Writing a Short Reply That Actually Answers
A Beginners writing task (about 80 characters) asks students to write a reply to this message from a Chinese friend, Li Ming:
你好！下个星期我要来悉尼玩三天。你周末有空吗？我们可以一起去海边，也可以去城里。你喜欢哪一个？请告诉我。
Jia writes:
李明，你好！欢迎你来悉尼。悉尼很好看，有很多好玩的地方。周末我有空。海边很好，城里也很好。我还有很多朋友，他们也想见你。我们可以一起吃饭。你什么时候来？
Her draft is 78 characters, has almost no grammar errors, and uses good vocabulary. Her teacher gives it a middle mark.
1. Explain why accurate language still earns only a middle mark here, and rewrite the reply so it answers the message.
Read the worked answer
Why the mark is middling
Beginners writing is marked on communicative effectiveness as much as accuracy. Jia's Chinese is clean, but she dodges every question:
| Li Ming asks | Jia writes | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| 你周末有空吗？ | 周末我有空 | answered ✔ |
| 海边还是城里？你喜欢哪一个？ | 海边很好，城里也很好 | not answered - she praises both and chooses neither |
| 请告诉我 | - | no information given |
She also adds unrequested content (我还有很多朋友，他们也想见你), and ends with 你什么时候来？ - a question Li Ming has already answered (下个星期). That reads as not having understood the message.
Rewrite (about 75 characters)
李明，你好！欢迎你来悉尼！周末我有空。我们去海边吧，因为海边很近，也可以游泳。星期六早上九点我在火车站等你，好吗？到了给我打电话。
Why this scores better
- Makes a choice: 我们去海边吧 answers 你喜欢哪一个 directly. The 吧 makes it a friendly suggestion.
- Gives a reason: 因为海边很近，也可以游泳 - a reason is what turns a one-word answer into a real reply.
- Adds practical detail (time, place, phone) that a real friend would include, without wandering off topic.
- Asks a question that has not been answered: 好吗？ invites confirmation instead of repeating what Li Ming already said.
Rule for this task type: tick off each question in the stimulus and answer it in one short sentence. Accuracy without answers loses marks.
2. Jia wants to raise her mark by writing longer, aiming for 120 characters. Advise her on whether length will help, using the task requirements.
Read the worked answer
Length alone will not help, and can hurt.
1. The task sets the length. It asks for about 80 characters. Going well over suggests she cannot select relevant material, and markers are told to reward relevance, not volume.
2. Her problem is not shortage of words. At 78 characters she is already at target. Her lost marks came from not answering 你喜欢哪一个 and from adding irrelevant content about friends. Adding more sentences of the same kind - more praise of Sydney, more general statements - would multiply the weakness.
3. What to add instead. If she wants more content, add material that does a job:
- a reason for her choice (因为海边很近，可以游泳)
- a logistical detail (星期六早上九点，火车站)
- a question that is still open (我们几点见面？ / 你坐飞机还是坐火车？)
Each of these is short and each earns credit because it develops the arrangement.
4. Check the register. 我们去海边吧 and 好吗？ keep the friendly tone. Long formal sentences would not suit a message to a friend.
Advice: aim for 80–90 characters, spend the extra words on reasons and arrangements, and re-read Li Ming's message at the end to confirm every question has an answer.