Tackling Q4 - Nov 2012 - English Language Paper AQA

Point – Both of these sources use the presentational device of pictures. However, they use them in different ways. Quote – In source two the picture shows two boats, the one they are rescuing and the lifeboat. The rope indicates that the lifeboat is helping the other one. Explanation – This picture gives the impression of action and also the surroundings of Loch Ness. Quote – The pictures in source 3 looks like an exotic holiday and shows three men laying down reading. Explanation – In contrast, the pictures in source three show a much more laid back and relaxed atmosphere. Point – The presentational device of colour is used in both extracts. Quote – The over riding colour of the background of source 3’s pictures and source 2 is blue. Explanation – The reason for the presentation being blue is because both texts are about water and our connotation with the colour blue reflects this. ​

Presentational Features

BTEC Production Arts - A Taster

Here at Southborough we run two routes through the BTEC Production Arts Course. The first is Make Up... Here students are getting involved with last year's Fright Night - designing and then applying make up designs

We also run the Stage Management route, and this could see you designing masks! These were all used for Fright Night too!

You might design and create a set...

Use our lighting and sound systems to support a production...

You get to support our productions which range from visiting Primary Schools with Drama projects, our annual Murder Mystery and KS3 and 4 productions. For more information contact us on Twitter: @Drama_SHS

Creative Writing - The Circus

Describe a carnival, theme park, a circus or a fairground attraction My visit to the circus was as divine as the beauty of heaven! The stage was full of big, fat, colourful clowns, with curly orange wigs. I laughed at them, as they joked around, making me feel excited! Some smaller children were torn between screaming and being in hysterics. The next act was waiting, an elephant balancing on a big ball. I could feel the hard bench beneath me, as I smelt the manure of exotic animals. The mustard of the hot dogs I’d been munching on, lingering in my mouth. Rolling into the centre stage, on its ball, the elephant was bigger than the roof. Emmanuel, the elephant gave an electric performance. It gave a trumpeting roar, I thought, doesn’t this remind you of a jungle? The acrobats attracted my attention, swinging awesomely from the trapeze. They leapt around the big top like a monkey from a branch. ‘Look out! Look out!’ I cried, worried that the acrobats would fall into the audience. What techniques can you spot here?

Drama - Antigone

Drama - Othello

Drama - Caucasian Chalk Circle

In Your Own Words - Jan 2012 paper - 1b.

In your own words… Rachel likes swimming “I love swimming,” she says. She enjoys competing and winning. Rachel is focused when she listens to music, she finds Snow Patrol “motivational.” She finds it “difficult to cram everything in” as she is studying at university as well as taking part in the Para Olympics. When she is practicing she visualises racing and shouts at herself ‘go on!’ in her head. I think she has a very good chance at winning, with this great attitude.

Essay Plan

Macbeth - Essay Plan Introduction - Talk about context – why did Shakespeare write this play? What elements were included to please James I? 1. On the way to kill King Duncan 2. After he’s killed Duncan 3. Deciding to kill Banquo 4. Deciding to kill Macduff 5. How does Macbeth change because of these decision x 2 Conclusion

How has Macbeth changed?

P. When Macbeth’s wife dies Macbeth feels… In the same scene the prophecies of the witches start to come true. Macbeth feels… In this scene he says that life is like a “walking shadow” he compares life to… and his overall feelings towards life is… This is ironic as Macbeth should feel….. because he has achieved all his goals. ‘Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player that struts and frets his hour upon the stage.’ Shakespeare compares, in a metaphor, life to being like a shadow. Our connotations with this are that shadows are insubstantial, they block out the light and they no effect on anything around them. This shows a negative point of view about what life is like. Macbeth says he’s a ‘poor player’ which means an actor. This is ironic because Macbeth would be played by an actor on a stage. The word ‘frets’ means being worried, which again seems like a waste of a life.

