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You can use the ACT Reading Question of the Day to get into the habit of thinking about ACT Reading content on a daily basis when studying for the ACT. Varsity Tutors' ACT Reading Questions of the Day are drawn from each topic and question type covered on the Reading section of the ACT.
Question of the Day: ACT Reading
Adapted from Jude The Obscure by Thomas Hardy (1895)
He sounded the clacker till his arm ached, and at length his heart grew sympathetic with the birds' thwarted desires. They seemed, like himself, to be living in a world which did not want them. Why should he frighten them away? They took upon more and more the aspect of gentle friends and pensioners—the only friends he could claim as being in the least degree interested in him, for his aunt had often told him that she was not. He ceased his rattling, and they alighted anew.
"Poor little dears!" said Jude, aloud. "You shall have some dinner—you shall. There is enough for us all. Farmer Troutham can afford to let you have some. Eat, then my dear little birdies, and make a good meal!"
They stayed and ate, inky spots on the nut-brown soil, and Jude enjoyed their appetite. A magic thread of fellow-feeling united his own life with theirs. Puny and sorry as those lives were, they much resembled his own.
His clacker he had by this time thrown away from him, as being a mean and sordid instrument, offensive both to the birds and to himself as their friend. All at once he became conscious of a smart blow upon his buttocks, followed by a loud clack, which announced to his surprised senses that the clacker had been the instrument of offense used. The birds and Jude started up simultaneously, and the dazed eyes of the latter beheld the farmer in person, the great Troutham himself, his red face glaring down upon Jude's cowering frame, the clacker swinging in his hand.
"So it's 'Eat my dear birdies,' is it, young man? 'Eat, dear birdies,' indeed! I'll tickle your breeches, and see if you say, 'Eat, dear birdies,' again in a hurry! And you've been idling at the schoolmaster's too, instead of coming here, ha'n't ye, hey? That's how you earn your sixpence a day for keeping the rooks off my corn!"
Which of these is the best antonym to the underlined word “conscious” as used in this passage?
Self-aware
Comatose
Insensitive
Nonchalant
Offended
Studying for different subjects on the ACT can sometimes require different methods. Preparing for the ACT Reading portion, for example, requires different skills than many of the other parts of the test. One way to help prepare you for the reading portion of the ACT is to use Varsity Tutors’ Learning Tools Reading Question of the Day. By using the Question of the Day, you will receive a daily question to help you not only prepare for specific concepts that you will encounter on the ACT, but also prepare you for the method of the reading portion of the test, which to some is quite different from any other part of the test. Whether you need ACT Reading tutoring in New York, ACT Reading tutoring in Chicago, or ACT Reading tutoring in Los Angeles, working one-on-one with an expert may be just the boost your studies need.
The Learning Tools Reading Question of the Day will provide you with a different passage to read each day. Each passage will vary in length as well as difficulty. At the end of the passage, you will be asked a question based on the text that you have just read, as well as given a number of different possible answers. Based on the reading that you have just done, you will select your answer. At this point, you will be told whether or not you were correct, as well as several statistics. The statistics include the time it took for you to read the passage and answer your question, the percentage of those that answered the question correctly, as well as the percentile that you fall into based on the statistics. The statistics will accumulate each day, allowing you to compare yourself to others that are also preparing for the test and give you an idea of how you rank. Varsity Tutors also offers resources like a free ACT prep book to help with your self-paced study, or you may want to consider an ACT Reading tutor.
One of the most important statistics for many is the amount of time it took for you to read the passage and answer the question. Given that the ACT is a timed test, the amount of time it takes for you to answer a question can be a very important aspect. With the help of the Learning Tools Question of the Day, you can keep track of the time of each question on a daily basis, continually working to both read the passages and answer the questions more quickly.
Along with the statistics provided in the Learning Tools Question of the Day, you will also be provided with a full explanation of why the answer you have given is right or wrong, as well as an area where you can read more on the general concept associated with each day’s question. Often times, you will be provided with many other examples of each general concept, which will allow you to spend as much time as you like on concepts that may be more difficult to you than others, better preparing you for the ACT Reading portion. In addition to the ACT Reading Question of the Day and ACT Reading tutoring, you may also want to consider taking some of our ACT Reading practice tests.
The reading portion of the ACT can be challenging for many, since it takes a different skill set to properly answer the questions. Along with reading comprehension, the reading section will require speed, English comprehension, and deductive reasoning. With the help of the Learning Tools ACT Reading Question of the Day, you will get a daily opportunity to improve these skills, as well as learn the reasoning behind the concepts that will be tested by the ACT.
All SSAT Upper Level Reading Resources
