So, you’ve got 30 days until the SAT, and you’re ready to raise that Reading score to help get into your dream college with a financial aid package that makes it all possible. Don’t panic—you’ve got this! With the right strategies, focus, and a smart study plan, you’ll be walking into that SAT with confidence.
Here’s a day-by-day breakdown of what you should focus on over the next month. Let’s go from the easiest-to-understand skills and build up to the more advanced ones, so by the end of this 30-day journey, you’ll be prepared for anything the SAT throws at you.
The main idea is the heart of any passage. Your goal is to be able to summarize a passage after reading it. Practice reading short paragraphs and identifying their central ideas. Remember, the SAT often disguises this skill in questions like, “What’s the passage mostly about?” or “What’s the author’s primary argument?”
Tip: Focus on topic sentences and concluding sentences; these usually give away the main idea.
The SAT loves to ask, “Which piece of evidence best supports the author’s claim?” or “Which of these choices best weakens the argument?” This is an open-book test in a way—just go back to the passage and look for specific lines that prove or disprove a point.
Practice: Use official SAT practice tests and try finding evidence for questions that ask you to support claims. This will get easier the more you practice!
Now, let’s move on to understanding how a passage is put together. Every SAT passage is structured in a specific way—whether it’s problem/solution, cause/effect, or even comparing two ideas.
How to study: Look at how paragraphs connect to each other. Pay attention to transitions and how each part of the passage leads to the next. Ask yourself, “Why did the author put this paragraph here?”
This is one step deeper: Why did the author include a specific word, sentence, or paragraph? Often, the SAT will ask, “What’s the purpose of paragraph 4?” or “How does this detail help develop the argument?” Think of this as figuring out how the puzzle pieces fit together.
Pro Tip: Always ask yourself, “Why does this part matter?” while reading.
Rhetorical synthesis may sound fancy, but it’s just understanding how different parts of the passage work together to create a whole argument or narrative. It’s often about recognizing shifts in tone or perspective and seeing how the argument builds.
Exercise: After reading a passage, try to map out its argument. Where does the author introduce their point? When do they bring in evidence? How do they conclude? Understanding the flow will help you quickly answer those synthesis questions.
Transition words like “however,” “therefore,” “consequently,” and “in contrast” are small but mighty. They are like road signs telling you where the passage is headed next. The SAT will often ask you to choose the correct transition word, so understanding how they work is key.
Challenge: Write out a list of common transition words and practice identifying them in passages. Notice how they connect ideas and signal shifts in arguments.
Commas are tricky little things, but they follow rules. Most of the comma-related SAT questions test whether you know how to use commas in lists, between independent clauses, or to separate non-essential information. Brush up on these rules to snag easy points.
Easy Win: Use Khan Academy or grammar websites to review comma rules and practice with sample SAT questions.
A dangling modifier is when a descriptive phrase doesn’t match up with the subject it’s meant to describe. This can make sentences confusing or even funny. The SAT will ask you to spot and correct these.
Quick Practice: Find sentences with dangling modifiers online (or write some yourself!) and rewrite them so the description matches the subject.
In these last few days, you’ll want to focus on subject-verb agreement. The SAT loves to trick students with long sentences where the subject and verb are far apart. Make sure you identify the subject and match it with the correct verb.
Focus Tip: Break down long sentences by identifying the main subject and its verb, ignoring all the extra words in between. It makes spotting agreement issues easier.
Now that you’ve worked through the key skills, here’s how you can maximize your remaining time and really focus on that SAT score:
The key to success is consistency. Focus on these skills a little bit every day, and by the time the SAT rolls around, you’ll be more than ready to take it on. Remember, every point counts—especially when you’re aiming for that dream school and a financial aid package that opens doors. You’ve got 30 days to make a difference. Let’s make it count!
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