Lesson video

Hello everyone.

It's lovely to see you here today.

My name's Dr.

Clayton and I'm going to guide you through your learning journey today.

Today's lesson's called Considering and Using Active and Passive Voice in Persuasive Letter Writing.

We're gonna talk through the definition of active and passive voice first.

Think about why they might be effective in persuasive writing.

Then we're gonna have a go at using voice in our own persuasive writing.

So if you're ready, grab your pen, laptop, whatever you're using for this lesson and let's get started.

So by the end of the lesson, you'll be able to identify and analyse the effects of active and passive voice, considering in which circumstances which is more effective.

So we have five words today we're going to be using as our keywords.

They'll be identified in bold throughout the learning material.

And I'll try to put them out to you as well so you can see them being used in context.

So our first keyword is active voice, which means where the subject of the sentence performs the action onto the object.

Our second keyword is passive voice, which means where the object is acted upon by the subject of the sentence.

We're going to be looking at examples of each of these throughout the lesson, and thinking about what the effect of their use has on the reader.

Our third keyword is direct, which means moving towards a place or object without changing direction or stopping.

In terms of your writing, being direct means you'll get to the point without adding any extra unnecessary detail.

We're going to be thinking specifically about how using active voice creates a direct tone.

Our fourth keyword is subtle, which you're making use of indirect methods to achieve something.

We're going to be thinking about how passive voice creates a subtle tone and when that might be useful.

Our fifth keyword is objective, which means not influenced by personal feelings or opinions in considering and representing facts.

We're going to be thinking about whether active or passive voice is more effective in creating an objective tone and when that might be useful.

So I'll just give you a few moments to write down those keywords and their definitions.

So pause the video, write them down now.

Fantastic, let's get started with the lesson.

So two learning cycles in our lesson today.

For our first learning cycle, we're gonna define active and passive voice and talk through some examples.

Then we're going to think about what effect they might have on the reader.

For our second learning cycle, we're going to think about how using active or passive voice might affect your persuasive writing, and when it might be better to use each of those voices.

Finally, you're gonna finish the lesson by writing a persuasive letter.

So let's just start by defining what we mean by voice before we look at active and passive voice.

Voice in writing refers to the connection between the subject and the object of a sentence.

Just a reminder, the subject of the sentence is the person or thing that's performing the action, and the object is the noun or pronouns that's being acted upon by the subject.

So let's start by looking at active voice.

Active voice is where the subject of the sentence performs the action onto the object.

So we might take the example of Tom kicked the ball.

In this example, the subject, Tom, is performing the action, kicking, onto the object, the ball.

So now let's talk about passive voice.

Passive voice is where the object is acted upon by the subject of the sentence.

So we can take the same sentence we had before, Tom kicked the ball, we can turn it into passive voice by saying the ball was kicked by Tom.

Now the object, the ball, is a recipient of the action, being kicked, to perform by the subject, Tom.

Now in terms of identifying passive voice, look at what happened and who is responsible for doing it.

If the person or thing responsible for doing the action is either omitted, so taken out, or occurs in the sentence after the thing that happened, it's written in passive voice.

You also might look out for passive voice by looking for the verb to be.

So words are, am, been, being, was, or were, that are often part of a sentence that uses passive voice.

So now for a quick check for understanding.

What I'd like you to do is fill in the gaps to complete the definitions.

So active voice is where the, of the sentence, performs the action onto the.

And passive voice is where the, is acted upon by the, of the sentence.

So pause the video and fill in the gaps now.

Welcome back everyone.

Let's talk through the answers.

So active voice is where the subject of the sentence performs the action onto the object.

And passive voice is where the object is acted upon by the subject of the sentence.

So very well done if you got those right.

So now we've defined what active and passive voice are, let's practise using them.

So what I'd like you to do is consider these three elements of a sentence.

So we have the subject, Laura, we have the verb, baked, we have the object, a cake.

What I'd like you to do is think about how you construct a sentence in active voice and how you construct a sentence in passive voice.

Remember that active voice is where the subject of the sentence performs the action onto the object, and passive voice is where the object is acted upon by the subject of the sentence.

So pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Welcome back everyone.

Let's talk through what you might have said.

So if you write the sentence as, Laura baked the cake, it's written in active voice.

As the subject of the sentence, Laura, is performing the action, baking, onto the object, the cake.

If we write the sentence as, the cake was baked by Laura, it's written in passive voice because the object, the cake, is being acted upon by the subject, Laura.

So now for a quick check for understanding.

