Digital SAT Practice Rhetorical Synthesis #2

1. While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes:

  • Egyptians had three kinds of paintings: one on flat surfaces, a second on bas-reliefs, and a third on designs in intaglio.
  • Intaglio designs are those hollowed out from a flat surface. Bas-reliefs are designs which are raised from the surface.
  • Egyptian painting is generally found on walls in temples and tombs as well as on columns and cornices. It is also found on small articles.
  • Egyptian painting lacks the perspective of modern art. All paintings are represented in the same plane, not painted to give the appearance of depth.
  • Painting was not signed or attributed to certain artists in ancient Egypt. For this reason, modern scholars have no knowledge of the people who created the paintings from that time period.

The student wants to educate someone unfamiliar with Egyptian paintings as to the difference between intaglio and bas-relief painting. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?

A. Intaglio and bas-relief paintings are both forms of art that were prevalent in Ancient Egypt, and were found on walls, columns, and cornices.
B. Intaglio designs are those painted on hallowed out sections of a flat surface while bas-relief paintings are raised from the surface. Both were common in Ancient Egyptian art.
C. Modern scholars do not know the names of Ancient Egyptian painters, because their work is not signed. However, they do know that both intaglio and bas-relief painting were common.
D. In both intaglio and bas-relief painting, there is a lack of perspective that makes the art appear flat, especially to the modern eye.

2. While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes:

  • So few fragments of Assyrian painting survive today that very little is known about the artwork of this civilization.
  • Assyrian painters appear to have done much of their work on walls, both on plaster and directly on brick.
  • When Assyrian plaster paintings are discovered, they often quickly disappear due to being exposed to the air for the first time in centuries.
  • Assyrians painted on tiles as well. Tile painting survives much longer than wall painting, but is prone to breaking. No complete Assyrian tile paintings have been assembled.

The student wants to give an overview of Assyrian painting to an audience who has no knowledge of it. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?

A. While little is known about Assyrian painting, it seems that it was largely done on walls and on tiles.
B. Unearthed Assyrian wall painting often degrades quickly when exposed to the air, which makes it difficult to learn about this style of art.
C. Very little Assyrian painting survives today, so art historians know nothing about the art of this civilization.
D. Painted Assyrian tiles, or shards thereof, are often found. However, archeologists have been unable to assemble entire paintings.

3. While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes:

  • In  6th century B.C.E. Babylon under king Nebuchanezzar, tile-painting was the peak of artistic expression.
  • The Babylonians were known for their rich and glowing cities, which shone with the bright and vibrant colored tiles.
  • The Babylonian tiles could be a solid color or could have intricate patterns on them. Some tiles were used to assemble vast scenes similar to those found on medieval tapestries.
  • Only a few remnants of Babylonian tile painting still exist today.

The student wants to explain to readers the beauty of Babylonian tile painting. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?

A. Babylonian cities were rich and glowing, covered in bright and vibrantly colored tiles which made up intricate designs, some even as complex as medieval tapestries.
B. Under King Nebuchanezzar, tile-painting was the peak of artistic expression, however, few examples remain.
C. Babylonian tiles were often a solid color, though many could be covered with a painted pattern.
D. Painted tiles covered the Babylonian cities of the 6th century B.C. E. The cities were, in fact, known for their colored tiles.

4. While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes.

  • Apelles could be described as the greatest of all Greek painters.
  • Apelles’s art is known for exquisite finishing as well as an abundance of grace and sweetness.
  • Apelles painted both King Phillip of Macedon and his son: Alexander the Great. This work lead to Apelles being the court painter and granted the exclusive rights to paint the monarch.
  • Late in his career, Apelles traveled as far as Egypt and painted a diverse range of mythological beings including Venus.

The student wants to include in her essay a sentence that will highlight Apelles’s connections to the Greek court. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?

A. The greatest of all Greek painters, Apelles was well known at court for the grace and sweetness in his work.
B. While he was well known in Greece, Apelles also traveled widely to seek inspiration for his work
C. Apelles painted a wide variety of subjects, from Phillip of Macedon, to mythological beings like Venus.
D. Both Phillip of Macedon and his son, Alexander the Great, retained Apelles as their official portrait painter and the general court painter as well.

5. While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes:

  • One well known form of Roman art is mosaics, which were used not just as artistic pieces, but also as wall and floor decorations.
  • The Romans did not invent the mosaic art form, but they did develop their own unique style of placing thousands of tiny shards of stone, glass, and pottery to create pictures.
  • Romans spread their mosaic art so far and wide that it is still common today for excavations in far flung parts of the former Roman empire to find amazing pieces of art buried in fields and under buildings.
  • Due to the prolific nature of Roman mosaics, many mosaics that are discovered are not preserved.

The student would like to explain to a friend already familiar with mosaics why Roman mosaics often are not preserved after discovery. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?

A. Roman mosaics were used as wall and floor decorations and were made up of shards of glass, stone, or pottery, which made them quite durable.
B. Mosaics are still commonly found in far flung parts of the former Roman empire as the durability of the materials has allowed them to survive significantly longer than other art forms.
C. Due to the widespread nature of Roman mosaics, newly unearthed mosaics are often not preserved: there are simply too many to keep them all.
D. Mosaic tiling was known prior to the Romans adopting the art form, but the Romans perfected and spread the art form.

6. While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes:

  • Roman catacomb paintings from the 3rd and 4th centuries C.E. often have Christian themes and are found in the underground catacombs near Rome itself since early Christians often had to hide their religious activities for fear of persecution.
  • These paintings exhibit majesty and earnestness as the painters tried to express their faith through their artwork.
  • Many of these artworks had not just literal meanings, but also symbolic meanings that would only be apparent to others who understood the significance of the chosen symbols.
  • One example of this symbolism would be a literal painting of a river of water which also had a figurative meaning in regards to baptism: a spiritual washing away of sin.

The student would like to explain the symbolism often found in catacomb paintings. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?

A. Catacomb paintings in Rome often have both obvious and symbolic themes. The obvious would be apparent to any viewer, while the symbolic would only be known to those who could decipher them.
B. Christian symbols are often found in catacomb paintings as the painters strove to express their faith through art and still avoid persecution. One example of such a symbol would be an artist painting flowing water to symbolize baptism.
C. Known for their majesty and earnestness, many early Christian catacomb paintings from the 3rd and 4th centuries B.C.E. are still visible in Rome today.
D. Due to fear of religious persecution, many early Christian artists used symbols in their paintings and in their every day life.

7. While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes:

  •  During the Romanesque period (950-1250) painting was not seen as an elevated art form. Rather, it was looked at as a form of visual story telling.
  • Most painting in Europe was done to illustrate religious stories and concepts and so was under the control and direction of the church.
  • Because of this connection, glass painting (what we know today as stained-glass) was developed, though historians argue whether the technique originated in Germany or France.
  • While most glass painting was very colorful as we are accustomed to seeing today, some factions of the church rejected highly colorful paintings and instead opted for grisaille glass which utilized the same patterns, but only applied paints in shades of grey, green, and brown with only very small bursts of other colors.

The student wants to emphasize the difference in how painting was seen in the Romanesque Period compared to how we see it today. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?

A. During the Romanesque period, painting was primarily done on glass in order to illustrate religious concepts.
B. Today, painting is seen as a form of high art, while in the Romanesque period, it was used merely as a way to tell stories.
C. During the Romanesque period, most painting was done in bright and vibrant colors, however, some religious orders preferred to paint mostly in shades of grey, green, and brown.
D. Stained glass art in the Romanesque period was seen as a way to tell the stories of the church. Today, it is also used in a wide variety of non-religious settings.

8. While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes:

  • The Gothic Period of Medieval painting was highly influenced by the well known Gothic style of architecture.
  • In the Gothic Period, painting moved out from the influence of the clergy and painters were more and more free to paint how and what they wanted, backed by powerful guild associations.
  • Gothic painting includes a lot of images from nature and starts to attempt to introduce perspective (which had previously been missing) into artistic renderings of scenes.
  • Due to the highly decorative nature of Gothic architecture, not much space was left on walls for painting. Glass painting, therefore, remained very common.

The student wants to explain the change during the Gothic period and the results of that change. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?

A. Influenced by Gothic architecture, Gothic painting was both highly decorative, and often created on windows.
B. Both Gothic architecture and a lack of clerical oversight influenced a change in painting arts during the Gothic period.
C. While art had previously been quite flat, Gothic painters started to experiment with adding dimension and perspective to their paintings.
D. During the Gothic period, the church lost much influence over artists. This led to paintings incorporating perspective and natural themes.

9. While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes:

  • Giotto was a well known artist in Italy  in the late 13th and early 14th century.
  • Giotto’s earliest known work is a portrait of the author Dante, painted on the wall of the Podesta at Florence.
  • Dante was exiled from Florence and his portrait was whitewashed over, which preserved it for modern scholars to examine.
  • There are many other works of Giotto in Florence and is also known for his frescoes in Assisi, and his pictures at Padua
  • In addition to his painting, Giotto is remembered as the great architect who designed the tower in Florence.

The student wants to give an overview of Giotto’s work in Florence. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this work?

A. Giotto’s first work is found on a wall in Florence. It is a painting of the author Dante. In addition to his paintings, Giotto is also known for his frescoes in Assisi and his pictures at Padua.
B. The painting of Dante at the Podesta is the first known work of Giotto and was preserved when it was whitewashed over following Giotto’s exile from Florence.
C. Giotto’s first work, a painting of Dante, as well of several other paintings still exist in Florence. In addition, he is remembered as the architect of the tower in Florence.
D. Despite being exiled from Florence, Dante is still associated with the city because of his work designing the tower in Florence.

10. While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes:

  • The Van Eyck family, of Flemish origin, is well known for its artistic creations.
  • The family had four painters: three brothers and one sister, the eldest of which was Hubert Van Eyck.
  • Hubert Van Eyck work and discoveries on the use of colors led to modern day oil painting. After Hubert passed away, his brother, Jan, perfected the technique and became a celebrated painter.
  • Prior to the work of the Van Eyck brothers, oil painting was a very unsatisfactory process and led to mixed results. The Van Eyck method vastly improved the process and results of oil painting.

The student wants to explain to a friend the influence the Van Eyck family had on oil painting. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?

A. There were four painters in the Van Eyck family. Two of them, Hubert and Jan, are the best remembered of the family.
B. Huber and Jan Van Eyck worked to perfect the process of oil painting and discovered techniques which led to modern oil painting.
C. Traditional oil painting was a very unpredictable process which caused issues for most painters, including all four of the Van Eyck siblings.
D. The Va Eyck family is a well known painting family. The three brothers and one sister are well known for their artistic masterpieces.

