June 2011 Study Group Forum

[maxpower430]

oh also, have you guys shifted over to practice with a watch yet? i finally bit the bullet and bought a watch with a rotating bezel (the one recommended by lsatblog), i'm going to miss my cellphone timer haha. do you guys think resetting the watch b/t sections is a good idea or should i jsut get used to not knowing exactly how much time i have left (i.e. ~30 seconds). agh wish i hadnt waited until now to do this haha.

[maxpower430]

For those of you experiencing plateaus, what are you doing to try and break them? I'm pretty consistently going -0 LG, -1/-2 LR, -4 or 5 RC, and it's keeping me stuck at the lower 170s Any advice regarding how to get out of a rut?? It's not burnout, since I'm only doing ~2-3 PT a week right now, and the only other prep I'm doing currently is reviewing my tests.

if you feel like you're in a rut with reading comp, i'd highly recommend the manhattan rc guide. i was pretty similar to you on RC before i read it, and it was very helpful in really driving home the idea of purposeful reading, and the whole scales thing is a useful mental trick as well. it's on the short side too so i think you could get what you'd need out of it in a day or two (i mean Soj went through the manhattan LR guide in like 2 days which i find crazy b/c it took me like two weeks haha). also i can't say enough good things about the manhattan lr guide, but it doesn't look like you need help there. hth.

I just purchased that guide and am also PTing with RC about -5 average. How much did it help you out?

well, i went -0 on superprep a and b, gonna do c today soon. however, i dunno how representative those are since they are older pts, i did some mid to upper 40s sections beforehand and besides one -4 i was -0-2 or so. their method is just really good in that it helps get you really focused on the argument of the passage and seeing which side has more support, which has at least made me more engaged as a reader and made questions generally easier.

[gaud]

Thank you maxpower430!!!

I just purchased it on Saturday so I'm hoping I get it asap. You have successfully made me super excited about it!!

[maxpower430]

haha no problem, i'm sure you'll find it very helpful, it's def deserving of the hype it gets on here.

[Eichörnchen]

Thanks, I like the idea because I think I'll be a lot less nervous in Oct from the experience. I majored in a foreign language and lit. I obviously would love a shot at HYS, hence not just taking in june and retaking, but I also am thinking of Oct because with my GPA I could get some good schollys to some other schools I'm very interested (I'm lookin at you, UVA ) If I push to Oct, I will definitely do the LRB and also probably do the MLSAT guides.

Sounds exciting! Let us know how your decision goes. We would hate to lose you to Gev. Until then, we'll wait with bated breath in anxious anticipation.

Ok, I have decided- I think I will plan on taking in Oct. I just think this test is too important to take it when I know I still have a lot to learn. I'll suck it up and study through the summer. However I will still be sticking around this thread cause I like you guys I appreciate all those who gave input because that was a tough few days of weighing my options!

Now I guess I need to go rearrange my life haha - good thing I didn't book airfare for my months abroad yet

[Strange]

I've also gone through the Atlas RC guide and haven't seen any improvement in scores yet, though I feel more confident than before. With RC you won't see advances overnight like with LG.... at least that's what I'm telling myself

[geverett]

Thanks, I like the idea because I think I'll be a lot less nervous in Oct from the experience. I majored in a foreign language and lit. I obviously would love a shot at HYS, hence not just taking in june and retaking, but I also am thinking of Oct because with my GPA I could get some good schollys to some other schools I'm very interested (I'm lookin at you, UVA ) If I push to Oct, I will definitely do the LRB and also probably do the MLSAT guides.

Sounds exciting! Let us know how your decision goes. We would hate to lose you to Gev. Until then, we'll wait with bated breath in anxious anticipation.

Ok, I have decided- I think I will plan on taking in Oct. I just think this test is too important to take it when I know I still have a lot to learn. I'll suck it up and study through the summer. However I will still be sticking around this thread cause I like you guys I appreciate all those who gave input because that was a tough few days of weighing my options!

Now I guess I need to go rearrange my life haha - good thing I didn't book airfare for my months abroad yet

Let's kill this test!

[jim-green]

Ok, I have decided- I think I will plan on taking in Oct. I just think this test is too important to take it when I know I still have a lot to learn. I'll suck it up and study through the summer. However I will still be sticking around this thread cause I like you guys I appreciate all those who gave input because that was a tough few days of weighing my options! Now I guess I need to go rearrange my life haha - good thing I didn't book airfare for my months abroad yet

CONGRATULATIONS! As I said in the study room yesterday, I think postponing to Oct is the right decision for you. This way, you'll get to do the PS and MLSAT LR books, RC guides, and LSAT blog's extra LG practice. And you won't waste PTs being semi-prepped. I'd advise learning MLSAT's pure sequencing strategy, becuase I saw you were doing PS's strategy, which is not good. I think we like you too
Gev, are you back or not? The suspense is killing me.

