ENGLISH STANDARD
GRADE WRITING
Denny High School
English Department
TOP TIPS
 Write about what you
know BUT make
sure you know
ENOUGH about it!
 Always stay
RELEVANT to your
chosen question.
 Avoid letters and
magazine articles.
TOP TIPS

You will need – a title ,
paragraphs , excellent
punctuation , legible
handwriting.
 Time breakdown : 9.009.05 = choose
9.05-9.15 = planning
9.15-10.10 = writing
10.10-10.15 = doublecheck.
 Your planning notes
should be NOTES or
bullet points only.

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Try to use a STYLE
POINT at or near the
start of each paragraph
(see later page).
Remember ENDINGS
have to be decided at the
planning stage;
depending on the type of
essay be sure you know
how it will end - for
instance:
–
–
–
Discursive = strong final
attitude to or judgement
on the issue;
Personal = a final feeling
or decision about the
experience;
Short Story = twist or
climax or anti-climax or
disappointment.
TOP TIPS
STYLE POINTS –
‘SHOW - DON’T TELL’
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You must convince the
marker of 2 things:
1. Your ideas are serious
and well developed.
2. Your writing can be
stylish and entertaining.
See yourself as a writer
shaping the language to
fit your ideas, not simply
recording facts or actions
in a dull, repetitive way.
Sentence structure:

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
1.
Make this varied
with long and short
sentences and different
openings. Do not repeat
the same style of
sentence constantly.
2. Use minor
sentences (short
sentences without verbs)
for impact.
3. Use single sentence
paragraphs to make a
detail stand out
dramatically.
4.
Use questions to
reflect doubt or worry.
5.
Use exclamation
marks to show
frustration or irritation or
relief. (How could she?
My room!)
6.
Use colon plus
list to emphasise
movement or colour or
shape.
Use brackets to add a
joke or funny aside.
Good Writing:
 This depends on VIVID word choice:
– EXACT WORDS
– PRECISE TERMS
– EXAGGERATION

Think ADJECTIVES – think ADVERBS –
think VERBS.
 Every so often your writing should contain:
–
–
–
–
a simile (his nose was like a ski slope)
a metaphor (his words bruised my heart)
exaggeration (We had just had enormous luck!)
personification (The trees doubled in laughter as I
struggled against the wind).
TYPES OF ESSAY
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DISCURSIVE
Choose this only if you
are knowledgeable about
the issues involved.
You could run out of
ideas pretty quickly if it
feels familiar - but all
you have is one or two
general views.
Be very wary of these
questions. Remember the
2005 markers will be
drowning in essays on
the smoking ban – avoid
it!
TYPES OF
ESSAY

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PERSONAL:
Could be a favourite for
many but the major error
here is description of
event or action, rather
than relationships.
Here is a good candidate
describing a sleepover at
his gran’s. Notice how
all the detail points to
their feelings for one
another and not simply
what they did together:
Despite the grey, gloomy Scottish
rain Dave and I were thrilled at
the possibility of the freedom
held out by a parent-free
sleepover at Gran’s.
Yes, we would have to suffer
“Coronation Street”. but in
return we had the reward of her
wild and competitive company,
and the challenge of her
inevitable mood swings.
She loved us dearly and for all
her flinty reprimands she would
soon melt into an absent-minded,
and cuddly gran. She hid the
sweets around the house – not
from us but from our healthobsessed parents…
TYPES OF ESSAY
 SHORT STORY:
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How good is your plan?
How strong is your
characterisation? Character must
dominate this type of essay –
which is why detail and
description from personal essays
can be transferred into the short
story if you wish.
Never end with, “I woke up and
it was all a dream!”
Be sure the drama or conflict is
present from the start, and the
rest of the essay is about
character, feelings and climaxes.
Do not overdo dialogue.
Keep the time-frame short and
brief: this is a story, not a novel!