WRITING TASKS OF LEVEL 3/6

Part 1: Sentence paraphrasing

1. Because – because of
2. Too…to – enough … to
3. Reported speech: Commands / statements
4. Direct – indirect questions
5. Conditionals – types 1, 2 (....because....not....--> if....)
6. Present perfect (This is the first time)
7. Despite – Though
8. It’s + adj. + to do sth. - … adj. + to infinitive
9. Unless – If
10. Active – Passive
11. Comparison-
So sánh (không) bằng – so sánh hơn
So sánh hơn – so sánh nhất
12. Necessary – need
13. People believe that … – It is believed that ….
14. Past simple – Present perfect (V (past simple) … ago – has … for)
15. Enjoy
16. Wish
17. Like sth than sht – Prefer
18. Last (v) + time – Take ...
19. Relative clauses (who)
20. There is (dummy subject)....  Subject + V
21. Present participle – past participle ( interesting/interested)
22. Can do st well  be ....... + V-ing (cụm tính từ)
23. ...+ be + adj  Make it + adj + to do st (dummy object)
24. So  because
25. Be interested in/ be good at

Part 2: Write a message/an email (35-45 words) to sb to

1. thank for something
2. invite sb. to come and stay with you
3. suggest activities you and sb. can do together
4. thank sb. for having given you a chance to visit his family and hometown
5. thank sb. for inviting you to go somewhere
6. thank sb. for coming with you and bringing some meal
7. invite sb. to have lunch with you/ to go out with you.
8. to ask if you can meet your friend and giving information about your trip, suggest what you can do
together
9. to apologize for not being able to go with sb. explain reasons

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 10. to apologize for not keeping promise (not returning st), explain reasons and make another suggestion.

PRACTICE OF SENTENCE PARAPHRASING:

1. Because – Because of
Ex: - He couldn’t go to school because he was ill.
He couldn’t go to school because of _____________.
- Our flight was delayed because the weather was bad.
Our flight was _______________________________
2. too … to - … not enough to …
Ex: - It is too cold to play tennis outside today.
It’s not ___________________________________
- My daughter is too young to live alone.
My daughter _______________________________

3. Reported speech: Commands – statements – questions

Ex: -“ Open your book, please” the teacher asked .
The teacher asked us ________________
- His teacher said he would be a champion one day.
His teacher said, “______________________________________”.
- ‘’I’m so tired ‘’ She said
She said that ____________________________________
- “Please take your shoes and socks off!”
Dr Gibson told us ___________________________
4. Direct – indirect questions
Ex: - The woman asked how much the jacket cost.
The woman asked, “How _____________________________?”
- Sarah asked me if I was a member of the sports centre.
Sarah asked me: “___________________________?”
5. Conditionals (type 2): if … - Because … not …
Ex:- If I were a millionaire, I would travel round the world
Because I’m not a millionaire, I ______________________
- If he had much time, he could learn karate.
He can’t __________________________
6. Present perfect – This is the first time …
Ex: - I’ve never lived in such a big city.
This is __________________________
- I have never visited such a beautiful place.
This is the first time ______________________________
7. Despite – although/though

