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Treasure Island

About the book

Treasure Island, written by Robert Louis Stevenson, was first published in 1883 as a serial in a children’s magazine. It has an exciting plot with many twists and turns, originally designed to encourage readers to buy the next issue of the magazine.

Treasure Island is referred to in another well-known children’s book, Swallows and Amazons (published in 1930) and also in the film, Pirates of the Caribbean (2003). In 2012 Silver, a sequel to Treasure Island written by the poet Andrew Motion, was published.

There are more film versions of Treasure Island than any other classic novel. There have also been television and radio productions and even, in 2009, a computer game.

The story of Treasure Island starts with a young boy, named Jim Hawkins, finding a map showing the location of buried treasure on a remote island. He tells Trelawney, who buys a ship (the Hispaniola), and they set sail in search of the treasure, with Jim on board as ship’s boy. During the voyage, they discover that some of the crew are also secretly after the treasure. In this extract, Jim describes his first impressions of Treasure Island.

We had made a great deal of way during the night, and were now lying becalmed

about half a mile to the south-east of Treasure Island. Grey-coloured woods covered a

large part of the surface. This even tint was broken up by streaks of yellow sand in the

lower lands, and by many tall trees of the pine family, out-topping the others – some

singly, some in clumps; but the general colouring was uniform and sad. The hills ran

up clear above the vegetation in spires of naked rock. All were strangely shaped, and

the Spy-glass, which was the tallest rock on the island, was likewise the strangest in

shape, running up sheer from almost every side, and then suddenly cut off at the top

like a pedestal to put a statue on.

The Hispaniola was rolling under in the ocean swell. The mast was creaking, the

rudder was banging to and fro, and the whole ship moaning, groaning and jumping like

a factory. I had to cling tight to the ropes, and the world turned giddily before my eyes;

for though I was a good enough sailor when there was way on, this standing still and

being rolled about like a bottle was a thing I never learned to bear, without a qualm or

two, on an empty stomach.

Perhaps it was this; perhaps it was the look of the island with its grey, melancholy

woods, and wild stone spires and the surf that we could both see and hear foaming and

thundering on the steep beach – and you would have thought anyone would have been

glad to get to land after being so long at sea – but my heart sank into my boots; and

from that first look onward, I hated the very thought of Treasure Island.

Task 1

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We had a dreary morning’s work before us, for there was no sign of any wind, and the

rowing boats had to be got out and the ship towed three or four miles up a narrow

passage to the haven behind the island. I volunteered for one of the boats. The heat

was sweltering, and the crew grumbled fiercely over their work. I thought this was a

very bad sign; for up to that day, the men had gone willingly and briskly about their

business; but the very sight of the island had relaxed the cords of discipline.

We brought up about a third of a mile from either shore, Treasure Island on one side,

and Skeleton Island on the other. The bottom was clean sand. The plunge of our

anchor sent up clouds of birds wheeling and crying over the woods; but in less than a

minute they were down again, and all was once more silent.

The place seemed entirely land locked, buried in woods, the trees coming right down

to high-water mark, the shores mostly flat, and the hill tops standing round at a

distance in a sort of amphitheatre, one here, one there. Two little rivers, or, rather two

swamps, emptied out into this pond, as you might call it; and the foliage round that

part of the shore had a kind of poisonous brightness.

There was not a breath of air moving, nor a sound but that of the surf booming half a

mile away along the beaches and against the rocks outside. A peculiar stagnant smell

hung over the anchorage – a smell of sodden leaves and rotting tree trunks. I observed

the doctor sniffing and sniffing like someone tasting a bad egg.

‘I don’t know about treasure,’ he said, ‘but I’ll stake my wig there’s fever here.’

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1. According to the text, in what way is Treasure Island still influential?

______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________ 1 mark

2. ...running up sheer from almost every side...

Give the meaning of the word sheer in this sentence.

