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GCSE AQA English Language RESIT Paper 1 4th November 2019

Hey guys

With the big exams just a few days away I thought I would set up a thread for everyone to get together and do some last minute revision and then come back and chat about how it went after!

Date: Monday 4th November

AM/PM:AM

Length: 1hr 45min

Specification:https://filestore.aqa.org.uk/resources/english/specifications/AQA-8700-SP-2015.PDF

Other Resources:

N/A

Good luck everyone you got this!

Scroll to see replies

Reply 1

Hazelly

Study Forum Helper

Original post by Evil Homer

Hey guys

With the big exams just a few days away I thought I would set up a thread for everyone to get together and do some last minute revision and then come back and chat about how it went after!

Date: Tuesday 4th November

AM/PM:AM

Length: 1hr 45min

Specification:https://filestore.aqa.org.uk/resources/english/specifications/AQA-8700-SP-2015.PDF

Other Resources:

N/A

Good luck everyone you got this!

Good luck to anyone sitting this exam, wishing you all the best! :biggrin:

Reply 2

londonnn

monday 4th!!! not tuesday

i still dont understand the gist of paper1 question 3 and the whole of question 4 :C but goodluck

Reply 3

maven2k

Does anyone have any tips on how to do question 4 and 5 at grade 5 at least

Reply 4

Evil Homer

TSR Community Staff

Original post by vapeboi

monday 4th!!! not tuesday

i still dont understand the gist of paper1 question 3 and the whole of question 4 :C but goodluck

Sorry small mistake! All changed now :smile:

Reply 5

Hazelly

Study Forum Helper

Original post by vapeboi

monday 4th!!! not tuesday

i still dont understand the gist of paper1 question 3 and the whole of question 4 :C but goodluck

Original post by maven2k

Does anyone have any tips on how to do question 4 and 5 at grade 5 at least

Hi,

Have you had a look at Mr Bruffs youtube videos before? They are free to use and extremely helpful. He goes through every question on the GCSE paper, including Q1 to make sure you get full marks on the 'small questions'.

@vapeboi for question 3, the examiners want you to analyse how the writer has structured the text to... there will usually be an emotion or feeling. For example, "how has the writer structured the text to make the reader feel scared or apprehensive" It's worth 8 marks, so you usually need to write 2 paragraphs in full detail. Or three if you have time! (but don't worry if you haven't got time)

Have you ever been taught PEEL when writing essays? It stands for P: point, E: evidence (quotes), T: technique (structural or language feature) E: evaluation (use words such as therefore, however, on the other hand), L: link (link your paragraphs, this may include using words such as in addition or additionally)

When writing your exam question for Q3, do not include any language features. You won't get any points/marks! Save your language analysis for question 2 and question 4. Question 4 is considered the one with the big bucks; 20 marks is quite a lot for one question so make sure you plan before writing, even if it's just for a few minutes on the back of your exam sheet.

Lastly, remember to reiterate how the reader is feeling. You could say: 'This makes the reader feel.. shocked' or 'the effects of this conveys..'. Also remember to add the structural techniques in your answer, such as zooming in to circular structures as an example.

There are so many resources online you can use to help you master both question 3 and 4, the CGP textbook is also really good if you haven't got that already.

@maven2k like I mentioned earlier on question 4 is heavy based question. It's full of marks but you need to make your answer clear to achieve these marks. The examiners want you to be critical and establish a clear evaluation which leads to a conclusion. When you see this question in the exam it may seem scary as it's so big. Don't panic over this! It's just directing you to what part of the extract you need to look at - highlighters are handy for the exam.
For this question, you are not writing a review of the extract. They want you to explain certain effects the writer has done in this way to interest the reader. It will usually be laid out such as: A student said: "The playground was very mysterious and darkening". To what extent do you agree? There will also be three main pointers, you don't necessary have to follow this. It's just a general guidance and it may throw you off track so be cautious with the bullet points.

You don't always have to agree in your answer, you could say "I agree to an extent.." or that you "partially disagree". However, some people do find it easier to agree as there's usually more points to agree that are visible in comparison to disagreeing- you will need to dig deeper to find points that show you can disagree with the student. Ultimately, it's your decision to whether you agree or disagree but you need to back up your answer evidently.

