Pithypike's Complete LSAT Study Guide Forum

[mgp2675]

Thank you so much!

[mgp2675]

Just purchased everything...a little over $200 from Amazon which I don't think is bad considering that most of them are new. I didn't want to buy books with lots of markings and notes.

I haven't even began studying for the LSAT and I know very little about it. I hope this method will prepare me by June 2012. Is this feasible?

[lacsam]

Pithypike,

Do you have an ISBN for the Kaplan Mastery? There's plenty out there under the same title, so I'm trying to find which one is best.

Thanks

[NoleMatt]

I just wanted to thank everyone (especially Pithypike, obviously!) so much for the help. I have the LG and LR bibles and finally finished making copies of all of the LG's and now I'm off to the coffee shop to study.

I was really intimidated by the test before I found this thread, now I see it as a tough, but beatable challenge. It's time to put in the work. Thanks again guys!

[mgp2675]

Hello everyone, it seems Pithy has been absent for a little while so I could really use your help. I bought all of the recommended books on this guide, and I started studying yesterday for about an hour...I'm still completing my undergrad so I don't have free hours daily yet but that will soon change.

Anyway, am I supposed to be studying all three (LG, LR, RC) every day or study them in blocks? Someone asked this on here earlier but no one answered. I assume I should go through the entire LRB and LGB but do I do this simultaneously or finish one and move on to the other?

Also, what exactly do I photocopy? Every single game? Between the Kaplan mastery, the four Top 10 PT books and the practice games in the LGB, that's a lot of photocopies. If someone can help me I would greatly appreciate it. Testing in February!

Thanks

[UnamSanctam]

Hello everyone, it seems Pithy has been absent for a little while so I could really use your help. I bought all of the recommended books on this guide, and I started studying yesterday for about an hour...I'm still completing my undergrad so I don't have free hours daily yet but that will soon change.

Anyway, am I supposed to be studying all three (LG, LR, RC) every day or study them in blocks? Someone asked this on here earlier but no one answered. I assume I should go through the entire LRB and LGB but do I do this simultaneously or finish one and move on to the other?

Also, what exactly do I photocopy? Every single game? Between the Kaplan mastery, the four Top 10 PT books and the practice games in the LGB, that's a lot of photocopies. If someone can help me I would greatly appreciate it. Testing in February!

Thanks

I did all of one then all of the other. And yes, it's a lot of photocopies, but that also means a lot of practice for you to get a consistent -0.

[mgp2675]

Okay, thanks for clearing that up! I'm currently going through the LRB and LGB simultaneously. I'm planning on doing some RC at the end of this month but I'm trying to go month-to-month like this was laid out. I have about 4 months until the February LSAT so I think that's a sufficient amount of time.

Hello everyone, it seems Pithy has been absent for a little while so I could really use your help. I bought all of the recommended books on this guide, and I started studying yesterday for about an hour...I'm still completing my undergrad so I don't have free hours daily yet but that will soon change.

Anyway, am I supposed to be studying all three (LG, LR, RC) every day or study them in blocks? Someone asked this on here earlier but no one answered. I assume I should go through the entire LRB and LGB but do I do this simultaneously or finish one and move on to the other?

Also, what exactly do I photocopy? Every single game? Between the Kaplan mastery, the four Top 10 PT books and the practice games in the LGB, that's a lot of photocopies. If someone can help me I would greatly appreciate it. Testing in February!

Thanks

I did all of one then all of the other. And yes, it's a lot of photocopies, but that also means a lot of practice for you to get a consistent -0.

[it'sjustme]

Just a quick question - would it be better to use the first booklet of tests that pithypike recommended when he created this thread, or to accumulate ten of the newer (40-49) practice tests instead? Does it make a difference? I thought it would be better to work with the newest tests consistently, but I am looking for some feedback.

Thank you!

[keyanaut]

Anyone do pithypikes? How does it compare to LSATBLOGs 5 month day by day? I'm taking the June test

[Br3v]

So should I read all 3 bibles first then attack this guide? Or am I understanding it correctly that you read for ex a chapter in the LR bible then do the corresponding problems? Then read the next ch, and so on?

[McLusky]

Sorry if this has been covered before, but what can sub in for the Kaplan Mastery book?

[Lt. Dan]

So, do you take the first 30 tests and do the sections corresponding with the bibles for the first 2 months, and then spend the last month exclusively doing the most recent 10 & reviewing?

I was just going to go through the bible first, and then just do all 40 PTs with review in between.

[yuck]

Halfway through the first group of LG games (linear), when do I start reviewing games I've done, or do I just go through all 20 or so of them for the 1st time, then review all of them. Probably do a few, review those few, do a few more, review those, then when done with the whole 20 of them, go through them a second time, chunk by chunk, with reviewing them like the first time, right?

