SAT Reading & Writing

Command of Evidence: Textual

How to Approach Textual Evidence Questions:

- Step 1: Identify the Argument

- Find the central argument presented in the question or passage.

- Extract the main hypothesis or interpretation.

- Step 2: Create a Test Phrase

- Simplify the identified argument into a concise test phrase.

- The test phrase should represent the core idea of the argument.

- Step 3: Test the Choices

- Evaluate each answer choice based on the test phrase.

- Eliminate choices that differ from the test phrase.

- Select the choice that best matches the simplified argument.

4. Top Tips for Answering Textual Evidence Questions:

- Stay Specific:

- Avoid straying from the passage's focus.

- Eliminate choices that broaden or alter the argument.

- Watch out for misleading choices that change the argument's focus.

- Be Strict:

- Look for the strongest and most direct evidence to support the argument.

- Eliminate choices that feel weak or require too many connections to match the argument.
Command of Evidence: Quantitative
**Quantitative Evidence Questions on the SAT**:

- Evaluate true/false statements in choices.

 False statements: Easily eliminated by comparing to graph data.

 True statements: Need to assess if they directly support the argument.

3. Approach:

- Skim the graph to get an overview.

- Read the paragraph for argument and data.

- Eliminate false choices.

- Choose data that directly supports the argument.

4. Top Tips:

- Use your finger/cursor to avoid confusion.

- Check choices for truthfulness - Stay focused on relevant data.

Central Ideas and Details Questions on the SAT:

Approach:

- Step 1: Summarize the Text:

- Read closely and create a simple summary in your own words.

- Step 2: Determine the Task:

- Identify if the question seeks the main idea or specific details.

- Step 3: Revisit the Text:

- For main ideas, find overarching theme from the summary.

- For details, locate relevant section in the passage.

- Step 4: Predict and Eliminate:

- Predict answer based on the passage.

- Eliminate choices that contradict or introduce new ideas.

5. Top Tips:

- Stay Specific:

- Eliminate choices that broaden or blur passage's ideas.

 - Watch for unsupported twists in choices.

- Keep Predictions Concise:

- Summarize prediction in one brief idea.

- Use it as a quick test against the choices.

- Use Keywords as a Map:

- Locate key words or phrases from the question in the passage to find the answer.

What are "Inferences" Questions?

You're asked to choose the choice that logically completes the text based on the
given information.

How to Think About Inferences Questions:

- Break arguments down into premises and conclusions

Approaching Inferences Questions:

1. **Separate the Text into Bullet Points:**

- Break down the passage into key ideas and create a step-by-step progression.

2. **Examine the Argument:**

- Consider how the pieces of information connect to form the argument.

- Treat each question like a mystery and piece together the clues.

3. **Explore the Choices:**

- Evaluate each choice and see if it completes the argument in the passage.

- Eliminate choices that introduce new ideas or don't match the passage.

4. **Select the Choice that Strengthens the Argument:**

- Choose a choice that fits well with the passage and makes the argument clearer and stronger.
**Top Tips:**

- **Stay Specific:**

- Don't go beyond what can be inferred from the passage.

- Be cautious with words like, “all”, “none”, "most" or "many"

-Avoid answers that are grand/exaggerations because normal people don’t make such bold claims

- **Lean on Transitions:**

- Pay attention to transition words to understand the relationship between ideas.

- Focus on transitions before the blank for clues.

- **Let Punctuation Help:**

- Punctuation marks shape ideas and show connections.

- Colons, semicolons, and dashes indicate conclusions, examples, and exceptions.

**What are "Words in Context" Questions?**
1. On the SAT Reading and Writing section, some questions ask for the most logical and precise word or
phrase in a given context.

**Determining the Most "Precise" Word:**

1. **Context Matters:**

- A precise word fits perfectly in the sentence and reinforces the text's meaning.

- Comprehending the text is crucial, not just knowing vocabulary.

2. **Focus on Context and Connotation (positive or negative) :**

- Context: Restate the word's meaning within the text.

