MacMillan Grammar

Agenda for English Academic Writing
1. Brainstorm & Outline

2. Paragraph Structure
a. TBER: topic sentence, restatement
b. Unity, Coherence, Concrete Supporting Details
3. Essay
a. Introduction & Conclusion paragraph
4. Extras
a. Typing with 10 fingers
b. Common Mistakes (+sentence problems)
c. Punctuations
Prompt with opinion Prompt WITHOUT opinion
(pick one item) (list out items)
To what extent do you agree or disagree (or Problems /Causes – Solutions:
both)?
(Or) What is your opinion? What are the causes of this? What solutions
(Or) Is it positive or negative? can you suggest?
Do advantages outweigh disadvantages? What are the advantages and disadvantages of

this?
Discuss both views and give your opinion Discuss both views.
2-part question: 2-part question:
Do you think wealth is the best measure of Why is happiness difficult to achieve? How can
success? What makes a successful person? people achieve happiness?
Common Structure: 1 body has 2 ideas
total ~300 words.
If <250 words -> max IELTS 5.0
Introduction: 2 sentences: ~50 words
[Paraphrase-same meaning] Keyword...keyword….keyword….

[Thesis-answer question] keyword…(and personal opinion if asked-”in my opinion, ….I believe….)
Body paragraph 1: 6 sentences ~ 100 words
[TS] On the one hand, keyword + disadvantages/problems/…

[Idea 1] Firstly, keyword + idea 1
[Explain/E.g] why or how TS is true / well-known fact or personal experience
[Idea 2] Secondly, keyword + idea 2
[Restatement] In short, keyword + idea 1 + idea 2
[TS] On the other hand, (my view is) keyword + advantages/solutions/…

[Idea 1] To begin with, keyword + idea 1
[Idea 2] In addition, keyword + idea 2
[Restatement] Overall, keyword + idea 1 + idea 2
Conclusion: 2 sentences ~50 words
In conclusion, (it is my point of view that...) keyword …. Keyword….+ ...idea.

[Final comment - optional] suggest a solution, or predict the future, address a concern,...
Keyword 1: Keyword 2:
Opinion 1: Opinion 2:
Individual: Individual:
Group: Group:
Society: Society:
• Economy, Environment
• Education, Healthcare, Security
• Communication, Entertainment
Prompt: It is thought by some people that it is better to live in cities while others do
not have the same opinion.
Discuss both views and your opinion.
Keyword 1: Live in cities Keyword 2: live in big cities

Opinion 1: better (Advantage) Opinion 2: not same opinion
(Disadvantage)
• More jobs • Stressful
• Better education • Pollution
Group: Group:
• Easy for networking • Unfriendliness
Society Society:
• Attract investment for economy • Hard to manage growing
population
Prompt: It is thought by some that it is better to live in cities while others believe life is
better in countryside.
Keyword 1: Live in cities Keyword 2: live in countryside

Opinion 1: better (Advantage) Opinion 2: better (advantage)
• More jobs • Peaceful
• Better education • Fresh environment
Group: Group:
• Easy for networking • Friendliness
Society Society:
• Attract investment for economy • Spread out population
distribution
Prompt: Some people think that exercise is the key to health while others feel that
having a balanced diet is more important.
Keyword 1: exercise Keyword 2: balanced diet

Opinion 1: key to health Opinion 2: more important
(Advantage) (advantage)
Group: Group:
Society Society:
Prompt: Some people think that internet has brought people closer together while
others feel that communities are more isolated.
Keyword 1: internet Keyword 2: internet

Opinion 1: brought people closer Opinion 2: more isolated
(Advantage) (disadvantage)
Group: Group:
Society Society:
Cause-Effect (focused view) Prompt: With increased global demand in oil and gas,
undiscovered areas of the world should be open up to access more resources.
Do you agree?
Keyword 1: undiscovered areas be Keyword 2: undiscovered areas be

open open
Opinion 1: agree (Advantage) Opinion 2: disagree (disadvantage)
Group: Group:
Society Society:
Prompt: Over population in many major urban centers around the world is a major
problem. What are the causes of this? How can this problem be solved?
Keyword 1: over population in Keyword 2: over population in

urban centers urban centers
Opinion 1: Causes Opinion 2: Solutions
Group: Group:
Society Society:
Rare Structure: 1 body has 1 idea
total ~300 words.

