RHETORICAL STRATEGIES

ACT PREP CLASS

What Are Rhetorical Skills?

• Problems that test how well you can write and understand what you read

• Strategy• Organization• Style• Transitions

HELPFUL TIP:

DON’T WORRY ABOUT USAGE AND MECHANICS

How Do I Know What Kind of Question It Is?

• Rhetorical Strategy questions come in TWO formats

• Reading questions• “no change” questions

HELPFUL TIP:

ALMOST ALL USEAGE/MECHANIC QUESTIONS ARE “NO CHANGE”

FORMAT, THEREFORE A MAJORITY OF “NO CHANGE” QUESTIONS ARE

NOT RHETORICAL SKILLS QUESTIONS!

TWO TYPES OF READING QUESTIONS

• STRATEGY• CHOICES AND STRATIGIES USED BY A

WRITER WHEN WRITING OR REVISING AN ESSAY

• EXAMPLE: WHICH CHOICE WOULD MOST EFFECTIVELY OPEN THIS PARAGRAPH AND CONVEY THE IMPORTANCE OF THIS CASE?

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT!

TURN TO PAGE 45 IN YOUR ACT BOOK…WHICH QUESTIONS ARE

STRATEGY QUESTIONS? IDENTIFY AND ANSWER!

TWO TYPES OF READING QUESTIONS CONTINUED

• ORGANIZATION• Issues of order, coherence, and unity in an

essay

• EXAMPLE: Upon reviewing this essay and finding out that some information has been left out, the writer composes the following sentence incorporating that information:

TRY THIS!

USE TIC-TAC-TOE METHOD!

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT!

TURN TO PAGE 46 IN THE ACT BOOK AND ANSWER

QUESTION 33!

TRY THIS!

USE YOUR READING COMPREHENSION SKILLS!

ANSWER WHAT IS BEING ASKED!

ELIMINATE THE WRONG ANSWERS!

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT!

TURN TO PAGE 45 IN YOUR ACT BOOK AND SEE IF YOU CAN

ELIMINATE THE WRONG ANSWERS WITHOUT LOOKING

BACK AT THE PASSAGE!

“NO CHANGE” QUESTIONS

• Looking to test your knowledge of – Style: effective choices related to tone,

clarity and economy– Transitions: effective choices related to

transitions to new clauses, sentences, or paragraphs

STYLE QUESTION TIPS

• ALL WRONG ANSWERS ARE GRAMMATICALLY CORRECT!

• The wrong answers fall into three categories– Too similar– Too Long – Too much

Too Similar

• Restates the exact same concept twice

• Example: Snooki starts and begins a new journey.

Too Long

• Makes the statement unnecessarily long

• Example: Snooki goes to start a new journey.

Too Much

• Adds irrelevant concepts

• Example: Snooki starts, like the first steps of a race, a new journey.

HELPFUL TIP!

With style questions, THE SHORTEST answer is correct most of the time, so the key is to identify them as style

questions!

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT!

GO TO PAGE 42 AND WRITE STYLE NEXT TO ALL THE QUESTIONS THAT YOU THINK ARE STYLE QUESTIONS.

THEN READ THOUGH THE SENTENCES AND TRY TO ELIMINATE THE ANSWER CHOICES THAT HAVE

STYLE ISSUES!

TRANSITION QUESTION TIPS!

• Identify the different types of transitions– Typically begin at eh beginning of a

clause, sentence, or paragraph

• Used in the following ways– To contradict– To conclude– To continue

Transitions that Contradict

• These transitions set the stage for a contradiction of the previous statement– but, however, despite, although, yet,

nevertheless, rather, on the contrary, instead of

• Example: “The Situation” was going to the gym, but he went tanning instead.

Transitions that Conclude

• These transitions signal a conclusion or result from the previous statement– Thus, therefore, consequently, for

example, and so, finally, in conclusion

• Example: “The Situation” went to the gym, thus he had no money for tanning.

Transitions that Continue

• Signal a continuation or an addition to the previous statement– And, also, furthermore, in addition, for

example, moreover, similarly, another

• Example: “The Situation” went to the gym, and he went tanning as well.

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT!

GO TO PAGE 45 AND WRITE TRANSITION NEXT TO THE

QUESTIONS YOU BELIEVE ARE TRANSITION QUESTION. THEN READ

THROUGH THE SENTENCES AND ANSWER THE QUESTIONS

CORRECTLY!

RHETORICAL SKILLS DRILL

• TURN TO PAGE 152 IN YOUR ACT BOOK

• IDENTIFY THE RHETORICAL SKILLS PROBLEMS

• ANSWER THE TRANSITION AND STYLE QUESTIONS

• REVIEW ANSWERS