3 EASY WAYS TO WRITE

BETTER SENTENCES FOR

COMPOSITIONS
Are you sick and tired of being told that you need to “improve your sentence structure”?
Other than making structural errors, a common challenge that many students have is to write
sentences that excite and engage. This goes beyond just “using good phrases”. Here’s a
timeless tip for writing good sentences and paragraphs. A great writing instructor, Gary
Provost, once gave a helpful tip about writing. Here’s what he wrote:

“This sentence has five words. Here are five more words. Five-word
sentences are fine. But several together become monotonous. Listen to
what is happening. The writing is getting boring. The sound of it drones. It’s
like a stuck record. The ear demands some variety.

Now listen. I vary the sentence length, and I create music. Music. The writing
sings. It has a pleasant rhythm, a lilt, a harmony. I use short sentences. And
I use sentences of medium length. And sometimes when I am certain the
reader is rested, I will engage him with a sentence of considerable length, a
sentence that burns with energy and builds with all the impetus of a
crescendo, the roll of the drums, the crash of the cymbals–sounds that say
listen to this, it is important.

So write with a combination of short, medium, and long sentences. Create a

sound that pleases the reader’s ear. Don’t just write words. Write music.”

Can you imagine that this was an advice given almost 40 years ago by a writer? [Check out
this video that demonstrates the rhythm of sentences as put forth by Gary Provost: This
Sentence Has Five Words] Even today, scores of writers have been influenced by this timeless,
classic tip. You, too, can apply the same idea in your compositions!

1. Start by omitting “just” and “then”

A good piece of composition is sufficiently long, but not needlessly long. Often, we come
across students who pepper their sentences with what we’d like to call “emphasis words”.
This means that the words don’t add anything new. Here’s an example.

AL 1
 When I heard my mother nagging at me, I just wanted her to keep quiet and leave me alone.
I then went up to my room to play games. She continued to shout at me, but I just ignored
her. I then called my friend, Adelina, and asked if she wanted to go cycling with me, but she
just wanted to stay home.

Look at the words “just” and “then”. Now, imagine removing these words – read the
paragraph again without them. Did you feel that any important, contextual meaning was lost
as a result of striking them off your paragraph? Neither did we.

2. Using connectors

All right, we admit, it’s still not a great paragraph yet, but what’s missing? The clue is in the
start of each sentence – most of them begin with a subject and verb. I did this, she did that,
we did these, they did those… boring!

One way to fix this is by using connectors. We cover a good variety of connectors in our writing
class, and you can see the results below.

Upon hearing my mother nag at me, I wanted her to keep quiet and leave me alone.
Heaving a sigh of exasperation, I went up to my room to play games. Undeterred, she
continued to shout at me, but I ignored her. Without hesitation, I called my friend, Adelina,
and asked if she wanted to go cycling with me. Alas, she wanted to stay home.

3. Sentence variety and good vocabulary

We can write short sentences. Or even sentences of medium length if we so desired. But what
about that long sentence, the one that requires courage, confidence and the certainty of
engaging your reader with musical prose?

In our compositions, we can do this by adding good vocabulary, which would include idioms
and fixed expressions. Alternatively, there’s also dialogue. Here’s what the final, revised
paragraph might look like.

Upon hearing my mother nag at me for the umpteenth time, I wanted her to keep quiet
and give me my personal space. Heaving a sigh of exasperation, I stormed up to my room
and busied myself with a plethora of console games. Undeterred, she continued to holler
at me, her shrill laments sounding like the wailing of a banshee, but I turned a deaf ear to
her complaints. A flash of inspiration struck me at that moment and without hesitation, I
called my friend, Adelina. “Do you want to meet at the park and cycle? I could really use
some exercise and take a breather from all the work I have to do!” I suggested. Alas, my
bosom buddy was preoccupied with her work as well and wanted to stay home.
AL 2
Did you find this article on the 3 easy methods to write better sentences useful? If so, you
might be keen to find out more about our regular writing/English classes! Our structured
classes give students the tools they need to ace the all-important examinations, empowering
them to learn these techniques and more while gaining exposure to a variety of composition
plots.

