5th Year Weekly Grinds

Applied Maths (H)

The Applied Math’s syllabus covers a variety of topics, designed to solve problems arising in Physics, Computer Science, Business and Finance. This course explores each topic in turn by first explaining the ideas behind, and motivation for the topic at hand, as well as applications to further study and professions. More concrete problems are then tackled, and once a level of proficiency and understanding is achieved focus is shifted to exam papers. Applied Maths assumes knowledge of the Leaving Certificate Maths syllabus, and so special care is taken to introduce topics only after 5th Year students are likely to have covered the necessary material in their own Maths classes.

Topics will be taught from the following list:

• Networks and Graphs
• Algorithms and Graphs
• Project Scheduling
• Dynamic Programming
• Units and Vectors
• Linear Motion
• Projectiles
• Newton’s Laws and Connected Particles
• Work, Energy and Power
• Collisions
• Circular Motion

Comprehensive notes will be given to students in advance of classes. They are designed not only to be followed during the first contact with a topic, but also to be an adequate revision tool after the fact. Multiple worked examples are provided, as well as questions to be worked through during class time, and optional homework to be completed after each class.

Biology (H)

Course Outline

This course is designed for students studying Higher Level Biology. Classes are exam-centered and particular attention is paid to past papers. The course is delivered by an experienced examiner of Leaving Cert Higher Level Biology who places strong emphasis on exam technique/keywords and the marking scheme. Worksheets are also given to help students gain an understanding of experiments associated with the Higher Level Biology course.

Topics from:

• The characteristics of life and the scientific method
• Food (biomolecules)
• Cell structure
• Cell diversity
• Enzymes i.
• Enzymes ii.
• Exam question focus
• Movement through membranes
• Cell continuity (mitosis)
• Respiration i.
• Diversity of living things
• Monera (bacteria)
• Exam question focus
• Fungi
• Protoctista (amoeba)
• Structure of flowering plants
• Transport in flowering plants
• Human circulatory system
• Human lymphatic system and defence
• Human nutrition
• Homeostasis
• Human breathing system
• Human excretion system
• The endocrine system
• The nervous system
• Ecology i.
• Ecology ii.
• Exam question focus

Chemistry (H)

Course Outline

The aim of this course is to allow students to gain a thorough understanding of topics on the Leaving Certificate Higher Level Chemistry course.

Topics from:

• Mole concept / Isotopes / Stoichiometry
• Periodic Table / Arrangement of electrons in atoms / Trends in the Periodic Table
• Chemical Bonding / Tests for Anions / Recrystallisation /Melting Point Determination
• Intermolecular forces / Shapes of Covalent Molecules
• Oxidation & Reduction / Oxidation numbers / Balancing Redox Equations / Halogens as Oxidising Agents
• Intro to Volumetric Analysis / Preparation of Standard Solutions / Acid Base Titrations
• Properties of Gases / Ideal Gas Equation / Measurement of Relative Molecular Mass of Volatile Liquid
• Volumetric Analysis (Part 2) / Redox Titrations / Potassium Permanganate and Iron (11) Ions / Sodium Thiosulphate & Iodine
• Hydrocarbons / Oil refining & oil products / Thermochemistry / Hydrogen
• Alkanes / Alkenes & Alkynes / Mechanisms of Substitution & Addition Reactions / Benzene

Please bring periodic table and calculator.

Classical Studies (H)

The Four Strands of Study

Strand 1

The World of Heroes: Homer’s Odyssey and Virgil’s Aeneid.

Strand 2

Drama & Spectacle: Greek theatre, Euripides’ Medea, the Roman Games, the Circus Maximus and the Colosseum.

Strand 3

Power & Identity: Alexander the Great.

Strand 4

Gods & Humans: Greek and Roman funerary practices, Greek and Roman temples and religious festivals, philosophy in Plato’s Crito and Horace’s Odes and Epodes.

Assessment

A research essay on an aspect of the ancient world must be completed by January of 6^th year. This essay is worth 20% of the final assessment. The remaining 80% comes down to a single two and a half hour exam paper.

These are the books required for both 5th and 67th years:

• G. Lloyd, Alexander the Great: Selections from Arrian, Cambridge University Press.
• Homer, The Odyssey, Penguin Classics (Must be translated by E.V. Rieu)
• Virgil: Selections from the Aeneid, Cambridge University Press, translated by Graham Tingay.

