Advertisement
banner image
Print

English

Writing to persuade

Page:

  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
  4. 4
  5. 5
  1. Next

Explaining what you want to achieve and getting other people to join in are very important skills. In your exam, you may have to show these skills by writing persuasively.

Try a question

This is a typical exam question:

Question

Write a letter to former students of your school, in which you try to persuade them to return to your school for a special occasion. It might be:

  1. An anniversary
  2. The headteacher retiring
  3. A new library or teaching block
  4. A reunion for that year

(250-300 words)

In this section, we will choose option 2. the headteacher retiring as an example to show you how you could tackle the question in an exam. We will look at the question in three stages:

  • The plan - set out the key areas you intend to cover, eg audience, purpose and tone.
  • The structure - write down and organise the main points you want to cover, eg introduction, the purpose, the presentation, and the conclusion.
  • Fluency - write in a clear way using good punctuation and varied vocabulary.

Page:

  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
  4. 4
  5. 5
  1. Next

Back to Writing to argue, persuade and advise index

Explore the BBC

This page is best viewed in an up-to-date web browser with style sheets (CSS) enabled. While you will be able to view the content of this page in your current browser, you will not be able to get the full visual experience. Please consider upgrading your browser software or enabling style sheets (CSS) if you are able to do so.