So which of the following sentences is written in active voice? Is it A, Sam wore her school uniform? B, the school uniform was being worn by Sam? Or C, the school was being run by the headmaster.

So pause the video, make your selection now.

Welcome back everyone.

Now the correct answer is A, Sam wore her school uniform.

Here the subject, Sam, is performing the action, wearing, onto the object, the school uniform.

The other two sentences are in passive voice.

In sentence B, the object, the school uniform, is being act upon by the subject, Sam.

And in sentence C, the object, the school, is being act upon by the subject, the headmaster.

So very well done if you got that right.

Amazing work so far everyone.

We're on to the first task of the lesson.

What I'd like you to do is read the following two sentences.

So sentence one.

More flexible timings of the school day are deserved by pupils.

And sentence two.

Pupils deserve more flexible timings of the school day.

And then I'd like you to answer the following questions.

So question one.

Which sentence is written in active voice, which is in passive voice? And number two.

What is the difference in effect between the two sentences? Pause the video, answer the questions now.

Welcome back everyone, some great work there.

Now I'm gonna share the ideas of one of our Oak pupils, Sofia.

I'd like you to think about how well they align with your ideas.

So let's start by considering Sofia's ideas about sentence one.

And let's think about how well they align with your ideas.

So sentence one.

More flexible times of the school day are deserved by the pupils.

So question one was which sentence is written in active voice, which is in passive voice? And Sofia said, this is written in passive voice as the object, more flexible times of the school day, is being acted upon by the subject, the pupils.

Question two.

What is the difference in effect between the two sentences? Now Sofia said, that using passive voice creates a more detached and less direct tone.

It doesn't get to the point straight away.

Therefore, the reader's focus is placed on the object, the timings of the school day, rather than subject, the pupils.

And this can mean it's more subtle, so it's less direct and it's more objective.

It's less influenced by personal feelings 'cause we're focusing on the object rather than the subject.

So pause the video, think about how well Sofia's ideas align with your ideas.

Welcome back everyone.

Now we're gonna talk through the second sentence.

So as with the first sentence, I'm gonna talk through Sofia's ideas and then you can think about how well they align with your ideas.

So just a reminder, the second sentence was, pupils deserve more flexible timings of the school day.

And Sofia said, this is written in active voice since the subject, the pupils, are performing the action, deserving, the object, the flexible timings of the school day.

In terms of the effect, Sofia said, the active voice is more direct.

So it gets straight to the points of the sentence, and that means it comes across as confident and concise.

The fact that it starts with the subject means the reader focuses on the subject, the pupils, and what they deserve.

So pause the video, consider how well Sofia's ideas align with your ideas.

Welcome back everyone.

Now we're going to move on to our second learning cycle.

We're going to think about active voice and passive voice in relation to persuasive writing.

Amazing work so far everyone.

Now for the second learning cycle, we're going to spend a little bit of time thinking about when using active voice and passive voice might be more appropriate in terms of persuasive writing.

Then you are gonna have a go at writing your own persuasive letter.

So before we start looking at active voice and passive voice in terms of persuasive writing, let's remind ourselves what we said the effect of active and passive voice was.

So active voice creates a more direct, confident tone in your writing.

It places the focus on the subject and the action they're performing.

Passive voice creates a less direct, more objective tone in your writing.

It places the focus on the object rather than the subject.

So now let's think about how we can connect the effective active and passive voice with persuasive writing.

So just a reminder that persuasive writing is a form of nonfiction writing that's written to persuade the reader of a belief, opinion, or idea.

So you want to convince them that they should believe what you're saying.

So what I'd like you to think about is which type of voice, so active or passive, do you think will be the most effective in persuasive writing? And why is that? Think about the purpose of persuasive writing and which voice will convey that best to the reader.

So pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Welcome back everyone, some great ideas there.

Let's talk through what you might have said.

You might have thought the active voice is more persuasive because it's more concise.

It allows the reader to focus on the subject of your argument without being distracted.

Because it focuses on the subject, it's a more direct and confident form of communication because it zooms in on the subject and the action they're performing.

Now, while active voice is typically seen as more effective in persuasive writing, there are circumstances where passive voice may be more effective.

So what I'd like you to think about is when do you think passive voice might be more effective? Why is that? Think about the fact that it's more objective and it's more subtle.

Pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Welcome back everyone, some fantastic ideas there.

Let's talk through what you might have said.

So you might have thought it'd be useful in trying to persuade someone you aren't responsible for something.

So politicians and company directors often use passive voice when they want to talk about a problem without admitting responsibility for the problem.

