PSAT 8/9 Prep with 2 practice tests - Princeton Review 2020

Chapter 6 Introduction to the writing and language strategy
Part III PSAT 8/9 Prep

CAN YOU REALLY TEST WRITING ON A MULTIPLE-CHOICE TEST?

We’d say no, but the PSAT 8/9 (and a heck of a lot of other tests) seems to think the answer is yes. To that end, the PSAT 8/9 is giving you 30 minutes to answer 40 multiple-choice questions that ask about a variety of grammatical and stylistic topics. If you like to read and/or write, this test may frustrate you a bit because it may seem to boil writing down to a couple of dull rules. But as you will see, we will use the next few chapters to suggest a method that keeps things simple for pro- and anti-grammarians alike.

It is worth noting that the Writing and Language section of the PSAT 8/9 is very similar to that of both the PSAT and the SAT. It is a little shorter, but it tests almost all of the same topics. All of the rules and strategies you learn in this section can also be used on those tests if and when you take them in the future.

WHERE DID ALL THE QUESTIONS GO?

One thing that can seem a little strange about the Writing and Language section of the PSAT is that many of the questions don’t have, well, questions. Instead, many of the questions look something like this:

When you think of a queen, or any member of a royal family, you probably don’t imagine floppy 1 ears a tail and fur.

1. A)NO CHANGE

B)ears, a tail and,

C)ears, a tail, and

D)ears a tail, and

How are you supposed to pick an answer when there’s no question?

Well, actually, what you’ll find throughout this chapter and the next two is that the PSAT 8/9 gives you a lot of information in this list of answer choices. (The answer is (C), by the way, but stick with us for a second here.)

Look at these pairs, and you’ll see just what we mean. As you read through these pairs of answer choices, think about what each question is probably testing.

1. A)could of

B)could have

2. A)tall, dark, and handsome

B)tall, dark and handsome

3. A)let them in

B)let Sister Susie and Brother John in

4. A)We arrived in Paris on a Sunday. Then we took the train to Nantes. Then we took the train to Bordeaux.

B)We arrived in Paris on a Sunday. Then we took the train to Bordeaux. Then we took the train to Nantes.

If you were able to see the differences in these answer choices, you’re already more than halfway there. Now, notice how the differences in these answers can reveal the question that is lurking in the heart of each list of answer choices.

1. The difference between the word “of” and “have” means that this question is asking Is the correct form “could of” or “could have”?

2. The difference between having a comma after the word “dark” and not having one there means that this question is asking How many commas does this sentence need, and where do they belong?

3. The difference between “them” and “Sister Susie and Brother John” means that this question is asking Is “them” adequately specific, or do you need to refer to people by name?

4. The difference in the order of these sentences asks What order should the sentences be in?

Therefore, what we have noticed in these pairs of answer choices is something that may seem fairly simple but which is essential to success on the PSAT 8/9.

THE ANSWER CHOICES ASK THE QUESTIONS

At some point, you’ve almost certainly had to do the English-class exercise called “peer editing.” In this exercise, you are tasked with “editing” the work of one of your fellow students. But this can be really tough, because what exactly does it mean to “edit” an entire essay or paper when you aren’t given any directions? It’s especially tough when you start getting into the subtleties between whether things are wrong or whether they could merely be improved.

Look, for example, at these two sentences:

It was a beautiful day outside birds were singing cheerful songs.

It was a beautiful day outside; birds were singing cheerful songs.

You’d have to pick the second one in this case because the first has a grammatical error: it’s a run-on sentence. Or for the non-grammarians out there, you have to break that thing up.

Now, look at these next two sentences:

The weather was just right, so I decided to play soccer.

Just right was how I would describe the weather, so a decision of soccer-playing was made by me.

In this case, the first sentence is obviously better than the second, but the second technically doesn’t have any grammatical errors in it. The first may be better, but the second isn’t exactly wrong.

What made each of these pairs of sentences relatively easy to deal with, though, was the fact that you could compare the sentences to one another. In doing so, you noted the differences between those sentences, and so you picked the better answer accordingly.

Let’s see how this looks in a real PSAT 8/9 situation.

Stormie’s loyal subjects, the other dogs at the dog park, 2 starting to recognize her natural leadership abilities.

2. A)NO CHANGE

B)is starting

C)have started

D)has started

Here’s How to Crack It

First, look at what’s changing in the answer choices. The verb is underlined, and the answer choices have different verb forms. The question, then, seems to be asking, Which verb makes the sentence complete and correct?

Choice (A) makes the sentence incomplete, so it can be eliminated. Choices (B) and (D) are the wrong number: the subject of the sentence is subjects, which is plural, so the verb also needs to be plural. Both is and has are singular, so (B) and (D) can be eliminated. Only (C) produces a complete sentence and contains a verb that agrees with the subject of the sentence.

