ESSAYS WRITING SPM
Short Communicative Message - Short Communicative Message is tested in Part 1 of Paper 2 (119/2). This section tests students’ knowledge in responding to questions in emails or messages. A stimulus (an email or a message) is given and students are required to respond to the stimulus in about 80 words. A total of 20 marks is awarded for this part. Students are assessed based on four criteria – content, communicative achievement, organisation and language. Each criterion is worth 5 marks. Only one question is asked in this part and it is compulsory for students to answer. - Test focus: i. Make ad respond to simple requests and suggestions ii. Explain simple processes iii. Narrate factual or imagined events and experiences iv. Express and respond to opinions and common feelings such as happiness, sadness, surprise, and interest v. Punctuate written work with moderate accuracy vi. Spell written work with moderate accuracy vii. Begin to use formal and informal registers appropriate to the target audience in familiar situations - Guidelines and strategy: i. The content must be relevant to the task given. Keep your response clear and brief. Answer only what is asked. There is no need for elaboration as there is a word limit of 80 words. ii. The response should be straightforward and communicative in nature. So, you should be concise and straight to the point. iii. The recipient of the email is usually family members or friends so use a friendly tone throughout the message or email. iv. Use cohesive devices to link your ideas so that the reader can easily understand your message. v. Use vocabulary that is relevant to your topic. Use grammatically correct sentences. vi. Review your work for grammar, spelling and punctuation errors. vii. Use interesting expressions in your answer. - Useful expressions: i. Greetings/ salutations: Hi/ Hello How are you doing? How are your family? Nice to hear from you! Hope you are doing well. It’s been a while since I last wrote. ii. Agreeing/ accepting invitation: I agree with you. You are absolutely right! I would love to come! That’s a great idea!
That sounds fun! Count me in! iii. Disagreeing/ I don’t think that’s a great idea. declining invitation: I’m afraid I don’t agree. I think I have to decline. I see things differently. I don’t think I can make it. Maybe next time as I… iv. Giving suggestions/ I suggest… Recommendations: I would recommend that… I think it’s a good idea to… Why don’t we… Let’s go/ do… How about if we… v. Giving advice: Why don’t you try… You have to… I would advise you to… It might be a good idea to… I think you need to… Maybe you should… vi. Justifying : Its’ a good idea because… The reason is… Due to… I think this might… Seeing that… I think this… vii. Expressing common Congratulations! feelings: All the best! Sorry to hear that. Have fun! Enjoy your trip! Don’t give up! viii. Concluding: Write soon. Till I hear from you again. Thanks for your email. Do let me know. Hope to hear from you soon. I’ll be waiting for your reply. ix. Signing off: Bye, Best regards, Your cousin, Warm regards, Best wishes, Your friend,
General format of an email To (Recipient’s email address) From (Sender’s email address) Subject (Purpose of email) ______________________________ (Greetings and salutations) ______________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________ (Conclusion) ______________________________ (Signing off) ______________________________ (Sender’s name) Exercise 1 You received an email from your brother, Samuel. Hi, We are planning to have a special dinner for Dad on Father’s Day. Should we have continental, oriental or local cuisine? Which restaurant do you suggest and what gift shall we get for him? I’ll be waiting for your reply. Bye! Now, write an email to your brother in about 80 words. (Body)
Guided writing - Guided writing is tested in Part 2 of Paper 2 (1119/2). Students are required to write an essay based on a text stimulus in 125 – 150 words. A total of 20 marks is awarded for this part. Students are assessed based on four criteria – content, communicative achievement, organisation and language. Each criterion is worth 5 marks. Only one question is asked and you are required to answer this question. - Test focus: i. Explain advantages and/ or disadvantages of: - Ideas - Plans - Arrangements ii. Explain the main points for and against an idea or argument iii. Express and respond to real or imagined opinions and feelings iv. Organise, sequence and develop ideas within a text of several paragraphs on familiar topics and some unfamiliar topics v. Punctuate written work on a range of text types with reasonable accuracy vi. Use formal and informal registers appropriate to the target audience - Guidelines and strategy: i. Read the question carefully ii. In this stimulus, you will be given two or three points to guide you in your writing. Remember to include all the points in your essay. iii. State your opinion in the first paragraph. Your answer must be relevant to the task given. iv. Provide reasons or supporting details in your second and third paragraphs. v. You may reiterate your opinion to conclude the essay. vi. There is a word limit of 120 -150 words so do not provide lengthy elaborations. vii. Use vocabulary that is suitable to your topic and language that is appropriate for your target audience. You may also use idiomatic expressions to fortify your response. viii. Use sentence connectors to link your ideas so that your essay flows well and the reader can easily understand your viewpoint. ix. Remember to use grammatically correct sentences. x. Review you work for grammar, spelling and punctuation errors. - Useful expressions i. To state your opinion I strongly believe that… In my opinion… To a certain extent I agree… I agree/ disagree with… I think… ii. To present arguments for
