Q5 (45 mins, 24 + 16 marks):

This is the WRITING section and you will usually be given a choice of TWO tasks. Complete only ONE.

One task is normally writing to describe and the other writing to narrate. They usually provide a picture to help inspire you.

Make sure you focus on your organisation, structure, sentence structures, vocabulary, techniques, SPAG, paragraphs and a sense of purpose and audience.

[Purpose and audience explained].EitherWrite a description, as suggested by this picture

Or

Write a story with the title ‘____________’.

(24 marks for content and organisation16 marks for technical accuracy)[40 marks]

AQA English Language Paper 1 Question 5Knowledge Organiser

This is the kind of question you will get in Section B or Question 5 of the exam. The exam board will give you a choice between two activities (so only answer ONE of them!)

The exam board could ask you to write a description or a narrative (story), or they could give you a choice between two descriptions or two narratives.

Whichever one you go for, you will be assessed on the same skills.

One mega important piece of advice I give to all my students is to plan your answer, whether it’s a description, a narrative or a bit of both. You can’t have a coherent and clear structure if you haven’t planned it out in advance. You wouldn’t bake a cake without a recipe or playing in a football game without coaching, training and a game plan, so why would you dive head first into a piece of writing? You need to organise your thoughts. How can you plan? Well, it’s entirely up to the individual, but spend 5-10 minutes planning out your answer before you write it. You could:

Some students like to mind map

If you’re writing a description it often helps to draw circles or squares around small parts of the picture given to you and then numbering those pictures (say 1-6). You can then use those sections of the picture to structure your description.

If you’re boring like me then you might just want to a simple paragraph plan and list key ideas for each paragraph.

There’s no ‘right’ way to plan an answer, but whatever helps to organise your ideas then use it. Please do not answer the exam question without having prepared your thoughts!

Pace and Tone: A way to think about sentences

Every writer wants to establish a pace and a tone to their writing. Pace is how fast or slow a text is meant to be read, and tone is the kind of sound or mood you want to give to a piece of writing.

If you use lots of short sentences together it can build tension, but it can also speed up a text as a reader becomes more desperate to find out what happens as tension builds. Alternatively short sentences can make a reader stop and reflect on specific ideas.

Longer, more complex sentence forms can be used to aid description or to help a reader build up an understanding of character.

So when you write your answer to Question 5, think about what kind of tone and pace you want to create and how you can use different sentence types to affect the reader, too!

Vocabulary

You’ve probably noticed your English teachers spending a fair bit of time trying to improve your vocabulary over the past few years. Essentially, narrative and descriptive writing are far more engaging when a wider range of words is used. When we talk to friends we’re not really reflecting on our choice of words and we’ll throw in adjectives and nouns like “good”, “bad”, “stuff”, “things” and so on.

In the exam, you want to show off any impressive words you know, but you don’t want to fall into the trap of using words that you’ve tried to learn for the exam and you’re not entirely sure what they mean. Examiners spot that kind of word-usage a mile away.

Instead, what you can do to really boost your vocabulary is learn synonyms. Instead of using basic colours in description like “yellow” and “green”, use alternative words that mean pretty much the same thing but sound so much better.

Additionally, avoid adjectives like “good” and “bad” and look at the synonyms above. Stick some of those in your exam answer!

Varying Sentence Openers:

There are many ways of opening sentences besides just repeating ‘I’ or ‘The’. Remember the acronym ‘iSpaced’ to get all of these sentence openers into your head:

-ing sentence openers

Considering his future, he went to the Careers Advisor

During the evening, it snowed heavily.

Shouting, she ran away from the ghost.

Simile sentence openers

As fast as a cheetah, he made his escape.

Like a fish in the sea, she swam across the water.

Preposition sentence openers

At the end of the evening, they returned home.

Through the streets of Birmingham, there are thousands of shops.

Inside the cupboard, it was dark and scary.

Adverbial sentence openers

Quickly, he packed his bag for school.

Silently, she read the book in the Library.

Surprisingly, no one was in the classroom.

Connective sentence openers

Although you worked hard today, it wasn’t quite enough for a merit.

However, I will say well done for your effort.

Despite his disappointment, the student kept smiling.

-ed sentence openers

Disguised in her costume, she was a hit at Halloween

Shocked by the score, the football team gave up.

