AP LITERATURE
EXAM PREP NOTES
WEDNESDAY, MAY 6 TH
7:45 am
Competition Gym
WHAT TO BRING:
picture ID
pencils / erasers
blue or black ink pens
watch
water
snack
tissues
jacket or sweater
mints or cough drops
LENGTH OF EXAM:
3 HOURS
2 SECTIONS:
MULTIPLE CHOICE
& ESSAY
(WITH A SHORT BREAK BETWEEN)
SECTION 1: MULTIPLE CHOICE
(45 % OF FINAL SCORE)
60 minutes
4-6 pieces of poetry and prose
50-60 questions
ANSWER ALL MULTIPLE
CHOICE QUESTIONS.
• There is no penalty for incorrect
answers. YAY!
• Your objective is to get through all
of the questions; you don’t want to
miss any you will get right.
• Mark the ones you can’t answer and
move on. Go back and work the ones you
skipped.
• Educated guessing is good strategy!!
SECTION 2: ESSAY
(55 % OF FINAL SCORE)
• 120 minutes (2 hours)
• 3 essays:
1 poetry (verse) analysis
1 literary (prose) analysis
1 student choice analysis
WHAT TO ANALYZE
Diction
Imagery
Figurative
Language
Sounds/Rhyme
Rhythm/Pace
•
•
•
•
•
•
Patterns
Shifts
Organization/Structure
Details
Point-of-View
Tone
NO, NOT THIS YEAR!
This year, not “rhetorical” -
instead it’s…
• “literary” devices
• “poetic” devices
•ethos
•logos
•pathos
ESSAY #3:
STUDENT CHOICE ANALYSIS
You get to choose which book you write about, even if
it’s not on the suggested list. Criteria….
it is of literary merit
you are very familiar with it
you haven’t simply watched a
movie version of it!
ESSAY 3 MAY BE ABOUT
“THE MEANING OF THE
WORK AS A WHOLE.”
• Explicitly say what the meaning is in your
thesis.
• Meaning = Theme
• This is a story about _______________ and how
_____________________________________.
SUGGESTED
TIMING:
2-3 MINUTES:
UNDERLINE KEY WORDS IN
THE PROMPT
Keep track of your own
time.
Start Time: _____
Stop Time: _____
• Divide the
10-15 MINUTES:
READ, RE-READ,
ANNOTATE, PRE-WRITE
120 MINUTES
as you see fit.
25-35 MINUTES:
WRITE THE ESSAY
•Tackle the essays in
2-3 MINUTES:
PROOFREAD
any order.
HOW TO PREP…
SHOULD I READ ANOTHER
BOOK?
COFFEE TALK REWIND!!
Option 1:
Re-read any
novel or play
from 9 th-12 th
grade assigned
reading lists.
Option 2:
Read The
Importance of
Being Earnest by
Oscar Wilde (a
play; a comedy)
… STORE IN YOUR MIND…
• 2 novels written in 20 th or 21 st centuries
• 2 novels written pre-20th century
Be able to recall:
author
plot points
characters
conflicts
themes
what distinguishes the author’s style
opening and closing paragraphs
what makes the work unique
…STORE IN YOUR MIND…
• 2 plays by Shakespeare
• 2 plays by other playwrights
Be prepared to recall:
•the setting (place, time, social mores)
•major characters
•themes
•rising and falling action
•climax
•opening and closing scenes
SOME GOOD NEWS…
NOW
IS THE TIME
FOR
S PA R K N O T E S
WHEN YOU ARE READY TO REVIEW …
• Go to my website under “AP Exam Prep”
• handouts and websites will help you
review
Most important:
• Literary Analysis
• Terms
DON’T LET THE WORDING OF THE PROMPT
CONFUSE YOU OR CAUSE YOU UNCERTAINTY .
• “show how…”
These are all
asking the same
• “analyze the
techniques…”
thing:
• “discuss the
How does the
strategies…”
author use
• “what devices are words?
employed…”
THE PASSAGES AND POETRY
WILL BE FROM DIFFERENT TIME
PERIODS AND WILL BE OF
VARYING LENGTH AND DEGREE
OF DIFFICULTY.
If you read a passage or poem that you think
is “hard” don’t panic. Take a breath, tell
yourself, “Oh, here’s the hard one” and then
give it your best!
READING
POETRY &
SHAKESPEARE
Don’t be intimidated by older
pieces or by Shakespeare.
Remember, it’s all English!
Begin with what you understand
and move forward.
Let punctuation guide you as you read.
Chunk it up and paraphrase.
Begin with what you understand.
Look for patterns: words, images, sounds, etc. that
seem to go together. What could these mean as a
whole?
Notice SHIFTS (words like but and yet are indicators)
Remember: IMAGERY = MEANING!
HEY, AM I READY FOR THIS?
ABSOLUTELY!!
Approach the
exam with
healthy respect
and confidence.
You’re going to
have to work for
it, but you can
do it!
Dearest Seniors,
I want you to know how delighted I
am that you have chosen to take the AP
Lit Exam. There is no doubt in my mind
that when you bring your A-game, you
will do well. You have worked with
earnestness and diligence this year, and I
am honored to point at you and say,
“THAT is my Phoenix student!”
~ Mrs. C
ANALYZING POETRY A LA’ THE SCIENTIFIC
METHOD:
OBSERVE • Notice details of the
text.
QUESTION • Interact with and
annotate the text.
•
Address
questions
of
HYPOTHESIZE
how and why.
• Test your thinking
EXPERIMENT against the thinking
of others.
SHARE RESULTS • Conclude and reflect.
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