English Checkpoint revision - Yr 9

Literary Techniques
●​ Imagery- Vivid descriptions of senses ‘The sunset was the most gorgeous
thing I have ever seen; the clouds were outlined with pink and gold glitter.’
●​ Simile- Direct comparison between two things ‘You fought like a lion on the
field.’
●​ Metaphor- Indirect comparison between two things ‘The snow is a white
blanket.’
●​ Personification- Giving a human quality to something non-human ‘The
lightning danced across the dark night sky.’
●​ Alliteration- Repeated consonant sounds occurring at the beginning of words
or within words ‘She sells seashells on the seashore.’
●​ Exaggeration/Hyperbole- A statement that represents something as better,
bigger, worse, etc than it really is ‘I have a million assignments to complete
today.’
●​ Onomatopoeia- The use of words that mimic sounds ‘The corn went pop in
the microwave.’
●​ Irony- A result opposite to what might have been expected to 'Yesterday the
police station got robbed!’
●​ Sarcasm- Words that are in contrast to their usual meaningA man replies to a
telecommunicator, who calls him while he is having his dinner, “Thanks for
calling! I hate having my dinner when it is hot!”
●​ Having a good grip on vocabulary is important. Hence, it is advisable to
know synonyms of basic words you might be asked to give synonyms for a
word or words from the text.
●​ Strong adjectives are used to emphasize or arouse a particular mood.
 Reading
●​ To score well in Section A(Reading) of the Paper 1 and Paper 2 it is
important to be able to critically read the passage and recognize the purpose,
tone, language, structure, and effect of it.
●​ When you are answering comprehension questions remember:​
- Some questions require answers in your own words.​
- Some questions need you to support your answer with evidence/quotes
from the text.​
- Some questions want you to use both.​
- Use full sentences where necessary.
●​ Don’t spend more than 30 minutes on this section!
●​ The three common purposes of a text are:​
1. To Inform- Provide information about a topic (Paper 1)​
2. To Persuade- To convince the reader to agree with the author’s views on a
subject (Paper 1)​
3. To Entertain-To amuse and fascinate the readers (Paper 2)
●​ Understanding an outline, which is made up of a primary idea followed by a
numbered list of supporting details, makes it easier to understand the
purpose of the text. An outline can be found out by looking for list words
and addition words like:​
- Several kinds of ​
- Various causes​
- One​
- First of all​
- Also
●​ A writer’s tone displays his or her view towards a subject, which is often
expressed through his or her choice of words. Identifying the genre of the
text can make it easier to understand the tone.​
Here are a few genres:​
- Adventure​
- Comedy​
- Fantasy​
- Horror​
 - Mystery​
- Science Fiction
●​ Here are a few possible tones:​
- Admiring​
- Amused​
- Angry​
- Bitter​
- Confused​
- Concerned​
- Cruel​
- Excited​
- Frustrated​
- Pessimistic​
- Urgent​
- Worried
●​ Informal Style:​
- Addresses the reader directly​
- Simple sentences (one clause, with a single subject and predicate.)
●​ Formal Style​
- Third person​
- Complex sentences
●​ Understanding the explicit meanings (Explicit meanings are obvious
meanings.)
●​ Techniques such as Skimming (briefly reading) and Scanning (closely
reading) can help identify the main ideas of the text, useful for the summary.
●​ Understanding the implicit meanings​
-Implicit meanings are underlying or indirect meanings. (Pay attention to the
clues the author gives you and think about what they really mean beyond the
surface words.)
●​ Writers use various stylistic features of language
Writing
Summary writing
Do’s Donts

Don’t give opinions

Don’t use direct speech

Don’t use first person

Don’t give a conclusion

Paper 1

Magazine article
●​ Use a catchy title.
●​ Use subheadings for better organization and presentation.
●​ Make use of rhetorical questions (questions which do not require an
answer).
Newspaper report
●​ Begin with a catchy headline.
●​ Make use of a lead line (small line after headline summarizing the report)
and by-line (line mentioning name of the writer).
●​ First Paragraph: ▪ Who? ▪ When? ▪ Where? ▪ What?
●​ Narrate the events in a chronological order.
●​ Do not include opinions, unless mentioning eye witnesses’ quote.
●​ Use time connectives (after, before, later that day, at the same time).
●​ End with a prediction of the future.

Informal letter

Format:
-​ Salutation (Dear/Dearest)
-​ Introduction
-​ Body
-​ Conclusion
●​ Sign off with your name/name of the character if based on the extract of
Section A.
●​ Avoid using abbreviations and slang terms.
●​ Keep the tone very friendly.
●​ Try using time phrases (shortly after that/later/that afternoon/after dinner)

Formal letter
Structure:

-​ Salutations and Signatures

Narrative/Story Writing
●​ First or third person depending on the question.
●​ Must have a conflict and resolution.

Conflicts could be:

-​ Man vs Man.
-​ Man vs Self.
-​ Man vs Supernatural.
-​ Man vs Nature.
-​ Man vs Society.
●​ Setting must have potential for adventure – perhaps terror or danger. Use
long sentences to create a feel of relaxation or reaching a climax.
●​ Use short sentences to quicken the pace.
●​ Use varied vocabulary to amplify the effect and enrich the piece.
●​ Alter paragraph length according to the importance of the content in that
paragraph.

Structure:

●​ Paragraph 1 - Setting
●​ Paragraph 2 - Character development
●​ Paragraph 3 - Conflict
●​ Paragraph 4 - Resolution
●​ Paragraph 5 - Ending

Email writing
●​ Define the goal
●​ Formal or Informal?​

Structure:
●​ Salutation - Dear (name)
●​ Subject line - Clearly indicates the email's purpose
 ●​ Body:
1- Introduction (Briefly explain the reason for the email)​
2- Key info (Progress, requests, updates, questions..)​
3- Call to action (What the receiver has to do, when, and how)
4- Closing (Thank you for your time and attention)

●​ Closing - Sincerely / Best regard / thanks, (Name)