ACT PREPARTION ROY HIGH SCHOOL MRS. HARTNETT 2016-17
Reading Passage Tips Skim the passage for general comprehension all the way through before answering the questions (~ 3 minutes) What is the speaker s main point? Is the tone of the passage positive or negative? Notice the flow of the story or argument (cause/effect; chronological; compare/contrast; flashback/forward; general to specific ) PRETEND YOU ARE FASCINATED WITH THE CONTENT Do not scan the questions first that is a waste of time Try to answer the questions without looking back at the text. If you do think you need to go back and look at the text, read the response choices first and see if you can eliminate two of them. Look for key words in the question to help you focus and answer correctly If part of an answer is wrong (even a single word), the answer is entirely wrong. There is only one 100% correct answer.
5 TYPES OF QUESTIONS ON ACT READING 1. Big Picture/Main Point: What is the main point of the passage or paragraph? 2. Little Picture/Detail: What does this small detail mean? 3. Inference: Where in the passage was the following detailed mentioned? What would the author most likely feel about the following hypothetical scenario? 4. Vocabulary in Context: What does this word or phrase mean in the context of the passage? 5. Author Method: How does the author construct the passage? What is the author's purpose in utilizing the following method?
Multiple Choice Strategy Understand why the wrong answers are wrong Answer Choice Reason to Eliminate 1. Too narrow Too small a section of selection covered 2. Too broad An area wider that the selection covered 3. Irrelevant Nothing to do with the passage Relevant to selection, but not the question 4. Incorrect Distortion of the facts in the selection Contradiction of the facts in the selection 5. Illogical Not supported by the facts in the passage Not supported by cited passage from the selection 6. Similar Choices GO BACK AND TEASE OUT THE DIFFERENCES 7. Not/Except Answer that correctly represent the selection
1. Misread question 5 MOST COMMON MISTAKES Missed LEAST / EXCEPT / NOT Read too quickly 2. Misread answer(s) Read too quickly Did not read all choices 3. Did not go back to the passage (particularly for vocabulary) 4. Did not tease out differences between two answers 5. Picked an answer that was relevant to passage, but not this particularly sentence or paragraph
Reading Passage 1 HUMANITIES: TWO EXCERPTS FROM RAY BRADBURY Passage A is adapted from the essay Just This Side of Byzantium by Ray Bradbury ( 1975 by Ray Bradbury), which is the introduction to a later edition of Bradbury s 1957 novel Dandelion Wine. PassageB is adapted from Dandelion Wine ( 1957 by Ray Bradbury).
ACT Reading Practice 21 21. When Bradbury claims, Thus I fell into surprise (line 46), he s most nearly referring to the: A. discovery that for him the secret to a creative out- pouring was to use a word-association method to write fiction. B. long-forgotten experiences he would remember when he would talk with his childhood friends in person. C. realization that he wrote more effectively about his current experiences than about his past. D. several methods other writers taught him to help him write honest, authentic stories.. 2. What type of word is Thus? What does it mean? 3. What is Thus referring to in the previous sentence? Little Picture/Detail: Make sure to check the context (sentences before and after if needed) to make sure your answer makes sense.
ACT Reading Practice 22 22. Passage A indicates that Bradbury believes all beginning writers think that they can: F. learn the nature of surprises G. force an idea into creation. H. use one word as a catalyst for a story. J. become a good writer through experiment. 2. Which lines in Passage A will help you answer the question? 3. What specific word should you scan for in the passage? Even though this question sounds like it is going to Big Idea because it refers to the word Passage, the question is looking for one specific idea. Always ask yourself what is the question asking me to focus on?
ACT Reading Practice 23 23. Bradbury s claim I would then take arms against the word, or for it (line 12) most strongly suggests that during his writing sessions, Bradbury would: A. attempt to find the one word that for him was the key to understanding John Huff B. often reject a word as not being a catalyst for meaningful writing. C. deliberately choose to write only about a word that inspired his fears. D. feel as though he were struggling to find a word s significance to him. 2. Just the quote won t help you answer the question. Where else must you look in the passage to find the answer? For understanding, you need context, context, context. To find the answer, read complete sentences, never just the quote.
