First

Language
English
Revision
0500
 Paper Format
Paper 1- Reading
2 Hours- 80 Marks
Qs. 1 a-e) Text A: Comprehension -
15 minutes for 15 marks

Qs 1f) Text B: Summary Writing -

25 minutes for 15 marks

Qs 2 a-b) Text C: Short answers –

10-13 minutes for 7 marks

Q2 d) Mini stylistic analysis-

5 minutes for 3 marks

Qs 2d) Text C: Writers Effect –

20 minutes for 15 marks

Qs 3) Genre Transformation –
40 minutes for 25 marks.

 Paper 2- Writing
2 Hours- 80 Marks

Qs 1- Discursive/Argumentative
or Persuasive
40 Marks for 55 minutes

Qs 2- Descriptive or Narrative
Writing
40 Marks for 55 Minutes
Paper 1
F. Summary
Identify 15 main, relevant points, write them in your OWN
WORDS and organised way.
• Pretend you had read story long time ago, and then write it
down. Short and simple. Understandable by a 3rd grade kid.
• Get readers attention. Use Synonyms.No repetition
• Scientific, Geographic terms are okay, Adjectives &
descriptions not okay.Use transitional words
• Clear & main points only. Specific Figs & stats not very imp.
• Info that answers the main question
• Don’t cross word limit. No less; no more; exact.
• Don’t give opinions. Don’t lift phrases from text. Group similar
ideas together.Organise and sequence ideas
• 10M: Content; 5M: Quality
 Writing frame to structure
each paragraph:
The writer creates the
impression of... in
paragraph...
The word ‘ ...’ helps to
create this effect. It
literally means...
However, it also
suggests...
The word has
connotations of... The
writer uses this word to
create an image of...
• include choices you could best explain.
• precise meaning in context, so that reader could relate with the text.
• Use synonymous words. Give it a little total dramatic effect.
• Write the effect you felt when read extend ideas & explanation fully.
• Avoid general comment & same explanation for one example.
• Zoom in Technique to evaluate adjectives and specific catchy words.
• Pick phrases rather than words. Embed Quotes “x”. 4-5 Words Max.
• Primary Focus (Imagery): onomatopoeia, figure of speech, adjectives,
adverbs, vocabs, sensory details, punctuation
• Is Humour/irony/sarcasm/foreshadowing used?
• Sentence Types: Simple, Compound, Complex, Imperative.
• Tell what part you liked: adjectives, verbs, adverbs, noun.
• Before finding anything, look for the effect you experience as a reader.
• Feelings of Character, setting if story, effect of the language.

Writing Formats
News Report writing
Formal Report Writing
Interview writing
Journal Writing
Magazine Article writing
Letter Writing
Speech Writing(Argumentative)
Talk (Persuasive)
Descriptive Or Narrative Writing
 Paper 2 Q1 Tips
The passage for this question will probably The bullet points are to remind you what should
contain a description of a person or place or be
both. included, use them to check you have covered

what is required.
To do well, you will need to be sensitive to the

atmosphere being created and to show

These bullet points can also help you to
appreciation of the feelings of any characters in
STRUCTURE your answer.
your response.

This means watching out for details and picking Your response from the passage should be put
up on clues in the passage as you read. In this into the APPROPRIATE BULLET POINT and
question, you are going to be rewarded not only NOT be repeated.
for identifying relevant material in the passage

but also for development of those ideas and use Remember to give an EQUAL amount of writing
of supporting detail. to each of the BULLET POINTS given

Some ideas might be quite subtle and implied. Before you start writing, you will need to decide
This means that you will need to use any clues
on the appropriate TONE to use – you will
and details you notice when you are reading in
decide this based on your AUDIENCE and WHY
order to write a convincing response. If any detail
is relevant, USE it!
you are

writing. You might even be writing in a
However, there may be some parts of the character from the text.
passage which you can ignore because they are

NOT covered by the question. You can expect that you will have to write in a

reasonably FORMAL style.
Do not DRIFT away from the text. Everything you

write must be directly connected to the passage It is NOT a good idea to use SLANG . Even if
and be supported by references to it. the task is to write a letter to a relative, it will be

someone distant or older, such as an uncle whom

Using words or phrases from the passage here
you haven’t met recently so this should still be
and there when you are giving details within your
answer is fine.
FORMAL.

