·Two short parts
Aptis General, Writing, parts one and two. These are the two shortest parts and the ones that weigh least on the final level, but you can lose marks through silly mistakes. Part 1 targets A1 and consists of answering five messages with single words. Part 2 targets A2 and is a text of twenty to thirty words with personal information. We will see what scores in each one, the typical errors and how to take care of spelling. The facts come from the guide and the descriptors; the advice is our reading.
1/3Part 1: single words
In Part 1 you answer five messages with single words, one to five per answer. They are not sentences. According to the official guide, there is no extended writing in this part: only individual words. And the score, from zero to three, only assesses whether each answer can be understood and is on topic: neither grammar nor spelling is assessed. Five answers that are understood, a three. Three or four, a two. One or two, a one. So the costliest mistake is writing too much and risking an answer that cannot be understood. A clear word is better than a doubtful sentence.
2/3Part 2: 20 to 30 words
Part 2 is a short text with personal information, of twenty to thirty words. Here grammar, punctuation, vocabulary and cohesion do count. The descriptors for a four say: on topic, simple structures, with basic errors that do not prevent understanding, punctuation and spelling almost always correct and some simple linker to join the sentences. And a three is a list of sentences with no linkers. So join them with and, but or because. And the most common mistake is going over thirty words and filling the text with errors: if you go over, cut.
3/3Spelling and capital letters
In Part 2, punctuation and spelling must be almost always correct to reach a four. Four things that easily cost marks. One: the pronoun I is always a capital. Two: days of the week, months, languages and countries also take a capital letter, which is not the case in Spanish: Monday, March, Spanish. Three: every sentence starts with a capital and ends with a full stop. And four: do not write a comma after and in a list of two items. And before you hand in, reread the text aloud: silly mistakes can be heard.
·To practise
To practise, do two things. First, answer five short messages with one to five words each, and check that all five answers can be understood. Second, write a text of twenty to thirty words about yourself, with at least two linkers, and count the words. Check the capital letters, the punctuation and that every sentence is clear. You can get feedback in the AptisBot bot.