Cambridge IGCSE ™
English ™
(9–1)
STUDENT’S BOOK
Also for Cambridge IGCSE
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Cenot s
Introduction 5
SECTION 1: BUILDING KEY SKILLS
Chapter1: yKe reading skils 7
38
1.1 L ocating information: skimming 8 91. S e n s o r y la n g u a g e 36
1.2 01 1 . 10 Recognising f a c t , opinion and bias
1.3 L ocating information: scanning 1.1 A nalysing an d evaluating
1.4 1 . 12 Un d e r s t a n ding the form and p u r p o s e o f
15. S e l e c ting information 41 d i f fe r e n t t e x t s 40
6.1 1 . 13 D educing th e audience
Synthesis 61 Checkyourp rogress
7.1
81. Explicit m eaning 20 42
32
Implicit meaning: c h a r a c te r 24 46
28 50
I mplicit meani n g : s e t ting
Emotive la n g u a g e
Chapter 2:eyKtechnical skils 15
1 2. oVc ab u l a r y and word clas s e s 52 2.7 Paragraph co h e s i o n 68
2.2 2.8 07
2.3 Accurate s e n t e n c e s 58 56 2.9 Proofreading
2.4 60 1 . 20 67
2.5 e n Ts e s a n d v e r b a g r e e m e n t 64 Audience and levels of formalit y 72 80
2.6 66
S e n t e n c e p u n c t u a tion oiVce and role
Re p o r t e d and direc t s p e e c h Check your pro g r e s s
Accurate use of p aragraphs
Chapter 3:eyKwriting forms 18
1.3 Conventions o f s p e e ch e s a n d t al k s 82 3.5 Conventions of news rep o r t s and magazine
3.2 88 3.6
3.3 Conventions of interviews 86 a r t icles 92
3.4 90 4.7
Conventions of diaries and journals 4.8 Conventions o f l e t te r s 96
4.9 98
Conventions of report s 01 4 . Check your pro g r e s s
20 1
Chapter 4: Writing for purpose 99 24 1
1 4. Writing to inform and e xplain 01 0 Writing to explore and discu s s 41 1 28 1
4.2 021
4.3 St r u c turing informative writing St r u c turing content in dis c u r s i ve writing 61 1
4.4
4.5 Writing to per s u a d e 01 4 D e s c r i p tive w riting
64. 01 6
S t r u c turing p e r s u a s i o n Narrative w riting
Writing to argue 01 8 Check your pro g r e s s
xhepatrgatnmruegapragnirutrusctS ts 01 1
SECTION 2:YAINPPGLKEY SKILLS
Chapter 5: Comprehension 291
1.5 Locating an d s e l e c ting information 3 01 5.3 Pr a c ti c e q u e s ti o n s a n d s am p l e r e s p o n s e s 3 81
5.2 Literal and inferre d meanings 3 41
Check your pro g r e s s 4 21
4 16 5 01
Chapter 6: Summary writing 413
5 81
1.6 I d e n t i f ying and selec tin g according to the 6 . 3 Writing a summary
6.2 question focus 6 12
S e l e c t ing and orderin g main points 414 6.4 Pr a c ti c e q u e s ti o n s a n d s am p l e r e s p o n s e s 5 14 Content s
Check your pro g r e s s
Chapter7: Analysinglanguage 591
1.7 egntinaylnomeysdnagnlaimdIysfernits 60 1 .7 2 E xplaining the sugges tions that words
can create
3
.7 3 I d e n t i f ying the writer ’scraf t 61 4 5.7 Pr a c ti c e q u e s ti o n s a n d s am p l e r e s p o n s e s 07 1
.7 4 A nalysing th e w r i t e rs’ c r a f t 618
Check your pro g r e s s 67 1
Chapter 8: Extended response to reading and directed writing 71 91 6
8.1 Understanding extended response 8 . 6 Di r e c ted writing: analysing and evaluating 20 8
8.2 4 12
to reading questions 178 text s
8.3 18 2
8.4 E x t e n d e d r e s p o n s e t o r e a ding: 7.8 9 1gniptsuceritrwsrd8i:reurieoDrcytugtnoens
8.5 81 4
gathering informatio n 8 . 8 Pr a c ti c e q u e s ti o n s a n d s am p l e r e s p o n s e s:
E x t e n d e d r e s p o n s e to reading: d eveloping e x t e n d e d response to reading 202
a convincing role 8.9 E xam-s tyle q u e s t io n s a n d s a m p l e r e s p o n s e s:
s :gnidaerEoxtepneosdresgnirutruct d i r e c ted writing
eponsera 8 81 Check your pro g r e s s
qgnitintUcwedreodirsntuaegsndi 29 1
Chapter 9: Composition 512
1.9 Un d e r s t a n ding compositio n t a s k s 612 9.5 N arrative writin g : s t r u c ture a n d d e t ali 2 26
9.2 Planning ideas fo r a d e s criptive ta s k 812
9.3 St r u c tu r i n g d e s cription creatively 96. Narrative writing: characterisation 23 0
9.4 U sing the sens es and ima g e r y in 2 20
d e s c r i p t ive writing 7.9 Pr a c ti c e q u e s ti o n s a n d s am p l e r e s p o n s e s:
composition t a s k s 232
24 0
2 24 Check your pro g r e s s
SECTION 3:YAIPNPGLKEY SKILLS IN COURSEWORK
Chapter 10: Approaching writtencoursework 124
252
1 10. D eveloping pe r s o n a l w riting 24 2 106. A pproaching A s s i g nment 3: Narrative
10.2
A pproaching A s s i g nment1: Writing to 24 4 writing 25 8
10.3 24 6 26 0
10.4 discuss, a r g u e a n do/ r p e r su a d e 10.7 A s s i g n m e n t 3 : D e v e l o p i n g n a r r a t i v e
257
10.5 A s s i gnment1: Responding to a text writing
A pproaching A s s i g nment 2: Writing to 10.8 D r a f ting and improving your work 26 4
describe 10.9 Coursework- s t y l e t a s k s an d r e s p o n s e s 26 6
A s s i gnment 2: Writin g a d e s criptive tex t 25 4 Check your pro g r e s s
SECTION 4: SPEAKING AND LISTENING
Chapte1:rA1pproaching speakingandlistening 72
278
1 . 11 U sing the right languag e 7 . 11 Re s p o n d i n g to t a l k , seeing implications an d
2.11 Choosing and re searching a p r e s e n t a t ion 8.11
topic 9 . 11 paraphrasing 29 4
3.11 St r u c turing your pres entation 29 6
4.11 Engaging you r audience 28 2 D eveloping and supp o r t ing ideas with
5.11 D eveloping a role
6 . 11 Preparing for conve r s a t ion 28 6 confi dence
28 8 29 8
Pr a c ti c e t a s k s and sample resp o n s e s
292
29 0 Check your pro g r e s s 30 4
SECTION 5: EX AM PRCATIC E
Chapter12: Practice papers and guidance 305
1 12. A n introduc tio n to Practice Paper 1 30 6 12.2 A n introduc tio n to Practice Paper 2 3 13
Glossary 7 13
Acknowled gements 913
4 ™
E n g l i s h S t u d e n t s’ B o o k
Cambridge IGCSE
tnI ro cud t i no
Th e Col lin s Ca mbridge IG CS ™ E ngl ish S tudent ’s Bo ok ( Thir d Ed ition) offe rs a sk il ls -b uildin g ap pr oa ch
E
™
to th e C amb ridg eI GC SE an d I GC SE (9 –1 )F ir st La ng ua ge E ngl is h s yl lab us es ( 05 00 and 09 90 ). O ur
bo ok sh ows yo u how to mak e pr og res s by m od el lin g an d givin g yo u ple nt y of o pp or tunit ies to
pr ac ti se the sk il ls that unde rpin yo ur co urs e.
™
Th eCa mbrdi geI GC SE pr ep ares yo uforeve ry day a nd workpal cec omm unci atoi nnitheE ngl si h-
rtiefo
sp eaknig wordl w,tihafocu son be ni g abelt oa dap twh at yo usa yandw rawdie r an geof
chnito
audei nce sand pu rp os es I. ti sal so aso il dfoundat oi nfro mw hciht oalun furt he rst ud yofEn gil sh
La ng uage or Lteir at ure.
O u r bo o k th e r efor e en co ur age s y ou to rea d a wi de ra n g e of en gag ing li te ra r y and no n - il te ra r y tex ts ,
rks within th eak in a r
to ex plor e the w ay that lan guag e wo d sp e m to create me anin g and in fl u e n c e rea de r s ,a nd
to de ve lo p y our ow na bi il t y to wr ite an an ge of di f f er en tf or m s .
How the book is structur ed
Section 1: Building key skills introduces you to the fundamental skills that you will use throughout your course.
Section 1
Understanding these underlying skills will enable you to tackle a range of different tasks in
Sections 2 to 5.
™
Ma ny of the C amb ridg e IG CS E ta sk s require y ou t o d eploy a r an ge o f dif fe re nt s ki ll s t og eth er . For
in s t an ce, the abil it y to summ ar ise is imp o s si ble t o a c hieve unle s s y ou have thre e basic sk li l s : the abi il t y
to sk im ,s ca na nd se le c t . T he se fun dam e n t a l read ing sk li l s are al l intro du ce d in S e c tio n1 , Chapt er 1
and th e n the t a s k of w rit ing a summar y i s c ov e r e d in Se c t io n 4, Chapte r 6. Simi larly , th eke y t a s k of
analys ing w rite r ’ s ef fec t s ,w hich i s t au ght in S e c tio n 2, Chapte r 5, is pr ep ared for throu gh th e s t u d y
of se le c t in g in fo rmati on ,u nd e r s t an di ng e xpl ic it an d impli ci t me anin g s and b ei ng ab le to re co gni se
e m ot ive and se ns or yl an gu ag e in S e c ti on 1 , Ch ap ter 1 .
o Y ur wr it in g sk li l s ar e a ls od ev el o p ed in the sa me wa . y
Accur ac y i s f un dam e n t a l t oany En gli sh cour s e an d we ha ve in cl u d ed a s p e ci fi c chap ter in the fi r st
our tec hnic
se c t io n of thi sb oo k, t oh el p y ou imp ro ve y al sk li l s .
T h eabil it yt ow rite in a ra ng e of form s and fo rara n g e of pu r p o s e s an d audie nce s is a vita l part of
su cces s w h e n at te mp ti n g th e ex te n d ed re s p on s e , direc te d w rit ing ,c om p o sit ion ta sk s an d c ou r s ewo rk
t a sk s . Se c t io n1 , C ha p t e r s 3 a nd 4 t h e re for ep ro vid e th or ough co ve rag e of the se k ey wr it in g
con ven tion s.
Section 2: Appl ying key skills
Se c t ion 2
he
Ea ch chapt e r of lps y ou t o d ra w t o g eth e r and ap ply the s ki l s intro du ce d in S e c ti on 1 t o
e, direc te d
re s p on d ef fe c t iv ely to ta sk s su ch as co mpre he n s ion , su mma r y wr it in g, anal y s ing lan guag
w r itin g and makin g an e x t e nd e d res po ns et o rea din g.
5
I n t r o duct ion
Section 3: Appl ying key skills in course work
Se c t io n3
In , s tu de nt s o p t in g f or c our s e work w li l fi nd out how th eke y rea din g , wr it in g and te chnica l
s k li l s develo p e d in Se c t ion 1 ca n be us e d to b e s t e f f e c t in the ir co u r s ewo rk as signme nts .
Section 4: Speaking and listening
S e c t ion 4
p r ov ide s a d edic ate d chapte r on Sp ea king and Li s t en ing t ob ui ld y our s ki l s an d co nfi d e n c e
xe mpl of t h e and d
wi th cl ea r guidanc e, ac ti vi ti e s an d e fi c a ti o n pr e s en t a ti o n i s cu ssio nt as k s .
