📝 Unit 9: Nature
Prepositions of movement & time · debate language · environmental vocab · tourist description
Task 1 — Fill the blanks with prepositions of movement (5 marks)
(5 marks)
Fill in each blank with a preposition from the box. There is one
extra word.
Box: into · across · through · along · towards · around · onto · off · past
(1) The bus drove ........... the temple without stopping.
(2) The trail runs ........... a thick cloud forest before it opens up.
(3) We swam ........... the river to reach the cave.
(4) The whole family walked ........... the beach at sunset.
(5) The road goes ........... the lake — a full 18-km loop.
(6) She stepped ........... the boat without waiting for help.
extra word.
Box: into · across · through · along · towards · around · onto · off · past
(1) The bus drove ........... the temple without stopping.
(2) The trail runs ........... a thick cloud forest before it opens up.
(3) We swam ........... the river to reach the cave.
(4) The whole family walked ........... the beach at sunset.
(5) The road goes ........... the lake — a full 18-km loop.
(6) She stepped ........... the boat without waiting for help.
(1) past
(2) through
(3) across
(4) along
(5) around
(6) into / onto
5 marks.
(2) through
(3) across
(4) along
(5) around
(6) into / onto
5 marks.
Task 2 — at / on / in / since / for / till (5 marks)
(5 marks)
Fill in each blank with the correct preposition of time.
(1) The temple festival begins ........... 6.30 p.m.
(2) I will visit Kanneliya ........... Saturday.
(3) She has lived here ........... 2018.
(4) We have been walking ........... three hours.
(5) Wait ........... the rain stops.
(1) The temple festival begins ........... 6.30 p.m.
(2) I will visit Kanneliya ........... Saturday.
(3) She has lived here ........... 2018.
(4) We have been walking ........... three hours.
(5) Wait ........... the rain stops.
(1) at
(2) on
(3) since
(4) for
(5) till / until
5 marks.
(2) on
(3) since
(4) for
(5) till / until
5 marks.
Task 3 — Match place to fact (5 marks)
(5 marks)
Match each Sri Lankan place with the fact that goes with it.
Write the correct letter.
Places: A — Kanneliya · B — Sigiriya · C — Polonnaruwa · D — Delft Island · E — Nuwara Eliya · F — Horton Plains
Facts:
(1) A protected area where you can find wild horses and a 'Devil's Well'. → ...
(2) A 5th-century rock fortress and World Heritage Site. → ...
(3) Sri Lanka's second capital, ruined gardens of King Parakramabahu I. → ...
(4) A forest reserve in the Galle District with 301 plant species. → ...
(5) Famous for tea, the lake Gregory and the April motor races. → ...
Write the correct letter.
Places: A — Kanneliya · B — Sigiriya · C — Polonnaruwa · D — Delft Island · E — Nuwara Eliya · F — Horton Plains
Facts:
(1) A protected area where you can find wild horses and a 'Devil's Well'. → ...
(2) A 5th-century rock fortress and World Heritage Site. → ...
(3) Sri Lanka's second capital, ruined gardens of King Parakramabahu I. → ...
(4) A forest reserve in the Galle District with 301 plant species. → ...
(5) Famous for tea, the lake Gregory and the April motor races. → ...
(1) D — Delft Island
(2) B — Sigiriya
(3) C — Polonnaruwa
(4) A — Kanneliya
(5) E — Nuwara Eliya
5 marks.
(2) B — Sigiriya
(3) C — Polonnaruwa
(4) A — Kanneliya
(5) E — Nuwara Eliya
5 marks.
Task 4 — Vocabulary: nature / environment (5 marks)
(5 marks)
Replace each underlined phrase with ONE word from the box. There
is one extra word.
Box: deforestation · biodiversity · indigenous · conservation · pristine · poaching
(1) The illegal hunting of wild animals has reduced our leopard population.
(2) The cutting down of forests is the biggest threat to our wildlife.
(3) Many birds in Sinharaja are native to Sri Lanka only.
(4) Wilpattu's beaches are still untouched and clean.
(5) Our government has launched a campaign for the protection of nature.
is one extra word.
Box: deforestation · biodiversity · indigenous · conservation · pristine · poaching
(1) The illegal hunting of wild animals has reduced our leopard population.
(2) The cutting down of forests is the biggest threat to our wildlife.
(3) Many birds in Sinharaja are native to Sri Lanka only.
(4) Wilpattu's beaches are still untouched and clean.