Challenged to a staring contest, the student reluctantly agreed.

Dialogue sentence openers

“You can start a sentence with dialogue!” shouted the teacher.

“That is amazing,” said the student, “I didn’t realise that!”

We can use the acronym ToPTiPs to help us remember where to put new paragraphs:1) New Topic: Whenever you start a new topic, add in a new paragraph.2) New Person: Whenever you talk about a new person or have a new person talking, add in a new

paragraph.3) New Time: Whenever you change the time in your writing (so back to the past or move forwards

to the future), you put a new paragraph in.4) New Place: Whenever you switch places in a piece of writing, you add in a new paragraph.

Remember that you can use paragraphs for emphasis and effect as well. If you put a one sentence paragraph in the middle of your writing, how will that affect the reader? If you put a really descriptive paragraph at the start and shorter action-packed sentences afterwards, how will that make the reader feel? Why? Experiment with your paragraphing as you practice for the exam.

One activity I like to get students to do is create a graph or story shape of your piece of writing. This is particularly useful when writing out a narrative piece. When your writing is more tense or exciting, the graph’s line goes up. When it is less exciting or tense, the line goes down. You could even draw a tension graph on the side of your exam text if it helps! Picturing it this way can really help you to structure your chapter/story and make it truly engaging for the reader.

Adding connectives, to add to your initial ideas:MoreoverFurthermoreIn additionAdditionallySimilarlyAs well as this

Contrasting connectives, to show a different perspective or idea:HoweverOn the other handAlternativelyDespite thisIn contrastConverselyIn spite of this

Genre

As well as thinking about all the other

areas mentioned here, try to consider

what genre(s) you’d like to write it in.

A genre is a way of classifying a text based

on the key elements or parts it contains.

There are many, many different genres and

sub-genres. Here are some:

Action/Adventure

Crime/Detective Fiction

Comedy

Fable

Fairy tale

Fantasy

Historical fiction

Horror

Mystery

Science fiction

Suspense/Thriller

Tragedy

Hopefully you read for fun outside of English

lessons – it’s one of the best ways to

guarantee success in your exams… plus it’s

fun! Whatever you like most, you can mimic

that style and genre of writing in your piece,

so long as it fits the exam question.

If you like westerns then try

and write a western story!

If you like mystery, try to

write a mystery.

Cyclical ending: where the ending returns back to the beginning of the narrative.

Plot twist: a complete change in direction from where the narrative was going.

Epiphany: a sudden moment of realisation or a sudden idea or emotional change.

Happy ending: a joyful celebration at the end

Sad ending: a very negative and possibly tragic finish

Uncertain ending: an end which is unclear to the reader – they have to think about it what it means

Converging storylines: where two or more different storylines combine together at the end

Tying up loose ends: where all the different strands of a plot are brought together and completed

Deus ex machina (Latin for ‘God within the machine’): where a seemingly unsolvable problem is resolved thanks to the introduction of a new character, place or object.

A puzzle! Hook your reader in with something that isn’t clear at the beginning, perhaps something unusual has happened?

Direct address. Talk directly to your readers as a way of engaging them.

Subtle hook. Hint at what is going to happen in the rest of the text/chapter.

Atmospheric hook. Use your descriptive language to build up a particular tone and atmosphere right at the very beginning.

Visual hook. Use a powerful image or description to engage the reader at the start.

Amusing hook. Use a joke to establish a comedic tone at the beginning of your text.

Dialogue. Have characters talking to each other right from the beginning to establish characters and relationships.

Beginnings

How a writer begins and finishes a text is incredibly important. How does a writer engage you right from the start and what kind of thoughts or feelings do they want you to have at the end of the chapter or text? Know these different beginnings and endings so you can choose which ones work best for your piece of writing. You could even mimic the style of writing from the exam test you looked at in Section A!

Endings

Here are some different structural features you could use in your own writing

Zooming in from something big to something much smaller (and vice versa).

Shifting between different times and places (you may notice this between paragraphs).

Sudden or gradual introduction of new characters at significant points.

Moving from inside to the wider world outside (and vice versa).

Combining external actions

with internal thoughts.

Switching between different points of view.

Developing and reiterating (focusing on a point of view by expanding and repeating it)

Cyclical structure (returning at the end to what happened at the beginning)

Positioning of key sentences and their impact on the whole text.