______________________________________________________________ 1 mark

3. Look at the first paragraph, beginning: We had made a great deal of way…

Which two statements about the trees on Treasure Island are true?

The trees on Treasure Island…

Tick two.

are all the same height.

include pine trees.

are mostly taller than the hills.

are strangely shaped.

all have a similar grey colour.

1 mark

4. We had made a great deal of way during the night.

Which word most closely matches the meaning of the word way?

Tick one.

angle

direction

distance

path

1 mark

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5. The following sentences are based on the paragraph beginning: We had a dreary morning’s work before us…

Circle the correct word to complete each sentence below.

(a) We had a ________________ morning’s work before us.

(b) The weather was ________________ .

(c) The crew ________________ about their work.

2 marks

6. Look at the paragraph beginning: We had a dreary morning’s work before us…

Explain what Jim means when he says about the men:

the very sight of the island had relaxed the cords of discipline.

______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________ 1 mark

7. Look at the paragraph beginning: The place seemed entirely land locked…

Find and copy two groups of words that suggest that Jim is having trouble describing the island.

1. _________________________________

2. _________________________________ 2 marks

8. Look at the paragraph beginning: There was not a breath of air moving… to the end of the text.

Give two ways that this section suggests that there may be danger on Treasure Island in the next part of the story.

1. ____________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

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2. ____________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________ 2 marks

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Moondust On 20th July 1969, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin became the first men to walk on the Moon. They landed on the surface in the Lunar Module called the Eagle. In this text, the narrator is remembering watching the Moon landings on television as a small child.

It’s coming up to 7:30 PM and dusk is falling. I can hear crickets and birds in the back garden, and the burble of the creek. The Moon’s in the sky, a big silver full Moon, and I’ve been on the porch in my pyjamas, which have little blue space-ships on them, just drinking the sight in. They’re up there. Up there. There. We’ve been watching the screen for an hour, because Neil Armstrong was due out at 7:00 PM, after he told NASA that he couldn’t bear to hang around until midnight, much less sleep. The TV anchor* and various experts have been assuring us that everything is fine, though. It takes a while to get those big suits on.

Armstrong is late because stowing the dishes after dinner was never part of the practice routine and it’s taken longer than anyone expected. The first men on the Moon are being delayed by dirty dishes: there’s something wonderful about that. The Eagle is on a bright, rolling, crater-pocked plain. When they had a chance to take the scene in through the Lunar Module’s (LM) tiny, triangular portholes, Aldrin exulted at the unreal clarity in this atmosphereless environment, with features on the distant horizon appearing close by, contrasting beautifully against the boundless black backdrop of infinity. Armstrong wondered at the peculiar play of light and colour on the tan surface. He thought it looked more inviting than hostile. He knows this will be his home for only twenty-one hours.

* presenter

Now, what do you say as you become the first human being to set foot on the Moon? Neil Armstrong is an astronaut, not a poet. The pressure is on. It's irritating, because, for him, the landing was the poetry and the taking off again his next major work. Still, as he thinks about it, he considers the paradox that it is such a small step, and yet... the laconic career pilot comes up with one of the most memorable lines ever offered in the English language.

The door won't budge and they don't want to force it, because you could poke a hole through Eagle at almost any point. The air pressure inside the cabin is holding it closed, so Armstrong peels the corner back gently and the last of the craft's oxygen screams into space as a rainbow of ice crystals. Aldrin holds the hatch open as the other man sinks to his knees and crawls through, until he is standing on Eagle's porch, surrounded only by Moon and space and the Earth which hangs above him.

He pulls a ring and a small TV camera lowers on a tray from the undercarriage and begins transmitting pictures home. A voice from Earth exclaims, "We're getting pictures on the

Task 2

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TV!" And so we are: grainy and unearthly. Upside down at first, then flipped over. Wow. Armstrong tests his weight in one-sixth gravity and launches himself onto the LM's giant landing pad. He describes the surface as "very, very fine-grained as you get close to it... almost like a powder." Then:

"Okay, I'm going to step off the LM now."

