Writing: Planning, Structure and Control
What the writing task asks
NAPLAN writing tasks give a prompt - often a statement, a scenario or a short stimulus - and ask you to produce a piece of prose, usually narrative or persuasive, in a set time. Markers reward a clear central idea, deliberate structure, and control of sentences.
Concepts to master
- Purpose and audience: decide in the first minute whether you are telling a story, arguing a position, or describing. Hold that purpose throughout.
- Structure: narratives need orientation, complication, and resolution; persuasive pieces need a position, ordered reasons with evidence, and a conclusion that returns to the position.
- Paragraphing: one controlling idea per paragraph, with a topic sentence. A new speaker or a shift in time and place usually means a new paragraph.
- Sentence variety: mix simple, compound and complex sentences. Vary openings so not every sentence starts with I or The.
- Precise vocabulary: choose verbs and nouns that do specific work (sprinted, shuddered, the corridor smelled of bleach) rather than generic intensifiers (very, really, a lot of).
Traps
- The plot dump: a long build-up that leaves no room for the ending. Plan a rough proportion - roughly a quarter for setting up, half for development, a quarter for resolution.
- Abandoned prompts: a brilliant story that never addresses the stimulus. Refer back to the prompt idea explicitly.
- Ornament over clarity: long, comma-spliced sentences written to sound impressive. Two clean sentences beat one tangled one.
- Weak endings: Then I woke up or So that is why I think this. End with an image, a decision, or a restated position with a new twist.
Rule of thumb
Before writing, spend three minutes on a five-line plan: who, where, what goes wrong, how it ends, and one image you want to use. Then write. The plan costs little and prevents the most common failure - a piece with no destination.