Dear Teachers,

The CALSDA office is buzzing with the excitement of

moving into a new home of its very own. It is with great

pleasure that we invite all of you to come and visit us at

our new premises for all your future Examination needs.

The official opening ceremony of our new building

premises was held on the 12th of June 2015 with our

Patron -  Mr. Phillip Trupp, Directors, Board of

Management, Examiners, teachers and distinguished

guests in attendance. Mr. Glen Lord, son of our dearest

former Patron late Mrs. Daphne Lord, cut the ribbon to

officially declare the building premises open.

Having successfully completed the first session of

Written Examinations for this academic year on the 30 th

of May 2015 in centers around the island, the CALSDA

office is busily buzzing with compilation of the

Examination results. The first session of Practical

Examinations is also steadily in progress.

In this issue of The Buzz we would like to focus your

attention on our new office contact  information and

details of our second session of Examinations. We are

also featuring an article on Paediatric Speech and

Language Therapist - Soharni Tennekoon whose

expertise maybe of interest to any of your students with

any speech difficulties.

Please note that our new contact details are as follows:

Address: No. 77A, Fife Road, Colombo 5.

Telephone: 011-2055087 / 011-2055088

Office Hours: 9.00 a.m. to 4.00 p.m. (Monday to Friday)

SECOND SESSION OF EXAMINATIONS

PRACTICAL EXAMINATIONSSecond Session

Period of Examinations - September - December 2015

Official closing date of entries - Friday 7 th August 2015

THEORY EXAMINATION

Second Session

Date of Examination - Saturday 31st October 2015

Official closing date of entries - Friday 7 th August 2015

PLEASE NOTE THAT THE CLOSING DATES FOR THE THEORY EXAMINATIONS WILL BE STRICTLY ADHERED TO. LATE ENTRIES WILL BE ACCEPTED (AFTER THE OFFICIAL CLOSING DATE) ONLY UP TO ONE WEEK AFTER THE CLOSING DATE. ENTRY FORMS AND BANK SLIPS SHOULD REACH THE CALSDA OFFICE NOT LATER THAN ONE WEEK AFTER THE OFFICIAL CLOSING DATE OF ENTRIES. 

WRITTEN ENGLISH EXAMINATION RESULTS

The results of the first session of Written Examinations

will be ready for collection from the CALSDA office

from the 15th of July 2015 or it may be posted on request.

Soharni Tennekoon Paediatric Speech and Language Therapist (C.P.S.P., MSc, MA, BA)

Australian qualified Paediatric Speech and Language

Therapist Soharni Tennekoon (C.P.S.P., MSc, MA,

NEWS LETTER 31st Issue : July 2015

The Colombo Academy of Language Skills and Dramatic Art

BA), has recently returned to Sri Lanka after 13 years in

London, Sydney and Melbourne. Ms. Tennekoon has

started her own private practice at Nawaloka Hospital

where she currently assesses and treats primary school-

aged children (5-12 years old) with communication

difficulties.

Early identification and intervention are a core focus in

her professional practice. With these goals in mind,

Ms. Tennekoon feels it is important to work in

collaboration with teachers and parents, in helping to

identify speech and language difficulties early in

children. Ms. Tennekoon firmly believes that teachers

and parents are the first port of call in noticing

communication errors in children.

According to her research has shown that the earlier such

difficulties are identified and acted upon, the better the

outcome for the child. For this reason, Ms. Tennekoon

conducts teacher training workshops, whereby she works

with staff to help them correctly identify red flags in

students’ communication. Resources and helpful

handouts are also provided to attendees of these

workshops.

Ms. Tennekoon holds a Master’s degree in Speech

Pathology (La Trobe University, Melbourne), a Master’s

in Publishing (University of Sydney) and a Bachelor’s in

Classics (King’s College London). She is a Certified

Practising Speech Pathologist (C.P.S.P), which is a

certification of clinical competence issued by Speech

Pathology Australia (the Australian professional national

body for Speech Language Therapists), of which she is a

member. She is also certified in specific treatments for

disorders such as Childhood Apraxia of Speech (CAS),

Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and Stuttering

(specifically the Lidcombe Program).