One important advantage is… A further advantage… Many people are convinced… The first benefit is… One point of view in favour of… It is often believed that… iii. To present arguments against One major disadvantage of… Some people are against… An additional disadvantage is… An important drawback is… One point against… Another major drawback… iv. To add similar points Furthermore, also, in addition to, besides, apart from this/ that, not to mention the fact that, besides that, also v. To add contrasting points On the other hand, however, despite/in spite of (the fact), while, nevertheless, even though, although, it can be argued that, but, though it is argued that, people argue that, opponents of this view say, there are people who oppose this view vi. To show sequence of ideas Firstly, secondly, finally, after that, then, first of all, to start with, to begin with, last but not least, in the first place, first of all vii. To introduce examples For example, for instance, such as, namely viii. To conclude In conclusion, to conclude, to sum up, all in all, all things considered, on the whole, taking everything into account/ consideration, above all, as was previously stated
- General format of an essay: ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ Exercise 1 Your class has been discussing about the influence of television on students and your teacher has asked you to write an essay on whether television is beneficial or harmful. In your essay, you should write about: - Your opinion on this issue - Reasons to support your opinion - Examples of television programmes Write your essay using all the notes and giving reasons for your point of view. Introduction Start with a general statement and mention the keywords in the situation given Body Answer the first, second and third prompts and elaborate briefly with examples Conclusion End with a brief conclusion
Extended writing - Extended writing is tested in Part 3 of Paper 2 (119/2). In this section, candidates are given three options and they must only choose one. The possible text types include: i. An article ii. A review iii. A report iv. A story - Candidates must write the essay in 200 – 250 words. A total of 20 marks is awarded for this part. Candidates are assessed based on four criteria – content, communicative achievement, organisation and language. Each criterion is worth 5 marks. - Text focus: i. Explain advantages and disadvantages of: - Ideas - Plans - Arrangements ii. Explain the main points for and against an idea or argument iii. Express and respond to real or imagines opinions and feelings iv. Organize, sequence and develop ideas within a text of several paragraphs on familiar topics and some unfamiliar topics v. Punctuate written work on a range of text types with reasonable accuracy vi. Use formal and informal registers appropriate to the target audience - Guidelines and strategy: i. Read the three questions carefully ii. Make sure you understand the requirements of each question – pay attention to the prompts or questions in the stimulus iii. Choose the option that you know best – be it in terms of the format or the subject matter. Be sure to include all the points given in the stimulus iv. Use vocabulary that is suitable to your topic and language that is appropriate for your target audience v. Keep to the word limit vi. Review your work for grammar, spelling and punctuation errors
A. Articles - An article is a piece of writing about a particular subject. Its purpose can be to give information, news, suggestions or opinion to the reader. An article can appear in newspapers, magazines, newslatters or on the internet. - Guidelines and strategy: i. Read the question carefully ii. Start your article with a title – you may use the one given in the stimulus if you wish, or come up with a new one. Remember to write your name in the next line iii. Read the stimulus carefully and understand what is required in your article. Use the pints given to guide you iv. Come up with a strong opening line. The first line must be able to capture the attention of the reader and set the tone of the article. Here are some ways you may start your article: - Use a quote - Share a personal story - Ask a question - Tell the reader to imagine a scenario - Share an interesting fact But remember to keep your introduction short as you do not want to bore the reader or give away too much information in the beginning. v. State the aim of the article in the introductory paragraphs – preferably a paragraph for each point. vi. Avoid lengthy elaboration as you need to keep to the word limit of 200 – 250 words. vii. Use sentence connectors to link your ideas so that the reader can easily understand your viewpoint. viii. Review your essay for grammar, spelling or punctuation errors. Exercise 1 You see this notice on the school notice board. Articles wanted! Let’s Go Camping! - What was your recent camping experience? - What are the benefits of camping? - What facilitates should be improved at camping sites? Write us an article answering these questions. The best articles will be uploaded on the school website. Write your article.
