Lesson Focus

This unit explores the themes of success, failure, and perseverance. It uses inspirational quotes and biographies of successful people (like Charlie Chaplin and Dr. C. W. W. Kannangara) to teach about the importance of hard work and determination.

Key Vocabulary to Master

• Success-related Words: preparation, hard work, failure, courage, continue, weakness, giving up, certain, succeed, inspired, excel, achieve, ambition, optimistic.

• Biographical Terms: born on, parents were, faced challenges, struggled financially, childhood, inherited, will power, talent.

Grammar Focus: More Reported Speech

This unit revisits Reported Speech, reinforcing the rules and applying them to sentences with modals.

• will → would

  • Direct: Ganesh said, "I will never give up."

  • Reported: Ganesh said that he would never give up.

• can → could

  • Direct: Sazi said, "I know I can make it."

  • Reported: Sazi said that she knew she could make it.

Important Points for the O/L Exam

• Paper I (Writing): An essay on a topic like "Hard Work is the Key to Success," or "Failure is the Stepping Stone to Success" is a very popular O/L question. The ideas and vocabulary in this unit are perfect for this. Writing a biography of a famous person is also a possibility.

• Paper II (Reading): You will often get a reading passage about a successful person's life. You will need to understand the challenges they faced and how they achieved their goals.

• Paper I (Grammar): Reported speech is always a key area. The ability to correctly change modals like will/can will earn you extra marks.

Tips & Tricks for Studying

1. Quote Explanation: Choose one of the inspirational quotes from the lesson. Write it down and try to explain it in your own words in two sentences.

2. Write a Mini-Bio: Think of a successful person you admire. Using the points on Dr. C.W.W. Kannangara as a guide, write 4-5 bullet points about their life and achievements.

3. Reported Speech Drill: Write five sentences about your own future plans using "I will..." and "I can...". Then, convert them into reported speech starting with "He/She said that...".