Princeton Review ACT Science Prep: 4 Practice Tests + Review + Strategy for the ACT Science Section (College Test Preparation) (2022)

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Princeton Review ACT Science Prep: 4 Practice Tests + Review + Strategy for the ACT Science Section (College Test Preparation) (2022) is the ultimate study tool to help you pass your exam on the first try.

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The Princeton Review Publishing Team
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Some material in this book was previously published as Math and Science Workout for the ACT, 4th Edition,
a trade paperback published by Penguin Random House LLC in 2019.
ISBN 9780525570363
Ebook ISBN 9780525570400
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Acknowledgments
The Princeton Review would like to extend very special thanks to Catherine
Eason Healey for her effort, insight, and expertise in creating this title.
Special thanks are also due to Aaron Lindh, Emily Baumbach, Gabrielle
Budzon, Sara Soriano, Jess Thomas, and Shannon Thompson.
The Princeton Review also applauds the efforts of the Production team, from
the eagle-eyed scrutiny of Liz Dacey and Sarah Litt to the layout wizardry of
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Finally, special thanks to Adam Robinson, who conceived of and perfected
the Joe Bloggs approach to standardized tests, and many of the other
successful techniques used by The Princeton Review.
–Amy Minster
Content Director, High School Programs

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Contents
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Part I: Orientation
1 Introduction to the Science Test
Welcome
Fun Facts About the ACT
Strategies
2 How to Approach the ACT Online Test
Part II: Science
3 The ACT Science Test
Fun Facts About the Science Test
Personal Order of Difficulty (POOD)
Now Passages
Pacing
Process of Elimination (POE)
The Basic Approach
Later Passages
4 Science Reading Strategy
5 Now Passages
6 Later Passages
7 Science Reading Passages
Part III: Science Practice Tests
8 Science Practice Test 1
9 Science Practice Test 1: Answers and Explanations
10 Science Practice Test 2
11 Science Practice Test 2: Answers and Explanations
12 Science Practice Test 3
13 Science Practice Test 3: Answers and Explanations
14 Science Practice Test 4
15 Science Practice Test 4: Answers and Explanations
Part IV: College Admissions Insider

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1 Go to PrincetonReview.com/prep and enter the following ISBN for your
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• If you’re still choosing between colleges, use our searchable rankings of
The Best 388 Colleges to find out more information about your dream
school
• Check to see if there have been any corrections or updates to this
edition

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WELCOME
The ACT can be an important part of college admissions. Many schools require or
recommend their applicants submit either SAT or ACT scores. It’s worth keeping in
mind, though, that the importance of these tests will vary among the many colleges
and universities in the United States. If you haven’t already, make sure to research
whether the ACT is required or recommended for admission to the schools you plan
to apply to.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, many schools went test-optional to account for the
numerous students whose SAT and ACT tests were canceled. Some of those schools
have returned to requiring test scores, while others have not yet but still may. For
the most up-to-date information on the schools you are interested in, check out their
admissions websites.
For more on admissions, see The Princeton
Review’s The Best 388 Colleges or visit our website,
PrincetonReview.com.
Even if ACT scores are optional, you may still want to submit them if you think your
great ACT scores will boost your chances of acceptance. Furthermore, ACT scores
are often used for scholarships, so it can be worth putting time into preparing for the
test if you can save a good amount on your college education in return.
When colleges require standardized test scores, they will accept either SAT or ACT
scores. The expert advice of The Princeton Review is to take whichever test you do
better on and focus your efforts on preparing for that one.
Because you bought this book, we assume you’ve already made the decision to boost
your ACT score. This book provides a strategic and efficient way to improve your
scores, specifically on the Science test. For a more thorough review of content and
exhaustive practice, we recommend purchasing the latest editions of ACT Prep and
our ACT Practice Questions book.
FUN FACTS ABOUT THE ACT
The ACT is nothing like the science tests you take in school. All of the content review
and strategies we teach in the following lessons are based on the specific structure
and format of the ACT. Before you can beat a test, you have to know how it’s built.
Structure
The ACT is made up of four multiple-choice tests and an optional Writing test.
The five tests are always given in the same order.
• English: 45 minutes, 75 questions
• Math: 60 minutes, 60 questions

