October 2010 Test Prep Forum

[yzero1]

When you guys are doing timed tests, have you tried adding a fifth section to simulate the practice section? Does it make a big difference in terms of your stamina?

You should always add a 5th section to simulate the experimental section on your PTs. It does make a difference in terms of your endurance level and it's helpful to make your practice as close to the real test as possible.

[Barbie]

When you guys are doing timed tests, have you tried adding a fifth section to simulate the practice section? Does it make a big difference in terms of your stamina?

The few that I did do, I always took the complete test formatted how it was actually given (inc. experimental)

[lastch2]

Did you guys read any materials before taking PTs?
I am reading the bibles and honestly when they give practice questions I keep getting them wrong for some reason. I am really stressing out; did this happen to any of you? Plese reassure me lol
I want to try out the technique of taking the PT twice, once timed and another time untimed.

don't worry, buddy. I had the same problem. Just take your time. It'll come to you eventually.

Thanks! I've been reading the LR Bilbe 2-3 hours a day and then I plan on finishing the LG one. I just needed to be reassured that I wasn;t the only one stuggling so much at first. I'm going to PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE!
Quick question, how long does it take to get your LSAT score once you've taken it? I think I saw that info somwhere, but I can't remember :-s

http://www.atlaslsat.com/actual-score-release.cfm

here's the chart for how early the scores have been released in the past, looks like about 3 days on avg for october

[3|ink]

When you guys are doing timed tests, have you tried adding a fifth section to simulate the practice section? Does it make a big difference in terms of your stamina?

You should always add a 5th section to simulate the experimental section on your PTs. It does make a difference in terms of your endurance level and it's helpful to make your practice as close to the real test as possible.

I definitely agree with you on this point. I'm doing this for all of my PTs now. I take a section from another test first. I'm definitely feeling the burn by my 4th and 5th sections. Learning to deal with that burn could really help your score on test day.

[Barbie]

When you guys are doing timed tests, have you tried adding a fifth section to simulate the practice section? Does it make a big difference in terms of your stamina?

You should always add a 5th section to simulate the experimental section on your PTs. It does make a difference in terms of your endurance level and it's helpful to make your practice as close to the real test as possible.

I definitely agree with you on this point. I'm doing this for all of my PTs now. I take a section from another test first. I'm definitely feeling the burn by my 4th and 5th sections. Learning to deal with that burn could really help your score on test day.

Where do you get your tests? Mine came with experimental sections..

[Adu]

When you guys are doing timed tests, have you tried adding a fifth section to simulate the practice section? Does it make a big difference in terms of your stamina?

You should always add a 5th section to simulate the experimental section on your PTs. It does make a difference in terms of your endurance level and it's helpful to make your practice as close to the real test as possible.

I definitely agree with you on this point. I'm doing this for all of my PTs now. I take a section from another test first. I'm definitely feeling the burn by my 4th and 5th sections. Learning to deal with that burn could really help your score on test day.

When I first started researching the LSAT online the advice that I have seen come up all the time is "practice as close as you can to the conditions of the actual LSAT".
It makes sense; that way you are prepared and know what to expect. No bad surprises.

[jaydizzle]

157 today, better than my 152 on Sunday. I managed to do 3 games out of 4 perfectly not getting to the fourth game and just filling in D. Got a -5, not too shabby. If I increase my speed I should do even better on LG. RC kills me on timing. I got a -8, and I didn't get to the last passage at all and filled in D for everything. LR is a little bit better with 4 questions or so on each section with random guesses. I guess I just need to continue taking these tests to increase stamina and perfect timing. I have what it takes for the 160s if timing gets better. I think I still have hopes of landing over 160 and possibly a 165.

[3|ink]

When you guys are doing timed tests, have you tried adding a fifth section to simulate the practice section? Does it make a big difference in terms of your stamina?

You should always add a 5th section to simulate the experimental section on your PTs. It does make a difference in terms of your endurance level and it's helpful to make your practice as close to the real test as possible.