Ms. Tennekoon holds a registration license with the Sri

Lanka Medical Council to practice speech and language

therapy in Sri Lanka (in medical and clinical settings).

The areas Ms. Tennekoon specialises in are: Dyslexia

and difficulties in reading and literacy; Delays/disorders

in receptive language (what we understand);

Delays/disorders in expressive language (what we say);

Disorders of articulation and phonology (the sounds we

say that make up words); Disorders of fluency (i.e.

Stuttering); Communication errors in those with hearing

loss; Disorders in motor speech skills (i.e. Childhood

Apraxia of Speech); Social/pragmatic skills (using

language appropriately and for different functions);

Disorders in voice (e.g. Vocal fold nodules).

Any youngsters who need assistance with speech therapy

can meet her at consultations at her private practice at

Nawaloka Hospital, Col 2, Mondays-Fridays 3.30pm-

6.30pm. To contact Soharni Tennekoon or to book

teacher training workshops, you may email at

soharni@gmail.com

EVERYBODY NEEDS A LAUGH

Teacher: Are you sleeping in my class?

James : No, a bug flew into my eye and I’m trying to suffocate it.

Teacher: Did your father help you with your homework?Student : No, he did it all by himself.

Mother : Why did you get such a low mark on that test?

Junior : Because of absence.

Mother : You mean you were absent on the day of the test ?Junior : No, but the kid who sits next to me was.

WRITER’S PROFILE

NEWS LETTER 31st Issue : July 2015

The Colombo Academy of Language Skills and Dramatic Art

Marilyn Singer

Marilyn Singer (1948 – ) is an award-winning American

author of children's books in a wide variety of genres,

including fiction and non-fiction picture books, juvenile

novels and mysteries, young adult fantasies, and poetry.

Singer was born in the Bronx, New York City on

October 3, 1948 and lived most of her early life in Long

Island, New York. She attended Queens College, City

University of New York, and for her junior year, the

University of Reading, England. She holds a B.A. in

English from Queens College and an M.A. in

Communications from New York University.

In 1974, after teaching English in New York City high

schools for several years, Marilyn began to write –

initially film notes, catalogues, teacher's guides and film

strips. Then, one day, when she was sitting in the

Brooklyn Botanic Garden, Marilyn penned a story

featuring talking insect characters she'd made up when

she was eight. Encouraged by the responses she got,

Marilyn wrote more stories and in 1976 her first book,

‘The Dog Who Insisted He Wasn't’, was published by

E. P. Dutton.

Since then, Marilyn has published over ninety books for

children and young adults. Some of her books include A

‘Monday on the Mississippi’ (2005), ‘Shoe Bop’ (2008),

‘Full Moon Is Rising’(2011), ‘Every Day’s A Dog’s

Day’(2012) and ‘A Stick Is An Excellent Thing’ (2012).

Her book, ‘Mirror, Mirror: A Book of Reversible

Verse’ (2010) has garnered many awards, including:

the Cybil Award for Poetry, 2011, an ALA Notable

2011; an CLA/NCTE Notable, 2011 and six starred

reviews.

An extract from ‘A STICK IS AN EXCELLENT THING’

A stick is an excellent thing.

If you find the perfect one, it’s a scepter for a king.

A stick is an excellent thing.

It’s a magic wand.  It’s yours to fling,

to strum a fence, to draw the sun.

A stick is an excellent thing

if you find the perfect one.

An extract from ‘EVERY DAY’S A DOG’S DAY’

CAT-CHASING DAY

It can happen anytime,

it can happen anyplace.

It’s a cause for celebration

when a feline shows its face.

 

For a lark you’ll charge and bark

just to get on kitty’s case.