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• Reading: 35 minutes, 40 questions
• Science: 35 minutes, 40 questions
• Writing: 40 minutes, 1 Essay
If you feel like you need help with the other subjects,
check out our companion books, ACT Reading Prep,
ACT English Prep, and ACT Math Prep.
Scoring
When students and schools talk about ACT scores, they mean the composite score,
a range of 1–36. The composite is an average of the four multiple-choice tests, each
scored on the same 1–36 scale: Ideas and Analysis, Development and Support,
Organization, and Language Use and Conventions. If you take the Writing test, you’ll
also receive an additional Writing score on a scale of 2–12. The Writing score is
an average of four 2–12 subscores. Neither the Writing test score nor the combined
English Language Arts score affects the composite.
Students also receive subscores in addition to their (1–36) composite ACT score.
These indicators are designed to measure student performance and predict career
readiness, as well as competency in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering,
Mathematics) and English language arts. ACT believes that these additional scores
will give students better insight into their strengths and how those strengths can be
harnessed for success in college and beyond. In addition to the 1–36 score for each
of the tests and their composite score, students now see score breakdowns in the
following categories:
• STEM score. This score will show you how well you did on the Math and
Science portions of the test.
• Progress Toward Career Readiness indicator. The ACT would have you
believe this indicator measures how prepared you are for a career, but really it
just measures how prepared you are to take yet another test: the ACT National
Career Readiness Certificate™.
• English Language Arts score. If you take the Writing test, this score will give
you a combined score for the English, Reading, and Writing tests.
• Text Complexity Progress indicator. This score will tell you how well you
fared on those hard passages throughout the test.
There is also a section on the score report that breaks each section down into
categories and tells you both how many questions there were in each category and
how many of them you got correct. Some of these categories can be useful in helping
you know what you need to study: for example, if you missed a lot of questions
in the “Geometry” category, you should brush up your Geometry skills. But if you
did poorly in the “Integration of Knowledge and Ideas” category, it’s not quite as

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obvious what you need to study. Don’t worry about these scores though—they’re
there because they align with federal academic standards, and school districts that
use the ACT for standardized testing for all juniors want those scores, but college
don’t typically look at them for admissions purposes.
It’s All About the Composite
Whether you look at your score online or wait to get it in the mail, the biggest number
on the page is always the composite. While admissions offices will certainly see the
individual scores of all five tests (and their subscores), schools will use the composite
to evaluate your application, and that’s why, in the end, it’s the only one that matters.
The composite is an average. Let the full weight of that sink in. Do you need to bring
up all four scores equally to raise your composite? Do you need to be a superstar in
all four tests? Should you focus more on your weaknesses than your strengths? No,
no, and absolutely not. The best way to improve your composite is to shore up your
weaknesses but exploit your strengths as much as possible.
To improve your ACT score, use your strengths to lift the composite
score as high as possible.
You don’t need to be a rock star on all four tests. Identify two, maybe three tests,
and focus on raising those scores as much as you can to raise your composite. Work
on your weakest scores to keep them from pulling you down. Think of it this way:
if you had only one hour to devote to practice the week before the ACT, spend that
hour on your best subjects.
Single-Section Tests and Superscoring
The people who write the ACT have announced their intention to allow students to
take one, two, or three individual sections in a day, as opposed to needing to take the
entire test. You will need to have taken the full ACT before using this option, and
single-section tests will only be offered on the computer.
Unfortunately, plans to offer single-section retesting were delayed by the COVID-
19 pandemic, and as of the publication of this book, a date for the rollout has not
been announced. We encourage you to check the ACT website, www.act.org, for the
most up-to-date information about the availability of single-section retesting when
it is eventually offered.
One piece of good news is that ACT has begun Superscoring. If you take the ACT
more than once, ACT will automatically take your highest English, Math, Reading,
and Science scores and average them together to calculate a new “Superscore”
composite.

