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HOW TO DO COMPOSITIONS
Formal letters | Informal letters | Narratives | Descriptions
www.callan.es
www.callanschool.info
SCHOOL OF ENGLISH www.metodocallan.info
Formal letters
4
Content Pages
Informal letters
Notes and useful language 6
Narratives
Notes and useful language 8
Descriptions
Notes and useful language 10
© Callan School of English S.L.
SCHOOL OF ENGLISH
FORMAL LETTERS
Write the name and address of Write your address on separate lines
the person or company you are in the top right-hand corner.
writing to on the left-hand side,
Do not write your name. Write the
below the date.
date below your address.
23 Oxford Road
Cheltenham
GL504QZ
The Manager
Goldspar Office Equipment
54 Old Market Malvern
WR122PO
There are several reasons for this. In the first place, the cabinet is grey in colour
rather than cream as I ordered. Secondly, the lock doesn't work. Thirdly, there
is a large dent on the top, which was probably caused during delivery.
I must ask you to replace the filing cabinet with one which is the correct
colour and in perfect condition. I would be grateful if you would telephone
me on 06845721399 as soon as possible in order to make the necessary
arrangements.
End with «Yours
faithfully», if you Yours faithfully,
began Dear Sir
or Dear Madam.
End with «Yours
sincerely» if you
began with a
name. HAZEL SMITH (Ms)
information.
• Conclude your letter.
4 SCHOOL OF ENGLISH
NOTES AND USEFUL LANGUAGE
Job applications
First make it clear which job you are applying for, and mention
Enquiries
where you saw the advertisement, and when. Give all the neces In the first paragraph, explain what information you need. If
sary information about yourself (including age, qualifications, you are responding to an advertisement, mention where you
past employment and other experience). Say why you are par saw this.
ticularly interested in the job, and what you have to offer. Use
a new paragraph for each main topic. It may also be useful to Use extra paragraphs to mention any specific questions you
mention when you would be available for an interview: would like answers to:
Apologies
Opinions
Explain why you are apologizing and what the reasons were for
your behaviour. If possible, offer to make up in some way (e.g. by
I strongly disagree with / I completely agree
paying for the damage) and / or promise that the problem won't
with Mr. Smith's letter, which appeared yesterday.
happen again:
I was interested to read the article on immigration
I am writing to apologize for the things I said in Monday's edition of your newspaper but I don't
at our last meeting / losing my temper. think it gave all the facts.
I would like to say how sorry I am about the trouble
I was interested / fascinated / amused / delighted
I have caused / that you were disturbed.
to see / hear / read...
The reason I missed the meeting was that
my car broke down. I was horrified / shocked / disgusted to ...
Please let me know how much it cost and In my opinion there is far too much violence
I will gladly replace it. in television dramas these days.
© Callan School of English S.L.
I assure you that this will never happen again. In conclusion I feel / I believe...
SCHOOL OF ENGLISH 5
INFORMAL LETTERS
Write your address (but not your
name) on separate lines in the top
right-hand corner.
23 Oxford Road
Cheltenham
GL504QZ
Write the date
4th August 20__ below your
Write the first line address.
next to the margin.
Always use a name. Dear Gill,
Never begin
Dear Friend.
Love Hazel!
Use separate paragrahs to: End your letter with an informal greeting:
© Callan School of English S.L.
6 SCHOOL OF ENGLISH
NOTES AND USEFUL LANGUAGE
I look forward to / Looking forward to hearing I wonder if / I was wondering if you could help me /
from / seeing you. do me a favour.
See you soon! Write soon / Hope to hear from I hope you don't mind me asking but could you
you soon. (possibly)...?
Once again, thank you for all your help. I'd be very / really / terribly grateful if you could...
Give my regards / love to ...
Thank you / Congratulations / Good luck
Apologies When thanking someone for something, it is usual to say as
much as possible about how useful / enjoyable / helpful it was.
Say what you are apologizing for and give reasons to explain
your behaviour. Try to suggest a way of putting things right,
7
When offering congratulations for some success, you usually
mention how well-deserved it is. When wishing someone good
if possible.
luck, try to reassure them or offer some friendly advice:
I'm writing to apologize for missing your party last
I'm writing to thank you for your hospitality /
week but I'm afraid I was in bed with flu.
the wonderful present.
I'm really sorry that I forgot to send you a birthday
It was so kind of you to invite me to stay with you.
card but I was so busy with my new job.
I really appreciated all your help / advice.
If you let me know where you bought it / how much Congratulations on passing your exams /
it cost. I'll gladly pay for it / replace it. your excellent exam results!
Please let me know how much the bill is and I'll gladly You really deserved to succeed after all your
pay it. hard work!
I wish you good luck / Good luck in /
Invitations. Accepting / Rejecting with your exams / your driving test / your interview.
Say what the event is and give clear details of the date, time and Don't worry, I'm sure you'll do well / pass.
place. It may be helpful to give other information such as how to
Do be on time, won't you, and don't forget to...
get there, who else is coming and what (if anything) to bring. It is
usual, too, to ask for confirmation:
News / information
I'm / We're having a party on Friday 19th and I /
we hope you'll be able to come. I thought you might be interested to hear about /
know that...
Would you like to come / go to see «Room With
a View» with me at the weekend? This is just to let you know that...
© Callan School of English S.L.
I was wondering if you'd like to go to the theatre / By the way, have you heard about / did you
come on holiday with us? know that...?
SCHOOL OF ENGLISH
NARRATIVES
Describe a journey you made when everything went wrong.
OPENING You don't necessarily expect everything to go smoothly when you're travelling.
To catch
There's always likely to be the odd delay or small problem to deal with. Just
the reader's
inttention occasionally, though, it seems that everything that can go wrong does go
wrong, and then you begin to wish you'd stayed at home.
