Male with short grey hair wearing black suit: A lot of your writing depends on what your content is, whether you're writing a report, whether you're asking somebody for information, whether you're actually writing a letter, whether you're writing a story, it's a case of your structure is totally different.
Male wearing blue shirt: I'd use a different language when I'm doing promotional materials or information for customers.
More use of adjectives, because it's more descriptive, as opposed to a report to board, which would be much more factual.
Kieran McDonnell: When we're writing for different purposes, we use different types of formats.
We use emails that are generally quite informal, they don't always have to have a lot of content and we get the information over quite quickly.
And we use letters, which are a lot more formal, and we may use those for things like offering somebody a job.
And we also have staff notices where we would use mainly bullet points, because we wanna get particular information across quite quickly.
It is important that you choose the right format and style of your writing for the audience you are writing for.
Quick tips for tutors
Format and style includes:
- Writing in different genres - descriptive, persuasive, informative and instructive texts
- How language is used in different types of text
- Presenting information in the form of charts, images, numbered points, tables and pre-set formats
Downloadable Factsheets
Entry 1 & 2 - Formal writing
An introduction to formal writing.
Entry 3 - Writing informative text
How to write texts for a particular audience with a clear aim.
Entry 3 - Writing instructive text
How to write in a way that makes instructions easy to understand.
Level 1 - Using images
How to add to your writing by including photographs or diagrams that help the reader to visualise.
Level 1 - Using tables and pre-set formats
How to use formats like tables to help your reader.
Level 1 - Using bullet points and numbers in lists
How to use numbers and bullet points in your writing, especially to highlight key issues.
Level 1 - Using paragraphs and charts
How to break up your text using paragraphs and charts for numerical information.
Level 1 - Using flow charts
How to give instructions or a process clarity by using a flow chart.
Downloadable Worksheets
Entry 3 - Writing a descriptive text
Exercise in writing a description of a place you know well.
Entry 3 - Writing a persuasive text
Exercise in writing an advert and catching your readers' attention.
Entry 3 - Writing an informative text
Exercise in planning some writing by developing an information sheet.
Entry 3 - Writing an instructive text
Exercise in giving a reader some written instructions.
Level 1 - Creating a staff rota
Exercise in creating a staff rota according to examples and information about a team of workers.
Level 1 - Choosing text that suits the purpose
Exercise in using different types of format to organise and present different types of information.
Level 1 - Presenting information in the form of a table
Answers to the exercise in organising information into a table format.