- Connotation: Consider whether the word's associations match the tone.

**Approaching Words in Context Questions:**

1. **Summarize the Text:**

- Read the passage closely and summarize the main idea in your own words.

- Look for patterns where claims are expanded or restated.

2. **Identify the Key Word/Idea:**

- The correct answer reinforces the main idea of the text.

- Look for a word or phrase with a similar meaning in the text.

3. **Select the Matching Word:**

- Choose the word that emphasizes the text's idea without changing its meaning.

- Avoid choices that alter the text's message or introduce new ideas.

**Top Tips:**
- **Charge it (+/-):**

- Consider connotation—whether a word feels positive or negative.

- Eliminate choices that don't match the tone of the text.

- **Avoid Unknowns:**

- Don't select unfamiliar words just because they seem tricky.

- Eliminate known options and choose from what remains.

- Only pick an unknown word if you've eliminated all other choices.

**What are "Text Structure and Purpose" Questions?**

1. Questions focus on understanding a passage's main purpose or overall structure.

2. These questions require you to analyze not just what a passage says, but also why and how it says it.

**Thinking about Text Structure and Purpose:**

- Purpose: Focuses on why the author wrote the passage and what they aim to achieve.

- Structure: Examines how the passage is organized to fulfill its purpose.

- Purpose and structure are closely connected and provide insight into the text's meaning.

**Approaching Text Structure and Purpose Questions:** (Weak –

Need to Practice MOREEE)
1. **Identify the Task:**

- Check if the question asks about "overall structure" or "main purpose."

- Focus on the specific task mentioned in the question.

2. **Summarize the Text:**

- Read the passage closely and create a concise summary of its main ideas.

- Keep the specific task (structure or purpose) in mind while summarizing.

3. **Test the Choices:**

- Compare your summary with the choices.

- Look for the choice that aligns most closely with your summary.

- It should accurately reflect the main ideas and the task specified.

**Top Tips:**
- **Stay Specific:**

- Eliminate choices that introduce unrelated information.

- Avoid choices that shift the focus away from the passage's central points.

- **Be Strict:**

- Ensure that each part of a choice accurately describes the text's structure.

- **Pay attention to transition words to see how ideas connect:**

"Part-to-Whole Relationships"
1. These questions ask you to determine the function of the underlined sentence within the overall
structure of the text.

**Approaching Part-to-Whole Relationships Questions:**

1. **Summarize the Text:**

- Read the passage closely and summarize the main ideas, including the underlined part.

- Understand the entire passage's purpose and content.

2. **Make a Prediction:**

- Predict how the underlined sentence fits into the passage's structure.

- Consider whether it introduces, contradicts, or elaborates on the surrounding information.

3. **Test the Choices:**

- Compare your prediction with each choice provided.

- Choose the choice that most accurately reflects the underlined sentence's function.

**Top Tips:**

- **Stay within the Underline:**

- Ensure the choice you select directly applies to the underlined sentence.

- Focus on the underlined part, not other sentences in the text.

- **Be Strict:**

- Eliminate choices that seem partly correct but don't entirely match the text.
 - The chosen choice must fully and accurately describe the underlined sentence's function.

"Cross-Text Connections"
1. These questions ask you to compare the viewpoints of the authors of the two texts.

**Approaching Cross-Text Connections Questions:**

1. **Summarize the Texts:**

- Read each passage closely and summarize the main ideas and viewpoints of the authors.

- Focus on the opinions expressed by each author.

2. **Determine the Relationship:**

- Analyze how the viewpoints of the authors from each text relate to one another.

- Identify whether viewpoints agree, disagree, or modify each other.

3. **Test the Choices:**

- Compare your analysis to each provided choice.

- Choose the choice that most accurately describes the relationship between the viewpoints.

**Top Tips:**

- **Look for Positives (+) and Negatives (-):**

- Pay attention to the tone and specific words used in each text.

- Positive, negative, or neutral language reveals the authors' attitudes.

- **Stick to the Text:**

- Avoid making extreme inferences beyond what's directly stated in the texts.

