English Language Paper 1

Explorations in creative reading

and writing
PAPER 1

PAPER 2
There was a hand in the darkness, and it held a knife. The knife had a handle of polished black bone, and a blade finer and
sharper than any razor. If it sliced you, you might not even know you had been cut, not immediately.

The knife had done almost everything it was brought to that house to do, and both the blade and the handle were wet.
The street door was still open, just a little, where the knife and the man who held it had slipped in, and wisps of night-time
mist slithered and twined into the house through the open door.

The man Jack paused on the landing. With his left hand he pulled a large white handkerchief from the pocket of his black
coat, and with it he wiped off the knife and his gloved right hand which had been holding it; then he put the handkerchief
away. The hunt was almost over. He had left the woman in her bed, the man on the bedroom floor, the older child in her
brightly coloured bedroom, surrounded by toys and half-finished models. That only left the little one, a baby barely a
toddler, to take care of. One more and his task would be done.

He flexed his fingers. The man Jack was, above all things, a professional, or so he told himself, and he would not allow
himself to smile until the job was completed.

His hair was dark and his eyes were dark and he wore black leather gloves of the thinnest lambskin.

The toddler's room was at the very top of the house. The man Jack walked up the stairs, his feet silent on the carpeting.
Then he pushed open the attic door, and he walked in. His shoes were black leather, and they were polished to such a
shine that they looked like dark mirrors: you could see the moon reflected in them, tiny and half full.

The real moon shone through the casement window. Its light was not bright, and it was diffused by the mist, but the man
Jack would not need much light. The moonlight was enough. It would do.

He could make out the shape of the child in the cot, head and limbs and torso.

The cot had high, slatted sides, to prevent the child the getting out. Jack leaned over, raised his right hand, one holding the
knife, and he aimed for the chest…

… and then he lowered his hand. The shape in the cot was a teddy bear. There was no child.
 Paper 1
Question 1

This question is the easiest. It will ask you to pick out FOUR
things from the text.

DO NOT just copy the entire paragraph. This will not get you
any marks.

DO:
• Box off the lines the question refers to
• Underline each relevant detail from the extract as you find it
• Write down each detail as a short sentence, using quotation marks around your
evidence
Question 1:

Question 1:
Re-read the first two paragraphs. List four things we learn about the knife from this part
of the text.

1. ____________________________________________________
2. ____________________________________________________
3. ____________________________________________________
4. ____________________________________________________
[4 marks]

5 minutes
 Paper 1
Question 2

This question asks you to read a short section of the text again.

The question is always about what language the writer has used.

DO:
• Box off the lines the question refers to
• Underline interesting words and phrases from the extract as you find them
• Use three layers to write up your answer, using quotation marks around your
evidence
Question 2: x3
Question 2: Use the full extract for this question. How
does the writer use language to create an impression of
the man Jack?

You could include the writer’s choice of:

• Words and phrases
• Language features and techniques
• Sentence forms
[8 marks]

The writer conveys… creates… captures…

The use of… Gaiman’s use of… The connotations of…

This positions the reader to… The reader…

Learning Objective: Q2: explain, comment on and analyse how writers use language…

Level 4 Shows detailed and perceptive understanding of language:

Perceptive, • Analyses the effects of the writer’s choices of language
Detailed • Selects a judicious range of quotations
7-8 marks • Uses a range of subject terminology appropriately

Level 3 Shows clear understanding of language:

Clear, relevant • Clearly explains the effects of the writer’s choices of language
5-6 marks • Selects relevant quotations
• Uses a subject terminology accurately

Level 2 Shows some understanding of language: Grade 4

Some, • Attempts to comment on the effect of language
attempts • Selects some relevant quotations
3-4 marks • Uses some subject terminology, not always appropriately

Level 1 Shows simple awareness of language:

Simple, • Offers simple comment on the effects of language
limited • Simple references or textual details
1-2 marks • Simple mention of subject terminology
 Paper 1
Question 3

This question asks you about the whole text.

The question is always about the structure of the text.

STRUCTURE simply means the order of the things the writer
describes in the text.

DO:
• Look at the beginning, middle and end of the text
• Look for a place where the focus shifts (changes)
• Make notes on the text as you find structural features
• Write about WHAT the writer has done and WHY
Question 3:

Question 3: You now need to think about the whole of the source.
This text is taken from the beginning of a novel.
How has the writer structured the text to interest you as a reader?
You could write about:
 What the writer focuses your attention on at the beginning
 How and why the writer changes this focus as the source develops
 Any other structural devices that interest you.

[8 marks]
 2 – look for two 3- what is the climax?
examples of How does it make us
rising action. feel?
What is the
writer focusing
on to create
tension? How It is unlikely you will
does he shift the get any falling action
in your exam text.
focus? The writer begins by
introducing… This
interests us because…

The narrative focus

shifts to… This is
interesting because…
1- at the start, Tension builds when…
what does the It is unlikely you will
writer The climax of the get any denouement
extract is… It makes us in your exam text.
introduce, and feel…
why?
Learning Objective: Q3: explain, comment on and analyse how writers use structure…

Grade 4