DO NOT copy BIG chunks of text as that will If a task asks for a report to your fellow
NOT show your understanding of the text. learners, it will be official or for a publication in

the school magazine. It is really important to
You should try to use YOUR OWN WORDS as remember
far as possible. Make your writing as REALISTIC WHO you are writing for and to address them
as possible. DIRECTLY imagining this is a REAL situation

(as far as possible).
Don’t forget that you are writing should be in
continuous prose so you should be using
paragraphs.

Avoid making LISTS.

 News Report
Paper 1
Points:
• Headline Short & Snappy (Extremely Important)
• 1st Sentence: Sum up the whole story
• Report in third person and past tense
• Split it into paragraphs.
• Objective & Formal & No Regular Language
• Technical Terms
• Quotations from witnesses & Reported Speech (same thing but
without quotations)

Reporting Verbs: Headline

• Believe 1. News Event
• Claim (What? When? Where? Who?)
• Expect

• Know 2. Background
• Hope (Why? previous history, lead-up to this event, causes)
• Report

• Understand 3. Report of actual news event

(detailed account of what happened and what is still
happening,facts)

4. Quotations
(participants, witnesses, member of public quote)

5. Future
(consequences, recommendations, investigations,
improvement, predictions)
News Report

Formal Report
 Letter
Formal Structure
Written to a higher Address
authority Date
Topic is about an issue

Formal tone Opening: Address your letter to the person you are writing to, check
No contractions then passage for clues as to who you are writing to or check the
Your tone must be question. Start a new line for the first paragraph
dominant in a way that you

want the person to take First Paragraph

action on your behalf and If formal: “This letter is written to you, to inform you about...”
acknowledge the issue If informal, you can write it in a semi formal style, in your usual
No colloquial language manner. Okay, so here you have to answer why you are writing? Is it
Very precise & strong & to request? To Complain? What exactly are you responding to? Such
succinct vocabulary details should be explicitly stated so the examiner can see that you
Connectives; Facts & understood how to answer the questions stated.
Statistics;

Name: Yours Sincerely; Paragraph 2

Sir/Madam/ Yours Faithfully Give the history of the event or your previous experience, basically
Use a formal and polite background information. Say what happened exactly in the past
tone throughout the letter. which made you want to write this letter, if you are writing a
complaint letter, mention details such as: dates, facts, names and
Infomal details.
Written to a loved one,

(relative or friend) Paragraph 3

Semi-formal Give support to your claim and request, summarise the current
You tend to talk about your situation and why the person you are writing to, should give
experiences consideration. These are the extra points which make your request or
Usually you invite them to complaints more valid.
something

You ask about their well- Paragraph 4- Conclusion

being or the well being of Say what you wish to happen next or if it was for a job interview,
their loved one mention that you look forward to being called in for the interview.
Colloquial Language Suggest firmly but politely what may happen if they do not do what
Emotive Language you have suggested regarding your complaint.
Begin the letter with a
friendly opening
End the letter with a closing
such as "See you soon," or
"Take care,"
Clearly state the purpose of
the letter in the first
paragraph.
 Magazine

Article

1. Topic
(Introduce the issue, which may be something topical and in the news, or research
recently published, or proposal which has been put forward by a government or
other agency, or the description of the person that the article will concern. Unlike a
news report, which is informative, and a speech, which is argumentative, a magazine
article is discursive writing.)

2. Background
(The article is likely to fill in the past history of the person or event which the article
concerns, so that readers are fully aware of the necessary facts and reason why the
article has been written and what has led to the current state of affairs.)

3. Discussion
(The article is likely to return to the present-day situation at this point, discussing
and giving different viewpoints of the person or event, with details and examples
and quotations, and making comparisons with the past or with similar topics. Though
the writer’s own viewpoint may be inferred, alternative views must be given equal
weight and other voices heard.)

4. Prediction
(At this point the article may deal with the future developments or predicted
outcome of the present situation, e.g. that a person will go on to become even more
famous and successful, or that a current predicament will become worse if nothing is
done about it, or which side will win the political debate.)

