Improving your writing style — Complete Worksheet
Improving your writing style
Look at the following article written by a student giving an opinion about
footballers’ wages.
I think it is unfair that footballers earn so much money. It is unjust
and scandalous. I think there should be a law that puts a limit on how
much money they can earn. I think, for example, that top footballers
shouldn’t be allowed to earn more than one million pounds a year.
I believe that a limit like this would make the game more fair and
competitive and it could stop unfair competition with clubs trying
to lure players with higher wages. I think it will help teams in lower
leagues attract better footballers and as a result they will have a
better chance of winning matches against the top teams. I also think
that by doing this we would bring football back into the real world as
many ordinary people feel that players are out of touch with their
fans. I believe it is wrong that we seem to be valuing footballers more
than doctors and nurses by paying them so much money.
What do you think the student could do to improve this piece of writing?
Rewrite it, thinking about how you can vary the way you start
each sentence.
Look at this piece of writing by a student.
Guilt. I never liked that feeling. The feeling that almost made
you sick to the stomach. I knew I was wrong and shouldn’t be
doing it, but I couldn’t face what was waiting for me. I just
couldn’t stay and let them do that to me. Although I had to run,
I wondered what would happen when they found me.
How many different types of sentence can you find in the piece?
Which sentence do you think has the greatest effect on the reader?
Explain your answer.
You should also use different types of sentence for effect when writing on
the non-fiction paper.
Here is an extract from a speech defending wolves.
I am here tonight to change your mind about one of the most
misunderstood and maligned animals in the world. Like us, this
animal lives in close families and loves playing and having fun. Any
idea who this creature can be? Yes, the wolf.
Evil and vicious? Not so. The wolf is a clever and loving animal,
nothing like the way it is presented in ‘Little Red Riding Hood’ and
‘The Three Little Pigs’. When we were little, we all enjoyed such
stories. Now we have grown up and we can understand the truth
behind the fiction.
How many different types of sentence can you find in this piece of
persuasive writing?
Explanation :
main clause the part of
a sentence that makes
sense on its own
subordinate clause the
part of a sentence that
doesn’t make sense on
its own and depends
on the main clause
TOP TIPS
Remember that a
main clause can form
a complete sentence
standing alone.
However, a
subordinate clause
cannot stand alone. It
is often introduced by
a conjunction, and is
dependent on a main
clause (for example,
‘when it rang’ in ‘She
answered the phone
when it rang.’).
conjunction a joining
word (a type of
connective), such as
however, because,
and
connective a linking
word, used to join
together words,
phrases or clauses, or
to show relationships
between sentences,
such as and, but, then
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