PLC
Personalised Learning Checklist
English Language GCSE
Paper 1, Section A
(please select)ProgressPLC items
Terminology and skills for language
Find information from specific lines in the text Ensure that you respond to the focus of the question
Understanding the protagonist, key event, theme, message, tone, structure Point, evidence and explain (PEE) – the effects are very important
Narrative voice – first person (I), second (you), or third (he, she or they).
Simile – when something is described like or as something else: He roared like a lion Metaphor – when a meaning is not literal: He is a lion.
Listing/use of three – sometimes for emphasis Rhetorical Questioning – not requiring an answer Senses – sight, sound, touch, smell and taste
Onomatopoeia – words that sound as they are spelt: crash, or sometimes called sound imagery
Alliteration – words in a sentence with the same initial sound Repetition – words repeated for emphasis or effect
Exaggeration/hyperbole – ‘It’s a million times better...’
Identify a variety of sentence lengths and structures and their effect:
Short sentence: for impact - Get out now!
Compound: closely related clauses: English is important and you should attend all lessons.
Complex: longer more complex structures sometimes including listing or embedded clauses: The dog, being very hungry, ate all the food for the party: sausages, crisps, cakes etc.
Personification – giving human qualities
Comparative and superlative adjectives – tall, taller, tallest
Semantic fields and connotations – words that share or create theme Connotations of words – what are the images that the word brings to mind?
Word classes: nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, conjunctions (particularly action verbs – ran, swept etc.)
Contrasts – does the mood or feeling change, is a contrast shown?
Language levels: understand the different functions of parts of the text, word level =
connotations, meanings – why is this word interesting and how does it work within the text.
Phrases and clauses why are these significant?
Noun phrases, verb phrases etc.
Word classes: ensure you understand, nouns, verbs, adverbs and adjectives. Identifying a powerful verb and writing about the significance of this one word for example is very impressive to the marker. There are many websites that you can use for this:
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(desktop only)Tone or mood of a text: if you show you understand what mood or tone the writer is aiming to achieve through language then your response can reflect this. Read for practise and check online revision guides or purchase an AQA study guide.
Terminology and skills for structure
Setting, atmosphere, weather – creating a sense of place and time Introduction of character – or more characters as the text progresses
Dialogue: usually a discussion between characters or even an internal thought Zooming in and out – perspective/focus
Switch in time or place: dream, flash back or forward, change of location or topic Narrative voice (see language)
Creation of suspense or tension
Cliff-hanger ending or twist in the story
Sentence types: but only if related to structure not language!
Words: but only if a word indicates a significant change in structure!
Contrasts: from happy to sad, dark to light, day to night etc.
An overview of the whole text: to gain the highest marks students must show an awareness of whole text structure. Look for:
Cyclical structure
Change in tone, atmosphere etc.
How the author makes the reader feel, creating emotion for example or empathy – how structurally is this achieved
Critical evaluation - question 5 This question will ask for your opinion
You will need to demonstrate engagement with the text Ensure that you support your views with textual reference
Higher grades will give perceptive comments on the text as a whole
Writer’s methods: understand that this is constructed with purpose by the author. What do you think? Why do you think this? And How has the writer used language to make you have this opinion?
Paper 1, Section B
(please select)ProgressPLC items
Skills for section B
Planning: It is recommended that you take a few minutes to plan based on using the S.T.O.R.Y structure
Paragraphing and structuring: you have observed structure in section A so now think about it in your own writing
Use a range of punctuation to guide the reader: see list of punctuation marks Range of vocabulary for effect: interesting words or more ambitious ones A range of sentence types
Language devices for effect: check the language list and apply these to your own writing Strong opening sentence/paragraph for impact
You might include some dialogue: not too much Senses - perhaps add feelings into your writing
Upgrade your sentences: practise a range of sentence types and challenge yourself with these:
Start with a verb or an adverb
Start with a simile or a rhetorical question Start with dialogue
Start with an exclamatory sentence or a short impact sentence
Start: triple noun colon – Bags, drinks, phones: all need to be put away before we start.
Ask your teacher for an exercise sheet
Include precisely punctuated dialogue: ask your teacher for an information sheet
Punctuation to guide the reader: begin to notice how authors use punctuation to take the reader through a text, signposting and directing the pace and sound of the piece. Practise this yourself, not just being satisfied with full-stops and commas but a range of punctuation to impress the examiner. There are many websites to help with this or ask your teacher.
Paper 2, Section A
(please select)ProgressPLC items
Terminology and skills
Synthasise - the ability to draw information from different sources and bring together to answer a question
Find information from specific lines in the text - for question 1 inference can be used Ensure that you respond to the focus of the question
Point, evidence and explain (PEE) – the effects are very important Narrative voice – first person (I), second (you), or third (he, she or they).
Simile – when something is described like or as something else: He roared like a lion Metaphor – when a meaning is not literal: He is a lion.
Listing/use of three – sometimes for emphasis Rhetorical Questioning – not requiring an answer Senses – sight, sound, touch, smell and taste
Onomatopoeia – words that sound as they are spelt: crash, or sometimes called sound imagery
Alliteration – words in a sentence with the same initial sound Repetition – words repeated for emphasis or effect
Exaggeration/hyperbole – ‘It’s a million times better...’
Identify a variety of sentence lengths and structures and their effect:
Short sentence: for impact - Get out now!
