English Language Exam - A host of GCSE questions for you to attempt!
Here are the questions:
16 marks
1. Inform the examiner about what you are really like.
2. Explain what you intend to achieve in the next year and explain how you intend to achieve these things.
3. Describe the view from your bedroom window.
4. Your local council is planning to develop a Youth Centre in your area. Write a letter to the leader of the council. Explain why a Youth Centre is a good idea and give information about the facilities and events you would like to have.
5. Many people are interested in animals. Write an informative article on an animal or animals of your choice.
6. Teenagers are often criticised in newspapers. Write a letter to the editor of a national newspaper explaining why this is often unfair.
7. Describe your home.
8. Childhood memories can be very important. Choose one childhood memory. Describe the memory and explain its importance to you.
9. Choose something you are interested in and know about. Write about it in a way which will inform other people.
10. Think about a decision you, or someone close to you, has made that has changed your life or the lives of other people. Explain what the decision was and the changes it brought about.
11. Write informatively about a journey you have made and describe the things you saw on the way.
12. School students sometimes say they get bored in the long summer holidays. Write an article for a local newspaper informing students of the different things they could do to prevent boredom.
13. Explain what qualities you think a best friend should have and explain, giving examples, why you think this.
14. Describe yourself.
15. Change can be good, bad or a mixture of both. Write about a time in your life when you experienced change of some kind. Describe what happened and explain how you felt about the change.
16. Write a letter to a friend who moved away from your area three months ago. Inform him or her of the things that have been happening to you over the last three months.
17. Explain what you think is needed to build a good relationship between parents and teenage children and explain why you think this.
18. Describe the person or people you would most like to go on holiday with you and explain why you would like to share a holiday with them.
19. Write a letter to the governors of your school informing them of the changes you would like to be made in your school and the reasons for these changes.
20. Explain what your dreams and ambitions for the future are. Explain, also, how you could achieve them.
21. Describe a nightmare world.
22. Many young people have concerns about the world in which they live. Write informatively about one or more of your concerns and explain the reasons for them.
23. Write an information leaflet on an area you know well. You could include information on places to visit and things to do there.
24. Write a letter applying for a part-time job you would like. Explain why you would like the job and why you are the right person for it.
25. Describe a place that is special to you.
28. Write an article for a magazine of your choice in which you inform readers
about a subject which gives you cause for concern.
29. If you could choose, where would you most like to live? Explain the reasons
for your choice.
30. Write a letter to your headteacher explaining how to improve your school.
31. Write a brief article for a website of your choice telling your readers about an interesting or unusual journey or travel experience you have had. Explain why it was memorable.
32. A place can appear to be very different if you visit it at different times of year.
Choose a place that you know well and describe it at two different times of year for a travel website.
33. Sometimes difficult decisions have to be made. Describe a decision that you, or
someone you know, had to make and explain the consequences. Your piece will appear in the Real Lives section of your local newspaper.
24 mark q.
1. Argue for or against the idea that advertisements for sweets should be banned from TV.
2. Write a letter to a TV company persuading them that they should produce more interesting programmes for teenagers.
3. Write an article for a magazine in which you present an argument for or against something you feel strongly about.
4. Write a letter persuading a publisher to produce a new and different magazine for teenagers.
5. A student you know is about to be excluded from school. Write a letter to the school governors arguing for or against this exclusion.
6. ‘Students should not be allowed to bring mobile phones to school’. Write an article for a school newspaper in which you argue for or against this view.
7. Write an article for a teenage magazine in which you persuade the readers not to smoke.
8. Write a letter to a magazine called The Explorer arguing for or against expeditions to dangerous places.
9. A group of students from your school or college wants to go on an adventure trip abroad. Write the text of a speech to local business people persuading them to sponsor the group.
10. Write an article for a magazine for teenagers, arguing that global warming will affect their lives and persuading them to join a group which aims to protect the environment.
