KEY STAGE THREE
EXAM
TECHNIQUES-
PAPER ONE
Have a WATCH and
TIME yourself!
• SECTION A Comprehension: 40 minutes
• READING TIME: 10 Minutes
• Section A, Question 1: 3-5 Minutes
• Section A, Question 2: 5-7 Minutes
• Section A, Question 3: 20 Minutes
• READ OVER QUESTIONS AND
HIGHLIGHT KEY WORDS AND
PHRASES.
• MAKE SURE YOU FOCUS ON
THE LINES GIVEN, e.g., Lines
1-10 etc.
• READ THE PASSAGE ONCE, THEN
READ IT AGAIN TO FAMILIARISE
YOURSELF WITH THE CONTENT.
• USE POINT-EVIDENCE STRCUTURE,
i.e., USE EVIDENCE!
• READ OVER WHAT YOU HAVE
WRITTEN.
• DON’T SPEND ALL YOUR TIME ON
ONE QUESTION-move on and you can
come back to it later if you have time!
Have a WATCH and
TIME yourself!
• SECTION B Creative Writing: 35mins
• BRAINSTORM your title, think of
possibilities for your plot: 3 mins
• PLAN your work-know where your story
will begin and end. 2mins
• Write from personal experience-this
makes it easier to relate to and write
about.
STRUCTURE YOUR
STORY!
• INTRODUCTION-grab your reader‟s
attention!
• Introduce the characters and setting.
• MAIN BODY-includes more detail on the
plot and reaches the climax of your story.
• CONCLUSION-finishes up your story. Any
loose ends are tied up and the main problem
is resolved.
How do I create
Atmosphere?
• We experience everything through
our senses, use each sense; smell,
touch, hear, see and taste; to
describe feelings and settings.
• E.g., . I could feel the ground tremble
beneath my feet.
How do I Make my
Writing Interesting?
• Vary your verbs to make your writing
interesting for your reader.
• E.g., His head throbbed…A drowsy
numbness in his stiff limbs
• Shimmering…Slurred…Gaping…Lapping
…Slushing…
Drifted…Sprawled…Frisked….Sloshing
How can I make my
Writing Descriptive?
• Similes-when you compare one thing to
another using like or as.
• E.g., As cold as ice.
• Paint pictures in your reader‟s head.
• …delicate fish, like shimmering splinters…
• …white clouds lingered like meringue
peaks…
How do I draw my reader
in?
• Rhetorical Questions are questions asked
in written/spoken texts that do not
require an answer.
• E.g., Who do you think you are?
How do I describe myself?
• This technique draws the reader in and
makes them want to find out more about
what you are talking about.
Introductions
• Open up with a direct conversation or dialogue. E.g., “It‟s all
my fault Johnny, what am I going to do?”
• Open up by talking directly to the reader.
• E.g., Hello, my name is Stephen. Let me tell you my story….
• Open up with the narrator (person telling the story) giving
us a rundown on their day from their point of view.
• E.g., “Well folks, this is another good morning on WK5 FM.”
• Aghhhh, I‟m late for school…I raced down the stairs and
sent the dog basket flying into the air and broke a mirror in
the process.
• Describe the setting. E.g., The maroon and navy flags flew
high in the sky.
Main Body
• What happens next? Having introduced your
problem or the main plot of your story, rising
actions should add complications or problems to
the story and so increase our interest.
• Reach the exciting part or climax of the story.
Create atmosphere using feelings to help you
convey this to the reader.
• Find a solution to the problem in the story. This is
also known as resolution. How do things work out
in the end?
Conclusion
• DO NOT END YOUR STORY WITH „They lived
happily ever after‟ OR „And then I
died/drowned/was killed‟ OR „And then I woke
up…‟OR „to be continued…‟
• Rounds up your story, it ties up any loose ends.
• Bring the title back into the ending of your story
by saying something like, „…from that day on I
learned that everybody deserves a second chance‟
OR „it really was all my fault.‟
Describing Characters
• Describe their physical appearance in detail.
• Explain a little about their personalities.
• Use similes and detailed descriptions to reveal
your character to the reader.
• Reveal your character to the reader by making
subtle suggestions rather than just telling them.
• Bad Example: Homer was lazy.
• Good Example: Homer often fell asleep at work,
posing a threat of a nuclear meltdown on a daily
basis.