1. Helpful Hints and Tricks
ACT Reading Test
Helpful Hints and Tricks

2. ACT Reading Test Question Types
Main Idea/Point-of-View
Specific Detail
Conclusion/Inference
Extrapolation
Vocabulary in Context

3. Main Idea/Point-of-View - STRATEGY
Answer according to your understanding of the topic, scope, and purpose.
Incorrect choices are usually either too broad or too narrow.
Topic – What is the passage about?
Scope – What aspect of the topic does the passage focus on?
Why did the author write the passage?

4. Specific Detail – STRATEGY
Refer to the passage to find the answer.
Don’t just choose the answers that contain words that appeared in the passage! Answer choices are often paraphrased to trip you up.
Make sure the choice you select responds to the question being asked.

5. Conclusion/Inference
Put information together as evidence for a conclusion.
Find STRONG evidence for your answers.
If you find yourself creating a long chain of reasoning and including information from outside the passage when “selling” the answer…STOP. Probably not right…

6. Extrapolation – STRATEGY
These questions go beyond the passage and find answers that are probably true based on what you know from the passage (usually either author’s tone or detailed information).
Be sensitive to clues about tone or attitude.
Eliminate any choices outside the scope of the passage.

7. Vocabulary in Context – STRATEGY
Simple: just read the answer choices back into the sentence mentioned in the question stem and choose the one that changes the meaning of the sentence the least!
Often, the answer to the question is found in the line before or after the referenced line or lines.

8. Now you try…

9. Tips and Tricks Skim, Answer, and be DONE! 75/25 Chunking
Set Up to Paint
Selective Abandonment
Re-order
Annotation

10. Skim, Answer, and Be DONE This is pretty much self-explanatory.
Skim over the selection
Answer using your best response
THEN, at the end of the test (once you’ve FINISHED all of the questions), go back and check the ones you weren’t sure about
This method is best for higher level students (like you!) who like the traditional approach to reading

11. 75/25
Studies show that students tend to spend about 75% of the time reading the selections and 25% answering questions.
How about doing it the other way around?
You know you have 35 minutes to take the test and there will be four selections, right? So, divide that by 4…then again by 4…leaving you with about 2 minutes per selection to read and 6 to answer questions.

12. Chunking
Ever find yourself unable to focus on a reading selection? Here’s a great solution for you!
This has been proven to be VERY effective for students with ADD and ADHD
Also a great option for English Language Learners or anyone who has a hard time retaining large amounts of information
Read the 1st paragraph
Go to the questions that refer to that paragraph. Answer them.
Read the 2nd paragraph.
(Lather, rinse, and) Repeat as needed.

13. Set Up to Paint
This is an old favorite! Don’t you like to know what to look for when you’re reading? It’s better not to be surprised!
Read all the questions for one selection.
Then, read the selection.
It helps to figure out a sort of coded shorthand for yourself so that…
As you read, make notes in the test book (you can do that, you know!) for each question so you know where to go back to find the answer.

14. Selective Abandonment
Do you ever just want to go through and answer the ones you know and forget about the rest? This is the one for you!
Here’s how it works!
Read at your own pace for 50% of the readings and spend your time answering those questions as accurately as possible.
Then, make your best guess on the rest
Note: This is a good option if you are a slow reader who answers with accuracy.
Be honest with yourself.
You don’t want to bomb the test, either. That’s not the point!

15. Re-Order
You know how there are some selections that are SO BORING and others that don’t suck quite as much? (Even though we all know they’re pretty bad…)
This tip is helpful for students who have trouble pacing themselves or are motivated by initial positive reinforcement.
So, start with the ones with subject matter that you like (or the ones you don’t think you’ll hate) or the ones that you think might be easier.
Read those and answer those questions first.
Then, go back and do all the others.
There’s always one narrative/prose fiction, one humanities, one natural science, and one social science selection.
What order would YOU do them in?

16. Annotation
You know how to do this already! You’ve had ANOTHER PowerPoint about it!
This can go hand in hand with the “Questions First” method, if you like.
As you read, make notes in the margin of reactions.
You’ll start to know the kinds of questions that will be asked, so you might be able to predict some anyway.
If you are a visual learner or if you like to focus on main ideas over details, this one is for you!

17. Some other tricks… Determine the main idea of the passage
Paraphrase the question stems
Predict answers to questions
Apply logic – is information actually stated in the passage or not?
Inference: conclusion based on what is stated in the passage
Assumption: unstated evidence, the missing link in an author’s argument
PROCESS OF ELIMINATION

18. So…next time we take a practice test
Pick the one that you think will work best for you and see if you like it.
Then, for each subsequent test, try another method until you find the one that helps you the most.
You’ll improve your score every time!

19. After you’ve taken a practice test…

20. Take a few minutes to… Mark the correct answers for each question.
Highlight the numbers of the questions you got wrong.
Review the passages and the questions for each incorrect response.
If you don’t understand what the question is asking or anything about the question itself, CIRCLE it.
If you got a question wrong and don’t understand why it’s wrong, mark a !.
If you got a question wrong and don’t understand why the correct one is correct, mark it with a ?.
If you understand why the answer you marked is incorrect and why the correct answer is correct, mark a .
If you just ran out of time, indicate how many you ran out of time for and a reason for why you think you ran out of time.