English Paper I in ICSE Boards exam is a language testing paper which include

Grammar and composition. Students have to bring out all their skills and talents
what they have learned during their schooling time in the language to excel in
this final exam. In this article I gave some tips, techniques and suggestions to
fare well in English language paper.

English Paper I in ICSE Boards exam mainly include questions from Grammar and
composition. Students have to do extremely well to score full marks in Grammar part.
To score well in composition part they have to use good vocabulary, good language and
have to write good sentences without any grammatic mistakes. So students have to
show their entire skill and hold over the English language to fare well in this subject. In
ICSE Paper I, the same mode of questions will come every year in this paper and so I
gave some tips and suggestion to excel well for each model of the questions given in
the question paper.

Here is ICSE Board's solved English Grammar questions from previous year question
papers

Tips and suggestions for answering

Question 1
Question 1 is a composition question consisting of 5 different varieties of questions. Out of
these five questions a candidate has to attempt any one of the question of his choice. So, first
student has to read all the five questions carefully and has to pick up a question which is more
convenient for him to impress the examiner.
In Question 1 (a) will be a short story-Basing on the given theme or certain phrases or outline
given, student has to write a creative story of his/her own in about 350-400 words. These are
the important things or points that the student has to keep in mind before attempting this type of
questions.

 The story should be narrated with a literary background of setting, character building,
plot, conflict, denouement.
 Students should write a story of their own creation but not a story of what they have lifted
out from some other book or well known popular stories. Candidates will be heavily
penalized in marks if they follow such a method in writing the story. Narration part of the
story should be given much importance and student should bring out the idea or central
theme given in the question by the end of the story.
 Sometimes student start the story with a male character and after sometime they go on
mentioning 'she' instead of 'he' in their story narration. Students sometimes start their
story in past tense and finally ends the story in present tense. Students should avoid
 such blind mistakes while writing the story and such a things will cost them much in
getting good marks.

In Question 1(b) A statement will be given (Ex:'Boarding schools are far better than day schools
for the all-round education of a child'. Express your view either for or against this statement.)
Student has to argue for the statement or against the statement. To write such a type of
questions students have to keep the following points in their mind to excel in answering the
questions:

 Students to back the side of their argument should provide strong points with logic to
strengthen their stand.
 Student should back only one side of the argument but not support or partially support
both which weaken their stance.
 To strengthen the point of their argument they have to quote examples or experiences
from the real life situations.

Question 1(c), Description of an imaginative event (Ex:You were on a school trip and were on
your way back to the hotel late one night when your school bus, full of children, broke down in a
lonely area. Describe what you saw and experienced as you looked around. How was the
problem
solved?
Student have to imagine the situation given and have to bring out their vivid feelings to make the
reader to feel real. Student has to bring out his ideas to show a proper solution to the situation.
Question 1(d), Students have to narrate what was given in the question(Ex(Q): Teaching
someone else how to do something can be a rewarding experience. Think of a skill that you
have helped someone to develop. Perhaps you taught someone how to swim or to bake a cake,
or helped someone learn how to study more effectively. Narrate the events that made up the
process of teaching the skill, and say what made the experience important and memorable for
you.)
Students have to feel themselves in the situation and have to narrate their imaginative
experience in a fitting way. Imagination of the situation is very important to bring out the best to
write your experience on the answer sheet.
Question 1(e), a picture will be given and the student has to analyze that photo and has to write
a composition by taking suggestion from the picture or a story in connection to the picture.
This question also test the imaginative and expressive abilities of the student. Student should
not write what was not suggested through the picture. Writing uncorrelated things or mere
mentioning or description of the of objects present in the picture will not fetch any marks to the
student. Student has to imagine the situation as suggested by the picture and has to answer.

Here are Best preparation methods and tips to score well in ICSE Board's examinations
Question 2
In question 2 is a letter writing question which include an informal and formal letter. Candidates
have to choose any one of the question from the choice.
For Formal letter or Informal letter, candidate have to present correct format of the letter, correct
salutations or subscriptions. Candidates have to give importance to address the points in the
question and pay attention to the issue given in the question. Candidates have to address the
points in separate paragraphs. Incorrect paragraphing and overlong letters do not give scope to
score more marks. Attention must be paid to clarity of expression and good vocabulary.
Candidates have to give importance to format of the letter, content of the letter and expression
of their views very clearly with good vocabulary.

