Writing to inform, explainand describe
The longer writing task
•This writing task is 45 minutes, including planningtime.
•Your response to the writing task is expected to befairly detailed and wide-ranging.
•In the writing task, you will be expected to be able toshow how you shape individual sentences and thenorganise them into a whole text, and how you chooseto use and link paragraphs within an overall structure.
•You will be marked on spelling and punctuation.
•You will need to use various linguistic devices andchoose interesting language.
The planning
•Make time to annotate the question.
•5 minutes planning.
Giving the best responses
For the best chance of getting high marks it isimportant that you:
•do exactly what you are asked. For example, if youare asked to write a speech, you will get no marks forwriting a letter
•answer the question that is asked. Make sure thatyou include material that answers the question. Forexample, the question will never ask you to includepictures, so do not waste your time drawing them
•respond to all the prompts. (such as bullet points),if any are given
•complete the task in the time allowed. Plan yourtime carefully.
Express yourself well
Here are a few tips for writing good
responses:
•Take your time to plan your response. Read each task carefully,make notes and plan what you are going to write. Before youstart writing, check that your plan responds to the actual taskand that you are not going to write about things which are notrelevant.
•Use as many skills that you have learned and that areappropriate to the question as you can, for example in yourchoice of persuasive or descriptive language.
•Watch your spelling and punctuation.
•Make sure that what you have written makes sense. If yourealise it doesn’t, change it. If you cannot understand what youhave written, it is unlikely that the examiner will!
•Try to leave a few minutes at the end to check your responsecarefully.
•Think about your handwriting, even if you are in a hurry. Afterall, you cannot score marks if the marker cannot read what youhave written.
Writing to inform
Some information texts:
•Railway timetable
•Guide books
•Recipes
•Reviews
•Letters
•Brochures
•Posters (missing person)
Features of informative writing:
Audience (degree of formality)
Purpose (what is the writer trying to achieve)
Clear, easy to follow layout of text
Use of headings and sub-headings
Organisation of paragraphs
Use of topic sentences to introduce aparagraph
Use of cohesive words, which link sentencesand ideas.
Writing to explain
Some examples of explanatory writing:
•Text books
•Manuals
•Newspaper articles
•Letter
•Magazines
Features of explanatory writing:
Clearly organised into paragraphs.
Complex as well as simple sentences are used.
Connectives such as ‘before’, ‘next’ and ‘once’ showthe chronological order in which things happen.
Connectives such as ‘because’, ‘since’, ‘owing to’ and ‘asa result of’ show cause and effect.
The passive emphasises things and actions ratherthan people.
Words such as ‘may’, ‘seem to’ and ‘apparently’ showwhen something is not proven.
Explanatory writing can be in:
- the first person, (I), if you are explaining somethingyou did or experienced
- the second person, (you), if you are explaining howto do something
- the third person, (he, she, it), when you areexplaining something outside your own experience.
Writing to describe
Some examples of descriptive writing:
•Advertisements
•Autobiography
•Biography
•Fiction
•Poetry
•Letters
Features of descriptive writing:
Can be subjective or objective viewpoint
Thorough detail
Five senses
Adjectives and adverbs
Imagery
Entertaining – humour
Variety of short and long sentences
Advice to a new School Council representative
The school year is almost over and your term of office as a Year 9
representative on the School Council is almost over.
The notice below, calling for the new form representatives, has
been posted on the class noticeboard.
Newton Community High School
Elections to the School Council
These elections will be held at the end of next week. If you would like to beyour form’s representative on the School Council next year, you should giveyour name to your form tutor. Your tutor will explain the election process toyou this week.
Form representatives should be prepared to:
• listen to the views and ideas of members of their form
• attend all meetings of the School Council
• take part in decision making
• report decisions back to their form
• represent the school at functions such as parents’ evenings.
You have been asked to write a briefing note for pupils who are considering
standing for election to the School Council for next year. These pupils, who have
not been on a School council before, need to know what their duties will involve.
You could also give some advice about the pleasures and pressures of the post.
Write the briefing note for Year 9 representatives on the School Council.
It should be about 300-350 words long.
Remember to:
• write in a style which is appropriate to secondary school pupils
• bring your advice to life with examples of what you have had to do
• use the frame to help you organise your ideas.
Over to you!
•Read and annotate the question in your
pack.
•Plan your answer.
•Write the answer to the question. Tryto include the features highlighted thislesson.