Practise exploring a topic in a balanced, structured way. Attempt each before revealing; the prompts are our own original material.
1Write the introduction to a discursive essay on the question: should teenagers have a part-time job during term?
Show plan, model opening & checklist
Plan: Frame the debate neutrally; map both sides briefly; avoid taking a strong side in a discursive opening.
Model opening: For some, a part-time job teaches a responsibility no classroom can; for others, it quietly eats into the hours a student needs to learn and rest. Both views deserve a hearing.
Checklist:
- Balanced framing, not one-sided
- Maps the ground to be covered
- Measured, exploratory tone
- Clear discursive register
2Write a body paragraph exploring one benefit and one drawback of living in a very large city.
Show plan, model opening & checklist
Plan: Develop one point fully, then turn to the other side within the same paragraph. Use connectives that weigh ideas.
A trial lesson can start from your child's attempt at Discursive essay practice tasks, with feedback from an experienced teacher.
Model opening: A large city offers opportunity on a scale a town cannot match: work, culture and chance meetings all crowd into a short walk. Yet that same density can leave people feeling curiously alone.
Checklist:
- Explores rather than argues to win
- Weighs a point against a counter-point
- Uses balancing connectives
- Develops ideas with reasons
3Write the conclusion to a discursive essay on whether social media does more harm than good, having explored both sides.
Show plan, model opening & checklist
Plan: Draw the threads together; you may reach a measured personal view without pretending the issue is simple.
Model opening: On balance, social media seems less a force for harm or good in itself than a mirror of how carefully we choose to use it.
Checklist:
- Draws both sides together
- Reaches a measured, earned view
- Avoids introducing new arguments
- Consistent exploratory tone
See the worked annotated model response for discursive essay, or the method in our discursive essay skills guide.