Explain How It Works — Explanation Writing — Answers

Answer sheet with model answers and success criteria for the Year 7 informative writing writing prompt.

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Year 7 · English · Informative Writing

Explain How It Works — Explanation Writing — Answers

Success Tutoring

Plan

Put the stages in the right order before you write.

1.Process and title (as a question):

Answer: How does the water cycle work?

2.General statement (what the process is and why it matters):

Answer: The water cycle is the continuous movement of water between the oceans, the air and the land. It supplies all the fresh water that living things depend on.

3.Stages in order (3–5), each with a cause:

Answer: 1. The sun heats water in oceans and lakes, so it evaporates into water vapour. 2. The vapour rises, cools and condenses into droplets, which form clouds. 3. When droplets become heavy, they fall as precipitation (rain, hail or snow). 4. Water runs off into rivers or soaks into the ground, and flows back to the sea.

4.Technical words you will define:

Answer: evaporation, condensation, precipitation, run-off

5.Concluding statement (why it matters or an interesting fact):

Answer: The same water has been cycling for millions of years; the water in your glass may once have fallen as rain on a dinosaur.

Write

6.Write your explanation text with a title, a general statement, the stages in order and a concluding statement. Use subheadings or a new paragraph for each stage.

Model answer: How does the water cycle work? The water cycle is the continuous movement of water between the oceans, the atmosphere and the land. It never stops, and every drop of fresh water on Earth depends on it. First, the sun heats the surface of oceans, lakes and rivers. As a result, liquid water turns into an invisible gas called water vapour. This process is called evaporation.

Success criteria:

Title written as a question or 'How...' statement
General statement introduces the process clearly
Stages are in a logical order with sequencing words
Each stage explains why it happens using cause-and-effect connectives
At least four technical terms are used and defined
Written in present tense, third person, with no opinions
A concluding statement finishes the explanation

Marking tips

Give credit for correct method even when the final answer slips — the working shows where the thinking went right.
For open-ended tasks, use the success criteria as a checklist rather than looking for one "right" answer.
Celebrate what went well first, then pick one thing to work on next.