Read a passage, name the situation it was written for, and explain how one choice does its job.
Have these open in other tabs:
The answer key stays closed until a step tells you to open it.
How it works. Start at the top and go down in order. When you reach a Stop here line, you are done for that day.
Answer all 5 questions before you read anything below. Mark how sure you are on each one. It is fine to miss some, because trying first helps you remember later.
Open the Try First CheckWhen you submit, choose View score and read why each answer is right or wrong. Write your score on the My Scores tab. Got 5 out of 5? Skip Part 1 and go to Part 2.
Every passage was written for one moment. Before you judge a choice, answer these:
A what sentence says what the speaker did. A how sentence names one choice and explains what it does for the audience. Here is one for Kennedy:
What: Kennedy says some people want to wait.
How: Kennedy names "this city of Houston, this State of Texas" so that waiting sounds like something other people do, not the crowd in front of him.
Your turn. Write one what sentence and one how sentence for Kennedy, paragraph 3 of Passage 1 in the Passage Packet. Use a real word from the speech as proof.
Read Passage 1, Kennedy's speech at Rice University, in the Passage Packet. Read the Context section first. Then write four lines: Speaker, Occasion, Audience, and Purpose. Add a paragraph number or a short quote as proof for each line.
Read each clue and pick the part of SOAPSTone it points to. Then press Check.
Replay Game 1 and try to beat your score.
Open the Passage Packet and read Passage 2, Ronald Reagan on the Challenger. Read the Context section first, then the full text. Then answer the questions in the Practice Set. It asks how sure you are on each one, scores your answers, and explains every choice.
Open the Practice SetRead the explanation for every choice, including the ones you got right. Write your score on the My Scores tab. For each question you missed or rated 1 or 2, add a row to My Mistakes. Then fill in the SOAPSTone table for Reagan in the Response Doc, Part 4. One line for each row, with a paragraph number or a short quote as proof.
Pick What or How for each sentence. A sentence earns a How only if it names a choice and says what that choice does for the audience.
Replay Game 2 and try to beat your score. Then do Game 3: Verb Match in the module doc. Weak verbs such as says, talks about, and uses hide what the speaker is doing.
Read the Strong Sample Essay in the Passage Packet twice. Then fill in the Part 5 table in the Response Doc: copy the thesis; for paragraphs 2, 3, and 4, write what each claims, what it quotes, and how it explains the quote's effect; and name what paragraph 5 does that the others do not.
Next, score the essay yourself on the three rows. Write your score on your own paper before you check anything else.
| Row | Points | What earns the points |
|---|---|---|
| Thesis | 0 or 1 | 1 if the thesis states what the speaker is trying to do and the choices used to do it. |
| Evidence and Commentary | 0 to 4 | Specific quotes, plus an explanation of how each choice helps the purpose. |
| Sophistication | 0 or 1 | 1 if the essay tracks a tension the speaker manages, from the first paragraph to the last. |
Answer all 5 questions without your notes. Then read why each answer is right or wrong, and add any miss to My Mistakes.
Open the Exit Check4 or 5 right: you are ready for your return day. 3 or fewer: replay Game 2 and reread Part 1 first. Pick a return date one to two weeks from today and write it on the Next Step tab and your calendar.
4 or 5 right: go to Module 3. 3 or fewer: open the help for the questions you missed, then retake the Exit Check in a few days.
Do this when you have about 1 hour and 15 minutes. A low score here is useful, because it shows what to work on.
This score is practice feedback on one essay. It is not an official AP score and does not predict your exam score.
Next step. Open the Next Step tab of your tracker, then the help for your top sticking point. Then go to Module 3.