Achieving an A in the Reading Section

Objectives

• 1. Answer ANY of the questions that you might have about this exam.

• 2. Teach you what the examiners have said about achieving high marks in this exam.

Technique

• Often, it is your exam technique that has let some of you down in the past.

• I am going to run through a few simple points which, if you abide by them, should serve you well once you are in the hall.

Which one is more important?

• Let me put it simply.• It is not true that either is more important than

the other.• You are the ELITE in this subject – the best in

the whole school.• Take pride in this.• However, with this sort of ability comes the

responsibility to produce A LOT of GOOD QUALITY work

Quality/Quantity

• The QUALITY should show through your construction of FANTASTIC PEE paragraphs.

• Make EXCELLENT/ORIGINAL points.

• ALWAYS back these up with AT LEAST one piece of evidence.

• ALWAYS fully explain what you mean.

However

• Even if you write the best paragraphs in the world, you will still get very low marks if you don’t write much.

• I would expect students of your ability to write around 6-7 PARAGRAPHS for the 16 mark question, and around 9-10 PARAGRAPHS for the 24 mark question.

• And yes, I know it is a big ask – but you are the people to do it!

• Yes your hand will hurt, and you will feel tired after the exam.

• This is how you get A’s!

Timing

Timing

• Decide on your timings IN ADVANCE and stick to them.

• This is a 1hr 45m exam

• Spend 1 hour on the reading section and 45 mins on the writing section.

• DO NOT STRAY FROM THIS!

Highlighters

• It is CRIMINAL for anybody in your position not to take a highlighter into the exam.

• Your brain will flag up many interesting points as you read through the extract. A highlighter will help you not to forget them.

• You could even colour code your evidence?• Green for standard points/Pink for more

interesting or original points?• Decide on that in advance and be ready to do it.

Plan

• There are many ways to plan this kind of response.

• You could number your evidence?

• You could use a spider diagram.

• Whichever way you choose to do this, it is always good for someone of your ability to plan so you don’t lose your train of thought. This can easily happen when there is so much to think about!

The question!

• Section A of this exam is, as you know, a READING section.

• Be happy! This is the sort of exercise that you have been doing since primary school, and you are some of the most intelligent people in the school.

• Therefore, there should be plenty of marks in this section for you.

• The 16 mark question asks you to answer questions based on an extract. This is DEAD EASY – for someone like you.

• This is because you do not have to have even read the extract before!

• You are simply answering on WHAT YOU LEARN IN THIS EXTRACT.

• The 24 mark question asks you to answer questions based on an extract that you have chosen. This is DEAD EASY – for someone like you.

• This is because you are choosing your own material to answer on!

• You are simply finding an extract which you know well, and answering a question on this!

It is DEAD SIMPLE

• Read this text.

• “As the sky blackened, John’s face began to show his true feelings; a red glint began to burn in his eyes.”

• How has the author used LANGUAGE here to manipulate or change the way you read the text.

Try another…

• “As Georgia made her way quickly home, the wind seemed to whisper words of warning in her ear.”

• What has the author done?

Be Warned!

• Although these techniques form the basis of what you need to do in this part of the exam, these techniques alone will not get you an A or A*

PERCEPTIVE and ORIGINAL

• To get the top marks in this exam, you have to look beyond the obvious.

• That is not to say that you can’t comment on the obvious points. It just means that, where possible, you are going to write something a bit more impressive than the average student.

Being Perceptive and original

• There are many ways you can do this.

• Here are some of the main ways…

Make less obvious judgements…

• Although many people might think that Slim is a kind and trustworthy character, I believe it could be argued that he has a different side to him.

Offering multiple viewpoints…

• At this point in the novel, it is hard to make a clear judgement about the character of George. On one hand, it could be argued that he is kind because he evidently cares so much about Lennie. On the other hand, however, we see a cruel side to George which we have not been used to so far in the novel which makes him far less appealing as a character.

Finding multiple pieces of evidence…

• The author uses metaphor concerning animals to affect our view of Lennie. We see this when Lennie drinks from the stream, and the author describes his ‘big paws’ dipping into the water. In the same way, the author describes the noise Lennie makes as a ‘snort’. Both of these metaphors show Lennie to possess animal-like qualities which make us think of him as huge and powerful, as well as taking away some of the human side of his character.

Linking paragraphs together…

• In the same way that the author uses metaphors to make us view Lennie as being ‘less than human’, he also uses adjectives for a similar effect.

Section B – Choosing your extract

• Last year’s examiner report had a lot to say about the extract that students had chosen.

• The extract can be from ANYWHERE else in the novel.

• “Shorter extracts often force more able students into a closer analysis of the text.” – That is you lot!

Choosing your extract

• Choose your extract carefully, ensuring that it definitely answers the question directly.

• Make sure you choose a part that has lots to write about. Do not be afraid to change your mind if you feel you have chosen a bad extract.

Exam

• Prove you can do it!

• Look at the exam.

• Construct one paragraph that you believe is ORIGINAL or PERCEPTIVE (something that you don’t think everybody would have spotted.)

Next…

• Construct a paragraph which uses multiple pieces of evidence to support your point.

Pair share

The tips

• Write lots of good quality paragraphs• Try to link paragraphs• Use multiple pieces of evidence where you can• Offer different viewpoints on a point if relevant• Stick to timings• Be brave• Show Off!