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6 min read Adult Practical Writing Skills

Lesson 2 · Choose What Matters

Learn to select the information your reader needs, leave out details that do not help, and make a short plan before drafting.
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Adult Practical Writing Skills · Course 1

Lesson 2 · Choose What Matters

Module 1 · Think, Plan and Write Clearly

This page guides your work but does not collect or save your answers. Use your own document or notebook. Keep your first draft and revised version.
1 · Select2 · Plan3 · Write4 · Improve
Start here · What matters?

By the end of this lesson

You should be able to select the information your reader needs, leave out details that do not help, and make a short plan before drafting.

Start with a real problem

Grace has registered for a weekend bookkeeping course. The centre has written her surname as Nambi, but the correct spelling is Namuli. The name on her registration will also appear on her certificate. Grace needs to ask the course administrator to correct it.

Grace starts like this

Hello. I joined your course because my cousin recommended it, and I am happy to learn bookkeeping. My surname has always been difficult for some people to spell. Last week I also bought a new notebook for the course. On the registration it says Nambi, but my name is Namuli, so I wanted to explain everything before Saturday.

The important problem is present, but the reader has to search through details that do not help them correct the registration.

Key idea

Clear writing is not about saying everything you know. It is about giving this reader the information they need to understand and respond.

Step 1 · Use the reader test

Before including a detail, ask:

  1. Does this help the reader understand the situation?
  2. Does this help the reader answer, decide or take action?
  3. Does the reader need this information now?

If the answer is no, leave the detail out. A true detail can still be unnecessary in this message.

Must include

The reader cannot understand or act without it.

May help

It is useful only if it makes the situation or request clearer.

Leave out

It does not help this reader respond to this purpose.

Practice 1 · Sort the details

Grace is writing to the course administrator. In your document or notebook, mark each detail:

M = must include · H = may help · L = leave out

  1. The registration shows the surname Nambi.
  2. Her correct surname is Namuli.
  3. The course begins on Saturday.
  4. Her cousin enjoyed a course at the same centre.
  5. She bought a blue notebook last week.
  6. She wants the administrator to correct the registration before the certificate is prepared.
  7. She has sometimes had to repeat the spelling of her name.
  8. Her registration number is BK-208.
Write which two details are easiest to leave out. Explain why.
Practice 2 · Find what the reader needs

A delivery company is bringing a desk to Joseph on Tuesday morning. Joseph will be at work until 1:00 p.m. He wants the delivery moved to after 2:00 p.m.

Possible details:

  • The delivery day is Tuesday.
  • Joseph likes the colour of the desk.
  • Nobody will be home before 1:00 p.m.
  • He needs delivery after 2:00 p.m.
  • The desk will be used in his bedroom.
  • His order number is D-417.
  1. Write the details the delivery company needs.
  2. Write one detail you would leave out.
  3. Explain one of your choices.
Practice 3 · Cut without losing meaning

Read this message:

Hello. I chose this desk after looking at many different desks, and my brother thinks it will look good in my room. The delivery is planned for Tuesday morning, but nobody will be home before 1:00 p.m. Could you deliver it after 2:00 p.m.? My order number is D-417.

Rewrite it in your document or notebook. Remove what does not help, but keep the information the company needs.
Step 2 · Make a simple plan

Lesson 1 helped you decide WHY, WHO and WHAT. Now add only the facts and action the reader needs.

  • WHY: What should this writing achieve?
  • WHO: Who needs to understand or respond?
  • WHAT: What is the main message?
  • NEED-TO-KNOW FACTS: Which facts help the reader understand and act?
  • ACTION: What do I need the reader to do or tell me?

Plan with notes, not polished sentences. The plan helps you decide what belongs before you worry about exact wording.

Step 3 · Complete your writing task

You registered for Food Handling Basics on 18 September. Your registration number is FH-214. The confirmation shows your surname as Kanya, but the correct spelling is Kamya. The name on your registration will be used on your certificate.

Write to the course administrator and ask for the correction.

Other true details:

  • Your friend also registered.
  • You bought a folder for the course.
  • Your phone battery stopped working yesterday.

Decide what the administrator actually needs.

Step 1 · Plan

  1. WHY am I writing?
  2. WHO will read my message?
  3. WHAT is the main message?
  4. Which facts must I include?
  5. What action do I need from the reader?

Step 2 · Write your first draft

Write the complete message. Save this version before you continue.
Step 4 · Self-check before seeing the model

For each question, choose Yes, Partly or Not yet.

  • Is my reason for writing clear?
  • Does every detail help this reader understand or respond?
  • Have I included the facts the reader needs?
  • Does the reader know what I need them to do?
  • Can the message be understood without guessing?
One detail I may need to remove…
One important fact I may need to add…
Open only after your first draft · Model comparison

Here is one possible response. Do not copy the wording. Compare the writer's decisions with yours.

Hello,
I am registered for Food Handling Basics on 18 September (registration FH-214). My surname is shown as Kanya, but the correct spelling is Kamya. Please update my registration so that the correct name appears on my certificate.
Thank you.

  1. Which facts did the writer include?
  2. Which true details from the task did the writer leave out?
  3. Why do those choices help the reader?
  4. What is one useful difference between this model and your first draft?
Step 5 · Revise your writing

Return to your first draft. Add a missing fact, remove an unnecessary detail, or make the requested action easier to identify.

Improve your own writing. Do not replace it with the model.

Save your revised version.

The most important change I made was…
It made my writing better because…
Transfer · Try it somewhere new

You ordered 100 printed flyers for a community event. The order confirmation says collection is Friday, but the event begins on Thursday evening. Write to the printing company to ask whether the flyers can be ready by Thursday at 3:00 p.m. Your order number is PF-63.

Other details:

  • The flyers are green.
  • Your neighbour recommended the company.
  • You will travel by bus to collect them.
Decide what the company needs to know. Make a need-to-know plan, then write your message without looking back at the model.

Lesson takeaway

Good practical writing includes enough—not everything. Choose the facts that help this reader understand and act, then leave the rest out.

Published by:

Alicia Lund

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