LANGUAGECERT – CAMBRIDGE - PEARSON
Exam Facts
In this part, you choose one writing task from four options.
In Cambridge English: First, the possible tasks are:
an article
an informal letter or email
a formal letter or email
a review
a report
In Cambridge English: First for Schools, the possible tasks are:
an article
an informal letter or email
a formal letter or email
a review
a story
Travel and holidays
Practice
How to write an article
You have read this on the website of a student magazine.
Write for us
How would you like to see your own article on 'Staying Fit' on our website?
Get your foot on the ladder to literary fame!
Tells us:
What kind of exercise you'd recommend for a busy student
How students could eat a healthy diet on a small budget
Any other advice?
Write your article.
Formal vs informal?
Who you are writing to and what style will you need to use.
Adjust your writing style and tone to your readers.
Read the question and pay attention to WHO you are writing the article for.
If it is for your school magazine or school website, you might want to use a style that appeals to teenage students.
If it is for a magazine or a larger website with a wider readership, you may need a semi-formal style.
Do I need a title?
The title is what draws the readers' attention to the article in the first place.
An article without a title is like fishing without bait
Think of an interesting title.
The title should be interesting so that someone would want to read the article.
Which one would you click on?
Why exercise is good
Exercise may add years to your life, and Here's Why
How to structure and plan your article
Use the task as the structure
Introduction
Recommended exercise for a busy student
How students could eat a healthy diet on a small budget
My advice???
Conclusion
Planning
Take notes and make short word lists
Write down some interesting, colourful language that you may want to use
Remember that the purpose of your article is not only to inform but also to entertain the reader.
Look at the three points you need to cover:
kind of exercise
healthy low-budget diet
other ideas
Think of fun ideas for students to exercise, and explain why you recommend them.
Give some ideas about easy and inexpensive meals and snacks.
Think of some more ideas of advice, e.g., drinking water instead of soft drinks.
Now concentrate on each note in turn.
Try to think of useful vocabulary and phrases you can use.
Choose the best ideas from your notes and start writing.
Writing
Remember an Article is NOT an essay so you don’t have to be too formal.
Avoid using very formal connectors such as furthermore, moreover, thus and hence.
Some of these can be good for writing essays, but they are usually too formal for an article.
Engage and entertain
You need to try and engage with your reader and you can do this by starting with an interesting title and asking direct questions and using imperatives. (Usually no more than 1 question per paragraph).
‘Do you want to live a long and healthy life but find junk food too hard to resist?’
'Are you one of those people who thinks that ……?'
Add humour, real-life or made up examples, or make up quotes.
Use a wide variety of language, phrasal verbs, idioms, and collocations
Use high-level vocabulary & grammar whenever you know it.
Avoid repeating the same word too many times.
Compare these sentences:
Exercise is good and healthy food is good. A healthy lifestyle will make you feel good.
Exercise can be great fun, while healthy food is often mouth-watering. Will a healthier lifestyle make you feel fabulous? Absolutely!
Which sentence sounds better?
Is it much harder to write?
Make it interesting and personal
Use interesting details, examples or anecdotes to ensure that your article has a personal touch.
You could choose a relevant event that happened to you or someone else (even a famous figure).
Try to connect the title you have chosen with the conclusion.
If you call your article
‘Exercise may add years to your life, and Here's Why!’
you could end by saying
'and that's why you need to start exercising.'
Tip!
Don’t end your article by summing up what you have just said. Remember this is not an essay.
You could leave your reader thirsty for more by asking an interesting question to get them thinking or by leaving them with a call to action.
Remember to check your work
Checklist
Check spelling and punctuation
Content - Have you answered the question and included all the points?
Organisation - Is it clearly organized in 3-4 paragraphs?
Communicative Achievement - Is the tone and style appropriate?
Language - Have you used good vocabulary and grammar?
Exam Help
Useful language
Use rhetorical questions
How would you react in a situation like this?
Was I surprised? Well, not really.
Are you keen on adventure? Then why not ...
Have you ever heard anything like it?
Address the reader directly
Just think about it. You'll probably agree with me that ...
We are told that this is the best way to .... But I don't agree, and I am pretty sure you don't either.
If you like to read good thrillers, then this is for you.
Make recommendations
There are a number of reasons why I would recommend this to ...
I'm in no doubt that this is really good for ...
This is by far the best ... I have come across.
This is the ideal ... for young teenagers because ...
I can't think of any other game that is as entertaining as this one.
SAMPLE
Sample article
Have fun and learn with ‘WordsMix’!
Are you tired of computer games that are a waste of time? This one is great fun and it also helps you enrich your vocabulary. I know that you must be thinking this is another boring educational game. Well, think .-again! This is exciting stuff - try it and you won't want to stop!
At the beginning of the game, you are given some letters and you have to come up with as many words as you can. It's got wonderful visual effects, so the words you write flash and dance on the screen. You receive points for each word and when you collect a certain number of points, you move on to the next level.
I would highly recommend this game to other readers for two reasons. First, the game requires you to use your brain but it is not fall of complicated rules. Secondly, you can play this game alone - just you against the computer - or you can have competitions with your friends. l am sure you'll become a fan of this great game!
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