11. “People should spend less money on bottled water and fizzy drinks and give more to charity.” Argue for or against this view.
12. Write a letter to a celebrity of your choice persuading him or her to support a campaign to end world poverty.
13. Write an article for a teenage magazine arguing that schools should change to give Year 11 students more freedom.
14. Write an article for a magazine aimed at teenagers in which you argue that students should be taught to drive at school.
15. Write the text for a car advertisement aimed at young men, which persuades them to buy the car.
16. Write the text for a local radio programme on physical fitness to persuade people to get fitter.
17. ‘Young people nowadays don’t know what real music is!’ Write an article for a national newspaper where you argue for or against this point of view.
18. You want to take two weeks off school to take part in a televised talent contest. Write a letter persuading your headteacher to allow you to do this.
19. Write a letter to the organisers of the National Lottery in which you argue that more should be done to help young people with special talents and persuade the organisers that money should be given for this.
20. Write a letter to a headteacher persuading him/her that all students should take part
in at least one hour’s physical activity every day at school.
21. Write the text for a leaflet to persuade young people in your area to take part in a sponsored event for charity.
22. Your school or college is inviting entries for a writing competition. The topic is “Dangerous sports activities and pastimes are selfish, often put others at risk and should be discouraged.” Write your entry arguing for or against this view.
23. Choose an activity or hobby that you are interested in. Write an article for your school magazine persuading other students to try it.
24. Many people believe that it is our duty to cut back on our use of the world’s resources, and that we must invest in greener forms of energy for the future – whatever the cost. Write an article for an environmental website which argues for or against this idea.
16 marks
1. Inform the examiner about what you are really like.
2. Explain what you intend to achieve in the next year and explain how you intend to achieve these things.
3. Describe the view from your bedroom window.
4. Your local council is planning to develop a Youth Centre in your area. Write a letter to the leader of the council. Explain why a Youth Centre is a good idea and give information about the facilities and events you would like to have.
5. Many people are interested in animals. Write an informative article on an animal or animals of your choice.
6. Teenagers are often criticised in newspapers. Write a letter to the editor of a national newspaper explaining why this is often unfair.
7. Describe your home.
8. Childhood memories can be very important. Choose one childhood memory. Describe the memory and explain its importance to you.
9. Choose something you are interested in and know about. Write about it in a way which will inform other people.
10. Think about a decision you, or someone close to you, has made that has changed your life or the lives of other people. Explain what the decision was and the changes it brought about.
11. Write informatively about a journey you have made and describe the things you saw on the way.
12. School students sometimes say they get bored in the long summer holidays. Write an article for a local newspaper informing students of the different things they could do to prevent boredom.
13. Explain what qualities you think a best friend should have and explain, giving examples, why you think this.
14. Describe yourself.
15. Change can be good, bad or a mixture of both. Write about a time in your life when you experienced change of some kind. Describe what happened and explain how you felt about the change.
16. Write a letter to a friend who moved away from your area three months ago. Inform him or her of the things that have been happening to you over the last three months.
17. Explain what you think is needed to build a good relationship between parents and teenage children and explain why you think this.
18. Describe the person or people you would most like to go on holiday with you and explain why you would like to share a holiday with them.
19. Write a letter to the governors of your school informing them of the changes you would like to be made in your school and the reasons for these changes.
20. Explain what your dreams and ambitions for the future are. Explain, also, how you could achieve them.
21. Describe a nightmare world.
22. Many young people have concerns about the world in which they live. Write informatively about one or more of your concerns and explain the reasons for them.
23. Write an information leaflet on an area you know well. You could include information on places to visit and things to do there.
24. Write a letter applying for a part-time job you would like. Explain why you would like the job and why you are the right person for it.
25. Describe a place that is special to you.
28. Write an article for a magazine of your choice in which you inform readers
about a subject which gives you cause for concern.
29. If you could choose, where would you most like to live? Explain the reasons
for your choice.
