Homework, 22nd January, 2018

Read the article below and answer the questions that go with it. This is due tomorrow (Tuesday, 23rd January). 

Local Girl Wins X-Factor

Chisby Town resident Emma Sheridan was last night crowned 2016 X-Factor winner in front of a television audience of millions. She beat off stiff competition from the other contestants to win a whopping 62% of the public vote, and received high praise from all of the judges, even the often grumpy Simon Cowell, who described her performance of Whitney Houston’s ‘I’m Every Woman’ as ‘spectacular’.

Shock

‘I’m just shell shocked at the moment,’ she told reporters, ‘but in a good way. I never thought anything like this could happen to me. Not in a million years.’ 

Pride

Sheridan, 17, also talked about her pride at having been born and raised in Chisby. ‘I’m just an ordinary girl from a small town who dreamt big. I think coming from humble beginnings is what made me.’

Friendship

‘I’m just so pleased for her,’ said her best friend Maisie Birch. ‘When we were growing up, she was always singing and saying how much she wanted to be a pop star like Taylor Swift.’ The two girls attended Cooper Manor Secondary School before Birch went to college and Sheridan enrolled at the Brit School in London.

Local girl

Many Chisbians took to the streets last night to celebrate their local hero’s success. ‘It’s great for the town,’ shopkeeper Len Barber said. ‘It’s put Chisby on the map. We’re all so proud of her.’

Plans

Sheridan will be returning home tomorrow afternoon to spend some time with her family, and there are rumours that she will be making a special appearance at the Crowndale Shopping Centre in the evening. One thing is sure: if she does turn up, it will be to a hero’s welcome.

Questions

1. Where is Emma Sheridan from?

2. What percentage of the public vote did she win?

3. What adjective is used to describe Simon Cowell?

4. Who originally performed the song ‘I’m Every Woman’?

5. Did Emma think something like this could ever happen to her?

6. How old is Emma?

7. What is the name of Emma’s best friend?

8. What is the name of the barber who has been interviewed for the article?

9. According to the article, what kind of a welcome will Emma get if she turns up at the Crowndale Shopping Centre?

Extension questions

10. How can we tell that this article was written for a local newspaper?

11. Shell shock is something soldiers sometimes suffer from in wars. When Emma uses it to describe how she feels, it is therefore an example of what literary technique?

12. Why do you think the article includes a paragraph where Emma talks about how proud she is to be from Chisby?

13. Overall, the tone of the article is quite friendly and informal. Copy down three parts from it that provide evidence of this. 

Homework, Monday, 15th January, 2018

For the next few weeks, we will be looking at how to write articles. For this week's homework, I would like you to read the following article and answer the questions that go with it.

This is due tomorrow (Tuesday, 16th January). 

There’s a place for everyone at The Moat School!

The Moat School was founded in 1998 by a group of parents in the Fulham area whose children were struggling at school because they were dyslexic. Unhappy with the approach their children’s schools were taking, they took matters into their own hands and the Moat was born!

Humble beginnings

In the beginning, the Moat School was very small, with only four pupils, but due to its popularity has grown over the years to almost five times the size and. In September 2017, it became part of the Cavendish group of schools.

A nurturing environment

Nestling among the trees, away from the hustle and bustle of Fulham Palace Road, The Moat School offers a safe, comforting and nurturing environment for pupils who may have found their needs being ignored in bigger schools. With small classes, a laptop for every student, full-time Speech and Language therapists and teachers qualified to teach learners with literacy difficulties, there is no longer a need for children who struggle with reading and writing to feel that they can’t cope.

Great facilities

As well as all this, though, the Moat School offers everything you would expect from a secondary school, including a playground with football goals and basketball hoops, a Design Technology workshop, a Food Technology room and a Performing Arts suite.

Questions

1. In what year was the Moat School founded? (1 mark)

2. There is an example of personification in the first paragraph. Find it and copy it out. (2 marks)

3. Why did the group of parents who founded the school feel the need to do so? (2 marks)

4. According to the second paragraph, in what way has the school changed over the years? (2 marks)

5. Why might teachers at the school have found it easier to meet with teachers from other schools from September 2017 onwards? (2 marks)

6. Write down one of the words used in the third paragraph to describe the school. (1 mark)

7. Write down three of the facilities that are mentioned in the final paragraph. (3 marks)

8. In what does the writer of the article try to make it seem that the Moat School is not actually that different from other schools? (2 marks)

9. Overall, this article paints a very positive picture of the Moat School. Write down three ways in which it does this. (3 marks)

Extension task

Overall, this is a very positive view of the school which is designed to persuade parents to send their children there. Explain, in your own words, how the writer achieves this. Focus on:

·        The details the writer gives about the school

·        The kind of language the writer uses (including literary techniques) and how the information is presented

Try and write at least 100 words. 

Homework, 11th December, 2017

For your last piece of homework of the term, I would like you to write one more formal letter. It's a kind of letter we haven't looked at in lessons, so this will be a test of how well you can come up with ideas of your own, as well as a test of how well you can remember how to lay out a formal letter and how well you can use formal language. 

The letter I would like you to write is to the manager of a hotel you recently stayed in complimenting her on the excellent experience you had. Things you could mention include:

* The comfortable beds
* The great restaurant
* The politeness of the staff

There  might be other things you can think of as well. 

The address you should use is:

Sunny View Hotel
Sunshine Avenue
Perranporth
PE4 8UH

The letter should be around 400 words long. 

Good luck, merry Christmas and see you soon!

Homework, Monday, 4th December, 2017

Have a look at the sentences below and, for each one, decide whether it belongs in a formal or informal letter, or is just too informal. 

If you decide that the sentence belongs in a formal letter, you then need to decide whether it goes best in a job application letter or a complaint letter.