With a dissed hiss it’ll bristle,  take a leap, and start to race.

 

Though you’re fast, you’ll come in last,

’cause that cat will set the pace.

Still, you’ve won because the fun

 is not the finish–IT’S THE CHASE!

I TeachI teach because there is a great

fulfillment that comes inworking with girls and boys.

I teach because I wanted to be a sculptor, and I can do so,

by shaping lives for the future. 

I teach because I wanted to be an artist, and I can do so,

by painting dreams for children. 

I teach because I wanted to be a musician, and I can,

in giving inspiration to children.

I teach because I wanted to be a historian, and I can in havingrecorded something for the lives of great men to come. 

I teach because I wanted to be a poet, and I can in writing

impressive passages of mankind. 

I teach because of the reward I receive when a child's

frowns turns to smiles, or when he says,

"Now I understand."

I teach because of the personal growth I receive each day as I venture out on a quest for knowledge and techniques

to help my students understand.

I teach for it is in this where I can see the worthwhile

and true fulfillment of living.

Author: Unknown

SOME INSPIRATIONAL WORDS

“Infuse your life with action. Don't wait for it to happen. Make it happen. Make your own future. Make your own hope. Make your own love. And whatever your beliefs, honour your creator, not by passively waiting for grace to come down from upon high, but by doing what you can to make grace happen... yourself, right now, right down here on Earth.” - Bradley Whitford

Visit CALSDA on the World Wide Web

You can now visit the newly updated CALSDA website

at www.calsda.org for information on our examinations,

syllabi, closing dates for entries and much more.

TEACHER SUPPORT MATERIAL

A series of work books, past question papers, a CD of

vocabulary pronunciation (Grades Introductory to Six),

specimen Spoken English passages for reading, re-telling

and listening comprehension are available for sale at the

CALSDA office. For revised rates of the books

available, please check with the office staff.

These material can be purchased between 9.00 a.m. and

4.00 p.m. Monday to Friday.

This is a special and memorable milestone ...

one that we will remember in the many years ahead.

We would like to welcome you to our new

CLASDA Office

May the fellowship that we share,

create happy memories and smiling, magical moments

in our new home .

We hope you will always feel warmly welcome here.

And we are indeed delighted to be sharing this

wonderful news with all of our loyal teachers.

………………………… ………………………….

Varuni Jayasekara Zulfika Musafer

Executive Director Director of Examinations

For and on behalf of the Board of Management

Dear Teachers,

Wish you all a Peaceful and Happy New Year! We hope

you have all had a vibrant start to the year 2015.

This time around the CALSDA office is buzzing with

excitement with preparations underway for a Workshop

for Teachers and the annual Prize Givings.

In this issue of The Buzz we would like to focus your

attention on the details of these special events and other

details of Examinations for the year 2015.

ANNUAL PRIZE GIVINGS

The annual Prize Givings for candidates who obtained

the highest marks in their grades in examinations

conducted in 2014, will be held in two sessions in March

2015.

The first session will be held on Saturday, the 21st of

March 2015 at Bishop’s College Auditorium for Prize

Winners of Grade 3 and upwards. The second session

will be held on Sunday, the 22nd of March 2015 at St.

Joseph’s College Auditorium for Prize Winners of

Introductory Grade to Grade 2.

More information on the Prize Giving functions will be

notified in the due course.

SYLLABUS FOR 2015

The CALSDA syllabus for the year 2014 will remain

valid for Examinations in the year 2015. Please use the

General Information Booklet for Examinations in 2015

as a guideline for the new fee structure and added

information on Examinations.

CALSDA WORKSHOP FOR TEACHERS

The Colombo Academy of Language Skills and

Dramatic Art will be conducting a teachers training

workshop on Sunday the 22nd of February 2015

from 8.30 a.m. to 4.00 p.m. at the Sasakawa

Memorial Hall, No.4, 22nd Lane, Colombo 3.