Past continuous
I had spent a week staying with friends in Eastern Europe and I was now- Perfect participle
to set the scene
-beginning my journey home. Having got to the station in good time to catch for events before
the main events
the train, I went to the ticket office to buy a ticket. Imagine my dismay when
the ticket clerk explained that the train had been cancelled and that there
wasn't another one that day. Luckily, there was a bus I could catch, but it
didn't leave for two hours so I spent the intervening time walking the streets
Events in clear of the town, getting hotter and stickier by the minute. When I finally boarded
sequence the bus, all the seats had been taken, so I had to stand for the first hour of
the journey.
Sequence
links
By the time we arrived, I was exhausted and longing for a shower, so I
looked for a taxi and showed the driver the name of the hotel my friends had
New paragraph recommended. You've guessed it! He didn't recognize the hotel and wasn't
for each main
stage interested in finding out where it was. Instead, I took a tram but, believe it or
not, the tram broke down before we reached my stop. Fortunately, I had a
map so I walked the last kilometre before practically collapsing in the hotel.
Past perfect for Things seemed to go better after that. I was relaxing in my room when an
events before the American girl I'd met at Reception knocked on my door and said, «Hi, I've-
main events Direct speech for
-got a lot of food left over from my journey and I can't possibly eat it all. I was- variety and
interest
-wondering if you'd like to come and share it?» She was very friendly and we
ENDING had great fun picknicking and chatting about our adventures. My flight was
to explain the leaving the next morning so, after an hour or so, I said goodbye to her and
final result, or to
surprise or amuse returned to my room to pack my bags and look out my travel documents. It
the reader was only then that I discovered I had lost the return half of my airline ticket!
© Callan School of English S.L.
8 SCHOOL OF ENGLISH
NOTES AND USEFUL LANGUAGE
It's usually easiest to write a story which is based on your own • The past perfect to decribe events which happened before
experience, but don't be afraid to change the details slightly or the main events.
invent new parts if this helps to make the story more interesting
or entertaining. It is usual to decribe events in the order in which When I got on the bus all the seats had been taken.
they happened and to use a new paragraph for each main stage • Present participles to show two actions which are linked.
of the story. The sequence of events is also shown by verb tenses
and time links. Noticing that she looked lost, I asked if I could help.
I was absolutely horrified when I saw the bill. He first(ly) / at first last(ly) / at last
shook his arm threateningly at us. after / afterwards while / during / meanwhile
© Callan School of English S.L.
SCHOOL OF ENGLISH 9
DESCRIPTIONS
Write a description of a favourite member of your family.
Describe a town or city anywhere in the world which you particularly like.
INTRODUCTION My cousin, Christopher, is the son of my father's brother. He's three years
Sets the scene
younger than me and we didn't know each other very well as children
because he and his family lived on the other side of the country at that time. Different tenses
to fill in the
Since then, he's married and moved closer so we meet quite often and background
-I've got to know him much better.
Appearance / height and medium build, and he's got curly, mousy hair and a fair complexion.
Clothes
As he's quite shortsighted like me, he wears glasses. The clothes he likes are
mostly casual: jeans or shorts and a tee-shirt. I don't think I've ever seen him
in a suit!
He's a very active person who loves the outdoor life. He's extremely particular
and he can build or repair almost anything, no matter how complicated it is.
-Another characteristic he has is that he's very outgoing. If you go to a show Vary the
Character sentence
with him and members of the audience are invited onto the stage, Chris will
structure
be the first to volunteer. The thing I appreciate most about him, however, is
his sense of humour. If I'm depressed, he can always cheer me up with a joke
or a funny story.
They say you can choose your friends but not your relations. In Chris's case,
CONCLUSION
Sums up your I feel I'm very lucky because he's not only my cousin but also one of my best
feelings
friends.
© Callan School of English S.L.
10 SCHOOL OF ENGLISH
NOTES AND USEFUL LANGUAGE
Structure Personalization
Descriptions need to be structured, like other types of writing, so Some topics give you more opportunity for personal comment
that they have an introduction, a middle and an end. In the intro than others. In general, though, including your reactions and
duction, you should briefly set the scene, perhaps by saying why feelings and an occasional touch of humour will make your des
you have chosen the person or place you're going to describe. cription more interesting and enjoyable for the reader.
After that you should deal with the different important aspects
of the subject in seperate paragraphs. Use the final paragraph to
sum up your feelings about the subject, if possible in a humo Describing places / events
rous or memorable way.
Possible aspects: your interest in the place / event, your impres
sions when you first went there, main characteristics, location,
Tenses
atmosphere, sights, sounds, people, summing up / comparison
You may be asked to write a description in the present, in the with later visit.
past or to make a comparison between the past and the present.
Location:
Think carefully about the tenses you use:
• Present habit: He rides a bicycle. in the middle, at the top / bottom, on the left / right
• Happening now: He's learning to play the violin. in the north, to the north of ...
• Links past and present: We've been friends for years.
in front of, behind, beyond, above, over, below, under
• Sets the scene: It was raining.
• Past action: She frowned when she saw me.
Describing objects
Sentence Structure Possible aspects; structure, shape, colour, material, use.
One problem which arises with this kind of writing is that you
can find yourself beginning all your sentences in the same way:
He looks... , He's got..., He wears... This makes the description Shape
rather boring to read, so try to vary the sentence structure: His
eyes are..., The first thing you notice is..., Another characteris- It is shaped like a circle / It's circular in shape /
tic is... It's star shaped
Order of Adjectives :
A brand-new white woollen sweater. so that + clause
SCHOOL OF ENGLISH 11
SCHOOL OF ENGLISH
www.callan.es
www.callanschool.info
www.metodocallan.info