Following Instructional and Explanatory Texts — WJEC-CBAC Other Life Skills Qualification Foundations for Learning Revision

    This subtopic focuses on developing the ability to follow written instructions and understand simple explanatory materials essential for daily living and e

    Topic Synopsis

    This subtopic focuses on developing the ability to follow written instructions and understand simple explanatory materials essential for daily living and employment. Learners will apply functional reading skills to interpret step-by-step directions and grasp the purpose and meaning of straightforward explanations. Practical application includes tasks like following a recipe, assembling flat-pack furniture, or reading a workplace health and safety notice.

    Key Concepts & Core Principles

    Exam Tips & Revision Strategies

    Common Misconceptions & Mistakes to Avoid

    Examiner Marking Points

    Following Instructional and Explanatory Texts

    WJEC-CBAC
    vocational

    This subtopic develops the ability to follow instructional texts, such as workplace procedures, recipes, and assembly guides, and comprehend explanatory texts, including information leaflets and how-it-works documents, which are essential for daily living and employment. Learners learn to extract key details, sequence steps, distinguish between instruction and explanation, and apply the information to complete tasks safely and effectively.

    15
    Learning Outcomes
    23
    Assessment Guidance
    23
    Key Skills
    14
    Key Terms
    26
    Assessment Criteria

    Assessment criteria

    WJEC Level 1 Certificate In Essential Skills for Work and Life
    WJEC Level 2 Certificate In Essential Skills for Work and Life
    WJEC Entry Level Award In Essential Skills for Work and Life (Entry 3)
    WJEC Entry Level Diploma In Essential Skills for Work and Life (Entry 3)
    WJEC Entry Level Certificate In Essential Skills for Work and Life (Entry 3)
    WJEC Level 1 Award In Essential Skills for Work and Life

    Topic Overview

    The WJEC Entry Level Diploma in Essential Skills for Work and Life (Entry 3) is a qualification designed to help you develop the practical skills needed for employment, independent living, and further learning. It covers key areas such as communication, numeracy, digital skills, and personal development, all at a level that builds confidence and competence. This diploma is ideal if you are preparing for work, an apprenticeship, or simply want to become more self-sufficient in daily life.

    Throughout the course, you will engage with real-world scenarios like managing money, writing emails, using public transport, and working in a team. The qualification is structured around units that reflect the skills employers and colleges value most. By completing it, you will not only gain a recognised certificate but also the ability to apply these skills in practical situations, making you more ready for the next step in your journey.

    This diploma fits within the broader 'Foundations for Learning' framework, which supports learners who benefit from a more hands-on, step-by-step approach. It is a stepping stone to higher-level qualifications, such as Level 1 or GCSEs, and helps you build a strong foundation for lifelong learning and career success.

    Key Concepts

    Core ideas you must understand for this topic

    • →Communication: Being able to listen, speak, read, and write clearly in everyday situations, such as filling in forms or explaining a problem to a colleague.
    • →Numeracy: Using numbers confidently for tasks like budgeting, measuring ingredients, or understanding timetables and pay slips.
    • →Digital Skills: Using computers, tablets, and smartphones safely for tasks like sending emails, searching for information, and completing online forms.
    • →Personal Development: Building self-confidence, setting goals, and managing time effectively to balance work, study, and personal life.
    • →Teamwork and Problem-Solving: Working with others to achieve a common goal and finding solutions to everyday challenges, like resolving a disagreement or planning an event.

    Learning Objectives

    What you need to know and understand

    • Understand instructional texts. (C1.2), Understand explanatory texts. (C1.2)
    • Understand instructional texts. (C1.2), Understand explanatory texts. (C1.2)
    • Distinguish between instructional and explanatory texts by their features.
    • Follow a simple set of written instructions to complete a practical task.
    • Identify key information in an explanatory text, such as main points and supporting details.
    • Use visual and textual clues (e.g., numbering, diagrams, headings) to understand a text’s structure.
    • Apply information from an explanatory text to answer questions or solve a problem.
    • Understand instructional texts. (C1.2), Understand explanatory texts. (C1.2)
    • Understand instructional texts. (C1.2), Understand explanatory texts. (C1.2)
    • Identify the purpose and typical structure of instructional texts
    • Follow a simple set of written instructions to complete a given task
    • Extract specific information from short explanatory texts
    • Distinguish between instructional and explanatory texts based on their features
    • Apply information from explanatory texts to answer questions or solve problems
    • Evaluate the clarity and effectiveness of a set of instructions