Formal letter format:-

From address (home/school)
Date
To address ONLY Principal, [spelling counts] + School address
Salutation [ Sir/ Madam/ Dear.../ Rev. Mother etc
Subscription. Yours faithfully
Name + surname/initial

Informal letter format:-

Informal letter:
Address (Home/school)
Date
Salutation- Dear/My dear [-name]/female relative
Subscription- Yours lovingly, /Yours affectionately, /Your loving,/affectionate...
First name
Question 3
Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions that follow:-
The first thing to do for this type of questions is to read the passage several times till you
understand the clear meaning of the passage and then only you have to proceed to answer.
The meanings asked for the words from the passage have to be gleaned from the context of the
passage but should not write their literal meaning. For the questions given on the passage
specific answers with fitting words to be given but merely copying the content or sentences form
the passage given do not help you to score marks. The title given by the candidate for the
summary written by them should mention how this title is apt for their summary. The answers
written for the questions of this passage must strictly follow the word limit mentioned for each
question.

Question 4
In this questions mainly various grammar questions will appear.

a. Fill in each of the numbered blanks with the correct form of the word given in brackets:-
For this question candidates have to use proper form of the tense and especially have to
learn proper use of present continuous tense . Students must be clear with the rules of
tenses and sequence of tenses through their regular practices of exercise work.
Candidates should not make spelling mistakes while writing the answers.

b. Fill in the blank with an appropriate word:- The correct use of prepositions is very
important to score good marks in this question. Candidates must know well when to use
these words:-
"from" instead of "between" , "from" in place of "since" , "in" instead of 'of' , 'away' in
place of 'down' , 'out' in place of 'off' . Candidates should not simply guess and write
answers for these questions.

c. Join the following sentences to make one complete sentence without using and, but or
so:- For this type of questions candidates must use basic grammar rules in writing
correct sentences. Candidates have to use gerund and infinitive correctly. Candidates
must adhere to the meaning of the given sentences while attempting answers for this
type of questions.
 d. Re-write the following sentences according to the instructions given after each. Make
other changes that may be necessary, but do not change the meaning of each
sentence:-
Candidates should not use such phrases as 'No sooner…when' or 'No sooner…then'.
Candidates loose marks by changing 'he' to 'she' and vice versa or replaced names with
pronouns of the given sentence. (eg: 'she' in place of 'Rita').

Here is 1999 ICSE English Grammar solved exam paper

Some important tips to do well in English

Language (Paper 1) in ICSE Boards Exam

1. Practice the format of the letter separately with regular consistency. Understand clearly
what you are being asked to write about. Practice the format of letter, underline the part
of the question that you are supposed to address.

2. Practice grammar exercises regularly and daily. Drill work is a very important part of
grammar learning. Use entire passages rather than sentences for practice.

3. Worksheets designed to practice specific items of grammar are extremely useful for
learning grammar. Adequate practice should be given in transforming sentences from
one kind to another.

4. In this question paper while answering questions write accurately and concisely what
you are asked and please remember to write in your own words.

5. Improve your listening and reading abilities to enhance your scoring capabilities in
grammar part. Comprehending unseen passage become difficult because of your poor
listening and reading habits. Actually Grammar part is a high scoring area works the
other way around if the candidate neglects good habit of listening and reading.
6. Learn to write in your own words rather than mugging from guides and prepared notes
and for this listen to well Spoken English when you can. The television is full of good
useful, educative and enjoyable program mes.

7. Students should take initiative to read English newspapers daily so that the correct
usage and style of language is maintained. Student must use the dictionary and
thesaurus extensively in learning English language.

8. Speak in English, avoid the temptation of thinking in your mother tongue and then
translating into
English. Read for pleasure. Be a part of classroom debates and discussions.

By following above tips you can surely do the best and score maximum marks in your
ICSE Board's English language Paper I.