Blueprint Online Course--October 2012 LSAT Forum

[AAyala]

Greetings!

Just wanted to start a thread for those enrolled in Blueprint's Online Course! Consider this a secondary "October 2012 LSAT Prep" thread; however, exclusive to the work presented through the online course.

I felt it necessary to post a thread because our regimen is quite different (both in structure and techniques), so we can help each other out!

Happy studying

[Joeshan520]

Doing a hybrid in class/video upgrade class. Got a great deal. Checking in!

[lovelyspotlight]

I'm taking the Blueprint online course! Checking in!

[az21833]

Checking in. Currently on Lesson 6. doing all the practice tests after i get through all the material first.

[lovelyspotlight]

Checking in. Currently on Lesson 6. doing all the practice tests after i get through all the material first.

That's what I'm planning on doing, too. All my PTs are sitting in a box waiting for me to attack when the time comes.

Quick question: How long does it take you to get through a lesson, on average? I don't know if it's because I have too many distractions in my current place of study or if it's because I'm just slow, but it's been taking me FOREVER to work through each lesson...as in, rarely do I finish a whole lesson plus homework in one day. I know they say it's good to take your time learning the material and then work on speed later; it's just a little concerning that it takes me quite so long.

At any rate, I'm feeling/seeing some major improvement in LR!

[bp shinners]

I'll be keeping my eyes on this thread - feel free to address any specific questions to me!

[az21833]

it takes me about 4 hours to watch the lesson and 4 hours to do the homework. i typically watch one lesson Saturday and one lesson Sunday then do the homework for them throughout the week after work. Has been manageable so far

[AAyala]

Checking in. Currently on Lesson 6. doing all the practice tests after i get through all the material first.

Wow! Fast worker! I am all done with PT 1 and on Lesson 4.

[AAyala]

Checking in. Currently on Lesson 6. doing all the practice tests after i get through all the material first.

That's what I'm planning on doing, too. All my PTs are sitting in a box waiting for me to attack when the time comes.

Quick question: How long does it take you to get through a lesson, on average? I don't know if it's because I have too many distractions in my current place of study or if it's because I'm just slow, but it's been taking me FOREVER to work through each lesson...as in, rarely do I finish a whole lesson plus homework in one day. I know they say it's good to take your time learning the material and then work on speed later; it's just a little concerning that it takes me quite so long.

At any rate, I'm feeling/seeing some major improvement in LR!

Yeah, speed later and learning concepts now. I am the same way -- I am a little slow at LSAT stuff because I want to really absorb it. I figure a lesson a day (maaaaaaybe two lessons if you need to catch up). I do the homework in-between the next lesson(s).

[bp shinners]

Quick question: How long does it take you to get through a lesson, on average? I don't know if it's because I have too many distractions in my current place of study or if it's because I'm just slow, but it's been taking me FOREVER to work through each lesson...as in, rarely do I finish a whole lesson plus homework in one day.

I think the average time is somewhere between 3.5 and 4 hours for the lessons.

And you're not supposed to get through a lesson AND the homework in one day - that's overkill. Limit yourself to 4 hours/day, or you're going to hit a wall fast. The homework should take about as long as the lesson. That's why our class is staggered during the week - one day of class, one day to do homework; another class, another HW day; another class, 2 days to catch up on everything.

Our class is scheduled as much for optimal learning as it is for the logistics of renting a room. It's one of the benefits of having so many hours in the course.

[lovelyspotlight]

Quick question: How long does it take you to get through a lesson, on average? I don't know if it's because I have too many distractions in my current place of study or if it's because I'm just slow, but it's been taking me FOREVER to work through each lesson...as in, rarely do I finish a whole lesson plus homework in one day.

I think the average time is somewhere between 3.5 and 4 hours for the lessons.

And you're not supposed to get through a lesson AND the homework in one day - that's overkill. Limit yourself to 4 hours/day, or you're going to hit a wall fast. The homework should take about as long as the lesson. That's why our class is staggered during the week - one day of class, one day to do homework; another class, another HW day; another class, 2 days to catch up on everything.

Our class is scheduled as much for optimal learning as it is for the logistics of renting a room. It's one of the benefits of having so many hours in the course.

Thank you for this! It makes sense -- I don't know where I got the notion that I should be able to finish the homework in the same day as the lesson, but like I said, it wasn't happening. So now I feel better about that! And about that wall: I'm seeing now that, for me at least, it'll be easier to smack into it due to overkill on RC or LR. I could do LG forever, though! Who doesn't like the thrill of solving a good puzzle?

[jared6180]

Joining. Just got my materials and took the first PT. Going to begin study Monday.

[L4809]

Just signed up for Blueprint Online, now i'm just waiting for the materials... Studied on my own with powerscore books and lots of practice tests for June test and didn't increase my score as much as I would have liked so I am ready for round 2 with blueprint!

[jared6180]

Oct 2012 will be round 1 for me. I want it to be my only round. If I score a 180 I guess I will go ahead and let BluePrint off the hook for helping me study for the Dec 2012 LSAT

[jared6180]

What is the best time to study for you guys? What is your favorite place to study? Do you have an office to study in? Bedroom? living room? How do you get your family to leave you alone for 3.5-4 hours at a time? My wife and three girls can't seem to leave me alone, and my office AC unit is broken temporarily, so that room is out until it is fixed or the heat drops below 80 degrees...

[05062014]

I am in Blueprints video course. I must say going through the first 5 lessons helped immensely but I am holding off on doing any further homeworks until late August. I am finding that I remember too many Logical Reasoning questions and want to assess my improvements completely on PT's 44-66 without remembering questions. That is the only drawback to this course, however. I like the fact that videos are readily available whenever and I can pick and choose topics from lessons 1-16 as I find weaknesses self studying.

Sidenote: I read somewhere that BP will give us the June 2012 test at some point. When exactly can we expect it?

[AAyala]

This is round 1 for me as well. I originally signed up for the June 2012 LSAT but got swamped with school work. I am ready to start over again and really have at it. I started with my first PT today (151) and Lesson 1.

[L4809]

jared6180: I like to study at night after work, ideally i wouldn't be working full time and studying but i'm trying to make it work...i do practice tests in the evening on the patio by the pool at my apartment (it's a nice quiet spot) may try Starbucks for watching the videos (with headphones.lol). I have to leave the apartment so i don't get upset with my boyfriend and 2 dogs for being so loud while I am trying to study!

abdistole: I didn't know they were going to give us june's lsat but that is awesome! I thought the logic games were a little different from what I had seen in the past so it will be good to go over those again, although maybe i just freaked out. Also they provided 2 pages for each logic game so you almost had too much work space.

Questions: How big of a score increase is everyone hoping for/expecting? Someone who has the books already, are the lesson plans included in the book or just homework problems with no explanations?

[lovelyspotlight]

jared6180: I like to study at night after work, ideally i wouldn't be working full time and studying but i'm trying to make it work...i do practice tests in the evening on the patio by the pool at my apartment (it's a nice quiet spot) may try Starbucks for watching the videos (with headphones.lol). I have to leave the apartment so i don't get upset with my boyfriend and 2 dogs for being so loud while I am trying to study!

abdistole: I didn't know they were going to give us june's lsat but that is awesome! I thought the logic games were a little different from what I had seen in the past so it will be good to go over those again, although maybe i just freaked out. Also they provided 2 pages for each logic game so you almost had too much work space.

Questions: How big of a score increase is everyone hoping for/expecting? Someone who has the books already, are the lesson plans included in the book or just homework problems with no explanations?

Pretty sure I saw the June test will get to us a couple of weeks before the October test date. I just can't remember exactly where I saw it, or I'd go find it and tell you for sure! If you really want to know and can't find the answer on the boards, I'm sure you could email someone from BP and find out.

As for a score increase, I'm hoping for +15 from my diagnostic! This may equate to something like +20, if you consider the fact that a diag may not be wholly representative, etc.

As for the books...they include lessons, so that if you needed to work through them without the videos (i.e., you're in a place without Internet), you could probably do it. The videos are awesome, though. I find myself briefly looking at the written lesson, then watching the video and connecting what they're saying to the on-paper lessons. The examples in the book vs. on the video are different most of the time, so you can't really follow word-for-word. I think it's just whatever works best for you. When it comes to explanations for specific problems, though, for the most part you have to go online for that. There are some brief explanations on some of the back-of-the-lesson answer keys, but not anywhere near what you get watching the video explanations. Hope that answers your question, at least a little!

[jared6180]

Desired increase- 30 points. It might be far out to have these expectations, but I have a goal school in mind, and I am going to need that increase to get there.

[bp shinners]

Sidenote: I read somewhere that BP will give us the June 2012 test at some point. When exactly can we expect it?

Checking with the office - I'll let you know when I do.

The LSAC doesn't license that test for distribution for another month or so. After that, we have to get it and format it. Expect to see it late August/early September. Honestly, though, it should be the last PT you take before the exam (or the second-to-last), so you shouldn't need it until after that anyway.

[L4809]

I'm hoping for a minimum 10 point improvement over my June score so 18+ total. I only improved 8 points with self study so still some room for improvement i hope.

[jared6180]

Will the new formatting of LG be standard for future tests? I read there is now considerably more room than before. Will that new format, if standard than be retrofitted to all previous tests by prep companies to allow new LSAT prep materials to mirror the new and improved space allowed for that question type?

[AAyala]

Of course I would love a 180 (what everyone should be shooting for), however, realistically, I will settle for a 165

[LSAT Blog]

Will the new formatting of LG be standard for future tests? I read there is now considerably more room than before. Will that new format, if standard than be retrofitted to all previous tests by prep companies to allow new LSAT prep materials to mirror the new and improved space allowed for that question type?

Yes, it will be the new layout for future tests. I got a quote from someone at LSAC to that effect. You can see the new layout here:

http://lsatblog.blogspot.com/2012/07/ls ... pages.html

I don't know whether prep companies will redo their materials to reflect the new layout - that's a great question, though. I haven't heard anything about LSAC redoing the layout of their PrepTests.