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Ho

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Lem

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Gre

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BlueCobaltNavyAzureDenimBerryIndigoTealCerulean

RedCherryRoseJamMerlot

CrimsonRubyBrickBloodCandyScarletAppleVermillion

MaroonCerise

BlackEbonyRavenOilyLeatherMidnightSootyInky

PurpleVioletLavenderAmethystLilacPlumRaisinMauve

OrangeTigerTangerineApricotSandstoneSquashMarmaladeCarrotAmber

GingerClayBronzePeachCantaloupeCoralNectarineCitrus

PinkFuchsiaWatermelonStrawberryMagentaBubble-gum

GreenJuniper

SagePistachioLimeMintMossyEmeraldGrassy

WhitePearlAlabasterSnowIvoryCreamEggshellCottonChiffon

SaltLaceCoconutLinenPorcelainParchment

Imagine pace and tone as a battery providing energy. How much does each tone need?

AngryIncensedViciousViolentFuriousIrateMaddened

Livid

RelaxedCalmPlacidTranquilNonchalantCarefreeComposedCollected

SadMelancholicMoroseDesolateDespondentCrestfallenDowncastDejected

JoyfulElatedDelightedRapturousJubilantUpbeatLight-heartedEcstatic

DarkSinisterCorruptMalevolentPoisonousApocalypticOminousPortentous

LonelyIsolatedAbandonedForsakenOutcastSecludedEstrangedDeserted

FearfulIntimidatedAghastPerturbedSkittishAgitatedNervousDisquieted

Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar

Unfortunately there isn’t a quick fix for SPAG – it’s something you work on over years and years. However, I’ve stuck this box here to remind you to spend time in the exam reflecting on SPAG and making sure that you’ve proof read your work having written it (you won’t believe the number of students that sit in the exam room like a lemondoing nothing but staring into space. Why? Use every second of the exam time wisely! You get one shot, I believe Eminem said.

As for punctuation, you want to show off all the different types of punctuation you know about – not just commas and full stops but semicolons, dashes, hyphens, speech punctuation and so on. If you know how to use them… use them! You’ll notice I used a few different types here; I’m not showing off I just want you to see punctuation can be used – for effect. Don’t fall into the trap of adding in 45 semicolons because you think that’ll impress the examiner. Use high level punctuation occasionally but to have an impact, not just for the sake of it.

• Really impressive vocabulary choices chosen for effect• The choice of vocabulary makes the writing interesting and engaging for the reader.

• The tone (sound of writing) is confident and changes dependent on the point being made.

• The writing is appropriately formal or informal (register).• The pace (speed) of the writing changes depending on the point being made.

• Your argument is clear and makes sense to the reader.• You sound confident in the way you write• The writing is engaging and genuinely interesting for the reader.• The writing has a distinctive voice that flows and feels natural not

robotic.

CommunicationTone, style, register

Vocabulary

• Paragraphs are linked together and in an order that engages the reader and makes their argument easy to follow.

• Paragraphs allow the structure of the piece to come through to the reader easily.

• Complex, detailed ideas with specific examples used to develop them and make them relevant for the reader.

• Wide-ranging ideas that cover multiple areas within an argument and avoids repetition.

• Flows from one idea or argument to the next• Engaging opening to the writing.• Powerful finish to the writing.• A carefully chosen and crafted order of ideas including within paragraphs and sentences.• Use of discourse markers/connectives to link complex ideas.

Structure

Ideas Paragraphs

Negative adjectives: disgusting, sickening, repulsive, abominable, awful, distasteful, gruesome, hateful, horrific, loathsome, nasty, objectionable, obnoxious, odious, outrageous, repugnant, scandalous, shocking, vile, vulgar, foul, gross, nauseating, revolting, stinking, detestable, frightful, ghastly, hideous, horrid, lousy, monstrous, offensive, repellent, rotten

Positive adjectives: amazing, awesome, incredible, marvellous, stunning, surprising, unbelievable, wonderful, delightful, fantastic, peaceful, pleasant, thrilling, joyful, alluring, appealing, charming, dazzling, elegant, exquisite, gorgeous, graceful, grand, handsome, magnificent, pleasing, splendid, superb, breath-taking, outstanding, sublime, admirable, exceptional