Basic outline of paper 1

  • 1 hour 45 minutes long / 80 marks
  • There are 5 questions:
  • 4 that test your reading and comprehension skills
  • 1 that tests your writing skills
  • You should answer these in the order they are in the exam – as the point is for you to see what makes good writing and then produce good writing yourself.

Section A: Reading

  • Spend about an hour on this section
  • Question 1 – Search and retrieve (4 marks)
  • Question 2 – Language (8 marks)
  • Question 3 – Structure (8 marks)
  • Question 4 – Agreeing with or challenging a statement about the text (20 marks)

Technique

  • Read the questions so you have an idea what you are looking for when you read the extract.
  • Read the extract through at least twice (with a highlighter in your hand!)– the first time to get the general idea of the extract – the second time to start looking for and highlighting points to include in your answers.

Timings

You have an hour for this paper so:

  • 10 minutes – read questions and extract, highlight points to include in answers
  • 5 minutes – Question 1
  • 10 minutes – Question 2
  • 10 minutes – Question 3
  • 20 - 25 minutes – Question 4
  • If time left – CHECK!

Source A

The cornfield was high up. He stood in the very middle of it, now, and the sun came glaring down. He could feel the sweat running over his back, and in the creases of his thighs. His face was burning. He sat down, although the stubble pricked at him, through his jeans, and looked over at the dark line of trees on the edge of Hang Wood. They seemed very close – all the individual branches were clearly outlined. The fields around him were absolutely still.

When he first saw the crow, he took no notice. There had been several crows. This one glided down into the corn on its enormous, ragged black wings. He began to be aware of it when it rose up suddenly, circled overhead, and then dived, to land not very far away from him. Kingshaw could see the feathers on his head, shining black in between the butter-coloured corn-stalks. Then it rose, and circled, and came down again, this time not quite landing, but flapping about his head, beating its wings and making a sound like flat leather pieces being slapped together. It was the largest crow he had ever seen. As it came down for the third time, he looked up and noticed its beak, opening in a screech. The inside of its mouth was scarlet, it had small glinting eyes.

Kingshaw got up and flapped his arms. For a moment, the bird retreated a little way off, and higher up in the sky. He began to walk rather quickly back, through the path in the corn, looking ahead of him. Stupid to be scared of a rotten bird. What could a bird do? But he felt his own extreme isolation, high up in the cornfield.

For a moment, he could only hear the soft thudding of his own footsteps, and the silky sound of the corn, brushing against him. Then, there was a rush of air, as the great crow came beating down, and wheeled about his head. The beak opened and the hoarse caaw came out again and again, from inside the scarlet mouth.

Kingshaw began to run, not caring, now, if he trampled the corn, wanting to get away, down into the next field. He thought that the corn might be some kind of crow’s food store, in which he was seen as an invader. Perhaps this was only the first of a whole battalion of crows, that would rise up and swoop at him. Get on to the grass then, he thought, get on to the grass, that’ll be safe, it’ll go away. He wondered if it had mistaken him for some hostile animal, lurking down in the corn.

His progress was very slow through the cornfield, the thick stalks bunched together and got in his way, and he had to shove them back with his arms. But he reached the gate and climbed it, and dropped on to the grass of the field on the other side. Sweat was running down his forehead and into his eyes. He looked up. The crow kept on coming. He ran.

END OF TEXT

Section A: Reading
Answer all questions in this section.
You are advised to spend about 45 minutes on this section.
Read again the first paragraph of the source,lines 1 – 6.
List four things from this part of the text about the cornfield.
[4 marks]
  1. ______
  2. ______
  3. ______
  4. ______


Look in detail at lines 7-14.
How does the writer use language to present the crow?
You could include the writer’s choice of:
• words and phrases
• language features and techniques
• sentence forms.
[8 marks]
Top Tips for Question Two
  1. Aim to write 3 bullet points – one per paragraph.
  2. You need to write about what images are being created and how they being created.
  3. Include subject terminology where you can – BUT:
  4. Instead of using words like metaphor and simile – you can use words like imagery and figurative language – you will not be penalised for this.
  5. Remember to say why the language creates a certain effect.
  6. Consider the connotations of words and phrases (what you associate with the words used).
  7. Try to include 4 examples
  8. ‘Track’ through the text – go sentence by sentence and technique by technique in your answer
Writing your Answer
Do not write in PEE chains for this answer:
Instead:
Have a very strong sentence at the beginning of your answer (your point) – i.e. the author has created a strong sense of (…refer to the question here) in the lines … to …
THEN
Example – Effect
Example – Effect
Example – Effect
Example - Effect
How does the writer structure the text to interest you as a reader?
You need to think about the whole of the source and how the writer structures the text to interest you as a reader.
You could write about:
• what the writer focuses your attention on at the beginning
• how and why the writer changes this focus as the extract develops
• any other structural features that interest you.

Focus this part of youranswer on the whole source:
Lots of students have written reviews about this novel. One student wrote, “I like the way the writer shows how scared Kingshaw is; she makes the bird seem very frightening and he seems lonely and afraid.”
To what extent do you agree?
In your response you could:
  • write about your own impression of Kingshaw and the birds
  • evaluate how the writer has created these impressions
  • support your opinions with quotations from the text.
[20 marks]

Section B: Writing
You are advised to spend about 45 minutes on this section.
Write in full sentences.
You are reminded of the need to plan your answer.
You should leave enough time to check your work at the end.

Your teacher needs examples of creative writing to make a booklet for parent’s evening.
A group of students in your class will select which ones to choose.
Either:
Describe a time when you felt like escaping or getting away from something or someone.
Or:
Write a description suggested by this picture:

(24 marks for content and organisation and
16 marks for technical accuracy)
[40 marks]
Top Tips for Question 5:
Timings:
  • 5 minutes – make notes around the picture / title on what points you are going to include – and plan your piece.
  • 35 minutes – writing
  • 5 minutes – checking
Key Points to Remember:
  • Write in paragraphs
  • Be imaginative
  • Use as wide a range of vocabulary as you can
  • Always think about the reader – is this an interesting piece? Will it hold the reader’s interest?