These seven exercises start with planning and end with a full revision. Write your own answer first, then read the model.
They follow the lessons in SPM English guided writing.
Exercises
Exercise 1: Your school is planning a Clean-Up Day. Turn these bullet points into a four-line plan: choose an area, say who will help, say what to bring.
Answer
Purpose: email to the discipline teacher, offering a plan for Clean-Up Day.
Area: the canteen garden, because it is used daily and looks untidy.
Helpers: Form 3 classes, since they have a free period that afternoon.
What to bring: gloves and rubbish bags from the school store.
Ending: ask for a reply this week so the notices can go out.
Each bullet has one reason, and the ending asks the reader to reply.
Exercise 2: Add one example and one effect to this idea: “Students should bring reusable bottles.”
Answer
Example: “A student who buys a drink at recess uses a new plastic bottle every day.”
Effect: “With a reusable bottle, that student throws away far less plastic over the school year.”
The example shows a person doing one specific thing, and the effect says what changes.
Exercise 3: Write a topic sentence for a paragraph about why Form 3 students should join the clean-up.
Answer
“Form 3 students are the right choice because they have a free period and know the school grounds well.”
It names one idea that the rest of the paragraph can prove.
Exercise 4: Choose a connector for each gap. (a) “The garden is untidy. ___, it is used every day.” (b) “Some students are busy. ___, the clean-up takes only one hour.”
Answer
(a) “Moreover” or “In addition”: it adds a second reason to the same point.
(b) “However”: it introduces a contrast, because the busy students can still help.
Exercise 5: This answer covers content but the order jumps. Reorder the sentences: (1) “Finally, please reply by Friday.” (2) “I suggest the canteen garden.” (3) “I am writing about Clean-Up Day.” (4) “Form 3 students can help.”
Answer
Order: 3, 2, 4, 1. The purpose comes first, then the area, then the helpers, then the closing request.
Exercise 6: Find what is missing: “Dear Encik Hamid, I suggest the canteen garden for Clean-Up Day. It is always untidy. Thank you.” The task asks for area, helpers and what to bring.
Answer
Helpers and what to bring are both missing, so the content is incomplete. The email also has no sentence saying why the writer is writing, which is an organisation gap.
Exercise 7: Revise: “Clean-Up Day is good. Students clean. It is fun. Teachers watch.” Keep the ideas, add examples, and make it read as one paragraph.
Answer
One possible answer: “Clean-Up Day gives students a practical way to care for the school. For instance, a Form 3 class can clear the canteen garden in one hour. As a result, the space looks better and students feel proud of it. Teachers can then supervise from one spot.”
The model has a topic sentence, an example, a cause link and an ending idea.
If you got these wrong
Exercises 1 and 5 practise turning bullet points into a plan. Exercise 2 practises supporting ideas with examples. Exercises 3 and 4 practise topic sentences and transitions. Exercises 6 and 7 practise balancing content, organisation and language.
Use the English writing task checklist to check your own drafts. To go through them with a teacher, try online one-to-one English tuition.