Last Minute Notes Before the Exam AP English Language and Composition Conn

Things to Review Some of your Rhetorical Devices Sample Essays (Upper-half scores ONLY) from throughout the year Your own past essays The books, documentaries, articles, etc. that we have encountered in class- they are perfect to use on the argument essay and they are a clear demonstration that “you know stuff”

First Step Relax Get enough sleep Rise earlier than you normally would Eat a healthy breakfast and pack a healthy snack (this is not the morning to have your first cup of coffee) Make sure that you bring a couple of pencils and pens (black or blue ink) Arrive at the Del Mar Fairgrounds with time to spare

In the Testing Room Know where the clocks are Make sure your pencils are sharp and that your pens actually write Sit down a couple of minutes before the test begins Relax

During the Multiple Choice Bracket Star Circle the EXCEPTs Circle transition words within the pieces If you can eliminate at least two then go ahead and guess Read closely, accurately, and quickly Relax

Between the Multiple Choice and the Essay Section Stretch Have a healthy snack that will sustain you for the essay section Try not to talk too much about the multiple choice section Know that you have done well and develop confidence about the essay section

During the 15 Minutes Before You Write REMBER WHAT AP STANDS FOR Develop your own position on the synthesis question and then outline Read all the documents carefully and thoroughly Summarize the documents If time, read the other questions and begin brainstorming for them as well Relax

During the Essay Section REMBER WHAT AP STANDS FOR!!! Relax REMEMBER: You can write the essays in any order you so desire For Synthesis, remember to incorporate AT LEAST 3 SOURCES!!! For a possible defend/challenge/qualify question, think MATURE ACADEMIC PERSPECTIVE!!! For a possible rhetorical strategy question, remember to talk about how the strategies ADD TO THE AUTHOR’S PURPOSE OR ADD TO THE TEXT AS A WHOLE!!! AUDIENCE. AUDIENCE. AUDIENCE. Remember the rhetorical triangle

During the Essay Section REMBER WHAT AP STANDS FOR Pace yourself Don’t give them any time back Go back over your essay Correct your errors and fix your mistakes Finish knowing that you have done the best you can

Remember the Ten Commandments of Advanced Placement English Literature and Composition 1. I am the Prompt, thy Prompt; thou shalt have no other Prompt before me. Thou shalt read the Prompt with rapt attention; the Prompt is thy friend. Thou shalt address the Prompt. Thou shalt not just get the general idea of the Prompt, nor shalt thou fight the Prompt or substitute your own ideas for the Prompt. 2. Thou shalt not postpone, omit or bury thy Thesis Statement.

Remember the Ten Commandments of Advanced Placement English Literature and Composition 3. Thou shalt not dwell with Summary, for it is an abomination in my sight. Neither shalt thou be satisfied with mere Reading Comprehension for thy Prompt is an analytic and interpretive Prompt. 4. Thou shalt not commit free-floating generalization, but shall support and develop thine every assertion with Concrete Details.

Remember the Ten Commandments of Advanced Placement English Literature and Composition 5. Thou shalt not mistake complexity for confusion, or subtlety for indecisiveness; thou shalt not attribute thine own insensitivity or ignorance to authorial ineptitude. The fact that thou gettest not the point doesn't mean that the passage hath no point: thou hast missed the point. Deal with it. 6. Thou shalt read every MC question with the same exquisite care that thou devotest to the Essay Prompt: thou shalt not "get the drift." By the same token, shalt thou strive to read what the writer actually wrote, not what thou expectest him or her to have written.

Remember the Ten Commandments of Advanced Placement English Literature and Composition 7. Thou shalt not finish early. Thou shalt spend plenty of thy time planning thine essay responses and any time left over editing them. 8. Honor thy percentages by guessing thoughtfully when thou art not sure of the answers. 9. Thou shalt not merely identify rhetorical, stylistic, and literary devices, but shalt show how they function.

Remember the Ten Commandments of Advanced Placement English Literature and Composition 10. Thou shalt never permit thyself to become discouraged: I am the prompt, thy Prompt. Thou shalt maintain thy focus, attention and confidence. Yea, though thou hast totally screwed up thy last essay, this next essay maketh a fresh start.