IB Diploma Programme Language B – Paper 1: productive skills and text types Study Guide

This study guide teaches the writing skills behind Paper 1 of IB Diploma Programme Language B: choosing a task, reading its context, audience and purpose, and producing a text with the right register and conventions. It follows the IB Language B subject brief for first assessment 2020, which remains the examined course until the new syllabus is first assessed in May 2029, so it applies to the 2026, 2027 and 2028 sessions. It covers SL and HL and draws on all five prescribed themes, because a Paper 1 task can come from any of them. It is written in English; apply each point to your target language.

Use it with the Paper 1 revision notes and the Paper 1 practice questions. For the whole course, see the Language B course hub and the printable Language B checklist.

What this unit covers

Part of the unit	What you must be able to do	SL/HL
Paper 1 as the brief describes it	State what it tests, how the task is chosen and what it is worth	Both
Context, audience, purpose	Read them from a task and let them drive every choice you make	Both
Register	Pitch your language from informal to formal, and hold it	Both
Personal texts	Write for yourself or people you know, with the right conventions	Both
Professional texts	Write to an organisation or in a working role	Both
Mass-media texts	Write for a wide public audience	Both
Choosing one task from three	Pick the task you can do best, fast	Both
Complexity	Use more complex language and structures and higher-order thinking	HL tasks demand more; higher word range at HL

What the brief says about Paper 1

The subject brief gives these facts, and only these, about the paper:

• It is Paper 1 (productive skills), externally assessed.
• You complete one writing task from a choice of three.
• It is worth 25% of the final grade and is marked out of 30 marks (“Writing—30 marks”).
• The outline is the same at SL and HL. At HL “the tasks set will require more complex language and structures and demand higher-order thinking skills”, and “a higher word range has been provided”.

The brief does not print the word ranges, the list of text types or the marking criteria. Your teacher will share these from the full subject guide.

Two of the brief’s assessment objectives describe the task exactly: “Communicate clearly and effectively in a range of contexts and for a variety of purposes” and “Understand and use language appropriate to a range of interpersonal and/or intercultural contexts and audiences”. Paper 1 rewards language that fits, not only language that is correct.

Five questions before you write

The brief names five conceptual understandings for the course: context, audience, purpose, meaning and variation. Turn them into five questions and answer each one in your plan.

1. Context. Where and why does this text exist? Context sets the format.
2. Audience. Who reads it, and what is your relationship to them? A friend, a manager, the general public. Audience sets the register.
3. Purpose. What must the text do? Inform, persuade, request, complain, advise, reflect. Most tasks have a main purpose and a second one.
4. Meaning. What single message should the reader take away? If you cannot say it in one sentence, your text will drift.
5. Variation. Which form of the language suits this reader? Languages vary by region, age group and situation. Choose forms that suit the reader and stay consistent.

Register: the scale you write on

Register is how formal or informal your language is: a scale, not a switch.

	Informal	Neutral	Formal
Typical reader	Friend, family, peers online	Wide public, school community	Manager, official, organisation
Address	First names, familiar “you” form	“you” to readers in general	Titles and surnames, polite “you” form
Vocabulary	Everyday, some slang, emotive	Clear, standard	Precise, impersonal
Sentences	Short, questions, exclamations	Varied	Complete, linked, fewer exclamations
Tone	Chatty, personal	Engaging but controlled	Polite, measured

Most languages mark register in ways English does not. French chooses between tu and vous, German between du and Sie, Spanish between tú and usted. Once you choose a form of address, keep it for the whole text, including verb endings and possessives. Switching halfway is one of the most visible register errors.

Worked example: one message, three registers

The message: a school event has moved from Friday to Monday. Original texts written for Marlbridge.

Informal (message to a friend): Hey! Bad news, the quiz night’s moved to Monday. Still up for it? Let me know!

Neutral (school newsletter): Please note that this term’s quiz night will now take place on Monday rather than Friday. Tickets already bought remain valid.

Formal (letter to a guest speaker): I am writing to inform you that the quiz night has been rescheduled to Monday. I apologise for any inconvenience and would be grateful if you could confirm whether you are still able to attend.

What changes, step by step:

1. Opening. “Hey!” becomes “Please note” becomes “I am writing to inform you”. The formal version states its purpose in its first clause.
2. Vocabulary. “moved” becomes “will now take place” becomes “has been rescheduled”.
3. Structure. Fragments (“Still up for it?”) give way to full sentences and a passive.
4. Request. “Let me know!” becomes “would be grateful if you could confirm”. Conditional and polite forms carry formality in most languages.

Three families of text types

This page sorts text types into three families by audience: personal, professional and mass media. Your teacher’s list from the full guide is the one to learn. The tables show the conventions that most often decide whether a text looks like the type it claims to be.