I definitely agree with you on this point. I'm doing this for all of my PTs now. I take a section from another test first. I'm definitely feeling the burn by my 4th and 5th sections. Learning to deal with that burn could really help your score on test day.

Where do you get your tests? Mine came with experimental sections..

Right now I'm using the "10 more" and "Next 10" books the LSAT publishes. I get them from amazon. They contain PTs 19 - 38. However, they only include 4 sections. Thus, I've beek taking the newer tests (PTs 30 - 38) with RC sections from the older tests (PTs 19-29).

Where did you get 5 section tests?

[Anaconda]

157 today, better than my 152 on Sunday. I managed to do 3 games out of 4 perfectly not getting to the fourth game and just filling in D. Got a -5, not too shabby. If I increase my speed I should do even better on LG. RC kills me on timing. I got a -8, and I didn't get to the last passage at all and filled in D for everything. LR is a little bit better with 4 questions or so on each section with random guesses. I guess I just need to continue taking these tests to increase stamina and perfect timing. I have what it takes for the 160s if timing gets better. I think I still have hopes of landing over 160 and possibly a 165.

You will definitely hit 160. What strategy are you using for RC?

[Mike088]

I'm in a bit of a difficult situation with my studying because i began fasting for the month of Ramadan today. So i have the next 30 days in which i am unable to eat or drink from sun up to sun down... I woke up at 4 AM today, had a decent breakfast and a cup of coffee and took a PT from about 5 am to 8am. I think that's going to have to be the norm for me for the next month .

[Adu]

I'm in a bit of a difficult situation with my studying because i began fasting for the month of Ramadan today. So i have the next 30 days in which i am unable to eat or drink from sun up to sun down... I woke up at 4 AM today, had a decent breakfast and a cup of coffee and took a PT from about 5 am to 8am. I think that's going to have to be the norm for me for the next month .

Good luck! It's a hot month too :-s I'm sure if you manage your time well enough you can do it.

[Adu]

For those of you that didnt know how to pronounce LSAT I was in the same situation! I'm glad to hear that I wasn;t the only one. I felt a little dumb when I got corrected; I used to say L-S-A-T lol

[iamcutdacheck]

I'm in a bit of a difficult situation with my studying because i began fasting for the month of Ramadan today. So i have the next 30 days in which i am unable to eat or drink from sun up to sun down... I woke up at 4 AM today, had a decent breakfast and a cup of coffee and took a PT from about 5 am to 8am. I think that's going to have to be the norm for me for the next month .

Much respect and good luck with you fast for Ramadan!

When I do my monthly fast on the new moon I always study at night/AM ...i.e. when I can eat, lol it allows for more savoring of food too

[am060459]

When you guys are doing timed tests, have you tried adding a fifth section to simulate the practice section? Does it make a big difference in terms of your stamina?

You should always add a 5th section to simulate the experimental section on your PTs. It does make a difference in terms of your endurance level and it's helpful to make your practice as close to the real test as possible.

i took the june lsat and i was there from 12pm-5ish. obviously the test is not that long but the process (seating, breaks, reading directions, etc) takes a mental toll on you. i would add a 5th section for sure. stamina and endurance will be key.

[yzero1]

When you guys are doing timed tests, have you tried adding a fifth section to simulate the practice section? Does it make a big difference in terms of your stamina?

You should always add a 5th section to simulate the experimental section on your PTs. It does make a difference in terms of your endurance level and it's helpful to make your practice as close to the real test as possible.

I definitely agree with you on this point. I'm doing this for all of my PTs now. I take a section from another test first. I'm definitely feeling the burn by my 4th and 5th sections. Learning to deal with that burn could really help your score on test day.

Where do you get your tests? Mine came with experimental sections..

