Both texts are newly written practice sources about invented people, places or projects.
Text One: An original account of a temporary reading room in an empty shop.
For one weekend, an empty shop became a silent-reading room. Its broad windows made the interior bright, but people passing outside could see every chair. During the first session, several readers repeatedly looked towards the pavement whenever voices or footsteps approached the glass.
Before the next group entered, volunteers moved the chairs away from the windows and placed folding screens behind them. The spoken welcome was shortened because late arrivals had disturbed readers while instructions were being repeated. Instead, each visitor received a card explaining the twenty-minute sessions, the expectation of silence and the route to the exit.
Only eighteen chairs were used, although more could have fitted into the shop. The organiser argued that leaving space between seats made the temporary room calmer and allowed visitors to move without interrupting others. People who did not want to join a timed session could browse a shelf of short books beside the entrance. The final report counted these visitors as participants rather than recording only those who occupied a chair.
Text Two: An original report and attendance record from a temporary reading room in an old railway waiting room.
The waiting room retained its narrow entrance and fixed benches. On the first afternoon, every available seat was used. Some visitors then found it difficult to leave without disturbing the whole room, while conversations between arriving visitors and the door volunteer could be heard inside.
For the second afternoon, six chairs were removed to create a wider route to the door. Written information was given outside, and the volunteer answered questions before admitting each group. A table of books and comfortable standing space remained available in the entrance area for visitors who preferred not to enter the silent room.
| Afternoon | Seats available | Visitors admitted to the silent room | Visitors who left before the session ended | Visitors who used the entrance-area book table |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| First | 28 | 28 | 7 | 6 |
| Second | 22 | 21 | 2 | 15 |
The review concluded that the second arrangement admitted fewer people at one time but gave visitors more control over how they took part.
Synthesise what you learn from both texts about how the organisers adapted the temporary reading rooms to the venues and to visitors’ different needs.
528 exam-style questions on WJEC GCSE English Language 3.1 Section A (20%) – Reading, covering 3.1.1 Understanding description, narration and exposition texts, 3.1.2 Range of continuous and non-continuous texts, 3.1.3 Short and extended response question types, and 3.1.4 Editing task at word, sentence and text level. Each one has a worked solution and a mark scheme showing where the marks go.