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Click on the above video for a full audiobook - great for revision! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TcjyXK-qv-c

Aiming for a Grade 8-9.... then you need to have a detailed understanding of how contextual factors influence the play.  Social and historical context  A Scottish King had just taken the throne....leading to an atmosphere of FEAR and INSECURITY  Macbeth was written in the early years of the reign of James I of England (James VI of Scotland), probably in 1604-5.  After nearly fifty years of rule, Queen Elizabeth I had died leaving no direct heirs and the throne was passed to her cousin James.  There had been fears of uprising at the queen’s death – after an earlier heirless death, that of Edward VI in 1553, a faction at Court had sought to secure its own power by placing Lady Jane Grey on the throne instead of Edward’s sister, Mary.  The situation was even more dangerous on Elizabeth’s death in 1603, f or Scotland was a traditional enemy of England and the fear of a popular revolt against the King of Scotland becoming King of England was very ...

How does this poster represent the characters and overall tone/atmosphere of The Sign of Four?

Analysing the extract  Spend at least 10 minutes carefully reading the extract, annotating it with ideas and planning your response. Conan Doyle writes in a specific style. Here are common techniques/stylistic features that are VERY likely to feature in your extract to comment on: • Watson’s retrospective narrative perspective – Watson is narrating this story from the beginning even though he already knows the solution to the crime/mystery. He is clearly a biased narrator as he is extremely loyal to Holmes and idolises Mary Morstan. His closeness to the story makes us as readers feel privileged that we are getting to hear the mystery first-hand.  • Dialogue – Conan Doyle uses the way the character’s speak to highlight social differences and difference in personality/skill/intelligence/morality – e.g. Thaddeus Sholto whimpers hysterically whereas Sherlock speaks calmly and coherently (but sometimes to himself, because his mind is working so much faster than everyone el...

If you want to get a top grade in your exams, you need to know the text very well (inside out, back to front, techniques, quotations, structure, genre...)  Reading it once isn't enough, but don't worry because there are several short cuts that you can take. Audio books and film versions are a great revision resource. Use them! (And, re-read the book where you can...)  This is a great audio book because you can select different chapters , by clicking on the description. This means if there's a section of the novel, you're less sure about it, you can just listen to that chapter, rather than thinking you have to sit down to do the whole thing. The Sign of Four Film version: it sticks very close to the book and the dialogue is all taken from the book, so it's a great way of revising.  It also does a good job of showing the creepy side of the Watson-Mary love story.... The Sign of Four Animated Version. Come on, admit it -  you didn't th...

Linking words  Linking words and phrases  are used to show relationships between ideas. They can be used to join two or more sentences or clauses (a clause is a group of words which contains a subject and a verb). Linking words/phrases can be used to  structure ideas, add ideas together, point out similarities between ideas  or  generalise about them . First, firstly, first off  (informal),  to begin with, second, secondly,  then, lastly  and  finally  are used to show the structure or flow of ideas. Moreover  (formal),  furthermore  (formal),  on top of that  (informal) and  another thing is  (informal) are used to give more information or ideas. The delivery was more than three weeks late.  Moreover  the clock was damaged when we finally received it. We choose them as suppliers because they are fast and reliable. Furthermore  they're the...

1. - 20% increase in the number of students interested in taking gap years -  More students are choosing to earn money as part of their gap year because finance is tight.  2. - Going abroad for less time /paying it off - no change in numbers wanting to do voluntary work - paid placements being quickly filled 3. - fun/change you as a person  -  work experience/build on skills and knowledge -  enhance university application

Advice from the examiners: This is the hardest part, where candidates most frequently lose marks! - Respond to all bullet points within the word limit (marks won't be given for bullet points addressed outside of the word limit) -  Use your own words for the whole summary (apart from technical words such as 'surgery' 'lung cancer') or you will be unable to gain a high mark - Use a clear paragraph structure and formal linking expressions to connect each paragraph Catherine's advice: - Do this question first, so that you are not tired/rushed for time when you do it! - Use a highlighter to make the different bullet points clearly in the text.

Of Mice and Men: Ideas for A* Essays THE OPENING: CHAPTER ONE • Near Soledad – means loneliness in Spanish – foreshadows key theme in novel  • Vivid colours - peaceful, heavenly, idyllic setting –like Garden of Eden – however a snake is introduced ‘snake’… ‘periscope head’ – makes us think about the evil lurking in the garden of Eden (snake that tempted Adam and Eve to sin)>> Foreshadowing. Even in the natural world that should be a shelter/peaceful place for George and Lennie – and is where Lennie is instructed to go to hide – tragedy is latent. • Pathetic fallacy used to create a positive, harmonious mood initially but by the end of the novel this will change. Nature is not a reliable shelter for George and Lennie ·          ‘a path beaten hard by boys’ implies violence, predatory nature of man ·           Sense of invasion when George and Lennie first walk in ...