F4 Writing 5

Write about 200 words on the following topic:

Your friend Sam wants to spend his summer learning more about a different culture. He has sent you
an email for your advice. You have researched the topic online and ran into some posts on the pros and
cons of a working holiday and a language course abroad.

Write an email replying to Sam and offering suggestions to him. List the pros and cons for each choice
in the email. Use the name Chris.

How do you tackle this topic?

Part I: Preparation
Read the question two times and find out the following:

1 Text-type (what do you need to write?) a. A letter? A speech? An article? A news report?
. b. Do you know the format of this text type?
2 Role (who are you?) a. The role you are asked to assume
. b. Your name

3 Target reader (who is going to read this *Please don’t tell me it’s your English teacher.
. writing?)

4 Level of formality The level of formality depends on the relationship

. (Formal vs informal) between the writer and the target reader.

5 Tone Friendly? Polite? Commanding? Encouraging? Serious?

. etc.

6 Content a. Find out the background of this writing (why do

. you write this?)
b. Things you need to include in the writing

7 Language a. The format of the text-type.

. b. The level of formality in the choice of words
c. The tenses used

d. Words or phrases commonly used for a particular

1
 purpose
e. Cohesive devices eg. Connectives

8 Organisation a. Usually we have 4-5 paragraphs in a piece of short

. writing:
i. The introduction
ii. The body (2-3 paragraphs with one idea in
each paragraph)
iii. The conclusion
b. Pay attention to creating
i. the cohesion between paragraphs
ii. the cohesion of idea, elaboration and
examples or evidence in each paragraph.
c. Use topic sentence in each paragraph

Part 2: Language
In this piece of writing, you are asked to list out the pros and cons of two options to give a suggestion.
To persuade the reader to agree with you, you should:
a. Compare (to list out the similarities) and contrast (list out the differences) of the options.
b. Explain why you think one option is better than the other and make a suggestion.
Here are some words and phrases commonly used to make comparisons (compare)
and describe differences (contrast)

Compare Contrast
like unlike
similar to in contrast to
as well as as opposed to
in comparison to different from/to
just the same as far apart (from)
similarly conversely

You can also use the comparative and superlative forms of adjectives to compare and contrast
E.g. The bus trip is the cheapest option though it takes more time.
This blanket is much more expensive but its quality is the best.

Part 3: content and organisation

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  Always elaborate your main point and support it with examples, facts and evidence. This can
clarify your idea and make it more convincing.
 Use cohesive devices eg. connectives and signalling words to link up all the paragraphs from
the introduction to the conclusion. A topic sentence is a good way to make the reader follow
the core idea of each paragraph more easily.
Part 4: A final note
Each piece of writing assignment is a chance for you to practise

 your thinking skills, like generating ideas, organizing them and thinking of the best way to
express/present them.
 Your writing skills, like using the precise words, the correct grammar and the suitable writing
style and tone.
 Refining your work, like doing proofreading. Good proofreading is a must. Your teachers also
proofread their work to avoid careless mistakes and to refine it!
It is very normal (and sometimes a good practice) to research ideas for your writing. However,
when you want to improve your writing, you should express the ideas in your own words.
Otherwise, the effort and time spent is down the drain!
Suggested Reading materials
1. https://global-goose.com/working-holiday-instead-of-going-to-university/

2. https://www.cervantes.to/articles/the-benefits-learning-foreign-language-abroad.html

3. https://www.shortcoursesportal.com/articles/430/language-summer-schools-set-course-for-
your-fun-adventure-abroad.html
This composition topic is not difficult for you to handle. With effort and care, you can do it well.
Happy writing!

Suggested time allocation (45 mins)

3
1.Planning (8-10 mins)
You can use the following table (*) to do your planning.
2. Writing (25 mins)
3. Proofreading (8-10 mins)
*

1. Your role

2. Target reader

3. Text-type

4. Formality

5. Tone

6. Content and organisation Introduction: Paragraph 1

(You can write down the
points you want to include
in the composition here) Body: Paragraph 2

Paragraph 3

Paragraph 4

Conclusion: Paragraph 5

6. Language Tenses?
(Tenses?)
7. Remarks
(What are the things you
want to remind yourself
before the actual writing?)