GRADE 10 DECEMBER EXAM
STUDY GUIDE
2015
Table of Contents
FAQs…..2
Noughts & Crosses Preparation…..3
Essay Vocabulary…..3
Essay Structure…..4
Predict Essay Prompts…..5
Study Guide to remember QUOTATION…..6
Review Run-ons and Fragments…..7
Short Stories Preparation…..7
Vocabulary Preparation…..7
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FAQs
What will be on my English exam?
Your exam will be 150 minutes total (2.5 hours). You should devote 90 minutes to an essay on Noughts &
Crosses (you will have a choice of prompts), 30 minutes on vocabulary units 1-3 (fill-in-the-blank,
synonyms/definitions, write your own sentences), and 30 minutes on the short answer section on the three short
stories (“Snapshots of a Wedding”, “The Gold-Legged Frog”, and “The Tall Woman and Her Short Husband”).
Your essay will be worth 70% of your final grade. The vocabulary will be worth 15%. The short story section
will be worth 15%.
What about grammar?
You will be tested on sentence types, run ons and fragments. Review your notes!
Can I study for an English exam?
Yes! And there are some very specific strategies you can use to do so. First, consider the total amount of study
time you have. Divide up your study time based on how much each part of the exam is worth. For example, if I
have 10 hours to study for English, I am going to study a total of 5 hours to prepare for the Noughts & Crosses
essay, 3 hours on vocabulary, and 2 hours on the short stories.
What specifically can I study to prepare for each section of the exam?
Noughts & Crosses essay:
 Essay vocabulary
 Essay structure (review weak points)
 Predict essay prompts and practice timed outlines (20-25 minutes should be your goal for an
outline)
 Complete and study the guide you have been given
 Review run-ons and fragments as necessary (review past writing assignments)
Short Stories
 Reread the short stories.
 Complete and study the guide you have been given.
Vocabulary
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Complete the vocabulary units 1-3 review in your book.
Come up with memory tools for each vocabulary word.
Write a sentence in a relative context for each word.
Make flashcards with pictures, synonyms, definitions and/or sentences if you are a visual learner.
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Noughts & Crosses Preparation
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Essay vocabulary
Essay structure (review weak points)
Predict essay prompts and practice timed outlines (20 minutes should be your goal for an outline)
Complete and study the guide you have been given
Review run-ons and fragments as necessary (review past writing assignments)
1. ESSAY VOCABULARY
Vocabulary for essays specifically includes transitions and essay verbs. You have been given several
handouts with this type of vocabulary. Here’s an additional list of words you can review and experiment
with:
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affirm
ascertain
assert
cite
claim
clarify
communicate
concur
contribute
convey
debate
defend
define
demonstrate
detail
determine
develop
differ
discover
discuss
dispute
dissect
document
elaborate
emphasize
employ
engage
enhance
establish
estimate
evaluate
examine
explore
express
find
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focus
highlight
hold
hypothesize
identify
illuminate
illustrate
imply indicate
incorporate
infer
inquire
invest
investigate
involve
judge
justify
limn
observe
ponder
predict
proclaim
proffer
promote
provide
question
realize
recap
reconcile
refer
reflect
regard
relate
relay
remark
report
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resolve
respond
reveal
review
sanction
seek
show
simplify
speculate
submit
subvert
support
surmise
survey
tangle
test
theorize
total
transpose
underestimate
underline
underscore
understand
undertake
undervalue
usurp
validate
value
verify
vex
wander
weigh
wonder
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2. ESSAY STRUCTURE
First, start by reviewing weak points in previous essays. Here is a sample essay to show you what you
should aim for. Please note that the thesis in each is underlined, opening sentences are red, sentences
with textual references are green, explanations of those references are blue, and closing sentences are
purple. The review of the thesis statement is underlined in the conclusion.
CONSIDER WILLIAM GOLDING’S USE OF SYMBOLISM IN LORD OF THE FLIES. EXPLAIN HOW
SYMBOLISM IS USED TO EXPRESS MEANING IN THE BOOK.
Are people inherently good or evil? This is a question which many people have pondered throughout history and
been able to explore through literature. In William Golding's Lord of the Flies, the boys who are stranded on the island come
in contact with many unique elements that symbolize ideas or concepts. Through the use of symbols such as the pig's head, the
beast, and Piggy's specs, Golding demonstrates that humans, when liberated from society's rules and taboos, allow their natural
capacity for evil to dominate their existence.
One of the most important and most obvious symbols in Lord of the Flies is the object that gives the novel its name, the
pig's head. Golding's description of the slaughtered animal's head on a spear is very graphic and even frightening. The pig's head
is depicted as "dim-eyed, grinning faintly, blood blackening between the teeth," and the "obscene thing" is covered with a "black
blob of flies" that "tickled under his nostrils" (137-8). As a result of this detailed, striking image, the reader becomes aware of the
great evil and darkness represented by the Lord of the Flies, and when Simon begins to converse with the seemingly inanimate,
devil-like object, the source of that wickedness is revealed. Even though the conversation may be entirely a hallucination, Simon
learns that the beast, which has long since frightened the other boys on the island, is not an external force. In fact, the head of the
slain pig tells him, "Fancy thinking the beast was something you could hunt and kill! You knew, didn't you? I'm part of you?"
(143). At the end of this scene, the immense evil represented by this powerful symbol can once again be seen as Simon faints after
looking into the wide mouth of the pig and seeing "blackness within, a blackness that spread" (144). Thus, evil, epitomized by the
pig's head, that is causing the boys' island society to decline, is inherently present within man.
