MUET WRITING TASK 1 (EMAIL/LETTER)

TASK 1: GUIDED WRITING (EMAIL/LETTER)

-You are advised to spend about 25 minutes on this task.
-You will be given a textual stimulus in the form of a letter or an email containing
three or four notes.
-You must reply to the letter or email in at least 100 words.
-You must use ALL the notes given

STEPS TO ANSWER EMAIL/LETTER

Step 1: Understand the task

a. Read and understand the instruction and the stimulus
 Who is the letter or email from?
 Who is the letter or email written to?
 What is the letter or email about?
b. Identify the sender of the email
c. Identify the keywords
d. Determine what you are required to do for the task
Step 2: Plan your response
a. Respond to the questions in the email or letter
b. Use all the notes provided
c. Decide the style - informal or formal

Plan using PNA+E (according to Paragraphs)

P- Prompts (Can be Question or Sentence)
N- Notes
A- Answer
+E- Elaboration
Step 3: Write your response
a. Use the right or most appropriate expressions
b. Write your letter or email appropriately
Instructions to the candidate:
-Use all the notes given.
-Write a reply to your friend
-The reply should be an email and at least 100 words long based on the given
stimulus.
-Complete this task in 25 minutes.
-Use linkers effectively to connect all your ideas

Type of Format (Task 1)

1. Email Email
2. Letter -Formal letter
-Informal letter

Exam techniques
1. Read the stimulus carefully
2. Underline key words or phrases. Identify your target reader/audience and the
language register you need to use. Identify the questions you need to answer
and their corresponding notes.
3. Plan your answers to each of the questions. Use all the notes to shape your
answers
4. Choose the appropriate format in which to write your response (letter or
email)
5. Write your response/ Answer all of the questions in your reply. Use the correct
format, greeting and closing. Remember to sign off.
6. Check your grammar, spelling and punctuation.
Various themes to respond to EMAIL

Volunteer program Field Trip

-Orphanage / Old Folk’s Home
-Sun Bear Conservation
-Tiger Conservation
-Go Places Club
-Educational Trip
-Go Green Campaign
-Photography Trip
-School Camp
-Rakan Muda Club
-Eco Ardence Class Trip

Workshop/ Competition Ceremony/ Event

-Sports Day -Prefects Dinner
-Team Building -Housewarming
-Annual Cross Country -Graduation Ceremony
-English Workshop -Book Fair
-Debate Competition -Food Carnival
-English Drama -Farewell party
-Patriotic Day -School Alumni Dinner
-Marching Competition
-Effective Speaking Training
-PTA Jonathon
-Spelling Bee
-Modern Dance Competition
-Junior Master Chef Competition
-Sing-Along Contest
-Piano Lesson
-Public Speaking Course
Various themes to respond to INFORMAL & FORMAL LETTER

Compliments/ Complaints/ Invitation

Condolences -Holidays with cousin in Singapore
-New apartment -Family BBQ Party
-Death of family member -Homestay with friends
-Visiting a patient
-Poor Dormitory Facilities
-Food price at school canteen

Seeking /Providing advice Inquiry about event

-Fitness Centre -Art Workshop
-Wellness programme -Community service at Children’s
-Experience in college hostel Home/Old Folks
-Violin lesson -Road Safety Campaign
-Courses to enroll at University -Sarawak Cultural Village Trip
-Culinary Academy -English Camp
-Enrolling into an oversea university -Birthday / Wedding
-Librarian Annual Luncheon
-Leadership Camp
-Photography Workshop
-Adventure’s Club
-Holidays ( Domestic Tourism)
-Science Exhibition
-Badminton Competition
-Hiking Trip
-School fund-raising event
-Talent competition
-East Coast Fest (shows)
-Round the Island (Penang)
-Putrajaya Run
Effective expressions
To greet the recipient
To begin a letter/an email
To express thanks
To express an apology
To express a reaction to good
news
Dear
Hi
Hello
To whom it may concern
Dear Sir or Madam
How are you?
How are the things?
How’s it going?
It’s great to hear from you!
Long time no see!
Sorry, I haven’t written for ages, but…
I’m really sorry that it’s taken me so
long to get back to you
Thanks for…
Thank you for…
Thank you so much for…
I am so grateful that/for…
I don’t know what to say!
I really appreciate it.
I am so grateful that/for …
I owe you one.
I am so sorry
I’m sorry for/that…
I would like to apologize for…
Please accept my apologies for…
I beg your forgiveness.
I’m glad to hear that …
I’m so happy that…
It was so good to hear that…
I’m very happy to hear about …
It’s so great that…
That’s great!
To express a reaction to bad news I’m so sorry to hear about…
I can’t tell you how sad I am that…
I’m extremely sorry to hear that…
It’s just awful to hear that …
That’s disappointing to hear…
You can’t be serious!

