Please write clearly in block capitals.
Centre number Candidate number
Surname
Forename(s)
Candidate signature I declare this is my own work.
GCSE
ENGLISH LANGUAGE
Paper 1 Explorations in creative reading and writing
Friday 23 May 2025 Morning Time allowed: 1 hour 45 minutes
Materials
For this paper you must have: For Examiner’s Use
Source A – provided as a separate insert. Question Mark
Instructions 1
Answer all questions.
Use black ink or black ball-point pen. 2
Fill in the boxes at the top of this page. 3
You must answer the questions in the spaces provided.
Do not write outside the box around each page or on blank pages. 4
If you need extra space for your answer(s), use the lined pages at 5
the end of this book. Write the question number against your
answer(s). TOTAL
Do all rough work in this book. Cross through any work you do not
want to be marked.
You must refer to the insert booklet provided.
You must not use a dictionary.
Information
The marks for questions are shown in brackets.
The maximum mark for this paper is 80.
There are 40 marks for Section A and 40 marks for Section B.
You are reminded of the need for good English and clear presentation in your answers.
You will be assessed on the quality of your reading in Section A.
You will be assessed on the quality of your writing in Section B.
Advice
You are advised to spend about 15 minutes reading through the source and all five
questions you have to answer.
You are advised to plan your answer to Question 5 before you start to write.
You should make sure you leave sufficient time to check your answers.
IB/M/Jun25/G4014/V6
8700/1
, 2
Do not write
outside the
Section A: Reading box
Answer all questions in this section.
You are advised to spend about 45 minutes on this
section.
0 1 Read again the first part of the source, from lines 1 to 8.
List four things which happened that night from this part of the source.
[4 marks]
1
2
3
4
4
IB/M/
Jun25/8700/1
, 3
Do not write
outside the
0 2 Look in detail at this extract from lines 9 box
to 18:
The early morning of the 27th was an affair of slatternly* rags soaking in a
dishwater sky, with a grey light weakly filtering through. Nevertheless, in
Oppley cocks crowed and other birds welcomed the dawn more melodiously.
In Midwich, however, no birds sang. In Oppley, as in other places, hands were
soon reaching out to silence alarm clocks, but in Midwich the clocks rattled on
until they ran down. For Midwich lay entranced.
While the rest of the world began to fill the morning with clamour, Midwich
slept on. Its men and women, its horses, cows and sheep; its pigs, its poultry,
its larks, moles and mice all lay still. There was a pocket of silence in
Midwich, broken only by the rustling of the leaves, the chiming of the church
clock, and the gurgle of the River Opple as it slid over the weir beside the
mill.
How does the writer use language here to describe the early morning?
You could include the writer’s choice of:
words and phrases
language features and techniques
sentence forms.
[8 marks]
IB/M/
Jun25/8700/1
Centre number Candidate number
Surname
Forename(s)
Candidate signature I declare this is my own work.
GCSE
ENGLISH LANGUAGE
Paper 1 Explorations in creative reading and writing
Friday 23 May 2025 Morning Time allowed: 1 hour 45 minutes
Materials
For this paper you must have: For Examiner’s Use
Source A – provided as a separate insert. Question Mark
Instructions 1
Answer all questions.
Use black ink or black ball-point pen. 2
Fill in the boxes at the top of this page. 3
You must answer the questions in the spaces provided.
Do not write outside the box around each page or on blank pages. 4
If you need extra space for your answer(s), use the lined pages at 5
the end of this book. Write the question number against your
answer(s). TOTAL
Do all rough work in this book. Cross through any work you do not
want to be marked.
You must refer to the insert booklet provided.
You must not use a dictionary.
Information
The marks for questions are shown in brackets.
The maximum mark for this paper is 80.
There are 40 marks for Section A and 40 marks for Section B.
You are reminded of the need for good English and clear presentation in your answers.
You will be assessed on the quality of your reading in Section A.
You will be assessed on the quality of your writing in Section B.
Advice
You are advised to spend about 15 minutes reading through the source and all five
questions you have to answer.
You are advised to plan your answer to Question 5 before you start to write.
You should make sure you leave sufficient time to check your answers.
IB/M/Jun25/G4014/V6
8700/1
, 2
Do not write
outside the
Section A: Reading box
Answer all questions in this section.
You are advised to spend about 45 minutes on this
section.
0 1 Read again the first part of the source, from lines 1 to 8.
List four things which happened that night from this part of the source.
[4 marks]
1
2
3
4
4
IB/M/
Jun25/8700/1
, 3
Do not write
outside the
0 2 Look in detail at this extract from lines 9 box
to 18:
The early morning of the 27th was an affair of slatternly* rags soaking in a
dishwater sky, with a grey light weakly filtering through. Nevertheless, in
Oppley cocks crowed and other birds welcomed the dawn more melodiously.
In Midwich, however, no birds sang. In Oppley, as in other places, hands were
soon reaching out to silence alarm clocks, but in Midwich the clocks rattled on
until they ran down. For Midwich lay entranced.
While the rest of the world began to fill the morning with clamour, Midwich
slept on. Its men and women, its horses, cows and sheep; its pigs, its poultry,
its larks, moles and mice all lay still. There was a pocket of silence in
Midwich, broken only by the rustling of the leaves, the chiming of the church
clock, and the gurgle of the River Opple as it slid over the weir beside the
mill.
How does the writer use language here to describe the early morning?
You could include the writer’s choice of:
words and phrases
language features and techniques
sentence forms.
[8 marks]
IB/M/
Jun25/8700/1
