ACT 1-on-1 CurriculumReading: Humanities & Natural Science

ACT Reading

• There are two types of questions on the ACT Reading test.

• Reference questions– Reference questions refer to a specific phrase in the passage.– Three types of reference question: paragraph, line, and general.

• Reasoning questions:– Reasoning questions require you to use context clues to infer what the

answer will be in the passage.

• Prose fiction and Humanities have more reasoning questions.• Social Science and Natural Science have more reference

questions.

Types of Questions

ACT Reading

• Process of Elimination– It can be easier to eliminate wrong answers rather than finding the correct

answer.– Eliminate answers that are contrary to the passage, that are not relevant to the

question, or that are not discussed by the passage.

• Skimming– Skimming effectively means to read the first and least sentence of each

paragraph while also finding key words and phrases in the passage.– Underline key words so you can refer back to them.– This works best on Natural Science and Social Science passages.– Practice this before using it.

• Pit Stop Approach– Read 2-3 paragraphs and then stop to think about what you read.– If you do not understand what you read, go back and reread it. – Do this again after the next couple of passages as well.

Test-Taking Strategies

ACT Reading

• Focus on 3– It might be difficult to finish all 4 passages in the time given.– Focus on 3 means you focus on the three passages that you can answer

all questions correctly on and then skipping the rest.

• Reorganizing passages– You don’t have to do the passages in the order they are in on the exam.– Work from your best passage to your weakest passage.– Use your past experience to decide in which order to complete this

section.

• Note Taking – Develop a system for taking notes about the passages characteristics,

highlight similar items in the same way each time to improve your speed.

Test-Taking Strategies

ACT Reading

• The humanities passage has a cultural significance, such as music, theater, art, or literature.

• This question has about 50% reference questions and 50% reasoning questions.

• Questions to be prepared for on Humanities– What is the author’s perspective on the subject he/she is writing about?– What events help shape the author’s opinion?– What information does the author use to support his/her point?

Humanities

ACT Reading

• Turn to p. 95 in the book

• What is the author’s argument?• What are some of the supporting details the author uses for this

argument?

Try it out — Humanities

ACT Reading

• Natural science will be a technical passage in a science field, such as biology, astronomy, physics, or earth science.

• You will want to slow down on this passage but must read it quickly.

• This passage contains 80% reference questions.

• Questions to be prepared for:– What is the argument the author is making?– What information is used to support this argument?

• Underlining is very important on this passage. Underline obscure terms, names, dates, and research findings.

Natural Science

ACT Reading

• Turn to p. 96

• What is the main idea of the passage?• What are some of the names, findings, or obscure terms you came

across?• How is the passage organized? Is it a comparison and contrast,

cause and effect, process of discovery?

Try it Out – Natural Science

ACT Reading

• Turn to p. 184-187

• Read the passage and then answer questions.

• I will let you know when 8 minutes 30 seconds pass.• If you do Focus on 3, you will have 11 minutes 45 seconds to finish

this section.

Try it Out

ACT Reading

• Now we will do a timed reading test.

• Decide if you will focus on three or four passages.• Think of the order you will do the passages. Write this down.• Take notes on the passages characteristics!

• We will do the timed test and then go over the answers.

Try it Out