How to answer it
- Read the goal first and underline what it asks for.
- Skim the notes only for what serves that goal.
- Pick the choice that meets the goal completely, even if others are accurate.
Worked example
An original question in the SAT format, already answered.
SAT Reading and WritingWorked example
While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes:
- The Atacama Desert in Chile receives less than 1 millimeter of rain a year in some areas.
- Its dry, high-altitude air makes the night sky unusually clear.
- Several major telescopes, including ALMA, are located there.
The student wants to explain why astronomers build telescopes in the Atacama. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?
- AThe Atacama Desert, in Chile, is one of the driest places on Earth.
- BALMA is one of several major telescopes.
- CBecause its dry, high-altitude air keeps the night sky unusually clear, the Atacama is home to major telescopes such as ALMA.
- DSome areas of the Atacama get less than 1 millimeter of rain a year.
Answer: C. Only C gives the reason, clear skies, and connects it to the telescopes being there. The other choices repeat a note without explaining why.
The most common trap
Choices that are accurate but answer a different goal. Reread the goal, not the notes.
Practice it
Hourly Prep’s daily sets mix rhetorical synthesis with the rest of SAT Reading and Writing, and send more of it your way when it’s a weak spot. See how the SAT prep plan works, or browse the other SAT skill guides.