Condensed notes – GCSE Paper 1
I have provided these ‘cheat sheets’ here for a quick reminder. Use the guide provided –
and the accompanying videos on Youtube – for the bulk of your revision.
Question 1: 4 marks, 5 minutes
As per exam guide. Brief summary:
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Make sure you comment on the lines in question: any comments outside the lines they give will not get a mark.
If they ask about weather, don’t comment on setting.
Don’t repeat yourself with different words.
You can paraphrase/quote. You do not need to put it in your own words.
Question 2: 8 marks, 15 minutes
Key points to remember:
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You DO NOT have to cover ALL of the bullet points. If there is nothing to say about, for example, sentence forms, do not
try and make something out of nothing.
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Write about your most perceptive point first. It is likely to get you the most marks.
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Remember to PEE – be methodical. Identify the language feature, quote it, comment on how it…in the case above,
describes the thoughts of the narrator.
Words and phrases
Language features & techniques
Sentence forms
In the above example, words like fear,
duty, flailed, impossible or fatal would be
good to talk about because they give us a
clear sense of the thoughts of the
narrator.
Here you are using PEE to comment upon (in
relation to the question) language
features/techniques such as: pathetic fallacy,
simile, metaphor, symbolism,
onomatopoeia, alliteration, personification,
foreshadowing, juxtaposition, etc.
This one is simple, yet context dependent.
Think back to ‘The Road’ (‘Oh my God. Come
down. Oh my God.’) we would comment on
this, and say it shows a sense of shock at the
contents of the basement. When we are in
shock, we can struggle to find the words.
This reveals something about the contents,
and the effect they have on the protagonist.
You should define what the word means in
your answer, and say what it reveals to us,
in this case, about the narrator’s thoughts.
For example, duty is a powerful word: we
get a sense of what the character is like,
that he understands right from wrong, he
is heroic. He feels bound to act in the face
of danger, even though he feels fear and
knows the situation is impossible and
could be fatal.
In the example above, using PEE, you could
comment on the juxtaposition the narrator
feels: on the one hand he feels scared
(quote), but on the other he feels ‘duty’
(quote). What has the writer done? He has
established the narrator as a person of high
character, but also vulnerable: readers can
relate to this.
In the above, the simple sentence: ‘legs
flailed in the empty air’ is set apart from
everything: makes us confront the thought,
and highlights the lack of control (could
define the word ‘flailed’ if you haven’t
already) felt by the narrator.
Useful sentence starters:
The writer uses short/long sentences to...
With the sentence (quote), the writer builds
tension/shows us how overwhelmed the
protagonist is/creates chaos/creates calm.
The writer uses several words and phrases
to...(quote, define words).
Fear establishes that the character is scared…
The writer uses (juxtaposition): (quote). This
shows us that…(make a point related to the Q,
e.g. this shows us that whilst he feels he must
act, he is also scared, making us sympathise…
Question 3: 8 marks, 15 minutes
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You are commenting on structure in this question. You need to consider the whole of the extract.
You are looking at what happens where, and why: what effect does this have on the reader?
Typically, writers will withhold certain information for us and make us focus on something else to build
interest/tension. Think of a character in your favourite show, film or (gasp) book – was there ever a time they were in
danger, and the focus shifted elsewhere?
Again, an 8 mark question. You are looking at 15 minutes response time.
Useful phrases:
To begin, the writer focuses on…
The writer then shifts focus onto…
They do this because…
The focus narrows/broadens onto…
We are deliberately presented with a direct contrast…
This change of focus is deliberate…
Question 4: 20 marks, 30 minutes
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For this question, you will be asked to respond to a comment. It will look like this:
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Luckily, you will at this point know the text well. Also good is that the skills you have been using previously for language
(Q2) and structure (Q3) still apply here.
You are better off completely agreeing with the statement. It is likely that with a statement like this, there is plenty of
evidence/quotations you can use to support the view that the writer ‘makes it seem like you are there’.
The best way to answer this question: read the portion of the extract (important; again, comments outside the
parameters set will earn no marks) and think to yourself: do I feel like I am there?
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Useful phrases (using the above question as an example – see page 23/24 of the revision guide):
I feel as if I am there because… (the sense of frustration felt by Dr Frankenstein is tangible. He is described as being
‘unable to endure the aspect he created’, ‘rushing out’ of his room, ‘traversing his bed chamber’, ‘unable to sleep’, he
‘threw himself’ on his bed ‘in his clothes…’ and walking around ‘in the greatest agitation’. These are all acts of a man
desperately unhappy, desperately trying to seek escape from his life, desperately frustrated that all his hard work
appears wasted. I can sympathise with this, having also not been able to get to sleep from having something on my
mind, something I was unable to change. I therefore feel as if I am there with Frankenstein, experiencing these
emotions with him – or through him.)
Another reason I feel as if I am there is…(through the full sensory description of him waking: a ‘cold dew’ on his
head, ‘chattering’ teeth and ‘convulsed’ limbs. We get the sense that he has had the most terrible nightmare, and that
he may be on the verge of doing something drastic. We are able to witness the physical manifestation of his thoughts,
etc…
A final reason that I feel as if I am there is…etc
Question 5: 40 marks, 60 minutes
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This is the writing question – you’ve made it this far, well done!
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You are now looking to apply all of the things you were looking for in Q2, 3 and 4 to your own work; can you structure it
to interest a reader? Can you use literary devices, such as pathetic fallacy, juxtaposition, personification? Can you use
effective vocabulary? Can you focus on the senses to make a reader feel like they are there?
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You know the score: you will be given a picture, and asked to either write a description, or part of a story that is loosely
based on the picture. Which you choose is up to you; it will be task dependent. The good news: you’ve had a lot of
practice, and there’s still time for more!
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You will be able to Word process your work.
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You will be expected to produce part of a story totalling around 500 – 600 words.
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You will be marked on your spelling and grammar: remember to use paragraphs, vary your punctuation, and allow
time to check your work once completed: you will likely have commas where full stops should be, and you can probably
use a colon, semi-colon or dash somewhere else in your work!
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If writing a story, you are much better off not trying to include too many characters: you simply will not have time to
develop them all to any reasonable level.
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Show me, don’t tell me: remember this?