Section 5: Exam practice
Se c t ion 5 r s ex ten de de xa m pr a c ti ce to he lpyo u ho n e yo ur ex aminat io n te chniqu e un d e r
Fin al ly , offe
ti m e dc o n dit io n s .
Checking y our progr ess
I t is impo r t ant to know how yo u are pr og res si ng , an d we hav e th e r efor e inc lu d e d ac ti vi ti e s
throug hout the bo ok , wh ic hco uld be us e d as as se s s me nt o p p o r tunit ie s . In S e c tio n s 2, 3, 4 a nd 5
the se t a s ks are sup po r t e d by s ample re sp on s e s at dif fe re nt level st oh el pyo u un de r s ta nd how y ou
ca ni mpr ov e y our wo rk . T he s amp le ta sk s , re s p on s e s and c omm en t a ries ha ve be en w ri t t e n by our
au th o r s , not by Ca mbr id g e A s se s s me nt Intern at io nalEd u c atio n.
T h ro u g hou tt he bo ok ,t he re are regular ‘ Ch eck yo ur pr o g re s s ’f eat ur e s to he lpyo ua ss es st he
pr og re ss yo u are mak in g.
We hop e our s ki ll s- bui lding ap pr oach h elp s yo u to unlo ck th e fund ame nt al s of y our C amb ridg e
e an d to be co me a co nfi de nt,
IG CS ™ F ir st L an guag e E ngl is h co urs sk il lful c ommunic ato r withi n and
E
be yo nd th e cla ss ro om .
Julia Burchell
S e r i e s E ditor
6 ™
E n g l i s h S t u d e n t s’ B o o k
Cambridge IGCSE
Key re a d i n g s k i l l s
1
In this chap,tyeoru will develop a range of
fundamental reading skills that you can us e
throughout your Cambridge IGCSE course.
uoY will learn how to
•
skim and scan to locate information
•
s e l e c t information
•
u n d e r s t a n d explicit meanings
•
s y n t h e s i s e information
•
infer implicit meanings ab out charac ter and
setting
•
identify emotive and sen s o r y l anguage
•
recognise , analyse and evaluate fac t s , o pinions
and bias
•
d e t e c t the form, purpo s e , s t yle and audience
of text s .
Links to other chapters: to reading and dire c t e d On their own, some of the s kills may se em
Chapter 5: Comprehension writing simple, but reme mber that they are building
Chapter 6: Summar y writing blocks to completing larger and more complex
Chapter 7: Analysing language t a s k s l ater on. For example:
E x t eChnadpteedr 8r:e s p o n s e
•
Chapter 9: Compo sition t a s k s t hat ask you to find a word or phras e
require you to ski m , s c a n and selec t
information
•
t a s k s t hat ask you to ex plain or put somethin g
into your own word s draw on your ability to
u n d e r s t a n d explicit or implicit meanin g s
•
t a s k s t hat ask you to re tell or reus e a t e x t in a
more succinc tway require you to s y n t h e s i se.
7
Chapter 1 . oT pic 1
Locantgionrfi mona:tiskmimngi
Therearet wowaystofi ndinfor mtaioninatext. Thefi rst miks scan Toptpi
isto .
andthesecondisto Remember what
by Alexander Mc Call in everydaylanguage: when
we say that an insect skims skim means
From T h e N o . 1 Ladies D e t e c t i v e A g e n c y thewaterwemeanthat it
Explore the skills just goes along the surafce.
uoY donothave to read every
uoY use skimming and scanning skills in everyday life as wel as word of the text.
study. For example, you may skim and scan to fi n d information
from a train time table or from websites . means reading th e w h o l e t e x t quickly, to get an overal
Skimming
p i c t ure of what it is about. Eve n a v e r y quick skim- read can tell
you a great deal abou t a t e x t .
coVabulary
1 S kim the following e x t r a c t f r o m the openin g chapter of intuition: the ability to
T h e No. 1 Ladies D e t e c tive Agency
Smith, then ans wer the que stions below. sense things about p eople
and situations instin c t ively
M m a R a m o t s we had a detec tive a g e n c y in Africa, at the foot of Kgale Hill. The se were it s a s s e t s: intuition and intellige nce,
a tiny white van , t w o d e s k s , two chair s , a telephone, and an old ty pewr.itTehren there wa s a
teapot, in which Mma Ramots we – the only la dy private d e t e c t ive in Bots wana – brewe d redbush
tea. And three mugs – one fo r h e r s e ,l fone for her secr e t a r, yand one for the clie n t . W h a t else
does a dete c t i ve a g e n c y really need? Detec tive agencies rely on human
both of which Mma R a m o t s we had in abundance. N o inventor y would ever includ e those, of
course.
But there was also the view, which again could ap pear on no inve n t o .r yHow could any such
l i s t d e s cribe what one saw whe n one looke d out from Mma R a m o t s we’s doo?tohTre front, an
acacia tree , the thorn tree w hich dots the wide edg es of the Kalahari; the great white thorns, a
warning; the oliv e - grey leaves, by contras t , s o delicate. In its bran c h e s , in the late af ternoon, or in
the cool of the early m orning, one might see a Go -Away Bird, or hear it, rat.hAenrd beyo nd the
acacia, over the dus t y road, the roofs of the town under a cover of trees and scrub bus h; on the
horizon , in a blue shimmer of heat,likeimprobable, ove rgrown termite m o u n d s .
by Alexander M cCall Smith
a) W h a t t y pe of tex t i s ?this
b) Where is it set?
c) Does the pas sage feature a charact?re
d ) Is this pa s s a g e f ul o f a c?tion
e) What is the purpose of thi s t e x?t
f ) I s a s tr o n g a t titude or me s s a g e b e in g p r e s e n ted by the
text?
S e c t i o n 1: Build i n g k e y s k i l l s
8
.1
1
g) Is this pas sage ver y d escrip?evti
h) Do you get a se nse of what might happen ne x t / later?
Build the skills
uoY may need to skim a text in order to be come famiilar with it so
that you can ans w e r q u e s tions about i t .
2 Would you now know where in the pa s s a g e t o look if you
had to resp ond to the following, mo re specifi c , t a s?k s
a) D e s c r i b e the kind of vege tation near M m a R a m o t s we’s
o f f i ce.
b) D o e s M m a R a m o t s we employ any s t a f f ?
c) W h a t s o r t of woman is Mma Ramot wse?
Develop the skills
Sometimes a t e x t may be too long or complex to skim in one go.
In this case , it helps to give each paragraph a heading.
3 Reread the extr a c t . What h eadings would you give to its
two paragrap?hDso the headings makeit easier or harde r
to answer t h e q u e s tionsains kT2?
4 In the passage, both paragraphs could be annotated to
show that they cont ain two s e t s of information. W hat
would you write andwhere?
Appylthe skills
5 A nswer th e three ques tionsains kT2 in full se n t e n c e s , as if
approaching pa r t of a comprehen s i o n q u e s tion.
Checklistforsuccess
✔
Quickly skim- read the te x t to unders tand what it is about.
✔
Use annotation s and heading s to identif y the content of
each paragraph.
✔
Use these annotations to locate the information you ne e d
to answer t h e q u e s ti o n s .
C h a p t e r 1: K e y r e a d i n g s k i l l s
9
Chapter 1 . oT pic 2
Locantgionrfi tma :noi scannig
S c a n n i n g i s t he r e a d i n g s k i l l t h at y ou u s e a f t er you Toptpi
h a v e s k i m me d t h e t e x t . S c a n n i n g means look ing for
p a r t ic u l a r d e t a i l s o r i n f or m a t i o n .ouY d i p i n a n d ou t , I n e v e r ydaylife, scanning is
r e a d i n g c e r t a i n w o r d s or p h r a s e s c l o s e l y t o c h e c k like fishing around in your
w h e t h e r t h e y a r e u s e f u l o r n ot . sock drawer lo oking for the
other half of a matchingpair!
Explore the skills
Key term a convers ation
In real life, you sc an when you are looking for s omething
p a r t icular – for example, the cost of an item or the clo sing date dialogue:
for an applicatioond. To this, you firs t decide what you are b e t w e e n t wo or more
looking ,ftohren find some thing that fit s that requirement. people in a pie ce of writin g
1 Copy and complete the table below by matching each Information you What you would sc an for
numbered box with a lettered box . need
1 show times A the words donate , giving ; o r t y pes of information:
Text how you can help, an a d d r e s s , telephone numb, e r
2 their email addr e s s text number dialogue that they are in
cinema home , footwear
page 3 the name of the B for example, their nam e , a d j e c tives near their boots , shoes
i n s t r u c tor name, pieces of
take- away menu 4 how to donate
5 quotes about a C the words
a d v e r t for a c h a r a c te r
Zumba class 6 the price of a pair D the @ symbol pleased to inf orm you or the word
a charity leaflet of boots to get a E the phrase
a novel refund regret , teacher , led by
7 did I get the ?job F a word beginning with a capital or the words
a receipt i n s t r u c t or
a l e t te r G numbers in time format
S e c t i o n 1: Build i n g k e y s k i l l s
01
.2
1
Build the skills nacs . Toptpi
emnumsymealueorsoyafoiu,dyto,ytsgnrtdpanoeWietch Remember that scanning
foetehntodeietsatytmealrainocawrifntcesalefihsuctorsr is the reading version of
meei tlowheevhcaethrdiadteonrfoymtaYeucoe.ginpiatdiewrt matching sock s , s o yo u n e e d
noi tmarofnTfodieeine.nhuoytiagnda,ext to look carefully at the one
in your hand before you can
The clue is always in theeky words of the ques tion. Loo k at the i f n d i t s p. a i r
following ques tion.
S e l e c t four unpleasant a s p e c t s of the narrators’ h o u s e.
Here, unpleasant and the narrator’s house arethekey w o r d s .
F i r s t , you nee dto‘unpick’ the word
unpleasant .
unpleasant=notnice,wouldbe uncomfortabletolive with, adjectives / adverbs ) Key terms
wouldmakedailyelifhadr
adjective s: words that red
Then make a mental che cklist of what you are looking for: d e s c r i b e nouns (‘the
c a, ‘rt’h e closed shop’)
• adverbs: describ e a verb
I am looking for d etails about a building. (usually an action)
•
I am going to be s canning mainly for comme n t s a b o u t it that
do not sound nice.
•
I should look out for descriptive det ails (
with negative meanings.
A s y ou scan, your brain wil a s k i t s elf whether the words you are
reading fi t the checklis t .
Here is the ex tra c t t hat goes with t h e q u e s tion.
I live in a corner of[thecit …]yin[ a cramped
h u n d r e d - square -fo otshackwhichhas()anonatural
light or (b) no ventilation, with a corru g a t e d m e t al
s h e e t s e r ving as a roof over my head. It vibrates
violently whenever a train pas ses ove rhead. There
is no running wate r and no sanitation. This is all
I c a n a f ford. But I am not alon]e.[…There are a
million pe oplelike me, packe d in a two - h un d r e d -
h e c t a r e triangle of swampy urban wasteland,
where we live likeanimals and die leikinse c t s .
D e s t i t u te migrants from all over the country jostle
with each other for their own handful of sky in[the
world]’sbigges t slum. Th ere are daily squabbles
– over inches of space, over a bucke t of water –
which at times turndeadly.
From Q & A by Vikas Swa r u p
C h a p t e r 1: K e y r e a d i n g s k i l l s
11
Chapter 1 . oT pic 2
2 setoebthl pcmeuoiolcbhywadtnsap,ehwtloyteptflhioC A&Q
aerchnpetendhmneotatsrsfrwfseiodfsreoewhs
Is this ab out Are the wo rds used Other thoughts
on s i d.natnaesdvei cletdarhwot11 naeorgattxpce a ho use? unpleasant? trap – not nice
Words read no,aboutanarea
corner sounds like a
I live in a corner of yes, ‘in’suggestswe
[thec i t]y are going to get a
in a description of a house
next
cramped yes, means too smal
h u n d r e d - s quare-fo o t yes,aboutitssize forcomof r t
anotherwordfora I am used to a bigger
house
room so I would not like
this
shack
thisword means
notwel madeor
temporar, syoyes
which has ()ano
natural light
or (b) ventilatio n
with a corrugated
metal sheet s e r ving as
a roof over my head
It vibrates violently
whenever a train
passes overhead
There is no running
water
and no sanitation
S e c t i o n 1: Build i n g k e y s k i l l s
21
.2
1
Develop the skills migrants ?
