Getting ready for the AP Exam

Test layout, helpful hints, and test strategies

1. Brief Intro. To AP Exam: -2 sections: multiple choice and essay

section

1. Brief Intro. To AP Exam: -test duration is 3 hours (180 min) -Section 1: Multiple Choice (60 min)-

Counts for 45% of grade; 50-55 questions

1. Brief Intro. To AP Exam: -Section 2: Free response (120 min)- Counts for

55 % of your grade; composed of 3 essays -1) Analysis of passage/Presentation of

analysis (40 min essay) -2) Argumentative Essay (40 min:

supports, refutes, of qualifies a statement) -3) Synthesis essay (55 min: integrates

info from a variety of sources)

1. Brief Intro. To AP Exam: -Final Score: 1- Not qualified 2- Possibly Qualified 3- Qualified 4- Well Qualified 5- Extremely Qualified

1. Brief Intro. To AP Exam: -Free Response Score (scored from 0-

9) -Criteria for a 9: “answers all facets of

the question completely, making good use of specific examples to support its points, and is ‘well-written’

-Criteria for a 0: means you basically wrote gibberish

2. Cracking the System: The Multiple Choice Section

Passages on the Exam Multiple choice section is made up of

5-7 passages They are followed by 5-12 multiple

choice questions for each passage Most works are from 19th and 20th

centuries You will probably see one passage

that was written before 1800.

Passages on the Exam Variety of Passages:

fiction, essays, biography, autobiography, diary entries, speeches, letters, pieces of journalism, literary criticism, science and nature writing, writings about politics or history

Passages on the Exam Passages will be varied in types of:

Diction (expression of words) Syntax (grammar/style) Imagery Tone Style Points of view

Passages on the Exam You MUST focus on:

Rhetorical devices Figures of speech Purpose of writings

The Big Picture DO NOT read the questions before you

read the passage. Why? Because you may filter your

reading and ignore important information.

Imagine the first question will be, “What’s the gist of the passage?”

Questions may try to trick you into identifying wrong answers because you focus too much on a sentence/question.

Two-Pass System 54 questions, 60 minutes to complete

test, about 1 min. to answer each question

Should spend 8-12 minutes on each passage.

Make a first pass answering questions that are easy and circling those that are hard.

Two-Pass System Steps to take:

1. Answer all the easy questions first. 2. Circle the hard questions. 3. Look and watch to see how much time

you have remaining out of the 8-12 allotted minutes. If you’re out of time, come back after you’ve finished the rest of the passages in the section.

POE and Guessing Some people think that guessing can

hurt you, but that isn’t true. Your chances of guessing correctly will go up if you can eliminate one or more choices. Imagine that.

You should take your best guess.

Recap Read the passage for the big picture. Pace yourself (use the two-pass

system) Use POE on every question.

Details and the Big Picture Big picture questions usually come at

the beginning or the end of the question set.

Detail questions are sandwiched in between.

3. Basic Principles of the Essay Section

Format and Content of the Essay Section Essay Section made up of the

following: 1 rhetorical analysis essay 1 argumentative essay 1synthesis essay

Format and Content of the Essay Section Time: 2 hours to answer 3 essay

questions Need to write in pen (blue or black

ink) You are responsible for time

management. (You will be given no cues)

Plan on spending 40 min. on each essay

Remember You are not writing for your teacher.

Your reader does not know you. You’ll be graded at least as much on

form and writing as on the content.

AP Essay Scoring Given a score between 0-9 About 65% of the essays receive a

score in the middle range: 4,5,6

Your goal is to have your essays stand out from the rest.

Your goal should be to at least get a 6 or 7.

AP Essay Scoring Essays are scored holistically. The readers are individuals who will

make subjective judgments. Avoid :

Being monotonous Providing a generic essay Doesn’t address the prompt

Analysis of the scoring guide High scoring essays are:

Clear and well organized. Use clear examples. Are not mechanical.

