Easter jobs, and that

Here are a few resources to help you out while you are completing revision notes on all of the main characters, and the themes. I know you can use Google and all, but still. First up is sparknotes – accessible and informative; I know a boatload of you have used this before. BBC Bitesize is also a classic, too.  One you might not know about is Universalteacher – this has great advice about writing about Shakespeare (don’t introduce your quotes!), but make sure you ignore the stuff about the exam and codes and stuff right at the top. Any problems, drop me a line and I’ll reply sooner than you think (I reply to kid emails as soon as I get them, unless you have chosen to boot yourself off the list…).

I’ll put up some paper 1 reading stuff around this time next week, although between now and then, have a look at what Geoff Barton says is some of the best writing on t’interweb. Have a nice Easter!

Oh, and the first person to email in and tell me what the picture is, and what book it relates to wins a tasty confectionery item of their choice – GUARANTEED.

Curley's wife

If you need the link for the questions I have set - you can find them here. I'm doing this on my computer (not my work one), so if anyone wants to post the helpful links in the comments below then you'll win all sorts of prizes. (By all sorts of prizes I mean anything I can pinch off McDermott's desk). Any probs - let me know via email; because I'm a friendless loser they come through to my phone, so you'll often get a response quicker than you think. In other news, Pickin and Lawrence win the Y1 speed awards, with some frankly spiffing answers from the pair of them. Finally, have a picture of my dog reading a book. You're welcome.

Reading practice - WOOOOOOOO

I've spoken to you at length about how the reading section was a bit weaker than the writing section in the mock - but not to worry, as it is easy to fix with a bit of practice. Click here for the first of much reading practice - just make sure you understand the difference between the 'why' question and the 'how'.
Tips - for the 'Why' question use lots of short quotes, from all over the text. For the how question, use the S /M/ L model - if you aren't sure about this then give me a shout and I'll go over it again.
I'll collate the answers on Thursday at 4pm, so get it done before then or you'll go down as not having done it.
Otter suggestion courtesy of Luke - well in, Luke.

Literature essay guidance

Here you go - I've emailed it out, but I'm aware some of you sometimes have trouble accessing school emails. In true belt and braces fashion, you can find the guidance here. Just remember to download it locally. Don't forget - come and see me after school or at lunch in L7 if you want me to check anything.

Equality in a capitalist society?

Have a look at this - an infographic roughly outlining the difference between left and rightwing viewpoints. Just for reference, we live in a capitalist society (generally the blue side), which is often concerned with creation of wealth, although there are a lot of aspects from the red side that you might recognise in our society, too (it's not a perfect division). Question for you then - is genuine equality possible in the society we live in? What about America in the 30s?

Essay guidance

Here you go kids - the guidance for what an English essay looks like here. Have a read of this, paying special attention to the  part about outlining your argument in the introduction, and then spending the rest of the essay justifying that view whilst comparing the texts. 

Anyhow, back to the essay. The title is

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." Compare representations of equality in Lee's 'To Kill a Mockingbird', and Steinbeck's 'Of Mice and Men'. To what extent has contemporary society learned the lessons the authors may have trying to teach us?

Have a look at the essay guide, and then have an idea of what your argument will be, ready to complete the introduction on Monday. Once you've done this, planning the essay will be a walkover. 

Last minute advice

A fair few of you have been to see me, so here is some last minute advice and reassurance. First of all, don't worry too much about this! We obviously want you to do well, but if you get anything wrong, it's not the end of the world, and we'll make sure that you know how to avoid making the same mistake in the future - what with it being our jobs and all. So, take a deep breath, make sure you follow the guidelines, and you'll be fine.

1. Plan. Spend the first ten mins collecting your ideas, answering the question in your head, going over the extract, using the toolkit (that I've pictured here), picking out quotes and linking ideas together. You might see kids who have written a side in the first ten minutes; that doesn't matter. Plan. Do all your thinking now, so that you'll avoid all that thinking whilst writing I want you to avoid. Plan it over one side, maybe two, but make sure you put a single line through it to show that it is a plan.

2. For the second half of the TKAM question, choose your extract carefully - make sure it answers the question you have been asked! Once you've picked your extract (make sure it isn't too long or short), simply analyse it in the same way that you analysed the first.

3. At the end of every paragraph, just check that it answers the question you have been asked. If you've planned properly this shouldn't be an issue, but it won't hurt to check.

4. Check out the model answers. We'll do more of these later on, but you kids are throwing your sizeable intellect at this question like it is a Literature exam, and it's not. Check out the models I've given you or provided you with online, and make sure your answer looks like an exemplar language response, not the model Literature responses you all gave me in the baseline assessment.

5. Don't forget the basics on the written section. You're all really, really able pupils, so make sure that you don't include any mistakes that suggest you aren't. Apostrophes and capital letters are standard, so make
sure you use them. Any problems with the apostrophes, then check this out.

Questions? Comments? Bell & Ross watches? All welcome - send them in to the usual address.