[geverett]

I took the weekend off, but I'll be back at it tomorrow. I might go over my LR notes instead of doing a PT.

Soj,
I am postponing until October. Any advantage you can note by going through the PT's chronologically? Did it feel like a gradual acclimation to the newer PT's that way? It looks like I will be doing this in anticipation of the October test. Any words of advice/wisdom you can offer on doing this would be appreciated.

[geverett]

Ok, I have decided- I think I will plan on taking in Oct. I just think this test is too important to take it when I know I still have a lot to learn. I'll suck it up and study through the summer. However I will still be sticking around this thread cause I like you guys I appreciate all those who gave input because that was a tough few days of weighing my options! Now I guess I need to go rearrange my life haha - good thing I didn't book airfare for my months abroad yet

CONGRATULATIONS! As I said in the study room yesterday, I think postponing to Oct is the right decision for you. This way, you'll get to do the PS and MLSAT LR books, RC guides, and LSAT blog's extra LG practice. And you won't waste PTs being semi-prepped. I'd advise learning MLSAT's pure sequencing strategy, becuase I saw you were doing PS's strategy, which is not good. I think we like you too
Gev, are you back or not? The suspense is killing me.

I will post here intermittently, but I am writing the test in October.

[99.9luft]

Thanks, I like the idea because I think I'll be a lot less nervous in Oct from the experience. I majored in a foreign language and lit. I obviously would love a shot at HYS, hence not just taking in june and retaking, but I also am thinking of Oct because with my GPA I could get some good schollys to some other schools I'm very interested (I'm lookin at you, UVA ) If I push to Oct, I will definitely do the LRB and also probably do the MLSAT guides.

Sounds exciting! Let us know how your decision goes. We would hate to lose you to Gev. Until then, we'll wait with bated breath in anxious anticipation.

Ok, I have decided- I think I will plan on taking in Oct. I just think this test is too important to take it when I know I still have a lot to learn. I'll suck it up and study through the summer. However I will still be sticking around this thread cause I like you guys I appreciate all those who gave input because that was a tough few days of weighing my options!

Now I guess I need to go rearrange my life haha - good thing I didn't book airfare for my months abroad yet

1st reaction: Noooo!
2nd reaction: kill them games over the summer (i recommend the blueprint method) and you will rock Oct.

[Eichörnchen]

Thanks everyone! I just couldn't let games take me down just yet now that I have the time, I will look at both of those suggested methods. I have only looked at PS' methods, and while I think the LGB is absolutely great, I think it's worth looking at other methods especially for pure sequencing - PS' method just doesn't click for me.

Gev I am with you buddy- I'm not willing to settle so I'll give up this summer. Everyone else, you guys are doing so well. I'm excited to see you all do great in June. Hopefully at least some of us will be classmates some day now I'm off to make my revised study schedule. Phew I feel so much better now. And hey if anyone has any suggestions for anything that got you to your current levels of success I'm open for tips

[mickeyD]

But, I completely understand your decision and I know you'll rock it in October. Depending on my score, I may end up joining you for October, especially since the schools I'm looking at are a tad more lenient on multiple scores than HYS.

[soj]

We're dropping like flies here! Good luck in October, Eich! You'll kill it, I know it.

Soj,
I am postponing until October. Any advantage you can note by going through the PT's chronologically? Did it feel like a gradual acclimation to the newer PT's that way? It looks like I will be doing this in anticipation of the October test. Any words of advice/wisdom you can offer on doing this would be appreciated.

Not really. I happen to be doing a little better on RC in the more recent PTs, but I don't know if that's a reflection of improved reading ability (doubtful--besides, why then did I do well on 51 and 51.5, which I took much earlier?), my brain preferring the different style of the newer passages, or just dumb luck (most likely).

As for doing them in chronological order, 99.9 had a great point when he said you should mix them up so you don't get used to a certain style of test and get stuck in it.

If I did it again, I'll probably just do what I did:
- save early PTs (1-30) for drilling or experimental sections
- do later PTs in mostly chronological order, but mix in a couple new ones throughout prep to keep things fresh
- do SuperPrep ABC and Deconstructed PTs as full tests, mid-early in your prep

[seanPtheB]

Do any of you guys have any experience with using Kaplan's method for pure sequencing games (they call them loose sequencing)? I'm currently taking a Kaplan prep course, and although I think overall it's pretty much a waste of time, I really love the simplicity of their pure sequencing strategy.

