Writing seems to be the hardest part of language learning for the majority of students. According to the IELTS statistics, students make most of the mistakes in the Writing module. Of course, not everyone is born with William Shakespeare’s skills. Still, everyone can learn to correctly express their thoughts.
Writing is a skill that is often neglected. For many, it is way more attractive to learn to speak than to write in English. Yet, if you are going to take an exam or you will need to use English at work, your writing skills should be good.
How to improve writing English in a short time is a question that arises for many students. The fact is – it is actually not that difficult. Remember how you learned to write in your native language at school – step-by-step.
First steps in writing skill
At first, you need to use only simple vocabulary constructions. Many beginners immediately try to make difficult grammar constructions. They try to use difficult tenses they just learned in a text. As a result, they make terrible mistakes. At the beginning of developing your English writing skills, you should only say what you can. Avoid writing difficult phrases, even if it is what you would like to say.
Remember that English is quite different from your native language. English has a special word order, unique usage of tenses, and various prepositions. Very often learners unconsciously construct phrases by the rules of their native language. Constantly remind yourself that English is distinct from your native language. Also, check the word order in a sentence you are writing.
5 tips for improving English writing skills
Expand your vocabulary
The more synonyms you have in your memory, the more intricate you can write. Besides, a wide vocabulary allows you to better express your thoughts. Surely, it’s much more accurate to define something as nasty or marvelous than just as bad or good. Try to constantly learn new words, expressions and immediately use them in writing.
Read as much as possible
Reading is one of the most important and often neglected activities. By the way, while reading, you observe how the same grammar “works” in practice. You see words that are already written and combined with each other the right way. During the reading, you immerse yourself in English, memorize how sentences are built. Plus, you see and learn unfamiliar words and grammar constructions. As a result, you transfer this experience into your own written language.
Also, reading is crucial if you want to write not only business emails but books and stories in English. You will develop your own style after a lot of texts.
Listen to English speakers
If reading is not always convenient, then there will definitely be time for listening. For instance, while walking with a dog, on a treadmill, or in a traffic jam. Students who read and listen to audiobooks and podcasts always have better results. They gradually build up an excellent vocabulary without any tiresome learning.
Find the podcasts on topics you enjoy listening to in your own language. You will not even notice how much your English writing skills will develop. Your brain memorizes the structure of sentences it hears. And it prevents you from making mistakes in writing later.
Try different formats
Written English isn’t all about writing for tests. In a large range of cases, you will need it so take every chance to practice. Your English writing abilities are improved by everything you write. It does not matter whether it is a hotel note, a restaurant review, a blog post, a company letter, or a resume. Try as much as possible to compose them. Feedback on your English writing is also helpful – on your blog post or a thread on a website. It all adds to your English writing skills.
Even the exams’ essays are different. For example, opinion essays, in which you need to look at the problem from different points of view. Or “essays for and against”, where you are asked to juggle arguments. To master every kind of essay, you will have to write them yourself at least a couple of times. Check custom-essaywriting to see how many kinds of essays there are. And if you need some help with reviewing your essays.
Usetechnologiestohelp
Nowadays there are a lot of websites, apps, and services made especially for improving English writing skills.
The most useful ones are:
- Student Share website. Thousands of English texts of all sorts, written and uploaded by students, can be found here. As well as a guide to vocabulary, grammar, and syntax, you can browse them and use them as a source of ideas. On the web, the quality of the texts is very good. The team of administrators reviews all the materials before release.
- VisuWords – a perfect tool for using visual memory and creativity to help you memorize new words. Especially if you are wary of lists of vocabulary and flashcards. With a lot of possibilities, VisuWords is a visual dictionary. When you type a word into the search box, you see the correct spelling of that word, and then the whole association area. Also, various parts of speech are labeled with different colors. This will support you a lot if you are a visual learner.
- Thesaurus – synonyms, and antonyms in the online dictionary. There are many such dictionaries, but not only does this one help to compose textsthis one help to compose texts, but to paraphrase them as well.