Online workshop for Sentence Equiv, reading comp & text completion + Verbal Foundations and Content Review (ch. 4; Pg. 27)

Tips to quickly identify the Topic and Scope and use them efficiently to answer Qs

#1 Strategic Reading Tip: The testmakers always keep the scope of the passage reasonably narrow, and it doesn't change much. #2 Strategic Reading Tips: ...Identify the author's topic and scope within the first few lines of reading the passage. **A consistent scope is a big advantage to the test taker since it means that the early promises of the passage will be kept. The author of the passage will stay within the limited scope he's defined up front. #3 Strategic Reading Tip: Every passage is the work of a human author, who had a purpose in mind when writing the passage. We can answer many questions correctly by approaching the passage with this in mind. -It is important to keep the author and the author's purpose in mind at all times. Many students (consciously or not) approach a passage as if it's "Institution-Speak" or "Test-Talk" instead of thinking about it from the point of view of the person who created it. - ask yourself why author has author written this/ why is he interested in this topic? #4 Strategic Reading Tip: There are only a few "purposes" that motivate the authors of standardized test passages. Consider the list below, and you will notice that author's purpose and tone are never extreme. As you read, ask yourself which of these "purposes" the author seems to be engaged in. ** six most common passage purposes: 1. To explain 2. To advocate 3. To rebut 4. To compare and contrast 5. To crique 6. To describe #5 Strategic Reading Tip: When you read strategically, you have to see that some sentences are really important (because they present or announce major themes or ideas), while some are secondary (because they present evidence for specific points) and some are downright filler. - There's no time on a standardized test to read a passage in depth. -Need to distill lengthy, complex passage into most important ideas. -Distilling the passage involves reading for what the author is primarily trying to say or communicate, and putting that into your own words. It means transforming deadly text into living ideas. #6 Strategic Reading Tip: When determining the main ideas, you'll have to sacrifice some nuances by ignoring the details. -Distilling the passage involves reducing it to simpler terms by using casual, informal language. -Concentrate on summing up, in broad terms, what the author is saying. Just be careful not to change the meaning of the passage when you do so - If and when a question asks you about something more specific, you can always go back and reread that portion in greater depth. #7 Strategic Reading Tip: Pick up the author's hints as to what must come next. Doing so will enable you to get through every passage quickly and more accurately. ^^A good strategic reader doesn't just look at what the author is saying and doing, but at what the author is about to say and do - stay several steps ahead of author at all times ***Look for Keywords- Keywords are words and phrases that authors employ to give their writing structure

Eliminating Answers

- Doing a vertical scan of the answer choices can be helpful all over the GRE. You could eliminate several of the answer choices simply by looking at the first word of each choice. - never attempt to answer a Detail question off of memory because the answer choices are designed to betray your memory. Wrong answer choices often use words and phrases from the passage that will sound familiar, but are not the correct answer. In fact, the correct answer choice is usually not a word-for-word quote from the passage, but more likely a close paraphrase. ***Remember for Inference questions: On Inference questions, search for the answer choice that follows from the passage. When it' s difficult to make a specific prediction to an Inference question, you still know that the right answer " must be true based on the passage." Wrong answer choices on Inference questions often use extreme language, or they exaggerate views expressed in the passage. Some wrong answer choices may sound plausible, probable, or like good common sense, but this doesn' t mean they' re correct. The correct answer necessarily follows from what' s written in the text.

Key words and what they mean

- Emphasis Keywords are clues to key pieces of information. Make certain to jot down notes for use on the questions when you see an Emphasis Keyword. EX: most of all, especially, above all, best/worst - Continuation Keywords tell us to expect more of the same. These types of Keywords indicate no change in the author's line of reasoning — the opinion or viewpoint previously mentioned is simply expanded upon. EX: and, moreover, also, furthermore, too - Conclusion Keywords provide a quick and easy way to locate the main point of the passage. Questions that refer to a passage's main point are quite common, so this is great news. EX: therefore, thus, hence, so, clearly - Contrast Keywords (Unlike Continuation Keywords, ) signal a change in the passage's direction, and therefore are strong indicators of passage structure. The author, for example, may support a particular view at the beginning of a passage, but then shift his opinion to argue against it. EX: but, however, on the other hand, not, by contrast, alternatively - Sequence Keywords allow the reader to locate a string of relevant details quickly. EX: first of all, next, secondly, finally, before/after - Evidence Keywords indicate that specific support for the author's point is forthcoming. For this reason, they are especially helpful when you encounter questions that require more detailed knowledge of the passage. EX:because, since, for example, due to *** Get to know these categories. When you come across a Keyword, stop and say to yourself, "Here's what must come next."