Thanks

[yuck]

nvm

[pkhildebrand]

hey pithypike, i plan on using your study plan for the next two months (especially with the LG section) to get ready for the december LSAT. however, i had a few quick questions.

i was confused about where the LGB comes into play. am i working through a chapter (like the linear games) then spending the entire month working on only problems from that chapter?

and i was confused about the #'s next to the LGs. . . .

thanks, pithy!

(i'll probably have more questions down the line. . . . )

You work through the entire chapter on whichever game type you are working on (Grouping, Linear, Pattern, Hybrid, etc.), then start working through that LG type game by game. If you struggle with a particular game then go back to the LGB and review it.

The numbers next to each LG type are the number of games that exist for each game type.

Let me know if you have any more questions.

So where it says "PT-44" are you suggesting we practice LG during month 1 only using PT 44?

[Systematic1]

Perfect time to buy all this stuff on Amazon right now, they're offering free 2 day shipping if you have a .edu email. Just make sure you disable autoupgrade in your account after you purchase, otherwise they'll charge you for an Amazon Prime membership in 6 months.

[cloudhidden]

Now that there are 65 prep tests available, does anyone prefer the Cambridge bundle that includes the first 38 tests grouped by type within LR, LG, and RC over the Pithypike advice to get Kaplan Mastery and the preptests separately? Would the optimal study plan now include an additional month to account for the ~10 Preptests that have been released since his study plan?

With 31 full-length tests (including Superprep A, B, and C, and "51.5") how many do you put aside for individual sections and how many do you take as PT? I was thinking to either leave 12 or 16 for PT and then fill a fifth section from the other tests and take the rest as individual sections. That leaves 12 or 16 five-section PT and 16 or 11 preptests that include four remaining sections. I am just not confident about whether I will need more PT or individual sections for my self-study. The Pithypike method leaves ample sections available for timing, but then how much spoilage exists across LR sections and Kaplan Mastery? I don't see the value in timing sections with questions that you have already gone through whilst drilling.

Also, if you are going through the RC as grouped by Cambridge, would you go through the different types of passages all at once or separately (i.e. work on the first passage for each type before the second for each type and so on and so forth, or complete all the Humanities (or whichever section you choose) before doing the other types)?

And finally, does anyone know the conversion for Powerscore and Cambridge classifications for LR and LG? I still intend to consult the LRB and LGB throughout.

[Yugihoe]

How do you guys handle games that you just didnt get the first time around. I've completed the logic bible and am doing drills now from the PTs and occasionally come across a problem I am having difficulty setting up/drawing inferences.

Sure you have the right answers at the end of the test booklet but theres no explanations of how a proper set up should be ect? Do you somehow just work backwards with the answers? Or there any explanatory materials for the prep tests?

[Easy-E]

How do you guys handle games that you just didnt get the first time around. I've completed the logic bible and am doing drills now from the PTs and occasionally come across a problem I am having difficulty setting up/drawing inferences.

Sure you have the right answers at the end of the test booklet but theres no explanations of how a proper set up should be ect? Do you somehow just work backwards with the answers? Or there any explanatory materials for the prep tests?

Manhattan LSAT's forum has explanations for every game. Good resource. Should always try and work it through yourself though!

[VasaVasori]

.

[LSAT Blog]

how much spoilage exists across LR sections and Kaplan Mastery? I don't see the value in timing sections with questions that you have already gone through whilst drilling.

The Kaplan Mastery book uses questions from many old PTs from the earliest exams up to the 40s. From what I've seen, it doesn't include any questions from the 50s and up, but some folks may be looking to use the 40s for timed sections for full-length practice exams closer to Test Day.

(Keep in mind that Mastery Practice fails to make some important distinctions. It doesn't differentiate between "Must Be True" and "Most Strongly Supported" questions (it lumps them together under "Inference"), nor does it distinguish between "Necessary Assumption" and "Sufficient Assumption" questions (it lumps them together under "Assumption"). Let me know if you'd like details on the differences between these question-types.)

In my study plans, I reserve questions from the older exams for untimed practice so that you can use questions from the newer exams for timed practice (to avoid mixing). I agree that there wouldn't be much value in drilling LR Qs to which you've already been exposed.

[jonjon1324]

I'm very confused as to how Pithypike is dividing the LG categories. He says the categories are:

Basic Linear - Balanced (23)
Basic Linear - Overloaded (5)
Basic Linear - Underfunded (5)
Advanced Linear - Balanced (25)
Advanced Linear - Overloaded (4)
Advanced Linear - Underfunded (7)
Grouping - Defined - Fixed - Balanced (10)
Grouping - Defined - Fixed - Overloaded (11)
Grouping - Defined - Fixed - Underfuned (5)
Grouping - Defined - Moving - Balanced (14)
Grouping - Defined - Moving - Overloaded (2)
Grouping - Partially Defined (9)
Grouping - Undefined (6)
Rare Game Types:
Grouping/Linear Combination (8)
Pattern Games (6)
Pure Sequencing (6) Note-much more common in modern games - pay attention
Mapping (3)
Circular Linearity (2)


Then he says to ") Do each LGB section in order and work on the respective game types as you progress. "

I don't understand what he means by "Respective" games. For example, the first section of the LGB is "Rule Origin"...but he doesn't list "Rule Origin" as one of the LG classifications, so how do I know what Logic Games to work on for this section? The same applies to Question Stem and Two Rule Inference..

