WRITING B1: the ARTICLE

In Part 2 of the WRITING test, you must choose to write an ARTICLE or a story of ca. 100 words.  An article is a text that expresses your opinion and knowledge.  

Remember the 3 parts to writing:
The introduction should catch the attention of your reader. You can ask a question or give a general opinion. 
The body is where you develop your ideas and relate them to personal experiences and opinions.
The conclusion is a recommendation and a summary of the main points. Readers should feel they have learned something. 

Before writing, ask yourself:
1) What do I have to write about?
2) Who is going to read my article?

Look at this exam task. 

You see this notice on an English-language website for young people. Write your answer in about 100 words on the answer sheet. (Remember that it's better to write at least 100 words; better more than less.)

Notice that there are 2 questions that must be answered. 
Read this sample answer:

Has the student answered both questions correctly? 
Does he give examples and opinions?
What could be done to improve this article? 
When YOU write YOUR article, use your own words.  Try not to use the same words as the text. 
Try substituting the underlined words with similar meanings from the list below.

    teenagers             make                find out about           willing       
    goes online           try to find        details                        searching for

Like the email, the examiners are judging:

• Content –  Have you done what you were asked to do?

• Communicative Achievement – How appropriate is your writing style and tone for the task, and its intended audience? Was it easy to understand?

• Organization – Does it have a logical order and paragraphing? Do you express your ideas clearly?

• Language – How good and accurate are your vocabulary and grammar? 

Grammer to Use;
Passive - The internet is considered the best place to find information.

Modal verbs - It might be best to stay home.
Conditional - If I were you, I'd stay home and study. 
Relative clauses - I know someone who speaks four languages fluently. 
Wish -  I wish I could travel more often. 

Phrases to involve the reader:

• Have you ever thought about…?
• How would you feel if …?
• What would you think of…?
• Are you one of those people who …?
• If the answer is …, you should….
• What would life be like if…
• Just think for a moment…
• Just imagine…

Use extreme adjectives instead of intensifiers: 
very good =  awesome, excellent, fantastic, marvelous
very bad   =  awful, terrible, horrible

big = huge, enormous, gigantic

cold = freezing

angry = furious

Use adverbs  importantly, surprisingly, absolutely, suddenly

Develop your points 
Another advantage of ...
On top of that…
What is more, …
Above all,,,
The reason I think this is…
The reason I feel this way is…
Let’s start with …

Some expressions for giving your opinion (SPEAKING or WRITING)
In my opinion, …
As far as I am concerned, …
Speaking personally, …
From my point of view, …
As for me, …
My view / opinion / belief / impression / conviction is that …
I hold the view that …
I would say that …
It seems to me that …   /  It is my impression that....
I am of the opinion that …
I am (was) under the impression that …
I have the feeling that …
My feeling on the subject is that …
I have no doubt that …
I am sure / I am certain that …
I think / consider / find / feel / believe / suppose / presume / assume / guess / reckon that 
I bet that ….
It goes without saying that …

Justifying opinions 
because…
due to the fact that ...
the reason is… / the main reason is...  /  that's the reason why ...
the reason I believe that is…
the facts suggest…
the evidence shows…
taking into account what I have seen…
seeing as how....
on account of....
In view/light  of the fact that....

Making recommendations and suggestions: 
it would be a good idea to…
Wouldn’t it be better to…?
Why don’t we…?
What / How about… ?
Shouldn’t we… ?
Let’s consider…
Why not… ?    

For more expressions click on this link to LBA Life 

WRITING PART 1- B1- EMAIL

The EMAIL is a MANDATORY task in the Cambridge Preliminary Test

1. You must write ca. 100 words. If you write too many words, you may have included irrelevant information, which could lower your score. If you write <100 words, you may lose points because you may not have included all the required information or used an adequate range of language.

2. Every email is different. You will usually write to a friend or teacher. Choose the correct tone: formal, informal, or neutral. NEUTRAL means you can use contractions (I'm, can't, doesn't, wouldn't) and phrasal verbs, but NO SLANG or words not found in a traditional dictionary.

3. Pay attention to the
    a. STRUCTURE: the correct layout, salutations, and paragraphing. 
    b. LANGUAGE and GRAMMAR.  Know the phrases to use when agreeing/disagreeing; giving your opinion; offering to do something; explaining something.

Below is an example from a past test. 
Your teacher, Mrs. Lake, has written to you about ideas for a class party she would like to organize.

BEFORE writing your email, ask yourself these questions: 

A. WHO am I writing to?

        You are writing to your teacher, so the tone can be neutral. 

B. What is the situation? 

C. What are the 4 things I need to include in my email?
        In this case: 1) react to the news that there is a party

                           2) explain your preference (classroom or park?)

                           3) suggest possible games/activities

                           4) give your opinion about which food should be served

Respond in the same format the teacher used in her email.

Here is my response:

Dear Mrs. Lake,

I think a class party is a great idea!  (9)

I would prefer to have the party at the park since we spend so much time in the classroom. (19)

 

Although there are badminton nets and a basketball court at the park, I would suggest organizing some traditional team competitions like sack and egg races, bobbing for apples, and a treasure hunt. (32)

The park has several grills, so in my opinion, we should have a picnic and barbecue. The students can bring the meat and vegetables they like. We can also ask them to bring chips, bread, drinks, and desserts. (38)

I hope I was helpful. See you in class. (9) Ellie

(107 body)                          

VOCABULARY you should know for the CAMBRIDGE PET for SCHOOLS (B1) certification

 The first section is in alphabetical order. You can go to p. 40 for the division into topics.  You can download the list by clicking HERE.

ERASMUS THEATER's presentation of The Blues Brothers

John Belushi (1949-1982) and Dan Aykroyd (1952) were two actors who performed on Saturday Night Live (SNL), an American late-night television comedy show, now in its 48th season. They made their first performance as the Blues Brothers, Jake and Elwood, on SNL on April 22, 1978, performing the songs "Hey Bartender" and "I don't know" with their full band. They became such a hit, that they made the movie, The Blues Brothers in 1980. Although today you must pay to see the original sketch, the video below with the famous song, "Soul Man", is from season 4 of the same year, 1978. 

Here's a scene with the famous singer, Aretha Franklin

a scene with Ray Charles

Matching: Vocabulary words you should know

 

You can join the challenge by going to https://game.educaplay.com/ and using the pin 304677