IGCSEWritingTHEINFORMALLETTEREMAIL

1、Well, the countdown has started. The IGCSE November 2009 session is coming up soon - actually end of October. On Wednesdays, I'll try to help out with writing by providing tips, plans and some exercises.THE INFORMAL LETTER / EMAILThere are many types of informal letter / email. For example, you

2、can write a letter of thanks,advice or invitation. When you are writing an informal letter or sending an email to a friend, it is very important for the examiners to try and make it sound friendly and chatty. However, do bear in mind that informal register means something between spoken and written

3、language. You will be likely to fail the exam if your letter to your dear friend Bobby starts like this: " Hey Bobby! how r u?" Or "I ain't gonna do nothing tonight" or "I got a present 4 u" Remember , it's a British exam and you are expected to use ei

4、ther informal British English or informal American English. Both are accepted. Online chat "language" won't be accepted.You will also be severely penalised if you use online chat expressions or if you mix British and American English both in expressions and in spelling :

5、Example : I can't afford buying a car. Gas has gone up recently in my area which means that petrol costs £5 a gallon.or : I love going to the theatre but our local theater has closed down.The following phrases may help you achieve the r

6、ight tone:(a) GreetingHi Bobby / Dear Bobby(b) OpeningI'm sorry I haven't written for such a long time but I've been really busy latelyThanks for the email. It was great to hear from you.I thought I'd drop a line to .I haven't heard from you for a long time and I thought we could

7、 catch up on our news.Hey! I've given you up for lost. What's up?( c ) Main Body (useful expressions)- you won't believe .- you'll never guess.- believe it or not .- by the way .- in fact .- hey! cheer up!- don't let it get you down- listen. don't worry too much about it(d) C

8、losing- that's all for now- I must love you and leave you! I've got homework to finish. Write back soon.- Take care- Have a lovely day / week-Say hi to Sue- Remember me to your mother(e) Sign-offLoveLots of loveYoursPLANNING AN INFORMAL LETTER1. Greeting : Hi / Dear + first name 2.

9、 Say why you are writing3. Suggestions / advice / questions and perhaps some more details.4. Conclusion / closing remark (see phrases above)TIP - Always make sure you have answered the examiners' prompts appearing at the bottom of the task!NOW YOUR TURN Write about 200 words on the fol

10、lowing topic: Imagine you have just moved to the city from a rural area. Write a letter to your friend telling him/her about a few of the problems you are facing.The picture below may help you. In your letter you must tell your friend :- about your first impressions- some of the probl

11、ems you are facing- what you do to deal with these problemsIf you wish, you can email me your answer and I promise to correct, comment and send it back to you THE OPINION COMPOSITION(a) How to plan an opinion compositionIntroduction: : express your opinion on the topic.Paragraph 2:  justif

12、y your opinion with examples.Paragraph 3: Present the opposing viewpoint.Conclusion: Restate your opinion but do not just repeat yourself. Consider writing about consequences or a new dimension of the same issue.(b) How to plan an opinion composition suggesting advantages and disadvantages:Intr

13、oduction: Introduce the problem and state its causes.Paragraph 2: Write about the advantages and develop through examples Paragraph 3: Write about the disadvantages and develop through examples.Conclusion: State your opinion and pick up a side!.( c ) Beginnings and EndingsThere are ma

14、ny ways of beginning(introduction) and ending(conclusion) an opinion composition. Read the following model paragraphs and pay special attention to the expressions in bold. These are only suggested ways of beginning and ending an opinion composition. IGCSE examiners love them,though!Introduction:Have

15、 you ever wondered what it must be like to wake up in the morning and realise that you can no longer use your computer? For millions of people this is certainly a frightening thought. Indeed, they cannot possibly imagine their lives without them. Because of this dependence on the comp

16、uter which we have developed, I strongly believe that it has become indispensable to us and it is here to stay!Conclusion:It is true to say that the computer has invaded our lives and changed the way we communicate forever. Let us not forget,though, that the computer has also promoted

17、 a very passive lifestyle.Brief ReminderRemember the essential paragraph structure : -topic sentence: it introduces the main idea of your paragraph-supporting sentences: they provide examples, illustrations or arguments which support the topic sentence.-closing sentence: round off your paragrap

18、h with a kind of conclusionRemember to use transitions to pass on smoothly from one sentence to another and from one paragraph to the next.Remember! Unless you think you can master English better than your own language DO NOT attempt to write one sentence for a paragraph!YOUR TURN!Scientists have ma

19、de the production of food easier and cheaper by using chemicals and other artificial procedures.Write an article stating your opinion about this statement.The comments below may give you some ideas but you are free to use any ideas of your own."This is the answer to feeding the world. No one wi

20、ll be hungry ever again!""If you use chemicals, then who knows what will happen to our health?""It means that people who work on the land will have no work""It's a really cheap way to grow good-quality food."DO NOT WRITE MORE THAN 200 WORDS. YOU WILL BE SEVEREL

21、Y PENALISED FOR EXCEEDING THE WORD LIMIT! IGCSE WritingDeveloping a Mature StyleLook at these two examples describing a village:Example 1 :The village is very pretty and very nice. The houses are not very big but they are beautiful. The village is surrounded by hills which give a very nice view of t

