Writing Two: A Proposal

Vocabulary Input
Here are some of the useful vocabulary items that can help you finish your task. Try to make good
use of them to enrich your writing task. (The words with * are advanced vocabulary items.)
Fundraising activities Social issues Adjectives describing events
1. auction 1. animal abuse 1. attractive
2. cookie-selling 2. bullying 2. creative
3. disco 3. child abuse 3. eco-friendly
4. dress casual day 4. divorce 4. interacting
5. flag day 5. drug addiction 5. meaningful
6. jumble sale 6. food waste 6. popular
7. readathon 7. homelessness 7. rewarding
8. raffle 8. poverty 8. impressive*
9. sponsored walk 9. suicide 9. entertaining*
10. talent show 10. gambling addiction* 10. thrilling*
11. drink driving* 11. educational*
12. web addiction*
People who need help Other useful vocabulary items Volunteering
1. Underprivileged 1. charity 1. Install Communal fridge
children 2. concern 2. Help repair buildings
2. low-income families 3. donate 3. Serve food in a homeless
3. the needy / people in 4. estimate shelter
need 5. include 4. Clean up a park
4. The elderly 6. lend a hand
5. The homeless / 7. leftovers Advantages of volunteering
homeless people / 8. insights 19. Be more motivated
Street sleepers 9. open to all students 20. Broaden one’s mind
6. Orphans* 10. promote 21. Appreciate life*
7. Gamblers* 11. recommend / propose 22. Contribute*
8. Visually impaired* 12. support 23. Develop one’s empathy*
9. Victims* 13. sponsor 24. Learn to put yourself in
People who are involved 14. take part in/ participate in* someone’s shoes*
1. participants 15. volunteer work 25. Raise one’s awareness of*
2. performers 16. venue
3. audience 17. promotion and
4. organizers* administration fees
5. sponsors* 18. promotional leaflet
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Writing Two: A Proposal

Vocabulary Exercise
Social issues are important topics for debate or discussion. These topics usually appear in newspapers
and many experts are consulted for their opinions or advice on how the situations arose and how they
should be solved.

Look at the following posters and tell the social issues.

(1)________________ (2)__________________ (3)________________ (4)________________

_______________ __________________ _________________ _________________

(5)_______________ (6)_________________ (7)__________________ (8)______________

________________ _________________ __________________ ______________

On 5th and 6th May,2017, LIY students can do something at the campus to offer help to people who
are in need. Through some fundraising activities being held on the two days, the Student Union can
give (9)______________________________, (10)__________________ funds and
(11)__________________ money to some charitable organizations. The funfair activities on 6th May
would be (12)________________ so that students can enjoy; (13)____________________, to make
sure they are not just for fun; and (14)______________________, as it is hoped more students would
come and join the activities.

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There are a lot of fundraising ideas to opt for which may either be simple or a bit complicated. As a
matter of fact, it is usually the simplest plan which works best.

The Student Union has proposed the following activities:

Activities Remarks
1. Each (16)_____________________ has to make a
A donation of $10 or above and he or she still needs to
(15)__________________________ wear proper clothes to school
(5th May)
2. Collect personalized shirts, mugs, pens, and other
A(17)__________________________ collectible items from teachers, parents and students
(6th May)
3. Some students or parents can help as they are good at
The(18)_______________________ making cookies
(6th May)
4. Book the school hall as the (20)_________________,
A (19)_________________________ over 30 (21)_____________________________ and
(6th May 200 (22)___________________________ are
3:00pm-5:00pm)` expected
5. Each ticket to be sold at $20, principal and vice-
A (23)_________________________ principals would be the
(6th May) (24)___________________________for gifts

Besides, the Student Union is recruiting volunteers to(25)______________________ through taking

up some (26)________________________________. Since it is for
(27)________________________, students should be happy to help. All activities would be
(28)_________________________________ , which means every LIY student can
(29)______________________________________.

