← Reading and Writing syllabus

United StatesReading and Writing

Craft and Structure

5 dot points across 5 inquiry questions. Click any dot point for a focused answer with worked past exam questions where available.

How does an author's word choice shape a text's tone and effect, and how is that tested on the Digital SAT?

Analyzing rhetorical word choice: reading how a word's connotation and an author's diction create tone and emphasis, and using that to answer purpose and function questions about a short passage.
A focused answer to how diction and connotation create tone and effect on Digital SAT passages, and how to use that reading in words-in-context, purpose and function questions, distinguishing an author's attitude from a neutral report.
9 min answer →

How do you compare two short paired texts and judge how one author would respond to the other?

Cross-text connections: reading a pair of short texts, summarising each author's position, and choosing how the author of one text would most likely respond to, agree with, or differ from a claim in the other.
A focused answer to the Digital SAT cross-text-connections skill: reading paired Text 1 and Text 2, writing a short position for each, and choosing how the author of one would respond to the other, while rejecting answers that capture only a single text.
10 min answer →

How do you describe the overall structure or main purpose of a short passage, or the function of one underlined sentence?

Text structure and purpose: identifying a passage's overall organisation, its main rhetorical purpose, and the function a specific underlined sentence performs within the whole text.
A focused answer to the Digital SAT text-structure-and-purpose skill: describing how a short passage is organised, stating its main purpose, and pinning the function of an underlined sentence, by matching the precise verb (introduces, contrasts, illustrates) to what the text actually does.
10 min answer →

Which context-clue types and habits most reliably crack Digital SAT words-in-context questions?

Vocabulary strategies for context: using definition, synonym, antonym, example and inference clues, handling multiple-meaning words, and applying word parts and connotation to confirm a context-driven choice.
A focused answer to the context-clue strategies behind Digital SAT words-in-context questions: the five clue types, multiple-meaning words, substitution, and using word parts and connotation to confirm a choice, with worked short-passage practice.
9 min answer →

How do you choose the most logical and precise word or phrase to complete a short Digital SAT passage?

Words in context: using the surrounding sentence to choose the most logical and precise word or phrase for a blank, predicting the meaning first, and confirming the choice fits both sense and tone.
A focused answer to the Digital SAT words-in-context skill: reading the whole sentence for clues, predicting the meaning of the blank before viewing the choices, matching meaning and tone, and confirming the choice by substitution. The highest-volume Craft and Structure question type.
10 min answer →