Approaching an exam essay:

• Read all questions.

• Choose the question that best fits your knowledge and understanding.

• Underline the key terms and concepts addressed in the question.   Use a mini-cluster diagram or brainstorm to jot down ideas and associations.

• Consider the structure of your response to the question.   How are you going to produce an argumentative response to the question, the kind of response that signals to the examiner that you are a lively, engaged thinker with an opinion, rather than a soggy sponge full of unconnected, undirected notes?

• Jot a brief paragraph plan that shows where your essay is going to go, move by move.

• GO! Get going with one of the openings that you've developed.   Try to learn an essay opening for each of the big themes of the text that you are writing about so that you can pick and choose the most suitable.

• But remember to revise your writing as you progress.   When you finish a paragraph, re-read it and see how it fits into the structure of your essay.   This will allow you to focus on what else needs to be said before you can conlude.