Can somebody explain this to me?

[LSAT Blog]

How do you guys handle games that you just didnt get the first time around. I've completed the logic bible and am doing drills now from the PTs and occasionally come across a problem I am having difficulty setting up/drawing inferences.

Sure you have the right answers at the end of the test booklet but theres no explanations of how a proper set up should be ect? Do you somehow just work backwards with the answers? Or there any explanatory materials for the prep tests?

LSAC's SuperPrep includes detailed explanations for every question in those exams (Feb 1996, Feb 1999, and Feb 2000), but even those don't include much of anything in the way of diagrams.

Working backwards from the answers isn't the best way to learn for Logic Games, as this doesn't give you an efficient approach. Better to make sure you have a solid main diagram and understanding of the rules, as well as some inferences, before jumping into the game.

I've got a variety of explanations for PT19 and up. Here are some free ones for Logic Games in recent exams.

[LSAT Blog]

I'm very confused as to how Pithypike is dividing the LG categories. He says the categories are:

Basic Linear - Balanced (23)
Basic Linear - Overloaded (5)
Basic Linear - Underfunded (5)
Advanced Linear - Balanced (25)
Advanced Linear - Overloaded (4)
Advanced Linear - Underfunded (7)
Grouping - Defined - Fixed - Balanced (10)
Grouping - Defined - Fixed - Overloaded (11)
Grouping - Defined - Fixed - Underfuned (5)
Grouping - Defined - Moving - Balanced (14)
Grouping - Defined - Moving - Overloaded (2)
Grouping - Partially Defined (9)
Grouping - Undefined (6)
Rare Game Types:
Grouping/Linear Combination (8)
Pattern Games (6)
Pure Sequencing (6) Note-much more common in modern games - pay attention
Mapping (3)
Circular Linearity (2)


Then he says to ") Do each LGB section in order and work on the respective game types as you progress. "

I don't understand what he means by "Respective" games. For example, the first section of the LGB is "Rule Origin"...but he doesn't list "Rule Origin" as one of the LG classifications, so how do I know what Logic Games to work on for this section? The same applies to Question Stem and Two Rule Inference..

Can somebody explain this to me?

He's suggesting that you complete the chapter about Basic Linear Logic Games, then complete the Logic Games of that type (Basic Linear).

Check the table of contents to find the chapters corresponding to those game types. The sections you described aren't about different game types - they're more general (introductory stuff). As such, there won't be any specific Logic Games corresponding to them in pithy's plan.

[jonjon1324]

I'm very confused as to how Pithypike is dividing the LG categories. He says the categories are:

Basic Linear - Balanced (23)
Basic Linear - Overloaded (5)
Basic Linear - Underfunded (5)
Advanced Linear - Balanced (25)
Advanced Linear - Overloaded (4)
Advanced Linear - Underfunded (7)
Grouping - Defined - Fixed - Balanced (10)
Grouping - Defined - Fixed - Overloaded (11)
Grouping - Defined - Fixed - Underfuned (5)
Grouping - Defined - Moving - Balanced (14)
Grouping - Defined - Moving - Overloaded (2)
Grouping - Partially Defined (9)
Grouping - Undefined (6)
Rare Game Types:
Grouping/Linear Combination (8)
Pattern Games (6)
Pure Sequencing (6) Note-much more common in modern games - pay attention
Mapping (3)
Circular Linearity (2)


Then he says to ") Do each LGB section in order and work on the respective game types as you progress. "

I don't understand what he means by "Respective" games. For example, the first section of the LGB is "Rule Origin"...but he doesn't list "Rule Origin" as one of the LG classifications, so how do I know what Logic Games to work on for this section? The same applies to Question Stem and Two Rule Inference..

Can somebody explain this to me?

He's suggesting that you complete the chapter about Basic Linear Logic Games, then complete the Logic Games of that type (Basic Linear).

Check the table of contents to find the chapters corresponding to those game types. The sections you described aren't about different game types - they're more general (introductory stuff). As such, there won't be any specific Logic Games corresponding to them in pithy's plan.

So I shouldn't do those sections at all, or I should do them, just not expect to have any corresponding games to go along with them? And is it normal for the "chapters" to be 2 pages long?