Meeting time

Hello everyone,


By now you will have heard that next week's time will not work for us to meet due to exam supervision scheduling.  I can be available from 12:30 onwards that day, if that day still suits.

Otherwise I could do the 9am slot on the following day. (I teach Y8's at period 2.)

Just some suggestions.  Let me know what you'd like to do!  Feel free to reply to this post.


- T. Marcus

CIE questions for study break...

Hi girls,


By now you will have noticed that I have not posted or made available any of the Cambridge papers.  That's because I did a double-check on my intentions, and contacted Cambridge to see if my plans were even legal.  They weren't.

SO.  If you'd like further practice papers you'll have to come see me!  Otherwise, I suggest re-attempting papers from earlier in the year, particularly the ones that you felt good about at the time yet did not score as highly on.

Hope you're getting a little bit of rest.


- T. Marcus

In-class self-evaluation

Hi everyone,


SO.  While it's fresh in your head I'd like you to do something for me.  Get alone somewhere with a pen, a notepad, your Bible and a device that can read this blog page.

• What did you struggle with in terms of your attitude and systems?
• How did you do managing your time for planning & writing?  Why?
• What did you find challenging regarding the question content?

This is where your Bible comes in...

• What do you need to do in order to improve in the above-mentioned areas?

Obviously you'll have your own ideas on that, yet I also encourage you to pray about it.  Ask God for a scripture He wants you to focus on during the study leading up to prelims, and ask Him for another you can be speaking over yourself during the exams themselves.

Keep going!  If you need to make a time to ask me any specific questions, please do so- slots are filling up!


- T. Marcus

Americanah - wider text essay, Obinze

Hi girls-


My thoughts on this essay...

Structural-

• We see Obinze through Ifemelu's eyes...but not ONLY through her eyes!  Is there a difference?  Obinze is the only other character the narrator seems to follow.  Are their perspectives different?
• Intercutting constantly induces the reader to alter their perceptions of every aspect of the core romantic relationship.  How do we INITIALLY feel about the fact that they are broken up, when we don't know the details?  How WILL we feel when we find out Obinze didn't even have a say in it?
• In each "part", how often does either Obinze or Ifemelu show up?  In other words, which of them is present the most frequently in each section?

Personal 'pet peeves'-

• SepAration, not sepEration.
• Do not repeat.
• Do NOT repeat.

Characterisation-

• Kosi - what are her focuses in life?  WHY?  How does this shape our opinion of Obinze?
• When comparing Curt & Blaine to Obinze, how does this comparison shape our opinion of OBINZE?

All in all, focus on the question.


Finally, here's a quick-reference revision list for Things To Include In An Essay:

1. Techniques of author-

• Language
• Tone
• Imagery
• Setting
• Conflict
• Contrast / Character foils (i.e. Emma v Jane / Mrs. Elton)
• Genre: indicators and upholding or subverting the genre

2. Audience / Reader

• Modern day
• Contemporary, plus social context

3. Themes & Symbols

4. Structure
Importance of place in text
Symbolic nature of story's concrete structure (i.e. Americanah's intercutting, or compressing time in Othello)

5. Weigh opinions of critics
Include their opinion and judge it!  Agree or not, and explain why.

In all cases, you should link the discussion back to demonstrate how that section of your essay is relevant to the set question.


Let me know if you have any questions!

- T. Marcus

Passage based approaches, take 2

Hi everyone,


Hope you've had a restful study break!

Onwards and upwards, then.

Passage-based approaches should do everything AS-Level, yet start with the following:

Who's the narrator or main "voice"?

• This will determine reader response. Do we trust the voice?
• What is the tone?
• What do we as readers infer about the voice?
• What do we as readers infer about the conclusions reached by the voice?

Structure revisited-

• Think about sentence structure and what it tells us.
• If you were to break the passage down into segments, what would they be?  Why?  (Use topic, tone, and time)

Genre clues?

• What aspects of the text are indicative of genre?
• What aspects of the text, if any, subvert the genre?

Overall topic and critical response


Hope this helps.


- T. Marcus

Holiday tasks!

Hi everyone!


Wow, what a term!  Well done, everyone- keep it up!

To the right is a PDF version of the passage based question for term break.   This will be due on the first day back!

Summary of study break tasks (include generous helpings of chocolate as you see fit):

• Revise notes for ALL texts
• Read Americanah
• Begin notes on Americanah, and look at links on blog
• Respond to passage based essay (print if needed!)

Have fun.  Any questions, feel free to study harder and THEN ask me.  :D

Enjoy your break!


- T. Marcus

Further notes on the title...

Hi everyone,


Here's a few more thoughts on the title.

• Shmoop has the most obvious and accessible discussion on the topic so far. (I may change my mind by the end of this post)
• Gradesaver has an interesting online conversation that draws out a few gems.
• Litkicks has a reasonably insightful (though perhaps overly blunt at times) and conversational critique.
• I honestly can't remember if we have a Cummings Study Guide link to the right.  Here you go anyway.

And of course, all the links we do have to the right should also have a few good comments.  Have fun.

By the way, if you haven't seen it already, this page has some good insights into what Willy sells, focusing on the American Dream.


- T. Marcus