Reaching for an A* for A Level AQA

French, Spanish & German

A carefully tailored resource designed to motivate and challenge your A Level students to reach the coveted A* grade!

Skills-based worksheets and exam-style questions cover all 4 skills: listening, reading, writing and speaking.

In line with:

Perfectly tailored to the exam requirements in topic and in skills

J Smith, HoD & Peer Reviewer
  • 2016 specification requirements
  • Your board’s sample assessment materials
  • A Level exam questions
  • Examiners’ reports of the new specification
12 units
  1. Impressive vocabulary
  2. Tough grammar
  3. Very tough (receptive) grammar
  4. Timing, fluency and spontaneity
  5. Communication strategies
  6. Voicing opinions, analysing and responding critically
  1. Planning & sophisticated sentences
  2. Translation
  3. Summarising information from written and recorded sources
  4. Developing research skills
  5. Expanding knowledge
  6. Challenge yourself!

Definitely a resource targeting the top end of the ability range... some excellent, challenging activities closely allied with AQA A Level topics and tasks

A Watson, Teacher & Peer Reviewer

Key features:

  • All 12 A Level topics covered
  • For use in both A Level Year 1 and A Level Year 2
  • Activities to stretch highly capable students up to and beyond A Level requirements
  • Practice questions to hone skills
  • Exam-style questions to challenge and reinforce learning
  • General and skills-based exam tips to prepare thoroughly

Plus! All answers provided, including model answers, for teacher, self- and peer assessment

  • For independent learning or use in class
  • Highly flexible! Worksheets can be completed: ❶ in order; ❷ per unit; ❸ per skill
  • CD included with listening tracks

What do teachers say about this resource? (9528)

I was very impressed with this resource. I was hoping that the work would be tied in nicely to the exam criteria and that students would be able to develop their own success criteria to help them on their way to an A* and this resource didn't disappoint. The tasks are logical and set out in a way that enables topics to be revisited at different times of the year to help students revise their work. The range of activities are considerable and cover all aspects of the course, working all the key skills (Listening, reading, speaking and writing) and focusses on precise elements such as the summarising or gapfill tasks that you expect to find on the Paper 1.

I particularly enjoyed the early units such as the vocabulary building and the tough(er) grammar sections. I felt the tasks were direct and purposeful in helping students create complex paragraphs using specialist vocabulary and high end grammatical structures. The further reading links in the 1st unit really helps students to delve deeper into the topic and are of a reasonable length that would not overwhelm a hard-working yr 12/13 student. The support given during these early tasks are excellent in initially providing support and building up confidence. When the support is gradually withdrawn, there is a real sense that students will be able to complete tasks independently and reflect carefully about the language they choose to use. I liked that the grammar tasks on the whole- a good selection of complex points for students to master and the end of unit grammar quiz helps to consolidate their progress.

This resource builds student confidence across all key skill areas. The tasks that are set push students out of their comfort zone and encourage them to adopt a success criteria. Whilst there are frequent hints and tips throughout the resource (reminding students of typical exam scenarios and frequent encouragement to use a certain number of structures when they write, speak etc.) the list does not become too prescriptive and enables the student to choose how they want to use the language. Encouraging this creativity of language and freedom of expression is so important as students strive to get the A*. The resource leads students to explore for themselves and go as far as they can without providing all the answers.

The resource matches up well with the specification. The tasks are closely aligned with the Paper 1 exam, especially the gapfill and summary tasks. The stimulus cards follow the specification closely too and are good practice for the final exam.

I would purchase this for my department. Getting students an A* in their A2 exam is the holy grail, so a resource that provides activities and tips on how to do this successfully would be a welcome addition to any MFL department. I enjoyed working through the tasks and think all ambitious students with a goal of getting an A* in the summer, would benefit from this resource.

