GUIDED WRITING
TYPES OF COMPOSITIONS
Speeches or Talks Expressing Opinions
News Reports
TYPES OF
Descriptive Texts
Informal Letters
COMPOSITIO N
Processes & Procedures
Formal Letters
Dialogues
GENERAL TIPS ON WRITING COMPOSITIONS
Read the question carefully
Study the visual aids and notes given
Plan your composition by writing out a brief outline first
Your outline can be in the form of a mind map
Remember to write your essays in paragraphs. You should have at least 3 paragraphs, i.e. paragraph 1 Introduction, paragraph 2 – Body; and paragraph 3 - Conclusion
Arrange your points according to importance or sequence
Make sure you elaborate on the points given in the question
Use a variety of sentence structures when you write your essay, and use words you are familiar with
Plan your time well with enough time left over to edit your essay for grammatical or spelling mistakes
1.
Speeches or Talks
The outline of your speech or talk should be:
Introduction
Body: Paragraph 1
: Greeting the audience Mention the topic of your speech/talk
- Start with the important details. Give examples to support your point.
Paragraphs 2 & 3 - Give other details. Support with more examples.
Conclusion
: State your topic again. Thank the audience.
2. Reports
The outline of your news report should be:
Headline / Title
Paragraph 1
-
Name of town and day of incident. Summary of Important details
Paragraph 2, 3, 4, … - Details of incident in order of importance, logical sequence
• • •
Make sure you have Introduction Body Conclusion. Remember to include details/examples to support your points.
3. Informal Letters The format of an informal letter is given below:
Sender’s address Date Greeting Dear Susan, Introduction How are you?
Body of letter (two or more paragraphs) Conclusion Ending Yours sincerely, (signature)
4. Formal Letters The format of the formal letter is shown below.
Sender’s name (optional) Sender’s address ______________________________________________________________
Receiver’s Name (if available) Receiver’s Address (underline last line of address)
Greeting Dear Sir/Mr …, Subject Heading Opening paragraph (no numbering and indentation)
Body of letter 2.
3.
Closing (no numbering and indentation)
Thank you.
Sign off Yours faithfully, Signature (FULL NAME)
Date
5. Dialogues
a. A dialogue is usually between two people. However, you may be asked to write a conversation which involves more than two people. b. You may be asked to write an interview, a telephone conversation, a dialogue between friends, etc. It may be a question and answer session. c. Arrange the notes given in the question to be used for the dialogue. Remember to elaborate on the points given. d. Start the dialogue with a greeting. Give an ending to the dialogue. It should not be left hanging. e. Finally, when you have finished writing your dialogue, check for any errors in spelling. Make sure you have used the correct tenses and there are no grammatical mistakes.
6. Processes and Procedures Format on writing a composition to describe a process or procedure
Introduction – name the process or procedure you are going to describe
Body
– 1. Start with the first step. Use First / Firstly . Say what is done 2. Continue to describe the following steps. Use sequence connectors such as secondly, then, next, finally, lastly, etc. to help you explain the process or procedure. 3. Proceed until the last step.
Conclusion –
Round up your essay by adding some comments about the process – simple/difficult process, what it is used for, etc.
7. Descriptive Texts a.
You may be asked to describe a place or scene, for example a busy pasar malam, a beach resort or a town.
b.
Use a lot of adjectives in your descriptions. These will help to bring the place or scene you are describing to life. Upon reading your description, your readers will be able to imagine/visualize the place or scene.
c.
When writing your descriptions, include the people there as well as their activities.
d.
You may also want to write about how you feel about the place/scene. Use words that appeal to the five senses of sight, sound, smell, taste and feelings.
The format of your essay may be like this:
Introduction – name the place/scene you are going to describe Body
Conclusion
– 1. Write about the most prominent point first. 2. Describe the surroundings. If it is a picture, you may describe what you see in the picture in a clockwise or anti-clockwise direction. Give details like colours, lights, sound, etc. – Round up your essay by adding your comments about the place/scene
8. Expressing Opinions a. Read the question carefully and state your viewpoint. You should state your opinion in the first paragraph. b. Support your opinion by giving reasons and examples. c. Arrange your argument according to importance. Remember to present your argument clearly and logically. d.
You may need to use logical connectors such as therefore, besides, moreover and besides to join your points.
e.
Check for any mistakes in grammar and spelling before handing in your composition.
The general format on writing an essay to express an opinion:
Introduction – mention the topic and state your opinion Body
– Paragraph 1 – State your first point of argument. Give elaborations and examples to support your argument. Use words like moreover , therefore, besides, on the other hand , etc. to help you link your points. Paragraph 2 – give your second reason to support your argument. Paragraph 3 – your third argument. Give details and elaborations.
Conclusion – End your essay by restating your stand on the argument.
