1. SAT Prep
The Essay

2. The Basics 50 minutes total. 4 available pages on which to write.
You will READ and ANALYZE a provided passage of text.
The prompt is the same on all exams; however, the passage will change from year to year.

3. Scoring You will receive a score from 1-4 in the following areas:
Reading - Demonstrate in your essay that you have read and understood the passage. The best way to do this is to quote from the passage. However, you must quote effectively!
Analysis - Analyze the elements of someone else’s argument and use this analysis to craft an argument of your own. Come up with interesting supportable claims and select strong, relevant evidence to support them.
Writing-You must effectively convey your analysis to the reader. This is based on coherent organization, varied sentence structure, good word choice, and an academic tone.

4. Sample Essay Prompt As you read the next passage, consider how
(author’s name) uses
evidence, such as facts or examples, to support claims.
reasoning to develop ideas and to connect claims and evidence.
stylistic or persuasive elements, such as word choice or appeals to emotion, to add power to the ideas expressed.

5. The Assignment After reading the passage, it will say:
__________________________________
Assignment: Write an essay in which you explain how (author’s name) builds an
argument to persuade his/her audience (topic of the passage). In your essay, analyze
how (author’s name) uses one or more of the features listed in the box above (or
features of your own choice) to strengthen the logic and persuasiveness of his/her
argument. Be sure that your analysis focuses on the most relevant features of the
passage.
Your essay should not explain whether you agree with (author’s name) claims, but
rather explain how (author’s name) builds an argument to persuade his/her audience.

6. Essay Structure & Timing
Analyze the passage-10 minutes
Introduction-5 minutes
Body Paragraphs #1-#4-25 minutes
Conclusion-5 minutes
Proofread-5 minutes

7. Basic Things to Remember!
DO NOT write outside of the lines provided! This is all that will be scored. Nothing written in the margins will be seen by the scorer.
Write neatly and legibly!
Write as much as possible. This suggests that you have written a thoughtful and thorough essay.
Write 5 paragraphs - Introduction, three body paragraphs, and a conclusion. This provides some structure so the reader can follow your argument more easily.

8. Basic Things to Remember!
Be explicit - State your argument as clearly as possible. Include a topic sentence at the beginning of every paragraph.
Quote from the passage! This ensures that you convey to the scorer that you read and understood the passage.
You will only be penalized for grammar and mechanical errors if they make the text difficult to read.

9. Basic Things to Remember
The SAT essay rubric states: "The response includes a skillful introduction and conclusion.”
Including an introduction paragraph in your essay is absolutely essential to getting a good Writing score.
A good introduction includes your claim statement

10. Introduction-5 minutes
Sets the tone for the rest of the essay.
Keep it brief and straightforward.
Start with a brief statement or two relevant to the prompt that demonstrates that you have read and understood the author’s position on the issue. Then move directly to your claim.
HINT - The SAT provides you with the passage’s main idea, so you don’t have to go hunting for it yourself.

11. Your Claim
The SAT essay rubric states: "The response includes a precise central claim.”
Your "precise central claim" is to identify the main idea of the passage and list the most effective methods that the author uses to support it. (Choose 3)
EXAMPLE: Dana Gioia expresses reasoning, includes evidence, and establishes word choice in order to make his point.

12. Be sure to state the author’s name, article title and main idea of the passage
Sample Introduction
This sentence outlines the organization of the essay and demonstrates understanding of the passage, related to the reading score.
In “Tear Down ‘Deadbeat’ Dams,” Yvon Chouinard makes a compelling argument for why the United States government should remove ineffective, environmentally harmful dams. Four distinct features make Chouinard’s argument so compelling: his use of impressively large statistics, his employment of specific examples, his telling of personal anecdotes, and the logical organization of his argument. These features in combination make Chouinard’s essay very convincing.
Here is your thesis. Has the author effectively persuaded the audience?

13. Body Paragraphs - 25 minutes
Start with a topic sentence that identifies the device you are discussing.
Support your claim and topic sentence with specific details drawn from the passage.
You don’t have to mention every single device or detail that makes the argument effective.
Choose the most effective examples of the device and explain their function.
Use only what you need from the quote!

14. Additional Tips for Body Paragraphs
You must explain the effect that the use of these devices has on the reader
You don’t have to be completely, 100% accurate about the effect on the reader. There is not one correct answer, but you must be convincing in your explanation. Do not simply paraphrase the quote!
Lastly, avoid getting drawn into the topic and using your outside knowledge. Do not give your opinion on the issue!

15. Sample Body Paragraph
One feature of Chouinard’s essay that makes it convincing is the effective use of evidence, particularly undeniably large numbers. For example, in the very first paragraph, Chouinard cites that “of the more than 80,000 dams listed by the federal government, more than 26,000 pose high or significant safety hazards.” Safety hazards numbering in the tens of thousands are difficult to ignore. Chouinard utilizes large-number statistics later when describing the example of the Elwha River: “Salmon runs that once reached 400,000 fish a year dropped to fewer than 3,000.” Again, a 397,000 drop in salmon in a single river makes a fairly compelling case for dam removal. Chouinard’s skillful employment of large, eye-grabbing statistics gives his obscure topic more force and makes his argument more powerful.

16. Sample Body Paragraph
Gioia also uses comparisons between people who don’t read and people who do. He states that poor reading skills ranked second among hourly workers and that 38 percent of employers complained that local schools inadequately taught reading comprehension. Those statements may accomplish two things: scare any parent reading this passage in that their child may not be getting a good education, and inspire his audience to not be one of the people that their employer is displeased with. Just from that statement, Gioia has captured the attention of parents and any other individual that is insecure about their literary skills as well.

17. Conclusion-5 minutes Should be clear and brief.
DO NOT add new arguments or quotes.
Simply, restate the arguments you have already made.
Your 1st sentence should rephrase the thesis statement.
Follow up with an answer to the “So what?” question. Why should anyone care about what you have just written or the topic?

18. Sample Conclusion
Chouinard utilizes many strategies to make his argument convincing, among them eye-grabbing statistics, specific examples, personal anecdotes, and logical organization. Together, these strategies form a compelling claim for dam removal. Using these strategies is especially important in promoting a relatively low-profile environmental cause such as this.