ACT Practice

ACT Mantra #9

"My uncle's books" means one uncle has books, and "my uncles' books" means that two or more uncles have the books. Watch for and unneeded "ly". "Who" is for people, and "which" is for things. Watch for pairs of words such as "not only...but also" and "either...or."

ACT Mantra #11

A descriptive phrase on the ACT must be clearly associated with (and usually placed right next to) the noun described

ACT Mantra #17

Always begin a reading passage by reading the bold intro

ACT Mantra #22

Answer "attitude" questions based on evidence in the passage; an author's attitude is expressed through choice of words and punctuation. For help, reread the bold intro and the first and last sentences of each paragraph

ACT Mantra #38

Brainstorm for specific details, not generalizations

ACT Mantra #14

For "goal" questions, choose the one answer choice that achieves the very specific GOAL stated in the question.

ACT Mantra #21

For "suggest" questions look for the answer that is hinted at in the passage; though it might have different language, it should be pretty close to what is actually said.

ACT Mantra #27

For a "Say what?" question, don't get thrown if the choices are not from the passage. Stay relaxed and focused, and look for the choice that answers the specific goal of the question.

ACT Mantra #20

For a direct info question, always read before and after a line number or key word and find proof. The correct answer will usually rephrase the way the answer is stated in the passage.

ACT Mantra #15

For a yes/no question, choose an answer that applies to the entire question and not just a few words of it

ACT Mantra #24

For questions that ask about the writer's choices or the flow of the passage, review the progression of paragraphs and use the process of elimination

ACT Mantra #8

IF "I" or "me" is underlined, test it by putting the I/me first or drop the other person and trust your ear. If "its" or "it's" is underlined, remember that "it's" means "it is," and "its" is possessive, like "that tree is nice; I like its colorful leaves."

ACT Mantra #26

If you don't know the meaning of a words, ask yourself if you can break it apart or if you've heard or seen it in a book, in a movie, on a sign, as the name of a business, in a commercial, in a class, etc.

ACT Mantra #40

Jot down or circle the best details from your brainstorm. Each detail will be the main idea of a body paragraph of the essay

ACT Mantra #12

Make sure that the underlined word fits into the context of the sentence

ACT Mantra #6

Phrases that can stand alone are separated with a semicolon, comma with "and", or a period

ACT Mantra #30

Read ACT science passages quickly, just to get the gist of what the experiment is generally about. Then glance at the graphs and go to the questions

ACT Mantra #18

Read the passage looking for main idea and tone. That helps you stay focused; keep asking yourself, What are the main idea and tone? when you notice the theme of a paragraph, circle a few words that capture it. Don't try to memorize details and don't reread hard lines. If you need them, you'll reread later when details and don't reread hard lines. If you need them, you'll reread later when you know the question and what to look for

ACT Mantra #28

Read the passage, looking for main idea and tone. Don't memorize details. Don't reread a confusing line. Don't reread if you spaced out and missed a sentence or two.

ACT Mantra #10

The ACT likes crisp and clear; we always want the answer that is most clear, concise, direct, and nonredundant

ACT Mantra #31

The most common ACT Science question tell you exactly which table or graph to look at.

ACT Mantra #32

The second most common type of ACT Science question asks you to look at a chart or graph and decide what happens to on thing as another changes

ACT Mantra #33

The third type of ACT Science question asks you to use the graph or table to determine the value for a data point that is not shown, but is above, below, or between points that are shown

ACT Mantra #19

To answer a "most nearly means" question, reread a few lines before and a few lines after

ACT Mantra #5

When a comma is underlined on the ACT, ask yourself, should there be a pause here? Read it with and without a pause and see which works. Commas (and pauses) are used to set off a side not.

ACT Mantra #7

When a preposition is underlined, ask yourself if it is the right preposition to use.

ACT Mantra #3

When a pronoun is underlined, we must be totally sure what noun it is referring to. If it is unclear in any way, it is incorrect. The underlined pronoun must also match (singular or plural) the noun that it refers to.

ACT Mantra #2

When a verb is underlined, identify the subject and cross out any prepositional phrases; a prepositional phrase NEVER counts as the subject of the verb

ACT Mantra #1

When a verb is underlined, trust your ear. When in doubt, identify its subject and make sure singular/plural and tense match the subject.

ACT Mantra #39

When you brainstorm for details, if something new that perfectly fits the assignment occurs to you, of course use it. If not, just turn the general viewpoints from the question into specific examples

ACT Mantra #41

Your intro paragraph should be two to four sentences: an opener, a link, and a thesis

ACT Mantra #13

for "flow" questions, use the process of elimination

ACT Mantra #23

if you need help with a "main idea" question, reread the bold intro and the first and last lines of each paragraph

ACT Mantra #4

when a transition word (such as "although" "since" "but" "therefore" or "however") is underlined, see if it works in the flow of the paragraph