Scannightereohstefsnetknohauertwnedyclsuwodylarsil
iyofphuel nhtdceorcnioeftlmrcasioasiTtnh.dunisghte
contepsaxirtI. cmiytualpror tanaeislcteviustmmawyr,hen
umsonhytoaufievmrsioarintonapcuialrpstectoaftext.
Usethewhoaeslcotnercifyfnomafriounciatslchta,se
personorpalcebenigdescbried.
3 H ow could you us e the whole
sentence below to work out the
specifi c meaning of the word
D e s t i t u te migrants from all over the country jostle with each
other for their ow n handful of sk yin[the world]’sbigges t
slum.
Appylthe skills
S o m e t i m e s you will nee d to skim a whole sentence or paragraph
in order to ide n t i f y the gist , or a ge neral feeliongu.wYill then go
back to scan for the words thatarekey to creating this ef f e c t . This
i s p a r ticularly useful when approaching ques tions that look at
how writers achieve effe c t s .
4 U se the strategies that you have learned to scan fo r
relevant information to answer the following qu e s t i o n
about the ex tra c t o n p.a1ge 1
Howdoesthewritersuggestthatfilesinoteas yforthe
?oartnar
Checklistforsuccess
✔
Use the key words in the qu e s t i o n to help you decide what
is relevant and what is not.
✔
Find relevant, s h o r t w o r d s , phrases or detail s that answer
t h e q u e s t io n .
✔
Makesure that you under s t a n d the precise meaning of
each word, phrase or de tail by loo king at the conte x t of
the whole senten ce around it.
C h a p t e r 1: K e y r e a d i n g s k i l l s
31
Chapter 1 . oT pic 3
Selectginoifr tma noi
Once you h a v e t he g i s t o f a t e x t ( sk i m m e d ) and have what i n f o r m at io n t o u s e .
locate d t h e i n f or m a t ion you n e e d (s c a n n e d ) , y o u ne e d
select
to
Explore the skills
Select only the most relev ant information.
1 Read the following qu e s t i o n a n d e x tr a c t . Then ide n t i f y the
u n n e c e s s a r y material in the t wo sample answer sbelow.
Nametwoaspect sofPor tugatlhatJackPetcheywanted
otherstoexperience.
nI1970 45- year- old Jack Petchey stood on a hiltop overlooking one of th e m o s t b eautiful bays on
P o r t u gal’s Algar v e and envisage d a time wh en people would come and mar vel at the same view,
walk on those w h i t e - gold s ands and s wim in that pe r f e c t sea – and they would do it all from th e
c o m f o r t of a luxury holiday resor t c o m p l e x .
e P tchey wanted people t ohave his experience of the white-goldsandsandto swim in the peerfct From P - L e isure Magazine
sea.Hewanted them to ‘marvel at the vi.ew’
Toptpi
P e t c h e y liked th e hi ll abov e a l ovely ba y a n d t h e a m a zi n g v i ew t h a t h e w a s enjoyin g Beingconcise andusingyour
s o h e w a n t ed to sh a r e i t . own words are impor t a n t in
summary and directed writing
Build the skills tasks. Simply copyni g out
Look at the two sample answers to thi s q u e s t ion. sentencesfrom the passage
wilmake your response
WhatmadeJackPetcheydedicetobudliCulbP?raaidaOuar .weaker
eJtackhPey decided to build theclubbecauseheenjoyed
that part of the Algarevcoastandhewanted other people to
beableto enjoy it to.o
41
S e c t i o n 1: Build i n g k e y s k i l l s
.3
1
J a c k P e t c h e y d e c i d e d to bu i l d t h e c lub be c a u s e one d a y h e Toptpi
w a s outf ora walk a n d t h e v i e w rem i n d ed him h owl ovel y it
w a s on the b e a c h a n d in th es e a a n d h e w a n t ed o t h er people Never include descriptive
to be a b l e to d oi t too s o t h ey n ee d e d s o m e w h ere t o st ay. detail,examples, anecdotes or
quotationsin a short answer
or a response to a summary
question.
2 U sing the st a t e m e n t s below, fi nd examples of what makes
one answer m o r e e f fe c t ive than the ot.her
•
It removes specifi c examples.
•
It removes descriptive det ail.
•
It ignores irrelevant additional detai l s .
•
It combines d i f ferent examples into larger poi n t s .
Key term s h o r t storie s
Develop the skills anecdotes:
to exemplif y o r back up a
Writers o f ten develop their ideas by adding writer’s or speake r’s p oints
ekidyloelrtnal’Icatsh;ecsyaeromIfIoke.nocW,eumrlnyaelI.gistephetaisnytlbackwards anecdotes .
anhdwtofermtaitopasnoegciyvslen,rtacetkn-wihkrepnalytshirei lframeTs.rheey’
mysteoriusa,oecrolauftersGmvesia.eoppcyanieanmiyOte.noelafostaeknciydotkunowti
ek‘ : lml,way’Ipenhotietmoodyoe‘rs’yes,yes,elt,stlanotwI’ya!’plartedwhwenIamsaslal
ewladnIdslhcfi thntgeiadrenonmoywnN.ex dtoocastr’meownlktumgeoidlpIae.
harmelsenacfonuigh; toiltkecuddadynldnkidsop,Iumtaymrotwsutaneidpalurldsme.
w o YtI !lmanbdetialreoseia,ndswpiedmeacorhtsceheIekwap.thbiesgwovatnleani
ohtulyhSeaodrt:ueiona!srvhnIateoufryfriendnainsu,sth.el
3 W hat is the main point h?erWe h e r e d o e s the anecdote synonyms .)
s t a r t and fi n?ihs
Key term
S o m e t i m e s you will nee d to use your own words to answer a
q u e s t i o n concise.ly synonyms:
identical, o r v e r y close in
4 Rewrite the following sentence in your own words . meaning, to other words
I n p a r tciualr, think about u sing alternative verbs and
a d j e c tives (
oltIokedharmlessenoughni;fact, oliotkedcuddlyandknid.
words that are
Appylthe skills
5 A nswer the following ques tion on th e p a s s a g e above.
Summarise concisely in your own w o r d s , grouping ideas
together in longer senten c e s .
Howdoesthewriterfeeal boutcatasnwdhy?
C h a p t e r 1: K e y r e a d i n g s k i l l s
51
Chapter 1 . oT pic 4
Synetshis
S y n t he s i s i s a s k i ll you w i l l n e e d w he n r e s p o n d i n g t o
a d i r e c t e d w r i t i n g t a s k . S y n t he s i s i n v o lves locat ing
i n f o r m at io n f r o m d i f f e r e nt s o u r c e s a n d c o m bi n i n g i t i n
your own t e x t .
Explore the skills
Synthesi borfllkhsitenosgmfiroinatogeohrftmerange
elcsi ti tahtedrnsaudgnsaiorpseucgneoyrsmf.likarof
I n e v e r yday life, you o f ten need to consider a wide range of Toptpi
w r i t t e n information o n a topic. For example:
Synhtesisisalittlebeitlik
• cookingame.aItlwould
if you were planning to purchase a n ew mobile phone , you be veryinefficienttostart
would probably che ck the details of several phones in store or cookingwhleitheingredients
on the internet arestluijmbledupinyour
shoppingbags.Goodcooks
• unpacktheringredientsand
if you were planningaholiday, you might gather info rmation organsiethemacocrdnigto
about a countr y from holiday bro c h u r e s , the internet and whentheyareneededand
guidebooks. whichitemswlbil ecombined
withea.chother
Howe,vseyrn t h e s i s is not simply about collecting information
from different locations. I t is also ab o u t s o r ting relevant
information into a clear and conci se or.der
uoY may need to gather information from several places an d use
it in one piece of writing. Dire c t e d writing and ex tend e d
r e s p o n s e s to reading ta s k s a s k youtodrawyour answer s from all
p a r t s of one, or som etimes t wo,te x t s . S u m m a r y q u e s t ions ask you
to look at one te x t at a time, but you stil need to use info rmation
from across the whole tex t .
1 Look at the ingredi e n t s b elow.Som e are usedtomake
t o r t lilas (simple pancake s made of flour and water) and
others tomake the fillings of chilli, salad, sour cream,
cheese and s a l s a . S o r t the ingredients into t woli s t s : o ne
f o r t h e t o r tillasand one for the fillings .
red onion, finely sliced cheddarcheese, grated two hot green or red chil ies
fresh tomatoes
one cup of water f reshcoria,ncdheorpped sourcream cucumber
tinned tomatoes
leuce juice of one lime plain flour
minced lamb
S e c t i o n 1: Build i n g k e y s k i l l s
61
.4
1
Build the skills
If the question is a simple on e, you may only b e looking fo r one
t y p e o f information fro m the text o r t e x t s. For e xample:
Summarisetheproblemscausedbyextremeweather
conditonsashowninthepassage.
It is tempting in these circumst ances to simply star t reading and to
write out your a n s w e r a s you go along. However, this can was te
time and your an swer will be weake r if similar point s are rep eated
in several places in th e t e x t .
This is even more of a problem if you nee d to use two or more
t e x t s in an ex tend e d r e s p o n s e to a reading ta sk. For example:
mI agniethatyouareaojurnalistputtnigtogetherascriptfor
aradoibroadcastaboutthekindsofadithatareneeded afetr
oanaturadl.Ysiaster uhavereadtheex artct beolwandyou
havealsomadethefoolwnignoteon(spage1at8k)enfrom
aninterveiwwthianadiworkerfomanniternaotinalch.arity
In your broadc a s t , y ou should explain:
•
what kinds of problems ari se from natural d i s a s te r s
•
what can be d one in advancetomake recover y ea sier
•
w h a t n e e d s to be done af ter t h e d i s a s ter has occurred.
E x t r eme winds,suchasthos efoundinhurricanes, tornadoes
and some thunderstorm s, canoverturncaravans, tearoff roofs
andtoppletree s, cau sing extreme distresstomany people
andfi nancialhardshiptowholecommunities.Someofthe
strongesttornadoescandemolish houses completely,leaving
people homeless ,andvunl erabletodis easeandcriminalharm.
Peoplemaybekno ckeddown or struckbydebrisandmany
placesmaylose electric.ilFotyodingandstormsurges can
destroybuildingsand roads,contaminatewatersupplies ,halt
other essentialser vice sanddrownpeople. Largehailstones
can damage car sandroo f s , and destroycrops ,butrarelykil
people.Heatwavescanleadtodrought, whichcaus escroploss
aswel ashealth issuesanddeathfromdehydration.
C h a p t e r 1: K e y r e a d i n g s k i l l s
71
Chapter 1 . oT pic 4
Interview notes
Need supplies, freshw,amtedricines, tents
Diseasespreads fast when pipes are broken
y l erveitropn, etcdeangatlsrPuunosahnecshti yenehlotapeo
R a p idresponseteams need to beofrmed toremovedebris
andsearchfort/reat survivors
Rough terrainvehicles needed Extra police presence helps to
reduce looting
A f ter you have dige s t e d th e q u e s tion, fi r s t scan the te x t t o
locate info rmation. Then go back over the t e x t and categori s e
the information into the diffe r e n t t y p e s r e q u e s t e d in the
q u e s t i oonu. cYould use coolur- coding to group similar pieces of
information tog e t h, seor that when you write your ans w,eryou
onlymake each point once.
2 Reread the pas sage on pag71e and list all the different
s t a t e m e n t s about problem s c a u s e d b y e x treme weather
conditions.