Economics (H)

Course Outline

Our 5th Year Economics grinds help students to develop the knowledge and critically, the flexibility, needed to be successful at Higher Level by assisting them in developing a deep understanding of all aspects of the Economics course. Having a broad knowledge across the entire course is an absolute pre-requisite for success and our exam focussed classes assist students to develop that breadth of knowledge. Students will learn how to apply that knowledge to exam style questions and will become familiar with the attention to detail consistent with H1 standards. Furthermore, students are encouraged to understand and evaluate real world economic events as this is another essential component for success in both the written examination and the research project.

Topics from:

Strand 1: What is Economics About?

• Economics as a way of thinking
• The economic concepts of scarcity and choice
• Economic, social and environmental sustainability

Strand 2: How are Economic Decisions Made?

• The market economy
• The consumer
• The firm
• Government intervention in the market

Strand 3: What Can Marketers Do?

• Market structures
• The labour market
• Market failure

Strand 4: What Is The Relationship Between Policy and Economic Performance?

• National income
• Fiscal policy and the budget framework
• Employment and unemployment
• Monetary policy and the price level
• Financial sector

English (H)

Course Outline

This class is designed to empower 5th year students so that they will be confident and successful in their approach to Leaving Cert. English. The classes will cover course content and relevant answering techniques on Papers 1 and 2 in order that students maximise their potential in the subject.

Topics Covered

Paper 1

• Explanation of the 5 prescribed language genres:
  • The Language of Argument
  • The Language of Persuasion
  • The Language of Information
  • The Language of Narration
  • The Aesthetic use of Language
• Comprehensive analysis of past examination tasks, with focus on how to approach the Reading Comprehension Part A and Part B tasks.
• Guidelines on the types of questions / tasks set and sample answers provided with a breakdown of the marking scheme.
• The Composition task is worth 25% of the final grade. Guidelines and examples will be provided on how to write an effective:
  • Personal Essay
  • Discursive Essay-Speeches/Newspaper Articles etc.
  • Short Story
  • Descriptive Essay

Paper 2

Single Text – The single text being taught in these classes is William Shakespeare’s Macbeth.

NB Significant class time will be given to the exploration of the single text.

The focus will be on developing a clear and substantial understanding of the plot, characters and important themes of the play, as well as beginning the work of identifying and learning important quotation.

Comparative Studies

• Class will offer guidelines on an approach to:
  • Using comparative language effectively
  • Constructing effective Comparative essays-past exam question analysis
  • The three prescribed modes of comparison:
    • Literary Genre
    • The Cultural Context
    • The General Vision and Viewpoint

Specific notes will be provided on a selection of prescribed comparative texts.

Poetry

Analysis of:

• Unseen Poetry tasks, including guidelines and sample responses to past questions
• 4 of the 8 prescribed poets will be taught in class
• Approaching the Prescribed Poetry Question:
  • How to structure your answer
  • Sample answers to past questions
  • Notes will be provided on all eight of the prescribed poets:
    • Elizabeth Bishop
    • John Donne
    • T.S. Eliot
    • Seamus Heaney
    • Paula Meehan
    • Eiléan Ní Chuilleanáin
    • Tracy K Smith
    • W. B. Yeats

French (H)

Course Outline

This course covers all the four competencies necessary for success in Leaving Certificate Higher Level French – Aural, Oral, Reading and Writing.

Topics from:

• Letter writing
• Diary entries
• Abstract topics
• Response pieces
• Comprehensions (method and content)
• Listening comprehensions
• Oral exam

Geography (H)

Course Outline

The focus of these classes is to improve the standard of knowledge and examination techniques for students studying Geography in Fifth Year.
Each class will examine key topics and the types of questions that can occur in exams. Students will learn how to study, understand and apply their knowledge to exam situations.

The areas for study in Fifth Year are focused on Physical Geography and Regional Geography. This will give students a strong basis for Sixth Year.

