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Sorry for the vague question.

What I mean is..let's say I reached my peak ability in preparing for the June exam. If I don't do a single LSAT question between now and September and take a practice test then, will my score stay about the same or go down? Do these skills stick with us for a long time?

If you've had experience with this please weigh in

The method, provided you practiced enough, will tend to stay intact.

What may be thrown off is your timing. With about a week of practice (2-3 PTs), it all comes back.

It definitely stays with you. I did 2months of studying leading up to June 09, and studied for 4 weeks leading up to Sept.09, scored 13 points higher (granted I was sick/anxious in June). This past week I was moving my stuff, and found my prep materials and I did a couple of games to see if I could still do it- and wouldn't you know it, it actually seemed easier.


/I'm a horrible geek.

yeah its similar to muscle memory. Although you might forget stuff after a long period of not practicing, once you start again it comes back a lot quicker than when you tried to learn it for the first time.

Mr. Pablo wrote:It definitely stays with you. I did 2months of studying leading up to June 09, and studied for 4 weeks leading up to Sept.09, scored 13 points higher (granted I was sick/anxious in June). This past week I was moving my stuff, and found my prep materials and I did a couple of games to see if I could still do it- and wouldn't you know it, it actually seemed easier.


/I'm a horrible geek.

What did you do to not be anxious for the Sept test?

Also, how many hours a day did you study during the 4 weeks before that test? Did you take a lot of practice tests

I think I did exactly what you're talking about. Took in September, scored wayyyy below my average. Then, from December-February took one test per week. The first test I took was a few points below my old average, then the subsequent tests pretty much hit my average every time. However, I noticed my range went from 166-172 in the summer to 166-170 during the second few months. This may be because I took fewer tests, and thus there weren't a lot of opportunities for outliers. I'm not really sure, but when I took in Feb I hit my average exactly. So to answer your question, for the most part you will retain the skills, but I would definitely suggest a few tests to dust off the cobwebs.

Your speeed would take a hit. Maybe a logic games.

iwanta170 wrote:

Mr. Pablo wrote:It definitely stays with you. I did 2months of studying leading up to June 09, and studied for 4 weeks leading up to Sept.09, scored 13 points higher (granted I was sick/anxious in June). This past week I was moving my stuff, and found my prep materials and I did a couple of games to see if I could still do it- and wouldn't you know it, it actually seemed easier.


/I'm a horrible geek.

What did you do to not be anxious for the Sept test?

Also, how many hours a day did you study during the 4 weeks before that test? Did you take a lot of practice tests

1) I was less anxious because, honestly, I simply didn't care as much. I had gone into the test the first time really freaking out, thinking that I had to nail it. I worried myself into a fever- literally, I felt hot and took my temp when I got home, 101. The second time I just went in with the feeling that it wasn't going to make or brake my life. I was really relaxed.

2) My study method was virtually the same. After work I would do 2 or 3 timed sections and then review them. On weekends I would do 1 whole timed test on each of Sat and Sun, then review them. In all I used most of the prep-tests. I usually saved the most recent tests for full practices and the older tests for my weekday practice. The whole thing felt a lot easier the second time around. Before June I was PTing around 166-168 (got a 157), in Sept I was averaging around 168-173 (got a 170).

.

They totally deteriorate.

Or at least mine are, but that may be because I am actively working on killing brain cells.

http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 6&t=120051

Mr. Pablo wrote:

iwanta170 wrote:

Mr. Pablo wrote:It definitely stays with you. I did 2months of studying leading up to June 09, and studied for 4 weeks leading up to Sept.09, scored 13 points higher (granted I was sick/anxious in June). This past week I was moving my stuff, and found my prep materials and I did a couple of games to see if I could still do it- and wouldn't you know it, it actually seemed easier.


/I'm a horrible geek.

What did you do to not be anxious for the Sept test?

Also, how many hours a day did you study during the 4 weeks before that test? Did you take a lot of practice tests

1) I was less anxious because, honestly, I simply didn't care as much. I had gone into the test the first time really freaking out, thinking that I had to nail it. I worried myself into a fever- literally, I felt hot and took my temp when I got home, 101. The second time I just went in with the feeling that it wasn't going to make or brake my life. I was really relaxed.

2) My study method was virtually the same. After work I would do 2 or 3 timed sections and then review them. On weekends I would do 1 whole timed test on each of Sat and Sun, then review them. In all I used most of the prep-tests. I usually saved the most recent tests for full practices and the older tests for my weekday practice. The whole thing felt a lot easier the second time around. Before June I was PTing around 166-168 (got a 157), in Sept I was averaging around 168-173 (got a 170).

This is exactly what happened to me. After you take it once and realize the sky doesn't crumble if you don't break 170, it's a lot easier to reach your potential.

Were you folks re-taking old tests or did you have some material you hadn't seen yet?

I think it will stick with you or come back relatively quickly. I was scheduled for the Feb exam which got postponed three weeks due to snow. I had gone through every single PT preparing for my scheduled Feb exam, so for the three weeks leading up to my rescheduled exam I did not take a single PT. The only preparation I did was one LG section the day before my test. I got my target score on the Feb exam.

My layoff was only three weeks though. I think even after a longer layoff though your LSAT skills should come back to you fairly quickly.

This is good to know. I guess that means I won't have to put in nearly as much time preparing for the October 2010 exam as I did preparing for the June 2010 exam since I have already reached my potential (practice testing around 170 but had to cancel the June test because the proctor royally screwed up the timing)

In the meantime, I'll read newspaper editorials as much as I can