Week 1 · English Practice Paper

Reading Passage

In the following passage, Mira has just arrived at Ashcombe House, a boarding school she has never visited before. She is being shown around by Mrs Pryce, the housemistress, on her very first afternoon.

The New Girl

"My name is Mrs Pryce, and I look after Ashcombe House along with three other members of staff," said the woman, closing the heavy oak door behind them. "You'll meet the others at supper. For now, let me show you where everything is."

Mira said nothing. She had only one question circling in her mind, and she finally asked it: "When can I go home?"

"Not for a few weeks yet, I'm afraid," Mrs Pryce said gently. "But I promise you'll settle in faster than you think. Everyone does, eventually."

Mira heard the words but they meant nothing to her. She followed Mrs Pryce along a corridor lined with dark wooden panels, where the floorboards groaned underfoot no matter how carefully she stepped.

"The staff room is through there, though you won't need to worry about that," Mrs Pryce said, gesturing towards a closed door. "Most of us are far too busy to sit around in it anyway."

They turned a corner and Mrs Pryce pushed open a set of double doors. The noise reached Mira before anything else did — a wall of sound so sudden that she flinched. The common room was crowded with girls: two were hunched over a chessboard while a small crowd argued about the next move; three more chased a ball of scrunched-up paper across the carpet; by the window, a group had gathered around someone's phone, shrieking with laughter at something on the screen. Mrs Pryce had walked fully into the room, but Mira lingered by the door, unsure where to put herself.

"Come and meet everyone properly," called a voice. A tall woman with cropped grey hair and round spectacles was making her way over, a mug of tea in each hand.

She wore a long cardigan the colour of moss, with sleeves pushed up past her elbows and a name badge pinned crookedly to the front. Her shoes were the sort built for standing all day, sensible and a little scuffed at the toes. She smiled as though she had been expecting Mira all her life, which only made Mira more nervous, since she wasn't in the mood for smiling back.

"I'm Miss Okafor," the woman said, handing one of the mugs to Mrs Pryce. "Head of Year Seven, and very glad you're here, even if you don't feel very glad about it yet."

Mira managed a small nod. Looking past Miss Okafor's shoulder, she noticed a girl on her own, sitting cross-legged on a beanbag in the far corner, reading a book with her knees pulled up to her chest, apparently unbothered by the chaos around her.

Miss Okafor followed her gaze. "That's Freya. Quiet as anything most days, but she'll talk your ear off about horses if you let her."

Option 1: What happens next?

• Carry on from where the passage ends.
• Don't write about too many different things and avoid repeating parts of the passage.
• Imagine what Mira does next, thinking about how she has been feeling in the passage so far.

Option 2: Describe a character's first sighting of a place they have never been to before.

• Choose any place or country.
• Remember to use creative description to entertain and excite the reader.
• Include at least one big image and focus in on key details.

Option 3: Describe the scene: a crowded school common room on the first afternoon of term, seen through the eyes of someone who has just arrived and knows nobody there.

• Don't tell a story: make sure you only describe the single moment.
• Remember to use creative description to entertain and excite the reader.