A pleasant journey
Yeats College teacher Jacqueline
Blake B.A, P.G.D.E, M.A provides helpful advice and tips to help make the road towards the English exam as smooth as possible
Ibelieve wholeheartedly that the secret to success for a Junior Cycle student lies in a positive approach to your learning. Every student has the ability to achieve their own personal goals, once inspired and motivated effectively. The skills you learn in Junior Cycle will increase your confidence and enable you to reach your full potential. These learning skills will be applicable as you make your journey into Senior Cycle.
It is the aim of this guide to suggest some tips that you can incorporate into your everyday school life in order to achieve the best grades possible in your Junior Cert exam.
WRITE EVERY DAY!
This is probably the most difficult rule to follow because it requires a dedicated approach over time. Writing means taking time for you. A diary is a great way to begin and if you can make it a daily habit, it will prepare you for many of the topics that come up on the paper. Writers improve their writing style through practice, even if this is only scribbling paragraph or two in a quiet moment.
Ideally, you should become competent in all the different types of writing but you should concentrate on the most frequently seen categories of writing. These include the short story, speech or short talk, personal essay, and the newspaper/magazine article. In a short story you need to have a clear plot, setting, characters and elements of direct speech.
PLOT: Your story should have a beginning, middle and end. The story should follow a logical narrative progression, and above all, try to be orginal - no more stories about scoring the winning goal in a match or fighting with your best friend. Write about something you think no one has ever written about before. Be courageous and go for it! Narrative writing involves the art of telling a story. A good story must record a clear narrative shape (narrative arc). The story must have a clear beginning, middle and end. The narrative must be interesting and original. The student can use their own personal experiences to scaffold their short story. The story must have vivid and realistic descriptions. The characters must be realistic and convincing. CHARACTERS: Interesting stories have believable characters that are well described to the reader. Make your characters come alive on the stage. This part of writing can be really fun as you are in control. You are the master of your characters. You can make them look however you want or give them a particular personality trait. It is entirely up to you.
SETTING: A story can be set in any time or place you wish but I find stories are more believable when students describe places they’re familiar with. It may be their hometown, or somewhere they visited on holidays,
regardless of the location it is always best to write about what you know.
DIRECT SPEECH: Using direct speech or dialogue can be extremely useful in an essay. Direct speech can reveal a lot about individual characters and it is a good way to progress your story.
NB: The story must contain a certain degree of conf lict in order to sustain the reader’s attention. This conflict may occur internally (within the characters mind) or externally, i.e. between different characters. Speech or short talk With this type of piece, the reader should feel you are trying to convince them of a particular point of view. – State your position/view clearly. – Give examples to support your position. – Use rhetorical questions to create a connection between the writer and the reader. Examine opposing views and criticise them. Personal essay The term personal essay gives you freedom to write as you wish. You may reflect generally on a topic giving your own views or memories. • The reader should feel that you are sharing your personal thoughts and feelings. You must try to relate to the reader. Ask the reader to agree/disagree with you. It is very important to describe your feelings about the material you are using. Make frequent use of the personal pronoun. Use descriptive language and vary your vocabulary. Newspaper/magazine article Students should use appropriate language style. The language of information and/or argument is most frequently used here. State clearly what your views are. Support your views with the use of appropriate examples and explanations. Each paragraph should contain one main point of evidence to support your position. Paragraphs should be linked using connecting sentences at the end of each paragraph. This helps to achieve clarity and a coherent structure. Your concluding paragraph should sum up your argument/information with reference to the essay title. You should mention the wider implications of your argument. A general statement referring back to the question is always a good idea. HAVE FUN WRITING! Don’t over think it! Take time to just scribble words on the page. No one need ever see what you have written. Let me assure you, the blank page is terrifying for any writer. The sooner you write words on the page, the more comfortable you will be. Sample opening paragraph ‘What books mean to me’ How do I describe what books mean to me? Well, at the risk of sounding theatrical, it is like describing a feeling of home, of being somewhere safe where you’re happy. The world of literature has provided me with a place I turn to in the worst and the happiest times of my life. I suppose I am nothing if not theatrical! As a teenager sometimes I get carried away in the moment, I can lose myself in a book for hours on end. My parents give me peculiar looks that demand I return to the real world. You see listeners, I feel I am myself when I read, when I write, or even when I talk about books. I have spent hours engrossed in numerous literary worlds and it has provided me with some of the happiest moments of my life. READ FOR PLEASURE! Reading for pleasure or developing a healthy reading habit can considerably improve your skills in all areas of English. Making reading a part of your everyday routine, the same as brushing your teeth or getting your five a day, can make you a confident scholar of English. I believe literature can transcend the pages of a book and can become something that appeals to everyone. The wonderful thing about the study of English is we are not a discerning bunch. To become a joyful reader does not go hand in hand with reading Tolstoy’s War and Peace or trudging through Joyce’s Ulysses. Snobbery has no place in the world of reading for pleasure. Read anything and everything. The back of your cornflakes box contains a wealth of interesting information. Read all of it every day and digest it. Look at the pictures, the ingredients list, the RDA (recommended dietary allowance) of vitamins. Think why Kellogg’s use particular colours and pictures. The minute you do this you have become an assured reader, a conscientious reader, and for five minutes every morning you will have read something for pleasure.
Make reading an enjoyable experience! Join one of the many book clubs in your area. Book clubs are not just for adults, there may be a book club in your school or if not perhaps you could be the one to start one. The most amazing thing about being in a book club is that it is your own little community. It is a group of like-minded people who get together with tea and biscuits (or cake if you are lucky) and discuss one book. It is a collective experience which can make the reading process less daunting for first timers. If a book club is not for you there are other options. Creative writing clubs and poetry groups offer a similar experience. Reading is a most inexpensive hobby. You don’t need any equipment, or gear, any special bag or boots. All you need is your book, which you can often borrow from the library and a good reading light. Reading skills Reading is central to all of our lives. Can you remember having stories read to you as a child and then the pleasure of being able to read yourself? Enjoying reading is something that can stay with us right through life. Try to develop the habit of reading without being interrupted or distracted. As you read, enjoy the mood the author is aiming to create. Enter the world of the story and let the characters make an impression on you. The skill of good reading is vital to the study of English. It is important in all areas of the course – drama, poetry, media, and fiction. One of the key skills you will be tested on is the ability to read a passage carefully and answer the questions that follow. The reading section of the exam sets out a number of short extracts to read and you will be asked to answer the questions that follow.