Transcript Medieval kingdoms did not become constitutional

*No one is admitted once
the test starts
*Bring only #2 pencils
*No books, bags, purses,
or cellular phones
*Four-function scientific or
graphic calculators are
allowed
*Each question you do not
answer is given 0 points
*Each question you answer
correctly is given 1 point
*Each question you answer
incorrectly is assessed
at ¼ of a point off
*The questions on the PSAT
start out easy and gradually
get harder. (Does not include
Critical Reading Section.)
*The first question in a group
is often so easy that virtually
everyone can find the answer.
*The last question is so hard
that almost no one can.
*Don’t waste time trying to
figure out the answer to a
hard question if there are
still easy questions you
haven’t tried. All questions
are worth the same number
of points. Why not do the
easy ones first?
*Most test takers could
improve their scores by
attempting fewer questions
and spending more time on
questions they understand
and have a chance of
answering correctly.
*Read the directions in the
PSAT booklet I gave you
before the test, so that you
don’t have to waste time
reading directions on test
day.
Error Identification
& Sentence Correction
A. VERBS:
Look for…
1. parallelism 2. correct tense
3. agreement
Find the noun the verb(s) is
working with and make sure that
it’s correct in all three areas.
B. Nouns:
• Make sure they agree with subject.
• Example: Carmen and Sarah want
to be a pilot. Or, Carmen and Sarah
want to be pilots?
C. Pronouns:
1. Right type
Example: The government made that
law, but they can’t do that. Or, the
government made that law, but it can’t
do that.
2. Consistency
Example: If one is tense, they should try
and relax. Or, if one is tense one should
try and relax.
C. Pronouns:
3. Ambiguity (not clear)
Example: “In the newspaper, they
say that few people voted.”
Who are “they”?
Better: The newspaper reported
that few people voted.
Watch for…
1. Sentence fragments
Bad: “Fred having to go home early.”
Good: “Fred has to go home early.”
2. Sentence run-ons
Bad: “Billy is nice he is funny, too.”
Good: “Billy is nice; he is funny, too.”
3. Comma splices
Bad: “I think I know him, I’ve seen him around.”
Good: I think I know him. I’ve seen him around.”
Sentence Completion
*LOOK FOR A
TRIGGER WORD
*ABOUT HALF OF ALL
PSAT SENTENCE
COMPLETIONS CONTAIN
TRIGGER WORDS
*THE MOST IMPORTANT
NEGATIVE TRIGGER WORDS, OR
WORDS THAT SIGNAL THE
OPPOSITE:
BUT, THOUGH,
ALTHOUGH, ON THE
CONTRARY, HOWEVER
*THE MOST IMPORTANT
POSITIVE TRIGGER WORDS:
AND, BECAUSE,
BESIDES, LIKEWISE,
ADDITIONALLY
Medieval kingdoms did not
become constitutional republics
overnight; on the contrary, the
change was_______________.
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
unpopular
unexpected
advantageous
sufficient
gradual
Trigger Word
1. Although the critics agreed that the
book was brilliant, so few copies were sold
that the work brought the author little
_______ reward.
Trigger Word
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
theoretical
thoughtful
financial
abstract
informative
*About half of all sentence
completions contain two blanks.
*They are no more difficult than
single blank questions.
*The key is to take them
one blank at a time
*Check just the first blank.
If one of the words doesn’t
work in the first blank, then it
doesn’t matter if the second
word of the pair works. Both
words must work!
*Don’t eliminate words
you’ve never seen before or
cannot define, especially on
medium and hard questions.
*If you are unable to figure
out what a word means, use
a “+” if you think it has a
positive meaning or a “–”
for a negative meaning.
This will help you eliminate
some, possibly most, of the
choices.
*Crossing out answers
you know are totally
wrong should be the first
thing you do. If you don’t
eliminate them immediately,
you run the risk of falling for
them later.