Practising FCE writing part 2 short story

Practising Cambridge English: First Writing Part 2: Short
story

Contents

A. TEACHER’S NOTES ...........................................................................................................2

B.

A1.

Lesson Plan ..............................................................................................................2

A2.

Classroom Handout 1 ...............................................................................................6

A3.

Classroom Handout 2 ...............................................................................................7

A5.

Answer keys .............................................................................................................8

A6.

Suggested homework/self-study activities ..............................................................10
GUIDANCE FOR FOLLOW-UP ACTIVITIES .............................................................12

© UCLES 2012. This material may be photocopied (without alteration) and distributed for classroom use provided no charge is made. For further

information see our Terms of Use at />
Practising Cambridge English: First Writing Part 2: Short story

www.teachers.cambridgeesol.org
Page 1 of 14


Practising Cambridge English: First Writing Part 2: Short
story
A. TEACHER’S NOTES
Description
Time required:

60 minutes

Materials
required:



Copy of the cover of “No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency” by Alexander
McCall Smith - you can find this on the internet.



Classroom Handout 1 (one copy per student)



Classroom Handout 2 (one copy per student)



To review narrative tenses in preparation for writing a story



To review the use of modifiers with gradable and non-gradable
adjectives

Aims:

A1.
1.

Lesson Plan

Introduce the topic of reading. Write up or show the following questions:


How many books do you read a year?



Do you enjoy reading? Or do you just read for work or study?



Are you reading a book at the moment? Would you recommend it? Why/why not?



Do you prefer to buy a book or to borrow it?



Have you ever read the book and seen the film of the same story? Which was better,
the book or the film?



Have you read any books which are set in a different country or an interesting place?
Give details.

Students walk around the class and interview their classmates about their reading habits.
They should try to find the person whose reading habits are the most similar to theirs.
Feed back briefly.
Timing: 5 minutes
2.

Show a copy of the cover of the novel on an OHT or IWB. Dictate or write the following
questions on the board:
a) What does this book cover show?
b) Where do you think the story takes place?
c) What do you think the main character does?

© UCLES 2012. This material may be photocopied (without alteration) and distributed for classroom use provided no charge is made. For further
information see our Terms of Use at />
Practising Cambridge English: First Writing Part 2: Short story

www.teachers.cambridgeesol.org
Page 2 of 14


Practising Cambridge English: First Writing Part 2: Short
story
Learners discuss the questions in pairs. Monitor, then feed back briefly with the whole
class. Do not accept or reject any ideas yet. (See A5 Answer keys.)
Timing: 3 minutes
3.

Give out A3. Classroom Handout 2.
Individually, students read the extract from the novel, ignoring the gaps, to check their
ideas. Remind them to read quickly to find the answers to questions a) and b) and not to
worry about unknown vocabulary at this stage.
Check answers in pairs before feeding back with the whole class.
Timing: 5 minutes

4.

Ask students to focus on the gaps. Elicit what kind of word is needed to complete all of
the gaps (they are all verbs). Check students comprehension of the verbs given in
brackets (do not discuss the meaning of any other words at this stage). Elicit when the
story takes place (the past). Brainstorm quickly the different ways of talking about the
past that students know, with an example of each different form (past simple, past
continuous, past perfect, present perfect simple, present perfect continuous).
Students work individually or in pairs to complete each of the spaces with the
appropriate past form of the verb given. Monitor, helping them with guiding questions as
required. Students compare their answers in pairs or in small groups, discussing how
they came to their decisions.

Go through the answers with the whole class. (See A5 Answer keys.)
Timing: 10 minutes

5.

Focus students’ attention on gaps (0), (4), (9), (10), (11), (12) and (16). Elicit the tense of
the verbs in these gaps, and its form. Ask:
When did these events take place?
a)

before the beginning of the story

b)

before the other events described in this extract

Focus students’ attention on the verbs in the rest of the extract. Ask: Do these describe
events in the same order they happened, or a different order?
Discuss why the writer uses these different ways of talking about the past in the same
extract. (See A5 Answer keys.)
Timing: 5 minutes
6.

Focus students on the highlighted vocabulary. Working with the whole class, ask
students look at the words in context and guess their meaning before giving the
definition. Give or elicit alternative examples of the words in sentences. Model
pronunciation. Check for any other vocabulary that students have problems with. (See
A5 Answer keys.)

