Writing non-fiction - CCEA

The material on this page is designed to help you with revision and preparation for your CCEA GCSE English Language exams. It applies to Unit 1, Section A: Writing for purpose and audience.

• Unit 1 is assessed by a written exam, worth 30% of your final mark
• There is one task in Section A of the Unit 1 exam, worth 87 of the 150 marks available
• For this task, you will be expected to produce a piece of writing, usually a speech or article, in response to specific instructions

You can practice for your English Language GCSE exams with a range of CCEA past papers and mark schemes.

• Non-fiction texts are those that deal with facts, opinions and the real world; they follow specific conventions such as structure, language and tone
• A good speech has a strong opening, a well-structured argument, and a memorable conclusion; it can be helpful to use persuasive language and devices such as rhetorical questions and emotive language
• Formal letters have a set structure, including addresses, a greeting and a closing; use Standard English and tailor your tone to your purpose
• Articles are found in magazines, websites and newspapers; they usually have a catchy headline, an engaging opening, detailed middle sections and a concluding paragraph
• Using persuasive techniques such as the rule of three, rhetorical questions and hyperbole, can make your writing more convincing and engaging

Texts that deal with facts, opinions and the real world are usually described as non-fiction. Different text types, or forms, of non-fiction have particular conventions. These are the typical or expected features of a form and include structure, language and tone.

For example, a newspaper article usually has a headline, uses formal language and takes a serious tone. A political speech usually addresses the audience directly, includes persuasive language and often has a rousing tone.

With all writing tasks it is important to consider:

• the conventions of the form
• your intended audience (reader)
• the purpose of your writing

Your reader might be one particular person, as with an email or letter. Or it might be a broader group of people, as with an article or speech.

Having a clear purpose will allow you to select language best suited to your task. For example, if your purpose is to entertain, your tone might be light-hearted. If your purpose is to persuade, you might include rhetorical devices.

Structure

A speech often follows a three-part structure:

1. A highly engaging and motivational opening
2. A well-structured argument with several main points that include objection handling
3. A dynamic and memorable conclusion

Language

The language you use in a speech will vary depending on your audience. In a speech to a professional audience, such as a business pitch or a talk to headteachers, formal language is most appropriate.

The purpose of a speech is often to convince listeners of a particular point of view. Language is typically persuasive.

Here are some persuasive devices you could include to make your speech more dynamic and memorable:

NB: Examples in the table are all from a speech against school uniforms.

Example

Here’s a passage from a speech by Barack Obama about climate change:

We, the people, still believe that our obligations as Americans are not just to ourselves but to all posterity. We will respond to the threat of climate change, knowing that the failure to do so will betray our children and future generations.

Some may still deny the overwhelming judgement of science, but none can avoid the devastating impact of raging fires, crippling drought or powerful storms. A path towards sustainable energy sources will be long and sometimes difficult, but America cannot resist this transition.

We must lead it! We cannot concede to other nations the technology that will power new jobs and new industries; we must claim its promise. That’s how we will maintain our economic vitality and our national treasure. You and I as citizens have the power to set this country’s course. You and I as citizens have the obligation to shape the debates of our time not only with the votes we cast but with the voices we lift in defence of our most ancient values and enduring ideas. Will you join us?

Notice how he shapes his language to match his audience and purpose:

• the audience is American citizens
• the purpose is to convince people to take responsibility for acting on climate change
• note the repeated use of the personal pronoun ‘we’ within the opening paragraph to engage the listeners
• he deals with objections using the phrase ‘Some may still deny’ suggesting that the opposition are in a minority – ‘some’ – and that their position is unsteady – ‘may’
• in the second paragraph, Obama uses the highly emotive language ‘devastating’, ‘crippling’ and ‘powerful’ to influence his listeners and to highlight the negative impact that climate change has had on America
• Obama then ends on a powerful message, using 'we' and 'our' to suggest to the audience that they are all together and he is working with them
• he uses forceful language and imperatives in the repeated ‘we must’
• he finishes with a rhetorical question, calling on the audience to take action

Structure

A formal letter has a conventional structure. The sender’s postal address goes in the top right hand corner. The recipient’s postal address is written to the left and slightly below this with the date underneath.

A letter then opens with the greeting ‘Dear…’ If you do not know the name of the person you are writing to (for example if you were emailing a company about a product, rather than a particular person that works there), the convention is to start your letter with: ‘Dear Sir/Madam’.

