ñssay \ffriting
I
Teehníques for introduetions & eonelusions
To get the reader's attention and make them want to
continue reading, the ¡ntroduction should use one of
the following techniques:
lntroductions
. Address the reader directly. e.g. Hove you ever
wondered whot life will be like in 50 yeors time?
. Start with an objective statement. e.g. lt has
been proven that diet ond lifestyle con directly
affect our heolth.
o Start with a quotation. e.g. lt wos Albert
Einstein who said "The true sign of intelligence is
not knowledge but imaginotion."
. Start with a rhetorical question (i.e. a question
that does not require an answer) e.g. ls global
g
wormi n really hoppen i n g?
. Start with a problem that needs a solution. e.g.
The number of homeless people in the world is on
the rise.
Make reference to a strange scene or
situation. e.g. The sight of hundreds of people
dressed os oliens is disturbing.
fvfatctr the introductions to the conclusions. Which techniques are used in each?
ffi
lntroductions
f-n The rise of obesity in young people is a
problem that must be addressed soon to
prevent the creation of a generation of
people with weight-related health issues.
tZTl There is no doubt that human activity is
responsible for increased CO2 emissions
which lead to a rise in globaltemperatures.
F-[-] What can we do to encourage more children
to read? The current generation of young
people seem more interested in video
games than in books.
f4n Have you ever considered working from the
comfort of your own home? This is
attractive option for many people these days
thanks to the lnternet and home computers.
F-I_-] Andy Warhol once said, "ln the future,
everyone will be world-famous for 15
minutes". lt seems that these days too many
people think success must include fame.
t¡Tl The presence of well-dressed people in the
queue at a soup kitchen is a common sight
these days and shows that poverty is now
an issue that can affect people from
walks of life.
4
To round off an essay and leave the reader with
something to consider, the conclusion should use one
of the following techniques:
Condusions
. Give the reader someth¡ng to think about. e.g.
Hopefully, the situotion will be very different in
twenty yeors.
. End with an objective statement. e.g. Mony
people believe thot solor energy is the best
solution to the energy crisis.
. End with a quotation. e.g. To sum up, I must
agree with Albert Einstein who soid, "We connot
solve our problems with the same thinking we
used when we creoted them.'
. End with a rhetorical question. e.g. After oll, it
is common sense, isn't it?
. Summarise the points made. e.g. Allin oll, it
seems that we hove to ...
( Conclusions
To conclude, it seems that the only way to encourage
more young people to become booklovers is to
introduce them to reading at a very young age.
Otherwise, many children will grow up thinking that
only screens can offer entertainment.
lf something is not done soon, an alarming increase
in the number of people with serious weight-related
illnesses is inevitable. This will undoubtedly have a
harmful effect on the next generation.
All in all, the importance of taking swift action
against global warming can be summed up by the
environmentalist David Suzuki who said, "lt's too
late to stop it now, but we can lessen its severity
an
and impacts."
Taking everything into consideration, although
working from home sounds wonderful, often it is
not. ln many cases, it can be far more difficult than
it seems and requires a great deal of determination.
To sum up, we should all take measures to help
those in need regardless of their appearance. After
all, you should never judge a book by its cover,
should you?
f ln conclusion, there are many ways to be successful
all without being famous. As Charles Churchill said,
"Fame is nothing but an empty name".

Style
:::;;;:Éf{'
is charaeterised
ry
. simple sentence structure (e.9. These doys, both
young and old people use the lnternet becouse it's
a fost woy to get informotion.)
. simple vocabulary @.9. We should all keep the
environment safe.)
. colloquial phrasal verbs (e.9. We've got to find
woys to come up with improvements.)
. contracted verb forms (e.g. lt's importont to hove
o good knowledge of Moths.)
. informal linking words/phrases (e.9. And when
you use your bike to travel to work, you ore
octually soving yourself money.)
. friendly personal tone (e.9. lt's great to
encouroge people to use public transport, isn't it?)
. colloquial idioms (e.9. lt costs o small fortune to
educate your child privotely.)
. use of active forms (e.9. People can waste o lot
of time surfing the lnternet.)
. colloquial expressions (e.g.lt's high time we did
something obout stroy onimols on the streets.)
Study the elements of formal style in the
extract below.
Secondly, joining an after-school sports
club can be beneficial for children socially.
For example, as well as gaining essential
physical exercise, they can come in contact
with people of similar interests and make
new friends. As a result. they will develop
their personalities by interacting and
cooperat¡ng w¡th others. skills that will
prove useful later on when they enter the
workforce. complexsentencestructure
rhe other nuno,lt,l*1'.'''3[,,"r"Jili:"'
format
Iinker
--on
students are hard pudhed to
deal with their
studies, let alone engage in extra curricular
-r..----r
advanced
";Á;;;;r:
activities. For instance, they have to keep
'ys¡6 'ahead of deadlines for assignments and
advanced-aI§Q-preoare adequately for exams.
vocabutary Therefore.. it i§ not advlslblg to m fu,
lake,
,fOrmalz---l
_the extra burden
. --.- _
of participatino in álGr-,;;;
vtru
.roüirio* school sports. For this reason, students'forr¡
' sporting activities are often postponed untrl
university level is reacheó¡.p.rriu*oiZ
I We've got loads of information on the
Essay writins
l
. 3É4i<r6:ery
. complex sentence structure (e.9. Nowadays, due to
increosed ovailobility of the lnternet, o greot number
of people, regardless of oge, ore using it to goin speedy
occess to information.)
advanced vocabulary @.9. lt is everyone's
responsibility to protect the environment.)
advanced phrasal verbs (e.9. lt is essentiolwe find
woys to bring about improvements.)
full verb forms (e.9. It is essentiol to hove o good
knowledge of Maths.)
formal linking words/phrases (e.9. What is more,
commuting by bicycle meons thot you moke personol
economies.)
impersonal tone (e.9. lt would be o good idea to
encouroge everyone to use public transport.)
formal idioms (e.9. Educoting o child privotely con be
quite hard on the porents' pockets.)
frequent use of passive forms (e.9. A lot of time con
be wasted surfing the lnternet.)
formal expressions (e.9. We need to take oction now
to reduce the number of stroy onimols on the streets.)
Rewrite the informal sentences using a
formal style. Use the prompts in brackets.
1 lt's a great shame when you don't pass an
exam. (be/extremely disappointinglfail/pass/
examination)
People are used to having electricity and so
they miss it when it's cut off. (people/rely/
electri c ity/theref ore/g reat i n co nven ien ce/
cause/when/be/power failure)
Children get spoilt when they get too much
pocket money. (an excess/pocket money/
results in/spoilt children)
The council needs to save up some money
for a new town hall. (council/should put
aside/funds/new town hall)
There would be less need for police patrols
if people obeyed the traffic rules. (fewer
pol ice patrols/be/need/ifltraff ic ru les/obey)
lf you ask most people, they will tell you that
smoking is bad for you. (it be/widely agreed/
smoking/harmful to health)
Cycling is good for the environment. lt is
good for your health, too. (not only/cycling/
beneficial/environmenUbut it also/have/
number/health benef its)
lnternet but it's not always useful or reliable.
(we have goVvast amounUinformation on
the InterneVbuUiUnot always be/useful or
reliable)
5