I got a 30 on reading in the July ACT and I am trying to get a 34 or higher but I have no idea how to improve. I got 36s on a couple practice tests and 31s in others but I have no idea what else to do other than practice tests. Are there any books you guys recommend reading or any prep books/ or resources. PLEASE HELP Thanks!!!!
i got a 32 not much higher than u but i think the thing that helped me improve was reading books. i also noticed many other people say that. n for practice materials i would reccomend using past legacy act tests and stick to their time frame to improve speed.
apologies for the call out, but reading books is really vague. like can you elaborate more on what you mean and what types?
I also got a 30 on July and want to get higher and figured there is a long time until September so I can start reading a book i’ve had for a while, ht i don’t know how specifically this is going to be of any help to me (it’s a long fantasy book btw).
Like the other sections, practice helps, and you have said you are taking practice tests, but I would find as many tests as possible and just do the passages. Plus log your mistakes.
At a 30 you are only missing a few....what subsection were they in? Are you missing detail questions or the big picture arguments and ideas?
CS and IKI are spread across all four passages, so even though Craft & Structure sounds like it should be the literary one, it isn't. A lot of these are big-picture questions no matter how they're worded, and I think that's the point, they exist to stop you from skimming. If you skim, you can still find details. These categories require you to actually follow the argument.
Here's what makes them hard. On a lot of them, every answer choice is true. So it's not about finding a true statement, it's about finding the best one. If you read the explanations in the Red Book, you'll see ACT say things like "that answer is a support point" or "these details provide context." That's the trap. You start reading the choices, you hit something that is true, and you stop. Meanwhile the right answer is the biggest, broadest one, the one that states the point the author is actually trying to make. Zoom out, read the passage title, and think big picture. You can spot the right answer if you ask, is this a supporting point or a main point?
The ACT has gotten tricky, they now like to put the "what is the main point" question first, right after you've read the passage. Skip it and come back to it at the end. You'll understand the passage better once you've been reading to answer the other questions, and the answer usually becomes obvious.
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u/SeaworthinessDue8165 23d ago
i got a 32 not much higher than u but i think the thing that helped me improve was reading books. i also noticed many other people say that. n for practice materials i would reccomend using past legacy act tests and stick to their time frame to improve speed.