Top Law Schools

On LR, what's the logic for doing questions 1-15, skipping the 3rd fold, doing the last fold ("hardest questions"), and then returning to the 3rd fold?

Um . . . I've never heard that this was a strategy? But my assumption is that because the questions on the third fold are traditionally considered the most difficult, that people should answer the easiest ones first so that they don't become bogged down by the harder ones. This way you can manage your time better (so you don't run out.)

Hope this helps!

Tht's wht I figured, but I would think the last fold would also be equally hard

glucose101 wrote:Tht's wht I figured, but I would think the last fold would also be equally hard

I don't know if there's a concrete order (I would imagine not) but I have noticed that when they throw in a ridiculous game (like Mauve Dinosaurs which annihalated me) it tends to come 3rd.

That said, I always just went straight through.

for LR

glucose101 wrote:for LR

lol sorry. I tried to go: first 10 in 10 minutes, 20 in 20 miuntes and then go slow on the last questions. I never tried skipping blocks of questions. I thought there was too great a chance I would misbubble or forget to answer a question doing anything else.

minnbills wrote:

glucose101 wrote:for LR

lol sorry. I tried to go: first 10 in 10 minutes, 20 in 20 miuntes and then go slow on the last questions. I never tried skipping blocks of questions. I thought there was too great a chance I would misbubble or forget to answer a question doing anything else.

That is the risk you take. And, I don't really think there is much of an plus-side. In reality, you should focus more on trying to get to the point where you leave yourself 5 minutes to check your answers, rather than trying skip around to find the path of least resistance.

I believe the LSATblog recommends you go through the first 15 in 15 minutes, then work backwards from the last question of the section.

tehrocstar wrote:I believe the LSATblog recommends you go through the first 15 in 15 minutes, then work backwards from the last question of the section.

This pretty much follows wht I was asking about, and I'm wondering what the logic is behind this is. Is it so that you don't make careless errors?

If you finish 15 in 15 minutes then this strategy is unnecessary. It's only a good idea for someone who often doesn't finish and doesn't have enough time before the test to sufficiently improve.

How does it help them improve? Are the last questions easier/quicker to answer than the 3rd fold? (just trying to understand the reason behind the method, lol)

I can tell you what works for me, and that's to do whichever fold has the most questions on it first. Sometimes on part will have 8 questions while others might have 4-5. I like to do the ones with the most first (usually #2/#3) because it makes me feel like I've knocked a lot of questions out in the beginning. It's a total psychological thing, but it works for me. I usually have 4-6 minutes left to look over the ones I was unsure of.

My vote is for everyone to do what works best for them. We all test differently.

Tiago Splitter wrote:If you finish 15 in 15 minutes then this strategy is unnecessary. It's only a good idea for someone who often doesn't finish and doesn't have enough time before the test to sufficiently improve.

Agreed. If you're going to come up short on time, you might need a strategy to try and rack up the quick easy points rather than taking on the slower more difficult questions. If you don't find yourself running out of time regularly, I don't see any benefit to jumping around.

glucose101 wrote:How does it help them improve? Are the last questions easier/quicker to answer than the 3rd fold? (just trying to understand the reason behind the method, lol)

I don't exactly know what you mean by third fold, but traditionally the hardest questions will be in the 13-21 range. Saving them for last means you can spend the appropriate time on questions you are likely to get right, and won't waste time getting bogged down on a really tough one.

Anyone gunning for 170+ shouldn't worry about this strategy. Just focus on getting them all right.

Tiago Splitter wrote:

glucose101 wrote:How does it help them improve? Are the last questions easier/quicker to answer than the 3rd fold? (just trying to understand the reason behind the method, lol)

I don't exactly know what you mean by third fold, but traditionally the hardest questions will be in the 13-21 range. Saving them for last means you can spend the appropriate time on questions you are likely to get right, and won't waste time getting bogged down on a really tough one.

Anyone gunning for 170+ shouldn't worry about this strategy. Just focus on getting them all right.

There are 4 folds in an LR section, generally. On the 3rd fold, questions 15-21 pop up.

Although one aiming for a 170+ should focus on getting them all right, wouldn't the strategy to rack the most points the quickest, also be the best strategy for 170+s? Just wondering.

(I'm not saying this is better, and trying to be a prick if it seems like that. I'm trying to really fig this out to be most efficient)

glucose101 wrote:
Although one aiming for a 170+ should focus on getting them all right, wouldn't the strategy to rack the most points the quickest, also be the best strategy for 170+s? Just wondering.

(I'm not saying this is better, and trying to be a prick if it seems like that. I'm trying to really fig this out to be most efficient)

If you can finish the whole section in time, you should just do them in order. If you don't you risk mis-bubbling and throwing yourself off of your rhythm.

The real problem for someone trying for an elite score is that they need to spend extra time on the tough ones to actually get them right. The strategy of doing the easy ones first basically says that you do the hard ones if you have time.