weekly

PSAT/SAT Prep: Critical Reading, Vocab, and Grammar for the Digital Test (2025)

Completed by 276 learners

Ages 12-17

Live Group Class

This course prepares students for the Digital 2025 PSAT/SAT by critical reading & discussion of literature. Students will read complex texts for comprehension, evaluate arguments & evidence, study vocabulary in context, & work on grammar.

Vanessa Roach

Average rating:

4.9

Number of reviews:

(374 reviews)

Star Educator

Live video meetings

1x per week

3-16 learners per class

45 min

About Learning Overview Teacher Reviews

What's included

1 live meeting

45 mins in-class hours per week

Homework

1 hour per week. Some reading homework may be assigned occasionally. Each week, there will be optional practice assignments given. Students may send them back to me for feedback. The reading assignments (as given) are required.

Class Experience

US Grade 8 - 11

Intermediate - Advanced Level

This course is appropriate for any student wanting to prepare for the PSAT and SAT. Do note that the reading levels of the passages range from 8th grade and beyond. Also, note that the SAT no longer assigns students an essay to write. Instead, students complete two critical reading section and writing sections that covers reading analysis, rhetorical synthesis, sentence structure, grammar, and vocabulary.

I have taken 2 workshops in the Spring of 2022 (including the Indiana GEAR Up SAT professional development workshop) that cover ways to prepare students for the SAT and PSAT. I also tutor students in preparing for the SAT and teach high school English. I am a SAT testing coordinator and administrator at my school. I also have a plethora of practice resources if you would like more than what is provided in this course.

This is an ongoing course. Topics do not build on each other. Learners may enter and leave at any time.

Topics Will Include:
-Analyzing Types of reading passages
-Author Craft Analysis
-Rhetorical Analysis
-Details/supporting details
-Functions of phrases/passages
-Vocabulary in context
-Main Ideas
-Inference
-Author's Purpose
-Evidence Support
-Data Interpretation
-Homophones
-idiomatic expressions
-Logical Fallacies

2025 Schedule begins week of 1/14 (Topics repeat in the following order each semester)

1/14 Week 1: Overview of the NEW Digital Test, Test Changes, and Sample Practice Questions

1/21 Week 2: Strategy Guidelines and Main Idea: Main Idea in Literature, History, and Nonfiction (2 weeks)

2/11 Weeks 5-6 Support or Weaken Claim in Literature, History, and Nonfiction (2 weeks)

2/18 Week 7 Relevant Information from Notes in Nonfiction

2/25: Week 8 Inferences

3/4 Week 9 Words in Context and Transition Words

3/11 Weeks 10-11 Dual Passages in Nonfiction

Week 12: Punctuation – Comma Usage and Apostrophes

Week 13: Pronoun Agreement and Misplaced Modifiers

Week 14: Subject/Verb Agreement, Finite and Nonfinite Verbs, Tense

Week 15: Practice Test Overview

Learning Goals

Students will work to prepare for the Reading section of the SAT, PSAT, and other types of test prep

Other Details

Learning Needs

Students may participate in the chat or verbally. I do not cold call on students.

Parental Guidance

This course is taught in preparation of content that may be encountered on the SAT. The SAT includes the following types of texts that students will be tested on: -1 literary passage from a work of fiction (typically an excerpt of a book in the literary canon). -1 or 2 passages from a U.S. founding document or a text in the Great Global Conversation they inspired. An example of a founding document would be the U.S. Constitution. The Great Global Conversation refers to works from around the world that focus on topics such as freedom, justice, or human dignity. A speech by Nelson Mandela would be an example. -1 nonfiction passage from a work of economics, psychology, sociology, or some other social science. -2 passages from scientific works that examine foundational concepts and developments in Earth science, biology, chemistry, or physics.

Supply List

Some printed resources may be needed. These will be posted on the outschool page

1 file available upon enrollment

External Resources

In addition to the Outschool classroom, this class uses:

Sources

Various articles, excerpts, and short stories will be assigned. Students will only use the Outschool platform during class. Students will need to access the chat to type some responses. Optional Assignments may require students to have access to a google doc and log into Khan Academy (with a username and password; emails are not required). This component is optional as well.

Meet the teacher

Vanessa Roach

Joined April, 2020

4.9

374reviews

Star Educator

Profile

Teacher expertise and credentials

Indiana Teaching Certificate in English/Language Arts

Master's Degree in English from University of Southern Indiana

In my classes (brick and mortar and Outschool), I work with all levels of students (IEP students, general education, and high-ability students). My goal as a teacher is to foster critical thinking and communication skills in order to help your child achieve their goals and become more proficient readers, writers, and critical thinkers. More than that, I encourage students to fall in love with learning. 

Experience/Education:
-Brick and Mortar Teacher for 7 years (current)
-Outschool Teacher for 3 years (current)
-BS in Education (Reading/English 3-12, Gifted Education 3-12, Special Education 5-12)
-Masters of Arts In English Teaching
-Certification in High Ability/Gifted Learning Strategies
-Certification in Teaching Students with Learning Exceptionalities
-SAT/PSAT Testing Administrator (5 years)
-Harkness Socratic Seminar Trained (Summer of 2023)
-National Writing Project Trained (Summer of 2023)

I am a secondary English teacher with certifications in gifted education and special education. I have been professionally teaching for 7 years and have a masters of arts in English education. I enjoy using socratic and discussion-based learning to help students think deeply about the texts that they read.

I have taken 2 workshops in the Spring of 2022  (including the Indiana GEAR Up SAT professional development workshop) that cover ways to prepare students for the SAT and PSAT. I also tutor students in preparing for the SAT. I am a Secondary English teacher and have an MAE. I also have a plethora of practice resources if you would like more than what is provided in this course.