Notice or Message? Marking Sana's Lost-Bottle Draft
Sana, a Grade 10 student, is asked to write a notice for the school notice board about a lost water bottle and, separately, a message to her friend. Her notice reads: 'Notice - I lost my blue Milton bottle in the playground yesterday. Anyone who finds it please give it to me in class 10B. It has a red cap. Sana.' The notice is 39 words; the exam instruction says 50-60 words. There is no date, no heading beyond 'Notice', and no class or roll number. Sana argues that the message is clear and that format marks should not be cut because 'the teacher knows who I am.' The writing section awards 5 marks: 2 for format, 2 for content, 1 for language. The teacher must decide how to mark this draft and how to teach the difference between a notice and a message without discouraging Sana.
1. List the format features missing from Sana's notice and decide whether to award full format marks. Justify with exam conventions.
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Missing format features:
- a specific heading such as LOST WATER BOTTLE (the word 'Notice' is a label, not a heading);
- the date;
- the writer's name and class at the bottom (Sana gives her name but not her class in the signature; 'class 10B' appears in the body only).
A notice also normally avoids a salutation and uses a clear, impersonal tone. Sana's content is understandable, but the format is incomplete. Award 1 of 2 format marks, not full marks, because the notice has a title and a signature but lacks a date and a specific heading. The word limit is also short (39 words against 50–60), so content marks should reflect that the essential details are present but the message is under-developed.
2. Rewrite the notice in 50-60 words, keeping all essential details, and explain two changes you made for clarity.
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NOTICE LOST WATER BOTTLE 15 March 2025 A blue Milton water bottle with a red cap was lost in the playground yesterday. It has a name sticker on the back. Anyone who finds it is requested to hand it over to the undersigned in Class 10B. Please contact me during the lunch break. Sana, Class 10B
Two changes: (1) I added a specific heading and a date so that readers can identify the notice and know when it was posted. (2) I changed 'give it to me' to 'hand it over to the undersigned' and added the class, which makes the notice more formal and tells strangers where to return the bottle.
3. Sana's friend asks why this cannot be a message instead. Explain the difference in audience and purpose in 3 sentences.
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A notice is a public announcement on a board for many readers, so it needs a heading, a date, and the writer's name and class; a message is a private communication to one person, so it can be brief and personal. The lost bottle needs many people to see it, so a notice is the right form. If Sana only wanted to tell her friend, a message would be enough, but it would not reach the person who finds the bottle.