the sat reading section is a daunting task for many students who are new to it. the passages are dense, and the questions are tricky. however, if you have a solid strategy in mind, you’ll be able to tackle it effectively. here are my top 10 sat reading tips to help you improve your score:

1. get familiar with the types of sat reading passages.
2. don’t read every sentence.
3. do a preliminary skim of the passage before looking at the questions.
4. write a summary in the margins for each paragraph as you progress.
5. use keyword skimming for more specific questions.
6. predict before looking at the answer options.
7. get familiar with the common wrong answer traps.
8. keep a different strategy in mind for each sat reading question type.
9. use time checkpoints to stay on track.
10. when in doubt, choose the “boring” answer.

sat reading tips for a high score (2024)

1. get familiar with the types of sat reading passages

there are four different types of sat reading passages:

• literary narrative
• historical document
• social science
• natural science.

the literary narrative passages are parts of novels or stories. the historical document passages are primary source documents, which take the form of speeches, letters, or editorials. social science is the scientific study of human society and social relationships, so social science passages will be articles related to subjects such as anthropology, economics, or psychology. on the other hand, natural science is the scientific study of the physical world. natural science passages will usually be related to chemistry, physics, or biology.

you will see a total of five passages in the test. literary fiction and historical documents will each appear once. additionally, there will be either one social science passage and two natural science passages, or vice versa. one of the passages you encounter will be paired with a graph, and another one of the passages is actually a pair of two short passages.

now that you know what to expect, you’ll want to ingrain that knowledge with regular sat reading practice using quality prep materials!

2. don’t read every sentence

sat reading is very different from the way we usually read in real life. you don’t want to read every single sentence of the passage, because it’s too time-consuming and completely unnecessary–a bad combination. another common tactic used by students is to skip directly to the questions. this is also less than ideal, as you will have no context for the questions, and context is key to reading comprehension. what you should do instead is skim the passages.

3. do a preliminary skim of the passage before looking at the questions.

the first thing to do before looking at the questions is an initial skim of the passage. to be clear, when i say “skim”, i don’t mean to simply read every sentence quickly. skimming on the sat entails reading only the important sentences and skipping the rest (cross sentences out, if necessary).

how do we know whether a specific sentence is important? the first and last sentences of every paragraph are usually important because they tend to give us a gist of what the paragraph is about. (one important exception: the first sentence of the overall passage is often just a catchy hook, lacking any substantial content.)

transition words and phrases are important to look out for. any sentences that feature contrast transitions (e.g., however, nevertheless, in spite of) or conclusion transitions (e.g., therefore, in conclusion, ultimately).

transition words and phrases can also act as clues that a sentence is not important. any sentences with transitions that indicate detail (e.g., in detail, for example, for instance) or continuation (e.g., furthermore, additionally, in addition) are sentences that you should avoid for now. at this point of the process, you’re just trying to get a broad understanding of the passage without wasting time on the specifics.

4. write a summary in the margins for each paragraph as you progress

as you go through the passage, stop after every paragraph and write a short summary of the paragraph in the margins. how short? ideally, summaries should be no more than five words. you don’t even need to use words, as long as you can understand what you wrote! it’s not easy to condense several sentences into a few words, but embracing this challenge will help you to really internalize and retain your summaries, often to the point that you don’t need to revisit them while answering questions.

when you’re creating your summaries, focus on the big ideas, logical or narrative structure, and tone. furthermore, remember that relationships between concepts and points of view are far more important than any technical stuff you may encounter. you should be able to answer all of the broader questions attached to the passage from just your summaries.

5. use keyword skimming for more specific questions

there will be questions that pertain to specific details in a passage. you may remember that i said to ignore the details when doing your initial skim. so, how do we answer these more specific questions without rereading the passage? this is where keyword skimming comes in.

pick the most unique word in the question and scan for it in the passage. you can use your summaries to narrow in on the paragraph that likely contains the answer to the question. you don’t need to read —simply look out for the “shape” of the word (i.e., its length and which letters stick up or down). it’s kind of like “where’s waldo?” or “i spy”!

6. predict before looking at the answer options

instinctively, students tend to read the answer choices immediately after reading the question. reject this instinct! on the sat reading section, it’s more effective to make a prediction of the correct answer before looking at the choices. even vague predictions are better than nothing.

making a prediction first can help to focus your thinking so you don’t fall into wrong answer traps (more on that later). as i said before, you can answer the broad questions using just your summaries; make predictions based on what you jotted in the margins.

for the specific questions, keyword skim and read the sentences that feature your keyword. then, you can take what you learned to predict the answer. if you’re still stuck after reading the answer choices, revisit your prediction. ask yourself which choice is closest to your prediction and go with that one.

