This was a post by someone about a year or two ago. I'm not too sure about the exact date but I thought it might be quite useful to put up in case anyone has problems in structuring their answers..
Question 1)

- This is ALWAYS a summary question. You need to look at an article and write a1 page long summary of what it is saying.
- You structure it as so: 4 paragraphs. In each paragraph, you are to includeat least 1 short quote. Don't make your quote any longer than 5 words. You thentalk about the quote, summarise what it means and provide an interpretationabout it. You start with "from this article we can infer that x"...you then include a short, embedded quote suchas "we can infer that vegetarianism is actually a "greaterdrain" on our supplies than regular meat eating". Now don't getthis wrong, YOU ONLY keep the quote you pick identical to the article's text.If the rest of the article says "...on our supplies than regularmeat eating", DON'T copy that out, change it into your OWN words,like "...than normal diets on our reserves of energy andlogistics." See what happened there? I re-wrote the article'smessage in this section using my own understanding. This gets you into the topband and makes sure that you actually UNDERSTAND the article, because that iswhat the question is asking you. That's what the paper is about, your READINGability, not your 'copying out information' skills.
- Add interpretations at the end, such as "this is actually verysurprising as we would expect vegetarianism to be a 'greener' take on our dietswhich highlights the unlooked attitudes towards this problem". Seethat? That shows that you are able to not only read it but take it that bitfurther and 'read between the lines'. You can read an article and inferunspoken stuff.
- Quote from a range of the article, include ALL important details, and makesure you mention everything important, choose your quotes wisely - highlightingthe article in the first 5 minutes helps.
- Finally, look for the 'ironic issues' or the 'other side of the argument'.This is ALWAYS in the texts we're given. For example: the June 2011 articletalked about the problems with wind farms... but at the end they talked aboutthe fact that these wind farms, despite their 'adverse effects' on the pristineview, they actually help. That is KEY, you HAVE TO MENTION the 'other side ofthe argument'. Miss it out, and you've got a maximum of 6/8.

Question 2)
- This one is probably the most predictable question. It will ALWAYS ask youthe exact same thing: to explain the effect of a presentational device andexplain how it links to the article. Easy as it sounds, this is a veryover-looked question.
- You must structure it as so: 4 short paragraphs, 2 paragraphs about thePICTURE and 2 about the HEADLINE or other notable presentational features.Okay? In these paragraphs, mention one feature about the picture/headline, andexplain how it is effective. Then include a quote from the text and explain howthe picture is representative of the details in the article.
- Now, here's the over-looked part... You HAVE TO BE SPECIFIC to the textgiven. You cannot just say "the headline is bold and eye-catching".NO. You have to talk into context. The June 2013 Q2 was of a young teenage girleating a ghastly looking burger, and the article talked about unhealthy diets.You NEVER just say "the teenager is eye-catching". For this, you haveto say something like "the picture is effective because theteenager is pretty in appearance, and the way she is obliviously eating anextremely unhealthy burger highlights the severity of the issue, and it grabsthe reader's attention as we are essentially forced to question why suchoblivious actions on our bodies is bestowed by young teenagers who actuallycare about their appearance." Understand? You have to makespecific points, not GENERAL points.

Question 3)
- Another predictable one, but the articles vary hugely. This one asks you toexplain the thoughts and feelings of a character in a non-fiction novel. Thisone is pretty simple, and it can be nailed easily with 5 minutes of planning.
- At the beginning of the exam, READ THE EXTRACT and note down what thecharacter is feeling at each point, offer a variety of feelings and give avariety of interpretations. Don't just say "she's feeling lonely",say "she's feeling lonely but also anxious at the same time". Youneed to explore a variety of feelings rather than just one. There will alwaysbe multiple feelings in one paragraph.
- Structure it with 4 short paragraphs, explaining the speaker's feelings 4times with several quotations to support it. Talk about 'why' she may feel likethis and explore deeply how her feelings change over the course of theextract.