There's still time for the rapacious Moon-bugs to grab him, but they don't. He tests the ground to make sure it will take his weight, then steps off the LM.

"That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind..."

Neil Armstrong

He bounces, paws at the dust once more with his boot and finally lets go of Eagle, to be free of the Earth and all its creations. He walks hesitantly, unsteadily at first, like a toddler searching for the secrets of balance. He feels his way into the rolling gait that Moonwalking demands and takes some photos, until Mission Control reminds him about the "contingency" soil sample he's supposed to get in case of an emergency takeoff. At that moment, Aldrin chips in, too, and the commander snaps, "Right," as the press room back in Houston erupts with laughter, because it seems that nagging is nagging, even on the Moon. Fourteen minutes later, Aldrin joins him, cracking a joke about being careful not to lock the hatch on the way out - but all the same, he's covered in goose bumps as he steps away from Eagle. He likes the reduced gravity, is glad of its attention after the weightlessness of space, which feels lonesome to him, as though he's nowhere. He looks up at the half-dark Earth and can make out the slowly rotating shapes of North Africa and the Middle East, then returns his eyes to the Moon and realizes that the soil next to his boots has lain untroubled by life since before these continents existed.

I run out into the garden to bathe in the silky Moonlight and the blood seems to rush to my head. They're standing there now. They're walking on the Moon. I go back inside and President Nixon is on the phone to the astronauts.

"Hello Neil and Buzz, I'm talking to you by telephone from the Oval Room at the White House. And this certainly has to be the most historical phone call ever made from the White House..."

Images courtesy of NASA

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1. ...Aldrin exulted at the unreal clarity... (page 1)

Which word most closely matches the meaning of the word exulted?

Tick one.

delighted

spoke

looked

laughed

1 mark

2. Look at the paragraph beginning: Now, what do you say…

Why was landing the Lunar Module like poetry for Armstrong?

______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________ 1 mark

3. …oxygen screams into space as a rainbow of ice crystals.

What does the word screams suggest about the way the ice crystals move?

______________________________________________________________ 1 mark

4. Armstrong walks like a toddler searching for the secrets of balance. (page 2)

This tells us that Armstrong is unsteady.

What else might it suggest?

______________________________________________________________ 1 mark

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5. What do we learn about Aldrin’s feelings on page 2?

Explain fully, referring to the text in your answer.

3 marks

6. Why is the phone call from the President in the final paragraph the most historic telephone call ever made?

______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________ 1 mark

7. Tick one box in each row to show whether each statement is true or false.

True False

The astronauts experience less gravity on the Moon than in space.

The first pictures of the Moon were upside down.

The Lunar Module has round windows.

Armstrong wasn’t meant to come out until midnight.

2 marks

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Task 3

Extract from ‘There’s a Boy in the Girls’ Bathroom’ by Louis Sachar

Bradley Chalkers sat at his desk in the back of the room-last seat, last row. No one sat

at the desk next to him or at the one in front of him. He was an island.

If he could have, he would have sat in the closet. Then he could shut the door so he

wouldn’t have to listen to Mrs. Ebbel. He didn’t think she’d mind. She’d probably like it

better that way too. So would the rest of the class. All in all, he thought everyone

would be much happier if he sat in the closet, but unfortunately, his desk didn’t fit.

“Class,” said Mrs. Ebbel. “I would like you all to meet Jeff Fishkin. Jeff has just moved

here from Washington, D.C., which as you know, is our nation’s capital.” Bradley

looked up at the new kid who was standing at the front of the room next to Mrs Ebbel.

“Why don’t you tell the class a little bit about yourself, Jeff,” urged Mrs. Ebbel. The

new kid shrugged.

“There’s no reason to be shy,” said Mrs. Ebbel.

The new kid mumbled something, but Bradley couldn’t hear what it was.

