How to hit Grade 9

The five habits of Grade 9 candidates

1. 1Read widely. Non-fiction articles, travel writing and long-form journalism build the vocabulary and register range examiners reward.
2. 2Time every practice answer. Examiners don't reward planning that doesn't fit in the time allowed.
3. 3Annotate mark schemes. Notice the difference between Level 5 and Level 6 descriptors - usually it's about precision of effect, not quantity of points.
4. 4Keep a vocabulary bank. Collect precise adjectives, verbs and transition phrases and use them consistently in practice writing.
5. 5Proofread mercilessly. The gap between 8 and 9 is often just careless spelling and punctuation errors.