Retaker trying to find the right study plan for October Forum

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am060459

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Retaker trying to find the right study plan for October

Post by am060459 » Thu Jul 01, 2010 2:28 am

took the june 2010 lsat and scored a 159 (LR -17, RC -9 and LG -3). my cold diagnostic was a 134 last summer and i managed to PT around 158 with 20+ PTs before the exam. i studied since last summer on and off with a course from testmasters in the fall. i really started to study this past january (after my TM course finished). i feel i can do a 161+ and thats why im retaking.

with a 159 my foundations arent strong (especially for LR and RC). i plan on studying for my retake mid july to the end of august. leaving september for PTing. i want to start from scratch (doing LR by question types, RC by passage and LG by types) but i only have 1.5 months.

what do you suggest i do and how do i attack it?

thanks.

am060459

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Re: Retaker trying to find the right study plan for October

Post by am060459 » Thu Jul 01, 2010 2:34 am

or should i PT from 1-60 with review until October?

Justiceinbrothel

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Re: Retaker trying to find the right study plan for October

Post by Justiceinbrothel » Thu Jul 01, 2010 3:58 am

am060459 wrote:took the june 2010 lsat and scored a 159 (LR -17, RC -9 and LG -3). my cold diagnostic was a 134 last summer and i managed to PT around 158 with 20+ PTs before the exam. i studied since last summer on and off with a course from testmasters in the fall. i really started to study this past january (after my TM course finished). i feel i can do a 161+ and thats why im retaking.

with a 159 my foundations arent strong (especially for LR and RC). i plan on studying for my retake mid july to the end of august. leaving september for PTing. i want to start from scratch (doing LR by question types, RC by passage and LG by types) but i only have 1.5 months.

what do you suggest i do and how do i attack it?

thanks.
The first and foremost things you should do for October LSAT is to understand that "YOUR FOCUS NEEDS MORE FOCUS" and watch the movie "Karate Kids" then you will be able attack LG, LR and RC with high accuracy.

am060459

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Re: Retaker trying to find the right study plan for October

Post by am060459 » Thu Jul 01, 2010 8:15 am

Justiceinbrothel wrote:The first and foremost things you should do for October LSAT is to understand that "YOUR FOCUS NEEDS MORE FOCUS" and watch the movie "Karate Kids" then you will be able attack LG, LR and RC with high accuracy.
lol. i love the advice.

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3|ink

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Re: Retaker trying to find the right study plan for October

Post by 3|ink » Thu Jul 01, 2010 10:49 am

Justiceinbrothel wrote:
am060459 wrote:took the june 2010 lsat and scored a 159 (LR -17, RC -9 and LG -3). my cold diagnostic was a 134 last summer and i managed to PT around 158 with 20+ PTs before the exam. i studied since last summer on and off with a course from testmasters in the fall. i really started to study this past january (after my TM course finished). i feel i can do a 161+ and thats why im retaking.

with a 159 my foundations arent strong (especially for LR and RC). i plan on studying for my retake mid july to the end of august. leaving september for PTing. i want to start from scratch (doing LR by question types, RC by passage and LG by types) but i only have 1.5 months.

what do you suggest i do and how do i attack it?

thanks.
The first and foremost things you should do for October LSAT is to understand that "YOUR FOCUS NEEDS MORE FOCUS" and watch the movie "Karate Kids" then you will be able attack LG, LR and RC with high accuracy.
Wax on. Wax off. Wax on. Wax off.

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Nikrall

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Re: Retaker trying to find the right study plan for October

Post by Nikrall » Thu Jul 01, 2010 12:55 pm

Hire a tutor. Honestly. A 134 starting diagnostic is, no offense, abysmal. It means that you lack basic fundamentals about logic and how to read these type of questions. You improved a hell of a lot, 25 points (which is quite impressive). Any further improvements are going to be a slow slog, but it is definitely possible. However you will likely need someone to look at exactly what you are doing wrong and why.

Also, start reading complicated articles and/or philosophy.

am060459

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Re: Retaker trying to find the right study plan for October

Post by am060459 » Thu Jul 01, 2010 3:55 pm

Nikrall wrote:Hire a tutor. Honestly. A 134 starting diagnostic is, no offense, abysmal. It means that you lack basic fundamentals about logic and how to read these type of questions. You improved a hell of a lot, 25 points (which is quite impressive). Any further improvements are going to be a slow slog, but it is definitely possible. However you will likely need someone to look at exactly what you are doing wrong and why.

Also, start reading complicated articles and/or philosophy.
thanks. i dont really have the money for private tutoring. im just going to go back to the fundamentals and try to work from there.

