How the writing sections are marked, planning, sentence and punctuation variety, and the conventions of a letter, article, speech and essay.
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1.How are both writing questions marked?
24 marks for content and organisation, and 16 marks for technical accuracy.
2.What does content and organisation reward?
Ideas suited to the audience and purpose, varied and ambitious vocabulary, and a clear deliberate structure.
3.What does technical accuracy reward?
Accurate spelling and punctuation, varied sentence forms, and correct grammar.
4.Why should you plan for five minutes?
A planned piece has a shape and a proper ending, and organisation is worth a large share of the marks.
5.What is the danger of an unplanned narrative?
It often runs out of time and stops abruptly, losing organisation marks.
6.Why is describing a single moment often better than telling a whole story?
A narrow focus allows detailed description and controlled structure, rather than rushing through events.
7.Give three ways to open a piece of writing effectively.
Start in the middle of the action, open with a striking image, or begin with dialogue or a short punchy sentence.
8.Why does sentence variety matter?
It controls pace and creates effects, and it is directly rewarded in the technical accuracy marks.
9.Name four punctuation marks worth using accurately.
Semicolons, colons, dashes, brackets and ellipses.
10.Why is a semicolon useful?
It joins two closely related complete sentences, showing control that a full stop does not demonstrate.
11.What is a discourse marker?
A word or phrase that signals the direction of your writing, such as however, furthermore or in contrast.
12.What is the purpose of paragraphing?
To organise ideas and control pace. A new paragraph signals a change in time, place, topic or speaker.
13.What are the conventions of a letter?
An address or greeting such as Dear Sir, a clear structure, and an appropriate sign off.
14.What are the conventions of an article?
A headline, sometimes a subheading, an engaging opening, and paragraphs suited to the publication.
15.What are the conventions of a speech?
Direct address to the audience, a greeting, rhetorical devices, and a memorable closing line.
16.What are the conventions of an essay?
A formal register, a clear introduction, developed points, and a conclusion.
17.Why does audience matter in viewpoint writing?
It determines the register and the kind of evidence and tone that will persuade them.
18.Name four persuasive techniques for viewpoint writing.
Rhetorical questions, the rule of three, direct address, statistics, anecdote and emotive language.
19.Why is a strong ending important?
It is the last thing the examiner reads, and a deliberate ending demonstrates control of structure.
20.What is the danger of over using ambitious vocabulary?
Words used incorrectly stand out more than simple words used well, and can cost accuracy marks.
21.How much should you write for Question 5?
Enough to develop ideas properly, usually two to three sides, but quality matters far more than length.
22.Why should you leave five minutes at the end?
To check spelling, punctuation and missing words, which is the quickest way to recover marks.
23.What is the single most common technical error?
Comma splices, where a comma is used to join two complete sentences that need a full stop or semicolon.
24.What should you do if you make a mistake in the exam?
Cross it out neatly with a single line. Messy corrections can make otherwise accurate work hard to credit.
25.Why is reading your writing back in your head useful?
It catches missing words and clumsy sentences that the eye skips over when scanning.
26.Does the content of a narrative need to be dramatic?
No. An ordinary moment described with precision and control scores far better than an unlikely story told badly.
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