Want to improve your expression and vocab? Some tips!

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End-of-holiday greetings to you all!

This guide about the 'writing' part of English started as a simple word-bank, and descended expanded into an unreadably long hate-speech against fancy writing.  Apologies for timing it so close to the exam, I meant to post this like three months ago and then just left it on my laptop .

tl;dr: aim to get your ideas across most efficiently, clearly, simply, accurately, and appropriately.  Big fancy words DO NOT inherently score big fancy marks.

How to build a good/high-quality/superior/better/outstanding/admirable/broad/excellent/varied/wonderful/wide-ranging/comprehensive vocabulary

To challenge yourself to learn and use new words and build a more powerful vocabulary, try these steps!

1.  Read.  This is ultimately the best way of improving expression and vocab, albeit slow.  Push yourself, all year through, to read more and more.

2. Write.  Write something, anything, and then go through your writing and list any ‘problem’ words – words that you commonly repeat (e.g. ‘the’… no not that), don’t quite express what you wanted, or are vague and generic (e.g. ‘good’).

3.  Collect alternatives.  Thesaurus it and ‘lift’ great words from other people’s writing.  Build up a bank or mind-map of synonyms.

4.  Use them.  Create cue cards with a word you use too frequently on one side, and synonyms on the other; practise verbally coming up with as many synonyms as possible.   Practise writing the words in single analytical sentences.  When writing essays, have the bank there and refer to it as you go, trying to incorporate new words.  Or, go over essays afterwards and replace weaker words with stronger ones from your bank.  To improve your overall expression, write short pieces not essays, as the fear of writing essays can detract from your actual writing practise.

5.  Rinse and repeat.

BUT, STOP!
DO NOT SWALLOW WORDS FROM A VOCAB LIST WHOLE.  IF SWALLOWED WITHOUT CHEWING, SEEK IMMEDIATE MEDICAL ATTENTION.

Words on a synonyms list DO NOT mean exactly the same thing, and ARE NOT used in exactly the same way!
1.   Different words often have a slightly different meaning; like, see these two synonyms for ‘argument’, ‘war’ and ‘quibble’.  ‘War’ implies a very serious conflict involving bloodshed; ‘quibble’ implies a petty little argument over nothing.
2.   Different words fit grammatically into different sentences.  e.g. Just because I find ‘present’ on a list of synonyms for ‘suggest’ does not mean I can plug ‘present’ into any sentence where I said ‘suggest’.
‘The author suggests that oranges are good.’
‘The author presents that oranges are good.’
‘The author presents the idea that oranges are good.’

So: NEVER write a word in your vocab bank without finding a couple of sample sentences that show how the word is used.  Googling ‘define >word<’ often provides a couple of sentences.  Similarly, before you use a new word in an essay, write a few single sentences containing the word, and show them to your teacher/mum/friend to check that you’re getting it right.  You’ll then be more comfortable to use it correctly in an essay.

Nothing grates more on an assessor than words used incorrectly – they’d prefer you to stick to boring, vague words you’re comfortable with.  It makes you look stupid.

Just use with caution, that’s all.

And don't use big words for the sake of big words.

Your aim is to communicate the message as simply and clearly as possible.  Writing more words does not make you a better writer.  Writing fancier words does not make you a better writer.  The excessive implementation of Brogdingnagian vernacular irrespective of necessity, with the exclusive impetus being amplification of your perspicacity, is detrimental to the readership's comprehension of your import, and indeed can precipitate a sense of pretension.

It's easy to 'rate' words in your mind, and be like, 'Hmm, use... that's like a 3/10 word.  But utilise, wow that's so a 10/10 word!  Imma put dis in!'  In reality, neither is inherently better, except in providing variety.  Having a couple of awesome words per sentence sounds great, as these words 'shine', but cramming in too many just sounds pretentious, cluttered and confused.

