Grammar and Punctuation: Honing Skill sets for SAT Dominance

Standard English Conventions 21 of the 44 questions on English section are labeled as SEC Their – There – They’re (They’re there) Correct form of words – (homophones)

This sample combines 2 elements SAMPLE #1 HOMOPHONES Passage was about physician assistants (PAs) “Both by merit and from necessity, PAs are likely to greet more 33 patience than ever before.” This sample combines 2 elements

ANSWER CHOICES for #33 A) NO CHANGE B) patience, than C) patients then D) patients than

CORRECT ANSWER is D “Patients” vs. “Patience” People PAs care for versus human quality of tolerance or perseverance

Explanation Continued “Than” vs. “Then” “Than” – comparison introduced by adverb “more” as in “more than” “Then” – refers to a time sequence

Explanation Continued And for good measure, SAT throws a comma into Choice B Many of these questions address more than one English convention Homophone, comparative conjunction, and punctuation all in 1 Question

THE COMMA SPLICE – What is it?

THINGS TO REMEMBER 2 Independent clauses (complete sentence – subject and verb) CANNOT be joined by only a comma You need a conjunction or you need a colon or semi-colon (specific rules for those)

SAMPLE QUESTION - #19 “Enter committee member John Burland, he is a geotechnical engineer from England who saved London’s clock tower Big Ben from collapse.”

ANSWER CHOICES A) NO CHANGE (the ever popular) B) Burland is C) his being D) DELETE the underlined portion

CORRECT ANSWER is D (Delete) Choice A (No change) doesn’t work because you’d have a comma splice and Choice B results in comma splice as well Choice C has unnecessary and awkward wording Choice D eliminates the comma splice

SAT ESSAY – 50 Minutes The student’s opinion does NOT matter Personal experience not relevant Always the same prompt/stem – but different reading passage each time ANALYSIS is the focus

SAT ESSAY CONTINUED All passages have these things in common: Written for a broad audience Argue a point Express subtle views on complex subjects

SAT ESSAY CONTINUED Use logical reasoning and evidence to support claims Examine ideas, debates, or trends in the arts and sciences, or civic, cultural, or political life Always taken from published works All the information you need to write your essay will be included in the passage or in notes about it.

HOW LONG SHOULD I SPEND READING/PLANNING AND HOW MUCH TIME WRITING? Reading passage for essay will be easier than reading passages for the multiple choice sections 50 minutes total Leave 30 minutes for writing the essay For the first 20 minutes, do the following: 1) Need to identify author’s claim (main point / contention) 2) Need to identify evidence concerning how author makes the argument (i.e. rational appeals, emotional appeals, ethical appeals) 3) Look for examples of craft (i.e. metaphor, tone, hyperbole, parallelism, etc.)

HOW is the ESSAY SCORED? Reading: A successful essay shows that you understood the passage, including the interplay of central ideas and important details. It also shows an effective use of textual evidence.

Analysis: A successful essay shows your understanding of how the author builds an argument by: Examining the author’s use of evidence, reasoning, and other stylistic and persuasive techniques Supporting and developing claims with well- chosen evidence from the passage

Writing: A successful essay is focused, organized, and precise, with an appropriate style and tone that varies sentence structure and follows the conventions of standard written English.