Bernadette

Introduction

I'm definitely a non-traditional student, having received my Bachelor Degree over a decade ago. Not too long after walking the stage for that accomplishment, I decided to go for my dreams and sit for the LSAT. After self studying and using a prep company (I finished their program without ever actually figuring out the difference between necessary and sufficient assumptions), the most that I could achieve was a 148. I still decided to throw my hat into the ring and apply, only to either receive rejections or acceptances into fourth tier schools. I decided then that someone like me couldn't do well on a test like this.

Fast forward ten years later to one graduate degree, a home, and a career. In the back of my mind, I knew that I still wanted to follow the path to Law School. But I knew I needed someone who could give me all the tools to make this a one and done shot. Miraculously, I found Ellen. I never met someone who actually loved this test to want to know it, figure out what made this test "click." I knew I had to work with her! Ellen challenged me, she knew that I could actually achieve my dream score if I put in the time and effort. I still wasn't sure. I figured that I was too old, too slow, too behind. "The LSAT was a young person's game," I claimed over and over again. Ellen would hear none of it! Each time I begged to quit, Ellen looked for another way for me to evaluate my skills. It didn't help that every week, another emergency happened in my life, be it a car accident or an issue with my ceiling (home owner life is not for the weak).

I begrudgingly stuck with her, did as much of the work that I could and trusted her. I took the test using Ellen's methods and with her advice in my mind the whole time. With bated breath, I turned in my exam and prayed for at least a 170. I got a 173!!! I was excited, in shock and disbelief. Ellen has literally changed my life!

April, May, June 2022 -- LR Translation

Believe it or not, Translation is the foundation of excelling on the LSAT. I don't know if I believed it at first, but I certainly came to this conclusion! When I first started my LSAT journey, sure I was reading, but I wasn't retaining and comprehending. Translation teaches you this.

The more you translate, the better you'll get. Honestly! It's a definite skill to learn for this test. And it's needed for every component of the LSAT. You'll soon realize that you will use Translation on every part of the test. There's a definite reason why Ellen starts her students off with Translation and why she doesn't let you move on to the next phase of LSAT prep until you've perfected this skill.

April and May 2022 -- Extracurricular Reading, Word Games, Science Articles, Vocabulary Quizlet

I can't say that I ever became a fan of War and Peace, but I can tell you that I was able to expand my skills and stamina in reading topics that I wasn't used to and actually found an interest in some of them. I became able to complete passage sections and pull out important information, make inferences, and correctly guess the author's view for the passages.

Ellen recommends a plethora of options in order to strengthen your comprehension skills that are needed for this test. A great recommendation is the NYT Guide to Essential Knowledge, which covers almost every topic that you'll find in the Reading Comprehension section. I had moments where I had no interest in certain science passages. When I brought this up, Ellen gave some of the most valuable information: "Do not let this come between you and your dreams."

May and June 2022 -- CLIR, Daily Virtual Tutoring, Slack Challenges

Getting to the CLIR was bringing my world from black and white to full color. Once I conquered Translation, adding the CLIR allowed me to actually understand what to look for in an answer choice and make sure that I find that correct choice more often than not.

The Introduction to Logic Games Videos showed me the way to perfect the Elemental Prep Logic Game strategy. I was able to get my inferences and was able to consistently get perfect scores on Logic Games using the Logic Games Daily Virtual Tutoring lessons, something that I couldn't have dreamed of before.

Elemental Prep's very own Slack Challenges helped perfect my skills, especially conditional logic. Some of the questions were especially difficult but being able to conquer them gave me so much confidence with the actual test.

The CLIR is essential. It's an entire method that, once you're consistent at practicing, guarantees you a roadmap to your dream score. Slack Challenges are an awesome Elemental-specific resource. They're simple quizzes that are created each week to target an LSAT skill that students are struggling with. They provided me with lessons when I only had a limited amount of time but still wanted to make the most out of study time.

June and July 2022 -- Reading Comprehension

After some practice, I was able to find a Reading Comprehension method that worked best for me and figure out a method to conquer the section, no matter the subject. Translating with intonation allowed me to interact more with the passages and truly understand the point of the passage and what the author's intention was.

Reading Comprehension was the last subject that I conquered. After mastering the Logic Reasoning section, Reading Comprehension came in smoother using the methods provided by Ellen. I began to look at Reading Comprehension as one long Logic Reasoning stimulus.

July and August 2022 -- Answer Choice Translation

For some reason, I figured that this would be harder to conquer. But really, it was like icing a cake that I spent so much time baking and putting together. After Translation + CLIR drills, translating the answer choices makes identifying the correct answer choice so simple.

Answer Choice Translation was literally putting it all together. You can learn all of the tips and tricks but you must remember that if you can't understand what the answer choices are saying, you can get tripped up and frustrated. This Translation and quip is invaluable!