<p>(Sorry for the bad syntax and improper grammar in advance)</p>
<p>On practice tests, I constantly score in the 780-800 range for writing and math (have never gotten lower than a 760 on either), which is great... but I can never seem to get above a 690 on the critical reading section. Even if I know all of the vocab words and get every single question pertaining to vocab matching correct, I still get around a 680. 640 is my average critical reading score. </p>
<p>For people who have scored low on critical reading sections in the past and have raised their scores to the 700's range, how did you do it? I'm learning about 50 vocab words a day from a combo of Direct Hits/Kaplan Flash Cubes/Barron's/practice tests, so I'm not too worried about vocab. On the other hand, even when I feel that my answer on a passage-based question is correct, I end up getting it wrong. When I look at the correct answer, I can't understand why that answer was correct. What could I do to raise my average CR score? Is it better to read several novels, take a bunch of practice tests in hopes that I gradually improve, or is there a book that has great explanations and strategies for tackling the CR section?</p>
<p>Also, this may be slightly irrelevant, but how similar is the SAT critical reading section to AP English lang?</p>
<p>By the way I just finished my sophomore year and plan to take the SAT halfway into junior year because I don’t want my AP study to interfere with my SAT score. It’s hard enough for me to switch gears as is, and retroactive interference really messed me up when I took the PSAT during sophomore year. </p>
<p>I have about 6-7 months to prepare, which will hopefully be enough to improve my critical reading score (and keep my math and writing scores up) hah.</p>
<p>I am waiting for some comments too… Any successful stories out there? I always end up with minimum 6 mistakes on CR. : / What other practice should I use other than College Board material?</p>
<p>I think the easiest way to conquer the critical reading section is to take practice tests (you need some basic vocab but don’t stress). Then afterwards, check the ones you got wrong and then you’ll be able to relate the correct answer or word w/a sentence. It’s a lot easier to remember words and you’ll cover a lot more. Also, for the passage based questions there’s a simple tip. Play devil’s advocate. Don’t let what you “think” influence your answer. Choose the one that the author seems to support (based on the text) even if it goes against what he is fundamentally saying throughout the passage. Sometimes the author may completely say something which undermines exactly what he’s been advocating the whole time in the passage. Don’t worry I was in the same scenario a couple months ago but after about 10 tests or so you get the hang of it. Most probably after 2 or 3 months worth of study, you’ll be only missing a total of 2/3 in CR. B|</p>
<p>I never really prepped for CR, but it’s generally regarded as the hardest one to do well one because you don’t learn the material in the span of a month or two, you know it instinctively because of a lifetime of reading. Still though, I recommend memorizing frequently used Greek and Latin roots - from those, you can usually infer the meaning of a word.
As for the text, the answer is * always * justified in line. If you can’t find evidence to support what you think is the answer, then it’s not the answer.
Good luck!</p>
<p>Thank you! Thank goodness Barron’s has a section with roots. I’ll study that, since I’ve only been using a vocab book for cramming words into my mind, and it isn’t working out too well. </p>
<p>I’ve been trying to figure out why an answer choice may be right, which is probably my problem. Whenever I review practice questions that I miss though, I can’t figure out why the right answer was A instead of E. Do you think I’ll be able to understand the difference between the right answer and the incorrect answer after a lot of practice tests as well?</p>
<p>Also I have the Kaplan 12 SAT tests book, the big blue book, and the regular Princeton Review study guide (not the one with the 11 practice tests). Is that sufficient for SAT prep?</p>
<p>Yeah just read read read. Whenever you do so, ask yourself what the authors purpose is and the tone of the text. These questions are always prevalent on the sat. Use syntax and diction to find out the speakers attitude about his or her subject matter. Long sentences are usually formal, reflective, or conversational; it is not tense. Short sentences are straightforward, which in turn undermines the complexity of the text- something writers may do to emphasize the simplicity or straightforwardness if the topic. Diction can be connotative which will showcase an authors attitude as well.</p>
<p>Lastly, try to extrapolate when you read- but do it logically. Analyze similes and metaphors used and try to determine their implications- about the authors attitude, about characters attitude, about argument. You have to extrapolate a lot on the sat as im sure youve realized but it must be backed up by the text.</p>
<p>P.s. i average 770 on the cr</p>
<p>BLUE BOOK is all I have to say. It’s helped me so far, and I’ve only done two practice tests… I haven’t really tried timing myself on CR though, cause I always run out of time. Yesterday it took me 40 mins to do a 25 min section because this huge passage I was reading bored me to death… Just stay focused and you will prosper. My CR is trashy, however. All I want is a 600 on the actual SAT… I think I scored maybe a 540 my second time. I consider that test my first legit test because the first time I took it i was a sophmore. The math seemed easier this time, and the essay aggravated me…</p>
<p>read Noitaraperp’s guide</p>
<p>I’ve been using noitaraperp’s methods and my score dropped from an average of 600’s to scores in the 400’s. I’m still using it though, since it takes time to improve. </p>
<p>I’ve been memorizing about 40-50 words per day using Direct Hits/Kaplan SAT Flashcubes/Barron’s word lists, so that’s sufficient right? I don’t want to spend too much time on vocab since it’s only a small portion of the CR and I have more trouble with passages than sentence completion. </p>
<p>I LOVE the essays, and it’s probably because I like talking about my own opinion. .___. I never do the essay portion when I take practice tests, but I often use the essay questions as journaling topics because I journal during my spare time. It’s so fun askfdlasdkfl;. I can end up writing 10+ pages hehe.</p>
<p>And yeah, the math is really easy. The only problem is that the curve is REALLY low. If I miss two, then it’s a 730… which is bad for me because I know how to do all of the problems, but rush through everything and end up misreading questions or doing something stupid like 3 + 3 = 9.</p>
<p>Yeah I am so terrible at CR. Probably because I haven’t read a book in God knows how long… =p</p>
<p>I used to read 8 books a day when I was in elementary school. After I entered 7th grade, I started going on a gaming site. I quit after the summer of 9th grade, but… yeah. Lately I’ve only been reading the books assigned to us in English class. This summer, I’ve been reading some books about psychology but… that’s like… 10 minutes a day and since it’s all really easy to understand and doesn’t really relate to any of the CR passages…
oh well.</p>
<p>I’ll just keep drilling myself with Barron’s, then take all 12 of my Kaplan practice tests, and hopefully that will get me to the score I want hah.</p>
<p>Even though I’m not much of a reader, I am capable of getting a pretty decent score on the writing. When it comes to CR I lose my focus during the longest passage which gives you 10+ questions to answer…</p>
<p>Same. Getting 800’s on the writing is a piece of cake. At first, it was hard because English is my second language and it was confusing, but after practice the writing became a breeze. On the critical reading, I have many problems. I have a really bad short term memory so I have difficulty remembering the passage after I read it, and I can’t stay focused on all of the questions for each passage and start spacing out. Then, when I actually concentrate on the questions, I overthink things and end up finding 3 “correct” answers. -____-</p>
<p>However, i don’t understand your situation a little because your writing score is so high and apparently you needed skimming or fast reading in MC section too. How did you do that in MC?? Of course, i know CR is much more tricky haha.</p>
<p>Try practicing CR with McGraw Hill’s tests. They are quite difficult and will teach you a lot of new words. After them College Board’s CR reading is a relief. Look up the online tests on their page if you haven’t seen yet [McGraw-Hill:</a> Practice Plus](<a href=“http://www.mhpracticeplus.com/sat.php]McGraw-Hill:”>http://www.mhpracticeplus.com/sat.php)</p>