Personal texts: for yourself or someone you know

Text type	Layout and opening	Register	Typical moves	Closing
Diary or journal entry	Date, sometimes a time	Informal, first person	Events of the day, feelings, reflection	A thought about tomorrow or what you learned
Personal email or letter	Greeting by first name	Informal to neutral	Shared references, news, questions to the reader	Friendly sign-off and name
Blog post (personal)	Title, engaging first line	Informal to neutral	Direct address to followers, anecdote, opinion	Question or invitation to comment

Professional texts: to an organisation or in a working role

Text type	Layout and opening	Register	Typical moves	Closing
Formal letter	Addresses, date, formal salutation	Formal	Purpose in the first paragraph; one point per paragraph; a clear request	Formal closing formula, name, role
Formal email	Subject line, formal salutation	Formal to neutral	Shorter than a letter; purpose first; action requested	Polite close and name
Report	Title, “to/from/date” or an introduction stating the aim	Neutral to formal, impersonal	Headings, findings, evidence	Recommendations
Proposal	Title and aim	Formal, persuasive	Problem, plan, costs or resources, benefits	Request for approval

In your target language, learn the fixed formulas. French letters often open “Madame, Monsieur,” and close with a “Veuillez agréer…” formula; German uses “Sehr geehrte Damen und Herren” and “Mit freundlichen Grüßen”; Spanish uses “Estimado/a” and “Atentamente”. Check yours with your teacher.

Mass-media texts: for a wide public audience

Text type	Layout and opening	Register	Typical moves	Closing
Article (news or feature)	Headline, often a subheading, byline	Neutral	Who, what, where, when, why; quotations from people	A final quotation or look ahead
Opinion piece or editorial	Headline that signals a view	Neutral to formal, persuasive	Clear stance, evidence, counterargument	Restated view or call to action
Speech	Greeting to the audience	Depends on audience; spoken features	Signposting, rhetorical questions, inclusive “we”	Thanks and a memorable last line
Leaflet or brochure	Title, short sections under subheadings	Neutral, direct	Bullet points, imperatives, contact details	Call to action
Review	Title, what is being reviewed	Neutral, evaluative	Brief summary, strengths, weaknesses, rating or verdict	Recommendation

Choosing one task from three

You get three tasks and write one. Spend the first minutes choosing well.

1. Read all three to the end. The text type and audience are often in the last line.
2. Underline five things in each: your role, the reader, the purpose, the text type and the content points you must cover.
3. Ask two questions. Do I control this text type’s conventions? Do I have the topic vocabulary in my target language?
4. Choose the task where both answers are yes.
5. Commit. Changing task halfway wastes time.

Worked example: decoding and planning a professional task

An original task written for Marlbridge (theme: Social organization, topic: the working world):

A local community library is looking for young volunteers to run a weekend reading club for children. Write to the library manager to offer your help, explaining what you could bring to the role and asking about practical details.

Step 1 — decode.

• Role: a student offering to volunteer.
• Reader: the library manager, someone you do not know. Formal register.
• Purpose: to offer help (main), to persuade them you are suitable, and to request information.
• Text type: the task says “write to the library manager”, so a formal letter or formal email.
• Content points: what you could bring; practical questions.

Step 2 — plan the paragraphs.

1. Salutation and purpose: why you are writing and where you saw the notice.
2. What you bring: two specific strengths, each with an example (reading to younger siblings; a club you already help run).
3. A short idea for the reading club, to show initiative.
4. Practical questions: hours, training, whether a reference is needed.
5. Closing: availability, thanks, formal formula, name.

Step 3 — model opening and close (original text written for Marlbridge).

Dear Ms Varga,

I am writing in response to your notice asking for volunteers to run a weekend reading club. I am seventeen, I read to my two younger brothers every evening, and I would very much like to help.

…

I am available every Saturday morning from next month. Thank you for considering my offer. I look forward to hearing from you.

Yours sincerely, Daniel Okafor

The opening names the purpose, then gives a concrete reason. The close gives availability, thanks the reader and uses a fixed formula.

SL and HL

The outline is identical at both levels; HL tasks demand more complex language and higher-order thinking, with a higher word range. So an HL plan should do more than report or describe:

• Weigh two sides before reaching a view.
• Anticipate the reader’s objection and answer it.
• Use complex structures you control: conditionals, subordinate clauses, the passive, structures of concession (“although…”, “even if…”).

SL writers should aim for the same where they can control the language. Complexity you cannot control costs more than it earns.

Common errors

• Right content, wrong text type. A general essay when the task asked for a speech, with no greeting, no audience and no closing appeal.
• Register drift. A formal letter that ends “Anyway, see you soon!”, or switches from the polite to the familiar “you”.
• Conventions only at the start. A headline, then paragraphs that read like a diary.
• Missing content points. The task asks for two things; the text answers one.

Where next

• Paper 1 revision notes and Paper 1 practice questions
• Theme pages: Identities, Experiences, Human ingenuity, Sharing the planet
• Syllabus guide, subject overview, exam preparation and assessment revision notes

Official syllabus

International Baccalaureate Organization, Diploma Programme Subject Brief, Language B, first assessment 2020 (2018). The Paper 1 facts, assessment objectives and conceptual understandings on this page are taken from it. Text-type conventions are general writing practice; check the list and criteria your teacher shares from the full subject guide.