Logical Reasoning · Strengthen

PrepTest 135 · Section 2 · Question 3

Phase 1 (your first ~400 questions): read the guidance, then answer. No clock.

Step 1 · Pre-Question Guidance · read this first

Question type

Strengthen

The one idea it tests

Supply the missing link between 'this practice leaves out the main group' and 'this practice is a bad idea'.

The basic logic

The argument says a perk for newcomers is a poor practice because the people who bring most of the business are left out. The gap: why is leaving them out bad? An answer showing that a business does best when perks go to its loyal people fills the gap.

Tiny words that decide it

“since”
“bulk”
“not ideal”

Playground logic

Priya's patty: the free sticker goes only to first-time buyers, and regulars buy most of the lemonade. Her top bun: that is a poor plan. The secret sauce is that rewarding the regulars is what makes a stand do well.

Step 2 · The kid story

Stickers for Strangers

Nadia and Owen run the lemonade stand on Maple Street. Their new plan: every first-time customer gets a free glitter sticker. Priya studied the sales chart. "This is not a great plan," she said. "Most of our cups go to the same neighbors every afternoon. Mrs. Lee, the mail carrier, the soccer kids. They never get a sticker." Owen shrugged. "So what? New people get stickers." Marcus jumped in. "Detective tip: new people bring new money!" Lulu looked up from her clipboard. "Priya's argument needs one more piece. Why does leaving out the regulars matter?" Priya sipped her juice box. "If stands do best when the treats go to the faithful customers, then my point gets much stronger."

Step 3 · Try the model question

Priya: Giving free stickers only to first-time customers is a poor plan for a lemonade stand, since the regular neighbors, who buy most of the lemonade, never get one.

Which choice, if true, gives Priya's argument the most support?

Step 4 · The courtroom tale

The Case of the Free First Game

Mr. Whitfield represented the members of a bowling league. "Your Honor, the alley gives a free game to every first-time bowler. My clients bowl here every week and make up most of the alley's business. They get nothing." The alley's lawyer frowned. "Is that a crime?" "Not a crime," said Mr. Whitfield. "A bad plan. And here is my witness, an expert on bowling alleys." The expert said, "Alleys do best when their perks go to their steady bowlers." The judge raised an eyebrow. "Well, that closes the gap. Leaving out the steady crowd really is a mistake."

Step 5 · Work the real question

Open PrepTest 135, Section 2, Question 3 in your official copy from LSAC (for example in LawHub) and read it there.

Your answer

How to apply it

Find the top bun: the practice is not a good one. Find the patty: the group that brings most of the business gets left out. Ask what secret sauce connects them: why does excluding that group make the practice poor? Pick the answer that makes that link true. Skip answers about other businesses' prices, about costs of a different plan, about a fact that only restates loyalty, or about a few cases that point the other way.