<p>Jason 88, Yeah i agree, I'm gonna do my best to just start taking an interest in the type reading I would normally hate. Any suggestions when it comes to classic novels? To kill a mocking bird, a brave new world....?</p>
<p>Tori_mom, did she think the ACT was harder/easier compared to SAT overall. Because I'm in the same position, high math and writing scores, but then very very low reading score.</p>
<p>I think math and writing were similar to SAT parts ( at least what my D. told me), science was not too easy for her, ( she hates science), and it lowed her overall ACT score to 33 with CR -36, Math -35, Writing -34. ( I don't remember science score, something < 30).</p>
<p>i went from 470 to 600 by increasing vocab</p>
<p>i agree with daman11. Most of the questions can be found directly in the text. Don't over think the questions. Underline answer in passage and go on. Doing AP Eng language tests is overkill! Those tests make you think a lot harder and are mostly crapshoot for me =P</p>
<p>To Kill a Mockingbird and Brave New World are both great books, even if you aren't reading them just to improve your SAT score. You may also want to read books like Fahrenheit 451 or The Catcher in the Rye.</p>
<p>I love reading TIME magazine. And I'm always reading a book. Currently it's Dreams From My Father by Obama, which is incredibly interesting if you're looking for something.</p>
<p>I totally agree with the Russian suggestion! Tolstoy is one of my favorite authors, and aside from being fascinating reads, his novels are teeming with complex ideas and advanced vocab. To take it one step further, I'd recommend simply reading a lot of world literature - you'll see words you may not find as readily in American texts, and you'll get to practice critical thinking while being introduced to globally diverse viewpoints :)</p>
<p>A good deal of it is based on luck. The first time I took the sat, I got a 690 on cr. The second time I took it (with no further preparation), I got an 800 on cr.</p>
<p>To increase your score at the higher levels, my advice would be to approach the passages as if you were reading your favorite novel. Convince yourself that the sat material you are reading about physics or some shakesperean composition or minority rights appeals greatly to you. Also, work on getting faster so that you can have the luxury of reading the passages completely and still have time to answer and check over your answers. As for vocabulary, you could get a few words that you have never seen and get unlucky, or get words that you have encountered many times and be fine.</p>
<p>I agree with everyone else about reading/studying vocabulary, but at a certain point it really comes down to luck and test-taking strategies.</p>
<p>I don't know about Tolstoy. I read the first 250 pages of Anna Karenina, and I didn't think the remaining 600 would be worth my time.</p>
<p>Haha, to each his own :) Just my personal preference.</p>
<p>listen 2 hip hop. I listen to hip hop daily, nas, biggie, pac, common, Krs-ONE, etc. Those artists use an intense amount of vocab in their rhymes. Maybe even try freestyling. I freestyle with a lot my friends when we're justing chilling in class, smoking, waiting for the train, whatever and i need to use a lot of different vocab in order to create long, unique rhyme schemes. I ended up getting a 750 on CR</p>
<p>i totally agree with the ACT suggestion! I was absolutely horrible at the SAT esp in CR. I think the ACT is far more straightforward and you may end doing much better on that in all of your subjects....def give the ACT a shot since your a junior.</p>
<p>Actually, I'm not so sure about reading more. It will only helps if you have a long time (2-3 months at least) to prepare. If you're cram preparing (2-3 weeks), it will help a lot more to learn roots.</p>
<p>And if you're looking at those novels for the essays, you can really use ANY novel and do well IF YOU RELATE THE NOVEL TO YOUR ARGUMENT. </p>
<p>But you say you don't need help with the vocab (although vocab questions are often the easy points).</p>
<p>For the passage-based questions, DON'T OVERTHINK THE ANSWERS. The CB purposely writes answer that seem reasonable considering the subject and stance of the passage but "go beyond the scope of the passage", i.e., are not explicitly written in the passage. See if that's where you're losing points.</p>
<p>If it's not, figure out why you're getting the answers wrong, or, if you will, why the right answer is right. Even though it seems arbitrary, the SAT is a standardized test and therefore must follow STANDARDS, i.e., have reasons behind the correct answers.</p>
<p>Try this site: Mystery</a> Tutor</p>
<p>other than over thinking the questions, are there any other ways to improve your CR score when you're pressed for time? I'm in a similar situation and it's driving me nuts...</p>
<p>Hi, I was in the same situation as you back in September/October. I had about a month to raise my ~650 score to a 700+. First off, let me tell you that its probably too late to "read read read" as some of the other posts are suggesting. That's more of a long term strategy and probably not your best bet. </p>
<p>The best piece of advice I can give you is probably also the most generic one. Practice, practice, practice. Practice does make perfect, especially when you review why you got certain answers wrong. It is also best to practice from tests that are slightly harder than the real thing. (I despised the Barrons CR prep because it was WAYYY too difficult). </p>
<p>If the above advice doesn't seem to be helping you much try to tackle the questions in a different manner. Instead of searching for the right answer, I began to use process of elimination to eliminate all of the choices except one. Using that method, I always had the right answer left. </p>
<p>On test day, I just forced myself to RELAX(!!!) and just focus on comprehending the passage. Constantly, I reflected on certain parts of the passages to avoid becoming a passive reader. In the end, everything worked out for me. My scores came back and they were MUCH higher than I expected. </p>
<p>Anyways, sorry for the long post. Good luck to you.</p>
<p>read good literature :|</p>
<p>aside from learning new vocab and practice passages, i read Huck Finn and half of David Copperfield.......</p>
<p>i went up by 120 points..</p>
<p>i think that dense forms of writing improve your reading skills
at first it may be hard, just keep rereading what you dont understand and before you know it you will be able to swim through dickens, and hopefully be on your way to a much higher score on the Critical Reading next time</p>
<p>Hi, I don't know if anyone has said this before yet. I think the most important factor in CR sections is just sheer concentration. If you are "hyperfocused" during the CR section, the answers to the reading comprehension will seem very obvious when you see them.</p>
<p>Prior to the December 2008 test, I never scored above a 710 on CR in practice tests, and then in the real thing I somehow managed to get an 800... Maybe it was just the test day adrenaline that really kept me focused throughout.</p>
<p>Also, I typically will spend 65-70% of my time reading the passage, and less time actually reading the questions. Many people have suggested the opposite: skimming the passages quickly and then taking time to psychoanalyze the questions... but that didn't seem to work for me.</p>
<p>Well, Good luck with your SATs in January!</p>