ACT Prep & College Writing Class Notes -- Week 8 (Oct. 10)

Greetings!

This week we covered a lot of ground.  I began the class with 3 unusual Words of the Day (Gluggavedur, tidsoptimist, and dysania) and had the students make up definitions using clues from the roots and/or sounds of the words.  From this, we had a brief discussion about how to decode words in a text that are unfamiliar and how to prepare for the kind of reading that is required on the ACT.  After Fall Break we will start work on the Reading portion of the test where familiarity with a large vocabulary and speed in reading will be important.

For the ACT portion of the class, we covered Chapters 14, 15, and 16, which were the final chapters of the Math Test.  I've intentionally taken a longer time on the portion because my experience is that students struggle if they need to speed through the review of the math concepts.  Because my goal is to review and to practice strategies for working through the tests, I did not spend long on Chapters 15 and 16 where students would be learning new information.  One of the strategies for ACT is to review and work on areas of strength to make them stronger and to not try to learn something new just for the test.  We have the "Letter of the Day" strategy for those "Never" problems.  

If there is an a topic on the Math test that a student would like to learn, Khan Academy has some excellent videos.  They are to take a practice ACT Math Test before the next class.

For the ACT Essay portion, I showed a short video from SuperTutorTV about Dos and Don'ts of the ACT Essay.  We discussed the video and reviewed organizational options for the essay.  Students are to take one more ACT Practice Essay test before the next class.  That will conclude our SAT and ACT essay portion of the class, and we will start working on college application essays.

Assignments for Oct. 24

-- Read Ch. 14, 15, and 16

-- Complete and correct the Trigonometry Drill

-- Complete and correct the Advanced Math Drill

-- Complete and correct the Practice Math Test from the first practice test in the book.  Find a quiet place and set the timer for 60 minutes.  Good luck!!

-- Finish the Take Home ACT test.  Set a timer for 40 minutes.  Again, Good luck.

Links for This Week

Class Notes

Words of the Day:  (Gluggavedur, tidsoptimist, and dysania)

Dos and Don'ts of the ACT Essay.  

Have a great Fall Break!

Blessings,

Mrs. Prichard

ACT Prep & College Writing Class Notes -- Week 7 (Oct. 3)

Greetings!

We continued to work on the Math portion of the ACT this week.  I'm intentionally going more slowly through this  part of the test because many students find that they need more time to review math-related concepts.  This week's chapter included percentages, averages, weighted averages, and probability.  We only got partway through the chapter, so I expect students to work through the whole chapter, including the practice questions and explanations.  The explanations are especially helpful because they will help the students to think like the test writers and to develop some short cuts in working through the problems.  Working a lot of problems is a key strategy to preparing for the test.

A note about homework:  I mentioned to the students this week that not doing  the homework and not reading the chapters only disadvantages themselves.  Sometimes students have a hard time seeing the importance of homework and feel that they are doing worksheets and assignments for the teachers' sake.  This is one class that I can guarantee that they will benefit themselves by doing the homework.  

For the ACT Essay portion of the class we turned to the sample our Cracking the ACT book.  We discussed a basic approach to answering the questions and a strategy for organizing the essay.  I've included the notes from this part of the discussion on a separate blog post; it includes a good summary of who to brainstorm and how to organize the ACT Essay.

Assignments for Next Week: 

-- Read Chapter 13 -- flag problems or explanations that need further explanation or review

-- Word Problems Drill (p.187)  Remember to correct your drill and read the explanations

-- Summary (p. 188)

-- Practice brainstorming the ACT Essay using the prompt on p. 376

-- Read Ch. 24 (Writing) p. 358 - 375

Links for This Week

Class Notes

Basic Approach to Writing the ACT Essay

Practicing Percentages on the ACT

How to Solve Percent Problems

How to Solve Difficult Average Problems

ACT Math:  Permutations and Combinations

ACT Math:  How to do Permutations

ACT Math:  How to find Combinations

Dos and Don'ts of the ACT Essay

3 Steps to a Perfect ACT Writing Score

Have a great weekend!

