WRITING

DO  NOT USE

USE

Example

1

etc.

Lists of examples should follow the pattern

One of the biggest problems in big cities is     unemployment, crime and pollution.

2

Question mark (?)

NEVER ask questions

3

Exclamation mark (!)

NEVER yell at the             reader

4

More and more,

bigger and bigger 

(informal – only for speaking)

Increasing numbers of people

a significantly larger number of...

a growing increase in the number of …

the number of people who … has increased

5

Much more

A great deal larger

6

big

Large / sizeable /significant

7

And, but, or (as sentence starters)

In addition / Furthermore / However / Since /

 As a result

8

No personal opinion in the body paragraphs, only in the introduction (opinion essay) or conclusion

Impersonal opinions

Some people think /

other people believe / many people claim that / as far as some people are concerned

9

Contractions (Can't / shouldn't)

Cannot / should not

10

Pronouns

I / we / us / you

(When you go abroad you will have a chance to experience new cultures.)

People, students, society

When a student goes abroad, they will have a chance to experience new cultures.

11

Tell the reader what YOU're going to do

This essay will show both advantages and  disadvantages of ...

12

Absolutes (all / every / none / only / always / never / completely / totally)

13

The word “thing” to name the object or action             you're writing about

… things, such as ...

1

The first sentence in EACH body paragraph should be a key sentence, it should define the content of the paragraph in general terms. The number one job of the topic sentence is to tell the readers what they are going to read in that paragraph.

2

Subject-verb agreement (e.g. he plays, etc.)

Mistake in Elementary grammar – forget about getting a good band score.

3

Articles

4

Singular / Plural

When speaking in general about something, use the plural form.

 (People use computers in their offices every day.)

5

Countable / Uncountable (information, equipment, etc.)

6

Write your essay from a global perspective. Avoid relating to only your country. It should be about the world in general. (e.g. “When people travel down busy streets in urban             areas during rush hours …” NOT “traffic in the city is a serious problem when you are travelling down Madison Avenue at rush hour”)

7

Use linking words and transition phrases at the beginning of all body paragraphs, and the conclusion.

8

Active tense can be changed into Passive tense