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SAT® Skills Insight™

© 2011 The College Board. College Board, achieve more, AP, SAT and the acorn logo are registered trademarks of the College Board. Skills Insight is a trademark owned by the College Board. All other products and services may be trademarks of their respective owners. Visit the College Board on the Web: www.collegeboard.org.

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Using SAT® Skills Insight™

SAT® Skills Insight™ demonstrates how the SAT is linked to the knowledge and skills taught in the classroom. Educators can use Skills Insight to see the skills typically mastered at each score band and develop strategies for improvement, with a clear framework for integrating essential academic skill insights into classroom instruction and curriculum to increase college readiness.

Skills Insight provides:

➣ Skills and scores

➣ Detailed information on the academic skills related to students’ scores

➣ Real test questions and answers

➣ Suggestions by score band to help improve college readiness skills that are needed to succeed on the SAT, in the classroom, and in college

Step 1: Review student dataFind the student score data you would like to review. If you’re interested in viewing state and/or total group aggregate reports, you can find these at http://professionals.collegeboard.org/data-reports-research/sat/ under the tab College-Bound Seniors. If you’re interested in viewing reports for your students’ particular high school and/or district, go to http://professionals.collegeboard.org/testing/sat-reasoning/scores/cb-seniors-k-12 for a description of the types of reports available.

Step 2: Use Skills InsightOnce you’ve gauged your students’ general level of performance on the SAT, you can use Skills Insight to understand how students, as individuals or a group, are performing in specific academic skill areas. This valuable feedback helps identify the strengths and weaknesses of students in a given SAT score band.

Step 3: Review skills and suggestions for improvementThe listed suggestions not only provide ways in which students can move into a higher score band. These can be woven into lesson and curricular planning.

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No matter what your role, Skills Insight can be a valuable tool.

For state-level policymakers

Once you identify your states’ average scores, you can use the skills and suggestions for improvement to align curriculum and instruction with college readiness goals.

For superintendents/principals

You can use the skills and suggestions for improvements to inform curriculum and instruction in order to increase the level of college readiness at your school or district.

For classroom teachers

You can use Skills Insight to:

➣ Determine students’ individual skill strengths and weaknesses

➣ Understand the links between the skills being taught in the classroom and the skills covered on the SAT

➣ Focus instruction on areas where students need improvement, and adjust lesson plans accordingly

➣ Look at the types of skills tested in each score band and have students answer sample questions

4*Real SAT Questions and Answers are available on the Web: www.collegeboard.org/SATSkillsInsight

SAT® SKILLS INSIGHT™

Critical Reading Academic Skills at Each Score Band and Suggestions for Improvement

200–290 300–390 400–490Determining the Meaning of Words

Academic Skills*A typical student in this score interval can do the following:

• Determinethemeaningofwordsinasimplesentencebyusingcontextcluesincludingfamiliarphrasesandothervocabularyinthesentence

• Usecontextclueswhenselectingmissingvocabularyat the sentence level

• Useknowledgeofrootwords,prefixesandsuffixeswhenselectingmissingvocabularyatthesentencelevel

• Usethecontextofasentenceorashortsectionoftexttoclarifythemeaningofunknownwordsortoselecttheappropriatemeaningoffamiliarandsimplewordsthathavemultiplemeanings

• Useknowledgeofrootwordstodeterminethemeaningofwordsneededtocompleteacompoundorcomplexsentence

• Recognizeandunderstandlesscommonwordsandspecializedvocabulary(termsusedinaparticularoccupationorfieldofstudy)

• Usecontextclues(suchasanembeddeddefinition)toselectmissingvocabularyatthesentencelevel

• Usethecontextofasentenceorashortsectionoftexttoclarifythemeaningofunknownwords(whendefinitionsmayormaynotbeembeddedinthetext)ortoselecttheappropriatemeaningoffamiliarandsimplewordsthathavemultiplemeanings

• Usesentencestructuretonegotiatethemeaningofthesentence• Makesenseofcomplexsentenceswithlogicalconstructions

thatincludetermssuchasbut,although,or,if,then and not

Suggestions for ImprovementToadvancetothenexthighestscoreband,students should focus on thefollowingskills:

• Whilereading,lookforwordswithfamiliarroots.Thinkabouthowroots,prefixesandsuffixesworktogether.

• Whilereading,usethecontextoftherestofthesentencetodeterminethemeaningsofunknownormultiplemeaningwords(suchaslight or run).

• Whenreading,considerrootwordstohelpdeterminethemeaningofanunknownordifficultword.

• Whenencounteringanunknownordifficultwordinatext,trytofindoutifthatwordisjargon,orthespecializedvocabularyofaspecificfield.

• Whenencounteringanunknownwordorawordwithmultiplemeanings(suchaslight or run)inatext,lookatthecontextofthesentenceforcluestowhatthewordmeans.

• Whenreading,pickoutalongsentenceandbreakitdownintosmallerparts.Thinkabouthowthestructure of the sentence creates relationships amongtheideasinthesentence.Thinkabouthowwordslikebut,although,andalso create certain relationships.

• Whenreadingatext,identifyacompoundorcomplexsentenceandbreakitdownintosmallerparts.Thinkabouthowthosepartsworktogetherandconsiderhowthestructureofthesentencesetsuprelationshipsamongtheideasinthesentence.

• Whenencounteringanunknownwordorawordwithmultiplemeanings(suchaslight or run)inatext,lookatthecontextofthesentenceforcluestowhatthewordmeans.

• Whenreadingatext(suchasanewspaperormagazinearticle)aboutanunfamiliarsubject,lookforwordsthatmightbepartofaspecializedvocabulary—thatis,wordsthatareprimarilyusedwithinacertainfield—anddeterminetheirmeaning.Chooseasubjectandfindabookwrittenbyaspecialistforotherspecialistsinthatfield,lookingforspecializedvocabularywordsinthetext.

Understanding Literary ElementsAcademic Skills*

Thisparticularskillgroupisnotrepresentedinthisscoreband.However,itisanimportantacademicskilltestedontheSAT.Weencouragestudentstoreviewtheskillsandexamplesinthenexthighestscorebandwherethisparticularskillgroupdoesappear.



Suggestions for Improvement

Therearenospecificsuggestionsforimprovementforthisskillgroupinthisparticularscoreband.However,we encourage students to review the suggestionsandexamplesinother scorebands.

Therearenospecificsuggestionsforimprovementforthisskillgroupinthisparticularscoreband.However,we encourage students to review the suggestions and examplesinotherscorebands.

• Whenreadinganovel,shortstoryorplay,trytoidentifythedifferentwaysauthorscreatecharacter.Whatisrevealedabouta character through his or her dialogue and interactions with other characters?

Organization and IdeasAcademic Skills*



• Understandthecentralidea(s)inasimpletextorinashortsectionofalongertext

• Determinethemainideaofatextandapplyittoadifferentcontext

• Understandtherelationshipofideaswithinandacrossdifferenttexts

• Integrateinformationfromshortsectionsofdifferenttexts



• Whenreadingatext(suchasabook,anessay,anewspaperoramagazinearticle),identifytheauthor’sideasandthinkabouttherelationshipsamongthoseideas.Identifythemainideaandthesupportingideas.

