Guided Writing
Read this page before any other writing page. Every writing lesson on RCF English follows these six steps, in this order, for a reason.
Why weak writers stay weak
A learner is told to write a letter. They have not been shown what a letter of that kind looks like, or how it is put together. They write something, it is marked, they are told it was poor, and they conclude that they cannot write English.
Very often the problem was never ability. A stage was missing. Nobody showed them the shape of the thing before asking them to build one.
On this site, no writing task is set without preparation. That is what guided writing means: the support is real at the start, and is taken away deliberately, step by step, as you become able to work without it.
The six steps
Every writing page on RCF English is arranged in these six sections. Work through them in order. Do not jump to step five.
Understand the task
What kind of writing is it? Who is the reader? What is it for? How long should it be? If you cannot say these four things in your own words, you are not ready to write. This step takes two minutes and saves twenty.
Study a model
Read a good example of the same task. Read it twice: once for what it says, once for how it is built. A model is not something to copy — it is something to take apart.
Identify the structure
Mark the parts of the model. Where does it open? Where does the main information sit? Where does it close? What does each paragraph do? The structure, not the words, is what you will reuse.
Complete guided steps
Now write, but with help. Fill in a framework, complete half-written sentences, or write one paragraph at a time to a given instruction. You are practising the structure, not yet the whole task.
Write independently
Now do the whole task alone, to time, without the model in front of you. This is the fifth step, not the first.
Use a correction checklist
Read your own work against a checklist and correct it yourself. This is the step most learners skip, and it is the step that produces the most improvement. Marking your own work is a skill, and it can be learnt.
The four questions to ask before writing anything
Whatever the task — email, notice, letter, paragraph, essay, description, dialogue or speech — begin by answering these.
- What form is it? A notice looks nothing like an essay. The form is usually stated in the question, and it decides your layout.
- Who is the reader? A principal, a friend, a newspaper, a general audience. The reader decides how formal your language must be.
- What is the purpose? To inform, invite, request, complain, thank, apologise, describe, persuade. The purpose decides your opening and your closing.
- How long? If a word limit is given, keep near it. Well under loses content marks; far over wastes time you need elsewhere.
Reader and purpose decide the language
| Reader | Register | How you would write it |
|---|---|---|
| A close friend | Informal | Can you send me the notes? Thanks! |
| A teacher you know | Polite, semi-formal | Could you please send me the notes for last week's lesson? |
| The principal, in writing | Formal | I should be grateful if you would arrange for the notes to be sent to me. |
Planning: four lines, one minute
A plan is not a rough draft. You do not have time to write anything twice. A plan is four short lines listing what each paragraph will contain, in order.
For example, for a letter asking the principal to repair the school library:
- Para 1 — who I am, why I am writing
- Para 2 — what the problem is: leaking roof, damaged books
- Para 3 — why it matters: students cannot use the library before the examination
- Para 4 — the request, and a polite close
That plan took under a minute. It guarantees four paragraphs, in a sensible order, with a proper ending. Most weak answers fail on exactly those three things.
The general correction checklist
Each writing page has its own checklist as well. Use this one for every piece of writing you do.
- Have I written the form asked for — email, notice, letter, essay, speech, dialogue?
- Is the tone right for the reader?
- Have I used every detail given in the question, and not invented content that contradicts it?
- Is it roughly the length asked for?
- Is each paragraph about one idea, and are the paragraphs clearly separated?
- Do my subjects and verbs agree? (Read each sentence looking only at the verb.)
- Are my tenses consistent, and correct for the time I am writing about?
- Have I checked a, an, the — the article errors are the ones I make most often?
- Are all plurals correct? (informations, advices, equipments do not exist.)
- Does every sentence begin with a capital letter and end with a full stop?
- Are names, days, months and places capitalised?
- Have I checked the spelling of the words I always get wrong?
- Can the examiner read my handwriting, including the last paragraph?
Now apply the method
Each of these pages follows the six steps for one kind of writing.
For teachers
The same six-step sequence is set out for classroom use, with guidance on how to withdraw the support gradually, on the Guided Writing page for teachers.