Writing
What this section tests
The Writing paper typically has two parts: a short task (a note, message, postcard, or filling in a form) and a longer task (an email, letter, or short article of roughly 50–125 words depending on the task). You are assessed on communication of the required information, range and accuracy of language, and structure and register. Every bullet point in the prompt must be addressed.
Concepts to master
You need reliable formulas: greetings (Estimado/a señor/a, Hola Ana), openings (Te escribo porque...), closings (Un abrazo, Atentamente). You need tense control: present for routine, pretérito for finished past events, ir a + infinitive for plans, and me gustaría for polite wishes. You need connectors (primero, luego, además, sin embargo, por eso) to link sentences. You need agreement (noun–adjective, subject–verb) and correct accents on question words and past tenses.
Traps to watch
- Missing a bullet point - the most common lost mark.
- Wrong register: mixing tú and usted in one text.
- Over-reaching: attempting complex subjunctives and breaking the sentence. Simple and correct beats ambitious and wrong.
- Word count: too short loses range marks; padding with repetition does not help.
- English words or invented Spanish words when vocabulary fails - paraphrase instead.
Worked example
Prompt: write a note to a friend explaining you cannot come to their party, giving a reason, and suggesting another day. Structure: greeting → Lo siento, no puedo ir a tu fiesta → reason with porque → suggestion with ¿podemos...? → closing. Rule of thumb: one sentence per bullet point, plus a greeting and a closing.
Rule of thumb
Before writing, list the bullet points in the margin and tick each one off as you write. Check verbs and adjective agreement last.