30. Write a letter to your headteacher explaining how to improve your school.
31. Write a brief article for a website of your choice telling your readers about an interesting or unusual journey or travel experience you have had. Explain why it was memorable.
32. A place can appear to be very different if you visit it at different times of year.
Choose a place that you know well and describe it at two different times of year for a travel website.
33. Sometimes difficult decisions have to be made. Describe a decision that you, or
someone you know, had to make and explain the consequences. Your piece will appear in the Real Lives section of your local newspaper.
24 mark q.
1. Argue for or against the idea that advertisements for sweets should be banned from TV.
2. Write a letter to a TV company persuading them that they should produce more interesting programmes for teenagers.
3. Write an article for a magazine in which you present an argument for or against something you feel strongly about.
4. Write a letter persuading a publisher to produce a new and different magazine for teenagers.
5. A student you know is about to be excluded from school. Write a letter to the school governors arguing for or against this exclusion.
6. ‘Students should not be allowed to bring mobile phones to school’. Write an article for a school newspaper in which you argue for or against this view.
7. Write an article for a teenage magazine in which you persuade the readers not to smoke.
8. Write a letter to a magazine called The Explorer arguing for or against expeditions to dangerous places.
9. A group of students from your school or college wants to go on an adventure trip abroad. Write the text of a speech to local business people persuading them to sponsor the group.
10. Write an article for a magazine for teenagers, arguing that global warming will affect their lives and persuading them to join a group which aims to protect the environment.
11. “People should spend less money on bottled water and fizzy drinks and give more to charity.” Argue for or against this view.
12. Write a letter to a celebrity of your choice persuading him or her to support a campaign to end world poverty.
13. Write an article for a teenage magazine arguing that schools should change to give Year 11 students more freedom.
14. Write an article for a magazine aimed at teenagers in which you argue that students should be taught to drive at school.
15. Write the text for a car advertisement aimed at young men, which persuades them to buy the car.
16. Write the text for a local radio programme on physical fitness to persuade people to get fitter.
17. ‘Young people nowadays don’t know what real music is!’ Write an article for a national newspaper where you argue for or against this point of view.
18. You want to take two weeks off school to take part in a televised talent contest. Write a letter persuading your headteacher to allow you to do this.
19. Write a letter to the organisers of the National Lottery in which you argue that more should be done to help young people with special talents and persuade the organisers that money should be given for this.
20. Write a letter to a headteacher persuading him/her that all students should take part
in at least one hour’s physical activity every day at school.
21. Write the text for a leaflet to persuade young people in your area to take part in a sponsored event for charity.
22. Your school or college is inviting entries for a writing competition. The topic is “Dangerous sports activities and pastimes are selfish, often put others at risk and should be discouraged.” Write your entry arguing for or against this view.
23. Choose an activity or hobby that you are interested in. Write an article for your school magazine persuading other students to try it.
24. Many people believe that it is our duty to cut back on our use of the world’s resources, and that we must invest in greener forms of energy for the future – whatever the cost. Write an article for an environmental website which argues for or against this idea.
Which exam board is this ?
i have never seen a 16 mark or 24 mark question for Edexcel
I really don't understand what you need to do when writing to explain, can anyone point me in the right direction?
Original post by idontwantto
I really don't understand what you need to do when writing to explain, can anyone point me in the right direction?
Well, it's the same as when an author describes something in a book - you're writing to form a picture in the reader's mind of the thing you're talking about, whether it's the view from your bedroom window or the time you visited France.
You don't have to, and a lot of authors don't do it much, but techniques like metaphors and strong vocabulary seem to be a good way to get marks for this (if somebody has other recommendations please say!). Some authors like John Steinbeck (author of Of Mice and Men) don't use a lot of metaphors, but he can get away with it because he's an amazing writer - us GCSE students, on the other hand, generally can't write to nearly the same level (especially in an exam), so try to include writing techniques in your work in order to make it appear more interesting to the examiner.