To express a preference I definitely prefer…

I’d prefer to…
I’d rather…
I would rather…
I prefer … to …

To express agreement You have a point…

Yes, I agree.
I’d go along with you on that…
I was just going to say that…
You could definitely be right about…

To express disagreement I’m afraid I disagree.

I have to disagree with that…
No way!
I can’t agree with…

To express like I enjoy/like…

I adore/fancy…
I am fond of…
I am thrilled about…
I think that … is great!

To express dislike I dislike…

I’m not very keen on…
I don’t really like…
I’m not really into…
To accept an invitation or offer
To decline/reject an invitation or
offer
To make a request
To give precise information
To describe an experience
Thanks you! I’d love to…
I’d be delighted to…
Yes, thank you. That would be
wonderful/great.
Oh, certainly! Thank you
I would very like…
Thank you very much for inviting
me/your offer
I’d love to, but I’m afraid I’m busy
tonight
I’m terribly sorry. I have other plans.
Thanks for asking. I’m afraid I’m busy…
I’m very sorry. I don’t think I can…
Unfortunately. I can’t…
Thank you for asking me, but…
Sorry, maybe next time
Could you…?
Would you mind…?
I was wondering if you could…
Do you think you could…?
I’d like to request…
… if it’s not too much trouble
If… that would be a great help
Would it be possible for you to…?
The purpose of this letter is to…
In this email, I will describe…
My reason for writing is to…
This email will discuss the…
I have an extensive …
His practical …
My rich…
I had considerable…
It was a great event!
To describe feelings I feel/felt…
This makes me feel …
I am happy/sad/angry/disappointed
about/ with…
What a..?

To describe an event The … was awesome because…

The… was very informative…
There were singing and colouring
contests for children and…
Every year, the students of… organize
The holiday took place in…
It is called…

To provide advice I think you should…

If I were you, I would…
Why don’t you …?
How about…?
Maybe you should …
You could…

To provide a suggestion I would suggest that…

My suggestion is to…
I recommend that…
I would like to propose that…
How about…
I think it is a good idea to…
In my opinion, you could…

To provide a reason This is because…

Since…
This is a result of…
I would suggest that…
My suggestion is to…
I recommend that …
I would like to propose that…
How about…
I think it is a good idea to…
In my opinion, you could…
To provide an opinion In my opinion…
From my point of view…
I think…
I feel that…
I reckon…
I believe that…

To provide justification After all…

The main reason I feel this way is…
There is a lot of evidence to support
There are many facts in favour of…
The reason is…
The facts suggest…
The evidence shows…
It’s because…

To conclude a letter/an email Well, I’ve got to go now…

See you soon.
Hope to hear from you soon.
Anyway. I should get going.
Look after yourself.
Take care of yourself.
Write soon!

To sign off Bye!

Love.
All the best,
Take care,
Regards,
Kind regards,
Best wishes,
Your friend,
Yours sincerely,
Yours faithfully,
Yours truly,
Express feelings

I’m good I’m as fit as a fiddle again

I’m in the pink
I’m all hale and hearty
I was under the weather but I’m right as rain now
I’m sick I’m unwell
I’m a little under the weather
I’m a little off colour today
I’m feeling out of sorts
I have been quite indisposed lately
I’m happy I’m fine/ I’m well
I’m delighted
I’m elated
I’m ecstatic
I’m euphoric
I’m over the moon
I’m on top of the world
I’m on cloud nine
I’m really chuffed
I’m as happy as a clam
I’m as pleased as punch
I’m sad I’m unhappy
I’m a little depressed
I’m feeling blue
I’m feeling down in the dumps
I’m feeling a little dejected
I’m feeling wretched
I’m a little desolate
I’m quite grief-stricken
I’m rather broken-hearted
I’m totally inconsolable
Linkers

Example /Explanation For example

For instance
That is
In other words

Addition Moreover
Furthermore
In addition
Additionally
And

Result /Reason So
Consequently
Thus
As a result
For this reason
Owing to this
Therefore
Accordingly

Attitude Naturally
Certainly
Fortunately
Undoubtedly
Strangely enough
Of course
Predictably

Contrast / Comparison However

Nevertheless
On the contrary
In contrast
In comparison
Still
Yet
But
 Time At first
Next
Then
Later
In the end

Summary Finally
In conclusion
In short
To sum up

Order First(ly)
Second(ly)
Third(ly)
Last(ly)
Finally

Reason and cause Because

As
Since
Because of
Due to.

Do and Don’t of Writing Task 2

Do
-Analyse the stimulus
-Plan your response
-Answer all the questions given
-expand all the notes
-Use effective expressions and
cohesive devices
Don’t
-Copy the rubrics
-Add irrelevant information
-Exaggerate and provide too many
details
-Use bad or disrespectful words
-Forget to sign off
-Write less than 100 words