Presentation and Creative Writing Tasks

Magazine / Newspaper Article · Title · Logo – this must be the last thing you do!! · Pictures – Ditto · Sub-heading · Caption · 1st paragraph – who what where when why how · Newspaper is more formal in tone to magazine · Pull out quote · Graph etc – but again not that important Website Article · Title · Logo – this must be the last thing you do!! · Pictures – Ditto · Sub-heading · Caption · 1st paragraph – who what where when why how · Hyperlink · Pull out quote · Graph etc – but again not that important Letter · Address / date at top · Salutation – “Dear Sir / Madam” or “To whom it may concern” or “Dear Anne Guyman” · Ending – If you’ve named the person = yours sincerely. If you’ve not named them = Yours faithfully / With very best wishes etc. · 1st Person – “My first point is…” Speech · Speech marks at the very beginning and end · Salutation – “Hello, I’m Boris Johnson and I want to talk to you about fish.” · Ending – “Thank you for listening.” · 1st Person – “My first point is…” · If you use a rhetorical question you can then answer it. · Speeches give good structure – “My first point,” “In conclusion…” etc Script – Radio · 3rd person · Naturalistic dialogue · Dialogue is shown by… · Radio host: Hello and welcome to Radio Jackie! Guest: Thanks a lot Brian… · Describe the action. Radio Host: Here we are at the start of the London Marathon. (Sound of gunshot and cheering. ) Radio Host: Oh, and they’re off. · Emotion. Radio Host: (Angrily) I cannot believe you just said that! Leaflet · 3rd Person · Bulletpoints · Title · Sections · Pictures / Logo · Information based · Boxes / graphs

Macbeth's decision to kill Macduff's family...

P. Macbeth makes the decision after seeing the witches and hearing their prophecies to send soldiers to kill MacDuff’s family. [Why does he do this? Self-fulfilling prophecy? Explain.] Q. ‘No boasting like a fool; / This deed I’ll do before the purpose cool.’ E. This is a rhyming couplet. Shakespeare often wrote couplets to show the audience that an Act or scene had finished. This is the end of Act 4 and so it is a significant moment. However, the witches also rhyme, and so by Macbeth also rhyming here, it links him to them, via the prophecies. Macbeth is becoming more attune to the supernatural: he sees Banquo’s ghost, he sees daggers. Shakespeare’s audience would be very aware of listening out for rhyme and so they would make these connections. What’s in it for the witches? - People were more superstitious and believed in the supernatural and witches - Shakespeare is showing how a king can be manipulated in a negative way - King James 1 had written a book about witches and so he believed strongly in them - King James was a new King, and so Shakespeare is trying to make sure he will be a good king. - As witches, they love chaos, so for them they encourage Macbeth and watch his downfall. One decision which Shakespeare makes is to include the witches….

Examples of Creative Writing

My favourite school trip was an evening at the circus! The big top stood in the field, like a mountain of canvas rising out of the cool, lush, green grass. Inside it was dark and mysterious. It smelt of dry hay, popcorn and candy floss. I moved to our row of seats, benches and benches and benches. Sitting down the red painted top was smooth. We all excitedly waited, whispering in hushed tones. We couldn’t wait. Could you? A smartly dressed man finally stepped into the spotlight, cracking a whip and calling out: “Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, roll up, roll up, to the Greatest show in the galaxy!” The show exploded with dancing clowns; snake charmers, tightrope walkers, bears, prancing elephants and chimpanzees who did the moon walk! The tent hummed with energy. Suddenly sparkles rained slowly down as a slim and sexy contortionist screwed herself up into impossible positions. I loved it! However, all too soon, it was time to go. Simon Cowell was tight! A night at the circus is the best entertainment ever…!

Macbeth decides to kill Banquo...

P – After killing King Duncan, Banquo is the next obstacle to Macbeth who might reveal what he knows. So he has to kill him. Q - Put rancours in the vessel of my peace Only for them; and mine eternal jewel Given to the common enemy of man, E – Macbeth is haunted by the idea of Banquo’s sons, who will become kings, according to the witches. Shakespeare conveys this idea by using emotive language such as ‘rancours,’ ‘peace,’ ‘eternal’ and ‘enemy.’ This gives us a strong sense of how Macbeth is feeling and the passions he is keeping in control. Again, this is said to the audience as a monologue before the murderers arrive. P – Macbeth has to give a public reason for killing Banquo. He tells the murderers that: Q - though I could / With barefaced power sweep him from my sight And bid my will avouch it, yet I must not. E – Macbeth is in a tricky position as with the death of Duncan, people are already suspicious. So to hide his guilt he arranges a banquet in his friend’s honour. He suggests here that he could banish Banquo with ‘barefaced power’ but actually he ‘must not.’ Therefore he needs the murderers to do his dirty work for him. This is an important decision which will lead to more death.

