AP Lang Review

Grammar

100

Make the following sentence more concise and clear: Often, America has been known to be a country full of people of all shapes, shades, and sizes.

America is a country full of people of all shapes, shades, and sizes.

200

Find four mistakes in the following sentence--> it isnt hard to notice that america is a country filled with "people from different nations." their speaking "different languages." They come from different cultures.

Capitalize I, add apostrophe to isn't, capitalize America, fix "their" (they're)

300

Fix the fragment and fix the run-on: This being true, we're the most powerful country because of our diversity, overall, we are not going to get along, yes, we may be stronger for this diversity, but the differences also cause problems. As we can see in this presidential election bringing racism to the front of issues.

This is true: we're the most powerful country in the world because of our diversity. Overall, we are not going to get along. Yes, we may be stronger for this diversity, but the differences also cause problems, as we can see in the way this presidential election has brought racism to the forefront.

400

Make these sentences better--> People in America cannot seem to unite because we have such a variety of experiences and face such a variety of problems. To further this, this worsens the struggle Congress has to deal with, which only adds to it.

(vague pronouns, being concise) Congress also has to deal with these differences, which only worsen the arguments our policymakers already have.

500

Correct the following sentence--> This being the issue: the government isn't taking responsibility for people, it doesn't care, and too much corruption.

(-ing verb, parallel structure) This is the issue: the government isn't taking responsibility for people's wellbeing, doesn't care about the poor, and seems prone to corruption.

Argument

100

In Toulmin's model, there are three parts of an argument: Claim, Data, and Warrant. Which of these three is: the conclusion you have drawn, or the statement you are arguing?

CLAIM

200

In Toulmin's model, there are three parts of an argument: Claim, Data, and Warrant. Which of these three is: the assumption on which an argument is based?

WARRANT

300

In Toulmin's model, there are three parts of an argument: Claim, Data, and Warrant. Which of these three is equivalent to evidence + reasoning?

DATA

400

Find the claim, data, and warrant in the following argument: I'm not going to that concert. It's going to be filled with screaming pre-teens.

CLAIM: Going to the concert would be a bad experience. DATA: The concert will be filled with screaming pre-teens. WARRANT: Screaming pre-teens will make the concert unpleasant

500

Find the weakness in the following argument --> We should use torture on people we suspect of terrorism. Sure, it compromises our morals a bit, but one life that's been hurt by torture is worth the thousands of lives that could be saved by getting information about terrorists.

It assumes that torture leads to accurate life-saving information, without providing any proof it does so. (It also assumes that morals are definite.)

Essay Writing

100

How could a writer improve this sentence?--> The author writes, "Time is a rainy day over which we have no control."

(active writer verbs, small phrases to quote) The author compares time to a "rainy day," highlighting how little control we have over its movement.

200

Which type of essay does the following selection probably come from, ANALYSIS or ARGUMENT? --> Yes, we should teach the core subjects like English and math. But neglecting to provide a space for creativity would be to neglect the very humanity of our students.

ARGUMENT (They Say, I Say)

300

Which type of essay does the following selection probably come from, ANALYSIS or ARGUMENT? --> Kempis is urging his followers to abandon all "senses of worldliness," appealing to their sense of faith and religion through his repeated allusion to Biblical scenes.

ANALYSIS

400

Every essay introduction has the same three basic components. What are they?

HOOK - BACKGROUND INFORMATION (CONTEXT) - THESIS

500

Which of the following sentences is better for the EVIDENCE portion of an ARGUMENT essay and WHY?--> 1) One of the biggest issues in America today is inequality, followed closely by racism. We can see these problems in our vastly unequal schools, and we need to address them. 2) American inequality is evident in the experiences of its students of color. Unlike their white peers, these students often go to school buildings with crumbling walls, broken bathroom latches, and creaky heat systems, where their classes are repeatedly interrupted by behavior issues and teacher turnover is alarmingly high.

#2 because it provides more CONCRETE DETAIL & DESCRIPTION to back up the abstract point being made.

Vocabulary

100

Correctly use the word OBSOLETE in a sentence

The ipod is an obsolete piece of technology.

200

Correctly use any word from the FEIGN word family and any word from the VARY word family in a single sentence.

Michelle feigned a variety of illnesses.

300

Correctly use the word "CONSTITUTES" in a sentence.

Argument construction constitutes a major part of the AP Language curriculum.

400

Correctly use the word "OSTENSIBLE" (or ostensibly) in a sentence.

Julia ostensibly just went to the bathroom, but someone thought he saw her running through the parking lot, and she never returned to the meeting.

500

Correctly use the phrase "appeals to" and the word "allusion" in the same sentence.

Through her allusion to Biblical figures, St. Theresa appeals to her reader's religious zeal and staunch faith.