What AP readers Long to see

Success on the AP Exam or “What AP Readers Long to See”
A compilation of thoughts from readers of both exams
1. AP= “Answer the Prompt” Read the prompt. It hurts to give a low score to someone who misread the prompt but wrote a good essay. While readers try to reward students for what they do well, the students must answer the prompt. “In the countless essays I’ve scored, I’m always amazed at how many students fail to answer the question.”
2. Do everything the prompt suggests; in other words, answer all parts of the prompt. Always answer EXACTLY what the question asks.
3. Think before you write. Rarely, is your first thought, your best thought. If you are working on the “open house” think about which novel or play is the best for the prompt? Don’t limit yourself to supplied suggestions. Many of the best responses deal with selections that are not on the list. If you are working on the argument question think about your best support.
4. Plan and organize your response. At least 10 min per essay can be used for planning. Brainstorm and write down any ideas. Even make a quick outline if time permits. You needn’t outline extensively, but a little organization will help you avoid extensive editing, such as crossing out lines or, in some cases, whole paragraphs. It is best to know before you begin what the finished product will look like. Don’t let organization “just happen,” plan for it to happen. It’s no fun for the reader to pick over the remains and try to decipher sentences crammed into the margins.
5. Make strong first impressions. Build your opening response artistically. Do not parrot the prompt. The introduction is most important as it sets the reader’s expectations. Get your THESIS quickly. Another question Leader writes “Use the language of the prompt (questions) not the prompt itself. The student writer’s inclination to repeat the question verbatim is disadvantageous. Practically, the repetition is a waste of the writer’s time; moreover the practice of the student writer’s substitute the question for a first paragraph suggests a lack of sophistication and control as well as the inability to develop a viable thesis.” Remember that the question itself is NOT a thesis though its required tasks should be the skeleton of the student essay.
6. Begin your response immediately. Don’t beat around the bush with generalizations like “There are many great novels…” or “Since the beginning of time…”—Lose these timeworn platitudes! Here’s an example of a creative opening that immediately sets up a central idea/thesis:
An illuminated photograph of a father who “fell in love with long distance” sits on the mantle of the Wingfield’s apartment in Tennessee Williams’ The Glass Menagerie.”
  7. Use clear transition helping the reader follow the progression of your essay. Keep your paragraphs organized; don’t digress.
8. Many prompt end with the statement, “Avoid Plot Summary,” or a similar thought. BELIEVE IT! (You should have a brief précis at the beginning of the body of the open question.) Your essay can follow selected plot sequences in the order in which they appear in the work but your central idea/thesis– not the plot—should dictate your overall organization. You are proving an assertion, not telling a story.
9. Write to express, not impress. Keep vocabulary and syntax within your zone of competence. Students who inflate their writing, using a large vocabulary word incorrectly, often inadvertently entertain, but seldom explain. There is, however, no substitute for command of a good vocabulary. A Question Leader writes, “Avoid the terms positive and negative; these words are so overused in AP essays