Writing skills

the plan / outline — your quick notes before writing

the running order / structure of your text

a key idea — one of the points you develop

the hook — an opening line that grabs the reader

the sign-off / closing line

a connector / linking word (inoltre, perciò…)

to develop an idea (with detail and examples)

Tipo di testo, 2–3 idee chiave, un gancio, una chiusura e vocabolario/connettivi utili.

Circa due minuti prima di iniziare a scrivere.

Decode → Brainstorm → Order → Note vocab.

Criterion B (Message) — it gives an organised, well-developed answer.

Depth with examples beats a long list of shallow points — undeveloped ideas lose Criterion B.

No — note form, five short lines; the plan is scaffolding for you, not text for the examiner.

A clear order keeps the reader following you from opening to close, protecting Criterion B.

the text type — the form you must write

the conventions / features that mark out a text type

Un titolo, il rivolgersi al lettore e un saluto finale; registro semiformale.

Gentile/Egregio…, il registro con il Lei e un saluto come Cordiali saluti; registro formale.

Un titolo, dei sottotitoli e una frase d'apertura; registro semiformale.

Un saluto al pubblico e domande retoriche; registro che dipende dal pubblico.

personal text types: l'email (a un amico), il blog, il diario

professional text types: la lettera formale, la relazione, la proposta

mass-media text types: l'articolo, la recensione, l'intervista, il discorso, l'opuscolo

Find the named form → Recall its conventions → pick the Register → Frame the opening & closing.

The task names a specific form; a generic essay misses its conventions and loses Criterion C.

It's almost always printed in the prompt — «blog», «email», «articolo», «discorso» — so underline it first.

From the form and its reader: a formal letter is Lei, a blog is semiformal, a speech depends on the audience.

Criterion C (Conceptual) — the conventions and register of the named form.

the register — how formal or informal the language is

the audience / addressee — the reader you write to

informal register, using tu (or voi in the plural) — for friends and peers

formal register, using Lei — for officials, teachers, companies

the greeting / salutation (Ciao informal vs Gentile … / Egregio … formal)

the sign-off (Un caro saluto informal vs Cordiali saluti formal)

tu/voi, un'apertura come Ciao e una chiusura come Un caro saluto.

Lei, un'apertura come Gentile … / Egregio … e una chiusura come Cordiali saluti.

Il registro formale (Lei).

Identify the reader → Choose tu/voi or Lei → Match greeting/sign-off/vocab → Keep it consistent.

The greeting, the verb forms, the possessive and the sign-off — change all four or none.

Mixing tu and Lei in the same answer — usually hidden in verb endings and possessives.

Criterion C (Conceptual) — register matched to the reader and held throughout.

Re-read every verb ending and possessive against your chosen register (tu or Lei).

a connector — a linking word/phrase between ideas

cohesion — how well the ideas hang together and flow

besides / also — connectors of ADDITION

but / however / nevertheless — connectors of CONTRAST

because / since — connectors of CAUSE

so / therefore / thus — connectors of CONSEQUENCE

first / then / finally — connectors of SEQUENCE

for example / that is — connectors introducing EXAMPLES

Aggiunta, contrasto, causa, conseguenza, sequenza ed esempi.

benché, sebbene, affinché, a patto che — «Sebbene piova, esco.»

Topic sentence → Develop with a connector → Add an example → Conclude or transition.

Linking every sentence with only «e» (and), or repeating one connector until it loses meaning.

Criterion A (range and accuracy of language) most, and Criterion B (organised, easy-to-follow ideas).

Link the ideas you already have with varied connectors matched to the relationship (cause, contrast, result).

register — formal (Lei) or informal (tu); never mix them

length — your answer must reach the required word count

verb tense — presente, passato prossimo/imperfetto, futuro; keep it correct and consistent

text type — blog, email, articolo…; use its conventions

to develop an idea — expand it with reasons and examples, not just name it

agreement — articles, adjectives and verbs must match in gender and number (la casa nuova)

Criterion C (conventions and register).

Criterion B (message); you don't get to develop the ideas.

Criterion A (language).

Words → Register → Conventions → Verbs → Ideas.

About five minutes at the end of the exam.

Fix one register (tu OR Lei) from the greeting to the sign-off and keep it consistent.

A clear, consistent, well-developed answer with correct verbs scores higher than a flashy one full of slips.

Develop 2-3 ideas with reasons and examples instead of naming many.