Tag Archives: writing

Teaching How to Write a Report. Create your own Worksheets and Make it more Palatable for your Students

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It’s Sunday evening, I’m prepping for the week, and I open my B2.1 students’ textbook to the report writing unit. Five seconds in, I want to close the book, pour myself a glass of wine, and pretend it doesn’t exist.

You know the kind of page I mean. Dense. Overwhelming. A chart nobody asked for. Vocabulary that even I have to look up. My students wouldn’t read it — they’d survive it. Barely. And I’d spend the entire lesson firefighting confusion instead of actually teaching anything useful.

So I did what any self-respecting language teacher does: I refused to accept it and went rogue.

Step 1: I Went Textbook Shopping

Before I even thought about creating anything, I did a little research mission. I pulled out a few different textbooks — because no single textbook has all the answers— and I started gathering:

  • The core structure of a report
  • Realistic vocabulary my students can actually use without sounding like a lawyer
  • Task types that make sense for where my students are right now

Step 2: Hello, Gemini and Hello ChatGPT

1. Generating the Text

Once I had my notes, I headed over to Gemini and copy/pasted my notes and asked it to generate clean,  level-appropriate content. Exactly the kind of thing I wished was in the textbook in the first place.

2- Generating the worksheets

So now i have the text; but, in the era of AI, why give them a boring document when you can give them a beautifully structured worksheet? Because — even well-written content, if it looks like a photocopied page from 1998, is going to kill the vibe before we even start.

So I took my Gemini-generated content and went straight to ChatGPT — a if you haven’t tried the new image generation model in ChatGPT yet, close this tab and go do that first. I’ll wait.  It is genuinely the best option out there when your worksheet involves formatted text, tables, or any kind of visual structure.

I want you to create a worksheet with  the content pasted under these lines. Include all the information pasted. Title “Writing a report _ B2 www.cristinacabal.com” . Use images related to the content to make it more visually appealing. Clean design.

And the result? A worksheet my students actually picked up and looked at. With curiosity. Not dread.

To get the worksheets, Right click on the image and Save as…

It has everything they need:

  • A model text at the right level
  • Guided vocabulary in context
  • A clear framework they can replicate
  • A writing task that feels achievable

 

Step 3: And why not an interactive website for those who prefer interactive content?

Because apparently a gorgeous worksheet wasn’t enough for me, I also went ahead and built an interactive website to go with it with a Drag and Drop exercise

Step 4. They Know the Theory. Now They Need to Write.

Knowing the structure is one thing. Producing it under exam conditions is a completely different story. Report writing doesn’t come naturally to B2 students — it needs practice. Lots of it. And they can’t do that without me in the room, monitoring, nudging, redirecting. What works for me is collaborative guided practice: students work together within a clear framework, which lowers the anxiety AND means I can actually see what’s happening before they write a single word. The activity below is exactly that. Does it guarantee a perfect report? No. But it gives them a fighting chanc

Note: Click here for a more user-friendly view of the webpage with the step-by-step  activity

 

Guided Opinion Writing: From Individual Ideas to Collaborative Essays

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Let’s be honest for a second. Writing. That skill we know our students desperately need… and the one that somehow never quite fits into a lesson. Sound familiar? You look at the clock, look at the syllabus, and think: “I should do some writing today…” And then—boom! Time’s gone.

And when we do try to squeeze writing into class, it feels… weird. Students are working individually, heads down, writing quietly. Necessary? Absolutely. But also a bit lonely. A bit silent. And if you’re anything like me, there’s that feeling that you’re “not really teaching” because you’re not actively doing something every second. Asking them to write at home? Yeah… no. We all know how that story ends.

So here’s the challenge: how do we give them real writing practice, keep it guided, make it engaging, and still protect the process? Tricky? Yes. Impossible? Not at all. I’ve used the small whiteboards on my classroom walls (but big sheets of paper do the job too) and the results were much better than I expected. Let me show you how it works.

