NSW HSC Minimum Standard Writing Test cheat sheet

Persuasive, informative, and imaginative prompts each demand a stated purpose; the opening sentence should signal that purpose within the first two sentences.

A complete sentence needs a subject and a finite verb; a group of words lacking either is a fragment and must be joined to or expanded into a full clause.

Comma splice rule: two independent clauses joined only by a comma is an error; fix with a full stop, semicolon, or coordinating conjunction (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so).

Apostrophes mark possession (the student's book, the students' books) or contraction (it's = it is); 'its' without an apostrophe is the possessive determiner.

Paragraph unity: each paragraph carries one controlling idea, usually announced in a topic sentence, with supporting detail and a closing or linking sentence.

Cohesive devices include pronoun reference, repeated key terms, and connectives such as however, therefore, in contrast, and for example; overuse of one connective weakens flow.

Tense consistency: narrative and reflective writing stay in one dominant tense unless a deliberate shift is signalled by a time marker.

Subject-verb agreement holds across intervening phrases; the verb agrees with the head noun, not the nearest noun (the box of papers is heavy).

Direct speech requires quotation marks and punctuation inside them, with a new paragraph for each new speaker in dialogue.

Main idea = what the whole text is mostly about; supporting detail = a fact, example, or reason that backs the main idea.

Inference is a conclusion drawn from stated evidence plus general knowledge; it must be supportable from the text, not merely plausible.

Fact is verifiable by evidence; opinion expresses judgement, value, or feeling and often carries evaluative adjectives or modal words such as should and best.

Text purpose categories: to inform, to persuade, to entertain, to instruct; the purpose shapes tone, structure, and vocabulary choice.

Skimming reads headings, first sentences, and concluding sentences for gist; scanning locates specific information such as names, dates, or figures.

Author's tone is conveyed through word choice and connotation; a word's negative or positive shading changes the reader's response.

Sequence and cause-effect questions are answered by locating signal words: first, then, finally, because, as a result, consequently.

Compare-and-contrast texts use connectives such as whereas, similarly, unlike, and on the other hand to mark similarity and difference.

A summary restates only the central points in the reader's own words and omits examples, repetition, and minor detail.

Place value: each position is ten times the value of the position to its right; 0.4 equals four tenths and 40 hundredths.

Fraction, decimal, percentage conversions: divide numerator by denominator for a decimal; multiply a decimal by 100 for a percentage.

Percentage of a quantity = rate ÷ 100 × amount; a 20% discount on $85 is 0.20 × 85 = $17, giving a sale price of $68.

Order of operations: brackets, then indices, then multiplication and division left to right, then addition and subtraction left to right.

Perimeter of a rectangle = 2(length + width); area of a rectangle = length × width; area of a triangle = ½ × base × height.

Average speed = distance ÷ time; rearranged, distance = speed × time and time = distance ÷ speed.

Unit conversion: 1 km = 1000 m, 1 m = 100 cm, 1 kg = 1000 g, 1 L = 1000 mL, 1 hour = 60 minutes.

Ratio sharing: total parts = sum of ratio terms; one share = total ÷ total parts, then multiply by each term.

Probability of an event = favourable outcomes ÷ total equally likely outcomes; probabilities lie between 0 and 1 and sum to 1 across all outcomes.