English (Option A), Junior Cycle - Ordinary Level - Paper

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*Y3FC*
PLEASE USE BLOCK CAPITALS WHEN COMPLETING THE INFORMATION BELOW.

If you do not have your student ID number, please check with your teacher.
Student ID:
STUDENT
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TEACHER
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Last name:
Pre-Junior Cycle Final Examination 2023
English
(Option A)
Ordinary Level
2 hours
For the Examiner only
Sec on Ques on Examiner Adv.
1.
180 marks 2.
A 3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
B 8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
C
RobertSchool use- Oatlands
Atkinson only: College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net 13.
-1
14.
Spelling Waiver Granted
Total
For examiner's use only

*01*
The theme for this examina on paper is:

Discoveries
InstrucƟons
There are three sec ons in this paper.
Sec on A Reflec ng on Reading 65 marks 5 ques ons

Sec on B Responding Imagina vely to Drama 65 marks 5 ques ons
Sec on C Reac ng to Different Media Texts 50 marks 4 ques ons
Answer all 14 ques ons
The ques ons do not all carry equal marks. The number of marks for each ques on is stated at the
top of the ques on.
You should spend about 40 minutes on Sec on A, 40 minutes on Sec on B and 35 minutes on
Sec on C.
When answering on studied material, you must use texts in line with what is prescribed for 2023.
Write your answers in the spaces provided in this booklet. You may lose marks if you do not do so.
You are not required to use all of the space provided. You should read each ques on in full before
beginning your response.
Extra pages are provided if needed. Label any extra work clearly with the ques on number and
part.
You may only use blue or black pen when wri ng your answers. Do not use pencil.
This examina on booklet will be scanned and your work will be presented to an examiner on
screen. Anything that you write outside of the answer areas may not be seen by the examiner.
*02*
Section A Reϐlecting on Reading 65 marks
Suggested Ɵme for SecƟon A: 40 minutes

Read the following extract and answer the ques ons that follow.
Thirteen-year-old Jay survived a shark aƩack. He has a big scar on
his body, and he doesn't remember exactly what happened. Sadly,
his estranged mum didn't survive the horrific accident, and Jay and
his dad have moved to the west coast of Ireland, where he surfs and
keeps his past a secret. He's not allowed a phone, and they don't
have the internet at home.
Then Jay discovers something that makes him realise his dad has
been lying to him. What really happened on that awful day? And
how can he ever trust anyone again?
Jay learns that his mother is in fact alive and goes with his new
friend Jess to meet her in secret.
A bigger truth was beginning to occur to Jay and he stopped. He sat

down beside her and looked at his mother and felt a moment of fear and hesita on, but it was too
late to turn back now. “You never wrestled a shark, did you?”
“A shark? Goodness, no, nothing like that.” She looked at her watch, clicked her fingers and then
ordered a glass of champagne. “There was no shark. I was never a acked by a shark,” he said. He
remembered everything then, as clearly as if he’s always known. The boat tearing round the corner
of Dellabelle Cove, the sound of the engine above him. The frenzied1 foaming water. The p of
the propeller slicing his side from under his neck down to his knee and then, his mother, seeing
what she had done, screaming his name over and over again in the sinister seeping s llness. Jay
remembered his blood flowering into the blue of that French sea.
Jay’s mother had crashed into him in a motorboat. There had been no other boy. He was the boy.
He’d been injured by his own mother. She reached out, “Jay, darling, I’ve been meaning to ask: why
were you in the water at all? You were supposed to be wai ng for me on the beach. That’s where
I told you to be, wai ng for me on the beach. Your father was so angry with me, but it wasn’t my
fault really. I didn’t see you. It was an accident. I was going too fast to swerve or stop or reverse. It
could have happened to anyone”. He turned to his mother with a grim calmness. “Why were you
going so fast?”
He already knew the answer. It was something he remembered his dad saying about her.
Everything had to be a big moment. The clothes she wore, the par es she threw, the a en on she
pulled towards herself. She made herself the spectacle and this had been a big one. She’d bought
a boat. Her plan was to come zipping around the sharp corner of the bay and make a spectacular
appearance with the engine racing, glistening2 in the sun, and she was going to moor the boat in
the cove beyond the shallows and then she was going to dive into the water and come up on the
beach and Jay was going to be thrilled. She’d planned for it to be something that he was never
going to forget, and when he was grown up, it was going to be one of the stories he told about his
mother and how exci ng she was.
There had never been a shark. His mother was the shark. She’d nearly killed him. There was no
point hanging around, hoping she might apologise. He couldn’t even bear to look at her. She
wasn’t even sorry. She’d never felt guilt about it, he realised. She’d lured3 him here to jus fy herself
in some twisted way. “It’s been such a hellish me for me,” she said. And that’s what made Jay
grab
Robert Jess by the
Atkinson hand andCollege
- Oatlands back away and then
- 60050E begin to run, as if they’d just come
- robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1face-to-face with
something even more dangerous than either of them could imagine.
Glossary
1. Frenzied: wild, 2. Glistening: sparkling, 3. Lured: persuaded
*03*
QuesƟon 1 (10 marks)
The following words in bold appear in the extract printed on page 3. In the case of each word,
show what the word means, as it is used in the passage, by placing a ck () in the appropriate
box. Tick one box only in each case.
(a) Truth
  False 
Dishonest 
Fact 
(b) HesitaƟon
Quickly 
Wait 
Rest 
(c) Propeller
Blade 
Oar 
Paddle 
(d) Sinister
Exci ng 
Scary 
Lucky 
(e) Twisted
Tangled 
Straight 
Clear 
*04*
What injuries did Jay receive during the incident? Give evidence from the text.
*05*
How would you describe the character of the mother? Choose one of the following words.
Give two reasons for your answer.
● Trustworthy
● Caring
● Selfish
Op onal Rough Work
*06*
Jay has decided to write a le er to his mother to explain how he feels about what happened on
the day of the accident. Write the le er from Jay to his mother.
You may include:
● What he thought had happened to him.