(5) Our government has launched a campaign for the protection of nature.
(1) poaching
(2) deforestation
(3) indigenous
(4) pristine
(5) conservation
5 marks.
(2) deforestation
(3) indigenous
(4) pristine
(5) conservation
5 marks.
Task 5 — Comprehension: Kanneliya (5 marks)
(5 marks)
Read the passage on Kanneliya (above) and answer the questions.
(1) In which province is the Kanneliya Forest Reserve located?
(2) How far is it from Colombo?
(3) Write the sentence that gives the total number of plant, animal and bird species.
(4) When is the best time to visit Kanneliya for waterfalls?
(5) Underline the correct answer. The Anagimale falls is ........... .
(a) the largest waterfall in Sri Lanka.
(b) the closest waterfall to the entrance.
(c) at the deepest point inside the forest.
(1) In which province is the Kanneliya Forest Reserve located?
(2) How far is it from Colombo?
(3) Write the sentence that gives the total number of plant, animal and bird species.
(4) When is the best time to visit Kanneliya for waterfalls?
(5) Underline the correct answer. The Anagimale falls is ........... .
(a) the largest waterfall in Sri Lanka.
(b) the closest waterfall to the entrance.
(c) at the deepest point inside the forest.
(1) Southern Province (Galle District).
(2) About 125 km away from Colombo.
(3) "There are 301 plant species at Kanneliya forest reserve, some 133 animal species and 59 species of birds making it very rich in biodiversity."
(4) From May to July and again in October and November.
(5) (b) the closest waterfall to the entrance.
5 marks.
(2) About 125 km away from Colombo.
(3) "There are 301 plant species at Kanneliya forest reserve, some 133 animal species and 59 species of birds making it very rich in biodiversity."
(4) From May to July and again in October and November.
(5) (b) the closest waterfall to the entrance.
5 marks.
Task 6 — Notice: a tree-planting drive (40–50 words)
(5 marks)
You are the secretary of the Environment Club. Write a notice
inviting students to a tree-planting drive. Use about 40–50 words.
Include:
• date, time, place
• what to bring
• why we are doing it
• whom to contact.
inviting students to a tree-planting drive. Use about 40–50 words.
Include:
• date, time, place
• what to bring
• why we are doing it
• whom to contact.
ENVIRONMENT CLUB — TREE-PLANTING DRIVE
The Environment Club is organising a tree-planting drive on the school back
lawn on Saturday, 6th June 2027 at 8.00 a.m. to mark World Environment Day.
Please bring a small spade and a water bottle. All students are warmly
invited. Register with Nimali Perera by Friday.
— Secretary.
47 words. 5 marks.
The Environment Club is organising a tree-planting drive on the school back
lawn on Saturday, 6th June 2027 at 8.00 a.m. to mark World Environment Day.
Please bring a small spade and a water bottle. All students are warmly
invited. Register with Nimali Perera by Friday.
— Secretary.
47 words. 5 marks.
Task 7 — Short paragraph (50–60 words)
(5 marks)
Write a paragraph on ONE of the following. Use about 50–60 words.
(a) The most beautiful place I have ever visited
(b) Why we should plant more trees
(c) How polythene is destroying our beaches
(a) The most beautiful place I have ever visited
(b) Why we should plant more trees
(c) How polythene is destroying our beaches
MODEL — The most beautiful place I have visited (60 words)
The most beautiful place I have ever visited is Mirissa beach in the south.
The sand was the colour of milk, the water was a deep turquoise, and a row of
coconut palms leaned over the cliff like dancers. At dawn we joined a small
boat and saw a blue whale fifty metres away. I will go back.
5 marks.
The most beautiful place I have ever visited is Mirissa beach in the south.
The sand was the colour of milk, the water was a deep turquoise, and a row of
coconut palms leaned over the cliff like dancers. At dawn we joined a small
boat and saw a blue whale fifty metres away. I will go back.
5 marks.
Task 8 — Letter / tourist description (~100 words, 10 marks)
(10 marks)
Answer (a) OR (b). Use about 100 words.
(a) Write a letter to a friend abroad inviting them to visit Sri Lanka.
Include: best season to come, ONE place they must see, ONE Sri Lankan food
they must try, what you will do together.
(b) The bar chart below shows the number of foreign tourists who visited
five Sri Lankan parks in 2026. Write a description.
Bar values (thousands): Yala 280 · Wilpattu 95 · Sinharaja 60 · Horton Plains 110 ·
Kanneliya 25.