Guidelines around which Text Completion questions are constructed and the rules for answering them:

- The text will be one to five sentences long. - For one-blank TCs, there will be five answer choices. - For two- and three-blank TCs, there will be a column of three answer choices for each blank. Each column of choices will be unconnected to the other columns of choices. - To answer the question, click in the cell in each column that contains the word of your choice. The cell will highlight once it is clicked— this means you have selected that choice. - To change your answer, either click in the highlighted cell to deselect and then choose another answer, or simply click in a different cell to highlight that choice instead. - When you are finished, you should have highlighted one answer choice for each column. All of, and only, the correct choices must be selected to get credit for the question. There is no partial credit. **NOTE: Each possible answer will fit the sentence(s) grammatically (Text Completions do not test grammar!), only the correct answer(s) will match in meaning.

Root words

-Study words grouped together by their root words ^allows you to learn meanings of many words at one time * Use word roots as basis for making up sentences about words to help remember meaning - history of words' meanings provides stories that also help with learning the words meaning

Text completion workshop: We will cover: -The Basics of Text Completion Questions -The Importance of Context -The Kaplan Method for Text Completions -Practice with the Method; Sample Questions -Two- and Three-Blank Text Completions -How to Practice Text Completions -Practice Questions

-Success on this question type relies in part on strong vocabulary skills, and the tougher TCs often feature more difficult vocabulary, Text Completions do not directly test this knowledge. ***Text Completions test the ability to decipher meaning and to use words in context.

Four Types of Questions in Reading comprehension

1. Global Question: asks about an author's primary purpose or main idea 2. Detail Questions: asks about something that' s actually stated in the text. Here' s where a detail that you skimmed past comes into play 3. Inference Questions: An Inference question asks you to read between the lines, searching for the choice that' s suggested or implied by the text. There is a great variety in the ways in which Inference questions are presented 4. Logic Questions: basically ask you to use logic to answer questions based on the structure of the passage or about the function of specific details from the text. NOTE: - The numbers 1 and 2 refer to the order in which information is usually given in passages. - Usually, examples, details, support, etc., are given right after some statement that was made. Think about it: When do you give examples when you write? Usually after you made some point that needed to be proven or supported, right? The writers of GRE Reading Comprehension passages are no different. - The point is that when the GRE asks you for the purpose of certain details, you can often look right before those details, and you' ll find some claim that was made that necessitated support. ***The purpose of details is typically to support whatever statement or opinion came right before them.

Global Question, examples and tips

1. Global question: asks about an author's primary purpose or main idea EX: - The primary purpose of the passage is to... - Which of the following best summarizes the main point of the passage? - Which of the following most accurately describes the organization of the passage? Tips for Global Questions: If you' ve already taken note of the Topic and Scope, and read the passage for structure and the author' s Purpose, your work for Global questions is mostly done. That doesn' t mean that these are always easy, and that you won' t have to look back to the text to confirm your answer. But if you read the passage strategically, you're off to a good start

