SHSAT: Revising: an ending that answers the cause
Learn to choose the concluding sentence that responds to the specific problem, and the specific cause, that a short draft describes.
When a question asks which sentence best completes a draft, how do you tell the logical ending from endings that only sound sensible?
Short answer
Name what went wrong and why, using the draft's own details. The best ending responds to that cause; the others repeat the failed plan, assume new facts or fix something the draft never blamed.
Know first: Finding the main point of a short paragraph, Transition words such as however and because
Step 1 of 5
A draft's ending answers its own problem
Some revising questions hand you a short draft and ask which sentence most logically completes it. These drafts often follow a pattern: someone makes a plan, something goes wrong (the setback), and the draft tells you why (the cause).
A logical ending grows out of that cause. It shows what the person learned or would change about the thing that actually went wrong. Every wrong choice will sound like reasonable advice, so sounding sensible is never enough.
| Part | What to ask | Clues in the draft |
|---|---|---|
| Plan | What did the person intend or believe? | sure that, planned to, hoped to |
| Setback | What went wrong? | however, but, yet, by noon, later |
| Cause | Why did it go wrong? | because, since, had forgotten, never once |
The cause often sits in the last sentence, right before the blank.
Step 2 of 5
Predict, then test each choice against the cause
A short draft, marked up
Marisol was sure that a bigger sign would bring more customers1 to her lemonade stand. By noon, however,2 she had sold only six cups. A neighbor pointed out that the stand sat behind the park's bandshell, where almost no one walked3.
- The plan: her belief is about the sign.
- The setback signal: the plan did not work.
- The cause: the location, not the sign.
Worked example: Which ending fits?
Which sentence most logically completes the draft about Marisol's stand?
- AThe next Saturday, Marisol painted an even larger sign.
- BThe next Saturday, Marisol set up her stand beside the park's main path.
- CThe next Saturday, Marisol added strawberry lemonade to her menu.
- DThe next Saturday, Marisol stayed open until sunset.
- 1
Name the cause
Sales were low because the stand was hidden behind the bandshell, where almost no one walked.
- 2
Predict
A logical ending moves the stand to a busier spot or otherwise deals with the location.
- 3
Test the choices
B moves the stand beside the main path. It answers the cause directly.
- 4
See why the others are there
A repeats the failed plan, a bigger sign. C and D sound like good business ideas, but the draft never says the flavor or the hours were the problem.
Answer
B. It is the only ending that responds to the location problem the draft names.
Wrong: Next time, Marisol decided to try harder.
Right: Next time, Marisol decided to set up where people actually walked.
The first ending could close any story about any setback. The second names the specific fix the draft points to.
Step 3 of 5
Test every ending against the cause
Check yourself · Question 1
Draft: Devon practiced his speech every night by reading it silently at his desk. On the day of the class debate, however, he stumbled over several long sentences. He realized he had never once heard how the words sounded out loud. Which sentence most logically completes the draft?
Answer: B
The cause is that Devon never practiced out loud. Rehearsing aloud responds to exactly that cause.
Check yourself · Question 2
Draft: The garden club planted twenty sunflower seeds along the north wall of the school, pleased with how neat the row looked. A month later, the seedlings were pale and thin. A volunteer checked a gardening guide and learned that sunflowers need full sun, but the wall shaded the row for most of the day. Which sentence most logically completes the draft?
Answer: C
The seedlings were weak because the wall shaded them. Planting in the sunny bed fixes that cause.
Trap answer: The next spring, the club planted forty seeds so that at least some would grow strong.
Sensible advice that skips the cause
- Why it looks right
- It sounds practical, and planting extra seeds really can help in some gardens.
- Why it's wrong
- The draft says the seedlings grew weak because the wall shaded them. More seeds in the same shade would grow weak too, so this ending ignores the reason the plan failed.
- The right answer
- Planting in the sunny bed is the only choice that changes the condition the draft blames.
Common mistake
I picked the ending that would be good advice in real life.
- Why it's tempting
- Every choice is written to sound reasonable, and real-world knowledge feels like a fair tool.
- Do this instead
- Judge each ending only by the draft. Ask whether it responds to the cause the writer gave. If a choice needs a fact the draft never states, cross it out.
Step 4 of 5
What to remember
Remember
- Find the plan, the setback and the cause before you read the choices.
- Predict an ending that deals with the cause, then look for the choice that matches it.
- Cross out endings that repeat the failed plan or depend on facts the draft never gives.
Step 5 of 5
Practice on a real question
Use what you just learned on this question, then check the explanation.
In your own words
In the practice draft, what was the real cause of the setback, and which choice simply repeated the plan that caused it?