Just like you wouldn't apply makeup with a trowel, don't apply big words in essays by the trowelful, or else your essay will look like this:



‘If you want to convey intelligence through writing, use simple words and short sentences* to convey intelligent messages and ideas. That is a far greater sign of intelligence, instead of masking otherwise clever ideas with poorly chosen phrases.’ ~ Jonathan Crossfield
* my strikethrough, you need a balance to stop your writing getting choppy
And try this.

And yes although Lauren is the goddess of this site and I can’t put my opinion above hers I still think she put too many big words in her essays in year 12 so come at me Lauren

And in the same vein:

Aim to write concisely.

Or: It is clearly evident that it is imperative that you attempt to keep as far away as possible from the redundant usage of excessively unnecessary words, in order to reduce, or decrease, the risk of your writing possibly becoming just a little bit too verbose.

Your aim is to get across the same information in the fewest words possible.

The English exam is a beauty pageant.  Obese essays packed with flabby writing aren’t likely to be winners.

Going on a word diet:
1.  Shows off your brilliant abs ideas so they shine.  Why dilute or hide them behind rolls of blubber?
2.  (plot twist!) Shows off your flaws.  In your practise essays, priority #1 is to search out your mistakes.  Word flab seeks to conceal them from you!  In cutting down, you often find that you have poor linking, very few ideas, or repetition.  (NB examiners wear x-ray glasses to see through the flab, so it doesn’t help you anyway)
3.  Rejoices the lazy, time-limited, but all-powerful assessors.  Make their life easy, and they will reward you.  Lead them a twisty-turny meandering dance that makes their arthritic gouty legs/brains tired, and they will punish you.

How to I become more concise?
Firstly, always think about exactly what your point is, and exactly what information or evidence is needed to get this point across.  Cut out any random unnecessary sideline descriptions or irrelevant story details.  And never say something twice in different ways.

Then, concise writing is about using STRONG, EFFICIENT words that pack real punch and power.  Weak, fluffy filler words are your enemies, that bog down your ideas.  ATTACK THEM!  Get out your verb-hammers, buddies; often, a strong verb can slaughter a whole vague-fluffy-flowery-adjectivey-adverby clause.  Note the powerful verb ‘slaughter’ rather than ‘put a stop to’ or ‘take away from the sentence’ or ‘bring to a bad end’.

So, fun challenge!  Get one of your essays, record the word count, and then set to work to cut it down as far as is humanly possible.  Rejig sentences, cut repetition, find more powerful words, kill flowery adjective-adverb fluff, switch to active voice, change verb tenses. I strongly recommend that you read these four articles on conciseness, (and maybe this, and Google ‘concise writing’ or something when you get hungry for more!). I nerdily spent year 9 lunchtimes reading this and trying to cut down my 700-word essays to like 300 words (it appears I was nerdier than I thought ).  As this exercise leads to short, choppy writing and woefully spindly paragraphs, you'll need to make up by gluing multiple short sentences together and expanding on your ideas.

Before long, you’ll easily pick up wordy phrases or structures and be able to eliminate them without thinking!

Finally, you may enjoy this Bad Writing Contest. Try reading the sentences in one breath

A couple of first-prize winner sentences for your interest

Indeed dialectical critical realism may be seen under the aspect of Foucauldian strategic reversal — of the unholy trinity of Parmenidean/Platonic/Aristotelean provenance; of the Cartesian-Lockean-Humean-Kantian paradigm, of foundationalisms (in practice, fideistic foundationalisms) and irrationalisms (in practice, capricious exercises of the will-to-power or some other ideologically and/or psycho-somatically buried source) new and old alike; of the primordial failing of western philosophy, ontological monovalence, and its close ally, the epistemic fallacy with its ontic dual; of the analytic problematic laid down by Plato, which Hegel served only to replicate in his actualist monovalent analytic reinstatement in transfigurative reconciling dialectical connection, while in his hubristic claims for absolute idealism he inaugurated the Comtean, Kierkegaardian and Nietzschean eclipses of reason, replicating the fundaments of positivism through its transmutation route to the superidealism of a Baudrillard.

