - My class teacher says that he will help me.

Basic Rules of Reported Speech

If the reporting verbs are in present or future tense, the tense of the direct speech is not changing into indirect speech.

Example - 

• Direct -  My class teacher says, "I will help you"

                    (says - is a reporting verb in present tense )

                    (I will help you - Future tense)

• Indirect - My class teacher says, that she will help me.

If the reporting verbs are in any past tense, the tense of the direct statement will be changed into the relevant past tense.

    Direct                                                 Indirecct

    is, am, are                                             was were

    was, were                                              had been

    will                                                         would

    shall                                                       should

    can                                                         could

    may                                                        might

    must                                                       had to

    have, has                                               had

    do, does                                                 did

    go                                                            went

    went                                                       had gone

Example - My class teacher said "I will help you"

                   (said  - reported verb in past tense)

                  My class teacher said that he would help me

Time words and place words are generally changed.

    Direct                                        Indirecct

    This                                               That

    These                                            Those

    Here                                              There

    Ago                                                before

    Now                                               then

    Today                                            that day

    Tomorrow                                    next day

    Yesterday                                     the day before, previous day

     Last night                                    previouse night

   

Example -  My class teacher says, "I will help you tomorrow"

                  My class teacher says that he will help me next day

                  My class teacher said, "I will help you tomorrow"

                  My class teacher said that he would help me next day

Exercise

1. Write the given sentences in indirect speech.

1. Kamal says, "I will help him"
2. Teacher says, "We will guide the students well"
3. Pawan said, "I was writing an essay last month"
4. Our teacher asks, "Do you do homework daily?"
5. Ramani said, "I went to Colombo yesterday"

Types of Writing

In school, the syllabus gives more priority to teaching grammar and a few types of letter writing, articles, and dialogs. In the English language, we can see there are four main types of writing that may not pay more attention to the school syllabus. So each of those writing styles is used in different situations for different purposes.

The writing styles are, 

• Persuasive
  
• Narrative
• Expository
• Descriptive

Persuasive

This is a style that shows authors' opinions and gives an argument to convince the reader with the evidence to support that particular belief.

Examples: Letters of recommendation, letters of complaint, Cover letters, Advertisements

Narrative

This method is mostly used to write long pieces of writing. Because this method is always trying to give a story behind the information we want to share. Also, it includes characters, conflicts, and settings to develop the story.

Example: Oral History, Novels, Poetry

Expository

Expository is not used to express opinions, it is used to explain some information relevant to a concept to a large audience using evidence. 

Example: Textbooks, Recipies, News stories, Scientific writing

Descriptive

In this concept the authors don't try to convince the audience with their opinions but, they try their best to explain the sense which helps to imagine a clear picture for the reader.

Example: Fictions, non-fictions such as travel guides and memories, Descriptive of Nature

For further studies:-

1. What is Writing Style? | Types & Examples - Study.com
   
2. The 5 Types of Writing Styles with Examples | Skillshare Blog

Improve English writing skills of secondary education

Writing is one of the important parts of learning the English language as much as speaking and listening. No matter what path they choose for the future ambitions they have to develop their skills in writing English as well since everything become globalized nowadays.

The foundation of English writing is starting from primary education. The students learn the alphabet, simple grammar rules, such as how to use articles, and small Wh questions. So, in secondary education, the teachers and tutors are polishing the basic knowledge they have learned in primary education and giving more knowledge. Some of the topics covered by the written part of the English language are given below.

1. Grammar 
2. Vocabulary
3. Functions
4. Articles
5. Letters
6. Summary and etc.

Strategies to improve the English writing skills of the students.

• Do some writing practices.

No matter how much knowledge you gained, if you are not using those in practice. that's why the students need to practice writing. they can write essays, articles, summaries, dramas, and many other things to improve their writing skills.

• Encourage students to read.

Writing, Reading, and listening are combined with each other. When students read books they can identify more writing methods and also new words which will improve students skills in writing.

• Use Questions and Answers.

The teachers can do more book activities relevant to the grammar parts. this might be very useful for some students who memorize things by writing to identify and memorize grammar rules.

• Teaching students to brainstorm.

Outlining and creating mind maps and organizing what they learned will be an easy method for students.

Because they can refer to those papers when they want to revise their knowledge.

Watch the below video for further information 

Referred- 

1. MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING GENERAL EDUCATION ENGLISH LANGUAGE CURRICULUM
2. How to improve writing skills in English
3. Effective Strategies for Improving Writing Skills of Elementary English Language Learners
   

Improving English Communication Skills of Secondary Education

Communication is a significant skill when it comes to learning a  language. In Sri Lanka, the students learn English as a subject for around thirteen years. But most of the students lack skills when it comes to communication. In that case, the reason might vary from person to person. Some of the student's problems are mentioned below.