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Ex: - A lot of people were there despite the rain.
Although______________________________
- Despite her injured foot, she managed to walk to the village.
Though ___________________________________
8. It’s + Adj. to do something – … adj. + to-infinitive
Ex: - It’s very comfortable to live in my new house.
I find it ___________________________________
- I find it difficult to do this English test.
It’s very _____________________________.
9. Unless – If
Ex: - Unless I miss the bus, I’ll be home in 15 minutes.
If I _______________ the bus, I’ll be home in 15 minutes.
- Unless you try, you will never succeed.
If you _______________________________________
10. Active – Passive
Ex: My mother made these curtains.
These curtains______________________________________
- My car windscreen was broken by a stone.
A stone ______________________________________
- They use sand to make glass.
Sand is ___________________________________________
11. Comparison - Comparative – Superlative
Ex: - My friend’s room isn’t as big as mine.
My room is ________________________________________
- Nobody in our class is better at English than him.
He is __________________________________________
- Football is the most popular sport at the centre.
Football is____________________________________
- The park entrance ticket was cheaper than I’d expected.
The park entrance ticket wasn’t __________________________
12. Necessary – Need
Ex: - It isn’t necessary to pay if you are a student.
You _____________________________________________
- You needn’t shout.
It isn’t ________________________
13. People believe that … – It is … that …
Ex: - People believe that the woman comes from Japan.
It is ______________________________________
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 - It is believed that he used to be a rich man.
People believe ____________________________
14. Past simple – present perfect
Ex: - She started working as a secretary five years ago.
She has _________________________________
- John has been playing the piano for ten years
John began _________________________ .
15. Enjoy + V-ing – Doing sth gives someone pleasure
Ex:- I enjoyed discovering this island.
Discovering this island …………………………….
- Listening to classical music gives me pleasure.
I enjoy __________________________________ .
16. Wish – I’m sorry that ….
Ex: - She wishes she knew the best way to bring up her children.
She’s sorry that ………………………………… .
- I’m sorry that I couldn’t finish it earlier.
I wish _________________________________
17. Like sth. than sth. – Prefer sth. to sth.
Ex:- He likes watching football match more than playing it.
He prefers ………………………………………….
- My mother prefers watching a film at home to going to the cinema.
My mother likes _____________________________ .
18. Last (v) + time - It takes ….
Ex: - It took us three days to go on the journey.
The journey ______________________
- Our trip to the island lasted two hours.
It took …………………………………….
19. Relative clause: Who/which/…
Ex: - Do you know who these skis belong to?
Do you know ____________________ these skis are?
- A man answered the phone. He told me you were out.
The man …………………………………….
20. There is – Subject + verb
Ex: - The flat has two bedrooms.
There ______________________________
- There is an elephant at the zoo now.
The zoo has ____________________________
21. Can do sth. well – be good at + V-ing
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Ex: - He can play football very well.
He is ___________________________
- He is good at speaking Japanese.
He can ____________________________.
22. … be + adj – make it + adj + to do sth.
Ex: - It is possible for her to go on the journey.
They made it possible for her to go on the journey
- Driving in the wet weather is very dangerous.
The wet weather makes ________________________
23. So – because
Ex: - He lost his money simply because he wasn’t careful.
He wasn’t careful ______________________________
- They were speaking too softly so I couldn’t hear them.
I couldn’t hear them ______________________________.
- It was too dark to go on so we camped there.
We camped there __________________________________
24. Present participle – past participle ( interesting/interested)
Ex: - People find the smile of the woman in the painting interesting.
People are ___________________ in the smile of the woman in the painting.

- Everybody thought that the museum visit was boring.

Everybody was _____________________ by the museum visit.
25. Be interested in/ be good at
- He’s interested in collecting coins.
He’s good ____________________________

WRITING PRACTICE – B1 LEVEL

PART 1
Rewrite the following sentences using NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS.
1. I haven't been to a concert for a long time.
It's been a long time since ………………….. a concert.
2. Why don't you learn a musical instrument?
If I were you, ……………….. learn a musical instrument.
3. If you don't practise the piano every day, you won't improve.
You won't improve unless ………………. the piano every day.
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4. There are only a few concerts this month.
There aren't ………………………… this month.
5. This room is too small for us to play music in.
This room isn't …………………………….. for us to play music in.
6. I prefer playing the guitar to playing the piano.
I like playing the guitar ………………………. playing the piano.
7. We could not take our instruments on the plane.
We were not …………………………….. take our instruments on the plane
8. I was taught English by a very good teacher.
The teacher who ………………………….me English was very good.
9. If you want to work in some countries, you need a visa.
You can't work in some countries …………………………….. have a visa.
10. There are six bathrooms in that house.
That house ……………………………. six bathrooms.
11. We are too young to smoke.
We aren’t old …………………………………...
12. She sings better than the other girls.
She is …………………………………………….
13. She must not smoke in the library.
She is …………………………………………. smoke in the library.
14. David has lent me a very good bike.
………………………………………. a very good bike from David.
15. You can get bored just staying at home.
It IS …………………………………… just staying at home.
16. I find it very annoying when she comes late.
I get …………………………………………….. when she often comes late.
17. Peter suggested that Susan should dance with Michael for a while.
Peter said "…………………………………. dance with Michael for a while?’
18. The hotel gave us a room with a beautiful view.
We ………………………………………. a room with beautiful view by the hotel.
19. The company said I was too old to become a trainee.
The company said I wasn't …………………………. to become a trainee.