Alvin Low
With close to a decade of teaching experience, Alvin has found teaching English a particularly
fulfilling profession. He has a fervent passion for language and humanities, giving up a career
in research to focus on language teaching. Alvin’s background in corporate training has given
him an edge in curriculum development and planning. Hence, it is no surprise that the
students he has taught over the years from Lower Primary to Upper Secondary have
benefitted from him greatly. Alvin finds the greatest joy in helping struggling students see
potential in themselves and stellar students scale to the pinnacle of their achievements.

AL 3
The Right Word is an English Specialist centre that has coached more than a thousand
students since 2013. With our proprietary Sail to Success techniques and TRW ethos, students
have chosen to go on their language acquisition journey with us through primary school to
JC.

The SAIL Approach: 
An Enriching Journey Towards Academic Success

The SAIL Approach is conceived through research workshops and research projects by the
team of teachers at TRW. Through the journey of our Masters education, journalism/writing
expertise and the many years of experience we have collected teaching students, we have
put together an approach proven to inculcate inquisitive, motivated students who have a zest
for success in academic endeavours and in life. The dynamic SAIL approach constantly
innovates and adapts to the seas of change that students are subjected to in this highly-
globalised and competitive society.

AL 4
If you’ve enjoyed this resource, you might be glad to know this is only one small part out of
the many strategies we use to tackle EVERY section of the English paper.

AL 5
 Why Students and Parents Love TRW

Celeste Woon (CHIJ St Nicholas Girls’ School)

Before I joined the classes, I could not write a decent composition and had really bad grammar.
Having lessons at The Right Word helped me improve 10 marks in my Paper 1. I’m really glad
that my writing is finally decent! I managed to improve with the FARTD strategy. For some
reason, it reminds me to use techniques I have learnt. What I really enjoy about the lessons is
that it is fun and engaging.

Emmanuel Tan (St Joseph’s Institution Junior) [Graduated from PSLE with A*]

I improved about 5 marks in my composition, consistently scoring more than 30 marks each
time. With the FARTD strategy, I can describe my characters in composition much better!

AL 6
Tay Yu Cheng (West Grove Primary School)

I used to fail my compositions as I had a lot of difficulties with my composition. My vocabulary

was also very weak. After I was taught strategies such as FLR and DOP, I improved close to
10 marks. I also found compositions a lot easier to do. At The Right Word, I learn a lot of
phrases and also news stories that I do not know about that I can apply to writing my stories.

Radiance Tan (Ai Tong Primary School)

I used to dislike English and I found it difficult to spell words. But with the fun and engaging
classes, I have improved 5 marks in my writing. Spelling does not seem that difficult now that
I have improved. Teachers at The Right Word really make sure we understand what is taught.
Other than that, there is also a “Reward Board” that allows us to aim to fill up areas like
Strategy Application, Excellence and Potential. Filling up the board gives us the chance to win
money or other prizes and it motivates me to push myself to do better!

Elizabeth Ong (Raffles Girls’ Primary School) [Score A* in the PSLE]

I found it challenging to think of original good phrases. My plots were also very clichéd. After
attending classes and applying strategies such as ICRCCRR under the Power Planning
technique, I have improved by about 7 marks to score 35 marks or more in my compositions.
When I write my compositions now, my ideas just flow and I do not find it much of a chore
to write. The Right Word’s lessons are enjoyable because the teachers are friendly and I know
that I can ask for help any time.

Joslyn Tan (Ai Tong Primary School)

I was facing challenges with writing compositions as I had trouble thinking of plot ideas.
Grammar was also difficult to me. After taking classes, I am happy to have improved in my
composition by more than 5 marks! I think I found the FART strategy really useful as it helped
me think of more ideas and phrases. The lessons at The Right Word are enjoyable because we
get to play Kahoot and learn in a fun way. The prizes awarded to us are also very encouraging.

Chong Dong Shyang (Qifa Primary School)

I improved a lot in my composition as the challenges I had in composition were made easier
with strategies to help me write better. Some of the techniques I learnt that were useful is the
FARTD for composition. I can strategise how to write better sentences. The lessons are also
fun and thrilling as the teachers often use jokes to educate and encourage us.