Blessings,

Mrs. Prichard

Basic Approach to Writing the ACT Essay

Basic Approach:

• Read the Prompt
• Form your own perspective
• Read Perspectives 1, 2,  and 3
• Determine the points in which you agree or disagree
• Brainstorm specific points to write about that include the following
• 1 - 2 sentences that explain the main point of the passage
• 1 sentence the states your opinion
• Brainstorm your argument (i.e. explain why you are right)
• Think of details and explanations to support your argument and perspective
• Explain how your perspective interacts with the 3 perspectives given:
• Work from the one you agree with the most to the one you agree with the least
• Brainstorm concluding remarks
• Organize your essay before writing:

I.  Introduction -- make sure you state the focus of the passage

II.  Explain your perspective 

A.  Clearly state your perspective

B.  Give a clear argument regarding how your perspective is the right one

C,  Include specific details to support your argument 

1.  Make up or give actual statistics/data if you need

2.  Make up or give actual stories if you need

III.  Address the perspective you most agree with

A.  Compare similarities and differences

B.  Include specific details to support your comparisons, if necessary

1.  Make up or give actual statistics/data if you need

2.  Make up or give actual stories if you need

III.  Address the perspective you kind of agree with and kind of disagree with

A.  Compare similarities and differences
B.  Include specific details to support your comparisons, if necessary

1.  Make up or give actual statistics/data if you need

2.  Make up or give actual stories if you need

III.  Address the perspective you most disagree with

A.  Compare similarities and differences

B.  Include specific details to support your comparisons, if necessary

1.  Make up or give actual statistics/data if you need

2.  Make up or give actual stories if you need

IV.  Conclusion

A.  Restate the focus of the passage

B.  Restate your thesis (i.e. your perspective)

C.  Summarize the issues with Perspectives 1, 2, and 3

D.  Leave concluding thoughts that solidify your viewpoint.

• START WRITING!! 

ACT Prep & College Writing Class Notes -- Week 6 (Sept. 26)

Greetings!

We worked hard today and covered a lot of material.  I started with a short video about random reasons that colleges might not accept an application.  Knowing some of these dynamics can help students be proactive in avoiding the random whims related to the human element and the strategic inclinations of college development.  Some tips that we derived from this video included being memorable in a good way, expressing knowledge of and enthusiasm for the college, and finding advocates connected to the college of choice.  By the way, the videos by Brooke Hanson of SupertutorTV are really helpful, so I've included a link to her YouTube channel.

During the ACT Prep portion of today's class we continued to review for the Math portion of the test.  We reviewed basic strategies to be used for this test:  ballparking, POE (process of elimination), Plugging In, and Plugging in the Answers (PITA).  For each Math test question, students should follow the same Basic Approach:  1) Know the question; 2) Let the answers help; and 3) Break the problem into bite-sized pieces.  A challenge with a number of test questions is two-fold:  geometry questions combine algebraic reasoning, and many questions have so much information that they become word problems.

Our College Essays topic this week included an introduction to the ACT Essay Test.  This test is structured differently than the SAT, but both of the tests are designed with the types of writing required in college in mind.  Rather than analyzing and evaluating the persuasive writing of a passage, students are given a topic that elicits multiple perspectives.  They are to develop their own perspective and then compare it with 3 other perspectives.  In the course of their writing, they are to support their viewpoints with details, logical arguments, and persuasive elements.  A basic outline for this essay would look like this:

I.  Introduction -- state the idea presented in the passage and give your perspective as a thesis statement

II.  Explain your perspective and back it up with  details, logical arguments, and persuasive elements

III.  Compare your perspective with the perspective that you mostly agree with.  Unpack that perspective to explain its strengths and weaknesses.

IV.   Compare your perspective with the perspective that you kind of agree with.  Unpack that perspective to explain its strengths and weaknesses.

V.   Compare your perspective with the perspective that you mostly disagree with.  Unpack that perspective to explain its strengths and weaknesses.

VI,  Conclusion -- Summarize the main points of the body and reassert your perspective.

This type of writing can be really challenging, so lots of practice is important.  The students have a take-home ACT test for next week, and we will continue to brainstorm and talk through multiple tests.

Assignments for Next Week

-- Read through Chapter 12 - Plane Geometry

     -- Be an active reader and flag any math or strategy topics that are causing you trouble.

-- Read through the "Fun Facts" on p. 156 - 159

-- Review the formulas on p. 160 - 161

-- Complete the Geometry Drill on p. 163 and correct it.

