Sometimes you need to give ideas about what you think happened in a past event, including the reasons why. In this post, I’m going to give you some help to speculate about the past.
opinion
Hedging: Podcast
Today’s podcast is about hedging. Sometimes you want to make your opinion sound weaker than it really is. Listen for some examples of how to do it.
The podcast is also available in the iTunes Store by searching for Get Great English or clicking here.
Think ‘3’ When Writing Opinion-Based Test Essays
When you write opinion-based essays for TOEFL or IELTS, you need to keep thinking about organising your thoughts in threes. This helps you to structure your writing more effectively. When you have three thoughts to organise each part of your writing it is much easier to stay with your plan.
Plan in Three Parts
- You need:
- an introduction;
- main points;
- a summary and/or conclusion.
And Keep Planning in Three Parts
- Your introduction should include:
- what the essay question means or background information;
- why this is important or significant;
- what your essay will cover.
- Your main points should include:
- Your opinion, judgement or findings;
- contrasting views;
- evidence to back up your view and why the contrasting views may be wrong.
- Your conclusion should include:
- reinforcement of your views;
- limitations or special cases;
- restatement that limitations and/or special cases are minor.
By doing this, you should increase your score and also find it easier to complete the essay within the given time.