    Assessment Criteria

    Key criteria assessors look for in your portfolio

    • Award credit for correctly identifying the purpose of a text as instructional or explanatory, with reference to its features (e.g., imperative verbs for instructions, descriptive language for explanations).
    • Award credit for accurately extracting and logically ordering the steps from an instructional text, demonstrating the ability to follow a process from start to finish.
    • Award credit for explaining the main idea and supporting details of an explanatory text in the learner's own words, showing clear comprehension.
    • Award credit for following written instructions to successfully complete a simple practical task (e.g., assembling an item, locating a safety exit) without missing key safety or sequential requirements.
    • Award credit for accurately identifying the purpose and audience of a given instructional text (e.g., a recipe for cooking a meal).
    • Evidence of correctly sequencing steps from an instruction manual when completing a practical task.
    • Ability to extract key safety warnings or cautions from an instructional document.
    • Demonstrate understanding of explanatory texts by summarising the cause-and-effect relationships described.
    • Distinguish between fact and opinion within an explanatory article.
    • Interpret visual aids such as diagrams or flowcharts that accompany explanatory text.
    • Award credit for correctly categorising a given short text as instructional or explanatory with justification.
    • Look for evidence of completing steps in the correct order when following written instructions.
    • Credit responses that extract and restate the main idea from an explanatory text.
    • Assess ability to interpret common symbols found in instructional texts (e.g., arrows, warning icons).
    • Award credit for correctly sequencing steps from a simple instructional text (e.g., a recipe or assembly guide).
    • Evidence must show the learner can identify key information such as ingredients, tools, or safety warnings in a set of instructions.
    • Marks should be allocated for demonstrating understanding of an explanatory text by answering ‘what’, ‘why’, or ‘how’ questions accurately.
    • Learners should be able to highlight or underline the main points in a short explanatory paragraph.
    • Award credit for demonstrating the ability to correctly identify and sequence steps in an instructional text, such as putting a set of directions in order.
    • Credit should be given when the learner can extract specific details from an explanatory text, e.g., answering 'how' or 'why' questions based on a simple explanation.
    • Assessors should look for evidence of practical application, where the learner follows a simple written instruction to complete a task accurately, such as making a cup of tea using a written recipe.
    • Award credit for correctly identifying the sequence of steps in a set of instructions
    • Look for evidence of the learner applying information from an explanatory text to a practical scenario
    • Assess the ability to highlight or underline key words in an instructional text that signal actions
    • Expect learners to verbally explain the difference between instructional and explanatory texts using accurate examples
    • Check that the learner can reorder jumbled instructions into a logical sequence

    Assessment Guidance

    Guidance for achieving higher grades

    • 💡Read the text twice: first to determine whether it is instructional or explanatory, and then to focus on extracting the specific information needed for the task.
    • 💡For instructional texts, highlight or underline the action verbs (e.g., 'turn', 'press', 'add') to help sequence the steps accurately and avoid omissions.
    • 💡When explaining the content of an explanatory text, avoid directly copying phrases; use your own words to paraphrase, as this demonstrates genuine understanding and earns higher marks.
    • 💡Always check for diagrams, labels, or visual cues that accompany the text—these often contain key information that can help in answering questions correctly.
    • 💡When completing an assessment task, always scan the entire instructional text first to grasp its overall structure before following the steps.
    • 💡Underline or highlight action words (e.g., 'press', 'connect', 'stir') to ensure each step is performed correctly.
    • 💡For explanatory texts, create a simple mind map or flowchart to visualise the cause-and-effect chain, aiding recall during written responses.
    • 💡Check that you have addressed all parts of the task: if the assessment asks you to identify both the sequence and safety precautions, ensure both are included in your answer.
    • 💡Always check the title and any headings first—they often indicate whether the text is giving instructions or explaining something.
    • 💡When following instructions, tick off each step as you complete it to avoid missing any.
    • 💡For explanatory texts, try to retell the information in your own words to show understanding.
    • 💡Look out for signal words like 'first', 'next', 'because', or 'so' to help identify the text’s purpose.
    • 💡Read the entire set of instructions or explanation before attempting tasks to get an overview.
    • 💡Look for numbered steps, bullet points, or headings that break down information.
    • 💡Use pictures or diagrams to support understanding of the written words.
    • 💡In assessments, underline or circle key verbs like ‘cut’, ‘attach’, or ‘mix’ in instructions.
    • 💡For explanatory texts, identify the main topic sentence and supporting details.
    • 💡Before beginning any assessment task, carefully read the entire text to identify its purpose—look for imperative verbs (e.g., 'take', 'mix') in instructions and causal language (e.g., 'because', 'so') in explanations.
    • 💡When following instructions, underline or highlight key action words and numbers; for explanations, note the main topic and supporting details to help answer comprehension questions accurately.
    • 💡Read all instructions and accompanying questions twice before starting; underline key action words like 'list', 'describe', or 'explain'
    • 💡For explanatory text tasks, scan for headings, bullet points, and bold terms to quickly locate relevant information
    • 💡When following instructions, physically tick off each step as you complete it to avoid missing any
    • 💡Practice with real-life materials (recipes, flat-pack furniture guides) to build confidence in interpreting different formats
    • 💡Show your working out in numeracy tasks. Even if the final answer is wrong, you can get marks for the correct method. Write down each step clearly.
    • 💡In communication tasks, always check your spelling and punctuation. Use full sentences and make sure your writing is easy to read. Practice writing short emails or notes to a friend.
    • 💡For digital skills assessments, remember to save your work regularly and check that you have followed all instructions, like attaching a file or using the correct subject line in an email.

