1. Approaching Unseens for Edexcel Certificate
Friday, 22 February 2019
Jonathan Peel UCGS 2014

2. Where and When?
Jonathan Peel UCGS 2014

3. What do we have to do?
You write a brief commentary on either the poem or the prose. What do you notice about the bullets?
Jonathan Peel UCGS 2014

4. Approach: You should look at the poem and the passage in front of you.
The poem is: Jenny Joseph’s Warning.
The prose is taken from a novel: The woman in black by Susan Hill
Do you know anything about either which might make you decide on a choice? No? Then read both carefully before you decide.
The texts can be found at the end of this powerpoint.
Jonathan Peel UCGS 2014

5. So:
Which ever you choose, the bullets focus on, description, language, form and structure
I suggest a quick SCASI approach
SCA will hit description together with well PEARLED and zoomed examples form language
S will hit form and structure.
Jonathan Peel UCGS 2014

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7. Trust yourself Reading one:
Note: Voice, obvious setting components and any stand out strong language or structure
Reading two:
Ensure you understand the purpose of the text and decide what areas to focus on to hiut the bullets.
Jonathan Peel UCGS 2014

8. Example, from the Woman in black
A long sentence with many subordinate clauses creates excitement as it represents the wild dash of the horse
NOT: lots of commas! Look at the device itself.
Strong vocabulary to enhance description. How many “go” or “say” variants can you find?
Punctuation used to enhance the image in the text
Powerful short sentence to halt the drama of the chase
Jonathan Peel UCGS 2014

9. Plan and PEARL Make your point and provide a quotation as appropriate
ZOOM INTO the quotation to focus on key words or phrases
ZOOM OUT of the quotation to establish a wider context/explanation for your analysis – this is evaluation
Link to the next point and to the question.
Jonathan Peel UCGS 2014

10. ZOOM IN! You should recognise the poem!
Comment on the words chosen – look closely at the specific ones underlined
Consider the structural devices used and the punctuation used.
“I am not yet born; O fill me With strength against those who would freeze my humanity, would dragoon me into a lethal automaton, would make me a cog in a machine, a thing with one face, a thing, and against all those who would dissipate my entirety, would blow me like thistledown hither and thither or hither and thither like water held in the hands would spill me”
Jonathan Peel UCGS 2014

11. ZOOM OUT
Does this develop ideas found in the other stanzas of the poem?
Is this sort of imagery or writing style repeated in the poem?
I am not yet born; O fill me With strength against those who would freeze my humanity, would dragoon me into a lethal automaton, would make me a cog in a machine, a thing with one face, a thing, and against all those who would dissipate my entirety, would blow me like thistledown hither and thither or hither and thither like water held in the hands would spill me
Jonathan Peel UCGS 2014

12. Assessment This is clear: no examples at all = no marks
There MUST be comment about structure and sentence structure by this point.
Begins to evaluate and establish effects
2/3 might be oK, but you need to hit all three as the marks go up
“assured” is the key – confident and well expressed writing over several paragraphs.
Looking into subtext and alternative perspectives
“discriminating” implies focus solely on what really matters!
Jonathan Peel UCGS 2014

13. Ready to give it a go?
When you have tried, or before you move on, you might look here:
unseen-poetry-for-igcse/
Jonathan Peel UCGS 2014

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