Reading & Note-Making Checklist

Reading & Note-Making Checklist

Run through this quick checklist before and during Section A so that nothing slips.

Reading an unseen passage

• Skim once for the gist; write the main idea in your head in one sentence.
• Read the questions, then read the passage closely, underlining key facts and tone words.
• Scan back to the exact lines when answering; answer in your own words, in complete sentences.
• For MCQ/true-false, reject options not supported by the text, even if true in real life.
• Justify every inference with specific lines — no outside guessing.

Note-making (≈5 marks)

• Give a short title (phrase, not a sentence) — 1 mark.
• Use at least three numbered headings (1, 2, 3) with indented sub-points (1.1, 1.2...) — 3 marks.
• Write in phrases only — no full sentences, no opinions, no invented examples.
• Use at least three or four recognised abbreviations and list them in a key — 1 mark.
• Keep the passage's sequence; keep indentation and numbering consistent.

Summarising (≈3 marks)

• Build the summary from your notes, not the passage.
• Write one connected paragraph with linking words, in your own words.
• Keep it to about one-third of the passage and within any stated word limit.
• Include every main point; exclude examples, repetition and personal comment.

Vocabulary & inference

• Give the word's meaning as used in the passage, using context clues.
• For synonyms/antonyms, pick a word actually present in the text with the right part of speech.
• Infer only what the text forces; defend it with the lines. …