The move from a structuralist account in which capital is understood to structure social relations in relatively homologous ways to a view of hegemony in which power relations are subject to repetition, convergence, and rearticulation brought the question of temporality into the thinking of structure, and marked a shift from a form of Althusserian theory that takes structural totalities as theoretical objects to one in which the insights into the contingent possibility of structure inaugurate a renewed conception of hegemony as bound up with the contingent sites and strategies of the rearticulation of power.

Oh and on a slightly different note, you just have to love the banter in this thread

Mulans superb english q.s

Some of the more epic quotes from user pooshwaltzer:

Gospel is an attempt to preach the virtuosity of faith's domain. It is the unremittingly fundamental extension of one's trust towards some esoteric belief system; one belonging to the realms of ethereal existence. These values assert the quintessential for exercising absolution from renounced evils, the denunciation of which requires dedication, forbearance and perseverance. The youth of our society - children, juvenile youngsters, adolescents, fledgling adults exist in under the saturation of worldly exposures. These can range from the lesser misgivings to the downright Satanic. Suffice to say, an inexhaustible reserve of popular pervasive antagonistic influences include domestic violence, substance abuse, illicit conduct and other behavioural misdemeanours. And these exemplary perturbations are as yet still within civil jurisdiction. Presiding rule of law and its inability to resolve these perennial matters presents a dilemma of conscience. Being young means being vulnerable. Vulnerable to the suggestive, attractive luring of insidious sources. The Gospel is a cause which seeks to equip the uninitiated novice with sanitised values, norms and ethos. It provides them with the tools which purvey moral fortitude and ethical subsistence the necessity of which goes towards ensuring spiritual survival.

At some point in time, one may be in such a dire state of discontentment that they'd be enticed to strike out, with ostentatious randomness, at their fellow peers - irrespective of innocence or guilt. It's rather unfortunate that you feel this way Ninwa. Perhaps someday you'll discover the ability to demonstrate even so much as a limited degree of tolerance for a relegated subordinate such as my humble self.

It seems the pinnacle of hyperbolic hypocrisy that a certain someone may be tempted to insinuate an accusation of questionable succinctness cum lucidity upon another unsuspecting target when the subject themselves would perhaps benefit from introspective examination. May I be so bold as to inquiry upon the sagacity of your somewhat inane choice to use fallacious ad hominem against the ramblings of a purported troll?

Detracting criticism insofar has stemmed from a contingent of self-righteous Admins and Gurus. Importune coincidence or a systemic pattern of collusive vindication?

Have you yet got my point about how simple language is 100000000000000x better than ... well ... this?

So what's the point of a wider vocab, then?!?

A wider vocab does two things:
1.  Keeps the assessor awake by introducing variety
2.  Improves specificity and quality of your ideas

Re reason 2: the reason ‘bad’ isn’t a great word is not because it’s short or commonly used.  It’s because it’s not SPECIFIC enough.

When you use a vague word like ‘bad’ to describe a character, action or solution, it looks like you’re not thinking deeply and analytically.  What do you mean by ‘bad’?  Morally dubious?  Weak and easily led?  Selfish?  Thinks Collingwood is a good team?  Goes round murdering people for fun?  Hotheaded?  Ineffective?  Hypocritical?  Even with these you could be more specific – morally dubious, selfish or ineffective in what way?

So, if in your mind you’re more specific, if your thinking is clear, specific and deep, you’ll automatically find yourself using ‘bigger and better’ words.  Similarly, good flow is often a flow-on (geddit) effect from having coherent, well-linked ideas.

Conversely, though, if you have a very small vocab, you limit your chance to express your higher-order, more analytical and specific ideas.  Let’s say you’re trying to explain how great oranges are.  If your vocab doesn’t go beyond the word ‘good’, you’ll can’t say anything more than ‘oranges are good’ – so even if you know in what way they’re good, you won’t be able to explain, and you risk leaving people unconvinced.  If your vocab included ‘juicy’, ‘thirst-quenching’, and ‘vitamin C’, you could clearly express what you were actually thinking.