Answer Explanations:

  1. B. The question is asking for the difference between intaglio and bas-relief painting. Options A and D give the similarities between the two and are therefore incorrect. Option C focuses on the artists, not the art and only gives a similarity between the two approaches. Option B takes information from the second bullet point to point out the differences between the two approaches and is therefore correct.
  2. A. Given that the audience has no knowledge of Assyrian painting, the student must give even the most basic information. Option A best gives a basic understanding of Assyrian painting based on the notes. Option B explains why we struggle to understand Assyrian art, but does not give an overview of what we do know. Option C explains why we don’t know much but doesn’t explain what we do know. Option D is not an overview of Assyrian painting, but rather a fact about only one type of Assyrian painting.
  3. A. The student wants to explain the beauty of the Babylonian tile painting. Options B, C and D explain different facts about Babylonian tiles and painting, but do not explain their beauty. Option A explains their brightness and vibrancy, their intricate designs, and even compares them to tapestries, giving a clear understanding of the beauty of this art form.
  4. D. The student wants to talk not about Appelles’s work, but rather his connection to the Greek court (the organization surrounding the Greek monarch). The answer, therefore, must focus on Apelles’s connections to the kings Phillip of Macedon and Alexander the Great. This eliminates options A and B. Option C mentions Phillip of Macedon, but only as a subject of a painting. Option D best explains Apelles’s close connection to the court of Phillip and Alexander.
  5. C. The student’s friend is already familiar with mosaics in general, so the concept does not need to be explained, eliminating option A. The student wants to explain why Roman mosaics, once discovered, are often not preserved. Options B and D do not explain this, but rather give other details about the mosaics. Option C explains that there are simply too many mosaics to preserve them all, giving the explanation the student wants.
  6. B. The student wants to explain the symbolism found specifically in catacomb paintings. Option A talks about the existence of symbols, but does not give an explanation of them. Option D does not discuss catacomb paintings specifically. Option C does not address symbols at all. Option B, therefore, is the best answer since it addresses catacomb painting specifically, addresses why they were used, and gives an explanation of one specific symbol.
  7. B. The student wants to emphasize the difference between how we see art today (as an elevated art form) and how people saw it in the Romanesque period (as a means of visual storytelling). Only option B provides this contrast. Options  A and C speak to Romanesque painting, but not to modern painting. Option B does not discuss how the painting is seen, but rather how stained glass is used.
  8. D. The correct answer must include both the change during the Gothic period and the results of that change. Option A does not discuss how Gothic painting changed. Option B discusses why a change occurred, but not what that change was. Option C discusses a change, but not the effects thereof. Option D is the best answer since it discusses a change (the church lost influence) and the effects thereof (artists started using perspective and natural themes).
  9. C.  The correct answer must give a broad overview of Giotto’s work specifically in Florance. Option A speaks of his work in multiple places. Options B and C speak of just one Florentine work of Giotto. Option C gives the best general overview of Giotto’s work in Florence.
  10. B. In order to understand the influence the family as a whole had on oil painting, option B is the best answer since it discusses the influences of multiple members of the family. Option A says they are remembered, but not any influence that they had. Option C discusses an issue they had. D presents the idea that they are well known, but not that they had any influence on oil painting in general.

The information for all notes is taken from History of Art for Beginners and Students. If you wish to read more it is available in the public domain from Project Gutenberg:

https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/24726/pg24726-images.html#CHAPTER_I

Digital SAT Standard English Conventions Practice Questions: Punctuation

1.  The hour of noon had just struck, and the few visitors still lingering among the curiosities of the great museum were suddenly startled by the sight of one of the attendants running down the broad, central staircase, loudly shouting, “Close the doors! Let no one out! An accident has ____________________ to leave the building.”

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. occurred, while nobody’s
B. occurred, while nobodies
C. occurred, and nobody is
D. occurred, and nobodies

2. She did not answer. She did not even look his way. With a rapid glance into the faces __________________ in one of deep compassion directed toward herself, he repeated his question.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. about him, ending
B. about him; ending
C. about him ending
D. about him ending,

3. With an air of relief Mr. Jewett stepped again into the court and, repelling with hasty gestures the importunities of the small group of men and women who had lacked the courage to follow the more adventurous ______________________ to where the door-man stood on guard over the main entrance.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. ones upstairs—crossed
B. ones upstairs crossed
C. ones upstairs crossed,
D. ones upstairs, crossed

4. They were standing at the foot of the great staircase connecting the two floors. __________________ away on either side, ran the two famous, highly ornamented galleries, with their row of long low arches indicating the five compartments into which they were severally divided.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. Above them, stretching
B. Above, them stretching
C. Above them stretching
D. Above them—stretching

5. The Curator offered his arm. The old man made a move to ___________________ himself up with an air of quiet confidence.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. take it then, drew
B. take it then drew
C. take it—then drew
D. take it: then drew

6. She was near ______________________ being a woman of great nerve, she fought her weakness and waited patiently for the next question. It was different, without doubt, from any she had expected.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. collapsing again, however,
B. collapsing again; however,
C. collapsing again: however,
D. collapsing again, however;

7. As he was meditating how he could best convey to her the necessity of detaining her further, he heard a muttered exclamation from the young woman standing near her and, following the direction of her pointing finger, saw that the strange silence which had fallen upon the room had a _______________ had fainted away in her chair.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. cause; Mrs. Taylor,
B. cause: Mrs. Taylor
C. cause, Mrs. Taylor
D. cause Mrs. Taylor,

8. But the detective was not so hasty. With a thousand things in mind, he stopped to peer along the gallery and down into the court before giving himself away to any prying eye. Satisfied that he might make the desired move with impunity, Mr. Gryce was about to turn in the desired direction when, struck by a ______________ again stopped short.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. new fact: he
B. new fact, he,
C. new fact he
D. new fact, he

9. The detective, thus appealed to, hesitated a ____________________ an irrelevance perhaps natural to the occasion, he inquired where this door so conveniently hidden from the general view led to.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. a moment then; with
B. a moment; then, with
C. a moment, then, with
D. a moment then with

10. The detective, working his way back around the pedestal, cast another glance up and down the _________________ into the court. Still no spying eye, save that of the officer opposite.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. gallery and over
B. gallery, and over
C. gallery and, over
D. gallery: and over

11. Silence. Heads moving, eyes peering, excitement visible in every face, but not a word from anybody. Mr. Gryce turned and pointed up at the clock. ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­_________________ still no word from man or woman.

Which choice completest the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. All looked however
B. All looked: but
C. All looked, or
D. All looked—but

12. He decided upon the northern one, which you will remember was the one holding _________________ __ finding anybody there, no matter whom, would certainly settle the identity of the person responsible for that flying arrow.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. the tapestry; since
B. the tapestry, since,
C. the tapestry since,
D. the tapestry: since,

13. A man was there: man going down—_________________ this man, as he soon saw from his face and uniform, was Correy the attendant.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. no—coming up—
B. no, coming up;
C. no coming up;
D. no, coming up,

14. As he did this, two ____________________ Sweetwater, who had stolen upon the scene, possibly at some intimation from Mr. Gryce, took a step toward them which brought him in alignment with the Englishman, of whose height in comparison with his own he seemed to take careful note; and secondly, the sensitive skin of the foreigner flushed red again as he noticed the Coroner’s sarcastic smile, and heard his dry remark.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. things happened; first
B. things happened; first,
C. things happened: first,
D. things happened: first

15. But nowhere in the great city of which we write on this night of May 23, 1913, was there to be found a scene of greater ______________________ the court and galleries of its famous museum.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. contradictions: than in
B. contradictions than, in
C. contradictions than in
D. contradictions than in,

16. Gems of antique art, casts in which genius had stored its soul and caused to live before us the story of the _________________ from desert sands, friezes from the Parthenon and bas-reliefs from Nineveh and Heliopolis, filled every corner, commanding the eye to satisfy itself in forms of deathless grace or superhuman power.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. ancients pillars
B. ancients, pillars
C. ancients pillars,
D. ancients: pillars

17. The Inspector, finding himself very much disturbed by the doubt just mentioned, felt inclined to _________________ any perceptible advancement had been made by this freak business of his canny subordinate.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. question: whether
B. question whether,
C. question; whether
D. question whether

18. In saying this, Mr. Gryce studiously avoided the _____________________ the Inspector in his turn looked up, then down—anywhere but in the detective’s direction.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. Inspectors’ eye;
B. Inspector’s eye;
C. Inspector’s eye:
D. Inspectors’ eye,

19. For the next three days the impatience of the public met with nothing but disappointment. The police were reticent—more reticent far than __________________________ to add to the facts already published, had little but conjectures to offer.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. usual—and the papers, powerless
B. usual, and the papers, powerless
C. usual—and the papers—powerless
D. usual, and the papers—powerless

20. The other—Carleton Roberts, his bosom friend, and the museum’s chief director—is of a different _____________ no less striking to the eye.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. type: but
B. type, nor
C. type, but
D. type, for

  1. C. “An accident has occurred” is an independent clause. “Nobody is to leave the building” is also an independent clause. Two independent clauses can be connected with a comma and one of the FANBOYS. “While” is not one of the FANBOYS, so A and B are incorrect. “Nobodies” is the plural form of “nobody” so D is incorrect. Answer C is correct because it correctly uses comma FANBOYS and it has the correct format of the word “nobody”.
  2. A. The phrase “ending in one of deep compassion directed toward herself” is extra information in the sentence that is not crucial to the structure of the sentence. Such phrases should be surrounded by commas, dashes, or parentheses. Since there is a comma after the word “herself” there must therefore also be a comma before the word “ending” to correctly bracket the phrase with commas. This makes A the best answer and the other answers incorrect.
  3. D. The phrase starting with the word “repelling” and ending with the word “upstairs” is extra information in the sentence that is not crucial to the structure of the sentence. Such phrases should be surrounded by commas, dashes, or parentheses. Since there is a comma before the word “repelling” there must therefore also be a comma after the word “upstairs” to correctly bracket the phrase with commas. This makes option D the best answer and the other options incorrect.
  4. A. The phrase starting with the word “stretching” and ending with the word “side” is extra information in the sentence that is not crucial to the structure of the sentence. Such phrases should be surrounded by commas, dashes, or parentheses. Since there is a comma after the word “side” there must therefore also be a comma before the word “stretching” to correctly bracket the phrase with commas. This makes option A the best answer and the other options incorrect.
  5. C. The first clause in the second sentence is an independent clause. The second clause is dependent. To connect an independent and dependent clause you should use a comma, however, this is not an option. A dash can replace a comma, giving a heavier pause. This makes answer C the best answer. Answer A puts a comma in the wrong place, answer B does not give punctuation where a pause is needed, answer D is incorrect as the second part of the sentence is not clarifying or explaining the first part.
  6. B. In this situation, the word “however” logically belongs with the second independent clause. The semicolon connecting the two independent clauses, therefore, must go after the word “again”. The word “however” is then an introductory word to the second independent clause, making it logical to place a comma thereafter. This makes option B correct and the other options incorrect.
  7. B. Options C and D are both run on sentences in which two independent clauses are incorrectly connected with a comma. The second clause is clarifying or explaining something from the first clause, namely, the reason the silence has fallen on the room. This makes a colon the best possible answer since a colon connects an independent clause to a clarification or explanation of that clause.
  8. D. The phrase “struck by a new fact” is extra information in the sentence that is not crucial to the structure of the sentence. Such phrases should be surrounded by commas, dashes, or parentheses. Since there is a comma after the word “when” there must therefore also be a comma before the word “again” to correctly bracket the phrase with commas. This makes D the best answer and the other answers incorrect.
  9. B. This sentence is really made up of two sentences. The first one ends after the word “moment”. The second sentence is made up of a dependent clause connected to an independent clause with the comma after the word “occasion”. To connect two sentences, we need to put a period or a semicolon between them. This makes option B the best answer.
  10. A. In this portion of the sentence no clauses are ending or beginning, no extra information exists, and no lists are being enumerated. In other words, there is no reason to put any sort of punctuation. This makes answer A the best option. Answer B would be correct only if the “and” were connecting two independent clauses.
  11. D. In this sentence, there is a contrast between all looking, and no one saying anything. This makes answers A and C incorrect. In addition, the second part of the sentence is not clarifying or explaining the first part, meaning that option B is incorrect. This just leaves answer D which uses the versatile dash to connect two clauses.
  12. A. The first part of this passage is a sentence made up of a dependent clause connected to an independent clause with a comma after the word “one”. The second part of the passage is an independent clause interrupted by the extra information “no matter whom”. To connect these two complete sentences, we need to use a semicolon. This makes option A correct and the other options incorrect.
  13. B. The first part of this passage is a sentence made up of an independent clause with a colon and then clarifying information ending after the word “up.” The second part of the passage is an independent clause interrupted by the extra information “as he soon saw from his face and uniform.” In order to connect these two sentences, we need to use a semicolon. This eliminates option D. The confusion of having two dashes around essential information eliminates option A. The need for a pause after “no” leads us to B as the best answer.
  14. C. A colon goes after an independent clause and before a clarification or explanation of that independent clause. A comma goes after an introductory word or phrase like “first”. This makes answer option C the best choice.
  15. C. In this portion of the sentence no clauses are ending or beginning, no extra information exists, and no lists are being enumerated. In other words, there is no reason to put any sort of punctuation.
  16. B. This sentence starts with a list. Among the items in the list are “casts in which genius had stored its soul and caused to live before us the story of the ancients” and “pillars from desert sands”. These two items must be separated with a comma, making option B the correct answer.
  17. D. In this portion of the sentence no clauses are ending or beginning, no extra information exists, and no lists are being enumerated. In other words, there is no reason to put any sort of punctuation.
  18. B. In this sentence there is a single inspector who has possession over his eye. This means that the apostrophe must go before the “s”, making options A and D incorrect. In addition, we are connecting two independent clauses, making the semicolon the best option.
  19. A. “More reticent far than usual” is extra information in the sentence. Since it begins with a dash before the word “more” we must end it with a dash after the word “usual”. The phrase “powerless to add to the facts already published” is also extra information. Since it ends with a comma after the word “published” we must start it with a comma before the word “powerless”. This makes option A the correct answer.
  20. C. The first clause of the sentence says that Carleton Roberts is a different type, this contrasts with him being “no less striking”. The contrasting word “but” therefore fits the author’s meaning. A comma to connect the independent clause to a dependent one would also be appropriate, making option C the best answer.

