IGCSE Paper 1 · Reading and Writing

How to use this sample

Choose Reading or Writing. Read the task guide, attempt independently, check the explanation or model, then revise before moving on.

Attempt first. Keep the model and explanation closed until you have finished. This sample reuses a selected activity from the paid collection; it is not an additional unseen test.

Reading · A library on the move

When a small town library closed for repairs, students in Bellford worried that readers living beyond the centre would lose their easiest source of books. Their solution was not another building. They converted a second-hand delivery van into a travelling library, which now visits three neighbourhoods each week. The project began as a temporary arrangement, but requests from residents encouraged the organisers to continue after the original library reopened.

The students initially expected children to form the largest group of borrowers. Instead, retired residents became the most regular visitors. Some could walk to the van's stop but found the longer journey into town difficult. Others valued the chance to discuss a book with someone who remembered their previous choice. The van's limited space seemed less important than this personal contact.

Each visit lasts ninety minutes. The team used to stop beside a supermarket, where there was plenty of parking, but traffic noise made conversations difficult. The current stop is outside the community centre. A notice inside the windscreen shows the return date, although borrowers can also check the printed timetable collected during their first visit.

Readers may take three books home and keep them for a fortnight. They do not pay to join, and a late return does not attract a fine. However, someone who repeatedly fails to return books is asked to discuss a new arrangement before borrowing again. The organisers want to recover books without making a worried reader avoid the van altogether.

Volunteers choose stock using requests from borrowers rather than simply accepting every donation. Books with missing pages are unsuitable, however attractive their covers look. A separate box holds large-print editions. These were expensive to obtain, but a local business paid for the first collection after hearing readers explain why they needed them.

Anyone planning a first visit should check the timetable because the van does not attend every neighbourhood on the same day. Bring something that shows your address when registering. Readers who need a particular title should request it in advance, allowing the team to collect it from storage. Finally, arrive before the last ten minutes if you want help choosing: that period is reserved for recording returns and packing safely.

The students do not claim that a van can replace everything a permanent library offers. It has no quiet study room and cannot carry a huge collection. Nevertheless, a shelf that arrives reliably can be more useful than a larger service that some readers cannot reach.

Writing · A surprise on the school trip

You recently visited a science centre with your class. Write an email to your friend Sam.

• Explain why your class went there.
• Describe something unexpected that happened.
• Say whether you would recommend the visit and why.

Practise a 120–160-word response. Focus: Develop every task point with a relevant detail.

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