Kaplan method for sentence equivalence

1. Read the sentence, looking for context clues. -Locate key words and phrases. Together, they tell us about the structure of the sentence (its direction) and how the structure produces a certain meaning. 2. Predict an answer. -The key to Sentence Equivalence questions is to decipher the question stem' s context and to use your own understanding of spoken and written language to decide what word is missing. You don' t need answer choices to do this. In fact, focusing on an attractive wrong answer choice can distract you from the correct answer. ***Predicting before moving to the choices acts as a safeguard against trap answer choices. It also saves valuable time that might be wasted on evaluating wrong answer choices. 3. Select the two choices that most closely match your prediction. - Once you have predicted an answer, scan the choices for the best match. Here' s where Kaplan' s vocabulary strategies will pay off in Sentence Equivalence questions. 4. Check your answers to see if the sentence retains the same meaning. -This step allows your everyday reading experience to help you determine if you' ve chosen the correct responses. If the sentence is inconsistent in meaning using the two words you have chosen, one or both of them are incorrect. NOTE: - Whenever a choice gives the sentence a fuzzy meaning, eliminate it. Remember - know what you' re looking for when you go to the answer choices, and you won' t be fooled by trap answers or confused by difficult vocabulary

Tips for practicing Text Completions before Test Day:

1. Use your scratch paper wisely: draw a small grid and make appropriate marks in the boxes based on your investigation of the text. 2. Using an " x" for elimination, a " check" for selection, and a question mark for uncertainty works for most test takers. 3. Focus on Roadsigns! As you may already have learned in class, roadsigns are the structural keywords that let you know what direction the sentence will take. Straight-ahead roadsigns are connecting words, such as " and" and " furthermore," that let you know that the sentence will continue in the same direction. Detour roadsigns are words, such as " but" and " however," that signal a change in the sentence's direction. 4. As you practice, begin thinking about how these structural clues allow you to predict the sentence's direction and the meaning of the word(s) in the blank(s). If you don' t know the vocabulary in the choices for a given blank, move to a different blank and then return to the one that is more difficult — it may become clearer when the rest of the sentence is filled in.

Watch out for these potential pitfalls when studying word roots

1.) Just because 2 words look similar does not mean they share the same root 2.) The same root or prefix can have different meanings 3.) Smaller words inside larger words are not necessarily a Greek or Latin root

Strategic reading = perspective

At Kaplan, we use the word "perspective" to sum up the idea of reading strategically. **Gaining perspective means stepping back from the passage in order to carefully evaluate why the author wrote the piece and how he put it together, instead of concentrating on the content. "Perspective" is a great word because it conjures up a whole lot of test-related tasks: 1.) Reading for structure: How is the prose put together? 2.) Reading for purpose and idea: Why is the author writing, and what is his main point or "Big Idea"? 3.) Reading between the lines: What's implied by the text? 4.)Reading for detail only when questions demand doing so.

Strategies to learn meanings of words most commonly seen on GRE

1.) Read more scholarly literature, academic articles, magazines, News - National Geographic - https://www.nytimes.com - Subscribe to News app (helps w/ vocabulary but also improves your knowledge of current events, which are often great examples to draw from when writing essays in analytical writing section) - Longform.org (nonfiction high level vocabulary essays) 2.) keep notebook/list of words you don't know 3.) Use credible dictionary app to look up meaning of words you don't know & make flashcards 4.) when looking up meaning of words: *** 4A.) See what dictionary says about the word's etymology *** 4B.) Look at synonyms/ antonyms *** 4C.) Look for the word used in a sentence/ use the word in a sentence on my own *** 4D.) make note of whether word has positive or negative connotation 5.) Tell stories about words, make up sentences, make relations to ur life ^^^Making up a sentence or Q helps remember the meaning and contrasts the word w/ its non-meaning and helps to remember the correct meaning of the word 6.) Color-code flashcards according to connotation of the word - Green = positive - Black/grey = neutral - Red = Negative 7.) Vocal Notebook has been proven to be esp helpful for kinesthetic learners!! ^^ Journal unfamiliar words, their definition, synonyms/antonyms, sentence using the word, etymology of word, Root word of word ^^ color code words according to connotation (neutral, pos, or neg) 8.) When you look up word include synonyms or group words as well as root words - allows you to learn multiple words as once ^^ tell stories about words to associate a word with related words !