• Whenreadingtwotextsbydifferentauthorsonthesametopicoronrelatedtopics,identifyeachauthor’sideasandthinkabouthowthoseideasrelatetoeachother.

• Whenreadingalongertext,noticehowitspartsworktogether.Consider how the author introduces and concludes his or her idea.Considerwhatsupportorevidencetheauthorprovides.

• Lookfortwotextsaboutthesametopicbydifferentauthors.Compareandcontrasthoweachauthorfeelsaboutthetopicandhoweachauthoraddressesthetopic.

• Afterreadinganessay,anewspaperarticleoramagazinearticle,considerwhatconclusionsandpredictionscanbemade.Considerwhatmightcomenextiftheessayorarticleweretocontinue.


Critical Reading, continued

500–590 600–690 700–800Determining the Meaning of Words

Academic Skills*

• Usethecontextofasentenceorlargersectionoftexttodeterminethemeaningofunknownwordsortodifferentiateamongmultiplepossiblemeaningsofwords

• Understandhowsyntax(thearrangementofwords and phrases in a sentence) influences the relationshipamongwordsandideaswithinasentence

• Demonstrateincreasedcomprehensionofspecializedvocabulary

• Understandfamiliarwordsinunfamiliarcontextsanddifferentiateamongmultiplepossiblemeaningsforwordsinunfamiliarcontexts

• Understandsophisticatedandspecializedvocabulary• Determinethemeaningofawordwhenthereislittle

ornosupportingcontext• Negotiatecomplexsyntax(thearrangementofwords

andphrasesinasentence),andintegrateideaswithin and across sentences

• Understandhowwordscansometimesbeusedinunusualwaysthatdirectlyrefutecommonusage

• Accessbroadandextensivevocabularywithincomplexsyntacticalstructuresandinavarietyofcontexts

• Analyzethecontextofasentenceorlargersectionsoftexttoclarifythemeaningofunknownwords,differentiateamongmultiplepossiblemeaningsofwords,detectnuancesandinferconnotations


• Whenreadingatextaboutanunfamiliartopic,lookforfamiliarwordstohelpdeterminewhatanyunknownwordsmightmean.

• Whenencounteringanunknownwordoradifficultwordinatext,lookitupinadictionarythatprovidesinformationontheoriginsandhistoryofaword.

• Whenencounteringadifficultsectionoftext,breakdowntheideassentencebysentenceandevenwithinsentences.Thinkabouthowtheideasworktogether.

• Whenreadingadifficulttext,lookforfamiliarwordsthatareusedinunfamiliarways.

• Whenreadingatextaboutanunfamiliartopic,lookforfamiliarwordstohelpdeterminewhatanyunknownwordsmightmean.

• Whenencounteringadifficultwordinatext,usethecontextofthesentenceandsurroundingsentencestodeterminetheword’smeaning.Alsoconsiderthecontextwhendetermininghowawordisbeingused.Forexample,doestherestofthesentenceindicatethatawordisbeingusedwithacertainconnotation?

• Toimprovevocabulary,readadifficulttextandlookupanyunfamiliarwordsinadictionarythatprovidesinformationontheoriginsandhistoryofaword.

Thisisthetopscorebandandstudentswhoscoreatthislevelwilllikelyhavemasteredtheskillslistedatallotherlevels.However,studentscanalwaysbenefitfrommorepractice.Weencouragestudentstoreviewtheskillsandexampleslistedinthe500–590and600–690scorebands.

Understanding Literary ElementsAcademic Skills*

• Identifynuancesandattitudesofcharacters• Determinecharacterizationfromdialogue,thoughts

andactions,interactionsamongcharacters,andnarrative perspective

• Analyzecharacters’functioninanarrative• Interpretdialoguefromacharacter’sorthenarrator’s

perspective

• Analyzetherolesandrelationshipsamongcharactersandbetweencharactersandthenarrator


• Whenreadinganovel,shortstoryorplay,chooseacharacterandthinkaboutwhatpurposeheorsheserves.Consider:Isthecharacteraprotagonist,anantagonistoranimportantminorcharacter?Isthecharacterafoiloratragichero?Doesthecharacterprovidecomicrelief?Howdoesthecharacterrelatetothestory’stheme?Howdoesthecharacteraffectthe plot?

• Whenreadinganovel,shortstoryorplay,pickoutalineofonecharacter’sdialogue.Thinkabouthowother characters would react to what that character says.Keepinmindwhatisknownabouteachcharacter.

• Whenreadinganovel,shortstoryorplay,identifythewaysinwhichthecharacters(includingthenarrator)contributetothework’soverallmeaningormessage.Considerthewaysinwhichthecharactersrelatetoeachotherandtothenarrator.


Organization and IdeasAcademic Skills*

• Integrateideaswithinandacrosssentencesandtexts

• Comprehendgeneralizationsabouttexts• Analyzeandcompareconceptsacrosstexts• Drawtext-basedconclusionsbeyondthemainidea• Determinethefunctionofaselectedportionoftext

withinalongertext

• Analyzemainideasandconceptswithinandacrosscomplexandsometimesopposingtexts

• Compareandcontrastexplicitandimplicitsupportingideasacrosstexts

• Recognizecomponentsofanauthor’sargumentwithinatext

• Analyzecontext,sentencestructureandsentencevariationtoconstructmeaningwithinandacrosssentencesandtexts

• Interpretmultiplelayersofatext


• Findtwochallengingessaysbydifferentauthorsonthesametopic.Considerhoweachauthoraddressesthetopic.Thinkabouthoweachauthortreatsthemainidea.Considerwhethertheauthorsusesimilarevidenceandsupportingideasoruseothermethodstosupporttheirmainideas.

• Whenreadinganargumentativetext,identifythepartsoftheauthor’sargument.Consider:Whatisthethesis?Whatevidencedoestheauthorprovide?Doestheauthorciteothers?Howdoesheorsheconcludetheargument?

• Whenreadingatext,lookatitsorganizationanditsstyle.Considerhowtheorganizationandstyleworktogethertocontributetothework’seffectiveness.

• Whenreadingatext,thinkaboutthestatedtopicandalsoconsideritslargermeaningorpurpose.Considerwhetherornotthetexthasameaningbeyonditsstatedintention.




200–290 300–390 400–490Author’s CraftAcademic Skills*

• Usevocabularycluestodeterminethetoneofatext(theauthor’sattitudetowardthesubjectofthetextandtowardthe audience)

• Recognizeelementsoffigurativelanguage(suchasmetaphor)inatext

Thisparticularskillgroupisnotrepresentedinthisscoreband.However,itisanimportantacademicskilltestedontheSAT.Weencouragestudentstoreviewtheskillsandexamplesinthenexthighestscoreband,wherethisparticularskillgroupdoesappear.

• Identifyanauthor’spurposeforwriting• Identifyanddescribetheeffectsofliterarydevicesused

toachieveaspecificpurpose• Infertheauthor’sopinionconcerningthecentralideasin

atext• Usetonetoinferanauthor’sunstatedassumptions• Usecontextcluestoidentifyanauthor’srhetorical

purpose(forexample,topersuadetheaudience)inashortsectionoftext



• Whenreadingatext,thinkabouttheauthor’spurpose for writing(forexample,toexpresshisorherfeelingsaboutasubject,toinformthereader,topresentanargument).