“Have you ever been to the White House, Jeff? Mrs. Ebbel asked. “I’m sure the class

would be very interested to hear about that.”

“No, I’ve never been there,” the new kid said very quickly as he shook his head.

Mrs. Ebbel smiled at him. “Well, I guess we’d better find you a place to sit.” She looked

around the room. “Hmm, I don’t see any place except, I suppose you can sit there, at

the back.”

“No, not next to Bradley!” a girl in the front row exclaimed.

“At least it’s better than in front of Bradley,” said the boy next to her.

Mrs. Ebbel frowned. She turned to Jeff. “I’m sorry, but there are no other empty

desks.”

“I don’t mind where I sit,” Jeff mumbled.

“Well, nobody likes sitting…there,” said Mrs. Ebbel.

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“That’s right,” Bradley spoke up. “Nobody likes sitting next to me!” He smiled a strange

smile. He stretched his mouth so wide, it was hard to tell whether it was a smile or a

frown.

He stared at Jeff with bulging eyes as Jeff awkwardly sat down next to him. Jeff smiled

back at him so he looked away.

As Mrs. Ebbel began the lesson, Bradley took out a pencil and a piece of paper, and

scribbled. He scribbled most of the morning, sometimes on the paper and sometimes

on his desk. Sometimes he scribbled so hard his pencil point broke. Every time that

happened he laughed. Then he’d tape the broken point to one of the gobs of junk in

his desk, sharpen his pencil and scribble again. His desk was full of little wads of torn

paper, pencil points, chewed erasers, and other unrecognizable stuff, all taped

together. Mrs. Ebbel handed back a language test.

“Most of you did very well,” she said. “I was very pleased. There were fourteen A’s and

the rest B’s. Of course there was one F, but…” She shrugged her shoulders.

Bradley held up his test for everyone to see and smiled that same distorted smile. As

Mrs. Ebbel went over the correct answers with the class, Bradley took out his pair of

scissors and very carefully cut his test paper into tiny squares. When the bell rang of

recess, he put on his red jacket and walked outside, alone.

“Hey, Bradley, wait up!” somebody called after him. Startled, he turned around. Jeff,

the new kid, hurried alongside him.

“Hi,” said Jeff. Bradley started at him in amazement.

Jeff smiled. “I don’t mind sitting next to you,” he said.

“Really.” Bradley didn’t know what to say.

“I have been to the White House,” Jeff admitted. “If you want, I’ll tell you about it.”

Bradley thought a moment, then said, “Give me a dollar or I’ll spit on you.”

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Questions ‘There’s a Boy in the Girls’ Bathroom’ by Louis Sachar

Retrieval Questions (1 mark)

1. Where did Jeff Fishkin come from?

2. What did Bradley do with his test paper?

3. Why did Bradley’s pencil always snap?

Inference Questions (2 marks)

4. Why does Jeff lie about going to the White House when the teacher asks him?

5. Why does no-one want to sit near Bradley?

6. How do you think Bradley feels about school?

7. ‘Bradley stared at him in amazement.’

Why does Bradley feel this way when Jeff is speaking to him?

Writer’s choice (2 marks)

8. ‘He was an island.’

What first impression does this give the reader about Bradley?

Extended Answer (3 marks)

How does the reader’s perception of Bradley change as they read this chapter? Use

evidence from the text to support your answer.

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Task 4

CAT

Judith Nicholls

My cat’s tail can dance or beckon whilst he sleeps, can wave or threaten, fall or rise.

Warily it lies awake, all on its own; he wakes, it lies forgotten. It lies alone, quite separate - or so it seems.

Could it be the place where, secretly, his life goes on? A space to hide for ever a million catty dreams?

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1. What part of the cat is the poem about?