[Eichörnchen]

Thanks Mickey and Soj

Mickey, while I would loooove a good shot at HYS, I was also really starting to think about schollys at the other schools I'm really interested in. I figured I might potentially earn tens thousands over these next months of I can get in the 170s. Hopefully I get a decent shot at HYS, though with my lame-o softs we'll see what happens

[crumpetsandtea]

For those of you experiencing plateaus, what are you doing to try and break them? I'm pretty consistently going -0 LG, -1/-2 LR, -4 or 5 RC, and it's keeping me stuck at the lower 170s Any advice regarding how to get out of a rut?? It's not burnout, since I'm only doing ~2-3 PT a week right now, and the only other prep I'm doing currently is reviewing my tests.

if you feel like you're in a rut with reading comp, i'd highly recommend the manhattan rc guide. i was pretty similar to you on RC before i read it, and it was very helpful in really driving home the idea of purposeful reading, and the whole scales thing is a useful mental trick as well. it's on the short side too so i think you could get what you'd need out of it in a day or two (i mean Soj went through the manhattan LR guide in like 2 days which i find crazy b/c it took me like two weeks haha). also i can't say enough good things about the manhattan lr guide, but it doesn't look like you need help there. hth.

Oooh, this was very helpful, thank you so much! I'm going to stop by a Border's and pick up a copy tonight after work. If I can just get that damn RC score up!

[99.9luft]

Do any of you guys have any experience with using Kaplan's method for pure sequencing games (they call them loose sequencing)? I'm currently taking a Kaplan prep course, and although I think overall it's pretty much a waste of time, I really love the simplicity of their pure sequencing strategy.

Why would you take Kaplan? Drop it like it's hot. You don't want to learn bad strategies and then having re-teach yourself new better ones.

[seanPtheB]

Do any of you guys have any experience with using Kaplan's method for pure sequencing games (they call them loose sequencing)? I'm currently taking a Kaplan prep course, and although I think overall it's pretty much a waste of time, I really love the simplicity of their pure sequencing strategy.

Why would you take Kaplan? Drop it like it's hot. You don't want to learn bad strategies and then having re-teach yourself new better ones.

I had already started the course when I found TLS. Most of the strategies are definitely inferior to other companies, but I do feel like even having said that I've still picked up a few solid tidbits of information on certain types of questions that I think will prove useful, like the way they break down different principle questions into identify, apply, and identify & apply subtypes, along with how they do pure sequencing games. Given the price of law school tuition, I feel like the 1100 I dropped for the course will prove to be a decent investment when it's all said and done.

[coldshoulder]

WHAT.THE.FUCK.
PT 45
LR 1: -5
RC: -3
LG: -0
LR 2: -5

Total: 87, -13,
170

I have never done this poorly in LR. Apparently being gone three days took me from a -2 or -3 total LR loss to a -10. Seriously, WTF.
LG was again super easy, but RC science section killed me again.

Any tips on staying consistent in LR? I felt legitimately bad during the first LR, but thought I did great in the second LR, and got -5 in each. This is devastating, as I was in the upper 170's for about 5 tests in a row before this.

[jim-green]

Weren't u the one getting like 176s and 178s last week? What happened? For me, PT45 was the 2nd easiest ever! I got like 165 on it, which was way above what I got on the real LSAT. I think your PT45 is an outlier like my PT6. By the way, anyone have their score for PT6 S3?

PT 45
170

[coldshoulder]

Yeah I was, I was generally -3 total on LR, this time I was -10. I think it was my vacation, I should've done a warm up. I hope it's an outlier too.

[Eichörnchen]

Yeah I was, I was generally -3 total on LR, this time I was -10. I think it was my vacation, I should've done a warm up. I hope it's an outlier too.

Don't sweat it too much. I think we all have a random outlier like that. I've read multiple accounts of high scorers who say you need to learn your own patterns- ie, do I need a warm-up? Should I follow conventional wisdom and take the few days before the LSAT to relax? Etc etc. Most people report a little boost after a few days of no LSAT, but some people find that they drop. Just be glad you found out you belong to the latter group now rather than after the real deal. Maybe consider doing a section the day before the test to still take it easy but also keep your momentum going. Cheer up you'll be back to showing the test who's boss in no time

[maxpower430]

so games get easier going forward from superprep c, right? i went -5 tonight and while i didn't make any fatal mistakes like i did on b or c i felt like there either weren't big inferences or i just missed them, and found my self rushing through the whole thing. i also felt the LR sections were a bit tougher, and even though i went -3 combined i didn't feel nearly as confident as i did in b or c, and felt like i was being too methodical and only finished with a minute or so to spare on the second section. so who knows, maybe it's just the tendency for new lr to be a bit subtler, though i don't see myself falling for the tricks i used to.

[theaether]

PT52
LR: 0
LRe: -2
LG: 0
LR: -2
RC: -4

94/100 --> 176

Oh man first time I did the comparative reading question since my cold diag (the June07). It was a big time suck and seemed very subtle. I'm happy seeing another -0 LR even though I wasn't confident at all when I completed it. Also, my first -0 in LG in a PT since January! Hoping I can ride this for a few more PTs...