In advance:

• read the article multiple times!
• mark up the text: vocabulary, important passages, supporting details, explanations and short summaries in the margins
• remember the template for the questions: write about your experience in relation to what the author writes about, referring to text; one related to the topic specifically, the other more broadly.
• reflect on your experiences/those of people you know or have read about
• practice writing thesis statements for your anticipated questions
• think about your thesis statement as a roadmap to your essay: you should be able to write an outline based on it
• review block and point-by-point comparison organization

During the exam:

• read the questions (5)
• take your time!
• think of what you want to write: outline and thesis statement draft
• to build outline, draw on the text for specific examples and quotations (20)
• write the essay using the thesis statement and outline to guide you (30)
• beginning the essay: start on topic, narrow into your thesis statement. You might try: In “A Natural Fix for ADHD,” Richard A. Friedman argues… OR In Richard A. Friedman’s New York Times article, “A Natural Fix for ADHD,” he claims… OR Richard A. Friedman, in his New York Times article, “A Natural Fix for ADHD,” demonstrates that… OR According to Richard A. Friedman’s New York Times article, “A Natural Fix for ADHD,” …
• continue to revise your thesis statement as you write your essay
• re-read and revise (15 minutes)