All passages are adapted or taken from The Mystery of the Hasty Arrow by Anna Katharine Green. You can read who whole exciting mystery novel about a murder in a museum for free online:

https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/17763/pg17763-images.html

Digital SAT Writing Transitions Practice Questions #2

1. He felt convinced, in his own mind, that he had been attacked by some fatal disease. When he arrived in London, ___________ he was relieved to find that the specialists whom he consulted, while they mostly gave him his money’s worth of polite interest, did not display any anxiety as to his condition.

Which choice competes the text with the most logical translation?
A. after a bit,
B. however,
C. on the other hand,
D. in addition

2. I want to talk to you about the child, little Juliet,” she said, a day or two later. She is not mine ________________  beyond that her parentage must remain a secret, even from you. Yet this I may say: she is the child of a friend of mine” A. consequently, and
B. however, but
C. of course, but
D. also, and

3. Besides, there was no getting over the fact that she was no relation whatever, and was, in addition, a considerable drain on the family resources, all of which Lady Byrne felt entirely equal to disbursing alone and unassisted. ___________ her presence led to disagreements between Sir Arthur and his wife.

A. Eventually,
B. Nonetheless,
C. In contrast,
D. Regardless,

4. The room in which she sat was so dark, so gloomy, so bare and cheerless, that Juliet began to wonder whether she would not have been wiser not to have come. This was not a place, _________ which fond parents would choose for a long-deferred meeting with their child, after years of separation.

A. therefore,
B. however,
C. fortunately,
D. surely,

5. He is one of the most respectable, the most domesticated of peers. Not very cheerful company, _____________ no one in the world can justly say a word against him in any way. He has had a sad time lately; his wife and only child died within a month of each other, only two or three years ago. A. maybe, and
B. for
C. though, so
D. perhaps, but

6. From the quickness with which Lord Ashiel answered her, he might have been sitting waiting at the end of the wire, and he expressed great pleasure at her acceptance of his invitation. ________ she could hear from the tone of his voice that his gratification was no mere empty form.

A. While,
B. Conversely,
C. Indeed,
D. Nevertheless,

7. No one was more conscious than himself that he was far from being infallible; _______ his admirers appeared to him to be willfully blind to that elementary truth; so that when he failed to bring a case to a successful issue people were apt to show an amount of disappointment that he, for his part, thought very unreasonable.

A. subsequently,
B. as has been noted,
C. for instance,
D. in fact,

8. In spite of her extremely hazy ideas on the subject of other people’s property, there was, he admitted, something attractive about her. __________ he was very glad she had gone.

A. Still,
B. As a result,
C. Naturally,
D. Moreover,

9. For a long while he sat on, huddled in the corner of an arm-chair, his elbows on the arm, his chin resting on his hand, and in his eyes the look of one who wrestles with obscure and complicated problems of mental arithmetic. ________________ but without relaxing his expression of concentrated effort, he stretched out long artistic fingers to a box on the table, took from it a chocolate, and transferred it mechanically to his mouth.

A. From time to time,
B. In brief,
C. In conclusion,
D. On the other hand,

10. Juliet did not really enjoy grouse-driving, but she tried to appear as if she did, since everyone else seemed to, and at all events there were intervals between drives when she could be happy in the glory of the hills and the wild free air of the moors. ____________she knelt in her corner of the butt beside her host’s big retriever, and waited. There was a little bunch of heather growing level with her nose, and she bent forward silently and sniffed at it. But the honey-sweet scent was drowned for the moment by the smell of gunpowder and dog.

A. For example,
B. Meanwhile,
C. Accordingly,
D. Because,

  1. B. In the first sentence, we learn that the man believes himself to be fatally ill. In the next sentence, though we learn that the doctors are not worried about him at all. These two ideas are in contrast to one another, making “however,” the best option.
  2. C. “She is not mine” is an independent clause, as is “beyond that her parentage must remain a secret”. To connect these two independent clauses, we need a comma and one of the FANBOYS like “but” or “and”. In this situation the two independent clauses are contrasting with one another, making “but” a better option than “and”. Since “but” is a contrasting word, we do not need a second contrasting word like “however”.
  3. A. In the first part of the passage, we learn that the woman is not a relative and is a financial drain of the family. We also learn that Lady Byrne wants to control the finances without input from the woman. It only makes sense, then, that her presence would “eventually” cause disagreements between Sir Arthur and Lady Byrne.
  4. D. Juliet, hoping for a meeting with her parents, looks at the dark and gloomy room and thinks that “surely” no parents would plan a reunion in such a place. Options A, B, and C do not fit the authors intended meaning.
  5. D. The first part of the sentence reveals that the man is not very cheerful company (a negative statement). The second part of the sentence reveals that no one can say anything bad about him (a positive statement). These two statements contrast, making “but” the ideal one of the FANBOYS to pair with the comma in connecting the two independent clauses.
  6. C. “Indeed” could also mean “in addition.” The author here is trying to add more information to the previous statement about Lord Ashiel’s “great pleasure at her acceptance”, making “indeed” the best option.
  7. D. Since it has not previously been stated that his admirers were blind to the truth, answer B is incorrect. The second sentence is not an example of the first, so answer C is incorrect. The first sentence is not caused by the first, so answer A is incorrect. Option D is the best answer.
  8. A. The author is setting up a contrast. Even though he finds her attractive, he is glad she is gone. Only answer A shows this contrast.
  9. A.  The second sentence is not summing up the first, making choices B and C incorrect. The second sentence is not contrasting with the first sentence, making choice D incorrect. Only answer option A correctly describes the actions of the man.
  10. B.  Juliet does not enjoy the activity at hand, but she is there because she enjoys “the glory of the hills and wild free air”. At the time described in the passage “meanwhile” she is not enjoying the hills and air, she is crouched in the corner with a dog, waiting. This makes answer option B the best. We need a description of time, which A, C, and D are not.

All passages are exerts or adaptations from The Ashiel Mystery: A Detective Story, by Mrs. Charles Bryce. If you’d like to read the story in it’s entirety, it is available on Project Gutenberg:

https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/9746/pg9746-images.html

Digital SAT Practice: Writing/Verb Choice Questions

1. The officer nodded, took the boy by the arm, and in a trice ___________ with him into the adjoining store.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of standard English?
A. have disappeared
B. disappears
C. disappeared
D. disappear

2. ________ the white light burn on, Mr. Gryce, by a characteristic effort, shifted his attention to the walls, covered, as I have said, with tapestries and curios.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of standard English?
A. Letting
B. Let
C. Had let
D. Have let

3. And sure enough, in another instant this strange being, losing all semblance to his former self, entered upon a series of pantomimic actions which to the two men who watched him seemed both to explain and illustrate the crime which _________________________ there.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of standard English?
A. had just been enacted
B. have just been enacted
C. were just enacted
D. had just enacted

4. The butler’s lips opened and a string of strange gutturals poured forth, while with his one disengaged hand (for the other was held to his side by Styles) he _________ his ears and his lips, and violently shook his head.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of standard English?
A. touches
B. was touching
C. touched
D. had touched

5. This absence of the usual means of eliciting knowledge from the surrounding people, adds to, rather than detracts from, the interest which Mr. Gryce  feels in the case, and a little before midnight the army of reporters, medical men, officials, and such others as had followed in the coroner’s wake, _______ out of the front door and leave him again, for a few hours at least, master of the situation.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of standard English?
A. files
B. file
C. filing
D. filed

6. The hour was late, and only certain portions of the city showed any real activity. Into one of these thoroughfares they presently came, and before the darkened window of one of the lesser shops ________, while Jake pointed out the two stuffed frogs engaged with miniature swords in mortal combat at which he had been looking when the lady came up and spoke to him.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of standard English?
A. paused,
B. pausing,
C. pause,
D. pauses,

7. The officer went out, and Mr. Gryce sat for a few moments communing with himself, during which he took out a little package from his pocket, and __________ out on his desk the five little spangles it contained, regarded them intently.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of standard English?
A. emptied
B. empties
C. had emptied
D. emptying

8. Sweetwater, to whom the song of the sirens would have sounded less sweet, listened with delight and ______________ with a frank smile.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of standard English?
A. respond
B. had responded
C. responds
D responded

9. This time he approached with considerable feebleness, passed slowly into the study, ­­­­­­­­­­­______________ to the table, and reached out his hands as if to lift something which he expected to find there.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of standard English?
A. advances
B. advanced
C. have advanced
D. advance

10. But her ears, and attention, _______________toward two girls chatting on a bench near her as freely as if they were quite alone on the lawn.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of standard English?
A. was turned
B. are turned
C. were turned
D. is turned

11. Was it that courage comes with despair? Or was he too absorbed in his own misery to note the shadow it cast about him? His brooding brow and vacant eye _______ of a mind withdrawn from present surroundings.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of standard English?
A. speaks
B. speak
C. spoke
D. spoken

12. So I wrote to my brother, Felix Cadwalader, or, rather, Felix Adams, as he preferred to be called in later years for family reasons entirely disconnected with the matter of his sudden demise, and, ________ him I had become interested in a young girl of good family and some wealth, asked him to settle upon me a certain sum which would enable me to marry her with some feeling of self-respect.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of standard English?
A. told
B. tells
C. telling
D. had told

13. Eva, to whom I had said little of this brother, certainly nothing which would lead her to anticipate ___________ either so handsome a man or one of such mental poise and imposing character, looked frightened and a trifle awe-struck.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of standard English?
A. seeing
B. to see
C. having seen
D. saw

14. Your stay in Mr. Adams’s house was quite productive, ma’am. Did you prolong it after the departure of this old man?” “No, sir, I _____________my fill of the mysterious, and left immediately after him.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of standard English?
A. had had
B. have had
C. was having
D. could have

15. Mr. Gryce, with something of the instinct and much of the deftness of a housewife, proceeded to pull up a couple of rugs from the parlor floor and ­­_________ them over these openings.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of standard English?
A. strung
B. string
C. had strung
D. strings

16. Miss Butterworth drew a long breath, ________ Mr. Gryce with some curiosity, and then triumphantly exclaimed, “Can you read the meaning of all that? I think I can.”

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of standard English?
A. eyes
B. had eyed
C. eying
D. eyed

17. Mr. Gryce, whose eye is travelling over the wall, reaches over her shoulder to one of the dozen pictures hanging at intervals from the bottom to the top of the staircase, and pulling it away from the wall, on which it hangs decidedly askew, _________ a round opening through which pours a ray of blue light which can only proceed from the vault of the adjoining study.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of standard English?
A. revealed
B. revealing
C. reveals
D. has revealed

18. The study—that most remarkable of rooms—________ a secret which has not been imparted to you; a very peculiar one, madam, which was revealed to me in a rather startling manner.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of standard English?

