The Reading & Writing section of the Digital SAT brings new challenges and some unique opportunities for students looking to boost their scores. With shorter passages, a broader array of question types, and the need to balance reading speed with comprehension, it’s more important than ever to have a focused strategy. Here are our top 10 SAT Reading & Writing tips to help you feel confident and prepared on test day:
- Get Familiar with the Types of Passages
- Learn the Different Types of Question Stems So That You Can Plan Accordingly
- Pacing: Read Actively and Efficiently
- The Most Important SAT Reading Tip: Context, Context, Context
- Know Your Grammar Rules
- Read the Passage First or the Question? Experiment!
- Predict Your Answer Before Looking at the Answer Choices
- Get Familiar with Common Wrong Answer Traps
- When in Doubt, Choose the “Boring” Answer
- One Final SAT Reading Tip: Practice Reading in General
1. Get Familiar with the Types of Passages
For our first SAT Reading tip, know that the passages on the Digital SAT cover a wide range of topics, from historical documents and scientific articles to contemporary social science and literature. You don’t need to be an expert in all these subjects. However, it’s helpful to know what to expect, so you’re not caught off guard. By practicing with a variety of topics ahead of time, you’ll be able to handle a more unusual passage—such as a poetry excerpt—with ease.
Here’s a breakdown of the most common passage types you’ll encounter:
- Literature Excerpts: Passages from novels, short stories, plays (or even poetry!) are common, often focusing on character interactions, themes, or descriptive language.
- History: These passages often include speeches, essays, or even excerpts from historical documents. Think of works by authors like Abraham Lincoln or excerpts from founding documents like the Declaration of Independence.
- Social Science: These typically cover topics in psychology, sociology, or economics. They discuss research findings, theories, or observations about human behavior.
- Science: Science passages focus on natural sciences like biology, chemistry, physics, or earth sciences. They may discuss a scientific experiment, explain a natural phenomenon, or present a theory.
- Contemporary Issues: Some passages are drawn from journalistic or opinion pieces discussing topics relevant to current social issues, technology, or environmental concerns. These passages can contain persuasive elements or present differing viewpoints.
- Two Passages: This type of question (also known as Cross-Text Connections) features two shorter passages on a similar theme, often with slightly different perspectives. You’ll need to compare the main ideas, evidence, or argumentative approaches between them.
Familiarizing yourself with these types of passages can help you feel more comfortable with the varied topics and writing styles you’ll see on the test. Practicing reading articles or excerpts within these categories can also give you a head start on managing different tones and structures.
2. Learn the Different Types of Question Stems So That You Can Plan Accordingly
Each question on the Digital SAT falls into specific categories, each requiring a different strategy. And each question type often has a unique stem that helps to identify it. You don’t necessarily need to memorize these, but they’ll become much more familiar as you do practice questions. Here are some example question types and sample stems:
- Transitions: Which choice completes the text with the most logical transition?
- Command of Evidence: Which choice most effectively uses data from the table to complete the example?
- Form, Structure, and Sense: Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
- Text Structure and Purpose: Which choice best describes the function of the highlighted portion in the text as a whole?
The better you can identify the question type, the better you can plan your approach. For example, let’s say you have a question with the stem “Which choice best describes the primary purpose of the passage?” This is a Central Idea question, so you’ll want to pay close attention to the entire passage and not focus on a single part.
Contrast that with this stem: According to the text, why does John mention “his terrible memory”? This is a Detail question where you can skim for that exact phrase in the text. The context will still be important, but you now have a specific portion of the text to find and analyze.
3. Pacing: Read Actively and Efficiently
On the SAT Reading & Writing section, you’ll have 64 minutes to complete 54 questions. This gives you about 1 minute and 10 seconds per each passage with its single question. This may seem generous, but the combination of shorter passages and a variety of question types makes efficient pacing essential.
The good news is that some questions, like vocabulary-in-context or grammar questions, can often be answered faster than more complex questions that ask about a central idea or evidence. By recognizing these quicker question types, you can save valuable seconds for tougher questions.
Regardless, you’ll want to practice active reading. Active reading means staying engaged with the passage and focusing on what matters for the question. Here’s how you can implement that effectively:
Identify the Main Idea Quickly
For most passages, start by scanning for the main point. In many cases, the first sentence or the last sentence will give a good sense of what the passage is about. Try to summarize the main idea in a few words mentally, which will help you remember the focus as you answer the question.
Look for Keywords and Key Phrases
Keywords, especially names, dates, and terms related to the passage’s subject, are useful anchors. By mentally noting or lightly underlining these, you can easily refer back to important details if the question requires it.
Stay Alert for Transition Words
Transition words like “however,” “therefore,” “for example,” and “in contrast” signal shifts in tone, argument, or perspective. They’re important for understanding the flow of ideas and can be key to answering questions about structure or relationships between ideas.
4. The Most Important SAT Reading Tip: Context, Context, Context
Though this is fourth on the list, this is the most important SAT Reading tip and also the most important SAT Writing tip! On the Reading & Writing section, context is everything. Whether you’re asked to interpret a specific detail or apply a grammar rule, the right answer usually depends on understanding the broader context.
Why is context so important?
Clarifies Meaning
Words, phrases, and ideas often shift in meaning depending on their context. For example, a word like “charge” could mean a fee, an accusation, or an electrical property, depending on the passage. By looking at the surrounding text, you can better understand which meaning applies.
Informs Author’s Purpose and Tone
Understanding the context helps you identify why the author included a particular detail or chose a specific tone. For instance, if the passage critiques a policy, the tone might be subtly skeptical or even outright critical. If the passage promotes an idea, the tone may be enthusiastic or supportive. Recognizing this through context helps answer questions about tone, purpose, and perspective accurately.
