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'I Have A Dream' - Martin Luther King Jr

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  In 1963, Martin Luther King, the civil rights activist, made a speech in Washington, the capital city of the United States of America, in front of a huge crowd of supporters. It is one of history’s best known speeches, sometimes referred to as his ‘I have a dream’ speech. Here is a link to the text of the speech by Martin Luther King https://www.archives.gov/files/press/exhibits/dream-speech.pdf If you choose to use this as a text for your National 5 exam, please refer back to the notes that you made in preparation for your essay. ( Think about word choice, imagery, repetition, etc. ) Also, if you want any other help or direction, please ask the teacher.
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'A Hanging' by George Orwell (prose)

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As an option for National 5, you may consider Orwell's essay. Here is a link to Orwell's the essay on capital punishment http://www.orwell.ru/library/articles/hanging/english/e_hanging and another link to a school page related to the essay http://www.eyemouthhigh.org.uk/learning-zone/english-literacy/n5-and-h-hanging and a link to a YouTube video about the essay https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jTrj0rcq4uU If you have any more questions, or need any other help, ask the teacher.
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Some film clips from 'Gran Torino' dir. Clint Eastwood

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Who are you?  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WMGflOYAEG0 Get off my lawn https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=idJPmAKcDQw Thao works for Walt https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ay1Iw-FvWI Spooks https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OLdIKlXl3ZA Where the hell is Hmong anyway?  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LxkHSJQYbB4 Chat about Gran Torino and work https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p-Y_WjeU3Oc Beating   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9Tpw1ICJEc Confession https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-FNHxEOjKVc Locked in basement https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y-TS_85-Kwo Sacrifice https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YQN-3p2HqPA Final sequence https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJLbR9TEMD8
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Make sure you attempt all of the past papers on the SQA website. Here is a link.

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https://www.sqa.org.uk/pastpapers/findpastpaper.htm?subject=English&level=N5
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BBC Bitesize National 5 - Close Reading

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https://www.bbc.co.uk/education/topics/z7rg87h Make sure you test yourself on these pages before the exam.
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Walt Kowalski - character development in 'Gran Torino' dir. Clint Eastwood

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The following item gives an account of the development of the character of Walt Kowalski in 'Gran Torino'. Reading it may be useful in understanding the sorts of things you could explain in a critical essay. Also, the development of the character of Walt is important in the film, because it goes hand in hand with the development of his relationship with Thao and the development of the theme of respect. Clearly, since this is taken from the internet, it cannot be copied. This would be plagiarism.. A film in which there is a character who becomes a hero is ‘Gran Torino’, directed by and starring Clint Eastwood. The story is set in modern day Detroit, where the central character, Walt Kowalski, a retired car plant worker and Korean War veteran, struggles to come to terms with the changes in his community. In particular, the plot revolves around his unlikely friendship with Thao, a teenage boy from a Hmong immigrant family. The first time we see Walt is a close up of h
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The Benefits of Reading.

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You will recognise this poster from class. The importance of reading in preparation for the exam cannot be ignored. A little reading each day will make you far more comfortable in dealing with the close reading paper. There are numerous suitable resources online and if you follow these on Facebook or Twitter, you can have new stories or articles to read all the time. The following news sources have free apps for your phone or tablet: https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/ https://www.theguardian.com/uk N.B. Don't believe everything you read. 
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