English Language & Literature GCSEs

Revision Tips

1. Knowing the plot

Having knowledge of what happens in each of your set texts is important, as it means you can answer the question better in your exam. The plot helps you to be able to identify what has happened before and after the extract or quotation you have been given and helps to you character track in your responses.

2. Knowing the context

In your English Literature exam, you are marked on the Social and Historical context and how this links to your set text. Knowing this information means you are developing your understanding of the writers' intent behind their novel.

3. Know your key quotations

In your exam, you are being asked to explore the whole of the text. Knowing your key quotations with their analysis will help you to be able to answer the question and gain more marks, as you are responding to the question in full. These are vital in being able to access your exam.

4. Reading

Reading a rage of different text types and genres will support you in knowing the conventions of that genre/text type. This will support in your analysis as you will be able to comment on the wider impact.

5. Answering Past Paper questions

Answer different themes and characters for literature. By the time you get to your exam, you'll hopefully have then covered any question that could appear in your exam. Give them to your teacher, who can then give you a mark and areas of improvement, to make it the best response possible!

6. Know your devices

You are expected to comment on the language, form and structure within both your exams. Your understanding of a writer's methods are vital in being able to analyse in detail the writers' intent for their piece of literature. Learn the language devices and structural techniques and why they are used. Once you have a sound knowledge of this, build on knowing what their purpose is. From here, you can then identify them within a text.

7. Creative Writing

Language Paper 1, Question 5 (Section B) is worth 25% of your overall GCSE. Spend time responding to different questions on this and getting feedback on them. 

8. Non Fiction Writing

Language Paper 2, Question 5 (Section B) is worth 25% of your overall GCSE. Spend time responding to different questions on this and getting feedback on them.  Make sure you know what the conventions of different non fiction text types are and what you need to include to make a fantastic piece of writing.

9. Ambitious Vocabulary

Make sure you have 10 word, from the ambitious vocabulary dictionary that you know the meaning of and can use in your GCSE English Language Question 5 of both Paper 1 and Paper 2. 

10. Inference skills

Practise your inference skills for words within a text. Inference is the biggest part of your exams. Build on your ability to infer from a text, both word level, sentence level and text level.

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