Feeling really distraught over Logic Games :( Forum

[MSachmorov]

Hey everyone,
I am working on my homework for Testmasters and I am feeling really distraught over logic games.
I get most of the inferences I should be getting (even the ones the answers say most students fail to make) and I get all of the rules down. But even with all that I just can't understand how everything fits together. I always end up making hypotheticals for the majority of the problems and it takes me a really long time to finish.

I have even worked through the Logic Games bible before my course started so this isn't too new to me. I just don't understand what isn't clicking...I don't know, maybe it's just the type of games we are doing now. We are on the "pure grouping types" I feel much more comfortable with Linear games. Does anyone else notice that these games are more difficult or is it just me? I also feel like it's getting WAY too close to test day to be having these kind of problems (I am taking the June exam).

Anyway, I guess I just wanted to vent. But any and all suggestions/comments/advice is appreciated!

[alphagamma]

Well, if it's any help, I create the hypotheticals in my head. It's a lot faster than writing them down. You know, you kinda go through the answers quickly in your head, systematically applying the rules.

[hellokitty]

Well, if it's any help, I create the hypotheticals in my head. It's a lot faster than writing them down. You know, you kinda go through the answers quickly in your head, systematically applying the rules.

If that works for you...but honestly I think that's a terrible idea for someone struggling with games. Please write everything down. Please.

[Pleasye]

I have a lot of trouble with games too ...but I'm terrible at making inferences, so at least you get those!

hopefully practice practice practice will make us better!

[imisscollege]

IMO, in order to do as well as one should in this section, a lot of answers need to play out in one's head. there simply isn't enough time to do it all out most of the time.

[rsuelzer]

IMO, in order to do as well as one should in this section, a lot of answers need to play out in one's head. there simply isn't enough time to do it all out most of the time.

Ditto, normally I can answer 2 or 3 questions in my head. This saves me a bunch of time work on the harder questions.

Take a few days off of studying, come back and look at the problem. Try and think of your life as a logic game and make up scenarios in your head all day. This will help solidify rules in your mind!

[hellokitty]

Well, maybe I'm a little slow, but the only one I can figure out in my head would probably be the first question and occasionally the 2nd question.

[SupraVln180]

I know you might not have time. But get in those extra hours and read the LG Bible. I recently started my prep for the October exam and I am starting with the LG Bible and the games seem to be clicking for me. (So far)

Just try to relax bro, you if you put in the work, you know the how to recognize and attack every time of game. It'll all come together on test day.

[ConMan345]

If it's any consolation, even after working for awhile on the test, I was still missing half of the LG questions. HALF. But after a certain point, without really doing anything in particular, the practice started paying off. It helped for me to get my diagramming on lock and to also start with the easiest games. Other than that--drill, baby, drill.

[bigben]

If you're having trouble with logic games, you should get the LG bible as a supplement to your Testmasters course. The methods are essentially the same and the LG bible will lay things out more clearly for you.

Logic games are the most learnable part of the LSAT, although it can really take a long time to learn them. LG comes naturally to some people. I was not one of these people. I had to do almost every logic game in existence before I felt really comfortable with them. Ended up with a perfect LG section and a 177.

[Shammis]

I used to be in the same boat...LG's were my worst section. I started doing a PowerScore course and after a bunch of practice, it just seems to click...you will get there if you buckle down and do it. Recognize the type of game and get used to the type of questions and their answers. Dont worry, you can always retake.

[matt@atlaslsat]

There's a lot of good advice here, except for the idea to not write down the rules. Always organize your information clearly so that you have the best chance of seeing every rule that applies.

If you're struggling with games the best advice I can give you (from someone who's been teaching the test for 7 years) is to redo the games over and over again. Make sure that you have 5-6 examples of each game type, and then work through them again and again. You also want to talk to your instructor and ask him/her what the common recent variations are. For example, in a game I call Relative Ordering (you might call it Pure Sequencing) one of the common recent variations is a rule that establishes an either or situation creating two versions of your Tree (as we call it at Atlas).

With regard to the 35 min time limit, the faster you get at seeing how one game relates to another game of the same type, the more similar the games will look regardless of some of the variations. Repetition is KEY.

The TestMasters course should do a good job of organizing the games for you into game type and if you still have the Logic Games Bible, the description of how to approach games in there is very good.

Good luck with you preparation!

[MahaloMontana]

I think the key to logic games is confidence. I was quite bad at them for a long time. I was also distraught over them and that lack of confidence would leave me totally frustrated, confused and panicked when I was doing them. Overcoming that panic is really the only way to succeed.

After many months and much practice, something clicked, and on my second taking of the LSAT, I only got one wrong in LG. The fact is the answer to most of the questions is pretty obvious if you know the rules, know how the rules relate to each other, and are thinking clearly. I know that sounds crazy, especially when you're lacking confidence and feel like the test is beating you. But after enough practice and exposure, you can start to recognize patterns and realize that you just need to find the trick or rule that clearly and quickly guides you to that right answer.

Oh yeah, and make sure you spend a good amount of time -- I would spend about a minute -- contemplating the rules before starting the questions. It's really hard to allow yourself that when you're panicked about time, but it ends up saving a lot of time.

[andreea7]

I obviously can't add much of value to what the LSAT instructor above said as far as advice goes, but just wanted to share my experience. LG section was my worst section at first -- I then used the Powerscore Bible to both understand the games and to practice. I would read and then do their practice tests with proper diagramming. This took me about two or three weeks during which I also did some practice tests, of course.

I then did pretty much every logic game I could find in the practice test books. I came back to those I didn't get at first and didn't leave anything to fall by the wayside. I am not a very organized person, but several weeks before the test I went through my practice books and wrote down which games I still had trouble with (e.g Fall 1996, game 2). I then went down the list and did most of them -- didn't really have time to finish all by the time of the test. I didn't make any mistakes on this section and I had a high score.

Good luck!