Edexcel English Language Paper 1
A 19th-century fiction extract, four reading questions worth 24 marks between them, and one piece of your own writing worth 40. The writing is worth more than all the reading put together.
About the examples on this page
Every example and practice task here was written by RCF English. They are not Edexcel questions or Edexcel source texts, and no Edexcel mark scheme wording is reproduced. RCF English is not affiliated with, endorsed by or approved by Pearson Edexcel.
Edexcel's own papers and mark schemes are linked on the papers page.
Paper 1 is called Fiction and Imaginative Writing, paper code 1EN0/01. It lasts 1 hour 45 minutes, carries 64 marks and is worth 40% of the GCSE. Section A gives you one 19th-century fiction extract of about 650 words and asks four questions worth 24 marks. Section B asks for one piece of imaginative writing worth 40 marks, on a theme linked to the extract.
The questions
| Question | What it asks | Marks | RCF suggested time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Identify a phrase from named lines | 1 | 1-2 minutes |
| 2 | From named lines, give two things | 2 | 3 minutes |
| 3 | How the writer uses language and structure to achieve a stated effect | 6 | 12 minutes |
| 4 | Evaluate how successfully something is achieved in the extract | 15 | 25 minutes |
| 5 or 6 | Imaginative writing - choose one task only | 40 | 45 minutes |
The timings on the paper are Edexcel's; the per-question split is not
The paper itself advises about 1 hour on Section A and about 45 minutes on Section B. Those are Edexcel's own figures.
Edexcel does not publish a time for each individual question. The minutes in the table above are an RCF recommendation worked out from the marks, and nobody will mark you down for dividing your hour differently.
Question by question
Question 1 (1 mark) and Question 2 (2 marks)
Both are retrieval questions on named lines. Question 1 usually asks for a single phrase; Question 2 asks for two things and may allow your own words or a quotation.
- Answer from the lines named and nowhere else.
- For Question 1, quote the phrase exactly. Do not explain it.
- For Question 2, give exactly two things, each on its own line.
- Three marks in total. Do not spend more than five minutes here.
Question 3: language and structure (6 marks)
This is a compact analysis question - six marks, not fifteen - and it names both language and structure. An answer that writes only about word choice has left half the question alone.
- Two or three developed points is the right size for 6 marks.
- Cover both: at least one point about words or images, and at least one about how the extract is ordered or paced.
- Quote briefly and say what the effect is on the reader.
- Do not write a fifteen-mark answer here. The time belongs to Question 4.
Question 4: evaluation (15 marks)
The question states something the extract attempts - to create strong feelings, to build tension, to make a place seem threatening - and asks you to evaluate how successfully it is achieved. It is the largest reading question on the paper.
Evaluation means judgement. Say how well it works, not only how it is done.
- Open by answering the question: largely successful, partly successful, successful in one way and less so in another.
- Three or four developed paragraphs, each with a short quotation and a judgement.
- Include one paragraph that qualifies - a place where the effect is weaker, or achieved by a different means than you expected.
- Keep referring to the wording of the statement in the question.
Question 5 or 6: imaginative writing (40 marks)
Choose one. The tasks are linked by a theme to the reading extract, and one of them provides two images to help you generate ideas. Pearson states that you may draw on one image, or neither.
The marks split between communication and organisation on one hand, and vocabulary, sentence structures, spelling and punctuation on the other - the same division you will see described on the AQA creative writing page, whose method transfers directly.
- Plan for five minutes. Know your last line before you write your first.
- The images are a prompt, not a subject to describe item by item.
- Four to six paragraphs, with deliberate variation in length.
- Leave five minutes to check accuracy. It is a large share of these 40 marks.
Paper 1 checklist
- Have I answered Questions 1 and 2 from the named lines only?
- Does my Question 3 answer cover both language and structure?
- Is my Question 3 answer the right size for 6 marks, not 15?
- Does my Question 4 answer make a judgement, not just an analysis?
- Have I chosen one Section B task, not both?
- Have I kept 45 minutes for Section B, which is worth more than all of Section A?
Questions about Edexcel Paper 1
How long is the reading extract on Edexcel Paper 1?
Pearson's specification states that the 19th-century fiction extract will be approximately 650 words. There is one extract only, and you meet it for the first time in the examination.
Do I have to use the images in the writing question?
No. Pearson's specification says that one of the writing tasks provides two images to help students generate ideas, and that a student may write a response that draws on just one of the images or on neither. They are a prompt, not a requirement.
How much should I write for Question 4?
Enough for three or four developed paragraphs, which in the 25 minutes or so it deserves is usually about a side. Question 4 is worth 15 of the 24 reading marks on this paper, so it should take well over half your Section A time.
Next
Edexcel Paper 2
The longer paper, worth 60% of the qualification.
Edexcel papers and model papers
Official papers plus an original RCF practice paper.
Creative writing method
Written for AQA, but the method transfers.