5. Conclusion
(The article needs a neat conclusion, which may be an ironic reference or humorous
comment, or an evaluation of the different viewpoints, or a reference back to the
beginning of the article, or a quotation.)
 Argument Writing Structure
1. Introduction
(State the issue and explain its importance and topical relevance.)

2. Alternative View
(Show awareness that there is an alternative viewpoint and give its
main arguments.)

3. Criticism of Alternative View

(Demolish the alternative viewpoint by exposing its weaknesses.)

4. Your View
(Give all the reasons you can think of why your position is the
sensible one, supporting each point with evidence in the form of
statistic, example, analogy, detail, quotation and personal
experience.)

5. Conclusion
(Conclude with a summary of your position on the issue and/or
what you think future developments might be.)
 Speech
TIPS:
In speech, there should be short paragraphs as that will have more impact
Number of paragraphs will depend on your collected points and how you structure
them
Use Imperative sentences and Use Varied pronouns
Check for sample speeches online to get a feel of the format, if still in doubt

Introduction
Capture’s the audience’s attention and Clearly state your opinion
Start with yourself and why you are speaking
Introduce yourself briefly and Include an interesting fact or item of information
about the topic

Body
Developing your main points and ideas
Using rhetorical questions to engage your listeners
What is your argument?(if argumentative style of speech)
Acknowledgement of counter argument (If argumentative style of speech)
If it is to persuade and inform, take evidences from the passage
and paraphrase them, in order to support your point

Conclusion
A brief summing up of your topic
Conclude the speech in a memorable manner that will make the audience understand
 INTERVIEW
Features:
▪ Purpose: Informative
▪ Structure: The interviewer asks three questions (the question bullet points given)
and each is answered relatively in about half a page of full sentences; paragraphs
not necessary.
▪ Style: As this is a spoken genre, the interviewee can speak somewhat informally,
using contractions, but must use full and linked sentences for fluency and a range
of vocabulary for interest.
▪ Voice: The personality of the interviewee, as inferred from the passage, should
be evident from their responses to the questions.

Language features to keep in mind:

▪ Rhetorical questions: asked in order to create a dramatic effect or to make a
point rather than to get an answer.
▪ Emotive language: language evoking an emotional reaction
▪ Anecdotes: short amusing or interesting story about a real incident or person.
Humour: amusing or comic
▪ Idioms: group of words established by usage as having a meaning not deducible
from those of the individual words (Under the weather, Spill the beans, Break a leg,
It’s the best thing since sliced bread).
▪ Colloquial language: informal, everyday spoken language, usually with emphasis
on geographic region

Points:
• 3 Questions will be asked.
• USE OWN WORDS.
• Repose to all questions appropriately.
• 15M Content; 10M Writing;
• Have context to text.
• Speaker’s name on left side followed by a colon (:).
• Have a little intro and outro and mid convo.
• Use of interjections, connectives.
• Expert Language (Language related to field). & Conversational Language &
Informal.
• Punctuations. ( ... | ! | ? )
• Chatty; Personal Pronouns; Purpose Style; Vary Sentence Structure; Feeling &
Opinion words;


JOURNAL ENTRIES
▪ Journal is a record of events that occurred in the writer’s life.
▪ It may be their emotions, ideas, or beliefs.
▪ The purpose of writing a journal is to reflect, it is a personal piece of
writing and the response to a question should be subjective.

Language features to keep in mind:

▪ Rhetorical questions: asked in order to create a dramatic effect or to
make a point rather than to get an answer.
▪ Emotive language: language evoking an emotional reaction
▪ Anecdotes: short amusing or interesting story about a real incident or
person. Humour: amusing or comic
▪ Idioms: group of words established by usage as having a meaning not
deducible from those of the individual words
▪ Colloquial language: informal, everyday spoken language, usually with
emphasis on geographic region

What to include:
▪ First person writing
▪ Use of the past tense when recounting events that have happened
before writing about them
▪ Recounting events that have happened and references to time
▪ Focusing on key moments and Personal feelings
▪ Thoughts/ feelings/actions for the future