- Incorrect choices often make claims that are too broad or not explicitly supported.
"Transitions" (Strong)
1. Questions ask you to select the most logical transition word or phrase.

**Approaching Transitions Questions:**

1. **Summarize the Text:**

- Read the passage closely and summarize the main idea in your own words.

- Ensure a clear understanding of the context.

2. **Identify Relationship Between Ideas:**

- Determine how the ideas in the passage are related.

- Categorize the relationship into groups like agreement (similarly), disagreement (however),
sequence(previously, subsequently), addition (moreover), or cause and effect (therefore)

3. **Select the Logical Transition:**

- Compare the relationship you identified with the provided transition choices.
 - Choose the transition that best fits the relationship and context.

**Top Tips:**

- **Be Flexible:**

- If the expected transition isn't provided, look for alternatives that serve a similar function.

- **Eliminate Copycats:**

- If multiple choices seem similar (like however and but), eliminate them as they can't all be correct.

**What are "Rhetorical Synthesis" Questions?**

1. The question asks you to use relevant information from the bulleted notes to achieve a specific goal.

**Understanding Rhetorical Synthesis:**

- Focuses on achieving a specific goal using provided information.

**Approaching Rhetorical Synthesis Questions:** (Strong)

1. **Identify the Goal:**
 - Read the question prompt to understand the goal.

- Simplify the goal for clarity if needed.

2. **Test the Choices:**

- Evaluate each choice based on whether it accomplishes the identified goal.

- Eliminate choices that do not match the goal.

3. **Select the Appropriate Choice:**

- Choose the choice that successfully achieves the goal defined in the question.

**Top Tips:**

- **Simplify the Goal:**

- Make the goal simpler to quickly test choices. (Is it asking for a summary? Asking for details? Asking
for a general introduction to an audience who is not aware of the topic?)

- **Be Strict:**

- Eliminate choices that don't fully address all parts of the goal.
-READ THE QUESTION GOAL FIRST
**Boundaries Questions Focus:**
- Concentrate on how phrases, clauses, and sentences are connected in written English.

- Test specific Standard English conventions related to boundaries:

- Linking clauses with coordination, subordination, or end punctuation.

- Formatting and punctuating supplemental information within sentences.

y - Correct usage of punctuation marks.

**Approaching Boundaries Questions:**

1. **Investigate the Blank:**

- Examine where the blank is located (within a sentence or between clauses).

- Compare the choices to identify changes in conjunctions or punctuation.

2. **Find the Focus:**

- Determine the specific Standard English convention being tested based on observations.
 - Narrow your focus to the identified convention to save time and effort.

3. **Eliminate Obvious Errors:**

- Test each choice in the blank, considering the focus convention.

- Eliminate choices that create clear errors.

- Select the remaining choice that adheres to the identified convention.

** Linking Clauses**
1. **Two Types of Clauses**

- Independent clause: A sentence on its own.

- Dependent clause: Needs a buddy to make sense.

2. **Ways to Link Clauses**

- End of sentence punctuation (period, question mark).

- Coordination: Using commas and FANBOYS words (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so). (Linking
independent + independent clauses)

- Subordination: Using subordinating conjunctions (although, since) and commas. (Linking

Independent + Dependent)

- Semicolons: Linking independent clauses without a conjunction.

3. **Identifying Linking Clauses Questions**

- Look for changes in commas, FANBOYS, semicolons, and end punctuation.

4. **Top Tips**

- Use the before and after test. (If

one side of the blank is not an independent
clause, then you're likely dealing with a supplements or punctuation
question)
- Pay attention to punctuation and words that connect.
1. **Supplements**
- Supplements provide additional information to sentences for description or elaboration.

2. **Essential and Nonessential Supplements**

- Essential: Necessary for sentence function, no punctuation needed.

- Nonessential: Not necessary for sentence function, requires punctuation.

3. **Punctuation of Supplements**

- Essential or nonessential distinction.