Indeed, not just those shown in the posters need our (30)______________________, the prospect
beneficiary could either be the (31)__________________________________(those lacking the
standard of living and opportunities enjoyed by most people in a society),
(32)_________________________________ (having problems of loneliness and ageism)and
(33)___________________________________(a family's income fails to meet its needs) and the
likes. Regardless of who or which is the beneficiary, fundraising may be just the most precise thing
to do.

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Writing Two: A Proposal

What is a proposal?
 A proposal is a plan or a list of suggestions that are put forward for consideration or discussion
by other people.
 The aim of the proposal is to convince the reader that the plan is good and hence should be
supported.

Part A) Analysis of the writing topic:

Situation: The Student Work Committee is now inviting a proposal from each class regarding the
End of the Year Charity Function. You are Peter Chan, the chairperson of F.3G class committee. You
are going to make a recommendation to SWC.

The proposal should include the following items:

 aims of the End of the Year Charity Function
 the local charity you would like to support and reason(s) for your choice
 three events you would like to suggest
 the budget and fund you need

Step 1: Analysis
Now study the situation more closely and do an analysis with your partners. (Group Work)

Genre/Text Type:
Tone/ Style:
Intended Sentence Structures /
Role of the writer:
language Features

Target reader:

Purpose of writing

The use of pronoun

(Highlight and number the main points to cover in the situation.)

Main points to cover

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Step 2: Identifying what information is needed
What should be included in the proposal? Below is a proposal written by Peter Chan.

Proposal for the End of the Year Charity Function

1. Introduction
On behalf of F.3G class committee, I would like to make a recommendation for the End of the Year
Charity Function organized by the Student Work Committee. We hope students can be inspired by
the charity our class recommends and everyone in our school can contribute something to help the
needy.

2. Recommended Charity
As voted by our classmates, the class committee would like to support a charity called Save the
Children Hong Kong, which was established in April 2009 with the aim of raising funds to support
their programmes in China and other countries. It works to resolve the ongoing struggles children
face every day — poverty, hunger, illiteracy and diseases — and replaces their struggles with hope
for the future. We have found it extremely meaningful to raise fund to help these underprivileged
children. They are the pillars of our future world.

3. Activities
The following activities are proposed and it is suggested that the activities should be done on 9th
July and some of them may start on 2nd July and will last for a week.

3.1 Talent Show

We suggest organising a talent show which could include singing, dancing, juggling and a magic
show. It is suggested that performers should be recruited before Easter Holiday. There should not
be more than twelve groups since the show will be expected to be held from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
It will be held in the school hall. Students can perform what they are good at so it is easy to get
student performers and this may attract their families and friends to give support. The most exciting
part is that the audience can vote for their favourite performance. Students must love this activity.
Consequently, more tickets will be sold. As a result, it will enable us to raise more money.

3.2 Readathon
We think a readathon will be a great idea because it is fun and meaningful at the same time. For
every book that students read, they can be sponsored $10 by their families, friends and teachers.
Students will be encouraged to read English books for a week from 2nd July to 9th July. Besides,
the school library will organise a book fair to introduce some more new books for students to
choose within this week. The reading atmosphere can be promoted as well.
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 3.3 Balloon Pop
We would like to propose this activity since it is easy to organise. Before filling a balloon with air
or helium, student helpers will put a note inside the balloon. There will be a certain number of the
notes which will be worth a prize. Students will buy balloons and pop them in the hope of getting
the prize. It can be a thrilling lunch activity. However, we need twenty helpers to prepare the
balloons with notes inside. We may consider inviting the Parent-Teacher Association to be our
volunteers helping giving out the prizes.

4. Budget and the Fund

An estimated budget of $2000 will be required to buy gifts,$ 700 to purchase balloons and $5000
for miscellaneous items. We hope the Parent-Teacher Association can sponsor us $7000 for the
whole function. Last year, a total of $24780 was raised. We hope we can raise $ 30000 this year.

5. Conclusion
I believe that the proposed activities will be effective and interesting enough to attract students.
Although we may not be able to raise tens of thousands of dollars, every single donation, no matter
big or small, will help. Additionally, students can benefit from participating in the activities. They
not only can lend a hand to the needy, but also learn how to organise activities. We hope that you
will consider our proposal.

