Education
Countdown to LSAT: Logic Games Section
Are you in the final stretch leading to the June LSAT? Well first of all — we feel your pain. But more importantly, we can help. Over the next five weeks leading up to the test, we’re going to give you the last-minute tips you need to complete your study plan. For week number five our resident LSAT expert/tutor Nick recommends starting with the Logic Games Section (formally known as Analytic Reasoning).
Here are your basic parameters:
The Logic Games will contain four questions/games, each with a few different parts. There are three main types of logic games — ordering, assignment, grouping — although they’re pretty broad categories. A logic game begins with a story, then offers clues and conditions, and then poses questions.
That sounds intimidating, I know, but one of the great things about the Logic Games section is that it’s totally learnable. Practicing the different types of games can absolutely make a great score on this section attainable — it just takes a lot of work.
So here are some easy-to-follow tips to help you get a great score on the Logic Games section of the test:
Start with the basics: Some people are going to just naturally have an easier time with the logic games, and some people aren’t. There’s no need to freak out if you’re one of the latter, but it is important to identify your strengths and weaknesses.
A good way to start preparing for the Logic Games is to learn the basics. Even though you probably won’t have anything quite as simple on the test, these skills will be the building blocks for the real problems. In order to learn these basics, LawSchooli recommends The Logic Games Bible. Instead of going through it linearly though, they lay out a really great strategy to get those building block skills for basic Logic Games, then moving on to more difficult games. They also recommend studying by type, and making sure you master one type before moving onto the next.
Be consistent: One important thing to do with the Logic Games is to draw a diagram. Make sure that you’re consistent with your diagrams, even if that means creating one that makes more sense to you than prep books or classes recommend, like this 180-scorer did. Just make sure you find what works for you.
Practice your concentration and timing: This applies to studying for pretty much all of the LSAT, but the Logic Games are the area where people are most likely to run out of time. The best ways that you can do this is to take practice tests and try to slowly shave off your time. The more problems you get exposed to, the more quickly you’ll be able to accurately move through them.
Be Prepared to be Flexible: There are hybrid games on the LSAT Logic Games section, and some of these have been known to throw people off. For example, in 2009 there was a logic game that is now referred to as “the dinosaur” game. It was a hybrid and a lot of people walked out of the test upset by it. As basic as it sounds, the best way to prepare for possible hybrid games is to expose yourself to as many as possible. Here are some examples of hybrid games from ManhattanLSAT Blog, LSATBlog, and Kaplan.
These are just a good starting point for mastering the LSAT Logic Games section, obviously it’ll take a lot of practice and hard work — but this close to the test you’ve already put in a god chunk of time…right? Follow these tips, work hard, and you’ll be a Logic Games master in no time!
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Anneliese Mahoney (@AMahoney8672) is Lead Editor at Law Street and a Connecticut transplant to Washington D.C. She has a Bachelor’s degree in International Affairs from the George Washington University, and a passion for law, politics, and social issues. Contact Anneliese at amahoney@LawStreetMedia.com.
Featured image courtesy of [Ofbarea via WikiMedia Commons]
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