1. Grammar and Punctuation:
Honing Skill sets for SAT Dominance

5. Standard English Conventions
21 of the 44 questions on English section are labeled as SEC
Their – There – They’re (They’re there)
Correct form of words – (homophones)

6. This sample combines 2 elements
SAMPLE #1 HOMOPHONES
Passage was about physician assistants (PAs)
“Both by merit and from necessity, PAs are likely to greet more 33 patience than ever before.”
This sample combines 2 elements

7. ANSWER CHOICES for #33
A) NO CHANGE
B) patience, than
C) patients then
D) patients than

8. CORRECT ANSWER is D “Patients” vs. “Patience”
People PAs care for versus human quality of tolerance or perseverance

9. Explanation Continued
“Than” vs. “Then”
“Than” – comparison introduced by adverb “more” as in “more than”
“Then” – refers to a time sequence

10. Explanation Continued
And for good measure, SAT throws a comma into Choice B
Many of these questions address more than one English convention
Homophone, comparative conjunction, and punctuation all in 1 Question

11. THE COMMA SPLICE – What is it?

12. THINGS TO REMEMBER
2 Independent clauses (complete sentence – subject and verb) CANNOT be joined by only a comma
You need a conjunction or you need a colon or semi-colon (specific rules for those)

13. SAMPLE QUESTION - #19
“Enter committee member John Burland, he is a geotechnical engineer from England who saved London’s clock tower Big Ben from collapse.”

14. ANSWER CHOICES A) NO CHANGE (the ever popular) B) Burland is
C) his being
D) DELETE the underlined portion

15. CORRECT ANSWER is D (Delete)
Choice A (No change) doesn’t work because you’d have a comma splice and Choice B results in comma splice as well
Choice C has unnecessary and awkward wording
Choice D eliminates the comma splice

16. SAT ESSAY – 50 Minutes The student’s opinion does NOT matter
Personal experience not relevant
Always the same prompt/stem – but different reading passage each time
ANALYSIS is the focus

17. SAT ESSAY CONTINUED All passages have these things in common:
Written for a broad audience
Argue a point
Express subtle views on complex subjects

18. SAT ESSAY CONTINUED
Use logical reasoning and evidence to support claims
Examine ideas, debates, or trends in the arts and sciences, or civic, cultural, or political life
Always taken from published works
All the information you need to write your essay will be included in the passage or in notes about it.

19. HOW LONG SHOULD I SPEND READING/PLANNING AND HOW MUCH TIME WRITING?
Reading passage for essay will be easier than reading passages for the multiple choice sections
50 minutes total
Leave 30 minutes for writing the essay
For the first 20 minutes, do the following:
1) Need to identify author’s claim (main point / contention)
2) Need to identify evidence concerning how author makes the argument (i.e. rational appeals, emotional appeals, ethical appeals)
3) Look for examples of craft (i.e. metaphor, tone, hyperbole, parallelism, etc.)

20. HOW is the ESSAY SCORED?
Reading: A successful essay shows that you understood the passage, including the interplay of central ideas and important details. It also shows an effective use of textual evidence.

21. Analysis: A successful essay shows your understanding of how the author builds an argument by:
Examining the author’s use of evidence, reasoning, and other stylistic and persuasive techniques
Supporting and developing claims with well- chosen evidence from the passage

22. Writing: A successful essay is focused, organized, and precise, with an appropriate style and tone that varies sentence structure and follows the conventions of standard written English.