• Whenreadingatext,lookforliterarydevicessuchaspersonification,metaphorandhyperbole;thinkaboutwhateffectthesedeviceshaveonthetext.

• Whenreadingatext,considertheauthor’stone.Lookforspecificwordsandphrasesthatmakethetextsoundhumorous,angry,earnestorobjective.Considerwhytheauthorhaschosentousethistone.

• Whenreadingatext,thinkabouthowtheauthorusesrhetoric.Forwhomistheauthoriswriting?Identifyhowheorshehooksthereader’sinterest,andhowtheauthortriestomakehimselforherselfbelievable.Consider how the author uses evidence to support his or herpoint.

• Whenreadingalongertext,pickoneparagraphandcarefullyanalyzethevocabulary,sentencestructuresanddevicesinit.Thinkabouthowanauthoruseslanguagetoachieveapurposeinjustashortsectionoftext.

• Whenreadinganovel,shortstoryorplay,thinkabouttheauthor’sstyle.Considerwhatkindoflanguagetheauthoruses—flowerylanguageorstraightforwardlanguage,forexample.Thinkabouthowthestyleaffectsthetext.

• Whenreadingatext,lookforliterarydevicessuchassymbolismandirony.

Reasoning and InferencingAcademic Skills*


• Performclear,simplestepsofreasoning• Recognizeageneralidea,suchasaparaphrase,thatis

supportedbyseparatebutrelatedpointsindifferentsentences

• Performmultiplestepsofreasoning• Makemultiple,layeredinferences


• Whilereadingatext,thinkabouthowtheauthorsupportshisorhermainidea.

• Whilereadingatext,chooseasentenceandrestateit,andthenchooseawholeparagraphandrestateit.

• Whenreadingatextandconsideringtheideasinit,thinkabouthowconclusionsarereachedbasedonthoseideas.Thinkaboutwhatcanbeguessedabouttheauthorandhisorherfeelingsaboutatopicbasedonwhatisinthetext:Istheauthor suggesting rather than statingacertainidea?Doesitseemthattheauthorissayingsomethingorbelievesinsomethingevenifitisnotdirectlystated?Canconclusionsbedrawnorpredictionsmadebasedoncluesinthetext?

• Afterreadingatextanddetermininghowtheauthorfeelsaboutacertaintopic,considerhowheorshewouldfeelaboutarelatedargument.Thinkabouthowsomeonewithanopposingviewpointwouldrespondtothetext,andhowtheauthorwouldrespondtoanopposingargument.

• Whenreadingalongertext,noticehowtheauthordevelopsanidea.Thinkabouthowtheideaisintroducedandhowtheideaisdevelopedthroughoutthetext.



500–590 600–690 700–800Author’s CraftAcademic Skills*

• Inferanauthor’spurposeforwriting• Recognizetheuseofironyandtheeffectsofother

sophisticatedliterarydevices,suchassymbolism,inatext

• Determinethefunctionofwordsanddevicesinlimitedsectionsoftext

• Analyzehowanauthorachievesspecificeffectsusing rhetorical devices and strategies

• Analyzeanauthor’sexplicitandimplicitpurposesforwriting

• Analyzetheeffectsofanauthor’srhetoricalandstylisticchoices

• Distinguishamongopinion,fact,conjectureandhypothesisinatext

• Recognizehowanauthorusesevidencetosupportaparticular position

• Recognizesubtletiesanddifferencesintone,suchastheuseofhumororironytoachieveaspecificeffect

• Analyzetheoverallpurposeofanauthor’stext• Analyzehowsophisticatedrhetoricaldevices

support an author’s purposes• Analyzehowthesophisticateduseofliterary

devicesandfigurativelanguage(suchasextendedmetaphors,complicatedanalogiesandsymbolicimages)achievespecificeffects


• Whenreadingatext,thinkaboutwhytheauthorchosetowriteit.Considerbothwhattheauthorsaysinthetextandwhatcanbeinferred.

• Whenreadingatext,considerhowtheauthor’slanguageandthestructureofthetextaffectthewaytheauthormakeshisorherpoint.Thinkaboutwhatkindofsupporttheauthorprovides.Consider:Doestheauthorspeculate,citefactsorexpressanopinion?Howdoestheauthor’stonerelate to the topic?

• Whenreadingatext,considertheauthor’suseofrhetoric.Thinkabouthowtheauthortriestomakehimselforherselfbelievableandhowtheauthorusesevidencetosupporthisorherpoint.Thinkabouthowtheauthor’suseofrhetoricsupportshisorherpurpose.

• Whenreadingatext,considerhowtheauthorcarefullyusesliterarydevices(suchasunderstatement,mood,allusion,allegory,paradox,voiceandauthorialpersona)andfigurativelanguage.Thinkabouthowtheauthor’slanguageanduseofdevicesaffectthetext.


Reasoning and InferencingAcademic Skills*

• Makelayeredinferencesandapplythoseinferencestodifferentbutrelatedsituations

• Makeaconnectionbetweenonepartofatextandalaterpartofthatsametexttoenhancecomprehension

• Performcomplexreasoningtasksonshortsectionsoftext

• Determineanauthor’sunstatedassumptionsanddevelopinferencesfromexplicitevidenceindifferentsectionsofatext

• Drawmultipleextendedinferencesthatrequireseveralsteps of reasoning

• Drawinferencesbasedonimplicationsthroughoutatext• Considertheentiretextwhenmakinginferences,linking

informationtoideasbothbeforeandafteraspecificsection

• Integratebothgeneralanddetailedinformationacrosstexts

• Makeinferenceswhenthereisnoexplicitreinforcementinthetextorwheninformationismissing,andusethoseinferencestodrawfurtherconclusionsaboutthetext

• Applyconclusionsdrawnfromatexttoothercontexts,understandingsimilaroranalogoussituations in the process

• Identifyanauthor’sunstatedassumptionsanddrawfurtherconclusionsaboutthetextbasedontheseassumptions

• Analyzeandrelatemultipleperspectivesonsimilartopicsacrosstexts

• Compareandcontrastdeeplyembeddeddetailsorideasacrosstexts


• Whenreadingatext(suchasanessayornewspaperarticle),thinkaboutwhattheauthoristryingtosay,eitherdirectlyorindirectly.Thinkaboutwhattheauthorstates,andwhatcanbeguessedaboutwhatheorshethinksorfeels.Identifytheevidenceinthetextthatsupportsanyassumptions.

• Findtwochallengingtextsbydifferentauthorsonthesametopic.Synthesizethemainideasandsupportingdetailsfromeachtext.Thinkaboutwhatconclusionscanbedrawnfrombothtexts.

• Afterreadingatext,thinkabouttheconclusionsthatcanbedrawnfromthattext.Considerhowtheseconclusionsmightapplytoadifferentscenarioorsituation.Thinkaboutothertextstheseconclusionsbringtomind,andconsiderhowtheseconclusionsmightrelatetothem.

• Whenreadingachallengingtext,thinkabouttheassumptionsthatunderlietheauthor’sposition.Thinkaboutwhattheauthorassumesabouttheworld.Consider:Aretheauthor’sassumptionslogical?Arehisorherassumptionsdefensible?Doesthereader’sviewoftheauthorandhisorherassumptionsaffectthereader’sunderstandingofthetext?