    Common Mistakes

    Common errors to avoid in your coursework

    • Confusing explanatory and instructional texts, such as treating a 'how it works' explanation as a set of actions to perform, leading to incorrect responses.
    • Overlooking critical details like safety warnings, cautions, or prerequisites in instructional texts, which compromises task outcomes.
    • Struggling to sequence instructions correctly, resulting in steps being performed out of order and tasks being incorrectly completed.
    • Assuming that any text containing bullet points or numbered lists is instructional, without recognizing that explanations often use similar formatting for clarity.
    • Assuming that instructional texts should be read in any order, ignoring numbered steps.
    • Misinterpreting imperative verbs as suggestions rather than commands.
    • Overlooking subheadings or bullet points that organize key information.
    • Confusing explanatory texts with persuasive texts, leading to misinterpreting the author's intent.
    • Failing to refer to diagrams when reading explanations, resulting in incomplete understanding.
    • Confusing instructional texts with explanatory texts because both provide information.
    • Skipping steps or misinterpreting the sequence in numbered instructions.
    • Overlooking visual elements such as diagrams or icons that clarify meaning.
    • Assuming all texts that contain bullet points are instructional.
    • Confusing the order of steps when following multi-step instructions.
    • Misinterpreting pictures or symbols used alongside text.
    • Struggling to distinguish between instructional texts (telling you what to do) and explanatory texts (telling you how something works).
    • Overlooking safety warnings or cautions printed in bold or with symbols.
    • Learners often confuse the sequence of steps in an instructional text, leading to incorrect task completion; they may skip steps or perform them out of order.
    • A common error is failing to distinguish between instructional texts (which tell you how to do something) and explanatory texts (which tell you why or how something works), leading to misinterpretation of the text's purpose.
    • Confusing explanatory text for instructional text by assuming all informative writing tells you what to do
    • Skipping or misinterpreting a step in multi-step instructions, especially if negative or conditional language is used
    • Failing to recognise visual aids (diagrams, icons) as part of the instructions and ignoring them
    • Assuming explanatory texts do not require any action, overlooking that they often inform decisions
    • Misconception: 'This qualification is just for people who can't do GCSEs.' Correction: The Entry Level Diploma is a valuable qualification in its own right, designed to build essential skills in a practical way. Many learners use it as a foundation to progress to higher levels, including GCSEs.
    • Misconception: 'I don't need to learn digital skills because I use my phone every day.' Correction: Using a phone for social media is different from using a computer for work tasks like creating a spreadsheet or sending a professional email. The course teaches you how to use technology safely and effectively in a work context.
    • Misconception: 'Numeracy is just about doing sums in a test.' Correction: Numeracy in this diploma is about applying maths to real life, such as working out change, comparing prices, or understanding a bus timetable. It's practical, not just theoretical.

    Frequently Asked Questions

    Common questions students ask about this topic

    Before You Start

    Prior knowledge that will help with this topic

    • •There are no formal prerequisites for this qualification, but it is helpful if you can read and write simple sentences and do basic addition and subtraction. If you have completed Entry 2 or have some experience of everyday maths and English, you will find the course easier to follow.

    Key Terminology

    Essential terms to know

    • Understand instructional texts. (C1.2), Understand explanatory texts. (C1.2)
    • Understand instructional texts. (C1.2), Understand explanatory texts. (C1.2)
    • Text type identification
    • Visual cues and symbols
    • Sequential information
    • Purpose of texts
    • Everyday application
    • Understand instructional texts. (C1.2), Understand explanatory texts. (C1.2)
    • Understand instructional texts. (C1.2), Understand explanatory texts. (C1.2)
    • Instructional text features
    • Explanatory text features
    • Sequencing and following steps
    • Extracting key information
    • Text comparison and contrast

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