Writing
Where can I find information about how to write?
(Years 7-10)
Image: A college student, learning in the library with a laptop and notebook by CollegeDegrees360 on Flickr.
Entry last updated: 15/12/22
Introduction
Writing is another way of communicating. Written communication can be in many different formats such as essays, reports, speeches, stories and more. The websites below have information and writing skills to help you with the different forms of writing.
Essays and reports
Essays are short pieces of writing about a particular subject. Reports are written investigations of a topic that finish with a recommendation. The websites below will help you write your essay or report.
This website has been put together by the State Library of Victoria for Australian school students.
From the front page select the link to Essay writing skills.
Follow the links to find out more information about different parts of essay writing.
Tips: We like sites that are from government or other reputable organisations, because we can trust the information. You can sometimes tell these sites by their web address – they might have .gov or .edu in their address – or by looking at their About us or Contact pages.
This online learning website for students from the UK has lots of helpful learning areas for topics including writing.
Under England choose KS3.
Then English.
Look down the page to Non-fiction writing.
Find out How to write an essay and How to build an argument.
Tips: While the information on the BBC Bitesize site is very reliable, most video clips do not work in New Zealand.
Fact Monster is an online encyclopedia and homework site. It has lots of basic facts and is a good starting point for all sorts of questions. If you scroll down to the bottom of the site, you will see it’s run by Pearson Education, a publisher of educational books.
Go to the Homework tab.
Select Writing.
Find out How to write an essay, How to write a research paper and more.
Tips: Some websites have advertisements (or ads) which ask us to buy something or tell us to ‘click here’. It’s best to ignore these ads and focus on the information we’re looking for.
Britannica school is one of the EPIC databases. EPIC is a collection of reliable databases covering lots of different topics. It’s put together especially for New Zealand school students and helps to answer questions like this.
Enter 'report writing' into the search bar.
Find the article Report writing which has all the steps for writing a report.
Tips: To get to the EPIC resources you will need a password from your school librarian first. Or you can chat with one of our AnyQuestions librarians between 1 and 6pm Monday to Friday and they will help you online. Some EPIC databases may also be available through your public library.
Creative writing and poetry
Creative writing is imaginative writing and includes stories, poems, and scripts. The websites below will give you some tips on creative writing.
This BBC website also has tips for creative writing and poems.
Under England choose KS3.
Then English.
Look down the page to Writing skills.
Select Creative and narrative writing or Understanding poetry.
Britannica also has information about creative writing.
Search for 'Creative writing'.
The article creative writing has lots of tips for creative writing and includes examples from well known writers.
Tips: Britannica School also offers links to related resources like Web's Best Sites.
Tips: To get to the EPIC resources you will need a password from your school librarian first. Or you can chat with one of our AnyQuestions librarians between 1 and 6pm Monday to Friday and they will help you online. Some EPIC databases may also be available through your public library.
TED-Ed is the youth and education initiative branch of TED designed for students and teachers. The information is good quality, reliable and in video or animated format.
Select the Students start here button.
Select the subjects drop down and choose Literature & Language, then Writing/Composition.
Select the filter by drop down menu.
Choose Student level then Middle School/Lower Secondary.
There will be lots of videos about different parts of writing including poetry and improving your writing.
Speeches
As well as presenting written work, you may also need to make oral presentations in the form of a speech. The websites below will help you write your speech and then present it.
This BBC website also has tips for speeches.
Under England choose KS3.
Then English.
Look down the page to Non-fiction writing.
Find How to write a speech.
TED-Ed is the youth and education initiative branch of TED designed for students and teachers. The information is good quality, reliable and in video or animated format.
Search for 'speech writing'.
Look down the page for the heading TED-Ed Blog.
6 techniques for clear and compelling speech and Rhetoric 101: The art of persuasive speech include tips and videos to help with speech writing.
Books
Your school library or local public library may have books on writing. We have suggested some titles below:
Brave the page : a young writer's guide to telling epic stories by Rebecca Stern
Tips for better writing by Louise Spilsbury
12 great tips on writing a speech by Catherine Elisabeth Shipp
Catch your breath : writing poignant poetry by Laura Purdie Salas
Writing fantastic fiction by Jennifer Joline Anderson.
SCIS no. 5354318
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