Kaplan Method for reading comprehension

1.) Read passage strategically!! - topic, scope, purpose, keywords 2.) Analyze question stem 3.) Research relevant text in passage 4.) Make prediction 5.) Evaluate answer choices

Kaplan method for text completion (two and three blanks)

1.) Read sentence, looking for clues 2.) Predict an answer for the easier/easiest blank 3.) Select choice that most closely matches prediction 4.)Predict and select for remaining blanks 5.) check your answers

Kaplan method for sentence equivalence

1.) Read sentence, looking for clues 2.) Predict answer 3.) Select 2 choices that most closely match prediction 4.)Check your answers to see if sentence retains same meaning

Kaplan method for text completion (one blank)

1.) Read sentence, looking for clues 2.) Predict answer 3.) Select choice that most closely matches prediction 4.) Check your answer

Verbal section

20 Q 30 min ~ 6 text completion Qs ~ 4 sentence equivalent Qs ~ 10 reading comprehension Qs

Strategic Reading Tip #4: There are only a few "purposes" that motivate the authors of standardized test passages. Consider the list below, and you will notice that author's purpose and tone are never extreme. As you read, ask yourself which of these "purposes" the author seems to be engaged in.

6 of the most common passage purposes: #1.) To EXPLAIN: The author wants to explain a phenomenon — specifically, why that phenomenon occurred. (Often he will contrast the "real story" with the previously-believed, or commonly-believed, version.) # 2.) To ADVOCATE: The author wants to argue for, to recommend, a particular proposal or approach or idea. (Such an author will often, in the course of the passage, bring up possible objections and try to demolish them.) # 3.) To REBUT: The author wants to rebut or challenge someone else's idea or theory. Your question as you read should be: "Is the author merely critical of that idea, or does he have one to offer in its place?" #4) To COMPARE OR CONTRAST: The author wants to examine the similarities and differences between two ideas, theories, proposals, or schools of thought. Your question as you read should be: "Which (if either) does the author favor?" # 5) To CRITIQUE: The author wants to evaluate the success or failure, the quality or deficiency, of a policy, organization, philosophy, or work of art or literature. The root of the word evaluate is "value" — that is, to assess whether something is good or bad. #6) To DESCRIBE: The author wants to present the salient facts and features, but deliberately takes no positions and makes no judgments. Such a passage is totally objective. Rest assured, the testmaker will create questions to test whether you recognize that the author expresses no personal opinions.

Word to the wise on how to approach Details in passage

A word to the wise: Details aren' t all that important!! - Usually, the majority of questions do not focus on details. Even if one or two questions do ask you about the details, you still only need to look closely at a small percentage of the details in a typical passage. -Therefore, it' s not important to absorb details when strategically reading the text. In fact, an attempt to do so is counterproductive because it slows down the reading process and interferes with the search for Topic, Scope, Purpose, and structure. -Details can be convoluted, difficult to comprehend, and related to specific subjects that may be unfamiliar to you. That' s why it' s best not to dwell on details until the testmakers ask you about them. ^^Thus, you should simply take note of the general location of such details so that they can be found quickly should a question so demand

Assumptions

An assumption is an unstated, necessary premise. It is something that must be true in order for the argument' s evidence to flow logically to the conclusion. To find the assumption, look for a disconnect between the evidence and conclusion— often a subtle difference between the language in the evidence and the conclusion is the tip-off. To visualize the relationship, consider the following equation: Evidence + Assumption → Conclusion how will the GRE test your ability to identify assumptions? - Two common Reading Comprehension Reasoning question types are the Strengthen question and the Weaken question. -These are the two argument-based Reasoning questions that depend on your ability to locate the author' s assumption. ***In Strengthen and Weaken questions, not only do you have to identify the assumption, but your correct answer will introduce additional facts that make the argument more or less persuasive by bolstering or undermining the relationship between evidence and conclusion.

3.) Smaller words inside larger words are not necessarily a Greek or Latin root Potential Pitfall when studying word roots !!

EX: Consider the word "Adumbrate" - It would be easy to see the word "dumb" (not intelligent or not able to speak) in the middle of "Adumbrate" and think "dumb" is the word root. - The root is "Umbr" which means "to shadow" - it is the same root as in Umbrella, which shades you from the sun or rain. - The prefix "Ad-" means "towards" THUS w/ AD- ad prefix and UMBR as the root, "Adumbrate" means "to foreshadow" or to give a hint of what is coming. Sentence: The ticking clock in the first paragraph adumbrates the fact that the protagonist runs out of time at the end of the story.

