What's everyone studying for Paper1?

_JustGav

i'll probably look over a couple of comprehensions just to get in the right frame of mind and how to answer the stylistic features queston.

reap-a-rat

You can't "study" for paper 1! Your natural ability gets a chance to shine through here, but do not waste your time; It's very dependent on the topics on the day, so honestly my advice would be just leave it now and go in and sit it; focus your time on study-able subjects (Paper 2, biology, home ec, practice maths, whatever).

ray2012

reap-a-rat wrote: »

You can't "study" for paper 1! Your natural ability gets a chance to shine through here, but do not waste your time; It's very dependent on the topics on the day, so honestly my advice would be just leave it now and go in and sit it; focus your time on study-able subjects (Paper 2, biology, home ec, practice maths, whatever).

You most certainly can "study" for Paper 1. Usually, part (iii) of the comprehension is based on stylistic features and their effect in the extract. You can study what features to look out for, and their intended effect (rhetorical questions - make readers thing, descriptive imagery - allow reader to imagine story in their head, etc, etc). As well as that, the QB's are often reports/letters/other various questions that require specific layouts. If you don't know this layout, it will impact on your mark. So again, "studying" that will help. Furthermore, if one is attempting the short story option, (s)he can learn nice descriptive phrases, etc. If one is doing a speech, (s)he can learn a nice mantra/rhetorical question(s), and so on for the other essay titles.

reap-a-rat

ray2012 wrote: »

You most certainly can "study" for Paper 1. Usually, part (iii) of the comprehension is based on stylistic features and their effect in the extract. You can study what features to look out for, and their intended effect (rhetorical questions - make readers thing, descriptive imagery - allow reader to imagine story in their head, etc, etc). As well as that, the QB's are often reports/letters/other various questions that require specific layouts. If you don't know this layout, it will impact on your mark. So again, "studying" that will help. Furthermore, if one is attempting the short story option, (s)he can learn nice descriptive phrases, etc. If one is doing a speech, (s)he can learn a nice mantra/rhetorical question(s), and so on for the other essay titles.

If you need to study how to write a letter (study meaning to spend more than a few minutes on something) then you've bigger worries, I fear. Knowing layouts etc is not a matter of study, it's a matter of very very quick revision and memory; the content is the bulk of the marks on the day and is completely dependent on the question. You can have a quick (and I mean not more than half an hour) look at different layouts for what's asked in question B, but that is not study per se; In general, you definitely can't study for something that is so different from year to year.

Also, if one is intent on writing a short story, as per your example, if they cannot formulate descriptive phrases ad lib, their choice seems questionable to me. A natural talent/a naturally written sentence will be more than evident to an examiner; something learned-off that is above par in relation to the rest of the essay would seem massively out of place in my opinion.

But if it makes ye feel happier to waste precious time at this stage to "study" things that are so likely to be irrelevant on the day, fire ahead. It's not my Leaving Cert!

ray2012

I know it helps me studying for paper 1 anyways. Obviously paper 2 will take up A LOT more time, but a little bit of revision is worthwhile for the first paper. Everyone is different, however. :P

reap-a-rat

ray2012 wrote: »

I know it helps me studying for paper 1 anyways. Obviously paper 2 will take up A LOT more time, but a little bit of revision is worthwhile for the first paper. Everyone is different, however. :P

If it helps, fire ahead; as I said, it's not my LC - I did my LC in 2009 and I never once practiced or "studied" for Paper 1; I got an A2 in English (HL) and I viewed my script; I got an A1 in Paper 1 - again though, that was me, and apparently I knew what to write and how to write it. I never felt it justified any of my time to do anything for Paper 1 (it was the same with Irish).

However, and I've mentioned it in this forum before, the most important thing to do when studying for the leaving cert is to not pay an iota of attention to what those around you are doing. Do what you think you need to do, do what you feel you have to work on; Don't do what Jimmy feels he has to work on!

Maybe I'm cynical in my old age, or maybe ye can come back here in four years and tell me that ye still really care about the LC - the only reason it matters is to get into a college course and the most of my year are currently doing what they love, including those who didn't reach the points for their original desired course; don't forget it's not the be all and end all of life!