A. did contain
B. contains
C. is containing
D. contain

19. Young Sweetwater, who was now all nerve, enthusiasm, and hope, ______________.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of standard English?
A. bow
B. bowed
C. bowing
D. have bowed

20. The two gentlemen, on the contrary, with an air of total indifference to her proximity, continued their walk until they reached the end of the piazza, and then __________ and proceeded mechanically to retrace their steps.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of standard English?
A. turned
B. turning
C. turn
D. turns

  1. C. In the sentence, the officer does three things. He nods, takes the boys arm, and disappears. In the sentence the first two actions are in the past tense “nodded, took”. In order to maintain parallel structure, the third verb should also be in the past tense. This makes option C the best answer. Options B and D are in the present, and option A is the plural present perfect, not the singular simple past.
  2. A. In English we can use the present participle or gerund (word ending in ing) to indicate that something is currently happening at the point in time being discussed. In this case, Mr. Gryce is letting the light burn while in the past he shifted attention to the walls. The other answers do not appropriately choose a tense that allows the reader to understand this.
  3. A. Answer options C and D are incorrect because they say that the crime enacted something instead of the crime being enacted itself. Option B is incorrect because it uses the plural “have” to describe the singular “crime”. Answer option A is therefore the best choice because it uses the singular “had” and correctly explains that it is the crime that was enacted.
  4. C. In this sentence, the butler is doing three things. His lips open, he touches his ears and lips, and he shakes his head. All three of these actions must be in the same tense. This makes option C correct as it matches “touched” to “opened” and “shook”.
  5. A. Be careful in identifying the subject of your verb in such lengthy sentences. Who is it who is filing out the front door? It isn’t Mr. Gryce. Nor is it the reporters, medical men, officials etc. (the subject of your verb will never be in a prepositional phrase).  Rather, the subject of the verb is “army”. Army is a singular noun, so you much choose the singular “files”. In addition, the passage is in present tense, making option D incorrect.
  6. A.  Since the passage is in the past tense and “paused” is in the past tense, answer A is the only correct answer.
  7. D. While the passage is in the past tense, at that point in the past, Mr. Gryce is presently “emptying” the package out onto his desk. One way to be clued into this is to put the answers into the context of the last part of the passage “regarded them intently.” Which only makes sense when answer D is selected. If answer A is selected the sentence is awkward.
  8. D. Sweetwater is doing two things—match your answer to “listened” and the correct answer “responded” becomes obvious.
  9. B. The man did four things: approached, passed, advanced, and reached. Only answer option B correctly matches “advanced” with the others.
  10. C. Since the subject “ears” is plural, options A and D are incorrect as they have singular verbs “was” and “is”. Since the sentence is in the past tense, the verb “were” is the most appropriate answer.
  11. C. This passage is in the simple past, so our verb must be “spoke”. Options A and B are in the present, and option D is the past participle which would go with a helping verb to create the past perfect instead of building the simple past.
  12. C. Even though this passage is in the past tense, this particular sentence is put into the past with the words “had become”. What the author is saying is that at a point in the past, the author of the letter was currently “telling” his brother that he (the writer) had become interested. The only answer that fits this complicated idea is answer option C.
  13. A. Since Eva is anticipating something, that something will be happening in the future. This means that we must use the gerund form—that is—the verb with “ing” at the end. This makes option A the best answer and the other options incorrect.
  14. A. In the past, the lady had already had her fill of the mysterious. She “had had” it. While this seems intuitively wrong, it is the correct way to express that in the past someone already had something. Option B would be used if the subject were plural instead of a singular person.
  15. B. Mr. Gryce does two things the first is to “pull” and the second, therefore must be to “string” so that the tenses of the verbs match.
  16. D. Miss Butterworth “drew”, “eyed”, and “exclaimed”. In order for her three actions to be in parallel structure (all in the simple past), we must pick option D.
  17. C. Since this passage is describing Mr. Gryce’s actions in the present tense, the best option is option C, the third person present singular. Options A and D are forms of the past tense and option B is the gerund form.
  18. B. The subject of this verb is singular: the study. This make option be the only correct answer since it is the third person singular conjugation of the verb “contain”.
  19. B. The subject of the verb is “Young Sweetwater”. When you put the subject directly in front of the answers it becomes clear that only option B is the right verb. Answers A and D are both plural while the subject is singular. Option C is the gerund form which is not appropriate in this context.
  20. A. Make sure that your answer is parallel in form to the second verb “proceeded”. In this case, that would mean choosing answer option A: turned.  The other options are not parallel.


All passages have been adapted from The Circular Study by Anna Katharine Green. Read more of this mystery novel on project Gutenberg:

https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/18761/pg18761-images.html


Digital SAT Poetry Practice Reading Questions #4

1. The following is a poem by Alfred Tenison:

When cats run home and light is come,
And dew is cold upon the ground,
And the far-off stream is dumb,
And the whirring sail goes round,
And the whirring sail goes round;
Alone and warming his five wits,
The white owl in the belfry sits.

When merry milkmaids click the latch,
And rarely smells the new-mown hay,
And the cock hath sung beneath the thatch
Twice or thrice his roundelay,
Twice or thrice his roundelay;
Alone and warming his five wits,
The white owl in the belfry sits.

What is the main idea of the text?
A. Cats and milkmaids share much in common: both are seen by the owl.
B. As the sun rises and the world comes to life, the owl settles in to rest.
C. The routine of each day is predictable and common.
D. The cat and the rooster are the waking signs of each morning.

2. “An Incident of the French Camp” is a poem by Robert Browning. Having read it, a student claims that the town of Ratisbon has been taken. Which quotation from the text best supports the claim?

A. You know, we French storm’d Ratisbon/ A mile or so away/ On a little mound, Napoleon/ Stood on our storming-day;
B. Just as perhaps he mus’d “My plans/ That soar, to earth may fall. Let once my army leader Lannes/ Waver at yonder wall,”
C. “Well,” cried he, “Emperor, by God’s grace/ We’ve got you Ratisbon!/ The Marshal’s in the market-place/ And you’ll be there anon!”
D. “You’re wounded!” “Nay,” the soldier’s pride/ Touched to the quick, he said: “I’m killed, Sire!” And his chief beside, Smiling the boy fell dead.

3. The following is the poem “Old Ironsides” by Oliver Wendell Homes:

Ay, tear her tattered ensign down!
Long has it waved on high,
And many an eye has danced to see
That banner in the sky;
Beneath it rung the battle shout,
And burst the cannon’s roar;—
The meteor of the ocean air
Shall sweep the clouds no more.

Her deck, once red with heroes’ blood,
Where knelt the vanquished foe,
When winds were hurrying o’er the flood
And waves were white below.
No more shall feel the victor’s tread,
Or know the conquered knee;
The harpies of the shore shall pluck
The eagle of the sea!

O, better that her shattered hulk
Should sink beneath the wave;
Her thunders shook the mighty deep,
And there should be her grave;
Nail to the mast her holy flag,
Set every threadbare sail,
And give her to the god of storms,
The lightning and the gale!

Based on the text, what fate would Holmes prefer for Old Ironsides?
A. That she be destroyed by a lightning strike
B. That she be taken ashore and preserved for posterity
C. That she lose her flag and decks
D. That she sink in glory to the depths of the sea

4. “Warren’s Address to the American Soldiers” is a poem by John Peirpont. A writer, knowing that that the poem echoes Warren’s rallying cry to American soldiers, claims that it aims to glorify a coming battle. Which quotation from the poem most effectively illustrates the claim?

A. Look behind you! They’re afire!/ And, before you, see/ Who have done it! – From the vale/ On they come!
B. Will ye look for greener graves?/ Hope ye mercy still?
C. What’s the mercy despots feel?/ Hear it in that battle-peal!
D. In the God of battles trust!/ Die we may, and die we must/ But, O, where can dust to dust/ Be consigned so well.

5. “My Own Shall Come to Me” is a poem by John Burroughs. A teacher tells her class that it is a poem about patience and the inevitability of fate. Which quotation from “My Own Shall Come to Me” most effectively illustrates the claim?

A. I rave no more ‘gainst time or fate/For lo! My own shall come to me…/ No wind can drive my bark astray,/ Nor change the tide of destiny.
B. The stars come nightly to the sky;/ the tidal wave comes to the sea;/ Nor time, nor space, nor deep, nor high,/ Can keep my own away from me.
C. The waters know their own and draw/ The brook that springs in yonder heights;/ So flows the good with equal law/ Unto the soul of pure delights.
D. Serene I fold my hands and wait,/ Nor care for wind, nor tide, nor sea…/ What matter if I stand alone?/ I wait with joy the coming years;

6. The following is the poem “A Wish” by Samuel Rogers:
 
Mine be a cot beside the hill;
A bee-hive’s hum shall soothe my ear;
A willowy brook that turns a mill
With many a fall shall linger near.

The swallow, oft, beneath my thatch
Shall twitter from her clay-built nest;
Oft shall the pilgrim lift the latch,
And share my meal, a welcome guest.

Around my ivied porch shall spring
Each fragrant flower that drinks the dew;
And Lucy, at her wheel, shall sing
In russet gown and apron blue.

The village church among the trees,
Where first our marriage-vows were given,
With merry peals shall swell the breeze
And point with taper spire to Heaven.

Which choice best describes the function of the underlined portion in the text as a whole?
A. To describe the garden of the narrator
B. To paint a picture of an idyllic country life
C. To help the reader visualize all that the narrator has lost
D. To illustrate the domestic part of what the narrator is wishing for

7. “L’Envoi” is a poem by Rudyard Kipling. A commenter claims that if the entire poem is read as if Kipling approving of what he describes, then Kipling believes that artists should paint not because they must, but for the love of it. Which quotation from “L’Envoi” most effectively illustrates the claim?

A. And only the Master shall praise us/ and only the Master shall blame;/ And no one shall work for money,/ and no one shall work for fame;/ But each for the joy of the working
B. And those who were good shall be happy: they shall sit in a golden chair;/ They shall splash at a ten-league canvas with brushes of comet’s hair;
C. When the oldest colors have faded, and the youngest critic has died,/ We shall rest, and, faith, we shall need it—lie down for an eon or two.
D. They shall find real saints to draw from – Magdalene, Peter, and Paul;/ They shall work for an age at a sitting and never be tired at all!

8. The following is the poem “Little Things” by Ebenezer Cobham Brewer:

Little drops of water,
Little grains of sand,
Make the mighty ocean
And the pleasant land.

Thus the little minutes,
Humble though they be,
Make the mighty ages
Of eternity.

8. Which choice best states the main purpose of the text?
A. To illustrate how small and individual moments build into all of history.
B. To discuss time lost while visiting the ocean.
C. To contrast the relentless progression of time with the endless movement of the ocean
D. To encourage the reader to take their time as they go through life.

9. The following is the poem “The Butterfly and the Bee” by William Lisle: BowlesMethought I heard a butterfly
Say to a laboring bee:
“Thou hast no colors of the sky
On painted wings like me.”

“Poor child of vanity! those dyes,
And colors bright and rare,”
With mild reproof, the bee replies,
“Are all beneath my care.

“Content I toil from morn to eve,
And scorning idleness,
To tribes of gaudy sloth I leave
The vanity of dress.”

What is the main idea of the text?
A. In an imaginary conversation, a butterfly and a bee have little in common.
B. As a personal quality, work ethic is far preferable to beauty.
C. Being judgmental of others is not an admirable pastime.
D. Even creatures as small as bees have lessons to teach us all.

10. The following is the poem “Ingratitude” by William Shakespeare: Blow, blow, thou winter wind,

Thou are not so unkind
As man’s ingratitude;
Thy tooth is not so keen
Because thou are not seen,
Although thy breath be rude.

Freeze, freeze, thou bitter sky,
Thou dost not bite so nigh
As benefits forgot;
Though thou the waters warp,
Thy sting is not so sharp
As friend remembered not.

Which choice best states the main purpose of the text?
A. To explain that winter is a harsh time through which all men must suffer.
B. To illustrate that emotional pain can hurt far worse than physical pain.
C. To paint a picture of various harms that many befall the narrator.
D. To show the readers the dangers of making friends with the wrong people.