Just because 2 words look similar does not mean they share the same root Potential Pitfall when studying word roots !!

EX: the words "aver" and "avert" differ by only 1 letter. However, the 2 words have no relationship to each other "Aver" means to state or prove as true. "Aver" comes from Latin word "verus" which means "truth" and shares a root with: verity, verify, verdict, veracity, and verisimilitude. "Avert" means to turn away or prevent. "Avert" comes from the Latin root "vertere" which means "to turn" and is related to: Convert, subvert, introvert, extrovert, incontrovertible, and vertigo

Strategic reading workshop

Covers the essential Strategic Reading skills needed to succeed on Test Day. These include: -Strategic Reading defined. -The four tasks that constitute "strategic reading" -Important categories of structural signals, "Keywords," that make it easier to read quickly and actively *** the ability to read dense and difficult prose in a critical manner.Remember, these are skills to learn and practice throughout your test preparation

Detail Question, examples and tips

Detail Questions: asks about something that' s actually stated in the text. Here' s where a detail that you skimmed past comes into play EX: - According to the passage... - The author states... - The author mentions which of the following... Tips for Detail Questions: - For these, use your Passage Map to locate the relevant part of the passage, and review a few lines before and a few lines after if necessary. -If you notice where details generally are as you read, instead of what they say, it will be much easier to locate the relevant text to answer any Detail question.

2.) The same root or prefix can have different meanings Potential Pitfall when studying word roots !!

EX: "Embellish" and "Belligerent" - Both words have "bell" has a root, but: "Embellish" means "to make prettier" and comes from the Latin "bellus" for "pretty" "Belligerent" means "at war or eager to fight" and comes from Latin "bellum" for "war" Sentence: If you accused someone of embellishing his war stories, he might become angry and belligerent. Have you ever pointed out that someone was stretching the truth and seen them get angry? Then you've got embellish and belligerent!

TIPS to improve vocabulary

Know root words Know word Groups ****Know is the word has a positive or negative connotation - goes hand in hand w/ root words and word groups! ^^ do not always need to know exact definition to get the Q correct

Inference Questions, examples and tips

Inference Questions: An Inference question asks you to read between the lines, searching for the choice that' s suggested or implied by the text. There is a great variety in the ways in which Inference questions are presented EX: It can be inferred that... The author suggests that... The passage best supports which of the following statements? The author of the passage would most likely agree with the assertion that... Tips for Inference Questions: - Inference questions take many forms. Some are general, asking for something the author would agree with, and you need to simply evaluate the choices, relying as always on your earlier assessment of authorial tone and Purpose. - Others are more specific, pointing you towards a particular element of the passage, or asking you to combine a few elements in a logical way. ***Always refer back to the text for context in these situations, and REMEMBER that the definition of Inference on the test is something that must be true, not what could be true, or what sounds plausible or likely. ^^For example, if the passage states, " Jill is Rachel' s mother" , then you can infer from that statement that Rachel is Jill' s daughter. As you can see, an inference isn' t something that strays from the text, or something that requires imagination or guessing, but rather something that' s necessarily and logically implied by the text. Remember for Inference questions: On Inference questions, search for the answer choice that follows from the passage. When it' s difficult to make a specific prediction to an Inference question, you still know that the right answer " must be true based on the passage." Wrong answer choices on Inference questions often use extreme language, or they exaggerate views expressed in the passage. Some wrong answer choices may sound plausible, probable, or like good common sense, but this doesn' t mean they' re correct. The correct answer necessarily follows from what' s written in the text.

