Reading Response

Identify the RAFTS - Role, Audience, Format, Topic and Strong Voice

1. Role - who am I writing as?

   1. Is the character formal (e.g., journalist) or informal (writing in a diary)?

   2. What is the character’s writing style?

      1. This can be gauged from the text if the character is mentioned

      2. Character’s background influences tone and register - professionals like doctors or professors are unlikely to use slang or colloquialisms

2. Audience - who are you writing for?

   1. The audience will determine the type of language and persuasive techniques used, e.g., a speech to school children versus a letter to a principal.

3. Format - what text type is the response?

   1. News report

   2. Magazine article

   3. Formal letter

   4. Formal Report

   5. Interview

   6. Journal Entry

   7. Speech script

4. Topic - what are the three bullet points asking for?

   1. Label each bullet with A1, A2 and A3 for assessment objectives.

   2. Annotate the points in the text that relate to each bullet with A1, A2 or A3.

5. Strong Voice - what is the purpose of the writing?

   1. This links strongly to the role. Ensure that the tone you choose matches the role and adequately conveys the message of the task.

      1. I.e., A speech should use persuasive techniques like power of three, repetition and powerful adjectives or adverbs. Punctuation can be used to indicate emphasis in the speech.

Reading and Annotating

Reading and Annotating

1. As you read, ensure you highlight/underline the key points relating to the question.

   1. Annotate the points in the text that relate to each bullet with A1, A2 or A3.

   2. As part of the READING paper, your response highly relies on what is provided in the text. It should only build on the material provided and is NOT a creative response. Thus, ensure you understand the text thoroughly.

Planning Your Answer

1. Extract the points and map them out according to the question.

   1. Choose the best points to include in your answer.

   2. It is NOT THE QUANTITY of how many points from the text you include (3-5 per section of the question is enough). You need to focus on the QUALITY of the points taken that you are able to develop well with details and personal thought.

2. Plan the structure - the order in which you would like to address the question. At IGCSE, the question will give you the structure and flow of how you should write your answer.

   1. Point, detail, development and evaluation must be included.

      1. Point - answers the question

      2. Detail - taken from the text

      3. Development - your own extrapolation or evaluation based on what the text implies.

Writing Process

1. Refer to your plan to make sure you do not stray away from what you are supposed to write about.

2. In essence, transfer and expand what you have in your plan to the answer sheet in complete and well-structured sentences and paragraphs.

3. With a clear plan, there is no need to rush; therefore, you can focus on using good handwriting and ensuring that all the mechanics of spelling, punctuation and sentence structure can be applied correctly.

Checking and Proof-reading

Check your answer for:

1. Clear sentence structure

2. Correct grammar and spelling

3. Check punctuation

4. Content - have I addressed all the bullet points? Are my points communicated clearly with no doubt about what I am trying to convey?

5. Is my handwriting legible?

Summary Writing (120 words)

Steps

1. Read and underline relevant points with a pencil

2. Make a plan by writing the points in your own words

3. Group the points logically- prioritize points

4. Check the summary (word count) decrease by changing punctuation or removing repetition. Add information by including more points that you think are relevant.

IMPORTANT: PLANNING-- The fluency of ideas presented by you is crucial, so you need to plan in order to structure and sequence the points effectively. Also, don’t break down the summary into paragraphs. You have to write it in 1 paragraph.

Keep In Mind:

• Write in your own words as much as possible

• Write in complex sentences to keep within the word limit

• Clear and direct points

• Use connectives

• Try to pick out 12-15 points from the text

• Use umbrella terms

• No Opinions

• Keep facts and quotes

• Present tense

• Paraphrase

• 3rd person objective tone

Writer’s Effect

Writer’s Effect

The following reading assessment goals are tested by this question which is for 10 points:

1. You must show that you grasp the clear meanings.

2. You must show that you grasp underlying attitudes and meanings.

3. You must choose the information you use carefully and only for those purposes.

• The total mark awarded for the Writer’s Effect question is 15. 10 marks for the content of your answer and 5 for your style of writing.

What to do while reading the text?

Things to think about while reading the text:

1. What did the author write about? Find the meaning and the purpose of the text.

2. How have they done it? Look for figurative devices used to create an effect in order to achieve the meaning or purpose of the text.

