The Big Review for the AP English
Language and Composition test
What to take to the test:
• Colored pens and pencils
– You must write in pen for the essays.
• A watch
– Time yourself accurately. Fill in all multiple choice you don’t get
to with a B or C. Pick only one. Remember that for every ten you
guess on, you can expect to get approximately two more back by
guessing.
• A sweater or jacket
• Be your own advocate; if you don’t like where you are
sitting, speak up!
• Don’t come late! If you are late, you will lose your
money. The entire nation takes the test on the same day
at the same time.
General structure of the test
• Multiple Choice 50-60 questions with four
or five passages (1 hour) 45% of
composite score.
– You must get around 55% of these questions
correct to get a qualifying score of 3 or higher.
• 3 essays: Synthesis, Rhetorical Analysis,
and Argument (2 hours and 15 minutes)
55% of composite score. Note: the order
of the last two may be reversed.
Plan of Attack for the Multiple
Choice Portion
• Option 1: Go at your own pace. slower= more accurate.
• Option 2: Go fast and hope that more answers=more points.
• General advice: annotate the first passage with colored pens and X
through the repeated copy of the passage.
• Do you read the questions in advance? This helps some students,
but it might just cause you to lose time.
• Don’t be dilatory on roman numeral questions. Go with your first
instinct and move on.
• There will be 1-2 questions on footnotes of passages and usually 1
“research” question.
• Without fail, there is one question over something we’ve never
taught you (maybe something we’ve never seen). Roll with it. It may
include an obscure literary device.
• Passages are written at the reading level of a sophomore in college
and generally range from in time from the years 1750-1950.
Synthesis Question Plan of Attack
• Remember this question is always the first essay question because
you get 15 separate minutes to read and process the sources.
• Make sure you understand the question. Remember BAT and
exigency. The most common construction will ask you to “evaluate
the factors”, or “consider the pros and cons” of an issue while taking
a strong stance on one side.
• Start your intro on one of the four islands of philosophy.
ME: Start with a personal anecdote
THE WORLD: an explanation of how current events in politics
create an exigency for this issue
HISTORY: a re-narration of historical events leading up to this
issue
LITERATURE: or where this appears in literature or film.
• End with a multi-clausal thesis statement that starts with the word
“Although”. This forces you to build in a concession.
• If you tend to struggle with writing thesis statements, skip a line or
two before you start your body paragraphs. It’s better to add later
than go with an overly general thesis statement.
Synthesis Question Plan of Attack
• Remember that you must synthesize assertions from at least 3
sources.
– Quotes and paraphrases are allowable forms of referencing
sources. Quotes are best!
– Use the grammatically intact part of the quote you need, but limit
yourself to 6-10 words which you should join to your own words.
– Introduce all quotes. Start and end body paragraphs with your
words; in other words, write topic sentences and include analysis
of all quotes. Ending a body paragraph with a quote is like
giving someone else the last word.
– Cite sources by their letters in parenthesis.
• Dr Smith (Source A) asserts, “corn is fuel of the future,”
however, Martha Ross (Source B) counters that, “corn sugar
does not contain enough raw energy to make it worth
converting into fuel”.
• Don’t use questions. This is almost always a risk.
– Don’t ask, “What kind of future will America have when students
are no longer required to read books?” Instead assert,
“America’s future will be bleak when students are no longer
required to read books”.
Synthesis Question Plan of Attack
• Try to organize the essay by key issues instead of building body
paragraphs around sources.
• Try to get multiple sources in a single body paragraphs. Sources
should be conversing with each other and you.
• When in doubt, attack a source. This is a strong approach as long
as you represent the argument of the source correctly.
• If a political satire, cartoon, or graphic is included as a source, try to
use it.
• If you use outside evidence, limit it to one or two sentences and join
it with a source.
• Remember a conclusion is more than a restatement of your thesis.
It is a call to action. What do you want your audience to do or think
now that you have persuaded them that you are right?
• Do not waste time writing titles. When you are 100% done, move on.
Remember that you must break up your own time into 40 minute
chunks after the initial 15 minutes.
Rhetorical Analysis Plan of Attack
• Read the question carefully.
– Remember BAT and exigency.
– Generally the question follows this format, “What
rhetorical devices does the author use to achieve
his/her purpose”?
– Occasionally the question will be phrased, “Describe
the strategies the author uses to achieve his/her
purpose”. The word “strategies” alerts you to a
possible tone shift and that you should focus on the
relationship between passages.
Rhetorical Analysis Plan of Attack
• Use a rhetorical precis for your intro.
– Sentence 1: Author’s name, title of the piece, and
year + “argues” and a full, accurate, and decisive
statement of the author’s thesis.
– Sentences 2-3: Identify some of the key rhetorical
strategies and briefly describe what their purpose is in
the piece.
– Sentence 4: “Writing with [tone word]”, + the intended
audience and the arguments effect on that audience +
the secondary audience (usually you the student) +
why you think this piece is on the test today.
Rhetorical Analysis Plan of Attack
• Organize the essay chronologically and
not by device.
• Quote the text to show the device.
– Your assertion:
• Quote: Description of 1st device + quote
• Analysis: 2-3 sentences of analysis describing
what the device does in context of the piece.
• Relationship between this part and the piece as a
whole.
Rhetorical Analysis Plan of Attack
• There is something I never told you about
called “the double rhetorical analysis
prompt”. This is where two different
speeches or letters on a similar topic are
set side by side for comparison. These are
rare, but should you encounter one,
remember to give equal space in your
response to each piece and to emphasize
their general similarities.
Plan of Attack for Argument Prompt
• There are three basic types of argument
prompts.
– 1. A quote to which you must respond
• Roman Poet Horace asserts, “Adversity brings about latent
talents”.
– 2. A paragraph to which you must respond.
• These are the easiest because you can pick among the
author’s assertions. Again, read carefully! Make sure you
read the question carefully, does it ask for you to pick one
assertion or respond to the main argument of the piece?
– 3. The presentation of a general issue.
• The role of advertising in schools.
Plan of Attack for Argument Prompt
•Make sure you understand the question. Remember BAT and exigency.
These prompts will generally ask you to defend, challenge, or qualify an
assertion. All the best responses qualify!
•Start on one of the four islands of philosophy.
ME: Start with a personal anecdote
THE WORLD: an explanation of how current events in
politics create an exigency for this issue
HISTORY: a re-narration of historical events leading up to
this issue
LITERATURE: or where this appears in literature or film.
•End with a multi-clausal thesis statement that starts with the word
“Although”. This forces you to build in a concession.
•If you tend to struggle with writing thesis statements, skip a line or two
before you start your body paragraphs. It’s better to add later than go with
an overly general thesis statement.
Plan of Attack for Argument Prompt
• Evidence is king in this response. If you make up
evidence it must be believable or it will count against
you. No one has read every newspaper or magazine. No
one has seen every movie. Your graders haven’t either,
but the key to good fake evidence is detail.
– Good Fake evidence: Recently I attended a foreign film festival
where I saw a film title La Rouge. It centered on a student who
was forced in Nazi occupied Paris during the 1940’s to destroy
all books in the library where he worked that did not agree with
Hilter’s vision of eugenics.
– Bad Fake evidence: Recently I read a newspaper article that
claimed that there are more starving people in the United States
than in the rest of the world.
Finally relax!
Remember that you are awesome and you
can do this. Sleep well tonight and eat
breakfast. Remember that I believe in you!