WRITING TASKS – NOTES (GENERAL TRAINING MODULE)
 

Writing Task 1:

1. Notice that the address is not given since we are told not to write it.
2. The number of words written is not less than 150 – as required.
3. All the points raised in the task question are included in the answer.
4. An imaginary situation is created which includes various details, also created when needed, to explain the situation.
5. The letter is written in paragraphs.
6. This is a letter of complaint, but it is politely expressed.
7. The letter is completed with a suitable "complimentary close" (Yours sincerely, Best regards, etc.) and is correctly punctuated.

General points about the writing:

a) the letter should be concise, well-expressed, and, of course, correctly spelt and punctuated
b) there should be as little repetition as possible
c) attention should always be given to using the correct tense of the verb.
d) the vocabulary used should be varied
e) the language itself can be kept as simple as required
 f) it is best not to use colloquial expressions or concatenations ("don't", "can't" etc. are not as appropriate as "do not", "cannot" etc.).

 

Writing Task 2:

Animals are not human beings and do not have the same rights. This is obviously true, although there are some well-meaning vegetarians and animal lovers who seem to think we should behave towards animals as if they were human. I cannot agree with this. However, we have a responsibility to always look after animals and make sure they are not cruelly treated.

For thousands of years, animals such as oxen have been used to help us do heavy work, by ploughing fields for example, or in the case of donkeys and horses etc., by carrying large objects long distances. Without the help of animals it is difficult to believe that modern civilisation would exist. These days we do not always need animals to do such work any longer, but we still need animals for food. Even for most vegetarians cow's milk is an essential part of our diet. We should never let animals unnecessarily suffer, but we cannot easily avoid the use of animal products, since their meat provides us with essential protein.

Animal rights are therefore not the same as human rights. They do not have the right to existence if their meat is required for food; however, they do have the right to be slaughtered in a humane way. Animals which are not bred for food must be treated with kindness and do have the right to co-exist with humans. We should not destroy their natural habitat and take away their right to live naturally in the wild.

In conclusion, it must be said that animals do have certain rights, the most important being the right to humane treatment at all times. Yet they cannot be considered as important as human beings because we are their masters.
  
KEY TO ESSAY FEATURES
Green Topic sentence of paragraph
Grey Further explanation; supporting arguments for the statement(s) made in the topic sentence
Light Blue Examples
Dark Red Phrases which introduce special parts of the essay (the writer's point of view, the first paragraph, and the conclusion etc.)
Blue Writer's proposition(s) (stated once in the introduction and restated in the conclusion)
Black Linking words and phrases
Purple Conditional clause beginnings
Bolded and italicised Modal verbs used for persuasion
 
Note: This analysis is of the model answer above. Other acceptable essays might have different features.