Insider Tips for AP Lit Exam MC Magic!!📚🔍
👋Hello, AP Lit Teachers,
Need some advice to pass on to your budding literary geniuses? Want them to feel oh-so-ready to crush the MC portion of the AP Lit exam? Let’s dive into some super-effective strategies that’ll have your students reading like champions and breezing through multiple-choice questions faster than you can say “iambic pentameter”!
(Need More Structure? Grab My Lesson PowerPoint with AP MC Tips for Students!)
Close Reading: The Secret Weapon 🗡️
First things first, let’s talk close reading. It’s not just reading slowly – it’s like becoming a literary detective! 🕵️♀️
- Start with a quick read of the test passage to get the vibe. Ask yourself what you think the “jist” of it is.
- Then, go in for round two with your annotating tools. Underline, etc. What seems important?
- Pro tip: Don’t annotate everything! Be selective and only go for what seems super meaningful.
Crack the Title Code 🔐
The title of the poem or passage is like a movie trailer for a movie. Pay attention to it. What is it telling you about genre, tone, and subject? Clue in on the title & get your brain working before you even start reading the passage! At the very least, keep it in the back of your mind as a potential clue to meaning, PoV, or tone…
Tone Detective 🕵️♂️
Figure out the narrator’s attitude. Is he or she excited? Grumpy? Sarcastic? Imagine the narrator is someone you’re listening to in real life. What would he or she sound like? What attitude is coming through the words and ideas he or she is conveying to you? Knowing the tone will help you understand the piece on a deeper level, so don’t skip thinking about this one!
Word Hunter👀
Look for words that seem to “stand out” to you or that keep showing up. They’re there for a reason! How do these word choices help you better understand the meaning of the text? How do they shape its tone? How might they help characterize the narrator or his/her point of view?
Compare and Contrast ⚖️
Notice any obvious contrasts or comparisons? This is where AP students can really shine. Contrast, Juxtaposition, Paradox, Irony, Foils: these elements often lead to a deeper understanding of the text and a better, more mature analysis can grow from that fertilized soil.
Find the Point (It’s Not Hide and Seek!) 🎯
After reading, ask yourself: “What’s the point?” Is there a message or an idea coming through? Is there a certain feeling, mood, or atmosphere being conjured up? What does the reader take away from the piece? Is there a lesson or a moral to it?
Students often think literature is purposefully difficult or ambiguous, but that is not USUALLY the case. The point should unfold before you because that is the POINT of writing something–to communicate. (Of course, sometimes the point actually is about ambiguity or lack of clarity, like in Heart of Darkness, for example, but with enough practice, you should be able to see something like that, too!)
Now, let’s talk Multiple Choice Strategies (Here’s How to Outsmart the Test) 😎
- Use the Process of Elimination (POE) to help you see what’s “out,” move more quickly, and zero in on the best answer.
- Trust your gut! It’s smarter than you think. If you narrowed it down to two, go with the one that seems most right, and keep moving. Don’t ever sit too long on one question.
- If you are super unsure about an answer, you can mark it to come back later if you have time.
- Read at a normal pace. This isn’t a race, but it’s not a leisurely stroll either. You don’t want to run out of time, so don’t go too slowly.
- Watch the clock! 60 minutes, 55 questions. You do the math. (Just kidding, we did it for you – that’s about a minute per question!)
- Make notes, underline, circle. Turn that passage into your personal work of art. Students who write on their exams nearly always do better. Don’t think it’s a waste of time. It’s not!!
Types of Questions You’ll Face 🥊
- Reading Comprehension: Did you get it?
- Inference: Can you read between the lines?
- Figurative Language: Can you decode the author’s use of non-literal language?
- Literary Technique: Why did the author make that choice?
- Character Analysis: What makes these fictional people tick? Who are they?
- Overall Questions: What’s the big picture?
- Structure: Can you grasp the significance of certain structural choices?
- Nitty-Gritty: Grammar, meter, rhythm – the nuts and bolts of prose & poetry.
So, that’s it. Those are my “quick tips” for AP Lit exam success.
If you want to go more in-depth, I also have a PowerPoint with MC strategies for AP Lit students.
Now, as you prepare to send them off to the test, remind them that the exam is their chance to show off their literary prowess!💪📚 Give them a few last-minute tips from this list, and they’ll feel SO ready to go forth and conquer the exam!🌟After a year in your class, they have a huge arsenal of reading strategies, literary terms, and deep subject knowledge. Make sure they know you’re proud of them and that they are more than ready to tackle any passage that comes their way!
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