B2 First (FCE) essay example
B2 First (FCE) Writing Part 1: Essay
(140-190 words, 40 min approx.)
TASK: In your English class you have been talking about different people’s lives. Now, your English teacher has asked you to write an essay.
Write your essay using all the notes and giving reasons for your point of view.
Is it important for people to have excitement and adventure in their lives?
Notes
Write about:
1. work
2. sport
3. …………………… (your own idea)
Task taken from Cambridge Write and Improve website. Link below.
Let’s analyse the task
The first thing when reading the B2 First (FCE) Writing task is to choose if we agree or disagree with the statement and come up with a note of our own to fill the 3rd place. Then, brainstorm some ideas and arguments.
While writing
For the introduction, try to rephrase the task and be as general on the topic as you can. Make sure to mention your opinion i.e. if you agree or not with the statement. Be careful not to repeat the same words from the instructions. Paraphrase!
Include each note in a separate paragraph.
When writing the paragraphs don’t forget to include a topic sentence. This sentence serves as an introduction of the paragraph. Then follow it by your arguments and reasons.
For the conclusion, repeat what you said before using other words and express your opinion clearly. Again, avoid using the same words as in the instructions. Look for new ways to express the same.
Here is my take on the task
Some people like following routines, while others search for thrills continuously. Both kinds of behaviour could be argued to be beneficial. However, I am more inclined to believe that we all need some adventure in our lives.
Let’s take work, for example. Why would you even consider doing a job that doesn’t excite you in a little bit? Someone said do something that you like and you wouldn’t work a day in your life. I totally agree. It is important for your job to be versatile and challenging.
An easy way to add adventure to our lives is through sport. No wonder, there are so many extreme sports out there. It is a safe way to provide this missing element to our otherwise monotonous lives.
Last but not least, I believe that learning needs to be entertaining and spike curiosity. By adding enthusiasm to their lessons, teachers can draw students’ attention as they can be easily bored.
In conclusion, some very significant areas of our lives, such as work and studies, require adventure. In the case that we can’t find it there we can still find it in sport. All in all, it needs to form part of our routines.
Don’t memorise examples!
You can use example essays to understand the style that you need to use. Compare your ideas and organisation. Learn some phrases for your own writing. But don’t forget that we all have different writing styles and there are more than one correct way of writing a B2 First (FCE) essay.
Still not confident about your writing?
Check out my other articles about the Writing paper on the B2 First (FCE) exam:
How to write an essay using a template
Need some useful phrases and a checklist? Grab a copy of my B2 First essay template