O/L English
Everything you need for the Ordinary Level English paper, arranged the way the paper is arranged. Start with the syllabus so you know the shape of the examination, then work through the skills and the writing tasks.
Syllabus documents, guides and study packs
Grade 11 English Pupil's Book
Educational Publications Department, Sri Lanka
Linked from the Educational Publications Department
Official site, no HTTPS
View or download (opens in a new tab; connection not encrypted)
Grade 10 English Teachers' Guide
National Institute of Education, Sri Lanka
Linked from the National Institute of Education
Grade 11 English Teachers' Guide
National Institute of Education, Sri Lanka
Linked from the National Institute of Education
Grade 10 English Study Pack, Way Forward, First Term 2021
Provincial Department of Education, Western Province
Linked from Google Drive
Grade 11 English Study Pack, Way Forward, First Term 2021
Provincial Department of Education, Western Province
Linked from Google Drive
Grade 11 Term Notes with Competency Levels 2026
J/Nelliady Central College - National School
Linked from Google Drive
Grade 11 English Unit Tests 2025
Department of Education, Southern Province - prepared by RESC Matara
Linked from Google Drive
Grade 10 English Study Pack, Way Forward, Third Term 2021
Provincial Department of Education, Western Province
Linked from Google Drive
Grade 11 English Study Pack, Way Forward, Third Term 2021
Provincial Department of Education, Western Province
Linked from Google Drive
O/L English Study Pack
Provincial Department of Education, Sri Lanka
Linked from Google Drive
O/L English Acceleration Kit 1
Provincial Department of Education, Sri Lanka
Linked from Google Drive
O/L English Self-Learning Pack, Sabaragamuwa Province
Provincial Department of Education, Sabaragamuwa Province
Linked from Google Drive
What this section is for
O/L English is a language paper, not a memory paper. You cannot learn it by heart the night before. What you can do is understand how each task works, see a good example of it, practise it with help, and then do it alone.
That is exactly how this section is organised. Nothing here asks you to write a complete answer before you have been shown how it is built.
Know the paper
Syllabus and Examination Structure
What the examination covers, how it is divided, and how to check the requirements for your own year.
Paper I
The shorter, faster tasks: comprehension, grammar, vocabulary and short guided writing. How to work through them without losing time.
Paper II
The longer writing tasks and extended comprehension. How to plan, divide your time, and finish.
Language skills
Grammar
Tenses, articles, prepositions, subject-verb agreement, active and passive, reported speech and conditionals, with the reason behind each rule.
Vocabulary
How to build vocabulary that you can actually use, and how to work out an unfamiliar word from the sentence around it.
Reading Comprehension
How to read a passage under time pressure and answer the question that was actually asked.
Writing, task by task
Each writing page follows the same six steps. Read Guided Writing first — it explains the method that every other writing page uses.
Essay Builder and Writing Exercises
Build an O/L essay of about 180 words step by step, with checks at every stage. Then improve weak paragraphs and practise topic sentences and linking words.
Guided Writing
The method itself. Read this before the others.
Emails
Formal and informal email, with the layout examiners expect.
Notices
Short, complete and correctly laid out. Easy marks if you know the form.
Letters
Formal and informal letters, addresses, openings and closings.
Paragraph Writing
One idea, developed properly, in one paragraph.
Essay Writing
Planning, paragraphing and finishing an essay in the time available.
Picture Description
Describing what you see in an organised order, not at random.
Dialogue and Speech Writing
Natural dialogue, and a speech with a clear opening, middle and close.
Grammar point of the day
Grammar point
Adjective order in English is fixed and nobody is taught it: opinion, size, age, shape, colour, origin, material. A lovely little old round brown Sri Lankan wooden box.
Learners get this wrong and cannot say why. Give them the order.
Practice and revision
Model Questions
Practice questions in the style of the paper, for every task type.
Model Answers
Full answers with notes explaining why each one works.
Examination Techniques
Reading the question, dividing time, planning briefly, and checking.
Common Student Mistakes
The errors that cost marks most often, with the correct form beside each.
Interactive Revision
Activities that mark themselves and explain the answer.
O/L English Past Papers
Past papers, model papers and marking schemes for O/L English.
Find related books
RCF Publications produces practical O/L English support materials, grammar resources and examination-revision books, with simplified explanations and guided writing for learners who need extra help.
O/L English Grammar Practice BookSee it in RCF Publications
Grade 10 English Support Book for Slow LearnersSee it in RCF Publications
Grade 11 English Support Book for Slow LearnersSee it in RCF Publications