Develop the skills
I t i s i m p o r t ant to group idea s t o g e ther as you are reading, to
save time.
3 Look back at the li st of pro b l e m s c a u s e d b y e x treme
weather conditions you gene rated faosrkT 2. Group
the information int o b e t ween fi ve and nine different
c a t e g o r i e s . Each tim e you come a cross a new piece of
information, decide wh ether it should go under an exis ting
heading or whether you need to create a new one.
uoY can go through th e same process with t wo or m o r e t e x t s .
Simply add to the categorie s you have create d, or add d etails to
existing on e s .
S e c t i o n 1: Build i n g k e y s k i l l s
81
.4
1
Appylthe skills
When making notes for a dire c t e d writing ta sk, you should use Toptpi
the bullet points given in t h e q u e s tion to help you decide on the Makingnotescanalsohelpto
keepyouranswersbaalnced.
category headings. Indirec tedwritngtask s,itisa
commonmistaoktefocustoo
4 Consider the who l e e x te n d e d r e s ponse to the reading ta sk muchononetextandforget
on page7s to118.Makea complete se t of notes fo r the tousepointsfromt.heother
t a s k , u s ing the inter view notes as well as the pass age that Bymaknignotes,youwil
a p p e a r s with the question. ensurethatbothtext sarefulyl
covered.
Checklistforsuccess
✔
Use the ques tion to help you decide on your cate gories fo r
making notes or annot ations.
✔
Decide on the b e s t m ethod of re cording info rmation from
a t e x t so that it is mos t useful for summary q u e s t ions or
d i r e c ted writin g t a s k s .
C h a p t e r 1: K e y r e a d i n g s k i l l s
91
Chapter 1 . oT pic 5
tExpmcilgenai
uoY w i l l b e a s k e d t o f i n d w o r d s w i t h e x p l i c it mean i n g s ,
Toptpi
o r p r o v ide explanatio n s f o r t h e m , i n s e v e r a l d i f f erent
Understandingexplicit
a s s e s s m e n t t y p e t a s k s . S o me t i m e s t h e i n f or m a t i o n t h at
meannigsiaslo import antni
y o u a r e s c a n n i n g f o r i s v e r y o b v i ou s , o r e x pl i c i t . For extended response toreadnig
anddirecetdwritingtasks. For
example, yo u m ig h t b e l o o k i ng f o r a pr e c i s e p ie c e o f
these,youwhliavetogather
i n f o r m at io n , s u c h a s a n a m e o r numbe r i n a n o n-ifc t i o n
and select niformationfrom
p i e c e , o r t h e n a r r ator m a y r e v e a l s o m e t h i n g a b out a
thetext sprovidedandadapt
c h a r a c t e, r place o r f e e l i n g i n a d i r e c t w ay i n a p ie c e o f
itforadeifrentpurpoSse.(ee
Ch)aper8t.
if ction.
Explore the skills
S u m m a r y t a s k s a n d l o w - s coring‘cl o s e d ’ comprehensio n o r s h o r-t
answer exam q u e s t io n s o f te n t e s t your ability to identif y e xplicit
informationu. aYlso need to be able to fi n d and adapt explicit
information in re sponse to reading and direc ted writing ta s k s .
oT do this, use the following four steps of basic scanning skills
(explain e d o n p a g e s10) 31:–
1 Look carefully at the ques tion.
2 D e c i d e e x a c tly what you are loo king. for
3 Jump to the rough lo cation of that information.
4 Cr o s s - examine what is the re to see if it matches your checklist .
1 Re a d t h e e x tr a c t from The Salt Road by Jane Johnson on
page.21Th en use the four step s above to i d e n t i f y a word .
or phrase from the text that b e o u t side.
s u g g e s t s the same idea as the breathefreelyni
words underilned. vanished cultures
a) I z z y s’wigwam co n s i s t s of hanging from a
cotton
bamboo pole.
b) I z z y would rather
c) Izzyfoundthehouse
impossibleot
d ) I z z y s’ parents studie d the
evidence of
from long ago.
e) Izzy wa s not the kind of child
to go well with her parents’
lifest yle.
S e c t i o n 1: Build i n g k e y s k i l l s
20
W h e n I w a s a child, I had a wig w a m i n o u r b a c k g a r d e n: a coVabulary .5
circle of thin yellow c o t to n d r a p e d o v e r a b a m b o o p o l e a n d 1
p e g g e d t o the lawn. Ever y tim e m y p a r e n t s a r g u e d , t h a t was grandeur:
w h e r e I w e n t . I w o u l d l i e o n m y s to m a c h w i t h m y f i n g e r s i n Georgian: grandness
my ears and s tare s o hard at the red animals printe d on its a r c h i t e c ture from the s t y le of
bright deco rative border that af ter a while they be gan to perio1d71 14 8 1 –
dance and run, until I wasn’t in the garden any m ore but out archaeologists: scientis t s
o n t h e p l a i n s , wearing a f r i n g e d d e e r s k i n tu n i c a n d f e a t h e r s w h o s t u d y the past by
in my h,aijru s t likethe brave in the fi lm s I w a t c h e d e v e r y looking at his torical o b j e c t s unresponsive
Saturday mornin g in the cinema dow n t h e r o a d . and sites
unbiddable: models or
Even at an early age I found it preferable to be out side in to being told what to do
oddly attenuated:
m y l i t tl e t e n t r a t h e r t h a n i n s i d e t h e h o u s e . T h e t e n t w a s strangely long and thin
mannequins:
my space. It wa s as large a s my imagination , which was dummies
infi nite . But the hous e, for all it s grandeur and Georgian
s t u f fe d
s p a c i o u s n e s s , felt small a n d s u f fo c a t i n g . It was with
t h i n g s , as well as with my mother and father’s b i t t e r n e s s .
They were both archaeologists , m y p a r e n t s: l o v e r s of
t h e p a s t , t h e y h a d s u r r o unde d t h e m s e l v e s with boxe s of
yellowed pape r s , a n c i e n t a r te f a c t s , dusty o b j e c t s; the fra gile
h u s k s of l o s t c i v i l i s a t io n s . I n e ve r k n e w w h y t h e y d e c i d e d to
have me: even t h e q u i e t e s t baby, t h e m o s t h o u s e -trained
t o d d l ,e rt h e m o s t s t u d i o u s c h i l d , w o u l d h a v e d i s r u p t e d
t h e a r t i fi cial , m u s e u m - l ike calm they had wrapp ed around
t h e m s e l v e s . In that house they lived se parated w i l d l i t tl e c r e a t u r e , from the res t
.
of the world, in a bubble in which dust motes fl oated silently
like the fake s n o w i n a s n o w - g l o b e . I w a s n o t t h e c h i l d t o
complement such a life, being a loud and
messy and unbiddable
]…[ I had dolls, but more of ten than not I behea ded them them, or burie d them in the garden and forgot pink plastic mannequins with
or scalped hair that the other girls so by Jane Johnson
where they were. I had no interes t in making fa shionable oddly attenuated brassy
o u t f i t s for the torsos and . From T h e S a l t Road
their i n s e c t lie
worshippe d and adorned
C h a p t e r 1: K e y r e a d i n g s k i l l s
12
Chapter 1 . oT pic 5 Synonym What the
boundless writer
Build the skills Precise wanted to
meaning convey
Writerschoosewords verycarefuylfortheirprecisemeanings .
Asyoureadapas age,youneedtothnikabouttheprecise The girl
meannigofnidvidiualwordsandaskyoursefwl hytheauthor ishighly
eebehvtayhsnreh(soht)chgmsdWymwtrnioashahnmn. imaginative.
used insetad?
2 Look back at the ex tra c t o n page.2L1o ok up the words
that have been highlighted, then copy and co mplete the
table below.
Word
infi n i t e having no
limits or
stueff d measurable
yelowed extent
dusty
very full
Develop the skills
uoY may be aske d to explain the meanings of words and
p h r a s ersT. y u sing a rang e of senten ce stem s to st a r t this kind
of explanation – fo r example:
The writer choosesthewo…rd ,whichineverydaylanguage
means…
Theword used by the wr,it..,meerans.
Thewriterusestheph…rasw,ehichisanotherwayofsa…ygin
3 U se each of the s entence st a r t e rs above to write abou t
three of the highlighted words in the extr a c t .
S e c t i o n 1: Build i n g k e y s k i l l s
22
.5
1
Appylthe skills The Salt Road
A range of que s t i o n s will tes t your und e r s t a n d ing of explicit The Salt Road on page.21
m e a n i n g s . ( T h e following ques tions all relate to
e x t r a c t o n page.)2T1h e m o s t common are the simple ‘close d ’
q u e s t i o ns that appear in comprehe n s i o n q u e s ti o n s . F o r example:
Givetworeasonswehystoketiglrligooutside.
Howddithegrtilea?thertoys
Another compre h e n s i o n q u e s ti o n t y pe require s you to explain the
explicit meaning of the write r’s wo rds. For e xample:
Explainhokweilhtgelridtoenojyhersefl.
Usnigyourownwords,explainwhathewreitrmeansby‘In
thathousetheylivedseparatedfromtherestofthewordl,
inabubbleinwhichdustmotesfloatedelsinhktaeyilf
snowniasnow -glo’be.
There will also be a su m m a r y q u e s t ion. For example:
Usingdetstalhaityouhavelearnedfromthetext ,sumup
whatyouknowabouthegsr’ilchildhood.
4 A nswer th e f i r s t four of the ques tions above in full
s e n t e n c e s , using the ex tra c t f r o m
C h a p t e r 1: K e y r e a d i n g s k i l l s
23
Chapter 1 . oT pic 6
tmimcIieanpgli: character
S o m e t i m e s t h e m ea n i n g t h at yo u a r e lo o k i n g f o r i s
n o t i m m e d i ately o b v i ou s f r o m t h e e x p l icit m e a n i n g o f
w o r d s a l o n e . oWrd s a l s o c a r r y w i t h t h e m s ug g e s t ions
a n d a s s o c i a t ions.ouY n e e d t o b e a bl e t o id e n t i f y a n d
i n t e r pr e t t h i s i m pl i c i t i n f o r matio n .
Explore the skills Key term reading bet ween
When readin g a t e x t , you might be: inferring:
the lines and drawing
• conclusions from subtle
looking for subtl e a s p e c t s of a characte r clues
• ngirrenfi .
t r y i n g to work out how a character feels about something
or someone
•
tryingtodefinetherelationshipb etween t woormore people
•
exploring the writer’s feelings o r a t ti t u d e s
•
looking for a par t icular effe c t that the writer wants to create
(for example, sympathy wi t h a p a r ticular character).
Moalng.mciniaeplucstdeoiflcratsThislgavyueolyrotdat
icsnoinomilpitmautraognfiisdynslihrTyaidefntvuelycr.pisart
delwnewpumlahcrenteeTstohrnpei.orecs
1 Look at the followin g q u e s tion, then co py and complete
the spider diagram below to record the clues that you use
to reach your deci s i o n s .
How do you know whether or not your teacher is in a g o o d
mood?
wwonkuoyodhwHoether orehHow
aetniruoystoni rehoca .skol ehs
?dmodog
.seodehsroehWtah
syasehsroeh.Wtah
S e c t i o n 1: Build i n g k e y s k i l l s
24
Build the skills .6
1
Writers give similar clue s to guide their readers’ r e s p o n s e s to
c h a r a c te r so.u nYeed to lo ok for these clues and draw your own 25
inferences from them. Con sider this ex tra c t a n d then look at the
table showing you how to draw infere n c e s .
‘Iatn’ogSrsao’oshdcae!gyoradI‘.noednahwtTe’mrantother
amtybhrtidaypart ayntdhtedsnihtodsacif!unotsi’s
Phrase Drawing o u t Possible meaning
Sasha wantstomake her
‘ S a s h a g ro a n e d ’ A s if in pain – but she is not in physical mother feel that her atte mpt
pain, so she must b e t o p e r suade her is hur tin g
p u t t i n g it on to make he,rtomake her mother feel
a point. guilty and warn her to s top
before she ge ts more up s e t .