The Board of Management of CALSDA invites all

teachers to participate in this programme which is

aimed at providing more information and clarifying

any doubts on various aspects of teaching.

There will be interactive demonstrations and

presentations made on various aspects of the

syllabus by the members of the Panel of Examiners.

NEWS LETTER 30th Issue : Jan 2015

The Colombo Academy of Language Skills and Dramatic Art

18/15, Chitra Lane, Off Kirula Road, Colombo 5 011-2555832 011-2599935

Editor : Ishitha Mannapperuma

You will receive a detailed notice in this regard

along with this newsletter.

Visit CALSDA on the World Wide Web

You can now visit the newly updated CALSDA website

at www.calsda.org for information on our examinations,

syllabi, closing dates for entries and much more.

FIRST SESSION OF EXAMINATIONS 2015

PRACTICAL EXAMINATIONS

Period of Examinations - January - August 2015

Official closing date of entries - Friday 27th February 2015

THEORY EXAMINATION

First SessionDate of Examination - Saturday 30th May 2015

Official closing date of entries - Friday 27th February 2015

PLEASE NOTE THAT THE CLOSING DATES FOR THE THEORY EXAMINATIONS WILL BE STRICTLY ADHERED TO. LATE ENTRIES WILL BE ACCEPTED (AFTER THE OFFICIAL CLOSING DATE) ONLY UP TO ONE WEEK AFTER THE CLOSING DATE. ENTRY FORMS AND BANK SLIPS SHOULD REACH THE CALSDA OFFICE NOT LATER THAN ONE WEEK AFTER THE OFFICIAL CLOSING DATE OF ENTRIES.

EVERYONE NEEDS A LAUGH !

I Didn't Do My Homework Because:

I didn't do my history homework because I don't believe in dwelling on the past.

I didn't want the other kids in the class to look bad.

A sudden gust of wind blew my homework out of my hand and I never saw it again.

Another pupil fell in a lake and I jumped in to rescue him. Unfortunately, my homework drowned.

I have a solar-powered calculator, and it was cloudy.

I made a paper plane out of it and it got hijacked.

I felt it wasn't challenging enough.

My parents were sick and unable to do my homework last night. Don't worry, they have been suitably punished.

I didn't want to add to your already heavy workload.

A WAY WITH WORDS

POETRY CROSSWORD

  1           2                              3                                               4     5                                                                                            6                   7    8                                      9           10                                                         11                                                                        

ACROSS

1. Many poems are divided into these.3. This type of poem is associated with Ireland.4. This is when you give human qualities to inanimate objects.6. In this kind of poem, the first letter in each line, when read downward, forms a word.8. This is what you call a person who writes poetry.9. Comparing two things by saying it is something else.

11. Comparing two things using like or as.

DOWN

2. The repetition of the first letter of words.5. The repetition of sounds at the ends of words.7. Free _____ is a kind of poetry that has no set rhyme or rhythm.10. This type of poem is often associated with Japan.

WRITER’S PROFILE

Dave Crawley

Dave Crawley is a contemporary children’s poet and

television reporter. Born in Frankfurt, Germany, he

now resides in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

A graduate of Washington and Lee University with a

Bachelor of Arts degree in History, Dave went on to

receive a Master of Arts degree in Mass Communication

from Emerson College in Boston, Massachusetts.

In his poems for children, Crawley uses rhyme and light

humor as he engages with subjects of animal life and

school days. He is the author of the non-fiction book

‘Sidelights on Wisconsin’ (1988) and the children’s

poetry books ‘Cat Poems’ (2005), ‘Dog Poems’ (2007),

and ‘Reading, Rhyming and ’Rithmetic’ (2010).

His work has been featured in the anthologies ‘Rolling

in the Aisles: A Collection of Laugh-Out-Loud Poems’

(2005), ‘If Kids Ruled the School: More Kids' Favorite

Funny School Poems’ (2004) and ‘What I Did on My

Summer Vacation: Kids' Favorite Funny Summer

Vacation Poems’ (2009); all edited by Bruce Lansky.