J Hulland, Head of MFL & Peer Reviewer

This is an excellent idea for a resource and it has been really well executed. It’s ideal for anyone who wants to stretch the top end of their A Level group, and can be used straight away rather than having to wait until Year 2 topics are being covered. It is perfectly tailored to the exam requirements in topic and in skills. The author is clearly very familiar with the specification.I would really highly recommend this resource to anyone teaching A Level with high ability students, and would welcome similar resources. Thank you.

J Smith, HoD & Peer Reviewer

This resource will be very useful as a means to encourage independent study and research on the part of the students. They will get out of it what they put into it and all the resources are there to encourage self-motivation, self-confidence and self-correction. The exercises are useful tools for the teacher as well and can be used as stand-alone resources in the classroom, to exemplify and clarify a grammar point, or as extension work for the more able members of the group, as each grammar point is well-explained and offers clear examples in unambiguous context to the reader. This resource is accessible, engaging and reassuring in its repetition of key terms, e.g. "Impressive", focusing the reader on the skills they personally need to hone in order to achieve their maximum potential.

P Naylor, French Teacher & Peer Reviewer

Fantastic range. The vocab, structures and grammar were very well pitched at extending the knowledge and understanding of top students. My top student in particular responded very well to this additional input during revision and exam preparation. We will certainly make good use of it again for future students.

J Ryland, Teacher and Customer

The resource is accessible and very well structured. It focuses on key grammar points using explanations and examples to facilitate understanding. It works perfectly within the AQA Specifications and is very useful to help students see and understand the difference between A and A* structures.

Y Morris, HoD and Customer

There are lots of good ideas which should inspire teachers. I particularly like the listening transcripts.

S Fleet, Teacher & Expert Reviewer

What do teachers say about this resource? (10358)

This is an extremely detailed resource. The author has clearly spent a lot of time analysing the specification and reading the examiner’s report to cover the demands of the course. Listening/Reading/Translation/Speaking – tasks are extremely similar to what is expected in the exam. The suggestions for independent research are good to ensure that students are developing those skills before tackling their IRP. The suggestions for students are very helpful and the fact that a mark scheme is provided and very detailed, is fantastic. The fact that all 3 papers are covered is also a bonus. I appreciate that Paper 2 is on the film/book but the opportunity to develop writing skills no matter the topic is great. I particularly like the way the resource is organised. The strength of 1 student might differ from the strength of another and it would still be possible to challenge different students at different times with this resource. The fact that the units are clearly labelled and that there is an overview at the start of the pack makes it easy to select the relevant unit. In the life of a busy teacher, this is a godsend.

I Rodriguez, Head of Languages & Peer Reviewer

It interprets the specification really well and I think it’s invaluable as it matches the SAMs and exam questions, especially with regards to the speaking, listening and reading elements of the exam. It’s a great resource to provide A Level Spanish students with lots of practice and exercises to push their marks in their exams. It’s a very comprehensive resource and covers everything students need to succeed, especially in terms of reading, speaking and listening. I particularly like exercises like the “exam-style questions”, especially the reading and speaking ones. Teachers can use it for class activities and for setting homework, and there are lots of sections that can be used for independent study. The answers at the back of the resource provide a great way for students to mark their own work or for peer marking. The links to external websites provide extremely useful materials for research and further study. 

J Ermina, Teacher & Peer Reviewer

An excellent resource for this specification as there is nothing like it in the market at the moment and it will easily be able to be used in class and for homework tasks. It helps students master exam technique of the 5 main skills. There is clarity in what is expected of the students and the diversity of topics is great.

A Palomo Lopez, Head of Spanish & Peer Reviewer

What do teachers say about this resource? (9479)

The resource gives students a great way to practice some integral skills when aiming for an A* grade. All explanations and practise questions are very clear and user friendly and I would expect students to be able to complete all tasks independently

H Oberg, Teacher & Peer Reviewer

This is definitely a resource targeting the top end of the ability range...some excellent, challenging activities closely allied with the AQA A Level topics and tasks.

A Watson, Teacher & Peer Reviewer