With a new Non-Fiction Models book issued fresh for 2025, I’m dying to show you an extract from a persuasive letter, so you can see exactly how the guide will transform your child’s writing. Remember, each model in the book gives you:
- A Question Prompt.
- A short plan – the kind your child can actually put together in a couple of minutes.
- The full model – Show your child what finished exam writing looks like to help them imagine it clearly. It’s like seeing a picture of a cake in a recipe book. Your child needs to know what they’re aiming for. Each model has all the must-write ingredients of exam-passing writing to super-boost your child’s mark.
- A full, line by line or paragraph by paragraph lesson of every writing technique and structure point in the model, so your child can see what, how and why the writing works.
- A vocabulary section with definitions of stretching, dazzling words for your child to use in their writing, to build eloquence and wow any marker!
It’s a guide to make your parent-and-child and tutor-and-child learning moments easy, valuable, and most importantly, to guarantee your child KNOWS how to make progress in every creative writing lesson and session. Yes, if you’d care to leap ahead in learning straight away, you can order your copy of the book on these links:
From Monday through to Friday, I’ll serialise extracts from the model and lessons – the full model and lesson taken from the book is 13 pages! We’re talking mountains of help and guidance!
My parents and children love this guide because it works: students progress quickly in all areas of exam-passing creative writing. Remember, I wrote the guide as a teaching tool, which use continually with my young writing legends – because it works. It’s your turn! Please come back to my 11plushappy.com blog on Monday. Here’s the sneak preview of what’s coming… Why not ask your child how many features they can spot in the opening paragraphs below?
Extract
Question: Your favourite playing fields are to be closed and replaced by a refuse (rubbish) and recycling centre to handle the town’s waste. Please write a letter to your local council to persuade them NOT to go ahead with this plan. You must give reasons for your viewpoint. What will you lose? You will be given marks for interesting vocabulary, persuasive writing techniques, punctuation and following the structure of a letter.
Time: 45 mins
(HAPPY TIP: Don’t be tricked into thinking you can write any letter you want. Although a question might not ask you to write a formal letter, persuasive letters should mostly use formal language.)
Freshly Cottage Flats
17 Goodview Court
Sutton
SM6 3PP
Dept of Planning
London Borough of Sutton 20th September, 2026
Dear Sir/Madam
From the address above, you may be alerted to the fact I’m one of the many concerned, frightened and – to be frank – livid residents whose lives will be ruined by the proposed building of the Refuse and Recycling centre on the site of Goodview Playing Fields.
My name is Laney, and as an 11-year-old beginning her life in the area, I stand to be affected more adversely and for far longer than the misguided grown-ups who came up with this nightmarish idea. A refuse centre instead of a park? Thus, I write for an immediate end to this ‘rubbish’ idea. There are three clear reasons to maintain the fields, with both urgent and long-term implications: the high levels of use the park has; the serious harm to children’s health; and a shock reduction in your council’s finances.
First, grasp Goodview as it is. You will know, as the local planning team, that there are 15 – yes, 15 – primary schools in the area, along with 2 secondary schools. Statistics on your own website (truthful facts, we presume) confirm approximately 8000 children study at these schools (7,873 to be exact).
Let’s go! If you’d like to know what features are in here and why they work, please bookmark or add Monday 19th May to your calendar. I hope next week’s blog adds ease, smooth-tempers and happy learning to your week.
Oh, by the way, I’m deliriously excited about launching a podcast soon, to help you if you’re an on-the-go thinker and learner. I’ll share more details soon. Season 1 is almost finished recording!
Again, here are the book links, the digital bookshelves, if you want to dive in and make progress straight away.
Stay happy, stay learning.
Any questions? leemottram@11plushappy.com
Lee, London. May 25
