Persuasive Writing

While most SET Stage 2 prompts lean towards narrative or descriptive writing, you may occasionally be asked to write a persuasive piece — a speech, a letter, or an article that argues a point of view. Even if the main prompt is narrative, understanding persuasive techniques will make you a stronger, more versatile writer. The examiners at Sutton Grammar, Wilson's, Wallington County Grammar, Nonsuch, and Wallington High want to see that you can write confidently and convincingly, whatever the task.

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What Is Persuasive Writing?

Persuasive writing aims to convince the reader to agree with your point of view. It is not the same as arguing or being aggressive — the best persuasive writing is calm, confident, and uses carefully chosen evidence and techniques.

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The AFOREST Toolkit

AFOREST is a useful acronym for remembering the key persuasive techniques:

Letter	Technique	What it does	Example
A	Alliteration	Repeating the same sound for emphasis	"Dangerous, destructive, and deeply unfair"
F	Facts (or statistics)	Adding authority and credibility	"Over 80% of students report feeling stressed by homework"
O	Opinions (expressed as facts)	Making your view sound like common sense	"No reasonable person could disagree that..."
R	Rhetorical questions	Making the reader think without expecting an answer	"How would you feel if this happened to you?"
E	Emotive language	Appealing to the reader's emotions	"Innocent children are being denied the opportunity they deserve"
S	Statistics	Supporting your argument with numbers	"A recent study found that 7 out of 10 families..."
T	Triples (rule of three)	Listing ideas in threes for rhythm and impact	"It is unfair, it is unnecessary, and it must change"

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Structuring a Persuasive Piece

A strong persuasive piece follows a clear structure:

Section	Purpose	What to include
Introduction	State your position clearly and hook the reader	A bold opening statement or rhetorical question
Argument 1	Your strongest point	Evidence, example, or statistic to support it
Argument 2	Your second point	A different angle or piece of evidence
Argument 3	Your third point	Another reason, perhaps emotional or personal
Counter-argument	Acknowledge the other side, then dismiss it	"Some may argue that... However..."
Conclusion	Restate your position powerfully	A call to action or memorable final statement

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Before and After: Persuasive Writing

Prompt: Should school uniform be abolished? Write a speech arguing your view.

Weak version:

I think school uniform should be abolished because it is boring. Everyone has to wear the same thing and it is not fair. Also, it costs a lot of money. I think we should be allowed to wear our own clothes.

Why it is weak: It uses "I think" repeatedly, gives no evidence, has no structure, and makes no attempt to persuade — it simply states opinions.

Strong version: