DSE Chinese — Character Description and Function Questions Tutor Prep Guide

DSE Chinese — Character Description and Function Questions Tutor Prep Guide | 1,200 words in 12 minutes

2026-11-03

Tutor lesson-prep guides · Secondary Chinese

Students finish a 1,200-word narrative and still cannot say what the main character is like, because they read from the first line to the last. This lesson reads the questions first: 1,200 words in 12 minutes is 100 words a minute, and the time is allocated rather than discovered.

Objectives — Students can: (1) read a 1,200-word narrative in 12 minutes at 100 words a minute and mark the four description types; (2) classify 12 descriptive sentences and identify the 8 that work indirectly (66.7%), naming what each borrows; (3) answer a function question in three layers (content, structure, theme) with at least 3 points on a four-mark item.

01 Prerequisites (3-minute check)

If any of these fails, fix it before the lesson starts.

Skill	Quick check	Pass mark
Six narrative elements	What goes wrong if one of time, place, person, cause, process or result is missing?	The plot is incomplete and function questions lose their logic
Description types	What is the difference between direct and indirect description?	Direct describes the person; indirect borrows others reactions, setting or objects
Paragraph function	What three jobs does an opening paragraph often do?	Signal the theme, create suspense, set the scene
Answer format	How many points does a four-mark question need?	Two or three points, each with textual evidence

02 Lesson flow (60 minutes)

Time	Stage	Tutor does	Student does
0–8 min	Questions first	Show the questions, no reading yet	Note what is asked and how many points
8–20 min	Four description types	Model appearance, speech, action, thought	Sort twelve sentences and mark the indirect ones
20–32 min	Three layers	Model one sentence per layer	Answer a four-mark item in three layers
32–44 min	Timed practice	Twelve minutes for reading and three questions	Work alone, no dictionary
44–52 min	Feedback with evidence	Point to the sentence that proves each answer	Add the missing quotation
52–60 min	Exit check	Oral marking of three items	Answer independently

03 Teaching script (read it out)

Scene 1: Read the questions first; the time is calculated

A 1,200-word text read in 12 minutes is 100 words a minute; the paper gives 75 minutes for 3 texts, so 25 minutes each, half for reading and half for answers. Reading the questions first means you know what to look for: if the question asks what the mother is like, a line of dialogue makes you stop. Reading straight through leaves you with the story but no evidence.

Students should say why the questions come first and how the reading time is calculated.

Scene 2: Four types, and the hard one is indirect

Appearance describes looks and clothes, speech reports what is said, action reports what is done, thought reports what is felt: all four are direct. Indirect description borrows other people, the setting or an object: the mother says nothing about worrying, but an extra pair of chopsticks on the table shows she was waiting. Of 12 descriptive sentences, 8 are usually indirect (66.7%); students mark only the direct ones, which is why their function answers stay shallow.

Students should say what indirect description borrows in order to describe a person.

Scene 3: Three layers, not three feelings

A four-mark answer starts with content: what this passage shows. Then structure: which earlier point it picks up and which later point it prepares. Then theme: what it brings out. One sentence each, plus one quotation, completes the answer. “It shows the mother worked hard” is only the first layer and earns at most half. The sentence pattern “this passage … picks up … prepares … brings out …” produces the layers naturally.

Students should answer once using content, structure and theme.

04 Question types and worked steps

Type	Example	Steps	Answer
Identify description	He clenched his fist until the knuckles went white.	1. Find the verb 2. Decide action or appearance 3. Name the feeling shown	Action description showing suppressed anger
Function question	What is the function of the mother back view in paragraph three?	1. Content 2. Structure 3. Theme, each with evidence	The back view carries her worry, picks up the quarrel and prepares the reconciliation
Character image	What kind of person is the main character?	1. Two adjectives 2. One textual event each 3. No unsupported judgement	Stubborn but soft-hearted: stubborn in the argument, soft in leaving a light on
Paragraph deletion	What happens if paragraph four is removed?	1. Note the information it carries 2. Check the links before and after 3. Judge whether it can be replaced	The motive disappears and the ending loses its preparation

Sanity check (teach this): Checks: 1,200 words in 12 minutes is 100 words a minute, slower than ordinary reading because sentences must be marked; 75 minutes over 3 texts is 25 minutes each, an average to be adjusted by marks. 8 of 12 indirect sentences is 66.7%, just over half, so “more than half” is safer than “most”. 6 questions at 3 points each is 18 points, which matches the mark structure of four-mark items.

05 Independent practice (3 questions)

Question	Answer	What to watch
1,200 words in 12 minutes, words per minute	100	Minutes taken as seconds
75 minutes over 3 texts, minutes each	25	Forgot to reserve checking time
8 indirect out of 12, percentage	66.7%	Written as 8%
6 questions at 3 points, total points	18	Multiplication slip

06 Common mistakes and what to say

Mistake	Student writes	Say this
Copying without analysis	Copying “he clenched his fist” as the whole answer.	“Copying earns at most one mark; you must name the technique and what it shows: action description, suppressed anger.”
Function answered as content only	“This paragraph shows the mother worked hard.”	“Content is the first layer only. Add what it picks up and what it prepares; three layers secure the marks.”
Judgement without evidence	“The main character is kind.”	“Every adjective needs a textual event behind it, or the marker has nothing to reward.”
Time split too uneven	Spending thirty-five minutes on the first text.	“Seventy-five minutes for three texts is twenty-five each; overrunning the first starves the third.”

07 Homework (paper, section and question numbers)

Chinese chapter index — Review rhetoric and description, then do this week narrative practice
Rhetoric and description — Redo practice questions 1 and 2, classifying description and answering function
Classical Chinese grammar — Classical description is more compressed; compare it with indirect modern writing

08 Exit check (last 5 minutes)

Question	Answer	Decision
1,200 words in 12 minutes, words per minute	100	Wrong: no division
The three layers of a function answer	Content, structure, theme	Wrong: content only
Four types of character description	Appearance, speech, action, thought	Wrong: thought missing
What indirect description borrows	Other people reactions, setting, objects	Wrong: “adjectives”

09 Tutor FAQ

Must the technique names be memorised?

Yes, because the questions use them; the name alone is not enough without one quotation.

Should the classical text come first?

Order by strength, but reserve answer time for every text; secure marks before chasing them.

Is a longer answer better?

A four-mark item needs three layers and one quotation; repeating one layer at length adds nothing.

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A TutorZone lesson-prep guide. Written by the TutorZone team; questions and lesson flow are original and are not taken from any school or publisher material.