3. Why have they done it? What was the writer’s intention in including those particular phrases in the text? How did the author want you to feel?

Writing Process

1. Skim through the passage first, and try to figure out the overall meaning and purpose of the passage. Additionally, make an effort to determine the passage's general mood, tone, and atmosphere.

2. Only essential words or phrases should be highlighted; do not highlight a large "chunk" of text.

   1. Try to come up with three to five options for each section of the question.

   2. Don't underline large sections of the text. Only the most powerful phrases should be highlighted.

3. Start your plan

   1. Divide the selected quotations into the three categories of Evidence, Explanation, and Effect on a table.

   2. Pay attention to the particular impact the phrase is having. Additionally, look for any figurative language that contributes to this effect.

   3. First, explain the explicit meaning of the phrase then the implicit meaning tries looking for connotations, etc.

4. Write the response

   1. Start your response by discussing the passage's overall impact.

   2. Use one paragraph to cover one section of the response, and a different paragraph for the second section.

      1. Explain Part A in 120 words and Part B in 120 words

      2. No conclusion is required

Key Vocabulary

• Mood: Mainly to do with the emotion the character is feeling internally.

• Tone: The way the text/narrator sounds. Ex: The narrator can sound frightened. We know this because of other techniques used in the writing that lets us know that the narrator is frightened.

• Atmosphere: The feeling caused by the environment around the narrator. It can be influenced by the objects within the setting. Ex: When the principal reprimanded the student in a stern tone, the atmosphere was suffocating for the student. The student can react with a frightened tone.

DOs and DONTs

DOs

1. First, explain the explicit meaning of the phrase then the implicit meaning (try looking for connotations, etc.)

2. Select diverse selections so that you don’t repeat explanations/don’t choose phrases that have a similar effect.

3. Use technical terms correctly though they aren’t required.

4. Search for the type of sentence and see if there is repetition and see what effect the syntax plays.

5. Look for synonyms for the word created before the exam. Some synonyms could be designed or portrayed.

DONTs

1. Don’t make general comments like stating that the writer has used great imagery.

2. The following phrase “the writer created an effect of…” should be avoided as it is not recommended for the effect to be stated explicitly, sometimes it is unavoidable.

Common Linguistic Devices

1. Alliteration: the occurrence of the same letter or sound at the start of words that are near together or adjacent.

Example: “Tasty Tacos”

2. Metaphors and Similes:

   1. Metaphor: when a writer states that one thing is another while comparing the 2 subjects

Example: She is a shining star.

2. Simile: expressions that describe one person/thing/attribute to another person/thing/attribute typically using the words “like” or “as”.

Example: Shine like a star

3. Pathetic Fallacy: when the writer describes the natural world as though it had feelings.

Example: “Weeping Willow”

4. Sibilance: the repetitive use of hissing or hushing-like letter sounds.

Example: Using words like “strange”, “sight” and “glass” in a sentence, for example.

5. Assonance and Consonance

   1. Assonance: the use of similar or identical vowel sounds repeatedly inside words, phrases, or sentences.

Example: They’re some creeps who I wouldn’t meet if you paid me a heap of cash!

2. Consonance: the group of consonants that are repeatedly copied. It occurs when a line or sentence has the same consonant sound several times, giving a rhythmic impression.

Example: Mike likes his new bike.

6. Anaphora: whenever a particular word or phrase is repeated at the start of clauses or phrases.

7. Epistrophe: a repetition of a phrase or word at the end of subsequent sentences.

8. Euphemism: an alternative term or phrase that is used in place of potentially rude or improper ones.

Example: “Passed away” instead of “died”.

9. Hyperbole: statements that are over-exaggerated (sometimes to a level at which it is inhumane) or overly stressed.

Example: I walked a million miles to get here.

10. Onomatopoeia: a phrase that describes a sound by imitating that sound

Example: “Pitter-patter”

11. Personification: to give human-like qualities to non-living things or abstract ideas

Example: The sun smiled down on us.

12. Connotations: an abstract idea/ something a word suggests. Connotation can be determined by context as well.

Example: The color blue can be associated with sadness.