2 U se the same approach to draw out what is implied about
Sasha’s a t t itude by ‘th a t ’ s the end of this d i s c u s. sion!’ as she sco oped
3 Read the continuation of the extr a c t below, then a n s w e r Great
t h i s q u e s tion. effec t
C h a p t e r 1: K e y r e a d i n g s k i l l s
Explainhowthehgihgilhtedphrasesareusedbythewrtierto
telusabouthemotherandthed.aughter
Her mother smlie d , b u t her eyes were troubled
up the invitations from the t able and began sliding them
s w i f tly into the beautifully addres sed enve l o p e s . ‘ W ell it
d o e s n ’ t s e em kind to m e to leave out j u s t one girl in your
c l a s s , s w e e t h ea r t . I think you ’lljus t have to a ccept that
you can’t have absolute l y e v e r y thing your own. w’…aSyhe
looked up and tried to c atch Sasha’s eyes, which had alread y
moved on to the photograph s of elaborate cakes she had
downloaded from the computer months ago.
Develop the skills by Charles Dicke ns on page 26 .
4 Re a d t h e e x tr a c t from the ope ning chapter of
E x p e c t a tions
A s y ou read, note dow n what each chara c t e r lo o k s l ike,says and
d o e s , a n d how others r e a c t to him. Then think about the
of what you are show n – what doe s it reveal abou t t h e t wo
c h a r a c te r s , Pip and the convic t Mag w?itch
Chapter 1 . oT pic 6 E f f e c t : What it
suggests about
Record your id eas in a se parate table,likethe one below, for each E f f e c t : What it his relationshi p s
c h a r a c. rte tells us about
him
Pip: What is said /
done/how others
r e a c t / words u sed
to describe him
‘Hold your noise ’ cried a terrible voice, as a man s t a r t e d up from amon g the graves at the side of glared and growle d ; and whose te e t h c h a t tered in his h ead
the church porch. ‘Kee p stil, you lit tle devil, or Il’l cut your throat’!
A f e a r ful man, all in coarse grey, with a great iron on hi s leg. A man with no hat, and with trembling ,
broken s h o e s , and with an old rag tie d round his head. A man who had be en soake d in wa,ter
and smothered in mud, and lam ed by sto n e s , and cut by fl int s , and stung by n e t t le s , a n d torn by
briars; w ho limped , and shivere d, and
as he seize d me by the chin.
‘O! Don’t cut my throat’,,Isipr leaded in te.rr‘Poray do n’t do i’t. , sir
Te‘ ll us your nam e’, said the man. ‘Q uick’ly.
‘Pi’p., sir
‘Once more,’ said the man, s taring at me. ‘Give it mou ht’!
‘Pip. P’ip., sir
tni!oePic‘alalp.usnmoayehehte’trsuw,oehSd’hteu‘oiv
I pointed to w here our villagelay, on the fl at i n - s hore among the alder-trees and p ollards , a
mile or more from the church.
The man, af ter looking at me fo r a moment, turned me upside down, and emptied my pocke t s .
There was nothing in them bu t a piece of bread. When the church came to itself – fo r he was so
s u d d e n a n d s trong that he made it go head over h eels before me, and I saw the stee ple under
my feet – whe n the church came to itself,Isay,Iwas seated on a high tombs tone,
while he ate the b read ravenously.
o‘u yYoung dog’ ,said the man, lickin g his lips , ‘what fat c h e e k s you ha’ go’t.
I believe they were fat, though I was at that time undersized for my year s , a n d not stro n g .
‘Darn me if I couldn’t eat em ,’said the man, with a threatening shake of his heada‘, nd if I han’t
half a mind to ’t’ .
I earnestly e x p r e s s e d my hope that he wouldn’t , and held tighter to the tomb stone o n which he
had put me; p a r tly,tokee p myself up on it; par t,ltyoeke p myself from c r ying.
From G r e a t E x p e c t a t io n s by Charles Dicke n s
S e c t i o n 1: Build i n g k e y s k i l l s
26
.6
1
5 U se your notes to write a paragraph about ea ch an icy glance .
c h a r a c. rte a smooth talker
.
S o m e t i m e s , meaning is implied by the literal meaning iwht ?m e ’
of an adjec tive or adverb. For example, in the se ntence
‘He fl a s h ed a warm smile in my direc t,io’n w e a s s o ciate rather dist antly .
warmth with friendliness o r a f fe c t io n .
Toptpi
6 W hat is implied about th e characters by th e
underlined p h r a s e s in the following se nten?ces uoY can explain the
a) Maria gaovemT effe ct a w ritercreates by
b) He had a reput ation for being focusingonly on the litearl
c) ‘Can’t you just be straight meaning–what the writer
d) Counsellor Smith dealt with the obj e c t o r s s o m e w h at telsusdirec . tHlyow, ever
h e a v y - h a n d e d.l y youwil improveyourskils if
e) He greeted m e you also explaintheimplicit
meaning–what you deduce
Appylthe skills fromthesubtle clues the
writer gives.
I n a t a s k , sometime s the implicit information will be ide ntifi e d
and you will be aske d to fi n d the words that create it. For
example:
Rereadthedes criptionofPip’sfi r s t meetingwiththeconvic t
Magwitch. Explain how the highlighted phras es are us ed by
the writer to su g g e s t t hat Pip is scared of Magwitch.
uoY may be aske d to selec t wo rds or phra ses that have a n e f fe c t
on you, and to i d e n t i f y what this ef f e c t is. For example:
Reread the des cription s of Magwitch in t h e e x tr a c t . S e l e c t
four powerful words or p hrases from the extr a c t and explain
how each word or phrase is us e d e f fe c t iveyl.
7 A nswer the two qu e s t i o n s above in complete sentence s .
C h a p t e r 1: K e y r e a d i n g s k i l l s
27
Chapter 1 . oT pic 7
timcmIiplenaig: set gni
C h a r a c t e r s a r e n o t t he o n l y f eatu r e o f w r i t i n g i n w h ich
y o u n e e d t o s e a r c h f or i m p l icit m e a n i n g s .ouY m a y a l s o
b e a b le t o i n f e r me a n i n g f r o m t h e s e t t i ng.
Explore the skills
uoY probably us e your skill s of inference in daily life, whenever
you visit a new place.
1 Look at the followin g q u e s tion, then co py and complete
the spider diagram below to record the clues that you use
to reach your deci s i o n s .
Whenyoufir stvisitanewplacewhataffe c t syouratitude
otwa?tdris
.skol tiwHo
.draehebnacWtah
tsrnweiaftsiuoyivWneh
stceffatwahecayourlp
?tdwroati edutasi
gnahpinesWiaht
.ereh
S e c t i o n 1: Build i n g k e y s k i l l s
28
.7
1
Build the skills
Writers give us similar clues to guide a readers’ r e s p o nses to buzzed . This literally sugge s t s a bee, which is thought of
places. T hey imply meanings through th e detail s they give abou t
s e t t i ngs to create a mo od or atmosphere.
Read the paragraph below. Consider the ef f e c t of word choices ,
such as
as continuou s l y b u s y and energeti c .
coVabulary
The room buz zed with en ergy and ever y t hing appeared to frenetic hum of cheerful
be moving slightly as if to echo the
voices. Balloons ge ntly swayed in the bre eze, bunting swishe d frenetic: busy in an excited,
above heads as couples dance d o r c h a t ted with animatio n.
Even the ed ges of the brightly patterned table cloths lif ted a s uncontrolled way
d r e s s e s s weptby.
2 T hink of three wo rds you could use to sum up the
S o m e t i m e s a writer will u s e
atmosphere in the room. Consider the followin g:
•
How does th e writer want you to feel about the event
b e i n g d e s cribed?
•
Why might the w riter have this inten?tion
pathetic fall a c y in describing a place.
3 Ad d t w o more examples of this technique by making small Key term when
changes to the passage.
pathetic fall a c y : the balloons
4 Some setintgsalreadyhavepar citularconnotaiotns.For a writer refl e c t s human
example,readerstendtoseeacaveasamysteriousor emotions in natural or the
threatennigpalce–whatcoudlbeul?rkHni,ogwtiheniver features or obj e c t s: for
insomecontex t s , itcouldsuggest.shelter example,
a) Place the word ‘jungle’ at the centre of a spider diagram s w a y e d happily
or mind map. Use this to explore words and id eas that leaden clouds hung heav y
y o u a s s o ciate with the word ‘jun.gle’ above the fi gure crouching
b) What kinds of stor y might have jungle se t t i n?sg on the moorland p ath
5 What is implied by the word ‘jungle’ in thes e senten?ces
a) Mrs Jones’s back garden was a jungle.
b) Living in an inn-er ci t y jungle, I grew up fa s t .
C h a p t e r 1: K e y r e a d i n g s k i l l s
29
Chapter 1 . oT pic 7 by Linda Newbe ry. A young
Set in Stone
Develop the skills
Read this extr a c t from
man has arrived late at night and is searching for ‘Fo u r w i n ,das ’
h o u s e d e e p in the country side.
D a r k n e s s s wallowed me; the branches arched high overhead; I saw o nly glimps es of the pale r s k y
through their tracery. My feet crun c h e d b e e c h m a s t . I smelled the coolnes s of the mos sy ear th,
and heard the trickle of water close .byA s my eyes accu s t o m e d t h e m s e l v e s to dimmer light, I saw
that here, on the lower ground, a faint mist hung in the, atirrapped perhaps b eneath the tre e s .
I m u s t b e careful not to stray from the path, which I could only dimly di scern; but before many
minutes had p a s s e d , wrought- iron gates reared ahead of m e, set in a walloffl int. Though I had
reached the ed ge of the wood , my way was barred. The gate mu s t , however, be unlocke d, as my
arrival was exp e c t e d .
I peered throughthescrolworkofthegates .Thetrack,paleandbroad,wound between
specimentreesandsmoothlawns;Ihadsomedistance s toli walk,it seemed. Themistcul ngto
theground,andthetreess eemed rootedinavaporous swamp.Itriedthefa stening; the le-fht and
gate swung op enwithaloudgratingsquealthatechoe dintothenight .
At the same moment another sound arose, competin g for shrillness with the gate’s pro t e s t : a
sound to make m y h e a r t pound and my ne r v e s stretch t aut. It wasawailing shriek that fi le d
my head and thrumme d in my ears; close enoughtomake me shrink agains t the gate, w hich I
p u s h e d o p e n to its fulle s t e x tent against the shadows of the wall. Wh e t h e r t h e c r y was animal
or human, I could not tell. If human, it was a sound of terrible dis t r e s s , of unbearable grief.I felt
the hairs p rickle on the back of my neck , my eye s t r ying to st are in all direc tio ns at once. In s t i n c t
told me to hunch low tlil the danger p a s s e d . D ropped into such str a n g e n e s s , I had acquired, it
s e e m e d , t h e impulse of a wild creature to hide myself and sur v i v e whatever pe rils were n. era The
metal bit into my hands as I clung into the gate. Attempting to retain a clear head, I remin d e d
myself that I wa sunfamiliar with the sound s of the countr ysid e at night. I t m u s t be a fox, a
b a d g, seorme creature yowling in hunge r or pain.
From Set in Ston e by Linda New b e r y
T h e p a s s a g e creates an atmos phere of fore boding without the Toptpi
writer saying direc tly that there is any threat. S he doe s not say,
‘I arrived at th e house af ter a long journey and wa s really sc ared Inyourowncreativewritng,
when I heard so mething screaming.’ I n s t e a d , you work this out remembertoshowartherthan
from the details she incl u d e s . te.lThsitechnqiuewilhelp
youimplysubtlemeannigsof
6 Copy and complete the following table on page 31 to help yourown.
you analyse th e d i f ferent features the writer us es to create
the mood in th e e x tr a c t . Add any fur t h e r words or p hrases
that help to create this ef f e c t .