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Sounds great, right? We think it is—this gives you the opportunity to show your
best ACT score to schools. Now, colleges and universities still have the option as to
whether to accept the Superscore, but for the schools that let you Superscore, this is
all positive for you.
Science Scores
The Science test can be frustrating for science fans and non-science fans alike. It’s
not unusual for students that excel in science and math at school to find that Math
is one of their highest scores and Science is one of their lowest scores. There are
good reasons for this. The Math test, perhaps deceptively so, resembles school tests
more than the other three. Science feels the most different, and many students are
intimidated by both the content and format.
Many students find improving scores on the Science test to be more difficult than the
other sections. Unlike the Math or English test, there are no rules or content to master
through rigorous practice. The Science test is designed to test your reasoning skills
using passage-based information, not tap specific outside knowledge. Who knows
what specific topics will appear on the next ACT? On the goods-news front, however,
The Princeton Review can teach you a smart, effective approach designed to
maximize your performance every time, regardless of content. It can be tough to
change your ways, but dedicated practice with a strategic method can prevent the
Science score from pulling down that composite.
Time
How often do you take a final exam in school that gives you at most a minute per
question? Probably never. The ACT isn’t a school test, and you can’t approach it as
if it is. While speed and accuracy depend on individual skills and grasp of content,
almost all students struggle to finish the Science test on time. The more you treat the
test the same way you would a school final, the less likely you are to finish, much
less finish with the greatest accuracy. The Princeton Review’s strategies are all based
on this time crunch. There’s a difference between knowing how to do a question
under the best of circumstance and getting it right with a ticking clock and glowering
proctor in the room.
STRATEGIES
You will raise your ACT score by working smarter, not harder, and a smart test-
taker is a strategic test-taker. You will target specific content to review, you will
apply an effective and efficient approach, and you will employ the common sense
that frequently deserts many others when they pick up a number 2 pencil.
Each test on the ACT demands a different approach, and even the most universal
strategies vary in their applications. In the chapters that follow, we’ll discuss these
terms in greater detail customized to Science.

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Personal Order of Difficulty (POOD)
If time is going to run out, would you rather it run out on the most difficult questions
or on the easiest questions? Of course you want it to run out on the points you are
less likely to get right. The trick is to find all of the easiest questions and get them
done first.
Now
Does a question look okay? Do you know how to do it? Do it Now.
Later
Does a question make you go, “hmm”? If you can’t find a way to get your pencil
moving right away, consider leaving it and coming back Later. Circle the question
number for easy reference to return.
The Best Way to Bubble In
Work one page at a time, circling your answers right on the booklet.
Transfer a page’s worth of answers to the answer sheet. It’s better
to stay focused on working questions rather than disrupt your
concentration to find where you left off on the answer sheet. You’ll
be more accurate at both tasks. Do not wait to the end, however, to
transfer all the answers of that test on your answer sheet. Go one
page at a time.
Never
Test-taker, know thyself. Know the topics that are most difficult for you, and learn the
signs that flash danger. Don’t waste time on questions you should Never do. Instead,
use more time to answer the Now and Later questions accurately.
Letter of the Day (LOTD)
Just because you don’t work a question doesn’t mean you don’t answer it. There is
no penalty for wrong answers on the ACT, so you should never leave any blanks
on your answer sheet. When you guess on Never questions, pick your favorite two-
letter combo of answers and stick with it. For example, always choose A/F or C/H.
If you’re consistent, you’re statistically more likely to pick up more points.
Note: if you are taking the ACT on a computer, all of the questions will have answer
choices A, B, C, D (or A, B, C, D, E on the Math test). On the paper-and-pencil ACT,
every other question will have answer choices F, G, H, J (or F, G, H, J, K on the
Math test).

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Process of Elimination (POE)
In a perfect world, you’ll know how to work all of your Now and Later questions,
quickly and accurately, circling the correct answer among the choices. The ACT is
not a perfect world. But even with a ticking clock and a number 2 pencil in your
sweaty hand, wrong answers can be obvious. Sometimes POE is a great Plan B, but it
is actually the best way to find the correct answer on many questions on the Science
test. And even when you can’t narrow the answers to only one, using POE to get rid
of at least one or two wrong answers will substantially increase your odds of getting
a question right.
The Power of POE
Very often, the quickest way to the correct answer is
to eliminate the wrong answer choices rather than
focusing on finding the right one.
Pacing
The ACT may be designed for you to run out of time, but you can’t rush through it as
quickly as possible. All you’ll do is make careless errors on easy questions you should
get right and spend way too much time on difficult ones you’re unlikely to get right.
To hit your target score, you have to know approximately how many raw points you
need. Use the entire time allotted where it will do the most good. Go slowly enough
to avoid careless errors on Now questions, but go quickly enough to get to as many
Later questions as you need to hit your goal.
On each test of the ACT, the number of correct answers converts to a scaled score
of 1–36. ACT works hard to adjust the scale of each test at each administration as
necessary to make all scaled scores comparable, smoothing out any differences in
level of difficulty across test dates. Thus, there is no truth to any one test date being
“easier” than the others, but you can expect to see slight variations in the scale from
test to test.
This is the scale from the 2021-2022 free test ACT makes available on its website,
ACT.org. We’re going to use it to explain how to pick a target score and pace yourself.
Science Pacing
Scale Score Raw Score
36 38-40
35 37
34 36
33 35