Answer Explanations

  1. B. Each stanza starts with a description of the morning. These descriptions include the cat coming home, the light coming, the milkmaid leaving her house, and the rooster crowing. Each stanza ends with the owl sitting and warming himself in his belfry. This best fits answer option B. We have no evidence that the owl sees the world waking, making option A incorrect. The daily routine is described, but not focused on as predictable, making option C incorrect. The cat and the rooster are only mentioned to highlight the time of day, making option D incorrect.
  2. C. Choice C best shows that Ratisbon has been taken. In it, we hear words spoken to the Emperor that “we’ve got you Ratisbon”. The army has taken the city and the Emperor will be in Ratisbon’s market place “anon” or soon. Option A proves that an army has stormed the town, but not that the town fell to that army. Option B shows that the leader is concerned they might not succeed in their military efforts. Option D shows the death of the messenger who came to the emperor.
  3. D. When reading the second stanza, we see that Holmes would prefer that the “harpies of the shore” not pluck “the eagle of the sea”. He says “O, better that her shattered hulk should sink beneath the wave.” Through the rest of the second stanza he clarifies that he would prefer to give her to the “god of storms”. He does not say that he wants her to be struck by lightning, so answer A is too specific. Answer B is the opposite of his preference. Option C is not described in the poem.
  4. D. Answer option D best glorifies the coming battle. It calls on the soldiers to trust in the God of battles, tells them that some will die, and then explains that such a death (dust to dust) will be consigned well. Answer option A talks of an oncoming foe, but does not glorify. Option B asks the soldiers if they are hoping to avoid the battle. Option C points out that the opposition will have no mercy.
  5. A. Option A best shows both patience and fate. The narrator does not rave against time or fate, but rather waits patiently for his “own” to come to him. He knows he cannot change destiny, so he does not try. Option B could prove his feelings about fate, but they do not show his patience. Option C speaks to neither fate nor patience. Option D speaks to patience, but not fate.
  6. D. The key in answering this question is in the title of the poem: A Wish. The entire poem describes what the narrator wishes for. Each stanza describes part of his wish. The underlined stanza describes his home and wife—these are domestic things, making option D the best answer. Answer A is incorrect as the garden is not the only thing described in the stanza and we have no evidence that the wish has been granted and that the garden actually exists. Option B is incorrect as this is not a generic picture of country life, but a specific hope for the future that the narrator has. Option C is incorrect as there is no evidence that the narrator once had this and lost it.
  7. A. A key note in the question is that the assumption is that Kipling approves of what he describes in the poem. This makes answer A the best option, as Kipling would approve of artists working, not for money or fame, but rather because it brings them joy. Option B describes happy painters, but not their motivations. Option C describes exhausted artists taking a rest. Option D describes what they paint.
  8. A. The first stanza describes how the vastness of land and sea are made up of tiny grains of sand and drops of water. This illustration, then is used in the second stanza to show how tiny moments of time make up all of extant history. This best fits answer option A. Answer option B is too literal. Answer options C and D draw conclusions not supported by the text.
  9. B. In the text, the butterfly points out that the bee does not have beautiful wings. The bee then pities and reproofs the butterfly for her vanity and highlights the hardworking nature of the humble bee. This best fits with option B. Answer option A is incorrect as the main idea is that of vanity and work, not that bees and butterflies have nothing in common. Answer option C is incorrect as while it is true, it is not the main idea. Option D is true, but not the message of the author.
  10. B. In each of the two stanzas, Shakespeare first describes horrible winter conditions and then says that ingratitude and “friend remembered not” respectively are far worse. These emotional pains are pointed out as worse than freezing winter weather, making option B the best choice. It isn’t option A as there is an emotional component to the poem. It isn’t option C as Shakespeare doesn’t mean to highlight physical harms, rather emotional ones. It isn’t D as there is no evidence that the emotional pain comes only from “the wrong people”.


Each poem is taken from “Poems Every Child Should Know”, edited by Mary E. Burt. If you wish to improve your poetry skills, you can read more poems from this book on Project Gutenberg:

https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/16436/pg16436-images.html



Digital SAT Poetry Practice Reading Questions #3

1. “In a Library” is a poem written by Emily Dickinson. A student who read the poem claims that Dickinson personifies an antique book, seeing it as a man whom she joys to meet. Which quotation from “In a Library” most effectively illustrates the claim?

A. What interested scholars most/ what competitions ran/ When Plato was a certainty/ And Sophocles a man
B. He traverses familiar/ As one should come to town/ And tell you all your dreams were true/ He lived where dreams were sown.
C. His presence is enchantment/ you beg him not to go/ old volumes shake their vellum heads/ and tantalize just so.
D. A precious moldering pleasure ‘tis/ To meet an antique book.

2. The following is the poem The Book of Martyrs (adapted), by Emily Dickinson

Read, sweet, how others strove,
Till we are stouter;
What they renounced,
Till we are less afraid;
How many times they bore
The faithful witness,
Till we are helped,
As if a kingdom cared!

Read then of faith
That shone above the fray;
Clear strains of hymn
The river could not drown;
Brave names of men
And celestial women,
Passed out of record
Into renown!

What is the main idea of the text?

A. Students should read diligently and memorize names of men and women who have passed away.
B. We should read of and look to the examples of those who went before us to gain strength, courage, and help.
C. Those who came before us are gone, passed out of the record, and no longer worth the effort to learn about.
D. Life is difficult; those older than us can attest to the fear and weakness of this mortal life.

3. The following is a poem by Emily Dickinson:

If you were coming in the fall,
I’d brush the summer by
With half a smile and half a spurn,
As housewives do a fly.

If I could see you in a year,
I’d wind the months in balls,
And put them each in separate drawers,
Until their time befalls.

If only centuries delayed,
I’d count them on my hand,
Subtracting till my fingers dropped
Into Van Diemen’s land.

If certain, when this life was out,
That yours and mine should be,
I’d toss it yonder like a rind,
And taste eternity. But now, all ignorant of the length
Of time’s uncertain wing,
It goads me, like the goblin bee,
That will not state its sting.

Based on the text, what is it that goads the narrator “like the goblin bee”?

A. The constant turn of the seasons of the year
B. The centuries of life she has lived
C. A fly, buzzing around her head
D. The uncertainly of time

4. “In Vain” is a poem by Emily Dickinson. A literature professor tells her class that the poem shows Dickinson’s anxiety around losing loved ones. Which quotation from the poem best illustrates this claim?

A. I cannot live with you/ It would be life/ And life is over there/ behind the shelf.
B. Glow plain and foreign/ On my homesick eye/ Except that you, than he/ Shone closer by.
C. And were you lost, I would be/ Though my name/ Rang loudest/ On the heavenly frame.
D. So we must keep apart/ you there, I here/ With just the door ajar

­

5. The following is a poem by Emily Dickinson:

The pedigree of honey
Does not concern the bee;
A clover, any time, to him
Is aristocracy.

Which choice best states the main purpose of the text?

A. To explain what is most important to the common honey bee.
B. To make a statement on the aristocratic nature of pollinating insects.
C. To make a point about hierarchy, using a nature metaphor.
D. To show the reader what is truly important in life.

6. “A Service of Song” is a poem by Emily Dickinson, a poet who was active in 19th century America.
Note: a bobolink is a type of songbird.

Some keep the Sabbath going to church;
I keep it staying at home,
With a bobolink for a chorister,
And an orchard for a dome.

Some keep the Sabbath in surplice;
I just wear my wings,
And instead of tolling the bell for church,
Our little sexton sings.

God preaches, — a noted clergyman, —
And the sermon is never long;
So instead of getting to heaven at last,
I’m going all along!

Which choice best describes the function of the underlined portion in the text as a whole?

A. It paints a picture of an unconventional practice which is later clarified.
B. It shows that the narrator is a rebel, a fact that has later consequences.
C. It helps the reader understand why the narrator chooses to stay home.
D. It singles out the narrator as a chorister and bird lover.

7. A student reads the poem “The Grass” by Emily Dickinson and claims that the narrator envies the simple life of grass. Which quotation from “The Grass” most effectively illustrates the claim?

A. The grass so little has to do/A sphere of simple green/ With only butterflies to brood/And bees to entertain.
B. The grass so little has to do/ I wish I were the hay!
C. And even when it dies, to pass/ in odors so divine
D. And stir all day to pretty tunes/ The breezes fetch along/ And hold the sunshine in its lap/ and bow to everything.

8. The following is a poem by Emily Dickinson.

I died for beauty, but was scarce
Adjusted in the tomb,
When one who died for truth was lain
In an adjoining room.

He questioned softly why I failed?
“For beauty,” I replied.
“And I for truth, — the two are one;
We brethren are,” he said.

And so, as kinsmen met a night,
We talked between the rooms,
Until the moss had reached our lips,
And covered up our names. Which choice best states the main idea of the text?

A. Truth is beauty and beauty is truth.
B. Finding like-minded people is worth any effort.
C. There is beauty and truth in the death of evil people.
D. Once deceased, people are as quickly forgotten as moss covers their gravestones.

9. A student reads an untitled poem by Emily Dickinson and claims that the man discussed in the passage is dying or dead. Which quotation from the poem most effectively illustrates the claim?

A. What was his furthest mind, of home, or God,/ Or what the distant say/At news that he ceased human nature/On such a day?
B. To know just how he suffered would be dear/ To know if any human eyes were near
C. And wishes, had he any?/ Just his sigh, accented,/ Had been legible to me./ And was he confident until
D. Was he afraid, or tranquil?/ Might he know/ How conscious consciousness could grow,/ Till love that was, and love too blest to be,/Meet —

10. “Trying to Forget” is a poem by Emily Dickinson:

Bereaved of all, I went abroad,
  No less bereaved to be
Upon a new peninsula, —
  The grave preceded me,

Obtained my lodgings ere myself,
  And when I sought my bed,
The grave it was, reposed upon
   The pillow for my head.

I waked, to find it first awake,
   I rose, — it followed me;
I tried to drop it in the crowd,
   To lose it in the sea, In cups of artificial drowse
  To sleep its shape away, —
The grave was finished, but the spade
  Remained in memory.

Which choice best states the main purpose of the text?

A. To paint a realistic picture of the grief of a traveler.
B. To metaphorically explain how the loss of a loved one effects the narrator.
C. To describe a troubled vacation.
D. To illustrate the narrator’s struggle with the thought of death.


Answer Explanations

  1. C. Answer option A gives no evidence that a book is being personified. Rather, it says that Sophocles (a person) was a man. Answer option B would be good evidence if we knew that the author was talking about a book. However, it could just as likely be about an actual man. Answer option D shows the author’s joy in “meeting” a book, but does not go so far as to personify the book as a man. Option C, therefore is the best option. It refers to the “old volumes” as “him” and it says that his presence is “enchantment”. Meaning, the author gets joy from the presence.
  2. B. The first stanza of the text commands us to read about how others strove, renounced, and bore witness until we are stouter, less afraid, and helped. The second stanza commands us to read of the faith that others had and the men and women who passed into renown. Passing into renown could be otherwise stated as passing from this life into memory. The poems main idea, therefore best fits with option B. Option A is incorrect as there is no encouragement of memorization. Option C is the opposite of the message of the poem. Option D is incorrect as the author wants us to look to those gone as examples of good things, not fear and weakness.
  3. D. In the first stanza of the poem, the author discusses what she would do if “you” were coming in the fall. She is waiting for seasons to pass. In the second stanza she talks about years. In the third stanza she is waiting centuries. However, in the last stanza she talks about how she doesn’t know which of these (seasons, years, centuries) she will have to wait. She is “ignorant of the length of time’s uncertain wing”. Time, therefore is the bee that goads her. D is the only answer that makes sense.   
  4. C. Answer option C tells of the narrator’s belief that even heavenly exultation would not be enough for her if “you were lost”. This shows her intense fear around losing a loved one. She believes she would be lost no matter what, were the object of the poem also lost. Answer option A is incorrect as it shows that Dickinson does not want to live with the object of the poem. Answer option B is incorrect as it shows her attachment to the object of the poem, not her anxiety about losing him or her. Answer option D is incorrect as it shows that the narrator wishes to remain apart from the object of the poem, not that she fears losing him or her.
  5. C. The poem is saying that bees like all honey regardless of pedigree and that clovers are all seen as “aristocracy”. The metaphor applies to humans, that we should all regard one another as bees regard honey and aristocracy. This makes C the best answer.  Answer A is incorrect as we find out that bees regard all honey and clover equally, not with some more important than others. Answer B is incorrect, as the author is not saying that bees are aristocratic. Answer option D is incorrect, as the poem makes not allusion to what humans should value the most, rather, that we should value all humans equally. 
  6. A. The underlined portion points out that the narrator, instead of going to church on Sunday, which would have been the accepted practice in 19th century America, stays at home. The songbirds are her choir and the orchard is the roof of her church. This is an unconventional practice for the time. Later in the poem, she clarifies that she does this as she believes that this place, the orchard, is her heaven where she has been “going all along”. This makes option A the best answer and the other options incorrect.
  7. B. Answer option B shows the envy of the narrator as she wishes she were the hay. Hay is just another word for grass. The other options all show what might be enviable qualities of grass, but not that the narrator actually envies it.
  8. A. The poem tells a story of someone who dies and, “in the tomb” meets a man who asks why she died. She replies that she died for beauty and he responds by saying that he died for truth and that “the two are one; we brethren are”. They then form a bond, a friendship, in death, over their similar causes. This best fits with answer option A. Answer B is incorrect as the main idea is that truth and beauty are the same and worth dying for, not that finding like-minded people is worth dying for. Answer C is incorrect as there is no evidence either of these people are evil. Answer option D is incorrect, as it captures only a part of the last stanza, not the main idea of the whole text.
  9. A. Answer option A is the best option because it talks about the man as having “ceased human nature” which is another way of saying to die. This excerpt is asking what the man was thinking of as he passed away. The other options do not as clearly prove the claim, but rather offer only peripheral evidence in the context of answer option A.
  10. D. In the first stanza the author goes to “a new peninsula” but the grave proceeds her there. In the second stanza she finds a place to stay and yet the grave waited for her in her new bed. In the third stanza, the grave follows her as she wakes and goes about her day. She can only escape these thoughts of grave and death when she sleeps in the fourth stanza. This makes option D the best answer.


