Writing: Composition Set 6
Writing: Composition Set 6 is further 13+ Common Entrance practice at descriptive and narrative writing, alongside short questions on vocabulary, sentence construction and punctuation.
Before you start
Make sure you're comfortable with these topics first:
Method
- Spend a few minutes planning before you write: note the setting, the main event or turning point, and how the piece will end.
- Choose precise, varied vocabulary rather than vague or repeated words, and vary your sentence openers to keep the writing interesting.
- Use techniques such as simile, metaphor and sensory detail with a clear purpose, rather than including as many as you can fit in.
- Show a character's feelings through their actions, dialogue and physical reactions instead of simply naming the emotion.
- Vary sentence length deliberately: short sentences can create tension or emphasis, while longer sentences can build detail or atmosphere.
- Leave time to check your punctuation, especially direct speech and apostrophes, and to proofread for missing capital letters and full stops.
Worked example
Write one original simile and one original metaphor describing an abandoned funfair at night.
- For the simile, choose 'like' or 'as' and pick a comparison that suits an eerie, deserted setting.
- Draft the simile: 'The Ferris wheel stood still like a skeleton against the sky.'
- For the metaphor, describe the funfair directly as something else, without using 'like' or 'as'.
- Draft the metaphor: 'The silence was a blanket thrown over every ride.'
- Check both sentences are grammatically complete and create a fitting, unsettling impression appropriate to an abandoned setting.
Practice questions
Type your answer and press Check to be marked straight away, or reveal the answer and mark yourself.
Q1Identify whether this sentence is simple, compound or complex: The gates creaked open.Show answer
Answer: Simple sentence.
Q2Identify whether this sentence is simple, compound or complex: The lights flickered, and the music started on its own.Show answer
Answer: Compound sentence.
Q3Identify whether this sentence is simple, compound or complex: Although the fair had closed years ago, the carousel still turned.Show answer
Answer: Complex sentence.
Q4Write an expanded noun phrase, using at least two describing words, for 'the funfair at midnight.'Show answer
Answer: For example: 'the silent, rust-streaked funfair at midnight' - any two well-chosen modifiers.
Q5Rewrite this sentence, replacing the vague capitalised word with a more precise alternative, keeping the meaning: The funfair was SCARY.Show answer
Answer: For example: 'The funfair was eerie.' - any suitably precise, vivid adjective.
Q6Punctuate this line of speech correctly, adding inverted commas and any other punctuation needed, without changing the words: dont go near the big wheel warned tom its not safeShow answer
Answer: 'Don't go near the big wheel,' warned Tom, 'it's not safe.'
Exam-style questions
Written in the style of a 13+ Common Entrance exam paper, with a full mark scheme.
Punctuate this paragraph, adding the missing capital letters, apostrophes and other punctuation: the girls torch flickered once then died she froze is anyone there she whispered
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You are going to write the opening of a short story called 'The Locked Carriage'. In about 60 to 90 words, write an opening paragraph that builds a clear sense of mystery and leaves the reader wanting to know more.
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State three techniques a writer might use to build tension in the middle of a story.
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Free printable worksheet
Want more practice on paper? Download the writing: composition set 6 worksheet pack - 14 pages of exam-style questions with a full mark scheme. One email opens every download in this browser for 14 days - no account, no card. Print it for personal and classroom use.
This topic is chapter 30 of 13+ English Workbook, the whole course as one free printable PDF.
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