Physical Geography

• Plate Tectonics
• Volcanoes
• Earthquakes
• Folding and Faulting
• The Rock Cycle
• Weathering Processes
• Karst Landscapes
• River Processes and Landforms
• Marine Processes and Landforms
• Glacial Processes and Landforms
• Mass Movement Processes
• Human Interaction with Natural Processes
• Isostasy

Regional Geography

• Physical Regions
• Climate Regions
• Socio-Economic Regions
• Urban Regions
• Cultural Regions
• Administrative Regions
• 2 contrasting Irish Regions: 2 Case Studies
• 2 contrasting Non-Irish European Regions: 2 case studies
• I Sub-Continental Region
• The European Union
• Border Change

German (H)

Course Outline

This course prepares students to achieve their maximum potential in their Leaving Certificate Higher Level German exam. Classes concentrate on the four main skills tested in the exam, with ongoing homework and support provided throughout the year.

Topics from:

Oral Exam

• Exam format
• General questions
• Role play
• Picture sequence or project work
• Option to discuss a film or novel in the oral will be covered

Aural Comprehension

• Practice using CDs and authentic listening material
• Skills required for the exam

Reading Comprehension

• Intro to both journalistic and literary styles of texts
• Answering skills & techniques for the written exam

Writing

• Letter writing
• Short essay
• Opinion of issue practice

Grammar

• Techniques needed for the examination
• Formal grammar section covered in detail

History (H)

Course Outline

This course is designed to help students prioritise their work that needs to be done in preparation for their Leaving Certificate Higher Level History exam. This course is suitable for students who are undertaking History in their school. The course structure, teaching and notes are also applicable for students who wish to study History as an extra subject outside their regular timetable.

Many of the online class sessions will also feature short video clips to add to the learning experience, encourage student engagement and invite questions and discussion.

In the Fifth-Year teaching programme, emphasis is given to two course modules. Where time permits, all three topics from the compulsory documents section of the Leaving Cert exam paper will also be taught.

The three Leaving Cert History modules that feature in Fifth Year are:

• Dictatorship and Democracy, 1920-1945 (Compulsory documents section will feature from this module in the 2024 and 2025 state examinations)
• Sovereignty and Partition, 1912-1949
• Politics and Society in Northern Ireland, 1949-1993

Key personalities, core course content and material outside the syllabus will be analysed to give the student extra insight and understanding of these modules to aim for the higher grades in the state exams.

Throughout the year, students will gain access to data, content and personalities that often do not feature in mainstream textbooks. The students will have a stronger grasp of each course topic and a greater range of content with which to answer any exam question.

Students will also be introduced to the several core-course themes that run through each of the modules. These themes influence the frame-working of exam questions. Knowledge of these themes and how they feature throughout the various course topics will help students achieve a deeper understanding of the subject and ensure they are better prepared for the state examination.

Information and tips regarding managing content, effective writing and essay structure will be referred to throughout the year.

Students will be instructed how to address and effectively answer the compulsory documents section of the exam paper.

Module 1: Dictatorship and Democracy, 1920-1945

(Compulsory Documents Case Study Section) Emphasis will be given to the three document case studies. Other areas of the course will also feature to enable the student to achieve a more comprehensive understanding of events that influenced each of the case study topics.

• The Rise of Hitler, his totalitarian regime, and life in Nazi Germany
• Nazi Propaganda
• Case Study: The Nuremberg Rallies
• The characteristics of fascism
• Britain between the Wars
• Case Study: The Jarrow March
• Stalin’s Russia – ‘Fear and Transformation’
• Case Study: Stalin’s Show Trials
• Propaganda in Stalin’s Russia

Module 2: Sovereignty and Partition, 1912-1949

Topics that feature from this Irish module include:

• Unionist resistance to Home Rule, 1912-1914
• The 1916 Rising
• The rise of new Sinn Féin, 1916-1918
• The War of Independence
• Case Study: The Treaty Negotiations
• The contribution of Countess Markievicz, Padraig Pearse, Arthur Griffith, and Michael Collins to Irish affairs
• Socio-economic developments in the Irish Free State
• Case Study: The 1932 Eucharistic Congress
• Social morality in the Irish Free State
• Law and Order in the Irish Free State
• Steps to assert Irish sovereignty, 1922-1949
• Anglo-Irish relations, 1922-1949
• The path to partition, 1912-1949
• The role of education, the Irish language and religion in the Irish Free State
• The contribution of Cosgrave and de Valera to Irish affairs
• Case Study: The Belfast bombings, 1941 and a comparative analysis with the war experience in Dublin

