Writing (Ysgrifennu) - Canolradd B1
Writing (Ysgrifennu) tests whether you can produce coherent Welsh texts for a clear audience and purpose at B1. The paper normally asks for more than one piece, such as a short functional message and a longer text giving an opinion. Read the rubric for the required length, register and audience; accuracy and task completion matter more than length.
Register and structure
- Informal writing uses 'ti': 'Helo', 'Sut wyt ti?', 'Cofia am...', 'Cofion'. Formal writing uses 'chi': 'Annwyl..., Parchus..., Yn gywir'.
- Answer every bullet point in the prompt. A missing bullet is a content mark lost, however good the Welsh.
- Paragraph by function: greeting and purpose, details, opinion or request, closing.
- Use B1 connectives: 'Yn ogystal', 'hefyd', 'fodd bynnag', 'ar y llaw arall', 'oherwydd hynny'.
- Keep idioms you control. A plain correct sentence scores better than an ambitious broken one.
Sentence control
- After 'yn' before a verbnoun, use the verbnoun: 'Dw i'n mynd', 'Roedd hi'n gweithio'.
- Use 'wedi' for the perfect: 'Dw i wedi colli'r bws'.
- Conditionals need 'baswn/byddwn' or 'os': 'Os bydd hi'n braf, awn ni am dro'.
- Possessives trigger mutation: 'fy mrawd', 'dy gath', 'ei thŷ hi', 'eu llyfr nhw'.
- Check accents and endings: 'â', 'ê', 'ô', 'ŵ', 'ŷ'; '-ais', '-odd', '-on ni'.
Worked example
Task: decline a party invitation informally and suggest another meeting. Draft: 'Helo Siân, Diolch am y gwahoddiad i'r parti ddydd Sadwrn. Mae'n ddrwg gen i, ond alla i ddim dod achos rydw i'n gweithio yn y siop tan naw. Beth am gwrdd ddydd Sul? Cofion, Tom.' Reasoning: 'am y gwahoddiad' acknowledges the invitation; 'Mae'n ddrwg gen i' is the standard apology; 'alla i ddim dod' is a negative ability form; 'achos' gives a reason; 'Beth am gwrdd' suggests an alternative; 'Cofion' closes informally. The draft answers the prompt without overreaching.
Traps that cost marks
- Mixing 'ti' and 'chi' in the same text.
- Writing a formal letter for an informal task, or the reverse.
- Forgetting 'yn' before a verbnoun: 'Dw i mynd' instead of 'Dw i'n mynd'.
- Missing mutations after possessives and after 'i' or 'o'.
- Adding extra content that introduces new errors instead of completing the task.
- No paragraphing or no clear opening and closing.