<p>I heard some kid read all the Federalist Papers and improved to an 800 in CR. What do you think of the validity of this?</p>
<p>And what really is CR score supposed to represent: Comprehension? Analysis? Insight? Superficiality?
THERE MUST BE SOME PATTERN OF REASONING, AND LET ME TELL YOU, I AM DETERMINED TO TRACK IT DOWN and hopefully save myself from Aptituditis of the Literary Faculties..... but I cannot do it alone!</p>
<p>THIS HAS BEEN A LIFE-LONG STRUGGLE. In grade 7 I scored a 280/800 in CR (not quite good enough for TIP programs)
This past March I got a 660. I just want to improve a little bit more. I love reading, the SAT used to be something that takes the pleasure out of good passages....but I actually like it now in a philosophical way...just need a boost here....
My parents speak a native Language of India- so I don't get much CR english practice at home.
This will be helpful to many people if the above Question can be answered.</p>
<p>770...I didn't read a whole lot, for me, I already knew all of the vocab words, so the thing that I did most was just practice reading comprehensions. It can get really boring, but it does pay off. I'm really not sure what they are exactly testing, but I'd just say that the main key for me was practice plus the fact that English and History are my two strongest subjects.</p>
<p>Reading challenging material will help. Every so often, take a break and summarize what you just read to yourself, and think up some SAT type questions for the passage. If you can discuss this material with your friends (since your folks are not native english speakers) it may help you to figure out what's going on, and where you are making mistakes and not seeing the connections, etc.</p>
<p>My son did pretty well reading Godel Escher Bach (790), and I has seen other kids mention that New York Times articles were useful.</p>
<p>Well... I read anything and everything. I've read all kinds of fiction. Currently I read TIME magazine, National Geographic, and Scientific American. I also read philosophy, pop science, foreign language books, math, history, and classics. </p>
<p>The easiest way to raise your CR score would be to expand your vocabulary. However, from your post I'm assuming the actual critical reading is your problem rather than the vocab. You'd probably want to read a variety of books, as the SAT passages have varying topics. The most effective vocab-building and perplexing (as in you absolutely must pay attention while reading) books would be the classics, with an emphasis on Dickens. I swear, that man cannot write a sentence that is shorter than a mortal writer's paragraph. The classics are classic for a reason; they're quality literature, something the SAT is wont to test. </p>
<p>Also, take notes whenever you read material of substance. Summarize what you've read, write down your questions, and record your intellectual epiphanies ;-) (But during the SAT, just underline the important ideas - something I found very helpful). Active, attentive reading will help you understand and absorb the material better.</p>
<p>I got a 720 on Writing and an 800 on CR. My opinion is that the reading section basically tests two things: vocabulary, and reading comprehension.</p>
<p>Both of these are improved by extensive reading of relatively "intellectual," nonfiction material. As far as choosing what to read, I think material of the cultural commentary vein should be more helpful than, say, a scientific journal. For the last few years I've been reading stuff like political magazines, newspapers, etc. fairly regularly. Unlike the memorization of word definitions, you will actually get a feel for where words fit into sentences. The format of the SAT sentence fill-ins is more forgiving of this kind of learning than a typical vocabulary test. That is, even if you don't know the precise meaning of a word, you can draw on the experience of having seen it before and decide whether it is appropriate in a particular context.</p>
<p>To be honest, I never took any physical notes after reading a newspaper article, but I would recommend that you consistently attempt to discern as much meaning as you can from your reading. In particular, focus your attention on the author's thesis - the main point the writer is trying to make. How effectively does he support his thesis, and what tools does he use in this endeavor?</p>
<p>I got a 770 CR and 730 W PSAT...don't know my SAT scores yet : ( but I'm expecting 750-800 on both unless I messed up more than I thought I did, lol. </p>
<p>I've always loved to read and write, I read voraciously whenever I have the time. The single most important thing to do is establish a habit of reading, whatever you like, whenever you can. What you read doesn't really matter so much. I've learned words from Stephen King novels just as well as from George Orwell's 1984. Just keep reading.</p>
<p>Also, realize that the SAT does not care about your ability to "read critically"! LOL. If anything the CR section is more a psychological guessing game. There are answers that are "sorta right" and then there is the answer that is "the best". Person A who can read and understand what they read might easily eliminate the answer choices that were not mentioned at all in the passage, but pick the 'distracting' choice that is 'almost the best choice but not quite'. Then they will say "What! But that was right there in the passage, how is it wrong?!" It's not "wrong", merely "less right" than the correct choice! Person B who also pays attention when reading, but in addition can get into the head of the person who wrote the question, will immediately recognize that what ETS wants is for Person B to follow the train of logic of the person writing the question, and pick the answer that they designed to be 'the best', rather than one of the distracting wrong answers that, while supported by the passage, is not 'as supported' or 'as lucid' as the 'best choice'. In other words, the choice that cannot be argued as being totally supported by the passage is correct, the one that could be supported but only weakly or loosely is wrong. Sometimes it is hard to distinguish: it's supposed to be!!</p>
<p>And finally, vocab is the key. If you don't know the vocab, you're screwed. Learn roots of words and word groups, it is much easier and just as helpful as actually memorizing words.</p>
<p>I think that the key to my success on the verbal/writing was a lucky bit of fate on my part...I was practically born reading and it just so happens that a measure of the one thing I love above all else matters to college admissions.
At least, that's how I feel about it. My scores are a tribute to that passion more than to my academic determination in general.</p>
<p>My daughter got an 800 on the verbal section of the "old" SATs - the third time she took them. She used a thorough SAT prep book, but I think what really helped her is that she is an avid reader. I know she has read alot of Jane Austen, the Brontes, and alot of philosophy. She is also fortunate our high school has an IB program (International Bachalaureate) My advice would be to contact a school that has an IB program (if yours doesn't) and ask them to send you a reading list. The IB program has been an excellent prep for college - Torey had the opportunity to sit in on a college creative writing class, and it was very similar to her IB English class. Clarke County High School in Berryville, Virginia has the IB program - you can google the school for more info. Hope this helps! Good lick - you are going to do just great!!!</p>
<p>yes! That's what I'll do. Read material everyday, like commentary on current political events, or perhaps some novels over the summer. And I will work on practice tests to ensure that I can score very high and get the patterns.</p>