 Have you ever wondered how to go about writing a newspaper or a website article for your GCSE exams? Maybe you're not entirely sure how to approach this issue? Well, I made this video as a way to explain and to show that actually when it comes to writing a newspaper or a website article, it need not be too complicated. Now, as you can see behind me, I've created a mind map which basically breaks down all the different components that go into writing a newspaper or a website article. Now, the reason why I have put newspaper and website together is because when it comes to how you write these articles and also the aims of both of these types of articles, they're actually addressed to an external audience. You are competing amongst other newspapers or amongst other websites. So when it comes to your approach in how to structure it, it should be quite similar. Now, when it comes to how to begin this, I would suggest of course always start off with the headline. So for example, if you think of any broadsheet newspaper such as, for instance, the Guardian newspaper or even any website or any blog, they tend to always have a website or rather they tend to always have a headline because these headlines are supposed to firstly summarize the main issue. So for example, when you think about the statement that you're answering, that's the key words within that statement. And secondly, they're supposed to be really captivating, really eye-grabbing. And this in many ways is what you use to attract your audience's attention. Now, I've suggested you should have your headlines always as a rhetorical question. That's the easiest way to go about it. Now, when you have a statement to answer and you have to write a website or a newspaper article around this statement, I would suggest highlighting the key words from the statement. So for instance, you could get a question around the statement. Climate change is not a big deal. Write an article either for a website or a newspaper, whether you agree or not. Now, the key words within this question are climate change, not a big deal. So how to change that into a rhetorical question for your headline could be, is climate change a big deal? Now, I would suggest for your headline, it should have no more than five or six words. Your headline should not be as long as a sentence. It needs to be eye-catching, attention-grabbing. And I would also suggest writing it in capital letters. Now, after your headline, you move on to the first paragraph. Now, one thing you have to remember when it comes to newspaper or website articles, they are not standard essays. So you do not start it off with a standard introduction, such as in this article, I will begin with this or we'll talk about this issue. No, it's supposed to be eye-catching. It's supposed to be attention-grabbing. So I would suggest maybe your first sentence could be, the question around keyword is a perennial issue. Now, going back to my example of climate change, it could be, the question around climate change is a perennial issue. That could be a way to start it off. And then you go into your viewpoint, which side of the argument do you stand on, whether you agree or disagree. And always, of course, when it comes to this kind of article, you're always talking directly to an audience. So you need to have a direct address. Then afterwards, when you have your first paragraph and you've summarized the side of the argument that you stand on. So for instance, let's say if we go back to the example of climate change, you maybe disagree that actually it is a big deal. You make that clear in your first paragraph. And then you talk about all the reasons and you summarize that. However, after your first paragraph, you go to your first subheading. Now, keep your subheading brief. And the reason why you need a subheading when you think about newspapers or website article is to break up the article on the page to make it easier for your reader to read through it. Now, in your subheading, always keep it brief and preview what you're going to discuss. So for example, going back to my example of climate change, the first paragraph, you've introduced the issue so that you actually believe that it's a big deal. And then your subheading could be a climate change key for our world, right? Because your next paragraph would be why it's really, really important, why it could cause to the destruction of the planet, why, for instance, climate change is causing, for instance, ecosystems, vast ecosystems to die off. This is going to impact our food chain and ultimately us, right? So in your subheading, you have something really brief, but it's a preview of what you're going to discuss. Now, in your second paragraph, you first give your first reason. I believe climate change is important because of this. It's critical for our world, for instance. Then you can give a statistic. Now, of course, you're going to get a question on anything. So you can't really learn all the statistics possible. So in this instance, the examiner will know this and they will know that you don't necessarily know statistics specific to the question. However, the reason why you're supposed to include statistics and you just make up the statistic, make sure it's not crazy. For example, 1,000% of people believe this. That's not necessarily a realistic statistic. It could be, for instance, 75% of people actually see climate change as a really important issue. That could be a believable-ish statistic. Now, the reason why you use this is because when you're thinking about writing compelling arguments to convince people, of course, what you want to show is an appreciation of the value of statistics and that's why you're including it in your article. In addition, also use things that make your article more compelling to your reader. So things like repetition, things like hyperbole, over exaggeration. Then after you're done with your second paragraph, you then move on to your third paragraph. Now, in your third paragraph, you outline your second reason. So the second reason why I think climate change is important is because of XYZ. Then you can give an anecdote. So, for example, you can give a really specific example. So Jimmy, who lives in New Zealand, actually lost his home because of really terrible weather, which was not typical of the year of the time. So, for instance, that could be an example of why climate change is terrible. You give an anecdote, something that's really, really specific, something that's really relatable to one individual. You can also end with a rhetorical question. So, of course, rhetorical questions are really useful because they are designed to convince your reader into thinking and into questioning, oh, this is really interesting. Why has this happened? Then after your third paragraph, you move on to your fourth paragraph, and this is your third reason supporting your viewpoint. And in this paragraph, you can talk about repetition, and you can add another statistic, another fixed statistic. So, for example, according to the University of Cambridge, XYZ happened with regards to climate change. Then after you've had your fourth paragraph and you've argued for your perspective, I would suggest having your second subheading. And this subheading gives a preview of now your counterarguments. When you're given argument questions, you should always balance the argument. You don't only show your perspective, you also have to consider why some people will disagree with you. So, your subheading could be a preview of the counterarguments. And then, so for example, the subheading could be why climate change may still not be a big deal. That could be a subheading. And then you can go into your fifth paragraph, which is your first and second counterargument. So, as you can see here, you've got one, two, three arguments for your perspective. Now, you want to balance it too perfectly. You can give two reasons why people might disagree with you. And then you can then add another statistic, so another counterbalancing statistic. And then you can give another anecdote as to why, for example, Sarah actually lives in this part of the world. She is experiencing climate change, but actually she doesn't see it as a massive change to her environment. That could be a counterargument. And then you can also use the rule of three. So, rule of three always means, for instance, men, women, and children might think this, boys, girls, and children. So, rule of three are any three words or three ideas that are somehow related. And again, this is a persuasive technique. Now, you finish off your final paragraph with refuting these counterarguments. So, after considering these counterarguments, I still believe that climate change is a really important issue. Something like that. And then you reiterate your argument and then you close. But do not use words such as to conclude, I think this. You are not writing an essay. You're writing a newspaper article, a website article. So, it has to be compelling. It has to be engaging. You can end off with saying, for instance, even if we think that climate change isn't that much of a big deal because we don't necessarily personally have an experience of it, we still need to change things. Otherwise, one day, we will suffer too. Something like that as an ending point. Because always remember, when it comes to a website or newspaper article, it's meant to inform. But equally, the secondary aspect of it is to entertain. So make sure you bear with this in mind. And of course, when it comes to this mind map, I've also made it a downloadable resource. So, in case you missed anything, you can download it and then watch this video over again and make notes. So, thank you so much for listening.