1st in Advanced English 2016 - Ask Me Anything!

[jxcq]

Hi!
I was just wondering, because I want become a doctor and that requires 99.95. But I made a research and it says 96 for UNSW.
I do Standard English, Advanced Maths, Legal, Business, PDHPE and Ancient History. I'm going well for all subjects besides maths and english and legal. But, do you think there's a chance to be in the 90s like approximately 96 ATAR? Because I have only received marks for last term, and I don't do any sciences which makes it a bit hard to get into medicine. But is there like a chance of getting a high ATAR?

[bowiemily]

Hi there,

Do you have any advice for creative writing ? Tips to use the stimulus if you've already got a story...

Thanks and congrats!!

Hi Lachlan,

For creative writing, my number one piece of advice is to always write from your own experience. This makes your story authentic, and easier for your marker to empathise with. Markers appreciate stories that make them think. So, make sure your story shows some personal insight into discovery. It doesn't have to be completely original per say, but it really should show what you understand to be at the heart of the discovery experience.

As for stimulus, you must read the question carefully. If it says it must be 'at the start' of your piece, put it there! If it must be a central feature, don't ignore it! Remember though, you can interpret the stimulus metaphorically. The markers are more lenient when it comes to creative writing, so as long as there is a general link to the stimulus, you will be fine! In my own writing, I liked to incorporate the stimulus as a motif, so it was interwoven throughout my piece

[anna.dvorak]

Hi, congratulations on achieving such exceptional results!! I'm doing four units of English for my HSC and Advanced is particularly the one that was my downfall in Year 11. I think it was because of the lack of time + effort I put into it especially when it has so much content with the three different modules.  My questions are:

1. What was your elective for Extension 1 English? (I'm doing After The Bomb)
2. Did you do countless past papers to practice writing your essays + creatives?
3. Have you posted any of your work online? I would love to read one of your essays or creatives!!

P.S Thank you for taking the time to read and answer our questions, it means a lot!!

[cindzw]

Hi Emily, thanks for taking the time to do this!
Just wanted to know how you went about looking for related texts (particularly for Art of Travel and After the Bomb).
Also how did you spread your subjects across your three hours of daily study?

[Biannca11]

1. Do you have any tricks dealing with legal studies as it is a lot of content, and is there anything specific you must remember?
2. What is the best way to tackle short answers and creative writing effectively

Lastly, Well Done 

[Huzaifa]

Hello Emily
I attended your English advanced lecture and it was amazing and really comprehensive, I'm just wondering though, what tips would you have for us English Extension students, particularly for 'After The Bomb.'? How do we structure our EE1 essays? Does the integrated essay structure still work, even with the 2 prescribed, 2 ORT thing. Also, what would you consider the main differences in writing between the EE1 course and the Advanced course?
Thanks so much 🙂

[bowiemily]

How did you prepare for assessments?? For me I do TEE tables but I have trouble remember quotes and some of the analysis. Whats your tip?

Hey there,

I'm not too sure what you mean by TEE tables? Technique, Example, Explanation?? If so, I think this is a clever way to organise your quotes. However, you're most likely to remember the things you understand most. So, I would always try to link my quotes to an argument. This also helped in the stress of the exam room, when you have to write arguments on your feet. If you don't understand a quote, and you're only using it on the advice of your teacher, I would try and look for one that better shows your understanding of the text, and most importantly, the module focus.

[brokenboxes]

Hey there

I've got two questions for you:
1) Do you have any tips on how to make strong connections between a prescribed text and a related text?

2) And if a question is really vague like, "how does discovery affect a person?" how would you recommend approaching it?

Thank you and congratulations on first

[bowiemily]

If you have one tip about doing well in any particular part of english that you have learnt that you could credit to your success what would it be??

'Learn from your texts. They've been set by BOSTES for a reason. They aren't trying to torture you, even though it seems like it. Your text is important, your text is valued. Take a deep breath and write the damn essay' Repeat this, like a mantra, until the HSC is over (especially if you do Yeats)

[elcheese20]

Hey Emily!

Just wondering if you have any tips for structuring essays and integrating related texts seamlessly with core texts?

Thanks!!

[shaney112]

Hello, 

1) I was wondering if you have any study tips you use prior to exams. The only study methods for English that I have heard of are memorising essays and writing practice essays.

Also, in what ways do you structure your notes in preparation for exams like AOS and Modules? 

2) What are some strategies you have for approaching the unseen texts section of the AOS paper?  I always find that it takes me a while to find appropriate techniques and think of key ideas/concepts to talk about in my responses. I also find it hard to sustain my responses as I tend to run out of things to talk about.

3) What tips do you have for writing fast without your hand being fatigued so easily?


Thanks so much!!!!!   

[cmadeleine]

Hi Emily!
I went to your lecture in the holidays and I just want to say thank you - it was really inspiring and insightful to hear about your experience and tips!
I remember how you gave us advice about creative writing and that it's a good idea to write from your own experiences, but I'm really struggling to find something about my life to write about to connect to discovery! Do you have any ideas or examples of this that you'd be willing to share?

Thank you so much!

[ebza1999]

Hello, I have a few questions

1. What would be your top tips for how to do well in Advanced English?
2. How did you memorise your quotes?
3. Do you recommend using other text types, such as a poem or speech, for the creative writing section?
4. What essay prep did you do before your HSC exam?

Thankyou!!

[bowiemily]

Hi, enjoyed the lecture, very informative.

Just a question on the integrated essay structure for aos

Do you have to link matching themes in both texts in each paragraph and how many paragraphs do you need? Or can i do like block structure for my essay and have a last integrating paragraph that links the both text. Also for creative, im planning to do a feature article, am i meant to write so the reader has like the ah moment, or am i meant to have a discovery inside the article.

Thank you :c

Hey, nice to see you again!

Yes, I would have a link inside my paragraphs. I would generally write 3 in Modules, and 4 in Discovery. I'm not sure about this block structure, but if it works best for you, and you're getting good marks with it, I would continue to use it.

You can show discovery in both of these ways! In doing so, you're making sure that the Marker cannot and will not miss the discovery within your creative. I think a discovery imparted on the reader is a fantastic, and insightful, way to go about it too! I would always back it up with a more concrete example, linked closely to the rubric, as well though.

[yattmoani]

Hello! Thanks for taking time out of your day to answer our questions

Do you have any tips on writing a creative? What's the best way to write one that separates itself from the other creatives?

Thanks again!