1. Doesn't remember the basic grammar since it is not used in day-to-day life
2. Not having a good vocabulary knowledge
3. Shyness about speaking in public
4. Being afraid to make mistakes when using a different language

Facing these challenges will be the most difficult task for students when they leave school and enter a society that is almost using English everywhere. So, I would like to suggest some methods to improve the communication skills of the students. 

1. Watch movies that have many conversations like documentaries.
2. Improve listening by listening to conversations, and music.
3. Encouraging students to talk in English. (listing is playing an essential role in communication. because when we have a conversation we need to understand the other person's opinion to reply. so understanding by listening is very important.)
4. Allow students to share their opinions without concerning mistakes at first to lose their fear to speak in public.
5. Engage with more teamwork like presentations, group assignments, and dramas.
6. Giving always positive feedback.

For more information watch these - 

Teach English to primary students as a foreign language

English is a global language. In the modern world, it became essential to communicate. The children start their learning procedural about languages by copying the actions and words of adults. Also, early childhood is a good age to develop their communication skills faster. Because they are just imitating things easily. So, if the teachers can guide them with proper techniques then the children may have some sort of basic knowledge and also the foundation to develop another language with their Native language. 

The research on the techniques of teaching English as a foreign language among elementary-level students is necessary, as children's development is an important theme required for development in the modern world. 

The foundation of studying the English language as a foreign language in primary classes is based on many factors. Because In Sri Lanka have a Native language that all the people use everywhere. So we need a good influence to teach another language to the children. 

The primary students may have a better learning potential to learn basic skills. Speaking, writing and reading are the basic factors that need to improve. Speaking is based on repetitive coping strategies, and it is the easiest one to consider at a young age. As for reading and writing, these competencies are developed in a more complicated way. Because the students use to write and read in their native language. Writing skills at the primary and elementary stages cannot be developed in the same way as writing skills in the native language. First, the students should understand the main principles of writing letters. Reading development should allow students to read the simplest texts, and understand their meaning. 

For further information -

   1. Top speaking Games

2. How to teach a child to read.

English as a Subject in Primary Education

Primary Education

Students enter school education at the age of six. They enter grade 1 after completing one or two years of elementary education. According to our government rules, we have an opportunity to have learning facilities free. 

This primary education was not compulsory to have for children until 1999. But after that, the Sri Lankan government established a new rule, that every child must be entered into primary education as a part of the reform program. According to that every child aged 5 -10  must go through grades 1-5 to complete primary education.

The curriculum for the first three years of primary education includes religion and mother language and it could be Sinhala or Tamil, English, and numbers for mathematics. In grade four the same subjects are continued and added more subjects like physical education, and environmental studies. These subjects will be the same for government schools and also for international schools even if they are not conducting the same syllabus.

According to the government syllabus, every student has an opportunity to learn about English as a secondary language. The students are learning the basics of the English language from this age. So using Activities based education is a very effective teaching method for primary students. Because they already using and learning another language which is mostly used in their day-to-day life. So learning another language might be difficult for them if the teachers' education is limited to books. The teachers have to use effective and interactive methods to improve basic skills in the English language.

School Education System in Sri Lanka

Sri Lankan students spend thirteen years of school education.

The government facilitates a free education system in Sri Lanka to improve the literacy rate of Sri Lankan citizens after gaining their freedom. According to the national education system, a child entered the school and starts education at the age of five. And after that, they continue it along 5 years of primary education and face a scholarship exam at the age of ten to evaluate their skills. 

After facing that exam some students change their schools and enter a secondary-level education. In grade 11 they are facing ordinary level exams which are very important for their further studies. 

Choosing a stream to study in Advanced level classes is depend on the student's OL results and their dreams. Based on the Advanced level exam result the government decided which university they can apply  for their higher education.

So until the students sit for ordinary level exams, they have to study nine subjects, among them three subjects are elective. But Science, English, Religion, Sinhala, (native language), Mathematics, and History, subjects are compulsory to learn. All these subjects contain a large syllabus to cover.

The government conducted schools in different languages. Since this is a multicultural society conducting different language schools was easier for other native groups to have an education. So the schools are conducting in all three main languages such as Sinhala, Tamil, and English.

In Sri Lanka for ages people have started International schools with different syllabus and fully English medium classes. Not like in government schools they gave priority to the English language. After ages with the success of international schools, the government started English medium classes in the schools. Until then, the students learned English as a second language in schools.