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1 0
The Science test has larger swings in difficulty levels between test administrations
than the other subjects, so the scoring scale can vary significantly from one test to
another. As a result, it’s hard to predict exactly how many questions you will need
to get correct to reach your goal score.
Here’s one example scenario. Let’s say your goal score on the Science is a 24. Find
24 in the scaled score column and you’ll see that on the test that this scale is based
on, you’d need 26–27 raw points. This could be done by devoting your time to the
questions in 5 of the 6 passages and guessing LOTD on the remaining 6 or 7 questions.
Even allowing for 4 or 5 mistakes in the 5 passages you work, you could still hit your
target score. However, if the Science test you’re faced with is easier, then it could
require 29 raw points to get a 24. On the other hand, if the test you’re faced with is
harder, then might only require 26 raw points to get a scale score of 24. The chart
is useful to give you a general guideline of how many questions you need to answer
correctly, but keep in mind that it varies.
If you find yourself faced with a particularly difficult set of passages, you might
be disheartened that you are unable to get through questions as quickly as you had
hoped. Don’t let that discourage you and distract you from the remaining questions!
The important thing to remember is that if the test is harder, the scoring curve will
even out the difference. Your job is to make sure that you are using your time wisely
and picking the best passages and questions for Now. We will focus on this strategy
in the lesson that follows.
Our advice is to be aggressive. Spend the time needed on the easiest passages first,
but keep moving to get to your targeted raw score. Use the chart below to figure out
approximately how many passages to work.
Target Score # of Passages to Attempt
< 20 4 passages
20–23 4–5 passages
24–27 5–6 passages
> 27 6 passages
Be Ruthless
The worst mistake a test-taker can make is to throw good time after bad. You read
a question and don’t understand it, so you read it again. And again. If you stare at it
really hard, you know you’re going to just see it. And you can’t move on, because
really, after spending all that time, it would be a waste not to keep at it, right? Actually,
that way of thinking couldn’t be more wrong.

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You can’t let one tough question drag you down. Instead, the best way to improve
your ACT score is to follow our advice.
1. Use the techniques and strategies in the lessons to work efficiently and
accurately through all your Now and Later questions.
2. Know your Never questions and use your LOTD.
3. Know when to move on. Use POE and guess from what’s left.
Now move on to the lessons and learn the best way to approach the content.

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WHAT IS THE ACT ONLINE TEST?
The ACT Online Test is the ACT that you take on a computer, rather than with a
pencil and paper. Despite the name, you can’t take the ACT from the comfort of your
own home; instead, you’ll have to go to a testing center (possibly your high school)
and take the test on one of the center’s computers.
ACT has indicated that eventually students in the United States will have the option
of taking the ACT Online Test instead of the traditional pencil-and-paper version.
Students choosing this option will get their scores in about two to three business days
(e.g., take the test on Saturday, have your score the next Wednesday). However, at
the time of this printing, no specific timeline was available.
At the time of this book’s printing, the option to take
the ACT online at a testing center was postponed.
ACT also plans to offer at-home online testing,
although an exact rollout date has not yet been
announced. For up-to-date news on both options,
check the ACT website.
WHO TAKES THE ACT ONLINE TEST?
ACT has been offering versions of the ACT on computer since about 2016. The first
students to take the ACT on the computer were students taking the test at school.
Schools and school districts decided whether to give the test on the computer.
As of September 2018, all students taking the ACT outside of the United States take
the test on a computer (except for those students with accommodations requiring the
use of a traditional pencil-and-paper test).
ACT has indicated that eventually students in the United States will have the option
of taking the ACT Online Test instead of the traditional pencil-and-paper version.
Students choosing this option will get their scores in about two to three business days
(e.g., take the test on Saturday, have your score the next Wednesday). However, at
the time of this printing, no specific timeline was available.
Single-Section Retesting
If you are happy with the score you receive from a single test administration, you will
still have the option to send just that score to colleges. If your score in one section is
not as high as you’d like, you will eventually have a chance to correct that. Students
who have already taken the full ACT may choose to take one, two, or three sections
again using Single-Section Retesting. ACT will then produce a “superscore”
consisting of your best results in all tests (English, Math, Reading, Science, and
Writing (if you took it)). Note that not all colleges accept a superscored ACT, so do
your research before taking advantage of this option.