To put this into practise, write your essays with the first words that come into your head.  Then later, try to improve by brainstorming exactly what you mean by any vague words you find - ask questions and try become more specific.  This will improve not only your vocab quality, but your ideas quality!

A truly good writer uses words with precision, variety and appropriateness – not just ‘big words’ for the sake of it.

Improving flow

Use linking words, all the time.

Contrastingly

•   conversely
•   on the other hand
•   in opposition to
•   in contrast to
•   alternatively

Therefore

•   thus
•   hence
•   due to/because of
•   accordingly
•   consequently
•   as a result
•   inevitably
•   since/as/given that
•   ultimately

In addition

•   moreover
•   furthermore
•   further
•   subsequently
•   additionally

Yet

•   although/although/even though
•   despite
•   while/whilst
•   nonetheless
•   nevertheless

Caution: you know how well it works to sticky-tape two floor-boards together, end to end.  It doesn’t.  Same here; there’s no point using a linking word in an attempt to glue together two unrelated ideas.  e.g. Jim likes oranges better than apples.  Similarly, eggs and pineapples are quite different types of food.  Doesn’t quite work, right?

If your writing is getting choppy with short sentences – e.g. The author claims that oranges are ‘juicier’ than apples.  He also outlines the health benefits of oranges.  This presents oranges as thirst-quenching and healthy.  Thus, readers are more likely to eat oranges. – then it’s time to use some grammar-glue!

> conjunctions (e.g. and, but, because, since, as)
The author claims that oranges are ‘juicier’ than apples, and outlines the health benefits of oranges.
> semicolons
The author claims that oranges are ‘juicier’ than apples; this presents oranges as thirst-quenching.
> comma + an ‘ing’ verb
The author claims that oranges are ‘juicier’ than apples, presenting them as thirst-quenching and encouraging readers to eat oranges.

If, on the other hand, your sentences are too long, search out and slash commas, conjunctions, and ‘ing’ verbs.

Vary your sentences.

Mix up sentence lengths

Read this piece of writing, stolen unashamedly from one of Ned Nerb’s posts.

“This sentence has five words. Here are five more words. Five-word sentences are fine. But several together become monotonous. Listen to what is happening. The writing is getting boring. The sound of it drones. It’s like a stuck record. The ear demands some variety. Now listen. I vary the sentence length, and I create music. Music. The writing sings. It has a pleasant rhythm, a lilt, a harmony. I use short sentences. And I use sentences of medium length. And sometimes, when I am certain the reader is rested, I will engage him with a sentence of considerable length, a sentence that burns with energy and builds with all the impetus of a crescendo, the roll of the drums, the crash of the cymbals–sounds that say listen to this, it is important.”

Vary sentence starters (especially in language analysis)
In case you’ve never heard, the examiners HATE formulaic responses.  A language analysis like this:
The author does this, which has this effect.  Then the author does this, which has this effect.  After that, the author does this, which has this effect.  Next the author does this, which has this effect.  Then the author does this, which has this effect. Finally, the author does this, which, you guessed it guys if you read this far, has this effect.
will not go down well.  It’s repetitive, boring, and doesn’t develop any interlinked big-picture understanding of the piece you’re analysing.  On the plus side, the rhythm is so repetitive that the examiner will be easily able to snore in time with it.

Here are some good ways to start:

• The author [verb]s...
  The author suggests that oranges are 'juicier' than apples, highlighting their thirst-quenching properties.
  The author highlights the thirst-quenching properties of oranges, by presenting them as 'juicier' than apples.
  
  
• [Verb]-ing, the author...
  This is one is brilliant and really really important.  Make sure you use it for TR too!
  Highlighting their thirst-quenching properties, the author suggests that oranges are 'juicier' than apples.
  