● What he remembers now.
● His feelings about the day of the accident.
● His rela onship with his father.
● Hopes for the future.
Op onal Rough Work
*07*
*08*
Read all parts of the ques on carefully before star ng your answer.
Op onal Rough Work
Jay is fortunate to have made a friend in Jess since he moved to Ireland. Jess proves to be a loyal
friend to Jay when he goes to visit his mother.
Choose a character from a novel you have studied that has a strong friendship with another
character in the novel.
(a)
Title of novel:
Name of character:
Name of character’s friend:
(b) Explain why you chose these characters.
*09*
(c) Describe a key moment in the novel that shows their friendship.
(d) If you could change one thing for your characters, what would it be, and why would you
change it?
*10*
Section B Responding Imaginatively to Drama 65 marks
Suggested Ɵme for SecƟon B: 40 minutes
This scene is an excerpt from The Two Towers, the second instalment in the Lord of the Rings
trilogy. Sam delivers a speech to Frodo in Osgiliath, a ruined city under the a ack of Orcs and
other minions of Sauron.
Frodo and Sam were captured and are now trying to escape without being killed or 9losing the ring.
Frodo just survived an encounter with a Black Rider. Frodo is in shock and Sam talks him to safety.
Sam: What are you doing?

Frodo pays him no aƩenƟon. He walks out of the tower of safety.
Sam: Where are you going?!
Frodo raises the Ring. Sam runs up the stairs, tackles Frodo and wrestles the Ring away, Sam looks
at Frodos’s blade with fear, tears run down his face.
Sam: It’s me. It’s your Sam. Don’t you know your Sam?
Frodo’s madness fades to shock and confusion.
Frodo: I can’t do this, Sam.
Sam: I know it’s all wrong. By rights we shouldn’t even be here. But we are. It’s like in the great
stories, Mr Frodo. The ones that really ma ered. Full of darkness and danger they were. And
some mes you didn’t want to know the end. Because how could the end be happy?
Frodo pants against a wall.
Sam: How could the world go back to the way it was when so much bad had happened? But in
the end, it’s only a passing thing, this shadow. Even darkness must pass. A new day will come. And
when the sun shines it will shine out the clearer. Those were the stories that stayed with you that
meant something. Even if you were too small to understand why.
Sam: But I think, Mr Frodo, I do understand. I know now. Folk in those stories had lots of chances
of turning back, only they didn’t. They kept going because they were holding on to something.
Frodo: What are we holding on to, Sam?
Sam liŌs Frodo to his feet.
Sam: There’s some good in this world, Mr Frodo. And it’s worth figh ng for.
*11*
Why did Frodo not respond to Sam immediately?
Did Sam do enough to help Frodo? Give a reason for your answer.
*12*
If you were offered either the part of Frodo or Sam, which character would you choose to be and why?
What do you think happens next to Frodo and Sam? Write out the conversa on between Sam and
Frodo following on from this scene.
*13*
*14*
Sam reminds Frodo that he learned in the old stories that there’s good in the world and that good
3
is worth figh ng for.
(a) Name a drama that you have studied where a character makes a discovery about the world
they live in.
Name of drama:
Name of character:
Op onal rough work
(b) What did the character believe at the start of the drama?
(c) What informa on did they discover in a key moment?
Op onal rough work
*15*
(d) Describe how the discovery changed the way the character felt a er this key moment.
Op onal rough work
*16*
Section C Reacting to Different Media Texts 50 marks
Suggested Ɵme for SecƟon C: 35 minutes
Look at the following two adver sements carefully and answer the ques ons that follow.
Poster A
Poster B
*17*
Based on your study of the two film posters alone, which film would you prefer to see? Give two
reasons for your answer.
Poster: ___________________________
2
Which film do you think would be suitable for a teenage audience? Give two reasons for your
answer.
*18*
Both posters make promises to the audience, which one stands out to you more? Give a reason for
your answer.
These films are follow-on films from famous film franchises Hocus Pocus and Jurassic Park, which
have been watched and enjoyed by different genera ons of families.
Choose a film you have studied that was enjoyable to watch and answer the ques ons that follow.
Op onal rough work
(a)
Name of film:
Name of director:
*19*
(b) Describe a scene in the film that you enjoyed watching.
(c) Why did you choose this scene? Give two reasons for your choice.
*20*
(d) Would you recommend this film to other Junior Cycle English students? Why or why not?
*21*
Addi onal wri ng space. Label all work clearly with the ques on number and part.
*22*
Addi onal wri ng space. Label all work clearly with the ques on number and part.
*23*
*Y3FC*
Acknowledgements
Images
Image of The Shark and the Scar novel. hƩps://www.vibesandscribes.ie/__socialshop/products/