ACT Reading Practice 24 24. In the seventh paragraph of Passage A (lines 30 37), Bradbury explains his habit, over many years as a writer, of almost daily: F. looking at and writing about saved objects from his childhood. G. wishing he had kept more letters from his childhood to trigger his memories. H. driving past his grandparents property, hoping to notice something that would remind him of his past. J. thinking about his grandparents property, hoping to remember something that would bring his past into focus. 2. Which word from 30-37 changes the meaning of Bradbury s description of his writing habit from literal to figurative? 1. All answers will be logical. It would not be logical in a piece in which a famous writer is providing success tips to other writers to advise them that the only path to greatness is to literally be able to revisit their hometown on a daily basis for 12 years.
ACT Reading Practice 25 25. Passage A explains that when writing about the character John Huff, Bradbury had A. placed John in a town in Arizona, where Bradbury himself had grown up. B. included John in stories about a town in Arizona and in stories about Green Town. C. moved John to a town other than the town in which the real-life John Huff had grown up. D. borrowed John to use as a minor character in many of his stories. 2. What is the veteran writer suggesting to new writers to help them with storytelling? Writer word choice is important. Figure out the role of unusually placed words. When Bradbury uses the word borrowed, his stated purpose in John Huff was to put him in a setting that allowed him to re-live the moment of John s departure.
ACT Reading Practice 26 26. In the first paragraph of Passage B (lines 52 63), the narrator describes John Huff in a manner that: F. emphasizes John s physical strength and intelligence, to indicate John s view of himself. G. exaggerates John s characteristics and actions, to reflect Douglas s idolization of John H. highlights John s reckless behavior, to show that Douglas was most fond of John s rebelliousness. J. showcases John s talents, to make clear why both children and adults admired John 2. Name three of the characteristics the narrator attributes to John Huff. Question in which you are asked to summarize require you to generalize based on specific details. Think broadly about what the details indicate.
ACT Reading Practice 27 27. Within Passage B, the image in lines 74 76 functions figuratively to suggest that: A. John s leaving on a stormy night was fitting, given Douglas s sadness B. John s disappointment about moving was reflected in his mood all day C. the mood of the day changed dramatically and irreversibly once John shared his news. D. the sky in Green Town became cloudy at the moment John told Douglas he was moving. 2. Which answers are taking the literal meaning instead of figurative? 3. Which words in the sentence communicate to the readers that the sentences is meant figuratively? If a sentence cannot be true, it is usually not a hyperbole (exaggeration). It is most likely a form of comparison that emphasizes the character s emotional state.
ACT Reading Practice 28 28. Both Passage A and Passage B highlight Bradbury s use of: F. a first person omniscient narrator to tell a story G. satire and irony to develop characters. H. allegory to present a complex philosophical question. J. sensory details and imaginative description to convey ideas. 2. Remember that if part of an answer is wrong, the whole answer is wrong. What parts are wrong with the wrong answers? 1. There is no such thing as first person OMNISCIENT. In the third person narrative voice there is omniscient, limited-omniscient, and objective. Other narrative voice choices are first person and multiple perspectives. 2. Satire means to poke fun at society. Irony means the opposite of what is meant or expected.
ACT Reading Practice 29 29. Based on Bradbury s description in Passage A of his writing process, which of the following methods hypothetically depicts a way Bradbury might have begun to write the story in Passage B?: A. Taking notes while interviewing old friends after first deciding to write a story about two boys B. Forming two characters, determining that he would like to tell a story about loss, and then beginning to write a scene C. Writing down the words train ticket and then spending an hour writing whatever those words brought to his mind D. Outlining the plot of a story about two boys that would end with one boy leaving on a train 2. Which answer summarizes the method he described in Passage A? While all of the answers are plausible (means could possibly be true), only one answer aligns with the narrative. Ask yourself: But what does the PASSAGE say?
ACT Reading Practice 30 30. Elsewhere in the essay from which Passage A is adapted, Bradbury write Was there a real boy named John Huff? There was. And that was truly his name. But he didn t go away from me, I went away from him. How do these statements apply to both Bradbury s approach as a storyteller provided in Passage A and the story of John Huff provided in Passage B? F. They reveal that Bradbury believed that to surprise readers is a fiction writer s most important task. G. They reinforce that Bradbury used his life experiences to create fiction but also altered those experiences as he pleased. H. They prove that Bradbury felt such pain over leaving John that he had to reverse events to be able to write the story. J. They indicate that Bradbury rarely used his life experiences to create fiction. 2. Which answers can you eliminate because they make no sense? 1. Circle key words in the question to help you stay focused.
Hyphens connect two adjectives when they come directly before a noun. Hyphens are never used after the word very or after ly adverbs, such as beautifully, or greatly.