At National 5 level the Close Reading exam makes up 20% of your final grade.

A good way to improve your close reading skills is to read some non-fiction. The easiest way to do this through online newspaper articles.

Newspapers that often have articles used as exam texts:

• The Times
• The Herald
• The Independent
• The Guardian
• The Scotsman

To help you prepare for the Close Reading exam paper you could:

• Pick out the writer’s main points
• Work out the tone used
• Use context clues to work out difficult words
• Comment on effective punctuation
• Identify linking sentences
• Look for imagery and comment on its effectiveness
• Put Key points into your own words.

If you find a good article with lots of close reading potential you can even share it in the comments.