Language Arts – Reading: Main Idea, Inference, and Author's Craft
What the questions test
The reading section asks you to show that you understand a passage, not that you already know the topic. The core skills are: identifying the main idea versus supporting details; making inferences that the text actually supports; recognizing author's purpose (inform, persuade, entertain, explain) and tone (the author's attitude, which is not the same as the topic); analyzing text structure (cause and effect, comparison, chronological order, problem–solution); figuring out vocabulary in context; and comparing two passages on the same subject.
Traps to watch for
- True but off-topic answers. A choice can state a fact from the passage and still fail to answer the question asked. Reread the question stem before choosing.
- Extreme wording. Choices with always, never, all, or only are usually wrong unless the passage says so.
- Outside knowledge. Answer only from what the passage states or strongly implies.
- Tone versus subject. A passage about a sad event can still have a calm or hopeful tone.
- Copy-paste bait. An answer that repeats the passage's exact words is not automatically correct; the right answer is often a paraphrase.
Rule of thumb
Before you look at the choices, cover them and say the answer in your own words. Then pick the choice that matches your sentence. If two choices seem right, ask which one is more completely supported by the text.
Worked example
Passage: "Last spring the city repaved its final cobblestone street with smooth asphalt. Commuters celebrated the quieter ride, while preservationists mourned the loss of a century-old landmark." Question: What is the main idea? A good answer is "The change drew mixed reactions." A weak answer is "Cobblestones are old," which is a detail, not the point.