© UCLES 2012. This material may be photocopied (without alteration) and distributed for classroom use provided no charge is made. For further

information see our Terms of Use at />
Practising Cambridge English: First Writing Part 2: Short story

www.teachers.cambridgeesol.org
Page 3 of 14


Practising Cambridge English: First Writing Part 2: Short
story
Timing: 5 minutes
7.

Write or show the following questions on the board or IWB:


What’s your impression of Mma Ramotswe?



What’s your impression of the lawyer?



Do you think Mma Ramotswe’s business is likely to do well? Why/ Why not?

Students discuss the questions in groups of 3 or 4 and then get brief feedback about
their ideas.
Timing: 3–5 minutes
8.

Discuss briefly the use of dialogue in the extract. How can dialogue make a story more
interesting? E.g., it is more involving; it changes the pace and so makes the story more
interesting to read; it adds a voice to the characters.
Ask students to turn over their handouts. Dictate or write the following sentence on the
board with no punctuation. If dictating, try not to indicate where the punctuation is with
your voice.
i have got a lot of money for you he said your fathers herd had grown and grown
Individually or in pairs, students write out the sentence with the correct punctuation.
They should check together before asking a student to write it on the board. (See A5
Answer keys.)
Highlight that inverted commas go outside any other punctuation, e.g. full stops,
commas, question marks, etc. Inverted commas can be single i.e. ‘__’ or double “___”.
Timing: 5 minutes

9.

Ask students to look back at the last line of the extract, and the lawyer’s question. In
pairs, they write a short continuation of the dialogue using the correct punctuation.
Encourage them to be creative and to make the dialogue come alive. For example,
instead of using he/she said, they can use she replied angrily, she answered, whispered,
etc. Monitor and help as necessary.
When the dialogues are finished, invite pairs to perform their dialogues to the rest of the
class.
Give out A4 Classroom Handout 3. Students read the second extract to see how Mma
Ramotswe responded to the lawyer.
Timing: 10–15 minutes

10. Tell students that they are going to write a story ending with the sentence: It was the
best decision of my life. Elicit the key words in the question, i.e. the best decision. In
groups, students make a list of decisions they have taken and the story behind each

one, or ideas for apparently risky decisions (like Mma Ramotswe’s) which could turn out
right. Students can then choose the most interesting one to use as the basis for their
© UCLES 2012. This material may be photocopied (without alteration) and distributed for classroom use provided no charge is made. For further
information see our Terms of Use at />
Practising Cambridge English: First Writing Part 2: Short story

www.teachers.cambridgeesol.org
Page 4 of 14


Practising Cambridge English: First Writing Part 2: Short
story
story. Alternatively, they can write about Mma Ramotswe’s story, imagining how her
detective agency turns out.
Explain that in their stories they must:


Use a range of past tenses, especially trying to use past perfect to good effect



Have some effective dialogue.

Allow a few minutes for each student to work individually to make some notes about the
content of the story they have chosen and how they are going to include a range of
tenses and dialogue. Monitor, feeding in ideas as necessary.
Students will write their stories for homework (instructions on A4 Classroom Handout
3).
Timing: 5–10 minutes

© UCLES 2012. This material may be photocopied (without alteration) and distributed for classroom use provided no charge is made. For further
information see our Terms of Use at />
Practising Cambridge English: First Writing Part 2: Short story

www.teachers.cambridgeesol.org
Page 5 of 14


Practising Cambridge English: First Writing Part 2: Short
story
A2.

Classroom Handout 1

Read the extract and check your ideas. Ignore the gaps.
Mma Ramotswe (0) had thought it would not be easy to open a detective agency. People
always (1)

(make) the mistake of thinking that starting a business (2)

simple and then (3)

(find) that there were all sorts of hidden problems and

unforeseen demands. She (4)

(hear) of people opening businesses that lasted four
(run out of) money or stock, or both. It (6)

or five weeks before they (5)

always more difficult than you (7)
She (8)

(be)

(think) it would be.

(go) to the lawyer in Pilane, who (9)

father’s money. He (10)

(be)

(arrange) for her to get her

(organise) the sale of the cattle, and (11)

(get) a

good price for them.
‘I have got a lot of money for you,’ he said. ‘Your father’s herd (12)
grown.’
She (13)

(take) the cheque and the sheet of paper that he (14)
(imagine) possible. But there it (16)

was more than she (15)
money, (17)

(grow) and
(hand) her. It
(be)- all that

(make) payable to Precious Ramotswe, on presentation to Barclay’s

Bank of Botswana.
‘You can buy a house with that,’ said the lawyer. ‘And a business.’
‘I am going to buy both of those.’
The lawyer (18)
advice, you know.’

