Weekly Test- July 2025
Name : Date :
Grade : A Level Sec :
Subject : English Topic: Reflective Commentary
Instructions: Read the provided Sample Reflective Commentary carefully. Then, answer
the following questions.
Sample Reflective Commentary :
"I decided to write the text for my leaflet in the same chatty style as that used in popular
magazines which are aimed at teenagers, giving a light-hearted and humorous feel to
the text whilst offering serious messages. My reason for the humour was to attract and
maintain the attention of the target audience of older teenagers; on the other hand I felt
that the information and advice the leaflet was offering needed to be sensible and
worthwhile, as the original instructions had come from the headteacher – therefore he
also needed to approve of what I wrote.
The structure of the leaflet is set into separate paragraphs, to make the overall
graphology of the leaflet clear and easy to read. I used subheadings which have catchy
titles including ellipsis and rhetorical question (‘Tempted to squander?’) coupled with a
rhyming imperative (‘Try not to squander!) and alliteration (‘Eating like Einstein’ and
‘Tickety tock . . .’ as I felt they needed to match the overall style of writing, rather than
just state ‘Healthy Eating’, for example, at the top of the third paragraph which would
seem too formal for the writing style I chose.
I used second person address throughout to create an intimate relationship between
writer and audience. I wanted to enhance this by creating a very informal register, with
flattery (‘congrats’) and colloquial terms such as ‘JK’, ‘Yay!’ and ‘peeps’ which were
used to position the reader as an equal. The inclusion of ‘zip code IND3P3ND3NC3’ is
set out to resemble text-speak which also lowers the level of formality and is in capitals
to imply shouting and excitement.
My sentence structures include snappy fragments, ‘So, congrats!’ with the low register
discourse marker opening the leaflet but more complex sentences containing the more
serious messages, such as ‘Keep a track of everything . . .’ (paragraph 2) are
positioned inside each paragraph. Hopefully this juxtaposition of structures
acknowledges the fact that the leaflet is meant to appeal by being humorous whilst
containing meaningful information.
Some of the features I used were intended to enhance the feeling of excitement about
going to university. Therefore ‘Too posh to look after your dosh? or in too much of a
daze to save?’ include rhyme on ‘posh’ and ‘dosh’ and assonance in ‘daze’ and ‘save’
inside rhetorical questions with ellipsis, to create an interesting rhythm. However, I also
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used hyperbole in ‘super-high’ and ‘astronomical’ to reinforce my warning about eating
fast food in paragraph 3. By combining these features, I wanted to give an overall
impression of everything that going to university might mean, which should be an
exciting but maybe also a tricky time for young people leaving home for the first time.
On reflection, I feel that I have achieved my aims in my writing. I wondered at first
whether I had chosen too many colloquial features and not enough low frequency lexis
or formal grammatical structures although when I considered that my main purpose was
to get teenagers to read my leaflet, when I read through my writing I felt that I had a
good balance of informality of style and formality of sensible advice."
1. Identifying Key Elements: A strong reflective commentary often involves
description, analysis, evaluation, and future learning/reflection.
From the sample commentary, identify and quote a sentence or phrase that best
represents each of these elements.
a) Description:
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b) Analysis (of choices/effects):
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c) Evaluation (of success/challenges):
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d) Future Learning/Reflection (could be self-correction or reinforced
understanding):
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2. Writer's Intentions: The writer makes many deliberate choices. Pick two different
stylistic features mentioned in the commentary (e.g., tone, sentence structure,
specific linguistic devices) and for each one:
a) State the feature.
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b) Explain the reason the writer chose it.
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c) Explain the intended effect on the reader.
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3. Addressing Constraints/Challenges: The writer mentions the headteacher's
approval as a constraint. How did the writer attempt to balance their chosen style
with the need for serious messages? Quote a sentence from the commentary
that supports your answer.
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4. Self-Correction/Refinement: In the final paragraph, the writer reflects on whether
they had used "too many colloquial features." How did they resolve this concern?
What does this tell you about the process of reflection?
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Scenario: Imagine you have just completed a short story for a creative writing class.
You were given the instruction to write a story that evokes a sense of mystery and
suspense, aimed at an adult audience.
6. Planning Your Commentary: Before writing your reflective commentary for this
short story, list three key aspects you would definitely want to discuss. These
should relate to your choices as a writer and their intended effect. (e.g.,
character development, plot twists, descriptive language, dialogue, pacing, etc.)
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7. Describing a Choice and Its Reason: Based on the scenario, describe one
specific stylistic choice you made in your short story (e.g., a particular sentence
structure, a type of vocabulary, the use of imagery). Then, explain your reason
for making that choice and what effect you hoped it would have on the reader.
(Aim for 2-3 sentences, similar to the detail in the sample)
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8. Evaluating Effectiveness: How would you evaluate the effectiveness of the
choice you described in Question 7? Did it achieve its intended effect? Why or
why not? (Refer back to the sample's evaluative language).
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9. Structure of a Reflective Commentary: In your own words, briefly explain why a
reflective commentary is more than just a summary of your work. What unique
insights does it offer?
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