This set practises the five skills of foreign-language writing: covering purposes, paragraph order, time reference, adding detail and checking against the task. All people and situations are invented.
Write your own answer first. Then open the model and compare purposes, order, time words and register. Model answers are examples, since many Malay versions can be correct.
Questions
1. (Purposes) A task asks you to write to a friend: congratulate him on winning a race, ask how he trained, and invite him to your house. List the purposes.
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Three purposes: (1) congratulate, (2) ask about training, (3) invite. A good message has a sentence for each, such as “Tahniah kerana memenangi perlumbaan itu,” “Bagaimana awak berlatih?” and “Datanglah ke rumah saya hujung minggu ini.”
2. (Purposes) Write one Malay sentence that thanks a neighbour for looking after your cat.
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For example: Terima kasih banyak-banyak kerana menjaga kucing saya semasa kami bercuti. It names the thanks and the reason.
3. (Register) Choose the better opening for a letter to the school principal: “Hai Tuan” or “Salam hormat, Tuan Pengetua”.
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Salam hormat, Tuan Pengetua is formal and suits a principal. Hai is relaxed and suits a friend.
4. (Paragraph order) Put in order: (a) Selepas itu, kami makan malam. (b) Pertama, kami sampai di rumah nenek. (c) Akhirnya, kami tidur lena.
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b, a, c. Arrival, dinner, then sleep. The connectors pertama, selepas itu and akhirnya mark the order.
5. (Paragraph order) A message has an opening that says why you write and a closing with a wish. What belongs in the middle paragraph?
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The detail the task asks for: the events, reasons or requests, in a clear order.
6. (Time) Add a time word so the sentence clearly refers to the future: “Kami pergi ke pantai.”
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Esok kami akan pergi ke pantai. The verb pergi does not change. Esok and akan carry the future.
7. (Time) Find the time error: “Semalam kami akan menonton filem di pawagam.”
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Semalam (yesterday) is past, but akan looks forward. Correct to “Semalam kami menonton filem di pawagam” or “Esok kami akan menonton filem di pawagam.”
8. (Expanding) Expand with where and why: “Saya suka membaca.”
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For example: Saya suka membaca di perpustakaan sekolah kerana tempat itu sunyi dan ada banyak buku menarik. It adds a place and a reason.
9. (Expanding) Which sentence adds relevant detail to a task about your birthday: (a) “Kami makan kek coklat di taman.” (b) “Kereta ayah saya berwarna biru.”
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(a). It says what happened and where. Sentence (b) does not help describe the birthday.
10. (Checking) Task: write to your aunt, thank her for a gift, say what you did with it, and ask when she will visit. Draft: “Terima kasih, mak cik. Saya suka buku itu. Hai.” Check the draft.
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Purposes: thanks is present, what you did with it is thin, and the visit question is missing. The closing “Hai” is a greeting, not a closing. Revised: “Terima kasih, mak cik, atas hadiah buku itu. Saya membacanya setiap malam sebelum tidur. Bilakah mak cik akan datang melawat kami? Salam sayang, Aisyah.”
If you got these wrong
| Error type | Go back to |
|---|---|
| Missed a purpose, wrong reader or register (1, 2, 3) | Cover each purpose |
| Order or connectors (4, 5) | A simple paragraph progression |
| Time words (6, 7) | Consistent time reference |
| Thin or off-topic answers (8, 9) | Expand with relevant detail |
| Draft not matching the task (10) | Check against the task type |
Use the audience register and purpose planner before you write, and the writing revision compare view after you revise. Our teachers in online one-to-one Malay tuition can work through your own drafts if you want a second reader.