Templates

[rahuldesarda]

When does using Templates come into the play most?

[James Finch]

Hi Rahul,

Logic games vary according to how much information that is given up front in the rules. When games offer up one or two either/or possibilities for variables, that creates a solid base for templates. If we're given two independent either/or possibilities for single variables, then creating four templates to reflect these possibilities makes perfect sense. Similarly, a limited number of numerical distributions may create a natural set of templates to use.

More than four templates may be a timesink and not worth it however; it varies according to the individual game and its rules. There is at least one game I can think of that requires identifying all possible variants (there are seven in total) in order to correctly answer the questions.

If you have a specific game or games to reference, I'd be happy to give a more specific and detailed answer.

[Dave Killoran]

Hi Rahul,

Later in the LGB there is an entire discussion of Templates and the various things that cause you to choose to show them. But, one of the things I often do in the LSAT Bibles is begin previewing ideas earlier, so that when we finally reach the "main" discussion, it's not out of the blue. So, earlier on in the book, read the explanations closely: I usually explain why a template approach was used in each individual instance.

If you want to read about it right now, the discussion is in Chapter 9, in the section titled Limited Solution Set Games, and more specifically in the "How to Recognize Limited Solution Set Games" section.

Thanks!

[Jon Denning]

For anyone else who happens upon this thread and perhaps doesn't own the Logic Games Bible, I've written about templates over on our blog in some depth. You might find the following article useful:

https://blog.powerscore.com/lsat/lsat-l ... -templates