Read the proposal written by Peter Chan (p.19-20) and complete the following table.
Aims of the End of
the Year Charity
Function

The local charity

you would like to
support
Reason(s) for your
choice

Events you would

like to suggest

Budget and fund

you need

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Part B) Genre Features
Read the following proposal. Pay attention to the structure and organization of the proposal.
Proposal for Activities to Celebrate
Our School 65th anniversary on Open Day.

1. Introduction / Background
As the chairperson of the Student Union, I would like to propose various sorts of
activities to celebrate our 65th anniversary on Open Day, which is on 24th April.

2. Theme
This year, we suggest choosing ‘Lending a Hand’ as our theme. We can nurture
students’ willingness to serve others, and bring what they have learnt back into the
classrooms and thus their whole-person development will be fostered through joining
fundraising activities.

3. Activities
3.1 Teacher Charity Game
We would like to generate excitement among students of attending a dodgeball game
which will include teams made up of their teachers. We would sell tickets to students
who want to watch the game. It could either be a serious game or a comical one. It
will be held in the playground from 1:00 p.m.to 3:00 p.m.

3.2 Fun Fair

In order to attract more visitors, a fun fair is a good choice. Twenty stalls should be
set up in the covered playground from 10:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Each class should be
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 responsible for one which can serve games or sell handicrafts or food.

3.3 Visiting the Elderly

We recommend organizing visits to homes for the elderly so as to develop students’
social awareness. Before the visits, students could prepare gifts for the aged, such as
knitting scarves or gloves. The preparation work will be done in the Art Room from
9: 00 a.m. to 10 a.m. Participants will set off at 5:00. Students have to sign up by 1st
April if they want to participate in the visit. This activity would teach students the
importance of looking after the elderly and could help to develop their social skills.

4. Budget and Fund

An estimated budget of $200 will be required to sponsor each class to set up the stall
in the Fun Fair. Moreover, $1,000 will be needed to purchase gifts for the prizes of
the dodgeball games. If possible, we hope the Parent-Teacher Association can sponsor
us the transportation fee of the visit to the elderly centres. We hope we can raise at
least $15,000.

5. Conclusion
The activities mentioned above are fun, meaningful and educational. They can also
raise students’ awareness of the needs of others. We sincerely hope that this proposal
will be approved.

II. Identify different parts of the layout of a proposal by choosing the labels from the following box
and write the letters (A – F) in the boxes on the left of the above proposal.
A. heading B. title C. conclusion D. subheading E. body F. introduction

Points to note:
 Title – should be brief, clear and specific.
 Heading – should tell the reader what the section is about.
 Subheading – each section can be divided further into subsections with subheadings. The
section and subsection headings should be numbered.
 Introduction - explain what the proposed event and reasons of writing
 Body – divide the content into clear sections.
 Conclusion – summarize the main points of the event in the conclusion
 The tone of a proposal should be formal, polite and persuasive.

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Language and Style
I. Language patterns
 Use modal verbs such as ‘can’, ‘could’, ’will’, ‘would’, ‘must’, ‘should’ and ‘may’ to make
suggestions, express possibility and express politeness in proposals.
e.g. We could publish a student art and culture magazine to enhance their
sense of belonging.
e.g. We may want to invite someone to judge the event.
 Phrases like ‘would like’, ‘plan to’, ‘expect to’ are used in proposals.
e.g. The Student Union plans to invite tenders for the juice bar contract.
e.g. We would like to propose a healthy food and juice bar in the school cafeteria.
 Use expressions like ‘to’, ‘in order to’, ‘so that’ and ‘so as to’ to show purposes.
e.g. We will add a comic page in order to / to encourage students to express their ideas.
 Conditional sentences can be used.
e.g. If we get $50,000, we will have enough money to renovate the school hall.
 Passive voice should be used.
e.g. Twenty stalls should be set up in the playground.
 Avoid using contractions such as ‘I’ll’, ‘I’m’, ‘I’ve’ and informal language like ‘See you’,
‘Talk to you soon’ in the proposal.
 Use concise, straightforward English in your proposal.