S e c t i o n 1: Build i n g k e y s k i l l s
30
Word/phra se Time of Time of Weather Landscape Object Action .7
year day 1
darkness Sound
branches Toptpi
m o s s y e a r th 13
trickle of Manywritersusethefacotrs
water ni thetoprowofthetableto
faint mist createatmroTsph.ere ythem
wrought-iron outwhenyouarewritingyour
gates owndescriptions.
a loud grating
squeal
7 T he mood could be completely altered by changing the
words and phra s e s . A d d another column to your table with
words and phra ses that wouldmake the approach to the
house exciting and op timisti c .
Appylthe skills
A range of que s t i o n s will tes t your und e r s t a n d ing of implicit
m e a n i n g s . Usually you wlil be asekd to explain how wo rds or
phrases are used to s u g g e s t something. For example:
Usnigyourownwords,explanihowthehgihgilhetdphrases
areusedbythewrtiertosuggest thenarastoer’xpeirence
andfeenilg s .
a sound to make m y h e a r t pound and my n e r v e s stre tch taut .
It was a
my ears; clos e enough to make me wailing shriek that fi led my head and thrummed in
shrink against the gate.
Atamoresophisticatedelvey,loumaybeaskedtoselec wtordsor thsi paragraph.
phrasesa,ndidentif yandexplaintheireffe c t sonyou.Forexamp:le
Rereadparagraph2oftheex artctonpage30,beginning,
‘I peeredthroughthescrowl orkofthegat’es .
Selectfourpowerfulwordsorphrasesfrom
Explainhoweachwordorphrase selecetdisused effectively
nithecontex t .
8 A nswer the two qu e s t i o n s above in complete sentence s .
C h a p t e r 1: K e y r e a d i n g s k i l l s
Chapter 1 . oT pic 8
Emovite alngeuga
O n e i m p o r t a n t t y p e o f i m pl i c i t m e a n i n g t h at may o c c u r
i n a t e x t i s e m ot i v e l a n g u a g e – w o r d s o r p h r a s e s t h at
m a k e t h e r eader feel a p a r t icular emotion .
Explore the skills
Somewordasreveroybvoiuyeslmvioetbecuaesohtfxtercpil dairaf usleltyelarlchsowsomeone Key term the
meaniFgoe.xramhtwepl,odr ofmumrgihcotndsiptereopYel.
efaesnldwmeim,esrefyealdtiHv.oweymsopmahtyetmi ethse gavreydar connotations:
emootinaelefctelsiobvoiuFs.oerxamhtpewl,odr emotional or s e n s o r y
hnasegvaeit connotaotins a s s o c i ations of a word
dtoaesvgyrbgesahivoerdntfigpalcTehs.ewodrmgiht or thing – for example,
oyekoveuorwnmemmoeakoiryosuefnlhapuponyera.s a fl ag can immediately
make some one think ‘my
1 W hat are the em otional effe c t s of the following wor?d s I s country ’
t h e e f fe c t created by the ex plicit meaning of the word or
phrase, or by its connotatio?ns Toptpi
a) sullen
b) s u n s e t Incaseswhereyourpersonal
c) r e d r o s e niterpretationisdeifrefntfrom
d) irritable theusualo,niteissafestto
assumethatthewritermeant
thewordtobeinterpretedin
themorenorm.alway
Build the skills
Differentwordshavediferentconnotatoinsandelvelsofintensi.t y
Forexample,therearemanywordsthatmeansomeonedoe snot
haveverymuchbodyfat,butheyaclar ydfiferentconnotatoi ns.
S e c t i o n 1: Build i n g k e y s k i l l s
32
2 Consider the em otional effe c t s of the .8
following adjec tive s . W h ich have a 1
positive ef f e c t and which have a
negative o?nAere any neutr?al 33
a) thin
b) slim
c) s l e n d e r
d ) skelet al
e) scrawny
It is also imp o r t ant to consider • keil how strong or weak
the emotional intensity of a word is. For example, there • love. 4 adore
are many words to describ e feeling a f f e c t i o n for
something: why a writer choos es to us e a word
• eke non C h a p t e r 1: K e y r e a d i n g s k i l l s
• a dore
If you place thes e words on a scale of i n t e n s i t, you will
notice that some s u g g e s t a stronge r feeling than oth e r s .
1 like
3 W here on the scale would you place the othe r two
e x p r e s s i o ns in the lis?t
4 D raw your own ‘intensit y s c al e ’ f o r w o r d s related to .
dislike
Develop the skills
It is also imp o r t ant to consider
with a particular emotional connotation or intensit , y and what
r e a c t ion they want from their rea.der
5 W hat kind of e motional res ponse do you think the author
wants to create in each of the following s enten?ceHsow do
the word choices a chieve?this
a) The pack of ravening wolves b o u n d e d , s narling, razor
fangs bared , closing in on the two terrifi e d children.
b) A s t h e rain began to lighten, an d the sun shone b ravely
out from behind the clouds , a glorious rainbow spread
in a huge arc acro ss the sk. y
c) The creatures slithered on their bellie s , b u lb o u s , p u s -
if led eyes p ulsating at the ends of their long slimy
stalk s.
Chapter 1 . oT pic 8
Read the following te x t fr o m a s h o r t stor . y
The rounded bodies fel l a p a r t as he came into sight over the
ridge, and dis played the pinkish objec tto be the par tially
devoured bo dy of a human being, but whether of a man
or woman he was unable to s.ayAn d the rounded bodies
were new and ghas tly-lo oking creatures , in shap e somewhat
resembling a n o c to p u s , with huge and ver y lo ng and fl e xible
t e n t a c l e s , coiled copiously on the ground. The skin had a
gliste ning texture, unpleasant to see, likeshiny leat.hTehre
downward ben d of the tentac l e - surrounde d mouth, the
curious excre scence at the bend, the tentacle s , a n d the large
intelligent e y e s , gave the creatures a grotesque s u g g e s t ion
of a face. They were the sizeofafair- size d swine about the
body, and the tenta c l e s s e e m e d to him to be many feet in
length. There were, he thinks , seve n or eight at leas t of the
creaturewsT. enty yards beyon d them, amid th e surf of the
now returning tid e , t w o others were emerging fro m the sea.
Their bodies lay fl atly on the rock s , and their eyes regarded
him with evil intere s t ; b ut it does not appear that M r Fison
was afraid, or that he realise d that he was in any dan.ger
Possibly hi s confi d e nce is to be ascribe d to the limp ness of
their atti t u d e s . But he was horrifi e d , of cours e, and intens ely
excited and indignant, at such revolting creatures preyin g
upon human fl e s h. He thought they had chanced upon a
drowned bod. y He shouted to them, with th e idea of driving
t h e m o f, fand fi n ding they did not bud g e , c a s t about him,
picked up a big rounded lump of rock, and fl un g it at one.
And then, slowly uncoiling their tenta c l e s , they all began
moving towards him – creeping at fi r s t deliberately, and
making a sof t p urring sound to each ot.her
In a moment Mr Fi son realise d that he was in dan.gHeer
shouted again , threw both hi s b o o t s , a n d s t ar t e d o f, fwith a
leap, forthwitwh.eTnty yar d s o f f he stopp ed and fa c e d a b o u t ,
judging them slow, and be hold! The tentacles of their leader
were already pouring over the ro cky ridge on which he had
j u s t b e e n s t a n ding!
From ‘T he Sea Ra i d e r s ’ by H. G. We lls
S e c t i o n 1: Build i n g k e y s k i l l s
34
.8
1
6 Copy and complete a table like the one below. Effect on reader Reason why writer wants
•
I d e n t i f y the emotive words and phra s e s u s e d in the Wethink of the shocking sight to create that effect
text. of the remains, andthesavage
• powerandappetit e of the Hewantsusto bedisgusted and to
Alongside each word, make a note explainin g how the creatures. feaorfr Mr iFson.
word would affe c t the rea.der
•
Consider why the writer wante d to create that ef f e c t .
Word/phra se
p a r tialy
devoured
coiled copiously
Appylthe skills
7 Write up your note s as an ans wer to the following exam-
s t y l e q u e s t io n .
Selectfourpowerfulwordsorphrasesfromeachoftwo
paragraphsE.xplainhoweachwordorphraseisused
effec veitylnithecontex t .
uoY could use th e following pro mpts to o rganise your ans wer:
•
how the writer u ses emotive language
•
how the writer make s creatures seem alien
•
how the writer u s e s p h y sical det ails
•
how the writer u ses language to sugges t threat.
C h a p t e r 1: K e y r e a d i n g s k i l l s
35
Chapter 1 . oT pic 9
Sensory anlgueag
S e n s o r y l a n g u a ge s t i mulat e s t h e r e ader’s i m a g i n at ion
s o t h a t t h e y a l m o st f e e l a s i f t h e y a r e t h e r e .ouY c a n
i m a g i n e e x a c t l y what y o u w ou l d b e ab l e t o s e e , h e a, r
t o u c h , t a s t e o r s m e l l at t he s c e n e .
Explore the skills denotation ) but also w h a t a s s o ciated ideas it brin gs to
connotations .)
It can help to analyse sen s o r y language in the form of a fl ow
c h a rotu.nYeed to think not only about w hat a word means Explicit Connotations Effect
literally (its meaning
mind (its no light, • •
cannot see c h a r a c ter feels sc ared
Word/ , r ae f ecanme
phrase •
lA‘ l around • p lace is frighte ning
me was blindness
darkness.’ •
s omething ba d is going to happ e n
1 M akeafl ow c h a r t for the following p hrases:
a) a wailing shriek Toptpi
b) I could smell th e coolnes s of the mos sy ear th.
It is import antobeableto
2 Read this des cription of a summers’ day at the beach. Make spotwordswithasensory
a list of any words or p h r a s e s that stimulate the sense osu. Y appealandexplanitheir
could use a t ablelike the one st a r t e d on pag. e 37 effec t s niwriting.Sensory
alnguagesiasloa powerufl
Slush- greyand ice- whitegul sscreamands tickytoddlers technqiuetouseinyourown
wrestleoverplas ticspade s, gigglingcarelessly.Theirvoicesand descriptiveandnaratvie
the sweetsmellofcan d y f l os s waft salongthepebbled beach wrting.
towardsme.Striped de ckchaircanvas esbilowinthebreeze
andthecommandingfl ag s advertising ice- creamcompanies
archkilestretchingbeautie sasthewarmwindcatchesthem.
The waves race towards us and their w hite cres t cur ves up and
ove,r scooping s a n d a n d s trayfl ip - f l o p s in its grasp. I lurch a s
the water suck s at my fe et pulling me towards its grey- green
d e p t h s , a n d grimace as th e salt spray lingers on my stin ging
lips and ton gue. There i s no laughter in my mouth, jus t the
harsh ta ste of lonelines s .
S e c t i o n 1: Build i n g k e y s k i l l s
36
.9
1
See Hear Touc h saT te Smell
Sulsh-greyandice-white gulls scream candyfloss wafts
toddlers wrestle sticky saltspray
lingers
Build the skills
Noun Adjective Verb Adverb Effect
3 sedbnonoaeshiretpenptacnsii.63forWphgaecnao √
r aTlmtuaietrdhusrtolhctosneadstaiewrohpeylte rePcise c,omloaukresuspicturedir ty
esneps nfeho,etIrilabptfio.pasedhsoitndarwpicrnes snow. This does not sound positiev
and adds to theefeling of unease or
oy tuokcipltniacrtehdwtehyeonsrehu.rs unhappiness.
Develop the skills
Writers choose word s v e r y carefully to create preci s e p i c tures in
the readers’ mind.
Think about the difference bet w e e n s aying that the gulls were
‘grey’ and saying that they were ‘slus h - g re. Wy h’ ich de scription
helps you pic ture t h e m m o s tclearly?