AL 7
Jasper Tan (Pei Chun Public School)

I was quite weak in my oral examination and English Paper 2 but after applying TRW’s
strategies, I saw improvement in both my papers. I improved from 21 to 26 marks for my oral
examination. The comprehensive grammar notes I was given was very useful too! Also, I enjoy
the lessons because it is fun and engaging. There is Kahoot, which helps us improve in both
English and general knowledge. I am very thankful to Mr Kelvin. He would always help me
when I ask him questions. He even stayed back for 2 hours after lessons for several weeks in
preparation for the PSLE. I am grateful to have such a wonderful teacher like Mr Kelvin!

Jodie Tan (Marymount Convent School)

I used to be too quick to answer my MCQ questions without a thought and often gave
incomplete answers in my comprehension open-ended. Applying strategies like ACE in
comprehension OE really made me understand the question better and motivated me to look
through the passage for clues. I’ve improved in my Visual Text and Booklet B a lot. I’m glad
that I see more ticks than crosses and Os! Overall, I’ve improved at least 5 marks in my
English. What I love best about TRW is that the teachers are friendly and the environment is
welcoming!

Matthias Wong (Maris Stella High School)

I could not do comprehension and had a lot of difficulty in both cloze and open-ended but
having lessons with Ms Dorothy helped me to think further to elaborate my answers, and
better understand the meaning of words in the passage. The strategies I found most useful
were SPUMUE and SKIs. They helped me attempt my visual text and comprehension better
such that I improved 12 marks in my preliminary examinations. The part of the lessons I enjoy
most is Kahoot as it helps me learn English in a fun and engaging manner.

Rachel Lau (CHIJ)

I struggled a lot of comprehension cloze as I had difficulties filling in the blanks. However,
acquiring the strategy for comprehension cloze helped me improve as I learnt to summarise
the paragraphs and understand the questions better. I enjoy lessons at TRW because it’s not
only fun but also enriching!

Chen Le Yuan (Ai Tong School)

I could not pass English at first because I made a lot of spelling and grammar errors. I also
could not understand the passage. But applying the ACE comprehension strategy helped me
improve in my comprehension. I finally improved by almost 10 marks and passed my English!
I enjoy the lessons at TRW because they share with us videos and there are quizzes that are
fun. I’m so very happy that I improved a lot.

AL 8
Elizabeth Tang (Marymount Convent School)

I’ve improved 8 marks in my English as I scored better in comprehension cloze, open-ended

and synthesis and transformation. The strategies taught at TRW really help me in identifying
clue words and with those hints, I knew how to do my work better. What I like most about
TRW is that the teachers are very nice and go out of the way to help us.

Bryan Koh (Fairfield Methodist Primary School)

I used to be bad in synthesis and comprehension. In my preliminary examinations, I improved

in my MCQ, synthesis and comprehension to score 30 more marks. I’m glad that I applied the
TRW strategies to see improvement! Ms Dorothy taught me to understand questions better
by paying attention to key words and underlining them. I also like playing Kahoot quizzes as it
is fun and helps me improve.

Reagan Goh (Pei Chun Public School)

I was weak in my grammar and comprehension but I’ve improved in those two sections and
other components. Applying the strategies taught helped me improve from 48 marks to 66
marks. Learning how to identify questions types made it easier for me to answer the
questions. I enjoy going to classes at TRW because the environment is conducive and fun.

Jamie Koh (Gongshang Primary School)

I used to have difficulties scoring in synthesis and transformation and comprehension.

However, applying strategies taught in TRW helped me improve in listening comprehension,
oral examination and English Paper 2. From 79%, I improved to 86% in the preliminary
examinations. I enjoy the fun atmosphere and the teachers at TRW really help students pay
attention and apply strategies through all sorts of methods such as Kahoot quizzes and more.

Owein Wong (Yew Tee Primary School)

I had a lot of challenges with spelling and comprehension open-ended. However, I was taught
strategies on how to identify common spelling errors in editing. There were many strategies
to help me learn grammar rules too. I’ve improved close to 10 marks, from 63 to 71 marks.
The best thing about the lessons at TRW is that the lessons are fun but also very useful!

AL 9
For enquiries, contact us at:

Tel: 9150 1560

Email: info@therightword.com.sg
Location: 205A Upper Thomson Road, (S) 574345

AL 10