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Please note that from the end of August I shall no longer be offering tutoring.

I have met and tutored so many lovely people, but it is now time for a change.

I wish all my past pupils good luck in all their future endeavours.

Best wishes

Sue

Most exams include some creative writing and in 11+ and 13+ this amounts to a significant percentage of the English marks. What are schools looking for? Well, they certainly don’t expect an amazingly original storyline. Don’t forget, the examiner will have read thousands of these over the years.

They want to see how you use language.

They are hoping to see:

a variety of punctuation used accurately

a high level of vocabulary

the use of literary devices eg similes, metaphors etc

a strong structure that demonstrates your control of the story/description

Here are a few hints that will help you produce a piece of writing that stands out from the crowd.

1. Always plan your story (even if you don’t write down much of a plan, spend some time thinking about your ideas)
2. Keep your plot simple
3. Avoid monsters/aliens/zombies – a very over-used genre
4. Stick to one main character that you can develop
5. Concentrate on description and atmosphere rather than action
6. Make sure you include lots of interesting adjectives and adverbs
7. Check your work so you can correct any silly mistakes

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-55721216

This article from the BBC gives some useful info for people still struggling to get internet access for young people at home.

I don’t usually blog anything political but I am incandescent about this:

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/gavin-williamson-snubbed-offer-cheap-23281316

The incompetence of this Education Secretary of State leaves me speechless.

It is possible to obtain free or cheap increased mobile data if you need it for home-schooling.

Three, BT, Virgin and Vodafone all have cheap or free offers available to people struggling.

If you need to access material for your offspring , don’t despair as BBC Bitesize provides masses of English and French with some interactive and practice questions.

Due to Covid I am still only teaching via Skype and will not have any slots available until February at the earliest. I still have a waiting list of three so would advise people to look elsewhere for urgent tuition – sorry I can’t help!

to all my pupils who have produced some really great GCSE English Language and Literature results. Your hard work has paid off and I wish you all the best of luck with your next stage – A levels! It’s been a pleasure to teach you all.

Please note that this year from September 2019 I shall be raising my fees, having held them at the same level for 4 years.

New fees from Sept 2019 are as follows:

Upto GCSE level one hour lesson £40

A level and above £45

Online/Skype lessons £40

Proof reading £25 p.h

Translation tba

Interview skills tba

I regret having to do this but my costs for books, heating etc. have risen steeply.