How to answer 6 mark questions

Exam technique

6 Mark Questions

Examples from AQA C1

simple list of keywords/points

describe (features)

A

PLANNING FOR EXTENDED WRITING

u

Av

w

becausex

y

zbecause

because

because

explain • why …• what causes…• the effect of …• what happens when… describe steps in process or sequence

1 2 3

A

B

A

B

…so…

compare evaluate/present argument

Atomic structure & periodic table

Examples from AQA C1

Evidence cardsMatter is made of particles

Atoms have been seen very powerful scanning tunnelling

microscopes

Smoke particles move around in a random way when you watch them

under a microscope

Balloons will pop if they get too hot

Gases can be squashed into

smaller volumes

Most materials expand when heated

Balloons inflate when you blow air

into them

You can see air particles in bright

sunlight

I’ve seen a picture of particles in my science book

Air resistance increases when you

go faster

Salt dissolves in water

All matter can be separated into smaller bits

Sand is matter and sand is made of

particles

Metals

Examples from AQA C1

Metals

• Metals are very useful in our everyday lives. Most metals are actually found combined with other elements, as compounds in ores. These metals must be extracted from their ores before they can be made useful.

• Explain why different metals need to be extracted using different methods.

Earth and atmosphere

Examples from AQA C1

Evidence cardsThe Earth rotates on its axis

The Moon moves across the sky

It’s cold at night Daylight hours are shorter in the winter

Hong Kong has dawn 8 hours before the UK

It’s warmer at the equator than at the poles

It takes 365 ¼ days for the Earth to orbit

the Sun

The Sun rises in the East and sets in the

West

Water goes down the plughole clockwise in

the Northern hemisphere but anti-clockwise in the

Southern Hemisphere

A day is 24 hours long

Stars move across the night sky in a circular

path

Some birds fly south in winter

On a midsummer’s day there are 12 hours of day and 12 hours of

night

Evidence cardsThe Earth is round

When a ship sails towards you the mast appears first.

If you travel west you eventually return to the place you started from.

The Earth looks spherical when viewed from space.

The Earth has a magnetic field

My textbook states that the earth is round

The sun travels across the sky in the same direction every day

The shadow of the earth during a lunar eclipse is round.

The moon and sun are round so the earth is almost certainly round

Toy shops sell globes of the earth.

Fats and oils

Examples from AQA C1