MATSEC IM Spanish - Writing
Writing tests your ability to produce clear, organised Spanish for a purpose and reader: an informal message or email, a short article, a description, or an opinion task. Marks reward task completion, organisation, range of vocabulary and structures, and accuracy (grammar, spelling, accents, punctuation). A short, correct text usually beats a long, broken one.
Core writing rules
- Underline the task points before you start: who you are writing to, why, and what information is required.
- Use a clear frame: greeting, opening, body paragraphs, closing.
- Choose register: Hola, ¿qué tal? / Un abrazo for a friend; Estimado señor/Estimada señora / Atentamente for formal.
- Link ideas with además, sin embargo, por lo tanto, aunque, mientras que.
- Vary tenses: present for routine, preterite for events, imperfect for description, future or ir a for plans.
- Check agreement, verb endings, accents and spelling before handing in.
Worked example
Task: write 60–80 words to a friend inviting them to a concert. Model answer: Hola Marta: ¿Qué tal? Te escribo porque el próximo viernes hay un concierto de flamenco en el teatro. ¿Te apetece venir conmigo? Las entradas cuestan veinte euros y puedo comprarlas por internet. Si quieres, quedamos a las siete delante de la taquilla. Un abrazo, Lucía. Reasoning: informal greeting and closing fit the reader; te escribo porque gives purpose; ¿Te apetece...? is a natural invitation; si quieres softens the arrangement; puedo comprarlas shows pronoun placement. The text meets the word count and covers invitation, price and meeting point.
Traps that cost marks
- Using usted with a friend or tú with an official.
- Translating literally: Tengo 17 años, not Soy 17 años; hace frío, not es frío.
- Forgetting accents that change meaning: el / él, si / sí, mas / más.
- Writing one long paragraph with no connectors.
- Ignoring part of the task, such as the price or the meeting time.