All poems were taken from Book of Poems by Emily Dickinson.  You can read more of this book here:
https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/12242/pg12242-images.html

Digital SAT Poetry Practice Reading Questions #2

1. The following is “The Land of Counterpane” by Robert Louis Stevenson:

When I was sick and lay a-bed,
I had two pillows at my head,
And all my toys beside me lay
To keep me happy all the day.

And sometimes for an hour or so
I watched my leaden soldiers go,
With different uniforms and drills,
Among the bed-clothes, through the hills;

And sometimes sent my ships in fleets
All up and down among the sheets;
Or brought my trees and houses out,
And planted cities all about.

I was the giant great and still
That sits upon the pillow-hill,
And sees before him, dale and plain,
The pleasant land of counterpane.

Which of the following options best explains the main purpose of the poem “The Land of Counterpane” by Robert Louis Stevenson?

A. To illustrate a child’s fertile imagination.
B. To tell a story of high adventure.
C. To show the journeys of a young child.
D. To build an understanding of physical malady.

2. The following is the poem “The Sun Travels” By Robert Louis Stevenson:

The sun is not a-bed, when I
At night upon my pillow lie;
Still round the earth his way he takes,
And morning after morning makes.

While here at home, in shining day,
We round the sunny garden play,
Each little Indian sleepy-head
Is being kissed and put to bed.

And when at eve I rise from tea,
Day dawns beyond the Atlantic Sea;
And all the children in the West
Are getting up and being dressed.

What is the main idea of the poem “The Sun Travels”?

A. Not all parts of the world are on the same time.
B. The daily routine of an ordinary child can be mundane.
C. The patterns of the sun and earth are predictable.
D. Cultural differences lead to differences in the time of day when people eat and sleep.

3. The following is the poem “The Moon” by Robert Louis Stevenson:

The moon has a face like the clock in the hall;
She shines on thieves on the garden wall,
On streets and field and harbor quays,
And birdies asleep in the forks of the trees.

The squalling cat and the squeaking mouse,
The howling dog by the door of the house,
The bat that lies in bed at noon,
All love to be out by the light of the moon.

But all of the things that belong to the day
Cuddle to sleep to be out of her way;
And flowers and children close their eyes
Till up in the morning the sun shall arise.

Which of the following is the main idea of the poem “The Moon”?

A. The moon looks over the night and observes all the bad things that are awake when the sun sets.
B. Nighttime is just as interesting and active as the day, but it belongs to different actors.
C. The moon, like a kindly woman, oversees her own distinct world while the world of day sleeps.
D. Some animals are active during the day and some animals are active at night.

4. The following is the poem “The Swing” by Robert Louis Stevenson:

How do you like to go up in a swing,
Up in the air so blue?
Oh, I do think it the pleasantest thing
Ever a child can do!

Up in the air and over the wall,
Till I can see so wide,
Rivers and trees and cattle and all
Over the countryside—

Till I look down on the garden green,
Down on the roof so brown—
Up in the air I go flying again,
Up in the air and down!

What is the purpose of the poem “The Swing”?

A. To describe the great swing of emotions which is common in a small child.
B. To show a child’s delight in the simple pleasure of riding a common swing.
C. To illustrate the beautiful view that is visible from great heights.
D. To describe the physical sensation often felt when riding a swing.

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­5. A student, having read a poem by Robert Louis Stevenson, claims that the children in the poem are peering into a river as they would a mirror. Which quotation from the poem most effectively illustrates the claim?

A. Smooth it glides upon its travel/ Here a wimple, there a gleam/ O the glean gravel/ O the smooth stream.
B. We can see our colored faces/ Floating on the shaken pool/ Down in cool places/ Dim and very cool;
C. Patience, children, just a minute/ See the spreading circles die/ The stream and all in it/ Will clear by-and-by.
D.  Sailing blossoms, silver fishes/ Paven pools as clear as air/ How a child wishes/ To live down there!

6. The following is the poem “From a Railway Carriage” by Robert Louis Stevenson:

Faster than fairies, faster than witches,
Bridges and houses, hedges and ditches;
And charging along like troops in a battle
All through the meadows the horses and cattle:
All of the sights of the hill and the plain
Fly as thick as driving rain;
And ever again, in the wink of an eye,
Painted stations whistle by.
Here is a child who clambers and scrambles,
All by himself and gathering brambles;
Here is a tramp who stands and gazes;
And there is the green for stringing the daisies
Here is a cart run away in the road
Lumping along with man and load;
And here is a mill, and there is a river:
Each a glimpse and gone for ever!

Which choice best describes the function of the underlined portion in the text as a whole?

A. It describes the inability of the narrator to visualize the world around him.
B. It explains to the reader the energy of the child described later on in the poem.
C. It paints a picture of the “glimpse gone forever” that the narrator will later introduce.
D. It helps the reader realize that the poem is a description of the world from a fast-moving train.

7. The following is the poem “The Hayloft” by Robert Louis Stevenson:

Through all the pleasant meadow-side
The grass grew shoulder-high,
Till the shining scythes went far and wide
And cut it down to dry.

Those green and sweetly smelling crops
They led in wagons home;
And they piled them here in mountain tops
For mountaineers to roam.

Here is Mount Clear, Mount Rusty-Nail, Mount Eagle and Mount High;—
The mice that in these mountains dwell,
No happier are than I!

Oh, what a joy to clamber there,
Oh, what a place for play,
With the sweet, the dim, the dusty air,
The happy hills of hay!


According to the text, what is it that Mount Clear, Mont Rusty-Nail, Mount Eagle, and Mount High are made from?
A. The homes of mice.
B. The shoulder high grass, growing in the meadows
C. The imagination of a child
D. The dried hay.

8. “The Unseen Playmate” is a poem by Robert Louis Stevenson. Having read the poem to her class, a teacher claims that the playmate described in the poem is only present when children play by themselves. What quotation from “The Unseen Playmate” most effectively illustrates the claim?

A.  Nobody heard him and nobody saw/ His is a picture you never could draw.
B. Tis he that inhabits the caves that you dig/ ‘Tis he when you play with your soldiers of tin/ That sides with the Frenchmen and never can win.
C. When children are happy and lonely and good/ The Friend of the Children comes out of the wood.
D. When’er you are happy and cannot tell why/ The Friend of the Children is sure to be by!

9. “My Kingdom” is a poem written by Robert Louis Stevenson. After reading it, a class is confused as to whether the kingdom is literal. A student claims that it is figurative. Which quotation from “My Kingdom” most effectively illustrates the claim?

A. I played there were no deeper seas/ Nor any wider plains than these/ Nor other kings than me.
B. Down by a shining water well/ I found a very little dell
C. This was the world and I was king/ For me the bees came by to sing
D. How very big my nurse appeared/ How great and cool the rooms!

10.“My Treasures” is a poem by Robert Louis Stevenson. Having read it, a child claims that the narrator’s treasures are just pointless pieces of nature. Which quotation from “My Treasures” most effectively disproves this claim?

A. The stone, with the white and the yellow and grey/ We discovered I cannot tell how far away;
B. This whistle we made (and how clearly it sounds)/ By the side of a field at the end of the grounds/ of a branch of a plane, with a knife of my own
C. But of all my treasures the last is the king/ For there’s very few children possess such a thing/ And that is a chisel, both handle and blade.
D. And I carried it back, although weary and cold/ For though father denies it, I’m sure it is gold.

Answer Explanations

  1. A.  The poem tells of a child who, though sick, still explores a vast imaginary land complete with soldiers, ships, cities, and countryside. It is an exploration of imagination. The things described are not literal, so it is not answer B or C. The poem mentions physical malady only once, and it is not the main focus or purpose, so it is not D.
  2. A. In the poem, we read the reflections of a child who points out that as he or she does each of his or her daily tasks, other people in other parts of the world will be doing something else as it is different times of day in different places. This best fits with answer option A. Answer option B is incorrect as it does not address different parts of the world. Answer option C is incorrect because, while the earth and sun are mentioned, discussing them is not the main idea. Option D is incorrect as it is not because of cultural differences that people do things at different times, it is because of their varying geography.
  3. C. Notice how the poem personifies the moon, giving it a face, calling it “she”. In addition, the poem points out the normally active parts of the day that are quiet at night and vice versa. The poem is painting an image of a different world, that only comes to life under the watchful eye of the moon. This makes option C the best answer. Option A is incorrect as there is no evidence that there are many bad things at night (even though the poem mentions thieves). Option B is incorrect as it neglects to mention the moon. Option D is incorrect as it is a description of one thing the poem mentions, but fails to show the bigger main idea.
  4. B.  In the first stanza, the narrator says that riding a swing is “the pleasantest thing/ever a child can do”. He goes on to describe the pleasantness, joy, and delights of such a ride. This makes option B the best answer. The narrator does not describe the physical sensations that he feels, making option D incorrect. Emotions are not discussed, making option A incorrect. While the narrator does describe the incredible view, this is not the main purpose of the passage, but rather, just part of the evidence proving why he delights in riding a swing.
  5. B. Answer options A, C, and D all give evidence that the narrator or child is near a river, or even looking at a river; however, only option B gives evidence that they are using the river as a mirror. The evidence states that they can see their faces floating on the water. This makes B the best proof of the claim that they are “peering into a river as they would a mirror.”
  6. D. The underlined portion essentially says that “stations” are whizzing by “in the wink of an eye”. This is what leads the reader to realize that the narrator is on a train, traveling at quick speeds. This brings the rest of the poem into focus as the reader realizes it’s a description of all the things zipping past outside the windows. Without the underlined portion, the poem makes no sense. This makes option D the best answer. The other options don’t capture what the underlined portion is saying, but rather connect it to singular details elsewhere in the poem, not to the poem as a whole.
  7. D. We see in the poem that the shoulder-high grass is cut down (with scythes) and dried before being transported in wagons and then piled high into the mountains of hay on which the narrator plays. The grass is therefore not still growing in the meadows, making option B incorrect. The hills of hay contain mice, but are not made up of mice homes, making option A incorrect. The hills are literal stacks of hay, making option C incorrect.
  8. C. The teacher claims that the playmate only emerges when children play by themselves, or when they are alone. Option C clearly states that when children are lonely, the Friend of the Children (the unseen playmate) emerges. The other options all describe him in one way or another, but they don’t clarify that he only comes to play when a child is alone.
  9. A. A literal kingdom would be a country that is actually ruled over by a monarch. The question asks for evidence that this is not literal, but rather figurative, in other words, that the “kingdom” is not real. Answer option A best fits this description by showing that this is all play. The narrator is “playing” or pretending that he is the only king over deep seas and wide plains. Answer option B could be literal or figurative. Answer C has some figurative language in the bees singing, but does not prove that the narrator is not a literal king with a literal kingdom. Option D gives no evidence of a literal or figurative kingdom.
  10. C.  The question is a bit different in that is asks you to disprove a claim. We are therefore looking for evidence that not all the narrator’s treasures are pointless pieces of nature. Choice A describes a treasure which is a rock. Choice B describes a treasure which is a whistle made of a branch. Both these could be described as pointless pieces of nature. Choice C, however, is a man-made object. This, as a treasure, disproves the claim that all the treasures are pieces of nature.