  
• Having..., the author then...
  This one's good for linking your ideas and showing awareness of how the language builds to a cumulative effect.
  Having highlighted the thirst-quenching properties of apples through labelling them as ‘juicier’, the author then reveals…
  
  
• To/In an attempt to..., author...
  To highlight the thirst-quenching properties of oranges, the author states that they are 'juicier' than apples.
  In an attempt to make oranges appear healthier and more useful, the author highlights that they are 'juicier' than apples.
  
  
• By/through [verb]ing..., author...
  By/through suggesting that oranges are ‘juicier’ than apples, [author] highlights their thirst-quenching properties.
  
  
• The author's [noun: usage/presentation/depiction/portrayal etc.] of... [verb]s...
  Great because it forces you to analyse and discuss the effect.
  The author’s depiction of oranges as ‘juicier’ than apples highlights their thirst-quenching properties.
• This ___ [verb]s...
  This use of comparative language reveals that...

VERBS

One of the biggest traps in essay writing – for all three essays – is storytelling:
The day before he argues with Andrea, Jim goes to the supermarket in his shiny red car which he had bought a few weeks earlier to buy an orange, which he then eats because he likes oranges better than apples.
Pure storytelling!  No analysis!

Think of it like this.  You have a deep treacherous river you must cross in your essay:

EVIDENCE                                                                                 SIGNIFICANCE
                       ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Heaps of students just look down into that river and are like, wow that's scary!  I give up!  So they stay safely on the evidence bank, just telling examples from the story, and rarely cross into analysing the significance - which was actually the point of having the evidence in the first place!

But, there's a very simple bridge!

EVIDENCE -----------------------VERB-------------------------SIGNFICANCE

Here are some of these verbs!
•   Implies
•   Suggests
•   Reveals
•   Exhibits
•   Displays
•   Highlights
•   Presents
•   Underscores
•   Emphasises
•   Establishes
•   Demonstrates
•   Illustrates
•   Shows
•   Conveys
•   Portrays
•   Depicts
•   Paints
•   Characterises
•   Exposes
•   Challenges
•   Condemns

Here's some examples of what I mean:
Jim’s consumption of ‘luscious oranges’ rather than apples HIGHLIGHTS that oranges are both thirst-quenching and healthy.
When Jim deliberately chooses to eat ‘luscious oranges’ rather than apples, he CHALLENGES the notion that apples are both more delicious and healthier than oranges.
Jim chooses to eat 'luscious oranges' rather than apples, REVEALING the thirst-quenching and healthy nature of oranges.

Basically, even though you can swap these segments round, make sure that every time you put in some green, you ALSO have some red and blue - if you've got 2-3 sentences of all green, warning bells should be ringing.

Here’s some tricks of how to write the green part to force you to move on to analysis!  Take ‘Jim eats fruit’.
1.   Nominalisation: turning the verb ‘eats’ into a noun that Jim does/possesses.
Jim’s eating/consumption of fruit…
2.   Begin with a word that locates your evidence in the plot: when, before, after, during etc.
When Jim eats fruit…
3.   Begin with a contrast word: while, although, despite, etc.
Although Jim eats fruit…

Because these aren't complete sentences, they nudge you to complete them with a red verb, and once you've got a red verb it's easy to launch into marks-scoring blue analysis and significance!

So remember to keep trying to put in those words: reveals, revealing, and which reveals (or 'this reveals' can start a new sentence).

This is relevant to all three types of essays - in text response, you should use verbs to go from the evidence to what it shows about the topic, characters or author's messages; in context, you should go from the evidence to what it shows about humanity and human beings and how they work, your big-scale ideas (in relation to the prompt); in language analysis, you should go from what the author says and does to why and how it impacts the readers.