I enrolled in the PR course back in May so I have access to a bunch of tests from their database. For the ones that aren't on their database, I have.. other means of getting them . I just use sections from the earlier tests (1-10) as my experimental sections. I know that PR has a bunch of tests with pre-inserted experimental section, but I think you need to be in the course to have access to them. Were you in a prep course that gave you those tests with experimentals pre-inserted, or did you get them from somewhere else?

[Mike088]

thanks for the kind words and wishes guys

[jaydizzle]

157 today, better than my 152 on Sunday. I managed to do 3 games out of 4 perfectly not getting to the fourth game and just filling in D. Got a -5, not too shabby. If I increase my speed I should do even better on LG. RC kills me on timing. I got a -8, and I didn't get to the last passage at all and filled in D for everything. LR is a little bit better with 4 questions or so on each section with random guesses. I guess I just need to continue taking these tests to increase stamina and perfect timing. I have what it takes for the 160s if timing gets better. I think I still have hopes of landing over 160 and possibly a 165.

You will definitely hit 160. What strategy are you using for RC?

I am underlining and circling things I think are important. I write a couple things in the margin. This doesn't seem to take time off the clock for me. My actual reading is so slow. If I go faster, I don't comprehend anything.

[Hedwig]

Tomorrow I'm planning an epic simulate the conditions kind of day. I'm going to head out to my university, find the room I'm scheduled to take the LSAT in (not going to commandeer it though, because if a summer class is scheduled in there then my test might get disrupted right in the middle which wouldn't be good) and find somewhere in that building where I can make my own little test center zone. Bringing my laptop for the Proctor, and I'll be taking Prep Test #43 with an experimental from 10 Actual. I'm going to do the Writing Section as well, which will be interesting because I haven't even been glancing at those. I'm not terribly worried. Being a humanities student, I usually end up writing at least one essay at the end of a 3 or 4 essay test with very little brain power and endurance and it usually turns out alright. Except for that one essay where I was supposed to discuss whether Gorbachev's policies had succeeded or failed and I wrote about how they were SO SUCCESSFUL THEY FAILED haha, and then turned my last body paragraph into the conclusion when I realized I wasn't saying anything anyways. Good times.

Has anyone done a writing sample yet?

[3|ink]

Has anyone done a writing sample yet?

Nope. It's not worth it. They're easy enough. The only trick to them is that you have to follow directions. Don't make anything up. Only use the information provided to write an argument for one of two positions.

[OklahomasOK]

Has anyone done a writing sample yet?

Nope. It's not worth it. They're easy enough. The only trick to them is that you have to follow directions. Don't make anything up. Only use the information provided to write an argument for one of two positions.

It's a waste of time to even simulate the writing sample. If you want to simulate the 35 minute block, just do another section of LR, LG, or RC. I never practiced for the writing sample in June, your time is better spent reviewing mistakes. The topics are pretty straight forward.

Honestly, I didn't notice any difference when I went from 4 to 5 section PT's. My scores were the same, my stamina was the same. Some people swear by them, whatever floats your boat.

I've started back up again on the PT wagon. LR is much easier for me this time around. Games are much slower to come to me, but I think it's just because I'm not making the "snap" inferences I built up by the June test. Reading comp is still meh, but I did well on the June RC, so I'm not worried about it.

[gdane]

I might start doing 5 section's, but I'm not so sure it would do much to help. I dont struggle for stamina as it is. Also, you get a break after 3 sections. I dont give myself a break when I take a PT. I do 4 sections, back to back with less than a minute between sections. Then, I go over ever single question very carefully (this usually takes well over an hour). I find that this is more effective to me.

[Hedwig]

Has anyone done a writing sample yet?

Nope. It's not worth it. They're easy enough. The only trick to them is that you have to follow directions. Don't make anything up. Only use the information provided to write an argument for one of two positions.

It's a waste of time to even simulate the writing sample. If you want to simulate the 35 minute block, just do another section of LR, LG, or RC. I never practiced for the writing sample in June, your time is better spent reviewing mistakes. The topics are pretty straight forward.