Another of the most important symbols used to present the theme of the novel is the beast. In the imaginations of many
of the boys, the beast is a tangible source of evil on the island. However, in reality, it represents the evil naturally present within
everyone, which is causing life on the island to deteriorate. Simon begins to realize this even before his encounter with the Lord
of the Flies, and during one argument over the existence of a beast, he attempts to share his insight with the others. Timidly,
Simon tells them, "Maybe, maybe there is no beast. What I mean is, maybe it's only us" (89). In response to Simon's statement,
the other boys, who had once conducted their meetings with some sense of order, immediately begin to argue more fiercely. The
crowd gives a "wild whoop" when Jack rebukes Ralph, saying "Bollocks to the rules! We're strong, we hunt! If there's a beast,
we'll hunt it down! We'll close in and beat and beat and beat!" (91). Clearly, the boys' fear of the beast and their ironic desire to
kill the beast shows that the hold which society's rules once had over them has been loosened during the time they have spent
without supervision on the island.
The evil within the boys has more of an effect on their existence as they spend more time on the island, isolated from the
rest of society, and this decline is portrayed by Piggy's specs. Throughout the novel, Piggy represents the civilization and the rules
from which the boys have been separated. Interestingly, as Piggy loses his ability to see, so do the other boys lose their vision of
that civilization. When the story begins, Piggy can see clearly with both lenses of his spectacles intact, and the boys are still fairly
civilized. For example, at one of their first meetings, the boys decide that they "can't have everybody talking at once" and that
they "have to have ‘Hands up’ like at school" (33). However, after some time passes, the hunters become more concerned with
slaughtering a pig than with being rescued and returning to civilization. When they return from a successful hunt in the jungle
chanting "Kill the pig, cut her throat, spill her blood," Ralph and Piggy attempt to explain to the hunters that having meat for their
meals is not as important as keeping the signal fire burning (69). In an ensuing scuffle, Jack knocks Piggy’s specs from his face,
smashing one of the lenses against the mountain rocks and greatly impairing his vision, symbolizing the boys’ transition to a more
savage society. Finally, after Jack forms his own tribe of savages, he and two of his followers ambush Ralph, Piggy, and
Samneric, and in the midst of "a vicious snarling in the mouth of the shelter and the plunge and thump of living things," Piggy's
specs are stolen, leaving him virtually blind (167). Meanwhile, Jack returns to Castle Rock, "trotting steadily, exulting in his
achievement," as he has practically abandoned all ties to civilized life (168).
In conclusion, Lord of the Flies is a story that portrays the dark, deteriorating life that results from mankind's inherent
capacity for evil, which is allowed to control humans when they are freed from the rules of society. Throughout the novel,
Golding uses many different objects as symbols to illustrate this theme. Some of those objects would be insignificant in real life
and would most likely be taken for granted. However, in Lord of the Flies, the Lord of the Flies itself, the beast, and Piggy’s specs
are each vital to the story's theme.
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3. PREDICT ESSAY PROMPTS AND PRACTICE TIMED OUTLINES
Questions or prompts for your essay shouldn’t come as a complete surprise. Review what we have
discussed as lessons, and consider possible prompts or questions you might be asked. Then, imagine the
prompt is real and write an outline, timing yourself as you go. Just remember, the theme (author’s
message!) is ALWAYS important!
4. COMPLETE THE STUDY GUIDE YOU HAVE BEEN GIVEN (BELOW)
Consider each of the following literary elements in Noughts & Crosses. Record two or three quotations per
literary element that you think are very revealing or important. Include an explanation for why you feel it is
important and what it shows.
Setting
Text Details
Explanation
Conflict (note internal or external!)
Text Details
Explanation
Characterization: Callum
Text Details
Explanation
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Characterization: Sephy
Text Details
Explanation
Characterization: Character of your choice (Lynette, Jude, Mrs. Hadley, Mr. Hadley, Minerva, Meggie, etc.)
Text Details
Explanation
Narrator’s Perspective or Point of View: What is important about the way the story is told?
Text Details
Explanation
Theme: What is the story’s message?
Text Details
Explanation
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5. REVIEW RUN-ONS AND FRAGMENTS AS NECESSARY
See previous powerpoints and activities. Also, check out these websites:
http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/runons.htm
http://www.writing.engr.psu.edu/exercises/grammar3.html
http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/run-on-sentences.aspx
Short Stories Preparation
1. Reread the short stories.
2. Complete and study the guide you have been given.
SHORT STORIES STUDY GUIDE
Complete the following for each short story:
1. Summarize the story in 3-7 sentences.
2. What is the story’s setting? What is significant or important about the setting?
3. Identify the protagonist/s. Provide three character traits. Choose one quotation that supports the
character traits you have identified.
4. Identify the narrative perspective. What is important or significant about it?
5. Identify the main conflict in the short story. Is it internal or external? How does it affect the characters?
6. Analyze the theme of the short story. What is its main message?
CONTEXT!
Additional literary terms:
Allegory
Microcosm
Allusion
Irony
Round character
Flat character
Dynamic character
Static character
Vocabulary Preparation
1.
2.
3.
4.
Complete the vocabulary units 1-3 review in your book.
Come up with memory tools for each vocabulary word.
Write a sentence in a relative context for each word.
Make flashcards with pictures, synonyms, definitions and/or sentences if you are a visual learner.
Grammar Preparation
Study definitions for simple, compound, and complex sentences. Also, review the definition of run-ons,
fragments and comma splices.
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