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Single-Section Retesting is an incredible option for
students. However, colleges still have the option to
accept or not accept these new scores. Research
your target schools early so you know your options!
ACT ONLINE TEST FEATURES
So, besides the obvious fact that it’s taken on a computer, what are the differences
between taking the ACT on the computer and taking it on paper? Let’s start with
what you can’t do on the ACT Online Test. You can’t “write” on the screen in a
freehand way. You’re limited in how you’re able to mark the answer choices, and
each question appears on its own screen (so you can’t see multiple questions at one
glance). You will also be given a small “whiteboard” and dry erase pen with which
to make notes and do work.
So, what features does the ACT Online Test have?
• Timer
◦ You can hide the timer by clicking on it.
◦ There is a 5-minute warning toward the end of each test. There is no
audible signal at the 5-minute warning, only a small indicator in the upper-
right corner of the screen.
• Nav tool
◦ You can use this tool to navigate directly to any question in the section.
◦ The Nav tool blocks the current question when opened.
◦ It also shows what questions you have flagged and/or left blank.
◦ You can flag questions in this menu.
• Question numbers at the bottom of the screen
◦ You can click on these numbers to navigate directly to any question in the
section.
◦ These numbers also indicate whether a question has been flagged and/or
left blank.
• Flag tool
◦ You can flag a question on the question screen itself or by using the Nav
tool.
◦ Flagging a question has no effect besides marking the question for your
own purposes.
• Answer Eliminator
◦ Answer choices can be “crossed-off” on-screen.
◦ An answer choice that’s been eliminated cannot be chosen and must be
“un-crossed-off” first by clicking the answer choice.
• Magnifier
◦ You can use this to magnify specific parts of the screen.
• Line Mask

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◦ This tool covers part of the screen. There is an adjustable window you can
use to limit what you can see.
◦ This is an excellent tool if you need an aid to help you focus on specific
parts of the text or figure.
◦ However, not everyone will find this tool useful, so do not feel obligated
to use it!
◦ Note that you cannot highlight the text in the window of the Line Mask.
• Answer Mask
◦ This tool hides the answer choices of a question.
◦ Answers can be revealed one at a time.
• Screen Zoom
◦ This tool changes the zoom of the entire screen (as opposed to the
magnifier, which magnifies only one part of the screen).
◦ Your screen zoom setting will remain the same from question to question.
• Highlighter
◦ You can use this tool to highlight parts of passage text, question text, or
answer text.
◦ You cannot highlight within figures.
◦ If you highlight in a passage with multiple questions, your highlights will
only show up on that question. (In other words, if you highlight, for
example, question 1 of a Reading passage, questions 2–10 of that same
passage will not show those highlights.)
◦ Turning off the highlighter tool removes your highlights.
• Shortcuts:
Keybind Function
Ctrl + H Toggle Help
Ctrl + F Flag Item
Ctrl + I Item Navigation
Alt + P Previous Question
Alt + N Next Question
A-E or 1-5 Select Alternative
Ctrl + Enter Answer Question
Alt + M Toggle Magnifier
Alt + H Toggle Highlighter
Alt + E Toggle Answer Eliminator
Alt + A Toggle Answer Masking
Alt + L Toggle Line Masking