B. Reviews - A review is a piece of writing in which the writer gives his or her opinion on a book, movie, place, product, service, performance and so on. - Here are some points you may want to consider when writing a review: Book Review Checklist Movie Review Checklist - Title - Author - Genre - Year of publication - Brief synopsis a. Where does the story take place? b. Who are the main characters? c. What is the story about? - What do you like about the book? Why? a. Story b. Language c. Themes/ moral values - Would you recommend it? Why? - Title - Director - Actors/ actresses - Genre - Year of release - Brief synopsis a. Where does the story take place? b. Who are the main characters? c. What is the story about? - What do you like about the movie? Why? a. Story b. Cinematography c. Acting d. CGI e. Music/ soundtrack - Would you recommend it? Why? Place Review Checklist Product Review Checklist - Name of place - Date/ time of visit - Location/ address - Accessibility – how to get there - Brief description of place a. View/ décor/ ambience b. Any special features - The food served - The quality of service - The price range - What do you like about the place? Why? - Would you recommend it? Why? - Name of product - Date/ time of purchase - Where it was purchased - Brief description of product/ key features - How is the product different from others in the market? - The price range - Where the product can be purchased - What do you like about the product? Why? - Would you recommend it? Why? - Guidelines and strategy: i. Read the question carefully and understand what is required in your review. Use the questions given to guide you. ii. Write the title of the review. e.g. Nevermore: A Book Review The Book Owl Café: A Review
Review of the Kobo e-Book Reader iii. You may start with an introduction of what you are reviewing. e.g. I recently read/ watched… One of my favourite restaurants is… The product I would like to review is… iv. Provide some background information or details of what you are reviewing in the opening paragraph. For example: The book is written by… / The movie is directed by… The genre of the book/ movie is…. The book was published in… /The movie was released… The restaurant is located in… / You can get to the restaurant by… The product claims to… v. Answer the first question in the stimulus – say what you like about the book/ movie/ product. Give reasons and elaborate what you like/ dislike about the subject you are reviewing. Remember, the point must be relevant to the prompt given. For example: It is fun/ entertaining/ chilling / inspiring story that… It features a great cast of characters including… One of the things I love about the café is… This is a great product as… vi. End your review with your recommendation, would you recommend it or not recommend it? Give a short explanation for your answer. For example: I thoroughly recommend this book/ movie because… It is one of the best books I have ever read/ movies I have ever seen. Although I enjoyed the food, I would not recommend it as… This product is recommended for… vii. Keep to the word limit of 200 -250 words. viii. Use sentence connectors to link your ideas so that the reader can easily understand your viewpoint. ix. Review your essay for grammar, spelling or punctuation errors. Exercise 1 You recently saw a notice in the library. Reviews required! Have you read an interesting book lately? Send us your book review. What did you like about the book? Will you encourage your friends to read this book? Why? The best review will be awarded cash prize. Write your review.
C. Reports - A report is a formal account of an event, project or situation. Types of reports you may be required to write include: a. Club/ society report b. Report on a social event c. Report addressing a complaint/ grievance d. Report based on a survey - A report has a particular purpose which is to give information or analysis, or make recommendations, suggestions or proposals. - Guidelines and strategy: i. Read the question carefully and understand the kind of report you are required to write. Use the prompts to guide you. ii. Pay attention to your role and the audience – who are you and who is the report for? iii. State the aim of the report in the introduction. You may give a brief background of the situation. iv. Answer the prompts and elaborate. Arrange them in paragraphs. v. If the question asks for it, give your recommendation, suggestion or proposal in your concluding paragraph. vi. Use sentence connectors to link your ideas so that the reader can easily understand your viewpoint. vii. Keep to the word limit of 200 – 250 words viii. Write your name and position at the end of your report ix. Review your essay for grammar, spelling or punctuation errors Exercise 1 As the Class Monitor, you have been asked to write a report for your class teacher on the types of television channels that your classmates watch. Your report should include: - The purpose of the report - The two most popular channels your classmates watch - The reason for watching them Write your report.
