Logical Reasoning · Main Conclusion

PrepTest 152 · Section 2 · Question 10

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

Step 1 · Pre-Question Guidance · read this first

Question type

Main Conclusion

The one idea it tests

Find the claim everything else is there to support, even when it arrives last after a 'therefore'.

The basic logic

Sort the sentences into the burger. Old way of doing things is background. Why the old way falls short is the patty. The claim that a new way became necessary, and when, is the top bun. Match the answer to that top bun, including its timing, without adding extra ideas.

Tiny words that decide it

“thus”
“however”
“therefore”
“necessary”

Playground logic

Kevin talks about how the class used to size up books and why that stopped working. All of that rambling feeds one point: once books were used for new jobs, the class needed new ways to size them. That last line is Kevin's top bun.

Step 2 · The kid story

Kevin Measures Books

Kevin is giving a report. 'So, in the old days, our class measured books by how long it took Ms. Rivera to read them out loud. A short book was one snack. A long book was three snacks. Two books with the same number of pages were not equal if one had big dinosaur words that slowed her down.' Owen yawns. Kevin keeps going. 'But snack time tells you nothing about whether a book fits on the new shelf, or how heavy it is in your backpack. So when we started using books for shelves and backpacks and not just story time, we needed new ways to measure them, like inches and ounces.' Priya sips her juice box. 'What's your point, Kevin?' Lulu answers for him. 'That new jobs for books made new measures necessary.'

Step 3 · Try the model question

Our class used to measure books by how many snacks long the read-aloud lasted. That tells you little about whether a book fits the shelf. So when books got new jobs, like shelves and backpacks, new measures such as inches became necessary.

Which choice best states Kevin's main point?

Step 4 · The courtroom tale

The Case of the Bake Sale Ruler

In a made-up courtroom, a school club argues about its rulebook. A witness explains, 'We used to price cookies by how long they took to bake. But baking time tells you nothing about how many fit in a box. When we started shipping cookies in boxes, we had to switch to counting by size.' The judge leans in. 'So what is your actual point, sir?' Mr. Whitfield answers, 'Your Honor, the point is the last line: new uses forced a new measure. The baking story is just how we got there.' The judge writes it down. 'Then that is the conclusion I will rule on.' The history and the shortcoming were support; the switch was the claim.

Step 5 · Work the real question

Open PrepTest 152, Section 2, Question 10 in your official copy from LSAC (for example in LawHub) and read it there.

Your answer

How to apply it

Label each sentence: background, support, or claim. Watch for a 'however' that turns toward the reason the old approach fails, and a 'therefore' that delivers the top bun. Say the conclusion in your own words before reading choices, keeping any time or cause it mentions. Reject choices that restate support, add a comparison the author never makes, or claim a different event. Pick the one that matches the top bun most closely.