Module 3: Politics and Society in Northern Ireland, 1949-1993

Topics that will feature form the Northern Ireland course module will include:

• Lord Brookeborough and the emergence of the welfare state in Northern Ireland, 1943-1963
• Cultural identity and symbolism in Northern Ireland
• Case Study: The Apprentice Boys of Derry
• The O’Neill era, 1963-1969
• Case Study: The Coleraine University controversy
• The Civil Rights Movement, 1967-1969
• The outbreak of the Troubles, the collapse of Stormont and Direct Rule, 1969-1972
• Case Study: The Sunningdale Agreement 1973
• Impact of the Troubles on Northern Ireland and political efforts that tried to establish peace
• The contributions of Bernadette Devlin, John Hume, Margaret Thatcher, Ian Paisley, and Seamus Heaney to Northern Irish affairs
• The contribution of Capt. Terence O’Neil to Northern Ireland
• The contribution of Brian Faulkner to Northern Ireland
• How the Troubles impacted on music, sport, and the arts

Irish (H)

Course Outline

This course aims to maximise the student’s ability to achieve the highest possible grade in the Leaving Certificate Higher Level Irish exam.

Topics from:

Poetry and Prose

• Detailed notes and sample answers to past papers provided (including the optional literature)
• Focus on vocabulary and key phrases

Oral Exam

• Practice of oral skills in class
• Sample answers to common questions
• Picture sequences 1-20 covered in class

Aural Exam

• Practice of past papers in class
• Focus on skills for the exam
• Focus on terms, questions and various dialects presented in the exam

Grammar Skills

• Weekly focus on grammatical aspects of the language
• Development of vocabulary
• Focus on comprehension past papers

Exam Skills and Techniques

• How to negotiate the exam
• Timing
• Tips for success

Maths (H)

Course Outline

This course covers the essential methods, formulae and procedures required for success in the Leaving Certificate Higher Level Maths Papers 1 and 2. Students are shown how to approach exam questions and homework properly. Guidance is given on resource material they will need to enhance their studies. Comprehensive notes are presented and fully worked solutions, with a huge number of examples, are provided.

Topics from:

• Algebra
• Complex Numbers
• Limits and an introduction to Calculus
• Financial Mathematics
• Sequences and Series
• Differentiation
• Anti- Differentiation
• Functions
• Trigonometry
• Co-ordinate Geometry of The Line and Circle

Please bring log tables and calculator.

Physics (H)

Course Outline

This course gives an intensive overview of selected topics from the Leaving Certificate Higher Level Physics syllabus. Strong emphasis is placed on the exam and past papers and students are given a solid foundation for progression in to 6th year. Classes are taught in a friendly, relaxed and structured manner that is conducive to understanding the principles of physics.

Topics from:

Mechanics 1

• Linear motion
• Newton’s laws

Mechanics 2

• Moments
• Circular motion
• Planetary motion
• S.H.M.

Sound and Waves

• Doppler Effect
• Standing waves
• Sound intensity

Light

• Reflection
• Refraction
• Diffraction

Electricity 1

• Resistivity
• Resistance
• Conductivity
• Semiconductors

Exam Focus

• How to study physics
• How to prepare for the exam
• How to correctly read exam questions
• How to “answer what is asked”

Please bring log tables, past papers and calculator.

Spanish (H)

Course Outline

This course prepares students for success in the Leaving Certificate Higher Level Spanish exam. Initial emphasis is placed on developing grammar skills. Once this important foundation has been established, students then practice with past papers and learn strategies to maximize their marks in the Oral, Aural, Reading and Written sections.

Topics from:

• General overview of the exam paper
• Key grammar points
  • Verbs: present, future, conditional, 3 past tenses, subjunctive, imperative and gerund
  • Some special verbs: gustar, ser and estar
  • Pronouns
• Reading Comprehension
  • Exam techniques and vocabulary from past papers.
• Writing
  • Opinion piece (Structure, topics, vocabulary, idiomatic expressions…)
  • Writing techniques for Diary entries and Notes.
  • Sentence building. Work on common errors.
• Listening comprehension
  • Vocabulary from past papers
  • Vocabulary for the weather report
• Oral
  • Understanding the oral exam
  • Interview. Expanding on common topics
  • Sample answers
  • Role-plays