D. Narrative writing (stories) - Narrative writing is story writing. The aim is to tell the reader a story where the characters face a problem or go through an interesting or entertaining experience. Narrative writing has these elements: a. Setting - where and when the story takes place b. Characters – the people in the story c. Plot – sequence of events in the story. The plot usually follows this pattern: Introduction – the characters and setting are mentioned Rising action – events that begin to lead to the conflict Conflict – a problem that the character(s) must overcome Climax – the highest point in the story where matters come to a head Falling action – events after the climax leading to the resolution Resolution – the end of the story where matters are resolved and the moral lessons may be mentioned - A story can have the purpose to motivate, educate or simply entertain the readers. - A good story has the ability to keep the reader engaged. - Here are some details you may want to consider when writing a story: Introduction Resolution Climax Rising action Conflict Falling action
Characters Setting - Give names to the characters - Describe what your character(s) look like - Describe your characters’ personality - State the relationship between your characters - Describe the characters’ feelings - State where and when the story takes place - Use descriptive words to describe the setting Plot Language - Describe the conflict/ problem that arises - How did the character(s) tackle the problem? - Did the character(s) solve the problem in a realistic way? - Did the character(S) learn any lessons from it? - Decide on the point of view – first or third person - Make sure the tense used is consistent (present or past) - Include dialogues to make the story come alive - Use words that appeal to the five sense – sight, hearing, smell, touch and taste - Include some figurative language to make the story interesting, such as metaphor, simile, proverb, onomatopeia, etc You may not be able to include all the details due to the word limit. However, try to include some to make your story interesting. - Guidelines and strategy: i. Read the question carefully and understand the kind of story you are required to write. Use the title and prompts to guide you. ii. Write the title given. iii. Decide on the point of view that you are going to use: - First person – the narrator is a character in the story (using the pronoun I) - Third person – the narrator is all-knowing (using the pronoun he, she, they) iv. Look at the tense used in the prompt to decide on the tense to use in the story. Does the story happen in the past or in the present? Be consistent with the tense used. v. Set the scenario in the first paragraph. Introduce the characters, the setting and the time frame. Give names to the characters. vi. Answer the first prompt in the second paragraph and elaborate – e.g. describe the problem the character encountered vii. Develop the events up to the climax
viii. Answer the second prompt in the third paragraph and elaborate – e.g. how was the problem resolved? ix. End your story with a logical conclusion. Include moral values that are relevant to the story. x. Keep to the word limit 200 – 250 words xi. Review your essay for grammar, spelling or punctuation errors. Exercise 1 Your teacher has asked you to write a story for the school magazine. The story must have the title: A painful lesson Your story should include: - A description of the painful situation - What the person learned from the situation Write your story.
Other types of writing A. Informal letters - We write an informal letter to a family member or friend. The language used is usually simple and casual. - Guidelines and strategy: i. First, write your address at the top right-handed corner of the letter. ii. Put a comma after every line and a full stop at the end of the address. iii. Write the date below your address. iv. Write the salutation on the left-hand side of the letter. Begin your greeting with Dear… v. Make sure you put a comma after the greeting. vi. Your letter must have an introduction, a body and a conclusion. vii. The language of your letter can be informal. You can use short forms in the letter, for example; I’ve, I’m, It’s viii. You must write in paragraphs and indent them ix. When ending your letter, sign off on the right-hand side of the letter x. The first word of the signing off begins with a capital letter. Examples are Yours sincerely, your friend, etc. Add comma at the end. - Format of informal letter: ____________,(1) ____________, ____________. ____________(2) Dear _____________, (3) ____________________________________________________(4) ____________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________(5) ____________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________(6) ____________________________________________________ __________________,(7) __________________(8) Address of sender Date Salutation or greeting Opening (introduction) Body – main idea of the letter Closing or conclusion Signing off (ending) Signature
Exercise 1 You receive a letter from your friend who is Chairperson of the English Language Society. She is organizing an English Language Week and has asked you to suggest some activities. In your letter: - Congratulate her on her initiative to carry out the English Week - State three fun activities - State the importance of an English Language Week Write your letter. Exercise 2 Your cousin is planning to join a school club. She seeks your advice on which school club to join – either the Environmental Club or the English Language Club. In your letter: - State the aims of the two clubs - Suggest which club to join - Suggest two benefits of joining the club Write your letter.
