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Hey all,

I've tutored for the LSAT on my own and worked for one of the major test-prep companies as an LSAT tutor and instructor. I don't do it now, but am trying to help a friend who is prepping for the June LSAT. I've never found a decent way to teach/help with RC. Has anyone found any sort of system or approach that has made a noticeable difference in this area for them?

Comprehend what you are reading more effectively.

Seriously, though, that's pretty much it. I asked a similar question of my brother, who made a 180, if there was something I should do to improve on reading comp. He told me to "pay more attention during reading comp." While some diagramming techniques or tricks may be helpful to a few people, there really aren't any proven approaches like there are in lg and lr. Except for to more effectively comprehend what you're reading.

GZL wrote:Hey all,

I've tutored for the LSAT on my own and worked for one of the major test-prep companies as an LSAT tutor and instructor. I don't do it now, but am trying to help a friend who is prepping for the June LSAT. I've never found a decent way to teach/help with RC. Has anyone found any sort of system or approach that has made a noticeable difference in this area for them?

Man. I am in the exact same situation... It was just so natural to me. My friend gets like -8 each time, and he can't read fast enough... I really don't know what to do.

This helped me out some and I went from around -7/8 to -0/2.

I would write 2 words next to each paragraph.

1 word summary of the paragraph (for example: media, criticism, child, award etc.
1 word tonal description.

This helped you also look back to certain sections quickly. hth

I agree with this. Although was always my strongest section I got into some bad habits and didn't do so hot on my first go at the test.

In addition to when you have to go back it really helps you summarize what you have just read in your own head. If you are simply reading the words and not comprehending how they interact with the rest of the reading sample you are going to have issues.

Doing this is a great way to avoid that.

AustinJim wrote:Comprehend what you are reading more effectively.

Seriously, though, that's pretty much it. I asked a similar question of my brother, who made a 180, if there was something I should do to improve on reading comp. He told me to "pay more attention during reading comp." While some diagramming techniques or tricks may be helpful to a few people, there really aren't any proven approaches like there are in lg and lr. Except for to more effectively comprehend what you're reading.

I agree, and I know it's not really that helpful. I went from around -7/8 to -2/3 by stopping the diagramming and analyzing (obviously not completely). I would write a word or two descriptions about a paragraph or section of a paragraph but mostly just read for comprehension rather than dissection. It's amazing what you can remember and take away from something when you're just reading like you would read a novel or something.

theavrock wrote:I agree with this. Although was always my strongest section I got into some bad habits and didn't do so hot on my first go at the test.

In addition to when you have to go back it really helps you summarize what you have just read in your own head. If you are simply reading the words and not comprehending how they interact with the rest of the reading sample you are going to have issues.

Doing this is a great way to avoid that.

Do you do this after read a paragraph or after you read the entire passage?

I do it after each paragraph. Very quick. Nothing major. Just as a way to sum up what was just said in the paragraph.

I feel that the biggest change for me was spending more time on reading.
At the beginning I used to rush through the passage so that i wont run out of time, but accuracy was a trade off and the questions seemed much harder as a result of such approach.
I got to -5 average on RC just by reading more closely, this way I know what exactly the questions are asking.
Also, with some practice i developed the ability to discern important details in the text and i underline certain words or phrases, mainly not because I go back to the passage while answering the questions, but simply because these marks somehow leave important images in my mind.
In general, if you understand the passage completely, about 90% of questions become transparent.

Instead of doing whole sections. Do practice timed passages. Set a timer for 8min30sec and go. It teaches you to read fast and accurate.

quasi-stellar wrote:I feel that the biggest change for me was spending more time on reading.
At the beginning I used to rush through the passage so that i wont run out of time, but accuracy was a trade off and the questions seemed much harder as a result of such approach.
I got to -5 average on RC just by reading more closely, this way I know what exactly the questions are asking.
Also, with some practice i developed the ability to discern important details in the text and i underline certain words or phrases, mainly not because I go back to the passage while answering the questions, but simply because these marks somehow leave important images in my mind.
In general, if you understand the passage completely, about 90% of questions become transparent.

I did this and it seemed to help, but there was a trade off - I found that I was really rushed on the last passage.

I don't think I refer back to the passage enough. Do many of you end up having to go back to the passage when answering questions?

honestabe84 wrote:I don't think I refer back to the passage enough. Do many of you end up having to go back to the passage when answering questions?

Yes, if I was ever not certain I went back to make sure. Are you missing questions because you're just getting them wrong or are you running out of time?

Desert Fox wrote:Instead of doing whole sections. Do practice timed passages. Set a timer for 8min30sec and go. It teaches you to read fast and accurate.

I did this. 20 passages this weekend. The results are AMAZING.

MChun08 wrote:

Desert Fox wrote:Instead of doing whole sections. Do practice timed passages. Set a timer for 8min30sec and go. It teaches you to read fast and accurate.

I did this. 20 passages this weekend. The results are AMAZING.

It works wonders if timing is the problem.

I just wanted to say thanks, all. I honestly think that all of the stuff that most of the prep courses out there teach re: all the time taken marking up the passages is counter-productive. Comprehension seems to be the issue, and I just don't know how to help with that beyond: read ALOT of these passages, slowly and carefully until you're comfortable with them, and then do timed drills like desert fox was talking about (really liked that, btw, thanks

I went from a 158 to a 164 and a lot of the points were gained in RC. I didn't do anything differently prep-wise, but I did start reading a lot of difficult non-fiction instead of fun fluffy fiction in my spare time. Stuff from the Economist, WSJ, journal articles, etc. It seems to have helped a lot. Try making up LSAT type questions for the articles you read in the real world. Stretch your brain a little

The thing that makes the difference between -5 and -2 in my scores is how "into" the reading I am. If I focus on the reading and actually think about what I'm reading, I'll get -2 or less. If I don't, I'll miss 5+. I just try and force myself to engage.