Point being, explain things in a way that makes the text seem interesting and engaging with the reader, as well as seeming to flow well rather than just forcing in a bunch of techniques that don't work well. Good techniques to use include the aforementioned metaphor (eg "he was a great hulking bear of a man" ), as well as things like direct address (directly addressing the reader as "you", eg "you can imagine just how horrific it was to be there" ), personification (giving human characteristics to non-human things, eg "the sea was a cruel mistress" - this is both personification and a metaphor), and many other techniques like the use of punctuation (correctly used semi-colons for brownie points), or variety in sentence length or structure.
(edited 7 years ago)
Original post by KomradeKorbyn
Well, it's the same as when an author describes something in a book - you're writing to form a picture in the reader's mind of the thing you're talking about, whether it's the view from your bedroom window or the time you visited France.
You don't have to, and a lot of authors don't do it much, but techniques like metaphors and strong vocabulary seem to be a good way to get marks for this (if somebody has other recommendations please say!). Some authors like John Steinbeck (author of Of Mice and Men) don't use a lot of metaphors, but he can get away with it because he's an amazing writer - us GCSE students, on the other hand, generally can't write to nearly the same level (especially in an exam), so try to include writing techniques in your work in order to make it appear more interesting to the examiner.
Point being, explain things in a way that makes the text seem interesting and engaging with the reader, as well as seeming to flow well rather than just forcing in a bunch of techniques that don't work well. Good techniques to use include the aforementioned metaphor (eg "he was a great hulking bear of a man" ), as well as things like direct address (directly addressing the reader as "you", eg "you can imagine just how horrific it was to be there" ), personification (giving human characteristics to non-human things, eg "the sea was a cruel mistress" - this is both personification and a metaphor), and many other techniques like the use of punctuation (correctly used semi-colons for brownie points), or variety in sentence length or structure.
You don't have to, and a lot of authors don't do it much, but techniques like metaphors and strong vocabulary seem to be a good way to get marks for this (if somebody has other recommendations please say!). Some authors like John Steinbeck (author of Of Mice and Men) don't use a lot of metaphors, but he can get away with it because he's an amazing writer - us GCSE students, on the other hand, generally can't write to nearly the same level (especially in an exam), so try to include writing techniques in your work in order to make it appear more interesting to the examiner.
Point being, explain things in a way that makes the text seem interesting and engaging with the reader, as well as seeming to flow well rather than just forcing in a bunch of techniques that don't work well. Good techniques to use include the aforementioned metaphor (eg "he was a great hulking bear of a man" ), as well as things like direct address (directly addressing the reader as "you", eg "you can imagine just how horrific it was to be there" ), personification (giving human characteristics to non-human things, eg "the sea was a cruel mistress" - this is both personification and a metaphor), and many other techniques like the use of punctuation (correctly used semi-colons for brownie points), or variety in sentence length or structure.
Wow thanks this helped a lot, my general idea is that I will just try and learn a few techniques for Q5+ 6 and then just wing it from there and hope for the best; doesn't really seem to be something a lot of revision will help with
Original post by idontwantto
Wow thanks this helped a lot, my general idea is that I will just try and learn a few techniques for Q5+ 6 and then just wing it from there and hope for the best; doesn't really seem to be something a lot of revision will help with
English is weird because (for language) there isn't exactly 'content' you need to learn - it's more just being able to write well, and so it's hard to revise because you can't just memorize a bunch of stuff like you can for science.
However, you can still revise for English by looking at the mark scheme and watching videos on what sort of thing the examiners look for, then making sure that your writing contains those things. These will help to ensure that even if you're not a brilliant writer, you're able to include the stuff that the examiners want to see in order to get you the marks.
Mr Bruff is generally quite good for this, look him up on youtube, he does lots of videos on things that they want you to include to get those A/A* grades in the language exam.
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