Supports Inferences
Many questions require you to infer information that isn’t explicitly stated, which is only possible if you understand the broader context. If a question asks, “What can be inferred about the author’s view on the topic?” you’ll need to look at how the author frames the entire discussion—not just a single sentence or phrase.
Aids in Grammar and Structure Questions
Grammar questions, especially those about transitions, punctuation, and sentence placement, rely heavily on context to make sense. A transition word choice like “however” or “therefore” is only correct if it aligns with the relationship between ideas before and after it. Likewise, punctuation rules often depend on context: knowing where to place a comma or semicolon requires an understanding of how clauses relate to one another.
Overall, context is like a lens through which you view each question. It allows you to see connections, interpret meanings accurately, and make logical inferences—all of which are key to selecting the right answer.
5. Know Your Grammar Rules
There’s no way around this. To do well on SAT Writing questions, you have to know your grammar rules. Familiarize yourself with the core areas: punctuation, verb agreement, subject-pronoun agreement, parallel structure, and modifier placement. These rules make up the foundation for most writing questions, so knowing them inside and out is essential.
6. Read the Passage First or the Question? Experiment!
There’s no right answer here as it really depends on your preferences. You should experiment with both approaches and see which one you like the most and do the best with. You may even find that for some passage types you prefer reading the passage first whereas on other passage types you jump straight to the question.
Read the Question First: Many students find that reading the question first can help direct their focus on specific details or aspects of the passage. This approach can be efficient since the question will often point you to key information, allowing you to skim for that relevant part of the text. However, if it’s a question that asks you about the passage as a whole, then… well, you’re going to have to read the whole passage anyways!
Read the Passage First: This approach gives you the entire context, no matter what the question is. This way, you get a clear sense of the passage’s overall message or purpose, making it easier to answer broad questions. And then if the question asks you about a specific detail, you may already know the answer or know where to find it.
In the end, it’s really up to you. Try testing out both strategies to see which approach feels most comfortable and efficient.
7. Predict Your Answer Before Looking at the Answer Choices
Whether you read the passage first or the question first, the one thing you do not want to do is to read the answer choices first! Before looking at the answer options, try to come up with your own response. This approach prevents you from getting drawn into tempting trap answers that might seem right at first glance but don’t fully address the question. A solid prediction gives you a benchmark to compare with the choices, making it easier to eliminate incorrect answers. Even vague predictions are better than nothing!
Your prediction won’t always be right, but more often than not it will enable you to be successful. 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.
8. Get Familiar with Common Wrong Answer Traps
Wrong answers are traps made to appear correct. Here are the most common traps you’ll see on the SAT Reading questions:
- 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 passage.
- Too extreme: The answer is overwhelmingly positive/negative or states/implies that something is “all”, “none”, “never”, “every”, etc.
- Assumption: It could very well be true, but not necessarily, given the text of the passage. Half right, half wrong: It is correct about one detail but incorrect about another.
- One word off: The answer is almost perfect, but one word ruins it.
- Wrong detail: It misattributes something mentioned in the passage.
- Opposite: The answer has a sneaky “not” thrown in, or it’s correctly answering the wrong question (e.g., in “EXCEPT” questions).
Understanding these traps can help you eliminate incorrect answers more confidently and make smarter guesses if needed.
9. 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.
10. One Final SAT Reading Tip: Practice Reading in General
One of the most effective ways to prepare for the Reading & Writing section of the SAT is to build a strong reading habit well before test day. Regular reading helps improve comprehension, vocabulary, and familiarity with different types of writing, all of which contribute to stronger performance on the SAT. Here’s how general reading can support your SAT success:
Improves Vocabulary and Word Recognition
Reading regularly exposes you to a wide range of vocabulary in natural contexts, helping you understand word meanings, connotations, and nuances without memorizing long lists of definitions. By improving your vocabulary through reading, when you then come across challenging words on the SAT, you’ll be more likely to understand or deduce their meanings based on prior exposure. Besides, the SAT doesn’t heavily test vocabulary, so you don’t want to devote a lot of time studying it.
Strengthens Comprehension Skills
By reading different types of materials—like articles, essays, novels, and scientific journals—you’ll develop the ability to quickly grasp main ideas, interpret details, and understand the purpose and structure of texts. These are all skills that the SAT Reading & Writing section tests.
Familiarizes You with Varied Writing Styles and Structures
SAT passages cover a variety of genres and topics. Regularly reading different genres builds your familiarity with diverse writing styles and structures. This makes it easier to adapt to different passage types on the test.
Increases Reading Speed and Focus
Reading more frequently helps improve your reading speed and focus, which are essential for the timed SAT. When you’re used to processing complex texts efficiently, you’ll be able to read actively and keep a steady pace during the test.
Develops Critical Thinking Skills
Reading actively involves making predictions, asking questions, and drawing inferences—all skills that are key to tackling SAT questions effectively. When you read thoughtfully, you get into the habit of analyzing texts on a deeper level. That will make it easier to answer questions about the author’s tone, purpose, and argument.
Builds Endurance for Longer Reading Sessions
The SAT requires sustained concentration, and a habit of reading for longer periods can help you build the mental endurance needed for test day. Though the passages on the Digital SAT are short, there’s still a lot of them.
By reading broadly and often, you’ll strengthen the very skills that the SAT measures, making it one of the most effective ways to prepare.
Closing Thoughts
Those are my top recommended SAT Reading & Writing tips to help you prepare efficiently for the test. By practicing these strategies, you’ll be well-prepared to tackle each question on the test with confidence.
For more help and practice with the SAT Reading & Writing section—and the Math section as well—take a look at a Magoosh SAT Premium plan. Magoosh has lessons covering all the content and strategies you need to know for the exam, along with plenty of practice questions and practice tests. Happy studying!
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