The initial paragraph usually outlines the overall aim of the letter, and the conclusion summarises the main points.

Conventionally, there are different ways to end a letter, depending on the addressee.

If you have named the recipient at the start (eg Dear Mr Banks/Dear Freya), your letter ends with ‘Yours sincerely’.

If you haven’t named the recipient at the start (eg Dear Sir/Madam), your letter ends with ‘Yours faithfully’.

Language

In a formal letter, the convention is to use Standard English. The tone of your letter will vary depending on your purpose.

Example

Here is an example of a job application letter (minus the sender's postal address and recipient's address). The writer’s overall purpose is to persuade the reader of their suitability for the role.

20th July 2025

Dear Mr Hopkins,

I am writing in response to the recent advertisement for the position of sales assistant that has become available in your shop. I would like to be considered for the position.

I am currently working in a local coffee shop, where I am responsible for the service and distribution of food and drink to customers. I am a key holder for the premises, and my daily duties include taking orders, dealing with customer queries and managing the till takings at the end of the working day. I work as part of a small team to ensure that the needs of the customers are met.

Before working in the coffee shop, I spent several years working as a sales assistant in a bookshop. In this role, I gained extensive experience of organisation, stocktaking and meeting specific requests for customer orders. In this full-time role, I developed interpersonal skills and confidence within customer service.

In addition to this I can offer competent skills with Microsoft Office software and I am currently completing an evening course in accounting. I have included details of my GCSE qualifications in my attached CV.

Thank for you taking the time to read my application; I look forward to hearing from you.

Yours sincerely,

Marisa Ahmed

The opening paragraph outlines the purpose of the letter to the recipient. The writer then explains their previous experience in sales and refers to their qualifications to show that they are suitable. The closing paragraph refers back to the overall purpose, and assumes that the writer expects to hear from the recipient – this shows confidence.

Formal language is used and the writer ends her letter with ‘Yours sincerely’ because she has used the recipient’s name at the start.

Here are a few places where you might expect to find an article:

• a magazine
• a website
• certain sections of a newspaper (NB: an article is different to a news report)

An article is a piece of writing (usually around 800-2000 words) about a particular topic. Sometimes an article will offer a balanced view of a subject. At other times an article might be biased towards a person or political standpoint.

An article might also be flavoured by the writer’s style. Depending on the purpose of your article, you might use very direct informative language or more poetic language to create a sense of the subject matter.

Here are some typical subjects covered by article writers:

• travel
• sport
• history
• hobbies/home/craft
• music
• celebrities/famous figures (eg an article about an actor’s life and career)

Structure

The basic structure of an article for a newspaper, magazine or website, is usually in three parts:

• opening – engaging the reader, or outlining the main point of the article
• middle – a series of paragraphs that go into more detail
• end – a concluding paragraph that draws the points together

Within this structure you could also create a circular structure in which the conclusion connects back to the opening idea.

For example, an article about Kerala in India opens with the writer describing the view from a train. The middle section describes Alappuzha, the place the writer is travelling away from, and goes into details about a boat trip they took there. In the concluding paragraph, the writer brings us back to the train and muses on the highlights of his trip.

Language

The language of an article depends upon the purpose and audience. The language of the article will fit the content and the intended readers. For example, an article about a recent film release would include language that deals with actors, scripts and performance and is likely to include the writer’s opinions of the film.

Articles usually have a catchy, memorable headline. This helps to grab the reader’s attention and entice them to read the whole article.

Articles are usually written in Standard English, but colloquial sayings or phrases might be used to emphasise a point. Literary techniques such as metaphor and simile make your writing more interesting and engaging. Persuasive devices, such as rule of three,rhetorical questions and hyperbole can encourage the reader to agree with your point of view.

Example

Here’s an extract from an article that tries to persuade the reader to eat a more balanced, healthy diet:

Eat Right: Live Longer

It has been scientifically proven that the less junk food a person consumes, the longer they are likely to live. So why isn’t everyone dumping the junk? Jordan McIntyre investigates.

Fast food equals fat

A staple part of twenty-first century British home-life is the weekly takeaway treat: finger-licking burgers, sticky ribs and crispy chicken wings are, for many, the normal Friday night feast. The average national calorie count in the UK is a whopping 4500 a day, a key factor in the obesity cases that are soaring. Fast food is packed with fat and obesity contributes to a range of health issues – most significantly heart disease and depression. So why aren’t we changing our lifestyles?