Step 1: Setting the model (with a little help from AI)

First things first. I used AI to help me build the presentation that introduces the writing task. Nothing fancy, no complex prompt engineering. I literally typed: “How to write an opinion essay with examples.” That’s it.

What matters here is the transparency of the process. I want students to see that AI can act as a support tool, not a shortcut. From one simple prompt, the tool generated a clear structure, key language, and examples that we could then analyse, discuss, and question together. Below, you’ll see exactly what that prompt produced.

Should you need this same presentation with AI voiceover, click here.

Note: Click on the three dots to view the presentation full screen.

Teaching how to write a strong introduction

Before students can write anything, they need something to react to. A topic. A bit of controversy. Something that makes them think, “Hmm… do I agree with that?” So we start with a clear statement and, just as important, the freedom to choose a side,

STARS AND FOOTBALLERS ARE PAID TOO MUCH MONEY

When writing an opinion essay, you can completely agree, completely disagree, partially agree or partially disagree. The important thing is that your position is clearly stated and that the points you make in the topic sentences of the main part fully support the position you have taken.

Once they have decided whether they agree or disagree, we zoom in on one specific skill: the introduction. Not a full essay. Not paragraphs and paragraphs. Just the opening. To make it manageable, I introduce the  3-Sentence Formula. Simple, structured, and very student-friendly.

A good introduction only needs three things:

  1. The Hook – a short question or a striking fact (big numbers work wonders here).
  2. The Connection – a sentence that shows this is something people talk about.
  3. The Opinion – a clear statement of what you think.

To practise this, students don’t write from scratch straight away. Instead, they build an introduction by choosing one option from each column: a hook, a connection, and an opinion

At this stage, the goal isn’t originality—it’s control of structure. Once they understand how a solid introduction is built, we can slowly remove the scaffolding and let them write with more freedom.

Brainstorming 3 ideas that support their position

Now that they’ve clearly decided their position, it’s time to brainstorm ideas. I give them one simple task: write three ideas that support your opinion about the statement. These ideas will later become the body paragraphs. We won’t necessarily use all three, but thinking of an extra one gives them options and makes them feel more secure.

  • Idea 1 (footballers earn more than essential workers/they generate huge income and entertainment)
  • Idea 2 ____
  • Idea 3____

Grouping students

By now, students have written their own individual introductions. That step matters—everyone has a clear opinion. Now I put them into pairs or groups of three, but not randomly. I group them by opinion: agree with agree, disagree with disagree. Otherwise, it doesn’t work. Once grouped, they move to the whiteboards, and we’re ready to build the body paragraphs.

The body of the essay

And again, we go step by step. No full essay at once. No panic.

I remind them of one key rule: One main idea per paragraph. You explain it, you add an example, and you move on. New idea? New paragraph.

To keep things guided, I don’t show everything at once. I first present the structure of the first body paragraph. Students choose the connectors they want to use, discuss which one fits best, and complete the paragraph on their whiteboard. Only when that first paragraph is finished do I reveal the second box with the next idea.

Body Paragraph 1: The Main Argument

Goal: Introduce the first reason why you hold your opinion and provide a specific example.

Body Paragraph 2: Adding Detail

Goal: Provide a second reason and look at the “human” side of the issue (the effort or the impact on society).

Time for the conclusion: closing the essay properly

Now it’s time to wrap things up—the conclusion. Before they write, I quickly remind them what a good conclusion does. No new ideas here.

A strong conclusion is simple and clear:

  • Restate your opinion using different words

  • Briefly summarise your main ideas

  • End with a final thought that sounds confident

Then I display the last box. By this point, they already know the routine, so they get straight to work.

The Conclusion: The Final Word

Goal: Summarize the main points and leave the reader with a final thought.

Final step: revising, polishing, and thinking again

Before I step in, students re-read what they’ve written. This is their moment to spot mistakes, improve wording, and polish ideas. Only after this do I give teacher feedback.

