There are many ways to write an introduction paragraph but a simple and tested technique is the following:
1. Paraphrase the question (use synonyms/ different parts of speech/ different word order etc.).
2. For questions which ask for your opinion - give your opinion.
3. Outline your 2/ 3 main ideas (which will be in body paragraphs 1 & 2).
Let’s look at an IELTS Writing Task 2 question and use this format to write the introduction paragraph:
Question:
Some people argue that we are born with a fixed personality while others argue that we develop our personality because of our experiences.
What do you think is the most important factor?
1. Paraphrase the IELTS Question
a. Use the passive:
One of the best ways to begin is to change the active “some people believe” to the passive, “it is believed by some people” or vice-versa.
b. Use a similar, but different verb:
Verbs such as “argue”, “believe”, or “think” are interchangeable in this context. So, if the question says, “Some people believe”, you can write “It is argued by some people”, or just, “It is often argued”.
c. Use synonyms
In the rest of the sentence, look for synonyms which can replace words in the question. For example, “fixed” becomes “determined”, “develop” becomes “forms”, “personality” becomes “character”, and “because” becomes “due to”.
d. Change parts of speech or word order
You can also change parts of speech, word order or grammatical structure. For example, we develop our personality… becomes the development of our personality…
2. Give Your Opinion (usually required)
a. Completely agree/ disagree with one side
Most IELTS questions ask for your opinion. The easiest way to write an IELTS essay that asks for your opinion is to completely agree (or disagree) with one side. In this case you can use one of the following phrases in your introduction:
I totally agree…
I completely agree…
I strongly believe...
I firmly believe...
For example:
I strongly believe that our personalities are decided by our upbringing and the events in our lives.
I firmly believe that we are born with our characters and they are not changed by circumstances.
If you are not so good at writing, this is a good way to write the essay because your opinion will be very clear (which is important for band 7 and higher for Task Response in IELTS Writing Task 2).
b. Partially agree with both sides
However, if you want to say that you partially agree with more than one side, you can use the following phrases:
I somewhat agree…
I partially agree…
For example:
I somewhat agree that we are born with innate characteristics. However, I also think that our upbringing affects how our personalities develop.
If you use this approach, make sure that you write in a very clear way. Often this approach causes problems because the examiner becomes confused about what the writer's opinion is. Make sure that you show that you partially agree with both sides in the introduction and conclusion. Be consistent.
c. Argue both sides, but support one side more
An advanced approach that works for both questions that ask for your opinion, and questions which ask you to discuss both sides, is to argue both sides, but support one side more.
You can do this by using a contrast adverb (or adverbial phrase) such as while, although, and however.
For example:
In my opinion, while genetics do play an important role, what happens in our lives is the most important factor in the development of our personalities.
Although we are born with some fixed characteristics, our upbringing is a more important factor in how our personality develops.
Using this approach, you can give both sides of the argument, but show that you support one side more by saying that it is more important. This is the most advanced approach.
3. Outline your 2/ 3 main ideas
At this point you already need to know the 2 or 3 main ideas in your essay. For the essay above I have chosen the following:
Main Idea 1: Genetics create a starting point for our personalities.
Main Idea 2: But experiences have a bigger impact on how our personality develops.
As you can see I am taking an advanced approach and showing I partially agree with both arguments. So, to outline these main ideas, I could write:
"While genetics do play an important role, it is what happens in our lives, particularly in our childhoods, that is the most important factor in the development of our personalities."
Putting it all together
If we put this all together we have the following introduction:
"It is believed by some people that personality is determined at birth, but others think that our character is formed due to the experiences we have. In my opinion, while genetics do play an important role, it is what happens in our lives, particularly in our childhoods, that is the most important factor in the development of our personalities."
To read my whole model answer for this essay look here: IELTS Writing Task 2: 8. Personality (fastforwardielts.com)
Comments