The short version: This is the whole unit under exam conditions: read and annotate, plan a thesis, write three evaluated linked paragraphs and a conclusion — in 1 hour 15 minutes, on an unseen text.
You've learned every move; timed practice is where they become automatic.
Set a real 1h15. Use the split you practised (≈15 plan / 55 write / 5 check). Work the guiding question into a thesis, cluster your annotations, evaluate as you go, link every paragraph back, and — above all — finish. The goal isn't a perfect essay; it's a complete, focused one, produced in the time you'll actually have.
The exam-day routine
Read & annotate (~15 min)
Two reads; mark choices and effects; circle the turn.
Thesis & plan
Turn the guiding question into a thesis; cluster notes into 3 paragraphs.
Write (~55 min)
Intro → three evaluated, linked paragraphs (~15 min each).
Conclude & check (~5 min)
Land the overall effect; fix obvious slips. Finish.
The key move: Run the whole routine to time: annotate → thesis → three evaluated linked paragraphs → conclusion, in 1h15. Practise it until the shape is automatic.
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Why it matters in the exam: Timed practice is the single best preparation: it trains pacing, forces a complete structure, and turns the method into a habit you can rely on when the real unseen text appears. Every criterion (A–D) is rehearsed at once.
A worked plan under time pressure for this unseen opening (guiding question: How does the writer present the sea?): “The sea does not rage. That is a thing we say to make ourselves feel chosen, as if it noticed us enough to be angry. It simply arrives, and rearranges, and leaves, indifferent as arithmetic, and we build our little towns at its edge and act surprised.”
Model answer plan
See the mark-by-mark plan — for / against / judgement, with marking guidance — in study mode.
Watch out: Under time pressure, the temptation is to start writing immediately. Don't. The ~15-minute plan is what makes the essay fast and focused — and it's the first thing panic tries to skip.