Macbeth - Post Duncan Depression

Quote: Will all great Neptune's ocean wash this blood Clean from my hand? E: Rhetorical question – makes the audience aware of Macbeth’s decision Neptune’s ocean is a reference to the Greek gods, it is also hyperbole. There is too much blood to be washed away. The blood is metaphorical – it is a symbol for Macbeth’s guilt

Decisions in Macbeth - On the way to kill King Ducan

Quote: Thou marshall'st me the way that I was going; Explanation: Here Macbeth refers to the dagger that he has mentally conjured up. It is leading him towards Duncan’s room and he sees this as an omen that he should kill the king. The key word here is “marshall’st” which means to lead, the dagger is drawing Macbeth to murder. As an audience we feel that Macbeth’s mental state is…. Quote: A dagger of the mind, a false creation, Proceeding from the heat-oppressed brain? Explanation: Macbeth is very aware that the dagger is an unusual, perhaps supernatural event. He describes it as a ‘false creation,’ so something that’s not real. We see how confused Macbeth is as he creates a compound word ‘heat-oppressed’ to describe his head. He is not literally hot but metaphorically he is struggling with this decision. Shakespeare present the decision to murder as a very difficult one, it’s not a choice that Macbeth takes lightly, despite his wife suggesting that it’s an easy task. By using a rhetorical question, Shakespeare is asking us as an audience at which lengths we would go to murder.

AQA English - Persuasive Language Techniques - Foundation Paper

This text informs and persuades by using a number of language techniques. First it uses a rhetorical question. “Why don’t you…?” By using this rhetorical question, the reader is encouraged to think about whether they should take part in Sport Relief, this is persuading the reader to take part. The second technique is identifying with a celebrity. It suggests “dress up as their favourite sporting personality.” The reader is encouraged to take part as they can be creative in their choice of dress up. By focusing on your favourite celebrity, these are people that we aspire to be. Another technique is repetition. “Get in the Olympic spirit, your students could come dressed as the Olympic flag or wear the kit of different Olympic sports.” The word Olympic is being repeated, this informs the reader of the theme of the event, but it also, by making stick in their minds, persuades them to take part. The final technique I’m writing about is shocking and emotive language. “£25 could provide ten street children in India with their own bank account to save their earnings securely and work towards a brighter future.” This amount doesn’t seem like a lot to us, but it is to them. The fact they’re on the street and they’re young people like us makes us feel sympathetic towards them. The ‘Work towards a brighter future,’ makes it seem like we can change their lives with this donation.

Presentational Devices

We looked at this article and compared it to yesterday's http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-31428072 We did a step by step in just the same way as yesterday, but we looked at presentational devices. In this question you need to compare and contrast. One presentational feature that both texts used for effect are pictures. In the first article we see Liverpool stadium, it is a shot from behind a commentary table. In the second article we see the two leading stars of 50 Shades of Grey. The pictures are relevant to the text as they show us what the article is going to be about, and give you visual information about the subject. By seeing the behind the scenes shot, it is appropriate to the article as it’s all about sport on TV and how much it costs. The film is central to the LFB’s concerns and so it is appropriate, but ironically by using a promotional picture from the film, the article also promotes 50 Shades of Grey. In contrast, article one uses graphs and tables to display its information, while in comparison article two uses bullet points to do the same job. The bar graph clearly shows how money spent has increased over the years. The bullet points are separated from the article, and while the give extra information, they are not crucial to understanding the article. I prefer the bar and doughnut graphs as it much more visual and uses colour to make it interesting. Another use of colour is in how the picture in article 2 is grey. This links appropriately because of the title of the book / film under discussion: grey. The central character is called Christian Grey. Another presentational feature in article one is its use of bold sub headings throughout the text. This technique helps break up the text and allow the reader to see each section clearly. It helps organise the long argument of the technique.

Question 3 - AQA GCSE English

Writing about Language Features Step by Step 1st - read the article - we chose this one: http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/31386483 As you go, use your highlighter to try and identify different techniques. We found a pun, rhetorical questions, facts, opinions, alliteration, group of three, emotive language.... Decided 4 you can write well about... We decided to look at pun, rhetorical questions, facts and groups of three. Then write about them using the PQE structure. Here is what we came up with... One way the writer uses language features is to include the reader in the argument. The writer uses the technique of rhetorical questioning multiple times to keep his reader on board. ‘How can £10.2m per game be good value for money?’ The question provokes the reader to engage with the text / argument. I am eager to find out the answer and so I keep reading. Early on in the article, the writer uses a pun. ‘Changing picture for TV viewers.’ Here the humorous play on words shows two different meanings. ‘Changing picture’ could mean changing the channel, or what we expect to see on TV. The second meaning is the state of football as a game and how much it is valued, is changing. Both of these meanings are relevant, and so the pun makes us aware of this in a fun way. Always make sure that you talk about how the technique makes you respond as a reader - what job is it doing?

GCSE Revision - Mrs E's wonderful resources

I want to alert you to a wonderful blog by Mrs E https://literacydaydreams.wordpress.com there are some great resources (Week 1 - 3) for revising non-fiction questions for your AQA and IGCSE exams.