Writers use adjec tive s , a d v e rbs and even carefully sel e c t e d nouns
and verbs to create particular effe c t s .
4 Look again at the d escription of the bea ch. Copy and
complete the table below by picking out examples of ea ch
t y p e o f word and consid ering their impa c t o n the rea.der
Word/phra se
Sulsh-grey
Appylthe skills
5 A nswer the q u e s t i o nbelow.
Selectfourpowerfulwordsorphrasesfromtheextract .Explanihoweachwordorphrase
selectedisused effectiveylnithecontex t.
Checklistforsuccess
✔
I d e n t i f y p a r ticular words an d phrases relating to the se n s e s .
✔
Consider the int e n d e d e f fe c t s of this language an d how it helps the writer to create a mood
or convey the narra t o rs’feelin g s .
C h a p t e r 1: K e y r e a d i n g s k i l l s
37
Chapter 1 . oT01cpi
Recognising fact,opnoinandbais
Key terms
To r e s p o n d t o t e x t s i n d i r e c t e d w r i t i n g , y ou m u st b e fact a n d opinion , and
able to t e l l t h e d i f f e r e nc e b e t w e e n
t o u n d e r st a n d bias: a strong favouring of
u s e o f t h e t e x t i n y ou r o w n w r i t ing. one side of an argume nt
b i a s . T h i s w i l l d e t e r m i n e h o w y ou m a k e o r d e b a t e , o f ten without
representing the other side
of it
Explore the skills c tahsti ntoninopwiepoiebvnAtoana Toptpi
i ylfloasunesdoesntduicafNon-lfacnnfionspitcnoiAets i. t ew s i no.dtnoiLs ifvtorwoawlroTelhehT Astatement presentedas a
ht ni rodfluo–c eutranhtem:evtetoaelmbtprasptbxneoyaeroet factcouldbeinocrrect,but
thatdoesnotmeanitisan
. s i rfaiPEoneihTlseTfi rew opinion.
eb ot tncervrocr:p
1 gniwol laof. sneoerhitanewhtmeipteaosdtrtsoiencsrhetDc
a) Nothing matters more thanfamily.
b) Watercovers 71 per cent of th e E a r th’s surface.
c) Women are on ave r a g e s h o r ter than men.
d ) Going abroad is a waste of money.
e) Many people enjoy foreign holiday s .
Build the skills
Read the following de scription of Dubai from a guide book. Look
out for fac t s and opinions .
hatf Diabuso’tebmreghnoreidt,esarniosuqituveshetorF
ifnad’uoy ehougltvola–ernkf-geisoucrliethoafhr
ouiurxlassekianadtsortfyhuosednhp,icgseis
ot wtnauoiyruotifehlIctdneobtpyse.gsncomhsbieatés,
,lrelv’uewoioyfhmuchsaouyDuhbinafotfhaotmnrehdor
ticdmolorfi,nkgcsganhitfigntahetrehgmtwci ,eyrnt
ubfohtnirybgaehdiy-ledglpiyltngs souks psenrtiesrdwthi
From R o u g h G u i d e s D u b ai
i f lanoitidartdmhkoyusrlhoqenmautiaoynbiArele,s het of snekypsaornhiusetetclauhcraihtefost
posmtodenr
uh.syest’lnoegifDabusimrciatme,ygeaboplgnhr coVabulary
tamr,oscinamoEpnialt,drIsianIfobAas,iromtnret souks:
postmodern:
r u l e - breakin g markets
nawhsrocntapicgnsaifieploatpneruos–iEplfFknads and
imaginative,
tichetahrsuatevtanguiaesltyucil.euqpdaleyinuilsr
S e c t i o n 1: Build i n g k e y s k i l l s
38
.10
1
2 Create a table leikthe one below to s how at least three Opinions . Use them in three
more fact s and three more opinions in the text about Dubasioneoftheworlds ’
Dubai. Remembe r – opinions u suallymake a judgement . bestpalceosrfabeachand
shoppingholiday(‘ takessome
Facts beatni.g)’
Dubaihas‘ designerboutiques
and fiev-starhot. els’ takes some beating
3 Find words or phrase s in your table that prese nt a Which misu s e s s t atistic s ,
judgement, such as
sentences of your own to de scribe a place you kno.w F r o m w w v.wi s i tdubai.com
Develop the skills
Bias is des cribing so mething in awaythatmake s it seem b e t t e r
or worse than it actually is. Bias may be unconscious(a s in bad
r e p o r t ing) or delib erate(a s in a charity campaign or tourism
promotion.)Common fo rmsare:
•
presentin g only those f a c t s that supp o r t the writers’ views
•
using misleadi n g s t atistic s .
4 Look at these biased s t a t e m e n t s .
andhow? Which is sel e c t ive in its u se of fac t s , andhow?
a) N e t t l e f i eld United has never lost a home game.
b) The Antarc tic is a great place to liv e , b o a s ti n g 2 4 - hour
sunlight and wide - o p e n spaces.
Now read this tex t from the Visit Dubai website.
ThecrystealowfncrlahAietrnaDGoubiysfetusrelvbeornfa,mihtoseanrig
skyscrapersoShkefhZiayedSp.eandoiahutwyoedlufaolKentrBieacghiyfoe,slutr e
ABluojrfntoieynjoabrenigpampeerodatncohbeincfaichuclwbnsi,ghrcfteihe
if loul’ muYPnaJmlahrd.eitwhshaetrh’eactvitoyfrao,tsimktesuirfi ngandpaddebloadrnig
kur4ont1oaginlhtgemgreencushoineudrnnoainrklcutgJmaChrScoeniru.nsa,ndb,ule
aeksnideveubnwelirfae–tr ndtheperefctbyeoafuhcr.
5 Inwhatwaysdoesthiste x t show?bWiahsatinformation
mighthavebeeninclude dinacompletely unbiasedver?sion
Appylthe skills
6 Write a des cription encouragin g tourist s to visit w here you
live. Includ e f a c t s , o pinions and bia s .
C h a p t e r 1: K e y r e a d i n g s k i l l s
39
Chapter 1 . 1oT pc1i
Anyanlsigandevalnugiat
Indirectedwr itngtaskyso,umaybeaskedtoreadoneor
moretexts givinafgctsandopinionst,hentowreti ale,ter
speechoreportbasedonyuorassessmentotfhem.
Explore the skills
omugneralnotToehtme–audenyolasyuv,sertfi
howndauentroandcseyhra,sthnreyuitwdthacoFtred.
llretpeahikvceds.sgenvihadtahetunordyeaioufyeospedrl
1 W hatdoyouunderstand byeachofthefolowinga sa introducing paragraphs Key term a sentence
Read the following ex tra c t f r o m a newspape r a r ticle about the sourceofevidenceforanalysingandevaluating a te?xHtow topic sentence: title
e f f e c t of social me dia on tee n a g e r s . that introduce s or sums up summarises
wouldyouranktheimp o r t a n c eandreliabilty of each?one theoverall idea or focu s of
a paragraph ecnetnes c ipot
• secudortni
The wording of the title hpargarap
factual
• evidence
poT ic sentences
anecdotal
• evidence
F a c tual evidence
•
Anecdotal evidence
Social media is harming the mental healthof
teenagers.Thestatehastoact
altgidi The putahendrlscidpcase ,lwleIoemszaeisdtnrichft leatil
nbg.aifl
eursepr on etnagesr ,yadot and we
efl .ti eThre era os myna laisoc meadi
A new udtsy sha oundf that teenagers
aFnat,Isgmar , wtier:Tslenahccebook,
who engae hwti laosic amide ngidur
uSnaphc,at T, r lbm ouy nmae .ti I made
eb deluocls thgrinhet ehnmdgtapgia
a ousiconsc noisdeic ot diova hcpantS
ngisaendrnci ksofnxairrihetiy nad
and amnatIsgr beusca of het alsioc
e dToepniesr. enabogutesprok hte
eursepr I aws hemt punigt on my
eursepr yeht tlef ot emka htemvesl
- ra-e41y dol ltiel . ertsis f I my mum
elbal iava ,42 / 7 nda het ngitulser
untred of het iWFip 1ta m, 1 my etrsis
anexiyt fi yhet ddi not pserond
wdoul bge me ot nrut my enohp otni
ymleimtadei ot etxs or posts. eens T
a hopsto.t heS wsyal need ot olad
era os ylloanmeiot sedvnti ni laiocs
hernhSaptcsesiort onemeorei,tor
amdie that a fifht of onecdars y school
ot ylper ot a meagse hta had ocme
llwi slipuon ogl nda ghtniu taekwap,
ni wto senutmi gao because hes tdn’di
tusj ot ekma eurs hyet tdon’ msi ou.t
wnat hre nedirf ot lef deg.nori fI I
oc ehs peosrnd gneurifesydau,l het ni From ‘S ocial m edia is
harming the me ntal
ermngoyuni’uir dgeYht‘ ’mIngo,ir
health of tee n a g e r s ’ by
et a sa ilnevEpseclaasi.choef’senager
June Eric Ud orie, The Guardian
S e c t i o n 1: Build i n g k e y s k i l l s
40
1 1.
1
2 U sing your own wo r d s , e x p l ain the main point Ud orie
makes in the fi r s t paragraph.
3 W hatevidencedoessheprovdieforthimsaniponit?
Build the skills
4 W hat impor tant point does Udorie make in the
second paragraph of the ar ?teicl
5 W hatevidencedoess?hegiv
Develop the skills
To e v a l u a t e , y o u m u s t j u d g e , w e i g h i n g u p t h e p o i n t s m a d e .
For example, you might judge that Ud orie’s argument is
s t r e n g t h e n e d – or weaken ed – by what sh e reveals abou t
herself.
Now read this ex tra c t f r o m another article in the sam e n e w s p a.p e r
[A Sheffi eld University] study found that, overall, social media can make children feel happier
about their friendshi ps . W i t h gi r l s e s pe ci,a ltlhye study found that m or e t i m e on s oci a l ne twork s
had a positive effect on how they felt about their friends. And other research, from North
Florida Univer,sistuyggests that chatti ng onl i ne v i a a pps s uc h a s F a c e book M e sse nge r a nd
WhatsApp could increase levels of empathetic concern for others, as it gives young people a
chance to widen their perspectives and practise empathic responses. As a result, expressing
empathy becomes habitual.
F r o m ‘ S ocial m e d i a g e t s a b a d p r e s s , b u t it was a life line for me ’ by Grace Holliday, T h e G u a r d ian
6 W hat main argume nt does Holilday put for ward?
7 Comment on how convincing you fi nd this argument,
a n d w .h y
Appylthe skills
8 Using material from both extracts, write the start of a
speech to parents of teenagers, in which you weigh up the
pros and cons of social media and start to reach your own
conclusions.
C h a p t e r 1: K e y r e a d i n g s k i l l s
14
Chapter 1 . o2T pc1i
Undaensrtdingethformand
purpose of diferfent exts
Form a n d p u r p o s e a r e i m p o r t a n t f ac t o r s i n f l u e n c i n g a Toptpi
t e x t .ouY s h o u l d b e a w a r e of t h e i r e f f e c t o n a n y t e x t
y o u r e a d , a n d b e a r t he m i n m i n d i n yo u r o w n w r i t ing. ReadChapter3formore
niformaotin aboutdifferent
Explore the skills formsoftex t.
ReadChapter4formore
niformaotin aboutdifferent
purposes.
The form of a piece of writing is the contex t of where and how
i t a p p e a r s . For example, it might be a review in a magazine, an
informative web pag e , a l e t ter or a diar y e ntry. It will pro bably
follow at least some of the co nventions of its form . For example,
a review will contain both information and evaluation.
1 H ow would you exp e c t form to infl u e n ce content in the
following tex ?t s
a) a n a r ticle in a free in - f l ight magazine
b) a celebrity autobiography
c) a n e w s p a p e r review of a currently running play
ehT esoprup oS .eveihcssattnitoawxetttarhwohattsuiafiome
lacipoytt ,mrofni aotsesoperurp retonte o,etsedaudisnvradepiaat.