-- Read the Summary on p. 164 - 165

-- Take the first ACT Essay Take Home Test

-- NOTE:  A couple of students mentioned that they were missing some homework.  If that is the case for any of you, please check past Class Note emails or blog entries for attachments or links.

Links for This Week

Class Notes

5 Random Reasons Why Colleges Might Reject You

Brooke Hanson & SupertutorTV

ACT Take Home Test #1

Have a great weekend!

Blessings,

Mrs. Prichard

ACT Prep & College Writing Class Notes -- Week 5 (Sept. 19)

Greetings!

I began the class with a short writing task.  I asked the students to answer these 3 questions:  1) What are colleges looking for? 2) What do you have to offer to a college? 3) How can you best demonstrate who you are to a college?  After the students took some time to write their responses, we discussed the first question.  Their comments included such characteristics as dedicated, hard-working, committed, academically prepared, unique, etc.  As we progress to the application essay, later in the semester, we will discuss how the students can write about themselves in such a way that colleges will want them as part of their student bodies.

We've started on the Math section of the ACT and worked through Chapter 11, "No More Algebra."  In this chapter, the writers gave us strategies for answering some kinds of problems without specifically using algebra skills.  By using ballparking (a strategy from Ch. 10), POE (process of elimination), Plugging In (choosing workable numbers for variables) and PITA (plugging in answer options into equations), students can often solve problems more quickly.  As I've stated multiple times in class, the #1 enemy in the whole ACT test-taking process is the lack of time.  If students can employ some test-taking strategies that will buy them time, they will have more time for harder questions and will more likely raise their scores.

Following our work with the ACT Math prep, we talked about the SAT Essay.  I shared with them the parameters/rubric used for scoring the test.  The SAT Essay is scored in 3 categories:  Reading, Analysis, and Writing.  Scores range from 1 to 4 and 2 readers will score every essay.  The scores are added, so the student can score between 2 and 24 points on the SAT Essay.  For next week, students are to take home the SAT #1 Take Home test that they did for this week, and using the scoring definitions and the samples of scored essays, they are to score their own essays.  They are also to take SAT #2 Take Home Essay.

Note:  In the section below of helpful links, I've included links for some helpful math-related videos and for a link to the ACT policy about calculators.  If a student is reading through the Cracking the ACT book and finds that he/she needs more explanations or more practice, theses links would be really helpful.

Assignments for Next Week

-- Read Ch. 11 "No More Algebra"

-- Take the Algebra Drill (p. 130)

-- Correct the Algebra Drill 

-- Read handouts about scoring the SAT and sample essays

-- Score your SAT #1 essay

-- Take SAT #2 Take Home Essay

-- Extra Credit -- Score SAT #2

Links for This Week

Class Notes

SAT Scoring

Sample Scores for SAT #1

Helpful Math-related Videos

Note:  Some of the videos are short explanations of strategies, and some are instructional videos that go through actual past tests.  There are also links for information about calculator policies and calculator use. 

5 Hacks for the ACT Math Test (8:19)

Ti-84 Calculator Downloading Programs (9:47)

     ACT Calculator Policy (pdf)

ACT Math Calculator Skills  (6:46)

Here ACT/SAT Prep (10:27)

     15 Concepts you need to know

ACT Math 2018 (act.magoosh.com) (7:30)

   Strategies and common types of problems

Here ACT/SAT Best Math Prep Strategies, Tips, and Tricks  (5:48)

     Using the Answer Choices

ACT Math Practice Test 1 (1:16:19)

    Actual Problems from the Official ACT Prep Pack 2019-2020

Note:  The instructor in this video uses his calculator a lot, so if you are unfamiliar with various possibilities of your calculator, this would be a good video to watch to help you become more familiar.

Detailed explanations of problems from an ACT Math test

ACT Math Test Prep Part 1 (2:18:03)

ACT Math Test Prep Part 2 (1:30:36)

ACT Math Test Prep Part 3 (1:39:58)

ACT Prep & College Essays Class Notes -- Week 4 (Sept. 12)

Greetings!

We worked hard today and covered a lot of material.  I began the class with a Quick Write for which I asked the students to list the strategies that they remembered about taking the ACT.  They were also to write their thoughts about the Practice English Test.  Some of the students had run out of time for the test and some didn't.  Most of them felt that determining whether the question was a Now, Later, or Never question was a good strategy and helped with time management.

