Ms. Warren’s Exam Tips:

Lessons from the College Board

Readers

Notice that it’s YOUR position! Also, readers

want to see all three types of

ways to integrate

sources (think research paper

notecards)

Notice that the Chief Reader stresses that HIGH-SCORING ESSAYS focus on issues surrounding a topic—

and the student’s claim about those issues and their impact on a community. This is what can be done

regardless of the synthesis topic!

Notice that they don’t want to see SUMMARY, QUOTE, OR

PARAPHRASE WITHOUT YOUR ARGUMENT: Can you say

“because”?

Pay attention to the fact that saying something is “good” or “bad”, no matter how fancy the diction,

will impress the readers. They want to see the impact and ramifications of the issue based on the information at hand from the sources to make your

decision

Now it’s time to put the 5-

paragraph essay where it belongs—in an grave labeled

“FAIL”!!

I hope you see a pattern here: if you don’t address the issues, only restate the info

from the sources, don’t develop an original claim, or use a five-paragraph formula, you

will make them think you are NOT A COLLEGE-LEVEL THINKER OR WRITER!

OUCH for you.

Rhetorical AnalysisNotice that if you apply the SOAPSTone, you are

halfway there on addressing the prompt; the second half depends on explaining how the writer achieved the purpose. The rhetorical terms (unless specified in the prompt) don’t drive the response: recognizing how a writer develops a claim should.

Argumentative Essay You have a problem if you completely misread the prompt: adversity and

advertising—read carefully!

Do you see how this prompt, similarly to

synthesis, requires you to examine a

broader perspective?

The lesson: don’t frighten your AP Exam readers with your freakiness!

Remember that ONLY on a prompt like this can you use 1st person “I” and ONLY in

one detail of one sentence.

Again, they DON’T LIKE

THE 5-PARAGRAPH FORMULA

I hope you see that just STATING your stance (agree, disagree, or qualify) on the claim is not sufficient—you MUST connect your examples

(evidence) to your stance on the claim.