i am taking the ssat in november and have been struggling with verbal. I focused a lot on it and did better but recently I took a practice test and now my new weak spot is the reading part of it. Any tips for
Me too; I find the verbal and the reading really difficult!
hey, so somehow i managed to drag my reading from a constant sub 60% to a 99%, so i have a couple of tips for you. when you’re reading, circle key parts on the booklet. key words, names, adjectives, whatever you think is important.
also, if it’s fiction, try to figure out the characters’ relationship with eachother. is he the other person’s brother? is she the maid? figuring these out might help you develop a deeper insight.
when you look at the question, do NOT look at the answers. many of them are there to trick you. figure out what YOU think the answer is first, then find the one that matches most. TRUST YOUR INSTINCT!
i read the questions first and then find and circle the answers in the reading. find the evidence for your answer and pick the option that matches it, don’t let the other options trick you.
thx for the tips, I actually did much better than I thought I would. I was able to get my horrible score to a 90+, I started using newsela but the passages are longer in than they would be on the test.
@hufflepuffhouse wow that’s absolutely amazing, congrats! A 90+ is a huge feat 
Thanks for the tip on Newsela. I’m finding it very useful and even a bit entertaining
Also, the more you read the better your score will be. Pick up a book and read it then read another. It’s best if you read different types of books and materials. For example read novels, and articles and science info etc. You never know what type of passages will be on the tests.
adding onto @Happytimes2001 's note, watch out and prepare for POEMS!! probably one of the most subjective question types of the entire test, as one person’s interpretation can be completely off the “correct” answer.
Adding onto @Happytimes2001 and @willmo - last year there was what kiddo described as a “Ye Olde English” poem. I recall many students last year describing significant variability of difficulty among passages. Have a strategy and don’t get stuck on one passage. Kiddo wasted time trying to figure out that “Ye Olde English” poem :-t
@Golfgr8 I remember that SSAT testing date well and your posting about “Ye Olde English” poem before my daughter came home from the test. I wish you could have seen her face when I asked her about it and she exclaimed “How’d you know?”
Yep- had CC folks from across the globe PM about that reading passage :))