[TS] Firstly, keyword + idea 1

[Bridge-explain] why or how TS is true
[Example] well-known fact or personal experience
[Restatement] In short, keyword + idea 1
[TS] Secondly, keyword + idea 2

[Restatement] To sum up, keyword + idea 1

Prompt: In many developing countries, there is a problem with declining quality of air
and water from both industry and construction. What measures could be taken to
prevent this?
Keyword 1: Pollution in Keyword 2: Pollution in

developing countries developing countries
Opinion 1: measure (solution 1) Opinion 2: measure (solution 2)
Group: Group:
Society Society:

3. Essay
4. Extras
c. Punctuations
Common Structure: 1 body has 2 ideas
total ~300 words.

[TS] On the one hand, keyword + disadvantages/problems/…

[Idea 1] Firstly, keyword + idea 1
[Idea 2] Secondly, keyword + idea 2
[Restatement] In short, keyword + idea 1 + idea 2
[TS] On the other hand, (my view is) keyword + advantages/solutions/…

[Idea 1] To begin with, keyword + idea 1
[Idea 2] In addition, keyword + idea 2
[Restatement] Overall, keyword + idea 1 + idea 2

Rare Structure: 1 body has 1 idea
total ~300 words.

[TS] Firstly, keyword + idea 1

[Restatement] In short, keyword + idea 1
[TS] Secondly, keyword + idea 2

[Restatement] To sum up, keyword + idea 1

Paragraph Structure
Topic sentence
points to remember:
1. Contains TOPIC + CONTROLLING IDEA
3. NOT too specific, NOT too general; Just main idea.
BAD: too many unrelated controlling ideas,

just need 1 idea
Paragraph Structure
Supporting sentences: B + E
3 types:
1. Examples
2. Quotations
3. Statistics
Paragraph Structure
Supporting sentences: B + E
Paragraph Structure
Restatement
2 purposes:
1. Signals end of paragraph

Paragraph Structure
Restatement
2 purposes:
1. Signal end of paragraph
2. Paraphrase topic sentence
NEVER introduce new ideas in restatement!


3. Essay
4. Extras
c. Punctuations
Unity & Coherence
Unity
A paragraph discusses one and only one main idea

from beginning to end
E.g: advantages of owning a car
• Discuss only advantages, do not add disadvantages
• Every supporting sentence must directly prove the

main idea (advantages)
Unity & Coherence
Coherence
Movement from one sentence to the next must be:
logical and smooth, no sudden jumps
Four techniques:
1. Repeat key nouns

instead of pronouns (it, they,…) when meaning is not clear
2. Use consistent pronouns THEY

Same person (you  he) + same number (he  they)
Unity & Coherence
Coherence
Movement from one sentence to the next must be:
logical and smooth, no sudden jumps
Four techniques :
3. Use transition signals to link ideas
Traffic signs: guide readers from one idea to the next

E.g. First, second, finally
Similarly, in addition
On the other hand, but, in contrast
For example,
…
Supporting Details
Concrete Supporting Details

3. Essay
4. Extras
c. Punctuations
From Paragraph to Essay
Introduction – Thesis Statement
Pitfalls
Pitfalls
Pitfalls
Body
Sentence Problems
Because laptop is portable. I prefer laptop because laptop is portable.
Because laptop is portable, I prefer laptop

Body
Sentence Problems
Body
Sentence Problems
Cliché, overused
sentences to avoid
(Considered learned expression)
The essay will discuss both sides and give an
opinion at the end.
Contains no main points

With the development of science and
technology….
Don’t use this if topic is unrelated to science

or technology
Don’t need this, just paraphrase the

question.
In the modern era…
Since the dawn of time…
Nowadays…
Overused, no clear time frame
Irrelevant for most topic issues

This is a highly controversial issue…
Controversial issues are deeply debated for

long time by whole society, such as “death
penalty”. Choosing laptop or desktop is not
controversial
Most topics are NOT controversial!