The last part is one of my favourites. Students are assigned an essay that defends the opposite opinion to their own. Agree reads disagree. Disagree reads agree. The goal isn’t to correct—it’s to understand. To see how the same topic can be argued differently. And yes… sometimes someone changes their mind.

If you’d like to try this sequence yourself, you can download the PDF with all the steps and adapt it to your classroom.

Hope it is helpful! Let me know in the comments below!

Tic Tac Toe Writing Challenge, Cristina’s Style

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This project is a perfect example of what I love most: blending the latest AI tools with good old-fashioned participation and creativity. It’s simple, it’s fun, and it gives every student a voice.

In class, we rarely have enough time for long writing tasks. Between listening activities, speaking practice, and vocabulary reviews, written expression often gets pushed to “maybe next week.” But what if we could sneak writing practice into something short, fun, and completely engaging? That’s exactly what we did this week!

I am currently working on personality adjectives, so I decided to create a Tic-Tac-Toe game using the Canvas option in Gemini.

Canvas option in Gemini?  Yes, this is an option where you create an app using natural language — no programming degree required! I simply typed something like, “Make a tic-tac-toe game I can edit,” and voilà! In seconds, we had our very own interactive Tic-Tac-Toe app, ready to play and personalize. I have made it editable, so you can easily adapt it to your own classes.( Aside note: I give webinars teaching all about it 😆 )

In my case, each square on the grid contained an adjective like embarrassed, confident….. If these words mean nothing to you, click on the Edit button,change the words and click on Save.

 

Tic-Tac-Toe Writing Challenge – Classroom Instructions
  1. Divide the class into two teams: Noughts (O) and Crosses (X). Within each team, students work in pairs, since they’ll be writing together.
  2. The Noughts team starts. They, as a team, choose one square on the tic-tac-toe board.

3. All pairs (from both the Noughts and Crosses teams) must write one sentence using the word in that square.

    • The sentence must be at least 12 words long.
    • Give them about 1–1.5 minutes to write

4.Divide the classroom board (whiteboard) into two halves: O and X.

5. When time’s up, choose one student from each team at random to come to the board and write their sentence on their side of the board. Remember, though they might be Os or Xs, they have been writing their sentence in pairs.

6. Next, ask the rest of each team to read their sentence on the board carefully and look for errors.

    • If someone finds a mistake on their team’s  sentence, they stand up, underline it on the board, and wait for the teacher’s confirmation.
    • Once confirmed, he/she corrects the error.

7. The teacher checks both sentences, gives final corrections if needed, and decides which one is better.

    • The “winner” can be the most accurate, complex, or creative sentence.
    • The winning team claims that square on the Tic-Tac-Toe board

8. Then, it’s the Crosses’ turn to choose a square and repeat the process.

9. Continue until one team wins the tic-tac-toe game or the board is full.

My tip: If you’re looking for a way to turn writing into an active, competitive, and collaborative task, this game is a gem. It keeps every student involved and sneaks in grammar, vocabulary, and peer correction all at once.

Speaking and Writing: Let’s Get these Personality Adjectives Moving

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Gallery walks must be one of my favourite dynamics. If we add speaking and writing, we have the whole package.

This activity takes something as simple as learning personality adjectives and turns it into an engaging speaking and writing task. The goal is for my students not just to memorize words like arrogant, generous, or shy—but to use them to express opinions and challenge ideas.

So in a nutshell, these are the steps to follow.

Materials: Posters (use mine if you wish), Functional language, Blue-tack or cello-tape, Optional post-it notes

  • REVISING: We start by revising personality adjectives. It’s the vocabulary we’re working on, so students already have a clear focus.

  • POSTERS. Posters with controversial statements, all using personality adjectives, are up on the walls. These are the ones I have used for this activity. You are welcome to use them.

