LAST LESSON…

THINGS WE COVERED

• Literacy devices
• Non-fiction text: A passage to Africa. George Alagiah
RECAP ON LITERACY DEVICES

20 minutes
 DEFINITION OF LITERACY DEVICE

Technique used by a writer which adds substance or an effect to

the text they are writing.
 9. SEMANTIC FIELD

Definition: a collection of words relating to each other

Example: furry, pet, tiger, wolf, can all be linked to 'animal'

 15. EUPHEMISM

Definition: a phrase used to deliver something harsh in a kinder

way

Example: they passed away

 20. ZOOMORPHISM

Definition: when a person is given animal features

Example: John barked at me

NON-FICTION TEXT POP QUIZ
*revulsion: disgust
*surreptitiously: secretly
*inured: hardened
*enervating: causing one to feel drained of energy
 NON-FICTION TEXT QUIZ

• What was the non-fiction text about?

• Where was the text set?
• What is George’s editors’ attitude to shocking photographs like?
• Where did Amina Abdirahman go and why?
• What did Amina find when she got home?
• What was the state of the health of the old woman George met and
what was the cause of it?
• What person had the most effect on George and why?
• What was the man with the smile called?
ENGLISH GCSE LESSON 2

How to structure an essay basics

 LESSON OBJECTIVES

By the end of this lesson, you will be able to:

• Analyse a given essay question or topic
• Use P.E.E.L to plan out and write your essay paragraphs
Remember, the aim of this lesson is not just to understand these
concepts, but also to apply them in your own writing.
 UNDERSTANDING THE QUESTION

If you are asked to answer a specific question, you must make

sure that you understand exactly what the question is asking. As
a good essay needs to be specific in its content, you must ensure
you only include information that is relevant to the question. You
will never be asked to write down absolutely everything that you
know about a topic. Instead, you will need to interpret the
requirement for one specific aspect of that topic as raised by the
question.
 UNDERSTANDING THE QUESTION

• Start by underlining or highlighting the key words or phrases in

your question. Use the context around each key word to help
you understand what is required, for example, ‘discuss briefly’
or ‘discuss in the context of…’
• The context means the circumstances or situation behind an
event, statement or idea. It is sometimes difficult to
understand the specific meaning of a word without this
context.
• Instruction or command words indicate what the assessor
wants you to present in your written assignment. It is vital that
you understand the meanings of these command words so that
you can answer all parts of the essay question.
 UNDERSTANDING THE QUESTION

Examples:

» Compare » Evaluate
» Contrast » Explain
» Describe » Illustrate
» Define » Justify
» Discuss » Outline
Match up
the words
on the left
to their
meaning…
 STEPS TO TAKE WHEN ANSWERING
AN ESSAY QUESTION

1. Read the whole question twice.

2. Look for topic words. These tell you the specific topic you need to focus
on.
3. Look for command words. These tell you exactly what the assessor is
asking you to do with the information about a topic. Two or more
command words in a question means that you will have to answer each
part of the question in order to produce a good essay.
4. Rewrite the question in your own words. This step is good practice to
make sure that you understand exactly what you are being asked to do.
If possible, ask the assessor to check your version of the essay question
against the original to make sure that your understanding is correct.
 ACTIVITY 2

Rephrase the following essay questions in your own words:

1. Discuss how video games can affect children. Use specific examples
to support your view.
2. Explain how the main character, Darrel, in Malory Towers changes
and develops throughout the novel.

Potential questions you could have produced:

3. Investigate and write an argument for and against video games
affecting children while providing examples.
4. Give reasons for Darrel’s character changes/development in Malory
Towers changes while providing examples.
 HOW TO PLAN AN ESSAY

There are many different strategies for writing an essay plan. The important thing is to find
one that works best for you. You could plan using a simple list, mind mapping, organising
your thoughts into a table or simply picking out the main topics in the question as headings
and jotting some notes under each one. Some people begin their plan by drafting out their
conclusion first. The simplest and quickest way to plan is to jot down a few words or
sentences in a list under the following headings:
» Introduction
» Main Body Paragraph One
» Main Body Paragraph Two
» Main Body Paragraph Three
» Main Body Paragraph Four (optional)
» Main Body Paragraph Five (optional)
» Conclusion
 HOW TO PLAN AN ESSAY 11

