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38 Taking Advanced Placement* Exams

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509
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Write for College

Taking Advanced Placement Exams Chapter Opener

Start-Up Activity

Ask students to take out a piece of paper and write a paragraph about someone they know or have read about who has achieved some level of success. Ask for volunteers to read their paragraphs aloud for discussion. Focus the discussion on important lessons that can be learned from each story, inspiring students as they prepare for the AP examinations.

Think About It

“Great literature is simply language charged with meaning to the utmost possible degree.”

—George Orwell

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State Standards Covered in This Chapter

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.11-12.1

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.11-12.2

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.11-12.3

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.11-12.4

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.11-12.5

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.11-12.6

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.11-12.1

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.11-12.1.A

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.11-12.1.B

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.11-12.1.C

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.11-12.1.D

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.11-12.1.E

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.11-12.4

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.11-12.1

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.11-12.2

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.11-12.3

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.11-12.4

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.11-12.5

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.11-12.6

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.11-12.5

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.11-12.7

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.11-12.8

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.11-12.9

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.11-12.10

Page 510 from Write for College

General Exam Preparation

In preparation for upcoming AP English exams, review the general practice strategies. Make sure students know where to find additional information about each critical strategy in their Handbooks:

  • Critical Reading (405–414, 415–430)
  • Literary Analysis (211–236, 421–430)
  • Argumentation (190-192)
  • Response to prompts (184 and 208)
  • Exemplary models (see the specific forms chapters "Narrative Writing," "Explanatory Writing," and "Argument Writing.")

To help students prepare for the test-taking environment, report which supplies they can and cannot bring to the AP exams. Model these conditions as they practice the strategies in this chapter.

Allowed . . .

  • Number two pencils
  • Black or blue pens

Non allowed . . .

  • Dictionaries or thesauruses
  • Cell phones or other electronic devices with WiFi access
  • Notes or scratch paper (Therefore, students will need to memorize the close reading questions from this page.)

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AP English and Composition: Multiple Choice

Review the format of the AP English and Composition exam with students. The first section of the test includes reading passages followed by multiple-choice questions, focusing on the ideas, organization, voice, word choice, and sentence fluency in each passage.

Lead students through the guidelines and tips for taking the first part of the exam. With multiple-choice questions, make sure students watch for multiple answers and for negating words. Give students practice by having them closely read the sample excerpt on this page and the next and answer the multiple-choice questions about it. To make the activity realistic, display the reading questions from page 512 on your board, and ask students to cover the bottom of that page to avoid the answers.

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AP English Language and Composition: Multiple Choice (Cont.)

Finish the practice activity. After students have answered the questions, have them check their answers.

Finally, review each question more closely so that students gain a better understanding of the types of questions they may encounter on the exam. Be prepared to revisit any particular concepts students find difficult to grasp. 

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Free-Response Questions

Review the format and guidelines for the free-response portion of the AP English Language and Composition exam. Note the overall time limit (2 hours and 15 minutes) and suggested time needed to respond to each prompt (40 minutes). Stress that, despite the challenges of on-demand writing, following a shortened version of the writing process will help them do their best work. Remind them that they will be writing their responses by hand in a test booklet, but that they can still revise their writing as long as they write using a pencil.

Use the PAST strategy to help students understand the difference between the three types of prompts they can expect to see on the exam. Make sure they understand that each prompt type requires them to make an argument. That is, take a position and support it. 

The next two pages offer a sample argument prompt and response model. Students can practice writing a timed response to the same prompt, or they can answer one of the other sample argument (page 208) or synthesis (pages 375 and 493) prompts in their Handbooks. Additionally, you may wish to have them practice questions from previous versions of the AP exam.

You can find other helpful preparation strategies in the AP English Language and Composition Teacher's Guide.
 

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Sample Argument Prompt and Response

Have students apply the PAST strategy to analyze the sample prompt. Then have volunteers read aloud the first page of the response. Students should consider whether the writer supports, disputes, or qualifies Emerson's assertion.

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Sample Argument Prompt and Response (Cont.)

Have volunteers complete the sample response. After, discuss the ways in which the writer applied portions of Emerson's quotation to a modern day context based on the writer's own experiences and previous reading. Recommend students relate their own responses to something familiar from their personal lives or interests. That way they will have plenty of content to draw from in support of their arguments. 

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AP English Literature and Composition: Multiple Choice

Introduce the multiple-choice portion of the AP English Literature and Composition exam. Let students know this exam will test their ability to analyze works of fiction, including short stories, poems, and excerpts from larger literary works.

Lead them through the multiple-choice guidelines. As practice, have students read the sample passage and answer the multiple-choice questions about it. Display the questions and ask students to cover the answers in their Handbooks.

 

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AP English Literature and Composition (Cont.)

Allow time for students to finish reading the passage and answering the response questions. After they check their answers, closely review the questions to give students a better sense of the types of questions they will need to be prepared to answer.

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Free-Response Questions

Review the two types of response questions students can expect to encounter on the free-response portion of the AP English Composition and Literature exam.

Then lead students through the writing guidelines and "Inside Info." Define the common literary devices referenced on the AP exam. (See pages 421–429.) Also refer students to the "Literary Response Writing" chapter for additional tips and strategies for writing literary analyses. (See pages 211–236.)

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Sample Prompt and Poem

Use the PAST strategy to analyze the sample prompt.

  • Purpose: Discuss (argue)
  • Audience: Test reader
  • Subject: Connect beauty and work in Yeat's "Adam's Curse"
  • Type: Literary analysis

Note that the purpose word "discuss" is synonymous with "argue" in a test-taking setting. Also note that a successful literary analysis must cite textual evidence, and that annotating helps responders pick out key material from texts. 

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Sample Response

Before having students read the sample response, point out the respondent's prewriting quick list. Let students know that even though they cannot bring a notebook to their AP exams, they can make notes inside the test booklet.

They should develop a thesis before they begin writing to help them stay focused. The statement should name the literature, provide the subject, and create a specific focus that answers the prompt. Students should also jot supporting points below the thesis statement, creating a quick list to structure their responses.

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Sample Response (Cont.)

Have volunteers read aloud the final page of the sample analysis. As practice, have students write their own on-demand literary analyses based on a poem or short story of your choice.

Also, review the AP English Literature and Composition Teacher's Guide for more tips for preparing students to take the exam.

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