B. Formal letters - We write formal letters on official matters. It can be a letter application for a job, a letter of complaint, a letter asking for permission or a letter of enquiry. A formal letter must be polite even if we are writing to express our dissatisfaction. - Guidelines and strategy: i. The sender’s name and address should appear in the left-hand corner. ii. A horizontal line ( __________ ) across the page separates the sender’s address from the recipient’s address. iii. Write the salutation. iv. Write the subject heading and underline it. It must be directly below the salutation. v. Your letter must start with an introduction. State the reason for writing in the opening paragraph. vi. Sign off using “Yours faithfully”, “Yours sincerely”, or “Yours truly”. - Format of a Formal Letter: ______________ ,(1) ______________, ______________, ______________. ___________________________________________________ (2) ______________, (3) ______________, ______________. __________________ (4) Dear ______________, (5) ___________________________________________________ (6) ________________________________________________ (7) _________________________________________________ _________________________________________________(8) _________________________________________________ _________________________________________________(9) _________________________________________________ Thank you. Yours faithfully, (10) ______________(11) Name and address of sender A horizontal line Name and address of recipient Date Salutation Subject heading Introduction Body – main idea of the letter Conclusion Signing off (NAME IN FULL) (Position, if any)
Exercise 1 You are Secretary of the English Language Society. Your Society is organising a trip to Cameron Highlands. The teacher-advisor has asked you to write a letter to the Principal to seek permission for the trip. In your letter: - State the objectives of the trip - State the number of participants and fees - State the itinerary of the trip Write your letter. Exercise 2 You are Secretary of Consumers Club. Your club is organising a visit to Terengganu. You plan to visit a batik factory. Write a letter to the manager of Batik Galore to ask for permission. In your letter: - State the aim of the trip - State the number of participants, teachers and time of arrival - Request for guided tour of the factory Write your letter.
C. Speeches/ Talks - A speech is a formal or informal talk given to an audience. It usually has a specific purpose such as to inform, to instruct, to persuade or to entertain. - Guidelines and strategy: i. Start your speech with an opening line ii. In your opening line, greet your audience. iii. You should greet them in order of importance. For example, you must greet your principal first before your teachers and fellow students. iv. After greeting, mention the topic of your speech or state what it will be about. v. Then, write your speech in paragraphs. vi. Organize your points in sequence. vii.Elaborate where necessary viii. Support your points with details and examples ix. As it is a speech, you can use phrases like, ‘I’m sure you will agree with me….’ Or ‘Do you have any questions?’ to the audience. x. End your speech with a closing statement and thank your audience. Do’s Dont’s - Start your speech with an opening line - Greet your audience in order of importance. Greet your principal first before your teachers and fellow students. - Write short paragraphs for the body of your speech. Keep sentences short and concise too. - End your speech with a closing statement and thank your audience. - Don’t plunge right into what you want to say without an opening line - Don’t greet your audience in any way you wish. For instance, do not greet your teachers and fellow students before your principal. - Don’t write long paragraphs for the body of your speech. - Don’t end your speech abruptly without a closing line. Don’t forget to thank your audience. Exercise 1 The SPM examinations are over and your class teacher would like to organize a final class trip before you leave school. She has suggested either watching a play at a theatre house or visiting a local theme park. Write a talk to persuade your classmates to choose one of the two trips. In your talk, you should: - Describe all the details of the two trips - State which trip you think is more suitable for your class - State one benefit the students will gain from the trip