Writing Skills (Part 2)

Writing Skills (Part 2)

ACTIVITY ONE

UNDERLINE THE CORRECT LINKING WORD/PHRASES THE WRITER USES TO INTRODUCE THEIR VIEWPOINTS AND THE OPPOSING VIEW POINT:

1.       ONE REASON / IT IS ARGUED that video games, television, and the internet are factors behind this generation´s, poor social skills.

2.       In my view, more could be done by governments to make access to the internet a reality for everyone. FOR EXAMPLE, / IN ADDITION, governments could increase the level of public funding that goes into such plans.

3.       Today almost every teenager owns a cellphone. WHAT IS MORE / HOWEVER, few actually pay for their talk plan. The bill is picked up by their parents.

4.       SECONDLY, / ESPECIALLY, knowledge of mathematics and science will be increasingly important for the technologies of the future.

5.       Nevertheless, it can be argued that intelligent robots will increase unemployment IN PARTICULAR / SINCE few employers will choose to employ humans over robots that work 24 hours a day for free and without complaint.

TECHNIQUES TO START / END ESSAYS

There is a variety of ways to start/end an essay.

1.       We can: address the reader directly (You can imagine how difficult life would be without running water.)

2.       Use direct speech, a quotation from a famous person, a proverb, or a saying. In such cases we need to use quotation marks. (As Einstein said, “The problems that exist in the world today cannot be solved by the level of thinking that created them.”)

3.       Use a rhetorical question – i.e., a question that does not expect a reply. (What would life be like without water?)

Essay Writing:

Opinion essays are formal pieces of writing in which we present a topic and express our opinion on it. They normally consist of:

a)    an introduction in which we present the topic and express our opinion about it.

b)    A main body in which we present our viewpoints supported by reasons/examples. We present each viewpoint in separate paragraphs. We also include a paragraph presenting the opposing viewpoint with examples.

c)    A conclusion in which we restate our opinion using different words. We link our ideas using appropriate linkers. We normally use the present tenses in such types of writing.

Remember write first the main body (development) secondly the conclusion and finally the introduction.