How to make the reader give you a high score Half the points you are given come

from the content of an essay. Make your essays readable. (legible) If your thoughts are a mess your

essay will be a mess. The occasional scratch-out is fine.

Too many and then you create a mess.

How to make the reader give you a high score Indent: Indent twice as far as you

normally would. Paragraphs should be approximately

the same length. Write perfectly…for the first two

sentences. Write with pizzazz. Use more precise, colorful wording.

How to make the reader give you a high score Address the prompt.

Budget Your Time Spend 40 min. on each essay. Spend 3-5 min. planning before you

begin writing. Save a few minutes at the end for

proofreading. You may write your essays in any

order. (But why would you?)

4. The Rhetorical Analysis Essay

The First Time You Read the Prompt The first time you read the prompt

identify the type of essay they’re asking you to write and what you’re supposed to do.

Underline any directions that the essay gives you.

Prompts do not always have a marker to show that you are required to present your analysis in an expository essay, but it will be obvious that you are required to explain

The First Time You Read the Prompt If the prompt doesn’t instruct you to

argue, then you will be expected to explain something.

Sometimes you need to infer the author’s position, sometimes the prompt gives it to you.

First time you read the essay, figure out the author’s point of view and identify rhetorical strategies used.

The Second Time You Read the Prompt You should circle clues or key

elements that you know or need to know.

Think PAPA. (Persona, audience, purpose, and argument)

5. The Argumentative Essay

First, a word… For this essay you will be asked to

take a stand. All that matters is how effectively you

argue and back up your position. The first time you read the prompt

identify the type of essay they’re asking you to write and what you’re supposed to do.

First, a word… Most argumentative essays in recent

history have used one of the following phrases: “refute, support, or qualify.”

You can easily distinguish between a rhetorical essay and an argumentative one.

The first time you read the prompt The passages for this essay type are

usually short. Underline the directions present

within the prompt. When you read, begin to formulate a

response and the evidence you find should determine the stance you take.

The first time you read the prompt Take the stance that is easiest for you

to defend. Your second reading can be fairly

superficial. The analysis:

This is not a rhetorical analysis, so you do not need take apart the entire passage.

The Analysis (con.) Next you need to refute, support, or

qualify the claim. Clearly decide how you feel about the

issue and have examples to back up your claim.

Don’t forget to write in the present tense. Use the present tense when addressing

the author, text, and claim.

Tenses and Misc. Use the past tense only when

presenting historical facts. One of the most common errors is

using improper verb-tense shifts. Don’t get into the habit of using

superfluous words in the introduction. I.e. “in the novel Pride and Prejudice,”

“in the play A Doll’s House,” “in the novella Heart of Darkness”

Misc. Highlight the use of rhetorical

fallacies. Ad hominem, non sequitur, etc.

6. The Synthesis Essay

Purpose Purpose behind this essay:

Test students’ abilities to read and evaluate multiple sources and integrate appropriate ones into a coherent, cogent essay.

Test to see if students know the rudiments of research paper-style writing

Suggested times Reading 15 minutes Writing 40 minutes

Purpose behind this essay Use sources in one of two ways: either to

explain something or argue a point Basically you are either writing another

rhetorical analysis or another argumentative essay.

Tip: Get a clear grasp of the prompt. If you know what to look for, then you can skim the parts that do not pertain to your thesis-and underline the good stuff.

The First Time You Read the Prompt Underline key instructions and other

terms. Look for guidelines that discuss sources. Make sure to outline your thoughts

The Second Time You Read the Prompt Probably not as useful with this type

of prompt. Time to read-sort of

How closely you read the passages should depend on how well you know the context of the topic.

Underline anything that supports or refutes the thesis.

Once you know what you want to write about underline only what substantiates your points.

Time to read-sort of Examine all sources Put a mark through the one that you

do not intend to use. Don't assume that all sources are

relevant. It is unlikely you will use them all, but

use as many as you can. Be aware of the requirement.