Have you had a look at the mark scheme before? If not, go onto google and type in AQA English language mark scheme. It's extremely helpful because it will give you a break down of each level (4-1, if I can remember rightly) for every question that you complete. It also goes in detail to what you need to establish that level. For example, to achieve 11-15 marks on question 4 you need to be able to: 'Evaluate clearly the effect(s) on the reader' and to 'show clear understanding of writers methods'. Additionally, evaluations don't need to be done at the end of your answer. After every paragraph you could sum up your point to ensure you're gaining those marks adequately.

I hope helps you both, if you have any other questions drop them down below and i'll try to help :smile:

Spoiler

(edited 4 years ago)

Reply 6

Cookies n cream

Good luck to all! I'm sitting this for the first time- didn't do it in June as I had A LOT of exams. How's everyone feeling? I'm quite nervous- high expectations.

Reply 7

Lils2003

I’m getting really anxious about the exams now, does anyone have any advice on how to boost a grade 4/5 answer to a solid grade 6 answer?

Reply 8

14dguz

I am re-sitting the English exam tomorrow and on the 6th and I want t know if anyone has done this before and passed I don't think I am going to pass and this is because of my poor revision and work ethic and I would like to pass. Any one know how the grading is done on resits is it put up against the rest of the year or is it going to based on something completely new.

Reply 9

_debt

I'm also resitting English Language tomorrow- please do NOT stress, we CAN do this!
There will be new grade boundaries but chances are they either stay at the same level or maybe decrease or increase by some marks.
Teachers at my school said that students that took the summer english exam and are resitting have solid chances of passing if revision is put in.
What i recommend is tackle all the questions in the exam, do NOT spend A LOT of time on the first 3 questions. Make sure you understand what each question is asking for.

Paper 1:
Q1) List 4 things, 4 marks, spend 5 minutes

Q2) Language question. (Investigate a writer's use of words, language featured and sentence forms. What is the desired effect the writer is trying to achieve in the extract? Is it boredom, energy, danger, threat etc? Then elaborate upon that.) 8 marks, 10 minutes.

Q3) Structure question. (Simply write about the start, middle and end you will get around 6/8 or more).

Q4) Evaluation question. 20 marks, 25 minutes.
It is about an extract not the whole source. Write about your own point of view, and avaluate how the writer has created them in the text. You can talk about language, structure, tone etc.

Q5) Creative or descriptive writing, 40 marks, 45 minutes.
The best suggestion i can give you which my teacher recommended is to create small plans on different genres e.g. spooky setting, thriller, birthday party etc. When you get to Q5 you might be able to adapt one of your plans to a story.

REMEMBER 10 minutes reading time at the start and leave time to go over your work to male any amendments etc. Time management is crucial.
Also learn synonyms!!

You can smash it!!

Reply 10

softboidrip

Exactly what you said, Good luck guys! we can do this!!!!

Reply 11

milesb99

im totally totally screwed

Reply 12

Rania01

i’m so scareddd!! i did so much revision but when i come to answer questions i have no idea what to do! :frown:

Reply 13

PastaIsLife

i know i’m not part of the gang but i’m bricking it for my gcse maths resit. just don’t procrastinate so you can pass. you guys can do this, i have so much faith in you

i also failed my english language gcse the first time and then passed with a C the second time. close to a B. concentrate on the questions and breathe. be positive!!!

Reply 14

Evil Homer

TSR Community Staff

How did it go today guys???

Reply 15

Ec_edward

I think i messed up question 5 because i only wrote about the magical part but didnt describe what was in the picture which was the girl holding a globe. Am i gonna lose a lot of marks because of that?

Reply 16

abbf

i wasn’t too sure what to write for question 1? i think i put the lanscape so the mountains and the resort but i wasn’t too sure if i should put that it was snowing or it smelt pine?

Reply 17

Ec_edward

Original post by abbf

i wasn’t too sure what to write for question 1? i think i put the lanscape so the mountains and the resort but i wasn’t too sure if i should put that it was snowing or it smelt pine?

I put it was snowing since thats about the surroundings but the smell i didnt put.

Reply 18

Maelonax

Hey I’m actually terrified on question 5 it said write a story about this picture (with kid holding the snow globe) or write a description about a beautiful place but now I got home and I’m scared I misread it and it actually said palace. Can someone help