The first one has been done for you as an example. 

1. I am writing to apply for the position of teacher at the Moat School. This goes best in a formal job application letter. 

2. Wassup bruv?

3. I can't wait to see you next week. 

4. I am writing to express my disappointment at the pair of shoes I bought from you last week. 

5. How are Mike and Julie?

6. She's bare peng innit. 

7. I feel I would be the ideal candidate for the reasons listed below. 

8. In addition to this, I have three years' experience working in retail.  

9. I hope you will make this up to me by giving me a full refund. 

10. I recently started taking swimming lessons. 

11. I was, quite frankly appalled at the service. 

12. Fam, it was bangin', you feel me?

Homework, 27th November, 2017

You recently read an article in a magazine which argued that school uniform should be scrapped in schools in the UK. 

Decide whether or not you agree with this point of view, then write a letter to the editor (the person in charge) of the magazine giving your view. Use the guidelines below to help you. 

It should be around 250 words long. 

Generic letter to the editor structure

Your address, e.g.: Mr Quillfeldt 12 Bishop’s Avenue London SW6 6EG

The date in long form, e.g.: 15th September, 2015

The address of the person you are writing to, e.g.: The Editor Education Today Magazine 567 Brooke Avenue Barnsley BR4 8YG

If you don’t know the name of the person you are writing to, start Dear Sir/Madam. If you do know the name of the person you are writing to, start Dear Mr if it is male, or Ms if it is a female.

In the first paragraph, explain why you are writing the letter, e.g.: I am writing to you to express my views on … Give the opposite view first: Some people believe that …

Then give your view: My own view on this topic is that …

Sum up everything you have said: For all of these reasons, I believe …

Sign off. If you know the name of the person you are writing to, use Yours sincerely. If you don’t know the name of the person, use Yours faithfully.

Write your name

Homework, 13th November, 2017

Read the letter from Nat's dad to Nat and answer the questions that go with it. 

This is due tomorrow (Tuesday, 14th November)

Dear Nat,

I hope you’re okay. I’m doing well … I mean, I know I’m in prison, but I’m doing as well as can be expected. The other lads in here are treating me well and, believe it or not, the food is not actually that bad. I’m sharing a room with a bloke called Rob. I haven’t asked him what he’s in for; to be honest, I’d rather not know, but whatever it is, he’s been nice to me, so whatever.

I’m sorry I couldn’t give you more information before those Secret Service goons turned up and whisked me away. I thought I had more time. Oh well, you’re smart, so I know you’ll figure out the trail. Just trust your instincts. I’m really sorry I’ve put you in this horrible position and, believe me, I wouldn’t ask you to do what you’re doing if it wasn’t really, really important, and I know it’s especially difficult as you have to sneak around the house without your mum and Hannah knowing what you’re up to, but it will all be worth it in the end, I promise.

Anyway, I have to go; it’s almost time for me to go back to my cell. I know this is all really difficult to deal with, but it will all be fine soon, I promise. Just keep following those clues, and soon we’ll be together again, kicking a football around in the garden just like old times.

Love,

Dad

Questions

1. What three things are missing from the top of the letter?

2. What word does Nat’s dad use to refer to the other men in the prison?

3. What do you think he wants us to think about his relationship with them by using this word?

4. Why do you think he would rather not know why Rob is in prison?

5. What word does he use to refer to the men from the Secret Service who arrested him?

6. What does the use of this word tell us about his attitude towards them?

7. What makes the position dad has put Nat in especially difficult?

8. Why does he have to go?

9. What, according to dad, will he and Nat soon be doing again?

Extension activity

Explain in around 100 words how we can tell that this is an informal letter. Make sure you copy specific parts of the text (although not more than one line at a time) to provide evidence.

Example: We can tell that this is an informal letter because Nat’s dad uses the informal greeting ‘Dear Nat’, as opposed to ‘Dear Sir/Madam’, which is more formal. 

Homework, 7th November, 2017

Read the letter below from Nat to his dad and answer the questions that follow. 

This is due tomorrow (Tuesday, 7th November)

13^th November, 2012

Dear Dad,

How are you? I mean, I know you’re in prison, so you’re obviously not doing that well, but are you as okay as you can be? Are they treating you well? What’s the food like?

I’ve been following Lily’s trail, but it’s hard trying to piece everything together. You didn’t give me enough information! I found some stuff in the loft: a picture of an eye, but I don’t get what it means. And I found some words scratched into a bucket, but I don’t understand what they mean either. I have a feeling the answers I need are at Bletchley Park, but I’ve no idea how I’m going to get in there. The security around that place must be water tight. If only you could give me more help, but I completely understand that you can’t.

Mum is doing okay … well, she acts like she is but I kind of get the sense that she’s just holding it together for me and Hannah. Hannah is still just being Hannah: moody, not saying much, spending a lot of time in her room.

I’ll keep trying dad, I will, I promise, and I also promise that I will find the evidence we need to prove your innocence and get you out of prison. I worry about you, but I know that if I stay positive we can do this.

Lots of love,

Nat

Questions

1. What is missing from the top of the letter?

2. Why is Nat’s dad obviously not doing very well?

3. Whose trail has Nat been following?

4. Why is it hard following this trail?

5. Where did he find some scratched words?

6. Why is it probably going to be difficult to get into Bletchley Park?

7. Based on what is written in the letter, what kind of person is Hannah?

8. What does Nat promise to keep doing?

9. What does he need to find to prove his dad’s innocence?

10. How does he sign the letter off?

Extension questions

11. How can we tell from the first paragraph that Nat is very worried about his dad?

12. How can we tell from the first few lines of the second paragraph that Nat might be slightly frustrated with his dad?

13. Why might it be difficult to tell if Hannah is really upset about the whole thing?