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Re: Retaker trying to find the right study plan for October

Post by psteele99 » Thu Jul 01, 2010 3:59 pm

Reading comprehension got lots better for me the more I pratice testing I did and the more reading of technical and scientific articles I did. LSAT prep course did wonders for my LR. I was not shooting for a 160+ but it increased my average PT score by seven questions or 4-6 scaled points, which was enough to put me comfortably into the upper quartile for the school I'm applying for. For me, self study didn't do enough because I didn't know, what I didn't know.. and then didn't know how to fix it! Good luck to you!

Justiceinbrothel

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Re: Retaker trying to find the right study plan for October

Post by Justiceinbrothel » Fri Jul 02, 2010 1:05 am

Nikrall wrote:Hire a tutor. Honestly. A 134 starting diagnostic is, no offense, abysmal. It means that you lack basic fundamentals about logic and how to read these type of questions. You improved a hell of a lot, 25 points (which is quite impressive). Any further improvements are going to be a slow slog, but it is definitely possible. However you will likely need someone to look at exactly what you are doing wrong and why.

Also, start reading complicated articles and/or philosophy.
Nobody wants to go beyond then limit of hard work there must be a pain in the heart. These type of low scores are extremely important to keep you motivated to push the bar and get what you dream of.

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Justiceinbrothel

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Re: Retaker trying to find the right study plan for October

Post by Justiceinbrothel » Fri Jul 02, 2010 1:15 am

No matter how many theories of success you read, LSAT forums you join, prep guide you study - it all comes down to one thing which is concentration. It is the concentration which allows you to distinguish between grouping game and linear grouping game so your set up. It is concentration which helps distinguish between secondry conclusion and primary conclusion. It is concentration which allows you to see the structure of passage in RC questions where notsurprisingly, crap said in first paragraph is questioned in second para and by the time third para comes it is turned like a U-turn and fourth para is full of entirely opposite of what was said in first paragraph.

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moxiepostulate

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Re: Retaker trying to find the right study plan for October

Post by moxiepostulate » Fri Jul 02, 2010 5:39 pm

Hmmn. Fundamentals, slow down, and keep focus?

Remember to separate out what type of RC questions you get wrong in your review. The formula is basically the same no matter what they're talking about, don't be spooked by the topic.

While this advice is limited on the basis of only one test score, as opposed to knowing the results of 5-10 practice tests, it seems that in addition to reviewing the fundamentals of LR you might want to review your close reading strategy and possibly reading speed.

For me, just putting a tiny pencil line between each sentence of LR as I read them keeps me focused in the text and doesn't allow me to rush past information. I very rarely diagram them (though in study, it's really useful to know how!), but if I don't separate out each sentence as I'm receiving the info I can get sloppy.

With RC I don't worry about marking up the text much, but again, little marks -a bracket here, an underline there- help me maintain focus without getting bogged down. And during those location specific questions when I go back and read I'll sometimes do the little line after each sentence/clause just to stay focused.

LR and RC have always been reliably strong for me because I'm a big lit-nerd, so my advice might not be helpful because I have different foundations. But concentration is tough across the board, so you could see if different pencil techniques help you keep your focus and relax. Everyone thinks differently but there are ways to help steer your brain along :)

am060459

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Re: Retaker trying to find the right study plan for October

Post by am060459 » Fri Jul 02, 2010 6:23 pm

moxiepostulate wrote:Hmmn. Fundamentals, slow down, and keep focus?

Remember to separate out what type of RC questions you get wrong in your review. The formula is basically the same no matter what they're talking about, don't be spooked by the topic.

While this advice is limited on the basis of only one test score, as opposed to knowing the results of 5-10 practice tests, it seems that in addition to reviewing the fundamentals of LR you might want to review your close reading strategy and possibly reading speed.

For me, just putting a tiny pencil line between each sentence of LR as I read them keeps me focused in the text and doesn't allow me to rush past information. I very rarely diagram them (though in study, it's really useful to know how!), but if I don't separate out each sentence as I'm receiving the info I can get sloppy.

With RC I don't worry about marking up the text much, but again, little marks -a bracket here, an underline there- help me maintain focus without getting bogged down. And during those location specific questions when I go back and read I'll sometimes do the little line after each sentence/clause just to stay focused.

LR and RC have always been reliably strong for me because I'm a big lit-nerd, so my advice might not be helpful because I have different foundations. But concentration is tough across the board, so you could see if different pencil techniques help you keep your focus and relax. Everyone thinks differently but there are ways to help steer your brain along :)
solid advice. i will definitely try the pencil technique. i feel good about it already without trying it becuase i do fell as if it would let me focus on wat im reading and how it relates to the rest. thanks.

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