7. get familiar with the common wrong answer traps.

wrong answers are traps made to appear correct. here are the most common traps you’ll see on the sat:

• too broad — the answer choice is technically correct, but it fails to capture the meaning or content of the passage.
• too narrow — the answer choice contains a detail or idea that is mentioned in the passage but can’t be generalized to the whole.
• too extreme — is overwhelmingly positive/negative or states/implies that something is “all”, “none”, “never”, “every”, etc.
• assumption — could very well be true, but not necessarily, given the text of the passage.
• half right, half wrong — is correct about one detail or passage but incorrect about the other
• one word off — is almost perfect, but one word ruins it
• wrong detail — misattributed something mentioned in the passage
• opposite — has a sneaky “not” thrown in, or it’s correctly answering the wrong question (e.g., in “except” questions)

8. keep a different strategy in mind for each sat reading question type

• main purpose questions typically ask what the passage/paragraph is about or why it was written. these are big picture ideas, so you can make predictions from your summaries.
• line reference questions ask about the intended meaning or purpose of specific sentences/phrases/words. these questions deal with little picture ideas, and they give you the location in the passage, so you can just go to the line reference to predict. it helps if you use the surrounding sentences for context.
• key words questions ask about specific details of the passage, where the answer will always be explicitly stated. you aren’t given a line reference for these, so you’ll usually have to keyword skim to make your prediction.
• inference questions deal with notions that are implicitly stated in the passage. you’re looking for something that isn’t mentioned in the text but must be true, given what is in the text. these are often the hardest questions to answer; they’re difficult to predict, so you might want to use the process of elimination.
• evidence-based reasoning questions are usually paired with inference questions but are sometimes standalone. these questions ask what part of the passage proves that the inference is true, and the answer choices are line references. if you were able to figure out the answer to the inference question, then you should have a pretty good idea of the answer to the evidence-based reasoning question. if not, think about the implications of each answer choice and whether it fits with the one alluded to in the question.
• vocabulary in context questions deal with the author’s use of a word in the context of the passage; they are not asking for the definition of the word. for these questions, your prediction doesn’t have to fit perfectly with the answer choices. consider how you would use the answer choices and substitute them for the word in question. it is also very helpful here to have a broad knowledge of words with several different meanings.
• with graph questions, you will be reading and interpreting graphics, and relating them back to the passage. take note of the graph’s title, axis/column/row titles, keys/legends/labels, and trends. you can use them as keywords to scan for in the passage. it’s often useful to annotate the graph and mark what you’re solving for.
• comparison passage questions ask about the relationships between the paired passages. answer the individual passage questions before the ones asking about both passages. skim the first passage and answer its corresponding questions before attending to the second passage.

9. use time checkpoints to stay on track

in the sat reading section, you have 65 minutes to answer 52 questions. instead of wasting time constantly checking the clock or not paying attention to your pace at all, you can use time checkpoints to help yourself to stay on track. because the questions are divided almost evenly amongst the five passages, you have built-in checkpoints at your disposal. 65 minutes divided by 5 passages gives you an average of 13 minutes for each passage and its 10 or 11 corresponding questions.

i want to emphasize that this is an average; it’s okay to spend more time on some passages and less on others. adjust your checkpoints to your specific strengths and weaknesses. for example, you can save more time for whichever passage type is your least favorite. (if it’s your least favorite, it’s probably also the one that takes you the longest time to get through.) if you find yourself significantly behind schedule (more than a few minutes), then consider skipping some questions to get back on track. you can come back and attempt them at the end if there’s still time.

10. when in doubt, choose the “boring” answer

correct answers are rarely extreme in their implications or their tone, so pick the answer that is the least assertive and/or most neutral. if there’s a passage that you’re just not getting, or if you’re running low on time, you can use the process of elimination to increase your chances. eliminate anything that isn’t “boring” enough.

those are my top recommended sat reading tips to help you prepare efficiently for the test. know of any other tips? leave them in the comments below!

all magoosh sat prep plans are digital sat ready! start studying today.

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the choice between the act and the sat is really tough, and most high school students wonder which side of this epic battle they should take. both the act and the sat are accepted by many universities in the united states and are taken by millions of students. in this post, we bring together all the best information about the differences and similarities between the act and the sat to help you make this important decision.

act vs sat quiz

if you’re short on time, try our free quiz to get an answer on whether you should take the act vs sat!

test format and timing

the act takes 2 hours 55 minutes to complete without the essay and 3 hours 35 minutes with the essay. it takes 3 hours to complete the sat (no essay). now, let’s dissect how the sections and the order in which they appear are different on the act vs sat.

sections and order

the act has four multiple-choice sections and an optional essay. its sections are always presented in this order:

1. english
2. math
3. reading
4. science
5. optional essay.

the sat has four test sections. the order is

1. reading
2. writing
3. math with calculators not allowed
4. math section (calculators allowed)

time per question

it is also important to note that one of the main challenges of the act is its time constraints. the majority of students struggle to complete at least one of the act test sections, and many students struggle to complete several sections within the time limit.

still, the fact remains that every section of the act takes less time per question than the sat. overall, across sections, the act takes an average of 50 seconds per question and the sat takes 1 minute 10 seconds per question. however, keep in mind that the questions from each test have different styles. sat questions can take longer to analyze than the act questions and thus take extra time to complete.

only the act has a science section

the science section is specific to the act. there are no other standardized tests with anything similar to this, except those developed by the act organization.

before jumping to the conclusion of whether you are good at science in order to judge whether you can do well on the act, you really need to know that there is very little real scientific knowledge tested in the act science section.

