Checking the exhibition labels aloud
An original fictional information text for reading practice.
The science club reads its exhibition labels aloud before sending them to the printer. Reading silently, a writer can supply an omitted word without noticing that it is absent. A reader unfamiliar with the label is more likely to hesitate at the gap.
The listener follows a printed copy with a pencil. A difficult moment is marked immediately rather than left until the end, when the listener might remember that something sounded awkward but forget where it occurred. The group then discusses the marked passage instead of assuming that every hesitation proves the reader is at fault.
Technical terms are checked against the object on display. A word can be spelled correctly and still identify the wrong component. Where a label uses a comparison, the group also asks whether the comparison would help a visitor who has not attended the club’s meetings. A private joke may be entertaining to its writer while confusing everybody else.
After corrections, another person reads the revised version. The first reader may now remember the intended wording so well that they glide over the same problem. Finally, the group checks that the printed label number matches the display number: clear writing is of little use beside the wrong object.
Explain why the club uses several checks before printing its labels.
120 exam-style questions on WJEC GCSE English Language 4.1 Section A (20%) – Reading, covering 4.1.1 Understanding argumentation, persuasion and instructional texts, 4.1.2 Range of continuous and non-continuous texts, and 4.1.3 Short and extended response question types. Each one has a worked solution and a mark scheme showing where the marks go.