School Magazine Articles Source: Alison Digger’s I GCSE as a Second Language: Focus on Writing Writing tips for content, organization, and question types for the IGCSE Second Language Exam

Format of a school magazine article  Title  Make it interesting and Capitalize the Title!  Which is more interesting: How to Prepare for Exams OR Exam Nerves Cure  Contrast Opposite Images:  Summer Holidays Loom  Play with Punctuation:  TV: The Teenager’s Viewpoint  TV—A Teenage View

Format of a school magazine article  Introduction: Create interest and make it personal!  Start one of three ways:  Question: Are you one of the many students with exam nerves?  Quotation: Alec Bourne once said, “It is possible to store the mind with a million facts and still be entirely uneducated.”  Broad Statement: Many students are self-confessed couch potatoes!  Let’s try to come up with (many) topics for these Introductory Sentences  Are you so busy working that you have no time for sport?  Are you dreading the thought of the long, boring holiday?  Are you fed up with all the arguments you have heard against television?

After your intro sentence, you need to move into the topic and focus your paper. This sentence should help set the tone for the paper (formal/informal). Let’s match the introductory sentences to the transition sentences and decide the article’s topic Transition Sentence  You need not spend the entire evening in the bathroom.  But should we take the risk?  Two studies highlight the issues at stake and the changing role of today’s women.  Nowadays stress seems to be the one word that’s on everybody’s mind.  There’s nothing to beat a canal holiday to take you closer to nature. Introduction  Look, no stress!! Don’t we all wish we could say this every day of our lives—and mean it?  Looking dull and stressed? Well don’t worry.  Want to experience the joys of the countryside?  There is no law that prohibits driving while fatigued,  What does the term ‘working woman’ evoke? Are women’s attitudes changing, Is feminism outdated? stress Road safety holidays Two studies Health/ beauty

Example of Introduction Write an article for your school magazine about a school trip you went on recently Let’s discuss the different parts of this introduction and why it is good Year 11 Trip to Manton Theme Park After a month of boring revision, followed by another moth of tough exams, I can say that most of us needed a good day out. We were lucky because the weather on that day was really hot and sunny. After a very long and sticky coach journey, 32 excited pupils and four anxious teachers finally arrived at the theme park.

Format of a school magazine article  The ending has three purposes  To summarize the article  To express your own opinion  To leave the reader with something to think about  Connect the ending to the introduction by  Using the same tone  Making it direct and personal, so you involve the reader again

Example of Ending Write an article for your school magazine about a school trip you went on recently Let’s discuss how the ending connects to the introduction and leaves the reader satisfied. After half an hour, the coach left for London with 32 exhausted pupils and four relieved teachers, after a really good day out.

Content of a school magazine article  Many types of exam questions  Giving your view or opinion/putting forward arguments for and against  Dealing with problems and solutions  Giving advice/making suggestions  Narrative—an account Example: Write an article for your school magazine about the effects of tourism on your country, putting forward your ideas and arguments We are going to use the views and arguments composition (notes)—the content of body paragraphs change based on the genre of writing

Content of a school magazine article  First Body Paragraph: general introduction explaining the importance of the subject. Include the following  Time Fixers  Nowadays/these days/until now/in the past/twenty years ago/in the last five years  Generalizations  Nearly all/many/a large number of/several

Content of a school magazine article  Second Body Paragraph: Address one side of the issue (an effect)  Views and arguments phrases  One of the main arguments in favor of….is that  Some people (would) argue that…  It is a fact that…  Joining Points—addition  Furthermore/Moreover/What is more/Besides  Support Phrases  Which/this/which means that/this means that/as a result/consequently

Content of a school magazine article  Third Body Paragraph: Address the other side of the issue (an effect)  Joining Points—contrast  On the other hand/However/Nevertheless  Views and arguments phrases  One of the main arguments against….is that  It can be argued that…  It has been said that…  Joining Points—addition  Furthermore/Moreover/What is more/Besides  Support Phrases  Which/this/which means that/this means that/as a result/consequently

Let’s look at an example of this form of argumentative writing