___________________________________________________________________ 1 mark

2. What happens when the cat is asleep?

1 mark

3. Find and copy three words from the first verse that tell you how its tail moves.

1. _________________________________________________________________

2. _________________________________________________________________

3. _________________________________________________________________ 1 mark

4. In the first verse ...can dance or beckon...

Give the meaning of the word beckon.

___________________________________________________________________ 1 mark

5. Warily it lies awake, all on its own;

Explain what these lines in the second verse mean.

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________ 2 marks

6. Look at the last verse.

According to the poem, what could the cat's tail be for?

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________ 2 marks

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7. Did the poem make you think differently about cats?

Explain your answer.

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________ 2 marks

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Mark Schemes

Task 1

Q2. 1. Award 1 mark for answers that identify any of the following:

1. it is referred to in Pirates of the Caribbean, eg:

• the Treasure Island is mentioned in ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’.

2. there have been (many) film versions of Treasure Island, eg:

• it has influenced people to change it into films.

3. there have been television and / or radio versions, eg:

• it has been made into television shows and radio productions.

4. there is a computer / video game based on it, eg:

• the book is so good it is worthy enough to become a game.

5. a sequel to Treasure Island has been written, eg:

• because they made a sequel called Silver in 2012.

6. there have been many different versions of Treasure Island, eg:

• there are still things being produced and made today about it.

Do not accept answers that only reference Swallows and Amazons.

1 mark

2. Award 1 mark for answers that refer to a very steep or almost vertical slope.

1 mark

3. Award 1 mark for two ticks in the correct boxes:

The trees on Treasure Island...

are all the same height.

include pine trees.

are mostly taller than the hills.

are strangely shaped.

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1 mark

4. Distance.

1 mark

5. Award 2 marks for all three words correctly circled.

Award 1 mark for any two words correctly circled.

(a) We had a ............................. morning’s work before us.

(b) The weather was ............................. .

(c) The crew ............................. about their work.

up to 2 marks

6. Award 1 mark for answers that recognise that seeing Treasure Island has made the crew less willing to do as they are told / work as hard, eg:

• it means that the men before they had come in sight of the island were well-behaved, now they are not

• it means that when the men saw the island they were less obedient and hard working.

Also accept answers that recognise that seeing Treasure Island has revealed their true (pirate) nature, eg:

• they had started to plot to steal the treasure.

1 mark

7. Award 1 mark for each of the following quotations, up to a maximum of 2 marks:

1. (The place) seemed (entirely land locked)

2. (in a) sort of (amphitheatre)

3. (Two little rivers,) or, rather (two swamps)

4. (this pond,) as you might call it

5. (had a) kind of (poisonous brightness).

up to 2 marks

8. Award 1 mark for each acceptable point, up to a maximum of 2 marks:

all have a similar grey colour.

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Acceptable points:

1. it is still / quiet, which seems ominous / stifling / expectant, eg:

• it seems too silent to be true

• there was complete silence, a surefire sign that something was going on.

2. the noises are threatening / intimidating, eg:

• it said “booming half a mile away along the beaches”. This means that something bad is coming.

3. the smell / rotting on the island is linked to death / illness / decay or is ominous / stifling, eg:

• the “rotting tree trunks” and “sodden leaves” show danger as death

• a peculiar stagnant smell implies that there is death and decay that lingers in the air.

4. the doctor thinks there is fever / disease on the island which could cause illness / death, eg:

• this could suggest that there is disease on the island that the sailors could catch

• by saying the doctor thinks there is some sort of disease, it suggests there may be some danger of becoming ill on the island.

up to 2 marks

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Task 2

1. Delighted

1 mark

2. Award 1 mark for answers that identify any of the following:

1. a comparison of the qualities of the landing with the qualities of poetry, eg:

• poetry is complicated but also intricate, just like landing a space ship

• it’s the most moving thing and it lifts people’s spirits like poetry can.

2. the landing was his real work / achievement, eg:

• it’s his talent in life, he’s good at that not poetry

• it was his masterpiece, his work of art, the thing he did.

