Starter: Vary your sentences

How many types can you name?

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 Answers
• Simple
• Compound
• Complex
• Minor
• Questions, especially rhetorical
• Rule of three. For example: young, slim and pretty
• Commands (Imperatives)

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 Aims

• To explore argue/persuade /
advise writing tasks
• To revise sentence types
• To consider tone
• To practise exam skills
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 Argue/Persuade/Advise Lesson 3

• If you’re asked to argue, persuade or advise, you will

be asked to write about a subject you’ll know
something about, and will, as usual, be given a few
prompts to get you going.

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• A clear, strong introduction to your subject,
perhaps including some background or history;
• One paragraph for each new argument, topic
or piece of advice;
• Evidence or reasons for every argument you
make;
• A clear, strong conclusion which leaves the
reader with a definite picture of your opinions.

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 Imagine you overhear the following statement:
'We're always hearing about Girl Power and
Independent Women these days, but all I see female
stars doing is strutting around, looking good, posing
for the cameras, making loads of money and bad-
mouthing boys. What about making your own
decisions and controlling your own life?’

Write an article for your school magazine arguing EITHER that today's
female stars are strong role models and examples of Girl Power, OR that
they are sexist and just obsessed with image and money.

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 Layout

Do remember that you should NOT waste

time on layout features such as big
headings, columns or pictures. The most
important thing is the quality of your
writing.
If you want to, you can use short
subheadings between the paragraphs of a
magazine article to signal to the reader
what each section will cover, such as 'Girl
Power – The Facts'. Sometimes these
work well if you write them as questions,
such as 'Rubbish or Reality?’

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 Other Views

• As with Analyse/Review/Comment texts, it’s often

useful to mention the opposite side’s views early on
in your text and then use your arguments to prove
them wrong! Of course, if you’re persuading, you
shouldn’t go into much detail about other people’s
views – you’re trying to convince people to agree with
you, so you don’t need to be as balanced as you do
when analysing. Don’t rubbish others’ views, though –
your audience will just switch off!

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Example:

We see so many films and music videos which tell girls that being strong
is all about being rich, thin, pretty and wearing almost nothing. Since
when was that powerful? I’m not suggesting we should all walk around in
sacks, but what about what’s inside? Not all of us are rich, and not all of
us fit in with the music video image of 'thin' or 'pretty'. Surely brains,
creativity or a sense of humour are more important? Life won’t be much
fun or very interesting if we’re all too worried about breaking a nail to try
anything new.

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 Tone and Style

Although you need to use a formal, impersonal tone

overall, you should also make your writing lively and
engaging. Persuasive texts often sound more convincing
if you actually do use a more personal tone from time to
time, including phrases like 'as we all know', 'I can hardly
believe' or 'no doubt you’ve often wondered' to involve
and convince your audience. Attract and hold their
attention!

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 Ending for Impact
• In any piece of writing, but especially when you
are arguing, persuading or advising, you need to
leave the audience with an impression which will
last. For example:
• So next time you hear someone talk about Girl
Power, ask yourself who the 'really' powerful
women are. or
• Girl Power is in the head, not in front of a
camera.
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 Task

• Working in groups, write a plan and an opening for the

article on GIRL POWER.
• Homework – complete the piece in neat books.

• Spend a maximum of 30 minutes at home.

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Year 10 Assignment

• Writing to Analyse

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 Assignment

Task: Write an article for a teenage magazine

analysing two still images, including any text,
showing how women are represented in the media
You may use the image you used in your
presentation, plus one other, possibly the one you
used for the homework. Hand the second image in
with the assignment.

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 Writing for teenagers

• You will need a crisp and exciting headline – NOT the

assignment title!
• You should find an exciting way in.

• Use language appropriate for teenagers, with

moderation!
• Any technical language must be explained, but in a
non-patronising way.

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 Target Audience

• It will help you if you have a specific magazine in

mind for your piece, such as Sugar, Bliss etc. Try to
write in the house style.
• Within the teenage bracket, decide on a specific age –
13, 14, etc.

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 Questions 1

The following questions may help you with your

planning:
• What is the purpose and audience for your chosen
images?
• Are they negative or positive images? How has this
influenced representation? Do different audiences
respond differently?

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 Questions 2

• How is the picture anchored? If the anchor line reads

‘Beautiful babes’ the women in the picture are no
longer women, they are ‘babes’.
• How does the mise-en-scene add to the representation?
A woman in a sharp suit on a podium gives a different
message to one in a bikini lying on a beach.

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 Questions 3

• What do we imagine the values of the women in the

images to be? What makes us think this?
• Colours – what are the connotations? Five colour rule
followed?
• Finally, detailed analysis of the language – font size
and positioning, as well as language devices such as
alliteration etc.

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 Organising your text

• You can work through these questions for each image

or compare images together by having a paragraph on
each area for analysis. Your article should be lively and
interesting as well as easy to follow, e.e. in a logical
order.
• This assignment will be handwritten in controlled
conditions, all done in class!

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