Honestly, I didn't notice any difference when I went from 4 to 5 section PT's. My scores were the same, my stamina was the same. Some people swear by them, whatever floats your boat.

I've started back up again on the PT wagon. LR is much easier for me this time around. Games are much slower to come to me, but I think it's just because I'm not making the "snap" inferences I built up by the June test. Reading comp is still meh, but I did well on the June RC, so I'm not worried about it.

I'm not planning on doing them regularly, but I'm going to do at least one or two so I know what to expect. Also, as I'm doing a very closely simulated test tomorrow, I'm going to throw in the writing sample so I have a better idea of what it all feels like, even if the writing sample is a waste of time, whatever.

LR is killing me. I got -4, -3 but then that test had a killer curve so had I gotten those scores on the real test combined with my RC/LG I'd already done, I would have had a 177, lol. Then I got a -2, and a -3. Sigh. I seem to be missing inference, flaw, and parallel reasoning again. I think I'll re-read those chapters in LRB.

[brickman]

I might start doing 5 section's, but I'm not so sure it would do much to help. I dont struggle for stamina as it is. Also, you get a break after 3 sections. I dont give myself a break when I take a PT. I do 4 sections, back to back with less than a minute between sections. Then, I go over ever single question very carefully (this usually takes well over an hour). I find that this is more effective to me.

you need to simulate and then go beyond.

From what I've read, doing 6 sections (with a break after the 3) is helpful because it trains you to have stamina all the way through the 5th section. Further, some have also argued that there is merit in the 2 full lengths (5 sections) back to back.

It's not a sport, but the logic goes that you should always have trained under more difficult conditions than those that you will actually face game day.

my distilled $.02

[gdane]

I might start doing 5 section's, but I'm not so sure it would do much to help. I dont struggle for stamina as it is. Also, you get a break after 3 sections. I dont give myself a break when I take a PT. I do 4 sections, back to back with less than a minute between sections. Then, I go over ever single question very carefully (this usually takes well over an hour). I find that this is more effective to me.

you need to simulate and then go beyond.

From what I've read, doing 6 sections (with a break after the 3) is helpful because it trains you to have stamina all the way through the 5th section. Further, some have also argued that there is merit in the 2 full lengths (5 sections) back to back.

It's not a sport, but the logic goes that you should always have trained under more difficult conditions than those that you will actually face game day.

my distilled $.02

Ive never actually tried using a 5th section, but I definitely will. I just dont want to distort my results. If I know that 5th section is "experimental" I wont feel as motivated to contine it because all I'll really want to do is calculate my score from the previous 4 sections.

[brickman]

I might start doing 5 section's, but I'm not so sure it would do much to help. I dont struggle for stamina as it is. Also, you get a break after 3 sections. I dont give myself a break when I take a PT. I do 4 sections, back to back with less than a minute between sections. Then, I go over ever single question very carefully (this usually takes well over an hour). I find that this is more effective to me.

you need to simulate and then go beyond.

From what I've read, doing 6 sections (with a break after the 3) is helpful because it trains you to have stamina all the way through the 5th section. Further, some have also argued that there is merit in the 2 full lengths (5 sections) back to back.

It's not a sport, but the logic goes that you should always have trained under more difficult conditions than those that you will actually face game day.

my distilled $.02

Ive never actually tried using a 5th section, but I definitely will. I just dont want to distort my results. If I know that 5th section is "experimental" I wont feel as motivated to contine it because all I'll really want to do is calculate my score from the previous 4 sections.

I know this is going to sound very ambiguous, but just don't think about it. Just focus on getting each question right. Don't put any expectation or anxiety on yourself, it is only going to be distracting in your long run preparations and you are better served in not engaging in those thoughts (at least not until October 10th!).

Just take it one step at a time, realize the benefits of introducing a 5th section and then accept it as essential to your preparation and I don't think you'll have a hard time motivating yourself to do it.