Keywords

Keywords shape the passage and its meaning. Since they play such a large role in predictive reading and structure of the passage Keywords = structural clues 5 major types of keywords: 1. CONTRAST keywords - Think a shift in direction whenever you see a contrast keyword. You should be able to predict where that shift is likely to lead ^^EX: but, nonetheless, as opposed to, not only/but also, however, on the other hand, disagree 2. CONTINUATION keywords - The opposite of contrast keywords, continuation keywords tell you we' re moving forward. Expect no significant change in the author' s direction, but rather another point or further expansion upon what you' ve just read; you can read what comes next a little more quickly. ^^EX: also, indeed, and, in addition, furthermore, moreover LOGIC keywords (Evidence & Conclusion): The purpose of these keywords is to signify an author' s argument, specifically, the two explicit pieces of an argument, evidence and conclusion. An author' s conclusion answers the question, " What' s your point?" The evidence for that conclusion answers the question, " Why do you think your point is correct?" These types of keywords are important on the GRE because the testmakers LOVE to ask questions about author' s arguments and opinions. Logic keywords will be especially important on argument-based Reasoning questions, like Strengthen and Weaken questions, which we' ll look at later in this workshop. ^^ EX of Evidence keywords : because, since, for example, to illustrate, citing that ^^ EX Conclusion keywords : therefore, hence, so, believe, maintain, hypothesize, argue, suggest EMPHASIS keywords- Remember how we just said the testmakers LOVE to ask questions about opinions? This is why emphasis keywords are perhaps the most important keywords on the GRE. When an author tells us that something is " important" or " unfortunate" or " curious," finding the author' s Purpose becomes significantly easier, leading to a payoff in points on both Global and Inference questions especially. Constantly remind yourself to be cognizant of the author in a passage. The GRE isn' t interested in finding out the facts you can memorize and regurgitate. The testmakers are gauging your understanding of what the author is thinking and doing in the text. ^EX: important, emphasize, vital, crucial, sad, interesting, unfortunately TEMPORAL/SEQUENTIAL keywords: These keywords are all about time and sequential order and occur with great frequency in GRE passages. They also frequently provide specific clues about the author' s intentions. It probably comes as no surprise that if an author says, " Three distinct factors may work to make interspecific pairings with pied flycatcher males reproductively beneficial," you should be getting ready for the author to talk about three factors (and you should accordingly look out for the accompanying sequential keywords— first, second, finally). ^EX: recently/until recently, over the past several years, traditionally, finally, then NOTE: Temporal keywords are frequently paired with contrast keywords, to signify that change or shift in time.

Logic Questions, examples and tips

Logic Questions: basically ask you to use logic to answer questions based on the structure of the passage or about the function of specific details from the text. EX: The primary function of the last paragraph is to... The author mentions X most probably in order to... Select the sentence in the passage in which the author provides support for a generalization. Tips for Logic Questions: - When a question asks you how the author uses a particular detail, go back to that detail and look at the context in which it is used, as well as any nearby keywords. -Then ask yourself, " Why did the author put this detail in the passage? How does this detail fit into the paragraph or the passage as a whole?" The answer to that question will be your prediction. Consider the following: A.) statement/opinion B.) details/support/example/quote/data/anecdote NOTE: - The numbers 1 and 2 refer to the order in which information is usually given in passages. - Usually, examples, details, support, etc., are given right after some statement that was made. Think about it: When do you give examples when you write? Usually after you made some point that needed to be proven or supported, right? The writers of GRE Reading Comprehension passages are no different. - The point is that when the GRE asks you for the purpose of certain details, you can often look right before those details, and you' ll find some claim that was made that necessitated support. ***The purpose of details is typically to support whatever statement or opinion came right before them. Remember for Logic questions: On Logic questions, predict the answer choice using the author' s purpose and your Passage Map. Answer choices that focus too heavily on specifics are usually wrong— it' s not content that' s key in Logic questions, but the author' s motivation for including the content.

How to approach Qs about details

Never obsess over details in your first read-through. When a detail is the focus of a question, the correct strategy is to go back to the text and research. But until you get a question about a detail, the details in the passage are unimportant.

Passage Map!!

Passage Map consists of: Topic Scope, and Purpose. The two primary reasons for mapping a passage are: 1) it will increase your comprehension/understanding of the passage if you force yourself to synthesize the information you just read, 2) it will serve as a reference tool to answer questions more easily later on, instead of having to reread the entire passage for each question.

