A Level English support - specialist help and advice to help you achieve at AS and A2.
Guidance on selecting wider reading, revising for exams and completing coursework.
Welcome to Sophie's Desk
How to use this site
This site contains all the free learning materials you could need to get an A at AS and an A* at A2 but you don't need to take in everything at once. Be sure to bookmark this site so that you can use it over and over. Ten or fifteen minutes a day revising what you've learned and testing yourself is much better than trying to cram everything into the last few weeks. If you find the site useful please support Sophie's Desk by telling your friends or colleagues about it, by making purchases through this site or by making a donation.
General Knowledge
Preparing for A-Level exams means acquiring a range of skills and knowledge over the two years. Due to the nature of English literature and the English language, this may include non-subject specific knowledge. A good general knowledge is very useful in English exams, and not only in English literature where it is important to know the contextual background of set texts. All three courses – Literature, Language and English Language & Literature combined, ask you to respond to unseen texts or extracts in the exam. In order to do this at the highest level, you will need to be able to put each extract into a cultural or historical context.Being able to identify and analyse biblical and classical allusions, intertextuality and cultural references as well as the historical events, literary movements and political ideologies impacting the production of a text, are the hallmarks of a top-grade candidate. Broadening your general knowledge is not something that can be achieved in the final few weeks of revision, it must be undertaken throughout the course. Sophie’s Desk contains an historical timeline you can use to give you an overview of the history of the English people, their literature and their language. Because the best way to learn about the past is to immerse yourself in it, each cultural epoch comes complete with links to novels, films and video games that will bring the period to life:
Historical timeline
Wider reading
Classical and biblical stories
Successful students
A-Levels aren't easy; they require hard work and commitment. On the other hand, they aren't mysterious either; there are certain things that successful students do that you can learn to do to help you fulfil your potential.
Successful students are well prepared - for lessons, for deadlines and, crucially, for exams. Being well prepared doesn't just mean doing what is expected of you; it means doing a little more. For every hour you spend in lessons you should spend another hour in independent study; this equates to around six hours per subject per week. If you are thinking of applying for Oxbridge, you can expect to double this.
Students often say things like 'I just can't do exams' or 'I never do well in coursework' but these are both skills that you can learn. As well as having a good general knowledge and wider reading base to draw on, successful students understand how to do well in exams and coursework; they know what the examiner is looking for and how to deliver it. Sophie's Desk contains feedback sheets which breakdown each assessment objective to help you understand how marks are awarded for each task and in every module. Once you know what you have to do, you may find the following areas useful in helping you to get the highest grade possible:
Planning and writing coursework
Learning and using key terminology
Revising
Exam technique
Accuracy of written communication
There are also a number of practice papers along with exemplar material. You should attempt the practice papers yourself before you use the exemplar material; by comparing your response to that of other students you can see what you are doing well and what you need to work on.
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