Notice how the entire process started with asking What’s changing in the answer choices? With that question, we figured out what was being tested, and we used POE to do the rest.

When other dogs approach, Stormie’s instinctive judgment, which categorizes each dog as friend or foe, tells 3 those how to respond.

3. A)NO CHANGE

B)one

C)them

D)her

Here’s How to Crack It

As always, start with what’s changing in the answer choices. It looks like the change is among the words those, one, them, and her, which are all pronouns. As such, this question seems to be asking, What is the appropriate pronoun to use in this context?

Start by determining what the pronoun refers back to. A pronoun should clearly refer to a noun. The subject of the sentence is Stormie’s instinctive judgment. Your judgment tells you what to do, so Stormie’s judgment tells “her” how to respond. Eliminate (A), (B), and (C). Only (D) provides a pronoun that works in the context of this sentence.

LEARN FROM THE ANSWER CHOICES

Sometimes, a sentence on the Writing and Language section may sound perfectly fine to you, but it actually has an error. That’s because the way we speak is often very different from the way we write. The PSAT 8/9 is more concerned on this test with how we write and with the stricter set of rules that go along with writing.

As such, not only can the answer choices tell us what a particular question is testing, they can also reveal mistakes that we might not have otherwise seen (in the original sentence) or heard (in our heads).

Let’s see another.

At home, Stormie perches regally atop a pile of pillows and crosses her 4 two pause, surveying the living room that is her domain.

4. A)NO CHANGE

B)two paws,

C)to pause,

D)to paws,

Here’s How to Crack It

First, as always, check what’s changing in the answer choices. In this case, that step is especially important because you can’t really hear the error. People often misuse words like to and paws in writing because these words sound similar to two and pause, respectively, but each spelling has its own meaning. The fact that similar-sounding words are not the same, that they change, tells us precisely what to pay attention to when we use POE.

Start the Process of Elimination. Paws refer to animal feet, and pause refers to a short break. A dog can cross its paws, but it can’t cross “a short break,” so eliminate (A) and (C). Next, consider the difference between (B) and (D). Two is a number, whereas to is a directional word (e.g., we went to the park). In this case, there are two paws, so eliminate (D). The correct answer is (B).

Notice, though, that looking at the answer choices revealed the problem that you might not have otherwise been able to see or hear. Then, POE got you the rest of the way.

ALL OF THE QUESTIONS CAN’T BE WRONG ALL OF THE TIME

Now that our strategy is basically set, let’s look at one more tough one.

As the dog queen, she 5 collects a tax on all cheese and peanut butter consumed in the house.

5. A)NO CHANGE

B)assembles

C)profits

D)organizes

Here’s How to Crack It

First, as always, check what’s changing in the answer choices. Even if the original sentence sounds fine, it’s important to check the answers in order to identify any possible errors that weren’t obvious. In this case, the vocabulary is changing. Read the sentence and determine what meaning would best fit in the underlined portion. The part after the underlined portion is a tax, and the subject is she. The underlined portion should mean something like “takes.” Collects matches with “takes,” so keep (A). Assembles means “puts together,” which doesn’t match with “takes” in this context, so eliminate (B). Profits means “makes money from,” which doesn’t match with “takes,” so eliminate (C). Organizes means “puts together,” which doesn’t match with “takes,” and it also wouldn’t be correct to suggest that a dog could organize something, so eliminate (D). The correct answer is (A).

Remember, NO CHANGE is right sometimes! However, do not automatically pick NO CHANGE simply because the sentence sounds fine. You may find that in some cases the correct answer does not “sound right.” Alternatively, a wrong answer could “sound fine.” Learn the rules in the following chapters, and use those rules along with Process of Elimination to maximize your correct answers.

HOW TO ACE THE WRITING AND LANGUAGE SECTION: A STRATEGY

· Check what’s changing in the answer choices.

· Figure out what the question is testing and let the differences reveal potential errors.

· Use Process of Elimination.

· If you haven’t eliminated three answers, pick the shortest one that is most consistent with the rest of the sentence.

In the next few chapters, we’ll get into some of the more technical issues in Writing and Language, but we’ll be using this strategy throughout. Try the drill on the next page to get some of the basics down.

Writing and Language Drill 1

The purpose of this drill is to get a basic idea of what each question is testing from only the answer choices. Check your answers in Part IV.

1. A)NO CHANGE

B)singers’ preferred songwriters

C)singer’s preferred songwriter’s

D)singers’ preferred songwriters’

What’s changing in the answer choices?