Predictive Reading can improve your Reading Comprehension level on the GRE

Predictive Reading is a mindset you need to carry with you on every passage. -It' s something that may not be intuitive, and it can take some time to get used to, but it is well worth your while to learn and apply. -Essentially, Predictive Reading is reflecting on what you just read— especially when that text contains a structural keyword— and thinking about where the passage is probably going next. -Predictive Reading helps you in your comprehension of the text because, in simple terms, if you think about where the text is going, when it actually goes there, you' ll already know what it' s talking about. ***It helps you to properly digest and categorize the information as you read, and you will be better able to predict the purpose of potentially complicated details in the passage. NOTE: if the jargon is getting in your way, your focus is off. ^ You should be reading for the big picture and for structure, not trying to memorize all of the details. You will know what the structure is and what the author is doing if you read predictively. As long as you know where the author is going as you read, you' re well on your way to developing excellent Reading Comprehension skills. IE don't need to know all of the highly technical details they're talking about, but know the structure by using keywords

Key steps that we need to take in order to be successful, strategic readers.

Step 1: Identify the topic and the scope of the passage **As soon as you begin to read a passage, you must seek to identify its TOPIC and SCOPE. Identifying the broader topic is usually a simple matter, and by the end of the first paragraph, the author has already begun to narrow the focus to a specific area of interest. This specific area of interest is the SCOPE, and the remainder of the passage will be devoted to discussing it. NOTE: the topic is a general description of the subject matter; the scope is a specific, refined description of the subject matter. Topic + scope are two concepts tied to the content of the passage. Now, in our second step, we begin to consider the structure of the passage more closely. How is the passage pieced together? How are ideas tied to one another? ^^The key to understanding the structure of a passage is to first understand the author's PURPOSE— what goal does the author hope to accomplish in writing the passage, and how does his writing help to achieve this goal?

Passage map defined

TOPIC - The broad subject matter of the passage SCOPE - What about the topic is being discussed? With what aspect of the topic is the author primarily concerned? A good way to figure out the scope is to see what the paragraphs have in common- what do they all discuss? In a longer passage, you can simply look at the body paragraphs and see what they have in common to figure this out. PURPOSE - What is the author' s primary purpose, or the ultimate point of the passage? What does the author want you to take away from the passage? Remember to review the Strategic Reading Workshop and look at the discussion of the classic purposes (advocate, rebut, compare and contrast, describe, and explain). They are important to know for this workshop. NOTE: For each of the paragraphs you should write a line or two of paraphrase on your scratch paper. If there are multiple paragraphs, paraphrase by the end of each paragraph and don' t wait until the end of the passage to summarize. Many questions require you to keep straight which paragraph said what.

Text completion tests...

Text Completions test your ability to understand the context— the main idea that the sentences convey— and to infer what word best maintains the sentences' meaning. The sentences provided in these Qs tell something that would allow us to pinpoint a certain characteristic/detail that will determine which word correctly fits into sentence to complete it. ^^ find a word explicitly indicated by the rest of the sentence.

Kaplan method for text completion Qs w/ multiple blanks (2-3 blanks) often, the longer and more intimidating a question looks, the more clues are built in to help you get to the correct answer choices. If two or even three words must make sense in context, then not only can we rely on the relationship of each blank to the sentence, but we can also take advantage of the relationship(s) that exists between the blanks.

The Kaplan Method is slightly different for two- and three-blank Text Completions: Step 1: Read the sentence, looking for clues. Step 2: Predict an answer for the easier/easiest blank. Step 3: Select the answer choice that most closely matches your prediction. Step 4: Predict and select for the remaining blanks. Step 5: Check your answers by reading them back into the sentence.

Focused reading can improve your Reading Comprehension level on the GRE

The oversimplified answer is: practice focusing. Yes, focus is something that you can learn and develop. It' s about making a concentrated, continuous effort to pay attention to what you' re reading, and disciplining your mind not to let it chase tangential thoughts. By practicing focus you can improve the stamina of your focus. Improvement may be gradual and incremental, but it is worth your while to practice. It really just comes down to practice, practice, practice.

Kaplan Method to handle Text Completions efficiently...

