READ THIS!

Ok you brain-boxes (I am really keeping this positive affirmation of your mental ability at the forefront of my exam prep for you guys),

I am going to try and write a VERY, VERY IMPORTANT post here which sums up the basics of everything that underpins Section A.

Each of these bullet points is VITALLY important, so read them very carefully.

*Revision is very good and very useful, but actually it is how capable you are of using the information you are  given ONCE IN THE EXAM which is important. If you have your techniques right, you should be able to answer well even on a text you haven't read before!

*You need to spend time SPOTTING LANGUAGE FEATURES, so make sure you have a HIGHLIGHTER! If not UNDERLINE words as you read the extract. These language features are your bread and butter. Once you have these, you can begin to turn them into awesome paragraphs.

*We all know you have to write in PEE, but you need to be taking it a step further. Ask yourself these questions in every paragraph.

1. Have I made a point/ found a language feature that I am proud of or sounds impressive?
2. Have I selected the best possible evidence (ie, try to LINK evidence, find multiple examples if you can.)
3. MOST IMPORTANTLY - Have I explained the EFFECT that this has on the reader, and linked it back to the question?

For example -

Have you explained how it makes the reader feel?
Have you explained how it changes your view of a character or setting?
Have you explained how your example links to another part of the book?
Have you explained that your example seems to hint about things which are going to happen in the future?
Have you explained how your example links to a theme/ or the context of the novel?

If you haven't, then you NEED TO EXPLAIN YOURSELF FURTHER!!!!

*Hopefully now you see what I mean. It is you ABILITY TO PICK OUT INFORMATION FROM THE TEXT which is most important. It is just slightly more complicated COMPREHENSION. You have done this all your lives, and you can still do it now!!!

*Context - Add context if you can, but don't force it in. If it feels appropriate to mention race/gender/money etc, then do it. But make sure your comment is useful. For example...

"The setting in the bunkhouse has been made to feel bare and uncomfortable. THis refelcts the way many people such as George and Lennie were living during the 1930s in USA. Many men were poor and out of work, and these sort of basic conditions would be seen as a welcome alternative to sleeping rough."

See? I mentioned it, but linked it to the question, and the point I was making!!!

Read the above carefully, and I will continue this post in part 2.

NW