Ultimate Revision Guide to GCSE English Language Paper 1

Welcome to the ultimate revision guide for the GCSE English Langauge Paper 1 exam. We have collected all of the best advice from our collection of professional tutors and qualified UK teachers to craft the ultimate revision guide for you to review before you take part in one of the toughest exams at the GCSE level.

To start, let's tackle that well-renowned myth.

"You don't need to revise for the English Language GCSE because you're given the extract on the day and it's just offering your thoughts on it - just be original"

Trust us (and our tutors) this is just completely wrong. You absolutely should be revising for the GCSE English Language exam and following the simple steps laid out in our guide, you will see a notable difference in your grades through mocks until you reach the full exam.

Language paper 1 is all about exploring creative reading and writing. You'll look at an example of some fiction text and even conduct a chunk of creative writing yourself near the end of the paper. (or will you do it first, check out our guide to find out) You need to answer 5 questions. The paper is split into 2 sections: A & B. In section A you are asked 4 questions about an extract of fiction. Then in section B, you have the choice of 2 questions, where you demonstrate your own creative-writing skills. (Which can be practised and learnt!)

You have 1 hour 45 minutes to complete the paper and there are 80 marks on the line, contributing to a whopping 50% of your entire GCSE English Language grade.