We must determine the main idea of the sentence using the context clues provided: 1. Read the sentence, looking for context clues. - determine the main idea of the sentence. To do so, we locate key words and phrases. Together, they tell us about the structure of the sentence (its direction) and how the structure produces a certain meaning. 2. Predict an answer. - focusing on an attractive wrong answer choice can distract you from the correct answer. Predicting before moving to the choices acts as a safeguard against these choices. It also saves valuable time that might be wasted on evaluating wrong answer choices. 3. Select the answer choice that best matches your prediction. 4. Read the sentence to yourself using your answer choices.

Detour roadsigns in wording of Sentence equivalence Qs

Words like " but" are called detour roadsigns. They indicate that the sentence contains a contrast. Rather than having one continuous meaning, the sentence changes course. Examples of detour roadsigns include the following: but nevertheless nonetheless while however rather despite yet unless although even though

Straight-ahead roadsigns in sentence equivalence Qs

Words like " so" are called straight-ahead roadsigns. They indicate that the word in the blank follows the same train of thought as the rest of the sentence; the meaning of the sentence is continuous. Examples of straight-ahead roadsigns include the following: and not only... but also also likewise as well as in addition to because since ; (a semicolon) : (a colon) thus therefore hence

Reading comprehension basics online Workshop Reading comprehension makes up 50% of verbal sections!!

Workshop covers: - The major strategies for Strategic Reading -The Reading Comprehension question types and wrong answer types -In-format passages and questions

Examples of Types of wrong answers that consistently show up on Reading Comprehension questions ***Deep familiarity with these types will help you identify and toss out wrong answers much more quickly

Wrong answer Choices to be aware of: 1.) 180: - States the opposite of what the question calls for or what is cited in the passage. 2.) Outside the Scope: - Deals with material beyond the confines of the passage or the author' s concern. (Note: Since topic is broader than scope, a choice can relate to the correct topic but still be outside the scope that the author takes up.) 3.) Distortion: - Relates to a point in the discussion but fundamentally confuses some aspect of it. 4.) Extreme: - Similar to Distortion, but takes a point and blows it out of proportion; an unwarranted exaggeration. Watch out for extreme language, such as always, never, only, etc. Choices with extreme language are rarely correct on the GRE. 5.) Faulty Use of Detail: - Focuses on a detail from the wrong part of the passage or takes a relevant detail out of context. ***Deep familiarity with these types will help you identify and toss out wrong answers much more quickly

Sentence Equivalence

test the ability to decipher meaning and to use words in context. guidelines around which Sentence Equivalence questions are constructed and the rules for answering them: - Exactly two answers are correct. Both of those two choices and only those two choices must be selected to receive credit for the question; there is no partial credit. - The correct choices need not be exact synonyms; the sentences resulting from the correct choices must be logically equivalent, but not necessarily identical in meaning. - Two incorrect choices may be synonyms of one another, but neither will complete the sentence logically. - One incorrect choice may complete the sentence logically, but there will not be a second choice that produces a similar meaning. -Note that, while each possible choice will fit the sentence grammatically (Sentence Equivalence questions do not test grammar!), only the two correct answers will fit the context logically and produce sentences with a similar meaning. THUS: Sentence Equivalence questions test your ability to understand the context - to understand the main point that the sentence conveys, and to infer which words best maintain the sentence's meaning.

the four skills that you need to make habitual by test day! Useful skills for comprehensive/strategic reading and useful for quantitative word problems in math sections

the four skills that you need to make habitual by test day: 1.) IDENTIFY TOPIC AND SCOPE Go beyond the broad subject matter to identify the specific aspect of the topic that interests this author. 2) DETERMINE THE AUTHOR'S PURPOSE Remember that a human being wrote the passage with a "Why" in mind. Figure out what that is. 3) GET THE GIST OF THE TEXT Boil down difficult prose to simple terms, concentrating on the ideas that seem most important to the author. 4) READ ACTIVELY That is, keep looking forward to what must follow — and rely on Keywords to provide reliable signals. **If you can make these four skills part of your strategic reading habit, you will be in the best position to rack up points on every section of your exam.