SAT Tutor's Blog » Passage Reading

SAT Critical Reading: How to Read a Passage

Adam — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 15:52:44 +0000

When reading an SAT Critical Reading passage, underline the one or two most important parts of each paragraph. Don’t worry about absorbing every detail of the passage. Just read each paragraph quickly and underline the most important parts. Even if you are not sure what is truly important, always be sure to underline SOMETHING in [...]

SAT Critical Reading: Mark Line Numbers & Circle Key Words

Adam — Sun, 15 Feb 2009 15:56:00 +0000

Before reading a passage, mark question line numbers and circle key words. Quickly scan the passage reading questions for line numbers (shown in parentheses) and mark these numbers with a check or bracket in the margin next to the appropriate line(s) in passage. Line number questions also often ask about “key words” (shown in quotes [...]

SAT Critical Reading: How to Answer Definition Questions

Adam — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 17:05:55 +0000

Common in SAT passage reading, definition questions ask you what a specific word “most nearly means” in context of a short or long passage.

SAT Critical Reading: Answering Line Number Questions

Adam — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 14:52:00 +0000

Always read a few lines above and below the line numbered portion of text to understand its context. The SAT counts on students simply reading only the specific text cited by the line number. For this reason, most line number questions include false answer choices that appear correct when a line is read on its [...]

SAT Critical Reading: How to Finish a Section

Adam — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 07:43:00 +0000

With so much to read and so many questions to answer, Critical Reading is for many students the most difficult SAT section to finish within the 20-25 minutes allowed. To finish each Critical Reading section, limit the amount of time you spend on the earlier, shorter questions. One big reason students have trouble finishing Critical [...]

How much time should I spend on vocabulary?

Adam — Mon, 26 Feb 2007 18:55:00 +0000

For most students, hours spent studying raw vocabulary words using flashcards or other study aids probably won't improve your SAT score all that much. Don't believe it? Find out why. Then, discover a more efficient vocabulary solution that actually can help you achieve a higher SAT score.