Some people prefer to think in a more visual way rather than

writing a list. One of the most common ways to formulate a plan,
is to organise ideas in the form of a mind map or spider diagram.
A mind map is a visual diagram used to organise data or
information around a single concept or topic. It is a great
memorisation tool and useful for revision as well as planning an
essay.
 HOW TO MAKE A MIND MAP

How to make a mind map

1. Write your topic or theme in the
centre of the page.
2. Think of the sub-topics you want
to add and start adding branches
to these from the central topic.
3. Add twigs to sub-topics as you
think of more ideas and relevant
information.
 ACTIVITY 3

Practise sorting information

into a mind map to help you
plan an answer to the
following essay question:

‘Discuss the benefits and

drawbacks of keeping a pet.’
PE.E.L PARAGRAPHS
 WHAT IS A PARAGRAPH

• A paragraph is a group of sentences that deal with a

single subject or idea. It can be as long or as short as
necessary, providing the topic or idea being explored
has been fully covered in that paragraph.
• Once there is nothing more to say about a particular
topic, then it is time to move on to the next paragraph.
• Paragraphs can be separated by missing a line
between them or beginning the new paragraph with an
indent - a large space on the left-hand side of the page
from the margin.
• In a non-fiction text, we often see a sub-heading before
each paragraph, telling us what the paragraph will be
about.
ACTIVITY 4

Castles are a type of home that were built to

protect the people inside. Everything about a
castle was made that way to keep the people
inside safe.

Castles could be very crowded places to live

because there were a lot of people inside.
People who lived in castles included royalty,
noble people and soldiers.

You can still visit many castles today. Why

not take a tour? Famous castles you can visit
include: Windsor Castle, Dover Castle and
Kenilworth Castle.
 PEEL PARAGRAPHS
PEEL stands for:

• Point

• Evidence

• Explanation

• Link

If you use the PEEL structure, you will write an effective

paragraph.
 POINT
The first sentence of your paragraph states the point or the
topic of the paragraph.

It is important because it tells the reader what the

paragraph will be about.

For example:

First of all, plastic bags are disastrous

for our environment.

I believe dogs make better pets

because they encourage your family to
be more active.
 EVIDENCE
Next, you support your idea with evidence or examples.

Evidence adds more credibility to your argument. The readers will

see you as knowledgeable and reliable.

Evidence could be data, expert opinions or facts.

For example:

Studies show that shoppers use 500

billion plastic shopping bags every
year.

Vets recommend that dogs have

between 30-120 minutes of activity
everyday depending on their breed.
 EXPLANATION
Explain how and why your evidence supports your point.

Write one to three sentences interpreting and explaining the

evidence and how it supports your point.

For example:

Many of these single-use bags are

thrown out and eventually end up in
landfill or in the ocean. Plastic bags
leak toxic chemicals into our oceans.
In addition, sea animals can ingest
them as they mistake pieces of litter
for food.

As a result of this, pet owners need to

ensure their animals are getting the
exercise they need.
 LINK
The last sentence should link back to your point in the first
sentence or it can transition to the next paragraph.

The link concludes the paragraph.

For example:

Reducing plastic bags would ensure

less rubbish is stored in landfill and it
would help to keep the ocean clean.

This would encourage families to be

more active and to move more.
 A PEEL PARAGRAPH
First of all, plastic bags are
disastrous for our environment.
Studies show that shoppers use
500 billion plastic shopping bags
every year. Many of these single-
use bags are thrown out and
eventually end up in landfill or in
the ocean. Plastic bags leak toxic
chemicals into the ocean. In
addition, sea animals can ingest
them as they mistake pieces of
litter for food. Reducing plastic
bags would ensure less rubbish in
landfill and help to keep the ocean
clean.
 A PEEL PARAGRAPH
I believe dogs make better pets because they
encourage families to be more active. Vets
recommend that dogs should have between 30-120
minutes of activity everyday depending on their
breed. As a result of this, pet owners need to ensure
their dog is getting the exercise they need. This would
encourage families to be more active and to move
more.
 A PEEL PARAGRAPH
Can you make notes for a paragraph to answer this question:

Discuss whether or not students should be

given homework
P E E L
Point Evidence Explanation Link
HOMEWORK
 HOMEWORK

• Write a plan using one of the methods we discussed today and

then write an introduction and one main body paragraph
to the essay question we discussed:

How does Alagiah use language to create a sense of

atmosphere? You should support your answer with close
references to the passage, including brief quotations.
• Due Thursday 07/09