GCSE English: AQA Unseen Poetry - The Poetry Guide

📝 From page 48: ANSWERS (1st image below refers) ‘These are only suggested answers – there are lots of different possible answers to these questions. Just make sure that you back up all your points with evidence from the poems.’ Having been well impressed with BOOK TWO , this was a natural purchase, especially as it is discounted, at the time of writing. The current 'LOOK INSIDE' facility above gives a good insight into the layout of this book, which is a less daunting thickness than some. From the inside title page: 📝 ‘Reading a poem for the first time can be a beautiful experience…unless you have to write an in-depth essay about it on the spot. Which is exactly what you’ll need to do for the Unseen Poetry questions in the new AQA English Literature exams. But don’t worry. This brilliant CGP book has everything you’ll need to write a top-grade answer – plenty of sample poems, plus worked examples, practice questions, full answers and exam advice. Once you’ve worked through all this, you should be able to handle any poems the examiners can throw at you!’ ooOoo ◆ CGP ◆ GRADE 9-1 GCSE ENGLISH LITERATURE ◆ EXAM BOARD: AQA ◆ UNSEEN POETRY GUIDE~ BOOK ONE ooOoo Measuring around 20.75 cm x 29.5 cm the graded shades of BLUE coloured paperback cover opens to 62 good quality, matte-finish WHITE pages, split into main sections: 1. EXAM ADVICE 2. UNSEEN POETRY PRACTICE 3. MARKING SAMPLE ANSWERS 4. PRACTICE EXAM QUESTIONS …followed by that aforementioned ANSWER SECTION, that starts on page 48, finishing with a handy 2-page GLOSSARY on pages 60 & 61. Each section is subdivided into smaller parts, with the heading in WHITE on TURQUOISE. The first is entitled WHAT YOU HAVE TO DO IN THE EXAM, which includes the FOUR MAIN THINGS the examiner is looking for, FIVE STEPS to ANALYSING the UNSEEN POEMS, along with WORKED ANSWERS, which are busy looking but clearly broken up for the best part, although the pastel-coloured areas can be hard to read in poor light. In the usual CGP style, EXAM TIPS are included, with important reminders such as: 📝 ‘Make sure you answer the question ~ It might sound obvious, but you won’t get marks for writing things that aren’t relevant, no matter how brilliant they are. So always read the question and underline the key words before you do anything else.’ Or 📝’Explore the emotion, moods or feelings’: ‘It’s really important to comment on the poet’s use of language, form and structure and the effect they have on the reader.’ Little pictures are dotted around, adding a bit more colour and a hint of the usual CGP humour you either love or hate, which is less than usual in this publication, IMO. In SECTION 2, some of the poems included benefit from a POEM DICTIONARY (e.g. last image below refers). Each poem has a set of WARM-UP QUESTIONS, followed by an EXAM-STYLE QUESTION. [12 images attached]

I just received this and have had a good look through. I can see this will be very helpful for my daughter doing GCSEs this year (1st year of the new 9-1 grading). It starts with some clearly set out pages on how to set about analysing an unseen poem, including suggestions on the kind of notes you might want to make on the exam paper and ideas for planning out your answer. Then there's a model answer based on the notes and plan. This is all then done again for comparing two poems. The next section has what they call 'warm up questions'. There are 10 poems set out with plenty of space for making notes, then on the opposite page of each poem is a list of 10 questions about the poem (example: "Describe the mood of lines 6-8. How does the poet put this across"). This is helpful for students who are having difficulty knowing where to start with analysing a poem as the questions give guidance and practice on what to look for before you are thrown into essay writing. The next section is about the 9-1 marking scheme. It starts with a couple of pages outlining what is needed for each grade, then there are 6 poems, each with sample answers, and they ask you to go through the poems and answers and work out what marks each answer should get and why. This seems very helpful in enabling students to really get to grips with what is expected and what they need to include to get top marks. Finally there are two practice exam papers - i.e. 4 poems, but, as in the exam itself, there is a question about the first poem, then a second question involving comparing that poem to a second poem. Ideally there could have been one or two more practice papers, but I think this is the kind of thing that likely to be done at school anyway, so is probably less valuable than the earlier part of the book. There is a comprehensive answer section at the back of the book. This is just what I was hoping for - something that will give my daughter plenty of practice at unseen poetry, help her understand what is expected and exercises to build her skills and confidence. The book also looks attractive and clearly set out, so hopefully won't seem too daunting to a student. There are also useful tips on how to allocate time in the exam. The only small negative is that, for parents who've used the CGP 11+ books, some of the poems (The Tyger, The Way Through the Woods, Westminster Bridge) might be very familiar! It's a shame because these are obviously not going to be 'unseen' to some children. However there are plenty of poems I haven't come across before and a good mix of styles, periods and subject matter, and I think even the familiar ones will provide useful practice, so I am still giving this 5 stars.

This book is very useful for the new GCSE exams starting 2017 with levels 9-1. Please be aware that it is only for the AQA Exam Board. This book is for the English Literature course. I bought this revision book for my daughter and this is her opinion on the book: Hello to all the Year 10's and 11's out there who are starting their GCSE's! This revision guide contains everything you need to consider for the exam you will be sitting. The book has four sections: 1. Exam Advice - this section contains all the advice and tips you need to know and help towards analysing poetry you have not seen before, hence the unseen poetry title. It goes through both questions you will receive in the unseen poetry section and guides you through the ways it can be answered and what you need to include. 2. Unseen Poetry Practice - in this section there are 10 unseen poetry practice poems with one side of the page consisting of the poem itself and the other containing practice questions on the poem itself and what techniques it uses. It is basically a section that lets you practice answering the different areas you need to cover in the exam. 3. Marking Sample Answers - This section sometimes get's looked over and I can see why: what is the point in marking answers? Well I can assure you that by marking answers you can steal the little techniques the writer has used and use them in your own work to get it to the higher levels. I did this in my exam recently with the Anthology Poetry section of the exam to do with Love and Relationships (go check out my review on this revision book for more details) and it worked really well with the structure of my answer. 4. Practice Exam Questions - these questions contain two poems just like you would get in the exam with two questions that accompany them. You can write your own answer to the questions and then compare your answer to what CGP have said in the answer section. Don't worry if your interpretation does not match the book; AQA will accept any valid interpretation of the poem as long as it is backed up with evidence. There are answers, a glossary, acknowledgements etc. at the back if any help is needed, but there is not much else that needs to be covered in this review. The overall quality of the product is outstanding and the content is really useful; if you buy it you will understand. Really recommended.

My son did not use this as much as he probably should have but it appears to have helped some what.

I bought this for my daughter to help with her revision. This book is very helpful and is geared for the new GCSE exams that start in 2017!! I wish they wouldn't keep chopping and changing their minds on these exams and had just stuck to the tried and tested exams from any moons ago. Its ridiculous for students and teaching staff to be subject yet again a new way. Its hard enough for them as it is. That gripe aside this book offers all the useful information and techniques for the exams. It is clearly laid out and easy to understand. The book covers a range of poems and will back up the work in the classroom but will also serve to improve confidence. Definitely a must have book for any student taking the new Grade 9 - 1 exams in 2017. It will guide them all the way through the daily study, revision for mocks and finally the GCSE exam.