2 W hich of the s e p u r p o s e s do you think would apply to the
following types of text?
a) a news repo r t
b) a holiday brochure
c) an accident prevention leafl e t
Build the skills
uoY should conside r each element c arefully whe n reading a tex t
and in your own writing. Whe n approachin g e x t e n d e d r e s p o n s e
to reading and dire c t e d writing ta s k s , eke p their form and
purpose in mind at all time s .
Read the following tex t on page 43 by the bu s i n e s s m a n and
adventurer Sir Richard Branson.In1,9h8e7a t t e mpted to cross the
Atlanticby hot-air balloon with his partne,r Per Linds trand. In this
e x t r a c t , a f ter a disas trous a t t e mpt to land , Per has leap t into the
sea to save him self but Branson remains in the ballo o n .
S e c t i o n 1: Build i n g k e y s k i l l s
42
Alone in the balloon 2.1
1
WhateverIdidinthenextenminuteswoudleladtomydeath
43
orsurvviwaI.laosnmyownW. ehadbroktenherecordbut
wI asaml os tcer tainylgonigw,toditeihP.enrosurvivalsuit,
waseitherdeadortrynigtoswmi on.Ihadtogetsomebodyot
if ndhmihI.adtosur vviecI.laredmymnidandconcentrated
ontheoptionsnifrontofme.Ihadn’tsleptforover24hours
andmymnidfetlfuz.yzIdecidedotakethebaolonuphigh
enoughsoIcouldparachuteof fthecapsule.Iblastedthe
burnersandthenfoundmynotebookandscrawledacrossthe
openpaJogaen,,‘HSaomlyolI,vwIe’aytoieduu.ntlihe
altimetershowed80 00 feetandthenimcl bedout side.
wI asaolnenithecloud.Icrouchedbytheinraligsandlooked
down.Iwalstiwheelingthroughthepositiblises.IfIjumped,
wI ouedlblyotekihlaveonlytwomniutestovilefI.managed
toopenmyparachutewI, ouldelstindupinthesea,where
IwouldprobablydrownfI.etlfortheparachutereleasetag ,
andwonderedwhetheritwasthergihtoneP.erhapsduetomy
dyslexia,Ihaveamentalblockaboutwhcihsirgihtandwhich
is left ,especaylwithiparachutes.Thelastmi ehIadfree af-len
pIueldthewrongreleasetagandjet tisonedmyparachuAet.t
thetmi ehI,adseveraskl ydvei rsaroundme,sotheyac vaitted
myreserveparachuteB.utnowwI asbymyselfat80 0 0feet.I
slappedmyseflhardacrosthefacetoconcentraet.
From Losing my Virgi n i t y by Richard Branso n
3 xoefat ethstiihsti fWo,temah?mlrpaxetrofFtadervn Toptpi
nwioldlpioclfehdehost?eniougdonlywio?Hngoeol lab A textwilonlyhaveoneform,
bumti ayhavemorethanone
a) ‘ We had broekn the record but I was almos t c e r t ainly purpose–suchastocritcise
going to die.’ andentert ani.
C h a p t e r 1: K e y r e a d i n g s k i l l s
b) ‘ I... scrawled across the open pagJeo, a“n, Hol,lySam ,
I love y’”ou.
c) ‘ Perhaps due to my dyslexia, I have a mental block
about which i s right and which i s l e f t ’.
4 Nowthnikabouthepurposeofthetext .Whatdoyouthnik
theauthorwant tsoacheivewtihthefoolw?nisegnil
a) ‘ Whatever I did in the next ten minutes would lead
to my death or sur viv’a.l
b) ‘ P,er with no survival suit, wa s either dead o r t r ying
to swim on.’
c) ‘ If I jumped , I would be likelyto have only two minutes
to liv’e.
d) ‘ I slapped my self hard acro ss the fa ce to concentrate.’
Chapter 1 . o2T pc1i
Develop the skills Metror oTnto
Form and purpose are closely related. For example, an instru c t i on
booklet is sho r t and easy tofolow, b e c a u s e its purp ose is to
explain clearl.yIt will not tel funny stories or in clude po etic
d e s c r i p ti o n s .
Read the following op ening to a re p o r t in the
n e w s p a p. e r
Confessions of a h i g h - rise window clea n e r
A f te r c ycling froomroTnto to the We s t C o a s t and back , then
sailing fro m S c a r b o rough to Iceland, K.C . Maple was having
trouble adjus tingto the confi n e d life within the tall tower s of
roT onto.
That was until he found a job that le thimclimbto the top
and dangle off of them.
For the past two and a half years , the 24 -year-old with long,
blond hair pulle d back in a po n y t ail has wa shed the win d o w s
oorfoTnto’shighrise buildin g s . I t was on the way to a native
sun dance ceremony that the par-tSwed e , p a r-ta b o riginal met
a man who cleaned windows for a living.
‘ T h a t was the pivotal point that brou ght me into the joy of
this busine ss,’ he says . He is s om e t i m e s afraid, bu t mostly he
enjoys the thril of being up so high. And the money is good.
He tells me a b eginner who works fa st can u sually maek
around $50 0 0 0 a.year
‘ I t ’ s great to be paid to go out the re, have a lit tle danger
and have some fun,’ h e s a y s . ‘I’ve always wanted adventure,
excitement, physical d a ’n.g e r
Maple spends his days spe eding up elevators with 25 0 feet repelling on a small ply wood
of ropes draped ove r his shoulder s, then lowering the rope
down the side of buildings and
seat, holdin g a couple of sque e g e e s , a s u c t ion cup to help him
keep close to the windows and a fi ve - g allon bucke t fi l ed with
water and dish s oap.
I t ’ s great exercis e , e s p e c iallypulling the rope s up at the en d of r e p s ’, coVabulary
the day – ‘Fro m a fi tn e s s s t andpoint, you’ve got a lot of Metro Tor o n t o
he explains . repellinga(n d r e ps):
rappelilng, a climbing
Instead of feeling trap ped within the walls of a crowded cit , y technique for lowering
he feels lib erated in scalin g them. yourself on a rope
‘I love the peace out there – on the outside of the building.
uoY re’ not inside the fi s hbowl.’
By Carolyn Morris,
S e c t i o n 1: Build i n g k e y s k i l l s
44
2.1
1
5 T h i s t e x t is from a news p a p, beur t what kind of repor t i sit? Metror oTnto a r ticle but
For example, is it breaking ne?wHsow does the following Metror oTnto r e p o r t , but
sentence help you answe r this ques ?tion
For the past t w o and a half years , the 24 -year-old with long,
blond hair pulle d back in a po n y t ail has wa shed the win d o w s
oorfoTnto’shighrise build i n g s .
6 Comment on what th e following tell s you about th e form
of the pass age.
‘ T h a t was the pivotal point that brou ght me into the joy of
this busine ss,’ he says . He is s om e t i m e s afraid, bu t mostly he
enjoys the thril of being up so high. And the money is good.
He tells me a beginner who works fa st can u suallymake
around $50 0 0 0 a.year
Appylthe skills
7 Both this repo r t and the ballooning account de scribe
dangerous physical ac tivities. Despite thi s similari,tytheir
p u r p o s e s a re diffe r e n t . E x plainhow.
8 Nowwriteoneotfhefolwnig:
•
a r e p o r t in the form of the
about Richard Brans on’sbalooning
•
an account of the dange rs of high - r i s e w i n d o w - cleaning
based on information in the
in the same form as the ballooning account.
C h a p t e r 1: K e y r e a d i n g s k i l l s
45
Chapter 1 . o3T pc1i
Deduncig centehudai
uoY w i l l a n a l y s e a n d e v a l uate a t e x t m o r e ef f e c t iv e l y i f
you under s t a n d h o w i t s c ontent a n d s t yl e a r e a i m e d a t
a p a r t i c u l a r au d i e n c e . T h i s w i l l a l s o h e l p y o u r e spond
t o t h e t e x t i n y o u r o w n d i r e c t e d w r i t ing.
Explore the skills
xeT t s are usually wri t t e n with a targe t audience in mind –
sometimes a v e r y specific one.
1 W hat targe t audience d o you think you fit into based on
t h e t y p e of things youread?Rank the following fac tor s
according to their i m p o r t ance:
•
where you ilve
•
how old you are
•
how much you have to s p e n d
•
your gender
•
your level of education
•
your special interes t s o r p a s t i m e s
•
your existing knowledge of a s u b j e c t .
Build the skills
A writer will think about the target au dience and make choices
based on thi s audience that determine the content (w hat it is
about) and the s t y l e and language of a pie ce of writin g.
2 W hat can you deduce about the targe t audience of these
sentences from their content , s t yle an d langua?ge
a) At a time wh en global warmin g is already creating
havoc in the natural world, it s’ down to pe oplelike you
and me to save the planet.
b) Grange Park has something for everyone – wild water
rides for ad venturous t e e n s , b o u n c y c a s t les for the
kiddies and rela xing gardens for Mum and Dad.
c) uoY r Rebel T5i 70 0 D of f e r s a wide range of shooting
o p t i o n s , from Scene Intelligent Auto to fully manual
control of lens ap e r t ur e , s h u t te r s p e e d and ISO.
S e c t i o n 1: Build i n g k e y s k i l l s
46
3.1
1
3 Readthefoolwnigreveiwopeninganmdakenotesonany
culesyoufindaboutitstargetaudeince.
J Hus – Common Sense
On his debut album, the man of many voices shi t - 7kcar 1 tubed bumla meranis desigren and
provides the sou ndofnow .ednetdlnrembontaurcftnidyeniprlg
From‘J Hus “C o m m o n S e n s e ” R e v i e w ’ by Joe
If any single ar tist embodeis the boundar-y
Madden, New Musical E x p r e s s
trouncing cross-pollinatoin s that’ mak ing hip -
hopsoceitxn,ggwsrhit2noaey-0’-tir dloLondon
He’sHu J.srappteortala chavocaplambeleon,
of convincingyl switching wosfl – swtichign
nation,a lit y neve – depending on what the t rack
requires. A signle ervse can find J scrol ing
through the oluche grind of aJmaica n dancehall,
genre-hopping means t hat –
authtoet unbeoduofnce Ghanaihnpil,ef the aggy
ldwra
energyof Londongrime andthe zoned-out
ofAstalantdiarzapz.’Ityin,gdazzling t rcki.
J s Hu’s prodigoius
despite conta ining only ofur br efi guest sp ot –
Look closely at the following t wo quotations fro m t h e e x tr a c t . coVabulary mixing of
• c r o s s - p o l lination: disreputable, not
‘ t h e l o u che grind of Jamaican dancehall, the autotuned influences
bounce of Ghanian hiplife, the agg y energy of London grime louche: agitated, n e r v y
and the zoned - o u t drawlofAtlanta rap’ r e s p e c t a ble
aggy: not thinking, as
• z o n e d - out:
‘energised and e n t e r t ainingly unp r e d i c t able’ if hypnotise d im pressive in
prodigious:
4 a) What kind of s peciailst knowledge in the target size or ex tent
audience doe s the firs t sentence s u g g e s?t
b) What do the d escriptive phrase s in the firs t senten ce
s u g g e s t t hat the writer is t r ying to do for the b enefit of
the audience, and how would this help th?em
c) How does th e phrase ‘e nergised and e n t e r t ainingly
u n p r e d i c t able’ make a judgement that might appeal to
the target au die?nce
5 W hich wordsintheVo c a b u l a r y box above are e xamples of
informal ‘str e e t ’ langua?gWehich are leikly to be us ed by
quite well- e d u c a t e d r e a d?eWr s h a t d o e s this combination
tell you about the target audie?nce
C h a p t e r 1: K e y r e a d i n g s k i l l s
74
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Collins Cambridge IGCSE™ ENGLISH STUDENTS BOOK
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