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• The Writing test is typed, rather than written by hand.
You will also be given a small “whiteboard” and dry erase pen with which to make
notes and do work.
HOW TO APPROACH THE ACT ONLINE TEST
The strategies mentioned in this chapter are thoroughly discussed in our
comprehensive guide, ACT Prep, so be sure to pick up a copy of that book if you
have not already done so. These approaches were created in reference to the pencil-
and-paper format, but they still apply to the ACT Online Test with some adjustments.
This chapter assumes your familiarity with these strategies and will show you how
to make the best use of them given the tools available in the computer-based format.
You will also want to incorporate some computer-based practice into your prep plan.
ACT’s website has practice sections for each of the four multiple-choice parts of
the test and for the essay. We recommend that you do those sections toward the end
of your preparation (and close to your test date) to give yourself an opportunity to
practice what you’ve learned on a platform similar to the one you’ll be using on the
day of the test.
If you are planning to take the ACT online, you should practice as if you’re doing
all your work on the computer, even when you’re working in a physical book. Use
a highlighter, but don’t use the highlighter on any figures (as the ACT Online Test
won’t let you do so). Use your pencil to eliminate answer choices and have a separate
sheet of paper or a whiteboard to do any work you need to do, instead of writing on
the problem itself.
Also, remember that our approaches work. Don’t get misled by ACT’s instructions on
the day of the test—their way of approaching the test won’t give you the best results!
Remember!
Your goal is to get the best possible score on the
ACT. ACT’s goal is to assign a number to you that
(supposedly) means something to colleges. Focus
on your goal!
Overall
Your Personal Order of Difficulty (POOD) and Pacing goals will be the same on the
ACT Online Test as on the pencil-and-paper version. Because it is easy to change
your answers, put in your Letter of the Day (LOTD) when skipping a Later or Never
question. Use the Flag tool on the Later questions so you can jump back easily (using
either the navigation bar at the bottom of the screen or the Nav tool).

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Process of Elimination (POE) is still a vital approach. On both the paper-and-pencil
ACT and the ACT Online test, there are more wrong answers than correct ones.
Eliminating one you know are wrong helps you to save time, avoid trap answers, and
make a better guess if you have to. On the ACT Online Test, you cannot write on the
test, but you can use the Highlighter tool. Turn on these tools (and the Line Mask, if
desired) at the beginning of the English section and use them throughout.
ENGLISH
The Basic Approaches to both Proofreader and Editor questions are the same on the
computerized and the paper versions of the ACT. When you decide to skip a question
to come back to it Later (for example, a question asking for the introduction to the
topic of the passage before you’ve read any part of the passage), flag the question
so you can easily jump back to it before moving on to the next passage. When you
have five minutes remaining, flag your current question and use the Nav tool to make
sure you’ve put in your LOTD for any questions that you haven’t done, then return
to your spot and work until time runs out.
For a comprehensive review of all sections of the
ACT and the strategies mentioned throughout this
chapter, check out our book, ACT Prep.
When you work Proofreader questions, you can use the Highlighter tool to help you
focus on the key parts of the text. Let’s see an example:
Sneaking down the corridor, the agent, taking care not to alert the guards,
spotting the locked door.
A. NO CHANGE
B. spot
C. are spotting
D. spots
Use the tools available to help you focus on the key
portions of the text. Practice with a highlighter when
you’re working on paper (instead of underlining with
your pencil).
Here’s How to Crack It
Verbs are changing in the answer choices, so the question is testing subject/verb
agreement. The verb must be consistent with the subject. The agent is the subject;
highlight it:
Sneaking down the corridor, the agent, taking care not to alert the guards,
spotting the locked door.

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A. NO CHANGE
B. spot
C. are spotting
D. spots
The agent is singular, so the verb must be singular. Eliminate (B) and (C), as both are
plural. Spotting cannot be the main verb of a sentence, so eliminate (A). The correct
answer is (D).
Similarly, the Highlighter tool is helpful on Editor questions. Use the tool on both
the passage and the question to help you focus on the relevant parts of each.
As it’s name suggests, the Indian fantail is not native to North
America. In fact, its establishment here was quite accidental. In 1926,
the San Diego Zoo acquired four pythons from India for its reptile
exhibit. The long trip from India required, that, the pythons be provided
with food for the journey, and a group of unfortunate fantails was
shipped for just that purpose. Two lucky fantails survived, and their
beautiful appearance caused the San Diego Zoo to keep and breed them
for the public to see. Eventually, some of the animals escaped captivity
and developed populations in the wild, all thanks to those two birds!
Given that all the choices are true, which one provides the most relevant and
specific information at this point in the essay?
A. NO CHANGE
B. and they have quite an appetite.
C. because no one wanted them to starve.
D. and they are quite picky in what they’ll eat.
Here’s How to Crack It
The question asks for the most relevant and specific information. Highlight those
words in the question. The first sentence of the paragraph focuses on the Indian
fantail, and the sentence after the underlined portion discusses (t)wo lucky fantails.
The final sentence discusses the animals that escaped. Highlight these words in the
paragraph.
Your screen should look like this:
As it’s name suggests, the Indian fantail is not native to North
America. In fact, its establishment here was quite accidental. In 1926,
the San Diego Zoo acquired four pythons from India for its reptile
exhibit. The long trip from India required, that, the pythons be provided
with food for the journey, and a group of unfortunate fantails was
shipped for just that purpose. Two lucky fantails survived, and their
beautiful appearance caused the San Diego Zoo to keep and breed them

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for the public to see. Eventually, some of the animals escaped captivity
and developed populations in the wild, all thanks to those two birds!
Given that all the choices are true, which one provides the most relevant and
specific information at this point in the essay?
A. NO CHANGE
B. and they have quite an appetite.
C. because no one wanted them to starve.
D. and they are quite picky in what they’ll eat.
Use POE, focusing on whether the choice is consistent with the highlights in the
passage. The sentence as written discusses a group of unfortunate fantails; keep (A).
Choices (B), (C), and (D) do not talk about the Indian fantail; instead, they focus on
the pythons. This is inconsistent with the goal of the sentence and the content of the
paragraph; eliminate those answers. The correct answer is (A).
Finally, you can’t write in the passage, so you’ll need to approach the Vertical Line
Test slightly differently. On the paper-and-pencil ACT, you would use this strategy
for questions about punctuation, drawing a vertical line where the punctuation breaks
up the ideas in the text. On the computerized ACT, you should use the whiteboard
to handle these questions.
I’m not searching for a ghost or yeti, my phantom is the Indian fantail.
These beautiful creatures are members of the pigeon family, but you could
not tell that by looking at them.
A. NO CHANGE
B. yeti: my phantom
C. yeti my phantom
D. yeti, since this
Here’s How to Crack It
Punctuation is changing in the answer choices, so the question is testing STOP and
GO punctuation. There is Half-Stop punctuation in (B), so use the Vertical Line Test.
You cannot draw a line in the text, so draw a “t” on your whiteboard, with “yeti” in
the bottom-left and “my” in the bottom-right:
Read each part of the sentence and determine whether it is complete or incomplete.
I’m not searching for a ghost or yeti is a complete idea; write “C” in the upper-left
of the “t.” My phantom is the Indian fantail is also a complete idea; write “C” (for
“complete”) in the upper-right of the “t.” Your board should look like this:
Eliminate any answer that cannot link two complete ideas. Both (A) and (C) use GO
punctuation, which cannot link complete ideas; eliminate (A) and (C). Choice (D)
adds since, which makes the idea to the right of the line incomplete. However, since

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is used to show time or causation, which does not work in the context of the sentence.
Eliminate (D). The correct answer is (B).
MATH
First off, you’ll still need to bring your calculator to the ACT Online Test—which
is a good thing! You’re already comfortable with your personal calculator, so there
will be one less thing to worry about on the day of the test.
When choosing questions to do Later, flag the question so you can easily navigate
back to it after doing your Now questions. Do put in your LOTD when doing so;
you don’t want to accidently leave a question blank! When you get the five-minute
warning, finish the question you’re working on, flag it (so you can find your spot
easily), then put in your LOTD for every unanswered question. Then you can go back
to working until time runs out.
Use the Highlighter tool to highlight what the question is actually asking, especially
in Word Problems. Of course, you’ll want to use your whiteboard when working the
steps of a math problem (don’t do the work in your head!).
Write it down!
It is tempting to do all your work in your head. Don’t
fall into this trap! It’s easier to make mistakes when
you’re not writing down your work, and you’ll often
have to “go back” if you don’t have something
written down. Use your whiteboard!
ACT Online Geometry Basic Approach
Because you can’t write on the screen, the Basic Approach for Geometry questions
needs a few slight tweaks:
1. Draw the figure on your whiteboard (copy if it’s provided; draw it yourself
otherwise). If the figure would be better drawn differently from the way ACT
has drawn it (for instance, a similar triangles question), redraw the figure in a
way that will help you answer the question.
2. Label the figure you drew on your whiteboard with the information from both
ACT’s figure and the question.
3. Write down any formulas you need and fill in the information you know.
Let’s see how that works on a question.
In the figure below, triangle ABC is similar to triangle DEF. What is the
length of EF ?
A. 1.5

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Princeton Review ACT Science Prep: 4 Practice Tests + Review + Strategy for the ACT Science Section (College Test Preparation) (2022)

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