Revision:English - Revision tips for Paper 2 Section A

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Paper 2 has two sections. Section A tests your reading skills and B your writing skills.

Revision tips for Section A

Section A is where you will be asked to compare two of the Different Cultures poems.

Revise these poems in a similar way to the others.

Read them and ensure you understand. If you are unsure, look at the following websites:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/english/

www.universalteacher.org.uk

Group the poems by theme and try to revise this. This will make choosing the poems for your questions much easier.

Remember you are comparing the poems. Point out similarities and differences.

Ensure you answer the question and refer to it.

Ensure you are covering LANGUAGE: this is the most important aspect! Remember: theme (what the poems are about), language (similes, metaphors, slang, personification…) structure (regular stanzas? Erratic?) and tone (aggressive, sinister, proud, sad etc).

Remember to make a comment on the effect of the above on the reader. Do not take a tour of the poems, simply pointing out things along the way, explain why they are used and the effect that they have!

Include your own opinions. These hold as much merit as mine. However, you must justify and explain them using quotes.

You only need to compare two poems in detail but you must ensure you are answering the question you have been asked.

You will be given one poem and then asked to find another with a similar theme. You must cover the named poem.

Things to remember when in the exam:

• Ensure you are answering the question. You must be focused on the theme given. A simple exploration of the poem will not do.

• Make a sensible comparison choice and make sure you know what the poems are about.

• Ensure you use a range of quotes

• You must ensure you discuss language!

Revision tips for Section B

In Section B you will be asked to write to inform, explain or describe. There will be at least three options. Make sure you only do ONE!

I recommend you write to describe or explain. These are the easiest options.

When writing to describe, remember to use:

• Similes, metaphors and personification

• Description using the senses – what you see, hear, smell, taste and feel

• A range of sentences, short to build up tension of for effect, long to develop the text you are writing.

• A range of punctuation (colons : semi colons ; and parenthesis ())

When writing to explain include:

• Similes, metaphors and personification

• Humour

• Anecdotes

• Rhetorical devices

• Connectives

• A range of sentence types