Loading…
Loading...
Loading...
Loading…
Loading…
Reading masterclass · RAO1
RAO1 asks you to identify and retrieve ideas and information from a range of texts. It is the first thing the exam tests and the most reliable mark on the paper — if you can read carefully and point to the right words, you cannot get it wrong.
Retrieval is the literal, surface layer of reading. The answer is already in the text — you are not working it out, guessing, or reading between the lines. That deeper work belongs to the next reading skill: the second bullet of 1.1 covers deducing and inferring meaning - reading beyond literal and explicit meaning. Retrieval is only the first bullet: identifying and retrieving key ideas and information from texts.
Think of it as locating rather than interpreting. If the text says “the centre opens at seven o’clock” and the question asks what time it opens, the words you need are sitting there explicitly. Nothing is hidden or implied.
Retrieval items are short and direct. They are worth one mark (sometimes two) and use a short open response - one or two lines. You will recognise them from openings such as:
Examiner guidance for this question type: Locate the exact place in the text. Answer in your own words or with a precise short quotation. Mark schemes reward a clear, specific reference, not a vague gist.
The reliable method has three steps:
The single most common error is retrieving the right topic but the wrong sentence. A text about a museum might mention a fee and online booking; a question about why you book online is not answered by the sentence about the fee.
Both are accepted for retrieval — but each has a trap.
A vague gist fails because retrieval is marked for precision. The mark scheme rewards a clear, specific reference; it does not credit an answer that is roughly in the right area. “The team filled forty bins” earns the mark; “the team filled lots of bins” does not, because “lots” is not the information the text gives.
Every extract below is an original non-fiction text written for this page. Read each one, attempt the questions, then check the model answer and the mark note.
Original practice extract 1 - Report
The Hatherly recycling centre opens at seven o’clock every morning, an hour before the rest of the town is awake. The first job of the day belongs to the sorting team. They walk the long conveyor belt and remove anything that does not belong: a garden hose, a broken kettle, the occasional shoe. These items are pulled out by hand because the machines further down the line cannot read them and would simply jam.
Glass is the heaviest material the centre handles, so it is collected in low metal bins rather than the tall plastic crates used for paper. Each colour of glass is kept apart - clear, green and brown - because mixing them lowers the quality of the new bottles that are made later. By the end of a normal Tuesday the team has filled forty bins.
Why is glass collected in low metal bins rather than tall plastic crates? (1 mark)
Model answer: Because glass is the heaviest material the centre handles.
Mark note (1 mark): One mark for the precise reason stated in the text (its weight). A vague answer such as “because it is different” does not pinpoint the information and scores 0.
Give one reason the sorting team removes some items by hand. (1 mark)
Model answer: Because the machines further down the line cannot read those items and would jam.
Mark note (1 mark): One mark for either idea - the machines cannot read them, or they would jam. The information is explicit; you may answer in your own words or quote the exact phrase.
How many bins had the team filled by the end of a normal Tuesday? (1 mark)
Model answer: Forty bins.
Mark note (1 mark): One mark for the exact figure (forty). “Lots” or “many” is a gist, not retrieval, and scores 0.
Original practice extract 2 - Recount
I joined the Marlow Junior Rowing Club in the September after my twelfth birthday. I had never sat in a boat before, so for the first three weeks I was not allowed on the water at all. Instead I trained on a wooden rowing machine in the boathouse while the coach, Mrs Okafor, watched my technique and corrected my grip.
When I was finally allowed out, the rule was strict: no junior could row alone, and everyone had to wear a buoyancy aid even in calm weather. My favourite session was the early Saturday outing, because the river was still and the only sound was the blades entering the water.
Why was the writer not allowed on the water for the first three weeks? (1 mark)
Model answer: Because the writer had never sat in a boat before.
Mark note (1 mark): One mark for the explicit reason given in the text. Answering “they were new” only earns the mark if it clearly reflects “never sat in a boat before”.
State two rules that applied once juniors were allowed out on the water. (2 marks)
Model answer: No junior could row alone, and everyone had to wear a buoyancy aid even in calm weather.
Mark note (2 marks): One mark per rule, two correct rules for full marks. Both are stated directly; precise retrieval of each one is required.
Original practice extract 3 - Information leaflet
The Coastline Museum is free to enter, but the temporary exhibition on the second floor charges a small fee that goes towards looking after the objects on loan. Tickets for that exhibition must be booked online; they are not sold at the door because the gallery is small and can hold only thirty visitors at a time.
Photography is welcome throughout the building, with one exception. In the Lighthouse Room the lenses are extremely fragile, so flash photography is not allowed there. Guide dogs are welcome everywhere, including the Lighthouse Room.
Why must tickets for the temporary exhibition be booked online? (1 mark)
Model answer: Because the gallery is small and can hold only thirty visitors at a time.
Mark note (1 mark): One mark for the precise reason. Note the question asks about booking online, not about the fee - retrieving the wrong sentence loses the mark.
Where is flash photography not allowed, and why? (2 marks)
Model answer: In the Lighthouse Room, because the lenses there are extremely fragile.
Mark note (2 marks): One mark for the exact location (the Lighthouse Room) and one mark for the precise reason (the lenses are fragile).
Do
Don’t
Run every retrieval answer through these questions. If you cannot say “yes” to all five, your answer is not yet secure.