Wt/L1.4

A set of two exercises (one vocabulary exercise, then a directed writing exercise) plus an extension (fun exercise where learners use the ‘wrong’ register to write a text) to learn about formal and informal language in English.

Editor’s note
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Love the final exercise :) The examples (which involve David Beckham and a broken washing machine) are hilarious.

A revision activity for Level 1 Functional Skills English reading and writing.

Editor’s note
Reading questions cover all aspects of the FS criteria. The writing activity (formal letter) stresses the use of persuasive techniques and is ideal for both Level 1 and Level 2. It includes a useful writing checklist.

I’m using this activity to give learners a writing frame for a piece of creative writing. I want them to really think about purpose of text when they are creating it, so they have to pick the format, style and tone of their work and plan it out.

This is a simple activity to get learners used to the concept of writing instructive text. It can be used as an introduction to the topic of ‘Purpose of Text’ and is easily adaptable to different contextualised areas e.g. instructions on how to: hang a door; insert hair rollers; change a tyre; make a bouquet etc.

The activity allows for ease of differentiation between levels, based on your assessment of the output, and works well as a main activity for Entry Level learners, or a fun warm-up for Level 1/2 learners.

A powerpoint to spark discussion and introduce the topic of formal and informal language and choosing which is appropriate for different social and work situations. Aimed at E3-L1 Functional English learners.

The PPT can be used with the word match up game, which gets learners thinking about the difference between formal and informal language. Laminate the page and cut up into individual word cards.

Set of 12 sentences to complete. The 12 missing words are 6 pairs of synonyms such as sorry / apologise, need / require, etc. Makes a good starting point for further discussion and/or further speaking and written work.

Two Tarsia puzzles based around formal and informal language. Guaranteed to prompt discussion as learners solve the puzzles. I suggest that the smaller one (16 piece triangle) is roughly at L1 and the larger on (24 piece hexagon) is at L2. I have duplicated some of my word choices from Imogen Stewart’s excellent ‘Little Britain’ (Language: formal, informal or slang?) resource which was also about formal and informal language (see link below). ‘Cheers’ has ‘regards’ as its synonym because of email sign offs – which I have found to be an interesting topic for discussion.

Wonderful high L1 – Level 2 resource which looks at the purposes and sources of a range of texts. Includes: useful handout with example of the four main types of text; discussion and examples of texts with more than one purpose; examples of badly written texts with mixed and confusing purposes; inferred and hidden meanings; writing practice (for four different purposes); re-ordering a long instructional text; and a set of final multiple choice questions to check skills.
Fully mapped to the Functional English criteria.

This activity is designed to follow on from previous discussion about formal language and letter writing. It can be adapted to suit all levels but is best for Entry 3 – Level 2.
Learners will consider the importance of the purpose, content, style and tone of letters; and write a suitable letter of complaint from a given scenario.

This is an activity that’s evolved over time and I’ve used it with learners ranging from E3 to L2. It’s always fun and can get the group talking and sharing thoughts. It’s a good way to reinforce the importance of choosing the correct tone for a letter.

It also has the advantage that it needs little preparation and no resources (except pen, paper and students!).