The spare seat
Owen put his bag on the seat beside him before the coach left. He had chosen the back row because nobody from his new class had spoken to him yet. At the first stop, a girl climbed aboard carrying a cardboard model of a wind turbine. She looked down the aisle, turning carefully so the blades would not catch. Owen stared at the rain on his window. Then he lifted his bag onto his knees. When she reached him, he said the model could have the window seat. He spent the rest of the journey holding one corner of its base steady.
What can you infer about Owen’s feelings towards meeting his new classmates? Support your answer with evidence.
40 exam-style questions on AQA GCSE English Language 3.1 Critical reading and comprehension, covering 3.1.1 Identify and interpret themes, ideas and information, 3.1.2 Read in different ways for different purposes, 3.1.3 Draw inferences and justify with evidence, 3.1.4 Support a point of view using textual evidence, 3.1.5 Identify bias and misuse of evidence, 3.1.6 Reflect critically and evaluatively using context, 3.1.7 Recognise different responses to a text, 3.1.8 Identify the main theme or themes, 3.1.9 Summarise ideas and information from a single text, 3.1.10 Synthesise from more than one text, 3.1.11 Explain how vocabulary and grammar create impact, 3.1.12 Analyse and evaluate form and structure, and 3.1.13 Compare texts critically. Each one has a worked solution and a mark scheme showing where the marks go.