- Read sentence without supplement: Sense remains (essential) or doesn't (nonessential).

- Position in the sentence: Nonessential

- Beginning or end: One punctuation mark.

- Middle: Punctuation on both sides.

- Types of punctuation:

- Commas (,)

- Parentheses ()

- Dashes (—)

- Match punctuation before and after the supplement.

4. **Identifying Supplements Questions**

- Look for added or removed commas without conjunctions.

- Presence of multiple punctuation types (e.g., commas and dashes).

6. **Tips for Handling Supplements Questions**

- Check consistency of punctuation around supplements.

- Don't worry about minor differences between punctuation types.

- Avoid using two semicolons or colons around a nonessential element.

That is mostly essential
Which is mostly non-essential
f
Top tips

Use the before/after test for semicolons

Unless it appears in a list, a semicolon must have an independent
clause both before and after it. If you think a semicolon might be right,
check to make sure you have an independent clause on either side. If
you don't, you can't use a semicolon.

Use the before test for colons

A colon can only appear at the end of an independent clause. If you
think a colon might be right, check to make sure what comes before is
a complete independent clause. If it's not, you can't use a colon.

Double-check commas
Many writers overuse commas (or use them as a default punctuation
mark). Double-check to make sure a comma is both necessary and
appropriate before selecting it as your answer.

If the comma is linking clauses, make sure it has the coordinating or

subordinating conjunction it needs to do so.

If the comma isn't linking clauses, make sure it serves a purpose and
doesn't unnecessarily interrupt some other function of the sentence.
**Subject-Verb Agreement on the SAT**
1. **Introduction to Subject-Verb Agreement**

- Requires subject and verb to agree in number.

2. **Agreement with Singular and Plural Subjects**

- Singular subjects pair with singular verbs.

- Plural subjects pair with plural verbs.

3. **Identifying Subject-Verb Agreement Questions**

- Look for differences in singular and plural verb forms among choices.

4. **Challenges in Identifying Errors**

- Extra words/phrases between subject and verb.

- Inverted sentences with subject coming AFTER verb.

- Tips to address challenges:

- Place subject and verb side by side.

- Pay attention to prepositions that describe the subject.

- Recognize plural nouns (with ‘s’) and verbs (without ‘s’)

6. **Top Tips for Subject-Verb Agreement**

- Compare subject and verb side by side.

- Watch for prepositional phrases that might mislead agreement.

- Remember the patterns for forming plurals with nouns and verbs.

**Pronoun-Ante cedent Agreement**

1. **Introduction to Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement**

- Requires a pronoun and its antecedent to agree in person (human or thing/animal) and number
(singular or plural)

2. **Identifying Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement Questions**

- Look for differences in singular and plural pronouns among choices.

- Pronoun outside the blank refers to a noun within the choices.

3. **Challenges in Identifying Errors**

- Distance between pronoun and antecedent.

- Multiple nouns before the pronoun.

- Pronoun appearing before the antecedent.

4. **Top Tips for Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement**

 - Find and identify the antecedent (noun that the pronoun refers to).

- Test your identification by plugging the antecedent into the sentence.

- Note: SAT won't ask about gendered pronouns.

**Verb forms** (needs MORE PRACTICE)

Identifying Verb Form Errors

1. **Look for Different Verb Tenses:**

- Different choices use different verb tenses (past/present/future)

2. **Check for Helping Verbs:**

- Helping verbs impact verb forms and tenses.

Top Tips
1. **Consider Context Clues:**

- Analyze time indicators like “In 1947,” "yesterday," "today," "tomorrow." (Don’t underestimate
this)

- Common context clues include dates, times and other conjugated verbs

2. **Match Tenses of Other Verbs:**

- Ensure verb tense consistency within the sentence or paragraph.

- Keep verbs in the same tense for clarity.

3. **Use Simple Present Tense for General Facts:**

- When no specific time indicators (context clues) are given.

- Opt for simple present tense for general statements of fact.

