IGCSE Language A

Directed writing

Section A is worth 40 marks. Fifteen for how well you read the stimulus, twenty-five for how well you adapt tone and style to the required form. Getting the form wrong costs you half your writing marks, so the first thing to get right is the shape.

How the 40 marks split

Reading - 15 marks

Select and develop relevant ideas from the stimulus text. Show that you understand implicit as well as explicit meanings.

Writing - 25 marks

Content and structure, style and accuracy. Register, form, tone, organisation, vocabulary, grammar, spelling and punctuation all count.

The four main forms

Letter

A single known reader - often a head teacher, editor, authority figure, or friend.

Opening and closing

Formal: "Dear Sir/Madam" + "Yours faithfully". Semi-formal: "Dear Mr Alvarez" + "Yours sincerely". Informal: "Dear Maria" + "Best wishes".

Match the relationship - a letter to an MP is formal; to a friend is chatty but still literate.

Key features

Clear opening stating purpose
Paragraphs for each main point
Polite but firm tone if persuasive
Sign-off appropriate to opening

Speech

A live audience - students at assembly, a conference room, a debate chamber.

Opening and closing

Greet the audience directly ("Good morning, ladies and gentlemen"). Close with a memorable call to action or rhetorical question.

Spoken-feeling but composed. Use rhetorical devices sparingly - one or two per paragraph.

Key features

Rhetorical questions to involve the listener
Lists of three for emphasis
Direct address ("you", "we", "let us")
Short punchy sentences alongside longer ones

Article

Readers of a publication - a school magazine, a website, a newspaper. Imagine them skimming.

Opening and closing

Hook the reader with a surprising fact, anecdote or question. End with a reflective or forward-looking statement.

Engaging, confident, slightly conversational. You may include an "I" perspective but keep it disciplined.

Key features

Headline-style title
Hook in the first sentence
Vivid but balanced language
Clear progression of ideas

Report

An official reader - a principal, a committee, a local council. They want facts, not rhetoric.

Opening and closing

State the topic and purpose in sentence one. End with clear recommendations.

Formal, neutral, third-person. Avoid humour and exclamation marks.

Key features

Subheadings are sometimes allowed (check the prompt)
Evidence-led statements
Impersonal phrasing ("It was found that...")
Brief recommendations at the end

Seven-step process in the exam

1Identify the TASK VERB - are you persuading, informing, advising, reporting?
2Identify the FORM - letter, speech, article, report - and who the reader is.
3Annotate the stimulus text for every usable idea you can reshape.
4Plan three to four paragraphs, each with a clear function.
5Open with the right salutation/greeting and state your purpose up front.
6Develop ideas from the stimulus in your OWN words - do not lift whole phrases.
7Close with a line that matches the form and purpose.

Paper 2 hub

IGCSE Language A

Directed writing

How the 40 marks split

Reading - 15 marks

Select and develop relevant ideas from the stimulus text. Show that you understand implicit as well as explicit meanings.

Writing - 25 marks

Content and structure, style and accuracy. Register, form, tone, organisation, vocabulary, grammar, spelling and punctuation all count.

The four main forms

Letter

A single known reader - often a head teacher, editor, authority figure, or friend.

Opening and closing

Formal: "Dear Sir/Madam" + "Yours faithfully". Semi-formal: "Dear Mr Alvarez" + "Yours sincerely". Informal: "Dear Maria" + "Best wishes".

Match the relationship - a letter to an MP is formal; to a friend is chatty but still literate.

Key features

Clear opening stating purpose
Paragraphs for each main point
Polite but firm tone if persuasive
Sign-off appropriate to opening

Speech

A live audience - students at assembly, a conference room, a debate chamber.

Opening and closing

Greet the audience directly ("Good morning, ladies and gentlemen"). Close with a memorable call to action or rhetorical question.

Spoken-feeling but composed. Use rhetorical devices sparingly - one or two per paragraph.

Key features

Rhetorical questions to involve the listener
Lists of three for emphasis
Direct address ("you", "we", "let us")
Short punchy sentences alongside longer ones

Article

Readers of a publication - a school magazine, a website, a newspaper. Imagine them skimming.

Opening and closing

Hook the reader with a surprising fact, anecdote or question. End with a reflective or forward-looking statement.

Engaging, confident, slightly conversational. You may include an "I" perspective but keep it disciplined.

Key features

Headline-style title
Hook in the first sentence
Vivid but balanced language
Clear progression of ideas

Report

An official reader - a principal, a committee, a local council. They want facts, not rhetoric.

Opening and closing

State the topic and purpose in sentence one. End with clear recommendations.

Formal, neutral, third-person. Avoid humour and exclamation marks.

Key features

Subheadings are sometimes allowed (check the prompt)
Evidence-led statements
Impersonal phrasing ("It was found that...")
Brief recommendations at the end

Seven-step process in the exam

1Identify the TASK VERB - are you persuading, informing, advising, reporting?
2Identify the FORM - letter, speech, article, report - and who the reader is.
3Annotate the stimulus text for every usable idea you can reshape.
4Plan three to four paragraphs, each with a clear function.
5Open with the right salutation/greeting and state your purpose up front.
6Develop ideas from the stimulus in your OWN words - do not lift whole phrases.
7Close with a line that matches the form and purpose.

Your Hub

Your Hub

Directed writing

How the 40 marks split

The four main forms

Seven-step process in the exam

Directed writing

How the 40 marks split

The four main forms

Seven-step process in the exam