How to write a journal entry

▪ Write from a first person point of view; use of the word ‘I’ in your writing.
Self-reflective tone. It should be a recollection of memory; thinking back on
something you’ve done or seen.
▪ Your journal should only reflect on incidents or observations that
happened recently.
▪ Your thoughts and viewpoints should be expressed with emotive
language, giving the reader more insight into feelings.
▪ Past or future tense, depending on whether writing about recent events
or anticipating future events or situations.
▪ Rhetorical questions increase the reader’s curiosity and improve your
work.
 Narrative Writing

The intimating moments leading up to climax should be filled with stomach butterfly orders and
descriptions.
• Ending is as important as the beginning & don’t use a stupid ending like: “I woke up and it was
dream”.
• Unexpected & realistic ending have great meaning.
• Use the best of characters, plot, conflict, & POV. [Features of Narrative].
• Use Dialogues with quotations, but the punctuation should be very accurate.
• Create the ambience/atmosphere.
• Imagery (Looks), Sensory (Feel, Taste, Smell) & descriptions (further details).
• Accuracy! More important than the content itself. Punctuation, Spelling, Grammar.
• Ambitious Vocabulary & variety of different sentence structure.
• Avoid using overly colourful language which ends up ridiculous, too much & senseless.
• If First Person Narrative, don’t overuse ‘I’.
• Complex, consistent, engaging & effective.
• Structure is secure, well balanced, & carefully managed for deliberate effect.
• Well defined, developed ideas create convincing overall picture with variety of focus.
• Clear, Well Defined, Strongly Developed, Description, Effective Climax, Convincing

Details.
• Figures of Speech will give you perks. and Well-chosen vocabulary
• Use of Paragraphs, and Title (if required)
• Particular & Precise Vocabulary
• Clear & focused rather than being too descriptive. and main Focus should be story not object.
• Usage of onomatopoeia: (Ouch! Aargh! Boom! Splash!)
• Indirect/Embedded Characterisation
• 2-3 Major Characters | minimum 1 supporting character.
• Strong Adjectives and Emotive Elements (e.g.: fear, anger, worry, sorrow, etc)
• Rule of THREE and Sound Vocab (e.g.: muttered)
• Connection between beginning and end
• Zoom Lens; Detailed Descriptions.
• Chronology but Avoid cliff hangers,
• Do not change the tenses.
• Use all 5 senses. and Show, not tell;
 Descriptive Writing Structure
1. Setting
(If you are describing a place, it is appropriate to set the general scene of location,
surroundings, atmosphere, time of day, week, month, season, weather, temperature.
Either time or distance can be used as the framework for a descriptive composition.
Descriptive compositions must have some kind of framework to give them a shape
and structure and logical progression to involve the reader.)

2. Positioning
(The observe takes up a position with regard to the object or place being described
e.g. they are standing outside a room. This should be at a distance so that interest is
aroused as to what will be revealed on closer inspection e.g. when the gate into the
secret garden is opened or the chest in the attic is opened. The senses of sight and
sound will be explored in this section and used to draw the reader in. If time is the
framework then this must be established, e.g. daylight is beginning to fade at dusk.)

3. Approaching
(The observer moves towards the object or place being described. New details can
be revealed because of the closer proximity e.g. as the beach becomes clearer to
view. At this stage the sense of smell can be added to sight and sound.
Alternatively, time has moved on e.g. darkness is creeping into the sky and natural
appearances are changing.)

4. Arriving
(The observer is now part of the scene, e.g. in the heart of the street market, or in
contact with the object e.g. going through the items in a chest. Minute details of
vision and noise can be used here, and also the sense of touch can be explored, and
taste implied e.g. people in the scene are eating, the sea is salty. Alternatively, time
has reached its climax, e.g. it is now night and the new sky and atmosphere can be
described.)

5. Farewell
(The observer leaves the scene, with or without a backward glance. They may have
replaced anything they disturbed in a room and now close the door so that things
are again as they were at the beginning; alternatively it may be going home time
for the people on the beach or at the market, so that the scene empties and
becomes the opposite of how it was at the beginning. Reference to either time or
distance is used as closure.)
Formal Vocab