  • Round 1. Gallery Walking. Students walk around the room in pairs or threes, reading the controversial statements and discussing whether they agree or disagree with each statement. You might want to write on the board some functional language to express opinion.(link to photocopy above)

  • Round 2: Write it down. Back at their seats, each student, individually, chooses one statement they agree or disagree with and writes about 70–90 words explaining why they agree or disagree — encourage them to use personality adjectives in their writing. They then stick it next to the poster.

  • First side note: ask them to use their best handwriting. You know what I am talking about, don’t you? Sometimes reading students’ handwriting is like trying to decode ancient hieroglyphics!
  • Second side note: yes, after this first round, you should walk around reading what they have written   and correcting mistakes. I am afraid this is our job, too.

  • Round 3: Writing. React and respond. Students go around again, this time reading their classmates’ post-its. Then, they add a response—agreeing or disagreeing with their peer’s opinion, explaining why. Note: a couple of sentences would be enough this time.

Note: For Round 3, I give my students post-it notes in different colours. It never hurts to add a bit of colour to life.

When Your Students Make YOU the Star of Their Halloween Story… with a Little Help from AI!

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Just imagine that you give your students a spooky Halloween writing task and you -their teacher – are the main star.  Have a look!

This is AI. Free and simple.  This little video is easy to make; Find a photo of yourself, choose a template , upload your photo and click Send. It only requires about 2 minutes, and the result is stunning. Just what we need to engage our students and make them think we are just geniuses at generating videos.

First, I will show you how to create the video clip and then, I will share how to use it in my class and with my students.

  1. Find a good photo of yourself to upload.
  2. The tool is PixVerse. It is Freemium and it gives 60 credits daily. With 60 credits, you can create two or maybe three video clips daily.
  3. Watch the video below to see how easy it is to create a video clip.Play around with other templates, it is a lot of fun.

 

Now, the writing task.

Activity: What Happens Next?

This is a traditional narrative writing activity where a short, dramatic video serves as the story’s “inciting incident.” Students will watch the clip and then write the rest of the story, focusing on plot development, descriptive language, and a clear resolution.

Learning Objective. Students will practice using past tenses (Past Simple, Past Continuous), sequence connectors, and descriptive vocabulary related to action and suspense.

Lesson Procedure

Step 1: Introduction & The Prompt (5 mins)

  • Tell your students: “We are going to watch the beginning of a Halloween horror story. As you’ll see, the main character is me, your teacher. Your mission is to write the rest of the story: what happens immediately after the clip ends, and how it all concludes.”
  • Play the video for the class. Play it a second time so they can absorb the details of the scene.

Step 2: Guided Brainstorming (10 mins)

  • Before students begin writing, project or write the following prompt questions on the board. Give them a few minutes to think and jot down some ideas. This will help structure their stories.

Guiding Questions:

    1. The Immediate Action: What happens in the five seconds after the video ends? Does she fight back? Does she scream for help? Is she dragged into the dark room?
    2. The Attacker: Who is under the Ghostface mask? Is it a student playing a prank, or is it someone truly dangerous? What is their motive?
    3. The Rising Action: How does she try to escape? Does she find a weapon (a book, a heavy pen)? Does someone else enter the scene (another teacher, the school janitor)?
    4. The Resolution: How does the story end? Does she get away and call the police? Does she manage to unmask the attacker, revealing a huge surprise? Or is it a tragic ending?

Step 3: Individual Writing Task (20-25 mins)

  • Instruct students to write a short story (around 200-250 words) that continues directly from where the video clip ends.
  • Remind them to use their brainstorming ideas to build a complete narrative with a beginning (the video), a middle (their rising action), and a clear end (their resolution).

Step 4: The Horror Gallery Walk & Peer Voting

Time Allotment: 15 minutes

Once they have finished, post their stories on the classroom walls to create a “Horror Gallery.” Students will stand up and move around the room to read the different creative endings their classmates have imagined. After reading them, they will vote for the story they liked the best.

Yes, don’t ask, we will need to collect their stories and give them feedback of their mistakes.