So they might say something like, mistakes were made rather than, I made a mistake, because it's more detached and objective.

And therefore it distracts the read from focusing on them and their shortcomings.

You also might have thought it could be effective of a letter of complaint because it's less direct and the focus is on the problem rather than the person who completed the action.

You're much more likely to have a positive response to a complaint if you don't make the person feel defensive, or if they feel as if they're personally being attacked.

You want them to focus on the issue and how it made you feel rather than what someone else did wrong.

So now for a quick check for understanding.

What I'd like you to do is tell me whether the following statement is true or false.

So is it true or false that active voice is typically seen as more effective in persuasive writing? Pause the video, make a selection now.

Now the correct answer is true.

Now I'd like you to tell me why it's true.

So pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Welcome back everyone.

You might have said that active voice is more direct, it's more concise and confident, so therefore we think it's more persuasive.

So very well done if you got that right.

Now for the final task of the lesson, you are gonna be writing a letter to the Minister for Education, about changing the hours of the school day, and you want to make the following points.

You want to say that the current early start of the day leaves pupils feeling sleep deprived and it negatively affects their wellbeing.

You also want to say that a later start would allow pupils more time to relax and spend time with their family.

So what I'd like you to think about is do you think active or passive voice would be more effective? Why is that? Pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Welcome back everyone, some great ideas there.

Now let's talk through what you might have said.

So you might have thought, that you want the focus to be on the pupil, the subject of the argument, in order to make the reader feel sympathy for the pupil and make them want to make a change that benefits them.

An active voice places the focus onto the subject and therefore would be the most effective in this type of persuasive letter.

So now for a quick check for understanding.

What I'd like you to do is tell me whether the following statement is true or false.

So is it true or false? That passive voice would be the most effective in convincing the Minister for Education of the negative effects of the early school day.

Pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Welcome back everyone.

The correct answer is false.

Now I'd like you to tell me why it's false.

So pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Welcome back everyone.

You might have said that passive voice placed the emphasis on the object, whereas active voice placed the emphasis on the subject, which is more effective in showing the negative effects on the pupils.

So very well done if you've got those right.

Fantastic work everyone.

We're at the final task of the lesson where I'd like you to write a formal letter to the Minister for Education to persuade them to start the school day later.

So remember to use active voice to create a direct tone and emphasise the negative effects on the pupils.

And just a reminder, in the formal letter form, the sender's address goes in the top right-hand corner with the date underneath.

And the recipient's address goes on the left-hand side with a salutation or greeting underneath.

And then the sign off goes at the end of the letter.

So pause the video, write your persuasive letter now.

Welcome back everyone, some fantastic work there.

What I'd like you to do now is read back over your work and rewrite one paragraph in passive voice.

So rewrite it to where the object is being acted upon by the subject of the sentence.

I'd like you to reflect on the following questions.

So what difference does it make to your writing, and do you think it affects how persuasive your writing is? So pause the video and rewrite one of your paragraphs now.

Welcome back everyone.

It was great to see people noticing how much more detached passive voice seems. By not getting directly to the subject of your sentence and adding extra unnecessary words, it distracts from your message, and therefore makes your writing seem less persuasive.

Remember, a good way to check your work for passive voice is to look for what happened and who's responsible for doing it.

If the person or thing responsible for doing the action is either omitted, so taken out, or occurs in the sentence after the thing that happened, it's written in passive voice.

You also might look out for passive voice by looking for the verb, to be.

So words such as are, am, been, being, was, or were, as they're often part of a sentence that uses passive voice.

So try to read back over your work and see whether you're using active or passive voice, and think about what effect that's having on your writing.

You all did amazingly well today everyone.

Here's a summary of what we covered.

We might see active voice as more direct, more concise and confident.

So by starting with the subject of the sentence, it gets straight to the point and the reader's focus is placed onto the subject.

We could see passive voice as less direct, more detached, and objective by starting with the object.

The reader's focus is on the object rather than the subject, and therefore it makes your writing seem less personal and more focused on the facts rather than the subject.

Potentially we might see active voice is more appropriate in more persuasive writing circumstances because it focuses the reader's attention onto the subject, which is more like to make them want to make a change to their behaviour or make a change to a policy.

However, we might use passive voice if we want to avoid responsibility or to make a complaint because it focuses on the object rather than the subject.

So it takes folks away from the person who performed the action, which is useful if you want to deflect responsibility or to focus on the effect something had on you rather than personally blaming the person who made the mistake.

I really hope you enjoyed the lesson everyone.

I hope to see you for another lesson soon.

Goodbye.