The writing paper ("production écrite") is the last of the collective papers and is marked out of 25 by two examiners with the official grid. Writing did not change in the comprehension reform: there is one format at every level.
| Level | Time | Task | Words |
|---|---|---|---|
| DELF A1 | 30 min | Fill in a form (10 points) and write a short message (15 points) | At least 40 for the message |
| DELF A2 | 45 min | Two short texts, 12.5 points each | At least 60 each |
| DELF B1 | 45 min | Give your personal view in a letter, email, article or forum post | At least 160 |
| DELF B2 | 1 h | Take an argued position (letter, article, report, forum contribution) | At least 250 |
| DALF C1 | 2 h 30 | A synthesis of a dossier, then an argued essay, 12.5 points each | 200-240, then at least 250 |
| DALF C2 | 3 h 30 | One structured text from a dossier of about 2,000 words (/50, with reading) | At least 700 |
A word is a group of characters between two spaces: "j'ai" and "rendez-vous" are one word each. Write your word count at the bottom of the copy.
Exercise 1 (10 points). A form with personal details, for a hotel, a club or a subscription: ten fields at 1 point each. Spelling is not penalised if the word sounds right, but the field must make sense: a country instead of a nationality scores 0.
Exercise 2 (15 points). A short, simple message (postcard, email, invitation) on an everyday topic, at least 40 words. FEI's sample: invite a French friend to your country for the holidays and say what you can do together.
Exercise 1 (12.5 points). Describe an event or a personal experience in a letter, email, diary page or forum post, at least 60 words. FEI's sample: tell a friend how you celebrated your birthday yesterday.
Exercise 2 (12.5 points). Write to invite, thank, apologise, inform or congratulate, usually in reply to a message, at least 60 words. FEI's sample: congratulate friends on their wedding, accept the invitation and ask about the arrangements. The manual suggests about 20 minutes per exercise.
One text of at least 160 words giving your personal view on a general topic, usually in reaction to a short written input, as a letter, email, newspaper article or forum post. FEI's manual suggests about 10 minutes to think and plan, 30 to write and 5 to reread.
One argued text of at least 250 words in which you take a position and try to convince the reader: a contribution to a debate, a formal letter, a critical article, a report. FEI's sample: as the representative of your building in a pedestrian zone, write to the mayor to contest his decision to let buses through during the day.
Synthesis (12.5 points). A dossier of several documents, about 1,000 words in all. Write one new, coherent text of 200 to 240 words with your own plan: no summaries side by side, no outside ideas, no personal comment. You may reuse key words but not sentences.
Essay (12.5 points). At least 250 words on the theme of the dossier: a contribution to a debate, an open letter, a critical article. FEI's sample: write an open letter to the education minister about a plan to cut the number of languages taught at school.
A synthesis of 300 words or more cannot reach C1 for task completion, and copying more than three quarters of the text from the documents scores 0 for vocabulary and grammar.
The paper "compréhension et production écrites" lasts 3 h 30 and is marked out of 50. You get a dossier of about 2,000 words and choose one of two subjects. Each sets a genre, a role and a stance, for example an article for a parents' association bulletin. Using the dossier and your own arguments, you write a structured text of at least 700 words that takes a clear position and proposes concrete solutions. A monolingual French dictionary is allowed.
Prompts with model answers are on the writing samples page; the grids are on the writing scoring page.
Practise DELF / DALF online
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Written by Kirill O'Nayd
French exam expert and educator at TestSucceed. He prepares candidates for the DELF and DALF from A1 to C2 and studies how each paper is marked against the official grids. See all TestSucceed preparation materials.