4. **If there is no main verb in the sentence you can match tenses with, go with Simple Present Tense

-Yup do that

What can make verb form errors difficult to spot

1. **Watch for Complex Sentence Structures:**

- Complex sentences can obscure verb form errors so it becomes easier to miss those little context
clues that tell us when and how the verb is taking place

- Take time to dissect the sentence and confirm proper conjugation.

2. **Only simple verbs can function without helping verbs**

PRO GUIDE

Here's a general guideline to help you choose the appropriate verb form:

1. **Simple Verb Form**:

- Use the simple verb form (base form) for general truths, habitual actions, and timeless statements.

- Example: "Water boils at 100 degrees Celsius."

2. **Perfect Verb Form**:

- Use the perfect verb form (have/has + past participle) to indicate actions that are completed before a
specific time or point in the past, present, or future.

- Example: "She has already finished her homework."

3. **Progressive Verb Form**:

 - Use the progressive verb form (am/is/are + present participle) to indicate ongoing actions or actions
in progress at a specific time.

- Example: "They are studying for their exams right now."

4. **Perfect-Progressive Verb Form**:

- Use the perfect-progressive verb form (have/has been + present participle) to indicate actions that
were ongoing and are completed or relevant to a specific time.

- Example: "By the time I arrived, they had been waiting for an hour."

When encountering verb form questions on the SAT, consider the following steps:

1. **Read for Context**: Understand the context of the sentence or passage. Pay attention to the
timing and nature of the action described.

2. **Identify Time References**: Look for time references (past, present, future) or keywords that
indicate the timing of the action.

3. **Determine Completion**: Determine whether the action is completed or ongoing in relation to the
specific time indicated.

4. **Consider Signal Words**: Signal words or phrases (e.g., already, by the time, since) can provide
clues about the appropriate verb form.

5. **Match with Surrounding Verbs**: Check the verb forms of surrounding verbs in the sentence or
paragraph to ensure consistency.

6. **Eliminate Incorrect Choices**: Based on your analysis, eliminate answer choices that do not match
the context, timing, or completion of the action.

7. **Choose the Best Option**: Select the answer choice that correctly uses the appropriate verb form
and maintains the intended meaning and coherence of the sentence or passage.
Subject-Modifier Placement Guide:

1. **Understanding Subject-Modifier Placement:**

- Convention requires subject and its modifier together.

2. **Correcting Placement Errors:**

- Proper placement connects subject to its modifier.

3. **Identifying Subject-Modifier Placement Questions:**

- Lengthy blank with modifying phrases.

- Choices reorganize words or phrases.

5. **Double check Introductory Modifiers:**

- Check for proper subject-modifier connection.

- When modifying phrases come at the beginning of a sentence, our brains will often do the work of
connecting the modifier to whichever noun it logically describes. But these modifying phrases don't
apply to the whole sentence: they still need to be placed right next to their subjects.
6. **Handling Possessive Nouns:**

- Possessive nouns function as adjectives.

- Focus on noun that follows possessive. (John’s jacket)

8. **Practice for Clarity:**

- Master subject-modifier placement for coherence.

1. **Understanding Plurals and Possessives:**

- Plurals refer to multiple things.

- Possessives show ownership.

2. **Forming Plurals and Possessives:**

- Apostrophe rules for different cases.

- Plural nouns don't need apostrophes.

- Singular possessive: 's after noun.

- Plural possessive: s’ after plural noun.

- Pronouns don't use apostrophes.

3. **Identifying Plurals and Possessives Questions:**

- Look for apostrophe errors.

- Check placement changes.

5. **Tips for Nouns with Apostrophes:**

- Be sure that the answer you choose uses (or doesn't use) apostrophes correctly in both nouns.

-Avoid confusion with contractions.

-Beware of “its” and “their” (possessive pronouns never use apostrophes e.g. mine, yours, ours, his,
hers, theirs, its)

How to pace yourself if you’re stuck on a hard question

1. Emergency Question: Acknowledge, Accept, Atone

2. Re-Read Question: Re-Predict, Re-Match, Guess and Move on