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 B1 Writing Part 2: Sample Task
In this part you have to answer a task by writing a short message to a friend or relative. The message must be
35-45 words and has to answer a specific set of writing prompts. Here’s an example:

As you can see in the task above, you are given:

 a situation: Your friend, Chris, has invited you to a special party…

 a task: Write an email to Chris.

 prompts or subtasks: accept the invitation, suggest how…, ask Chris…

 number of words: Write 35-45 words…

And all of the above are essential when writing your answer.

B1 Writing Part 2: Sample Answer

Below you can see a sample answer to the task in the previous section:

As you can see in the sample answer, we:

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  greet our friend: Hi Chris!

 thank him: Thanks a lot for…

 suggest how to help him: Shall I give you a hand…?

 ask him for ideas: …what could I get for the teacher as a present?

 say goodbye: Write back soon,…

And all of the above is what you have to do in virtually any short message you may have to write for Cambridge
English: Preliminary (PET), except that the writing prompts will change.

Language to use in your Writing

What follows is a list of expressions you should use when writing these short messages. For your convenience,
they are divided into greeting expressions (saying hello), language functions (thanking, suggesting, asking,
reminding, etc.) and farewell expressions.

Greeting expressions

In order to start a short message of this type, it’s important to bear in mind that we are writing to a friend or
relative, so we have to adapt our language. In this case, it is a good idea to say:

 Dear … ,

Language functions

In this section I have gathered plenty of expressions to use when answering the different writing prompts. For
this reason, they are divided into what you could be asked to say in your short message:

Inviting

 Would you like to come over…?

 Do you want to…?

 I’d like to you come…

 Why don’t you come…

Reminding

 Remember that…

 Don’t forget about/that…

 It’s important to remember sth./that…

 It’s essential that you do/bring…

Congratulations
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  Congratulations on…!

 Congratulations! It’s great that you…

 Well done!

 Well done with…!

 Way to go!

Apologising

 I’m really sorry about…

 I’m sorry that I…

 Forgive me for…

 Please, forgive me!

Suggesting

 Why don’t we…?

 How about…?

 What about…?

 Shall we…?

 Let’s…,

 Let’s…, shall we?

 It could be a good idea to…

Arranging meetings

 Let’s meet at…

 I’ll see you … at …, okay?

 Is it okay if we meet at…?

Offering

 Shall I…?

 Can I help you with…?

 I can give you a hand with…, if you want.

 I’ll …. , if you want.

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  Let me know if you need any help with…

Saying “yes” / accepting

 Of course I’ll go (to…).

 I’m more than happy to…

 I’m glad to…

 Great! I’d really like to…

Saying “no” / refusing

 I’m sorry, but I can’t…

 (Thanks, but ) I’m afraid I can’t…

 Sorry, but it’s impossible for me to…

 I’d like to, but I can’t…

Explaining

 What happened was that…

 The thing is that…

Asking for information

 Could you tell me…?

 Can you tell me…?

 Is it true that…?

 Do you know (if…) …?

 Please, let me know (if…) …?

Expressing preference

 I would prefer to… (if that’s okay).

 I’d rather…

 I like …. better.

 What I’d like/love is to…

Wish good things

 Good luck (with…)!

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  All the best (with…)!

 Hope you enjoy …!

 Enjoy yourself!

 Have fun (at/in…)!

 Have a good time (at/in…)!

 You’ll have no problems with…!

 You can do it!

Asking for advice

 What could/can I do (about/with…)?

 Do you think I should…?

 Should I…?

 What would you do?

Saying what you liked/disliked

 What I really enjoyed/liked/loved/hated was…

 I really enjoyed/liked/loved/hated…

 What I liked/enjoyed/… most was…

 My favourite (part of the…) was…

 The best thing (about…) was…

Warning

 Be careful with…

 Be careful not to…

 Remember (not) to…

 It’s not a good idea to…

 I wouldn’t… if I were you.

Farewell expressions

There are many ways to say goodbye in an email or a letter. However, given the word limit we have in these
short messages, we must keep it short and simple, so try to avoid long sentences like I’m looking forward
to… unless you have some leeway. Some expressions you could use are the following:
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  Bye!

 Bye for now!

 Best,

 All the best,

 Best wishes,

 Regards,

 See you soon!

Another example

Just so you see another example, here’s another task:

And here’s a sample answer:

Again, we are answering the task in the following way:

 greeting our friend: Hi James!

 thank him: Thank you very much for the party!

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 saying what we liked best: What I enjoyed most was the music.

 suggest meeting again and when: How about meeting again next Saturday?

 saying goodbye: Best, …

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