About the Practice Tests and Chapter Drills -- I will check to make sure that the students finish these, and it is important that they correct the tests and drills.  A very important part of getting ready for the ACT is understanding how the test works, and working through the answers is extremely helpful.

Our next section of the ACT is the Math Test.  This is always the second section of the test.  It is a 60 minute test that includes 60 test questions about Algebra, Geometry, Trigonometry, and Advanced Math.  I gave an overview of Chapters 9 and 10.  

Our College Essays topic this week included another SAT Essay.  For the SAT Essay, students will be reading and analyzing a passage as to its effectiveness.    This week as homework students are to finish one of the sample SAT Essays.  Next week we will discuss the scoring.

Assignments for Next Week

-- Read Chapters 9 & 10

-- Quiz yourself on the Vocabulary

-- Fundamentals Drill on p. 113 (Answers on p. 388)

-- Practice SAT Essay Exam (50 minutes)

Links for This Week

Class Notes

Week 4 Slides

Teacher Notes

Have a great weekend!

Blessings,

Mrs. Prichard

ACT Prep & College Writing Class Notes -- Week 3 (Sept. 5)

Greetings!

We started this week in class with a little bit of a mystery -- where did Mrs. Prichard's reading glasses disappear to?  Somehow between the Grace Cafe and the classroom I lost my glasses.  We prayed, and Mrs. Johnson appeared at the door with my missing glasses.  

I dispensed with the Quick Write and Commonly Misused Words section of the class because I wanted more time for our SAT Essay discussion.  Most of the students will not take this test, but I feel that they engage in important critical thinking skills that will benefit them in higher education situations.  The SAT Essay requires students to read and analyze how effective and persuasive a particular piece of writing was.  As they read a prompt, they consider how the writer uses specific facts/data, logical reasoning, or persuasive style elements.  For this week, we used a sample prompt which was a transcript of a speech that Helen Keller gave in New York.  We discussed it paragraph by paragraph and then considered how we might structure a response.  I was really pleased with the thoughtful comments of each of the students.  Students were given the Take Home SAT Test #1, and they can do that test this week or next week.  

After our SAT discussion, we focused our attention on the ACT.  Last week and this week we've been learning strategies for the English portion of the test.  As your students can tell you, this English portion is 45 minutes long and includes 5 separate passages, each with 15 questions (75 questions total).  The questions will be a mix of grammar, usage, punctuation, style, and rhetoric topics. 

The chapters in the Cracking the ACT book are a blend of strategies for working the test and review of those topics the students will encounter.  I've encouraged the students to be active readers and to pay special attention to the areas that seem confusing or troublesome.  They might encounter information that they've never learned.  When this is the case, they should do some research to learn these topics, ask parents for help, send me an email, or ask in class for more information or for whole class review.  Chances are, they won't be the only ones with questions.

One of the homework assignments for this week is to take the Practice English Test.  For this, students are to go to Practice Test #2 in the back of their books.  Each test has a bubble in sheet; students should either tear that out or make a photo copy.  I feel that it's important to practice filling in those bubbles as they take the test, so they are NOT to write their answers on a separate piece of  notebook paper.  The Practice English Test should be taken in a quiet, undisturbed place.  No music or other distractions.  If your house is on the noisy side, headphones could be used to block out extraneous sounds.  This is also a timed test, so set a timer for 45 minutes.  

Assignments for Next Week-- Read Ch. 7 & 8 -- Be active by making notes, highlighting, and marking sections

-- English Drill 2 on p. 70 - 71 (Answers in Ch. 25, p. 385)

     Note:  These drills will need to be handed in or check in class

-- Rhetorical Skills Drill on p. 84 - 85 (Answers in Ch. 25, p. 387 - 388)

-- PRACTICE ENGLISH TEST -- 45 minutes in a quiet place

-- Take Home SAT Essay Test #1 -- due in 2 weeks

Links for This Week

Class Notes

Helen Keller Test Prompt

Week 3 Slides

Videos

     3 Tips for Writing the Perfect SAT Essay

     SAT Essay -- The College Board

     The SAT Essay -- Khan Academy

     ACT English Test:  3 Must Know Tips

     ACT Grammar Tips -- Comma Rules

     ACT Multiple Choice Strategies

Have a great weekend!

Mrs. Prichard