(a) Write a letter to a friend abroad inviting them to visit Sri Lanka.
Include: best season to come, ONE place they must see, ONE Sri Lankan food
they must try, what you will do together.
(b) The bar chart below shows the number of foreign tourists who visited
five Sri Lankan parks in 2026. Write a description.
Bar values (thousands): Yala 280 · Wilpattu 95 · Sinharaja 60 · Horton Plains 110 ·
Kanneliya 25.
(b) MODEL — Bar chart description (105 words)
The bar chart shows the number of foreign tourists who visited five Sri
Lankan parks in 2026, in thousands. Yala received by far the largest share at
280,000 — more than double any other park. Horton Plains attracted 110,000
visitors, followed by Wilpattu at 95,000 and Sinharaja at 60,000. Kanneliya
was the least visited at only 25,000, despite its rich biodiversity.
In summary, leopard-spotting at Yala drives most foreign visits, while
cloud-forest reserves like Kanneliya remain hidden treasures. The eleven-fold
gap between Yala and Kanneliya shows how unevenly tourism is shared across
the island.
10 marks.
The bar chart shows the number of foreign tourists who visited five Sri
Lankan parks in 2026, in thousands. Yala received by far the largest share at
280,000 — more than double any other park. Horton Plains attracted 110,000
visitors, followed by Wilpattu at 95,000 and Sinharaja at 60,000. Kanneliya
was the least visited at only 25,000, despite its rich biodiversity.
In summary, leopard-spotting at Yala drives most foreign visits, while
cloud-forest reserves like Kanneliya remain hidden treasures. The eleven-fold
gap between Yala and Kanneliya shows how unevenly tourism is shared across
the island.
10 marks.
Task 9 — Speech / essay (~200 words, 15 marks)
(15 marks)
Write on ONE of the following. Use about 200 words.
(a) A speech you would make at the assembly on 'Let's protect our forests'.
(b) An article for a tourist magazine: 'A natural wonder of Sri Lanka'.
(c) An essay on 'Plastic pollution is killing our oceans'.
(a) A speech you would make at the assembly on 'Let's protect our forests'.
(b) An article for a tourist magazine: 'A natural wonder of Sri Lanka'.
(c) An essay on 'Plastic pollution is killing our oceans'.
(a) MODEL — Speech: Let's protect our forests (215 words)
Good morning everyone.
Forests are far more than a backdrop in tourism brochures. They are giant
air-conditioners that pull carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere, hold our
soil in place during the monsoon, and shelter every wild creature from the
elephant down to the giant squirrel. Without forests, the rains would not
fall on time and the rivers would not run clean.
Yet we are losing them quickly. Every year, hundreds of acres of forest in
Sri Lanka are cleared for chena cultivation, illegal logging and new
buildings. Forest fires — some accidental, others started deliberately —
destroy what took a hundred years to grow. When the trees vanish, the
rainfall pattern changes, the temperature rises, and the elephants come into
the villages because their home is gone.
The answer is in three steps. First, plant trees — every school, every
temple, every home garden can give space to a sapling. Second, support the
Forest Department and the small NGOs that replant Sinharaja and Wilpattu.
Third, change the way we shop: choose recycled paper, refuse furniture from
suspect timber, and ask before every purchase, "Did this come from a forest?"
Our forests are not just ours. They belong to children not yet born. Let us
protect them.
Thank you.
15 marks.
Good morning everyone.
Forests are far more than a backdrop in tourism brochures. They are giant
air-conditioners that pull carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere, hold our
soil in place during the monsoon, and shelter every wild creature from the
elephant down to the giant squirrel. Without forests, the rains would not
fall on time and the rivers would not run clean.
Yet we are losing them quickly. Every year, hundreds of acres of forest in
Sri Lanka are cleared for chena cultivation, illegal logging and new
buildings. Forest fires — some accidental, others started deliberately —
destroy what took a hundred years to grow. When the trees vanish, the
rainfall pattern changes, the temperature rises, and the elephants come into
the villages because their home is gone.
The answer is in three steps. First, plant trees — every school, every
temple, every home garden can give space to a sapling. Second, support the
Forest Department and the small NGOs that replant Sinharaja and Wilpattu.
Third, change the way we shop: choose recycled paper, refuse furniture from
suspect timber, and ask before every purchase, "Did this come from a forest?"
Our forests are not just ours. They belong to children not yet born. Let us
protect them.
Thank you.
15 marks.