• Readessaysbydifferentauthorsonthesametopicorrelatedtopics.Analyzetheessays’similaritiesanddifferencesfrommanydifferentperspectives.Considerthingssuchaseachauthor’sreasoning,evidenceandlogicalappeals.




Mathematics Academic Skills at Each Score Band and Suggestions for Improvement

200–290 300–390 400–490NUMBER AND OPERATIONS

Academic Skills*A typical student in this score interval can do the following:

• Identifyfactorsofwholenumbers• Solvewordproblemsusingaddition,

subtraction,multiplicationanddivisionofwholenumbers

• Recallbasicmathematicalfacts/definitionsaboutexponentialnotation,includingscientificnotation

• Identifyarulethatdescribesanumericalpatterninasequence

• Identify,useandrepresentfractionsandpercentsinarithmeticandalgebraicsettings

• Usepropertiesofevenandoddnumbers,multiplesandfactors• Identifyandusethenamesforplacevaluesinsolvingproblems

involvingdecimalrepresentations(e.g.,tenthsandhundredths)• Usepropertiesofinequalitiestocompareandordernumbers

Suggestions for ImprovementToadvancetothenexthighestscoreband,students should focus onthefollowingskills:

• Recallbasicmathematicalfacts/definitionsaboutexponentialnotation,includingscientificnotation

• Identifyarulethatdescribesanumericalpatterninasequence

• Identify,useandrepresentfractionsandpercentsinarithmeticandalgebraicsettings

• Usepropertiesofevenandoddnumbers,multiplesand factors

• Identifyandusethenamesforplacevaluesinsolvingproblemsinvolvingdecimalrepresentations(e.g.,tenths and hundredths)

• Usepropertiesofinequalitiestocompareandordernumbers

• Solveproblemsusingideasfrombasicsettheoryandbasicnumbertheory

• Recognizeandapplyratio,proportionorpercentinsolvingproblems

• Usepropertiesofrealnumberoperations,orderingandthezero-product property

• Solveproblemsinvolvingcountingtechniques

ALGEBRA AND FUNCTIONS

Academic Skills*

• Uselettersasplaceholdersforunknownvalues

• Treatexpressionssuchasa + basasinglequantityinlinearproblemsituations(e.g.,solving2(a + b) = 6 to findthevalueofa + b)

• Verifythatavalueisasolutiontoalinearorquadraticequation(e.g.,substituteandsimplify)

• Usefunctionnotationinsimplesituations(e.g.,evaluation)• Usevariablesinmultistepabstractsettings(e.g.,applythe

distributivepropertyacrossseveralvariables)• Solveproblemsinvolvingpositive-integerexponents• Solvewordproblemsinvolvinglinearrelationships• Substitutevaluesinandsimplifysystemsofequationsintwo

variables• Solvetwo-steplinearequations• Evaluateanoperationintwovariablesrepresentedbyunfamiliar

symbols


• Treatexpressionssuchasa + b as asinglequantityinlinearproblemsituations(e.g.,solving2(a + b) = 6 to findthevalueofa + b)

• Verifythatavalueisasolutiontoalinearorquadraticequation(e.g.,substituteandsimplify)

• Usefunctionnotationinsimplesituations(e.g.,evaluation)

• Usevariablesinmultistepabstractsettings(e.g.,applythedistributivepropertyacrossseveralvariables)

• Solveproblemsinvolvingpositive-integerexponents• Solvewordproblemsinvolvinglinearrelationships• Substitutevaluesinandsimplifysystemsof

equationsintwovariables• Solvetwo-steplinearequations• Evaluateanoperationintwovariablesrepresented

byunfamiliarsymbols

• Formulateandsolveproblemsinvolvingproportions• Solvemultistepproblemsinvolvinglinearandquadratic

relationships• Useandinterpretgraphs,includinggraphsofstepfunctions• Solveproblemsinvolvingalgebraicinequalities• Solveproblemsinvolvingexponentialgrowthanddecay• Evaluateanoperationinthreevariablesrepresentedbyunfamiliar

symbols

GEOMETRY AND MEASUREMENT

Academic Skills*

• Solvegeometryproblemsinvolvingbasicshapes(e.g.,triangles,circlesandsegments)

• Recallbasicmathematicalfactsabouttriangles(e.g.,propertiesofisoscelestrianglesandthe180˚anglesumproperty)

• Applypropertiesoftriangles,includingcongruence• Applyanglerelationships,includingthoseinpolygonsandcircles• Solveproblemsinvolvingthelengthoflinesegments


• Recallbasicmathematicalfactsabouttriangles(e.g.,propertiesofisoscelestrianglesandthe180˚anglesumproperty)

• Applypropertiesoftriangles,includingcongruence• Applyanglerelationships,includingthosein

polygons and circles• Solveproblemsinvolvingthelengthoflinesegments

• Recognizeandusethefollowing:■ Simpleinscribedandcircumscribedfigures■ ThePythagoreanTheorem■ Coordinategeometry(e.g.,slopecalculations)■ Parallelismandperpindicularity■ Two-andthree-dimensionalfigures■ Figurescomposedoftwoormoresimpleshapes

• Interpretandsolvetwo-stepproblemsinvolvinggeometricproportions


Mathematics, continued

500–590 600–690 700–800NUMBER AND OPERATIONS

Academic Skills*

• Solveproblemsusingideasfrombasicsettheoryandbasicnumbertheory

• Recognizeandapplyratio,proportionorpercentinsolvingproblems

• Usepropertiesofrealnumberoperations,orderingandthezero-productproperty

• Solveproblemsinvolvingcountingtechniques

• Determinevaluesorpropertiesofnumbersinasequencewhengivenadescriptionofthesequence

• Createanduseratios,fractionsorpercentsinsolvingproblems

• Solvemore-complexcountingproblems(e.g.,permutations,combinationsandinclusion/exclusion)

• Useπinalgebraicandgeometriccontexts• Createanduseratios,fractionsorpercents,

includingalgebraicexpressions,insolvingproblems


• Determinevaluesorpropertiesofnumbersinasequencewhengivenadescriptionofthesequence

• Createanduseratios,fractionsorpercentsinsolvingproblems

• Solvemore-complexcountingproblems(e.g.,permutations,combinationsandinclusion/exclusion)

• Useπinalgebraicandgeometriccontexts• Createanduseratios,fractionsorpercents,including

algebraicexpressions,insolvingproblems


ALGEBRA AND FUNCTIONS

Academic Skills*

• Formulateandsolveproblemsinvolvingproportions• Solvemultistepproblemsinvolvinglinearand

quadraticrelationships• Useandinterpretgraphs,includinggraphsofstep

functions• Solveproblemsinvolvingalgebraicinequalities• Solveproblemsinvolvingexponentialgrowthand

decay• Evaluateanoperationinthreevariablesrepresented

byunfamiliarsymbols

• Applytheconceptofabsolutevaluetoalgebraicexpressions

• Identifyandanalyzethequalitativebehaviorofgraphsofnonlinear functions

• Solveproblemsinvolvingnonlinearfunctionsandequations(e.g.,quadratic,exponentialandrational)

• Solveproblemsinvolvingfractionalandnegativeexponents• Identifysolutionsetsinalgebraicsituationsinvolving

inequalities• Solveproblemsinvolvingcompositionoffunctions(e.g.,use

theoutputofonefunctionastheinputtobeevaluatedinasecond function)