22、he area.Example 2The village is strikingly pretty and unspoilt. The houses, rising up from the harbour, are pale-coloured with painted shutters and made of stone. Pine-clad hills provide panoramic views of the area.The vocabulary in Example 1 is limited to basic and definitely not up to IGCSE regist

23、er.Examiners would simply cross it out! Example 2 makes use of a wide range of vocabulary making the description lively and interesting to read. Examiners would give it full marks for register.USEFUL TIPSThere are many ways you can make your writing more mature:1. Choose your adjectiv

24、es with care and use them accurately. You don't really need a great many - just a few fresh and powerful ones. But please avoid using dull, boring, commonplace adjectives like : good, bad, nice, beautiful.2. Remember that you can create adjectives by adding suffixes to nouns or adjectives :

25、 e.g. panoramic, colourful, quaint-sounding, picturesque, boyish, hopeless etc3. You can make common adjectives more emphatic by using adverbs as intensifiers: e.g. strikingly pretty, exceptionally interesting, amazingly beautiful.4. Adjective collocations, such as crystal clear, are another wa

26、y of adding impact to your description. e.g. icy cold (adjective + adjective) , stone cold(noun + adjective)5. Use relative clauses to link ideas -  beginning with which / where / when / whose6. Use comparisons : not as much as . / far more interesting than ./ much less

27、 exciting than .All the above techniques will help you to write more concisely - using fewer words to greater effect.NOW YOUR TURNRewrite the following description in a more mature style:The town developed around  a marketplace. The marketplace is very, very old. It is the shape of a

28、rectangle. In the town , the people live in the way that they used to live hundreds of years ago.  They like visitors. They do not commit crimes. They will always help you. You do not need to be afraid of them. They wear clothes that are very simple. They wear long, loose, white, cotton robes.

29、The town has many very, very old buildings. The buildings were built in the 13th century. It also has many restaurants. You can eat nice food there. The food is from different cultures. IGCSE Writing - Expressing OpinionsThe IGCSE Task : writing a letter from outline notes to express an opinionExamp

30、le:In your neighbourhood, there is a large open area called Antalya Place which is used by young people for ball games. Your council are proposing to dig up the area and plant a flower garden with benches for elderly people. Trees will be planted too. No hall games will be allowed.Write a letter to

31、the local newspaper giving your views. Your letter should be about 200 words long.You should:· try to be even-handed in the discussion of the issues· discuss both advantages and disadvantages· state your opinion firmlyPLANA. INTRODUCTION: explain why you are writingB. BODYPa

32、ragraph 1 : Points in Favour1. Flower garden would brighten up area ; flowers and plants provide a habitat for a wide variety of insect life.2. Old people have no meeting place ; garden would provide focal point for meeting each other.3. Trees welcome; provide shade ; reduce pollution and noise

33、 levels, provide protection against wind.Paragraph 2 : Points against1. Young people need opportunity to practise ball games : most live in flats - no gardens or other space nearby.2. Local football and netball teams are winning matches  will be less successful if they cannot practise ; morale

34、and team confidence will sink.3. Young people meet friends, have picnics, watch matches, enjoy themselves here. Without this area, boredom and resentment might set in ; vandalism might be a problem. C. CONCLUSION : state your opinion firmly1. Suggest an alternative solution2. Council's sugg

35、estion will promote passive entertainment for the youngD. SIGN OFF TIPS1. Always plan your letter. The plan above can help you do so.2. Make sure you have developed all the points of the task.3. Use transitions (linking words) to pass on smoothly from one paragraph to the next - yet do not exag

36、gerate. Too many transitions will make your writing awkward. Use a few effective transitions.MODEL ANSWERDear Editor,I am writing to express my concern about our local council's suggestion to dig up Antalya Place in order to plant a flower garden for the elderly.On the one hand, a flower garden

37、will brighten up the area. Besides, flowers and plants provide a habitat for a wide variety of insect life. The garden would also provide a focal point for the elderly to meet each other. As for the trees, they are very welcome. They provide shade, reduce pollution and noise levels an

38、d offer protection against the wind.On the other hand, young people need an opportunity to practise ball games.Most of them live in flats and there are no gardens nearby. Local football and netball teams have been winning matches for a long time now. If they cannot practise, they will cert

39、ainly be less successful and , as a result, morale and team confidence will sink. In addition, young people meet friends,have picnics, watch matches and enjoy themselves here. Without this area, boredom and resentment might set in. I am also afraid vandalism might be a problem.Therefore, I strongly

40、feel that the council should look for another place to plant a garden for the elderly. How about the abandoned field on the outskirts of our town? I truly hope that the council will reconsider their decision as, I am sure, they wouldn't like to promote passive entertainment for the you

41、ng.  (233 words)Yours faithfully,Bill JonesNOW YOUR TURNConway's council is supporting government plans to build a new motorway. This will link Conway to the capital and to some other large cities. Do you think this will be a good development for Conway?Write a letter to the Edito

42、r of Conway Express sharing your views.Your letter should be about 200 words long.You should:· Say who is likely to benefit.· Say who might be against the idea.· Clearly state and justify your own opinion.IGCSE Writing - Expressing Opinions - Answer KeyReference Guide MODEL ANSWERDear Ed