3. actions are his way of communicating, eg:

• he landed it with such grace his landing speaks for him

• because he’s an astronaut and words can’t describe it, it describes itself.

Do not accept:

■ the quotation Neil Armstrong is an astronaut, not a poet

■ generic positive qualities applied to poetry and landing, eg:

• beautiful

• special.

1 mark

3. Award 1 mark for answers that identify either of the following descriptions of the movement:

1. fast, eg:

• they raced out

• it moves incredibly quickly.

2. forcefully / powerfully, eg:

• it suggests that they move violently

• it bursts out.

1 mark

4. Award 1 mark for answers that identify either of the following:

1. he is inexperienced at / new to walking on the Moon, eg;

• it also suggests he’s not used to the environment

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• he’s a learner and needs more practice.

2. he is trying to discover the best way to walk on the Moon, eg;

• he is learning the techniques of walking in space

• he is trying to find an efficient way to walk.

1 mark

5. Acceptable points:

Feeling: Likely evidence:

1. his sense of awe / wonder (at the view)

• He looks up at the half-dark Earth

• can make out the slowly rotating shapes of North Africa and the Middle East

• realizes that the soil next to his boots has lain untroubled by life since before those continents existed

2. his sense of honour / privilege / being one of the first people there

• he’s covered in goose bumps

• realizes that the soil next to his boots has lain untroubled by life since before those continents existed

3. nervous / anxious / afraid

• he’s covered in goose bumps

• cracking a joke

4. excited • he’s covered in goose bumps

5. relieved / reassured • He likes the reduced gravity, is glad of its attention

• after the weightlessness of space, which feels lonesome to him

6. alone / lonely / isolated / separated

• is glad of its attention

• feels lonesome to him

• as though he’s nowhere

• He looks up at the half-dark Earth

7. light-hearted / relaxed • Aldrin chips in, too

• cracking a joke

8. insignificant • realizes that the soil next to his boots has lain untroubled by life since before those continents existed

Award 3 marks for answers that clearly identify at least two acceptable points, both with supporting evidence, eg:

• we learn that he is feeling happy because of the quote ‘Aldrin joins him cracking a joke’, this suggests that he is ecstatic that he got to the moon,

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and is in a good mood. Secondly, he is a little bit scared as evidenced by ‘he’s covered in goosebumps’ if you have goosebumps you are scared, so that shows his fear [AP7 + support, AP3 + support]

• we learn that he is in awe of how untouched it is, and that he is scared and excited, we know this because of the goosebumps he had as he stepped away from the lunar module. [AP1 + support, AP3 and AP4, both supported by the same evidence]

Award 2 marks for answers that either identify at least one acceptable point with supporting evidence or that identify at least two acceptable points without supporting evidence, eg:

• I think he feels that he isn’t important as he realises the soil next to his boots has lain untouched since before those continents existed [AP8 + support]

• that he’s cold and scared. That he’s happy and relieved. [AP3, AP7 + AP5]

Award 1 mark for answers that identify one acceptable point, eg:

• Aldrin’s feelings are a bit scared [AP3]

• he must be very proud of being on the moon. [AP2]

Accept the same evidence for more than one acceptable point, if appropriate.

Do not accept a feeling supported by evidence relating to the wrong character (Armstrong), eg:

• he’s nervous because he walks hesitantly.

up to 3 marks

6. Award 1 mark for answers that recognise that a call is being made to the Moon / outside of the Earth, eg:

• because he is calling from the white house up into space, which seems impossible

• because it’s the first phone call ever made where the receiving end is out of this world.

Also accept

■ it’s the furthest phone call ever made, eg:

• it’s the longest distance phone call ever made.

■ nobody has ever done it before.

1 mark

7. Award 2 marks for all four answers correct.

Award 1 mark for three answers correct.

True False

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The astronauts experience less gravity on the Moon than in space.

✔

The first pictures of the Moon were upside down.

