What is IGCSE?
IGCSE stands for “International General Certificate of Secondary Education.” It is an internationally recognised qualification for secondary school students, typically
Learn how to write step-by-step answers, and score A* in your exam!
Announcement: Cambridge IGCSE, O Level and AS & A Level June 2025 past papers are now available.
You may be asked to write an informal letter to a friend or family member. Often, the question will require you to describe or explain something, or it may ask you to say what you think about a suggestion or a plan. The exam question will give you some ideas, and will tell you what you should include in your letter.
Remember: It is important to show that you can write in an informal style.
Write a short introduction for this post:
Make sure that you follow all instructions very carefully and write the required number of words. Aim for 15 words plus or minus from the maximum word limit guideline.
For English First Language Extended syllabus, aim for 435 words or so; or in the range of 435－465 words.
For English as a Second Language Extended syllabus, aim for 145 words or so.
Though there is no penalty in writing more than the suggested limit, it would be self-penalising to wrote more as you leave no time for other questions.
When you write, use your imagination as much as possible, but remember that your answer must always be relevant to the question.
One way to improve your writing is by using more adjectives and adverbs.
Example:
We had food and the music was good.
The above sentence could be made better by applying some adjectives like the below sentence.
We ate delicious food and the music was fantastic!
For example: Up to nine marks are awarded for content, and up to nine marks for language.
“Content” refers to the relevance and development of ideas; “language” refers to style and accuracy.
Below are some important points about writing a formal letter in your IGCSE exam:
You may be asked to write an article or a narrative, describe something or to write something persuasive. It is important that you read the question very carefully and that you express yourself effectively. You should also show that you can vary the style of your writing, depending on the topic.
In all the English subjects papers, you’ll be required to summarise a text. Below are some important points to help you score maximum marks for this section:
You may be asked to write your opinion about something in the form of a newspaper article, or perhaps for your school newsletter or magazine.
For English First Language, be sure to cover all the bullet points given.
For English as a Second Language, usually you will be given help in the form of a list of ideas or other people’s opinions, but you do not have to use them in your answer. You are free to use your own ideas, just be sure to keep to the topic.
You must show the examiner that you can use the English language for a specific purpose and that you can organise your ideas in a logical way.
Although you don’t have much time for planning, you should underline the key word(s) in the question to ensure you do exactly what is asked.
Write very brief notes, putting your ideas into a logical order. Also, check for repetition. When you have finished your writing, check your spelling, grammar and punctuation.
Take the A* Readiness Assessment. The goal of this diagnostic is to identify how close you are to A*−level precision, and what refinement may still be required.
Madina
Kuwai
Reinard Swart
South Africa
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616 responses
actually i am having my igcse english examinations tom and my major problem is time management as i take little time inorder to understant the plot so plz suggest the needfully……..
Hi IGCSE Team!
I wanted to ask, is it necessary to have just two paragraphs in a formal letter, or you could have more?
Hi Uni,
You could have more.
Dear IGCSE,
I would like to know the specific maximum paragraph an article as well as letter should consist .Thank you
I really want to know coz I am confused which format to use is it “3553 r 37773 ” plz reply soon
We do not know what is “3553 r 37773” ?
The teacher says,they are paragraph format for cambridge
Hi Jiji,
There is no “specific maximum paragraph” when it comes to writing. The normal practice is to have 4 paragraphs. But if you want to have the fifth paragraph, and still within your writing time frame, you’re always welcome to do so.
Hi, i am interested about igcse writing tasks for second language as an extended student. Which words arent calculated in summaries,letters and articles? Because we always have arguments about number of words
Hello Ilaha,
All words are calculated. Including numbers.
What about extended paper ?
Word limit is not an issue any more,an examiner told me
Word limit is just a guideline for you not to exceed the set time frame. If you are able to write more and still within the set time frame, definitely you could do so.
Hai igcse
How can i improve in my story writing
Hi Srikanth,
The most important things you need to do are: read a lot and write a lot.
We can’t stress enough of “read a lot”. By reading, you will gain tremendous knowledge on how to phrase your sentences, types of vocabulary, style, etc… Besides reading, you ought to practise writing as well. You have to put to use what you have learnt.
Hey.
Can the following rules be used in CIE examinations???
Yes, definitely.
Oh.
Thanks a lot.
I am sitting for my O Levels this May.
Can u please provide formats for formal and informal letters that will be appreciated by Cambridge??
Hi Quamran,
You may want to consider our online revision courses. You will learn all these from the revision courses.
Dear igcse team,
Wanted to ask if it’s necessary to provide a title when writing a summary [0510],and also article writing.
Hi Allan,
No, you don’t have to provide any title for both summary and article.
tnx hey ,this helped me a lot. GOD BLESS YOU
Yeah!
why not
Thanks alot! It was very helpful 🙂
I have a question. In paper 2, does article writing require a title? And in letter writing, do we have to start by greeting the person? (e.g hello, how are you? I hope you are fine)
Thanks in advance 🙂
Hi Mohammed,
Are you referring to English Second Language or English First Language?
Can u tell for 2nd language ?thnks..
Hi Nunu,
For English Second Language, the title is not mandatory. You can write the title to help you not to drift off course. However, for English First Language Reading Paper 2, the title is mandatory according to the requirement of the question.
When writing a letter, you must always write greetings. But not too long, 1 sentence is more than enough.
really thank you
You are welcome! 🙂
Good tips!