• Solveproblemsinvolvingvariableswithoperationsrepresentedbyunfamiliarsymbols

• Generalizeanexponentialpatternfromageometricsequence

• Solveforonevariableorexpressionintermsofanother• Workwithsystemsofequationsinvolvingthreeormore

variables

• Solveproblemsinvolvingcomplexfractions• Solveproblemsinvolvingfunctionsdefinedwith

unfamiliarsymbolsinoneormorevariables• Identify,applyandrepresenttransformationsof

functions,graphicallyandalgebraically• Applypropertiesofnon-integerexponents• Solvemultistepproblemsinvolvingalgebraic

inequalities• Solvewordproblemsinvolvingrateofchangein

nonlinearorpiecewise-linearsettings• Identifyandusetherelationshipbetweentheslope

ofalineandalgebraicrateofchange• Interpretandsolvewordproblemsusingmultistep

proportional reasoning• Transformanequationorexpressionbyraisingittoa

power


• Applytheconceptofabsolutevaluetoalgebraicexpressions

• Identifyandanalyzethequalitativebehaviorofgraphs of nonlinear functions

• Solveproblemsinvolvingnonlinearfunctionsandequations(e.g.,quadratic,exponentialandrational)

• Solveproblemsinvolvingfractionalandnegativeexponents

• Identifysolutionsetsinalgebraicsituationsinvolvinginequalities

• Solveproblemsinvolvingcompositionoffunctions(e.g.,usetheoutputofonefunctionastheinputtobeevaluated in a second function)

• Solveproblemsinvolvingvariableswithoperationsrepresentedbyunfamiliarsymbols

• Generalizeanexponentialpatternfromageometricsequence

• Solveforonevariableorexpressionintermsofanother

• Workwithsystemsofequationsinvolvingthreeormorevariables

• Solveproblemsinvolvingcomplexfractions• Solveproblemsinvolvingfunctionsdefinedwithunfamiliar

symbolsinoneormorevariables• Identify,applyandrepresenttransformationsoffunctions,

graphicallyandalgebraically• Applypropertiesofnon-integerexponents• Solvemultistepproblemsinvolvingalgebraicinequalities• Solvewordproblemsinvolvingrateofchangeinnonlinear

orpiecewise-linearsettings• Identifyandusetherelationshipbetweentheslopeofaline

andalgebraicrateofchange• Interpretandsolvewordproblemsusingmultistep

proportional reasoning• Transformanequationorexpressionbyraisingittoapower


GEOMETRY AND MEASUREMENT

Academic Skills*

• Recognizeandusethefollowing:■ Simpleinscribedandcircumscribedfigures■ ThePythagoreanTheorem■ Coordinategeometry(e.g.,slopecalculations)■ Parallelismandperpindicularity■ Two-andthree-dimensionalfigures■ Figurescomposedoftwoormoresimpleshapes

• Interpretandsolvetwo-stepproblemsinvolvinggeometricproportions

• Recognizeandusevolumeinsolvingmultistepproblems• Usetherelationshipsbetweentheslopesofparalleland

perpendicular lines in the coordinate plane

• Determinetheeffectofchangesinthelineardimensionsofafigureonothermeasuresofthefigure,suchasarea

• Interpretandsolvemultistepproblemsinvolvinggeometricproportions

• Solveproblemsinvolvingnetworks


• Recognizeandusevolumeinsolvingmultistepproblems

• Usetherelationshipsbetweentheslopesofparalleland perpendicular lines in the coordinate plane

• Determinetheeffectofchangesinthelineardimensionsofafigureonothermeasuresofthefigure,suchasarea

• Interpretandsolvemultistepproblemsinvolvinggeometricproportions

• Solveproblemsinvolvingnetworks




200–290 300–390 400–490DATA, STATISTICS AND PROBABILITY

Academic Skills*

• Readsimpledatadisplays(e.g.,bargraphs,linegraphs,pictogramsandtables)

• Readandinterpretbargraphs • Extractanduserelevantinformationfromtables,graphsanddiagrams


• Readandinterpretbargraphs

• Extractanduserelevantinformationfromtables,graphsanddiagrams

• Interpretandsolveproblemsinvolvingdatadisplays(e.g.,circlegraphs)

PROBLEM SOLVING

Academic Skills*

• Setupandsolveone-stepproblemsinvolvingrates

• Applyasimpleproceduretosolveanarithmeticproblem

• Solveone-stepproportionalreasoningproblems • Read,extractanduserelevantinformationfromwrittendescriptionsandgeometricfigurestosolveaproblem

• Solvesomemultisteproutineproblems• Solveproblemsinvolvingratesandunitconversions


• Solveone-stepproportional reasoning problems

• Read,extractanduserelevantinformationfromwrittendescriptionsandgeometricfigurestosolveaproblem

• Solvesomemultisteproutineproblems• Solveproblemsinvolvingratesandunitconversions

• Usemultistepstrategiestosolveaproblem,suchasthefollowing:■ Drawingauxiliarylines■ Breakingalargerproblemdowntosmallercomponents

• Solvemultistepnonroutineproblems(e.g.,bytrialanderror)• Solvemultistepgeometryproblemsinvolvingthefollowing:

■ Anglemeasuresandrelationships■ Triangles

REPRESENTATION

Academic Skills*

• Readpictorialandtabularrepresentations to identify an answer

• Selectanappropriaterepresentation for a proportion

• Translateverbalstatementsintoalgebraicexpressions • Createandapplyanappropriaterepresentationforarate• Visualizeorcreateageometricrepresentationtosolveaproblem• Translatebetweenverbalandsymbolicrepresentationsoflinearexpressions• Translatebetweenequivalentsymbolicrepresentationsoflinearexpressions


• Translateverbalstatementsintoalgebraicexpressions

• Createandapplyanappropriaterepresentationforarate

• Visualizeorcreateageometricrepresentationtosolveaproblem

• Translatebetweenverbalandsymbolicrepresentationsoflinearexpressions

• Translatebetweenequivalentsymbolicrepresentationsoflinearexpressions

• Recognizeandtranslateamonginformationrepresentedverbally,graphically,numericallyandsymbolically

• Visualizeorsketchafigurebasedonaverbaldescriptiontosolveaproblem• Interpretfunctionsandgraphsasmodelsinappliedsituations

REASONING

Academic Skills*

• Applyreasoninginsolving straightforward problemsinfamiliarsettings

• Reasonabout,structureandsolveproblemsaboutratesand proportions

• Considerandcomparedifferentcasesinreasoningaboutaproblemsituation


• Reasonabout,structureandsolveproblemsaboutrates and proportions

• Considerandcomparedifferentcasesinreasoningaboutaproblemsituation

• Makeandtestconjecturesinvolvingbasiclogicandsettheory• Usebasicnumbertheorytoinvestigateconjectures(e.g.,conjecturesaboutodd/

even,positive/negativeandconsecutiveintegers)

CONNECTIONS

Academic Skills*

• Makeconnectionsbetweendataanalysisandnumberandoperations(e.g.,usenumericaljudgmentinreadingasimpledatadisplay)

• Usevariablesinageometriccontext(e.g.,workwithunknownanglesidentifiedbyx and y )

• Usevariablesinareasotherthanalgebra


• Usevariablesinageometriccontext(e.g.,workwithunknownanglesidentifiedby x and y )

• Usevariablesinareasotherthanalgebra • Useconnectionsbetweenareasofmathematics,suchasthefollowing: ■Algebraandgeometry(e.g.,connectgeometricslopewithanalgebraic

expression)■ Dataandalgebra(e.g.,computemeanofalgebraicexpressions)■ Applyingproportionsingeometricsituations

COMMUNICATION

Academic Skills*

• Usethefollowingnotationandterms:■ Factor(wholenumber)■ Radius

• Usethefollowingnotationandterms:■ Congruent angles

• Usethefollowingnotationandterms:■ Function notation■ Parallel


• Usethefollowingnotationandterms:■ Congruent angles

• Usethefollowingnotationandterms:■ Function notation■ Parallel

• Usethefollowingnotationandterms:■ Consecutive integers■ “NOT,”“CANNOT,”“must,”“whichofthefollowing”■ Arcs■ Anglebisector



500–590 600–690 700–800DATA, STATISTICS AND PROBABILITY

Academic Skills*

• Interpretandsolveproblemsinvolvingdatadisplays(e.g.,circle graphs)

• Interpretandsolvemultistepproblemsinvolvingdatadisplays• Interprettheeffectofchangesindataonmeasuresofcenter• Solveproblemsinvolvingprobability

• Solveconditionalprobabilityproblems

• Solvegeometricprobabilityproblems


• Interpretandsolvemultistepproblemsinvolvingdatadisplays

• Interprettheeffectofchangesindataonmeasuresofcenter

• Solveproblemsinvolvingprobability

• Solveconditionalprobabilityproblems• Solvegeometricprobabilityproblems

Thisisthetopscorebandandstudentswhoscoreatthislevelwilllikelyhavemasteredtheskillslistedatallotherlevels.

PROBLEM SOLVING

Academic Skills*

• Usemultistepstrategiestosolveaproblem,suchasthefollowing:■ Drawingauxiliarylines■ Breakingalargerproblemdowntosmallercomponents

• Solvemultistepnonroutineproblems(e.g.,bytrialanderror)

• Solvemultistepgeometryproblemsinvolvingthefollowing:■ Anglemeasuresandrelationships■ Triangles

• Solveproblemsusingmultiplestrategies,including the following:■ Visualization■ Estimationskills■ Recognizingrelevant

information■ Function notation

• Useinsightinsolvingnonroutinegeometricproblemsinvolvingthe following:■ Triangles■ Patterns■ Perimeter■ ThePythagoreanTheorem■ Propertiesofcircles

• Solvethefirststageofaproblem,and then apply that solution to solve thenextstageoftheproblem

• Recognizecomplexityinproblemsthatappearatfirsttoberoutine

• Developandapplyaneffectivestrategyandkeeptrackofinformationinsolvinganonroutineproblem

• Identifyrelevantandirrelevantinformationwhenchoosingasolutionstrategy

• Solvemultistepproblemsinvolvingproperties of integers


• Solveproblemsusingmultiplestrategies,including the following:■ Visualization■ Estimationskills■ Recognizingrelevant

information■ Function notation

• Useinsightinsolvingnonroutinegeometricproblemsinvolvingthefollowing:■ Triangles■ Patterns■ Perimeter■ ThePythagorean

Theorem■ Propertiesofcircles

• Solvethefirststageofaproblem,andthenapplythatsolutiontosolvethenextstageoftheproblem

• Recognizecomplexityinproblemsthatappearatfirsttoberoutine

• Developandapplyaneffectivestrategyandkeeptrackofinformationinsolvinganonroutineproblem

• Identifyrelevantandirrelevantinformationwhenchoosingasolution strategy

• Solvemultistepproblemsinvolvingpropertiesofintegers


REPRESENTATION

Academic Skills*

• Recognizeandtranslateamonginformationrepresentedverbally,graphically,numericallyandsymbolically

• Visualizeorsketchafigurebasedonaverbaldescriptiontosolveaproblem

• Interpretfunctionsandgraphsasmodelsinappliedsituations

• Translateverbaldescriptionsintoalgebraicrepresentationsinsolvingcomplexproblems

• Translateamongequivalentrepresentationsofexpressionsinvolvingexponents

• Compareandcontrastalgebraicandgeometricrepresentations

• Translateverbaldescriptionsintononlinearalgebraicrepresentationsinsolvingcomplexproblems


• Translateverbaldescriptionsintoalgebraicrepresentationsinsolvingcomplexproblems

• Translateamongequivalentrepresentationsofexpressionsinvolvingexponents

• Compareandcontrastalgebraicandgeometricrepresentations• Translateverbaldescriptionsintononlinearalgebraic

representationsinsolvingcomplexproblems


REASONING

Academic Skills*

• Makeandtestconjecturesinvolvingbasiclogicandsettheory

• Usebasicnumbertheorytoinvestigateconjectures(e.g.,conjecturesaboutodd/even,positive/negativeandconsecutive integers)

• Recognizeandusecounterexamples• Considermultiplecases• Investigateandcoordinatemultipleconjecturestodrawalogical

conclusion

• Decidewhichcasestoconsiderinordertoreach a conclusion

• Makeandtestconjecturesaboutproperties of operations represented byunfamiliarsymbols


• Recognizeandusecounterexamples• Considermultiplecases• Investigateandcoordinatemultipleconjecturestodrawa

logical conclusion

• Decidewhichcasestoconsiderinordertoreachaconclusion• Makeandtestconjecturesaboutpropertiesofoperations

representedbyunfamiliarsymbols




500–590 600–690 700–800CONNECTIONS

Academic Skills*

• Useconnectionsbetweenareasofmathematics,suchas the following:■ Algebraandgeometry(e.g.,connectgeometric

slopewithanalgebraicexpression)■ Dataandalgebra(e.g.,computemeanofalgebraic

expressions)■ Applyingproportionsingeometricsituations

• Useconnectionsbetweenareasofmathematics,suchasthe following:■ Coordinategeometryandalgebra■ Numberandoperations,anddata,statistics,and

probability■ Numberandoperations,andgeometry■ Numberandoperations,andalgebra■ Data,statistics,andprobability,andgeometryand

measurement■ Algebraandfunctions,anddata,statistics,and

probability

• Solvenonroutineproblemsinvolvingtheapplicationofconceptsfromthefollowing:■ Algebraandfunctions,andnumberandopera-

tions■ Geometryandmeasurement,andalgebraand

functions■ Data,statistics,andprobability,andnumberand

operations


• Useconnectionsbetweenareasofmathematics,suchas the following:■ Coordinategeometryandalgebra■ Numberandoperations,anddata,statistics,and

probability■ Numberandoperations,andgeometry■ Numberandoperations,andalgebra■ Data,statistics,andprobability,andgeometryand

measurement■ Algebraandfunctions,anddata,statistics,and

probability

• Solvenonroutineproblemsinvolvingtheapplicationofconceptsfromthefollowing:■ Algebraandfunctions,andnumberandoperations■ Geometryandmeasurement,andalgebraand

functions■ Data,statistics,andprobability,andnumberand

operations


COMMUNICATION

Academic Skills*

• Usethefollowingnotationandterms:■ Consecutive integers■ “NOT,”“CANNOT,”“must,”“whichofthe

following”■ Arcs■ Anglebisector

• Usethefollowingnotationandterms:■ Median■ Random

• Usethefollowingnotationsandterms:■ π■ Tangent(linetoacircle;circletoacircle)■ “morethan”■ Symmetryabouttheorigin


