We continued to work on practice exercises during today's session. I reviewed the proper use of numerous transitional phases and further provided instruction on responding to note synthesis questions. In this regard, we continue to focus on the exact question in order to be able to locate which note or series of notes responds to the specific inquiry. Last,we began our discussion and review of the digital PSAT format. We looked at the college board "blue book" page and located and reviewed the digital PSAT practice exams. We will soon begin practicing on the digital platform as well as on paper.
As Kaitlin has been progressing well in her test prep work, we today studied two more difficult data and logic questions. The first data analysis required an understanding of correlation and inverse correlation; the second problem required drawing inferences from conflicting psychological theories. We worked on parsing the second passage by noting the claim followed by the word"but" thereby suggesting that the passage will contradict the original thesis. We then completed going over Module 1 of Practice Test 2 which focused on grammar. I provided additional instruction on the SAT's idiosyncratic use of the colon.
We worked on interpreting data based bar charts and answering logic questions during today's session. I provided instruction on reading bar graphs and discussed how to begin the analysis by first drawing some conclusion about what the chart depicts. We then worked on matching each multiple choice answer to the data in the bar chart to determine if the proposed answer accurately reflects the data. As Kaitlin had some difficulty with today's data questions ,I spent time explaining the logical conclusion presented by the data in order to facilitate finding the correct answer. We also addressed some word choice questions (their , they're, and there) as well as the SAT's idiosyncratic use of the colon.
We studied exercises focused on the nuanced questions that ask : the purpose of a sentence, the function of a sentence, and the main idea of an entire passage. We then noted the distinction between questions that ask "according to the text" vs those that ask what the text "suggests." As Kaitlin worked through these practice questions I provided strategies for finding and importantly then checking the selected answer for accuracy. She continues to do well on all of our "on paper" practice sessions. We will also soon be working on transferring these skills to the digital format.
We studied some challenging data analysis questions today and worked on finding statements that supported or were logically inferred from the data(tables). Kaitlin overall did very well on these questions, and where she encountered difficulty, I broke down the data to demonstrate how to select the best answer. We then continued working on PSAT grammar skills: the proper use of a semi-colon , and a hyphen, possessive pronouns that don't use apostrophes (except one's), and punctuating sentences to avoid creating sentence fragments.
As Kaitlin was not clear on subject -verb agreement rules when the operative verb is a form of the verb"to be" today, I first on the board conjugated the verb "to be" in past and present tense. Then, I distributed two subject-verb agreement exercises .I addressed how to locate the subject of the sentence -never in the prepositional phrase. We then completed subject -verb agreement exercises where the subject follows a form of the verb "to be." During the remainder of the class, we reviewed Kaitlin's PSAT practice test homework focusing on logic transition questions.
As Kaitlin had some difficulties with the grammar practice questions , during the first segment I provided instruction on subject- verb agreement when the verb is a form to "to be", the use of the colon, and the use of apostrophes to show possession. After instruction, she was able to correctly revise her grammar question responses . She did well on the logic questions, and we then addressed the strategies for the note summary questions. For these questions, I again emphasized the need to focus on the exact wording of the question. For example , today the questions sought an encapsulation of contrasting views. We worked on eliminating choices that were too general and hence did not contain any views or did not reflect contrasting views.
We first addressed Kaitlin's concerns about the digital online format now required of all students taking the SAT or PSAT. When she is physically in class, we will review her blue book online format that is on her computer and address this concern. Next, we studied logic questions where Kaitlin had some difficulty. I again emphasized the need to focus on the immediately preceding sentence(s) in order to discern the syllogism inherent in the questions. I then provided instruction in dissecting the syllogism to locate the best answer among the four choices. We made good progress as Kaitlin was able to correctly answer some of the sample questions and was always able to locate the two best responses. I then explained why one choice was superior to the other.
Today we continued studying PSAT questions on logic and vocabulary. I further provided instruction on the different strategies for responding to a question that asks for the main idea of a passage vs. the main purpose of the passage. Next, we studied questions on gleaning relevant notes that relate directly to a specific research inquiry. Kaitlin's homework on these areas was very good. We continue to parse the passages so that Kaitlin can practice locating clues within the passages that reveal the correct choice among the 4 proposed answers.
Today's lesson focused on grammar and punctuation. I reviewed the function of the comma, the colon, the semi-colon, and the dash. We further addressed how to recognize and to correct run -on sentences and sentence fragments. Kaitlin then answered PSAT practice questions on these topics. As we work through the questions, I continue to explain what makes the correct response the best choice and why the other punctuation choices are wrong, often because they create run-ons and sentence fragments. Kaitlin continues to do well on the practice exercises.
