Reason
There are many real-life situations where you have to state your opinion, e.g. a friend asks you for advice, your boss wants to hear your opinion on a business matter. In English lessons, this is also a popular way of testing your English writing skills.
Preparation
Think about the topic first. What's your opinion? What arguments can you use to support your ideas?
Structure and Content
Typical Tasks
There are many real-life situations where you have to state your opinion, e.g. a friend asks you for advice, your boss wants to hear your opinion on a business matter. In English lessons, this is also a popular way of testing your English writing skills.
Preparation
Think about the topic first. What's your opinion? What arguments can you use to support your ideas?
Structure and Content
- Introduction: defining the problem
- Use the introduction to get the reader's attention and interest in the topic. Define the problem you are going to discuss and provide a short overview on what you think and why.
- Opinion and Reasons
- Give reasons for your opinion. Concentrate on one main point per paragraph. What to write exactly, depends on the task (see below)
- Conclusion
- Summarize the most important arguments that best support your opinion.
- Simple Present
Typical Tasks
- Comment (stating your own opinion)
- state your opinion and give examples and arguments that support your opinion
- statement – reason – example
- Compare
- find common and distinct features
- draw conclusions
- Criticize
- find advantages and disadvantages
- comment on somebody's opinion (usually in a negative way)
- Discuss
- analyse all aspects of a problem (What is …? / Is it okay to …?)
- weighing the pros and cons
- Evaluate
- analyse a problem
- show advantages and disadvantages
- Justify
- support an opinion
- show advantages
- Opinion and Statements
- Agreeing and Disagreeing
- Conjunctions, Examples, Additions and Conclusion