Seven passages. Thirty-five minutes. That means you’ve got five minutes per passage. Five minutes to take in dense paragraphs and confusing diagrams, decipher what the heck is going on, and answer five to seven questions.
The ACT Science section is a notorious time crunch, but you can learn to pace yourself to finish in time. Remember the following fundamental rule: Every question is worth the same amount.
Consider the following two questions:
1.How does the value of I for NaCl compare with the value of I for Ca(OH)2, and what is the significance? The value of I for NaCl is:
A. lower, which means that each NaCl dissolved in H2O forms fewer particles than does each Ca(OH)2.
B. lower, which means that each NaCl dissolved in H2O forms more particles than does each Ca(OH)2.
C. higher, which means that each NaCl dissolved in H2O forms fewer particles than does each Ca(OH)2.
D. higher, which means that each NaCl dissolved in H2O forms more particles than does each Ca(OH)2.
2.According to Figure 2, the amount of rainwater in the spring of 1998 was closest to which of the following?
F. 2.0 inches
G. 3.0 inches
H. 5.0 inches
J. 7.0 inches
Question 2 will take you about three seconds, whereas Question 1 could take a few minutes, but they’re both worth only one point.Novice test-takers will dutifully work on Question 1, wasting precious time that could be better spent on problems like Question 2. Experienced test-takers will push through the test, taking down all the quick questions and coming back to the time-consuming ones later. This is true for all sections, and can especially trip up students in science. Don’t get stuck on one question and sacrifice the others!
One last thing, however: don’t let this strategy mess up your bubble sheet. If you are skipping a question, make a notation on your bubble sheet. Then, in the last few minutes, you can easily find the questions that you skipped and bubble in the same letter for all answers. We suggest Choice A/F for all guesses.
Remember, the key to scoring well on the ACT Science section is to get to as many questions as possible. Never get stuck. Develop this habit, and your score will go up.