Mastering the Verbal

Long Term Preparation

Broaden your reading and read deeply (The Atlantic Monthly, The New Yorker, etc.)

Look up new words that challenge you and practice using them.

Work on weakness areas weekly

Practice your answers using a guide book

Approaches and Strategies

All questions count the same. Answer easy questions first.

Make educated guesses.

Skip questions that you really can’t answer

Limit your time on any one question.

Keep track of time.

Use your test booklet as scratch paper.

Critical Reading

Sentence Completion (19 questions)Tests vocabulary and understanding of sentence structure.

Passage-based reading (48 questions)

Tests comprehension of what is stated in or implied by the passage.

Timing

Spend 30-40 seconds on a shorter question.

70-75 seconds on a longer question.

90 seconds on reading a passage.

Practice and time yourself, see if you finish early enough.

Question 1

Though ostensibly a put down in its good natured ribbing, the average “Celebrity Roast” turns out to be a more of a _______ in reality.

A. Critique

B. Masquerade

C. Eulogy

D. Debacle

E. Calamity

When should I guess?

Student A has no idea.

Student B notices a latin root, eu-like in euphemism is positive

Student C notices that the word should be the opposite of a put down, therefore a eulogy. Eulogy is given at a funeral in praise.

Question 2

Martha’s Vineyard, once a sleepy vacation spot for ______ visitors, has now become a _______ mecca for hordes of sun-worshipping tourists.

A. Myriad-quiet

B. Impoverished-weary

C. Discriminating-bustling

D. Impetuous-depressing

E. Curious-pensive

Practice 1-9

Use the context of the sentence, what do you know?

Use logic to look for opposite relationships and eliminate wrong answers.

Don’t answer if you have no context.

Reading Comprehension

Draw Generalizations from Main Ideas

Draw Inferences

Spot Details from the Text

Understand the Author’s Role

Understand Language in Action

Look Beyond the Passage to Predict Outcomes

Get the Big Picture

Look for the Main Idea

What is the author doing? Describing? Telling a Story? Why?

Look closely at the words the author uses, do they have something in common? Do they share a common feeling (tone)?

If you understand 1 and 2, look deeper, why might a writer do something like this.

Let’s Analyze the 1st Passage

List notice up here:

The Writing Section

A Crash Course in Grammar

Make these words plural: tax, lady, ray, roof, knife

Make these words plural possessive: book, box, lady, sheep

(Does the plural end in s? Then s’. Does it have no s ending, then ‘s?)

Verbs

Know your tense

Make sure sentences match

Ed-matches ed at both parts of the sentence, and so on.

The airplane circled the airport and then heads toward Atlanta.

Correct

Subjects and Objects

I versus me

I is a subject

Me is an object

I am the one responsible for him.

He is the one responsible for me.

Modifiers

Good versus well (well is an adverb)

Students do well in school.

Avoid double negatives

Keep things next to what they modify

Jill walked her new dog with her miniskirt on.

Joining Words

Unless is a subordinate conjunction

Without is a preposition

Unless dad’s check comes through, I will have to wait for an X-box.

Without good directions, traveling is difficult.

Commas

Ending sentences correctly

To separate items in a series

When more than one adjectives preceded a noun

Words or phrases that interrupt a sentence

Appositive phrases

Quotations

Joining sentences with coordinating conjunctions

Capitalizing

First word of a complete sentence

The comments of each new speaker in a conversation

Each first letter in the new line of a poem

Proper Nouns and Adjectives

The first letter of the first word in a salutation

Confused words

Complement-compliment

Principle-principal

Accept-except

Then-than

Your-You’re

It’s-Its

Essay

I. Strong Narrative Lead Into ThesisII. Explain Example 1Topic SentenceRestrict the TopicGive a Concrete ExampleConcludeIII. Repeat with Example 2IV. Strong Conclusion