{"id":8145,"date":"2012-04-05T12:01:59","date_gmt":"2012-04-05T16:01:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/?p=8145"},"modified":"2012-04-05T12:01:59","modified_gmt":"2012-04-05T16:01:59","slug":"a-few-pointers-on-that-sat-essay","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/?p=8145","title":{"rendered":"A few pointers on that SAT essay"},"content":{"rendered":"

Express your real feelings, offer personal examples and keep it simple <\/span><\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

By Heather Lobb<\/strong>, Special to UnionvilleTimes.com<\/em><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>You want me to write about what<\/em>?<\/p>\n

There aren\u2019t many students that can say they are completely comfortable writing an essay, let alone a timed essay for which they cannot plan.\u00a0 So here are a few tips to scoring well on the SAT essay.<\/p>\n

You will be given a writing prompt, which will most likely consist of one or two quotes and a question about your opinion on the given topic.\u00a0 Two English teachers, or some type of writing professional, will read your essay, each assigning a score from 1-6.\u00a0 (If you write in pen, you get a 0.\u00a0 Don\u2019t write in pen!)\u00a0 Their scores will then be combined to give you a score from 2-12.\u00a0 The very first thing you have to do is consider the question you are being asked, and then have a definite opinion about it.\u00a0 The readers do not want to read about you sitting on the fence of a controversial topic.\u00a0 They want to see that you have a strong head on your shoulders and you can defend your position.<\/p>\n

Next is a quick brainstorm.\u00a0 By this point, you probably have a technique with which you\u2019re comfortable.\u00a0 If you typically make an outline, use the blank test booklet page opposite the prompt.\u00a0 If you prefer using a web diagram, go with that.\u00a0 If you have never brainstormed anything in your life, take about 2 minutes to jot down some notes.\u00a0 This will help you form your ideas and stay on topic while you are writing.<\/p>\n

The length of your essay doesn\u2019t necessarily matter, as long as you are getting in all the appropriate information.\u00a0 But try to stick with what you were taught; a typical essay consists of a thesis statement in the introductory paragraph, followed by three supporting paragraphs, and ends with a conclusion to wrap up your ideas.\u00a0 It\u2019s okay to write your SAT essay in the first person.\u00a0 The question will be asking for your opinion, so the best way to do that will be to give it!<\/p>\n

So what qualifies as a good supporting example?\u00a0 You can pull from a number of sources; examples can typically be found in current events, politics, the medical field, technology, and many classic novels you may have read in class.\u00a0 The most effective way of showing that you understand the prompt is to mention how that scenario has affected your own life.\u00a0 Try to use a personal example, or something that happened to a close friend or family member.\u00a0 Even if you can\u2019t come up with anything that actually<\/em> happened, make it up!\u00a0 The readers aren\u2019t going to know that you\u2019re lying.\u00a0 They will see that you understand and can relate to the question.\u00a0 But don\u2019t tell anyone we told you to lie\u2026<\/p>\n

The last tip is to just relax.\u00a0 The readers will be more impressed with your ability to express your thoughts than of an expansive vocabulary.\u00a0 Just keep it comfortable, and you\u2019ll be just fine!<\/p>\n

Heather Lobb co-founded the Unionville-based Thinking Cap Corporation in 2007 to help students achieve their academic goals.\u00a0 Heather graduated from Millersville University and continues to take the SATs on an incredibly unnatural regular basis for a grown up. \u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Express your real feelings, offer personal examples and keep it simple By Heather Lobb, Special to UnionvilleTimes.com You want me to write about what? There aren\u2019t many students that can say they are completely comfortable writing an essay, let alone a timed essay for which they cannot plan.\u00a0 So here are a few tips to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8148,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5,7],"tags":[1097,1096,837,1098],"class_list":["post-8145","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-community","category-featured","tag-essay","tag-sat","tag-the-thinking-cap","tag-tips"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8145","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=8145"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8145\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/8148"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=8145"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=8145"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=8145"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}