II. Useful words and expressions

 Introduction
- As the chairperson of the Student Union, I would like to propose…
- On behalf of the School Social Services Club, I would like to make a recommendation for …

 Describing charities
- a charity / group that helps ...
- an organisation that aims to ...
- helping others / people in need / those less fortunate
- runs programmes dealing with ...

 Describing a charity day

- To support ..., a charity event was held on ...
- ... will be / is organised to raise money for ...
- We expect to raise a total of ...
 Ending the proposal
- We sincerely hope that this proposal will be approved.
- We hope that you will consider our proposal.
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Part C) Get Ready for the Writing Task
Exercise 1 Techniques Commonly Used in Proposals
a) Using question words (i.e. what, who, why, how, where) is a good way to help us come up
with a detailed description of the suggested actions/activities. Study the following paragraph
taken from the sample text on p.4 and fill in each of the blanks below with a Wh-question
word.

Teacher Charity Game

We would like to have a dodgeball game which includes teams made up of their teachers in order
to generate excitement among students. We would sell tickets to students who want to watch the
game. Each ticket will cost $10. It could either be a serious game or a comical one. It will be held
in the playground from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.

b) Read the following description of the activity and use question words to see what kind of
details should be included.

Visiting the Elderly

We recommend organizing visits to homes for the elderly so as to develop students’ social
awareness. Before the visits, students could prepare gifts for the aged, such as knitting scarves or
gloves. The preparation work will be done in the Art Room from 9: 00 a.m. to 10 a.m. Participants
will set off at 5:00. Students have to sign up by 1st April if they want to participate in the visit.

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Exercise 2 Writing a detailed description of your suggested activity
Choose one more activity from the vocabulary list for the school open day. Use the given question
words to write a detailed description of the activity. (Group work)

What

Why

How

Who

Where

When

________________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________

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Exercise 3 Language features / sentence structures
Pair Work: Read reading text one and find out what language features / sentence structures can be
used. Jot down the language features and underline the sentences.
Student A
Language Features / sentence structures

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Pair Work: Read reading text two and find out what language features / sentence structures can be
used. Jot down the language features and underline the sentences.
Student B
Language Features / sentence structures

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Part D) Your Turn
Situation
You are Chris Wong, the chairperson of the Student Union at your school. You and your committee
members plan to raise fund to help a charity through organising a series of school activities on
Christmas Eve. You are writing a proposal to the principal hoping that he can approve your plan and
support the event.

Task

In your proposal, you have to include the following items:

 aims of organizing the school activities on Christmas Eve
 the charity you would like to offer help and reason(s) for your choice
 the activities you would like to suggest
 the budget
Write your proposal with at least three activities which have not been mentioned in the sample texts
1 and 2 in about 300 words.

You need to pay attention to the following points:

1) You MUST use at least 10 vocabulary items from the vocabulary input. Underline them in
your writing.
2) You MUST use 4 of the following words. Pay attention to the parts of speech. Underline them
in your writing.
enable importance successful choice
attract care actively attention
3) You MUST use 7 of the following sentences structures. You may need English Dessert when
you are working on the task. Underline them in your writing.
a) Modal verbs
b) Gerunds
c) Because of +N, S+V+O
d) because / since / as
e) Even though...
f) Relative clauses (who / which)
g) Conditional sentences
h) Passive voice
i) Connective
j) in order to / so as to

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Step 1: Analysis
Before you write, you should analyse the question carefully and finish the following table.
(Group Work)

Genre/Text Type:
Tone/ Style:
Intended Sentence Structures /
language Features

Role of the writer:

Target reader:

Purpose of writing

The use of pronoun

(Highlight and number the main points to cover in the situation.)

Main points to cover

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Step 2: Identifying what information is needed
Can you suggest what should be included? (Group work)

_________________Title____________________

1. ___________________

2.Recommended Charity
(the charity you would
like to offer help and
reason(s) for your
choice)
3. 3.1 Details of the activity:
____________

3.2 Details of the activity:

3.3 Details of the activity:

3. Budget and fund you

need

5. Conclusion

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