So this is why I think that in expanding vocab, make verbs your first priority!  Strong verbs can:
• Take away the need for adjectives, which can make writing sound flowery and cumbersome (like, have you ever tried a hot chocolate with six sugars?!  That’s what binging on adjectives can get like)
• Replace a big fluffy phrase
• Make writing punchy, clear, and just downright impressive

For example: ‘Jim eats an orange’ tells you nothing more than that he eats it – it gives no insight into his opinion of them.  (Though at least it’s better than ‘Jim removes all the juice and flesh from the orange in his teeth and they pass to his stomach for processing to provide him energy’ – you see how a simple verb can eradicate so much unneeded info?)  But, ‘Jim savours an orange’ or ‘Jim forces down an orange’ tell you how he feels about the orange!  You don’t have to explain with fluffy adjectives and adverbs (e.g. Jim enthusiastically eats an orange with relish) because the more powerful verb already explains.

I thought I'd add a verb bank for LA!

Stuff the author does

Argue (the author argues that...)

•   contend
•   declare
•   assert
•   claim
•   aver
•   state
•   pronounce
•   allege
•   address
•   question

Advocate (the author advocates the idea that…)

•   advance
•   propagate
•   proclaim
•   promote

Suggest (the author suggests that…)

•   imply
•   hint
•   intimate
•   convey [the idea that]
•   insinuate
•   connote

Reject (the author rejects the view that…)

•   deny
•   repulse
•   repudiate
•   contradict

Undermine (the author undermines the opposition’s argument…)

•   refute
•   rebut
•   disprove
•   defeat [opposition/the view that…]
•   rout
•   conquer
•   destroy
•   dislodge
•   erode
•   weaken
•   demolish
•   shatter
•   crush

Attack/degrade/mock (the author attacks… >the opposition/the notion that<)

•   confront
•   criticise
•   condemn
•   denounce
•   accuse
•   blame
•   charge
•   censure
•   belittle
•   insult
•   downplay
•   disparage
•   undermine
•   denigrate
•   vilify
•   cast aspersions at
•   mock
•   deride
•   scorn
•   satirise

Praise (the author praises the idea that… / the author praises person X, who…)

•   admire
•   commend
•   extol
•   honour
•   acclaim
•   laud

Emphasise (the author emphasises that…)

•   stress
•   highlight
•   underscore
•   accentuate
•   reiterate

Support (the author supports this notion/his argument by…)

EXCELLENT for linking and showing how the argument works together and is strengthened/built up)
•   reinforce
•   substantiate
•   consolidate
•   corroborate
•   strengthen
•   fortify
•   give weight to
•   bolster
•   build on
•   compound

Use (the author uses >technique/phrase<…)

•   employ
•   utilise

Portray (the author portrays >something involved< as…)

•   depict
•   present
•   paint
•   demonstrate
•   show
•   characterise
•   illustrate

Attempt (the author attempts to…)

•   aim
•   endeavour
•   seek
•   strive
•   try

How the author impacts the audience

Persuade, positive (the author encourages the audience to…)

•   encourage
•   inspire
•   motivate
•   invite
•   stimulate
•   instil [a sense of/a desire to…]
•   attract
•   captivate
•   allure
•   entice
•   coax

Persuade, neutral (the author positions the audience to…)

•   position
•   prompt
•   sway
•   urge
•   convince
•   prevail (over/upon)
•   assure
•   incline
•   angle

Evoke (to evoke a… responses / to evoke a sense of…)

•   stimulate
•   elicit
•   provoke
•   arouse
•   kindle
•   ignite
•   create
•   generate
•   engender
•   produce
•   build

Manipulate (the author manipulates the reader to see… OR: the author manipulates the reader’s views…)

•   manoeuvre
•   channel
•   direct
•   steer
•   guide
•   control
•   convert
•   propel

Build (the author builds the reader’s >fear/emotion<…)

•   arouse
•   augment
•   increase
•   heighten
•   amplify
•   intensify
•   breed
•   generate

Alleviate (the author alleviates fear/doubt/pressure…)

•   relieve/provide relief
•   assure/reassure
•   allay
•   assuage
•   calm
•   quiet/quieten
Placate (the author placates the opposition/readers…)
•   appease
•   mollify
•   soothe
•   pacify
•   propitiate
•   conciliate

Shock (the author shocks the reader…)

•   startle
•   disturb
•   alarm
•   perturb
•   frighten
•   appal
•   daunt
•   dismay
•   terrify
•   agitate

Expression and vocabulary under timed conditions.

This is where it gets tricky.  Ultimately, the only way to improve this is through PRACTISE - both in timed and untimed conditions, because every time you use a word or phrase it'll be easier to spit it out next time.  So take good words and phrases through the year and USE THEM obsessively till they just flow off your pen without a thought.

The most important thing is not to get stuck on a word, phrase or sentence.  Use a weak 'stop-gap' phrase and then put an asterisk in the margin of the page, so you can fix it later.  Writing on every second line of your paper gives you heaps of editing room.  Don't perfectly craft a sentence before writing it - get it down quickly, and maybe dedicate 5-10 min to editing each essay.  Don't obsess for more than 20 seconds on one word, or a minute on one sentence.  GET IT OUT, edit later, and remember VCAA knows this is a timed-conditions first draft.

Ultimately, expression and vocab aren’t the be-all and end-all.
Yeah, they only make up max about 90% of your marks, so don’t stress.



… Just kiddin’.

While expression and vocab make a huge difference to your writing, ultimately English is a two-step process:
1.   Having (relevant) high-quality ideas
2.   Expressing those ideas in a high-quality way

Without Step 1, no matter how nicely you can express your ideas, if you don’t have any ideas, you won’t get good marks.  It is FAR FAR FAR better to get down your ideas, even in a really sloppy way, than to not get them down at all.

So please, don’t stress!  Your marks will be minimally affected by this.  (But then, if you have great ideas, and can’t express them clearly or specifically, the examiner’s not going to know that you have them.  So, the key with good writing is: to show off your ideas in the most crystal-clear, strong, and interesting way.  But ‘crystal-clear’ is the most important).

But ultimately, if you don't remember anything else from this post, I want to leave you with just one message: oranges are so better than apples.

[YellowTongue]

Read.  This is ultimately the best way of improving expression and vocab, albeit slow.  Push yourself, all year through, to read more and more.

So how often do you recommend reading? And what; fiction, non-fiction or a bit of everything? Do you have any suggestions?

This guide is going to be so immensely useful  Thanks for putting it together 

[heids]

So how often do you recommend reading? And what; fiction, non-fiction or a bit of everything? Do you have any suggestions?

This guide is going to be so immensely useful  Thanks for putting it together 

Literally all reading will be positive, no matter the genre (well, maybe not cartoons and picture books... nothing like the sneaky ol' Asterix or Dr Seuss though ).  Most important is that you enjoy it, so find the styles that interest you most!

How often: the more the merrier!  Seriously, the most important thing is that you try to view reading as a fun leisure activity rather than gruelling 'homework', because ideally you'll hit the point where you have to steadfastly ration the number of novels you consume per week.  If you don't yet love reading, try different styles and some light, easy reading first, or maybe the news, until you find something you enjoy.  Search for any topic that interests you.  Basically, the more you read, the more the benefits, so it's up to you how much you want to invest.  Note: reading is not a quick fix, but has huge impacts over time.

And you're welcome

[jono12345678910]

Love the idea of a word bank! Very Advantageous!

[Willba99]

Heids I only just found this thread and I have to say, this is hands down one of the best things I have ever read. Those lists of synonyms are a lifesaver!!

[Erstwhile]

That Ned Nerb quote gave me chills. Turns out the quote was stolen twice; you stole from Ned who stole from Gary Provost. Lol...

[ash1198]

What do you mean by ‘bad’?  Morally dubious?  Weak and easily led?  Selfish?  Thinks Collingwood is a good team?

Shots fired against Collingwood.   

In all seriousness though, this post is incredibly helpful. Thanks for putting the effort !

[GoldenEagle]

Thank you very much for this informative and light hearted post, it helped me alot.

[The Cat In The Hat]

Very useful, heids! Thank you! It may just save my exam... I hope. Thanks again.