✔

The Lunar Module has round windows.

✔

Armstrong wasn’t meant to come out until midnight.

✔

up to 2 marks

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Task 3

Questions ‘There’s a Boy in the Girls’ Bathroom’ by Louis Sachar

Retrieval Questions (1 mark)

1. Where did Jeff Fishkin come from? Washington D.C

2. What did Bradley do with his test paper? Cut his test paper into tiny squares

3. Why did Bradley’s pencil always snap? He used it sometimes on the paper and

sometimes on his desk. Sometimes he scribbled so hard his pencil point broke

Inference Questions (2 marks)

4. Why does Jeff lie about going to the White House when the teacher asks him?

Because he didn’t want to draw attention to himself at the front of the class and

he wanted to try and fit in.

5. Why does no-one want to sit near Bradley? Because he is not very nice and

doesn’t join in with the rest of the class. They seem a little afraid of him.

6. How do you think Bradley feels about school? Bradley does not seem to care

about school I know this as he cuts up his test paper and doesn’t listen to the

teacher.

7. ‘Bradley stared at him in amazement.’

Why does Bradley feel this way when Jeff is speaking to him? Because no one

normally comes near or talks to Bradley usually so it is a rare occurrence.

Writer’s choice (2 marks)

8. ‘He was an island.’

What first impression does this give the reader about Bradley? It makes it seem

like he is by himself and no one can or will go near him. It is almost like he is

untouchable.

Extended Answer (3 marks)

How does the reader’s perception of Bradley change as they read this chapter? Use

evidence from the text to support your answer. From the beginning of the text you

could feel slightly sorry for Bradley as he is by himself and no one wants to sit near him

in the class as a girl says ‘No, not next to Bradley,’ even the teacher doesn’t want to

put the new child near him. However, by the end of the text you do not feel sorry for

him as he doesn’t appear to be very nice as in the text it says ‘Give me a dollar or I’ll

spit on you’ to the new child.

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Task 4

1. Award 1 mark for reference to the cat’s tail.

1 mark

2 its tail moves

1 mark

3 Award 1 mark if THREE or more of the following correct responses are given (do not award half marks):

• dance

• beckon

• wave

• threaten

• fall

• rise

1 mark

4 Award 1 mark for an explanation that refers to summoning something to come closer, eg:

• it means come here.

1 mark

5 Award 2 marks for answers which describe the cat’s tail as something distinct and separate from the cat itself, which seems to be awake or on watch when the cat is asleep, eg:

• the tail has not stopped and gone to sleep with the cat because it’s still moving

• it means that the cat’s tail wags around on its own while the cat is asleep

• it means that the tail is nothing to do with the cat.

• It’s got a life of its own.

Award 1 mark for answers which express something of this idea, eg:

• the cat’s tail is awake but the cat isn’t

• its tail doesn’t sleep when the cat is

up to 2 marks

6 Award 2 marks for answers which refer to the cat’s tail as being the secret centre of the cat’s life; where its dreams are held, eg:

• the author thinks the cat’s tail is where secretly its life goes on and where he hides his dreams

• the author thinks the cat’s tail secretly makes and hides dreams for the cat

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Award 1 mark for answers which directly quote the relevant part of the poem without explanation, eg:

• to hide forever a million catty dreams

• where secretly his life goes on

up to 2 marks

7 Answers should have a direct relationship to the poem. Award 2 marks if the opinion refers to some aspect(s) of the poem and gives an explanation as to why this made them think differently or otherwise about cats, eg:

• yes - because now I will wonder what goes on in a tail when a cat is asleep

• yes - because I didn’t think they would sleep with their tail wagging and I didn’t think they would dream

• no - because I have two cats and I have often wondered the same thing about their tails

Award 1 mark for a partial explanation, eg:

• yes - because I’ve never thought about a cat’s tail before

• no - because cats don’t have dreams

up to 2 marks