(look) interested. ‘What sort of business? A store? I can give you

‘A detective agency.’
The lawyer (19)

(look) blank.

‘There are none for sale. There are none of those.’
Mma Romatswe (20)
The lawyer (21)

(nod). ‘I know that. I am going to have to start from scratch.’
(wince) as she spoke. ‘It’s easy to lose money in business,’ he

said. ‘Especially when you don’t know anything about what you are doing.’ He (22)
(stare) at her hard. ‘Especially then. And anyway, can women be detectives? Do you think
they can?’
The No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency, Alexander McCall Smith, © Birlinn Limited

© UCLES 2012. This material may be photocopied (without alteration) and distributed for classroom use provided no charge is made. For further
information see our Terms of Use at />
Practising Cambridge English: First Writing Part 2: Short story

www.teachers.cambridgeesol.org
Page 6 of 14


Practising Cambridge English: First Writing Part 2: Short
story
A3.

Classroom Handout 2

Read the second extract to check your predictions.

‘Why not?’ said Mma Ramotswe. She had heard that people did not like lawyers, and now
she thought she could see why. This man was so certain of himself, so utterly convinced.
What had it to do with him what she did? It was her money, her future.

Homework
You have been asked to write a story for your student magazine. The story must end with the
following words.
It was the best decision of my life.
Write your story.
Write your answer in 120–180 words in an appropriate style.

© UCLES 2012. This material may be photocopied (without alteration) and distributed for classroom use provided no charge is made. For further
information see our Terms of Use at />
Practising Cambridge English: First Writing Part 2: Short story

www.teachers.cambridgeesol.org
Page 7 of 14


Practising Cambridge English: First Writing Part 2: Short
story
A5.

Answer keys

A2. Classroom Handout 1
a) Students’ own description.
b) The story is set in Botswana, Africa.
c) The main character, Precious Ramotswe, wants to set up her own business – a
detective agency.
A3. Classroom Handout 2
Answers underlined. Alternative acceptable answers given in brackets.
Mma Ramotswe (0) had thought that it would not be easy to open a detective agency.
People always (1) made the mistake of thinking that starting a business (2) was (would be)
simple and then (3) found that there were all sorts of hidden problems and unforeseen
demands. She (4) had heard of people opening businesses that lasted four or five weeks
before they (5) ran out of money or stock, or both. It (6) was always more difficult than you
(7) thought it would be.
She (8) went (had gone) to the lawyer at Pilane, who (9) had arranged for her to get her
father’s money. He (10) had organised the sale of the cattle, and (11) had got a good price
for them.
‘I have got a lot of money for you,’ he said. ‘Your father’s herd (12) had grown (has grown)
and grown.’
She (13) took the cheque and the sheet of paper that he (14) handed her. It was more than

she (15) had imagined possible. But there it (16) was - all that money, (17) made payable to
Precious Ramotswe, on presentation to Barclay’s Bank of Botswana.
‘You can buy a house with that,’ said the lawyer. ‘And a business.’
‘I am going to buy both of those.’
The lawyer (18) looked interested. ‘What sort of business? A store? I can give you advice,
you know.’
‘A detective agency.’
The lawyer (19) looked blank.
‘There are none for sale. There are none of those.’
Mma Romatswe (20) nodded. ‘I know that. I am going to have to start from scratch.’
The lawyer (21) winced as she spoke. ‘It’s easy to lose money in business,’ he said.
‘Especially when you don’t know anything about what you are doing.’ He (22) stared (was
staring) at her hard. ‘Especially then. And anyway, can women be detectives? Do you think
they can?’
© UCLES 2012. This material may be photocopied (without alteration) and distributed for classroom use provided no charge is made. For further
information see our Terms of Use at />
Practising Cambridge English: First Writing Part 2: Short story

www.teachers.cambridgeesol.org
Page 8 of 14


Practising Cambridge English: First Writing Part 2: Short
story
A1. Lesson Plan Step 5
The verb in gaps (0), (4), (9), (10), (11), (12) and (16) is past perfect simple. Its form is had +
past participle.
b) These events took place before the other events described in this extract.
The verbs in the rest of the extract describe events in the same order they happened.
The writer uses these different ways of talking about the past in the same extract in order to

condense the events and to give information which is relevant at a specific point of the story.
It also makes the story more interesting to read, as we don’t always think about events in the
past in a linear way.

