ACT Tips

ACT Tips

ENGLISH:

• The ACT likes clear, direct, concise language. Choose the answer that is the most direct.
• Slang, idioms, and cliches are ALWAYS wrong.
• Shorter answers are usually better answers.
• Eliminate wordy expressions.
• Avoid REDUNDANT expressions.
• ALWAYS change “due to the fact that…” statements.
• Pay attention when the ACT offers the “delete” option.
• Good diction means choosing the EXACT word. Be aware of homophones.
• ALWAYS match verb TENSE.
• Subjects and verbs must agree.
• Pronouns and antecedents must agree (and ignore the words between them when deciding).
• Commas and dashes generally come in pairs.
• Having TOO many commas is as bad as not having enough. Each comma must have a purpose.
• Apostrophes show ownership. (people’s, women’s, classes’)
• Make sure you can recognize and fix: fragments, run-ons, improperly joined sentences or clauses, and non-parallel elements.

READING

• You have 35 minutes to answer 40 questions (9 minutes per passage)
• Read the questions before skimming the article. Then, work through the questions, answering the questions with specific line numbers first. Work quickly, and any answer that is taking too long to find, skip and come back to at the end.
• The first and last paragraph should contain the information to answer: tone, purpose, attitude, main idea/purpose.
• Eliminate answers that are obviously wrong. Then decide which of the answers left is the best.
• Correct answers are generally paraphrases or summaries of the passages, not direct quotes.
• Skip questions that ask you to infer, imply, or suggest and answer if time allows later. These questions require a lot more time. The goal is to get the MOST correct answers.
• Questions that use NOT and EXCEPT require reverse elimination. Find the NEGATIVE answer, or the one that does not belong.
• Vocabulary in context refer to specific lines. They should be quick to answer.