Example 2: “As I tread through the forest, I brushed past shrubs, leaves biting at my ankles as I stepped over the gnarled roots snaked around the forest floor.”

→ Here, adjectives with negative connotations are used to create a dark atmosphere. “Biting” suggests the leaves are sharp and dangerous, and the adjective “snaked” is less positive than “swirled” or “twisted” which adds to this atmosphere.

Directed Writing

Reading the Question and Understanding the Prompt

1. Read the instructions

2. Read the question. Identify:

   1. Role - who am I as the writer?

   2. Audience - who is reading what I have written?

   3. Format - is this an article, speech, letter or interview?

      1. What are the structural features that need to be included? i.e. heading

   4. Topic - what is the focus of the two bullet points?

   5. Strong Voice - what is the purpose of the writing?

Annotating the Text

1. Identify the relevant information according to what was given in the question.

   1. Highlight and annotate the text. Label what you find.

   2. You must clearly identify points under TWO different POV

Planning Your Response

1. Extract the points and map it out according to the question. Choose the best points to include in your answer. It is NOT THE QUANTITY to how many points from the text you include (3-5 per section of the question is enough). You need to focus on the QUALITY of the points taken that you are able to develop well with details and personal thought.

2. Plan the structure - the order of how you would like to address the question. At IGCSE the question will give you the structure and flow of how you should write your answer.

   1. Point, detail, development and evaluation must be included.

   2. Evaluation is emphasized for directed writing, which makes it different from a reading response. Some ways to produce evaluations can be by asking the following questions:

      1. Are there alternatives to the solutions/suggestions provided by the text?

      2. What can be learnt or improved upon from examples in the text?

      3. What are some arguments against the ones in the text?

      4. Which arguments are more important? Weigh the options against the stakeholders involved. For example, a proposition to start school 2 hours later. The stakeholders are:

         1. Students

         2. Teachers

         3. Parents

3. Be as organized as possible at this stage. Check your plan to ensure that you have everything you need to write in the answer.

Writing Your Answer

1. Refer to your plan to make sure you do not deter away from what you are supposed to write about.

2. In essence, transfer and expand what you have in your plan to the answer sheet  in complete and well-structured sentences and paragraphs.

3. With a clear plan, there is no need to rush; therefore, you can focus on using good handwriting and ensuring that all the mechanics of spelling, punctuation and sentence structure can be applied correctly.

Descriptive Writing

General: Do’s and Dont’s

Tackling Descriptive Writing

1. Select the prompt you would like to respond to.

   1. Specific prompts: “Write a description of a group of people who have become stuck somewhere”

      1. Identify subjects/focus areas of the prompt, i.e. “group of people” and “somewhere” indicating the things that need to be described.

   2. General prompts: Write a description with the title, ‘The nest’

      1. Brainstorm the concept of the piece - what ‘nest’ are you describing? A literal bird’s nest, or a metaphorical nest?

         1. Identify distinct components of a nest

2. Plan/consider descriptive semantic fields or the different senses you would portray:

   1. Semantic field: vocabulary or a set of terms closely linked by subject or usage.

   2. Senses: smell, touch, sight, sound, taste

      1. Depending on your choice of structure, each ‘sense’ would be a focal point. What do the group of people look like? What sounds can you hear in the location? Are there any distinct scents?

   3. Focal points can be created by “zooming” into aspects of the scene.

      1. For the “nest” prompt, this may be describing the bird who made the nest, or the shape, color etc of the eggs.

3. Writing the response:

   1. Be wary of descriptions or movements that turn into plot. Using present tense may help keep the writing “in a moment”.

      1. A good way to think about descriptive writing is like describing a picture, painting or at most, a live photo. The character, previous actions or future actions of characters within the frame aren’t captured and shouldn’t be written.

   2. Structure the description so it flows. Choices may be by:

      1. Each paragraph zooms into a different part of the picture, e.g. tree canopies [with x, y, x elements] and then the next paragraph is about the river bank.

      2. Each paragraph concentrates on a sense, e.g. smell, then sight, then touch.

   3. Specific, precise vocabulary enhances imagery. A “pink” box leaves a lot to be interpreted. A “fuchsia box” is different from a “a maroon box”.