If you’d like to read more poetry by Robert Louis Stevenson, you can explore his work on Project Gutenberg. Below is a link to the book from which each of these poems was taken.

https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/25609/pg25609-images.html

General ACT and SAT Test-Taking Tips

  1. Schedule your test well in advance, and try to select a site that is connected to a high school. Sites that are not connected to high schools have less accountability to the students and tend to be more likely to cancel tests at the last moment. Taking the test at your high school is generally best. If your school isn’t a testing center, consider asking the administration why that is.
  2. Make sure to read your emails! The ACT and SAT will both email you occasionally with important information. It might be a reminder to upload your picture (which you can’t take the ACT without). It might be an update to your testing location (so you show up at the right place). It might be the notification to set up your SAT prior to arriving at your test center (you can’t do it once you arrive). Many students ignore these emails and then have big problems on test day.
  3. Have a regular schedule for practice and tutoring. Having a scheduled time in your week to practice or meet with a tutor will provide better results than intermittent or random practice squeezed into any free spot.
  4. Practice like you play. When doing practice at home, make sure you are giving it your all and treating it like test day. Practicing while lounging on the couch, eating a snack, and intermittently texting a friend will be far less effective than sitting at a desk or table, timing yourself, and focusing without interruption.
  5. Practice what you’re good at too. A lot of students make the mistake of only focusing on their weaknesses. It is often easy to improve what you’re already good at, so don’t forget to put effort into each section of your test.
  6. Don’t cut yourself slack. It’s very tempting to ignore small mistakes. “Oh, it was just a silly slip up” is easy to say. Small mistakes lead to wrong answers, just like big mistakes do, so treat a small mistake just as seriously as a big one. Identify why that small mistake happened and work towards eliminating what caused it.
  7. Sleep. High school students generally need over 8 hours of sleep each night. Just because you can exist on less doesn’t mean that is ideal. Best brain function occurs when students are well rested the week or two prior to the test. Start practicing healthy sleep habits today.

Old ACT vs. Digital SAT: Which One is Better for Me?

With the Digital SAT upon us, conventional advice about which test on which to focus has gone out the window. Students find themselves unsure as to which test is best for them. With colleges accepting either test, which one is best for you? Let’s take a look at the similarities and differences between the tests. Take a look at our info-graphic, and then read below to help decide which test is best for you or your student!

English, Reading, and Writing

On the ACT you’ll see a long English section that tests grammar, mechanics, and composition skills. There will also be a reading comprehension section later on in the test that requires that students read four long passages and answer 10 questions about each of them. On the Digital SAT these two sections have been combined into modules that cover both reading and writing. The reading passages are far shorter (max 150 words each) but the writing questions overlap many concepts covered on the ACT. The relative brevity of the passages on the SAT gives students with shorter focus periods a better chance at showing their skills. However, the constantly changing topics may be distracting.

Math

The ACT math tends to cover a wide range of topics from elementary school up through introductory pre-calculus. Students will need a broad understanding of many topics and the ability to do math quickly in order to do well on the ACT. The ACT focuses on testing simple concepts in diverse settings. The SAT covers fewer subjects, but does so more in depth. Students must have a much deeper understanding of algebra and linear geometry to succeed on the SAT.

Timing

The SAT, in general, is a deep, narrow test. The test expects students to have a thorough understanding of fewer concepts compared to the ACT which expects a shallower understanding of more concepts. For this reason, the ACT expects students to think quickly and adroitly while the SAT grants more time for deep thinking. Most students can expect to run out of time on at least one section of the ACT, while on the SAT this is less of a concern.

Adaptiveness

The SAT is now adaptive; the ACT is not. Depending on how a student does on the first reading and writing module and the first math module of the SAT, their second modules may be easier or harder. Consequently, the SAT can be shorter than the ACT and still collect a large amount of information on a student’s skills. It also means that students sitting next to one another will have different tests, thus reducing the risk of cheating.

Students who prefer the ACT

Students who prefer the ACT tend to be big readers and quick thinkers. Students who read a lot in their free time (or who did in the past) tend to have an advantage in terms of speed and skill on the ACT. In addition, students who are good with data and scientific concepts will have an advantage on the science portion of the ACT. Students who receive extended time or other accommodations often prefer the ACT as well.

Students who prefer the SAT

Students who are strong in math (especially Algebra) tend to do well on the SAT. Students who prefer to have more time to think deeply about concepts, wording, and nuance also tend to prefer the SAT. Students with a shorter attention span, will often prefer the shorter passages and more direct wording of the questions on the reading and writing portion of the SAT.

The Long and the Short of It

If by now it isn’t obvious which test you should focus on, consider taking one of each to compare. Nothing beats the real-world experience of giving it a try.  If you’re having a hard time making a decision based on your scores and skills, please reach out: we’re always happy to help!

Digital SAT Practice Questions–Command of Evidence: Quantitative

Here are 10 original questions to practice the new Digital SAT Quantitative Command of Evidence questions.

  1. Consumption of Sugar, Coffee, and Tea:

CountrySugar (lbs)Coffee (lbs)Tea (lbs)
Great Britain35.960.903.190
United States24.635.68—–
Holland14.867.030.800
France14.392.320.018
Norway11.046.920.060
Sweden9.800.800.060
Switzerland9.605.28—-
Germany9.424.030.035
Denmark9.003.400.400
Belgium7.188.590.018
Portugal6.330.690.040
Italy5.200.900.020
Austria4.931.300.012
Spain4.230.010.040
Russia2.400.0070.160

The entire consumption of sugar in Europe has averaged, during the last few years, 3,410,000 pounds, and for the whole world is it set down at nearly twice that amount. It is estimated that three fourths of the sugar is made from cane, and one fourth from beet. The consumption of coffee has doubled in most countries during the last twenty years.


A scientist wishes to use data from the table to try to back up the initial claim of the author as to European sugar consumption. Which of the following procedures should the scientist undertake in order to utilize the data?

A. Add up all the sugar from European countries and see if it is roughly 3,410,000 pounds.
B. Add up all the sugar from all countries and see if it is exactly 3,410,000 pounds
C. Add up all the coffee from the European countries and see if it is double 3,410,000 pounds
D. Add up all the coffee from the all the countries and see if it is exactly 3,410,000 pounds.

2. Annual report to Congress of the Commissioner of Patents, 1876:

Number of applications for patents in 187621,425
Number of patents issued, including reissues and designs15,595
Number of applications for extension of patents2
Number of patents extended3
Number of caveats filed during the year2,697
Number of patents expired during the year814
Number of patents allowed but not issued for want of final fee3,353
Number of applications for registering of trademarks1,081
Number of trademarks registered959
Number of applications for registering of labels650
Number of labels registered402

The number of applications for patents was a little less than during the previous year. The Commissioner suggests that Congress should appropriate $50,000 to promote the printing of the old patents; that additional examiners be employed, and more clerks, for the purpose of expiating the business of the office; that the price of the Official Gazette be reduced, also the fee for trademark registration; that the library fund be increased; that more space be provided for models, and the transaction of business.


The author is requesting additional funds to hire employees for the patent office. Which answer, if true, would support his claim that more examiners and clerks are needed?

A. Of the 15,595 patents issued, most were to citizens of the United States.
B. Of the roughly 21,425 applications, over half could not be reviewed in time for the annual report.
C. Three patent extensions were needed in 1876
D. The 3,353 patents not issued for lack of fee were mostly to non-Americans



3.

 Without ConductorWith Conductor
Moisture %78.2179.84
Sugar16.8618.41
Tartaric acid0.8000.791
Bitartrate of potash0.1800.186

Macagno, also believing that the passage of electricity from air through the vine to earth would stimulate growth, selected a certain number of vines, all of the same variety and all in the same condition of health and development. Sixteen vines were submitted to experiment and sixteen were left to natural influences. In the ends of the vines under treatment, pointed platinum wires were inserted, to which were attached copper wires, leading to the tops of tall poles near the vines; at the base of these same vines other platinum wires were inserted and connected by copper wires with the soil. At the close of the experiment, the wood, leaves, and fruit of both sets of vines were submitted to careful analysis with the above results.

Which answer would be the best summary statement to make based on the results in the chart as they relate to Mocagno’s hypothesis?

A. The plants without the conductor and the plants with the conductor had no measurable difference in bitartrate of potash.
B. The plants with the conductor had higher levels of moisture, sugar, and bitartrate of potash, which created growth and proves Macagno’s hypothesis correct.
C. Because the plants without a conductor had higher tartaric acid levels, they would have grown more than the plans with the conductor, proving Macagno’s hypothesis incorrect.
D. Because we do not have data on the size or height of the plants, we can not draw conclusions as to the effect of the conductor on plant growth. Macagno’s hypothesis remains untested.

4. The following table gives the absolute sensitiveness of several of the best known kinds of American and foreign photography plates, when developed with oxalate, in terms of pure silver chloride taken as a standard. As the numbers would be very large, however, if the chloride were taken as a unit, it was thought better to give them in even hundred thousands.

Sensitiveness of Plates:

PlatesDaylightGaslight
Carbutt transparency0.7—
Allen and Rowell1.3150
Richardson Standard1.310
Marchall and Blair2.7140
Blair Instantaneous3.0140
Carbutt Special4.020
Monroe4.025
Wratten and Wainwright4.010
Eastman special5.330
Richardson Instantaneous5.320
Walker Reid and Inglis11.0600
Edwards11.020
Monckhoven16.0120
Beebe16.020
Cramer16.0120

It will be noted that the plates most sensitive to gaslight are by no means necessarily the most sensitive to daylight; in some instances, in fact,                                                                . It should be said that the above figures cannot be considered final until each plate has been tested separately with its own developer, as this would undoubtedly have some influence on the final result.

Which answer option best completes the passage with information consistent with the data in the table?


A. there is no gaslight sensitivity whatsoever
B. the gaslight and daylight sensitivity seem to be nearly the same
C. the reverse seems to be true
D. The daylight sensitivity is far below the gaslight sensitivity

5. So much has been claimed for natural gas as regards the superiority of its heating properties as compared with coal, that some analyses of this gas, together with calculations showing the comparison between its heating power and that of coal, may be of interest. These calculations are, of course, theoretical in both cases, and it must not be imagined that the total amount of heat, either in a ton of coal or 1,000 cubic feet of natural gas, can ever be fully utilized. In making these calculations I employed as a basis what in my estimation was a gas of an average chemical composition, as I have found that gas from the same well caries continually in its compositions. Thus, samples of gas from the same well, but taken on different days, _______________________________________  and so with all the component gases.

Analysis of Natural Gas- given as percents

Date tested10/28/8410/29/8411/24/8412/4/8410/18/8410/25/84
Carbonic Acid0.8.60.400.3
Carbonic Oxide1.00.8.580.41.00.30
Oxygen1.10.8.780.82.11.2
Olefiant Gas0.70.80.980.60.80.6
Ethylic Hydride3.65.57.9212.305.24.8
March Gas72.1865.2560.7049.5857.8575.16
Hydrogen20.0226.1629.0335.929.6414.45
Nitrogen000023.412.89
Heat Units728,746698,170627,170745,813592,380745,591

Which answer option best completes the passage with information from the chart?