you will see some questions that require you to bring in external knowledge, but most of them relate to your ability to read tables and graphs, make inferences about the scientific situation, and evaluate scientific hypotheses. before making a decision on your capabilities for this section, it is recommended that you review the act science video lessons or the examples of act science questions on the act website.

math emphasis of each test

the sat will ask you some questions about advanced math and trigonometry. however, the act seems to contain more questions in the areas of algebra ii and trigonometry. but don’t panic if you haven’t studied trigonometry in either test. knowledge of all trigonometry tested in either the sat or the act is at a very basic level, and you can learn what you need to know in the sat trigonometry learning guide and the act trigonometry resources.

the sat has a no-calculator section

the sat contains a 25-minute non-calculator section with 20 questions. the calculations here are designed to be easy to do by hand, but keep in mind that you may want to hone your mental math skills. if you can see and calculate a ton of math problems in your head, you may have an advantage in the sat over many of your peers.

act reading passages are longer

the act has four longer passages (700-900 words) and the sat has five slightly shorter passages (500-750 words). in general, reading comprehension is a little more intense on the act than on the sat, but the difference is mostly negligible.

act english vs sat writing and language

if you take a look at the english section of the act and the writing and language section of the sat, they appear to be virtually the same. not only that, they test many of the same concepts. arguably, these concepts are tested in a more subtle way in the sat than in the act, and with more subtle answer choice variation. still, it is important to note the difference in reading level between the tests and their approaches to the information graphic questions.

all passages in the act english section hover around a relatively low reading level (for example, about 9th grade). however, the text in the writing and language section of the sat may vary in difficulty level from early high school to early college. in the act, all questions are about the given text. the sat will also ask some questions about text-related tables and graphs.

the act has an optional essay (act writing)

as mentioned earlier, the act has an optional essay. the act essay offers three different perspectives on controversial issues and asks you to evaluate them and present your own perspective. of course, for those who are good at discussing on the fly and coming up with supporting examples, it may be a good choice to write the act essay.

different scoring system

the act uses so-called composite scores to provide students with an overall act score. the overall composite score ranges from 1 to 36. you will also receive scores for each individual section ranging from 1 to 36, but with most universities, it is the composite score that matters. the overall composite score is the average of the section scores and is rounded to the nearest integer.

sat scores range from 400 to 1600. your overall score is based on a sum of your 200-800 reading/writing score and your 200-800 math score. note that the sat has three major multiple-choice sections (reading, writing, math), but reading and writing are grouped into one combined score out of 800 points.

if you take both the sat and the act, how can you find out which scores you should send to your school or scholarship program? don’t let different score scales confuse you! act to sat conversion (and sat to act conversion) is possible. this act to sat conversion table makes it easy to convert the act scores to the sat scores.

different test dates

the sat and the act alternate every month (except june, october and december). both tests are offered seven times a year. sometimes their schedules align so you can take the sat and the act on consecutive weekends. some students do that, but it’s not always wise. would you want to spend two weekends at the test center and study for two different tests at the same time? probably not.

in an ideal world, you would just have to choose one of the tests to take. after all, making this decision is the point of this post! if you do take both, it’s best to have at least a month (ideally more) between test sessions to switch gears.

different costs and fees

the act usually costs $55 without the essay and $70 with the essay. the cost of the sat is usually $52. there may be additional charges depending on the situation. students who cannot afford to take the act or the sat can often work with their high schools to get fee exemptions. this allows you to take the test for free (with or without an essay), but the fee exemption usually does not cover the additional charges.

varying popularity by state

the sat remains popular on the east and west coasts, while the act is a more popular test in the midwest, although in recent years both tests have become established in areas where they were previously less popular. currently, it is common for students across the country to take both exams.

the act vs the sat: which is easier? which is harder?

the act may be easier than the sat if:

• you work really fast. usually, you don’t have any shortage of test time at school, and you’re a fast reader. the act is, in many respects, an even easier test if you have the speed to complete it in time.
• you like science and are good at interpreting data and trends. earlier i told you that you don’t need to know a lot of science to be successful in the act science section. this is still true, but it doesn’t hurt to be interested in what you are reading. students who may not be science fans, but who are really good at seeing trends in graphs and tables and can guess the next steps in a logical process, can also succeed in the act science.
• you are super reliant on your calculator in your math classes. you may find the sat no-calculator section and the grid-in may be a little scarier than act math.

the sat may be easier than the act if:

• you are not a fast reader, but a good reader. with enough time, you can understand what you read quite well. you may not be able to take all the time you want on the sat, but you will encounter more complex passages on the sat than on the act. this, coupled with slightly shorter sat passages and a little more time to answer questions, can make the sat a better choice.
• you are good at mental math. you can confidently get through the section without a calculator, while other students are stressing.
• you’re good at reading between lines and catching traps. the sat isn’t as tricky as it used to be, but there are still some tricks. if you know how to play the standardized test game, the sat should go well for you.
  

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  ]]> //www.catharsisit.com/hs/act/act-vs-sat/feed/ 16 act vs sat header act vs sat infographic click the thumbnail to view our handy infographic comparing the act and sat!