For example, research shows that…/a recent
study from ABC indicates that…
Sounds like a made-up fact
Just use a well-known fact

It cannot be denied that…
Means 100% surely correct fact, but in most

cases, it is just an opinion
In a nutshell,…
Informal

3. Essay
4. Extras
c. Punctuations
How to write in
Academic style
How to write in Academic style
DON’T use this: Simple sentences (low level structure)

The essay was late.
Compound Sentence
combine independent clauses
The essay was late, so he lost marks.
-> We can join simple sentences with a comma and a word such
as: and, but, so, yet.
Complex Sentence:
combine an independent clause with a dependent clause
He lost marks because the essay was late.
Compound-Complex sentence:
Grammar: Connect 2 sentences
Grammar: Adding a clause
Use higher level academic vocab
1. Create an objective, confident voice
Use the third person (this means not using 'I, you, we')
Most of the time you will be expected to use the third person
(THEY is best) as it enables you to show that you are being
objective.
You could try:

I want to discuss -> This essay discusses the importance of ...
I show that -> This research shows that ...
I think that -> It could be said that ...
Use passive voice:
"I took a sample..." -> "A sample was taken"
2. Use academic language
Avoid contractions
'don't', 'can't', 'it's', 'should've',
-> 'do not', 'cannot', 'it is', 'should have'
Use the full forms of words
'TV', 'memo', or 'quote‘
-> 'television', 'memorandum' or 'quotation‘
Avoid using informal words
Smith's bit of research is ok.
-> Smith's research is significant ...
'get', 'got' or 'a lot'
-> 'obtain', 'obtained' or 'many‘
Write numbers in words (except for Date and Year)
Avoid "phrasal verbs“, use one word equivalents.
get rid of -> eliminate put off -> delay, procrastinate
2. Use academic language
use nominalization; write noun-based phrases > verb-based.

instead of
Crime was increasing rapidly and the police were becoming
concerned.
Write:
The rapid increase in crime was causing concern among the
police.
In general, academic writing tends to be fairly dense,
Crime -> rapid increase in crime

Concerned -> concern among the police
(richer in content, higher level)
3. Be clear and concise
Avoid any vague words or phrases:
Clear when using 'it', 'them', 'they‘

-> replace with KEY WORD
'in the past' or 'in recent times‘
-> You need to be specific.
Last summer, in the last ten years,…
“etc”. -> use and so on, so forth
Avoid brackets (); exclamation marks ! or dashes -; direct

questions ?;
4. Use language sensitively

Avoid expressing strong opinions/emotions
Rather than: Smith has an extremely important point
-> try: Smith's view is significant because ...
->So avoid words like: 'very', 'really', 'quite' and 'extremely'.
-instead use ‘attitudinal signals’ such as apparently, arguably,
ideally, strangely, unexpectedly.
Lean towards caution, avoid making over generalisations.
Rather than: 'This view is correct because ...'
-> try: 'It could be said that ...', 'It appears that ...', 'It seems that‘
Rather ‘everyone’, ‘no one’
-> try: some, several, a minority of, a few, many to
4. Use language sensitively
Do not stereotype, generalize or make assumptions

Your use of language should always remain neutral.
Rather than: fireman or policeman -> fire fighter or police officer

Rather than: mankind -> Try using: humankind
Structure: How to add examples
Vocabulary: paraphrasing tips
Signals for Opinion Signals for Conclusion
To my mind In general,
I reckon In a nutshell,
I suppose Finally,
In my belief To sum up,
As far as I am concerned To conclude,
From my perspective In conclusion,
If you ask me, I think
In my view
In my opinion
I think / I believe
It is my point of view that

Practice!
Turn a simple sentence to
academic sentence
I use computer to search for info.
Example sentences:
Computers have become useful equipment for not only
researchers but also students to access to wide range of
information.
Data access and manipulation have never been easier with the
advent of computers which are user-friendly to researchers and
the mass of the population.
I go to school to learn new things.

Example sentences:
Compulsory schooling has helped millions of children to gain
necessary knowledge to pursue their passion.
Academic foundation spread rapidly throughout the population

via program of compulsory schooling.
Topics, ideas,
vocabs
Prompt: Government is wasting money on arts and this money should be spent
elsewhere?
To what extent you agree or disagree?
Keyword 1: waste money on arts Keyword 2: money spent

Opinion 1: disagree (advantage of elsewhere
arts) Opinion 2: agree (advantage of
other fields)
• Entertainment, • Critical thinking
• Creativity
Group: Group:
Society Society:
• Diversity in education • Solving problems & create
solutions in life
Prompt: Success is often measured by wealth and material belongings. Do you think
wealth is the best measure of success? What makes a successful person?
Keyword 1: success Keyword 2: success