A. vary in olefiant gas from .98 to .6, Ethylic Hydride from 12.3 to 3.6, heat units from 745,813 to 592,380,
B. vary in nitrogen from 23 percent to zero percent, carbonic acid from two percent to zero percent, oxygen from four percent to 0.4 percent,
C. vary in nitrogen from 23 percent to zero percent, carbonic acid from two percent to zero percent, heat units from 745,813 to 592,380,
D. vary in nitrogen from 23.41 to 0, carbonic acid from .08 to .3, Oxygen from 1.1 to 1.2

6. The following table gives some particulars of the Great Lakes and the discharge from them:

LakeElevation above mean tideArea of Basin (square miles)Area of lake (square miles)RainfallEvaporationDischarge
Superior602.7890,50538.875187,38634,49580,870
Huron and Michigan581.28121,94150,400262,96466,754216,435
Erie572.8640,29810,00096,65413,870234,578
Ontario246.6131,5587,22075,69210,568272,095

The average variation in level of the lakes is from 18 inches to 24 inches during the year, and the range in evaporation from year to year is also very considerable; thus the evaporation per second on Huron and Michigan, as given in the table above, _____________________  but the figures for another year show nearly 89,000 feet per second, which would represent a difference of 6.5 inches in water level. As a discharge of 10,000 cubic feet a second into the new canal would lower the level of these two lakes by 2.87 inches in a year, it follows that the difference between a year of maximum and one of minimum evaporations is more than twice as great as would be required for the canal, and even under the most unfavorable conditions the volume taken from the whole chain of lakes would not lower them an inch.

Which answer option best completes the passage with relevant data from the table?


A. is nearly 67,000 feet,
B. is around 250,000 feet,
C. is nearly 14,000 feet,
D. is nearly 35,000 feet,

7. The portion of the flame which is supposed to be the hottest is about half an inch above the tip of the inner zone of the flame, and it is at this point that most vessels containing water to be heated are made to impinge on the flame; and it is this portion of the flame, also, which is utilized for raising various solids to a temperature at which they radiate heat.

In order to gain an insight into the amount of contamination which the air undergoes when a geyser or cooking stove is at work, I have determined the composition of the products of a combustion, and the unburned gases escaping when a vessel containing water at the ordinary temperatures is heated up to the boiling point by a gas flame, the vessel being placed, in the fist case, half an inch above the inner cone of the flame, and in the second, at the extreme outer tip of the flame.

Gases Escaping During Combustion:

 Luminous flame InnerLuminous flame Outer
Nitrogen77.5269.41
Water Vapor11.8019.24
Carbon Dioxide4.938.38
Carbon Monoxide2.452.58
March Gas0.950.39
Acetylene0.270
Hydrogen2.080
   
 100.00100.00


Based on the passage and the table, what inference could be made about the placement of the water vessel and the resulting effects on the air in the room the experiment was conducted?

A.  When water was heated in a vessel placed in the hottest part of the flame, less of every type of contaminant was released into the air, leading to better air quality than when the vessel was placed in a cooler part of the flame.
B. When water was heated in a vessel placed in the hottest part of the flame, more nitrogen, march gas, acetylene, and hydrogen were released into the air while less water vapor, carbon monoxide, and carbon dioxide were released. The resulting effect on air quality is unknown.
C. When water was heated in a vessel placed in the hottest part of the flame, less nitrogen, march gas acetylene, and hydrogen were released into the air while more water vapor, carbon monoxide, and carbon dioxide were released. The resulting effect on air quality is positive.
D. When water was heated in a vessel placed in the hottest part of the flame, more of every type of contaminant was released into the air, leading to poorer air quality than when the vessel was placed in a cooler part of the flame.



8. Eggs Laid and Gain in Weight in Hens over the course of three periods.

 NitrogenousCarbonaceous
Live Weight, July 26th23.5323.56
Live weight, November 2721.3122.00
Loss2.221.56
Number of Eggs laid79.0026.00
Weight of eggs laid (lb)8.252.92
Average weight of eggs (oz)1.671.80
Gain in weight, including eggs (lb)6.031.36

During the first week the carbonaceous fed hens laid three eggs while the others laid two. The two groups were, therefore, practically evenly divided at the start as to the condition of the laying stage. At the end of the first period the nitrogenous fed hens had laid forty-three eggs and the carbonaceous fed hens had laid twenty. During the next twenty-five days the former laid thirty and the latter six; ___________________________________     From this time on no eggs were received from either group. The decline in egg production was probably due in large part to the fact that the hens began to molt during the second period, and continued to do so during the rest of the experiment.

Which answer option best uses information from the table to complete the passage?


A. during the third period the former laid six and the latter not any.
B. during the third period the former laid 79 and the later laid 26.
C. during the third period the former laid non and the latter laid six.
D. during the third period it was no possible to tabulate the number of eggs laid.



9. Cost of living for a man in Great Britain and the United States, in shillings:

 Great BritianUnited States
Food744773.7
Clothing192278.4
Rent144272.1
Fuel60122.0
Sundries6090.0
Total:1200 Shillings
(60 pounds)		1536.2 Shillings (77 pounds, 16 shillings)

Having agreed that wages are probably 62 percent higher in Massachusetts than in Great Britain, it would be easy, if we could ascertain what proportion of a working man’s income is spent respectively in groceries, provisions, clothing etc., to determine what advantage an operative derives from the higher wages of the United States. Dr. Engle, the chief of the Prussian Bureau of Statistics, puts us in possession of this information, and, as the result of a laborious inquiry, has formulated a certain economic law which governs the relations between income and expenditure. We learn, consequently ___________________________ .

Which answer best uses information from the table and the passage to draw a conclusion about wage equity between the United States and Great Britain?

A. that a workman earning 1200 shillings per year in Great Britain would also have to pay more in food costs, thus further reducing his available funds, and making the advantage of working in the United States even stronger. 
B. that workers in the United States have to pay more for everything from food to Sundries, making their income lower than that of a man in a comparable job in Great Britain.
C. that a workman in Great Britain earns only 60 pounds per year while a comparable workman in the United States earns over 77 pounds, creating a wealth gap of 17 pounds, 16 shillings between English and American workers.
D. that a workman earning 60 pounds per annum in Great Britain would receive 99 pounds in the States, but living there would cost him 77 pounds, or 17 pounds more than here, giving him a net advantage of only 22 pounds.

10. The following table, which has been prepared by the French Ministry of Public Works, gives the railway mileage of the various countries of Europe and the United States up to the end of 1881, with the number of miles constructed in that year, and the population per mile:

CountryTotal MilesMiles Built in 1881Population per Mile
Germany21,3133312,154
Great Britain18,1571641,939
France17,1348952,170
Austria-Hungary11,8802623,200
Italy5,4501095,321
Spain4,8691763,492
Sweden and Norway4,6162731,408
Belgium2,561482,203
Switzerland1,557221,831
Holland1,425832,885
Denmark1,053251,919
Romania916565,860
Turkey866–2,891
Portugal75785,870
Greece6–28,000
Total107,3062,4553,168
United States104,8139,358502

It appears from this that the United States Mileage was only 2,493 less than the total of all Europe, and at the present time it exceeds it, as the former country has built about 6,000 miles this year, whereas Europe has not exceeded 1,500. The difference in the number of persons per mile in the two cases is also

Which answer, if true, would best complete the author’s thought, using data from the table?


A. generally minimal, with the difference between countries varying from 5,870 in Portugal to 1,405 in Sweden and Norway with two outliers: the United States and Greece.
B. very great: Greece has one mile of rail for every 28,000 people while Sweden and Norway have one mile of rail for every 1,408 people largely due to the density of their population.
C. very great, Europe taking six times as many persons to support a mile of railway as the States, and can only be accounted for by the fact that American railways are constructed much cheaper than the European ones.
D. marginal, with the average population per mile in Europe hovering around 4,750.




Answer Solutions

1.  A. The passage claims that Europe has, in the past few years, had a sugar consumption around 3,410,000 pounds. If a scientist wanted to support this, he or she could find the total European sugar consumption for the year in the table and see if it is close to the average. Of course, any given year might be an outlier, but given the limited data in the table, this is still the best option. Option B is incorrect because it includes non-European countries. Options C and D are correct because the scientist is trying to make a claim about sugar, not coffee.
2. B. In the passage, the commissioner requests additional funds in order to employ more examiners and clerks for the patent office “for the purpose of expiating the business of the office”. In other words, they need more people so that the office can move more quickly in processing the patent and other applications. If it were true that only half of the submitted patents had been able to be reviewed by the time the end of the year report came out, that would support the idea that more workers are needed, making option B correct. Option A is incorrect, as the citizenship of the applicants does not impact the need for more funds. Options C and D are incorrect for the same reason.
3. D. The hypothesis posited by Mscagno was that electricity would stimulate the growth of the plants. Because plant height, weight, or other indicators of growth were not measured, the data cannot be used to support Macagno’s hypothesis. This makes option D correct and the other answers incorrect. The presence of moisture, sugar, tartaric acid, and bitartrate of potash are not indicators of growth.
4. C. The first sentence points out that there seems to be no positive correlation between plate sensitivity to daylight and gaslight. The passage continues by saying that “in some instances, in fact”. This is leading into a contrasting statement from the first sentence, making option C the best answer. Answer option A is only correct for Carbutt transparencies, not for the plates in general. Answer B is incorrect as there is a clear and measurable difference between daylight and gaslight sensitivity for all the plates. Option D is incorrect as it does not contrast with the first sentence of the passage.
5. B. The correct answer must include the variances for different components of the gas. Heat units are not components of gas, but rather a measure of energy, and thus answers A, and C are incorrect. Answer option D incorrectly measures the highest and lowest measurements of the components, leaving only answer B as a correct option.
6. A. A careful reading of the graph shows that the evaporation on lakes Huron and Michigan is 66,754 which makes option A correct and the other options incorrect.
7. B. We learn in the first paragraph that the hottest part of the flame is about half an inch above the tip of the inner zone of the flame. This makes “luminous flame inner” our hotter option and “luminous flame outer” our cooler option. Based on this, we can see that the hotter option has higher outputs of nitrogen, march gas, acetylene, and hydrogen and lower outputs of water vapor, carbon monoxide, and carbon dioxide. However, we do not have evidence of the impact of these outputs on air quality. This makes option B the best answer. The other answer options are all incorrect as they misunderstand either which one is hotter, or they assume the impact on the air quality without evidence.
8. A. We learn in the table that the nitrogenous fed (former) hens laid a total of 79 eggs and the carbonaceous fed (later) hens laid a total of 26.  The passage tells us that in the first and second periods the nitrogenous fed hens laid 43 and 25 eggs and the carbonaceous fed hens laid 20 and 6. 79-43-25=6 therefore in the third period the nitrogenous fed hens laid six eggs. 26-20-6=0 therefore in the third period the carbonaceous fed hens laid 0. This is best stated in answer option A.
9. D. We see in the table that in Great Britain the cost of living is 1200 shillings, or 60 pounds. In the United States, the cost of living is 1536.2 shillings, or 77 pounds, 16 shillings. We learn in the passage that wages are higher in Massachusetts than in Great Britain. This makes answer D the most logical conclusion. A that pays 60 pounds in Great Britain would likely pay more in the United States, but some of that advantage would be eaten away by the higher cost of living.
10. C.  Note the word “also” before the blank. In the previous sentence, the author pointed out a large discrepancy in the 6000 miles built in the U.S. compared to the only 1500 built in Europe. We now need a similar comparison for that “also” to make sense. This would mean that answers A and D are incorrect as they do not show a similarly large difference. Answer B is incorrect as it compares one European country to another instead of continuing the author’s comparison of all of Europe to the United States.





Sources:

All information and data are taken from or adapted from various editions of Scientific American and the supplements thereof. You can improve your reading skills by reading more of similar texts. Specific links for the information from each question can be found below.

1. https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/19180/pg19180-images.html
2. https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/19406/pg19406-images.html
3. https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/15193/pg15193-images.html
4. https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/13401/pg13401-images.html
5. https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/13401/pg13401-images.html
6. https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/13443/pg13443-images.html
7  https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/13443/pg13443-images.html
8. https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/13443/pg13443-images.html
9. https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/11735/pg11735-images.html
10. https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/8504/pg8504-images.html