Writing non-fiction texts Part 2 of Examination

Writing non-fiction texts

Overview: non-fiction texts

You will be asked to write different non-fiction texts with different purposes andaudiences. They may be of specific lengths. You might be asked to:

·         Describe a person or a place.

·         Give information or instructions.

·         Persuade a person or group of people.

·         Argue a point of view.

·         Express an opinion on a topic.

·         Analyse some information.

 

You will need to think about:

·         Content: what do you want to say?

·         Organisation: how should you layout and structure your writing?

·         Accuracy: how good is your spelling and punctuation?

·         Vocabulary: how many interesting words are you familiar with?

TIP: A good tip is to imagine why you are writing: not because you're in an exam but why you might feel motivated to write the letter, speech or magazine article you have been asked to come up with. This is a bit like thinking of the back story to explain your motivation. Deciding on your motivation will give you more ideas about what to write.

 

 

Identifying GAPS

When it comes to the writing tasks in the exam, your first step is to clearly identify:

·         the genre - what type of text should you be writing, e.g. a magazine article

·         the audience who will be reading your text, e.g. teenagers

·         the purpose of your text, e.g. to convince people to do more sport

·         your chosen writing style, e.g. informal

Make notes on these four areas and use them to help plan your writing. Show that you understand how each of these will persuade the examiner to give you marks.