WHAT IS AN ARTICLE?

An article is a text that expresses your opinion and knowledge about something. It
should be an entertaining text that gets the readers attention and informs them.

THE STRUCTURE OF AN ARTICLE IS SIMPLE:

 Title
 Introduction
 Description (develop your idea)
 Recommendation and ending
 
 Title
Every good article has a title. When you read a newspaper, magazine or website you
always find titles (and sometimes even subheadings) at the top of an article.

Try to make the title interesting so the reader wants to see what you have to
say. For example, in our task from earlier we could choose one of the following ideas:
1. Films I like (and how I watch them)
2. How to best watch the films you love
3. Home or cinema – How do you watch your favourite films?
You can see that the topic is clear and it creates some interest for the reader. However,
don’t feel stressed. If you just use the title “Films”, you won’t lose any marks. It is
more important to give your article some kind of title.
Main paragraphs
The main paragraphs are the most important pieces of your article and you should
always think about these two things:
1. Does the paragraph talk about about one of the main questions in the task?
2. Do I use good language (neutral/informal, linking words, good grammar and
interesting vocabulary)?
One of the most important things in the PET Writing exam is that you have to answer
the questions in the task very clearly. Don’t talk about things that are unrelated,
but focus on the topic. An example for one of the main paragraphs could look like this:
I know many people who love animated or romantic films, but for me, there is nothing
better than an amazing drama or adventure movie like ‘Indiana Jones’ because I’m a
big fan of stories with a fascinating plot.
In my opinion, watching a film at home isn’t the same as going to the cinema to enjoy a
great movie on a huge screen with popcorn and cola. If it wasn’t so expensive, I would
go every week.
You can see that I answered the question about what films I enjoy. I only focused on
the question and gave some examples.
In the first paragraph I talk about film genres (animated, romantic, drama, adventure) as
well as one specific film (Indiana Jones). I also tried to include some interesting
grammar (I know many people who…, nothing better than) and vocabulary (amazing
drama, I’m a big fan of…, fascinating plot). On top of that, I used different linking
words to connect my ideas (who, but, because).
In the second paragraph I say how I prefer watching a film (going to the cinema) and I
explain why (huge screen, popcorn and cola). I also included a conditional sentence
for good grammar (If it wasn’t so expensive, I would go every week.).
This sounds like a lot of information, but is you practise regularly, it will become easier
and easier for you to do the same.
Final sentence
As soon as you finish your main paragraphs, you should end your article with a nice
final sentence. It can be a little bit funny or surprising, but you can also just
summarise your article. Remember, the more interesting your article is, the better
it is for your marks.
So, if you want to give me some money to go to the cinema more often, or to tell me
which you prefer – the cinema or the TV screen, leave a comment.