A1. Lesson Plan Step 6
hidden= most people do not know about it or understand it
unforeseen= not expected
cattle= large farm animals kept for their milk or meat; cows and bulls
herd= a large group of animals of the same type that live and feed together; a herd of
cattle/elephants/goats
store= (UK) e.g. a department store, a large shop where you can buy many different types of
goods.
(US) any type of shop e.g. a convenience store
blank= showing no emotion, or no sign of understanding something or recognising someone
from scratch= from the beginning, without using anything that already exists
(These definitions are from the Cambridge Dictionary Online />
A1. Lesson Plan Step 8
‘I have got a lot of money for you,’ he said. ‘Your father’s herd had grown and grown.’

© UCLES 2012. This material may be photocopied (without alteration) and distributed for classroom use provided no charge is made. For further
information see our Terms of Use at />
Practising Cambridge English: First Writing Part 2: Short story

www.teachers.cambridgeesol.org
Page 9 of 14


Practising Cambridge English: First Writing Part 2: Short
story
A6.

1.

Suggested homework/self-study activities

Use the extract to work on vocabulary, especially modifiers/intensifiers.
Look at the second extract on A4 Classroom Handout 3. Find the phrase utterly
convinced. What does utterly mean here? Adverbs are often used to intensify the
meaning of adjectives. In each of the following sentences, two adverbs are possible and
one is incorrect. Cross out the incorrect adverb.
Example: I thought the book was absolutely / very / really brilliant.
1.

I’ve just read a totally / a terribly / an utterly amazing book.

2.

The film of The No.1 Ladies’ Detective Agency was pretty / absolutely / quite good,
but the book was better.

3.

Mma Ramotswe was fairly / very / completely optimistic about her business.

4.

It must be incredibly / really / totally hard to write a book.

5.

It would be terribly / absolutely / quite dangerous to travel on your own in Africa.

Answers:
Utterly = completely
Incorrect adverbs

2.

1.

terribly

2.

absolutely

3.

completely

4.

totally

5.

absolutely

Students can find an extract of many writers’ work by searching on the internet. They
can type in the author’s name + extract (e.g. Alexander McCall Smith extract). Set them
some generic questions, e.g.:



Who are the main characters?



What’s your impression of them?



Where is the story taking place?



What do you think is going to happen?

Students then focus on the use of verbs and dialogue in the extract. They can bring their
extract to class, or post it to the class blog for others to read.
3.

Encourage learners to always plan stories as carefully as other types of text.

Planning your story:
© UCLES 2012. This material may be photocopied (without alteration) and distributed for classroom use provided no charge is made. For further
information see our Terms of Use at />
Practising Cambridge English: First Writing Part 2: Short story

www.teachers.cambridgeesol.org
Page 10 of 14

Practising Cambridge English: First Writing Part 2: Short
story
Decide which are the key words in the question.
Think of a general outline for your story.
Organise your ideas into paragraphs, using a variety of past tenses, linking words, and wide
range of vocabulary including some dialogue to make it more exciting
Remember to write between 120 and 180 words.
Remember to check your work when you have finished, it can be difficult to understand a
story if the verb tenses are wrong.
Opening:
Set the scene
Main Events:
One or two paragraphs on what happened. Do not write about too many events.
Ending:
The best decision. Don’t forget to end with the exact words in the question.

© UCLES 2012. This material may be photocopied (without alteration) and distributed for classroom use provided no charge is made. For further
information see our Terms of Use at />
Practising Cambridge English: First Writing Part 2: Short story

www.teachers.cambridgeesol.org
Page 11 of 14


Practising Cambridge English: First Writing Part 2: Short
story
B.
1.

2.

3.

GUIDANCE FOR FOLLOW-UP ACTIVITIES
In A1 Lesson Plan Step 1, students interview their classmates on their reading habits,
to introduce the topic of novels.


Alternatively, students could each write one question about reading to ask their
classmates. The teacher could also add some additional questions. The questions
(on strips of paper) are all pooled and students select one each at random to ask
each other, before collecting feedback with the whole group.



As a follow up, students could think of a famous writer (dead or alive) from their
country, and tell the others about them and the book(s) they are/were famous for.
This could also be developed into a class project, and students can give
presentations at the end of the project, including extracts from the writers’ work.