 

Crawley has also produced more than 3,000 human-

interest stories during his career in journalism. 

He has won numerous awards throughout his career. He

has won 13 Emmy awards, including ‘Outstanding

Feature Reporter’ in the Mid-Atlantic states, and an

Edward R. Murrow Award for broadcast news writing.

Crawley’s children’s poetry book ‘Dog Poems’ was

chosen as one of the Best Children’s Books of the Year

2007 by the Bank Street Children’s Book Committee.

TRAPPED! by Dave Crawley

I can’t get up!There’s a cat on my lap!What a terrible timehe picked for a nap!

I can’t get up!No dinner for me! I can’t play gamesor watch TV.

I can’t get up! No school in the morning!My cat dozed offwithout any warning.

I can’t get up!And I don’t dare speak!I may be herethe rest of the week.

SAW MY TEACHER ON A SATURDAY by Dave Crawley

Saw my teacher on a Saturday!I can’t believe it’s true!I saw her buying groceries,like normal people do!

She reached for bread and turned around,and then she caught my eye.She gave a smile and said, “Hello.”I thought that I would die!

“Oh, hi…hello, Miss Appleton,”I mumbled like a fool.I guess I thought that teacher typesspend all their time at school.

To make the situation worse,my mom was at my side. So many rows of jars and cans.So little room to hide.

Oh please, I thought, don’t tell my momwhat I did yesterday!I closed my eyes and held my breathand hoped she’d go away.

Some people think it’s fine to letour teachers walk about.But when it comes to Saturdays,they shouldn’t let them out!

INSPIRATION FOR TEACHERS

A Loving TeacherThings our grown-up mind defies

Appear as giants in children’s eyes.

A gentle touch upon her head

A simple word when kindly said.

Complete attention when she calls.

Her knowing you have given all.

Correcting in a loving way.

Instilling trust in what you say.

Making her believe unique

The tiny flaw upon her cheek.

Admiring old and faded dresses.

Reminding her we all make messes.

Words of comfort you’ve softly spoken

A promise you’ve made she knows won’t be broken.

Your knowing her doll that was lost today

Is just as important as bills you can’t pay.

Helping make her plans and schemes

Giving her hope and building her dreams.

All of this and so much more

Is in her mind forever stored.

They who touch her life awhile

Can either make or break that child.

Education is important, true,

But so much more, her faith in you.

You’ve weathered through the storm and strife;

You helped to build a small girl’s life.

You’re truly one to be admired.

For you gave more than was required.

-Pat McClain

WHAT IS A METAPHOR?

A metaphor is a figure of speech that identifies one

thing as being the same as some unrelated other thing,

thus strongly implying the similarities between the two.

Given below are some example of metaphors :

The snow is a white blanket.  Her lovely voice was music to his ears.  Life is a rollercoaster.   The alligator’s teeth are white daggers.   He is a shining star.  Time is money. His words were cotton candy. Her long hair was a flowing golden river. The computers at school are old dinosaurs. Laughter is the music of the soul. The falling snowflakes are dancers. Books are keys to your imagination. The peaceful lake was a mirror. The wind was an angry witch. The ballerina was a swan, gliding across the stage. Her angry words were bullets to him. Jamal was a pig at dinner. You are my sunshine.

TEACHER SUPPORT MATERIAL

A series of work books, past question papers, a CD of

vocabulary pronunciation (Grades Introductory to Six),

specimen Spoken English passages for reading, re-telling

and listening comprehension are available for sale at the

CALSDA office. For revised rates of the books

available, please check with the office staff.

These material can be purchased between 9.00 a.m. and

4.00 p.m. Monday to Friday.

………………………… ………………………….

Varuni Jayasekara Zulfika Musafer

Executive Director Director of Examinations

For and on behalf of the Board of Management