We have been looking at different ways to write advice. This week, we will examine how you can target your suggestions at groups of people. This makes it interesting for your readers as they may well be looking for some guidance on certain issues. To begin with, you should practise with subjects close to home. You will already be very familiar with the things you want to write about and your advice will be more accurate and more relevant. Your first step will be to decide if your advice is to be serious or not. Read the advice below and see if you can spot which one it is. How to make school a better place All of us who attend school each day would like to make it the best experience possible. After all, we have little choice. Pupils have to attend school. It is against the law to be a truant. Teachers need jobs and they have to get good results. My advice for teachers is: Dress neatly You should be a role model for your students. They look at you and often copy what you do. Dressing untidily sets a bad example. I am thinking particularly here of a certain history teacher whose shirt is always hanging out of his trousers. Tuck it in! Write clearly It can be very frustrating for students when they cannot read what you write on the board. Many are too embarrassed to ask and fear they will be punished. Also, if the comments you write when you mark books are indecipherable, this does not help students. I hope the mathematics teachers are listening! Speak clearly Some teachers speak too softly. You need to understand that students at the back of the class cannot hear you. It is very important that all students can hear what you say or you are wasting your time. My advice for students is: Dress neatly I know you all wear school uniforms. But some of you look very untidy. This is bad for the school's image. Have some pride in yourself and your school. Look smart. Form Four boys should take particular note! Write clearly Teachers need to be able to read what you write. Illegible writing is useless. Also, when writing looks good, people want to read it. Speak clearly When you answer questions in class, speak slowly and loudly. That way, students and teachers can listen to what you have to say. Glossary truant (n) - someone who skips school; an absentee role model (n) - good example frustrating (adj) - annoying indecipherable (adj) - unreadable illegible (adj) - scribbled; impossible to read Comprehension 1. What is against the law? 2. Who should be a role model for students? 3. Which teachers should write more clearly? 4. What is bad for the school's image? 5. What makes people want to read writing? Writing style Sometimes you want to write your points as a list. This can work quite well. Note how the writer uses bullet points to indicate items in a list. Read the list below and decide which would be written next to the bullet points. clean thoroughly, wear a business suit, use a brush, drive a minibus, empty bins 6. Advice to school cleaners: _________________________ _________________________ _________________________ Crossword There are lots of things in classrooms. Read the clues below and fill in the boxes in the crossword. blackboard, easel, desks, chalk, chairs, display 1. The teacher writes on this. 2. Students sit on these pieces of furniture. 3. A stand used for paintings. 4. A board for posters, notices and pieces of work. 5. Furniture used to store equipment and for students to work on. 6. A white stick for teachers to write with. Answers: 1. to be a truant; 2. teachers; 3. mathematics teachers; 4. untidy students; 5. when it looks good; 6. clean thoroughly, use a brush, empty bins Crossword: 1. blackboard; 2. chairs; 3. easel; 4. display; 5. desks; 6. chalk