• Usethefollowingnotationandterms:■ Median■ Random

• Usethefollowingnotationsandterms:■ π■ Tangent(linetoacircle;circletoacircle)■ “morethan”■ Symmetryabouttheorigin




Writing Academic Skills at Each Score Band and Suggestions for Improvement

200–290 300–390 400–490Manage Word Choice and Grammatical Relationships Between WordsAcademic Skills*A typical student in this score interval can do the following:

• Recognizesimplepronounreferences• Recognizeincorrectpronouncase

• Recognizevaguepronounusage(i.e.,thepronounhasnoclearorspecificreferent)

• Recognizeappropriatepronounusage(i.e.,pronounagreeswithreferentintermsofnumber)

• Recognizesubject–verbdisagreementwithbriefinterrupterthatdoesnotalterthenumberconsidered and that does not shift the focus away fromthepropersubject

• Recognizeinappropriatesequenceofverbtenses• Recognizeredundancy(e.g.,“Annuallyeach

year...”)

• Recognizevaguepronounusage• Recognizeshiftinperson(e.g.,fromthirdpersonto

second)• Recognizesubject–verbagreementwithbrief

interrupterthataltersnumberandshiftsfocusawayfromthepropersubject

• Recognizewhenasubordinateclausemustincludeasubjectandaverb

Suggestions for ImprovementToadvancetothenexthighestscoreband,students should focus on thefollowingskills:

• Whenreading,focusonspecificparagraphsthatcontain pronouns in order to see how writers use pronounsappropriately.Whenwriting,checktosee that any pronouns refer appropriately to a noun earlierinthesentenceorinapriorsentence.

• Whenreading,chooseaparagraphandidentifythesubjectsandverbsinthesentenceswithinthatparagraph in order to see that writers pay careful attentiontogender,numberandperson.Whenreading,noticethatwritersuseconsistentverbtenseandactivevoice.Whenwriting,checktoseethatsubjectsandverbsagreeingenderandnumber.

• Whenreading,focusonspecificparagraphsthatcontainpronouns,notingthatpronounsmustagreeinnumberandperson,andmustrefertospecificnouns.Whenwriting,besuretousepronounsappropriately.

• Whenreading,chooseaparagraphandidentifythesubjectsandverbsinthesentenceswithinthatparagraph in order to see that writers pay careful attentiontogender,numberandperson.Whenwriting,payattentiontosubject–verbagreement,evenwhenthesubjectandverbarenotnexttoeachother,toensurethatsubjectsandverbsagree.

• Whenreading,chooseaparagraphandexaminetherelationshipbetweenthepronounsandtheirlogicalantecedents.Whenwriting,makesurethatanypronounsreferspecificallytologicalantecedents.

• Whenreading,trytobecomeawareofidiomaticexpressions,especiallytheuseofprepositions.Whenwriting,peereditorproofreadfortheidiomaticuseofprepositions.

• Whenreading,payattentiontohowtemporalelements(dates,times,etc.)dictatetheappropriateverbforms.Whenwriting,besuretouseconsistentverbtense.

Manage Grammatical Structures Used to Modify or CompareAcademic Skills* Thisparticularskillgroupisnotrepresentedinthis

scoreband.However,itisanimportantacademicskilltestedontheSAT.Weencouragestudentstoreviewtheskillsandexamplesinthenexthighestscorebandwherethisparticularskillgroupdoesappear.

• Recognizeproperusesofadverbsandadjectives• Recognizeappropriatecomparativestructures• Recognizeimpropermodification(e.g.,introductory

clausedoesnotlogicallymodifythesubjectofthesentence)



• Whenreading,chooseaparagraphandidentifytheadjectivesandadverbsinthesentencesandthewordstheymodify.Whenwriting,checktoseethatadjectivesareusedtomodifynounsandthatadverbsareusedtomodifyverbs.

• Whenreading,focusonsentencesthatcontaincomparativephrases(e.g.,“asstrongas”or“morefitthan”).Whenwriting,checktoseethatappropriatestructuresareusedtocomparethingsandideas.

• Whenreading,payattentiontohowwritersuseintroductoryclausestologicallymodifythesubjectofasentence.Whenwriting,checktoseethatintroductoryclausescorrectlyandlogicallymodifythesubjectofasentence.


• Whenreading,payattentiontohowwritersuseintroductoryphrasestologicallymodifywhatfollows.Whenwriting,checktoseethatallmodifiersandmodifyingphrasesareusedappropriately.


Writing, continued

500–590 600–690 700–800Manage Word Choice and Grammatical Relationships Between WordsAcademic Skills* • Recognizetheantecedentofapronoundespite

multipledistractorsthatchangethenumberand/orthesubjectofthereferentwithinthesentence

• Recognizetheinappropriateuseofapluralpronountorefertoasingular,collectivenoun

• Recognizehowtemporalelementsinfluenceverbformsinasentence

• Recognizesubject–verbagreementdespitemultipledistractorsandcomplexitiescausedbypassiveconstruction

• Recognizetheneedfortheeffectiveuseofconcision

• Recognizesubject–verbagreementevenwhenthedistractorstoagreementoccurinasubordinateclause


• Whenreading,chooseaparagraphandidentifythesubjectsandverbsinthesentenceswithinthatparagraph in order to see that writers pay careful attentiontosubject–verbagreement,evenwhenaword,phraseorclauseintervenesbetweenthesubjectandtheverb.Whenwriting,checktoseethatsubjectsandverbsagreeinnumber.



Manage Grammatical Structures Used to Modify or CompareAcademic Skills* • Recognizeillogicalsentencescausedbydangling

modifiers• Recognizeinappropriatecorrelativeconstructions

(e.g.,neither…nor)• Recognizenoun–noundisagreement

• Recognizeidiomaticuseofadjectives/adverbs• Recognizesophisticatedcomparativestructures• Recognizeappropriateplacementandwordingof

parallelinformationincorrelativeconstructions(e.g.,“notonly...butalso”)

• Recognizethatillogicalsentencescausedbydanglingmodifierscanbecorrectedbyusingthepassive voice

• Recognizetheunidiomaticuseofprepositions


• Whenreading,chooseaparagraphandidentifytheadjectivesandadverbsinthesentencesandthewordstheymodify.Whenwriting,checktoseethatadjectivesareusedtomodifynounsandthatadverbsareusedtomodifyverbs.

• Whenreading,focusonsentencesthatcontaincomparativephrases(e.g.,“asstrongas”or“morefitthan”).Whenwriting,checktoseethatappropriatestructuresareusedtocomparethingsandideas.

• Whenreading,payattentiontotheplacementofmodifyingwords,phrasesandclauses.Whenwriting,checktoseethatmodifiersareusedappropriately.