Question 4)
- This question is the easiest to learn but the hardest to master. Youmust not lose any time on this question, you need exactly 16 minutes on thisand every single one of them counts. Try to do one paragraph for 4minutes.
- This involved describing the effect of language devices, you should know alot about this from poetry essays and all of that stuff. But the ironic thingis; you don't even need to analyse a 'list of three' or a 'metaphor'... you canpull out one word and explain it's effect without it actually being a distinctlanguage device. Try to ramble on about how it sets the scene, or createstension.
- This is a PEC structured question. Make a point, quote it, and make aconclusion. In the conclusion, include at least 3 statements about the word.Try to offer different interpretations, like "it could suggest that x. Butalso that y"... You must say A LOT about SO LITTLE. Take a word andanalyse every single possible thing it could be referred to, and don't beafraid - MOST of the marks are about language analysis rather than comparison.You can take two words and make the slightest hint of comparison and completethat aspect of band 4.
- As I said, don't compare so much, analyse. The analysis marks are far morevaluable than comparing. As long as the two devices do such little in common asto 'setting the tone', you can compare them. But analyse the hell out of thewords and what they mean. Do this 4 times and you will get 16/16.

Question 5)
- Okay, you've done the reading, that is the hard part. But now comesthe writing section. This question is always a describing question, you will bebestowed a dull as hell question like "describe your best meal" andyou will have to go for it with everything you've got.
- THIS is where your last 4 years of reading articles, looking at their effectsand explaining how they create feelings/tension comes into play.
- PLAN an answer, 5 minutes will give you an array of things you want tooutline. You will need this as you will find that you will just ramble on andon in your writing piece until you find a closing point. You NEED everythingoutlined.
- Acknowledge this, and plug in language devices and effects (no matter howcringe they are) and describe. Talk about the senses, describe how you feel. Butdon't be too repetitive.
- The structure depends on the question, I'd do 3-4 paragraphs with separate'intentions' to aim towards, but it depends on the task itself by a hugeamount.

Question 6)
- This is a juicy question where you should be able to get 18+/24 withease. You have to argue for or against something, OR persuade someone to dosomething.
- This has some unspoken rules: you have to quickly and boldly outline yourargument at the beginning, don't waste time with an anecdote, don't waste timerepeating yourself (YGM?!) and just say what you need to say... If you canthink of an effective opening, go for it.
- As with Q5, PLAN AN ANSWER TO THIS. You need to come up with 4-5 main pointswhich your paragraphs will describe. You need to know your argument's points soyou know when you've finished - I tend to see that if I don't plan, I will justkeep on writing until I feel I've finished.
- You can use satire if you want, this can be very effective and it takes skillto accomplish. You need to have a confident, assured tone and argue directlyfor what you want with no misconceptions...
- Make counter-points, think of any other arguments against the issue and shootthem down cleverly and effectively. Argue as if your opinion is a fact, and thatno one else is right about anything.

- FURTHERMORE an extremely important thing with Q5/6 is that you use COMPLEXsentence structures, don't just write a 15 worded sentence 20 times... You needto use semicolons and commas to show that you're literate and can write thingswell. Check below if you don't know how to use a semicolon.

As I said, this is a difficult exam... You NEED to time yourself correctly andplan your answers. The first 15 minutes MUST be dedicated to analysing each ofthe 3 sources, highlight and go through it. And vice-verse you must plananswers to the writing tasks, or you'll just keep writing until you feel you'vefinished.

You must time yourself well. In order:
- 15 minutes highlighting sources 1-3.
- 12 minutes on Q1.
- 12 mins on Q2.
- 12 mins on Q3.
- 24 mins on Q4.
- 25 mins on Q5 (ideally 5 planning out of this 25).
- 35 mins on Q6 (as per above).

As for grammar, you should know all of the basic rules right now. If not,correct them RIGHT NOW:
- you're = you are
- your = your object/entity
- their = their object/entity
- there = there is...

Semicolons, you use them to connect two sentences with linked meanings. IE -This is a semicolon. It can link two connected sentences...... (THISBECOMES...) This is a semicolon; it can link two connected sentences.

Use a comma when you have a connective, and never connect more than 3 sentenceswith commas. You will comma-splice and just ruin your accuracy mark.mise