Writing Tips For Students

Shehana Albaz

I am going to provide you with some vital tips to help you improve your English writing skills. Take some time to read through these steps.

These 6 tips will benefit you if you want to write professionally or for everyday use.

TIP 1: FOCUS ON THE WRITING STYLE YOU NEED

This first step is arguably the most important.

Before implementing the other tips be clear on the type of style you are going to need. If you are writing for business purposes, then focus on business English. If you are taking the IELTS exam, get resources focused on this.

Be clear on what you’re going to be writing about. Then, move on to step two.

TIP 2: FIND EXAMPLES OF TEXT AND COPY THEM

In the age of the internet, this is a very easy thing to find and an essential for getting used to the style you like.

If you are looking for conversational English, search for something like ‘Conversational English text’.

I want you to Read, Copy, Write (without looking at the original) and then correct yourself by checking back afterwards.

TIP 3: READ A LOT!

Read, read, read and did I mention? Read!

I cannot stress this enough, as this will be one of the most vital tools for you becoming familiar with the way English is written, and also to help you spot the mistakes you are making at the moment; and if you copy passages, it can also be a way for you to rectify those errors.

Reading graded readers is a good place to start, as the words used aren’t overly complicated, and the stories are generally fun enough to keep you interested.

If you are especially interested in informal English improvement, for texts and social media, you can, of course, read comments and posts to improve, but also there is now the emergence of a new writing genre called text stories, where a whole story will be explained through text messages.

It can be a very interesting way to read and you do get some valuable information.

If you aren’t a fan of reading by yourself, try looking for free or paid audiobooks, and read along with a hard copy. Most audiobook apps allow you to control the speed of the speaker, so you can read along at whatever pace suits you. Whatever makes you feel most comfortable, just make sure you read!

TIP 4: PRACTISE AND GET FEEDBACK.

Improving your writing is like learning any new skill – you have to practice, and you will need to try and get feedback.

After trying the copying tactic a few times and you start to feel a little more confident, try doing written exercises and find a native English speaker to correct you.

One app which I like is called ‘Hello Talk’, which allows you to make language exchanges with people in your target language, usually in exchange for you helping them improve in your language.

The app is great as it has a ‘correction’ feature, which not only corrects the other person’s text, but also shows the original and the edited next to each other, so you can learn from your mistakes.

TIP 5: USE APPS, IN PARTICULAR, MY FAVOURITE: GRAMMARLY

It is available as a web browser extension and as a downloadable app for your electronic devices. It is fantastic because it shows you grammatical mistakes on near-enough every web page, social media site, email host etc. So, you can be sure to be correct when you type, but more importantly, as it corrects your mistakes regularly, you will start to notice these mistakes and know how to correct them to avoid it highlighting them in future.

https://www.grammarly.com/

Another great website and app is called Linguee .

This website/app allows you to see words or phrases in real life examples taken from the internet, written by native speakers. This can be especially useful with homonyms (words which sound the same but mean different things).

TIP 6: TAKE YOUR TIME, AND BE SURE TO SEARCH FOR NEW SENTENCES TO LEARN AND PRACTICE

I can’t emphasize enough how important taking your time is.

If you rush too much, the hard work you put in won’t be retained, and all your effort will go to waste.

Make sure you copy things and write things at your own pace, trying your hardest to get things correct; the speed and fluidity will come later. Find useful new sentences to learn regularly to help improve your vocabulary and allow for you to be a better writer in general.

You can do this by starting to type a phrase into google for example. It will provide suggestions using the start of a phrase, all of which will be searched often, so you can near-enough guarantee accuracy of your writing.

Also, as I mentioned above, Linguee offers actual examples from native speakers who are using your word or phrase, so this could work as well!

Video to help you understand more :

8 Writing Exercises to Improve Your Writing Skills

When it comes to writing, some people are better than others. The truth is that there is no real science to it. In fact, many consider writing an art. Still, this doesn’t mean that you can’t become a better writer if you practice. After all, practice makes perfect, as the saying goes. There are several things you can do to enhance the way you write. These are some exercises to help students to improve their writing:

Picture It & Write –

One of the hardest jobs a writer has to accomplish is describing to the reader what they want them to see. This means offering real details about the situation or subject you want to convey. A great writing exercise is taking a picture from a magazine or somewhere else. Your next step is to describe that picture using as much details as you can. Go further than just writing what you see in the photo and actually imagine yourself in the image. Describe what you may feel, smell or taste in the situation. You will learn how to accurately write about perceptions, adjectives and feelings.

Use the Dictionary –

The road to improving your writing begins by expanding your vocabulary. The more words you know increases how many ways you will have to convey your message. Start by opening your dictionary and learning a new word every day. Once you have found a word you don’t know, learn it. Begin by writing sentences using it and writing your own definition of the word. In the end, you will learn a new way to say something and expand your writing skills.

Do Word Association –

Another great writing exercise is word association. This consist of writing down a random word and then continuing to write another that relates to it. As you write more words, you can end up slowly changing the route of each words. This will help you to slowly move from one context to the next. Since this is your own exercise, you don’t have to worry about anyone seeing your list. Performing this exercise will allow you to let your imagination go in any direction. One example is as follows:

Writing, pen, paper, book, print, machine, copy, ink, cartridge, colors, etc.……

Create A How To-

If there some things you are familiar with, create a how to guide on them. Use your writing to make a step-by-step guide showing others what to do and how to do it. You can do just about anything from using an app on your phone to eating cereal. Whatever topic you choose, you will learn how difficult doing a guide can become. In turn, you will discover all about organization and instructions. This means you will teach yourself about organizing your thoughts better and following instructions to achieve that goal.

Become an Editor –

A great way to improve your own writing is by correcting another people’s work. By becoming an editor, you can concentrate on someone else’s mistakes. This will help you pay more attention to details you may otherwise ignore. In addition, you will also discover and learn about other people’s writing styles.

Practice Fiction or Non –

Find a book and open a page randomly. Next, concentrate on the first sentence you see. Now use that sentence and begin writing your own version of events from that sentence. The twist is that you can begin using fiction to support whichever way you want to write. You can also use non-fiction if you choose. This will help you think and explore new ideas and concepts in your mind. At the same time, your imagination and thoughts can be put in writing.

Use Writing Apps –

The best things about smartphones is the many useful apps available. There are now all kinds of apps out there which are dedicated to helping you become a better writer. Many of these apps can vastly improve your writing by showing you mistakes you may not be aware of. Apps such as Hemingway, Grammarly and One Look Reverse Dictionary are great applications to use. All of these will greatly enhance many aspects of your writing; including some you may not even been aware of.

Use Word Games –

Just like apps, word games are an excellent way to strengthen your writing. Using word games actually help you in several different ways. For one, they can expand your vocabulary. Second, they can also teach you to properly spell words by seeing them as you play. Lastly, word games substantially increase your memory, give your brain a workout and keep your mind sharp.