the-shark-and-the-scar-by-sarah-moore-fitzgerald.html
S ll of Frodo and Sam from Lord of the Rings, The Two Towers Film. hƩps://www.fanpop.com/
clubs/frodo-and-sam/images/36089809/Ɵtle/lotr-two-towers-photo
Film Poster for Hocus Pocus 2. hƩps://www.imdb.com/Ɵtle/Ʃ11909878/mediaindex?ref_=Ʃ_ov_

mi_sm
Film Poster for Jurassic World, Dominion. hƩps://www.imdb.com/Ɵtle/Ʃ8041270/
Texts
More Fitzgerald, S. (2022) The Shark and the Scar. London. Hache e.
Jackson, P. Walsh, F. and Boyens, P. (2002) The Two Towers Film Script based on the Lord Of The
Rings trilogy by J. R. R. Tolkien. hƩps://thescriptsavant.com/pdf/LordOfTheRingsTheTwoTowers.pdf
*24*
23
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Terms and conditions

3. I will not photocopy or distribute the paper to students.

Part of the Examcraft Group T: 01 808 1494 F: 01 8307464 E: info@examcraft.ie www.examcraft.ie

Please consider joining our correction team, even if

Leaving Certificate Junior Cycle

Any questions, please email correctors@examcraft.ie

PLEASE USE BLOCK CAPITALS WHEN COMPLETING THE INFORMATION BELOW.

Title (Mr, Mrs, Ms):

Pre-Junior Cycle Final Examination 2023

For examiner's use only

The theme for this examina on paper is:

There are three sec ons in this paper.

Sec on A Reflec ng on Reading 65 marks 5 ques ons

Answer all 14 ques ons

Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1

Section A Reϐlecting on Reading 65 marks

Suggested Ɵme for SecƟon A: 40 minutes

A bigger truth was beginning to occur to Jay and he stopped. He sat

QuesƟon 1 (10 marks)

Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1

Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1

QuesƟon 3 (10 marks)

Op onal Rough Work

Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1

QuesƟon 4 (15 marks)

You may include:

● What he thought had happened to him.

Op onal Rough Work

Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1

Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1

QuesƟon 5 (25 marks)

Op onal Rough Work

Name of character’s friend:

(b) Explain why you chose these characters.

Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1

Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1

Section B Responding Imaginatively to Drama 65 marks

Suggested Ɵme for SecƟon B: 40 minutes

Sam: What are you doing?

Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1

Why did Frodo not respond to Sam immediately?

Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1

QuesƟon 8 (10 marks)

QuesƟon 9 (20 marks)

Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1

Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1

QuesƟon 10 (25 marks)

Op onal rough work

(c) What informa on did they discover in a key moment?

Op onal rough work

Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1

Op onal rough work

Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1

Section C Reacting to Different Media Texts 50 marks

Suggested Ɵme for SecƟon C: 35 minutes

Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1

QuesƟon 11 (10 marks)

QuesƟon 12 (10 marks)

Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1

QuesƟon 14 (25 marks)

Op onal rough work

Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1

(b) Describe a scene in the film that you enjoyed watching.