In A3 Classroom Handout 2 students read an extract from the book ‘The No.1 Ladies’
Detective Agency’ by Alexander McCall Smith. This book was published in 1998 and is
the first in a series of books. It is set in Africa and tells the story of Precious Ramotswe
(Mma Ramotswe) who wants to help people with their problems. In this lesson, students
read an extract, in which the character is setting up her own business with the money
she has inherited from her father. She is hopeful but not very optimistic that her business
will succeed. You can use other pieces of fiction:


find suitable texts from websites, magazines or newspapers. For advice on how to
find good material, see />


if you are concerned that the level of language in authentic texts is too high, adapt it
to suit your students, e.g. change a high level word with an easier synonym or get
students to try to work out the meaning from context. This will be a useful technique
for the Reading paper as there will almost certainly be items of vocabulary which
students have not met before.



alternatively, use texts from coursebooks or graded readers.

In A3 Classroom Handout 2 students complete a gap fill exercise to recycle narrative
tenses. To create a similar exercise:


Choose an extract with an interesting use of tenses.



Initially, aim for only two different tenses, or only gap two tenses. As students’ level
improves, you can focus on a wider range of tense use.



Leave some verbs in the text, to provide a guide and structure.



Instead of gapping out the verbs, ask students to underline the past tenses and to
explain the differences.

© UCLES 2012. This material may be photocopied (without alteration) and distributed for classroom use provided no charge is made. For further
information see our Terms of Use at />
Practising Cambridge English: First Writing Part 2: Short story

www.teachers.cambridgeesol.org
Page 12 of 14


Practising Cambridge English: First Writing Part 2: Short
story

4.

Always focus on the meaning and purpose of the different tense use, as well as the
form.

In A1 Lesson Plan Step 6, students focus on some of the vocabulary used in the
extract. To make their stories more interesting and come alive, students need to use a
wide range of vocabulary. There are different methods of acquiring new vocabulary:


Keep a record of new words and expressions you learn, with an example sentence
each time.



Review these from time to time so that they become an active part of your
vocabulary.



Keep a notebook specifically for this purpose.



Read as much as possible from a different variety of authentic reading materials e.g.
books, newspapers, magazines, etc.



Use an English to English dictionary that can clearly define words and give you
sample sentences to show how words are used in context and also give you
information about grammar.

5.

In A1 Lesson Plan Step 8, the focus is on using dialogue in stories. For further
practice:


Rewrite a dialogue as reported speech or a piece of prose. Ask students to rewrite it
as dialogue.



Choose texts with good use of dialogue. Focus on the verbs and other descriptive

language used.



Give students a badly-written piece of dialogue to improve.

6. In A4 Classroom Handout 3, students write a story for homework.


If you have a double lesson, you might like to treat this section as an informal
workshop session brainstorming ideas for expansion, encouraging them to review
their writing, replacing frequently used words with a wider range.



Alternatively, get your students to write the story in the class as a timed task, so that
they get a feel for the exam. Remind them about the importance of planning.



o

Students are less likely to make mistakes and are unlikely to include
unnecessary or irrelevant information or miss out information altogether.

o

It helps them to connect their ideas clearly and use logical paragraphs

o

It teaches students that they need to write in a style suited to the situation and
target reader.

Always give your students individual feedback. Encourage them to take small steps
forward all the time, point out what has been achieved and where improvements can
be made. Build up their confidence, while setting achievable goals for progress.

© UCLES 2012. This material may be photocopied (without alteration) and distributed for classroom use provided no charge is made. For further
information see our Terms of Use at />
Practising Cambridge English: First Writing Part 2: Short story

www.teachers.cambridgeesol.org
Page 13 of 14


Practising Cambridge English: First Writing Part 2: Short
story
7.

In A6 Suggested homework/Self-study activities, students focus on modifiers and
intensifiers. Students often don’t know how to use intensifiers, and tend to apply ‘very’ to
all the adjectives. This is a follow-up activity.


Write the words absolutely, very, really, quite, fairly, pretty, utterly etc. and some
adjectives e.g. amazing, good, hard etc on pieces of paper. In teams, students
choose one of the adjectives, and have five minutes to write as many different
sentences as possible.



Stop them after five minutes and give each team one point if the intensifier is used
correctly and deduct one point each time an intensifier is used incorrectly.



Instead of your students looking at the adverbs and adjectives, read out the
sentences, using either correct or incorrect intensifiers, and let your students work in
small groups to decide if your sentences are right or wrong.

© UCLES 2012. This material may be photocopied (without alteration) and distributed for classroom use provided no charge is made. For further
information see our Terms of Use at />
Practising Cambridge English: First Writing Part 2: Short story

www.teachers.cambridgeesol.org
Page 14 of 14