Opinion 1: measured by wealth? Opinion 2: key factors
Group: Group:
Society Society:
Prompt:
Keyword 1: small business Keyword 2: large business

Opinion 1: adv Opinion 2: adv
• Dynamic environment for • Better employment benefits and
learning skills career path development
Group: Group:
• Flat hierarchy for easy team
management -> flexibility
Society Society:
• Economy of scale -> competitive
advantage in international
market
Prompt:
Keyword 1: face-to-face Keyword 2: long distance

communication communication
• Mutual understanding / reduce • flexibility
misunderstanding/ effectiveness
Group: Group:
• Enhance trust &
Society Society:
• Affordability / cost-saving
Prompt:
Keyword 1: prisons Keyword 2: rehabilitation

Group: Group:
Society Society:
Prompt:
Keyword 1: teenagers crime Keyword 2: teenagers crime

Opinion 1: causes Opinion 2: solutions
• Learn positive habits (sports &
books)
Group: Group:
• Lack support from family • Emotional support from family
(parents divorce)
Society Society:
• Lack personality education • Control inflation and create
• No job security stable economy with many jobs

MacMillan Grammar

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Agenda for English Academic Writing

1. Brainstorm & Outline

Do advantages outweigh disadvantages? What are the advantages and disadvantages of

2-part question: 2-part question:

[Paraphrase-same meaning] Keyword...keyword….keyword….

Body paragraph 1: 6 sentences ~ 100 words

[TS] On the one hand, keyword + disadvantages/problems/…

[TS] On the other hand, (my view is) keyword + advantages/solutions/…

Conclusion: 2 sentences ~50 words

In conclusion, (it is my point of view that...) keyword …. Keyword….+ ...idea.

Keyword 1: Live in cities Keyword 2: live in big cities

Keyword 1: Live in cities Keyword 2: live in countryside

Keyword 1: exercise Keyword 2: balanced diet

Keyword 1: internet Keyword 2: internet

Keyword 1: undiscovered areas be Keyword 2: undiscovered areas be

Keyword 1: over population in Keyword 2: over population in

[Paraphrase-same meaning] Keyword...keyword….keyword….

Body paragraph 1: 6 sentences ~ 100 words

[TS] Firstly, keyword + idea 1

Body paragraph 2: 6 sentences ~ 100 words

[TS] Secondly, keyword + idea 2

Conclusion: 2 sentences ~50 words

In conclusion, (it is my point of view that...) keyword …. Keyword….+ ...idea.

Keyword 1: Pollution in Keyword 2: Pollution in

1. Brainstorm & Outline

[Paraphrase-same meaning] Keyword...keyword….keyword….

Body paragraph 1: 6 sentences ~ 100 words

[TS] On the one hand, keyword + disadvantages/problems/…

[TS] On the other hand, (my view is) keyword + advantages/solutions/…

Conclusion: 2 sentences ~50 words

In conclusion, (it is my point of view that...) keyword …. Keyword….+ ...idea.

[Paraphrase-same meaning] Keyword...keyword….keyword….

Body paragraph 1: 6 sentences ~ 100 words

[TS] Firstly, keyword + idea 1

Body paragraph 2: 6 sentences ~ 100 words

[TS] Secondly, keyword + idea 2

Conclusion: 2 sentences ~50 words

In conclusion, (it is my point of view that...) keyword …. Keyword….+ ...idea.

1. Contains TOPIC + CONTROLLING IDEA

3. NOT too specific, NOT too general; Just main idea.

BAD: too many unrelated controlling ideas,

1. Signals end of paragraph

1. Signal end of paragraph

2. Paraphrase topic sentence

NEVER introduce new ideas in restatement!

1. Brainstorm & Outline

A paragraph discusses one and only one main idea

E.g: advantages of owning a car

• Discuss only advantages, do not add disadvantages

• Every supporting sentence must directly prove the

1. Repeat key nouns

2. Use consistent pronouns THEY

3. Use transition signals to link ideas

Traffic signs: guide readers from one idea to the next

1. Brainstorm & Outline

Because laptop is portable. I prefer laptop because laptop is portable.

Because laptop is portable, I prefer laptop

Contains no main points

Don’t use this if topic is unrelated to science

Don’t need this, just paraphrase the

Overused, no clear time frame

Irrelevant for most topic issues

Controversial issues are deeply debated for

Most topics are NOT controversial!