Short on time

Families these days are spending less and less time at home during the working week. School commitments, work meetings and extra curricular activities mean that time is short and fewer people are prepared to put in the effort to prepare fresh, healthy meals.

And when time is tight, it seems we are even more willing to compromise our waistlines for a little bit of what we fancy – fast fatty food.

Eat yourself healthy

However, Georgia Thomas of the University of Food says, ‘I am convinced that it is possible to live a busy lifestyle AND prepare healthy, satisfying meals. It seems that people have simply got out of the habit of cooking. We are busy people; how do we reward ourselves? You guessed it - food.’ Britain clearly needs to shift the stodge, and fast.

The headline grabs the reader's interest and introduces the article. The writer uses parallelism by using two imperative or command phrases: ‘Eat well’ followed by ‘live longer’. Alliteration is also used with the repetition of ‘l’.

The rhetorical question in the opening paragraph encourages the reader to engage with the topic. The subheadings direct the reader through the text, and act as mini headlines. The writer uses colloquial sayings such as ‘a little bit of what we fancy’ and ‘shift the stodge’ to create a lively, conversational tone.

The final paragraph uses quotations from an expert to add credibility to the argument. You would expect the article to go on to explore how we can eat healthily and to conclude with an explanation of how easy it is to do this.

Task

‘Libraries are relics from the past. Everything we need to know these days can be found online. Library buildings could be put to better use as community spaces.’

Write an article for a broadsheet newspaper in which you explain your point of view on this statement.

Response one

Go to the library

We shouldn’t get rid of libraries because they are places where a lot of people like to go. For example students. The books are free which means no one has to waste their money on more books and can just borrow them and have them on loan. This is useful if you’re skint. Teachers keep going on about how the Internet isn’t really the best place to get your information for research and stuff. They say if you use books it’s more trusting. So we should keep libraries so we can use books and double check the things we read online or find out more about it all. It’s like we’re trying to put everything from books onto the internet, so maybe one day it will all be online anyway and then we won’t need libraries after all. For now though, they are good.

Feedback – basic

• Makes a clear argument
• Attempts to use formal Standard English

To improve

• Paragraphs would help to make this piece easier to follow
• Some sentences run on and would be better split into shorter sentences
• Avoid using slang: ‘skint’, ‘going on’
• Develop each point in more detail

Response two

Books are Better

Libraries are places of learning and have been used by students for many centuries. They are valuable to society and let people have access to books without having to buy them. For many of us they are the place we develop a love of books.

A lot of the information on the Internet is untrustworthy. Some sources that students use, such as Wikipedia, can be edited and have often been changed by members of the public just for a laugh.

Feedback – improving

• Alliteration in the headline is effective
• Establishes a clear and increasingly convincing argument
• Language mostly appropriate for audience and form – Standard English used throughout
• Personal pronouns include the readers

To improve

• Include more sophisticated vocabulary
• Include literary techniques to make the writing more engaging
• Develop the argument more thoroughly

Response three

Bring on the Books!

It seems that more and more people are glued to their screens these days. You see them walking through the streets, phones in hand, barely even noticing the world around them. They’re like zombies, not really present in the real world at all. And their brains are rotting away because rather than relying on books for information and memory, they outsource their minds to the Internet.

This is a potentially dangerous habit. In fact, for many people, their dependency on the Internet is bordering on serious addiction.

What they need is bibliotherapy – and the library is just the place to get it!

Libraries are storehouses of books. And books are more reliable than websites. They have been through a process of checking and editing that doesn’t always happen online. Our libraries are valuable resources. Rather than trading them in for social spaces, we should find ways to make more of them.

In fact, destroying libraries in favour of social spaces would be criminal. There are already plenty of places where people can go to socialise: coffee shops, leisure centres and parks, to name a few. The beauty of the library is that it is a sanctuary. It is a place of peaceful focus and learning.

Let’s make use of our libraries… and our brains!

Feedback – even better

• A convincing and lively argument
• Appropriate language used throughout
• Some sophisticated vocabulary choices: ‘dependency’, ‘sanctuary’, ‘bibliotherapy’
• A memorable headline using alliteration and imperative to engage the reader
• Emotive language used persuasively: ‘destroying libraries… would be criminal’
• Uses a simile: ‘like zombies’

To improve

• The points could be clearer, but overall this is very good