200–290 300–390 400–490Manage Phrases and Clauses in a Sentence

Academic Skills* • Recognizeawkward/unidiomaticconnectives• Understandbasiclogicalcomparisons

• Recognizeappropriaterelationshipsbetweenclausesincompoundsentencesanduseconnectivescorrectly

• Recognizesimpleparallelstructure• Recognizesentencefragments• Recognizeappropriateandlogicalrelationships

betweenpartsofasentence


• Whenreading,examinecompoundsentencestolookattherelationshipbetweentheclausesandtheideasexpressedbythoseclauses.Whenwriting,payattentiontohowrelationshipsbetweenclausesandideasarebeingpresented.

• Whenreading,chooseaparagraphandexaminehowwritersusesubordinationandcoordinationtoconstructcompletesentencesthatclearlyexpresstherelationshipsamongtheideaswithinasentence.Whenwriting,usesentencevariety,employingbothsubordinationandcoordinationtoconstructsentences.

• Whenreading,chooseaparagraphandbeabletodistinguishgerundsfrommainverbs,especiallywhenbothendin“ing.”Whenwriting,besuretousegerundsandparticiplesappropriately.

Recognize Correctly Formed SentencesAcademic Skills Thisparticularskillgroupisnotrepresentedinthis

scoreband.However,itisanimportantacademicskilltestedontheSAT.Weencouragestudentstoreviewtheskillsandexamplesinthenexthighestscorebandwherethisparticularskillgroupdoesappear.

• Recognizecorrectlyformedsentences • Recognizecorrectlyformedsentences


• Inyourreading,payattentiontothepartsofspeechandhowtheyagreeinwell-formedsentences;noticemodifyingwordsandphrasesandhowtheyfunctionwhenusedcorrectly;andnotetherelationshipsbetweenphrasesandclausesinwell-formedsentences.Inyourownwriting,makesurethatsubjectsagreeinnumberwiththeirassociatedverbsandthatmainverbsareusedtoconstructcompletesentences;thatpronounsagreeinnumber,genderandpersonwiththeirlogicalantecedents;andthatverbformsareusedconsistentlyandlogically.Besuretousecorrectlyformedmodifyingwords,andmakesurethatmodifyingwordsandphrasesareplacedcorrectlytoshowlogicalmodification.Usepropersubordinationandcoordinationtojoinideasandtoformcompletesentences.


• Inyourreading,payattentiontothepartsofspeechandhowtheyagreeinwell-formedsentences;noticemodifyingwordsandphrasesandhowtheyfunctionwhenusedcorrectly;andnotetherelationshipsbetweenphrasesandclausesinwell-formedsentences.Inyourownwriting,makesurethatsubjectsagreeinnumberwiththeirassociatedverbsandthatmainverbsareusedtoconstructcompletesentences;thatpronounsagreeinnumber,genderandpersonwiththeirlogicalantecedents;andthatverbformsareusedconsistentlyandlogically.Besuretousecorrectlyformedmodifyingwords,andmakesurethatmodifyingwordsandphrasesareplacedcorrectlytoshowlogicalmodification.Usepropersubordinationandcoordinationtojoinideasandtoformcompletesentences

Manage Order and Relationships of Sentences and Paragraphs

Academic Skills* Thisparticularskillgroupisnotrepresentedinthisscoreband.However,itisanimportantacademicskilltestedontheSAT.Weencouragestudentstoreviewtheskillsandexamplesinthenexthighestscoreband,wherethisparticularskillgroupdoesappear.

Thisparticularskillgroupisnotrepresentedinthisscoreband.However,itisanimportantacademicskilltestedontheSAT.Weencouragestudentstoreviewtheskillsandexamplesinthenexthighestscoreband,wherethisparticularskillgroupdoesappear.

• Recognizethefunctionofapieceoftext(e.g.,addssupportingdetail,servesasatransitionfromoneideatothenextorfromoneparagraphtothenext)

• Recognizecontextbeyondthesentenceinquestioninordertomaketheappropriatecorrection

• Recognizetheneedforspecificexamplesinordertodevelop ideas appropriately



• Whenreading,developanawarenessofhowwritersconnectideaslogicallytooneanother.Whenwriting,besuretoconnectideaslogicallywhendevelopingparagraphs.

• Whenreading,beabletorecognizecoherence,eveninparagraphswithacomplexdevelopment.Whenwriting,developmultiplemeansofelaboratingideaslogicallywithinaparagraph.

Writing, continued


500–590 600–690 700–800Manage Phrases and Clauses in a Sentence

Academic Skills* • Recognizethedifferencebetweenmainverbandparticiple/gerundwhileworkingwithparallelstructure

• Recognizewaystocombineideasusingappropriate,concise syntactic structures

• Recognizesyntacticalstructuresthatincludeparallelelements

• Recognizerelationshipsbetweenphrasesandclausesintermsofpunctuation,subordination/coordinationandsemanticrelationship

• Recognizeproperplacementofmultipleparallelstructures within a single sentence

• Recognizethecorrectuseofthecolontojoinideasin a sentence


• Whenreading,chooseaparagraphfromamoredifficultpieceofnonfictionprosethatcontainscomplexsyntacticalstructures.Whenwriting,attempttoemploymoresophisticatedsyntacticalstructureswhenappropriate.

• Whenreading,examinetextsthatcontainsophisticatedanddifficultsentencestructures.Whenwriting,developsophisticatedtechniquesfordevelopingideasinmultipleways.

• Whenreading,learntorecognizethatsubject–verbagreementisnotconfinedtothemainclauseofasentencebutmayoccurinembeddedsubordinateclausesatanypointinthesentence.Whenwriting,learntousecomplexsentencesthatmayembedimportantideasinembeddedsubordinateclauses.

Thisisthetopscorebandandstudentswhoscoreatthislevelwillhavelikelymasteredtheskillslistedatallotherlevels.However,studentscanalwaysbenefitfrommorepractice.Weencouragestudentstoreviewtheskillsandexampleslistedinthe500–590and600–690scorebands.

Recognize Correctly Formed SentencesAcademic Skills • Recognizecorrectlyformedsentences • Recognizecorrectlyformedsentences • Recognizecorrectlyformedsentences




Thisisthetopscorebandandstudentswhoscoreatthislevelwillhavelikelymasteredtheskillslistedatallotherlevels.However,youcanalwaysbenefitfrommorepractice.Weencourageyoutoreviewtheskillsandexampleslistedinthe500–590and600–690scorebands.

Manage Order and Relationships of Sentences and ParagraphsAcademic Skills* • Recognizecoherencebetweensentencesandfillin

gaps when needed • Recognizetheneedfortransitionwordstolink

sentences in a paragraph

Thisparticularskillgroupisnotrepresentedinthisscoreband.However,itisanimportantacademicskilltestedontheSAT.Weencouragestudentstoreviewtheskillsandexamplesinotherscorebands,wherethisparticularskillgroupdoesappear.

Thisparticularskillgroupisnotrepresentedinthisscoreband.However,itisanimportantacademicskilltestedontheSAT.Weencouragestudentstoreviewtheskillsandexamplesinotherscorebands,wherethisparticularskillgroupdoesappear.




Thisisthetopscorebandandstudentswhoscoreatthislevelwillhavelikelymasteredtheskillslistedatallotherlevels.However,studentscanalwaysbenefitfrommorepractice.Weencouragestudentstoreviewtheskillsandexampleslistedinthe500–590and600–690scorebands.

Writing, continued

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